Essential! This is the landmark album that forever put saxophonist Joe Harriott on the map, and it's a brilliant batch of tracks that prove that Harriott was advancing the jazz avant garde in England as much as players like Ornette Coleman and Cecil Taylor were advancing it in America. Despite the "free form" of the title, the tracks are more "new thing" – somewhat structured, with a rhythmic approach that's still a little straight, but solos that go nice and outside. Joe's overall conception is a beautiful mix of angular thinking with freely expressed soulful emotion – and the record's one that ranks up there with the 10 most groundbreaking of the 60s! The group's about as fantastic as you could ever expect from England at the time – with Shake Keane on trumpet, Pat Smythe on piano, Coleridge Goode on bass, and Phil Seamen on drums – and titles include "Formation", "Coda", "Abstract", "Straight Lines", and "Impression". CD

Like finding a time machine – one that takes you back to the glory days of the New York club scene at the end of the 70s! Much has been written about Larry Levan – the genius DJ behind the Paradise Garage, and a leading force in club music who pulled the genre from the ashes of disco cliches and cold pre-programmed throwaway tracks. Levan not only had an ear for picking the most soulful tunes of the underground, buy he also had an extremely good talent for putting tracks together – a talent that got him plenty of work as a remixer in the early 80s, but which is also heard here exactly as you'd have heard it at the Paradise Garage back in 1979! The set is a magical document – a live mix performed by Levan at the Paradise, recorded with excellent sound, and spread over 2 CDs! Levan comes up with killer groovers we've never heard, and other monsters that we'd forgotten about, and which sound even better in this stunning mix of music. Titles include "It's Magic" by Damon Harris, "Put Your Body In It" by Stephanie Mills, "By The Way You Dance" by Bunny Sigler, "Right In The Socket" by Shalamar, "Here We Go Again" by Peoples Choice, "Bad Mouthin" by Motown Sounds, "Let Yourself Go" by The Supremes, "Angel In My Pocket" by Change, "Smack Dab In The Middle" by Janice McClain, "Sun Sun Sun" by Jacki, and "Erucu" by Jermain Jackson". 20 tracks in all – and all expertly mixed! CD

Female soul galore – and a set that mixes together work from the 60s, 70s, and 80s – mostly pulled from the older catalog of Charly Records, and featuring styles that include funk, deep soul, and modern club! The stylistic mix is a bit all over the map, but there's plenty of great cuts on here that haven't been reissued in awhile – and as long as you're prepared for a genre shift as the set moves on, you'll find plenty to enjoy. 30 tracks on 3CDs – with titles that include "You're Losing Me" by Ann Sexton, "If My Friends Could See Me Now" by Linda Clifford, "There's A Break In The Road" by Betty Harris, "Funky Love" by The Staple Singers, "Girls Are Out To Get You" by The Fascinations, "Jessie Joe" by Jean Knight, "Take Care" by June Conquest, "All I Want Is You" by Zilla Mayes, "One Man's Poison" by Liz Lands, "Baby Don't You Know" by Bobbi Humphrey, "You Gotta Push" by Jodi Gales, "It's You I Need" by Deniece Chandler, "I Know You Care" by Ethel Beatty, "If You Don't Start" by The Jones Girls, and "Love & A Friend" by Eddie Bo & Inez Cheatham. CD