A timeless jangly country rock album from a band that didn't sound like it was setting out to reinvent the wheel, even if they ultimately almost did! At the time, pressure was pretty high to live up the preceding legacy of the Uncle Tupelo and contemporaneous debut of Son Volt, but in hindsight, this is just a straight up, no bs, solid, tuneful batch of songs that don't sound at first like they're among best of their kind until you realize you're humming and singing them to yourself days, years and decades later! Includes "I Must Be High", "I Thought I Held You", "Dash 7", "Blue Eyed Soul", "Shouldn't Be Ashamed", "It's Just That Simple", "Casino Queen" and more. CD

Seminal work from Wilco – one of those key records where they were firmly establishing themselves as one of the most solid, complete bands of their generation – maybe hitting instant classic status with an album like this! The set's both very contemporary and true to their roots – the kind of set you'd swear you heard on AM radio back in the 70s, but which never would have gotten played back then – thanks to the ever-sharpening songwriting skills of Jeff Tweedy, and the overall musicianship and production skills of the group. Titles include "Walken", "Leave Me Like You Found Me", "Either Way", "You Are My Face", "Impossible Germany", "Side With The Seeds", "Please Be Patient With Me", "Hate It Here", and "On & On & On". CD

A wonderfully weird record from the mighty Mason Williams – a set that's filled with lots of cool little surprises at each new twist and turn – yet which also comes across with a really solid, tuneful feel overall! The album's got a bit of folk, a bit of moog, and a bit of kitsch – but has a way of serving it all up with the kind of warmth and wit we love so much in that unique late 60s Warner Brothers moment – the same sort of vibe you might get from Van Dyke Parks or Harpers Bizarre at their best. Some tunes have Mason Williams singing these beautifully poetic lyrics straight, while others evoke the playful feel of his appearances on the Smothers Brothers Show – but things are really balanced throughout, and give the record that sense of discovery we hardly ever find in albums these days. Titles include a new version of "Baroque A Nova" from Mason's first album, the cool electronic "Generatah Oscillatah" instrumental, the groovy "Last Great Waltz", a "One Minute Commercial", and a wild remake of "Cinderella Rockefella" – plus "Saturday Night At The World", "$13 Stella", and "Whistle Hear". LP, Vinyl record album

A seminal moment on the west coast scene of the 60s – a record that has the great Gerald Wilson pulling together some of the best elements that were going on at the time, and also pointing the way towards changes to come in the future! The set's not the first effort by Wilson on record, but it's maybe one of his most classic – and begins with superb selection of members for the ensemble – a lineup that includes Carmell Jones on trumpet, Lou Blackburn on trombone, Teddy Edwards and Harold Land on tenors, Joe Pass on guitar, and the great Jack Wilson on piano! But key to the set are the rhythms – with the wonderful bassist Jimmy Bond setting up a groove that seems to pull out the best from drummer Mel Lewis – as the pair help ground the larger group with a rock-solid groove that keeps things soulful throughout! Nearly every track's an original, and the album includes Wilson's killer track "Viva Tirado" – a tight jazzy stepper that was covered by many artists over the years, most famously El Chicano – with a Latin-tinged groove that really opens up a new sound in Los Angeles jazz! There's lots of other great cuts too – including "Moment of Truth", "Latino", "Josefina", and "Patterns". LP, Vinyl record album

A seminal moment on the west coast scene of the 60s – a record that has the great Gerald Wilson pulling together some of the best elements that were going on at the time, and also pointing the way towards changes to come in the future! The set's not the first effort by Wilson on record, but it's maybe one of his most classic – and begins with superb selection of members for the ensemble – a lineup that includes Carmell Jones on trumpet, Lou Blackburn on trombone, Teddy Edwards and Harold Land on tenors, Joe Pass on guitar, and the great Jack Wilson on piano! But key to the set are the rhythms – with the wonderful bassist Jimmy Bond setting up a groove that seems to pull out the best from drummer Mel Lewis – as the pair help ground the larger group with a rock-solid groove that keeps things soulful throughout! Nearly every track's an original, and the album includes Wilson's killer track "Viva Tirado" – a tight jazzy stepper that was covered by many artists over the years, most famously El Chicano – with a Latin-tinged groove that really opens up a new sound in Los Angeles jazz! There's lots of other great cuts too – including "Moment of Truth", "Latino", "Josefina", and "Patterns". LP, Vinyl record album

A really wonderful album of polished 80s soul – a key effort from Angela Winbush after the breakup of Rene & Angela! Angela was one of the artists who reminded us throughout the 80s that underneath the gloss of the reigning production style of the day, solid songwriting still wins out – and here, in the years before she went on to help the Isleys revive their careers, she's stepping out as a proud solo act on her own. The more laid back numbers are the ones we're going for here, but Angela also does a respectable job with some of the more radio oriented material too. Titles include "It's The Real Thing", "Thank You Love", "Lay Your troubles Down", 'Please Bring Your Love Back", "Menage A Trois", "I've Learned To Respect (The Power Of Love)" and "I'll Never Be The Same". LP, Vinyl record album

A great collection of work from this soulful Japanese singer - all of his best for RCA and Ariola, collected here in one sweet set! There were few cats on the Japanese scene of the time who could match the approach of US soul singers as well as Yamashita – and you'll definitely hear proof of that on Tatsuro's work on cuts that include "Windy Lady", "Bomber", "Loveland Island", "Ride On Time (single version)", "Door Into Summer", "Let's Dance Baby", "Your Eyes", "Solid Slider", and "Funky Flushin". LP, Vinyl record album

There's plenty of popping here – great little grooves, recorded with the jazzy finish that makes the 70s material of Tatsuro Yamashita so great! The vibe here has all the warmth and sophisticated groove of Fantasy Records in the late 70s – maybe a bit of Wayne Henderson/At Home influence in the way that jazzy elements are used next to soulful vocals from Tatsuro – and presented in a way that's never too overdone, too polished, or commercial. Yet the set, which is a live one, also has all the careful precision of Yamashita's studio work – that quality that also marks the 70s live work of Earth Wind & Fire, who are every bit as great on stage as behind the glass. Titles include "Hey There Lonely Girl", "Space Crush", "Windy Lady", "Paper Doll", "Candy", "Marie", "Circus Town", and "Solid Slider". LP, Vinyl record album

A surprisingly nice set of soulful pop from mid 70s Japan – very much in the best Free Soul mode that's been championed in recent years! The album's got a nice jazzy style at its core – with arrangements that make the best of the fusion players working in the studio, and a compressed approach to Tatsuro's vocals that really make them mix sweetly with the grooves – and almost make you forget that he's singing in Japanese! The album's got one massive jazzy break track called "Dancer", but the whole thing's pretty nice overall – and cuts include "Solid Slider", "Candy", and "Love Space" – plus other tunes that are listed in Japanese. LP, Vinyl record album

A hell of a singer, working here with some wonderful grooves from Timo Lassy – an artist we've really loved for his own jazzy projects in the past! Joyce Elaine Yuille has this style that's very classic, and very groovy – jazz-based, with a nice rasp in her voice that really brings out some of the more soulful qualities in the music – and able to write her own lyrics, too – which makes for a wonderful record that's full of fresh sounds at every turn! Lassy's music is wonderful too – tightly snapping on the rhythms, but never forced – and with a jazz current that's a nice change from other contemporary soul production, which might have been added to the record with a bigger label. But clearly, the real star of the show is Joyce – a talent that will definitely be huge in years to come – a rock-solid singer and songwriter who may well turn out to be the female equivalent of Gregory Porter. Titles include "Come With Me", "Tryin Times", "Chaos", "It's Madness", "Make Right", "Welcome To My World", "Follow The Sun", and "Late I Rise". CD

Hard and heavy female soul from the mighty Chess Records – and a selection of tracks that features plenty of funk in the mix too! The sisters on this set are not of the sobbing kind – as the package goes for a proud-stepping approach to soul that puts the ladies in charge right from the very first note – backing their deeply soulful vocals with a righteous set of backings, and really upping the power of tunes with some sock-solid production all the way through! Most of the tunes are from the late 60s, when Chess was bringing a good deal of funk into the mix – and plenty are from rare singles that haven't been reissued for years! 20 tracks in all, and part of this great Mojo Chess series – with titles that include "Dirty Man" by Laura Lee, "Git Out" by Mitty Collier, "Liberation Conversation" by Marlena Shaw, "Take Me For A Little While" by Jackie Ross, "Don't Mess With The Messer" by Koko Taylor, "In Orbit" by Joy Lovejoy, "Cheater Man" by Irma Thomas, "Sally Go Round The Roses" by The Jaynettes, "California Soul" by Marlena Shaw, "My Babe" by Mitty Collier, "I Surrender" by Fontella Bass, and "I Don't Wanna Fuss" by Sugar Pie Desanto. CD

Killer soul from the Forte label of Kansas City – a tiny imprint, but a really great one too – and a company with an especially strong ear for the funkier side of the spectrum! This Numero set really gets back to the greatness that first made us fall in love with their collections in the first place – and brings together a really wonderful batch of rare singles that work perfectly as a whole album – no filler, no trans-genre stepping, and just a rock-solid batch of soul cuts that you'd have to dig deep in the American underground to find this strongly! The package is wonderful – plenty of notes, photos, and the usual Numero sense of history – but even without all that, the music is more than enough – a smoking pile of singles that includes "Whtever You Do" by Gene Williams, "I'm Gonna Get Your Thing" by Lee Harris, "Baby Your Love Is Amazing" by The Four Darlings, "I'll Never Be Satisfied" by Tony Ashley & The Delicates, "Baby Be Good" by The Rayons, "With Fun In My Life" by James Whitney, "Reaching For Our Star" by Sharon Revoal, "Daddy Don't Know About Sugar Bear" by Marva Whitney, and "Cry Night & Day" by The Fantasticks. CD

One of the earliest soul collections from the legendary Kent Records UK – a package that was originally released way back in 1982, but which set the scene for decades of great reissues to come! Even at this early state, the Kent approach was something different – and the package shows a great ear for under-discovered 60s soul gems – most of which have a sock-solid Northern Soul approach! Most of the work here is from the US Kent/Modern label – obviously an inspiration for the UK imprint – and the tunes are a mix of Detroit-styled soul numbers and a few deeper soul tracks. 15 tunes in all – including "You Turned My Bitter Into Sweet" by Mary Love, "I'm So Thankful" by The Ikettes, "In The Sunshine" by The Marvellos, "Before It's Too Late" by Jackie Day, "Your Love Has Made Me A Man" by Willie Hutch, "Baby Without You" by Danny Monday, "Gimme Gimme" by ZZ Hill, "Dancing Fast Dancing Slow" by The Intentions, "Let Me Know" by Mary Love, "I've Been Taken For A Ride" by The Intentions, "I Can Feel Your Love" by Felice Taylor, and "Come Back Baby" by Tami Young. LP, Vinyl record album

Classic funk, rare soul, and contemporary goodies too – all served up in a beautiful package designed by the folks at Seth Rogan's Houseplant! As with the previous set, this one is divided into three modes – one record sativa, one indica, and the third a hybrid – capturing different moods with each record, but with an all-soul, rock-solid selection of tunes throughout! As with previous volumes, the classic and contemporary come into play in a really great way – and this volume also features some great international titles too – a set list that includes "Follow The Wind" by Coletta Woodson, "Cookin" by Tortilla Factory, "Bra" by Cymande, "High Beams" by Tkay Maidza, "Lupita" by Nico Gomez, "Pretty Woman Pass On By" by Richard Marks, "Norma Jean" by Napoleon Demps, "Bizness" by Tune Yards, "Right On" by Carleen & The Groovers, "The Love You Left Behind" by Syl Johnson, "Groovy Babe" by Durand Jones & The Indications, "Kill Dem" by Jamie XX, "Aminata Du The" by Amadou Balake, "Help Me To Understand" by Harlem Gospel Travelers, "Will I See You Again" by Thee Sacred Souls, "Grow Forever" by Lizette & Quevin, "Tearz" by El Michels Affair & Lee Fields, "Everything That Looks Good" by Charles Suggs, "Raggio Verde" by Il Quadro Di Troisi, "Let's Do It Today" by The US, and "When We Would Ride" by Kendra Morris & Eraserhood Sound. LP, Vinyl record album

A set that steps out with a Curtis Mayfield reference in the title, but which goes into much heavier territory all – black rock, often mixed with a bit of funk, in the best tradition of some of the Hendrix-inspired groups who rose up at the start of the 70s! If you know the trippy psychedelic style of Merda, you'll get part of the vibe here – but as usual with Numero, the span is much wider-ranging overall – and the label's done a great job of uncovering a range of obscure African-American acts from the 70s who were firmly committed to the headier, heavier, fuzzier, freakier side of the spectrum! Titles include "I Can't Believe" by Flying Wedge, "Sweet Poison" by Iron Force, "Message To Planet Earth" by Solid Gold, "Ringing Bells (part 2)" by The Young Senators, "Rolling Love (part 2)" by Three Days Ahead, "It's A Dream" by Little Ed & The Soundmasters Band, "Funky Music" by The Basement, and "Chrystal Illusion" by Creative Unlimited. LP, Vinyl record album

A massive assortment of tracks that go way past the familiar – not a collection of standard classics from Blue Note, Impulse, or Prestige – and instead a whole host of jazzy groovers that we'd never have discovered otherwise! This volume of the series does a great job mixing in contemporary cuts with rare nuggets from years past – in ways that never make you notice the passage of years, as almost all of this work is rooted in a solid blend of tight rhythms and inventive improvisation – heavy on acoustic instrumentation, but with occasional electric moments too! Imagine the kind of groove that Gilles Peterson used to turn us onto years back, when he was spinning rare jazz records, and you'll get the vibe here – served up on titles that include "Tape Your Beat" by Born 74 & Onj, "Still In Love" by GeeW, "46 To Somewhere" by The Sultan's Swing, "Unreachable Galaxy" by Stefano Di Santis, "Movin" by Charro Band De Emilio Guerro, "Caught In A Fever" by Moreen Meridian, "Mr Fool" by Alonson Gonzalez & Jazz Latino, "Cla Samba" by Juju, "I Face East" by Mary Greer Mudiku, "Mende" by Jacques Schwarz Bart, "Mother Of The Future" by Venus Dodson, "Wanting Touch (inst)" by Juju, "Mambo De Papi" by El Caballo Y Su Orquesta, "Ponteio" by Miho Nobuzane, "Samba De La Cruz" by Tres Men, and "I'll Bet You Thought I'd Never Find You" by Lifetime. CD

A massive assortment of tracks that go way past the familiar – not a collection of standard classics from Blue Note, Impulse, or Prestige – and instead a whole host of jazzy groovers that we'd never have discovered otherwise! This volume of the series does a great job mixing in contemporary cuts with rare nuggets from years past – in ways that never make you notice the passage of years, as almost all of this work is rooted in a solid blend of tight rhythms and inventive improvisation – heavy on acoustic instrumentation, but with occasional electric moments too! Imagine the kind of groove that Gilles Peterson used to turn us onto years back, when he was spinning rare jazz records, and you'll get the vibe here – served up on titles that include "Tape Your Beat" by Born 74 & Onj, "Still In Love" by GeeW, "46 To Somewhere" by The Sultan's Swing, "Unreachable Galaxy" by Stefano Di Santis, "Movin" by Charro Band De Emilio Guerro, "Caught In A Fever" by Moreen Meridian, "Mr Fool" by Alonson Gonzalez & Jazz Latino, and "Cla Samba" by Juju. LP, Vinyl record album

A massive assortment of tracks that go way past the familiar – not a collection of standard classics from Blue Note, Impulse, or Prestige – and instead a whole host of jazzy groovers that we'd never have discovered otherwise! This volume of the series does a great job mixing in contemporary cuts with rare nuggets from years past – in ways that never make you notice the passage of years, as almost all of this work is rooted in a solid blend of tight rhythms and inventive improvisation – heavy on acoustic instrumentation, but with occasional electric moments too! Imagine the kind of groove that Gilles Peterson used to turn us onto years back, when he was spinning rare jazz records, and you'll get the vibe here – served up on titles that include "I Face East" by Mary Greer Mudiku, "Mende" by Jacques Schwarz Bart, "Mother Of The Future" by Venus Dodson, "Wanting Touch (inst)" by Juju, "Mambo De Papi" by El Caballo Y Su Orquesta, "Ponteio" by Miho Nobuzane, "Samba De La Cruz" by Tres Men, and "I'll Bet You Thought I'd Never Find You" by Lifetime. LP, Vinyl record album

The funky third volume of the Living In The Streets series – and easily the best in this great series – a really hard and heavy batch of rare funk tunes that pushes past the cliches of the title to come up with an all-solid batch of tracks that's sure to please any fan of deep funk. Loads of great little groovers from a range of different labels – organ jazz meets heavy soul vocals meets dancing bassline funk, hard drums, heavy riffing, and beyond – all wrapped up together with a sound that never lets up. Tracks include "Mary Jane" by Bobby Rush, "Bustin Outta The Ghetto" by Carlos Malcolm, "I'm A Good Woman" by The Generation, "Dance Girl" by The Mighty Tom Cats, "Peace Love Not War" by Johnny King with The Fatback Band, "The Truth Shall Make You Free" by King Hannibal, "I'm Wishin" by Lorez Alexandria, "I've Known Rivers" by Gary Bartz, "Viva" by Jade, "Seeds Of Life" by East LA Car Pool, "Starvin" by Winfield Parker, and "He Called Me Baby" by Spanky Wilson. CD

Numero Records parodies both the Las Vegas Grind series of compilations, and the 50s sci-fi artwork of EC Comics – and turns out a surprisingly great set of tracks in the process! The material here is from the more garagey side of the Numero spectrum – tracks that are heavy on twang and guitars – sometimes instrumental, sometimes with raw early rock vocals – all laid out in a rock-solid collection that maybe beats some of the more long-running compilation series of this nature. In keeping with those, Numero has been completely restrained on including any real information on the tracks – just a groovy little comic insert that follows in the style of the cover – alongside titles that include "Classie's Whip" by Classie Ballou, "The Grasshopper Twist" by The Blazers, "Jump Back" by Eugene Blacknell, "Rock & Roll Guitar" by Johnny Knight, "The Boogie Twist (part 1)" by Cal Valentine, "Slap Stick" by Dino & The Deltones, "Bui Bui" by L Hollis & The Mackadoos, "Hot Links" by Soul Heirs, and "Aw Shucks" by JJ Jones. CD

Deep southern soul from the Sounds Of Memphis label – with some incredible stuff that for the most part never has seen official light of day before now – compiled by Dean Rudland for Kent UK! Kent has mined the vaults of Sounds Of Memphis for a series of solid compilations, and it's surprising how much more continues to be discovered considering the continual high quality! A solid majority of the tracks are prime 60s & 70s southern soul – with some early 80s records later on on the set that with a contemporary sound, though still committed to a true soul style! Includes "Pity A Fool" by Carl Sims, "I Don't Want No One Way Love" by Dan Greer, "Stop Boy" by Fran Farley, "So Cruel" by Barbara And The Browns, "Teardrops" by William Bollinger, "Play The Game (Pt 2)" by Version, "Make It Easy On Yourself" by Demetrius, "When I Look Inside" by Takelia Kelly, "It's Hard To Say No" by George Jackson & Linda Lucchesi, "Save My Love" by Billy Cee & The Freedom Express and more. CD

Killer work from one of the smokinest soul labels of the west coast scene of the 60s – mighty Mirwood Records, a company that's kept the Northern Soul scene humming for decades! Mirwood wasn't one of the biggest, or most chart-topping labels – but the company came up with some incredible work in the uptempo mode that's really held strongly over the years. The label boasted some great singers with a straightforward, no-nonsense approach – often working with tight rhythms and rolling piano lines to send the tunes home with a solid sort of punch! This special vinyl-only set features some of the most crackling cuts from the Mirwood catalog – 14 titles that include "Do The Temptation Walk" by Jackie Lee, "That Beatin Rhythm" by Richard Temple, "My Little Girl" by The Bob & Earl Band, "I Wanna Do Everything For You Baby" by The Mirettes, "I Can't Get Away" by Bobby Garrett, "Is She In Your Town" by Curtis Lee, "Mine Exclusively" by The Olympics, "Where There's A Will" by Jimmy Thomas, "I Can't Stop You" by The Performers, "Stubborn Heart" by The Sheppards, and "Don't Pretend" by The Belles. LP, Vinyl record album

A batch of rare Northern Soul – featuring a whole bunch of numbers we've never seen before – floor shaking numbers by solo singers & groups such asJesse Davis, Jimmy Holiday, Brenton Wood, The Hytones, The Gypsies, The Tiaras and many more! You probably don't need us to tell you that Kent Records UK has been digging deep for the mightiest and most sought after Northern Soul singles they could find for their impeccable series of compilations – and they go above and beyond once again with this one. Great stuff with solid notes and put together with care and affection! 24 tracks in all: "Hang On In There Girl (Inst)" by The Jesse Davis Band, "Try My Love" by Troy Dodds, "Black Mother Goose" by Sam Nesbit, "Queen Of Losers" by Eleanor Rigby, "Hook, Line And Sinker" by San Greer, "Deeper" by The Cheques, "There's Room For Me" by Jesse Davis, "Just A Fool" by Jerry Ganey and more. CD

Music from Louis Jordan & His Tympany Five, Joe Liggins & His Honeydrippers, Roy Milton & His Solid Senders, Nat "King" Cole Trio, Cecil Gant, Charles Brown with Johnny Moore's Three Blazers, Ivory Hunter* with Johnny Moore's 3 Blazers, T-Bone Walker with Marl Young & His Orchestra, Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup, Julia Lee with Tommy Douglas' Orchestra, Helen Humes with Bill Doggett's Octet, Dinah Washington with Lucky Thompson's All Stars, and more - 36 songs in all. CD

A beautiful set of modern club tracks – put together with a real emphasis on soulful grooves! Most of the tracks on the set have a strong deep house vibe going on – with warm instrumentation, soulful vocals, and solid songwriting with a real focus on the feel of the overall track, not just a few effects. This is no surprise, though, as the set's put together by Lofty & Dr Bob Jones, who did such great work with the East West Connection – and the pair of them dipped into a wide range of labels from around the globe, just to come up with the perfect sound. Titles include "I Know A Place (Shades Of Black mix)" by Jaymz Nylon feat Mooney, "Latin Soul (not so Latin Sonic Soul mix)" by Turnstyle Orchestra, "Ain't No Running Away (Ricanstruction voc mix)" by Willie Washington presents Paula Ralph, "Across The Universe (full story version)" by Chari Chari, "Never Lost Faith (original mix)" by UC Heights feat Anthony Flanagan, "Universal (part 2)" by Solar House, "Still Loving You (Jii Hoo mix)" by Midnight City Soul Affair, and "Lost Tribes Of Ibadan (orixas rmx)" by Sfere. 10 tracks in all! CD