Two killer cuts from the Big Beat, a funky sound library gem from Nick Ingman – not to be confused with the other Big Beat records of the 70s from the KPM label – as this set's got an even sharper, hipper vibe overall! Keyboards are in the lead on most numbers – although they get lots of support from the beats promised in the title – and both cuts are great! 7-inch, Vinyl record

Fantastic early funk from The Commodores – two great tracks on a limited pic sleeve funky 45! "Assembly Line" has a famous break that was big in the old school scene – but is also this massive cut with a really full-on feel that's completely different than any of the group's later hits! "Gonna Blow" is wonderfully wicked too – with a sharp bassline and percussion, and a groove that's almost more like funky fusion than Motown soul! 7-inch, Vinyl record

A funky holy grail – one of the rarest of the rare, and the only album ever cut by funky guitarist Carl "Sherlock" Holmes! Carl's work on the guitar is incredible – fast riffing and jazzy, with a style that's dirtier and messier than some of his 70s jazz funk contemporaries, but which also lays back on a few tracks so that Carl can deliver a sweetly soulful vocal. The album's a real blend of styles, all handled pretty darn well – and this special 2 x 7" single version features the best cuts – "It Ain't Right", "Black Bag", "Investigation", and "Think It Over". 7-inch, Vinyl record

Two fantastic early cuts from bassist Curtis Lundy – one of which features superb vocals from the young Carmen Lundy too! The stellar "Never Gonna Let You Go" was the first time most of us heard Carmen's voice – which is perfect for this uplifting, hard-grooving number that also features superb alto from the great Bobby Watson! The group here also features Steve Nelson on vibes, Hank Jones on piano, and Kenny Washington on drums – and "Jabbo's Revenge" is a wonderful instrumental track from the group! 7-inch, Vinyl record

A fully and funky spider from the De Wolfe sound library of the 70s – one that's got all sorts of heavy horns and tight drums, and packs a punch that would be sure to tear open a spiderweb in seconds! That same approach is used on the flipside – a hot-moving cut that's definitely not a cool character – as the whole thing moves along at the pace of some cop/crime chase cut, complete with driving drums and funky horns! 7-inch, Vinyl record

Two fantastic cuts from one of the greatest Roy Ayers albums ever! "Everybody Loves The Sunshine" is an incredible blend of righteous soul, funk, and jazz – a slow-moving, head-nodding tune that's gone on to have an equally long life as a huge sample and song influence in hip hop! "Lonely Cowboy" is a lesser-remembered tune, but one that's got a great little groove – like finding a lost track on the flipside of a 45! 7-inch, Vinyl record

Four of the best tracks from one of the greatest Roy Ayers albums of all time – and one of the rarest! The record is right in the same vein as Roy's groundbreaking He's Coming LP – a righteous mix of soul jazz, subtle funk, and some of the cosmic wisdom that Roy was spreading among the jazz funk underground – all wrapped up beautifully, but never in a way that's like commercial soul of the time. There's a few instrumental tracks on the album, plus some vocal ones that show that off-beat male/female style that Roy would use more famously in later tracks like "Everybody Loves The Sunshine" or his work with Ramp. Players include Harry Whitaker on electric piano, Edwin Birdsong on organ, Alphonse Mouzon on drums, Jumma Santos on congas – and titles include a version of Nat Adderley's "Hummin", done as "Hummin In The Sun", and very much in the Ramp vein. Other titles include "I Can't Help Myself", "Love", and "The Fuzz" – all great too! 7-inch, Vinyl record

A trio of heavy hitters from the DeWolfe sound library – all pulled from the super-rare Night Moves album! "Night Moves" is a great bit of slow funk – heavy drums stepping carefully while a clavi line does all these cool things in the middle! "Bank Job" is nicely slow – like they're setting up the heist with Fender Rhodes, and taking their time to get things right! "Zero Hour" is maybe a bit more urgent, but still nicely laidback – funky punching drums at the bottom, peppered by riffing guitar and some mighty nice keyboards! 7-inch, Vinyl record

Two killer cuts from one of the unsung talents of the De Wolfe sound library of the 70s! "Design" has this really cool bongo line that kicks hard throughout the cut – while riffing guitar and just the right touch of some other electric string instrument create a mighty nice groove! "Long Weekend" is even fuller and funkier – and has this offbeat electric keyboard line that's all cool and sprightly next to the heavier groove! 7-inch, Vinyl record

A fully and funky spider from the De Wolfe sound library of the 70s – one that's got all sorts of heavy horns and tight drums, and packs a punch that would be sure to tear open a spiderweb in seconds! That same approach is used on the flipside – a hot-moving cut that's definitely not a cool character – as the whole thing moves along at the pace of some cop/crime chase cut, complete with driving drums and funky horns! 7-inch, Vinyl record

Pure dynamite throughout – a really killer batch of cuts that easily steps between 60s and 70s styles in Jamaican music – shaking things up with soulful late 60s numbers, funky 70s gems, and some dubbier tracks from a time when production styles really opened up! As with other volumes in this excellent series, the choice of cuts is wonderful – really well-chosen tracks that go past the hits, but also feature some numbers that have become underground classics over the years – but all at a level that's got a lot more bite than some of the oft-played reggae that's been keeping dorm rooms running for decades. There's a total of 14 tracks in all – and titles include "Rocker's Rock" by Augustus Pablo, "No No No" by KC White, "Ring The Alarm" by Tenor Saw, "One Two" by Sister Nancy, "Woman Of The Ghetto" by Kim Harriott, "Heatwave" by Johnny Organ, "King Tubby Dub" by Tommy McCook & The Agrovators, "Earthquake" by Jackie Mittoo, and "Ready Or Not" by Johnny Osborne. CD

Pure dynamite throughout – a really killer batch of cuts that easily steps between 60s and 70s styles in Jamaican music – shaking things up with soulful late 60s numbers, funky 70s gems, and some dubbier tracks from a time when production styles really opened up! As with other volumes in this excellent series, the choice of cuts is wonderful – really well-chosen tracks that go past the hits, but also feature some numbers that have become underground classics over the years – but all at a level that's got a lot more bite than some of the oft-played reggae that's been keeping dorm rooms running for decades. There's a total of 14 tracks in all – and titles include "Rocker's Rock" by Augustus Pablo, "No No No" by KC White, "Ring The Alarm" by Tenor Saw, "One Two" by Sister Nancy, "Woman Of The Ghetto" by Kim Harriott, "Heatwave" by Johnny Organ, "King Tubby Dub" by Tommy McCook & The Agrovators, "Earthquake" by Jackie Mittoo, and "Ready Or Not" by Johnny Osborne. LP, Vinyl record album

Incredible! This is quite possibly the best of this legendary series of Jamaican soul, funk, and reggae tracks – and it's a masterpiece! The track selection is amazing, and the set has a bit more crackle than earlier volumes – with loads of great 70s production, including nice dubby bits, and some excellent instrumentation. Titles include "Mission Impossible" by Randy's Allstars, "Make It Reggae" by Shark Wilson & The Basement Heaters, "Rebel Soldiering" by Johnny Clarke, "Jungle Lion" by Lee Perry, "Take It Easy" by Hopeton Lewis, "Jackie's Theme" by Jackie Mittoo & Randy's Allstars, "Uptown Top Rankin" by Althea & Donna, "Cincinatti Kid" by Prince Buster, and "Bam Bam" by Sister Nancy. 15 cuts in all – and all great! LP, Vinyl record album

The Soul Jazz Dynamite series goes 100% dancehall – with this massive collection of rare cuts and classic material from the past 25 years – plus some new numbers! You know that you can depend on the reverent Soul Jazz compilers to deliver a better overview than any other label, and Dancehall Style covers the breadth wonderfully! It features the dub dancehall style of King Tubby and other pioneers such as Michigan And Smiley, Dillinger and Early B, and modern variations of later practitioners such as dub steppers Digital Mystikz, electro dancehall groovers such as Ladybug, and much more. A killer set from Soul Jazz! Volume 2 includes 11 tracks: "Assault Rifle" by Fat Eyes, "Governor General" by Pompidou, "Weed And Grabba" by King Baucho & Beenie Man, "Fade Out" by King Tubby, "Jah Lick We" by Michigan & Smiley, "Police And Bad Boy" by Wayne Wonder, "Billie Jean" by Shinehead, "Give It To Me" by Cecille and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Prime selections from one of the greatest soundtracks of the blacksploitation era – served up with some incredible grooves from maestro JJ Johnson! Martha Reeves sings some of the deepest vocals of her career on the great title track "Willie D" – an old sample cut that you're sure to recognize – and the equally great "Keep On Moving On". The instrumental tunes might be even better, filled with great percussion and jazzy flourishes from JJ – in a style that really keeps things interesting! This 2 x 7" single set features the cuts "Willie D", "Willie Chase", "Keep On Moving On", and "Parade Strut". 7-inch, Vinyl record

Soul Jazz have done it again! As with their classic NuYorica, Strata East, and Black Jazz comps, this one's a definitive sampling of rare funky stuff that you'll never find otherwise. The set brings together 14 classic Jamaican tracks from the 60's and 70's – and unlike a lot of the other weak-ass reggae comps out there, every cut on here is a winner (or if you prefer, 100% Dynamite!) Great cuts include "Armageddon Time" by Willie Williams, "Stereo Freeze" by Jackie Mittoo, "Granny Scratch Scratch" by Sound Dimension, "Popcorn" by The Upsetters, and lots more! There's also some great Jamaican covers of American funky soul classics – like The Marvels' version of "Rock Steady", and Phyllis Dillon's great remake of Marlena Shaw's "Woman of the Ghetto". Lots more goodies, and the usual Soul Jazz high standard – which is 100% Dynamite! LP, Vinyl record album

A surprisingly great batch of material from the early years of Cliff Richards – a figure who became somewhat staid pretty quickly, but who was a hell of a rocker on the UK scene during the time of these early cuts! Given Cliff's mainstream pop fame in the late 60s and through the 70s, it's sometimes easy to forget that at the start, he was almost England's answer to Elvis Presley – a dynamic young singer who was really giving things his all, and usually got some great rocking accompaniment as well! This package will definitely re-open your eyes to Cliff – and it serves up a whopping 34 tracks in all, all with the great Bear Family style of presentation – tunes that include "Dynamite", "High Class Baby", "Move It", "Apron Strings", "What'd I Say", "The Snake & The Bookworm", "Forty Days", "My Babe", "Don't Bug Me Baby", "My Feet Hit The Ground", and "Painted Toe Shoes". CD

Beautiful! If you dig harmony soul as much as we do, then you'll really love this set – a super batch of 22 rare group soul cuts from the late 60s and early 70s, a perfect summation of that "sweet soul" sound that's always so hard to find on the reissue market. And like the first two volumes in this series, this one goes way past the hits – and includes a stunning selection of rare 45s that we never ever see on vinyl, but which deserve to be the stuff that soul legends are made of! Titles include "Different Girls" by The Naturals, "All That's Good" by The Four Jewels, "So What" by Carl Carlton, "Nothing But Promises" by The Turnpikes, "Without You" by The Norvells, "A Lonely World" by Billy & The Hi-Liners, "Baby Don't You Go" by The Perfections, "Find Me" by The Attractions, "Two Lovers" by The Voice Masters, "Peek-a-boo" by The Creations, and "This Love Of Ours" by The Sunlovers. Some of the tracks are mastered from original vinyl copies, so you will hear a spot of noise from time to time – but they still probably sound better than if you found a beat-up original! CD

A really cool collection of cuts that were originally issued as 7" singles in recent years, but which work perfectly together here as a full length set that introduces the world to the deeply funky talents of Kevin Finigier! Kevin hails from Argentina, but has a deep love of American soul and funk, particularly the 60s variant that was big in the UK mod scene – and here, he serves up some wicked grooves that may well be some of the best contemporary work in this mode we've heard for years! The production is nice and gritty – really back at the level of the indie funky 45 scene from back in the day – and the set mixes instrumental numbers that have a wicked sharp explosion of sounds with some heavy vocal tracks that are equally nice. The Kevin Fingier Collective deliver the cuts "Addis Ababa", "Sunglasses After Dark", "El Basement", "Latin Dynamite", and "Cocktail De Medianoche" – and other tracks include "I Love Without A Love" by Jo Ann Hamilton, "Why Don't You Go Home" by Diane Ward, "Um Brilho Novo" by Josi Dias, "Kairo Bancou Moulu" by Abdoulaye Badiane, and "Don't Wanna Cry No More" by Gerri Granger. CD

A surprisingly nice score for this Italian sex comedy from the start of the 80s – one that reverses the roles a bit from earlier modes in terms of the story, and which gets a mix of groovy and sweet soundtrack handling from Detto Mariano! The group Clown turn in a few vocal performances – of the cuts "Step On Dynamite" and "La Pigiatura" – but the wealth of work here is instrumental, often based around a simple, playful theme – which Mariano can use with a sensual touch at one minute, or a sentimental one the next. The CD features a whopping 39 tracks in all – including a number of alternates of "Step On Dynamite" – with some cuts that are previously unreleased. CD

A surprisingly nice score for this Italian sex comedy from the start of the 80s – one that reverses the roles a bit from earlier modes in terms of the story, and which gets a mix of groovy and sweet soundtrack handling from Detto Mariano! The group Clown turn in a few vocal performances – of the cuts "Step On Dynamite" and "La Pigiatura" – but the wealth of work here is instrumental, often based around a simple, playful theme – which Mariano can use with a sensual touch at one minute, or a sentimental one the next. LP, Vinyl record album

A soaring batch of disco gems, club cuts, and undiscovered nuggets – all pulled together to make a set that's even better than the first entry in this Disco Wonderland series! DJ Andy Smith and associates bring together a great array of fresh tracks from back in the day – not massive disco hits, but also not the kind of rare gems that maybe never made the cut for a good reason – and instead, the tracks here work together perfectly, and even get a few special mixes along the way by Smith and the crew, which includes a few contemporary cuts that fit perfectly next to the vintage material. Titles include "Get Up & Dance (Bad Bikini re-edit)" by Disco Circus, "You're The Best" by The Emotions, "Heaven" by The Gibson Brothers, "Dreamin" by Greg Henderson, "You Don't Know (Crissy Kybosh rmx)" by Serious Intention, "For The Love Of Money" by Armada Orchestra, "You & I" by Ronnie Jones, "Sweet Dynamite" by Claudja Barry, "Dance Freak" by Chain Reaction, "Night Of My Life" by Full Intention & Nick Reach Up with Jazz Morley, "I'm In Love" by Cela, "Love Don't Come Easy" by New Jersey Connection, "Lost Without You (Andy Smith re-edit)" by Will Sessions & Amp Fiddler, and "Ghetto Disco" by Ted Taylor. 2CD version features one CD of the songs mix, another unmixed! CD

A searing set of vintage soul cuts – brought together in honor of the legendary Wigan Casino – one of the most important clubs in the UK Northern Soul scene of the 70s! For the uninitiated, Wigan was a hotbed of upbeat rare soul cuts – overlooked American goodies from both the previous decade and more recent years – often with a strong focus on deeper soul vocals, which meant some strong entries from the southern scene as well! This well-done package comes with a heavy book-style cover, notes on the club and its music – and a whopping 28 tracks in all – including "I Can't Hide It" by The Appreciations, "Baby What Has Happened To Our Love" by The Ringleaders, "The Night The Angels Cried" by Johnny Dynamite, "I'm A Teardrop" by The Jerms, "Your Love Makes Me Lonely" by The Chandlers, "Watch Yourself" by Tony Hester, "Does Anybody Know What Time It Is" by Copper & Brass, "Can I Be Dreamin" by The Young Savages, "She's Fire" by The CODs, "Could It Be" by Mikki Farrow, and "Your Wish Is My Command" by The Inspirations. LP, Vinyl record album