Tuned drums, chimes, gongs, and xylophone – all played together in this slow-building, hypnotic way that stands as one of the most perfect records we've ever heard of Javanese gamelan! The music is quite spare, despite the size of the ensemble – as the timing of the players is perfect enough so that all the members of the group seem to work as one – with a sound that might make you think just one or two musicians where making the music, instead of a much larger group. The recording quality is perfect, too – that amazingly clear, faithful representation that was part of this Nonesuch series by David Lewiston – and titles include "Kebo Giro", "Liwung", "Pangkur", "Tijatrik II", and "Senggot". LP, Vinyl record album

... CD

Maybe the most overstuffed collection of work we've ever seen from early New Orleans soul legend Eddie Bo – a set that not only includes his early classics for the Ric label, but also more obscure material for Apollo, Chess, Ace, and Swan – all brought together here with a number of unissued tracks from the time! If you don't know Eddie, you're in for a treat – as the singer first began in a more familiar New Orleans R&B mode, but already had a gritty style that helped him first pave the way towards Crescent City soul, then some even more important funk territory as the 60s moved on! This set focuses on six key years in Bo's early career – clearly a very fruitful time, as the package features 43 tracks in all – titles that include "Baby", "I'm Wise", "Happy Tears", "I'll Be Satisfied", "Walk That Walk", "Oh Oh", "My Dearest Darling", "I Love To Rock & Roll", "So Glad", "I'm So Tired", "Hey There Baby", "I Need Someone", "Tell It Like It Is", "Every Dog Got His Day", "Roamin-titis", "Now Let's Pop Eye", "Hep Hep Hooray", "I Cry On", and lots lots more! CD

A group who are best known for one huge hit in 1957 – but one who also recorded a fair bit of other wonderful material too – not just their early singles for Atlantic Records, but also a lot of material for other companies too – as you'll hear in this collection that brings together singles for King, Jubilee, Triple X, End, and other labels too! Although a girl group, The Bobbettes have lots of nice rough edges that are more R&B and deep soul overall – hardly the sweet pop of groups that would follow them in the 60s, and instead maybe a group expression of some of the modes that Ruth Brown and Lavern Baker were cutting for Atlantic – with maybe some of the energy of the doo wop groups thrown in for good measure. CD features 31 tracks – titles include "Speedy", "Zoomy", "Untrue Love", "I Shot Mr Lee", "Mr Lee", "I Don't Like It Like That (parts 1 & 2)", "Mr Johnny Q", "Looking For A Lover", "Mama Papa", "Over There", "Loneliness", "I Cried", "Um Bow Bow", and "The Dream". CD

A huge collection of work from the great Bobby Charles – a sometimes-overlooked figure in late 50s music, but a key force in developing the sound of Louisiana at the time! Bobby hailed from the cajun part of the state, but also drank heavily from the R&B that was brewing up in New Orleans – and the records within are part of a fantastic genre-crossing legacy that's always gotten Charles equal interest from fans of older rock and soul! The package is very heavy on key material that Bobby recorded for Chess Records, including a number of tracks that were not issued at the time – and the set also features some later singles for Imperial, which continue the kind of Crescent City soulfulness that Bobby really helped forge with a few key contemporaries as the start of a much bigger legacy to come. The set features 48 tracks in all – with titles that include "Oh Yeah", "Since She's Gone", "Watch It Sprocket", "I'm A Fool To Care", "Mr Moon", "Ain't Got No Home", "Laura Lee", "Take It Easy Greasy", "One Eyed Jack", "No More", "You Can Suit Yourself", "On Bended Knee", "Hey Good Lookin", "Why Did You Leave", "Your Picture", "Good Lovin", "Those Eyes", and "What A Party". Also includes a few bonus tracks that show Bobby's influence on other artists – tracks by Fats Domino, Clarence Henry, John Fred, and Bill Haley. CD

A nice range of work from Larry Hall – a singer who's best known as a one-hit wonder, with a small hit at that – but who steps out here with a groovy batch of material that only ever saw release as a string of indie label 45s at the end of the 50s and start of the 60s! Larry's got a great way of dipping and warbling his voice – never too much, but this unique inflection that can make simple lyrics catchier than they might otherwise sound – captured here with backings that mix rock and roll with gentler pop production, a mode that's maybe like some of the Cadence or Dot Records material of the period. Titles include Larry's hit "Sandy" – plus "Kool Luv", "The Stranger", "Rebel Heart", "Lips Of Wine", "Ladder Of Love", "I Didn't Ask To Be Born", "I'll Stay Single", "For Every Boy", "A Girl Like You", "Lovin Tree", and "I Sit Alone". CD

Stonewall Jackson may not be one of the best-remembered singers of his generation, but during the time covered in this set he really delivered a fantastic string of singles for Columbia Records – the kind of classic country gems that are often equally great on both sides of the record! Jackson's got this raw twang on his vocals on most of these tracks – a warbling charm that's somewhere in the Lefty Frizell side of the spectrum – and even as he moves into some folksier material during the second stretch of this set, his vocal charms hold things very strong – especially as he moves back to straighter country towards the end. 32 tracks in all – with titles that include "Hungry For Love", "Leona", "That's Why I'm Walkin", "Waterloo", "Don't Be Angry", "A Broken Heart A Wedding Band", "I Need You Real Bad", "A Wound Time Can't Erase", "Can't Hang Up The Phone", "Slowly", "Thirty Links Of Chain", "Run", "Grieving In My Heart", and "Gettin Older". CD

A huge collection of work from the overlooked Gus Jenkins – one of a number of blues musicians who started in the south, then moved out to the west coast during the postwar years – and found a way to change his older style into a great mix of jump blues and raw R&B! Jenkins both sings and plays piano – and like some of his key contemporaries who recorded for LA indies in the 50s, that mix is really set loose with all sorts of jazzy modern currents as the years move on – quite far from the earlier roots, into the coming modes of rock and soul. The set features more material by Gus than has ever been collected in one place – singles for labels that include Flash, Combo, and Pioneer – plus other material, songs with his wife Mamie, and work with the team of Albert & Charles, and Blues Slim and his band. Titles include "Copper Tan", "Hit The Road", "Remember Last Xmas", "Spanky", "Gonna Take Time", "Off The Road", "Jealous Of You Baby", "Celebrate (parts 1 & 2)", "Last Time", "Red River Shuffle", "Tricky", "You Lied", "Cold Love", "I Been Working", "Worries & Troubles", "Stand By Me", and "Pay Day Shuffle (parts 1 & 2)". CD

A pair of Hammond jazz classics from organist Sam Lazar – back to back on a single CD, with rare bonus tracks too! First up is Space Flight – a tight batch of organ groovers with a raw R&B feel, recorded by the obscure St Louis organist Sam Lazar – with a very young Grant Green on guitar! The album's a bit different than Sam's other records for Argo – in that the tunes are all quite short, with a tight fast sound that's almost more R&B at times than jazz – a very unusual setting especially for Grant Green! The guitar is nice and loud – really racing to keep up with Lazar's fast work on the Hammond – and other members of the group include Willie Dixon on bass and Chauncey Williams on drums. Titles include "Mad Lad", "Space Flight", "Caramu", "Funky Blues", and "Big Willie". Playback is one of a few rare albums from Hammond player Sam Lazar – a lesser-known artist from the same searing generation as Baby Face Willette and Jack McDuff, but a musician who never full got his due! This record was done for the Argo side of Chess Records, and it's got a raw sound that's equal parts soul jazz and R&B – with Sam doing some great work on the keys, and the obscure tenorist Miller Brisker in the group too – a really great musician who works with lots of unique twists – and spurs Lazar onto new heights of playing, with maybe an even farther reach on the keys than his other albums. Lazar wrote most of the set, and the tracks include "Deep", "Fuzz Buzz", "S&S", "Scootin", and "Long Gone". A nice bit of soul jazz, with a deep rootsy sound all the way through! CD also features the bonus two-part 45rpm single of "Space Flight". CD

A really wonderful overview of the early career of Bobby Lewis – a pre-soul singer who recorded for a variety of different labels, and always managed to pack a hell of a punch! Bobby can have a very dynamic vocal approach when he wants – a sometimes-explosive approach that paves the way from jump blues through R&B into soul – and the tracks here follow a similar trajectory, and start with early work for Chess, Mercury, Spotlight, and Roulette – before moving into the early 60s material for Beltone Records that's perhaps some of Lewis' best-known material. Throughout the 27 track set, there's a real love for an upbeat, playful tune – the kind of work that would be more strongly associated with the New Orleans scene in the 60s, even though Bobby's roots are in the midwest. Titles include two versions of his early hit "Mumbles Blues" – plus "Tossin & Turnin", "Oh Mr Somebody", "Solid As A Rock", "Turn Over A New Leaf", "Cry No More", "One Track Mind", "Yay Yay I Feel So Gay", "A Man's Gotta Be A Man", "Yes Oh Yes It Did", "Boom A Chick Chick", and "I'm Tossin & Turnin Again". CD

A great range of work from Rose Murphy – one of the most unique talents of her generation, and an artist with a style that's really unlike anyone else we can think of! At one level, Murphy's a great pianist – ala Hadda Brooks – but she's also got a high range of singing, with vocals that are more in the light upper reaches hit by Blossom Dearie – which makes for quite a contrast to her work on the keys! Then there's also her very rhythmic way of singing, which often has some playful inflections – most notably the use of the "chee chee" or "chi chi" phrase, which comes through on a fair bit of the tunes here. The package is the first strong career overview we've ever seen of Murphy's music – and includes tracks recorded for the RCA, Majestic, Mercury, Verve, and Decca labels – with 28 tracks that include "By The Waters Of Minnetonka", "You Were Meant For Me", "Time On My Hands", "Ceceila", "When I Grow Too Old To Dream", "Rose Of The Rio Grande", "Mm Mm Good", "Busy Line", "A Little Bird Told Me", and "The Little Red Monkey". CD

A great early run of records from the fantastic Osborne Brothers – a bluegrass duo who maybe had more to offer as a single act than some of their bluegrass contemporaries put together! These guys have an instrumental deftness that rivals the team of Flatt & Scruggs – especially on the many fast-moving tunes in the collection – yet they also manage to harmonize together in a way that captures the heartfelt vibe of the Louvins, while also bringing in that raspy edge of a Ralph Stanley or Jimmy Martin – all names that we feel that Osborne Brothers can stand next to proudly, even if they don't always get their due! This collection will hopefully change that – as it features 32 gems that include "Five Days Of Heaven", "Ruby Are You Mad", "Lost Highway", "You'll Never Know", "It's Just The Idea", "Give This Message To Your Heart", "I Love You Only", "Who Done It", "Down In The Willow Garden", "Della Mae", "Wild Mountain Honey", "At The First Fall Of Snow", "Blame Me", "There's A Woman Behind Every Man", and "If You Don't Somebody Else Will". CD

A pair of overlooked gems from singer Ed Townsend – a talent we'd rank right up there with Jesse Belvin or Arthur Prysock in his early years! First up is New In Town – an obscure early session from Ed Townsend – an artist who's perhaps better known as a songwriter of hits for others, and slightly less as a 70s soul singer on Curtom and Casablanca! Yet here, Ed's starting out his career as a mainstream crooner – cast by Capitol as a sepia Sinatra, and even working with arrangements from Frank's Capitol mainstay, Nelson Riddle! There's a bit more drama here than you might hear on a Sinatra album – a slightly deeper range that slides towards more conventional pop vocals of the period – but the whole album's pretty darn compelling, especially the overall package. Titles include "Symphony", "I Am", "New In Town", "Goin My Way", "Till The End Of Time", "Mam'selle", "Do Nothin Till You Hear From Me", and "Lover Come Back To Me". Glad To Be Here is another great album – every bit as wonderful as the first! Orchestrations are by Nelson Riddle, and the album's got a gentle swing that we really enjoy – Ed singing over some lesser known tracks, and bringing a raspy soulfulness to the more familiar ones. Titles include "What's Wrong With Me", "Golden Earrings", "I'm In Love", "Don't Ever Leave Me", and "On The Street Where You Live". CD

Early work from two different singers – each featured here on rare singles for the Cadence Records label! First up is Lenny Welch – a singer with a voice that's as smooth as butter, and a key link between some of the more pop-oriented vocalists of the 50s, and the new generation of 60s "icemen" like Jerry Butler and Chuck Jackson! Like those two, Lenny's got a great way of putting over a sad tune with just the right balance of emotion – never too overdone, nor self-indulgent – but perfectly poised with a nicely mature quality. And Lenny's also a great singer on a more upbeat number – a surprisingly rocking vocalist when he wants to be, as you'll hear on some of the more groove-oriented titles on this set – tunes that have a classy early soul approach, one that's almost a bit like uptown soul of a few years later. CD features 19 Welch titles – including "Rocket To The Moon", "I'd Like To Know", "Darlin", "You Don't Know Me", "Pony Time", "You Can Have Her", "Mama Don't You Hit That Boy", "Taste Of Honey", "Congratulations Baby", and "The Last Star Of Evening". The bigger surprise here is OC Smith – recording her as Ocie Smith – years before his big country soul hits at the end of the 60s, and in a style that's as cool and classy as Lenny Welch, but maybe a bit more rocking too – with nice use of electric bass at the core of larger arrangements, and a nice sense of rhythm that often brings in a bit of jukebox mambo or popcorn soul. CD features 6 titles by Ocie Smith – including "Lighthouse", "Bad Man Of Missouri", "Forbidden Fruit", "If You Don't Love Me", "Too Many", and "Slow Walk". CD

A really cool collection – one that brings together 32 answer songs and follow-ups from the 50s – all R&B numbers that stand more than strongly enough on their own, but which are even cooler when you know that most of them are kind of a "part 2" to bigger hits of the time! Unlike other packages of this nature, which often also include the hits – this one just features the more obscure follow-ups – which makes the whole thing a lot more fresh, even as some of the tunes echo familiar melodies or themes. There's plenty to love here if you dig older R&B on labels like King, Chess, Atlantic, and Modern – and titles include "Play It Again" by Pat Lundy, "My Real Gone Rocket" by Jackie Brenston, "Mr Hound Dog's In Town" by Roy Brown, "Pappa" by Benny Brown, "Florence Don't Leave Me" by The Paragons, "Charlie Brown Got Expelled" by Joe Tex, "I Found Out" by The Du Droppers, "Yes I Will Love You Tomorrow" by Jon E Holiday, "Be My Girl" by Dee Dee Sharp, "Babalu's Wedding Day" by The Eternals, "I Quit My Knockin" by Carol Fran, and "All In Your Mind" by The Harptones. CD

Fantastic early work from Rene Hall – a talent you've probably heard on record before in a variety of different formats – as Hall was a key arranger, producer, and session musician on the LA scene of the 50s and 60s! Yet here, Rene's also the leader – stepping out in small combo modes on a host of rare singles, both 78s and 45s – starting out in a mode that echoes some of the best jump blues/instrumental R&B styles coming out of LA in the postwar years – then moving into styles that are more rocking and early soul as the 50s move on! Hall plays guitar throughout, and other musicians include Plas Johnson and Buddy Tate on tenors, Ernie Freeman on piano, and Earl Palmer on drums – and the set features a whopping 29 tracks in all, including "My Uncle", "Bitter Winds", "Voodoo Moon", "Blue Creek Hop", "Chitling Switch", "The Parrot & The Rooster", "Southgate", "Cleo", "Thunderbird", "That's It", "The Untouchables", "Night Fright", and the fuzz guitar monster "Twitchy" – worth the price of the CD alone! CD

A huge amount of work from the lovely Bonnie Lou – a singer who recorded a fair bit of hillbilly singles for King Records in the 50s – but one who could also step up with some strong R&B and rockish touches too! At some level, Bonnie Lou is a key example of the way that so many other singers besides Elvis were changing during the decade – as her connection to King clearly brought her in contact with a lot of that label's great R&B material, which she's clearly drawing on in some of the tracks on the set – maybe losing more of her rural twang as the years move on, and turning into the kind of strong-voiced singer who should have been huge. CD features 33 tracks in all – mostly King material, but a few singles from other labels too – titles that include "Dancing In My Socks", "Seven Lonely Days", "Just Out Of Reach", "I'm Available", "Twenty Four Hours Of Loneliness", "Takes Two", "Drop Me A Line", "Tennessee Mambo", "Don't Stop Kissing Me Goodnight", "Darling Why", and "Barnyard Hop". CD

Anita O'Day on one of her great self-released albums – working here with some cool duos and trios – including work from the great Stan Tracey on piano, plus Kirk Lightsey on two tracks too! Titles include "Girl From Ipanema", "Once Upon A Summertime", "Tea For Two", "Love For Sale", "Night & Day", and "Boogie Blues". CD

A really great full length set from Cool Million – a group who don't give us nearly as many records as we'd like – because by this time, they should have a recorded legacy to match that of Incognito or Brand New Heavies! Like both of those groups, these guys have a great way of going back while still moving forward – borrowing the best classic elements to add to their music, while also keeping things lean and contemporary too! The group have always had a great way with singers – and this time around, the set features guest vocals from James D-Train Williams on two tracks – plus more guest work from Sophia Ripley, Yolonda Lavender, Matthew Winchester, Seest, Jasmine Franklin, and Boogie Back. Titles include "Stronger", "Keep On", "No Matter What", "Your Move", "Come Back Home", "Queen Sugar", "I Love The Way You Fly", and "Slow Burn Love". CD

A really great full length set from Cool Million – a group who don't give us nearly as many records as we'd like – because by this time, they should have a recorded legacy to match that of Incognito or Brand New Heavies! Like both of those groups, these guys have a great way of going back while still moving forward – borrowing the best classic elements to add to their music, while also keeping things lean and contemporary too! The group have always had a great way with singers – and this time around, the set features guest vocals from James D-Train Williams on two tracks – plus more guest work from Sophia Ripley, Yolonda Lavender, Matthew Winchester, Seest, Jasmine Franklin, and Boogie Back. Titles include "Stronger", "Keep On", "No Matter What", "Your Move", "Come Back Home", "Queen Sugar", "I Love The Way You Fly", and "Slow Burn Love". LP, Vinyl record album