Great stuff! Tania Maria's first few years recording in the US were some of her best – and this excellent groover on Picante features some very tight Brazilian jazz tracks, cut with a small combo of west coasters, and produced by Cal Tjader with a smooth jazzy vibe. The overall sound is nicely stripped-down, and the main focus is on Tania's soulful voice and piano. Titles include "Lemon Cuica", "Chiclete Com Banana", "Yatra Ta", "Comecar De Novo", and "Super Happy". LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible batch of Brazilian fusion – cut by keyboardist Manfredo Fest, and one of the few records he ever waxed in the US during the 70s! The record mixes Fest's soaring Brazilian groove with a tight soulful set of arrangements by Jerry Peters – a bit club-oriented, with a similar sound to some of the other records on the Tabu label at the time, but always sensitive to Fest's playing and writing – especially his Brazilian roots! The record features wonderful vocals by Roberta Davis – a very soulful singer who had a hip wordless style that was similar to Tania Maria's at the time – breezy, scatting, and very nice. Her work really makes the record sparkle, working perfectly with Fest's jazzy electric keyboards in a perfect way! Titles include "Jungle Kitten", "Koko & Leeroe", "Arigo", and "Who Needs It". LP, Vinyl record album

A fab set of James Bond tunes – performed by Brit easy maestro Roland Shaw, in a style that's arguably groovier than the original soundtracks themselves! There's some nice instrumental touches on a few of these that push the mood of the set in a good way – and Shaw's also chosen a lot of less-familiar numbers that have a more dramatic feel to them, getting past the obvious cliches of other albums of this type. Titles include "Kingston Calypso", "Thunderball", "Death Of Goldfinger", "Miami", "Spectre Island", "Underneath The Mango Tree", "Tania Meets Klebb", and "Arrival Of The Bomb & Countdown". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Dig Tuareg guitar? Then you should find plenty here to really expand your listening palette, and in a nicely different way – as these older cuts from Mauritania show a similar use of electric guitar over long-spun rhythms – often cyclical and hypnotic, especially when the musician turns up the fuzz! The Saharan nation really has a way with the guitar – and here, the styles vary nicely, along with the variety of artists included in the set – really expanding our understanding of the music, and in a way that's as groovy as it possibly can be. The set comes with a great booklet of notes – in true Mississippi style – and titles include "Wezin" by Luleide Ould Dendenni, "Banjey" by Kebrouh, "L'Ensijab" by Ateg Ould Syed, "Wezin" by Jeich Ould Chighaly, "Moulana Laa Moulana" by Baba Ould Hembara & Mamma Mint Hembara, "El Horr & Az-Zrag" by Mohammed Cheikh Ould Syed, and "Guelbi Vatimetou" by Mohammed Guitar & Sbeyniat. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most dramatically poppy albums from Yello – a set that takes their older electric groove and infuses it with a bit more theatrics and dancefloor-styled rhythms! Flag's really the record that probably sums up the mainstream vision of Yello the best – that image of mustachioed Europeans acting goofy in cleverly cartoony music videos, while referencing an imagined nostalgia in definite 80s trappings, and avoiding any real direct attempt at songwriting. Yet amidst the showiness and oddball characters, the core Yello sound is still at the bottom of the mix – lost a bit, to be sure, but still more compelling and longer-lasting than much other electric pop spawned by their generation. Titles include "Tied Up In Red", "Blazing Saddles", "The Race", "Otto Di Cantania", "Tied Up", and "3rd Of June". LP, Vinyl record album

A collection of regional music from Nigeria, Uganda, Tanzania, Tunesia, Kenya, South Africa, Ethiopia, Malawi, Zambia, Angola, Algeria, Tanzania, Egypt, Senegal, Morocco, Ghana, Mauritania, Gabon, Sudan, and Mali. LP, Vinyl record album