Beautifully tripped-out material from Gale Garnett & The Gentle Reign – titled after the Sausalito Heliport, a northern California complex that housed a bunch of hippy dippy bands in the late 60s! The album's a wonderful blend of Bay Area freedoms and some of the folksier and sweeter touches of east coast groups of the time – with instrumentation that includes organ, harpsichord, guitar, and lots of cool percussion – and a style that's got lots of wild elements, yet always manages to compress them down into cool sunshiney tunes! Titles include "Peace Comes Slowly To The Thrashing Fish", "Water Your Mind", "The Trip Note Song", "Man In The Middle", "Want Ad", and "Deer In The City". LP, Vinyl record album

Dramatic music from the Sirk film Written On The Wind – with even cooler music on the flipside – the "Rhapsody For Four Girls In Town", with piano from Andre Previn, trumpet from Ray Linn, and orchestrations by Henry Mancini! LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful early soundtrack from Dave Grusin – surprisingly sensitive, and quite different than his later funky work in the 70s! The score is a cool mix of strings and keyboard parts – sometimes played on harpsichord by Grusin, an instrument that we don't always hear him use, and which rings out here with a hip 60s cinematic style – often a bit spacey at points, with a slow-stepping pace that really fits the feel of the orchestrations. The strings are never too full, and they're often cut by some woodwind parts too – and a few tracks feature some more familiar 60s modes, including a few standout vocal tracks – like "The Color Of The Wind", "Elizabeth", "I Can't Afford To Let You Go", and "Beyond The Reach Of Love". Includes the main title theme, plus "Drop Out", "The Last Walk", "Aftermath", "Growing Pains", and "Symphodelic", which is a nice twist on a bit of Mozart! LP, Vinyl record album

One of the coolest, grooviest albums that pianist Vince Guaraldi ever recorded – a set that's got the same Peanuts theme as his earlier dates for Fantasy Records, but which also features some sweet electric touches that only make things even better than before! In addition to his warmly vamping piano, with all those lyrical touches we love so much, Vince is playing an electric harpsichord too – which makes for some very groovy moments – in a cool quartet that features guitar from Eddie Duran, bass from Stanley Gilbert, and drums from the great Carl Burnett! All tunes are Peanut-themed – the music that Guaraldi wrote for the TV specials – but they're sometimes taken at a looser style that's even jazzier overall – as you'll hear on the classic "Linus & Lucy", plus "Red Baron", "Peppermint Patty", "Great Pumpkin Waltz", and "Rain Rain Go Away". LP, Vinyl record album

A brilliant little set from Keef Hartley – a blend of jazz, blues, and rock that's really tremendous – quite different than other efforts of its sort at the time, with a gritty edge that really makes the record stand up strongly over the years! Keef's on drums, and has a great way of rumbling up the bottom of the tunes – a feature that's always made his records a favorite of beatheads – and vocals here are from Miller Anderson, who definitely has a touch of Eric Burdon in his approach. Other instrumentation includes organ, harpsichord, and some wickedly fuzzy guitar – plus occasional brass from a section that includes Harry Beckett and Henry Lowther, the latter of whom did arrangements. Titles include "Born To Die", "Just To Cry", "Think It Over/Too Much To Take", "Just To Cry", "Leavin Trunk", and "Sinnin For You". LP, Vinyl record album

The Incredible String Band are paired down to the core duo of Mike Heron & Robin Williamson for their third and possibly best album – the truly incredible Hangman's Beautiful Daughter – using the studio as a most impressive adjunct member of the group at this point! This is an extremely talented pair – each playing myriad instruments – sitar, organ, guitar, hammer dulcimer, harpsichord, gimbri, whistle, pipe, oud, mandolin, mouth harps and more. Previous vocal collaborator Licorice sings on one song, and Dolly Collins and David Snell contribute flute organ, piano and harp – but the main duos incredible way of layering their magic with multitracking in the studio the real masterstroke of the effort. Titles include "Koeoaddi There", "Witch's Hat", "The Water Song", "Swift As The Wind", "Nightfall", "Waltz Of The New Moon", "Three Is A Green Crown" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

A great little record – very different than anything else that Hank Jones ever recorded! The album features arrangements by Oliver Nelson – done in that mod 60s pop-jazz style that he was using on his best work – and about half the record features Jones playing electric harpsichord, one of those groovy instruments that we can never get enough of! Needless to say, the combination of these two factors pushes the record far away from Jones' usual straight jazz piano trio approach – as does some tight added horn work, and an overall feel that's right up there with the grooviest sounds that Impulse or Verve had to offer in the 60s. Titles include "Broadwalk Samba", "Happenings", "Funky But Blues", "Fugue Time", "Jazztime USA", "Mas Que Nada", and "Cul De Sac". LP, Vinyl record album

A very strange record from Chicago! The album features one side of soul jazz piano work by the Lafayette Leake trio – a bluesy group from Chicago that feature Leake on piano, Clifton James on drums, and Willie Dixon on bass. They play one very long track called "Soul Wrinkles", with lots of nice changes, and a good live feel. The flipside of the record features radio DJ E. Rodney Jones reciting an extended work called "Might Is Right", with backing "courtesy of Chess Records". The work is vaguely political, and has a similar sound to records by Gary Byrd and Jim Ingram – although less funky. A strange one, but a great relic of the kind of indie record scene that once helped spread knowledge and wisdom through the African American community. LP, Vinyl record album

The great keyboardist Mike Melvoin is at the top of his game here – getting a rare session as a leader, and working on Hammond, electric harpsichord, electric piano, and even ondoline! The small combo features Emil Richards on percussion, Don Peake on guitar, and Hal Blaine on drums – and the set features groovy versions of "Summer in the City" and "For No One", plus some originals, all played on a number of different keyboards. LP, Vinyl record album

The only album ever from this trippy little combo from the 60s Berkeley scene! Notes From The Underground were contemporaries of Country Joe & The Fish, and share a similar mix of folk and country-styled roots mixed with a bit of pre-hippie rock – but their overall sound is a bit more focused, and gets some nice jazzy inflections here from keyboardist Skip Rose – who plays piano, organ, and even a bit of harpsichord on the set! Rose's lines really help spin the album in a different path from some of its contemporaries – not just on the set's unusual instrumental take on Herbie Hancock's "Cantaloupe Island", but also on the vocal numbers as well – where rolling piano lines offset the guitar nicely. Titles include "Who Needs Me", "Tristesse", "Where I'm At", "Follow Me Down", "I Wish I Was A Punk", and "Down In The Basement". LP, Vinyl record album

A smoking live set from Jimmy Reed – filled with the kind of rocking, rollicking numbers that made his bluesy groove an undeniable influence on the UK scene of the 60s! Most numbers begin with a compelling vamp, then have Jimmy taking the lead on vocals – adding in plenty of charm in ways that few later bluesmen ever seemed to be able to match. And at times, there's a nice undercurrent of fuzz in Reed's guitar – almost making him one of the first folks to really use distortion in his music – on a great set of cuts that includes "I'm Going Upside Your Head", "The Devil's Shoestring (part 2)", "A New Leaf", "I Wanna Be Loved", "Wear Something Green", "You've Got Me Waiting", and "When You're Doing Alright". LP, Vinyl record album

Sim-E Auto smoked it up on the third volume of this great series, and he returns with even more force on this collection of well-chosen cuts! Production on most of side one is by Temper3000 – and tracks include "Mind Trixxx" and "After Midnight" – plus a guest appearance from Bogey on "Rokk Dis" and Ill Seed on "Men Or Mice". The flipside features a more varied mix of cuts and collaborations – with cuts that include "Un Game (rmx)" with Illanoyz, "Impervious" with Denmark Vessey, "Tyme" with Skyzoo, "Sultan Of Ishtar" with UG, and "3 Roundzzz" with Guilty Simpson and Sean Price. LP, Vinyl record album

Dreamy dreamy pop psych from Strawberry Alarm Clock – a great late 60s group who skirted the worlds of Sunshine Pop and more jamming garage rock! This album's got a lot more to offer than you might guess from just the title hit – as the instrumentation sometimes gets nicely tripped out – with cool use of organ, harpsichord, and guitar – plus plenty of special effects in production – and even some of the song styles and lengths are unusual too, making the album way more than just a batch of cute little tunes. Titles include the classic "Incense & Peppermints", the 8 minute jammer "The World's On Fire", the instrumental "Pass Time With SAC", and the cuts "Paxton's Back Street Carnival", "Rainy Day Mushroom Pillow", "Strawberries Mean Love", and "Unwind the Clock". LP, Vinyl record album

Solo recordings with a side's worth of originals and standards on the flipside. LP, Vinyl record album

The Ventures were furiously productive in the early 60s – delivering gem after gem – and this is among the best! Telstar is somewhere near the ninth record by the group, offering a dizzying mix of covers of some of the most popular songs of the day. The guitar still leads as the main sound on these tracks but they do expand the instrumentation to include organ, trumpet, mandolins and harpsichord as well. They sing a little on some of the tracks but they mainly stay in the instrumental realm. Greatness! Tracks include "Telstar", "The Lonely Bull", "Mexico", "Calcutta", "Apache", "Never On A Sunday", "Tequila", "Green Onions", "Let There Be Drums", and "Red River Rock". LP, Vinyl record album

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Bobby Womack at the height of his powers – perfectly balancing southern soul roots and 70s soul polish – with an amazing sound that was unlike anyone else at the time! The set was recorded at Muscle Shoals, but has a quality that goes way beyond any of the standard modes from the studio – almost as if Bobby brought a special sort of magic to the sessions that made everyone rise above the sometimes too-familiar work they were giving to the bigger names who were traipsing through the studio. Of course, a big part of the success of the album comes from Womack's amazing vocal delivery – that style that's raspy, yet warm – and which is a perfect fit for the well-penned tunes on the set. Titles include "I'm Through Trying To Prove My Love To You", "Nobody", "If You Can't Give Her Love Give Her Up", and a very cool version of "The Look Of Love". LP, Vinyl record album

Fantastic soundtrack work for the Stranger Things series from Netflix – a narrative set in the early 80s, and scored here with a sound that really gets that era right! This isn't schlocky 80s keyboard work, nor some sort of easy retro motif – and instead, the team of Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein go for sort of the coolest moods and styles that were being used in film scores during the time – especially the spare keyboards and careful electronics that were just right for a sci-fi or sophisticated horror story! The keyboards all feel very vintage, but not in an "easy" way – and titles on this first volume include "Lay Z Boy", "Nancy & Barb", "Kids", "Hawkins", "The Upside Down", "Lamps", "Fresh Blood", "Photos In The Woods", and "Hanging Lights". LP, Vinyl record album

Wonderful early electronic works by Tod Dockstader – with a turgid sound that's very reminiscent of some of the early French Musique Concrete recordings from the 50s. Waves of sound collide and clash, opening up dark modern soundscapes that seem to point towards an outside referent – but which end up collapsing under the weight of the machine! Titles include "Piece 1", "Piece 2", "Piece 3", etc. LP, Vinyl record album

Mean, lean grooves from The Gap Band – a legendary batch of mainstream funk from the end of the 70s – and a record that really has the trio working at the top of their game! There's a wonderful balance here between funky numbers and mellow ones – the latter of which really help pace the record nicely, giving it a depth that takes the group way beyond the cliches of some of their contemporaries, and firmly establishing the Gap Band as one to watch for the 80s! Titles include the massive "I Don't Believe You Want To Get Up & Dance" – with its classic "Oops Upside Your Head" refrain – plus "Who Do You Call", "No Hiding Place", "Steppin Out", "You Are My High", and "Party Lights". LP, Vinyl record album

Very groovy stuff – with Joanne Grauer on organ, Victor Feldman on percussion, Plas Johnson on saxes, and Mayorga on piano and harpsichord! LP, Vinyl record album

A record so big they dropped the "Ross" from Diana's name – just to show how large the lady was living at the end of the 70s! The album was a key set in the solo years of Diana's career – a back to basics dancefloor effort done with impeccable production by Bernard Edwards and Nile Rogers – often in that tightly snapping mode that made Chic so great, a sound that really breathed new life into Ross' sound at the time! Roger's fast-riffing guitar touches cook the album up beautifully – pushing a catchy pop groove into the massive hits "Upside Down" and "I'm Coming Out" – both numbers that have aged surprisingly well over the years. Other tracks include "Tenderness", "My Old Piano", "Now That You're Gone", "Friend To Friend", and "Give Up". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the odder 60s LPs from the Supremes, the soundtrack to a film that starred the group, with some guest appearances by The Temptations – in Motown-show versions of tracks that often feature the singers lapsing into medleys of other tunes, or doing some popular hits of the day. Titles include "Respect", "Somewhere", "Stop In The Name Of Love", "TCB", "For Once In My Life", "Hello Young Lovers", "I Hear A Symphony", and "The Impossible Dream". LP, Vinyl record album

Sublime early work from Robert Wyatt and crew – a psychedelic accented jazz rock classic that never gets old – and a visionary set that inspired a generation! The heavily fuzzy guitar sound is transcendent on Volume Two – with sudden jazzy changes, augmented by horns, and all done with a sly sense of humour for which the group doesn't get enough credit. The set's broken up into two different "concept" halves – and side one is "Rivmic Melodies" – and includes "Pataphysical Introduction", "A Concise British Alphabet", "Dada Was Here", and "Out Of Tunes". Side two is "Esther's Nose Job" – with the parts "Pig", "Fire Engine Passing With Bells Clanging", "Orange Skin Food", and "A Door Opens & Closes". Wyatt's on vocals and drums; Hugh Hopper is on bass, guitar, and alto; and Mike Ratledge plays some great Lowry and Hammond organ, plus a bit of harpsichord and flute! LP, Vinyl record album

A great little groover from Sonny Stitt – blowing here with a very soulful group that features piano by soul jazz giant Ronnie Matthews! Matthews is at his prime here, and his heavy left-handed approach lays out some wonderful grooves for Stitt – crackling little tunes that are extra-great because they include a good number of original compositions by Sonny! The group's a quartet, with Sonny and Ronnie alongside Art Harper on bass and Lex Humphries on drums – and the session's got the great tone and inventive solo work of Stitt's best work on Roost, but also a more pronounced role from the rhythm section, who really help drive the record! Titles include "Rearin Back", "Cut Plug", "Queen", "Carpsie's Groove", and "Bunny R". LP, Vinyl record album

A period score, but one with plenty of groovy touches – a masterpiece of 60s film scoring from the great John Addison! Addison's music for the famous Tony Richardson version of Tom Jones is every bit as playful as the images on the screen – with only marginal aesthetics of the period of the story, and instead lots of romping melodies, carried out on horn parts, percussive passages, and even some cool harpsichord bits. Most of the tunes move quite quickly – as does the action on screen – and titles include "Sylvan Misadventures", "Ladies Are Irresistible", "Love Theme From Tom Jones", "Wine & Women", "If He Swing By The String", and "The Squire Steps In". LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing little record from Joe Byrd – an artist with roots in serious music, but who's serving things up here with a wild hippie aesthetic that makes the whole thing come across more like a "happening" than the usual sort of studio album – but in ways that also echo an earlier generation of Americanist composition too. The process of the record mimics some of Byrd's famous work in New York – and has a very collaborative feel overall, with elements of electronics, acoustics, and vocals coming together beautifully! There's some great tabla, harpsichord, moog, and organ on the record – plus more serious woodwinds and brass – and vocals from Victoria Bond, Susan De Lange, Christie Thompson, and Ernie Anderson – plus Joe himself. Titles include "Kalyani", "Moonsong Pelog", "You Can't Ever Come Down", "Gospel Music", "Nightmare Train", "Leisure World", and "The Elephant At The Door". LP, Vinyl record album

Buddy DeFranco plays tunes associated with Artie Shaw – but in a completely different way than before – with a wider-open swing for the 50s! The work here is all small combo, not big band – and there's a free-flowing groove that's totally great – a sound that carries echoes of the earlier years, but which comes across with that modern inflection to swing that made Buddy's years at Verve so great. Few players could come up with a balance of modes as great as this – and DeFranco's clarinet is caught alongside trumpet from Ray Linn, guitar from Barney Kessel, and piano and harpsichord from Jimmy Rowles! LP, Vinyl record album

A seminal classic from Michael Franks – one of those records that's almost a whole genre unto itself, and which set a whole new tone for the male voice in American music! The style here is light and jazzy – almost an evolution of modes first begun by Kenny Rankin, and served up here with a similarly compressed production style that really brings out the jazz in the instrumentation. Players include Michael Brecker, Joe Sample, Larry Carlton, and David Sanborn – all sounding great with a bit of added strings from Nick DeCaro. But the real star of the set is clearly Franks – whose light vocals and creative lyrics sound wonderful next to the electric piano on the set. Titles include "Eggplant", "Monkey See Monkey Do", "Jive", "Mr Blue", "Popsicle Toes", "St Elmos Fire", "I Don't Know Why I'm So Happy I'm Sad", and "Sometimes I Just Forget To Smile". LP, Vinyl record album

A wicked album that's one of Stan Getz's best from the 70s! The record features Stan reunited with Chick Corea, whose warm lyricism was the lynchpin in Getz's landmark Sweet Rain – the stunning session from 1968 that is perhaps our favorite-ever Getz album. Corea plays electric piano here, but with none of the indulgence that he was lapsing into at the time. His blocky chords stake out a stark new territory, into which Getz solos beautifully, into a range yet untapped at that time in his career. Tony Williams augments the group on drums, giving the whole thing a sense of freedom, but also a nice tight swing. Tracks include "La Fiesta", "Five Hundred Miles High", "Times Lie", and "Day Waves". LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent soundtrack to this early 70s thriller that starred George C Scott! Jerry Goldsmith has come up with some strong action themes that are very much in a Lalo Schifrin mode – mixing guitar, electric harpsichord, and strings with a harder-edged groove so that there's a lot of space in the overall blend of elements – allowing each one to step out nicely, identified on its own! Even the mellower tracks are great – with an airy feel that recalls some of Michel Legrand's best action scores at the end of the 60s – with colors that flow out and really give the record a sense of soul! Steve Lawrence sings "The Last Run" in a mode that recalls Matt Munro's performances on other thriller soundtracks – and other titles include "Claudie's Stockings", "The Trap", "Border Crossing", "Rickard Escapes", and "Double Cross". LP, Vinyl record album

A seminal set from Hawkwind – a record that virtually defines the term "space rock", and which went on to create a whole genre unto itself! The live setting is perfect for the group – as they open up on long tracks that blend together odd touches, sci fi elements, and some mighty heavy rock lines too – all with some trippy vocals that really send things over the top! Lemmy's a mad genius at this point – and the record's got a ballsy power that's quite different from more prog-based groups who travel down similar paths, but never with ferocity like this. Titles include "Earth Calling", "Born To Go", "Down Through The Night", "The Awakening", "Upside Down", "10 Seconds Of Forever", "Brainstorm", "Seven By Seven", "Sonic Attack", Welcome To The Future", "You Shouldn't Do That", "Time We Left This World Today", and "Master Of The Universe". LP, Vinyl record album

Beatles Back & Bacharach presents the Ted Heath group in some very groovy territory – playing a fair bit of the first and third "B" in the title, plus a little bit of the second! Heath's instrumentation is quite far from the brassier horns used on his earlier records – and Johnny Keating's sensitive arrangements for the date bring in a fair bit of groovier elements – electric bass, guitar, flute, and even some electric harpsichord! In a way, the record's much more of a Keating album than a Heath one – right down to the subtle dose of funk that Johnny was bringing to his music at this time – and titles include "This Guy's In Love With You", "Norwegian Wood", "B B & B", "Air On The G String", "Let It Be", "You'll Never Get To Heaven", and "I'll Never Fall In Love Again". LP, Vinyl record album

A great collection that brings together early 50s work in the "birth of the cool" mode! Side one features Lee Konitz and Miles Davis – in a group with Sal Mosca, Max Roach, and Billy Bauer, on very "birth of the cool" like tracks that include "Odjenar", "Hi Beck", "Yesterdays", and "Ezz Thetic". The flipside features several takes of "All The Things You Are", "I'll Remember April", and "These Foolish Things", plus "You'd Be So Nice To Come To" with Jimmy Gourley on guitar, Henry Renaud on piano, Don Bagley on bass, and Stan Levey on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

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An incredibly beautiful album from Pearls Before Swine – one that uses light orchestrations to create a baroquely folksy sort of feel – easily elevating the album past previous efforts, into classic territory we'd rank with the best from Nick Drake or Leonard Cohen! The whole album's great – with fragile and haunting songs from Tom Rapp, all supported by sparsely arranged instrumentation that includes harpsichord, flute, oboe, cello, and dobro. Genius throughout – and a clear inspiration for music still being made 30 years later – with classic tracks that include "The Jeweler", "Rocket Man", "Song About A Rose", "The Old Man", "When The War Began", and "From The Movie Of The Same Name". LP, Vinyl record album

One of our favorite 60s surf soundtracks ever – an amazing blend of Stu Phillips orchestrations with some key vocal moments from the trio of Dino Desi & Billy! The album's got a wonderful theme – "Thru Spray Colored Glasses" – sung initially by the trio, then served up by Stu in a number of variations that change with the different exotic locales of the film – India, Hong Kong, Hawaii, and Morocco – all referenced slightly in the instrumentation, but in ways that always retain Phillips' grooviest inspirations! Strings blend with bits of harpsichord, vibes, voices, Spanish guitar, and these "watery" woodwinds that almost remind us of Australian jazz in the same period – and titles include "Thru Spray Colored Glasses", "Big Wave Bay", "Incinerator", "Ranee Express", "Nazare", and "Cascis". LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing leap forward for the incredible Walter Wanderley – a record that has him mixing his earlier bossa groove with the wider vision of late 60s A&M/CTI – supported by an amazing cast of American and Brazilian artists! The vibe is wonderful from the very first note – a refinement of bossa with the more sophisticated scoring touches of CTI – arrangements from both Deodato and Don Sebesky, working wonderfully to support Wanderley's lead keyboard lines on organ and electric harpsichord! The record's arguably more sophisticated than most work of this nature coming from Brazil at the same time – and with classic production by Creed Taylor, the sound is sublime through and through! A few tracks feature a slight bit of vocals – from Milton Nascimento, Anamaria Valle, and others – and instrumentalists helping on the session include Hubert Laws on flute and Marvin Stamm on flugelhorn. Titles include great versions of "Open Your Arms", "When It Was Done", "Reach Out For Me", "Ponteio", "Surfboard", "Baiao Da Garoa", "Capoeira", and "Ole Ole Ola". LP, Vinyl record album

Wonderfully groovy European soundtrack work – a "triple feature" that contains tunes from the films Casanova 70, Darling, and Marriage Italian Style! The music for Casanova 70 is oddly not credited on the album – but features some excellent jazzy tunes, really swinging with lots of nice horn parts – and a few especially nice numbers that use electric harpsichord and have a very mod 60s feel! Darling is a British film with mellower work – larger orchestrations by John Dankworth – and Marriage Italian Style moves back into the realm of the groovy with a few nice numbers by Armando Trovajoli. Titles include "C'E Un Non So Che", "My Baby's Rockin", "Swinging Lonely", "Running Slow", "Sempre Cosi", "See What's Happening", and "Is That You Again". LP, Vinyl record album

A very groovy soundtrack to this cool British film – starring a young Jack Wild in his pre-HR Puffenstuff days! The film's kind of a mod kids film – with a number of bright and peppy tunes mixed with others that are either more serious or more jazzy – a blend of rock and more familiar soundtrack instrumentation that really keeps things interesting! The Bee Gees contribute a number of great tracks – like "Melody Fair", "In The Morning", "First Of May", and "To Love Somebody". Even better, though, are the instrumental bits by the Richard Hewson Orchestra – which include "Teacher's Chase", a killer groover with some sweet electric harpsichord and strings, plus the cuts "Working On It Night & Day", "Spicks & Spacks", and "Melody Fair". Peter Knight put the whole thing together, too! LP, Vinyl record album

Smoking live material from Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers – a set recorded at Birdland, aka The Jazz Corner Of The World – home to a number of key performances by the group! The lineup here features a key transitional version of the group – with the younger Lee Morgan on trumpet and Bobby Timmons on piano, already setting the combo on fire with their new ideas and very bold work on solos – and the great Hank Mobley on tenor, who'd worked with Blakey for a few years at this time – and provides this deeply soulful grounding that's as great as his own records, but maybe even a bit more open in the live setting. The great Jymie Merritt is on bass – one of Art's secret weapons over the years – and the set list of this first volume includes "Hipsippy Blues", "Justice", "Just Coolin", and a nice version of "Close Your Eyes". LP, Vinyl record album

The debut album from Tyrone Davis – a supreme achievement for the Chicago soul scene of the late 60s, and a record with a sound that would set the standard for years to come! Tyrone had been bumping around as a blusier singer before this set – but here, working with arrangements by Don Myrick and Willie Henderson, he gets a sound that's sweet and soaring – taking a rough-spirited soul, and recasting it in a sweeter sound for the 70s. Tyrone's not lapsing into bluesy cliches here, and instead keeps things wonderfully soulful by hitting a loping groove that picks up his beat and gives the songs a nice lilt. You can hear this to best effect on the title track "Can I Change My Mind", but all tracks are great – including "She's Looking Good", "Call On Me", "Open The Door To Your Heart", and "Have You Ever Wondered Why?". LP, Vinyl record album

Landmark work from The Dead Kennedys – and maybe still one of the greatest punk records to ever come from the American scene! There's so much here that so many other records are missing – razor-sharp instrumentation, a great sense of pacing, and most importantly, a biting wit that always keeps the whole thing from ever lapsing into any sort of over-serious cliches! Yet unlike their LA contemporaries, the group were also never ones to just lay into the jokes – as the political commentary here is especially pointed, and nearly every single song is a blistering attack on late 70s California mores and national obsessions. Every track's a gem – and titles include "Kill The Poor", "Forward To Death", "Let's Lynch The Landlord", "Your Emotions", "Holiday In Cambodia", "California Uber Alles", and "Stealing People's Mail" – plus a killer cover of "Viva Las Vegas". LP, Vinyl record album

A funky gem from 70s Poland – heavy grooves from maestro Henryk Debich, served up in a range of soulful styles! The tunes here are all instrumental – and range from Barry White-styled tracks, to big band funk, to other more complicated numbers with a soundtrack vibe – all laid out back to back in a really fresh-felling set! There's plenty of jazz in the lineup – and most tracks have some sort of a solo, on instruments that include tenor, trumpet, flute, alto, and even a bit of electric harpsichord. Titles are a mix of originals and some groovy covers – and tunes include "Shaft", "Chameleon", "Gry", "Bez Metalu", "Na Opak", "Standard In B", "Oscypka", and "Badz Wieczorem W Dyskotece". LP, Vinyl record album

A work of true genius – and one of Hefti's most amazing soundtracks ever! Barefoot In The Park was written shortly before The Odd Couple – also for a Neal Simon film – and it's got a similar style of grooving to that more famous soundtrack, with two melodies working their way in together rhythmically, dancing around almost in counterpoint, but instead opening up the tunes in a really wild way. The main theme is tremendous – played in a number of versions, including one with some super-cool electric harpsichord – and even one number with vocals is pretty darn incredible. We love this one – and although short, it's a treasure throughout! Titles include "Barefoot In The Park", "Blues For Paul", "New Home Up A Stairs", "Nut On The Roof", and "Six Flights Up". LP, Vinyl record album

A pretty darn groovy soundtrack – one of Neal Hefti's best of the 60s, and the score to a silly sex comedy that starred Natalie Wood and Tony Curtis! Fran Jeffries sings vocals on a few cuts – like "Sex & The Single Girl" and "Anniversary Song" – but the best tunes are the instrumentals, which mix together a lot of electric harpsichord (ala Odd Couple), a bit of flute, and which have a style that's in the mode of the best Quincy Jones or Henry Mancini scoring from the time! Titles include "Legs", "The Game", "Midnight Swim", "City Style", "I Must Know", and "I've Got Love". LP, Vinyl record album

A great batch of moogy grooves from the In Search Of Orchestra – really the team of Laurin Rinder & Michael Lewis, working here on a slightly wider variation of the styles used in their dancefloor work for AVI! The album's somewhat of a soundtrack for the In Search Of TV show hosted by Leonard Nimoy – and it's a wonderful blend of keyboards and subtle funky rhythms – often at a pace that's a lot more laidback and spacious than some of the more familiar disco from Rinder & Lewis. Lewis plays a host of great keys – including Fender Rhodes, clavinet, harpsichord, and synth – and the tracks range from long to short, with plenty of great funky bits and samples in the mix. Titles include "A Taste Of Ghosts", "Time Traveler", "The Rise & Fall Of Vlad Dracula", "In Search Of", "Nazca Lines", "Easter Island Suite", and "Afterthought". LP, Vinyl record album

Anita Kerr and her singers take on the baroque pop sound of the late 60s – working here in a way that mixes their smoother vocals with more complicated arrangements and some nice use of electric harpsichord! The approach isn't as over the top baroque as other albums like this – thanks to a key core of Kerr vocals from the quartet – but the harpsichord's used on nearly every track, and it really helps to bring a nice new flavor to the record – a sound that's quite different than the bag Kerr was hitting a few years before! Plus, there's some great jazzy moments from conductor Dick Marx – never too over the top, but nicely sunny at all the best points. Tracks are pretty hip too – and include "Love At Last You Found Me", "Love Lies", "It's Not Unusual", "One Note Samba", "How Insensitive", "Cast Your Fate To the Wind", and "My Love". LP, Vinyl record album

A split record from these two very hip talents – a set that features one side of work from saxophonist Nubya Garcia, the other from funky Khruangbin – both of them great! Nubya blows tenor with a group that includes Daniel Casimiar on bass, Jahari Stampley on keyboards, and Sam Jones on drums – a quartet who move through that sublime mix of jazz and other modes that we love on Garcia's own records, delivered here with a more straightforward approach in the live setting, on tunes that include "Source", "La Cumbia Me Esta Llamando", and "The Message Continues". The flipside features more work in the best style that Khrungabin's been giving us on record, but again with a nicely different energy, given the live setting – on titles that include "Pelota", "So We Won't Forget", "The Infamous Bill", and "Time". LP, Vinyl record album

Incredible work by one of our favorite 60s groups! If you don't know The Left Banke, their unique style of "baroque rock" is a wonderful mix of groovy organ, electric harpsichord, and swirling strings – all set as instrumentation for some of the tightest, grooviest little songs you'll ever hear. Nearly every track on here is a toe-tapping hummer, and even if you know their big hits like "Walk Away Renee" and "Pretty Ballerina", you'll still find lots of other goodies like "Barterers & Their Wives", "Evening Gown", "Lazy Day", and "What Do You Know". LP, Vinyl record album

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Sweet electric funk from Ramsey Lewis! The album's one of his best from the 70s – and it's got Ramsey on Fender Rhodes, electric harpsichord, and other keyboards, grooving away in an open-ended 70s mode that still retains all the heavy soul of his classic work for Chess. Morris Jennings adds in some very nice percussion with his drum work, and Cleveland Eaton's on funky bass, giving the set a strong bottom groove. Features the sublime sample cut "My Love For You", a great version of "Knights In White Satin" that's done with a weird spacey groove, plus the tracks "Kufany Mapenzi (Making Love)", "Serene Funk", "What It Is!", and "Dreams". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the groovier albums the Modern Jazz Quartet ever recorded – as you might expect, given the cover and title! In addition to the group's usual cool sound from Milt Jackson's vibes, the set also features John Lewis playing a bit of harpsichord in addition to his usual piano – and the group's also augmented on a few tracks with some great horns from Snookie Young and Joe Newman on trumpets, Garnett Brown on trombone, Jim Buffington on French horn, and Don Butterfield on tuba – a change that really gives the record a nicely different flavor from other MJQ albums. John Lewis composed all of the tracks – and titles include "Walkin Stomp", "Dancing", "Plastic Dreams", "Variations On A Christmas Theme", "Travlin", "Piazza Novona", and "England's Carol". LP, Vinyl record album

A very groovy soundtrack from the great Stanley Myers! The setting of the film is mod London – and Stan's come up with some very cool tunes that mix together 60s easy, trippy instrumentation, and a bit of that go-go groove. Instrumentation includes a bit of sitar and tabla – mixed with electric guitar, organ, electric harpsichord, a bit of vocals, and orchestral flourishes – changing mood from track to track, but always staying on the straight and groovy! Titles include "Barney", "Angel's Theme", "Shazam", "Kinky Dolly", "Kings Full", and "A Present for Daddy". LP, Vinyl record album

A free jazz jam from the Nostalgia 77 Octet – easily their most far-reaching work to date, and only available on a limited edition vinyl EP! "The Impossible Equation" has the group stretching out in a side-long jam of space jazz proportions – building very slowly with a style that's even more sonically focused than their previous efforts – sounding nicely tripped up, but still a bit funky at the bottom, thanks to a bassline that steps strongly along underneath some of the more psychedelic solos! Instrumentation is mostly acoustic, as with other Octet records – but the production makes for some especially spacey sounds. The flipside features a great version of "Desert Fairy Princess" – done in a really righteous 70s soul jazz mode – plus the shorter "Well Being I", which is a bit outside! LP, Vinyl record album

One of the more masterful albums that Prado cut for RCA, and a thrilling set of tracks with a very haunting feel. The entirety of side one features the extended "Exotic Suite Of The Americas", which has a storming Latin sound, mixed with nice exotica touches. The flipside features shorter tracks, but also done in a manner that has a wide dynamic range, with some startling arrangements. Titles include "Son Of A Gun", "Mama Yo Quiero", and "El Relicario". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest modern moments on Blue Note – ever! From the cover, to the compositions, to the playing on the set – the whole album crackles with an unbelievable fire that was hardly ever matched again. A young Sam Rivers leads a quartet that includes Jaki Byard on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Anthony Williams on drums – coming together in a sound that's got lots of sharp edges, yet which also beats with an undeniably swinging heart. Rivers blows incredibly on the session – held in check by the rhythm section, and never getting too free (or sloppy, as on some later sides) – and instead hitting these hard tones that really push the envelope of 60s jazz without rewriting the rules entirely. Brilliant all the way through, with tracks that include "Beatrice", "Ellipsis", "Cyclic Episode", and "Downstairs Blues Upstairs". LP, Vinyl record album

Quite an unusual record for Sonny Rollins – but a great one too! At first glance the concept is a strange one – almost a crazy decision to pair modernist tenorist Sonny Rollins with a set of large brassy arrangements – but oddly, the idea works, and works nicely – as Rollins' edgey solos cut through the heavy arrangements with ease, creating some angular counterpoint and a tight little space to make his own sound. The group was conducted by Ernie Wilkins, and the flipside of the album features Rollins playing in a small trio with the great Henry Grimes on bass (who also played with Rollins on some of his best sessions from the time!) and Charles Wright on drums. Titles include "Manhattan", "If You Were The Only Girl In the World", "Who Cares?", and "Far Out East". Originally issued on MGM/Metro – but this is the Verve pressing. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the hippest albums ever from Chicago reedman/trumpeter Ira Sullivan – a set that takes on a really different feel than his previous bop-styled records – and which shows a whole new side of the musician! Ira's clearly inspired here by the changes in jazz in the 60s – particularly the work of John Coltrane – and he reaches forward in a wonderfully expressive way that's filled with joy, life, and a spiritual sensibility we never heard this strongly again in Sullivan's music. There's a definite modal jazz vibe to most of the record – played beautifully by an obscure rhythm section that features Dolphe Castellano on piano and electric harpsichord, William Fry on bass, and Jose Cigno on drums – players with a wonderfully refreshing conception that really makes the album sparkle. Yet Sullivan's the clear star of the show, too – really shining on a range of horns that includes trumpet, tenor, and soprano sax – sometimes played together on the same tune. Lon Norman plays a bit of trombone on the record – and the set's got some great eastern numbers like "Ninevah", "Horizons", and "Adah" – plus the tracks "Oh G", "Norwegian Wood", and "E Flat Tuba G". LP, Vinyl record album

A pretty great debut from Sweetwater – described on the cover as "Eight high-octane musicians who met and jammed in the great peanut butter octopus that is Los Angeles!" The record's got a really trippy approach that's partially folk rock, partially psychedelic soul, and which also has some great touches of groovy harmony pop and Latinized LA rhythms – all wrapped up in some totally great production overall! The whole thing skims and sings around like some of our favorite sunshiney pop from the time – almost a meeting of Triste Janeiro and Mamas & The Papas – with some great instrumental touches that include cello and electric harpsichord! Female lead vocals on most tracks, but the album also spins out nicely, so that you get plenty of instrumental passages too! Titles include "Why Oh Why", "Motherless Child", "Here We Go Again", "For Pete's Sake", "What's Wrong", "Come Take A Walk", and "In A Rainbow". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Cal Tjader's best albums ever – and a sweetly electric side that features Joao Donato on organ and Gary McFarland on vibes! The record is a brilliant extension of Cal's styles at Verve – a bit of Latin, a bit of jazz, with some easily grooving numbers that have just the right dose of funk! Donato's organ sounds especially great, and there's also some added electric piano and electric harpsichord on the record, which expands the electricity even more – and gives the whole thing a really groovy sound! Loads of great numbers – including "Mambo Sangria", "Fried Bananas", "Solar Heat", "Ode to Billy Joe", and Donato's great "Amazonas". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic score from the great Armando Trovajoli – one of his few 60s classics to get any sort of circulation in the US – and one of the best! The album's got loads of scatting vocals by his great group I Cantori Modern – alongside upbeat chase tracks, crime jazz, and even a bit of electric harpsichord too! The music mixes together bubbling organ with swinging vocal riffs by I Cantori Moderni – an excellent little combo directed by Alessandro Alessandroni with a cool breezy vocal style that works perfectly with the other instrumentation. Tracks include "Ping Pong", "Thunder Bolt", "Walk On Home", and "Golden Bricks". LP, Vinyl record album

One of THE greatest experimental rock albums of the 60s – a landmark effort from a short-lived group that included avant musicians Joe Byrd and Gordon Marron! The group's got a really tremendous sound – part psyche, part electronic, and part folk rock – all put together in a freewheeling style that cares little for genre or convention – and which must have really shook the roots of Columbia Records when they submitted the tape for this set! The instrumentation on the set should be enough to pop your cork – as the group uses ring modulator, electric drums, electric harpsichord, organ, calliope, and other early electronic instruments – but their sound is topped off with some really beautiful vocals from singer Dorothy Moskowitz, adding a light touch that really makes for a strange juxtaposition! The lyrics are a bit poetic and trippy – in a good way – and titles include "The American Metaphysical Circus", "Garden Of Earthly Delights", and "Cloud Song". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the principal albums in trip hop's ascension into the mainstream, and the bright, extroverted flipside to Portishead's darker vision of the late 90s scene. Mo Wax honcho James Lavelle's longstanding Unkle project got a massive makeover when DJ Shadow became the prime sonic architect for the Psyence Fiction LP. Shadow throws everything but the kitchen sink into the thing, working with a wide range of vocalists and collaborators from hip hop innovators (Kool G Rap, Mike D) to whiny alternative rockers (Richard Ashcroft, Thom Yorke). With a project as busy as Unkle, the law of subjectivity pretty much dictates that you're gonna love parts, and hate parts – but Shadow was so on top of his game at the time, he somehow manages to hold it all together. It may not be his best ever work, but Psyence Fiction certainly holds up, and it's an essential piece of the puzzle! Tracks include "Main Title Theme", "Guns Blazing", "Blood Stain", "Unreal", "Chaos", "Rabbit In Your Headlights", Lonely Soul", and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Wild funky grooves – and even crazier than the first volume! The set follows the format of the first, in that tracks are selected by the enigmatic Barry 7 – but the source material is completely different, making for a very unique sound. This time around, Barry's dipped into the rich catalog of Italian soundtrack label CAM – one of Italy's greatest sources of work for film scores, and home to plenty of wonderful tunes over the years! Tracks here are a mad blend of guitars, keyboards, voices, orchestrations, rhythms, electronics, and strange instrumentation – as groovy and cool as they are upbeat and funky. Many of the titles are unfamiliar to our ears, and they sound even better laid back to back in this great-looking package! Titles include "Margaret" by Giuseppe De Luca, "Iniziazone 72" by Ennio Morricone, "Motivi Psichedelici" by Daniele Patucchi, "Sisy" by Giampiero Boneschi, "Rio A Los Angeles" by Giuseppe De Luca, "Dies Irae Psichedelico" by Ennio Morricone, "Saturns Ambush" by Giampiero Boneschi, "Omicidio Per Vocazione" by Stefano Torossi, and "Secondo Rito" by Ennio Morricone. LP, Vinyl record album

One of Mose Allison's most sophisticated album, and one that has him going way past his usual "folksy jazzy" style, into a realm that touches on Monk-like modernism! The whole first side is Allison's extended "Hiram Brown" suite, which mixes vocal and instrumental passages in an extremely haunting way. The flipside features shorter versions of standards – some vocal, some instrumental – but all with more of a moderist sound than his earlier Prestige recordings – a great step forward for one of the most unique talents in jazz! LP, Vinyl record album

A long spoken set that chronicles the story of African Americans from the days of slavery up through the 20th century. The album was produced by Pepsi, with a style that's kind of like a radio show – narration, plus sound effects, and some dramatized passages as well. LP, Vinyl record album

An unusual album from 1973 – one that has Italian guitarist Franco Cerri working with larger backings, in a style that's almost a bit like soundtrack work of the time! Franco's guitar lines are clean and clear – right up front in the mix, over a range of strings, plus bits of organ, harpsichord, and flutes too – all directed by the great Nando De Luca, with a feel that's warm and sweet, but never too mellow! The guitar glides nicely over the top – making for a really light sort of groove, and a change from Cerri's straighter work of previous years – on titles that include "Miss Iva", "Bostrizione", "Toilette", "Lady Stinta", "Penelope Jane", and "Vado E Tornio". LP, Vinyl record album

Quite possibly the grooviest album ever from Enoch Light – a trippy blend of many 60s styles, all put together with sublime Project 3 Sound! The album's billed as featuring "exploratory trips through the music of Bach, Bacharach, the Beatles – Integrating the Moog, the Guitar Scene, Electronic Harpsichord, Flugelhorns, etc" – and it definitely lives up to that bill, given the range of songs included! Rhythms are strong, and the use of sweetly compressed horn parts is very much in an A&M mode – as is the backing vocals, which are light and wonderful – a bit like Free Design, but more towards the territory of Singers Unlimited, although even groovier. The Beatles and Bacharach material is especially great – but even the Bach tunes come out wonderfully, given that most are re-arranged with a hip 60s soundtrack sort of groove – classical roots, but contemporary execution – especially when there's a bit of moog or electric harpsichord. Titles include "Walk On By", "Norweigan Wood", "What The World Needs Now", "Get Back", "Bond Street", "Petite Paulette", "My Silent Song", and "Lover's Concerto". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most impressive albums ever from arranger Oliver Nelson – a set that really shows the full depth of his mighty talents! Side one features Nelson working with a larger orchestra – similar to the kind of ensemble he arranged for other artists in the 60s, but handled here with an open, searching sort of sound – really impressive modern jazz elements on the title track, then some sweeter, warmer soul sounds on a few shorter numbers too! Nelson plays soprano sax, and his use of the instrument is definitely Coltrane-informed at times – and a nice change from his more familiar alto. The flipside features just a quartet – Oliver again on soprano sax – plus Steve Kuhn on piano, Ron Carter bass, and Grady Tate on drums. With Kuhn on piano, bringing a nice modern edge that works perfectly with the soprano. Titles include "Sound Piece For Jazz Orchestra", "Patterns", "Flute Salad", "The Lady From Girl Talk", and "Elegy For A Duck". LP, Vinyl record album

A wonderful record that's every bit as great as you might expect from the title – a baroque take on the music of Burt Bacharach, and one that's served up with some groovy scatting vocals too! The approach is a bit like that of the Swingle Singers, but a bit more American too – mixed male and female vocals scatting wordlessly to some of Burt Bacharach's greatest tunes – always with a jazzy feel, and usually backed with some cool electric harpsichord, which totally sounds great! The mighty Al Capps handled arrangements – and it's clearly his genius that got this whole thing sounding so wonderful – but the mighty Snuff Garrett produced, and deserves a tip of the hat too. Titles include "The Look Of Love", "What The World Needs Now", "I'll Never Fall In Love Again", and "Close To You". LP, Vinyl record album

The Marquis De Sade never sounded so sweet! For some strange reason, Schifrin decided to pay a musical hommage to De Sade with this one – but fortunately, he's not punishing himself with the subject matter at all, and is sticking to his jazzy bossa guns. The arrangements have a tight Verve mid 60s groove to them – with breakout solos on piano and flute, slightly baroque scoring that mixes strings, harpsichord, and some straighter jazz playing, and a good focus on strong rhythm playing throught. A breezy treat that would make any of us drop a paddle and kick back for a cocktail – if we had the chance! Titles include "Bossa Antique", "The Wig", "Old Laces", "Beneath A Weeping Willow Shade", "Renaissance", and "Troubadour". LP, Vinyl record album

Some interesting moments here – including harpsichord by Johnny Guarnieri, trumpet from Roy Eldridge, guitar from Barney Kessel, and piano from Dodo Marmarosoa! LP, Vinyl record album