... 12-inch, Vinyl record

... 12-inch, Vinyl record

... LP, Vinyl record album

... 12-inch, Vinyl record

... LP, Vinyl record album

A crossover classic from Level 42 – a set that catapulted the soulful British group into international stardom! The tunes are catchy, filled with electro bits, and produced with some great bubbling touches from Wally Badarou – whose hand in the studio really keeps things from ever getting too cheesy, despite the commercial fame of the set. There's a balance here that's hard to describe, but it's one that's allowed the record to hold up well over the years – almost waiting to be rediscovered by a younger generation who'd appreciate whole other aspects in the music. Titles include "World Machine", "Physical Presence", "It's Not The Same For Us", "Lying Still", "Coup D'Etat", "Dream Crazy", and "Good Man In A Storm". LP, Vinyl record album

Janelle Monae took a bit of a rest between this album and her last – but given the results, it feels like she's really recharged her groove in that surprisingly long stretch! Not that Janelle needed recharging at all – but there's something here that sets the record apart from earlier chapters in her career – and not in a commercial way, or something that feels like a sidestep – maybe just a bit like Sade after the first few records – able to space out her creative activity, and always keep us wanting more! There's maybe a more down to earth approach here than before – but at a level that makes the whole thing feel more heavenly overall – and Monae works with guests who include Sister Nancy, Seun Kuti, and Grace Jones – on titles that include "The Rush", "The French 75", "Float", "Black Sugar Beach", "Phenomenal", "Ooh La La", "Lipstick Lover", "Paid In Pleasure", "A Dry Red", and "Only Have Eyes 42". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Easily the crowning moment of genius for the legendary Dave Brubeck Quartet – the moment when all things came together magically, and the group somehow elevated themselves to a whole new level in jazz! At the time of the set, Brubeck, Paul Desmond, and the rest had already been making plenty of waves with their creative yet swinging approaches to modern jazz – heard on a number of successful albums for Fantasy and Columbia in the 50s. But with this record, they really knocked one out of the park – blending Desmond's cool alto, Brubeck's unusual piano phrasing, Joe Morello's melodic drum work, and Eugene Wright's pulsating bass into a waltzing, almost modal groove that crossed over to many camps at the time! The classics "Take Five" and "Blue Rondo Ala Turk" were both hits on their own – but all titles are great, and include "Kathy's Waltz", "Strange Medow Lark", "Everybody's Jumpin", and "Pick Up Sticks". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Duke's most popular albums of the 50s – but we won't hold that against him! The session's one of a number of 50s outings that revisit older classics with the new level of quality offered in the studio – and it's got a similar feel to some of Duke's work for Bethlehem around the same time, which was also done by producer Gus Wildi – tight, but never too facile – and a perfect demonstration of the great balance the Ellington orchestra had at the time. The group includes key players Ray Nance, Cat Anderson, Clark Terry, Juan Tizol, Harry Carney, Paul Gonsalves, and Jimmy Hamilton – and titles include "Black & Tan Fantasy", "Rockin In Rhythm", "Flying Home", "Happy Go Lucky Local", and "In The Mood". LP, Vinyl record album

A wonderful album from this legendary Brazilian singer – and probably one of his best-ever! Farney began his career as a warm romantic vocalist in earlier pop years, but on this great set, he's emerging as a talented jazz singer, on a level with Leny Andrade or Elis Regina. The instrumentation's only a piano trio, and Farney's work on the keys fits perfectly with his moody vocals on tracks like "Este Seu Olhar", "Marina", "Ponto Final", "Uma Loira", and "Perdido De Amor". LP, Vinyl record album

A seminal album from the American underground of the late 70s – the debut of Pere Ubu, bursting forth from the Cleveland scene with a sound to challenge the greatness of anything coming from New York or LA at the time! The album's not exactly punk, not exactly art rock, but has strong elements of both – all wrapped around the unique conception of singer Dave Thomas, whose vocals are some of the oddest ever recorded! The tunes here are a lot more straightforward and upfront than some of Pere Ubu's later work – in a way that definitely makes the album their biggest favorite with new generations of indie rockers. But there's also still a fair number of more experimental touches too – odd sonic tricks and almost-abstract moments that were quite revolutionary for the time – especially from Cleveland! Titles include "Non Alignment Pact", "The Modern Dance", "Chinese Radiation", "Real World", "Life Stinks", "Over My Head", and "Humor Me". LP, Vinyl record album

An obscure Jazz Messengers session – but a great one! The album is ostensibly a set of jazz versions of tunes from the musical Golden Boy, and the group this time is a larger one than usual – a total of 10 players, led by Blakey – and playing beautifully over arrangements from Wayne Shorter, Curtis Fuller, and Cedar Walton! The style's not any sort of clunky "jazz meets Broadway" mode, though – as the care taken by the artists involved help elevate the tunes, and the performance, to a whole new soulful level – hardly what you'd expect! The group features trumpet work from Lee Morgan and Freddie Hubbard, tenor from Wayne Shorter, alto from James Spaulding, trombone from Curtis Fuller, baritone from Charles Davis, piano from Cedar Walton, and bass from Reggie Workman – all very hip cats, working here with the same sort of large group textures you might hear on Freddie Hubbard's Body & Soul album from the same time, mixed with some more traditionally Blakey-led moments. Titles include "Yes I Can", "Theme From Golden Boy", "Lorna's Here", "This is The Life", and "There's A Party". LP, Vinyl record album

A really unique later album from Peggy Lee – one that's so different than the brash confidence of her early material, and which shows her really perfecting that boozy, mature sound that she brought to a handful of gems like this! The album's got a truly adult approach to pop that was less concerned with chart placement than it was with getting over a more sophisticated level of expression – and Peggy turns out to be wonderfully well suited for this mode – a deeply emotive singer by this point, capable of bringing a deeper sense of life into younger tunes of the era, fleshing them out with the newer freedoms of the time, yet without going overboard. There's almost a Robert Altman sense of poise and adult grace to these tunes – arranged by Artie Butler with a careful simplicity, and sung by Peggy with some of the truest emotion of her days on record. Titles include "Love Song", "Razor", "When I Found You", "A Song For You", "It Takes Too Long To Learn To Live Alone", "Someone Who Cares", and "Just For A Thrill". LP, Vinyl record album

A mindblowing album from James Moody – of the sort that opens up a whole new facet of his career! The record takes off from Moody's early 60s work for Chess – his post-bop recordings that started displaying a deeper side of his musical consciousness – and which occasionally featured work by composer/arranger Tom McIntosh. McIntosh's presence is felt very strongly here – as he produced the whole session, and contributed a few tracks – working in the Nola Penthouse studios at a level of hipness we never would have expected! Moody plays tenor, alto, and flute – working with a really great group that includes Patti brown on piano, Albert Heath on drums, Reggie Workman on bass, and Thad Jones on trumpet – and the scope of the work is far beyond anything you'd expect! The record's got a stunning early funk track by Edward Bland – "If You Grin You're In", which features a tripped-out organ line mostly just holding one note – while drums pound hard, and Moody blows it over the top – all set to this flattened production that makes the whole thing sound really eerie! Other great tracks include the loping groover "Capers", the wonderfully moody flute number "Wayward Plaint" (written by Dennis Sandole, of the oft-overlooked Sandole Brothers), and the tracks "Em Prean Shore" and "Buster's Last Stand". Tremendous throughout – and completely essential, whether you already like Moody or not! LP, Vinyl record album

Two excellent Bryant sets, recorded for Prestige, though he's more well known for his Cadet sides. The first disc of the set is a very striking album – one of Bryant's most noteworthy of the time! The album features Ray playing solo piano – quite unusual for the period, as most piano jazz records, especially his, were at least cut in a trio format. Ray's wonderfully unfettered here – hitting grooves with a level of expression and sophistication that far surpasses most of his other records. The intimate time on the keys never gets hokey or overindulgent – but it does let Ray open up and show a side that we've rarely heard on wax. Titles include "Stocking Feet", "Blues #3", "Joy", "Me & The Blues", and "My Blues". The Ray Bryant Trio is another wonderful early side, featuring Ike Isaacs and Specs Wright in a trio alongside Bryant, performing sparkling renditions of standards and a couple originals, that are still infused with his bluesy groove. Titles include "Golden Earrings", "Angel Eyes", "Blues Changes", "Splittin'", "Django", "The Thrill Is Gone", "Daahoud" and "Sonar". LP, Vinyl record album

A killer set from Joe Farrell – one of the 70s greatest reed players, and an always-exciting talent who was one of the first artists to really use the extended CTI format to break into a whole new level! The set's a drawn-out quintet side, with Chick Corea on electric piano, Buster Williams on bass, Elvin Jones on drums, and Airto on percussion. Farrell was playing with Jones at the time, and the album's got some of their strong choppy reed/percussion interplay – but with a sharpness and focus that you don't always hear on Elvin's records! Tracks are all long – and titles include "Outback", "Sound Down", and "Bleeding Orchid". LP, Vinyl record album

Roberta Flack still sounding great in the early 80s – co-produced with Ralph MacDonald, William Eaton, and William Salter – who all give the record a nice jazzy finish! The group's a small combo with Grover Washington Jr, Richard Tee, Eric Gale, and other 70s fusion talents – and the record's got a smooth jazzy groove that's almost in the mode of Sade's work from a few years later. A nice little step into and 80s modern vibe – without compromising here classic level jazzy soul! Titles include "I'm The One", "Til The Morning Comes", "Love & Let Love", "In The Name Of Love", "Making Love", and "My Love For You". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Stan Getz's greatest records – no fooling! This gem often gets overlooked because it was issued in the years between Stan's bossa recordings and his later pop experiments – but trust us, it's a totally solid jazz album, with a quality level that was hardly ever matched by Getz again! The tracks are all long, sweeping, and very spiritual – and the group's a soulful batch of freer players (Chick Corea on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Grady Tate on drums) – all of whom really open Stan up, and drive him to give out some of the best solos of his careers, with a tone that's completely sublime. All tracks are long, and the album includes an amazing version of Corea's "Litha", plus the cuts "Windows", "Con Alma", and "O Grande Amor". One of our favorite jazz albums ever! LP, Vinyl record album

Jeru's first LP, a double vinyl set of great tracks that more than lived up to the "Come Clean" single. Now classic, with god level production by DJ Premier, with "D Original", "Brooklyn Took It", "Mental Stamina", "Da Bichez", "You Can't Stop The Prophet", "Ain't The Devil Happy", "My Mind Spray", "Jungle Music", and "Statik". LP, Vinyl record album

The masterful second album from Mobb Deep – served up at a level that's raw, gritty, and real – in ways that transcended the scene and cemented the duo's legacy! Production is nice and spare – and provides the perfect raw framework for the bleak storytelling – really pulling you in to the lyrics, and beautifully balancing things so that the record neither glamorizes its topics, nor gets to heavy either. The set features guest appearances by Q-Tip, Ghostface, Nas, Raekwon, and Big Noyd – and there's not a moment of filler at all, on titles that include "Shook Ones Part II", "Temperature's Rising", "Drink Away The Pain", "Survival Of The Fittest", "Trife Live", "Eye For An Eye", and lots more. Classic! LP, Vinyl record album

A stone classic from Bobby Womack – one of those records that has all his best elements firmly in place, put forward at a level that's sophisticated and polished, yet never too commercial at all! Bobby's voices are still incredible – that raspy, personal feel that's rooted in country and deeper soul modes, yet ready to take on the mainstream as well – and the tracks also still feature lots of his wonderful guitar work, which inflects the music with these deeper feelings that really holds strong – and definitely lives up to the initial charm of Womack's first few records on Minit. Most of the set was recorded at Muscle Shoals, but as a place where Womack was travelling from LA – a fact that definitely shows in the mix of rootsy elements and tighter construction – yet still handled here without any of the cliches that so many other artists might hit when recording on that scene. Titles include the killer funky stepper "You're Welcome Stop On By", which has been sampled and covered many times over the years – plus "I Don't Wanna Be Hurt By Ya Love Again", "Let It Hang Out", "Lookin For A Love", "Doing It My Way", and "Don't Let Me Down". LP, Vinyl record album

A seminal meeting of the old and new generations of jazz in the 60s – put together in perfect Impulse fashion! At some level, this is actually an early 60s John Coltrane Quartet album – with Duke Ellington sitting in for McCoy Tyner on piano, as that's the lineup on about half of the album – tracks that feature Coltrane on tenor, Elvin Jones on drums, and Jimmy Garrison on bass, all working with Ellington on the keys. On other titles, though, the album features Coltrane playing with a Duke-ish trio that has Aaron Bell on bass and Sam Woodyard on drums – slightly less modern, but with a nice sense of depth throughout! Overall, the the record does a great job of balancing between the best talents of both players – and titles include "Big Nick", "The Feeling Of Jazz", "Take The Coltrane", and "My Little Brown Book". LP, Vinyl record album