A 2CD collection of Cindelic Sounds – grooves from the Italian label that blending fresh and breezy sounds and inspirtation from the 60s to today – lively bits of bossa, lounge jazz, club funk & soul and DJ oriented atmospheres! Disc 1 features 20 tracks by Montefiori Cocktail, Allessandro Scala Quintet, Mop Mop, Daniele Baldelli, Calibro 35, Signor Wolf and many more. The second disc features more club oriented sounds, though with similar inspiration – and includes some sweet remixes. 34 tracks on 2CDs: "Funky Teacher" by Moplen, "Sun Is Shinin'" by Nylon, "Starz" by Altalena, "Capo Est" by Mop Mop, "Guilty's Trip" by Signor Wolf, "Into The Fire (Reworked By Allesandro Magnananini), "King Of Swing (Remixed By Doktor Zoil)" by Magnetic4, "Psykfunk" by Dario Piana, "Robotic Dub" by Fun Trio and much more. CD

You gotta love a record with song titles like "Marijuana", "Drugstore", and "Hurrycane" – and we can definitely promise that the overall sound definitely matches those trippy references! The record's one of the most obscure Italian sound library sets from the time – and really has a feel that's more like an offbeat jazz album overall – never too outside, but definitely modern – with very strong passages from the saxophone, flute, and trumpet players in the group – who work nicely alongside some sweet organ and guitar, which provide some excellent psychedelic touches! Tony Iglio himself handles the Hammond – and wrote and arranged all the tunes – and in addition to the three mentioned above, other titles include "Jungla", "Yatagan", "Yellow Drops", "Soft Cream", and "Velvet". CD

Not the disco promised in the title – but a sweet batch of funky tracks from Japanese reedman Jiro Inagaki – easily one of his hippest albums of the 70s! Rhythms are super-tight – very much in the best mid 70s space of Fatback Band or Kool & The Gang – and carried off with some occasional trippy touches in the production, of the sort you'd know from other Japanese albums of this nature. The tunes are mostly instrumentals – focused on the jazzy grooves we'd expect from Jiro – but they often feature a bit of chorus vocals – probably just the musicians shouting out with joy alongside their sweet lead lines. Titles include a great cover of Ripple's "I Don't Know What It Is But It Sure Is Funky" – plus "Boogie Joe The Grinder", "Express", "Jungle Boogie", "Living For The City", "Outa Space", "Funky Stuff", and "Loose Booty". LP, Vinyl record album

A great and groovy early album from Volker Kriegel – the German guitarist who'd cut some very trippy work for the MPS label in the 70s – but a player who steps out here in a sweet soul jazz mode at the end of the 60s! Volker's still got the same wickedly sharp style on guitar you'd know from his later fame – but here, it's turned towards the kind of soulful guitar work you'd hear on Verve Records at the time – somewhere in the territory of George Benson, or maybe a bit in that of Wes Montgomery – but also with some occasional freewheeling moments that hint at the changes to come! The group's a trio on side one – with Peter Trunk on bass and Cees See on drums – but side two moves into wilder material with a quartet that features vibes by Claudio Szenkar, who adds in just the kind of psychedelic touches to really make the music open up! These cuts are much more modal, and show Kriegel's growing love of Eastern sounds – and titles include "Na Na Imboro", "Morandi", "Interpunctuation", "Traffic Jam", and "With A Little Help From My Friends". LP, Vinyl record album

A record that's very different than you might expect from the title – not 70s crime/cop material from the Italian scene, and instead a much richer, more sophisticated soundtrack from the late 60s – one that really makes great use of the darker, moodier side of the talents of Egisto Macchi! The music at times resonates with some of Macchi's more experimental library work, and does include some collaborations with Walter Branchi of Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza – but some moments are more straightforwardly jazzy, and have elements that resonate with other Italian soundtracks of the period – all of which makes the record a really fantastic blend of styles, and a great bridge between the worlds of cinema, library, and serious experimental music! LP, Vinyl record album

A really majestic album from Japanese keyboardist Hiromasa Suzuki – a set that maybe takes inspiration from the progressive side of the rock spectrum at the time, but which delivers the goods with a style that's definitely jazz all the way through! Suzuki plays both acoustic piano and electric, and with guitar from Kiyoshi Sugimoto in the group, there's definitely an electric vibe – but one that's offset by the sax work of Takeru Muraoka, trumpet of Takehisa Suzuki, and trombone of Tadataka Nakazawa! There's also work from the ancient biwa instrument from Japan, name-checked in the title – although the soaring quality of the other instrumentation really takes over at most points. Titles include "Ame No Iwayado", "Ashiharashiko", "Kamuyamatoiwarehiko", "Watatsumi No Irokonomiya", and "Yamatoshi Uruwashi". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastically free session from the Japanese scene of the late 60s – a set that really points the way towards some of the more dramatic, dynamic guitar-based expression to come in later decades! The group's a trio, with guitarist Masayuki Takayanagi very firmly in the lead – playing his instrument in a range of compelling ways – bowing the strings one minute, plucking with Derek Bailey-like complexity the next – sometimes with heavy drums and bass, other times standing out in very free solo space. The whole album's got a very freely improvised feel, and stands as an early link between free jazz and experimental rock modes - with tracks that include "Piranha", "Herdsman's Pipe Of Spain", "The Galactic System", "Sick Sick Sickness My Aunt", and "Study No 3 Up & Down". LP, Vinyl record album

A really cool classic from this Italian combo – one of the first groups to really get the sound of vintage easy and bossa grooves just right – which they perform here in a mix of original tunes and numbers by famous soundtrack giants like Piero Umiliani and Armando Trovajoli! Rhythms are nice and lean, and not in the too-clubby remix mode that other groups in this territory might use – with plenty of percussion down next to the bass and drums – topped with some especially great work on organ and synth, plus occasional wordless vocalizations too! The whole thing is very tasty – and titles include "Psicoerotica", "Il Bellunese", "Topless Party", "La Decisione", "Madame La Mousse", "Don Peppino E Falpala", "Gonna Make It Easy", "Gangster Story", "Il Colore Degli Angeli", and "Dentro L'Atelier". Great vinyl pressing – with a bonus record that features seven unreleased tunes, and seven more from singles as well! LP, Vinyl record album

An incredibly cool use of the koto – that stringed Japanese instrument that got some great reworking in the 70s, thanks to hip records like this! The instrument is set up here amidst some sophisticated larger arrangements – in a way that almost takes off from some of the Dorothy Ashby material on Cadet Records, but which also has a richness in sound that echoes some European soundtrack albums too – gentle grooves with warm currents that are mighty nice throughout – as keyboards, guitar, and even a bit of vibes come into the mix to really update the setting for the ancient instrument! The whole thing comes off with a sound that's surprisingly soulful at times – and titles include "Yagi Bushi", Otemoyan", "Mamuro Gawa Ondo", "Gujo Bushi", "Nishinjo Bushi", "Ume No Uta Genka", "Itsuki No Komori Uta", and "Akita Obako". LP, Vinyl record album

A deceptively groovy record – one that, like the other two in this hip series, hides some very cool sounds behind a relatively unassuming cover! Toshiko Yonekawa plays the Japanese koto, but the setting here is very different than the spare, folksy mode of earlier koto records – as arranger Kiyoshi Yamaya brings in a hip blend of jazz instrumentation and strings – using keyboards, vibes, guitar, and other instruments to update the sound, and give the whole thing a slinky 70s groove – bridging generations in Japanese music, with some great cinematic funk elements at times – on titles that include "Kariboshikiri Uta", "Tabaruzaka", "Iya No Kohiki Uta", "Takeda No Komori Uta", "Hietsuki Bushi", "Mogami Gawa Funa Uta", and "Aizu Bandai San". LP, Vinyl record album

Demonic sounds, but surprisingly sweet as well – done with this easy-flowing style that's really wonderful – and much more similar to the seductive sound library work of Alessandro Alessandroni, than to some of the starker, darker horror of the time! There's definitely some spooky passages, but they're almost always warmed up in really nice ways – both with keyboards, and with these wordless vocals from the lovely Giulia De Mutiis, who drifts through the record like some sexy ghost. Her vocals almost give the whole thing a more dream-like feel at times – not too atmospheric, but with clouds of sweet sounds that blow through the space in a wonderful way. Titles include "Demon Night II", "Demon Arise", "Dark Dreamer", "Devil's Nightmare", and "Erotic Demon". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the funkiest soundtracks we've ever heard from Alessandro Alessandroni – a set that clearly shows he'd been listening to the score for Shaft, as well as a host of 70s sound library music too! There's lots of great Italian cop/crime grooves on the set – done at an understated level that's almost better than more familiar work of the genre – often strongly focused on the core rhythms, which are lean and plenty darn funky – bad-stepping with instrumentation that's often small combo funky jazz more than it is the bigger orchestrations of American cop scores. Titles include "Cop's Blood", "Amusement", "Duke Soul Jazz", "Tema Di Susie", "Club Jazz", "Palance", "Knell", "Sbirro In Fuga", and "Luxury". CD

Modern electronic grooves from Funkadiba – a duo that features the legendary Daniele Baldelli, the DJ reknowned for his contributions to the famous Cosmic nightclub! The styles here are definitely an update of that classic Cosmic groove – lots of spare, stark beats mixed with synth and keyboard parts – but usually handled with a slightly warmer feel overall – one that almost shifts back from the 80s roots to grab a bit more 70s funk too – which is mixed in with the rhythms to deepen the soul of the cuts nicely! Titles include "Dirty Sun", "Countdown", "I Must Feel Better", "Barabba Funk", "Funka Takin Over", and "Skippy & The Funky Boys". CD

Percussionist Masahiko Togashi leads a really cool group here – one in which nearly all the other players handle percussion as well, but with a quality that's also surprisingly open and laidback – not a drum-heavy spectacular, but a record that allows more subtle elements to resonate a bit with some of the great string elements of the session too! The album features Keiki Midorikawa on bass and cello, and Yoshio Ikeda on bass too – with Yoshisaburo Toyozumi playing more percussion with Togashi, and use of soprano sax from Mototeru Takagi weaving throughout the record to create these nicely sharp lines from time to time! Yet even Takagi plays percussion on the record – and the album begins with gentle, organic rumblings first, then finds a bolder path – on titles that include "Things That Will Come Again", "Life Story Of Wind", "And Then", "Reunion", and "Those Passing Things". LP, Vinyl record album

Inventive percussion and amazing bass work – plus a host of other interesting elements as well – all wrapped up beautifully in this unique collaboration between Isao Suzuki and Masahiko Togashi! Both players were some of the most creative of the mainstream Japanese scene of the 70s – Togashi a drummer who'd often go out, but still maintain a sense of soul – and Suzuki a bassist who often used variations of his instrument that were a bit unusual, and which did way more than simple rhythm work! Here, Isao's working with cello, piccolo bass, and regular bass – in addition to piano and percussion – and Togashi plays lots more percussion, and a bit of keyboards too – as both players mix up instrumentation in these sensitive shadings of sound and color that are almost a Japanese equivalent of the best ECM experiments of the 70s. Tunes are all as poetic as they sound from the titles – and titles include "A Day Of The Sun", "Birth Of Yellow Eggs", "Silvery Flash", and "Awakening Of The Fresh Green". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the coolest Japanese albums of the 70s to blend classic instrumentation and contemporary elements – a record that's got plenty of the koto promised in the title, but which also serves up the music with a wonderfully rich vibe throughout! The style is more in sophisticated soundtrack territory, but with an undercurrent of funk underneath the larger arrangements – ala David Axelrod – and next to the koto played on each track by Toshiko Yonekawa, you'll find some wonderful basslines, vibes, and even some occasional tenor as well – all wrapped together in these really stunning arrangements from Kiyoshi Yamaya! The whole thing's as beautiful as it is groovy – and titles include "Tanchame", "Konpira Fune Fune", "Oshima Bushi", "Kaigara Bushi", "Sado Okesa", and "Tosa No Sunayama". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest soundtracks ever from Luiz Bacalov – a set that's filled with sex and slink, but which also has a great sense of groove as well – blending bossa jazz, mod moments, and all the best styles of the late 60s Italian scene! The music is mostly acoustic, but has a really great way of using sustained notes on flute – which creates this dreamy vibe that's almost electric, especially when offset by acoustic basslines, percussion, and piano – all used at a level that's right up there with the best from Morricone or Trovajoli at the time! There's also wonderful drifting vocals in the mix – courtesy of Nora Orlandi – and titles include "Round Nassau", "Swingin Easy In Tanganika", "Rio Zona Sul", "L'Amica", and "Taxi Cab 67". Features two bonus tracks – "L'Amica (ripresa)" and "The Bitter Truth (inst)". LP, Vinyl record album

With a cover like that, it's easy to see where the fantasy in the title is going – certainly not into the musky world of swords and sorcery, and instead into the realm of slinky sounds that are right at home in the Italian sound library world of the 70s! The music here has all the warm erotic touches of some of the better-known soundtrack material from the time – put together by Gianfranco Reverberi, who you might know from some of his crossover prog classics – but delivered with a lean instrumental mode that often has a keyboard as the lead instrument, over slow-stepping basslines and some nice washes of strings used in just the right way. Some tunes have a gentle funk vibe, others are sweetly sexy – and the set also features versions of some bigger hits from the time, with titles that include "Daniel", "Sylvia's Mother", "Fire Shadows In The Sunset", "Vincent", "She Was Not An Angel", "E Poi", "Quel Che Non Saprei Dirti Mai A Parole", and "Closed In A Drugstore". LP, Vinyl record album

A Japanese take on the sound of late 60s Woodstock – one that kind of takes all the best songs from the famous festival, then distills them into a batch of short, tight, funky jazz instrumentals! The approach is very cool – more funky than hippie, especially since the album begins with a massive drum break – although the instrumentation does have some nice fuzzy touches around the edges, particularly on some of the guitars and maybe a bit of the keyboards. There's brassy horns on the top, and lots of great rhythms on the bottom – and titles include "The Ground For Peace", "Spoonful", "Summertime Blues", "Mama Told Me", "I Want To Take You Higher", "Woodstock", "Knick Knack", and "Head Rock". LP, Vinyl record album

Nothing innocent about this record – because the groove is hard and heavy, wild and trippy – a really heady brew of funky jazz and more psychedelic influences – all recorded with some weird sounds in the background too! The album's a great one from Japanese groove pioneer Takeshi Inomata – and it's almost a fusion of earlier 60s funky band jazz with some of the more tripped-out modes of the jazz rock era. Vamping rhythms and full-on organs are undercut by wiggy guitar parts and soaring organ lines – all augmented by spoken Japanese passages, sound effects, and production styles that abstract out some instruments into very unusual modes. There's plenty of soulful and funky moments throughout – and titles include "The Death Of Janis", "Child & I", "Blue", "Alone", and "Go For Nothing". LP, Vinyl record album

A great and groovy early album from Volker Kriegel – the German guitarist who'd cut some very trippy work for the MPS label in the 70s – but a player who steps out here in a sweet soul jazz mode at the end of the 60s! Volker's still got the same wickedly sharp style on guitar you'd know from his later fame – but here, it's turned towards the kind of soulful guitar work you'd hear on Verve Records at the time – somewhere in the territory of George Benson, or maybe a bit in that of Wes Montgomery – but also with some occasional freewheeling moments that hint at the changes to come! The group's a trio on side one – with Peter Trunk on bass and Cees See on drums – but side two moves into wilder material with a quartet that features vibes by Claudio Szenkar, who adds in just the kind of psychedelic touches to really make the music open up! These cuts are much more modal, and show Kriegel's growing love of Eastern sounds – and titles include "Na Na Imboro", "Morandi", "Interpunctuation", "Traffic Jam", and "With A Little Help From My Friends". LP, Vinyl record album