A totally great set by Cannonball Adderley – one of his funkiest albums ever, recorded live at Operation Breadbasket under the supervision of Jesse Jackson, and a session in which the band is cooking a lot more than on some of their other albums from the time! The set grooves hard with some tight electric piano from Joe Zawinul – amazing snakey lines that not only set the tone for the whole record, but which really make for a strong evolution from the Mercy Mercy Mercy era of the group a few years before. Cannon's alto and soprano work are beautiful – a masterpiece of soul jazz expression – as is the cornet from brother Nat – and the group's completed by bassist Walter Booker and drummer Roy McCurdy. The album's a bucketful of great jazzy sample tunes – and tracks include "Walk Tall", "Country Preacher", "Hummin", and the extended "Afro-Spanish Omlet". CD

Titles include "74 Miles Away", "Country Preacher", "Work Song", "Jive Samba", "Mercy Mercy Mercy", "Walk Tall", and "Why Am I Treated So Bad" – lots of classics produced by David Axelrod! CD

Cannonball Adderley left the planet all too soon during the year of 1975 – but he's still going fantastically strong in this live date from the same year – a set that maybe shows us what sort of directions that Cannon might have taken had he stuck around for another decade or two! There's certainly some of the older Adderley modes going on here – a cut or two delivered as crowd pleasers – but on other numbers, the group opens with qualities that are almost hinting at spiritual jazz, with looser and more searching energy – delivered by Cannon on alto and soprano, Nat Adderley on cornet, Michael Wolff on piano, Walter Booker on bass, and Roy McCurdy on drums and percussion. Titles include "Waban", "Country Preacher", "First Trip", "Five Of A Kind", and "The Scene". CD

A really wonderful collection of work from the great Jerry Reed – some more obscure albums than his bigger hits, which makes for a really fresh selection of music throughout! Explores Guitar Country is maybe one of the rootsier efforts during the early RCA years of Jerry Reed – a set that definitely lives up to the "guitar country" promised in the title, as his strong command of the instrument is right up front in the mix – often on these midtempo numbers that sound perfect with his style! Jerry sings a bit, but his guitar is almost the strongest voice on the record – nicely unadorned, especially for RCA at the time – on titles that include "Bluegrass With Guts", "Are You From Dixie", "Wayfarin Stranger", "Barbara Allen", "In The Pines", "Swarmin", and "A Worried Man". Cookin has Jerry Reed reaching for some of the groovier material that would bring him great fame – but the songs are also balanced with some slightly folksy currents, maybe a bit like the late 60s work of Waylon Jennings – with some surprising commentary from time to time, and a richness of feeling that wasn't always allowed Jerry in some of his more famous, joke-heavy moments. Titles include "Turn It Around In Your Mind", "How Many Tomorrows", "Sometimes Feelin", "Plastic Saddle", "Alabama Jubilee", and "My Next Impersonation". Georgia Sunshine is a record that has Jerry Reed really hitting that formula that would make for some big albums in the 70s – a mix of witty, upbeat numbers and some occasional deeper moments – many of which are featured here in songs penned by Jerry himself! The set features the big hit "Amos Moses" – plus "Good Friends & Neighbors", "Talk About The Good Times", "Preacher & The Bear", "Georgia Sunshine", "That's All Part Of Losing", and "Dream Sweet Dreams About Me". Me & Jerry is a great duet album with Chet Atkins – a set that showcases the super-strong guitar talents of both musicians – very different in sound and style, but perfectly matched on a strong set of instrumentals! The tunes are mostly familiar, but nicely fresh in this setting – with lots of creativity from both musicians – and titles include "Tennessee Stud", "Wreck Of The John B", "Nut Sundae", "Stump Water", "Cannonball Rag", and "The January February March". CD

Cannonball Adderley left the planet all too soon during the year of 1975 – but he's still going fantastically strong in this live date from the same year – a set that maybe shows us what sort of directions that Cannon might have taken had he stuck around for another decade or two! There's certainly some of the older Adderley modes going on here – a cut or two delivered as crowd pleasers – but on other numbers, the group opens with qualities that are almost hinting at spiritual jazz, with looser and more searching energy – delivered by Cannon on alto and soprano, Nat Adderley on cornet, Michael Wolff on piano, Walter Booker on bass, and Roy McCurdy on drums and percussion. Titles include "Waban", "Country Preacher", "First Trip", "Five Of A Kind", and "The Scene". LP, Vinyl record album

Not the first album from Roy Buchanan, despite the title – but a set that helped firmly cement his strong 70s legacy – thanks to plenty of the almost-effortless guitar craft that made Roy one of the key forces to carry blues inspiration towards a more rock-oriented world at the time! Despite his face on the cover, Roy doesn't even sing at all – he leaves that to vocalist Bill Sheffield, who's got a soulful style that really matches the grooves – which leaves Buchanan to spin out all these long, well-crafted guitar lines that are more important to the record than the lyrics. Titles include "I'm A Ram", "In The Beginning", "You're Killing My Love", "Wayfaring Pilgrim", and a nice take on the Cannonball Adderley/Joe Zawinul tune "Country Preacher". LP, Vinyl record album