Features the dreamy pop song "Look For A Star", sung by Garry Mills – plus some nicely dark music conducted by Muir Mathieson! LP, Vinyl record album

A cool west coast organ cooker – with Rivera on organ, plus Anthony Ortega on alto and flute, Lorenzo Holden on tenor, Herb Ellis on guitar, and Terri Rivera on a bit of vocals. LP, Vinyl record album

A well-titled set from the second chapter in the career of Johnny Rivers – a record that has him stepping into deeper, more sophisticated territory than before – with some slightly larger arrangements put together by the great Marty Paich! There's still plenty of those groovy rhythms that helped put Rivers at the top of the charts, but Johnny's also opening up his range of material, and getting a bit more introspective at times too – on titles that include "Cast Your Fate To The Wind", "Days Of Wine & Roses", "If I Were A Carpenter", "Getting Ready For Tomorrow", "Poor Side Of The Town", and a great cover of "California Dreamin". LP, Vinyl record album

... CD

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

A great batch of late 60s soft rock from the Sunshine Company – a group cut from the same cloth as the Millenium, Fifth Dimension and others of the ilk, with perhaps a little bit darker of an edge. Includes "Up, Up And Away", "I Need You", "Just Beyond Your Smile", "Rain", "Happy", "I Just Want To Be Your Friend", and more! LP, Vinyl record album

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

A rare one from Charlie Ventura – recorded for Imperial, with a bit more grit in the grooves than usual! LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Great material from the postwar Imperial Records catalog – rare singles by Boozoo Chavis, Clifton Chenier, Boogie Bill Webb, Snooks Eaglin, Papa Lightfoot, JD Edwards, and Slim Harpo! LP, Vinyl record album

A great entry in this wonderful early 70s series from Imperial – which brought to light some excellent rare material from the 78rpm years! Includes work by Country Jim, Little Son Jackson, Lowell Fulsom, Boogie Bill Webb, and Papa Lightfoot. LP, Vinyl record album

One of Sonny Criss' classic albums for Imperial – a brilliant batch of LA bop from the 50s, with an impeccable sound throughout! Criss had a tone like nobody else on the alto – and here, he's at the height of his early powers – neither blowing too hard, nor going for boppish tricks – and instead settling into an amazing groove with a sense of power, confidence, and extreme "rightness" as to his choice of notes! The album's right on the money throughout – exactly the kind of set that lives up to our lifetime devotion to Sonny's music – and the whole thing's great, with tracks that include "West Coast Blues", "Criss Cross", "Ham's Blues", and "Blue Friday". LP, Vinyl record album

The only full album ever cut by The Majors – a hell of a vocal group from the Philly scene of the early 60s, and one with a fantastic approach that's a bit unlike anyone else we can think of! The group sports soaring lead vocals from singer Ricky Cordo – a singer with a range that's really amazing, and used in these ways that can be really dynamic, even on the mellow cuts – as he's backed by the group's three guys and one gal, who sometimes get a bit more spotlight in the lead – amidst this wonderful palette of instrumental touches, which includes bits of vibes, organ, and other nice touches that really keep things interesting. Titles include "Oh Wee Baby", "Time Will Tell", "She's A Troublemaker", "Don't You Lose Your Cool", "Come One Come On", "What In The World", "A Wonderful Dream", and "Anything You Can Do". LP, Vinyl record album

A really fantastic bit of lost Cali magic from the 60s – the debut of The Moon, a west coast group, but one who've also clearly absorbed plenty of influence from the UK scene as well! Moon are just a quartet, but they work here with a spacious style that often includes added strings and some excellent production from Larry Brown – who trips things out in all the right ways by bringing some post-Sgt Peppers energy to the group's core performance! The group features David Marks, who some folks might know from work in The Beach Boys – and great songwriting and vocals from Matthew Moore, who along with the other two members, has a resume of other hip work on the LA scene. Titles include "She's On My Mind", "Brother Lou's Love Colony", "Got To Be On My Way", "I Should Be Dreaming", "Mothers & Fathers", "Pleasure", and "Walking Around". CD

... CD

The insane debut of the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band – an amazing late 60s Brit ensemble who were almost to music what Monty Python were to TV! This first effort by the group is a mad array of sounds and styles that come together with a great sense of play and joy – a real delight in quick turns, witty phrases, and parodic re-castings of earlier modes – inspired by dada work of the early 20th century, but also handled with a lot more of a post-modern feel overall. Most tracks are short, and many echo earlier music styles, filtered through a slightly psyche filter – and titles include "Death Cab For Cutie", "In San Francisco", "Jollity Farm", "Equestrian Statue", "Cool Brittania", "I'm Bored", "Piggy Bank Love", "Big Shot", "Mickey's Son & Daughter", and "The Sound Of Music". LP, Vinyl record album

Titles include "Shurah", "Rising Sun", "Walking To New Orleans", "Natural Born Lover", "Magic Isles", and "Three Nights A Week". LP, Vinyl record album

Tracks include "The Fatman", "Blueberry Hill", "My Blue Heaven", "I'm Walkin", "Whole Lotta Loving", "When My Dreamboat Comes Home", "Blue Monday", and more – 20 tracks total. CD

Spooky music hosted by the master of suspense himself – a classic album that features Albert Hitchcock introducing dramatic instrumentals arranged and conducted by Jeff Alexander! The format is almost a musical presentation of the same style that you'd find on Hitchcock's famous TV show of the 50s – as the spoken passages are as humorous as they are macabre, penned with a black sense of humor that perfectly fits the music. The tunes themselves are often moody, but have slight dramatic flourishes – and titles include "Suspicion", "The Hour Of Parting", "Lover Come Back To Me", "I'll Never Smile Again", "Music To Be Murdered By", and "I'll Walk Alone". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Hard rockin instrumentals from this Northwest combo who caused the scene to blow up large back in the 60s! Tracks are short and hard – with a darker edge that tunes of the type coming out of CA at the time. Titles include "Tall Cool One", "Frenszy", "Shake Down", "Mashi", "We're Going Surfin", and "Doin The Seaside". LP, Vinyl record album

The classic sound of New Orleans soul never gets old – and the strength of the 20 tracks on this sampler are a good testament to that! The set brings together mostly numbers recorded for the Imperial label during the 50s – chunky little groovers that show off the unique Crescent City groove, with lots of clunky rhythms and piano triplets dancing about. Titles include "New Bon Ton Roula" by Clarence Garlow, "Ya Ya" by Lee Dorsey, "I'm Wise" by Ruth Durand, "Let The Good Times Roll" by Shirley & Lee, "Stack A Lee" by Archibald, "Lawdy Miss Clawdy" by Lloyd Price, "She Put The Hurt On Me" by Prince La La, "Let The Four Winds Blow" by Roy Brown, and "Chicken Shack Boogie" by Amos Milburn. CD

Great early work from one of the hippest bassists of his generation! Paul Chambers cut this obscure little album in LA, featuring a "jazz delegation from the east" that included Philly Joe Jones on drums and John Coltrane on tenor – plus pianist Kenny Drew, who had already been working on the west coast – all in a style that's much more relaxed and stretched-out than most other jazz recorded in LA at the time! The album is one of the earliest small group sessions with Coltrane, and it's a very spare batch of tracks that lead off with Chambers' amazing work on bass – but which also feature some incredible early work from Trane – very raw and loud in the mix, with a lot more bluesiness than you'd expect – and we mean that in a good way! Titles include "Dexterity", "Visitation", "John Paul Jones", and "Eastbound". CD

Heady work from Jackie DeShannon's later years in 60s pop – an album with themes and styles that go way beyond her earlier recordings – as you might guess from the hip Laurel Canyon reference in the title! Jackie's working here in a mode that's much more strongly in a singer-songwriter style than before – with arrangements and backings that are a lot more organic, and less pop-tuned than ever – almost in a Laura Nyro approach on some numbers. As usual, a good portion of the tracks were written by Jackie herself – including "Holly Would", "Come & Stay With Me", "LA", "Too Close", and "Laurel Canyon" – and the album also features a few well chosen tracks by other writers too, like "Bitter Honey" by Paul Williams & Roger Nichols, "I Got My Reason" by Barry White, and "You've Really Got A Hold On Me" by Smokey Robinson. . LP, Vinyl record album

Quite possibly the last great hit from singer Jackie DeShannon – an album built around the righteous spirit of the title track – filled with really wonderful original tunes penned by Jackie and soul singer Jimmy Holiday! The album may well be the best to explore the space between pop and soul that often characterized Jackie's work – and the overall sound is somewhat similar to some of Dusty Springfield's best pop/soul work from the same stretch. 10 of the album's 12 tracks are originals by Holiday and DeShannon – all set to soaring orchestrations by James Langeford, which often have a pronounced influence from the sound of Atlantic Records in the late 60s! Titles include "Put A Little Love In Your Heart", "You Are The Real Thing", "River Of Love", "Movin", "You Can Come To Me", "You Have A Way With Me", and "I Let Go Completely". LP, Vinyl record album

Great work from Fats Domino – a set that's got lots of unusual album tracks! Titles include "How Can I Be Happy", "One Of These Days", "So Glad", "Sailor Boy", "Lazy Woman", "Walking To New Orleans", "What's Wrong", "Little Mama", "Goin Back Home" and "Oh Wee" among others. LP, Vinyl record album

... CD

Killer work from Tony McPhee and this legendary trio – lean, blues-influence, but really pointing the way towards hard rock! LP, Vinyl record album

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Raw New Orleans soul from Overton "Smiley" Lewis – one of the city's big stars in the 50s R&B years, and a singer who arguably set the stage for later deep soul to come! A few years before, and Lewis might have been more of a blues singer – but here, he's working with some strong Nola piano lines and lightly loping rhythms – in a mode that's vaguely in the Fats Domino side of the universe, but a lot more raw and stripped-down too – from the performance to the production! Tracks include Smiley's classic "I Hear You Knocking", plus loads of other nice ones – including "Bumpity Bump", "Bells Are Ringing", "Blue Monday", "Lost Weekend", "Real Gone Lover", and "One Night". LP, Vinyl record album

... CD

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

Featuring Orchestre Rock A Mambo, Le Dynamic Jazz, Orchestre T.P.O.K. Jazz, Orchestre Negro-Band, and L'Orchestre African Fiesta Sukisa. LP, Vinyl record album

A great collection of early material from Dave Bartholomew – a key figure in the early days of New Orleans soul! Dave blows trumpet, arrangements are by Wardell Quezerque, and the group features Bobby James on organ and Smokey Johnson on drums! LP, Vinyl record album

Mel Carter's big 60's pop soul hit "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me", with some arrangements by Nick De Caro, and a good LA 60's studio soul sound. Gene Page and HB Barnum did the arrangements on the other cuts, so you can guess how the groove's going to sound. 7-inch, Vinyl record

Four classic albums from Jackie DeShannon – all in a single set! First up is Me About You – sophisticated Jackie at her best – working with great arrangements from Jack Nitzsche and Nick DeCaro – both cats from the California scene we can really trust for "cut-above" pop work like this – music that goes way past the simple sounds of DeShannon's start – into cool adult territory that really makes the album great. Jackie's vocals are surprisingly soulful in the setting – even more so than before – and the tunes include lots of gems, including versions of Van Dyke Parks' "High Coin", John Sebastian's "Didn't Want To Have To Do It", and Tim Hardin's "Baby Close Its Eyes". Also includes "I Keep Wanting You", "Me About You", and "Nicole". Next is Laurel Canyon – heady work from Jackie DeShannon's later years in 60s pop – an album with themes and styles that go way beyond her earlier recordings – as you might guess from the hip Laurel Canyon reference in the title! Jackie's working here in a mode that's much more strongly in a singer-songwriter style than before – with arrangements and backings that are a lot more organic, and less pop-tuned than ever – almost in a Laura Nyro approach on some numbers. As usual, a good portion of the tracks were written by Jackie herself – including "Holly Would", "Come & Stay With Me", "LA", "Too Close", and "Laurel Canyon" – and the album also features a few well chosen tracks by other writers too, like "Bitter Honey" by Paul Williams & Roger Nichols, "I Got My Reason" by Barry White, and "You've Really Got A Hold On Me" by Smokey Robinson. Put A Little Love In Your Heart is quite possibly the last great hit from singer Jackie DeShannon – an album built around the righteous spirit of the title track – filled with really wonderful original tunes penned by Jackie and soul singer Jimmy Holiday! The album may well be the best to explore the space between pop and soul that often characterized Jackie's work – and the overall sound is somewhat similar to some of Dusty Springfield's best pop/soul work from the same stretch. 10 of the album's 12 tracks are originals by Holiday and DeShannon – all set to soaring orchestrations by James Langeford, which often have a pronounced influence from the sound of Atlantic Records in the late 60s! Titles include "Put A Little Love In Your Heart", "You Are The Real Thing", "River Of Love", "Movin", "You Can Come To Me", "You Have A Way With Me", and "I Let Go Completely". To Be Free is an interesting little record – with kind of a crossover California soul feel overall – recorded with Rene Hall arrangements that echo a few rootsy modes at times, mixed in with fuller orchestrations that step a bit back towards Jackie's earlier years on Imperial – a surprisingly nice blend, with a fresh sound for the 70s. The album features a number of great tracks co-written with Jimmy Holiday – a fellow Imperial talent – and titles include "Mediterranean Sky", "Sooner Or Later", "What Was Your Day Like", "Livin On The Easy Side", "Brighton Hill", and "When Morning Comes Again". CD

The young Jackie DeShannon in a really wonderful setting – partly in the mode of her earlier singles for Imperial Records, partly hitting some hipper, more adult modes – thanks in part to production help from Burt Bacharach! Burt gives Jackie a great early hit with a classic reading of "What The World Needs Now" – and in the spirit of including that tune, the record opens up a bit more to other songwriters than some of DeShannon's other albums – as Jackie's wonderful vocals really do a great job with a nice variety of work, alongside a few of her own tunes too. Titles include "What The World Needs Now", "Don't Let The Sun Catch You Crying", "Take Me Tonight", "Summertime", "Go On Your Way", "After Last Night", "Am I Making It Hard On You", "Hellos & Goodbyes", and "I'm Gonna Be Strong". LP, Vinyl record album

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

Lots of obscure Imperial Records material from this New Orleans legend – titles that include "What A Price", "I'll Always Be In Love With You", "My Bleeding Heart", "When I Was Young", "Once In Awhile", "I Miss You So", "Ain't That Just Like A Woman", and "It Keeps Rainin" – plus his classic "I Hear You Knocking". LP, Vinyl record album

An overlooked gem from the glory days of the west coast surf scene – the standout set from The Fantastic Baggys, a group who are also known for their backup work with Jan & Dean! There's a very Jan & Dean vibe going on here – right down to the backings from Hal Blaine and the Wrecking Crew – but the overall sound's a bit looser, too – a bit less iconic, and almost a bit less perfect – in ways that make for a lot of charm as the album rolls along! The set's almost worth it alone for the track "This Little Woody" – and other titles include "Big Gun Board", "Alone On The Beach", "Surfer Boy's Dream Come True", "When Surfers Rule", and "Wax Up Your Board". LP, Vinyl record album

Mindblowing music from Hapshash & The Coloured Coat – a group with a sound that's every bit as freewheeling as their name! The set's a unique collaboration between DJ/producer Guy Stevens and psych poster designers Michael English and Nigel Weymouth – and has this loose, unfettered feel that's almost more like a "happening" in the studio instead of some road-jamming band cutting its music to vinyl – a really hair-down party with instrumentation on trippy percussion, jangly guitar, and other odd sounds that step in and out of the mix – showing a larger studio sense of manipulation for the whole record. There's an odd groove to the record at parts – almost a chaos theory return of the eternal – and titles include "H-O-P-P Why?", "A Mind Blown Is A Mind Shown", "The New Messiah Coming 1985", "Aoum", and the epic side two jam "Empires Of The Sun". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Breathy brilliance from April Stevens – the sexy west coast singer who made some really wonderful records in the 50s! At some level, April was a bit like Julie London – in that she sang in a laidback, seductive tone that was quite risque at times – but she was also a bit more pop than jazz, and was always up for a catchy arrangement or a slight production gimmick to really help send over a tune! The title track was a hit single, but the whole album's great – and titles include "I'm In Love Again", "Do It Again", "Teach Me Tiger", "That's My Name", "When My Baby Smiles At Me", "I Want A Lip", and "In Other Words". LP, Vinyl record album