A really important early album from this groundbreaking pianist – a set that initially got plenty of exposure at the time, thanks to its placement on the Infinite Zero label – even though Matthew Shipp's piano work was very far from the mainstream! The trio here is tremendous – and the work of William Parker on bass is especially wonderful, as is the subtle drum handling of Whit Dickey – as the group perform lne long suite of tracks that flow together in haunting patterns of criss crossing lines that describe seem to really bring a sense of spirituality back to the world of improvising music in the early 90s! CD

A really important early album from this groundbreaking pianist – a set that initially got plenty of exposure at the time, thanks to its placement on the Infinite Zero label – even though Matthew Shipp's piano work was very far from the mainstream! The trio here is tremendous – and the work of William Parker on bass is especially wonderful, as is the subtle drum handling of Whit Dickey – as the group perform lne long suite of tracks that flow together in haunting patterns of criss crossing lines that describe seem to really bring a sense of spirituality back to the world of improvising music in the early 90s! LP, Vinyl record album

Obscure swinging male/femal vocal group that both plays and sings, in the style of the Pat Moran group or other jazz vocal groups from the time. As far as we know, this is their only LP, and it's a hip batch of tracks like "Julie Is Her Name", "Bernies Tune", "Free Speech", "Cross Your Heart", and "April In Paris". Swinging stuff, and good for fans of Jackie & Roy or The Hi-Lo's. LP, Vinyl record album

Pretty darn great work from OC Smith – on of his biggest albums for Columbia! OC's working in a country soul mode that draws on a tradition shared by Solomon Burke, Joe Tex, Ray Charles, and others – turning the genre towards a more pop-driven version of country, the kind that was creeping into the crossover charts at the end of the 60s. The style's one that might have you suspicious, but it comes off surprisingly well – thanks to arrangements by the always-great HB Barnum, the man who brought a syncopated groove to some of Lou Rawls' best work in the late 60s – his Capitol sides with David Axelrod! The feel here is a bit rootsier, but still has that nice Barnum bounce underneath – and titles include "Wichita Lineman", "I Ain't The Worryin' Kind", "The Best Man", "Stormy", "Cycles", "Keep On Keepin On", "Isn't It Lonely Together", and "Promises". LP, Vinyl record album

A great batch of Brazilian soul from Sorry Drummer – an artist with a touch that's a lot more open and laidback than some of his contemporaries – much more strongly influenced by American underground hip hop than some of the more booty-shaking beats of the Brazilian mainstream – at a level that makes this whole set come across with a surprisingly timeless, durable vibe! There's a really nice blend of guests here – Sorry Drummer acts as the head of the sound system, opening things up for Filiph Neo, Groove Coletivco, Silvera, Mr Reed, Summer Azul, and even Patricia Marx – as the vibe changes nicely from track to track, while the album still holds onto a great sense of quality throughout. Titles include "If You Let Me", "Slow Down", "Fly Away", "Na Vitrola", "Aeroporto", "Life Is Too Short", "Dias De Sol (rmx)", "Sunshine", and "Yeah Love". CD

John Swana on trumpet and flugelhorn, Jesse Van Ruller on guitar, John Patitucci on bass, and Eric Harland on drums. CD

A key American release for one of the most popular bands in Niger – a really unique ensemble whose sound definitely reflects their cultures place at the crossroads of north Africa! The music is heavy on guitars – criss-crossing in ways that clearly take inspiration from high-life, but which have exotic tones that feel much more like music from Mali, too – almost kora-like inflections, which ring out wonderfully over bass and percussion, alongside vocals that have these rich inflections that are extremely musically too – and which are maybe even the most powerful element in the songs. Everything swirls together beautifully, in this hypnotic groove that never lets up for a minute – and which should hopefully get these guys the sort of exposure that they deserve. Titles include "Tchana", "Sarkin Fada", "Kountche", "Zigda", "Nouvelles", and "Kaani". LP, Vinyl record album

Thievery Corporation are back after a long hiatus – and they've returned to the fold with a host of surprising guest stars! The set's got a really wide range of grooves – as one might expect when the group's working with artists that include David Byrne, Perry Farrell, and The Flaming Lips! But over and above these bigger crossover names, the team's also sticking very true to their roots on other tracks – bringing in some great downtempo and Brazilian influences, and fleshing out tunes with an equally great array of lesser-known talents that includes Sista Pat, Gunjan, Verny Varela, Gigi Rezende, and Patrick De Santos. Titles include "Marching The Hate Machines", "Pela Janela", "Sol Tapado", "The Time We Lost Our Way", "A Gentle Dissolve", "Holographic Universe", "The Heart's A Lonely Hunter", and "The Cosmic Game". CD

The Ebony Godfather is grooving here with a set of fuller backings – sweet clubby funk, arranged and conducted by Brad Baker (of B Baker Chocolate Company fame) – all as a showcase for Joe's sweet work on flute and tenor sax! There's a fair bit of keyboards on the tunes – played by Pat Rebillot and Barry Miles – and Steve Gadd's playing the drums on the date, which helps the rhythms keep a bit of an edge, even amidst the larger backing. Some cuts have backing chorus vocals, in a style used on other Thomas albums – and although definitely touched by a bit of disco fever, the album's still got a jazzy element too – like some of the crossover club sessions on the Kudu label from the 70s! Titles include "Funky Fever", "Feelins From Within", "Polarizer", "Coco", "Galaxy Dreamin", and "Venus". LP, Vinyl record album

Three full albums from funky reedman Joe Thomas – served up in a single set! On Feelings From Within, the Ebony Godfather is grooving with a set of fuller backings – sweet clubby funk, arranged and conducted by Brad Baker (of B Baker Chocolate Company fame) – all as a showcase for Joe's sweet work on flute and tenor sax! There's a fair bit of keyboards on the tunes – played by Pat Rebillot and Barry Miles – and Steve Gadd's playing the drums on the date, which helps the rhythms keep a bit of an edge, even amidst the larger backing. Some cuts have backing chorus vocals, in a style used on other Thomas albums – and although definitely touched by a bit of disco fever, the album's still got a jazzy element too – like some of the crossover club sessions on the Kudu label from the 70s! Titles include "Funky Fever", "Feelins From Within", "Polarizer", "Coco", "Galaxy Dreamin", and "Venus". Make Your Move is sweet clubby grooving from Joe Thomas – a set that has the Ebony Godfather smoothing his groove a bit for the disco years of the late 70s, but still keeping things plenty soulful throughout! Brad Baker (of B Baker Chocolate Company fame) arranged and conducted the album, and he brings in some added vocals to the session – starting most tunes with a bit of singing before the instrumentalists get to solo in the grooves. The approach still works plenty darn well, though – and there's some great numbers here that slide in a bit of moogy vamping, in a way that's somewhat like some of Thomas' previous Ebony Godfather records. Titles include the funky "Caught You Lying Again", the smooth stepper "Let Me Be The One", and the tracks "Sugar Smack", "Get On Back", "Make Your Move", and "Your Love Is So Good To Me". On Masada, the cover's a bit righteous, but the grooves are wonderfully smooth – that shift towards warmer, club-based styles that Joe Thomas took in the 70s – an approach that comes off surprisingly well! Brad Baker's handling most of the arrangements here – with a fusion of jazz, funk, and club that's similar to some of the work coming out of the CTI/Kudu labels during the same stretch – and Joe's use of tenor sax on the album almost comes off like Stanley Turrentine in a similar setting, although with a bit less bite. Instrumentation includes keyboards, horns, and strings – and there's also a slight bit of chorus vocals on a few tracks too. Titles include "Poinciana", "Flame", "Let's Love", "Gemini Flyin' High", "I'm Gone & I'm Glad", and "Masada". CD

A surprisingly beautiful book on the famous 60s radical Jerry Rubin – one that's not only the first-ever look at the man's life, politics, and influence – but one that's also presented in a lavishly visual style that really conveys the crossroads of art and ideas of which Rubin was a key part! The book is even better than Pat Thomas' previous book, Listen Whitey – and has the same heavily visual feel as that one – as words from Rubin and his contemporaries are mixed with larger historical information, an incredible amount of cultural sidebars – and hundreds of fantastic images from the 60s onwards. Rubin's known as one of the founding fathers of the yippies – the Youth International Party, which gave political focus to the freedoms of hippies, and was a key part of the protests in Chicago in 1968. But the man's also had a much larger, even more colorful life – and this book really gets at all of that, and then some – one of those rare cases where you pick up a book on someone, and actually find yourself far more illuminated than before – both in terms of the subject, and their larger cultural role. 253 very vivid pages, hardcover, and done in the best Fantagraphics style. Book

Bunny Wailer hits up the dancehall for inspiration and recruits the Radics to back him on this crossover effort that successfully spans his roots roots and the new sound of the day! 7 numbers in all, including "Rock & Groove", "Another Dance", "Dance Rock", "Cool Runnings", "Roots Man Skanking", "Jammins" and "Ballroom Floor". LP, Vinyl record album

Masterpiece records from Philly soul maestro Dexter Wansel – stepping out here in a beautiful blend of jazz and soul! Life On Mars is a fantastic bit of space age funk, easily the best album that Wansel ever recorded – and a sublime blend of Wansel's Philly grooving sensibility with some of the more keyboard-oriented funk that was coming out of the Herbie Hancock camp during the mid 70s. The result is a tight batch of crossover tracks that work well both as jazz funk groovers, and as smoother modern soul tracks. Includes the version of "Theme From the Planets" with the much sampled breakbeat at the beginning – plus lots of other nice ones, including "Life On Mars", "Rings Of Saturn", and "Stargazer". What The World Is Coming To moves the focus back to soul a bit more than Life On Mars – but also keeps in plenty of jazzy touches! Dexter's groove here is similar to the best work he did with other Philly vocalists in the same time – and the set features guest vocals from Jean Carn and Terri Wells, sliding into a warmly soulful realm on the mellower tracks, and stepping out with a fully jazzed up groove on the more upbeat numbers. Titles include "What The World Is Coming To", "Dreams Of Tomorrow", "Holdin On", "Dance With Me Tonight", "Disco Lights", and "Prelude #1". 1978's Voyager is a bit like Dexter's space jazz classic Life On Mars – and with those fat, thumping bass lines, elastic lead guitar, atmospheric soul vocals and loads and loads of keys – spatial work on Rhodes, Moogs and ARPs! It's all done in a funky style not always heard on Philly – plus Dexter arranged and produced just about everything! Tracks include "Solutions", "Voyager", "I'm In Love", "Latin Love", and "I Just Want To Love You". 1979's Time Is Slipping Away is a straighter Philly soul outing than some of Wansel's earlier work – a nice batch from a talent that was responsible for crafting some of the best smooth modern numbers at the end of the 70s! It features the killer cut "The Sweetest Pain" – a smooth stepper with some subtle keyboard grooving behind warm female vocals by Terri Well – plus "Funk Attack", "New Beginning", "One For the Road", "It's Been Cool", and "I'll Never Forget (My Favorite Disco)". CD

Tim Warfield on tenor and soprano sax – with Terell Stafford trumpet and flugelhorn, Pat Bianchi on Hammond, Byron Landham on drums, and Daniel Sadownick on percussion. CD

Joel Weiskopf on piano, John Swana on trumpet, Walt Weiskopf on tenor and soprano sax, John Patitucci on bass, and Jeff Brillinger on drums. CD

2 Nancy Wilson Capitol sets from 1966 – back to back on one CD! From Broadway With Love is Broadway material – but given the Nancy Wilson twist – and sung in a mode that's a lot more soulful than other records of its type! Nancy's at her strong early Capitol best here – working with arranger Sid Feller in a set of tunes that get some nice syncopation and jazzy inflections from Sid – pushing them past their showier roots, and into leaner territory that really matches the class of the Nancy Wilson voice! And although they all came from musicals, most titles have had their own life as standards and pop songs – making the record less of a dip into Broadway than just a continuation of modes that Wilson was already exploring at Capitol in the 60s. Titles include "I've Got Your Number", "He Loves Me", "Here's That Rainy Day", "Hey There", "Makin Whoopee", and "Young & Foolish". Tender Loving Care has Nancy singing with arranger Billy May – who comes across here with a bit more sensitivity than usual for his Capitol work, especially given the 60s time of the recording! Sometimes, May is using full strings as a broad pillow of sound for Nancy's vocals – but other times, he strips things down and goes for a livelier, jazzier approach that's even better – one that helps give the familiar tunes a new lease on life in the hip Wilson style of the 60s. Titles include "As You Desire Me", "Like Someone In Love", "Don't Go To Strangers", "Tender Loving Care", "Love-Wise", "Try A Little Tenderness", and "Close Your Eyes". CD

A fantastic 70s classic from Stevie Wonder – part of a great run of records in which he broke completely from his earlier Motown sound – and showed the world that he was one of the true musical visionaries of the decade! The righteous currents of his previous few albums are fully in place here, taken with a bit more focus that helped the record gain Stevie a few new followers in the crossover market, while still offering up plenty to please all the minds that had already been blown by is initial work of the 70s! There's some fantastic themes here, and so many new ideas too – and titles include the slow-funk moog classic "Creepin", which has these wonderful washes of sound throughout, weird vocals by Stevie, and some drums that bump around in off-kilter little patterns just at the right moments. The album also includes the hit "Boogie On Reggae Woman", plus "Too Shy To Say", "You Haven't Done Nothin", "It Ain't No Use", "Bird Of Beauty", and "Please Don't Go". CD

A fantastic 70s classic from Stevie Wonder – part of a great run of records in which he broke completely from his earlier Motown sound – and showed the world that he was one of the true musical visionaries of the decade! The righteous currents of his previous few albums are fully in place here, taken with a bit more focus that helped the record gain Stevie a few new followers in the crossover market, while still offering up plenty to please all the minds that had already been blown by is initial work of the 70s! There's some fantastic themes here, and so many new ideas too – and titles include the slow-funk moog classic "Creepin", which has these wonderful washes of sound throughout, weird vocals by Stevie, and some drums that bump around in off-kilter little patterns just at the right moments. The album also includes the hit "Boogie On Reggae Woman", plus "Too Shy To Say", "You Haven't Done Nothin", "It Ain't No Use", "Bird Of Beauty", and "Please Don't Go". LP, Vinyl record album

John Zorn and Bill Laswell have crossed musical paths over over the years, and this set is certainly not the first time they've recorded together – yet there's also this wonderful sense of rebirth in the music, maybe the cleansing hinted at in the title – as things really go back to the basics of improvisation that began the career of the two artists, but with a sound that's very different than the past! Zorn is on alto and Laswell is on electric bass – and the tracks are all long improvisations that really take their time to find the right space – never over-conceived or forcing any sort of an agenda – just a natural, organic sonic progression in that hands of two improvisers who still have plenty of musical feathers left in their caps after all these years. Titles include "William Burroughs", "Brion Gysin", "Aleister Crowley", "Austin Osman Spare", and "Alejandro Jodorowsky". CD

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