... 7-inch, Vinyl record

A pair of ABC Records classics from Bobby Blue Bland – back to back on a single CD! First up is Get On Down – brilliant later work by Bobby Blue Bland – done with backings that are much fuller than on his earlier albums – a mixture of strings and horns that really expand the sound! That doesn't keep things from being soulful, though – as Bobby's in incredible form vocally, really rising to the occasion of the session with some of his best vocal performances of the decade. Great throughout – and one of his few true classic sessions after the early Duke years. Titles include "Today I Started Loving You Again", "I Take It On Home", "I Hate You", "If Fingerprints Showed Up On Skin", and "Too Far Gone". Reflections In Blue is a bit of a shift for Bobby Blue Bland – a record that picks up some slight touches of the disco generation, thanks to arrangements by Michael Omartin – but a record that, thanks to Bobby's fantastic vocals, still really stands out from the pack! The shift is a bit like the one that Johnnie Taylor was taking at the time – music that's still rooted in southern soul and blues, but which has some slight updates at a few points – but never in a way that's trying to put Bobby on the dancefloor at Studio 54! Instead, warmer keyboards, strings, and some well-crafted guitar lines are used in a few spots – while other tracks retain more of the horn-heavy arrangements that made his Duke Records material so great. Throughout it all, Bland is vocally fantastic – on titles that include "It Ain't The Real Thing", "The Soul Of A Man", "I Got The Same Old Blues", "Five Long Years", "It's All Over", and "If I Weren't A Gambler". CD

The dawn of millennium classic by Dead Prez – and angry, revolution-minded effort from a period on major label hip hop that sorely lacked such strident players – and if it didn't make any huge waves commercially, that only strengthens its legacy! Sticman & M1 are at the top of their game lyrically, the beats are are exciting to this day, and it all adds up to one of the strongest politically minded hip hop records of its time. Titles include "Wolves", "Hip Hop", "They Schools", "The Pistol", "Discipline", "Enemy Lines", "Mind Sex", "Propaganda", "You'll Find A Way", "Police State", and many more. LP, Vinyl record album

While the other standouts of mid 90s class like Nas, Jay Z and AZ drifted towards the mainstream street rap, Mobb Deep avoided that trend in this tight follow-up to their legendary Infamous debut! Their subject matter may not have evolved or expanded too much, but their strong production is top notch and strong to this day. Also, it has some nice guest appearances from Method Man, Raekwon, Nas, Big Noyd. Includes the hilarious "Drop A Gem On 'Em", "Hell On Earth", "Extortion", "More Trife Life", "Still Shinin'", "G.O.D. Pt III", "Nighttime Vultures", "Bloodsport" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark album in a landmark package – a set that takes this gem from Sly & The Family Stone, presses it up on a special hi-fidelity gold CD, then cradles the whole thing in special box with a heavy hardcover book with lots of new notes – and a fabric American flag sewn right onto the cover! The album's a wonderful moment Sly and crew – moving way past the straight funk approach of earlier records, into a complicated crossover soul style that's filled with warmth and righteousness! Despite the political tone implied by the "riot" in the title and the co-option of the American flag on the cover, the album's strongest suit is its warmth and personal soul message – sometimes filled with politics, sure, but always sounding like a sexy love song, no matter how hard it tries to get righteous! The flow is wonderful throughout – a very well-thought out album that shows that Sly was singing way past the singles scene – and the record's filled with great cuts like "Family Affair", "Luv N Haight", "Brave & Strong", "You Caught Me Smilin", and "Thank You For Talkin To Me Africa". Also features "There's A Riot Going On" – which runs for "0:00" minutes! The whole thing's completely sublime already – but in this special box, it's really something else. CD

An undeniable acid house classic with enough bouncing 909 bassline and 808 handclaps to keep you moving all night long! One of the essential mid 80s Trax releases. 7-inch, Vinyl record

A nice smooth house track from Strictly Rhythm's salad days, with a nicely bouncing bassline – and one that was HUGE here in Chicago! There's this really moody keyboard line at the start – before the beats pump up and the vocals really get fantastic! 7-inch, Vinyl record

An amazing slice of music from the legendary David Axelrod – quite different than his better-known sides for Capitol and Reprise Records – and plenty darn funky overall! Axelrod is at his studio best here – stepping off the funky jazz modes he produced for Cannonball Adderley, and taking a shot at that territory on his own! In a reversal of modes, Cannonball actually handles the production – with help from Jimmy Bowen – which leaves Axelrod alone to compose, arrange, and direct the group on the set. The album's got a fair bit of electricity in the mix – heavy keyboards from Joe Sample, and some really fuzzy guitars – plus lots of choppy reed work from Joe Sample and Ernie Watts, all wrapped up with some monstrously funky drums from Ndugu Chancler. There's a very bottom-heavy groove to the record – one that makes for a few completely amazing breaks, and a very funky sound overall – and Axelrod does an amazing job of controlling the players here – so that nobody jams too much, and the grooves are always right on the money! The whole thing's great – a sublime symphony of instrumental funk all the way through – and titles include "Reverie", "Miles Away", "Go For It", "Ken Russell", "1000 Rads", and "One". LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark set from a group who only ever gave the world two albums – but who've gone on to have a huge influence over the years! This initial offering from Breakwater is a masterful blend of jazzy fusion and mellower soul – a sound sifted together so perfectly, it really tops the rest of the combo's contemporaries – hitting a careful balance that never gets too cheesy or commercial, and which still manages to glow as strongly into the 21st century as it did when first released back in the day! The sound here is sublime – warm, but never sleepy – jazzy, but never cliched – and mixed in such a way that the vocals and instruments almost get center stage in the spotlight without trying to crowd one another out. Titles include the incredible "Work it Out" – worth the price of the record alone – plus "No Limit", "That's Not What We Came Here For", "Free Yourself", "Do It Till The Fluid Gets Hot", and "Feel Your Way". CD

A great lost record of minimalist club – a set that we'd rank right up there with classics by Arthur Russell, Liquid Liquid, or some of the other most creative talents on the New York scene at the start of the 80s! As with work by those other two artists, there's an experimental approach here, but one that's very very groovy – mostly just spare beats, loose instrumentation, and other sounds – woven together in ways that certainly have strong post-punk inspiration, but which can also work perfectly on a dancefloor too! This is the kind of work that would be equally at home in the clubs and in a punk club too – the crossover you'd experience at the legendary Danceteria – and titles include "AEO (parts 1 & 2)", "Psyclone", "Nervous Breakdown", and "Spy Vs Spy". LP, Vinyl record album

The first Clipse album to see release – and a neo-electro/drug rap/crossover hip hop masterpiece produced by the Neptunes – the debut LP on their own Star Trak label. Malice and Pusha T arrive as smooth, confident rhymers with plenty of standout moments, while the Neptunes reach an early production peak. The Neptunes' fingerprints are evident on just about every second of every track, but it doesn't diminish the role of the rappers in the least. This is a true hip hop record from beginning to end, something the 'tunes had shied away from around the same time with the hard rockin' NERD and their more pop-oriented productions. We thought from the first needle drop that this was a record we'd be able to come back to for years and years and years, and that indeed holds true! Tracks include "Young Boy", "Ma, I Don't Love Her" featuring Faith Evans, "Ego", "Comedy Central" featuring Fabulous, "Gangsta Lean", "Let's Talk About It" featuring Jermaine Dupri, and more. Get On Down reissue includes the Selector remix of "Grindin'" feat Sean Paul, Bless, Kardinall Offishall, NORE, Baby & Lil' Wayne. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best hip hop albums of all time – given the remastered, deluxe edition treatment! In 1994 when everyone seemed to be turning hardcore, Common Sense wasn't having it. Introspective tales of growing up and living on the South Side that fit perfectly with No ID's mellow production and spiced up with a couple guest appearances by Y-Not aka Twilight Tone. A classic LP, solid all the way through. Being in Chicago, people always ask us for this one, but the original is often impossible to find, even here. This incredible 2CD edition comes in classy box – each disc in its own gatefold style sleeve, with liner notes by Brian Coleman, plus a full sized poster. Disc one is the full original album, with "I Used To Love HER.","Book Of Life", "Chapter 13 (Rich Man vs. Poor Man)", "Nuthin' To Do", "In My Own World (Check The Method)", "Maintaining", "Communism", "Watermelon" and more. Disc 2 collects the 12" singles from the period, with "Resurrection" (Large Professor remix, Extra P remix, Large Professor remix instrumental and Extra P remix instrumental), "Resurrection 95", "Communism" (acapella and instrumental), and "I Used To Love HER" (acapella and instrumental). CD

Cypress Hill's debut masterpiece – one of the biggest and best first albums in 90s hip hop – in cased here in skull for its 25th Anniversary! There's little we can add to the canon when it comes to describing this album's impact, but it's still pretty revelatory. Like other west coast rap heavies of the time, Cypress Hill documents real world street violence with a darkly comic sensibility, redefined usage of the word "blunt" forever more, and simply delivered one of the most influential rap (or rock. . .considering the astonishing crossover success) albums of the decade. "How I Could Just Kill A Man", "Hand On The Pump", "Hole In The Head", "Real Estate", "Stoned Is The Way Of The Walk", "Phunky Feel One", "Pigs", "Latin Lingo", "Something For The Blunted", "Psychobeatbuckdown" and more. Get On Down's 25th Anniversary is one of the coolest, craziest things we've seen for a commemorative anniversary edition ever – housed in an amazin, hard resin black skull – essentially a 3D physical recreation of the group's 1991 logo – plus a 100 page hardcover book! CD

Not the famous debut album from Deee-Lite, but a killer set of grooves that has the trio very much at the height of their powers! So many folks remember these guys as a bigger pop act, they tend to forget how much they brought back to dance music – a real embrace of warmer elements from the past, served up in samples and set to rhythms that were often more funk-based than a lot of the stark, stiff, house-inspired beats of the time! Lady Kier is completely charming in the lead – and the group get lots of help on production from Louie Vega and Kenny Dope, who really add in a Masters At Work level of soul. Titles include "River Of Freedom", "Bittersweet Loving", "What Is This Music", "Picnic In The Summertime", "call Me", "Stay In Bed Forget The Rest", "Music Selector Is The Soul Reflector", and "Sampladelic". LP, Vinyl record album

Heavy funk from the legendary Bo Diddley – one of his amazing comeback albums from the early 70s for Chess, all of which are plenty darn great! For this set, Bo's traded in the scratchy guitar mode of his classic work for a sweeter, tighter funk-based sound – a groove that's supported strongly with electric studio arrangements from Wade Marcus – used here in very nice contrast to Diddley's rougher vocals and guitar! The style's got a bit more electric jazz touches than some of the other Chess blues funk records from the time – but the overall sound is still bound to please any funk fan – and titles include "Bite You", "Stop The Pusher", "You've Got a Lot Of Nerve", and the breakbeat classic "Hit Or Miss"! CD

A Dee Jay classic from the Dub Organiser! One of the first LPs to break large on the international scene, and certainly one of the first Dee Jay records to do so, this Channel One Hoo Kim production features the Ragnam Piza toasting mightily over some fat rhythms provided Benbow & Sly, Family Man and an all star cast of other great Jamaican session men. There's a bit of back & forth toasting with Trinity on "Crankface", the huge hit "Cokane In My Brain" and other essentials like "Buckingham Plaace", "Plantation Heights" and the title track. LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible album from Dinosaur L – the legendary New York dancefloor project of Arthur Russell! – fleshed out and expanded more than ever before by Sleeping Bag and Get On Down Records! The group's core sound is a punky, funky, chunky amalgam of bass thumping, guitar riffing, keyboard filling, and sax honking – all very much in the spirit of Russell's best quirky club work of the time, but with the added sound here of a more expanded approach – one that takes the tunes in a whole new territory than the more famous 12" singles! The tracks on the original set were simply numbered – "1", "2", "3", and so on – and come across almost as free-jamming instrumentals – but this reissue appends the songs with their 12" titles, so "#1" gets parenthetically entitled "You're Gonna Be Clean On Your Bean" and "#5" as "Go Bang!", plus this disc adds several 12" versions that were not on the original LP release, like Francois K's mix of 'Go Bang!" and Larry Levan's mix of "In The Corn Belt". Totally great stuff – as experimental as it is funky! This 2CD box set edition is amazing – coming in a heavy-duty box with each disc in an oversized gatefold style sleeve – and it includes more Arthur Russell collaborative and/or pseudonymous material for Sleeping Bag with or as Bonzo Goes To Washington, Felix, Sounds Of JHS Brooklyn and Indian Ocean. Other tracks include "School Bell/Treehouse" (Indian Ocean), "You Can't Hold Me Down (Extended Version)" (Felix), "5 Minutes (R-r-r Radio Mix)" (Bonzo Goes To Washington) and more. Also includes a nice booklet of photos, artwork and artist testimonials – plus notes by Russell biographer Tim Lawrence. 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

Seminal work from Dr John – one of his key late 60s albums that set the world on fire at the time – and which still stand as some of the doctor's greatest achievements! The approach here is a fantastic abstraction of older New Orleans roots – not nearly as rigid as in some of John's later music, and really used here just as a leaping-off point for these cool tripped-out explorations – often with a style that's got a very heady quality. The arrangements are wonderful – and bring in some off-kilter jazziness to inflect John's rootsy style with a sound that shows that he was opening his ears to all that was around him at the time – all the best elements he was picking up in Nola and Cali, fused into something really unique! Titles include "Black Widow Spider", "Barefoot Lady", "Twilight Zone', and "The Lonesome Guitar Strangler". LP, Vinyl record album

Ed OG's nice debut, with a slightly jazzy touch on the production and literate, intelligent lyrics. We really couldn't get with "Bug A Boo", but besides that, this first LP's solid from start to finish, from the days when that wasn't so uncommon. Drop the needle on this and head back in time to a day when backpacker wasn't necessarily a derogatory term, a beat wasn't a straight loop of a common sample, and rhyme skills included being able to follow the beat, which was typically at least a little bit funky. With the now classic "Be A Father To Your Child", plus standout tracks like "I'm Different", "Speak Upon It", "I Got To Have It" and "Life Of A Kid In The Ghetto". 12 tracks in all, also includes "Gotta Have Money", "Feel Like A Nut", "She Said It Was Great", "Dedicated To The Right Wingers", 'Let ME Tickle Your Fancy" and "Stop (Think For A Moment)". LP, Vinyl record album

A spacey soul classic – with a sound that never gets old! Faze-O will be forever remembered for their massive cut "Riding High", the leadoff on this album – a stretched out slow funk jam that has amazing keyboards, floating guitars, and a super-dope groove that's stayed fresh from the moment it was first set to wax back in 1977! This album's the group's first, and best – and it's a really wonderful record that blends together funky fusion and heavy soul – filled with killer cuts arranged by the Ohio Players, and with lots of great keyboards by the group! Includes, of course, the massive cut "Riding High" – plus "Toe Jam" and "Funky Reputation"! CD

The only album ever from Groove Theory – but the set that introduced the world to Amel Larrieux – whose vocal talents alone are worth the price of admission! The feel here is a bit more mainstream soul than some of Amel's later work – but given the mid 90s date of release, the sound is still plenty underground – and filled with the warmer tones and deeper soul styles that wouldn't be that common until years later when the Neo Soul scene rose to prominence. The overall package is the work of former Mantronix member Bryce Wilson – who plays some keys, and ensures that the rhythms are never too bombastic to overwhelm Amel's vocals. Titles include the massive stepper's cut "Tell Me" that hit huge here in Chicago – plus "Baby Luv", "Didja Know", "Come Home", "Hello It's Me", "Hey U", "Good 2 Me", "You're Not The 1", and "Boy At The Window". LP, Vinyl record album

The cover looks a bit cheesy – like some sort of Star Search graphic – but the album's a rock-solid gem from the second decade of Nigerian funk – recorded in Lagos with a great boogie vibe, and a groove that's as heavy on keyboards as it is on riffing guitar and percussion! Peter Abdul's got this falsetto style of singing that's quite unusual for the Nigerian scene – one that echoes American sweet soul of the 70s, but set to a groovier style – and backing vocalists often help push over the top to new heights – as he stretches his range over the top of the longer grooves in the set! Titles include "Just Start To Understand You", "Don't You Know", "Baby I Love You", "Get Down With Me", "Let's Do It", and "Sisi". LP, Vinyl record album

Four late 70s albums from Bobby Bare – all brought together in a single set! First up is Me & McGill – a really special sort of album from the great Bobby Bare – a set that's a collaborative effort with songwriter Bob McDill, as you can probably guess from the title! Bob gives Bobby tunes that are nicely different than some of the mid 70s material he was recording for RCA – maybe a bit more down to earth, with less easy attempts at wit – and at a level that show a maturing Bare, in styles that are similar to some of the shifts that Merle Haggard was taking at the time. Titles include "If You Think I'm Crazy Now", "Look Who I'm Cheating On Tonight", "The Woman In Every Man's Life", "Tired Of The Road Joe", "You Made A Believer Out Of Me", and "Till I Get On Feet". Sleeper Wherever I Fall is Bobby Bare's first album for Columbia Records – a bit of a return to straighter material than some of his concept records for RCA from a few years back – material that really helps the maturing singer find a way towards some of the adult territory that some of his contemporaries were handling at the time – but all without ever sounding too commercial or mainstream, maybe a shift towards territory of some of the non-outlaw material of David Allen Coe. Titles include "Hot Afternoon", "Goin Up's Easy Goin Down's Hard", "Sleep Tight Good Night Man", "What Did It Get Me", "The Last Time", and "Rodeo Queen". Bare is a record that reunites Bobby with songwriter Shel Silverstein – the talent who really helped him reignite his music at the start of the 70s! The songs here are maybe a bit less concept, or joke-oriented than some of Silverstein's more famous material – a great reminder that Shel can be a hell of a songwriter in more conventional modes – and a few tracks on the record are by other writers too. Throughout it all, that great Bobby Bare vocal approach really makes the best of the songs – titles that include "This Guitar Is For Sale", "Too Many Nights Alone", "Greasy Grit Gravy", "Sing For The Song", and "Yard Full Of Rusty Cars". Down & Dirty is a strong live set from Bobby Bare – a singer we mostly associate with studio work, but who's clearly at home here in front of a crowd! There's maybe some slightly more rockish phrasing in some of the instrumentation – but the live presentation keeps things from ever sounding commercially overdone – and the songs are a mix of material from the kinds of singers who always bring out the best in Bobby Bare – a fair bit from Shel Silverstein, plus more from Bob McDill, Townes Van Zandt, and Kris Kristofferson. Titles include "Some Days Are Diamonds", "Numbers", "Tequila Sheila", "I Can't Watch The Movie Anymore", "Qualudes Again", "Down To My Last Come & Get Me", and "Good For Nothing Blues". CD

The funky Root Down EP by the Beastie Boys – riding high on a mid 90s creative peak! Root Down featuring a trio of versions of the title track and Ill Communication album standout, based on the Jimmy Smith's classic of the same name – and in hindsight, you really have to hand it to the Beasties, not only sampling and celebrating classic early 70s jazz funk, but for their earnest wish to introduce Jimmy Smith to the pop culture kids of the 90s – including a killer remix by the mighty Prince Paul. Also includes some live recordings from the time of classic Beasties tracks like"Time For Livin", "The Maestro", "Somethin's Got To Give", Time To Get Ill", thier punky "Heart Attack Man", "Sabrosa" and "Flute Loop". CD

The funky Root Down EP by the Beastie Boys – riding high on a mid 90s creative peak! Root Down featuring a trio of versions of the title track and Ill Communication album standout, based on the Jimmy Smith's classic of the same name – and in hindsight, you really have to hand it to the Beasties, not only sampling and celebrating classic early 70s jazz funk, but for their earnest wish to introduce Jimmy Smith to the pop culture kids of the 90s – including a killer remix by the mighty Prince Paul. Also includes some live recordings from the time of classic Beasties tracks like"Time For Livin", "The Maestro", "Somethin's Got To Give", Time To Get Ill", thier punky "Heart Attack Man", "Sabrosa" and "Flute Loop". LP, Vinyl record album

A selection of late 80s South Bronx Teachings – classic Boogie Down Productions circa Criminal Minded! South Bronx Teachings focuses soundly on the class of '87 – so you get fistful of the Criminal Minded cuts and a few other blasts from KRS-One & Scott La Rock, nicely paced over 13 tracks. Includes "Poetry", "South Bronx", "9MM Goes Blang", "Word From Our Sponsor", "Elementary", "Advance", "D-Nice Rocks The House", "The Bridge Is Over", "Criminal Minded", and "P Is Free (rmx)". CD

The A&M debut of Brewer & Shipley – and a set that's got a lot deeper sound than the duo's later radio hits! There's a youthful, earnest feel going on here – touched with a bit of sunshine, too – all in that wonderfully fresh feel you'll get from the early A&M forays into rock – this magical vibe that's not nearly as posturing, or as self-conscious as some of the heavier projects from bigger labels at the time. Songwriting is sensitive, delivered beautifully by the two voices – and instrumentation often has acoustic elements that echo the love of country that was bubbling in the LA scene of this late 60s Byrds generation. Yet the vibe is quite different than anything you might know, too – almost somewhere between the Roger Nichols Trio and Lambert & Nuttycomb – showing a nice A&M evolution that links together both acts. Titles include "She Thinks", "Truly Right", "Green Bamboo", "Dreamin In The Shade", "Love Love", and "An Incredible State Of Affairs". LP, Vinyl record album

A huge batch of work from Change – all the group's classic albums from the 80s, plus some great work from later years too – all with bonus tracks added to most of the records! First up is Glow Of Love – the classic debut from Change – and the start of an amazing run of groovers in the early 80s! The set's got a tight, jazzy feel throughout – a stripped-down approach to disco modes, with the same focus on the basslines that you'd find in work by Chic – but a style that's almost even more instrumentally focused overall, given the great range of studio players who worked on the set. Yet there's also some key vocal moments, too – work by Luther Vandross that really helps make some of the best tracks sparkle, and which went onto catapult Vandross into a rich solo career on his own. Next is Miracles – a brilliant second set from Change – working here without Luther Vandross on lead vocals, but hardly missing a beat at all! As before, the basslines are at the core of the set – a sweet stripped-down approach that brings even more focus onto the bottom of the groove for early 80s dancefloors – with loads of numbers that step along in a really groovy mode – one quite far from the cliches of disco, and inflected by loads of jazzy elements that keep things fresh over the years! Vocals are by James Robinson – previously with Lonnie Liston Smith – Diva Gray, and Jocelyn Shaw. Sharing Your Love is sweet modern soul from this great group – one of the brightest points in major label soul during the early 80s! Change, ironically, is a group that went through a number of line-up changes, even in their prime – with the tight, clubby, yet genuinely soulful production a constant. This record is made all the better for the beautifully soulful dual lead vocals of James Robinson and Deborah Cooper. The tracks have deeply layered live instrumentation – keyboards, guitar, percussion, horns and strings – blended seamlessly with early 80s production touches. This Is Your Love is an overlooked set from Change – a record that possibly wasn't as hit-worthy as some of their previous efforts – yet one that still had the group very much at the top of their game! By this point, Change had really evolved past being just a studio project, into a rock-solid soul group with a definite ear for a groove – particularly the tight, lean sort of rhythms that percolated in the post-Chic era – making a perfect fit for the slightly jazzy production of the record. Bassbits and beats drive most of the rhythms, but there's still a nice degree of warmth – and vocals are handled by Deborah Cooper, James Robinson, Rick Brennan, and Timmy Allen – who each seem to get their moment in the spotlight, furthering the well-rounded sound of the record. Next is Change Of Heart – a game-changing album from Change – a real breakthrough for the early 80s international soul combo! Change Of Heart has some great production by Jimmy Jam/Terry Lewis – and on top of that, it's perhaps the best set of songs the group had recorded to to date. Jam/Lewis wrote half the tunes and produced most of the album, which is front-loaded with some of the best of them. Turn On Your Radio is not nearly as well-known as their first few hits, but still in that all-solid approach to the groove that was the Change trademark during the early 80s! The sound is a bit more stripped down than before – tight beats and keyboards, mostly in a mellow to midtempo mode – all topped with vocals from male and female members of the group! Change still have a great way with a hook here – an approach to soul that's tight and professional, yet not nearly as cloying as some of the chart-climbing acts of their generation. And as before, the keyboards are almost as great as the vocals – with slight jazzy inflections that warm up the tunes nicely! Last up is Love 4 Love – a 2018 comeback for Change – still sounding great all these many years later, but in a slightly different way! The balance between all elements here is fantastic – as the music has all the best parts of the group's earlier music, but also updates the sound a bit – in the way that a combo like Incognito or Brand New Heavies were updating older soul music back in the 90s, by grabbing all the strongest parts of the past, and fusing them into a fresh lean groove. The songs are upbeat, positive, and full of the kind of catchy hooks that Change always did so well! Box set features 78 tracks in all – with bonus tracks added to most albums! CD

Three overlooked gems by the Everly Brothers – all very different than their early hits, and very much in the hippest territory the duo would ever hit! First up is The Hit Sound Of The Everly Brothers – a really amazing little album, and not a set of the pair's earlier hits, but instead an all new recording that has the duo moving into rootsier modes that rub shoulders with the same country rock territory of The Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers! In truth, Don and Phil Everly are probably more important to the rise of the sound than anyone else – as their early work took a bluegrass harmony style, and moved it onto the rock charts – yet here, they almost seem to move backwards, and nod back to their roots – while still showcasing plenty of electric guitar in the mix. Most tunes are hits by other artists, but transformed with very hip late 60s Warner presentation – think Beau Brummels on Bradley's Barn – and titles include "Devil's Child", "Legend In My Own Time", "I'm Movin On", "Let's Go Get Stoned", "She Never Smiles Anymore", and "Sea Of Heartache". Sing is a record that has The Everly Brothers in a completely different mode than before, as you might guess from their look on the cover – a record that has Don and Phil moving into some very cool rootsy territory – really opening the door towards a generation of country rock to come, but at a level that reminds us that they maybe got the whole thing going in the first place! Production is in a very cool late 60s Warner Brothers mode – echoes of folk, psych, and sunshine in the mix – but all handled with this mature style that's at once sophisticated, yet completely down to earth – in a set of original tunes by the brothers, plus some gems from Terry Slater too – completely wonderful music that includes "Bowling Green", "A Voice Within", "I'm Finding It Rough", "Do You", "Mary Jane", "It's All Over", and "Talking To The Flowers". Roots is sublime country rock and superb vocals from the Everly Brothers – an album as close to our hearts as the much more hipster-celebrated work of the era by Gram Parsons, the Byrds and others! The Everlys grasped onto their significance throughout the 60s by hopping from trend to trend with little success – but they finally nailed it in 1968 with this effort. (Artistically, if not commercially.) The boys apply their staggering harmonies to country and country-ish material, adding their own unique spin to the tunes – and earnestly work in some montages of their family radio shows from the early 50s! It's easily their most endearing work of the 60s. Produced by Lenny Waronker with strings by Nick DeCaro. Includes wonderful versions of Jimmie Rodgers' "T For Texas", "Shady Grove", Randy Newman's "Illinois", Ray Price's "You Done Me Wrong", Merle Haggard's "Mama Tried" and "Sing Me Back Home", plus "Ventura Boulvard" and "Turn Around" written by Ron Elliot of Beau Brummels. 3CD set features lots more bonus tracks – including "When Eddie Comes Home", "Empty Boxes", "Milk Train", "Lord Of The Manor", "My Elusive Dreams", "You're Just What I Was Looking For Today", "Omaha", "Mr Soul", Shop Girl", "Human Race", "A Little Bit Of Crazy", "Nothing But The Best", and "Love Of The Common People". CD

Bassist Eddie Gomez hardly ever has a down stretch – especially given all the creative combinations he's worked in over the years – and this rare 70s album from Japan is more of a high point than anything "down" at all! The record's a trio date, with killer work on Fender Rhodes and piano from Takehiro Honda – who's easily one of our favorite Japanese pianists of the time, and a musician who really brings a different sort of energy to the record than some of Gomez's other sessions with piano players, especially Bill Evans. Drummer Elliot Zigmund is also nicely creative, too – really working the kit in unusual ways, and often staying back a bit so that Eddie can get some wonderful space in the lead, especially at the start of some of the songs. The whole thing's great – an overlooked moment of genius from Gomez – and titles include "Caprice", "Half Life", "Blues E", "Dream Passage", and "Down Stretch". CD

Three full funky albums – and bonus tracks too! First up is Keep On Bumpin & Masterplan – the Kay-Gees' funkiest record ever – a set that's harder and sharper than anything else they'd ever record in years to come! Grabbing this one up is like finding a lost Kool & The Gang album from the early years – which is no surprise, since Ronald Bell of the group produced, and wrote a lot of the songs with the group – maybe acting as their mentor, and definitely giving the young group a great showcase for their boundless energy, and tight skills in the groove department! The band are incredibly tight – with lots of hard drums, choppy guitar, and the rolling party feel that made Kool & The Gang so great during their best years – captured here with a similarly raw production style. There's some great horns that blast in and out, sounding very off-beat at the best moments – like the classic "Who's the Man With the Master Plan", sampled by YZ many years ago – or other funky cuts like "Ain't No Time", "Get Down", and "You've Got to Keep on Bumpin". On Find A Friend, the Kay-Gee's are getting a little disco, but they also manage to lay down some nice funky tracks – in the best Kool & The Gang tradition of their early work! Ronald Bell of Kool & Gang is still working with the group – and he wrote a lot of material and also performs on the LP – which might be part of the album's strength – although the group have clearly got a very strong legacy on their own! The record shows signs of the direction that Kool & The Gang were taking at the time, with a move towards electric keyboards instead of raw funky guitars – but like Kool's work from the period, the use of these keyboards is nicely restrained, and adds some good jazzy elements to the sound, to create a more sophisticated style of funk. Cuts include "Waiting At The Bus Stop", "Mr. Nothin", "STP", "Be Real", "Keep On Saying", "Acknowledgement", and a number of versions of "Find A Friend". On Kilowatt, The Kay-Gees are burning bright – in that razor-sharp approach to funk that made the group one of the best of their generation – able to strongly step on the dancefloor, but without losing any of the rawness of their funky 45 years! The balance is a bit like Fatback at their best – and that group is maybe one of the few we'd match next to the Kay-Gees at this point – and although the basslines are up a bit more than before, they never hit any sort of too-cliched or overdone modes, as in some of the other big funk groups of the period. Guitars riff mightily, lyrics are plenty catchy, and the rest of the instrumentation is right on the money – on cuts that include their "Kay-Gee's Theme Song", plus "Fat Daddy", "Celestial Vibrations", "Space Disco", and "Kilowatt/Invasion". CD features bonus tracks – "Hustle Wit Every Muscle", "Cheek To Cheek (12" mix)", "Kilowatt (12" mix)", and "Kilowatt (12" ext)". CD