Some of the most compelling grooves the Talking Heads ever recorded – a set that sparkles with imaginative touches, and railroads forward on a wave of complicated rhythms! The sound is brilliant throughout – a genre-less approach that sheds the group's earlier art nerd aesthetic for one that's clearly influenced by late 70s funk and club – but takes that influence in a whole new direction! The whole thing's even fresher than some of the artier downtown moments that bubbled around at the time – as David Byrne and the group actually managed to cross over big with the record – hitting not only urban markets, but also getting some play from the classic rock crowd too. Brian Eno produced, and co-wrote the songs with the group – and some great Green World-esque electronics bubble through the mix, and hold the whole thing together beautifully. Titles include "Houses In Motion", "Once In A Lifetime", "The Great Curve", "Crosseyed & Painless", "Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On)", "Listening Wind", "Seen & Not Seen", and "The Overload". LP, Vinyl record album

A great late 80s return to form for Lou Reed – a record set in a New York that's a bit different than the gritty one of his youth, but which is captured here by Lou with that vivid sense of songwriting that always made his urban themes some of the best in rock and roll! The set's designed to be listened to straight through – like a book or a movie, Lou mentions in the notes – and the songs are set to well-crafted guitar work mostly by Reed, augmented with work from Mike Rathke – delivered in a vocal style that's found a newly-confident way of moving between singing and speech. Titles include "Dirty Blvd", "Endless Cycle", "Busload Of Faith", "Sick Of You", "Hold On Mr Waldheim", "Xmas In February", "Strawman", "Dime Store Mstery", "Romeo Had Juliette", and "The Last Great American Whale". LP, Vinyl record album

The only full length album ever issued by Suburban Lawns – a real standout in the southern California scene at the end of the 70s, and a group whose potential seems to know no bounds! These guys are clearly rooted in punk, but already reaching past it – getting creative and playful with their song structure, then rolling back into these short, sharp bursts of guitar energy that shows that they can go head to head with the best of them – a combination that makes the record pretty darn fantastic all the way through! Vocals are nice and jagged, and really fit the spirit of the songs – which were all penned by Su Tissue, who sings lead on a number of them. Titles include "Janitor", "Flying Saucer Safari", "Anything", "Green Eyes", "Jam The Controls", "Intellectual Rock", "Gossip", "Unable", "When In The World", "Not Allowed", and "Mom & Dad & God". LP, Vinyl record album

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