Music from Aladdins, Supremes, Turks, Enchantones, Sunny Boys, Five Blue Notes, Fortuneers, Roxy & Daychords, Sunny Fulton & Mixmasters, Magnets, and more - 26 tracks in all. CD

Includes tracks by The Heartbreakers, The Nutmegs, The Belltones, The Quails, The Dials, The Nitecaps, The Accents, The Blue Jays, and The Juveniles. CD

Fantastic harmony soul – 26 tracks from The Jivers, Denny & The LPs, Superiors, Catalinas, Viscounts, Ike Perry & Lyrics, Fabulous Pearl Devines, Gaynotes, Stereos, Bay Bops, Pretenders, and many more! CD

Includes tracks by The Gems, The Lyrics, The Termites, The Lovers, The Jokers, The Antwinnetts, The Floridians, The Baby Dolls, and The Mar-Vels. CD

A stellar set of rare vocal group soul! This is one of our favorite-ever compilations of sweet soul harmony tunes – and it's filled with wonderful rare singles from the late 60s and early 70s, tight little gems from that period where the harmony soul format was getting even more sophisticated than before, but had not yet hit the overproduced sound of the mid 70s chart years. Titles include "When I'm With You" by The Four Thoughts, "I'll Make A Vow" by The Crescents, "Just A Few Steps Up The Aisle" by Jato Von Dell, "You're My Desire" by The Four Mints, "You're All I Live For" by The Four Vibes, "Sad Girl" by Emperors Soul 69, "It's Not The End" by The Jet Set, "Borrow Til Morning" by The Compliments, "Step Into My World" by Magic Touch, and "Girl Of The Night" by Uptites. 23 tracks in all, and although the sources seem a bit dodgy, the sound's still better than our beat up 45s, and the track listing is a collector's dream! CD

Magnificent stuff – an a treasure trove of lost harmony soul! This is the kind of compilation that really gets us going – 24 super-mellow soul tracks from the late 60s and early 70s, all of them done by male harmony groups with a stellar vocal approach. Some of the groups are ones you'll know, singing in a style that you may not recognize from their earlier years – and others are obscure ensembles, the kind we treasure even more on a set like this! Vocals are wonderful throughout – smooth, yet deeply soulful – and often with the kind of sad and honest quality that we look for in harmony soul. Titles include "What Did I Do Wrong" by The Mayberry Movement, "I've Been Trying" by Reggie Saddler Revue, "Friends Or Lovers" by Act One, "Hearts Were Made To Love" by The Pretenders, "Please Don't Leave" by Tuxedo, "Baby It's You" by The Masqueraders, "You Send Me" by Ponderosa Twins Plus One, "I Am So Glad I Took My Time" by the Floaters, "Let Your Heart Be The Judge" by Gods Gift To Women, "What Am I Guilty Of" by The New Cymbals, and "Maybe So Maybe No" by The New Holidays. CD

Music from the Del Jays, the Chaperals, the Roomates, the Del Prince, the Chotalls, Pep Torres, the Fairytales, the Checkmates, the Quotations, and more. CD

Music from New Creation, the Chantlers, the Chants, the Hollidays, the Premieres, Little Jimmy Gandy, Joe Fisher, the Exceptionals, the Sonnets, and more. CD

Live session in Europe circa 1963 originally released on the Reprise label in 1967, with Cootie Williams and Ray Nance, plus Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney, Paul Gonsalves, Lawrence Brown, Jimmy Hamilton and Russel Procope, Ernie Shepard, Sam Woodyard, and Milt Grayson. LP, Vinyl record album

Music from The Vibraharps, The Teen-Tones, The Emerals, Monograms, The Hy-Tones, Little Sammy, The Elements, The Masters, Viscaynes, The Preludes, and more - 21 tracks in all. CD

Features tracks by Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor, Kenny Loggins, Teddy Pendergrass, Dr John, Janis Ian, and more! LP, Vinyl record album

25 songs from The Nephews, Bette Renee, The Turks, The Positive Gospel Singers, Thelma Harper, 21st Creation, The Fantastics, Deloris Clark, Vonciel Myers, Soul Fay, MVP, and more. CD

Music from The James Quintet, Eddie Gorman & Group, The Bachelors, Madeline Green & The Magichords, The Drifters, The Beavers, Maggie Hathaway And Her Bluesmen, The James Quintet, The Colemans, The Cats And The Fiddle, Bill Johnson & His Musical Notes, The Five Breezes, The Norfolk Jazz Quartet, and more. CD

A beautiful bit of late 60s pop – featuring a harmony group who can really sing – a group who really hit big with the famous cover tune of the set, but who really sound wonderful throughout! The album was masterminded by the team of Paul Vance and Lee Pockriss – who wrote most of the tunes, and also arranged and produced – and the whole thing's got a no-filler feel that's really great, with loads of original tunes that really pull out the best of the group's great vocal sound. There's a definite Sunshine Pop quality to the record, but the vocals also hearken back to an even better-crafted era of pop – and the whole thing kicks off with the hit single "Tracy", then rolls into gems like "Where Did You Go", "All The Young Women", "When Julie Comes Around", "Lay A Little Love On Me", and "Early In The Morning". CD also features 6 bonus tracks that include "Run Sally Run", "Wake Up Judy", "The Kiss", "Thank You Pretty Baby", and "Robin's World". CD

A quartet of Culture albums – Two Seven Clash, Baldhead Bridge, More Culture and As Hard The Rest – in 4CD set with each in an LP style sleeve! Two Seven Clash is the mighty debut album from African disciples Culture pairing up with the Mighty Two, Joe Gibbs and Errol Thompson is one of the landmark sets of roots reggae, a defining moment of the genre dropped during the year when two sevens clashed. On Baldhead Bridge, Culture deliver a nice set of harmony roots, another successful collaboration between them and Joe Gibbs, with Errol Thompson on the mix and the Professionals band holding down the rhythms. Sweet rockers vibes from the twilight of the roots era. More Culture is a later effort from the harmony trio, with some solid production courtesy of Gibbs. As Hard The Rest features tracks by Culture plus The Mighty Two and Joe Gibbs & The Professionals. CD

A wonderful soul album on the Black Fire label – a hip 70s imprint best known for spiritual jazz – stepping out here on a record that has a lot more vocals than their other releases, but which makes for a mighty nice fit! Wayne Davis is wonderful here – singing with the warmth of a Leroy Hutson at times, and some of the more righteous currents of DJ Rogers at others – often with harmony backings that really elevate the tunes, and a jazzy current in some of the instrumentation that ties things strongly back to the other artists on the Black Fire label! One of those groups, Experience Unlimited, lend their horn section for the record – and Davis himself shows off his deeper musical skills by also handling the piano and keyboards on the record. The whole thing is great – and titles include "Morning", "Things See Just Right Now", "Strive On and Be Strong", "The Garden", "Look at the People", and Al Johnson's "Dawn of a New Day". LP, Vinyl record album

A nice dose of work from one of the greatest harmony soul groups of all time – the mighty Delfonics, a trio who took high-end vocals to a whole new level! The package does a good job of mixing hits up with a few lesser-known gems from the group – showing their full vocal potential, and wonderful approach to the music – stellar harmony soul that really redefined the genre at the time, and which remains some of the best male group work you could ever hope to find! 20 tracks in all – including "Hey Love", "Delfonics Theme", "Over & Over", "Funny Feeling", "Loving Him", "Somebody Loves You", "Break Your Promise", "La La Means I Love You", "I'm Sorry", "Walk Right Up To The Sun", "Think It Over", "I Told You So", and "Lying To Myself". CD

Amazing work by The Delfonics – their first 2 albums, back to back on a single CD! La La Means I Love You is a landmark album in harmony soul – one of those records that pushed the genre to a whole new level! The Delfonics emerge fully formed here as one of the most compelling groups of their time – a tremendous trio with a really unique approach to soul music – one that's heartfelt and heartbreaking, but never too sweet to be cloying or poppy – definitely just the right groove to keep things hip while also cracking the charts! The album's their first full collaboration with legendary producer Thom Bell – and it's got a sound that's summed up perfectly in the quintessential cut "La La Means I Love You" – and which is followed through beautifully on a batch of tracks that includes "Losing You", "Can You Remember", "You're Gone", "I'm Sorry", and "Break Your Promise". Sound Of Sexy Soul is an equally groundbreaking album of vocal group soul – right from the first note! The record kicks off with the sublime "Ready Or Not, Here I Come" – which starts with fierce stepping strings that are actually funky, then soars into some of the best harmonies the group ever put to record, superbly arranged by the great Thom Bell, who also wrote the track. As the album progresses, the sound expands further to encompass many elements that would become the blueprint for vocal groups over the next few years – like twangy electric sitar, cascading orchestrations, and pinched lead vocals that take a lot more chances than most group singers had been taking for years! There's still a bit of a 60s soul sound to some of the cuts, but the album's a watershed – not only for Thom Bell and the group, but for harmony soul as well! Titles include "Ready Or Not Here I Come", "My New Love", "Loving Him", "With These Hands", "Somebody Loves You", and "Everytime I See My Baby". CD also features the bonus track "You Got Yours & I'll Get Mine". CD

Solo work from Dimas Garza of The Royal Jesters – a really heartbreaking cut that mixes his own lead vocal with some great harmony support – all in a style that's like some sweet soul gem from the east coast scene of the time! 7-inch, Vinyl record

One of the rarest soul records on Brunswick! This one was cut during the mid 70s – when the label was really having some rough times financially, but also was cutting some of its most groundbreaking soul work. The Directions are a tight harmony quintet – equipped, it appears, with their own band (The Directions Band) who give the group a nice rough soul sound. The vocal cuts on the record have sort of a Philly harmony style – with many uptempo numbers that are sort of a rougher version of work by Blue Magic or The Spinners. The instrumental tracks are smooth funk – with lots of tight keyboard work over heavy riffing and vamping, mostly in an uptempo vein. Titles include "Too Many Secrets", "Soup Line", "I Want To Be Your Special Man", "If You Ever", "We Need Love", and "I Love You So". CD

Obscure work from Dr John – probably recorded in the years before he was working on Atco, as the music is a mix of straighter 60s soul with some of John's later psychedelic New Orleans grooves. John's voice is a bit more restrained on some of the soul cuts – coming across almost a bit like Mose Allison in a ballad harmony style. A few tracks are done in different versions – like "Trader John", "Zu Zu Man", and "Xmas In New Orleans" – and other titles include "Did She Mention My Name", "Della", and "The Grass Looks Greener". LP, Vinyl record album

A killer collection of work by The Dramatics – featuring their greatest tracks from the early Stax years – seminal work that helped redefine the group soul sound of the 70s! There's a great blend of southern and east coast harmony modes here – and the package is filled with the group's best moments from their Stax/Volt albums – mostly from the first two releases. Titles include "Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get", "Get Up & Get Down", "Hey You! Get Off My Mountain", "In The Rain", and "The Devil Is Dope". Who could ask for more? LP, Vinyl record album

A killer bit of soul from The Dreamlovers – one of the rawest soul records on Columbia at the time! The group have a rough and ready harmony style that's more in keeping with some of the indie labels of the time – and the set's a nice batch of hard-edge dancefloor tracks with chunky midtempo grooves lots of nice jerky beats. Tracks include the group's hit "The Bird", plus versions of "The Slide", "Pony Time", "Limbo Rock", "Mashed Potato Time", "Let's Turkey Trot", "Black Bottom", and "South Street". LP, Vinyl record album

A great lost bit of mid 70s Motown – a pair of should-be classic albums by Dynamic Superiors – in a single set! Dynamic Superiors were a great harmony group with an east coast sound – quite different from the usual Motown combo in that their vocals were often allowed very free range, with less of the tightness of the usual Motown group soul album. Ashford & Simpson produced the record – with arrangements by Leon Pendarvis, Richard Tee, and Arthur Jenkins – and the whole thing's a sweet soul treasure that's got some excellent mellow soul cuts! Titles from the self-titled set include "One Nighter", "Don't Send Nobody Else", "Shoe Shoe Shine", "Star of My Life", and "Leave It Alone". Pure Pleasure is another sweet set – arranged with a bit more of a high stepping groove than some of the other Motown work of the time. Backings are handled by a range of talents that includes Paul Riser, William Eaton, Al Gorgoni, and Horace Ott – but the real charm is the way the group's innocent harmony style puts over the lyrics, all of which are very strong tunes written by the team of Ashford & Simpson. Titles include "Face The Music", "Hit & Run Lovers", "Deception", "Pleasure", "Nobody's Gonna Change Me", "Feeling Mellow", "Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing", and "Don't Give Up On Me Baby". CD

A really great group who never fully got their due – one who come together with a wonderful criss-crossing of voices – part old school harmony, partly some of the new crackle that was hitting the world of R&B at the time! The record's got a wonderfully well-crafted vibe – hook-heavy, and soulful – with leads soaring out from the group at just the right point, then slipping back to allow the whole quartet to really deliver a vocal punch! Titles include the killer title cut "Good Life" – plus "Groove Of Love", "Strong Man", "Butterflies", "Thinkin", "Sista Sista", "All Of Me", "Come Home To My Love", and "All Because Of You". CD

The Ebonys sing about life, and a host of other groovy topics too – in this lost soul treasure from the 70s! The set is one of only two albums ever cut by The Ebonys – a consistently great group from the 70s, as is testified by their constant popularity in our racks! The quartet has a 3 man/1 woman harmony sound that's very hip – often applied to righteous themes worked out in a heavy soul mode, and which sounds just as great on the ballads as it does dancefloor numbers. This second album's got an even sharper edge than their debut – thanks to production and arrangements from Tony Camillo – who gives the album some great undercurrents of funk, and a slightly righteous style that reminds us of some of Norman Whitfield's best studio work of the time. Vocals are wonderful – with really great harmonies that balance out beautifully – in ways that are much more unified than other girl/guy soul groups. Titles include "Neighborhood Gossip", "Mr Me, Mrs You", "One Thing On My Mind", "Sing About Life", and "A Love of Your Own". CD

A great collection of the first wave of work from late 70s Detroit harmony group Enchantment – the best of their recordings for United Artists, and a set that's put together with a real focus on the group's mellower tracks! Like The Dramatics at the time, Enchantment had a newly sophisticated approach to vocal group harmonies – able to work with smoother, tighter arrangements, but not in a way that took away the focus on the sublime vocal work that made the group so great in the first place. The tracks here are a wonderful blend of the personal and professional – and even when a bit of a groove sneaks into a few of the tunes, there's still a warmly crackling vocal approach that's just as great as indie soul work from a few years back. Titles include "Gloria", "Silly Love Song", "Trying To Get Over", "Where Do We Go From Here/Journey", "Thank You Girl For Loving Me", "If You're Ready Here It Comes", "It's You That I Need", "Sunshine", "Dance To The Music", and "Come On & Ride". CD

One of the great ones from the Warner years of The Everly Brothers – a set that has them taking off with a new sense of energy, yet still in a way that makes perfect use of their sublime harmony vocals! Titles include a mix of rockers and standards done in the Everly way – a very nice mix of tunes! CD

One of the great ones from the Warner years of The Everly Brothers – a set that has them taking off with a new sense of energy, yet still in a way that makes perfect use of their sublime harmony vocals! Titles include a mix of rockers and standards done in the Everly way – a very nice mix of tunes! The back cover has some "party hints" too. LP, Vinyl record album

A lost harmony soul treasure – by an obscure family group from the Newark scene! The Family Circle have a fantastic style that mixes together sweet and deep soul styles into a darkly tinged approach that we'd rank with the best harmony soul of the early 70s – similar to work from bigger New Jersey groups, like The Moments or Whatnauts – but with an interesting twist too, given the mix of male and female vocals.. Nearly every track on the album is an original tune – conducted with baroque arrangements by George Andrews, and delivered with a near-perfect approach that makes this album a real treasure all the way through – not a soul record that's great because it's rare, but just a great album all the way through. Titles include "Change", "If You Really Want To Make It", "Loving You Makes The World Go Round", "I Hope You Really Love Me", "Mariya", and "La La So Lucky". CD

A pair of albums from this overlooked Detroit soul group – back to back on a single CD! On Got To Have Your Love, Fantastic Four are a hell of a harmony group – and one who still hold strong through this second chapter of their career – by avoiding any of the cheaper cliches of some of the groups of the disco generation! Instead, the album focuses on their vocals first, and any sort of grooves second – which makes for some wonderful mellower cuts that really follow the spirit of some of the hippest 70s group soul from Chicago or the east coast – followed by a few upbeat tracks that get handling by Tom Moulton at Sigma Sound in Philly! The balance is great – almost more like some of the best group sides from a few years before, especially Blue Magic – and the ballads really take center stage, and blow us away with the group's deeper currents of soul. Titles include "Mixed Up Moods & Attitudes", "There's Fire Down Below", "I Got To Have Your Love", "She'll Be Right For Me", "Cash Money", and "Disco Pool Blues". On BYOF, the Fantastic Four definitely bring their own funk – thanks to tight help from arranger Dennis Coffey, who also produced the set with a heavy groove that's like his own work of the time! The basslines are stronger than before for the FF – but their harmonies are very firmly intact – and, if anything, the blend of funk and great vocals really makes the album a charmer right from the get-go – especially as they aim more for midtempo steppers than too-upbeat disco tunes that might have them losing some of their charm. The overall vibe is maybe more 1974 than 1978 – and titles include "I Just Want To Love Ya Baby", "BYOF", "Cold & Windy Night", "Sexy Lady", "Shout", "Super Lover", and "Realize". CD

A brilliant bit of offbeat bossa from brothers Hugo and Osvaldo Fattoruso – the Uruguayan pair who later recorded in the US as fusion combo Opa, but who are heard here in a rare 1968 outing for Odeon in their homeland! The style here is far from the usual Brazilian bossa set of the 60s – as the brothers have clearly absorbed some trippier influences, and are using them gently, but effectively in the way they put together the electric guitar and percussion in the set – and in the way they often bring their voices together, in a mode that resonates a bit with the harmony vocal sound of Sunshine Pop years! This work even predates the pre-Opa compilation on Vampi Soul – and the CD packages the original 12 track album with 8 more bonus tracks, some of which are by the Fattoruso's beat group Los Shakers! Titles include "Ojos Oscuros", "Este Muchacho Esta Enamorado De Ti", "Hechizo", "Nunca Nunca", "El Pino Y La Rosa", "Amaneciendo", "Poema De Las Cinco Rosas", "Chicalanga", "Un Humore Y Una Mujer", "Siempre Tu", "Candombe", and "Estoy Esperando". LP, Vinyl record album

An insane package of work from this wonderful British group – a studio pop creation who stormed the charts with one huge hit, but also recorded some really great overlooked material! The style of First Class is a brilliant extension of the sound of American harmony pop of the 60s – and one that blends it together with a good deal of 70s soft rock as well – but always with a super-catchy style that's completely wonderful! The group is the brainchild of Brit studio legend John Carter – and they're kind of a recast take on the sound of the Beach Boys in later years – filtered through a nicely compressed UK mid 70s pop approach that brings in some sweeter, softer modes, but which also has some of that "bump" of glam-era pop as well. The group's best known for their massive 70s hit "Beach Baby" – but they've got a great sound that's more than worth rediscovering all these years later – which you will definitely do when digging through this massive set. The 3CD package features 82 tracks in all the group's two full albums and singles, plus unreleased tracks – and, even cooler, a whole host of rare jingles they recorded – for Right Guard deodorant, Eveready batteries, Singer sewing machines, and many other products. The jingles alone are worth the price of admission – and the whole thing is super groovy, all the way through! CD

A rare set from The Flamingos – a set that has the group moving into a sweet 70s harmony soul mode, with a sly undercurrent of funk! Arrangements by Al Fontaine – and cuts include "Virgo Virgin Lady", "Let IT Be Me", "At Night", and "Why Can't Suzie Go To School With Lucy" – a great song on 70s busing! LP, Vinyl record album

Loads of early classics – delivered with a sublime harmony sound! Titles include "Day By Day", "Poinciana", "Seems Like Old Times", "Lonely Night In Paris", "Graduation Day", and "Love Turns Winter Into Spring". LP, Vinyl record album

A classic 60s album by the Four Tops – really one of their better efforts of the period – a record that finds the group working some soulful magic on a couple of their best known tunes, as well as adding a dose of deeper emotion to some hit songs of the time! Like other Motown success stories from that time, this set features some pop tunes and standard chart material, done by the group in their inimitable harmony style – with a few hits like "Reach Out, I'll Be There" and "7 Rooms Of Gloom" – plus wonderful interpretations of songs like "Walk Away Renee", "Last Train To Clarksville", and "I'm A Believer". Also includes "What Else Is There To Do", "Bernadette", and "Standing In The Shadows Of Love". LP, Vinyl record album

The last album to some from the brilliant team of Peter Howell and John Ferdinando – the partners behind the Ithaca and Agincourt albums – coming across here with one of their greatest sets ever! The music here is a bit more focused and polished than before – taking the best folk and psychedelic elements, and folding them together in a sweet sound that's almost Sunshine Pop – but which is obviously a few years later than the rest of the genre! The vocals often have a slight harmony approach, and there's a strong rhythmic undercurrent to many numbers – not really funky, but a lot more grooving than you might expect – again, a quality that we really appreciate in Sunshine Pop! Titles include "Memories", "Lonely Road", "You Need Friends", "Tale Of Your Life", "In The Morning", "Come Inside", "Take A Walk", and "Once In A Winter Town". CD

A harmony group with a great ear for beats – at a level that really makes Front Page one of those acts who were really transforming the sound of older soul styles in the early 90s! Two decades before, these guys would be stepping along in mellow territory of New Jersey soul – but here, they're using the best elements of the new jack generation alongside their vocals – percolating rhythms that at first might seem out of place for sweet soul, but which kick things along nicely, and often with a lot more warmth than this sort of material would have sounded a few years before! Titles include a great remake of "You Make Me Feel Brand New" – plus "Good Stuff", "Somethin About Your Lovin", "On My Way Back", "Something U Can Appreciate", and "Come To Poppa". CD

An excellent – and obscure – session of female vocals from the 50s! Singer Honi Gordon was part of a harmony group, The Gordons, who sung with Charles Mingus briefly in the 50s – and that modernist tradition is kept strongly in this, her one solo LP. The record's got some extremely strong accompaniment, in a Mingus-esque vein, by Jaki Byard and Ken McIntyre – and although Honi's style is sultry, it's also got a dark edge that really makes the album stand out from other vocal sessions of the time. Tracks include "Strollin'", "My Kokomo", "Cupid", and "Walkin' (Out the Door)". CD

Incredible pop psych sounds from Grapefruit – a group who might be best known for their early inclusion in the Beatles' Apple Corps – but who can easily stand on their own with the strength of material like this! The production is superb, and the overall vision in the music is sublime – trippy touches, but never too many – and vocals that echo out with both a sense of harmony in the group, and some beautiful larger touches in the studio! The whole thing's got a subtle power that we'd rank right up there with The Zombies, just as they were starting to get great – and the collection finally gets these guys out from the shadows of The Beatles, to show the world how great they were on their own. CD features a number of unissued tracks, and titles taken from tapes and brilliantly remastered – and the set features 20 titles that include "Dead Boot", "Dear Delilah", "Breaking Up A Dream", "Elevator", "Another Game", "Yes", "Ain't It Good", "Sweet Little Miss No Name", "Theme For A Lonely Queen", "Round & Round", "One More Try", "Yesterday's Sunshine", and "Do What You Want To". CD

A gem of a record from trumpeter Matthew Halsall – one of our favorite jazz musicians of the past 20 years, and an artist who just seems to be growing and growing with each new release! This set picks up on the organic, meditative quality of some of Halsall's recent records – but it also has a bit more bite, and is maybe almost a return to the roots of his earliest records on the Gondwana label – those classics that first made us fall in love with his music over a decade ago, and which made Matthew a real front-runner of the current global spiritual jazz underground! The set's got this very rich presentation – as the leader's work on trumpet is mixed with harp from Maddie Herbert, flute and tenor from Matt Cliffe, piano and kalimba from Livin Gheorghe, and great use of percussion, bass, and drums – all on long tracks that build with the best sort of post-Coltrane energy – titles that include "Joyful Spirits Of The Universe", "Mindfulness Meditations", "Tropical Landscapes", "Harmony With Nature", and "The Energy Of Life". CD

A dream – and the fab first LP by Harpers Bizarre! The group were one of the strangest pop ensembles operating in the seminal LA scene of the mid 60s – ostensibly a sweet harmony vocal group, but with a strangely childish approach that also had an ear open for the mind-blowing production styles of the Brian Wilson era. Van Dyke Parks was a big supporter of the group – and they perform a sublime version of his tune "Come To The Sunshine" as the leadoff track on the album – and even though Van Dyke didn't handle the arrangements of the record, the style of the music is very similar to his own, with guitar, bass, and drums coming into play with strings, woodwinds, and baroque orchestral touches. The record is as dark as it is sublime – one of those pop gems that hit big, but which has a brooding depth bubbling underneath the sugary coating – ala Pet Sounds. Tracks include "Happy Talk", "The Debutantes Ball", "I Can Hear The Darkness", "Raspberry Rug", and their huge hit version of "59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin Groovy)". LP, Vinyl record album

The classic first LP by this stellar Chicago harmony group – and a monster! Heaven & Earth had a wonderful falsetto harmony sound that reminds us a lot of east coast winners like Blue Magic or The Stylistics – and like some of the best east coast groups, this group's vocals work equally well on slow ballads or faster uptempo numbers, both of which are handled extremely well on the record by producer Clarence Johnson. The bulk of the arrangements on the record were done by Tom Tom 84 – one of Chicago's true soul geniuses, and in perfect form on this record. The whole thing's amazingly well put together for an indie soul group album – and is a sure indication of the group's later fame on Mercury. Titles include "Nature's Miracle", "The Message", "I'll Always Love You", "Let Me Back In", and "I Can't Seem To Forget You". CD

Seminal sounds from The Heptones – and a record that really helped the older trio style of Jamaican music find a new home in the 70s roots reggae years! The vocals here are every bit as much in harmony heaven as reggae trios from a few years before – but there's also a tighter, more righteous quality to the music that really makes the record a classic – with stunning lead vocals from Leroy Sibbles, fused tightly with the voices of Earl Morgan and Barry Llewellyn, in this style that's smoothly soulful, but still has a nicely edgey undercurrent too. The record was cut at Harry J's, with production that really steps past earlier Heptones work – and titles include "Country Boy", "Book Of Rules", "Deceivers", "In The Groove", "Love Won't Come Easy", "Fatty Fatty", and "Mama Say". LP, Vinyl record album

The only album ever issued by this very hip Boston band of the late 60s – a group who've certainly got the psychedelic feel you'd guess from their image on the cover, but one who also wrap up all sorts of other great strands going on in their scene as well! There's some harmony vocals on a few tracks, and really striking leads from female singer Connie Devanney on the best tracks – mixed with fuzz guitar in a way that comes across with a nicely sinister vibe – different than west coast psych of the time, and maybe with this feeling of trapped urgency that really gives the whole album a nice sort of sizzle! Titles include "Hung Up Chick", "Sleep", "Full Cycle", "People Of The Night", "Dark World", "LAPD", and "Walkin & Singin" – plus a nice take on "High Flying Bird". LP, Vinyl record album