Bobby Byrd recorded some killer work with James Brown back at the end of the 60s, but hardly got the chance to record much once the 70s moved on – until this killer full length set that has Bobby's vocals backed by the genius of the Soul Society combo! There's a really old school vibe to the whole set – strongly inspired by the James Brown sound of the late 60s, but also filtered through the new changes that the UK scene was bringing in during the generation of Brand New Heavies – a plenty that's great for Bobby, and has a whole back to basics vibe that really sounds wonderful, and reminds us that old funky legends never die – they just don't get the attention they deserve! The set features guest vocals from Vicki Anderson and Carleen Anderson – two generations of female funk – and titles include "Back From The Dead", "Never Get Enough", "I'm On The Move", "Sayin It & Doin It Is Two Different Things", "The Way To Get Down", and "Sunshine". CD

Incognito never lets us down – and records like this keep us listening strongly year after year! The set's got all the core brilliance of Incognito at their best – a really classic approach to jazzy soul, served up with top shelf instrumentation by the group – and sent home strongly by a range of singers who include Vanessa Haynes, Tony Momrelle, Chiara Hunter, Imani, Deborah Bond, and the great Carleen Anderson! Nobody can do it as well as these guys – tight, but never uptight – smooth, but never sleepy – really right on the money from the production on down to the bottom – the kind of careful, classy soul that almost makes Incognito a genre unto themselves. Titles include "Wind Sorceress", "Rapture", "Hands Up If You Wanna Be Loved", "Hats", "I Couldn't Love You More", "Something Bout July", and "Silver Shadow". Japanese CD features the bonus track "Part Of The Plan". CD

One of the greatest soul albums of the past 20 years – an instant classic the day it was released! When this killer came out in the UK in 1991, it was one of the best soul records we'd heard in years. Carleen Anderson, the then-unknown daughter of Bobby Byrd & Vicki Anderson, sung some of the deepest vocals we'd heard in years – and she was backed by funky soundscapes filled with references and homages to greats like Roy Ayers, Leroy Hutson, Leon Ware, 24-Carat Black, and many others – all now well-remembered artists from the rare groove years of the 70s, but at the time just barely-remembered echoes from the past who were being kept alive in the British soul scene. The record was (and is) impeccable – a wondrous treat for fans of the kind of rare groove material we stock at Dusty Groove – and it features stellar performances by the likes of Carleen Anderson, Master Ace, Johnny Lytle, Maceo Parker, and others! This US version features a few remixes from the original UK album – and titles include "All I Have (Young Ideas mix)", "Funky Yeh Funki (Mek It)", "Talkin What I Feel", "Move On", "Apparently Nothin (Soul River)", "Get Yourself Together (parts 1 & 2)", "Freedom Suite", "Step Right On (original mix)", and "As We Come (To Be)". CD

Jazz-meets-hip hop-meets-new grooves compilation put together by the folks at the Red Hot organization in the mid 90s. Titles include "Time Is Moving On" by Donald Byrd, Guru, and Ronny Jordan; "Stolen Moments" by United Future Organization; "This Is Madness" by The Last Poets & Pharoah Sanders; "The Scream" by US3 & Joshua Redman; "Trouble Don't Last Always" by Incognito, Carleen Anderson, & Ramsey Lewis; "Nocturnal Sunrise" by Me'Shell NdegeOcello & Herbie Hancock; "Proceed II" by The Roots & Roy Ayers, "Un Ange En Danger" by MC Solaar & Ron Carter, and "The Rubbers Song" by Pharcyde – plus a bonus disc with two versions of "A Love Supreme" and remix of Creator Has A Master Plan". CD

Bobby Byrd recorded some killer work with James Brown back at the end of the 60s, but hardly go the chance to record much once the 70s moved on – until this killer full length set that has Bobby's vocals backed by the genius of the Soul Society combo! There's a really old school vibe to the whole set – strongly inspired by the James Brown sound of the late 60s, but also filtered through the new changes that the UK scene was bringing in during the generation of Brand New Heavies – a plenty that's great for Bobby, and has a whole back to basics vibe that really sounds wonderful, and reminds us that old funky legends never die – they just don't get the attention they deserve! The set features guest vocals from Vicki Anderson and Carleen Anderson – two generations of female funk – and titles include "Back From The Dead", "Never Get Enough", "I'm On The Move", "Sayin It & Doin It Is Two Different Things", "The Way To Get Down", and "Sunshine". CD

A groundbreaking meeting of musical icons – with veteran jazz greats, a couple of then-young guns, and one of the MCs who helped bring jazz into hip hop in the first place! Jazzmatazz bridges both stylistic and generational boundaries in incredible ways, not only an earnest effort by Guru to pay heartfelt tribute to heroes, but to show his own and subsequent generations its the vitality and longevity jazz music – with a lineup that includes Donald Byrd, Roy Ayers, Ronny Jordan, Lonnie Liston Smith, Carleen Anderson, N'Dea Davenport and MC Solaar. 12 tracks in all, including "Slicker Than Most", "No Time To Play", "Loungin", "Sights In The City", "Le Bien, Le Mal", "Transit Ride", "When You're Near", "Down The Backstreets", "Respectful Dedications", "Take A Look At Yourself" and "Trust Me". CD

A groundbreaking meeting of musical icons – with veteran jazz greats, a couple of then-young guns, and one of the MCs who helped bring jazz into hip hop in the first place! Jazzmatazz bridges both stylistic and generational boundaries in incredible ways, not only an earnest effort by Guru to pay heartfelt tribute to heroes, but to show his own and subsequent generations its the vitality and longevity jazz music – with a lineup that includes Donald Byrd, Roy Ayers, Ronny Jordan, Lonnie Liston Smith, Carleen Anderson, N'Dea Davenport and MC Solaar. 12 tracks in all, including "Slicker Than Most", "No Time To Play", "Loungin", "Sights In The City", "Le Bien, Le Mal", "Transit Ride", "When You're Near", "Down The Backstreets", "Respectful Dedications", "Take A Look At Yourself" and "Trust Me". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic trip through the archive with Volcov – even if most of the cuts here are a bit more recent than those that usually get archival status! And yet in a way, many of these cuts almost went to the archives directly – especially in this digital age for modern soul and club, where so many great singles and albums don't make it onto vinyl – and fade fast in the fast rush of new music hitting the internet. That's why we love collections like this so much – as Volcov's done a great job of grabbing the best bits from the past decade or so, and weaving them together as a strong reminder of how much wonderful soul music is being created on this planet – most of it still waiting to be discovered. There's a few older bits here, but most tracks are contemporary – and titles include "Caterpillar" by Rebirth, "All That Glitters" by Carleen Anderson, "Let The Music Play" by Collective Peace, "Spiraling Prism" by Ian O'Brien, "Ori Space" by Ron Trent, "Turn It Around (Eric Lau rmx)" by Ruth Koleva, "Planet Birth (Xantone Blacq rmx/Volcov edit)" by Intuit with Andy Bey, "Lawra (Volcov edit)" by Tony Williams, "Blue Room (Kaidi Tatham's shokazulu rmx)" by Quentin Kane & Simon Sheldon with TK Blue, "Finding The Peace" by Skymark, "I Put A Spell On You" by Honey Sweet with Cindy Mizelle, and "After Life (part 2)" by Harry Whitaker. CD