... 78 RPM, Vinyl record

Think the Germans had the market cornered on dark-edged electronics in the 70s? Guess again, because this mid 70s gem from Frenchman Philippe Besombes easily rivals the most progressive work of the Kraut scene of the time! The album's a collaboration with Jean-Louis Rizet – and features both artists duetting on a variety of analogue electronics – sometimes in a melodic way, but often in more experimental modes that are quite textural at times – and which stand as a key link between initial German electronics in the 70s, and some of the murkier British uses of the instrument a few years later. Titles include "Synthi Soit-Il", "Haute Pression", "Evelyse", "Armature Double", "Lundi Matin", and "Montelimar". CD

A percussion record, but one with a very different twist – as the set was done both in collaboration with dancer Tonny Kennybrew, and based on his sense of motion – and it was done at the end of the 80s, and features a very cool mix of both acoustic and electric instrumentation! Percussionist Jean-Pierre Boistel handles a nice array of instruments at the core – kalimba, quinto, congas, bass tambours, bells, berimbau, shakers, and many other percussion elements – and at times, he uses computer-assisted programs to help line up the acoustic sounds, but in ways that hardly make them sound like some lame drum machine beats at all. Instead, there's a richly organic quality to the record – spare and lean, but nicely focused too. Titles include "Vas Y Peter", "C'Est A Sete", "A Capucine", "Des Perce Boys", and "Dans Le Secret & Clepsydre". LP, Vinyl record album

Don Cherry gave many wonderful musical performances on the European scene in the 70s, including this one – a gem of a record that was thought to be lost for years, and finally gets released to the world at large! The set's a live collaboration with electronic musician Jean Schwarz – whose contributions here are nicely subtle, and never challenge the acoustic energy of the session, but instead augment it in all these really cool, unique ways – very different than most improvised music with electronics at the time. Cherry plays pocket trumpet and some great doussn gouni – in the company of an equally fantastic lineup that features JF Jenny Clark on bass, Nana Vasconcelos on percussion, and Michel Portal on saxes, bass clarinet, and bandoneon. Given all the elements, there's some very unique sounds going on here – a really amazing record that includes the tracks "Bells One", "Doussn Gouni", "Tribute To Ornette", "Bando", and "Berimbau". CD

A killer French soundtrack from the start of the 70s – four very groovy cuts that were used in the film Jeu De Dames, a movie that also circulated under the more titillating title of Sex Revolution! The music is full of freak and fuzz – Hammond organ, great guitar lines, and plenty of romping mod rhythms that feel more like late 60s French grooves than work from 1973 – all given the sorts of very cool production touches that you'd expect from bigger giants of the field, like Michel Colombier and Alan Goraguer! Titles include "Les Velos", "Le Viol", "Drole De Jeu De Dames", and "La Recherche". 7-inch, Vinyl record

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

There's nothing drone-like about this album at all – as the set's a soaring bit of space rock from the French scene of the 70s – served up with lots of keyboards and electronics from leader Jean Philippe Goude, who uses a variety of different musicians and instruments from track to track! The set's one of those cool French records that offered up a way to compress some of the excesses of prog in the second half of the 70s, but all without losing the best energy either – shorter tracks that still manage to journey to the stars – sometimes with vocals, but which are always secondary to the deft instrumentation of the tunes. The whole thing's a beautiful lost treasure, ever issued in the US – with titles that include "Les Saturnales", "Sicilienne", "Machine", "Coma", "Duo", "Cantiliene", "Dies Irae", and Tintinnabulum". CD includes a bonus track: "Trio De Mini-Moogs". CD

All star session with George Shearing, Joachim Kuhn, and Wolfgang Dauner on piano; Niels-Henning Orstred-Pedersen, Andrew Simpkins, and Peter Warren on bass; Philip Catherine, Larry Coryell, Diz Disley, and Ike Isaacs on guitar; Daniel Humair, Rusty Jones, and Oliver Johnson on drums; and Isla Eckinger on bass. LP, Vinyl record album

A seminal session from 70s French synth maestro Jean-Michel Jarre – his 8-part "Equinoxe" suite, a great bit of electronics that was almost France's answer to Kraftwerk at the time! Jarre's style is a bit warmer and more focused on the melody – and the range of keyboards and synthesizers used on the album create a rich tapestry of sound that almost has a soundtrack-y feel at the best moments. CD

A really haunting bit of early electronics by Jean Michel Jarre – the soundtrack for the film Les Granges Brulees from the early 70s! The work here has a very different sound than Jarre's later music – not nearly so neat and tidy, with lots of rough edges, and shorter tunes that have a really kind of spooky, other-wordly feel. And yet despite these qualities, there's also a good degree of melody to the set – as the shorter tracks bubble forth with some great themes that sound even more enchanting in the analogue electronic mode. Titles include "L'Helicoptere", "La Chanson Des Granges Brulees", "Le Pays De Rose", "Theme De L'Argent", "Rose", "Les Granges Brulees", and "La Verite". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

... CD

A seminal session from 70s French synth maestro Jean-Michel Jarre – a great bit of electronics that was almost France's answer to Kraftwerk at the time! Jarre's style is a bit warmer and more focused on the melody – and the range of keyboards and synthesizers used create a rich tapestry of sound that almost has a soundtrack-y feel at the best moments. 7-inch, Vinyl record

... CD

... LP, Vinyl record album

Includes the songs "Prologue", "Faith In You", "Tchokola", "Spring Episode", "Metamorphosis", "Tender Memories", "Mouna Bowa", "In The Fast Lane", "The Gift Of Time", "After The Storm", "Bottle Bop",and "Prelude No. 20, Op. 28". CD

Includes the songs "Cantaloupe Island", "Contact", "Pebble Beach Walk", "California", "The Loner", "Soul Summit", "Eighty-One", "Twenty Small Cigars", "How Would You Like To Have A Head Like That", "King Kong", and "With A Little Help From My Friends". CD

A trio of Columbia Records sets from Jean-Luc Ponty – served up here in a single package! First up is Gift Of Time – a set that really shows him embracing keyboards much more than at the start of his career – even though he also still turns in plenty of great jazzy sounds on violin! Ponty often seems to be mixing both – using the keyboards to augment inflections in the violin – at a level that makes you feel like he's not using the older stringed instrument at all during some sections, even though it's there in the mix. The set's got a vibe that very much fits with its cover – somewhat lean, with guitar from Pat Thomi, bass from Baron Browne, and percussion and drums from Rayford Griffin. Titles include "Faith In You", "New Resolutions", "No More Doubts", "Metamorphosis", and "Introspective Perceptions". Storytelling is a set that has Jean-Luc Ponty really staying on top of his fusion game – part of that ever-evolving run of records that took the European musician from early straight jazz violin records in the 60s, to the height of American jazz crowds in the 70s and 80s! Here, Ponty continues his exploration of various keyboard modes, while also folding in warm work on electric violin – a blend that's surprisingly seductive, and augmented along the way with guest work from Grover Washington on soprano sax, and Patrice Rushen on additional keyboards. The core group also has guitar from Jamie Glaser, and piano and more keyboards from Wally Minko – on titles that include "Tender Memories", "In The Fast Lane", "After The Storm", "The Amazon Forest", "A Journey's End", and "Pastoral Harmony". Tchokola is a very different record than usual for Jean-Luc Ponty – as you maybe can tell from the global-styled image on the cover! This time around, Ponty's bringing in some key elements from African music – plenty of live, acoustic percussion, which makes for a really great blend with the warmer keyboard and electric violin styles he's normally known for! The percussion was recorded at an analog level, which helps it retain its warmth – a great mix of balafon, tama, sabar, bongos, and other instruments – plus some nice use of kora too. There's also some vocals on the record – sung by Angelique Kidjo and Myriam Betty – and titles include "Yeke Yeke", "Rhum N Zouc", "Cono", "Bottle Bop", "Tchokola", "Sakka Sakka", and "Mouna Bowa". CD

Trippy electric fusion from the west coast – a record that features Ponty, who was working with Zappa at the time, playing a set of electric jazz takes on Zappa tunes – with lots of added help from George Duke, who was also working with Zappa too! The set's almost a "birth of fusion" one – with Zappa arrangements that are clearly in a jazz-rock mode – and lots of electric bass, electric piano, and electric violin in the set. Tracks are long, and riff-heavy – and other players include Ernie Watts, Wilton Felder, Buell Neidlinger, and Ian Underwood. Titles include "America Drinks & Goes Home", "Music For Electric Violin & Low Budget Orchestra", "King Kong", and "Twenty Small Cigars". LP, Vinyl record album

Definitely some mystical adventures here from Jean-Luc Ponty – one of the few artists on the violin who can make it come up with sounds like this – weird cool and spacey elements that sound great next to the album's use of organ, keyboard, and Fender Rhodes! The album features two long tracks – "Mystical Adventures" and "Final Truth" – both building nicely on straightforward themes which are then extrapolated by the fusiony solos – never too jamming or intense, but moving with a nice sense of progression, too. The album also features two shorter, catchier numbers – a compelling cover of Stevie Wonder's "As", plus "Rhythms Of Hope". LP, Vinyl record album

A classic underground funk set from the 70s – and a record that definitely lives up to the party time promised in the title! The group have a really festive approach to funk – still as hard-hitting and sharp-edged as other indie contemporaries – but willing to open up and push things with a live sort of energy too – a vibe that's a bit like a funkier take on Jr Walker & The All-Stars – especially given the strong use of tenor on the tunes! The set's got two very long jamming numbers – "Party Bump (parts 1 & 2)" and "One More Time (parts 1 & 2)" – and other titles are all pretty nice too – including "You're Gonna Need", "Now Generation", and "Party Strut". Produced by George Kerr, arranged by Bert Keyes, and even the version of "Amazing Grace" comes out pretty nice too! LP, Vinyl record album

Probably the best-ever funky cut by this obscure group from the early 70s! The track begins with a voice shouting "Hey Y'all!" – then rolls into a tight sax-honking groove that's a bit like Oliver Sain in his "Bus Stop" mode! The track's definitely a party, and has plenty of crowd noises next to the vocals, making for a nice live in studio feel! 7-inch, Vinyl record

Sweet trumpet work from one of Duke Ellington's best sidemen – done for Mercury in 1958 with some very tight arrangements by Anderson and Ernie Wilkins – all in a mode that show's a bit of Cat's Ellington association, but which also opens up in some other swinging modes – including a bit of Basie, and even some wider ranging styles. Cat's in the lead on trumpet, getting support from other players on the instrument – including Clark Terry, Ernie Royal, and Ray Copeland – plus Jimmy Cleveland and Frank Rehack on trombone, Earl Warren on alto sax, Jimmy Forrest and Ernie Wilkins on tenor, and Sahib Shihab on baritone. Titles include "Little Man", "Cat's In The Alley", "June Bug", "Adorable D", "Nina", "Birth Of The Blues", and "Blue Jean Beguine". LP, Vinyl record album