Maybe one of the most authentic records ever cut by John Berberian – an American musician, but one who delivered great work on the oud during the 60s – including some projects that were often a bit psychedelic in nature! This set's a bit more straightforward, but equally great – really hard-driving and surprisingly earthy, without any attempts at all to touch up the sound with rock or pop elements – quite a surprise, given that the set was issued on Roulette Records, home to more mainstream rock and soul! Instrumentation includes lots of percussion, plus saxes and guitar – as well as a host of great oud solos from Berberian, on titles that include "Samra Ya Samra", "Dale Dale", "Chifte Telli", "Gamavor Zimfor", "Tamiko", and "Oud Solo". LP, Vinyl record album

Prince Igor is Igor Zhukovsky of the legendary funk group The Soul Surfers – and he teams up here with DJ Boora for a set of lean, funky grooves! The tunes all have plenty of funk drums at the core – layered up top with samples and all sorts of sonic elements that create a cool, spacey sort of vibe – definitely echoing the image on the cover, but with a down to earth vibe, given the drums! Given the legacy of spacey funk projects we've loved from the Funk Night label, this set fits right into their mode – with titles that include "Who Is Hiding In The Forest", "Ninja", "Dvor", "Mamont", "Nani", "Gusli", "Klass", and "Arsenalio". LP, Vinyl record album

The legendary debut of Bobby Caldwell – a blue-eyed soul singer who borrowed just the right amounts from AOR and R&B! Bobby's got a voice that's really great, and wrapped up warmly amidst keyboards and larger arrangements that all come across with a very cool compressed style – almost as if Caldwell discovered that midtempo and mellow style on some of the Earth Wind & Fire albums from a few years before, and used it as inspiration to craft a classic groove that's very much his own! The set features Bobby's huge classic "What You Won't Do For Love" – but the whole album's great, and other titles include "Special To Me", "Can't Say Goodbye", "My Flame", "Love Won't Wait", "Come To Me", "Down For The Third Time", "Take Me Back To Then" and "Kalimba Song", another nod to Maurice White and crew, to be sure! LP, Vinyl record album

Funky funky Don Ellis – a great set of electric groovers released at the same time that Don scored big with his soundtrack for The French Connection! As you'd guess from the title, the feel here is quite similar – funky electric big band jazz, with a very hip 70s action soundtrack feel – one that mixes acoustic sax and trumpet passages with some groovier keyboards and electronic bits – all wrapped up in production that's tight, but never too slick to be funky! The album features a great take on Don's excellent "Theme From The French Connection" – plus great electric jazz covers of "Alone Again Naturally", "Superstar", "I Feel The Earth Move", "Roundabout", and "Lean On Me" – as well as album originals "Chain Reaction" and "Train To Get There". LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing album by the great guitarist Eddie Fisher – and completely unlike his later funk records! Eddie plays stripped down jazz with a small combo that includes organ by Robert Selby, bass by Paul Jackson, and some rhythm guitar by Phil Westmoreland – and the twin-guitar approach creates this super-dope style that's light years ahead of its time, with a sophistication that points the way to later mid 70s work on labels like CTI and Kudu! Eddie's guitar work is an incredible exercise in spareness and soulfulness – best heard on the fantastic "Third Cup", a long drawn-out jazz stepper that's got to be heard to be believed. The cut's been a favorite on the Chicago jazz stepper's scene for years – and it alone is worth the price of the album. However, the record features some other wonderful stuff – like a sublime version of "Shadow Of Your Smile" that runs for a bubbling 12 minutes – plus the originals "Shut Up", "Scorched Earth", and "Two By Two". LP, Vinyl record album

A stunning batch of tracks from a very unusual LA group of the early 70s – a funk combo at the core, but one that was also equally comfortable with bits of psych and redneck rock as well! The music here was all recorded within a short span of years, and mostly issued on the small Alpha label as a handful of funky 45s – but the style is surprisingly spacious, and shows a strong sense of musicianship from the members of the group – so much so that they seem equally comfortable and right on top of their game, no matter what direction they choose to take! And don't think that this multi-style description means that these guys are too all over the map, because there's a really unified sense of soul that holds the whole thing together – so that when they get a bit rootsy, the result is country soul – or when they get a bit trippy, they hit some Funkadelic-styled sounds. The collection includes great notes on the setting that produced these tracks – penned by Egon, who put the set together with help from Malcolm Catto, DJ Shadow, and others. Titles include "Don't Let Him Take Away Your Mind", "Strange Things", "Heaven & Earth", "Take Time", "We Got Love", "Waterloo At Watergate", "Why Don't You Trust In Me", "Cruising Central Ave", "The Dead Don't Die Alive", and "You're My Precious Someone". LP, Vinyl record album

Incredible early recordings by The Fugs – a set that captures the group at a time when they still had tremendous power and potential! The sessions were originally done for Folkways, then later sold to ESP – and the spare, earthy Folkways approach is perfect for the group, capturing them in a setting that's more of a happening than an actual recording session – a freewheeling hippie-esque party that's perfect for the protest and politics of the songs. Instrumentation includes a lot of hand-held percussion – maracas, tambourine, etc – and the Holy Modal Rounders join the group on some songs as well. Titles include "Saran Wrap", "We're The Fugs", "Caca Rocka", "My Bed Is Getting Crowded", "New Amphetamine Shriek", and "CIA Man". LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible concept album from the South African scene of the early 70s – a record that mixes rootsy percussion with plenty of freak and fuzz – all in a style that seems to take UK psychedelic inspirations and forge them into a very unique Johannesburg expression! Acoustic elements are every bit as important to the music as the electric ones – creating this earthy vibe that's very different than Anglo records of its type – and the soulful vocals from singer Dave Ornellas really send things over the top! The album begins with a seventeen minute, side-long track that's completely beautiful – and side two moves on with similar beauty, on a set of shorter tracks that balance things out nicely. Titles include "African Day", "Here Comes The Sun", "Look Up Brother"," Kissed By The Sun", "Happy Man", and "Love Song". LP, Vinyl record album

Heavy funk from a hip Japanese combo – one that features lots of drums and percussion from leader Akira Ishikawa, plus plenty of guitar, keyboards, and hard-riffing horns! Akira's taking most of his cues here from American funk of the early 70s – work by Incredible Bongo Band, BT Express, and others – but he often serves up the music with a fair bit of conga work at the front of the arrangements, in a way that takes familiar tunes and gives them a much rootsier, earthier kind of groove! The approach is unique, but totally great – and the album's a funk album unlike anything else we can think of – quite unusual even for the experimental Japanese scene of the time. Titles include "Bongo Rock", "Pick Up The Pieces", "Do It Til You're Satisfied", "I've Got To Use My Imagination", "Let's Start", "Love Is The Answer", and "Boogie On Reggae Woman". LP, Vinyl record album

A really game-changing set from late 60s Japan – a group who work with a title in English, but a sound that was definitely helping to give the younger Japanese scene a vibe that's all its own! The Jacks definitely have some of the psychedelic touches you might guess from their image on the front, but they also carry forward older styles of Japanese vocal inflections – especially modes that you'd be more likely to hear from a singer with a melancholy vibe! That mix of vocals and fuzzy guitars is wonderful – especially as the lyrics often have this nearly heartbreaking feel, even if you can't understand the lyrics – underscored by electric guitar that seems informed by ways of playing the shamisen, and even percussion work on the drums that feels more earthy than most rock groups. The whole thing is a mindblowing masterpiece – and although lyrics are in Japanese, English titles for the tunes include "Love", "500 Miles From The Sky", "Love Generation", "Stop The Clock", "Vacant World", "Marianne", and "Gloomy Flower". LP, Vinyl record album

No bebop here, despite what you might guess from the title – and instead an album of much freer lines and wider musical vision, captured with Keith Jarrett's famous group of the 70s! Jarrett plays a bit of soprano sax alongside his piano, and the rest of the quartet features Dewey Redman on tenor and musette, Charlie Haden on bass, and Paul Motian on drums and percussion – all in a mode that's somewhat quieter and not as earthy as their early 70s sides together, but still filled with the great sense of interplay that made the group a noteworthy one. Titles include "Pyramids Moving", "Mushi Mushi", "Silence", "Gotta Get Some Sleep", and "Blackberry Winter". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best-remembered albums from the Atlantic Records run of the legendary Rahsaan Roland Kirk – a set that stands as Kirk's answer to all the hipper soul currents that were taking place at the time – including some that were being issued by singers on Atlantic Records! The album is mostly instrumental, but Roland has this way of singing through his reeds at times, especially his flute – really bringing an earthy sense of personality to the whole thing – as he mixes his acoustic lines on flute, tenor, and other reeds with work from Richard Tee on electric piano, Mickey Tucker on organ, Billy Butler on guitar, and Dick Griffin on trumpet. There's a few vocal spots from other singers – Cissy Houston sings on two great cuts – and titles include remakes of "Never Can Say Goodbye", "What's Going On", "Mercy Mercy Me", "My Girl", and "Ain't No Sunshine" – plus some other nice originals by Roland, including Blacknuss", "Which Way Is It Going", and "One Nation". LP, Vinyl record album

A pair of rare 80s soul albums from the Windy City – presented here as a double-length collection, given that the groups were essentially the same act! First up is the debut of Maxx Traxx, an excellent 80s groove combo from Chicago – one of the city's last great indie acts in the years before the house generation – and an outfit who comes across with an incredibly tight sound that should have made them huge! The set cooks along in a really great way – bubbling with bass and keys like a BB&Q band album, but also sporting some really strong vocals from the group – coming together in great harmonies at surprising moments – which makes for a set that's a lot deeper than you might think at first. The ballads are as great as the groovers – and titles include "Time Has Come", "Tell Me", "You & I", "Let's Have A Party", "Don't Touch It", "To Be With You", and "Living Without You". Next is the album Reachin For It by Third Rail – a real lost group from the early 80s Chicago scene – but a great one! It's our guess that these guys never made it bigger because they were stuck on a tiny indie in the years after the big companies departed the Windy City – the sound is almost in the Omni mode, in that the group's a larger ensemble funk outfit, given an 80s groove spin, with some great post-Earth Wind & Fire styled instrumentation supporting the rhythms, and sweet compressed vocals that step out nicely. Titles include "Reachin For It", "If You Want It", "Just Had To Tell You", "Let Me Love You", and "Living Without You". LP, Vinyl record album

A title and cover that beautifully illustrate the sharp-edged power of the Thelonious Monk quartet on Columbia – and a wonderful place to start if you're just digging Thelonious' music! The record is similar to the best of Monk's Columbia sides – in that it revisits older tunes and themes from previous years, but in a way that's often much better than the original recordings – thanks to some incredible energy between group members Charlie Rouse on tenor, John Ore on bass, and Frankie Dunlop on drums! Rouse's sharp horn is easily a real bnous here – as it dances beautifully with Monk's piano lines and creates a magical sense of juxtaposition and fluidity, but is still nicely earthy and soulful as well! Titles include "Criss Cross", "Think Of One", "Eronel", "Hackensack", "Rhythm-a-Ning", and "Crepuscule With Nellie". LP, Vinyl record album

A never-issued performance of this classic tune from the Thelonious Monk songbook – recorded for Danish Radio in 1963, and played by the legendary quartet that featured Charlie Rouse on tenor sax, John Ore on bass, and Frankie Dunlop on drums! The quality is right up there with some of the live material that Columbia has unearthed in recent decades – and Rouse takes a great solo that's worth the price of the single alone! 7-inch, Vinyl record

A rare early moment from the legendary Austrian group Paternoster – sounds that predate their one and only cult-status album – originally created for the equally legendary film, Die Ersten Tage! The music here was never issued commercially at the time – and the release of these sounds adds a much-needed page to the slim book of Paternoster – especially since the creative flair of these songs really fleshes out our understanding of the group! As with their vocal music, most of the style here is slow, but jamming – kind of mellow prog, almost – but lighter, too – and with a moodier vibe, given the absence of lyrics – which lets the offbeat guitar parts do most of the speaking for the group. The whole thing's fragile, yet jagged – earthy, but cosmic – and the set features 30 tracks in all, appearing here on record for the first time ever! LP, Vinyl record album

A German group, but one who've got a sweet, sunny sound that would have been right at home in the Cali scene of the 70s! The harmonies on the record alone are great – right up there with America or CSN – and the instrumentation has slight jazzy currents, with a blend of acoustic guitar, flute, percussion, and other electric instrumentation – delivered in a style that's tight, but never commercial or overproduced – which is really the charm of the album! If these guys were working in LA, no doubt a bigger label would have mucked things up with too much polish for the charts – but instead, the record has this down to earth quality that makes the tightness seem even more appealing. Tracks include "Natures Melody", "Tears Take It Away", "Expression Of Feeling", "Upside Down", "Like A Ship On The Water", and "Out On the Road". LP, Vinyl record album

The last-ever album from the legendary Lou Reed – and a set that's completely different from the sounds he gave the world in the Velvet Underground, and on most of his solo work in recent decades too! The music is spare and ambient, and very much lives up to the "meditations" in the title – inspired strongly by Lou's love of Tai Chi, but also delivered with a quality that echoes a lot of the ambient work of Brian Eno too! There's a great sense of texture and tone here – really slow-building, quiet-shifting sound that has this really subtle, almost earthy power – definitely music that is designed to alter the body and mind, but in very peaceful ways. Titles include "Move Your Heart", "Find Your Note", "Wind Coda", and "Hudson River Wind". LP, Vinyl record album

Eight Atlantic albums, and The Spinners are still going strong – sounding really wonderful here, thanks to Philly backings from the great Thom Bell! The album's not filled with hits, but that's a big part of its charm – as the group still sounds great, with smoother than smooth vocals – and the tunes move nicely between the soaring style the group discovered in Philly, and some of the mellower moments we've grown to like even more in their work over the years. Most players are Sigma Sound regulars, and titles include "I'm Tired Of Giving", "You Got The Love That I Need", "Painted Magic", "Easy Come Easy Go", "Love Is One Step Away", "Back In The Arms Of Love", and "Heaven On Earth". LP, Vinyl record album

Stanley blows it sweet, mellow, and soulfully – in this wonderful post-CTI session from the 70s! The set features some swirling larger arrangements from Gene Page – done with a bit of the CTI sound lurking in the mix, but also a more complicated groove that almost takes on soundtrack-like proportions at times – a warmly-flowing groove that's lush without being soppy, and which really sets Turrentine up nicely for some sophisticated, mature solos on tenor. Stan's got some great company on the record – including Patrice Rushen on keyboards, David T Walker on guitar, and Freddie Hubbard on trumpet – and although the set's laidback, it's a lot more soulful than you might think – almost like a hip mellow soul set from the time, but with tenor instead of vocals. Includes covers of the Earth Wind & Fire tunes "Reasons" and "That's The Way Of The World", plus the tracks "Touching You", "T's Dream", and "Have You Ever Seen The Rain". LP, Vinyl record album

The Vaqueros created music hundreds of miles from the ocean – working in the Twin Cities in the 60s – but that didn't stop them from creating some mighty nice surf numbers at the time, which were then mixed with more rocking numbers that sported a very cool female singer in the lead! That singer is Linda Anderson, who's almost got a rockabilly inspiration, but a few years too late – a style that makes for a really unique combination with the excellent surf-styled guitar work of the group – who shine equally well on their own when Linda's not in the lead! The tracks here were all unearthed from the Kay Bank archives – and titles include "Growing Pains", "69", "Don't You Dare", "80 Foot Wave", "Space Journey Ranger 7", "Birds & The Bees", "Island In Paradise", and "Soft Summer Rain". LP, Vinyl record album

Really beautiful sounds from bassist David Wertman – an unsung hero of the late 70s spiritual jazz scene around New England, and one who delivers this gem in close partnership with singer Lynne Meryl! Meryl's got this warm, fluid style that's a lot like the way that some of the better Bay Area groups were using jazz vocals a few years before – a mode inspired by overseas singers like Flora Purim or Urzula Dudziak, but used here alongside soulful instrumentation that draws a lot from the more inside currents of the loft jazz scene! Wertman's bass is at the core, and tremendous throughout – full of fire and force, and sometimes matched with a bit of percussion – a musical force that's handled here more fully by Tony Vacca, who employs a range of instruments – next to piano and prepared piano from Tom McClung, and these strong trombone solos from Tim Atherton – a player who really sends the whole thing over the top with his contributions! Most tracks have a great modal groove – and titles include "Forest Dance", "Camel", "Flute Song", "New Earth", "Sing My Love Song", and "Dance Of The Mideast Madness". This expanded edition brings in more rare cuts from other releases – eight bonus tracks that include "How Come", "Up In The Sky", "Sci Fi Fantasy", "Blessing Of Love", "Golden Light", and "You Are My Love". LP, Vinyl record album

The rarest of all of Art Blakey's percussion group projects – and quite possibly the best, too! The session features Blakey at the head of a strong mix of jazz and percussion players – with Art Taylor and Philly Joe Jones on the regular drum kit, Donald Byrd on trumpet and Ray Bryant on piano, and a host of assorted percussion work by the likes of Ray Barretto, Sabu Martinez, Victor Gonzalez, Julio Martinez, and others. The resultant sound is incredible – very full, rich, and earthy – and done in a way that interweaves African and Latin percussion styles with straighter American jazz! A few cuts have chanting by Blakey and Sabu – and titles on this first volume include "The Feast", "Mirage", "Lamento Africano", and "Aghano". LP, Vinyl record album

A late 70s return to glory for the Captain – and a set that has a bit of a checkered path, in that it was originally done for Frank Zappa's Discreet label as the album Bat Chain Puller – then was held back, and mostly re-recorded for this seminal release on Warner Brothers! The set shows all the grown that Don Van Vliet had undergone during the decade – and also echoes his previous collaboration with Zappa – served up with instrumentation that is wonderfully complex, but still quite personal and earthy – a blend of composition, improvisation, and individuality that almost has Beefheart rivaling the work of Hermeto Pascoal during the decade, yet in a very different mode – given his vocal styles and occasional spoken musings! The Cap sings, plays harmonica, and blows soprano sax – alongside Jeff Moris Tepper on slide guitar and spell guitar, Bruce Lambourne Fowler on trombone, Eric Drew Friedman on Fender Rhodes and bass, Art Tripp III on marimba and percussion, Robert Arthur Williams on drums, and Richard Redus on slide guitar, bottleneck guitar, fretless bass, accordion, and guitar. Tracks include "The Floppy Boot Stomp", "Ice Rose", "Bat Chain Puller", "Candle Mambo", "Love Lies", and "Suction Prints". LP, Vinyl record album

The future is now! Or at least it seemed to be back in 1983 when Herbie teamed up with Bill Laswell to record this classic album of computer-driven keyboard grooves! Whatever you might think of the music, the record was a genius move for Herbie – who was kind of flopping around in a number of different styles on previous albums, most of which we like, but none of which seemed to earn him the same cred as his albums in the 70s. Well this one not only earned him plenty of cred, but also a lot of cash, and continued assurance to Columbia that their contract with Herbie was well-placed – and it certainly cast Bill Laswell into the spotlight as well, given that his efforts really provided the core of the album. Tracks include "Rockit", "Earth Beat", "Future Shock", "Autodrive", and "Rough". LP, Vinyl record album

Very spacey work from Mahavishnu Orchestra – a set that continues the change in sound explored by the second incarnation of the group – one that's much more spacious than the first! The group here is somewhat large, but often comes off with a good sense of leanness at times – less of the notes-on-notes jams of rockish fusion, and more stretched-out spiritual modes, mixed with a slight dose of funk at just the right moments! John McLaughlin's in the lead on guitar, and other players include Gayle Moran on keyboards, Jean-Luc Ponty on electric violin, and Narada Michael Waldon on drums, percussion, clavinet, and vocals. Titles include "Eternity's Breath", "Lile's Dance", "Can't Stand Your Funk", "Earth Ship", "Be Happy", "Opus 1", and "Pegasus". LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent set of smooth funky fusion tunes cut by Brazilian trumpeter Marcio Montarroyos – done in a style that's partly like some of Freddie Hubbard's albums of the sort, but which also has a mixture of Brazilian percussion and electronic touches – similar to early 80s work by Azymuth! The blend of styles is a great one – making things darker than you'd think for an album on Columbia a the time, and creating a nice juxtaposition between the earthy and the smooth that really keeps things fresh! Titles include "Christina", "Samba Solstice", "Sky Dive", "Ocean Dance", and "Aruanda". LP, Vinyl record album

Some of the most unusual Sun Ra material of the 80s – a series of performances done with the Outer Space Visual Communicator – a unique instrument that mixed light and music together, and created a very trippy experience for both the Arkestra and the audience! Most of these tracks have never been heard before – only two have appeared on a video – and together, they showcase a really unique experiment for Ra – which is really saying something, given how experimental Sun Ra could be with his music! The package was put together in collaboration with the inventor of the OVC, and titles include "Calling Planet Earth", "Sunset On The Nile", "Love In Outer Space", "Theme Of The Stargazers", "East Of The Sun", "Saturn Rings", and "El Is A Sound Of Joy" – plus a very long take of "Discipline 27-II". LP, Vinyl record album

A soaring stormer from T-Connection – and a set that has them sounding even better than before! There's a perfection here the group didn't have with earlier releases – a quality that goes way past indie funk ensemble, into the realm of some of the best mainstream acts on the bigger labels at the time – company shared by a rare few, like Earth Wind & Fire, Ohio Players, or the Bar-Kays! Things are every bit as funky as before – but there's a way of putting the tunes together that really blows us away – fusing all the elements together perfectly, and making everything work towards the groove – yet all without making anything sound too slick or polished either. Mighty nice all the way through – and titles include "Funky Lady", "Don't Stop The Music", "Funkannection", "Saturday Night", "At Midnight", and "Love Supreme". LP, Vinyl record album

We love this record! Although Gato Barbieri has put out a few snoozers in his career, this amazing first chapter of his Latin venture for Impulse is an incredible record throughout – one of the greatest Impulse sessions of the 70s! Gato returns to his native Argentina for the session – and works with a collective of musicians in Buenos Aires to create a sound that's a startling blend of Latin rhythms and post-Coltrane freeness. Barbieri's tone is amazing, and has a rich Pharoah Sanders-ish spirituality to it – soaring out over acoustic percussion and Latin rhythms with an earthy, organic sound that's completely wonderful! Titles include "Encuentros", "India", "Nunca Mas", and the fantastic "To Be Continued". LP, Vinyl record album

A nice lean set from Barclay James Harvest – a record that gets more to the core of their sound after the larger arrangements of some of their albums for Harvest Records – in a way that also seems to bring out more of an edge in their songwriting, too! The shift is somewhat subtle, but effective – as the quartet manage to find ways to make simple guitar and keyboard lines come across with this flowing vibe that often makes the sum sound way more than its parts – especially when set to the inventive themes covered by some of the album's lyrical topics! The drums are great, too – seemingly stronger than before – and titles include "Negative Earth", "Paper Wings", "The Great 1974 Mining Disaster", "Mill Boys", "Poor Boy Blues", and "Child Of The Universe". LP, Vinyl record album

A great collection of earlier compositions by Cage – most of which we prefer to later work, because of their striking and bracing approach to the music. Titles include "She Is Asleep", a duet for voice & prepared piano, "A Room", for prepared piano, "Two Pastorales", for prepared piano, "Seven Haiku", for prepared piano, "And The Earth Shall Bear Again", for prepared piano. Joshua Pierce plays piano – and the prepared piano sides sound great! LP, Vinyl record album

The legendary debut of Bobby Caldwell – a blue-eyed soul singer who borrowed just the right amounts from AOR and R&B! Bobby's got a voice that's really great, and wrapped up warmly amidst keyboards and larger arrangements that all come across with a very cool compressed style – almost as if Caldwell discovered that midtempo and mellow style on some of the Earth Wind & Fire albums from a few years before, and used it as inspiration to craft a classic groove that's very much his own! The set features Bobby's huge classic "What You Won't Do For Love" – but the whole album's great, and other titles include "Special To Me", "Can't Say Goodbye", "My Flame", "Love Won't Wait", "Come To Me", "Down For The Third Time", "Take Me Back To Then" and "Kalimba Song", another nod to Maurice White and crew, to be sure! LP, Vinyl record album

A record that's maybe as famous for its cover art, done by comic legend Neal Adams, as it is for the music of The Groundhogs – who are really moving away here from the more blues-based work of their roots! The great Tony McPhee is on vocals and guitar, and also uses mellotron and harmonium in some really wonderful ways – and the sound here really has the group soaring with the sort of super-powered energy you might guess from the cover – a case of a British group tipping over nicely past their original inspirations, and finding a way to make hard rock magic that's very much all their own! Titles include "Wages Of Peace", "Music Is The Food Of Thought", "Bog Roll Blues", "The Grey Maze", "Earth Is Not Room Enough", and "Body In Mind". LP, Vinyl record album

Mad mad sound library work from Giulia De Muittis – best known as the female voice on the big Italian soundtrack hit "Mah-Na Mah-Nah", and also the wife of famous film score talent Alessandro Alessandroni – although an artist here with a sound that's definitely all her own! The music mixes up elements that are both primitive and modern, acoustic and electric – all to create a vibe that's as if they were scored for a film in which aliens came to earth and interacted with a prehistoric society! Some tracks are heavily percussive – almost Moondog in nature – others have more of a groovy Italian sound library vibe, but towards the more experimental side of the spectrum – although always tuneful, and never too outside. This package is the first to focus on Giulia's overlooked contributions – and will hopefully put her at the same level as Delia Derbyshire in the history books – and the whole thing was done by Andy Votel, who also supplied the notes – with titles that include "Iquitos", "Saltillo", "Azebajan", "Soledad", "Campeche", "Hamadan", and "Cuenca". LP, Vinyl record album

A super-huge album for Kool & The Gang – and for good reason too! The set features their massive hit "Celebration" – a cut that firmly planted the group in the mainstream, and which keeps getting countless play over the decades – probably still earning them a fortune in royalties year after year from wedding bands alone! The group's got some great help on the record from Deodato – the Brazilian keyboardist who scored big with his own records in the 70s – and who's working here to arrange, conduct, and produced the album with a sweet jazzy finish! In a way, it's Deodato's ear for a great warm groove that really seems to make the set sparkle – giving it a strong soul sound, even with tighter production – still somewhat down to earth, despite its hit status – that core quality that's always made Kool & The Gang so great! Apart from "Celebration", other tracks include "Jones Vs Jones", "Love Festival", "Love Affair", "Night People", and "Morning Star". LP, Vinyl record album

Incredible early work from Willie Nelson – quite different from his outlaw material of the 70s, but equally compelling in its own sort of way! As you'd guess from the title and cover, the set came out at a time when Willie was a real up-and-coming songwriting in country music – responsible for hits for artists like Faron Young, Patsy Cline, and others – and finally given the chance to start as a singer on his own. Willie's style is as amazing as his songs – very different than the mainstream, and often inflected with plenty of jazz – which, for some odd reason, as wonderful as it sounds, is what also kept Nelson away from stardom for most of the 60s. Yet don't let that put you off at all, as the presentation of the material is sublime – completely personal, almost heartbreaking, and still with all those charms that most of the rest of the world didn't discover with Willie for another decade or so. Titles include "Funny How Time Slips Away", "Crazy", "Mr Record Man", "One Step Beyond", "Wake Me When It's Over", "The Part Where I Cry", "Hello Walls", and "Darkness On The Face Of The Earth". LP, Vinyl record album

The last-ever album from the legendary Lou Reed – and a set that's completely different from the sounds he gave the world in the Velvet Underground, and on most of his solo work in recent decades too! The music is spare and ambient, and very much lives up to the "meditations" in the title – inspired strongly by Lou's love of Tai Chi, but also delivered with a quality that echoes a lot of the ambient work of Brian Eno too! There's a great sense of texture and tone here – really slow-building, quiet-shifting sound that has this really subtle, almost earthy power – definitely music that is designed to alter the body and mind, but in very peaceful ways. Titles include "Move Your Heart", "Find Your Note", "Wind Coda", and "Hudson River Wind". LP, Vinyl record album

An overlooked gem from Pharoah Sanders' years on Impulse – one that has him breaking the pattern a bit, but in a really great way! The session mixes up more shorter songs than before – still all quite spiritual, but also a bit more focused – in a way that packs an incredible punch, even at more contemplative moments. Players include Sanders regulars – like Norman Connors on drums and Cecil McBee on bass – but also some key newcomers, like Art Webb on flute, Joe Bonner on piano, and Jimmy Hopps on drums – making one of his excellent Impulse appearances for the record. But perhaps even more striking are the vocals on the set – done often by Sedatrius Brown, who sings partially in a Leon Thomas spiritual mode – but also hits notes that are a bit earthier, and which are picked up in added vocalizations by members of the group. Sanders himself plays soprano and tenor sax – and titles include the expanded "Village Of The Pharoahs" suite, plus "Went Like It Came", "Memories Of Lee Morgan", "Myth", and "Mansion Worlds". LP, Vinyl record album

Trumpeter Louis Smith made only two records for Blue Note, but both of them are great! This set's arguably his most famous – because of a rare uncredited appearance by Cannonball Adderley, working here under the "nom de date" of "Buckshot La Funke" – and blowing with a power that beats most of his other Mercury sessions of the late 50s! But the real credit here should go to Louis Smith – who's got a sense of power and command that should have made him one of THE trumpeters of the 50s – an emerging young talent to stand alongside Lee Morgan, Nat Adderley, and other post-Fats Navarro/Clifford Brown talents on the instrument. Smith sparkles throughout with a mix of soul and modernism we really love – and an earthy way of blowing the horn that doesn't always reach its goals, but which draws even more energy from its ability to try! The rhythm section on the album's also very tight – with Art Taylor on drums, Doug Watkins on bass, and either Tommy Flanagan or Duke Jordan on piano – and tracks include "Ande", "Brill's Blues", "South Side", and "Val's Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

An incredibly evocative record – one of the strangest of its kind, and an audio treasure that we've loved for years! Eden Ahbez first came into public prominence as the man who wrote "Nature Boy" for Nat King Cole – a dark, moody tune that was as mysterious and earthy as the man who wrote it! This album was recorded nearly a decade after Cole's original hit, and features Ahbez almost in Moondog-like territory – working in an amazing setting of odd instruments and exotic percussion – but also singing in this almost spiritualist kind of way! The record's got plenty of ties to the exotica scene of the late 50s – but also stand out from the pack with a mad vision that's all its own – a strange intersection of lines that one might draw between Moondog, Martin Denny, and Anton La Vey! Tracks include "The Wanderer", "Eden's Island", "Tradewind", "Full Moon", "Mongoose", "Market Place", "The Old Boat", "Island Girl" and "La Mar". Great expanded package – with bonus tracks that include the unreleased "Surf Rider", plus "The Wanderer (alt)", "Tobago (45 rpm mix)", "Jam Session 78", "India (demo)", "Big Square From Nowhere", and "The Planet Song". Also includes related tracks "Sahara" by Bob Romeo, "Song Of The Fool" by The Crew Cuts, "End Of Desire" by Jack Powers, "The Shepherd" by Herb Jeffries, "Hey Jacque" by The Mt Holyoke V8s, "Monterey (alt version)" by John Harris, "Big Rock Steam Roller" by Biggie McFadden, "Green Flamingo" by Robbie Lester, and "Lonely Island" by Gene Chandler. LP, Vinyl record album

The rarest of all of Art Blakey's percussion group projects – and quite possibly the best, too! The session features Blakey at the head of a strong mix of jazz and percussion players – with Art Taylor and Philly Joe Jones on the regular drum kit, Donald Byrd on trumpet and Ray Bryant on piano, and a host of assorted percussion work by the likes of Ray Barretto, Sabu Martinez, Victor Gonzalez, Julio Martinez, and others. The resultant sound is incredible – very full, rich, and earthy – and done in a way that interweaves African and Latin percussion styles with straighter American jazz! A few cuts have chanting by Blakey and Sabu – and titles on this second volume include "Otinde", "Swingin Kilts", "Dinga", and "Reflection". LP, Vinyl record album

A late 70s return to glory for the Captain – and a set that has a bit of a checkered path, in that it was originally done for Frank Zappa's Discreet label as the album Bat Chain Puller – then was held back, and mostly re-recorded for this seminal release on Warner Brothers! The set shows all the grown that Don Van Vliet had undergone during the decade – and also echoes his previous collaboration with Zappa – served up with instrumentation that is wonderfully complex, but still quite personal and earthy – a blend of composition, improvisation, and individuality that almost has Beefheart rivaling the work of Hermeto Pascoal during the decade, yet in a very different mode – given his vocal styles and occasional spoken musings! The Cap sings, plays harmonica, and blows soprano sax – alongside Jeff Moris Tepper on slide guitar and spell guitar, Bruce Lambourne Fowler on trombone, Eric Drew Friedman on Fender Rhodes and bass, Art Tripp III on marimba and percussion, Robert Arthur Williams on drums, and Richard Redus on slide guitar, bottleneck guitar, fretless bass, accordion, and guitar. Tracks include "The Floppy Boot Stomp", "Ice Rose", "Bat Chain Puller", "Candle Mambo", "Love Lies", and "Suction Prints". This 2LP version features a full bonus record of rare material – including "Love Lies (demo)", "Harry Irene (rough mix)", "Witch Doctor Life (demo)", "Brickbats (inst rough mix)", "Suction Prints (inst demo)", "You Know You're A Man (inst alt version)", and "When I See Mommy I Feel Like A Mummy (demo)". LP, Vinyl record album

Swirling spiritual work from Alice Coltrane – an incredible trio album that features her heavily on harp, plus a bit of piano – in a trio with Ron Carter on bass and Rashied Ali on drums! The sound is wonderful – lush, yet contemplative – in a personal style that really shows Alice beginning to express herself in new modes after the death of The Great One. The us of harp is especially incredible – handled here with a sense of majesty that really leaves us breathless, and which goes far beyond other use of that instrument in jazz. And even Alice's piano is surprisingly nice – with these mellow, earthy undertones that bubble at the bottom and ground the whole effort on earthly territory. Titles include "Turiya", "HIS", "Jaya Jaya Rama", and "Via Sivanadagar". LP, Vinyl record album

A gem of a record from the Japanese scene of the early 70s – and one that's very different than most of the other work at the time – maybe more influenced by some of the more thoughtful, creative developments in British music in the post-Beatles years – and delivered in this mix of acoustic instrumentation, larger orchestrations, and really beautiful, personal touches on the vocals! The mix of modes going on here is almost like solo Paul McCartney – and Yoki Hinohara's got an equally great way of mixing melodic elements with occasional earthier elements – all in a way that delivers a heck of a lot of feeling, even if you can't understand the Japanese lyrics of the tunes. LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful sounds from Hypnotic Brass Ensemble – a group who've matured tremendously in the time that they've been giving us music – and who almost seem ready here to take on the legacy of their musical father – the late Kelan Phil Cohran! There's a complexity to the horn work here that's even deeper than before – amazing tones and textures from trumpets, trombones, euphonium, and sousaphone – all balanced with these sonic currents on guitar, bass, and electronics – instruments used in subtle ways, but to strongly shape the brass elements with maybe more spiritual overtones than in previous years – almost as if the group is growing, and getting even more serious about their message – with echoes that stretch back to the work of Cohran, and maybe Sun Ra's Arkestra, the world of Strata East, and even the tonal colors of Oliver Nelson at his best. Titles include "Heaven & Earth", "Midnight", "Now", "Morning Prayer", "Purple Afternoon", "Lead The Way", "Synapsis", "Royalty", "Solstice", and "Sri Neroti". LP, Vinyl record album

Way more than just a "boogie" album – as you might think from the title – and much more a hard-hitting batch of funky tunes, mixed with some even cooler laidback numbers! The album follows heavily off the style of Wild & Peaceful – mixing together the group's older crack rhythms with some newer, hipper, jazzier inflections – making for an incredibly powerful sound that really opens them up. Titles include the massively funky "Jungle Jazz" – a jazzy follow up to "Jungle Boogie" – plus some spiritual numbers that have a cosmic soul jazzy feel, like the tracks "Cosmic Energy", "Ancestral Ceremony", and "Winter Sadness". The whole thing's great – and other titles include "Mother Earth", "Caribbean Festival", and "Ride The Rhythm". LP, Vinyl record album

Completely killer work from Frankie Beverly & Maze – captured here at the height of their power, with that amazing blend of Frankie's lead vocals and the group's tight instrumentation – all at a level that so many others tried to copy, but never got this right! The sense of unity in the title really comes through in the music – a proud, progressive approach to contemporary R&B that always made Maze one of the more positive acts of their time – even if the message was played in a more subtle way than earlier groups in the 70s. At some level, Maze are picking up the torch that Earth Wind & Fire were dropping a bit by this point – but with an even more charismatic singer in the lead – and just the right blend of acoustic and electric elements in the instrumentation. The whole thing's wonderful – and titles include "I Wanna Thank You", "Love Is The Key", "We Are One", "Right On Time", "Never Let You Down", and "Metropolis". LP, Vinyl record album

Nirvana's lean, economical predecessor to Nevermind – an album that's plenty earthshaking in its own right – the mean, metallic Bleach LP! If you weren't around and listening to underground rock in 1989, it's tough to impart how unique Nirvana was at the time – there weren't a lot of rock bands playing this kind of ferocious, pummeling music that married metal's volume and intensity with college rock's artfulness. Good stuff, this. Titles include "Blew", "Floyd The Barber", "About A Girl", "Negative Creep", "Mr Moustache", "Big Cheese", "Downer", "Scoft", "Love Buzz" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Nirvana's lean, economical predecessor to Nevermind – an album that's plenty earthshaking in its own right – the mean, metallic Bleach LP! If you weren't around and listening to underground rock in 1989, it's tough to impart how unique Nirvana was at the time – there weren't a lot of rock bands playing this kind of ferocious, pummeling music that married metal's volume and intensity with college rock's artfulness. Good stuff, this. Titles include "Blew", "Floyd The Barber", "About A Girl", "Negative Creep", "Mr Moustache", "Big Cheese", "Downer", "Scoft", "Love Buzz" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

A breakout record that forever put Wilson Pickett at the top of the heap for mainstream 60s soul – thanks to the oft-covered, endlessly played "Mustang Sally" single that leads off the set! And although the groove established by that track helped Pickett establish an audience on both sides of the fence, the full album itself is much deeper stuff – a searing album of southern-styled soul recorded with some great Muscle Shoals production – Rick Hall and Tom Dowd at the helm – and key session players who include Charlie Chalmers, Chips Moman, Tommy Cogbill, Spooner Oldham, and Roger Hawkins – all of whom help give the record the intimate, earthy feeling that helped Pickett step out with a stronger sound than earlier recordings. (And in fact, this album's perhaps a key pre-Aretha Franklin example of the way that Atlantic's vision could majestically change the sound of an already-known soul artist – bringing them far deeper than ever before.) Titles include "Mustang Sally", "Everybody Needs Somebody To Love", "Nothing You Can Do", "Three Time Loser", "Sunny", "She Ain't Gonna Do Right", "Knock On Wood", "Time Is On My Side", and "You Left The Water Running". LP, Vinyl record album

An early one from Waits – his second album – and it's a great one! Like a lot of his early oeuvre, this is a kind of like a street-savvy, hipster cabaret affair, with less of the eccentricity that would reveal itself later in his career. Still a great record though, rendered with a Bukowski-esque salt of the earth palette. Includes "Fumblin' With The Blues", "Please Call Me, Baby", "Diamonds On My Windshield", "New Coat Of Paint", "The Heart Of Saturday Night", "Drunk On The Moon", "Shiver Me Timbers", "San Diego Serenade", "Semi Suite", "Depot, Depot", and "The Ghosts Of Saturday Night (After Hours At Napoleone's Pizza House)". LP, Vinyl record album

Amazing work from violinist Michael White – one of a few that he cut for the Impulse label in the early 70s, all of which helped to completely redefine the use of his instrument in jazz! Throw away any sleepy connotations you may have about the violin, because in White's hands it's an instrument of soul and spirit – one used to unlock cosmic tones that glide effortlessly next to the session's earthy blend of piano, bass, and percussion! White shapes his sounds beautifully for the session – breaking the violin free of any staid European-bound traditions – and using the instrument as a key part of the new tradition of African American expression explored by Leroy Jenkins, Billy Bang, and others. Side one features the extended "Pneuma" suite – a long, exploratory track that sounds a bit like some of Leroy Jenkins work at the time – and side two tightens things up with some shorter, groovier numbers that often also feature vocals! Our favorite is the anthemic vocal number "Journey Of The Black Star" – a skipping, joyful ode that's really great – and other tunes include soulful tracks "The Blessing Song" and "Ebony Plaza", both of which have that warm post-Shepp Impulse glow to them! LP, Vinyl record album

About as archetypal as you can get for a Christmas collection – but isn't that what the holiday's all about? The album's filled with classics from years back – including "Rockin Around The Christmas Tree" by Brenda Lee, "Jingle Bell Rock" by Bobby Helms, "All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth" by Spike Jones, "Do You Hear What I Hear" by Bing Crosby, "Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer" by Gene Autry, and "Santa Baby" by Eartha Kitt. LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing compilation – a decade in the making, and filled with wonderful grooves – most of which have never appeared on CD or LP reissues! The set's based around the groundbreaking series of Soul Cal 12" reissues put together by Stones Throw about a decade ago – wonderful records that unearthed rare grooves that fall beautifully in a space between funk and club – almost all originally issued on tiny little labels from all over the US, but working together to create a rich vibe in the set. Titles include "Ecology" by Anubis, "You Can Be A Star" by Luther Davis, "Don't Get Discouraged" by UPC All Stars, "Things Cannot Stop Forever" by Stanton Davis, "Free Your Mind" by Record Player, "Get Down" by Freedom Express, "Keep Running Away" by Clifford Nyren, "Love Is" by Leon Mitchison & The Eastex Freeway Band, "What It Takes To Live" by Key & Cleary, "I'm Gonna Miss You Girl" by Ellis & Cephas, "It's A Bad Feeling" by Mixed Sugar, and "Put A Smile On Time" by Rhythm Machine. LP, Vinyl record album

An incredibly evocative record – one of the strangest of its kind, and an audio treasure that we've loved for years! Eden Ahbez first came into public prominence as the man who wrote "Nature Boy" for Nat King Cole – a dark, moody tune that was as mysterious and earthy as the man who wrote it! This album was recorded nearly a decade after Cole's original hit, and features Ahbez almost in Moondog-like territory – working in an amazing setting of odd instruments and exotic percussion – but also singing in this almost spiritualist kind of way! The record's got plenty of ties to the exotica scene of the late 50s – but also stand out from the pack with a mad vision that's all its own – a strange intersection of lines that one might draw between Moondog, Martin Denny, and Anton La Vey! Tracks include "The Wanderer", "Eden's Island", "Tradewind", "Full Moon", "Mongoose", "Market Place", "The Old Boat", "Island Girl" and "La Mar". Great expanded package – with bonus tracks that include the unreleased "Surf Rider", plus "The Wanderer (alt)", "Tobago (45 rpm mix)", "Jam Session 78", "India (demo)", "Big Square From Nowhere", and "The Planet Song". Also includes related tracks "Sahara" by Bob Romeo, "Song Of The Fool" by The Crew Cuts, "End Of Desire" by Jack Powers, "The Shepherd" by Herb Jeffries, "Hey Jacque" by The Mt Holyoke V8s, "Monterey (alt version)" by John Harris, "Big Rock Steam Roller" by Biggie McFadden, "Green Flamingo" by Robbie Lester, and "Lonely Island" by Gene Chandler. LP, Vinyl record album

A contemporary set, but one that sparkles with all the best brilliance of the 70s scene in Brazil – and that includes such heady company as Marcos Valle, Azymuth, and Joao Donato! As with all those artists at the time, Lucas Arruda has a groove that's strongly based on Fender Rhodes – warm keys that are underscored with some great acoustic percussion that gives the whole thing an earthy core at the bottom, and a vibe that's quite different than any American fusion of the time! The music is completely sublime throughout – very jazzy in its inflections, but also with a more freewheeling approach – as you'd hear on classic keys from Jose Roberto Bertrami. The set's got a bit of vocals, but really focuses on the keyboards – and titles include "Physis", "Rio Afternoon", "Batuque", "Alma Nova", "Sambadi", "Carnival", and a sweet cover of "Who's That Lady". LP, Vinyl record album

The insane debut of Big Stick – a record that came out around the same time that Sonic Youth were really taking off, and Pussy Galore were first getting their feet wet – and a set that's as equally noise-filled as the early work of both! The group are a duo – John Gill on guitar and Yanna Trance on drum machine – and the sound is very spare, but very noisy – heavy beats that are almost hip hop meets industrial – colored with lots of freaky, fuzzy guitar lines – and topped with lyrics that have this offbeat sense of wit – all with an approach that's in that mid-80s moment when underground music and performance art were somewhat comfortable bedfellows. Titles include "Shoot The President", "Drag Racing", "I Look Like Shit", "Hell On Earth", and "Jesus Was Born (On An Indian Reservation)" 12-inch, Vinyl record

An incredible album of electronic music – and one that definitely lives up to its title, as every selection is played live – quite a unique thing as the set was recorded at a time when programming was really beginning to take hold! In a way, Jeff Carney is evoking that first great moment when more expensive electronics were able to get in the hands of more homegrown musicians – using technology that was previously the stuff of academic labs, but in ways that were much more down to earth! You can definitely feel that vibe here – as Carney works magic at a level that has us imagining him just sitting alone in the echoey space of recording – revelling in each new fingertouch on the keyboards – as he spins out the long tracks "Questions Unanswered", "Arp 2600 Improvisations", and "Pensive Mood". LP, Vinyl record album

Fantastic work from the team of Dave Baker and Ansel Collins – one a soulful singer from the Jamaican rocksteady scene, the other a hip keyboardist whose organ lines really make the album shimmer! The pair scored a huge international hit with this album – and the whole thing was a key crossover record in the years before Island Records and some of the bigger reggae artists to come! There's a raw, earthy vibe to the whole thing – and a heck of a groove too – and titles include "Double Barrel", "Wild Bunch", "Monkey Spanner Version", "Secret Weapon", "Impossible Mission", and "Ten To One". LP, Vinyl record album

A great little modern soul group, and one who've got a style that's all their own – maybe one that comes from their mix of St Louis roots and the California release of this rare debut album – a set that showcases that blend with organ from the mighty Oliver Sain, and bass from Headhunter Paul Jackson! The tunes are well-crafted – tight, but never commercial – and the vocals are a mix of message-oriented, uplifting lyrics with a few mellower, more personal moments – all delivered with a very down to earth style that's nicely different from the slicker modes of so many singers on soul records at the end of the 70s. At times, there's almost a sense of honest that recalls the best indie work on the east coast in the early part of the decade – and titles include "Together We Stand", "Pushin To The Top", "I've Been A Good Man", "You Don't Even Know My Name", "Big City", and "This Ain't Livin". LP, Vinyl record album

Great later work from The Paragons – the Jamaican vocal group who are probably best-remembered for their early work in the rocksteady years, but who here deliver a well-crafted batch of roots reggae material, all under the production genius of Bunny Lee! The set's laidback in all the right ways – with gentle grooves from The Agrovators, who capture some of the mellower modes of the early years – while updating the sound with more righteous elements that bring a very different vibe to the sweeter soul vocals! The themes are nicely different than before, too – and titles include "That All I Want", "Come A Little Closer", "A Place Called Zion", "Heaven & Earth", "Positive Movements", "Life Spoilers", and "Dirty Streets". LP, Vinyl record album

The first really major album from Rare Earth – issued on their own self-named subsidiary of Motown! The set's a perfect blend of the rich undercurrents of the heady Detroit scene of the late 60s – at one level a tripped-out rock record with styles that almost hint at MC5, at another level a batch of blue-eyed funky soul, with keen appreciation for the grooves coming out of the headier end of the Motor City indie spectrum! There's lots of tripped-out guitar work on the set – reminiscent of contemporary work by Dennis Coffey and George Clinton – mixed with a Mitch Ryder, R&B-inspired vocal style that actually comes across pretty darn well. Added to this is the group's flat-out ability to jam – showcased best in the side-long title cut "Get Ready" – a massive jammer which runs for nearly 22 minutes, and takes up all of side two! Other tracks include "Train To Nowhere", "Magic Key", "Tobacco Road", and "In Bed". LP, Vinyl record album

... 12-inch, Vinyl record

Fantastic stuff through and through – and almost a "best of" best of collection from the 70s! The album's a key illustration of the genius of Earth Wind & Fire on Columbia Records – because by the time the set was released in 1978, most of the tracks were already well-known hits – but still had a soulful power and righteous undercurrent that few other chart acts could match. Maurice White, Charles Stepney, and the others have a perfect way of holding onto their deepest inspirations while honing their sills in the studio – and the results of that commitment are heard beautifully on tracks that include "Got To Get You Into My Life", "Shining Star", "Getaway", "Can't Hide Love", "Fantasy", "Reasons", "September", and "That's The Way Of The World". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album