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... LP, Vinyl record album

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Joe Lovano on saxophones and flute, Greg Osby on saxophone, Jason Moran on piano, Cameron Brown on bass, and Idris Muhammad on drums. CD

The second album by Inner Life, and the group's first for Salsoul – an instant club classic, thanks to some supremely soulful vocals by Jocelyn Brown, and excellent arrangements by Greg Carmichael and Patrick Adams! The album starts out with the slow-building track "It's You", but then moves quickly into uptempo club territory – letting Brown really open up on tracks that include the amazing remake of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough", plus "Pay Girl", "Live it Up", "Make It Last Forever", and the classic "(Knock Out) Let's Go Another Round"! CD features long bonus tracks too – including "Make It Last Forever (unreleased Larry Levan rmx)", "Let's Go Another Round (orig Tee Scott 12" mix)", "Ain't No Mountain High Enough (orig Larry Levan The Garage 12")", and the unreleased track "Let's Get This Thing Together". CD

A classic of 70s avant spiritual jazz – issued on the tiny Sweet Earth label, which was also home to some very special records from Sun Ra and Marion Brown! Bassist David Wertman is a lot more obscure than those bigger names, but he was part of the New York loft jazz scene in those crucial mid 70s years – and had associations with Arthur Blythe, Billy Bang, Steve Reid, and other key members of the group – all heavyweights that Wertman can easily stand next to with the strength of the material on this set! The sounds here are a fantastic combination of larger ideas and more spontaneous creation – almost in an AACM mode, but a bit more spiritual overall – with David's bass at the helm of a group that includes David Swerdlove on alto and soprano sax, John Hagen on tenor and soprano, John Sprague on flutes, Greg Wall on baritone, and John Zieman on keyboards. Drummer Jay Conway really provides some great energy to keep things lively and moving – and titles include "Oh John Love Trane", "Clear Air Dancer", "Earthly Delights", and "Relations". LP, Vinyl record album

Gregg Diamond takes his Bionic Boogie sound to a different level – soaring to the skies with a leaner disco groove than before – almost hinting at the coming 80s groove in the process! The rhythms are nice and tight, and often augmented by keyboards that sweeten things up – never overwhelming the overall groove, but packing things in with a mighty nice punch – one that lets the vocals on the record really explode! Most numbers have a chorus singing the spare lyrics – but Diva Gray and Gordon Grody each sing lead on a track each, then give the rest of the record to a backup group that also includes Jocelyn Brown. Our favorite track may well be "Holding Back", which snaps along in a great funky dancefloor groove with some old Bionic Boogie elements – and other cuts include "Arista Vista", "Bring Back Your Love", "Fancy Dancer", and "This Side Of Midnight". LP, Vinyl record album

Gregory Porter arrives on Blue Note Records – and the result is Porter's most fully-formed set so far – just the kind of album that will push him firmly into the limelight – a place that we've felt he's deserved for quite a few years! Porter's a hell of a singer, and a hell of a songwriter too – and although his roots are in jazz, he's got a rare ability to step between genres with plenty of soul – a special space that belongs to a very rare few – like Nina Simone, Bill Withers, Roberta Flack, or Gil Scott-Heron! Gregory's voice is amazing, his lyrics are both personal and pointed – and he does so much here with so little, the album should be handed out to the hundreds of mis-directed vocalists who think that a few extra tweaks in the studio is all they really need. Most numbers just feature small combo backing, with wonderfully warm piano from Chip Crawford – and the whole thing's got a timeless feel that makes us think this is the beginning of a rich new season for Porter. Titles include "Free", "Water Under Bridges", "Lonesome Lover", "Liquid Spirit", "No Love Dying", "Brown Grass", "When Love Was King", and "Wind Song". This great 3LP deluxe version features special guest bonus tracks on the fifth side – Water Under The Bridge" with Laura Mvula, "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" with Jamie Cullum and "Grandma's Hands" with Ben L'Oncle Soul – plus Rainer & Grimm, Claptone, 20syl, St Germain and Knuckle G remixes on the sixth side! LP, Vinyl record album

Gregory Porter arrives on Blue Note Records – and the result is Porter's most fully-formed set so far – just the kind of album that will push him firmly into the limelight – a place that we've felt he's deserved for quite a few years! Porter's a hell of a singer, and a hell of a songwriter too – and although his roots are in jazz, he's got a rare ability to step between genres with plenty of soul – a special space that belongs to a very rare few – like Nina Simone, Bill Withers, Roberta Flack, or Gil Scott-Heron! Gregory's voice is amazing, his lyrics are both personal and pointed – and he does so much here with so little, the album should be handed out to the hundreds of mis-directed vocalists who think that a few extra tweaks in the studio is all they really need. Most numbers just feature small combo backing, with wonderfully warm piano from Chip Crawford – and the whole thing's got a timeless feel that makes us think this is the beginning of a rich new season for Porter. Titles include "Free", "Water Under Bridges", "Lonesome Lover", "Liquid Spirit", "No Love Dying", "Brown Grass", "When Love Was King", and "Wind Song". CD

Gregg Diamond takes his Bionic Boogie sound to a different level – soaring to the skies with a leaner disco groove than before – almost hinting at the coming 80s groove in the process! The rhythms are nice and tight, and often augmented by keyboards that sweeten things up – never overwhelming the overall groove, but packing things in with a mighty nice punch – one that lets the vocals on the record really explode! Most numbers have a chorus singing the spare lyrics – but Diva Gray and Gordon Grody each sing lead on a track each, then give the rest of the record to a backup group that also includes Jocelyn Brown. Our favorite track may well be "Holding Back", which snaps along in a great funky dancefloor groove with some old Bionic Boogie elements – and other cuts include "Arista Vista", "Bring Back Your Love", "Fancy Dancer", and "This Side Of Midnight". CD

There's way more than sufficient grace going on here – and a strongly soulful swing that really has the whole album coming together, right on the money! Maybe that's no surprise, though, given that the set's issued on the excellent WJ3 label from Willie Jones III, who plays drums at the core of the record, next to the bass of Sean Conly – while Tardy carves out all these wonderfully fluid, feeling lines next to the trumpet of Marcus Printup – who himself sounds better than usual, and makes for a perfect fit for Tardy. Keith Brown handles piano on the quintet session, all tunes are Tardy originals, and titles include "Tree & Its Fruit", "I Choose You", "For Deacon Rock", "The Omnipresent Cardiologist", "Janel's Love Song", and "Nick Hoot". CD

A great look at a really magical moment in Jamaican music – one in which the influence of the big UK audience was felt in styles back home – and also in which some shifting modes in American soul also helped create some new modes of expression! Lovers Rock is a mellower, gentler version of reggae than some of the roots rock or headier dub recordings of the 70s – going back to the soul that first inspired Jamaicans to make their own grooves back in the 60s – but with an updated style that has more mature, sophisticated modes coming into play – great vocals that go wonderfully with the slow-stepping and midtempo grooves of the tracks! Make no mistake, this is still reggae, but just with less politics and more interpersonal themes – well-collected here on titles that include "Caught You In A Lie" by Louisa Mark, "Can't Go Through With Life" by Marie Pierre, "I'm Still In Love With You" by Marcia Aitken, "Silly Games" by Janet Kay, "Dim The Light" by Winston Ready, "Someone Loves You Honey" by JC Lodge, "Money In My Pocket" by Dennis Brown, "Night Nurse" by Gregory Isaacs, "I'm So Sorry" by Carroll Thompson, "Ghetto Queen" by John Holt, "Key To The World" by Ruddy Thomas, "Love Has Found Its Way" by Dennis Brown, "Getting Crazy" by The In Crowd, and "When Push Comes To Shove" by Freddie McGregor. 3CD set features 60 tracks in all – a huge selection! CD

Music from Freddie McGregor, Beres Hammond, Garnett Silk, Dennis Brown, Pam Hall, Makeda, Gregory Isaacs, Jack Radics, Cutty Rank & more. LP, Vinyl record album

Fantastic funk from a totally obscure group – Portland's Shades Of Brown, a combo not to be confused with the Chicago group who recorded for Chess Records – but one who share a very similar sense of righteous soul! There's a heady groove to the record right from the start – carefully vamping rhythms laced with organ, riffing guitar, trumpet, and tenor – all in support of the superb lead vocals of Gregg Smith, a singer with an expressive style that really sends the whole thing home! The tunes are often laidback enough to really find their groove – longer than two minute funky 45 numbers, and infused with a very deep soul vibe overall. The set features four killer cuts – "Teasin Woman", "Girl In The Streets", "Black Woman", and "Searchin For Love". LP, Vinyl record album

Fantastic work from reedman Marion Brown – an unissued live set from the mid 70s, and one that features a whole new side of his talents! The music is definitely the improvisations promised in the title – but never in a free jazz sort of way, as Brown is working with a group, who have a nice sort of swing on all the tracks – and almost put Marion into hardbop territory that he hardly ever touched at this time! The whole performance is a unique glimpse at that much richer life that Brown was living overseas in the 70s – a time when he was connecting strongly with the jazz scene in Europe, in ways that were not always that well-documented on record – and also working on the American underground, but in ways that were different from some of his better-known material. This set is certainly one of those sides of his career – a beautifully swinging, soulful set that also features work from Brandon Ross on guitar, Jack Gregg on bass, and Steve McGreven on drums. Titles include "First Improvisation", "Second Improvisation", "Third Improvisation", and so on. CD

With Ray Brown on bass, Benny Green on piano, and Gregory Hutchinson on drums. CD

Christian McBride, John Clayton Jr, and Ray Brown on bass, Benny Green on piano, and Gregory Hutchinson on drums. CD

With Benny Green on piano, Gregory Hutchinson on drums, and Ulf Wakenius on guitar. CD

Oscar Peterson and Benny Green on piano, Ray Brown on bass, and Gregory Hutchinson on drums. CD

Music from Brown Bird, Trevor Hall, Sarah Jarosz, Justin Townes Earle, The Sweet Remains, Lucy Kaplansky, Gregory Alan Isakov, Fences, Jon And Roy, The Waifs, and Harry Manx. CD

A stunning array of rare sounds from Togo – a tiny West African nation, but home to a real hotbed of grooves in the 70s and 80s! As with the first volume, the music here is a real revelation – sounds very different than those in nearby Nigeria, often with a slight tropical vibe in the rhythms – almost if there were Caribbean currents flowing east to infect the scene Lome with a very unique sound! Guitars are often right down in the rhythms, but in ways that are different than highlife – funkier, with almost a James Brown influence – but one that's been very changed up in the process! Some of the 80s cuts bring in a bit more beats, basslines, and keyboards – but still in really unique ways – and titles include "Misiqui" by Roger Damawuzan, "Agaza Gbona" by Agboti, "Yansama" by Ali Bawa, "Fati Waka" by Mamo Lagbema, "Kissakpiou" by Napo De Mi Amor, "The End Of All" by Deg Dos, "Habie" by Gregoire Lawani, and "Assini" by Palete Wawa. CD

A stunning array of rare sounds from Togo – a tiny West African nation, but home to a real hotbed of grooves in the 70s and 80s! As with the first volume, the music here is a real revelation – sounds very different than those in nearby Nigeria, often with a slight tropical vibe in the rhythms – almost if there were Caribbean currents flowing east to infect the scene Lome with a very unique sound! Guitars are often right down in the rhythms, but in ways that are different than highlife – funkier, with almost a James Brown influence – but one that's been very changed up in the process! Some of the 80s cuts bring in a bit more beats, basslines, and keyboards – but still in really unique ways – and titles include "Misiqui" by Roger Damawuzan, "Agaza Gbona" by Agboti, "Yansama" by Ali Bawa, "Fati Waka" by Mamo Lagbema, "Kissakpiou" by Napo De Mi Amor, "The End Of All" by Deg Dos, "Habie" by Gregoire Lawani, and "Assini" by Palete Wawa. LP, Vinyl record album

A seminal Dee Jay LP from Jah Youth. Mad, bad riddims – courtesy Gussie Clarke, Big Youth's prowess on the microphone and a smattering of nice dub like effects blend to create a landmark early 70s reggae LP, forever raising the bar for DeeJays. Includes the original LP with 10 tracks: "The Killer", "Screaming Target", "Tipper Tone Rock", "Pride & Joy Rock", "Lee A Low", "Honesty", "I Am Alright", "These Fine Days", "Be Careful" and "Solomon A Gundy", plus 14 bonus tracks on this CD edition, with a number of the original versions of the tracks, including "Origan Style" by Augustus Pablo, "Pride & Ambition" by Leroy Smart, "Their Own Way" by Dennis Brown, "Rhythm Style" by Simplicity People, "Skylarking Version" by the Society Squad, "Slaving (Every Day)" by Lloyd Parks,"No More Slavery" by Glen Brown, and "I Am Alright (aka Loving Pauper)" by Gregory Isaacs. CD

A sweet bit of disco, with a wonderful hook! We've never been sure if this Caress is the same group that went onto record later for P&P Records fame, but the tune's got these sweeping strings, falsetto vocals, and a nicely rhythmic pulse that all share real P&P touches – even if Peter Brown or Patrick Adam's names aren't on the credits! Written by Gregg Diamond, and a really nice little tune! 7-inch, Vinyl record

A landmark early moment from Doris Troy – a set that has her shining not just as a key 60s soul singer for Atlantic Records – but also as a heck of a great songwriter too! She's got a really fresh approach here – one that's right up front for the time – with a mix of raw vocals and classy production, in a style that's partly New York uptown – but which also has the kind of strongly individual vibe you'd get from singers like Maxine Brown or Barbara Lewis too! Arrangements on the record are by Gregory Carroll, who also wrote the bulk of the material with Doris – including tracks like "Lazy Days", "Bossa Nova Blues", "Whatcha Gonna Do About It", "Time", and "Just One Look". Other tracks include "Stormy Weather", "School For Fools", and "Somewhere Along The Way". LP, Vinyl record album

Robot Rock n Roll issue featuring a lavishly illustrated encyclopedia of hundreds of robot records/bands/etc. Interviews with Captured! By Robots, Gilbert and George (The Singing Sculpture), Arthur Lee Maye (1950s R&B/Baseball star), Blowfly, The Troggs, Snoop Dogg, The Syndicate of Sound, Richard and the Young Lions, Rocket From The Crypt, Archer Prewitt, Andy Starr and Junior Brown. Plus Bubblegum, Martin & Lewis, Shrimpenstein (written by Dominic Priore), Crispy Ambulance, Sammy Davis, Jr., Art Fein's 1950s Chicago memories, Bryan Gregory obituary, lots of comics, reviews and more. Magazine