... LP, Vinyl record album

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

A pretty cool look at the sound of hip at the end of the 50s – with contributions from just about every jazz label on the market! LP, Vinyl record album

A pretty cool look at the sound of hip at the end of the 50s – with contributions from just about every jazz label on the market! LP, Vinyl record album

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

A lost little gem from Al Wilson – recorded for the short-lived Playboy label, in a rich, full sound that takes off from his earlier 70s hits! The groove here is a bit more sophisticated than before – with arrangements by HB Barnum, Gene Page, and Richard Cason – casting Al's vocals in a style that almost seems to bring out a deeper sense of soul, even while the backings are tighter and more driving than before. There's almost a Lamont Dozier ABC style to some of the tracks – one that suits Al surprisingly well, and makes the album a surprisingly fresh winner. Titles include "Stay With Me", "I've Got A Feeling", "Ain't Nothing New Under The Sun", "How's Your Love", "You Did It For Me", "Honoring", and "Differently". LP, Vinyl record album

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

A rare Decca album lead by the smoky vocals of Beverly Kenney – a really unique late 50s/early 60s jazz girl who once worked for the Dorsey brothers, the Count Basie Orchestra and others, and only ever cut a handful of albums under her own name! Sings for Playboys is an intimate, sultry batch of tunes that have a really unique feel thanks to the super spare accompaniment of just Ellis Larkins on piano and Joe Benjamin on bass. That approach does a great job of transforming your senses to the smoky, boozy after hours cabaret that must have been in mind when the recordings were conceived. The album only ever appeared briefly in the late 50s (possibly because of the unauthorized and quite obvious reference to Playboy Magazine in the title and in the cover photo) but it's sure great to see it reappear – they didn't make a lot records like this in the big band dominated recordings of the era! 12 tracks including "Do It Again", "A Woman's Intuition", "Mama, Do I Gotta?", "A Lover Like You", "A Summer Romance", "It's Magic", and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Well, they certainly got the title right on this one! Dee Dee sings all the hits (or some of them, at least!) in her youthful gutsy soul style. Tracks include "Snap Your Fingers", "Seven Day Weekend", "Playboy", "Don't Play That Song", "Village Of Love", "Loco-Motion", and "The Wah-Watusi". Production's uncredited, but it's in the usual stormin' Cameo/Parkway vein! LP, Vinyl record album

A nice little soundtrack from the prime years of the Rat Pack – for a film that featured Sammy Davis Jr as a trumpet player! The overall score features work by Benny Carter – nice and jazzy, with the 60s swing he was bringing to his best work at the time – and on top of this, Sammy Sings a bit, and so does Mel Torme and Louis Armstrong! Nat Adderley handles the trumpet solos for Sammy's role – blowing out in front of larger backings from Carter with a great sense of color and tone – quite different from some of his other work of the 60s. And while the jazz tracks alone are worth the price of admission, the vocal ones are wonderful too – and include "All That Jazz" by Mel Torme, "I Want To Be Wanted" and "Whisper To One" by Sammy Davis Jr, and "Back Of Town Blues" and "Someday Sweetheart" by Louis Armstrong. Instrumental titles include "Crack Up", which is a great variation on Cy Coleman's "Playboy Theme" – plus "Claudia", "Night Walk", and "Soft Touch". LP, Vinyl record album

With selections by Abbey Lincoln, Bobby Goldsboro, Jackie DeShannon, Count Five, John Fred & His Playboy Band, Desmond Dekker & The Aces, and a side's worth of themes by Goldenthal. LP, Vinyl record album

Classic 60s Capitol work by Buck and the Buckaroos – featuring the cuts "I Don't Care (Just As Long As You Love Me)", "Don't Let Her Know", "Loose Talk", "Bud's Bounce", and "Playboy". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest records ever cut by organist Billy Larkin – a lean, mean batch of soul jazz instrumentals, recorded with the Delegates combo, featuring tenor work by a young Fats Theus! The tracks are short tight jazz dancers – with a mixture of stepping grooves and some more full on rhythmic modes – and titles include "Tarantula", "Soul Sister", "Playboy Theme", "Puget Sound", "Gwon Train", "Ain't That A Groove", "Ain't Gonna Move", and "Goin Out Of My Head"! One of his great ones! LP, Vinyl record album

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

Stunning funky soul by California Playboys – a heck of a record that should have made the Playboys a huge combo at the time! It's a shame the group didn't become millionaires – but the obscurity of the record is maybe also one of its charms – the kind of small label set that never fully got its due at the time, but which is ripe for rediscovery all these many years later! The California Playboys were together for a number of years – forming as a backing band for singer Lester Young (not the sax player), doing session work for others, and otherwise developing their skills for years – all of which really comes through here in their sharp-edged instrumentation, which sounds even sharper in the 70s indie-level production for the album. The killer title tune sounds like it could (and should!) be the namesake tune of a funky mid 70s soundtrack – as it's really got a perfect cinematic soul vibe, ala Bobby Womack and Marvin Gaye – though in a tighter, smaller combo setting. Most tunes start with vocals and end with long instrumental riffing – and titles include"Double Love", "She's A Real Sweet Woman", "Just Say A Four Letter Word", "I've Got To Find Myself Another Girl", and "Turned On For Good". LP, Vinyl record album

With Bob Fahlsing on vocals and bass, JJ Murphy on drums, and Frankie Raye on guitar. LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful 60s sunshine pop from Gary Lewis – sunny melodies and grand pop orchestrations by Jack Nitzsche – and a record that's been terribly overlooked for decades! Gary Lewis & The Playboys had fairly successful run before Gary was called to active service, and he cut this solo work during brief leaves from the service. It may not be groundbreaking work, it's got hallmark soaring 60s psych pop arrangements and melodies, but it sure is sweet stuff, and we can't think of any reason it's been so deeply buried for the past few decades! LP, Vinyl record album

With selections by Dave Sampson & The Hunters, Dickie Pride, Vernon Girls, Terry Wayne, Don Lang, Ray Ellington, Squadronaires, Janice Peters, Vince Taylor & His Playboys, The Silhouettes, Jean & The Statesides, The Olympics, The Memos, and Bobby Day & The Satellites. LP, Vinyl record album

Heady sounds from a variety of different scenes – served up here in a compilation that was one of the first to turn western ears onto the sounds of the east! The music is a fuzzy blend of sounds from Southeast Asia, Korea, India, and even Turkey – and the package was one of the first times we'd ever heard some styles that have now become much more common in the psych market – the kind of groundbreaking overseas moments that we love on labels like Guerssen/Pharaway or Finders Keepers! Titles include "Simla Beat Theme" by The Fentones, "Gonul Sabreyle Sabreyle" by 3 Hur El, "26 Miles" by The Quest, "Korean Titel A2" by Jung Hyun & The Men, "Istemem" by Erkin Koray, "Magic Colors" by Teddy Robin & The Playboys, "A2" by Cambodian Rocks, "Blind Bird" by The Mpos, and "You Know What I Mean" by Justin Heathcliff. LP, Vinyl record album

From the vaults of Liberty and United Artists, with selections by Jay & The Americans, Bertell Dache, Johnny Maestro, The Belmonts, Patty Duke, Mike Clifford, Gary Lewis & The Playboys, Bobby Vee & The Johnny Mann Singers, The Fleetwoods, Patience & Prudence, Johnny Burnette & The Johnny Mann Singers, and Jan & Dean. LP, Vinyl record album

Includes work by Gary Lewis & The Playboys, Freddie & The Dreamers, The Turtles, Dobie Gray, Astronauts, and Knickerbockers. Produced by Nick Venet. LP, Vinyl record album

Vintage recordings by Texas Troubadours, Roanoke Jug Band, Roanoke Entertainers, Johnnie Autrey, Dixie Playboys, Wanderers Of The Wasteland, Roy Hall & The Blue Ridge Entertainers, and Tommy Magness & The Orange Blossom Boys. LP, Vinyl record album

A hell of a record from the great Merle Haggard – partly a tribute to the western swing pioneer Bob Wills, but also a fantastic demonstration of all the growth that Merle had undergone in such a short time! The songs are all Bob Wills classics, and they're interpreted here by a group that also features members of Bob's original Texas Playboys lineup – including Johnny Gimble on fiddle and Billie Tiny Moore on mandolin – but the real revelation is the way that Merle can not only give complete credit to the way that Bob Wills influenced his music, but also step into the role of a leader with the same sort of strength as Bob – yet in a completely different way. Hag's vocals are different than other Capitol Records of the time – able to capture all the jazzy inflections that Tommy Duncan had when singing with the Texas Playboys – and the style seems to just be another feather in Merle's mighty cap at the time. Titles include "Right Or Wrong", "Brown Skinned Gal", "Misery", "Roly Poly", "Old Fashioned Love", and "Take Me Back To Tulsa". LP, Vinyl record album