Maybe the best-ever Luv n Haight comp, this one was put together by the folks at the Groove Merchant record store in SF (maybe we'll get such an honor some day), which was formerly owned by Ubiquity. Lots of totally rare cuts here, and many with a real jazzy feel. No duplication from other comps, either – or at least none that we can determine. A little like the Feelin' Good comp, but with more of a hard funk edge, and a bit of a Keb Darge sound. CD features two bonus cuts, too! CD

Jazzy club from Joe Thomas – 2 tracks that feature the Ebony Godfather's flute alongside some sweet electric backings! "Funky Fever" has a silly title but is actually a nice little cut – one that has electric keys and warm arrangements from Brad Baker, plus a bit of vocals on the chorus. "Polarizer" is even funkier – a bit slower and chunkier, almost in a late 70s kind of Blue Note fusion mode! 12-inch, Vinyl record

Tasty small group work from Groove – with Mr Holmes himself on organ, and the great Larry Willis on electric piano – coming up with a twin electric organ/piano sound that's similar to the one that Groove used on his Comin On Home LP for Blue Note. The difference here is that things aren't as funky as on the Blue Note record – more in the style of the mellow soul of some of the other Groove Merchant albums, with a sweet use of percussion and guitar next to the keys – in a nice laidback kind of groove! Titles are mostly covers – like "St Thomas", "American Pie", and "Who Can I Turn To" – but the lineup also includes two Holmes originals, "Catherine" and the jazzy "Fingers", which is a nice little cut! CD

Sweet 70s funk from the legendary Groove Holmes – an album that has his funky organ riffing nicely over some tight larger arrangements! The style is really great, and a nice departure from the smaller combo Groove Holmes sound of the 60s – more in keeping with his later Blue Note work, in that the organ's in the lead, grooving soulfully, and the rest of the band vamps and comps behind him with a tight style that's almost in the soundtrack mode! Players include Pretty Purdie on drums, Horace Ott on electric piano, and Seldon Powell on tenor – and Horace Ott wrote two nice originals – "Night Glider" and "Flyjack" – and Groove contributed "Pure Cane Sugar". Other tracks include "Go Away Little Girl", "Young & Foolish", and "One Mint Julep". CD

Twin organs back to back – and a heck of a hard-wailing set from Groove Holmes and Jimmy McGriff! The album cooks from the very first note – and features long tunes that open up with the same sort of solo-heavy approach that you'd get on Holmes' Prestige albums of the 60s – very stretched out, in a way that offers the keyboardists no cover at all, and forces them to keep thinking on their feet to come up with great notes! Bernard Purdie plays some nicely tight drums on the set, and guitar is by George Freeman and O'Donel Levy – both of whom add some nice superdope touches to the set! A winner all the way through, with great solos – and titles that include "Licks A Plenty", "The Squirrel", and "Finger Lickin' Good". CD

Fantastic sounds throughout – and maybe the best album ever by this legendary 70s guitar player! O'Donel Levy's got this tremendous sound that comes from playing an electric hollow body – in a tone that takes the best bits of Grant Green and Wes Montgomery, and strips them down for a hipper, badder 70s sort of mode. The album's got some great blackploitation-esque arrangements by Manny Albam, and O'Donel's groove is nice and lean as he snakes over the top of the record in some very soulful solos! Lots of cool grooves, and titles include "Joni", "Nigerian Knights", "Bad, Bad, Simba" and "Sad, Sad, Simba". LP, Vinyl record album

A killer electric piano jam from the great Mike Longo – stone funky, and one of his best albums ever! The whole thing's done in a really laidback style that's simply amazing – a lot like the best CTI work of the time, but somehow rougher, and with a darker edge. Longo riffs out on the keys over rhythm by Ron Carter, Mickey Roker, and Ralph MacDonald – and Joe Farrell and Randy Brecker add in some great horn work that fleshes out the tunes with a deeply soulful jazzy feel. The whole album's great, with a range of moods, emotions, and grooves that Longo hardly ever hit again – and titles include "Summers Gone", "El Moodo Grande", "Like a Thief In the Night", "Ocean Of His Might", and "Magic Number". CD

A sweet and jazzy little session from Carmen McRae – an overlooked batch of groovy tunes recorded with small combo backing – with a hip vibe that's a bit different than some of her other 70s work! The sound's pretty soulful overall, and takes off nicely from Carmen's best moments on Atlantic a few years before – mixing in just a bit of electricity to keep things sounding a bit 70s-styled without losing any of Carmen's talent for interpreting a tune. The group features Joe Pass on guitar and Larry Bunker on vibes – and titles include Blossom Dearie numbers "Hey John" and "Inside A Silent Tear", plus "All The Things You Are", "The Right To Love", "Where Are The Words", "It Takes A Whole Lot Of Human Feeling", and "Imagination". LP, Vinyl record album

Always-hip work from the great Carmen McRae – a singer who moved way past standard jazz during the second half of the 60s – to a point where she was really handling a great range of material by the start of the 70s! Carmen's voice was always great, but there's a really special quality to it once she starts picking songs with a fair bit of variety – almost more expressive, especially when in an indie label setting like this – which features light arrangements and just a small combo that includes Zoot Sims on tenor and Bucky Pizzarelli on guitar – both keeping the jazz currents strong. Titles include "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life", "Masquerade", "You & I", "It's The Good Life", and "Livin". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the funkiest albums ever from Junior Parker – a great little set that shows he had a lot more to offer than just the average bluesman! The album's got a nice little soul sound in the backings – tight rhythms from Horace Ott, who nicely avoids a lot of the cliches that the blues business was hitting at the time – in order to keep Junior in hip territory that's filled with breaking drums and heavy basslines! There's a few key crossover tracks here, plus some surprisingly sweeter numbers – and the album's a gem through and through – well-appreciated by new generations over the years, thanks to its diversity of tracks! Titles include a great break version of "Taxman" – plus two more Beatles numbers, "Tomorrow Never Knows" and "Lady Madonna" – and the tracks "Outside Man", "Darling Depend On Me", "You Know I Love You", "River's Invitation", and "Just To Hold My Hand". CD

A really beautiful later album from Zoot Sims – one that might easily be overlooked, given its understated appearance on a sometimes-cheap label – but a record that really helps Zoot find whole new magic for the 70s! The date's nice and laidback – with great guitar from Bucky Pizzarelli, who himself is really a cut above here – a master of chromes, balancing out the sharply raspy tone that makes Sims' tenor so fantastic – with subtle but strong accompaniment on bass by Milt Hilton, and nicely restrained work by Buddy Rich on drums! The feel is maybe like some of Zoot's work on Pablo, but hipper too – and titles include "Memories Of You", "Summerset", "A Summer Thing", "Somebody Loves Me", and "Nirvana". LP, Vinyl record album

Excellent work by Lonnie Smith – a free-flowing album of long jazzy grooves that's kind of an extension of his Blue Note albums, touched with more of the electricity of his 70s playing! There's some killer rhythms on the album – courtesy of drummers Jamey Hudad and Ben Riley, and electric bassists Ron Carter and Ralphe Armstrong – and Lonnie's on organ grooving alongside a young Joe Lovano, who plays some killer tenor and soprano sax – and the album's got these really long, open cuts that definitely hint at the more spiritual look of the cover. Titles include the 15 minute jammer "Spirits Free", plus "Afrodesia", "Favors", "Straight To The Point", and "The Awakening". CD

Excellent work by Lonnie Smith – a free-flowing album of long jazzy grooves that's kind of an extension of his Blue Note albums, touched with more of the electricity of his 70s playing! There's some killer rhythms on the album – courtesy of drummers Jamey Hudad and Ben Riley, and electric bassists Ron Carter and Ralphe Armstrong – and Lonnie's on organ grooving alongside a young Joe Lovano, who plays some killer tenor and soprano sax – and the album's got these really long, open cuts that definitely hint at the more spiritual look of the cover. Titles include the 15 minute jammer "Spirits Free", plus "Afrodesia", "Favors", "Straight To The Point", and "The Awakening". LP, Vinyl record album

Lonnie Smith's a long way from his Blue Note years here – but the sound is still plenty darn great, thanks to some fuller arrangements from the great Brad Baker – of B Baker Chocolate Company fame! The whole thing's quite electric – with Lonnie on Fender Rhodes and other keyboards on most tracks, and rhythms that bring in bits of strings amidst the smaller jazz combo vamping – a blend that's smoothly soulful, but still more than funky enough to please our ears. Lonnie even sings a bit on the record, too – in this slightly-spacey quality that has echoes of Stevie Wonder – but the main focus overall is on his keyboards, which step out nicely over the backings. Titles include "Keep On Lovin", "What I Want", "No Tears Tomorrow", "Sizzle Stick", "Lean Meat", and "Filet O Sole". CD

Heavy Hammond from a time when the use of the organ in jazz was really changing up from the 60s – music that often had more of a funky current in the rhythms than some of the more soul and gospel-influenced styles of the decade before! All the work here was recorded for the Groove Merchant label – most by older heavyweights who'd recorded for Blue Note and Prestige, but were given a chance to hip things up a bit more for the 70s – as you'll hear in the great style of these tunes! Sonny Lester produced most of the music – and titles include "Cisco Kid" and "Superfly" by Reuben Wilson, "Afrodesia" and "Funk Reaction" by Lonnie Smith, "Groove Grease" and "Tailgunner" by Jimmy McGriff, "Good Vibrations" and "Out Of Nowhere" by Richard Groove Holmes, "Never Can Say Goodbye" by Reuben Wilson, "Preacher's Tune" by Richard Groove Holmes, and "Let's Stay Together" by Jimmy McGriff. CD

One of the funkiest albums ever from Junior Parker – a great little set that shows he had a lot more to offer than just the average bluesman! The album's got a nice little soul sound in the backings – tight rhythms from Horace Ott, who nicely avoids a lot of the cliches that the blues business was hitting at the time – in order to keep Junior in hip territory that's filled with breaking drums and heavy basslines! There's a few key crossover tracks here, plus some surprisingly sweeter numbers – and the album's a gem through and through – well-appreciated by new generations over the years, thanks to its diversity of tracks! Titles include a great break version of "Taxman" – plus two more Beatles numbers, "Tomorrow Never Knows" and "Lady Madonna" – and the tracks "Outside Man", "Darling Depend On Me", "You Know I Love You", "River's Invitation", and "Just To Hold My Hand". LP, Vinyl record album

A tasty CD that brings together some cuts from Lonnie's legendary Afro-desia album for Groove Merchant from 1975, plus other tracks from later Groove Merchant sessions. The Afro-desia material is great – with Lonnie playing in a very stretched out, Larry Young-ish kind of way, and a young Joe Lovano laying down some sweet hard tenor solos. The other material features players like George Benson, Ben Riley, and Bob Cranshaw – and although the sound's a bit smoother, the groove's still pretty nice. Titles include "Apex", "Flavors", "Afrodesia", "All In My Mind", and "When Night Is Right". 7 cuts in all! CD

An early 70s gem from Jimmy McGriff! Jimmy's grooving with a larger group here – but in a funky 70s mode that makes for a great update of the rawer sound he laid out on some of his Sue sides in the 60s. The best tracks are the covers of 70s soul material – like "Shaft", "What's Going On", and "Let's Stay Together" – hewn in the organ funk mode that Jimmy pioneered and honed with his trademark expertise. Another highlight of the record is an original called "Tiki", that has a slight exotica feel to it, coming off very nice with Jimmy's organ work! Other tracks include "Georgia On My Mind" and "April In Paris". CD

Gritty gritty gritty! This live set of soul jazz tracks was recorded in Chicago's Cook County Jail on Friday the 13th, 1972 – and we can hardly think of a darker place to record a soul jazz album! Side one features the aptly-named "Freedom Suite", an extended groover played by Jimmy McGriff, and a 2-guitar group that includes George Freeman and Odonel Levy – and side two has Lucky Thompson playing in a soulful group with Cedar Walton on electric piano, on the tracks "Green Dolphin Street" and "Everything Happens To Me". A pretty incredible event to be recorded – trust us, we drive by the jail a fair bit on the way to work! LP, Vinyl record album

One of the rarest albums on the Groove Merchant label – and one of the best! Ramon Morris has a sweet tone on the tenor that works very well with the electric piano in his tight little combo – grooving with a style that's like the best Black Jazz funk records of the time – mixing together bright notes, funky rhythms, and plenty of great chord changes! Cecil Bridgewater's on trumpet, and the band has a really righteous feel – with lots of real soul and thoughtful playing mixed into the jazz funk grooves of the record. Massive – with titles that include "Sweat", "Lord Sideways", "Sweet Sister Funk", and a nice version of "People Make The World Go Round". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the funkiest Buddy Rich albums of the 70s – a mad screaming affair that's overflowing with great tunes! The band on the set is very full – with a heck of a lot of trumpets in the brass section, set next to searing sax work by the great Pat LaBarbera. But even better is the rhythm section – which grooves in a hard electric funk mode, thanks to guitar from Joe Beck, bass from Tony Levin, and some surprisingly smoking drums from Buddy himself! Tracks are all very nicely grooving – and titles include "Kilimanjaro Cookout", "Nuttville", "Senator Sam", "Waltz Of The Mushroom Hunters", and "Big Mac". LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent album of mellow soulful tracks by Lucky Thompson – with a sweet 70s groove that's quite different from most of his other recordings! The album's got a cool mellow feel – with Lucky veering much more towards a CTI-ish electric mode than the style he used on most of his other earlier albums, which were in a soul jazz or hardbop style. Thompson plays both tenor and soprano sax – sometimes with hints of a post-Coltrane influence, in lines that are nice and snakey! The group's great too – with Cedar Walton on acoustic and electric piano, Sam Jones on bass, and Louis Hayes on drums – all very soulful players that help bring a righteous sort of energy to the album! Titles include "Munsoon", "Sun Out", "Aliyah", and a good cover of "Moment Of Truth". LP, Vinyl record album

A strange and wonderful session from the Jones/Lewis big band – one of their hippest of the 70s, recorded in Finland with a host of very cool players! UMO is the Finnish New Music Orchestra – a group featuring players that include Pekka Sarmanto on bass, Eero Koivistoinen on tenor and soprano sax, Otto Berger on electric guitar, and Esko Linnavalli on electric piano – plus a host of other great talents that we'd never heard before. The style is a nice mix of acoustic and electric big band grooving – with some nicely dancing numbers that have a bit of a choppy reed touch, some of the MPS big band groove, but still retain that Jones/Lewis American swing. Titles include "Tip Toe", "Groove Merchant", "Summary", "Kids Are Pretty People", and "The Great One". LP, Vinyl record album

Quite possibly the funkiest record ever made by guitarist Joe Pass – a real surprise from an artist we mostly know for his mellower and straight ahead work! The style here is tight electric funk, almost in a Groove Merchant sort of way – and given Joe's heavy use of hollow-body guitar on the record, and the warm chromatic hues in his tone, the style's a fair bit like O'Donel Levy on his 70s classics from the same era. Bassist Carol Kaye had a hand in putting together the record, and there's a similar feel here to her own best grooves – tight, studio-oriented work – but never slick or too commercial! Other players include Joe Sample on keyboards, Paul Humphrey on drums, Tom Scott on sax and flute, and JJ Johnson on trombone – and despite the presence of these heavyweights, the record has a nicely soulful sound that's more indie grit than major label funk! CD adds some bonus tracks to the original record – and features 18 titles that include "Free Sample", "Better Days", "Head Start", "It's Too Late", "Gotcha", "Alison", "The Preacher", "Bass Blues", "Burning Spear", "Slick Cat", "Flying Down To Baja", and "Love Is". LP, Vinyl record album

Wonderfully soulful grooves from the amazing Lucky Thompson! Despite the simple cover and title, this is a very nice set that brings together some of Lucky Thompson's excellent soulful recordings for the Groove Merchant label during the early 70s. Thompson started out his career as a more traditional tenorist, with a definite post-swing bias – but by the time of these sessions, he'd emerged (after a long stay in Europe) as a more spiritual, more soulful player, capable of deep emotion, and warm flowing introspective solos. He's caught in good company here – as both sessions feature Cedar Walton on keyboards – and the CD features Thompson on both tenor and soprano, which he plays in a delightful way. Titles include "Fillet Of Soul", "Then Soul Walked In", "Home Come'n", "Soul Lullaby", and "Sun Out". CD

A really fantastic pairing of talents – a set that takes the hip larger group style of Buddy Rich in the 70s, and tops it with very groovy vocals from the wonderful Buddy Rich! Imagine the funky style of Buddy's work on the Groove Merchant label, matched with a singer – and you'll get a very good idea of the vibe of this set – except that Mel also seems to open up the instrumental side of the music with an even more expressive vibe! Players include Steve Marcus on tenor, John Mosca on trombone, and Hank Jones on piano – and titles include "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life", "Bluesette", "I Won't Last A Day Without You", "Lady Be Good", "Blues In The Night", "When I Found You", and "Here's That Rainy Day". LP, Vinyl record album

A really fantastic pairing of talents – a set that takes the hip larger group style of Buddy Rich in the 70s, and tops it with very groovy vocals from the wonderful Buddy Rich! Imagine the funky style of Buddy's work on the Groove Merchant label, matched with a singer – and you'll get a very good idea of the vibe of this set – except that Mel also seems to open up the instrumental side of the music with an even more expressive vibe! Players include Steve Marcus on tenor, John Mosca on trombone, and Hank Jones on piano – and titles include "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life", "Bluesette", "I Won't Last A Day Without You", "Lady Be Good", "Blues In The Night", "When I Found You", and "Here's That Rainy Day". CD

Monster funk from Hammond hero Reuben Wilson – an album of hard-burning, bad-walking tunes that are a fair bit different than most of his other work! Although Wilson recorded some pretty traditional organ jazz for the Blue Note and Groove Merchant labels, this album has him working with his "Cost Of Living" group – a combo who only recorded this one album, and which includes Richard Tee on keyboards, Bad Bascomb on bass, Bernard Purdie on drums, and both Houston Person and Pee Wee Ellis on tenor sax! Most cuts have some sort of vocals – sung by either Sammy Turner or Kenny Williams, both of whom really fit the badass spirit of the record, and bring in a nice range of deeper themes from the 70s. There's almost a blacksploitation funk feel to the record at times, although the set's also got more of a soul album focus too – a rare move for Reuben, but one that's made the album a favorite for years! Tracks include the rare groove classics "Got To Get Your Own" and "Tight Money" – plus "Together", "Stoned Out Of My Mind", "What The People Gon Say", "Back Rub", and "In The Booth In The Back In The Corner In The Dark". CD

Massive soul from the start of the 70s – some of the heaviest cuts ever put together by the Holland Dozier Holland team – all issued on their own family of labels after the trio split with Motown! The work here is way deeper than their Motown sides – maybe more in the territory of Norman Whitfield, Westbound Records, and some of the other great work coming out in that second wave of soul from Detroit – more progressive and more righteous overall, often with more emphasis on the bottom groove too! 4LP set features 55 tracks and a big set of notes – with rare cuts and classics from their labels Hot Wax, Music Merchant, and Invictus – in a lineup that includes Freda Payne, Melvin Davis, Danny Woods, 100 Proof, Flaming Ember, Lucifer, 8th Day, Glass House, Lamont Dozier, Laura Lee, Just Brothers, Honey Cone, Brian Holland, Jones Girls, New York Port Authority, Ruth Copeland, Silent Majority, Chairmen Of The Board, and others! LP, Vinyl record album

The rare 2LP version of Stan Getz At The Shrine – a classic west coast recording by Stan – recorded at the Shrine Theater in LA, with a group that includes Bob Brookmeyer on trombone and John Williams on piano! The groove is more similar to Stan's eastern sides of the time, given his bandmates here – but the sound is still quite wonderful, and almost a relaxed Verve answer to the sound of some of the Pacific Jazz dates of the period. Rhythm is by Bill Anthony on bass and either Frank Isola or Art Madigan on drums – and titles include "Flamingo", "Lover Man", "Pernod", "Tasty Pudding", "Polkadots & Moonbeams", "Open Country", "We'll Be Together Again", and "Feather Merchant". LP, Vinyl record album

A compilation of tracks from his early 70s Groove Merchant albums, including "Let's Stay Together", "Every Day I Have The blues", "Jumping The Blues", "That Healin' Feelin", "Yardbird Suite", "There Will Never Be Another You", and "It's You I Adore". LP, Vinyl record album

Sweet soulful lines from guitarist Jimmy Ponder – working here in a warm set of bigger backings that almost give the record the same feel as classic late 60s outings from Wes Montgomery, or some of the CTI work by George Benson! Backings are put together by Brad Baker – in that same great mix of jazz and soul he used with his B Baker Chocolate Company material – and although there's a bit of chorus vocals on the album (sung by a group that includes Gwen Guthrie and Jocelyn Brown), the main focus is on the soulful, chromatic lines of Ponder's guitar – which have a poise and focus here that really tops some of his earlier work. The groove is pretty super-dope throughout – that great late Groove Merchant approach to funky jazz – and titles include "Love Me Right", "Chasing That Face", "A Trip To The Stars", "A Clue", and "Turn". LP, Vinyl record album

Hammond hero Reuben Wilson's on Broadway – and he hits a massively soulful groove that's light years from the cliched sounds of the great white way! The set's one of the tightest cookers from Wilson's early years on Blue Note – and has a vibe that's a bit different than the rest, thanks to some compelling rhythmic elements that push things past a Lou Donaldson groove, and more into that chunky approach to organ jazz that Wilson would explore later on the Groove Merchant label. Most numbers have this back/forth groove that's really wonderful – almost a rocking energy that has Wilson laying in the pocket one minute, then bursting forth the next with some really tremendous work on the keys. Other group members are great too – and the quartet features tenorist Trevor Lawrence, guitarist Malcolm Riddick, and drummer Tommy Derrick – on tracks that include "Poincinana", "On Broadway", "Ronnie's Bonnie", "Ain't That Peculiar", and "Baby I Love You". LP, Vinyl record album

Way more than the sort of fusion you may know from the mainstream – not the smoothed-out mellow jazz of recent years, or the too-jamming styles of the jazz-rock crossover era – and instead an excellent batch of funky electric numbers from the 70s, most of them rare tidbits from the righteous years of the soul jazz underground! Many of the names here will be familiar from bigger recordings, but the tracks on the set here are an ultra-hip batch of work done for indie labels that include Prestige, Muse, Groove Merchant, and Strata East – all records that really reached out for new territory back in the 70s, and which still stand as some of the best work from that era! The set list is really wonderful – filled with some of our favorite tracks from long-lost albums, all brought together in a tremendous assortment that's far greater than even the sum of its already-excellent parts! Titles include "Padali" by Chuck Flores, "Force Of Nature" by Azar Lawrence, "First Impressions" by Shamek Farrah, "Tomorrow's End" by Larry Bright, "First Come First Serve" by Ramon Morris, "Soul Turnaround" by Walter Bishop, "K High" by Nat Adderley, "Rise Of Atlantis" by Carter Jefferson, "Out On The Coast" by Larry Willis, "Gazelle" by Joe Henderson, and "Like A Thief In The Night" by Mike Longo. CD

Massive soul from the start of the 70s – some of the heaviest cuts ever put together by the Holland Dozier Holland team – all issued on their own family of labels after the trio split with Motown! The work here is way deeper than their Motown sides – maybe more in the territory of Norman Whitfield, Westbound Records, and some of the other great work coming out in that second wave of soul from Detroit – more progressive and more righteous overall, often with more emphasis on the bottom groove too! This huge package is totally great – a 7" square, book-styled package with very detailed notes inside the booklet – all in support of a huge batch of vintage soul tracks – with rare cuts and classics from their labels Hot Wax, Music Merchant, and Invictus – in a lineup that includes Freda Payne, Melvin Davis, Danny Woods, 100 Proof, Flaming Ember, Lucifer, 8th Day, Glass House, Lamont Dozier, Laura Lee, Just Brothers, Honey Cone, Brian Holland, Jones Girls, New York Port Authority, Ruth Copeland, Silent Majority, Chairmen Of The Board, and others! CD

Excellent work from the team of Thad Jones and Mel Lewis – arguably one of their best albums from the late 60s, and a set that's got some really great funky big band numbers! There's a nice bouncing groove to the group that they normally don't have – possibly because Richard Davis is playing some Fender bass on the set, which brings in a nice focus on the bottom end – and the best numbers have a sock-soul feel that's in the best late 60s large group soul jazz mode! Titles include "Tow Away Zone", "Jive Samba", "The Groove Merchant", and "Central Park North". CD

Chris Hazelton cooks it up on the Hammond – playing here in a sweet small combo mode that's mighty nice – and with baritone from Brett Jackson in the group instead of the usual tenor! The deep sound of Jackson's horn is a nice balance with Chris' tight work on the keys, and the chromatic sounds of Jamie Anderson's guitar – as the group swings nicely on tracks that also feature drums from John Kizilarmut and occasional conga from Pat Conway! The whole thing's got a nicely different vibe from standard jazz organ sets – and titles include "The Groove Merchant", "Night Lights", "So Tired", "Amsterdam After Dark", "Easy Talk", and "Watch What Happens". CD

Incredibly hip big band work from trumpeter Herb Pomeroy – proof that the Boston influence in the 50s was a very good force in modern jazz! The group here is large, but the sound is often quite lean – done with an open focus on the strongest soloists in the group – players who include Joe Gordon on trumpet, Jaki Byard and Boots Mussulli on saxes, and Ray Santisi on piano. The style is swinging and modern, but never too academic or Kenton-styled – and the driving solos on the record are quite heartfelt, and never hokey. Great stuff all around, with titles that include "Blue Grass", "Wolafunt's Lament", "Theme For Terry", "Less Talk", "Big Man", "Feather Merchant", "Our Delight", and "Aluminum Baby". LP, Vinyl record album

A great later set from 70s guitar genius O'Donel Levy – slightly different than his earlier work for the Groove Merchant label, but equally great in its own sort of way! Levy's still working here with producer Sonny Lester on the LC label – and the tone is great, with this clear, clean, soulful line that should have made O'Donel one of the giants of his generation – tripping along with these well-crafted solos that are a perfect fit for the laidback rhythms of the tunes! And if you're worried that the later date and different cover style is too much of a shift for Levy, don't – because there's plenty of greatness within – and the record really knocks it out of the park compared to some of his more mainstream contemporaries. Titles include the great "Butta" – plus "Love Will Never Die", "Have You Heard", "Dancing Girl", and "Time Has Changed". CD

One of the most hard-hitting Jimmy McGriff albums of the 70s – a raw live date recorded in Newark – and a set that's a perfect bridge between the sharp soul of his Sue Records sessions and his later funk to come! The whole thing's got a gritty vibe the really recalls the sound of a Hammond combo in a small club back in the day – a sense of recording that's different than the usual Blue Note record, and we mean that in a good way! Future Groove Merchants Fats Theus and O'Donel Levy are both on the record – the former on tenor, the latter on guitar – and Jimmy gets plenty of room to really open up and soar on the Hammond. The group also features the lesser-known Ronald White on trumpet and Joseph Morris on alto – and titles include "In A Mellow Tone", "Groove Alley" and "Man From Bad" – and a nice cover of "Ode to Billie Joe"! LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful sounds from a very unique label – one started in Paris by a Malian merchant in the 80s, in order to both present sounds from his homeland, and all of the wonderful new variations that were taking place on the cross-cultural scene in France! The body of work is partly a compelling document of culture in diaspora, but more importantly presents a nice range of grooves with a vibe that's very different than mainstream music from the time – especially some of the too-commercialized records that were shifting big numbers on the world music scene. Most of these tracks have a very down to earth presentation – professional, but never overdone – mixing older styles with electric instrumentation and just a touch of studio sweetening, but hardly much at all. Titles include "Duna" by Halima Kissima Toure, "Ayebo" by Hadja Soumano, "Bolinaame" by Diaby Doua, "Tenedo" by Ami Traore, "Alla Da Fo Na" by Halima Kissima Toure, "Soso" by Mah Kouyate, "Nogome" by Lassana Hawa Cissokho, and "Kori" by Mamadou Tangoudia. Most tracks originally issued on cassette or digital – and appear here on vinyl for the first time ever! LP, Vinyl record album

Jazz organ explodes to the next level – on this brilliant and rare session by Larry Young from 1969! The record was Young's last recording for Blue Note, and was never issued at the time – only making a brief appearance in a short series at the end of the 70s – and its obscurity makes it all the more important, as it's the kind of record that would have transformed jazz tremendously if released at the time. On the set, Young delivers on all his 60s experimentation with modal grooves and Coltrane-styled playing – working with a quartet that includes Lee Morgan on trumpet, Herbert Morgan on tenor, and Eddie Gladden on drums – soaring to the skies on long tunes that push the Hammond farther than any organist had ever imagined! And while modern, and freer than before, Young is also playing here without some of the over-indulgent styles of his later jazz-rock work – still sticking to the Blue Note mode, while managing to record in a "new thing" mode long after the label had abandoned the "new thing" sound! Mindblowing – and with titles that include "Visions", "Love Drops", "Trip Merchant" and "Street Scene". CD

Jazz organ explodes to the next level – on this brilliant and rare session by Larry Young from 1969! The record was Young's last recording for Blue Note, and was never issued at the time – only making a brief appearance in a short series at the end of the 70s – and its obscurity makes it all the more important, as it's the kind of record that would have transformed jazz tremendously if released at the time. On the set, Young delivers on all his 60s experimentation with modal grooves and Coltrane-styled playing – working with a quartet that includes Lee Morgan on trumpet, Herbert Morgan on tenor, and Eddie Gladden on drums – soaring to the skies on long tunes that push the Hammond farther than any organist had ever imagined! And while modern, and freer than before, Young is also playing here without some of the over-indulgent styles of his later jazz-rock work – still sticking to the Blue Note mode, while managing to record in a "new thing" mode long after the label had abandoned the "new thing" sound! Mindblowing – and with titles that include "Visions", "Love Drops", "Trip Merchant" and "Street Scene". CD

Jazz organ explodes to the next level – on this brilliant and rare session by Larry Young from 1969! The record was Young's last recording for Blue Note, and was never issued at the time – only making a brief appearance in a short series at the end of the 70s – and its obscurity makes it all the more important, as it's the kind of record that would have transformed jazz tremendously if released at the time. On the set, Young delivers on all his 60s experimentation with modal grooves and Coltrane-styled playing – working with a quartet that includes Lee Morgan on trumpet, Herbert Morgan on tenor, and Eddie Gladden on drums – soaring to the skies on long tunes that push the Hammond farther than any organist had ever imagined! And while modern, and freer than before, Young is also playing here without some of the over-indulgent styles of his later jazz-rock work – still sticking to the Blue Note mode, while managing to record in a "new thing" mode long after the label had abandoned the "new thing" sound! Mindblowing – and with titles that include "Visions", "Love Drops", "Trip Merchant" and "Street Scene". CD

A killer batch of funky tracks from the Stax family of labels, all recorded in the early 70s, and Ace's third entry into the catalog, digging even deeper than the first two comps! Some of these numbers are so rare we've never even seen them on original 45s – and the groove is hot hard and funky Southern all the way through. Titles include "Too Many Lovers" by Shack, "Rock Back" by Rufus Thomas, "Broadway Freeze" by Harvey Scales, "LAS" by South Memphis Horns, "Got It Together" by Rudy Robinson & Hungry 5, "Wes" by Soul Merchants, "Grab A Handful" by Art Jerry Miller, and "Do The Sweetback" by March Wind. 21 tracks in all, and very solid. CD

Jazz organ explodes to the next level – on this brilliant and rare session by Larry Young from 1969! The record was Young's last recording for Blue Note, and was never issued at the time – only making a brief appearance in a short series at the end of the 70s – and its obscurity makes it all the more important, as it's the kind of record that would have transformed jazz tremendously if released at the time. On the set, Young delivers on all his 60s experimentation with modal grooves and Coltrane-styled playing – working with a quartet that includes Lee Morgan on trumpet, Herbert Morgan on tenor, and Eddie Gladden on drums – soaring to the skies on long tunes that push the Hammond farther than any organist had ever imagined! And while modern, and freer than before, Young is also playing here without some of the over-indulgent styles of his later jazz-rock work – still sticking to the Blue Note mode, while managing to record in a "new thing" mode long after the label had abandoned the "new thing" sound! Mindblowing – and with titles that include "Visions", "Love Drops", "Trip Merchant" and "Street Scene". CD