An ambitious larger group album from Yusef Lateef – and one that's carried off with all the genius of his smaller group sessions from the time! Yusef himself is working with a variety of reed instruments – including tenor sax, oboe, flute, and argol – amongst a larger horn section that also features Josea Taylor on bassoon, Tate Houston on baritone sax, Curtis Fuller on trombone, and Clark Terry and Richard Williams on trumpet. Rhythm is by the trio of Joe Zawinul piano, Ben Tucker bass, and Lex Humphries drums – and although the horn arrangements are complicated, they're always soulfully swinging – never too academic, and really done on a way that just expands the mixture of exoticism and hardbop expressed on other Lateef albums! Titles include "Iqbal", "Apathy", "Summer Song", "Revelation", and "The Centaur & The Phoenix". CD also features 2 bonus tracks – "Jungle Fantasy" and "Titora" – both taken from The Many Faces Of Yusef Lateef album, and done with added percussion and background voices! CD

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Pure genius from Tangerine Dream – a record that came out right at the start of the 70s, and immediately cemented the group's reputation as one of the most inventive electronic acts of the decade! The tracks are long and spacious here – very much in the territory of some of the group's Krautrock contemporaries, but with more of a sense of openness, and patience – as they never rush things at all, while layering together their unique blends of guitar, organ, percussion, flute, and anything else they can think of – even a coffee machine! Chris Franke handles the electronics, but Steve Schroyder abstracts them with "several echo machines" – while Edgar Froese helps them all remember to keep things tuneful at times. Tracks include "Sunrise In The Third System", "Fly & Collision Off Comas Sola", and the side-long "Alpha Centauri". CD

Ronald Langestraat has been in more jazz-based territory in the past, but here he adds in a bit more rhythm and opens up a groove – quite a surprise for this octogenarian musician! Ronald sings on many tracks, with this cool raspy voice that slides in and out of the grooves nicely – as keyboards dance over beats, often with a spacey quality that's got a bit of an 80s vibe, which is in keeping with Langestraat's work during that decade. Titles include the long groover "Mambo Magic" – hardly a Latin track, but one that has nice keyboards over skittish beats – next to other cuts that include "Energy In Space", "Working Every Day", "Alpha Centauri", "Freedom", and "Chet Baker". LP, Vinyl record album

Mildlife serve up a very classic groove, but one that's maybe got more 80s elements than their previous work – in part because the vocals often use processing to come across in a very cool way! The music is funk, but with some nice tightness too – almost a leaner take on the wider ambitious modes of 70s AOR, filtered through an 80s cosmic club aesthetic, all with a sound that's sparkling and spacey all the way through! The basslines and keyboards are great – and titles include "Musica", "Sunrise", "Forever", "Yourself", "Return To Centaurus", and "Future Life". CD

A classic from the late 70s lineup with Phil Mogg on vocals and Paul Chapman on guitar – on itles that include "Money Money", "Anyday", "Alpha Centauri", "Mystery Train", "Gone In The Night", "Lettin Go", and "Youngblood". LP, Vinyl record album

Cool cuts from CAMPOS – a name that stands for "Cumbias And More Psychedelic Original Sounds" – which is a very good way to describe the music on the set! There's an update of older Colombian modes going on – served up by Joshua Camp, who handles all instruments and programs in the set – mixing acoustic elements with keyboards, samples, and other sonic delights – all in a mode that echoes some older styles that you might have heard on Discos Fuentes back in the 70s, but with a delivery that's very contemporary overall! Titles include "Rise Up Shapeshifters", "Cumbia VIP 600", "After The Flight", "Last Star In The Aubergine Sky", "The Saddest Of Parties", "The Eigth Door", and "Cumbia De Alpha Centauri". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the comps that rode the mid 90s wave of turntablism, with a nice time table inside the gatefold sleeve. Not as much over the top trickery as you might hear on the Return of The DJ compilations on Bomb, but some essential moments, like Cut Chemist's "Lesson 6" and the X-Men's "A Turntable Experience". Radar's "Radar Frees Tibet" and Beyond There "On Wax" display some nice turntable moments, while a few of the other tracks don't really justify their place in the context of the comp, but are nice to have anyway – like Latyrx's "Say That". Also includes Prince Paul "DJ Prince Paul Vs The World", Ingrid De Lambre & Eddie Def "Poeisies, Scene 1 Le Blues", DJ Swingsett & DJ Wally "Centaurus Space Bass (Cloak & Destroy mix)", Peanut Butter Wolf & The Beat Junkies "They Don't Fall Down", Mumbles "At The Mountains Of Madness" and Q-Burn's Abstract Message "Book Of Changes". CD