One of the most amazing albums ever from Frank Foster – a totally righteous set that's light years ahead of his earlier work with the Basie Band! The format here is right up there with the best on Strata East at the time – a large-group session that's filled with some of the hippest players of the early 70s – all coming together with a joyous, spiritual sense of power! Foster's in the lead on tenor and soprano sax, but other players include Cecil Bridgewater and Hannibal Marvin Peterson on trumpets, Harold Mabern on keyboards, Elvin Jones on drums, Dick Griffin on trombone, Stanley Clarke on bass, Airto on percussion, and even Dee Dee Bridgewater on vocals! Tracks are all quite long and flowing – spiritual expressions of jazz that rival the greatness of anything recorded for Impulse – and titles include "The Loud Minority", "Requiem For Dusty", "JP's Thing", and "EW – Beautiful People". CD

A reverent snapshot of the spiritual & soul jazz emanating from the Mainstream label in the early 70s – a well curated set featuring great numbers by Frank Foster, Blue Mitchell, Hadley Caliman, Roy Haynes and other giants of the scene! The material comes from a time in Mainstream label history when it was essentially relaunched as a jazz label, following some the psyche era rock albums of the previous few years. Soulful jazz sounds from a spiritual realm as well as some in a jazz funk mode, and excellent material all the way! 12 great tracks in all: The sprawling opener "The Loud Minority" by Frank Foster, "Mi Hermano" by Blue Mitchell, "Up And Down" by Harold Land, "Watercress" by Hadley Caliman, "Kamili" by Buddy Terry, "Senyah" by Roy Haynes, "EW Beautiful People" by Frank Foster, "Little One" by Hadley Caliman and "Petits Machins" by Johnny Coles/ CD

Wickedly hip work from Cannonball Adderley – and one of his real standout sessions for Capitol Records in the 60s! The set lives up to its "Africa" promise right from the very first note – and features a set of loud, proud tunes that really bring out the righteous sounds of this generation of new liberation – tunes that sparkle with lead alto and soprano sax from Cannon, but which really draw even more energy from the whole collective of musicians on the record – a hip lineup led by HB Barnum, who also did all the arrangements for the set! The result is a record that's unlike any of Adderley's other albums – from some of the evocative snakey lines on the top, to the hip mix of 60s Cali soul and African percussion on the bottom. And oh yeah, David Axelrod produced the whole thing too! Titles include "Gumba Gumba", "Up & At It", "Hamba Nami", "Ndolima", and "Lehadima". CD

Art Blakey, without any Jazz Messengers – but still coming through loud and clear, thanks to help from a unique group that features Sonny Stitt on tenor, McCoy Tyner on piano, and Art Davis on bass! The album's still got all the hardbop charm of Blakey's best Blue Note dates, but also feels a bit more spontaneous too – and the basslines of Davis are a wonderful change from the usual – beautiful sounds that drive the record quite strongly up from the bottom! Titles include the killer "Cafe", plus "Blues Back", "Just Knock On My Door", "Summertime", and "The Song Is You" – and the album features fantastic blowing from Stitt! CD

One of the greatest albums ever from James Brown – even if it wasn't issued during his classic run of funk records in the early 70s! Yet the material here is all from that time – recorded by Polydor when James and the JBs were completely kicking ass in the studio – turning out these monstrous longform funk jams that often gave up too much material to fit on all of his albums – which makes this package an overdue dip into the vaults to rescue some of those treasures! The package first saw the light of day in 1988 – at a time when the genius of James was being rediscovered by younger hip hoppers and DJs – and the set is a love letter to all that James had to offer that scene – with gems that include the lost soul classic "She's The One", a duet with Bobby Byrd called "Since You Been Gone", a live version of "There It Is", an untitled instrumental and another instrumental one called "Funk Bomb" – plus a huge long 9 minute version of the great "People Get Up & Drive Your Funky Soul" from Slaughter's Big Ripoff, and the cuts "Say It Loud & Live", and "Baby Here I Come". CD

James Brown recorded a few different Christmas records back in the 60s – but this stunner may well be the best of the bunch – a killer record that not only fills the need for James Brown Holiday tunes, but which also more than lives up to his non-Christmas gems for King Records too! There's a nice mix of funk and soul throughout – and the album features the incredible hit "Santa Claus Goes Straight To The Ghetto", plus the funky "Tit For Tat", the groovy "Christmas Is Coming", and the soulful "Let's Unite The Whole World at Christmas". Also features some stone-cold non-holiday cuts – like "In The Middle", "Say It Loud", and "Believers Shall Enjoy". Plus, James is standing on the front in a Santa suit – looking mighty funky! Back cover has a great set of photos – and the whole thing's Super Bad! CD

Great early work from one of the hippest bassists of his generation! Paul Chambers cut this obscure little album in LA, featuring a "jazz delegation from the east" that included Philly Joe Jones on drums and John Coltrane on tenor – plus pianist Kenny Drew, who had already been working on the west coast – all in a style that's much more relaxed and stretched-out than most other jazz recorded in LA at the time! The album is one of the earliest small group sessions with Coltrane, and it's a very spare batch of tracks that lead off with Chambers' amazing work on bass – but which also feature some incredible early work from Trane – very raw and loud in the mix, with a lot more bluesiness than you'd expect – and we mean that in a good way! Titles include "Dexterity", "Visitation", "John Paul Jones", and "Eastbound". CD

Man, it must have been something to hear this record blasting out of a boombox back in the old days – especially if it was the magenta-hued one on the cover! The groove here is strong and loud – plenty of bass and beats at the bottom, and even a few surprising early electro touches that really stand out and make the album something special. And as with other records from this time, Fatback also show their ballad skills on one number – "Come & Get the Love" – but it's the more jamming tracks we really love, and they include "Street Band", "Hot Box", "Love Spell", "Gotta Get My Hands On Some Money", and the fat 80s jam "Backstrokin". CD

Beautiful 70s work from the great Frank Foster – material from that time when he'd split with the Count Basie group to go into a completely different direction – cutting spiritual records like this, and his better-known Loud Minority album for Mainstream records! The session was only ever issued in Japan – and it's got Foster really hitting new heights – picking up some of the spiritualism of his experience with Elvin Jones, but working his own sort of magic – with a personal charm that's echoed by the image on the cover. Frank blows saxes and arranged the set with a warmly angular group – in a larger group that also includes Cecil Bridgewater on trumpet, Thad Jones on flugelhorn, Jerry Dodgion on alto and flute, Walter Norris on piano, George Mraz on bass, and Mel Lewis on drums. Titles include "Shitsu Mon", "Tan Kyu", "Cecilia Is Love", and "Now That She's Away". CD

A bit later than some of Lowell Fulsom's funk work for Kent Records – but a set that's almost more vintage overall! The album's recorded for the short-lived Big Town imprint – a late 70s venue that took older R&B artists back to the sounds of a few decades before – never too rootsy, thanks to the style of production – but with less attempt to crossover to a contemporary audience than the artists might have used on another label. There is a fair bit of heavy guitar in the 70s – a kind of post-blues revival feel that comes on loud and clear, and which sounds especially great on the title track "Lovemaker", which almost has a funky "Tramp" groove at the bottom! Other cuts include "Bending Like A Willow Tree", "Get The Cash & Let The Credit Go", "My Mind Is Trying To Leave Me Too", "When Things Go Wrong", and "I Am Not Worried". CD features 2 bonus tracks – "Price For Love" and "All I Want Is For You To Love Me". CD

A funky nugget from the second Blue Note chapter of guitarist Grant Green – that wonderful point when he shifted into more funk-based styles from his hardbop work at the start – and found a way to unlock a whole new side of his talents! The approach here is similar to some of the funky Lou Donaldson albums from the time – like Hot Dog or Say It Loud – in that tracks are nice and long, and have some great funky currents at the bottom from the drums of Idris Muhammad – who kicks up lots of those chunky funky breaks that we always love so much! Green's work on guitar is especially nice – stretched out, but never trippy, with a tight single note style that really gets the most out of the grooves – in a great lineup that features Blue Mitchell on trumpet, Claude Bartee on tenor, Emanuel Riggins on Hammond, Jimmy Lewis on bass, and Candido on congas. Neal Creque contributed two great tracks to the set – "Windjammer" and "Dracula" – and the album also sports a great long version of James Brown's "Ain't It Funky Now", and a sweet cover of "A Day In The Life"! CD

A really unusual album from the TK Records Miami Soul empire – a set that feels like that label's attempt to go head to head with the sound of Sylvia Robinson! Like Sylvia, Regina James is a singer with a very sexy approach to 70s soul – not afraid to let her desire ooze out into the grooves, which are a really well-crafted batch of Miami rhythms handled by Clarence Reid – who also produced and wrote most of the songs in the set. And also like Sylvia, Regina may not be the best soul singer in the world, but she more than makes up for that with her personality – which comes through loud and clear in the album's very unique "Kitty Kat Pussy Cat Medley" – and on other tunes that include "Alfie", "Tribute To Music", "Primitive", and "Dancin In The Flames Of Love". CD

An incredible album – a landmark piece of funk that nobody should be without, funk fan or not! The album is the second to feature James Brown's famous backing combo of the early 70s – and unlike their first one, which was really more of a collection of singles, this album has the group playing hard, long, and loud, in the free funk improvisational mode that was James' real contribution to the music at the time. The tracks are all incredibly long, with James at the forefront, egging the band on with shouts and comments – but also letting them open up large instrumentally, playing in a mode that's as much jazz as it is funky soul. The whole thing's peppered with some nice shorter segues between tracks – but the long cuts are the winners, and are some of the best funk ever recorded! Titles include "Mo Peas", "Doing It To Death", "La Di Da La Di Day", "You Can Have Watergate, Just Gimme Some Bucks & I'll Be Straight", and "Sucker". CD

Essential funk in a single set – three killer albums from James Brown's legendary backing group! First up is Food For Thought – the classic first album by The JBs – James Brown's Fred Wesley-led backing band, and the force behind most of his greatest records of the early 70s! The band are incredible at this point – sharper, harder, and funkier than just about any other combo around – and that includes all the thousands of groups in the funky 45 underground who were always trying to copy their sound, but never got things this right! Not only are the rhythms the stuff of legend – but the use of the instruments is far far above the norm – as can be heard on the mindblowing "The Grunt", which was sampled heavily by Public Enemy to great fame – and which features a saxophone solo that sounds more like a whistling tea kettle! The set collects some of the group's best early singles, and includes all of the short little funky cuts that made them a legend right out of the box – "Pass the Peas", "The Grunt", "These Are The JBs", "Hot Pants Road", "Wine Spot", "To My Brother", "Blessed Blackness", "Theme From King Heroin", "Escapism (parts 1 & 2), and "Gimme Some More" – all together here in one tight little album of massive funky hard beats and breaks! Doing It To Death is an incredible album – a landmark piece of funk that nobody should be without, funk fan or not! The album is the second to feature James Brown's famous backing combo of the early 70s – and unlike their first one, which was really more of a collection of singles, this album has the group playing hard, long, and loud, in the free funk improvisational mode that was James' real contribution to the music at the time. The tracks are all incredibly long, with James at the forefront, egging the band on with shouts and comments – but also letting them open up large instrumentally, playing in a mode that's as much jazz as it is funky soul. The whole thing's peppered with some nice shorter segues between tracks – but the long cuts are the winners, and are some of the best funk ever recorded! Titles include "Mo Peas", "Doing It To Death", "La Di Da La Di Day", "You Can Have Watergate, Just Gimme Some Bucks & I'll Be Straight", and "Sucker". Last up is Damn Right I Am Somebody – quite possibly our favorite record by the JBs, ever! The set starts with a wonderful conversational bit – rapping and musing on the idea of "Damn Right, I Am Somebody" – showing the group in a political and righteous mode for the first time ever. The grooves then kick in – with the same heavy funk as on earlier records, but also a nice nod towards experimental production – from strange fade ups and fade downs, to stark time and rhythm changes, and even bits of electronics used to create some very cool moments in the grooves! The whole thing's as dead funky as can be, and is stuffed with insane classics like "Blow Your Head", "Same Beat", "Damn Right I am Somebody", "I'm Payin' Taxes, What am I Buyin'", and a great cover of Marvin Gaye's "You Sure Love to Ball"! CD

Both of the rare albums on the tiny Tuba label, cut by jazz vibist Johnny Lytle in the 60s! The Loop is one of the coolest, grooviest albums ever from jazz vibist Johnny Lytle – a set that really leans into the impact that he was having with the soul instrumental crowd, and which serves up tunes in these short, tight grooves that show why Johnny was the king of the stepping dancefloor in the 60s! The set's still done with producer Orrin Keepnews, who'd handled Lytle's earlier jazz sides – but the tunes are shorter, and have the grooves punched up nicely – with plenty of cool Hammond work from organist Milt Harris, and tight drums from Peppy Hinnant – augment6ed with work from Willie Rodriguez on congas, and guest piano from Wynton Kelly on a few cuts! The whole thing's sweet and groovy, and the set features Johnny Lytle originals "Big Bill", "The Shyster", "Possum Grease", "The Man", "The Loop", and "Hot Sauce" – plus a cool cover of "Cristo Redentor". New & Groovy is one of Johnny Lytle's great recordings for the Tuba label, and probably one of the albums that shows his funky jazz vibes style at its best! The whole thing is very nicely stripped down - and the focus of the album is on down-and-dirty groovers, perfect for the jazzy stepper set that still digs Lytle loads! Lots of short groovy ditties on here which match Lytle's vibes and Milt Harris' organ. The group also includes Wynton Kelly on piano, George Duvivier on bass, Jimmy Cobb on drums, and Montego Joe on conga and percussion. Tracks include "The Snapper", "Selim", "The Pulpit", and "Screamin' Loud", "Too Close For Comfort" and more. CD

A pair of Purple Sage classics – back to back on in a single set! First up is the classic debut of New Riders Of The Purple Sage – one of the leading lights of the new acoustic scene in the Bay Area after the shaggier, more electric years of the Haight Street scene! Jerry Garcia plays pedal steel and banjo on the record, and at some level these guys definitely owe a bit to some of Jerry's more acoustic explorations – especially on records to come – but they've also got their own brand of hippie country that's mighty nice, and which has a much more easygoing, less-jamming vibe than some of the headier San Francisco groups of the period. The set also features more guest work from Mickey Hart and Commander Cody – and titles include "Portland Woman", "Garden Of Eden", "Whatcha Gonna Do", "Glendale Train", "Dirty Business", "Louisiana Lady", and "All I Ever Wanted". Powerglide is a set that has the New Riders Of The Purple Sage expanding their sound a bit – moving past the acoustic trio at the core to add in more pedal steel and even a bit of dobro – all at a level that seems to further their commitment to country-influenced Bay Area acoustic grooves! As before, Jerry Garcia makes a few appearances on the set, but it's clear that the group don't even need his help to sound great – working with vocals that are more harmonic and confident than before, and with songs that also really show them growing as tunesmiths too. The set features the original cuts "Sweet Lovin One", "Rainbow", "California Day", "Contract", and "Runnin Back To You" – plus a great cover of "Dim Lights Thick Smoke & Loud Loud Music". CD

Finally! Andre Williams has been getting loads of press over the past few years as the true "Funky Godfather" that he is – but up until now, nobody's ever done a good compilation of his work! This long-overdue set from Tuff City digs through the vaults of Avin, Sport, & Wingate – smaller labels that Williams recorded with around the same period that he was working with Chess – and the result is a funky funky batch of great little tracks, the sort that we always sell for a bundle on our funky 45 pages! Williams hard funky talent rings loud and true here (a hell of a lot more than on those recent recordings) – and the album's filled with great gems like "Black Bull", "Loose Juice", "Soul Groove", "Bassology", "Hard Hustling", "Jivin Around", "Rip Tips (parts 1 & 2)", "Pearl Time", "Chicken Thighs", and the great "Sweet Little Pussy Cat". CD has 3 bonus tracks, too! CD

Great group soul from the wonderful Brunswick Records – and a sweet selection that goes way beyond the hits and the bigger groups who recorded for the label! Sure, Brunswick is known for its big groups from Chicago – who were some of the best of their time – but the label also recorded a lot of up-and-comers who were totally great too – but who never got to put together a full album for the label! Lots of those groups are collected here – in a wonderful collection that's filled with soaring harmonies, deep soul leads, and some totally groovy arrangements that are in the best Brunswick ultra-hip style of the early 70s. Titles include "Chickens" by Complaments, "Purple Haze" by Johnny Jones & King Casuals, "Lonely Street" by The Admirations, "I'll Take You Just As You Come" by The Nialations, "Until You came Along" by The Visitors, "I Think I'll Cry Out Loud" by The Realistics, "The Sweetest Thing" by Channel 3, "Sing A Ling" by The Cooperettes, "Don't Fail Me Now" by The Symphonics, "A Strange Way" by The Loreleis, "Don't Take It Out On This World" by Adam's Apples, "Cowboys To Girls" by Jalynne Sound, "He's Got Your Number" by The Demures, and "Stay With Me Baby" by BW & The Next Edition. CD

The fourth fantastic chapter in this wonderful trip through the 60s – headed up by author Jon Savage, as a great soundtrack to his documents of the time! If you know Savage at all, you'll know to expect something different and fresh – an unusual take on the period, and one that goes way past the chart hits and overplayed oldies – to instead uncover currents of cultural activity at a much deeper level! And sure, there's a number of familiar songs here – but they're mixed with lesser-known gems, and presented in this great double-length package that features 48 tracks in all – all with notes from Savage himself. Titles include "Talkin About The Good Times" by Pretty Things, "Eastern Organ" by Brother Dan All Stars, "Hard To Handle" by Otis Redding, "Freedom Train" by James Carr, "Say It Loud (part 1)" by James Brown, "Omnibus" by The Move, "Sunshine Help Me" by Spooky Tooth, "Everydays" by Buffalo Springfield", "How Does It Feel To Feel" by The Creation, "Dear Delilah" by Grapefruit, "Machines" by Lothar & The Hand People, "Tomorrow Street Puzzle" by Fairport Convention, "I Got A Line On You" by Spirit, "Kick Out The Jams (preview pressing)" by MC5, "World In A Jug" by Canned Heat, "Classical Gas" by Mason Williams, "Honey Chile" by Martha Reeves & The Vandellas, "Danse A La Musique" by The French Fries, "Israelites" by Desmond Dekker, and "Why Does It Feel So Right" by The Shades Of Jade. CD

If you need to own one album by Average White Band, this is it! The album features the band at their funky best – playing hard and chopping away with a strong crossover sound that put them firmly on the map during the early 70s. Loads of tight rolling basslines and hard drums – all produced with that polished funky sound that was the band's stock-in-trade during the big chart years! The record includes their funky classic "School Boy Crush", still a sampling favorite – plus loads of other nice moments, like "If I Ever Lose This Heaven", "Cloudy", "High Flyin Woman", and the hit title cut "Cut The Cake". CD features bonus single mixes of "If I Ever Lose This Heaven" and "How Sweet Can You Get". CD

Joe Bataan working in a pronounced dancefloor soul mode! While the legendary Bataan was no stranger to the fusion of Latin, soul and funk, this some of the most club soul oriented sounds from Joe we've ever heard – and the sessions are seeing official release for the first time ever! The recording feature players who worked on Joe's stellar Afrofilipino and features a backdrop of wonderful Afro and Latin percussion and rhythms with the best sounds of the NYC dancefloor soul in the mix – with uptempo and midtempo vocal numbers flirting with disco and modern soul very nicely – with solid lead vocals and groovy female backup! Most tunes bring a bit of harp into the mix for a little more of a soar that plays off the percussion in really cool way. Titles include "Sadie", "When We Get Married", "My Cloud", "I Need Love", a take on the Isaac Hayes "Theme From The Men", "Let Me Kove You", "My Opera" and "I Do Love You". CD

The rich tenor sound of Jerry Bergonzi sounds wonderful here – set up strongly next to the guitar work of Sheryl Bailey, a player with a loose, open style that really mixes well with Jerry's own! The duo have a way of really moving past any familiar guitar/tenor pairing – into a world of colors and flowing tones that's completely captivating throughout, and delivered in a way that makes us fans of Bergonzi all over again, constantly amazed at his ability to open up different chapters in his career, while never failing to deliver the goods. The lineup also features Phil Grenadier on trumpet, Harvie S on bass, and Luther Gray on drums – and titles include "Obama", "Czech Mate", "Double Billed", "Extra Extra", "Loudzee", "Separated", and "The Truth". CD

Heady and heavy work from Billy Bond and La Pesada Del Rock & Roll – a guitar heavy group from Argentina, and one with plenty of blues rock overtones! The guitars are definitely turned up to 11 here – jamming with an intensity to match some of the best hard rock sides from Peru reissued by the Lazarus label in recent years – and like those sets, there's a sound here that's an intensification of earlier beat group modes – taken into much harder territory for the 70s. The production is great – earthy, trippy, and a little bit spooky – and the album's got an oddly unsettling feel, one that's familiar at first, but then increasingly estranged as the record moves on. Quite compelling, and with 16 tracks that include "Dueno De Tu Piel", "El Parque", "Buen Dia Senor Presidente", "Divertido Reventado", "Salgan Al Sol", "La Maquina", "Voy A Ver Un Amigo", "Para Que Nos Sirven", and "La Marcha De San Lorenzo". CD

There's a wonderful sense of sound going on throughout this obscure set of dubs from the Bullwackies crew – music that's got some of the headier, bassier sounds of the generation – but which is also dappled with lighter touches at points, especially on keyboards – which makes the whole thing sparkle with a really timeless vibe! Joe Auxumite serves up vocals on about half the tracks on the set, and the instrumentals are equally great – working together with the more lyrical numbers to make a set that's maybe a lot more well-conceived overall than you might expect. Titles include "Shining Star", "Rain From The Cloud", "Simple Little Woman", "Troubled Land", "Recording Connection", "United Rock", and "Black World". CD

Chicago finally gets its due – in this great series that previously gave us the Philadelphia Experiment and Detroit Experiment projects! This time around, though, the lineup is even more top-shelf – filled with the kind of artists who really make us proud to be part of the Windy City – many of them players with slightly different styles and approaches, which is what makes the record such a great break from the usual! Pianist Greg Spero heads up the group, and the septet features work from Makaya McCraven on drums, Jeff Parker on guitar, Joel Ross on vibes, Marquis Hill on trumpet, Darryl Jones on bass, and Irvin Pierce on tenor – working together with a style that's nicely unified, and which has some of the soulful currents of other projects in this series from Ropeadope. That mode is maybe a bit different than you're used to hearing from McCraven, is a perfect showcase for the more soulful side of Parker's talents, and is right on the money for Marquis Hill – on tunes that include "The Chant", "Sizzle Reel", "Cloud Jam", "Always Be", "Double Take", "Maxwell Street", "For Too", "Straight Shooter", and "Tiny Beat". CD

A killer album of 70s New Orleans funk! Chocolate Milk were an amazing funk group in their best moments – and this album is certainly one of those moments – a blistering batch of tracks that set a whole new style for the Crescent City scene, and which showed that producers Allen Toussaint and Marshall Sehorn could easily hit the hipper notes of the 70s! There's a tight rhythmic sound at the core of most numbers, but expanded instrumentation over the top – bits of spacey electrics or jazzier electronics that never would have shown up in Sansu records of years back, but which show that with the right group, New Orleans funk could easily take on the hippest styles going down on both coasts! The title cut, "Action Speaks Louder Than Words", is a slow funk classic – and the record also includes the incredible electronic-tinged "Time Machine", a perpetual favorite these days. Other nice tracks include "Pretty Pimpin' Willie" and "Ain't Nothin' But a Thing". Arguably the band's best album ever! CD

Classic work from the legendary P&P Records label – created by one of the "P" talents who gave them their name – studio genius Patrick Adams, who mostly works here on his own under the name of Cloud One! Adams already had great success working with east coast soul groups in the first half of the 70s – and as Cloud One, he really finds his way around the more cutting-edge styles of the time – mixing bits of funk with bits of disco, and often adding in these cool electronic elements that really helped define the P&P sound! Many cuts have cool moogy keyboards, and some spacey elements along the edges – done with a lot more soul than some of the Euro space disco recordings of the same time – with much more of a tie to the New York underground that was Adams' main milieu. Titles include the classics "Spaced Out" and "Atmosphere Strut" – plus "Jump Jump Jump", "Stomp Your Feet & Dance", "Disco Juice", "Don't Let My Rainbow Pass Me By", "Patty Duke", "Happy Music", "Doin It All Night", and "Flyin High". CD

A fantastic pairing of these two contemporary French acts – coming together here in a style that's even greater than the sum of their parts! The set is full on with all sorts of fuzzy elements and funky rhythms – a range of keyboards and other instruments from Pascal Comelade, more guitars and fuzz from Lionel Liminana, and drums from Marie Liminana – the latter two of whom also provide vocals! The set is heavy on the kind of tripped-out sounds that we love from both acts – who seem to whip each other into a frenzy here, with lots of other cool elements added into the mix – theremin, plastic guitars, and plenty more – on titles that include "Playitloudornotatall", "Le Retour De Black Sabata", "Concinacion", "Solo De Boxe En Conserve", "Contortionne Toi Toi Meme", and "Elvis Has Left The Building". CD

One of the first international collections to showcase the genius of Francisco Fellove Valdes – a singer and percussionist who first rose up on the scene in Havana in the 50s, but who made an undeniably strong contribution to the Mexican scene of the late 50s and early 60s – with the sort of material showcased in this set! Fellove's got a very unusual style of singing – influenced a bit by scatting in jazz, but also given more of the prouder, louder calls that you'd hear on an Afro Cuban jam session – a great balance with the heavy percussion and jazzy instrumentation used on these tracks, almost all of which were recorded for RCA down in Mexico. The track selection is wonderful, and the notes do a great job of introducing the world to this sometimes-overlooked figure in Latin music – presented here with 21 tracks that include "Mango Mangue", "Baile Mi Rumba", "Te Quiero Corazon", "El Yoyo", "San Jose", "Alejate De Mi", ""Mata Siguaraya", "Baile El Minuet", "Baila Mi Guapacha", and "Guapacheando". CD

A long-overdue package – one that finally brings together all the many strands of music from underground Cali rock legend Merrell Fankhauser! CD1 features some of Merrell's earliest music – a host of early singles by Merrell & The Exiles, some of which were issued on the Glenn and Golden Crown labels – mixed here with rare unissued titles too – for a whopping 19 tracks that offer up a rare look at Fankhauser's earliest years! CD2 features the classic Fapardokly record – a lost bit of legend from the west coast scene of the 60s – and a record that's maybe best-known as a showcase for the early genius of Merrell Fankhauser – who wrote most of the songs on the set, a good number of which were actually recorded for the record by his previous group, The Exiles! Yet despite that little bit of trivia, there's a great vibe going on here – a seminal shift in the Cali scene from garagey work to trippier modes – served up beautifully on titles that include "Glass Chandelier", "Suzie Cryin", "Tomorrow's Girl", "Lila", "Mr Clock", "No Retreat", "Gone To Pot", "When I Get Home", "Supermarket", and "The Music Scene". CD3 features the album Things, recorded by Merrell Fankhauser & HMS Bounty – a perfect blend of Fankhauser's earlier garage rock modes and latter trippier styles! The tunes are short and wonderfully tuneful – produced at Gold Star studios, with a simple, straightforward style that makes all the deftness of the songwriting come through even more – an approach that, although supposedly steeped in Pacific Ocean inspiration, almost feels more like that great moment when some UK groups of the mid 60s were tripping out, but not too much. Titles include "Lost In The City", "Your Painted Lives", "In A Minute Not Too Soon", "A Visit With Ashiya", "The Big Gray Sky", and "Rich Man's Fable". CD4 features MU – an incredible record, and one that really lives up to all its well-deserved legend over the years – one of those sets that's not just rare, but which has all the chops to really deliver the goods! A few short years before, Merrell Fankhauser was recording garage and psych on the LA scene – but here, he steps off the latter with a bit of post-60s hangover – working with a current of darkness that really changes things up, while still providing a great outlet for his legendary work on guitar – and his mindblowing sense of a lyric! Titles include "Ballad Of Brother Lew", "Eternal Thirst", "Too Naked For Demetrius", "Mumbella Baye Tu La", "The Clouds Went That Way", and "Nobody Wants To Shine". CD5 features MU's The Last Album – 20 more tracks recorded in 1974, but unissued for many years – and CD6 features the legendary Maui album from the enigmatic Merrell Fankhauser – a self-released set that drew inspiration from his time in Hawaii – even though the set was mostly recorded in LA and San Francisco! The tunes are beautiful – nicely evolved from Merrell's psych of earlier years, with a much more personal vibe – yet all without some of those west coast cliches that were creeping into more mainstream music of the period. You might get the vibe partly right if you could maybe imagine a more personal singer/songwriter take on the AOR vibe of the period – with leaner, better instrumentation and unslick production – but that's also only part of the picture too! Titles include "On Our Way To Hana", "Make A Joyful Noise", "Garden In The Rain", "Waterfall", "The Source", "Sail It Over The Ocean", and "We Were All Free". Box set features a very detailed book of notes – bonus tracks added to most of the albums, and a massive 95 tracks in all! CD

3 killer CTI classics from Joe Farrell in a 2CD set! Penny Arcade has grooves so sharp you could cut your trousers on them! Farrell's angular reed style is in perfect form here – grooving with a small group that includes Herbie Hancock on piano, Joe Beck on guitar, Steve Gadd on drums, and Don Alias on percussion – a combo that's got a harder, tighter feel than most CTI groups – a key reason why Joe's records of this time are so legendary! Includes a version of Stevie Wonder's "Too High" – one that breaks all over the beginning with these riffs by Farrell, then grooves into a CTI electric funk mode for about 13 minutes. All tracks are long – and other tracks include "Hurricane Jane", "Geo Blue", "Penny Arcade", and "Cloud Cream". Upon This Rock is another massive set from the funky reedman – with a lean, edgy groove to the set that's totally great. One cut features a guest group – with Herbie Hancock on piano, Steve Gadd on drums, and Don Alias on percussion – and the album includes the massively break-heavy title cut "Upon This Rock", plus "Seven Seas", "I Won't Be Back", and "Weathervane". There's nothing canned on Canned Funk – as the sound, style, and groove of the record is as fresh and freaky as the classic image on the cover! The sax lines are as angular as the rhythms – tight, choppy, and completely funky – no wonder the record's a CTI classic that folks have dug for years! Tracks are all nice and long – and titles include "Canned Funk", "Animal", and "Spoken Silence". CD

Mary Halvorson seems to expand her sound here a bit more than usual – not in that she's working with a large ensemble, or in any sort of too-ambitious ways – but just that she's mixing her very unique phrasing on the guitar with just the right blend of other instruments – all at a level that feels way more than just the sum of its parts! The sextet features work from Adam O'Farrill on trumpet, Jacob Garchik on trombone, and Patricia Brennan on vibes – the last of whom is especially great, and whose tones really do a lot to color the album and shape the sound. The trumpet's got a great presence too – trading nicely with the trombone – and titles include "Desiderata", "Collapsing Mouth", "The Gate", "Tailhead", and "Ultramarine". Plus, Laurie Anderson plays guest violin on "Incarnadine". CD

A beautiful package of rare work from the archives – two never-released recordings, brought together in a cool book-style package! First up is Living City – breathtakingly organic sounds from Jon Hassell – performing here live, and at a level that's a nice evolution from his studio modes in the earlier part of the 80s – with all sorts of long-blown lines, and nicely complex elements in the sound! Hassell handles both his famous electrified trumpet and keyboards, with a group that includes keyboards, guitar, bass, and percussion samples – all mixed live by Brian Eno, who definitely adds a darkness to the whole proceedings – recalling the Fourth World experiments that he and Hassell had done about a decade before, but with a quality that really respects all the growth that Jon went through as an artist in the intervening years. Titles include "Ituri", "Alchemistry", "Mashujaa", "Paradise Now", "Nightsky", and "Adedara Rising". Next is Psychogeography – very heady work from Jon Hassell – a set that almost seems to showcase his skills as a producer as much as it does his always-creative work on trumpet and keyboards! The sound here is often very layered and dense – maybe Hassell's own take on the noisier territory of Miles Davis electric imports of the 70s – but warmer, and with more of the organic elements that we love in some of Jon's other material. The recordings have never been issued – and are reworked elements of some material that went into the City/Works Of Fiction album – but with a quality that's very different than that. Tracks are shorter than some of Hassell's ususal work, which only increases their density – as Jon plays with work from a group that uses guitar, bass, keyboards, and plenty of live and sampled percussion. Titles include "Cityism Superdcub", "Harambe", "Freeway", "Midnight", "Favela", "Waterfront District", "Cloud Shaped Time", and "Emerald City". CD

A never-issued live performance from the legendary Japanese drummer Motohiko Hino – recorded live in concert, originally by the Three Blind Mice label – yet a date that's a lot more freewheeling than most of the more familiar studio material from TBM! All the tracks are long, soaring, and searching – very spiritual in nature, and kicked off with long solo work from Hino, as he builds up energy and then welcomes in the rest of the group – a killer lineup that features two tenors, one in each channel – Mabumi Yamaguchi and Yasuaki Shimizu – plus nicely raw guitar work from Kazumi Watanabe, very different than his tighter albums of later years – as well as bass from Nobuyoshi Ino and percussion from Yuji Imamura. Titles include "Olive's Step", "Flying Clouds", and "Running Water". CD

A beautiful collection of all the great and rare material Eddie Holland cut as solo singer in the late 50s and early 60s – including the incredible early Motown material, plus tracks he cut for Mercury, Kudo, Tamla and United Artists! Of course Eddie Holland is best remembered for uber-legendary work as producer, composer and arranger with the Holland-Dozier-Holland super soul unit – for damn good reason, but it's his early work as singer is way too strong to be considered a mere footnote to his greater legacy. Many of the cuts were written and produced by Berry Gordy, along with numbers written and produced by Brian Holland and Lamont Dozier, some recorded more famously by later acts, so what you truly have here is the foundation for great things to come – it's beautiful stuff that shines brightly in its own light. Eddie's a solid singer and the songs are terrific, formative stuff that's a pivotal bridge from earlier R&B to massive soul. 56 tracks on 2CDs: "Little Miss Ruby", "Will You Love Me", "Just A Few More Days", "It's Not Too Late", "Just Ain't Enough Love", "Brenda", "Baby Shake", "Magic Mirror", "If Cleopatra Took A Chance", "Action Speaks Louder than Words", "Bashful Kind", "Too Late To Cry", "Happy Go Lucky", "Pretty Little Angel Face", "Day Dreamer", "Rain And Thunder", "I Like Everything About You", "Happy Days" and many more. This set goes deeper than any compilation we've seen of Eddie's recordings, too, with a number of previously unissued Mercury recordings. CD

About as classic as you can get for the legendary John Lee Hooker – a set of recordings from his early postwar years that perfectly define the special touch and electric genius of his music! The sound here is often as spare as rural acoustic blues from years back – but Hooker's using an electric instrument with a nice current of fuzz, which almost acts like a louder, fuller chorus behind his vocals – often hinting at feedback possibilities, which creates this hypnotic quality to the music – whether or not John's grooving high, or stepping low! And the vocals are something equally wonderful, too – sung and hum at the same time, in that classic Hooker way – again a huge influence on so many others to come. Japanese CD features 24 tracks in all! CD

Spacey sounds from the enigmatic Iasos – a legendary figure in the 70s underground – and an artist with a heck of a great ear for organic electronics and unusual recording techniques! This cool collection of Iasos' music was put together by Carlos Nino with the guys at Numero – and as such, it's got a really sensitive feel – a way of bringing together the sounds and stories that really get at the subtle genius of Iasos – packaged in a lavish set that also features lots of vintage photos too. The style is often quite personal, and almost naive – as Iasos works on guitar, keyboards, amplified flute, and other odd tape and studio effects – all flowing out with a style that's often a bit cosmic, and pretty darn compelling. Titles include "Crystal Petals", "Procession On The Horizon", "Cloud Prayer", "Rainbow Canyon", "I Passion You A Leap Of Love Flame", and "Spring Temple Forest". CD

A soundtrack project from tenorist Javon Jackson, and one that may well be our favorite album from him in years – as it really lets Javon explore all these different sounds, shapes, and styles – while still working with a small combo that makes for a very unified vibe on the entire record! The set mixes a few non-soundtrack titles with the shorter numbers from the film, really expanding the palette – and overall, things have this soulful, swinging quality that almost reminds us of the spirit of some of the soundtrack material by Bill Lee from many years back – equally evocative, lyrical, and well-performed – by a quintet that features Gregg Glassman on trumpet, Jeremy Mansaia on piano, David Williams on bass, and either Charles Gold or McClenty Hunter on drums. Titles include "The Game", "Brother G", "Never Let Me Go", "In The Studio", "CB", "D Town", "In The Clouds", "On The Move", and "Amy's Theme". CD

Four important albums from Jade Warrior – all brought together here in a single set! Floating World is the first album in Jade Warrior's mid-70s run for Island Records – and a set that marks a key shift for the group – a moment when they leaned even more heavily into their interest in global sounds, dropped most of their vocals, and used their impeccable instrumentation to take off in really amazing ways! The core duo of Tony Duhig's guitar and Jon Field's flute serve up most of the instrumentation here – and both players handle plenty of percussion too – yet there's a richness to the record that's undeniable too, which is a great testament to the way the pair make really special music together! Martha Mdenge serves up some guest vocals on the final track "Quba", the group take on the legendary "Monkey Chant" of Balinese music, and other titles include "Red Lotus", "Clouds", "Mountain Of Fruit & Flowers", "Waterfall", and "Easty". Kites is one of the most ambitious records ever from Jade Warrior – a set that expands their core sound in a wonderful way, with all sorts of great guests who really add a lot to the music! As before, the duo of Tony Duhig and Jon Field are at the core – guitar, flute, and plenty of percussion – but augmented here with all sorts of cool contributions by guests who include Fred Frith on violin, Gowan Turnball on saxes, and Jeff Westley on electric piano – plus Clodagh Simonds on a bit of vocals – all really bringing a new sort of majesty to the sort of music that the group delivered on their previous record – but without losing the sense of intimacy either. Titles include "Towards The Mountains", "Wind Song", "The Emperor", "Songs Of The Forest", "Quietly By The River Bank", and "The Last Question". Waves is a key moment in the continuing evolution of Jade Warrior – and a set that nicely moves the group from the prog styles of their roots, into leaner territory that's almost jazz-based at times! Some of the group's contemporaries were making such shifts, but usually in a way that was more heavy handed – where the lightness that Jade Warrior had on previous records really guides the music here – as they work with their core combination of keyboards, flute, guitar, and plenty of percussion – with additional work from Dave Duhig on lead guitar, Maggie Thomas on alto recorder, and Steve Winwood on moog, piano, and keyboards! There's a bit of vocals on the record from a female singer – but most of the tracks just have this gentle instrumental flowering – moving through an album-length suite that includes the tracks "Caves", "Groover", "River To The Sea", "Song Of The Last Whale", "The Sea", and "Wave Birth". Way Of The Sun is a set that's got a few sharper edges than some of the previous records by Jade Warrior – yet one that still hangs nicely in that Eastern-inspired blend of jazz and prog that made their Island Records years so great! As before, the album works as a unified whole – each track crucial to the overall feel of the set – with plenty of excellent work on flute from Jon Field, amidst more conventional guitar, keyboard, and percussion. There's some occasional nice guest moments on flugelhorn, harp, and saxes – and titles include "Sun Ra", "Dance Of The Sun", "Heaven Stone", "Moontears", "Sun Child", "Carnival", and "Death Of Ra". CD