The stunning second album from Procol Harum – a record that takes everything that's wonderful about their debut, and pushes it even farther – to a very unique space that's completely the group's own! The songcraft here is magical – with great work from the team of vocalist Gary Brooker and Keith Reid – and the production continues the group's unusual blend of bluesy elements with these dramatic, ambitious arrangements – never pop orchestrations, but just these ways of putting together a tune that make familiar fuzz guitar, piano, and organ explode in really new sort of ways. The whole thing's wonderful – hardly any hits, but all wonderful songs throughout – and titles include "Quite Rightly So", "Shine On Brightly", "Skip Softly", "Magdalene", "Glimpses Of Nirvana", "Grand Finale", and "In The Autumn Of My Madness". LP, Vinyl record album

An overlooked 70s soundtrack from the great Lalo Schifrin – in part because it was never issued on vinyl back in the day! The film is an obscure mid-70s murder mystery, but one that's given a great deal of depth and class from Schifrin's music – which is often surprisingly jazzy, despite the setting of the film – almost with the care of some excellent late night LA noir, and in the territory of Johnny Mandel for its sensitivity and color – yet still served up with all the Schifrin sense of swing and groove! The group features some greats from the LA jazz scene – Emil Richards on percussion, Bud Shank on reeds, and Howard Roberts on guitar – and titles include "Rosehaven Motel", "Maggie's Theme", "Evelyn Story", "Wills' Trance", and "Forest Finale". Plus, this first-ever vinyl version features some great bonus material, some unissued – a whopping 30 tracks in all! LP, Vinyl record album

Includes "The Grand Illusion", "Come Sail Away", "Fooling Yourself", and "The Grand Finale". LP, Vinyl record album

The world of moogy music first exploded back in the late 60s – when artists like Bruce Haack, Perry-Kingsley, and others were making all these wonderfully weird records that featured heavy analogue electronics and other playful elements! By the 80s, most of that music had gone away – some migrating to the world of new age, others turning more mainstream – yet up in Eugene, Oregon, there was a small scene that continued the electronic experiments of years past – work that sounded very different than most of the darker cold wave and industrial sounds that were popping up at other points on the globe. This collection offers up a long-overdue look at that scene – and features work from a collective of artists who really continue some of the hippest traditions of the genre – from the early records that Bruce Haack made with Miss Nelson, to some of the weird Mort Garson productions, even to some of the more wigged-out French psych/electronics of the 70s. Some of these tracks have vocals, some are instrumental – and they're all nicely "switched on" – providing a great bridge between the world of Walter Carlos and the Stereolab generation to come. Titles include "Energy" by Kim Carter, "Other Playgrounds" by Peter Kardas, "The Seven Rays" by David Stout, "Finale From A Walk Down Serenity Lane" by Joel Horowitz, "Self Regulation 2" by Carl Juarez, "The Ride" by Talve, "New Snow" by Peter Nothnagle, and "Patterns" by Suse Millemann. CD

Alright, we admit that the tile sounds like something from Ghostbusters – but don't hold that against Baby Mammoth's Octo Muck! This album has some of the leanest, most poppin' and chest thumpin' electronic club grooves we've heard in a while! The tunes stick to what works, without a lot of unnecessary ambient noise and clatter – and lots of pronounced, thumping bass and percussion, hypnotic synth and keyboard chords, with some occasionally jazzy accents on flute and drums! A nice one! About that title though. . . Titles include "Seven Years", "Lady Cod Diver", "Sunburn", "Blind Date", "Finale", and "Big Show". CD

The classic debut album by the DOC, from the glory days of Ruthless Records – one of the few records on the label to live up to the brilliance of NWA at their height! Dr Dre handles the production here – and there's a razor-sharp edge that really matches DOC's wordcraft – as powerful as the rest of the Ruthless crew, but in a different way too – almost more sophisticated, with the messaged buried a bit more in the lyrics. Titles include "The Formula", "It's Funky Enough", "Mind Blowin", "Lend Me An Ear", "Portrait Of A Master Piece", "Whirlwind Pyramid", "No One Can Do It Better", and "The DOC & The Doctor" – plus "The Grand Finale", which features guest work from Ren and Ice Cube. LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic late 70s album from guitar genius John Fahey – his first after a number of years away from the recording studio – and a real back to basics effort overall! There's none of the "orchestra" trappings of other 70s records – nor some of Fahey's more longer-form ideas – and instead, the tracks focus mostly on his incredible sense of texture and timing on the acoustic guitar – heard to perfectly as he folds his own compositions together with songs by Bill Monroe, Bola Sete, Leo Kottke, and Doc Watson! The whole thing's wonderfully understated – even more so than you'd guess from the cover – and titles include "Silver Bell/Cheyenne", "Ann Arbor/Death By Reputation", "The Discovery Of Syliva Scott", "Guitar Lamnento", "Melody McBad", and "The Grand Finale". CD

One of the oddest of the 70s concept albums by The Kinks – a set of tracks that takes Ray Davies and the band back to the school days of their youth – where they revisit frustrations, anger, and the disgrace in the title! The best moments here are the ones that unlock a bit of the straighter rocking that shows up more in late 70s Kinks work – like the excellent single "I'm In Disgrace", the anthemic "No More Looking Back", or the leadoff "Schooldays" – and a few of the weaker moments get a bit too silly, and almost showy at times – like Ray's writing for a forthcoming Broadway career. Titles include "The Hard Way", "Headmaster", "Education", "Jack The Idiot Dunce", and "Finale". CD

Haunting horror work from the great Bruno Nicolai – an album that's got some wonderfully-crafted themes mixed with some lighter, breezier numbers – almost in a Rosemary's baby sort of mode! Bruno really gets to show off both sides of his talents here – and comes up with some spare and melodic orchestrations that recall his work with Morricone, mixed with other numbers that diverge into sweeter territory and dance along nicely. The set features a total of 24 numbers – nearly all of which are more redemptive than the darker horror plot of the film – and titles include "In Cantina", "Servizio Fotografico", "Minaccia", "Scoperta & Sesto Delitto", "Confronto Finale", "In Automobile", "Ufficio Vuoto", and "Terzo Delitto". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most beautiful, most sophisticated, and most fully-realized sessions from trumpeter Hannibal Marvin Peterson – and a record that features some incredible larger backings from David Amram! The set's a haunting suite dedicated to the children of Vietnam – one that starts out in a darkly brooding mode, but which opens up with some extremely redemptive moments as the set moves on – done in a very spiritual approach to soul jazz that's strongly in the Alice Coltrane tradition! Instrumentation includes a small string group, plus added percussion – and musicians on the set include Art Webb on flute, Richard Davis on bass, Billy Hart on drums, Michael Cochran on piano, and Hannibal himself on both trumpet and koto. The lovely Alpha Johnson sings on a few of the album's tracks, and the whole thing is very warm and deep, and has a lot of variance in tempo and mood, with a strong spiritual feel similar to that of some of the more ambitious Strata East recordings from the time! Titles include "Forest Sunrise", "The Bombing", "Prayer", "Aftermath", and "Finale". LP, Vinyl record album

A great little soundtrack from Pete Rugolo – Stan Kenton's right-hand man during the early 50s modernist years, and a hell of an arranger in his own right! Pete wrote some of the best crime jazz soundtracks of the late 50s and early 60s – and his work for television ranks up there with the best by Mancini or Nelson Riddle. This 24-track set is the first time that Rugolo's work for the original Fugitive TV show has been reissued – and it's a nice mix of crime themes, chase numbers, and mellower scene-setting tunes. Titles include "Kimble vs One Armed Man", "The One Armed Man's Name is Fred Johnson", "Theme From The Fugitive", "Tragic Homecoming", "Under Arrest", "On The Run", "Brass Interlude", "Freedom & Finale", and "Back On The Road". CD

A pretty lush John Williams score to this period piece based on William Faulkner's The Reivers – in a version that starred Steve McQueen. The overall feel is actually in keeping with Williams' more successful later work – and the tunes here have all the drive, emotion, and catchy themes of Star Wars or Superman. Titles include "The Winton Flyer", "Carrie's Entrance", "The Picture", "Finale", "The People Protest", and "Memphis". CD

A surprisingly nice soundtrack, written by Williams before his over-the-top fame in the 70s – designed to accompany this big-budget disaster movie, one of Irwin Allen's last great films. The score is mostly orchestral, but has some very nice moments – especially in the warmer and calmer moments, two of which yield some very nice slinky groovers – gentle tunes in a 70s bossa style that almost feels like it could be lifted from a hip Italian soundtrack. The score also features a vocal number – "We May Never Love Like This Again", sung by Maureen McGovern – plus the 10 minute suite "Planting The Charges/Finale". Titles include "Susan & Doug", "Trapped Lovers", and "Something For Susan". LP, Vinyl record album

Elmer Bernstein's theme to The Magnificent Seven is one of the standout soundtrack tunes of the 60s – an instantly recognizable number that you'll groove on right away, and which shows up often in Bernstein's soundtrack to this 1966 sequel to the original film. The CD features bonus dialogue from the movie, plus a quicktime version of the trailer – and tracks that include "The Magnificent Seven", "In The Trap", "Battle", "Finale", "Council", "The Journey", and "El Toro". CD

Very obscure sounds from a very obscure Italian crime film of the 70s – issued here for the first time ever! The music has a great vibe – slinky, but also a bit offbeat – with some of those odd tunings of the piano that you might hear in an Ennio Morricone score when he was still keeping things groovy, but wanting to set a nice edge – spun out nicely here amidst some gentle strings and other unusual sounds! The whole thing's great – a real lost treasure that finally sees the light of day – with titles that include "Lo Spinello", "In Discoteca", "Overdose", "L'Inseguimento Finale", "Nel Vecchio Mulino", "Titoli Di Coda", "La Droga Uccide", and "L'Agguato Al Corriere". LP, Vinyl record album

The soundtrack to Francis Ford Coppola's first film, and a surprisingly groovy batch of tracks! John Sebastian composed the whole score, and unlike most of the other albums by The Lovin Spoonful, this one's got a lot of instrumental numbers, arranged by the great Artie Schroek – short little grooves with a really nice feel, and mixes of percussion, horns, and guitar that come off with a great groovy 60s sound! The vocal numbers are pretty great too – and titles include the sublime "Darling Be Home Soon", plus "Miss Thing's Thing", "Letter To Barbara", "March", "The Finale", "Try & Be Happy", "Wash Her Away", and "Lonely". LP, Vinyl record album

Includes "The Grand Illusion", "Come Sail Away", and "The Grand Finale". LP, Vinyl record album

A stunning presentation of the legendary Wattstax concert – that huge moment of pride and power when the folks at Stax Records filled up the Los Angeles Coliseum with one of the most memorable shows of the 70s! The meeting of talents here is the stuff of legend – and this great package brings together the complete show in running order – really building up excitement as the concert progresses – with different acts each bringing their own sort of fire to the stage, culminating in a fantastic long finale by Isaac Hayes! The presentation is different than the two double albums that Stax issued back in the 70s – and this expanded package features a number of unreleased tracks in place of material the label later added – such as work from Richard Pryor and The Emotions. There's a whole instrumental section at the start, and more spoken links between some parts – and new material includes unissued work from Kim Weston, Freddie Robinson, Ernie Hines, Eric Mercury, Tommy Tate, Billy Eckstine, and Isaac Hayes – in addition to famous performances by The Soul Children, Jesse Jackson, Rufus Thomas, Albert King, Carla Thomas, William Bell, The Bar Kays, David Porter, The Temprees, Eddie Floyd, and David Porter – plus plenty more from Isaac Hayes too! Great package – with a full color book with new notes and essays, and plenty more too. CD

Killer 2 CD set that focuses on the funky sound of James from the 70s – and which includes great material that was never issued at the time, alternate funky takes, rare singles, and other great bits! There's a wealth of incredible material on here that makes the set essential – even if you have James' full albums from the time, because there's so many other extra bits that weren't included on those! The extra goodies include "Down & Out In New York City" (with a spoken intro), "Coldblooded" (undubbed version), "Mind Power" (alternate take), "Hot Pants Finale" (live), "Don't Tell It", "World Of Soul", "I Can't Stand It '76", "Turn On The Heat & Build Some Fire", "Problems", "I Got A Bag Of My Own", "I Got Ants In My Pants", "King Heroin", "Make It Funky (parts 1 thorugh 4)", "Escape-Ism", "Don't Tell It", "My Thang", "Funky President", and "Make It Good To Yourself" (interlude). Great notes, loads of other great tracks, and a total of 26 cuts make this a monster value! CD

An insane package – one that features the material from the 6CD Complete Concert Wattstax set, plus 5 more CDs from Summit Club Recordings in 1972, plus one more CD of additional material too! First up are 6 CDs that feature a stunning presentation of the legendary Wattstax concert – that huge moment of pride and power when the folks at Stax Records filled up the Los Angeles Coliseum with one of the most memorable shows of the 70s! The meeting of talents here is the stuff of legend – and this great package brings together the complete show in running order – really building up excitement as the concert progresses – with different acts each bringing their own sort of fire to the stage, culminating in a fantastic long finale by Isaac Hayes! The presentation is different than the two double albums that Stax issued back in the 70s – and this expanded package features a number of unreleased tracks in place of material the label later added – such as work from Richard Pryor and The Emotions. There's a whole instrumental section at the start, and more spoken links between some parts – and new material includes unissued work from Kim Weston, Freddie Robinson, Ernie Hines, Eric Mercury, Tommy Tate, Billy Eckstine, and Isaac Hayes – in addition to famous performances by The Soul Children, Jesse Jackson, Rufus Thomas, Albert King, Carla Thomas, William Bell, The Bar Kays, David Porter, The Temprees, Eddie Floyd, and David Porter – plus plenty more from Isaac Hayes too! Great package – with a full color book with new notes and essays, and plenty more too. The Summit Club material follows on five more CDs – material that was partly issued on some other reissues by individual artists, but augmented here with a wealth of unreleased material too! There's a a full show of work from Johnnie Taylor and Rufus Thomas – the latter of whom even does some comedy bits – plus some extra funky performances from The Sons Of Slum, heavy blues from Little Milton, great soul from The Emotions, and a huge amount of never-issued work from the great duo Mel & Tim – arguably better here than on their Stax studio sessions. CD12 features additional recordings that were layered into some of the LP releases issued under the Wattstax name – 15 more tracks that include titles by The Emotions, Isaac Hayes, The Dramatics, Staple Singers, and Eddie Floyd – plus some comedy routines by Richard Pryor. CD

A stunning presentation of the legendary Wattstax concert – that huge moment of pride and power when the folks at Stax Records filled up the Los Angeles Coliseum with one of the most memorable shows of the 70s! The meeting of talents here is the stuff of legend – and this great package brings together the complete show in running order – really building up excitement as the concert progresses – with different acts each bringing their own sort of fire to the stage, culminating in a fantastic long finale by Isaac Hayes! The presentation is different than the two double albums that Stax issued back in the 70s – and this expanded package features a number of unreleased tracks in place of material the label later added – such as work from Richard Pryor and The Emotions. There's a whole instrumental section at the start, and more spoken links between some parts – and new material includes unissued work from Kim Weston, Freddie Robinson, Ernie Hines, Eric Mercury, Tommy Tate, Billy Eckstine, and Isaac Hayes – in addition to famous performances by The Soul Children, Jesse Jackson, Rufus Thomas, Albert King, Carla Thomas, William Bell, The Bar Kays, David Porter, The Temprees, Eddie Floyd, and David Porter – plus plenty more from Isaac Hayes too! Great package – with a full color book with new notes and essays, and plenty more too. LP, Vinyl record album