... 12-inch, Vinyl record

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

Fantastic work from the UK soul scene – music from a time when some of the bigger names overseas were starting to grab interest on US charts, but were only the tip of the iceberg next to some of the overlooked artists on this set! If you dig the sounds of Loose Ends, Soul II Soul, and Mica Paris, you'll find plenty to love here – as the set's overflowing with 80s and 90s-styled soul tracks that make great use of beats and more contemporary production in a great way – almost bringing back a more organic approach in the music, at a time when American R&B could come off sounding a bit too stiff or commercial. And we'll be honest in saying that although we were scouring the racks for imports during this generation, there's plenty of cuts here that are still new to our ears – a superb set list that includes "Straight to The Top" by Purely Fizzycal, "Passion" by Taffy, "Hold Your Head Up" by Weekend In Paris, "Don't Touch "by Cavalier, "Coming Back" by Bovel, "What You Do For Me" by Pure Silk, "Take Me There" by Marcelle Moncrieffe, "Life (club mix)" by Sam, and "Step By Step" by Kofi. CD

Fantastic work from the UK soul scene – music from a time when some of the bigger names overseas were starting to grab interest on US charts, but were only the tip of the iceberg next to some of the overlooked artists on this set! If you dig the sounds of Loose Ends, Soul II Soul, and Mica Paris, you'll find plenty to love here – as the set's overflowing with 80s and 90s-styled soul tracks that make great use of beats and more contemporary production in a great way – almost bringing back a more organic approach in the music, at a time when American R&B could come off sounding a bit too stiff or commercial. And we'll be honest in saying that although we were scouring the racks for imports during this generation, there's plenty of cuts here that are still new to our ears – a superb set list that includes "Straight to The Top" by Purely Fizzycal, "Passion" by Taffy, "Hold Your Head Up" by Weekend In Paris, "Don't Touch "by Cavalier, "Coming Back" by Bovel, "What You Do For Me" by Pure Silk, "Take Me There" by Marcelle Moncrieffe, "Life (club mix)" by Sam, and "Step By Step" by Kofi. LP, Vinyl record album

Ok so she's got a Grammy – but that makes us love her even more! Jill Scott is one of the greatest soul artists to emerge in the past decade – and this second album avoids the usual "sophomore slump" by showing a whole new side of her talents! Disc one is a great live set – showing that Jill's organic talent isn't the product of studio trickery, and can conjure up as much warmth in person as it can on disc. The backing is tight, jazzy, and with a different finish than you might be accustomed to from Jill's first LP – less hip hop beats and more real funk drumming, a fuller group instrumental sound with lots of nice solos, and over it all, incredible vocals from Jill! The set's got smoking live versions of "One Is The Magic #", "A Long Walk", "Love Rain", "Getting In The Way", "Fatback Taffy", "He Loves Me", and "Do You Remember". CD

A really compelling second set from Cat Mother & The All Night Newsboys – and quite different than the first! On their Polydor debut, the group had Jimi Hendrix at the production helm – but this time they're taking things on their own, with a feel that's nicely loose and freewheeling – and which really matches the woodsy image of the cover! The core mix of guitar and organ is still as tight as before – but it also gets some nice rootsy touches from violin, mandolin, and acoustic guitar – used in ways that echo folk and maybe preface a bit of redneck rock – yet which also have a bit more of a North Cali sort of sensibility in the long run. Titles include "Riff Raff", "Boonville Massacre", "Turkish Taffy", "Last Go Round", "Good Times", "Albion Doo Wah", and "Strike A Match & Light Another". CD

The final volume in this fantastic collection of rare female soul from the 60s – and one that's maybe even better than the earlier entries in the series! The tracks here are totally great, and totally well-chosen – not big girl group hits of the time, but instead a treasure trove of under-appreciated singles on labels that include Excello, Dionne, Cameo/Parkway, Fairmount, Musicor, and other indies of the time – mix with a few 60s gems that weren't even issued back in the day! As always with Ace/Kent, the track list is superb – completely wonderful music that we never would have discovered otherwise – track after track of new discoveries for our ears, all presented with fantastic sound, very detailed notes, and enough tracks to make the whole thing a hell of a deal for the price. Many of these cuts have much more of a deep soul vibe than the lighter style you might be expecting for 60s female soul – and titles include "This Heart Is Haunted" by Kelly Garrett, "Hot Spot" by The Bronzettes, "Top Twenty" by The Delicates, "He's My Hero" by The Avons, "It's The Loving Season" by The Vareeations, "Just A Little Touch Of Your Love" by Saundra Franklin, "Sir Galahad" by The Elites, "That's How It Goes" by Jackie & Gayle, "That Guy Of Mine" by The Sherrys, "Everybody South Street" by The Taffys, "I Would If I Could" by The Sweet Three, "That Kind Of Love" by Diana King, "Nothing Can Go Wrong" by The Beas, and "False Alarm" by Tari Stevens. CD

A great set of groovers from the Cameo/Parkway label – a company that gave the world the biggest twist record of the 60s, but which also was perfectly poised to deliver all sorts of other upbeat tracks as well! The label was in Philly – a huge dance town in the early days of soul and rock – and the set list here is filled with the kind of cuts that were Philadelphia's answer to the rising sound of Motown – the roots of the Northern Soul sound that would be followed by soul collectors for decades! These aren't novelty hits, but upbeat cuts that groove plenty – most by soul artists, a few by pop singers – but all given the kind of tight instrumentation and strong studio handling that made the Philly scene such a standout. 22 tracks in all – including "Shimmy Shimmy" and "The Wah Watusi" by The Orlons, "Bristol Stomp" and "You Can't Sit Down" by the Dovells, "Mashed Potato Time" and "Do The Bird" by Dee Dee Sharp, "The 81" by Candy & The Kisses, "The Mash" by Tony Young & The Hippies, "Mexican Hat Rock" by The Applejacks, "Baby Do The Frog" by The Dardenelles, "The Swim (part 1)" by The Marlins, "Slow Twistin" by Chubby Checker & Dee Dee Sharp, "The Third House" by Bobby Rydell, "When You Dance" by The Turbans, "Everybody South Street" by The Taffys, "The Popeye Waddle" by Don Covay, and yes, "The Twist" by Chubby Checker. LP, Vinyl record album