Soul — Recently Added

The complete Opera House recordings by Sylvester – material that partly appeared on the Living Proof album back in the 70s, but which is greatly expanded here – with over an hour of previously unreleased music, and extended performances of some tunes! The set documents a key moment of ... CD

Ike Turner rocks – which is maybe no surprise to anyone who knows that right during the early days of Sun Records, Ike had a big hand in a single that some folks consider the first real rock and roll record – done before even Elvis Presley or Jerry Lee Lewis had entered the scene! This ... CD

A really wonderful set from the great Charles Brown – known to most as a blue singer, and a sophisticated one at that – but also an artist with a fair bit of jazz in his style, which is unlocked nicely on this 60s session for Mainstream Records! Arrangements are by Don Sebesky, and ... CD

Breathy, beautiful soul from Ellerine Harding – a lesser-known 70s singer, but one who managed to cut this great album for the Mainstream label! Like some of the other soul on Mainstream, the approach here is inflected with a bit of jazz – arrangements scored by Wade Marcus, and ... CD

A killer album of Afro Funk – with a very unusual origin! In the wake of Manu Dibango's big hit (and some kind of failure to register the copyright), many many versions of "Soul Makossa" were recorded and released, some good, some bad. This album is a good example of that ... CD

Has there ever been anyone as lovely as Sade? We think not – and from the time she first hit our ears in the 80s, it was the start of an instant love affair that's continued for decades! Sade really brought something new to music at the time – a return to older styles of acoustic and ... LP, Vinyl record album

A mellow soul classic from Sade – the last album in the original run of gems from Sade Adu and her original jazzy quartet – and one that helped tide the world over for the long stretch before the next album! Sade's great here – vocally, very much in the best laidback mode of her ... LP, Vinyl record album

A huge amount of work from the mighty Midnight Star – a group who really helped find a new way forward for funk in the 80s, thanks to music like this! The group were one of the key acts on Solar Records, the west coast imprint who really changed things up at the time – and they have a ... CD

Maybe the funkiest album ever cut for the legendary Westbound label in Detroit – and that's saying a lot, given that the company was the initial home to Funkadelic! Yet on this stunning full length set, The Counts maybe do that famous group one better – pushing aside their vocals for ... LP, Vinyl record album

The one-time obscure, now straight-up classic funky soul record by 24-Carat Black! This beautiful LP was released by Stax in the early 70s, but somehow got lost in the shuffle. Fortunately, it was rediscovered by the international groove community in the years to come, and it's been at the top of ... LP, Vinyl record album

A heady second chapter of a legendary funk group that were only around for a few short years, but gave us some great music in the process – presented here with 16 unissued tracks from their years in Los Angeles, including work from members of the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band too! With so ... LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic first chapter from this legendary funk group – material recorded during their early years on the Phoenix scene, at a time when Dyke & The Blazers must have been the hottest act going down in Arizona! The group here begin with their Funky Broadway roots – taking on that ... LP, Vinyl record album

A lasting classic from singer Tasha Thomas – a vocalist who'd already lent her talents to numerous studio sessions, commercials, and disco tracks by the time of this release – which has the lady stepping into the spotlight as a fully-formed talent in her own right! The vocals are ... CD

A wonderful female soul trio from the Chicago scene of the 70s – and one we'd stand strongly next to the best gal groups from the Philly or New York scenes! In fact, Coffee were a bit unique in the city – which mostly had male groups getting the record contracts during the decade ... CD

Tremendous work from Anglo Saxon Brown – a Philly group who started out their recording career as Ujima on Epic, where they issued a handful of well-remembered singles – then changed their name and cut this one and only full length set for Atlantic! The album's a stunner all the way ... CD

West coast harmony soul genius – a full early album of work by The Ballads – a sweet soul group who really live up to their name! The tracks here are all mellow soul with a near-perfect quality – vocals that step and slide together in a gentle, heartfelt sort of way – never ... LP, Vinyl record album

Rare Canadian funk from the 70s – played by a hip little group who've also got a jazzy flavor too! The Sidewinders are a bit like American ensemble funk acts of the time – in that they can have an upbeat, tight approach to the groove when they want – but they also have a great ... LP, Vinyl record album

Really great early live work from The Commodores – recorded years before their big 70s fame at Motown, and with a nicely gritty vibe overall! The performance is a great one for anyone who's ever doubted the funk roots of the group – as the combo work at a level that's like the best ... LP, Vinyl record album

A rare groove gem from the Chicago scene at the start of the 80s – a record that shows that the city's soul scene was still going strong at the time, even though the bigger labels had given up the ghost! Michigan Avenue have this great way of taking older harmony modes and refitting them for ... CD

The classic first LP by this stellar Chicago harmony group – and a monster! Heaven & Earth had a wonderful falsetto harmony sound that reminds us a lot of east coast winners like Blue Magic or The Stylistics – and like some of the best east coast groups, this group's vocals work ... CD

A wonderful set of funky Latin grooves from Chakachas – an album that was recorded around the same time as their classic Jungle Fever record, but which is much more obscure overall! The set was originally only issued in Europe, and has a groove that's very similar to Jungle Fever – a ... CD

Funky genius galore – a massive package that brings together both the complete studio and live recordings by the Average White Band – plus some great surprises as well! The group are the stuff of legend – an overseas combo, but one with a groove so tight they were able to get ... CD

The complete Opera House recordings by Sylvester – material that partly appeared on the Living Proof album back in the 70s, but which is greatly expanded here – with over an hour of previously unreleased music, and extended performances of some tunes! The set documents a key moment of ... LP, Vinyl record album

A really unusual late life project from the great Weldon Irvine – one done after a decade or more of having an influence on hip hop, which then led Weldon to create a hip hop album of his own! There's a nice vibe here that almost updates the style of his 70s Time Capsule record – as if ... LP, Vinyl record album

A lost early chapter in the career of Roberta Flack – material recorded during the sessions for her legendary First Take album, but unissued at the time – and presented here with an amazing demonstration of the depth of her young talents! All the genius of First Take is in place here ... LP, Vinyl record album

A righteous treasure from the end of the 60s – an album of vocal tracks recorded by the Minister Of Information for the Black Panther Party, set to backings from the legendary jazz visionary Horace Tapscott! Elaine Brown's less of a soul singer than a powerful speaker who delivers the lyrics ... LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic album from Sade – issued after a way too long hiatus from the record racks, but one that also shows just why she's always such a classic talent, and has the right to disappear for awhile, then come back and give us another dose of magic! The style's a real change from the Lovers ... LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic return to form for the amazing Sade – a set issued almost a decade since her previous album, but one that shows that she is still very much at the top of her form! The production is slightly different than before – with a spare, stripped-down, slightly dubby style that's ... LP, Vinyl record album

Proof that the US Army had plenty going on during the 70s – as you'll hear from this killer set of military-produced grooves from East Of Underground! The set goes way past the previous East Of Underground reissue – to feature work by the groups Soap, Black Seeds, and Sound Trek – ... CD

A very unusual setting for the legendary Ruth Brown – the singer who first rose to fame singing raw-edged R&B tracks for Atlantic Records in the 50s – but who works here in a much jazzier mode overall! The set features backings from Peter Matz – who often accompanied the ... CD