The second killer set in this series – a wonderful blend of AOR hits and soulful singers – wrapped up in a stunning style that's a great subgenre in itself! Many of the tunes here are familiar, but served up in versions you might not know at all – done by soul artists who were clearly inspired by the warmer styles of mid 70s AOR, but who also bring the modes back to soul music, and really open up the tunes with fantastic vocals and mighty nice grooves! The set is particularly heavy on that late 70s/early 80s moment when things were really coming together in the modern soul scene – and the set features titles that include "Dedicate This Heart" by Dionne Warwick, "Dreams" by Richie Havens, "Monkey See Monkey Do" by Patti Labelle, "Euphrates" by Main Ingredient, "Sara Smile" by Impact, "Listen To The Music" by Isley Brothers, "Gringo" by Arnold McCuller, "What You Won't Do For Love" by Roy Ayers, "Tin Man" by John Edwards, "It's Too Late" by Billy Paul, and "I Hope You'll Be Very Unhappy Without Me" by Esther Phillips. CD

A very cool collection – Japanese-only, and filled with some rare moments from the Atlantic Records catalog of the 60s! Titles include "Darling" by New Foundation, "Calling For Your Love" by The Enticers, "Keep Your Love Strong" by The Webs, "What Can You Do When You Ain't Got Nobody" by Soul Bros 6, "Great Big Thing" by Barbara Brown, "Can I Hold You To It" by Lorraine Johnson, "Can I Be Your Main Thing" by Margie Alexander, and "But You Know I Love You" by Laura Lee. LP, Vinyl record album

A really cool record, and one that digs deep into the earliest days of the disco scene – that time in New York where there weren't any records being made as strictly "disco" cuts – and DJs had to make their pick of soul and funk records from a time when the music was really changing things up! The album's heavy on New York and Philly-based tracks, and some of the artists here are ones who'd had an earlier life in soul music, but were picking up the rhythms, adding in some larger arrangements, and creating grooves that really knocked the whole thing out of the park! The presentation here is based on a famous 1975 article that looked at the underground scene out in Brooklyn for New York magazine – later made famous as Saturday Night Fever – and as such, the tracks here are full of surprises, and very different than the usual disco-inspired compilation. Titles include "Just As Long As We're Together (single version)" by Gloria Scott, "After You've Had Your Fling" by The Intrepids, "Welcome To The Club" by Blue Magic, "Mellow Me" by Faith Hope & Charity, "Got To Get You Back" by Sons Of Robin Stone, "Date With The Rain (LP version)" by Eddie Kendricks, "Georgia's After Hours" by Richard Popcorn Wylie, "If That's The Way You Feel" by White Heat, "It's The Same Old Story" by Act 1, "Tell Me What You Want" by Jimmy Ruffin, "Night Of The Wolf" by Ivano Fossati, "The Whole Damn World Is Going Crazy" by John Gary Williams, "You Can't Hide Love" by Creative Source, "Wendy Is Gone" by Ronnie McNeir, "Free & Easy" by Satyr, and "Keep It Up" by Betty Everett. CD

A really cool record, and one that digs deep into the earliest days of the disco scene – that time in New York where there weren't any records being made as strictly "disco" cuts – and DJs had to make their pick of soul and funk records from a time when the music was really changing things up! The album's heavy on New York and Philly-based tracks, and some of the artists here are ones who'd had an earlier life in soul music, but were picking up the rhythms, adding in some larger arrangements, and creating grooves that really knocked the whole thing out of the park! The presentation here is based on a famous 1975 article that looked at the underground scene out in Brooklyn for New York magazine – later made famous as Saturday Night Fever – and as such, the tracks here are full of surprises, and very different than the usual disco-inspired compilation. Titles include "Just As Long As We're Together (single version)" by Gloria Scott, "After You've Had Your Fling" by The Intrepids, "Welcome To The Club" by Blue Magic, "Mellow Me" by Faith Hope & Charity, "Got To Get You Back" by Sons Of Robin Stone, "Date With The Rain (LP version)" by Eddie Kendricks, "Georgia's After Hours" by Richard Popcorn Wylie, "If That's The Way You Feel" by White Heat, "It's The Same Old Story" by Act 1, "Tell Me What You Want" by Jimmy Ruffin, "Night Of The Wolf" by Ivano Fossati, "The Whole Damn World Is Going Crazy" by John Gary Williams, "You Can't Hide Love" by Creative Source, "Wendy Is Gone" by Ronnie McNeir, "Free & Easy" by Satyr, and "Keep It Up" by Betty Everett. LP, Vinyl record album

A deep deep dive into the farther reaches of the California scene in the late 60s – music that's completely wonderful all the way through, and presented with a level that really blows away some of the less-official collections on the market! If you know the hit sounds of the time, you'll know a bit of what to expect here – but the selection of cuts goes way way deeper, put together by Alec Palao, a guy we'd already trust with anything Cali from the 60s – and who really knocks himself out with this set! If you dig Beach Boys, Mamas & Papas, and the Byrds, you'll find plenty of new sounds here to fall in love with – and as usual with Ace, the whole thing comes with superb notes, and even features a few unreleased tracks – including two rare cuts by Third Wave, who recorded one album for MPS! Titles include "Niki" and "Three Kingfishers Ferris Wheel" by Third Wave, "Go Try & Put Out The Sun" by The Forum, "Soul Sunrise" by JP Rags, "A Thousand Faces" by The Thousand Faces, "Out In The Open" by The Justice League, "Meadows & Flowers" by Curt Boettcher, "Richard & Me" by Evergreen Tangerine, "Someday Sunday" by The Gettysburg Address, "Lazy Bones" by The Tricycle, "Sugar Stone" by The Candy Company, "The Life You Lead" by A Small World, "Summer Flower" by Crystal Set, and "Until Now" by Augie Moreno. CD

A landmark double-live album that was easily one of the most important soul record moments of the 70s! The concert was an all-star event held in LA to celebrate the anniversary of the Watts riots – but it features a killer lineup of talent from the roster of Stax Records – by then a proud independent with more than enough power to spread a nationwide message from Memphis to Los Angeles without any trouble! The record is nicely segmented – so that it offers up mini "sets" by each artist – really recreating the feel of the event, at a level that lived on in countless living rooms long after the concert was over. Titles include "Son Of Shaft/Feel It" and "I Can't Turn You Loose" by The Bar-Kays; "Ain't No Sunshine" by Isaac Hayes, "I Don't Know What This World Is Coming To" and "Hearsay" by The Soul Children, "I Like What You're Doing To Me" and "Gee Whiz" by Carla Thomas; "The Breakdown" and "Do The Funky Penguin" by Rufus Thomas, "Killing Floor" and "Angel Of Mercy" by Albert King"; "Respect Yourself" and "I'll Take You There" by The Staple Singers; and "Knock On Wood" by Eddie Floyd. Also includes 2 studio tracks recorded after the show – "Oh La De Da" by The Staple Singers, and "Lay Your Loving On Me" by Eddie Floyd. LP, Vinyl record album

A pretty nice mix of tunes that falls under the retro lounge/bossa and acid jazz side of things – put together by the folks in 45 Dip, and featuring 2CDs worth of material groovy enough to make any party chill out with a solid soul vibe. The overall presentation is in that trendy Hed Kandi mode – but that also means that you're getting a good portion of semi-hit tunes at a nice low price, all in one sexy package. Titles include "What Do People Do All Day" by Aim, "Epoca" by Gotan Project, "Twilight Reservation" by Tim Love Lee, "Sweet Revenge" by Bobby Trafalgar, "Coming Out Of The Sky" by Space Hoppa, "Crazy Lounge" by Yasmine Tamara, "Beach Boy" by Disjam, "Tippy Tippy Toe" by Crackpot, "Green Tomatoes (wild turkey mix)" by 45 Dip, "East Side Story" by Soul Drummers, "Zambumba" by Zuco 103, "Carnaval Do Sao Vincente (LP mix)" by Cesaria Evora, and "Saturday Morning TV" by Sam Paglia. 29 tracks on 2CDs! CD

Where the girls are is right here – served up in a beautiful blend of rare tracks from the mid 60s – almost all of them in a female group mode, at a time when that style was really hitting new heights in American popular music! The work here is a mixture of rock and soul, and almost all of it features female harmonies set to sublime pop production – modes that range from west coast dreamy to Brill Building groovy – all laid out in an extended track list that also includes a few never-issued tracks as well! This series has been running for quite some time, but it's always a great one – and we're amazed at how the folks at Ace keep turning up nuggets we never would have heard otherwise – all presented with wonderful sound, and full notes to support the whole collection – a lot more than you can say for dodgier sets on the market. Titles include "Billy Sunshine" by Evie Sands, "With A Kiss" by The Bluezettes, "Don't Forget" by The Murmaids, "That's The Way It Is" by The Sweet Three, "Moon Walking" by The Blossoms, "More Than A Friend" by The Wooden Nickels, "On A Rainy Night" by The Flowers, "What Did You Do Last Night" by The Drake Sisters, "I Can Tell I'm Losing Your Love" by Lena Calhoun & The Emotions, "You Better Stop It" by The Lovelites, "Ballyhoo" by Ramona King, "Bad Boy" by Christine Cooper, and "Baby I Miss You" by The Popsicles. CD

A searing set of vintage soul cuts – brought together in honor of the legendary Wigan Casino – one of the most important clubs in the UK Northern Soul scene of the 70s! For the uninitiated, Wigan was a hotbed of upbeat rare soul cuts – overlooked American goodies from both the previous decade and more recent years – often with a strong focus on deeper soul vocals, which meant some strong entries from the southern scene as well! This well-done package comes with a heavy book-style cover, notes on the club and its music – and a whopping 28 tracks in all – including "I Can't Hide It" by The Appreciations, "Baby What Has Happened To Our Love" by The Ringleaders, "The Night The Angels Cried" by Johnny Dynamite, "I'm A Teardrop" by The Jerms, "Your Love Makes Me Lonely" by The Chandlers, "Watch Yourself" by Tony Hester, "Does Anybody Know What Time It Is" by Copper & Brass, "Can I Be Dreamin" by The Young Savages, "She's Fire" by The CODs, "Could It Be" by Mikki Farrow, and "Your Wish Is My Command" by The Inspirations. LP, Vinyl record album