A lost harmony soul classic from the east coast scene of the 70s – a set that was recorded in the shadow of work by bigger groups, like the Moments or Stylistics, and which has a similarly sort of sublime sound! There's a nice edge to the album – like some of the George Kerr productions on Stang/All-Platinum – as producer Bruce M Clarke really lets the vocals shine through on most tracks – just updating a 60s sweet soul mode with the right sort of hip 70s elements, but all while never getting in the way of the harmonies! With that approach, we'd maybe rank this one right up there with the classic album by Soul Generation – especially given the badass sort of vibe on the funky numbers. Titles include "At Last It's Over", "Giving Up", "God & You", "All Good Things Can't Last", "Booking Up", "Moving Down The Line", "Gotta Get You Back", and "Your Love Comes Slower Than Never". Bonus tracks include "What Is Love" and "Am I Ever Gonna See My Baby Again" by Marion Butler, "Another Man's Woman" and "Nothing In The World" by The Electras, "God & You" by Loreli, and "Everybody's Got A Good Thing" by Loreli with Empress Kilpatrick. CD

A sweet funky set from the New Jersey 70s soul empire of the Stang/Turbo/All-Platinum family of labels – the kind of record that came out with little fanfare at the time, but which has a razor sharp groove all the way through! The set features plenty of wonderful work on keyboards – clavinet, organ, moog, and Arp – mixed with really sharp basslines that snap along nicely, and really tuck the tunes into the groove – as vocals from various group members trade places in the best funk ensemble mode! There's plenty of nice nuggets on this set – like the super-catchy "Chance With You", the moogy "Phattenin", and the warmly mellow "Visions" – next to other tracks that include "Groovy Day", "Take My Love", "Leavin Me", and "Let Your Mind Be Free". CD

A great take on sweet soul sounds from the past – served up here by a mighty hip group who mix slow funky modes with some mighty nice vocals! The record's got a mix of deep funk production and some of the warmer qualities of east coast group soul from the New Jersey scene at the start of the 70s – almost an All-Platinum/Stang sort of record from the hands of George Kerr and Sylvia Robinson, but with some fuller, more forward-moving cuts that also echo the Record Kicks label too! There's light strings that really help the record soar – and the lead vocals of Mark Sexton are mighty nice throughout, especially when he gets support from a few backup singers too. Titles include "Better Late Than Never", "The Other Side", "Trouble On My Mind", "Love Can't Be Borrowed", "Beck & Call", "This Could Last Forever", and "Daydreaming". CD

The cover looks like a lost metal album, but the sound here is plenty soulful – recorded in a New Jersey studio in the 70s, and served up for a brief release at the time by TK Records! There's a clubby vibe at times, which lives up to the TK approach – but other moments have a much deeper east coast soul style – maybe more like some of the Stang/All Platinum groups of that scene, who did a great job of messing up modes, and really creating something unusual in the process! In other words, there's some disco tunes on here, but the album's hardly the usual disco outing – more of a freaky funk set, with lots of twists and turns along the way! Titles include "Work It Out", "Funk A Fried", "April", "Shades Of September", "Disco Party", and "Tight Rope". CD

A bit sweet soul, a bit funky – and a real indie soul classic from the early 70s! The album's the second from The Dynamics – a group from Detroit, but one who work here with a style that's much more in the east coast mode of the All Platinum/Stang generation! The production is nice and mellow on the best cuts – fragile, but never sloppy – and the vocals really dominate nicely on the ballads, sliding forward with a really mellow late nite sound! The album does have one standout funk track, titled "Funkey Key", but most of the set is relatively mellow – and other tracks include "Count Your Chips", "You're The Only One", "Voyage Thru The Mind", "What A Shame", and "You'll Never Find A Man Like Me". CD features a lot of bonus tracks too – titles that include a few versions of "Beautiful Music", plus unreleased tracks "Get Myself High", "I'm Thinking", "Baby Baby I Love You", "Sweet Games Of Love", and "Let's Start All Over" – and original single versions of "Show The World" and "We're Gonna Be Together". CD

One of Donald Byrd's most fantastic records for Blue Note – and one of three gems that he recorded with the great Sonny Red on alto sax! Byrd and Red work magnificently together – and the two of them play with a tightness and funkiness that's missing from a lot of their other records as leaders – this really sharp edge that makes Sonny sound even better than ever, and a slight funkiness in Byrd's trumpet – which really seems to point the way towards his groove of the 70s! Hank Mobley joins the group on tenor, Walter Booker is on bass, McCoy Tyner's on piano, and Freddie Waits is on drums – and the groove is tight and funky, with a mix of hard bop soloing and funkier Blue Note rhythm playing. Red burns throughout, especially on his own "Mustang", and on the cut "Dixie Lee". Other tracks include "Fly Little Bird Fly", "On The Trail", and "I'm So Excited By You". Plus, this CD reissue also includes 2 non-LP bonus cuts – "Gingerbread Boy" and "I'm So Excited By You". CD

One of the greatest records ever by the legendary Marcos Valle – a set of pure genius that's beyond description – easily one of the key records that's got him so well-remembered in recent years! The record takes Valle's earlier bossa style, and filters it through a late 60s sense of baroque pop – filled with incredible sweeping arrangements, funky undercurrents, jazzy instrumentation, and lots of other cool touches – all sifted together beautifully by arranger Lyrio Panicali, and given a hip sound that's completely sublime! The music is almost a blend of soundtrack themes, experimental bossa nova, and deeply personal songwriting – all delivered with warmly crackling vocals by Valle in a way that goes far beyond language! Titles include "Frevo Novo", "O Evangelho Segundo San Quentin", "Mentira Carioca", "Samba De Verao 2", "Azimuth", and "Mustang Cor De Sangue". CD

Tremendous work from the great Bobby Fuller – not the early Texas tapes that have recently been the stuff of much interest on the market – but instead the well-crafted singles he cut in Los Angeles – working at the Mustang label with pop maestro Bob Keane! These tunes are still plenty raw, and the fierce, raspy tone of Fuller's guitar is very much upfront in the mix – hugely powerful, even when there's no other element stepping forth in the lead – and still pretty important, even when the group starts adding some vocals! The package presents all the Mustang singles in rare mono mixes for the first time together in one place – and a number of the tracks here are actually different recordings than the better-known stereo tracks, supported with the kind of great notes and high sound quality we always love from the Now Sounds label – and the set includes a few related tracks by Jay Horton and the Randy Fuller Four. Titles include "These Memories Of You", "Our Favorite Martian", "Wolfman", "Let Her Dance", "Thunder Reef", "I Fought The Law", "Love's Made A Fool Of You", "My True Love", "I Trip On You Girl", "Little Annie Lou", "You Kiss Me", "Never To Be Forgotten", "The Things You Do", and "Don't Ever Let Me Know". CD

A rock-solid set from Donald Byrd and a great group of players – a record that's got the same sharp edges and dark undercurrents of late 60s classics like Black Jack, Mustang, and Slow Drag! As with those gems, this album's got Donald really experimenting a bit more – especially with the rhythms – which are put forth by a hip trio that features Chick Corea on piano, Miroslav Vitous on bass, and Mickey Roker on drums! But almost even better is the frontline – with Sonny Red making one of his sublime appearances with Byrd, blowing alto with an edge that's amazing – and frequent partner Pepper Adams, adding plenty of baritone on the deep end. The whole thing's great – oddly unreleased until the start of the 80s – and titles include "Samba Yanta", "I Will Wait For You", "Blues Medium Rare", "The Creeper", "Chico-San", "Early Sunday Morning", and "Blues Well Done". CD

A great second adventure from Dynasty – the kind of set that shows why the group went on to become one of the strongest things going in the second chapter of the Solar Records soul empire from LA! The album begins with a rock-solid punch, then continues strongly throughout – basslines, guitar riffs, and funky drums all right on the money – used in a way that's somehow fresher than most of the larger funk groups of the time – and with a nice balance between mellower moments that still seem to have a gentle kind of groove. The energy is wonderful throughout – and titles include "Give It Up For Love", "Love In The Fast Lane", "Revenge", "Here I Am", "A Man In Love", and "You're My Angel". CD features bonus tracks – the previously unreleased "Mustang Movin On", plus single versions of "Here I Am" and "Love In The Fast Lane". CD

A fantastic follow-up to the legendary Home Schooled collection from Numero Group – and, like that one, a set that focuses on the surprisingly great genre of kid soul that flourished in the 70s – in the wake of bigger groups like the Jackson Five, Sylvers, and 5 Stairsteps! These groups are all from similar territory – mostly comprised of younger members, but who work with an undeniably great sound overall – grooves as sharp as most of their adult counterparts in the indie soul field – and maybe a lot more energy and enthusiasm in their music – which makes for tracks that are wonderfully upbeat, positive, and overflowing with goodness! Most of the work here is from the early 70s – and, as always with Numero, the set is presented in a very thoughtful manner – with some great notes and wonderful sound quality overall. There's a few of our favorite Chicago groups on here, mixed with loads of other artists we've never heard before – and titles include "Runnin Wild" by Scott Three, "You Got Me Believing" by Leonard Kaigler, "Guessing Games" by Jimi Hill, "I Want A Little Girl" by The Bennetts, "Everywhere You Go" by The Next Movement, "Because I Love You" by Brighter Side Of Darkness, "It's Time For Love" by Soul Emotions & Co, "The Other Guy" by Mighty Mustangs, "Love Got A Piece Of Your Mind" by Five Ounces Of Soul, "Funky Breakdown" by Little Man & The Inquires, "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" by The Brothers Rap, "I'm Free No Dope For Me" by The Dynamics, and "Girl Why Do You Want To Take My Heart" by Magical Connection. CD

Heavy funk from the Bahamas – a whole bunch of groups that will show you that Nassau had a lot more to offer than The Beginning Of The End! The groove here is totally wonderful – somewhat like American funk of the late 60s and early 70s, but served up with some very unusual rhythmic patterns too – a bit Jamaican at times, but certainly not reggae – and somewhat sunny and Caribbean styled, but not in a way that's cheesy or filled with any hokey island-styled stereotypes. Instead, the tunes are deeply funk and soulful – grooving with plenty of dark edges and gritty instrumentation that's often heavy on the guitar. Many numbers have vocals, and those are great too – and as usual with the Numero label, the whole thing's put together with amazing notes and packaging, so that you get a full history lesson and a heck of a lot of photos to support the music too! Titles include "Gonna Build A Nation" by Cyril Ferguson, "Mustang Sally", "I Am The Man For You Baby", and "Funky Fever" by Jay Mitchell, "Theme From Shaft" by Esquires LTD, "Gimme Some Skin (inst)" by Frank Penn, "Words To My Song" by Dry Bread, "People Won't Change" by Willpower, "Take Five" by Ozzie Hall, "Watcha Gonna Do Bout It" and "The Time For Loving Is Now" by Mustangs, "Honesty Is The Best Policy" by Gospel Chandeliers, and "Don't Touch That Thing" by Sylvia Hall. CD

A long-overdue entry in this legendary series of compilations – one that taught us an awful lot about funky soundtrack music back in the day, finally back in action after a long hiatus! This time around, the groove has gotten even deeper – as the series has stretched to include some killer sound library material as well – really mixing together all the jazz, funk, and cinematic elements that were in the previous volumes – yet all with the hip Euro-styled groove that we loved in all of those releases too! There's a huge amount of funky nuggets here, but all with a vibe that's very different than 70s work from the US scene – and although we've missed the Easy Tempo series for many years, we're so glad to have them back – as they're still one of the best. Titles include "Take Me To New York" by Brooklyn Bridge Group, "Undertown" by Orchestra Mustang, "First Time Three" by Roberto Pregadio, "Angelus" by Soul's Soul, "African Flute" by Ninety, "Super Cat" by Les Chakachas, "Sunshine Train" by Hugh Bullen, "Un Uomo Che Lavora" by Carlo Cordara E I Waterloo, "Meeting" by Gino Marinaaci, and "Guida Sicura" by Enzo Scoppa. CD

Hard and heavy Memphis soul from Don Bryant – a great singer who recorded for Hi Records in its early years, but who was never as well-remembered as Al Green or Ann Peebles, because the label wasn't cutting full LPs on many of its soul acts in the 60s. Don's got a rough style that's part Memphis, part New Orleans, with nice bluesy touches, and a slightly rough style that reminds us of James Carr or other singers on the Goldwax label. The set's got a total of 15 tracks in all – all recorded between 1964 and 1969 – with titles that include "I'll Go Crazy", "Doing The Mustang", "What Are You Doing To My World", "There Is Something On Your Mind (part 1)", "The Call Of Distress", "Is That Asking Too Much", "Clear Days & Stormy Nights", and "Can't Hide The Hurt". CD

Fantastic sounds from the man who opened up the electric guitar in a whole new way at the end of the 50s – one of the first players to really embrace fuzz and distortion, and use it to completely transform the sound of his instrument on record! Wray's one of those players who hit big at the start, then kept on recording for many years, even after his fame had died – never letting commercial temptations get in the way – and always staying true to the sort of raw sound that made him so important, right from the start! This career-spanning package features a whopping 25 tracks in all – lots of early singles for the Swan and Cadence labels, some tracks on Rollercoaster and Rumble – and other work done for Ace in later years. The whole thing's great – a blueprint for freaky guitar – from psych through hard rock through punk – with titles that include the landmark "Rumble", plus "Fat Back", "Mustang", "Black Widow", "Deuces Wild", "Jack The Ripper", "Hang On", "I'm Branded", "Ace Of Spades", "The Joker", "Green Hornet", "Moped Baby", "Geronimo", "Rumble On The Docks (edit)" and much more! CD