The debut album from Juicy Lucy – an American act who made a trip to the London scene in the late 60s, where they found a way to forge a whole bunch of influences into a very unique groove! Had they stayed back home in Cali, Juicy Lucy might have gravitated towards the Bay Area scene, and ended up sounding a bit freakier and hippieish – but in London, they sharpened their sound, unleashed some deeper bluesy currents, and put the whole thing together with a mix of wit and flair that really set them apart! The group boasts great lead vocals from Ray Owen, a cool mix of electric and acoustic sax parts from Chris Mercer, strong lead guitar from Neil Hubbard, and a range of great sounds from Glenn Ross Campbell – who uses steel guitar and mandolin in ways that are very different than American groups of the time. Forgive the album its quickly-dated, exploitative cover – because it's got a lot more to offer than that – and titles include "Chicago Northwestern", "Train", "Nadine", "Mississippi Woman", "She's Mine She's Yours", and "Just One Time". LP, Vinyl record album

Mindblowing funk from one of the greatest combos on the New York scene of the early 70s – Pazant Brothers Eddie & Al, heard here on a host of their greatest recordings! The album is overstuffed with horn-heavy funky grooves that mark the Pazants as one of the hottest things going at the time – snapping on the beat with a tightness learned from their old boss Pucho, but also a willingness to explore brassier grooves in a style that seems to be influenced from the New Orleans and Texas scenes of the late 60s. Producer/arranger Edward Bland had a good hand in much of this work – giving the tracks a gritty, nitty, Perception/Today kind of groove – and a few of the very best numbers on the record even bring in some wicked scratchy guitar into the mix! The package features work from a host of early singles for the RCA and GWP, and a few tracks that only got exposure in the later CD years, but from the same period – and titles include "Fly Vines", "Chicken Scratch", "A Gritty Nitty", "New Orleans", "Fever", "Hi Heel Sneakers", "Why I Sing The Blues", "Work Song", "Toe Jam", "Juicy Lucy", "We Got More Soul", and the original RCA version of "Skunk Juice". LP, Vinyl record album

A very groovy entry in this all-great series – a set of compilations that have been giving us really wonderful funk for many years, and which just seems to get better and better with each new entry! The tracks here are a hip mix of styles – not just familiar funk and soul sources, but some funky tracks from other surprising records too – presented together in a way that makes for a nice sense of variety, even while the cuts are all still staying in the groove! Titles include "Who Is She & What Is She To You" by Madelaine, "Golden Ring" by American Gypsy, "Just One Time" by Juicy Lucy, "Condor" by Geoff Love, "Steal Away" by Photoglo, "The One You Love" by Joey Newman, "Metropolis" by Walter Hawkins, "Happiness Is Just Around The Bend" by Main Ingredient, "Seacoast" by Archie Whitewater, and "Strange Games & Things" by Love Unlimited Orchestra. LP, Vinyl record album