A soul fusion set from David Spinozza – a player who managed to cross over nicely, but never without losing the depth in his sound! The set features Spinozza in the lead on guitar, working in a soulful setting that's often laidback – rhythms stepping along gently, allowing for some glide in the instrumentation – sometimes hitting a bit hard, yet never in the jamming side of the fusion spectrum. The arrangements are a big part of the success of the album – nice and lean, and handled by Mike Mainieri, Leon Pendarvis, and Spinozza himself – who seems to have a good ear for vocals, using them sparingly, with just the right blend. Luther Vandross sings a bit on the record, and titles include "Country Bumpkin", "Superstar", "On My Way To The Liquor Store", "Prelude To The Ballerina", "Airborne", and "Doesn't She Know By Now". LP, Vinyl record album

With Ralph MacDonald on percussion, Hiram Bullock on guitar, Marcus Miller on bass, Don Grolnick on clavinet and piano, David Spinozza on guitar, and others. LP, Vinyl record album

Sweet 70s funk from the great Herbie Mann – a tight small combo set done with plenty of electric touches! Side one, the "up side", features a core combo that's really great – Pat Rebillot on organ and electric piano, David Spinozza on guitar, Jerry Jemmott on bass, Reggie Ferguson on drums, and Ralph MacDonald on percussion – and the tunes themselves are a nice mix of covers that come off nicely in this instrumental mode. Side two is billed as the "down side", but is still pretty funky at points – arrangements are a bit fuller, but have a nice soundtrack kind of groove. Pat Rebillot's on keyboards again, and also did some of the arrangements. Titles include "Turtle Bay", "Do It Again", "Happier Than The Morning Sun", "Family Affair", "Reverend Lee", and "Never Ending Song Of Love". LP, Vinyl record album

Wild electric work from Les McCann – an album of free, open sounds that's quite a change from his styles of the 60s – and from most of his other work of the 70s too! Side one features an extended 26 minute track titled "The Lovers" – a slow-building number that has Les on sublime Fender Rhodes, as things build slowly with this really spiritual current that comes from the addition of Yusef Lateef on reeds, Cornell Dupree and David Spinozza on guitar, Corky Hale on harp, and both Bernard Purdie and Alphonse Mouzon on drums! The track is loose, but builds into some great funky moments – almost a keyboard version of electric Miles Davis at the time, but a lot more soulful. And side two continues the heavy keyboard vibe – with a killer remake of Les' classic "Beaux J Poo Poo" and a similar "Poo Pye McGoochie", both with the kind of choppy funky grooves Les laid down with Eddie Harris a few years prior! LP, Vinyl record album

Wild electric work from Les McCann – an album of free, open sounds that's quite a change from his styles of the 60s – and from most of his other work of the 70s too! Side one features an extended 26 minute track titled "The Lovers" – a slow-building number that has Les on sublime Fender Rhodes, as things build slowly with this really spiritual current that comes from the addition of Yusef Lateef on reeds, Cornell Dupree and David Spinozza on guitar, Corky Hale on harp, and both Bernard Purdie and Alphonse Mouzon on drums! The track is loose, but builds into some great funky moments – almost a keyboard version of electric Miles Davis at the time, but a lot more soulful. And side two continues the heavy keyboard vibe – with a killer remake of Les' classic "Beaux J Poo Poo" and a similar "Poo Pye McGoochie", both with the kind of choppy funky grooves Les laid down with Eddie Harris a few years prior! CD features a long bonus track – a live version of "Compared To What", which originally appeared on the Doldinger Jubilee album from 1975. CD

The group features Michael Small on tack piano – plus Pat Rebillot on piano, Joe Beck on acoustic guitar, David Spinozza on electric guitar, Dave Bromberg on dobro, and Eric Weissberg on banjo and fiddle. LP, Vinyl record album

Arranged and produced by David Spinozza – with titles that include "Ain't No Song", "Walking Man", "Hello Old Friend", "Migration", "Fading Away", "Me & My Guitar", and "Daddy's Baby". LP, Vinyl record album

An early album from Japanese genius Akiko Yano, and one that features some key contributions from American jazz and fusion players – in a lineup that brings some surprisingly funky touches to the record too! Akiko's vocals and unique song structures still have all the charms you'll know from other records, but there's also a groove at points that's totally great – a vibe that's picking up from that moment when Japanese singers and musicians were traveling over the Pacific to work with American players for a really cool blend! The album features keyboards from Roger Powell, Hammond from Will Boulware, drums from Steve Jordan, and guitar from David Spinozza – plus plenty of moog and other keyboards from Akiko and Hideki Matsutake. Titles include "Yo Ro Ko Bi", "Uo Sao", "Katarun Kararan", "Kodomo Tachi", "Okina Ishi", "Two On The Stage", and "Andante Cantabile". CD

An early album from Japanese genius Akiko Yano, and one that features some key contributions from American jazz and fusion players – in a lineup that brings some surprisingly funky touches to the record too! Akiko's vocals and unique song structures still have all the charms you'll know from other records, but there's also a groove at points that's totally great – a vibe that's picking up from that moment when Japanese singers and musicians were traveling over the Pacific to work with American players for a really cool blend! The album features keyboards from Roger Powell, Hammond from Will Boulware, drums from Steve Jordan, and guitar from David Spinozza – plus plenty of moog and other keyboards from Akiko and Hideki Matsutake. Titles include "Yo Ro Ko Bi", "Uo Sao", "Katarun Kararan", "Kodomo Tachi", "Okina Ishi", "Two On The Stage", and "Andante Cantabile". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best solo records from Harvey Mason – best known as the drummer on some really monster 70s funky fusion sessions (such as Johnny Hammond's Gears album) – but a surprisingly well-rounded R&B artist overall! As with Norman Connors, another fusion drummer gone soul star, Harvey's working here in a style that mixes jazz influences with modern soul – grooving things for a more mainstream audience, but still keeping things real underneath. The record's filled with guest appearances by fusion greats – like Bob James, David Spinozza, Richard Tee, Lee Ritenour, and others – and Jim Gilstrap sings vocals on a cut or two. Titles include "The Race", "Groovin You", "Wave", "We Can", and "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow". LP, Vinyl record album

Although Howard Tate's work on Verve has gotten a lot of acclaim lately – thanks to an excellent CD reissue – this later album for Atlantic still remains in the ranks of soul obscurities. The album's perhaps not as great as Tate's Verve work – in that the arrangements don't fit as hand-in-glove as those sides – but the quality's still quite high, with arrangements by David Spinozza and Jerry Ragovoy that work quite well with Tate's soulful vocals. Tracks include "The Bitter End", "Keep Cool", "She's a Burglar", "Strugglin", and "It's Your Move". CD

Although Howard Tate's work on Verve has gotten a lot of acclaim – thanks to an excellent CD reissue – this later album for Atlantic still remains in the ranks of soul obscurities. The album's perhaps not as great as Tate's Verve work – in that the arrangements don't fit as hand-in-glove as those sides – but the quality's still quite high, with arrangements by David Spinozza and Jerry Ragovoy that work quite well with Tate's soulful vocals. Tracks include "The Bitter End", "Keep Cool", "She's a Burglar", "Strugglin", and "It's Your Move". LP, Vinyl record album