One of two albums produced by Rudy Ray Moore – the other being The Sensuous Black Man – which define the art of making love from a gender-based perspective. Like Rudy's Sensuous Black Man, The Madam's version features one side of "instructional" dialogue – very XXX-rated, in bitchy mode that verbally orders a man to make love to a woman properly. Side two features "Rap Session", kind of a Q&A session in which The Madam lays down a bit more knowledge about sex over some bluesy music. There's plenty of bits on here that have been sampled over the years – and the record was a big one in the early mixes of the Chicago house scene. LP, Vinyl record album

Very cool work from vibist Cal Tjader – sounds that are different than some of the larger arrangements and concepts of his Verve Records albums of the mid 60s, and material that appears here for the first time ever! The set features a range of appearances that Tjader made on radio in Seattle – really well-recorded dates, done at the city's famous Penthouse nightclub – and featuring Cal's vibes in a stripped-down setting that's almost more of a throwback to his pre-Verve material for Fantasy records. There's excellent players throughout, especially on piano – as the keys are handled by Clare Fischer, Al Zulaica, and Lonnie Hewitt – all of whom did great work with Cal – working here in combos that feature plenty of percussion from Armando Peraza, and drums and timbales from Johnny Rae and Carl Burnett. The tunes are a nice mix of modes – some Latin, some bossa, lots straighter jazz – and titles include "Insight", "Davito", "Pantano", "Leyte", "Half & Half", "Bag's Groove", "Mambo Inn", "Morning", "Soul Burst", "Cuban Fantasy", "Love For Sale", "Reza", "On Green Dolphin Street", "O Morro Nao Tem Vez", "Fuji", and "Along Comes Mary". CD

Very cool work from vibist Cal Tjader – sounds that are different than some of the larger arrangements and concepts of his Verve Records albums of the mid 60s, and material that appears here for the first time ever! The set features a range of appearances that Tjader made on radio in Seattle – really well-recorded dates, done at the city's famous Penthouse nightclub – and featuring Cal's vibes in a stripped-down setting that's almost more of a throwback to his pre-Verve material for Fantasy records. There's excellent players throughout, especially on piano – as the keys are handled by Clare Fischer, Al Zulaica, and Lonnie Hewitt – all of whom did great work with Cal – working here in combos that feature plenty of percussion from Armando Peraza, and drums and timbales from Johnny Rae and Carl Burnett. The tunes are a nice mix of modes – some Latin, some bossa, lots straighter jazz – and titles include "Insight", "Davito", "Pantano", "Leyte", "Half & Half", "Bag's Groove", "Mambo Inn", "Morning", "Soul Burst", "Cuban Fantasy", "Love For Sale", "Reza", "On Green Dolphin Street", "O Morro Nao Tem Vez", "Fuji", and "Along Comes Mary". CD

Very cool work from vibist Cal Tjader – sounds that are different than some of the larger arrangements and concepts of his Verve Records albums of the mid 60s, and material that appears here for the first time ever! The set features a range of appearances that Tjader made on radio in Seattle – really well-recorded dates, done at the city's famous Penthouse nightclub – and featuring Cal's vibes in a stripped-down setting that's almost more of a throwback to his pre-Verve material for Fantasy records. There's excellent players throughout, especially on piano – as the keys are handled by Clare Fischer, Al Zulaica, and Lonnie Hewitt – all of whom did great work with Cal – working here in combos that feature plenty of percussion from Armando Peraza, and drums and timbales from Johnny Rae and Carl Burnett. The tunes are a nice mix of modes – some Latin, some bossa, lots straighter jazz – and titles include "Insight", "Davito", "Pantano", "Leyte", "Half & Half", "Bag's Groove", "Mambo Inn", "Morning", "Soul Burst", "Cuban Fantasy", "Love For Sale", "Reza", "On Green Dolphin Street", "O Morro Nao Tem Vez", "Fuji", and "Along Comes Mary". LP, Vinyl record album

John Scofield's the leader here – but at times, we almost think the record's the vision of pianist Hal Galper as much as it is the guitarist – as both their efforts leap from the grooves with a really wonderful sense of energy! Maybe part of the album's strength is the rhythm duo – as the great Stafford James is on bass, a player we always love, next to drummer Adam Nussbaum – who can also really take off, and keep things driving in ways that have Scofield moving with all these fast flourishes of sound – quickly spinning out those chromatic lines that made him such a distinct player in the 70s! Galper has a great sense of boldness – and titles include "Alter Fields", "Rough House", "Slow Elvin", "Triple Play", "Air Pakistan", and "Ailleron". LP, Vinyl record album

A very cool oversized package of rare 78rpm material – with an excellent Robert Crumb cover! Music from Freeny's Barn Dance Band, Son House, Ernest Phipps, Memphis Minnie, Tommy Johnson, Three Stripped Gears, the Kentucky Ramblers, Amedie Ardoin, Yank Rachelm, Asa Martin, Blind Roosevelt Graves, Ken Maynard & more. CD

Also includes tracks by Duncan Faure, Club Nouveau, Michael Davidson, Scritti Politti, and Coati Mundi. LP, Vinyl record album

A wonderful Chicago house groover from the Risque rhythm team – one that bubbles along in that mellower, moodier later Chicago groove – with as much emphasis on the keys and bass as on the beats. The softening of the colder edge is really significant – and makes for a perfect setting for the tune's mythical spoken vocals! "Risque Madness" has some nice Kraftwerk keys running throughout – but also features vocal snippets that emerge as found samples, really keeping the "madness" theme intact! 12-inch, Vinyl record

Music from The Original Caste, Edward Bear, R. Dean Taylor, Tranquillity Base, Joey Gregorash, Lighthouse, Crowbar, The Bells, The Stampeders, April Wine, and more. CD

It's the early 70s, and Mose is still going strong – grooving with a unique blend of New Orleans soul and Northern jazz influences, his own particular brand of music, timeless from the day it was born! The setting here is a live one, and Mose is playing with a trio that includes Clyde Flowers on bass and Eddie Charlton on drums. The album features a number of strong originals – including "Look What You Made Me Do", "Powerhouse", "I Don't Worry About A Thing", and "Don't Forget To Smile" – plus versions of "The Seventh Son" and "Fool's Paradise". LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark debut from the mighty Erykah Badu – a record that really set the world on fire when it first appeared – and which continues to blow our minds all these many years later! There's a simple, straightforward grace to the album that comes through immediately – as Erykah tries to forge new ground for soul music, but does it by taking a few steps backwards – not into retro modes, but more in a way that focuses on the core vocal, songcraft, and right instrumentation that can make a special soul record such a standout. She does a great job of both avoiding easy commercial paths, or some of the temptations to embrace other then-contemporary genres – which has made the work of some of her colleagues seem a bit dated. The record defines a whole new style of expression – "Baduizm", if you will – one in which Erykah sings with a depth that stretches back through a century's worth of jazz, soul, and gospel influences – but works a groove in a stripped-down and forward-thinking mode that sets the pace for countless Neo Soul singers to come! Titles include "Certainly (Flipped It)", "Next Lifetime (radio)", "On & On", "Appletree", "No Love", "4 Leaf Clover", and "Sometimes (mix #9)". CD

Suzanne Ciani has cut some sweeter sets over the years, but this album's definitely not one of them – as the whole thing is an early piece from the artist's career, recorded on the Buchla synthesizer, and based on the work of Charles Baudelaire! The core piece, "Flower Of Evil", features a recitation of a Baudelaire poem right into the Buchla – which then complicates and distorts the voice, as it mixes with these wonderful waves of analogue electronics – bubbling, flowing, and stretching out to create this moody landscape that really would have made the poet proud! The other three selections on the record are even more stark and spooky – still done on the Buchla, but with a vibe that's maybe even more in the mode of some of the Pierre Henry experiments from the same time. Titles include "Glass Houses" and "Token Spokes (parts 1 & 2)". LP, Vinyl record album

Great 70s work from Paul Desmond – a sweet little quartet date that easily rivals his genius live album for A&M from the same stretch! The record's done in the simple, unadorned style that made the short-lived Artist House label so great – a real back to basics setting that's free from any gimmicks, and which has that sublime Desmond alto sound out front, in a quartet that features Ed Bickert on guitar, Don Thompson on bass, and Jerry Fuller on drums. Titles include the original "Audrey", plus "Line For Lyons", "Too Marvelous For Words", "When Sunny Gets Blue", and "Darn That Dream" – all nice and long! LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe one of our favorite Doors records of all time – if only for the long Fender Rhodes solo by Ray Manzarek on the album's final track, "Riders On The Storm"! Yet the whole album is pretty darn great, too – the last to feature Jim Morrison, who would leave the planet shortly after the album was released! There's a looser, more mature feel to the whole record – still lots of the territory the group had explored on previous albums, but also maybe more relaxed in the studio – knowing when to go for a hook when needed, but also letting some of the tunes really find themselves too. Titles include the hits "Riders On The Storm", "LA Woman", and "Love Her Madly" – plus "The Changeling", "Been Down So Long", "Cars Hiss By My Window", "The WASP", "L'America", and "Hyacinth House". LP, Vinyl record album

Funky fusion from the Brazilian scene of the 80s – music from a time when the best electric jazz was more the product of indie labels like the Som Da Gente powerhouse – a company who really let Grupo Medusa find their groove! The band features some great keyboard work on Fender Rhodes and clavinet by Amilson Godoy, plus some great guitar playing by Heraldo Do Monte, in a style that's much more soaring, groovy, and upbeat than some of his solo albums. There's also lots of great Brazilian percussion in the rhythms – and as with other Brazilian jazz of the style, there's often a bit of vocals mixed in, almost at an instrumental sort of level. The whole thing's great – and titles include "Pe No Chao", "Uma Viagem", "Ponto De Fusao", and "Baiana". LP, Vinyl record album

Massive work from Isaac Hayes – a hard and heavy soundtrack that we like even more than his classic work on Shaft! Unlike Shaft, Ike actually starred in the film Truck Turner – which may be one reason why he brought his full game to the table for the record – and scored a batch of badass tunes that still stand with some of the best funky soundtrack work of the 70s! The rhythm's especially hard on the best cuts – really crackling with a lot of intensity, and a stark, hard funky sound that's made the record a favorite of beatheads for years! Ike kicks it hard on cuts like "Pursuit Of The Pimpmobile", "House Full Of Girls", "Drinking", "Give It To Me", "Now We're One", "Breakthrough", "House of Beauty", and the massive title cut "Truck Turner". LP, Vinyl record album

Boogie, indeed – as the tracks here are filled with the kind of skittish guitar lines that made John Lee Hooker one of the real standouts of the 50s scene – maybe one of the most rhythmic bluesmen of his generation, next to Bo Diddley! Like Diddley's classic records for Chess, most of these tracks are filled with deft work from Hooker on guitar – chuggingly rhythmic, but often breaking out into great solo moments too – the roots of electric modes that would break bigger in the 60s, handled here by one of the early masters! Titles include "Hoogie Boogie", "Boogie Chillen 2", "House Rent Boogie", "Jump Me", "Huckle Up Baby", "Shake Holler & Run", "Momma Poppa Boogie", and "Hastings Street Boogie". LP, Vinyl record album

A really amazing package – not just for fans of John Lee Hooker, but for anyone who loves postwar blues in general! The work here is all from the tiny Sensation Records label in Detroit – the label to first record John Lee Hooker in the late 40s, and who continued to do sessions with Hooker even after they were getting some of their recordings placed on bigger labels for wider distribution. The massive 3CD set is the first to ever fully plumb the depths of these years – and brings together all the recordings made by Sensation, including some unusual alternates, related dates, and more – all with fantastic sound that really gets at the raspy brilliance of Hooker, and the way he effortlessly mixed up urban and rural modes on the Detroit scene. 71 tracks in all – and titles include "Hoogie Boogie", "Hastings Street Boogie (ext take)", "Hobo Blues (alt take)", "Henry's Swing Club", "Sailing Blues", "Build Myself A Cave (take 3)", "Alberta (alt take)", "Wednesday Evening", "John L's House Rent Boogie (alt take)", "Moon Is Rising (alt take)", "Story Of A Married Woman (alt take)", "Strike Blues (ext)", "I'm In The Mood (humming overdub)", "It Hurts Me So (alt take)", "That's All Right Boogie (underdub)", and lots more! CD

Howlin Wolf sings the blues, and comes across in a way that influences an entire generation too – with that raw, raspy sound that made the singer a perfect blend of delta roots and contemporary sounds that were bubbling up in the postwar years! These tracks have a spare, simple, stark style that's still a lot more powerful than most of the records that tried to copy Wolf's modes in later years – mindblowing guitar work from Willie Johnson, harmonica lines that weave the whole thing together, and tremendous vocals that would shake the paint off your walls, even without any other instrumentation! Titles include "Crying At Daybreak", "Twisting & Turning", "Brown Skin Woman", "Morning At Midnight", "Backslide Boogie", "House Rockin Boogie", "Keep What You Got", and "Worried About My Baby". LP, Vinyl record album

A great return to form for the LTJ Experience – exactly the kind of tight grooves and soulful sounds that made Luca Trevisi such a standout in earlier years of the Italian club scene! The style here is really back to basics – somewhere between the spareness of the post-disco years and the fuller soulful styles when house started coming into play – always pretty funky in the rhythms, but with a forward-moving focus that's quite different than straight instrumental funk too. Titles include "Funk Is On", "Disco-Ver Me", "What I Feel", "Linear Funk", "Vuoto Beat", and "Get Down". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Sun Ra's best non-Saturn live sets of the 70s – a nice little record that shows the group mixing it up with equal parts avant garde and straight ahead jazz, all handled in that ever-growing large group style that made them a real force to be reckoned with in a concert setting! The album was recorded during the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival, and has a bit more focus and polish than some of the other Arkestra live material from the time – a mature, coherent sound that almost points the way towards some of their work to come in the 80s – when Ra and the group were finally reaching the wider audience they deserved. The set's a double-length one, and features players who include John Gilmore on tenor, Marshall Allen and Danny Davis on alto and flute, Pat Patrick on baritone, Ahmed Abdullah on trumpet, Craig Harris on trombone, and James Jackson on Ancient Egyptian Infinity drum – which is always a treat. Ra plays solar organ and moog, as well as piano – and titles include "Of The Other Tomorrow", "On Sound Infinity Spheres", "El Is The Sound Of Joy", "Gods Of The Thunder Realm", "Gods Of A Thunder Realm", "The House Of Eternal Being", and "Lights On a Satellite". CD

A crackling bit of hardbop from Sonny Rollins – and a session that has Sonny playing with the Max Roach/Clifford Brown group that included Bud Powell's brother Richie on piano! Sonny had already made a strong name for himself on albums issued under the Roach/Brown tag at the time, and here the group returns the favor by allowing Sonny to lead, and by giving him a good deal of time in the spotlight! Rollins' solo ability is risen to a razor-sharp level for the set – really getting fire, and managing to invent at a speed and sharpness that's simply amazing. Titles include Sonny's classic reading of "Pent-up House", plus "Valse Hot", "Kiss & Run", and "Count Your Blessings". CD

We're not normally ones to stock urban fire books here at Dusty Groove – but as you probably know, our hometown is Chicago, a city with a pretty incredible history – part of which is a fantastic fire that burned the whole place to the ground back in the 19th century! This huge book dives into great detail about the fire – its origins, its too-long burnout, initial failed efforts to stop it, and the surprisingly quick rise from the ashes that Chicago experienced as a result – as the city turned the tragedy into a way of rethinking and modernizing itself, which made it very well-poised to become a global powerhouse in years to come! Carl Smith tells the tale with a nicely narrative voice, while also showcasing the long research that went into the project – and this hardcover edition is 374 pages, with some black and white images. Book

An essential collection of work from one of the hippest funk groups of the 70s – the mysterious Wood Brass & Steel, who also participated in the legendary Skullsnaps record! The first part of the set features an unreleased album that the group recorded for the All-Platinum label in 1973 – music that's hard and funky, but which also shows a strong current of jazz as well – the kind of material that has the group very much in the best Earth Wind & Fire territory of the period, with a sense of righteous perfection that should have made them huge – had the album not stayed in the vaults! The set includes their fantastic "Hey What's That You Say" – which was later reworked as "It's A New Day" for the Skullsnaps album – plus a few more cuts that later appeared on the Brother To Brother debut album – titles that include "Trespassing", "Let's Take A Stroll", "Jermilah", "If He Can Do It She Can Do It", "I Wish It Would Rain", and "A Love Of My Own". Next is the self-titled Wood Brass & Steel album – a legendary bit of east coast funk from the 70s – by a group who'd go on to have a huge influence both in the worlds of hip hop and house! Wood Brass & Steel feature two key players who later became part of the Sugarhill Records house band, and later the On-U Sound collective – Doug Wimbush and Skip McDonald – but the set's got a much fuller, more soulful vibe than work from those later projects – nice use of horns, as hinted at in the title – but not in a way that make these guys a brassy funk band either! Instead, there's a smooth groove throughout – one that comes up from the rhythms first, with a wonderful quality that's years ahead of its time – never disco, but not afraid of some faster rhythms that point the way towards underground club to come. The whole thing's the kind of funky lost gem that makes us happy to do what we do – and it's had long life over the past few decades, thanks to the rich variety of tunes on the set. Titles include the classic cut "Funkanova", an uptempo jazzy instrumental that continued to be a club favorite throughout the house years – plus loads of other good cuts, too, like "WBS Theme", "Welcome To The Party", "Same Ol Me", "Working On A Dream", and a version of "Always There". Hard & Heavy is the incredibly rare second album from Wood Brass & Steel – the mighty funk group we've loved for years for their landmark debut from the mid 70s! This sophomore set is from a few years later, and has the group honing their groove even more – working with these righteous currents in their music that expand the sound into territory that's almost a bit like Roy Ayers at times! As with Ayers, the vocals are often layered into the rhythms – sometimes sung by group members with this soulfully flowing current that has a subtle, sublime sort of vibe – and which works perfectly for the message in the music. Tunes are often in the faster side of midtempo – but never conventional club or disco at all – and there's this really special quality to the whole record, one that even tops the unique vibe of their first album. The original album was very briefly issued by Sugar Hill, during a time when the label was mostly doing hip hop – and is impossibly hard to find in the original pressing. Titles include "Open Up Your Heart", "Be Yourself", "Long Live Music", "Space Walk", "Fly With Music", "Superstar", and "Are You Busy". CD

A really pivotal album from XTC – a set that still has the group able to deliver the kind of tight, catchy work that made their early singles so great – but one that also really has them expanding out into a group who really understand how to put together an album the right way too! It's that quality that really helped XTC not only outlast some of their British contemporaries, but also reach out to a wider audience with a well-crafted set like this – full of gems that include "Knuckle Down", "Fly On the Wall", "Down In The Cockpit", "All Of A Sudden", "Yacht Dance", "English Roundabout", "Snowman", "Jason & The Argonauts", "No Thugs In Our House", "Runaways", "Ball & Chain", and "Senses Working Overtime". CD

A fantastic little set that looks at the huge wave of top-shelf AOR material recorded in recent years – part of a huge global re-awakening to the charms of the genre – often with results that are even groovier than the classic records of the 70s! One of the compelling things here is that the music isn't being made by big names on major labels – and instead is an almost-underground thing – but handled at a level that's completely faithful to the best Cali styles of the 70s – from sweet jazzy instrumentation right down to the perfect production styles to get the whole thing right. You'll recognize a few names here – and will hopefully discover a lot more too – as titles include "Tell Me" by William Sikstrom, "Quiet Storm" by Workshy, "Liberation Groove" by Incognito, "You Make My Life A Better Place" by Mamas Gun, "What You Deserve" by Chris Cauley, "See Me Slumber" by Young Gun Silver Fox, "Melt The Night" by Lucas Arruda, "All Smiles" by Jeremy Passion, "Walkin On Air" by Tomi Malm, "Good To Live" by Monkey House, "Thoughts" by Michael Carreon, "Dangerous" by Umii, "Hello Monday" by Briamarie, "The Greatest" by King, "Perish The Thought" by Ned Doheny, "Sweet Life" by Mike Champion, and "Don't Disturb This Groove" by Meshell Ndegeocello. CD

A much-needed collection of the famous Jazz At The Philharmonic performances of the 1950s – work that follows up the initial postwar run from producer/presenter Norman Granz, which helped lay the groundwork for Verve Records – but which hasn't gotten the full exposure it deserves! Unlike the 40s sessions, there's a lot of material here that never made it to CD – including tracks from the multi-record box set releases that included JATP volumes 11, 15, 16, and 17 – plus the Jazz Concert #1 album, Jazz At The Hollywood Bowl, and various Opera House sessions – and even the Lester Young Carnegie Blues record, which appeared later on vinyl! Some unreleased tracks have been added to the set too – and as with Mosaic Records at its best, this is less a reissue package than a proper presentation of material that was scattered out there in various formats – finally presented in the right order, with detailed notes, and really great sound. Artists are the cream of the crop of Verve at the time – Stan Getz, Ella Fitzgerald, Oscar Peterson, Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins, Roy Eldridge, Herb Ellis, Buddy DeFranco, Sonny Stitt, Benny Carter, Lionel Hampton, Gene Krupa, and others – plus some non-Verve artist surprises as well! Very limited, and comes with a huge booklet of notes and performance details too. CD

Hammering stuff! This is one of the hardest of the Goldmine compilations – with a heavy-duty garagey mix of soul, R&B, and beat-heavy tunes that fit perfectly together. The overall sound is super-mod, with the kind of grooves you'd expect to find at some wonderful underground party in London during the late 60s – where original soulboys are dancing all night long to a color-blind mix of storming chunes. Titles include "The Snake" by Al Wilson, "Jump & Dance" by Carnaby, "Exus Trek" by Luther Ingram, "Alligator Boogaloo" by Sandy Nelson, "These Boots Were Made For Walkin" by The Happy Cats, "Charley" by The Soul Runners, "Coffee Pot 2" by Bo Junior, "Crawling Up A Hill" by John Mayall, "Wobble Legs" by Tommy Dark, "Chain Gang" by The Powerhouse, and "Baby You Got It" by The Truth. 20 cuts in all – and all hardcore! LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible addition to the rich legacy of Stax Records – a massive collection of 146 tracks, almost all of which appear here for the first time ever – a set that represents recordings done by all the great songwriters who were working for Stax at the time, most of whom were also recording artists on the label! Given that fact, these aren't scratchy recordings performed by hacks who can't sing – as almost all the material features the sort of top-shelf vocalists who made Stax such a deep soul powerhouse in the 60s and 70s – represented here in a style that shows just how much freedom of creative expression the label allowed its best – very different than the way some of the bigger companies would just cram a song down a quickly-booked session in the studio! Plus, these demo tracks are done in a variety of modes – some with very stripped-down instrumentation, some with fuller groups – and together, they offer a key look at the creative process at Stax – one that's very different than the iconic sound of productions in their Memphis studio, and which really shows an even deeper range of expression through the variety of approaches. The 7CD set has a really cool approach – CDs 1, 2, and 3 feature demos by Stax artists singing their own material; CD4 features Stax singer/songwriters working on non-Stax material; and CDs 5, 6, and 7 feature songs by these artists that were never issued at the time! The set includes work by The Staple Singers, William Bell, Carla Thomas, Bettye Crutcher, Homer Banks, Eddie Floyd, Veda Brown, Frederick Knight, Mack Rice, Delaney Bramlett, Jimmy Hughes, and many others – and the package features 146 tracks in all, with copious notes on the material! CD

An incredible addition to the rich legacy of Stax Records – a collection of rare tracks, almost all of which appear here for the first time ever – a set that represents recordings done by all the great songwriters who were working for Stax at the time, most of whom were also recording artists on the label! Given that fact, these aren't scratchy recordings performed by hacks who can't sing – as almost all the material features the sort of top-shelf vocalists who made Stax such a deep soul powerhouse in the 60s and 70s – represented here in a style that shows just how much freedom of creative expression the label allowed its best – very different than the way some of the bigger companies would just cram a song down a quickly-booked session in the studio! Plus, these demo tracks are done in a variety of modes – some with very stripped-down instrumentation, some with fuller groups – and together, they offer a key look at the creative process at Stax – one that's very different than the iconic sound of productions in their Memphis studio, and which really shows an even deeper range of expression through the variety of approaches. This LP version features tracks that later became hits in the finished versions – titles that include "A Woman's Love" by Carla Thomas, "634-5789" by Eddie Floyd, "If Loving You Is Wrong" by Homer Banks, "I Got To Be Myself" by Carl Smith, "I'll Be Your Shelter" by Homer Banks, "I've Got No Time To Lose" by Deanie Parker, "I'll Be The Other Woman" by Shelbra Bennett, "Respect Yourself" by Mack Rice, "Woman To Woman" by Henderson Thigpen, and "We Can Love" by Eddie Floyd. LP, Vinyl record album

One of Chet Baker's rarest albums – and a great one! The session was recorded in Rome in 1962, at a time when Chet's star had fallen quite a bit on the American scene, and it features him working with some of the hippest European players at the time – like Rene Thomas on guitar, Bobby Jaspar on tenor and flute, Amadeo Tomassi on piano, and Daniel Humair on drums. The tracks are longer than those on some of Chet's earlier albums – with an angularity that brings out new modes of blowing on some of his solos. Titles include "Blues In The Closet", "Barbados", "Star Eyes", "Pent Up House", and "Ballata In Forma Di Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

Another gem from The Animals' overlooked late 60s years on MGM – a time when the group were easily making some of the most inventive music on the label! The styles here are even wider than before – definitely an attempt to showcase "every one of us" that made up the group – in a blend of spacey sounds, gentle folksy moments, and some of the rougher tones of previous MGM records. Many titles were written only by Burdon – a bit of a change from before – and showcase an increased use of acoustic guitar alongside his bleak vocals. Titles include "The Immigrant Lad", "Year Of The Guru", "Serenade To A Sweet Lady", "White Houses", "New York 1963/America 1968", and "Uppers & Downers". CD features a bonus single version of "White Houses". LP, Vinyl record album

A punky funky no wave classic from James White – working here under the name of The Contortions, in a manner that's very similar to his Off White album! The tunes dip, turn, and kind of groove with a mad sort of art school energy – shifting easily between fast and frenetic playing, and some more "out" jazz styled riffing – that crazy saxophone work that always made James White sound so amazing! Most tracks have raw vocals, and titles include "Bedroom Athlete", "Twice Removed", "Roving Eye", "Anesthetic", "Contort Yourself", and "I Don't Want To Be Happy". The CD version includes 3 bonus tracks – live versions of "Throw Me Away", "Twice Removed" and "Jailhouse Rock". CD

A crackling bit of hardbop from Sonny Rollins – and a session that has Sonny playing with the Max Roach/Clifford Brown group that included Bud Powell's brother Richie on piano! Sonny had already made a strong name for himself on albums issued under the Roach/Brown tag at the time, and here the group returns the favor by allowing Sonny to lead, and by giving him a good deal of time in the spotlight! Rollins' solo ability is risen to a razor-sharp level for the set – really getting fire, and managing to invent at a speed and sharpness that's simply amazing. Titles include Sonny's classic reading of "Pent-up House", plus "Valse Hot", "Kiss & Run", and "Count Your Blessings". CD

Roxy Music's third album, and a record that really shows that the group have found a tremendous voice of their own – quite a thing to do, given the heady brew of records that were coming out in the year of 1973! There's a style here that's familiar enough to draw the listener in – maybe some echoes of territory you might hear in work from David Bowie, Lou Reed, John Cale, or the now-solo Brian Eno – but once inside, you find yourself in a completely different world – a mad blend of guitars and strings, saxophones and electronics, all used in these ways that are tuneful enough to be catchy, but also deeply unsettling too – as are the lead vocals of Bryan Ferry, who comes across like some older European singer who's been let out of the madhouse for the sessions. This isn't a singles-heavy record, but instead an album-length journey that never gets old, even as the years move on – and which is as powerful to new ears discovering the record for the first time as to longtime fans. Titles include "Street Life", "Just Like You", "Amazona", "Psalm", "Serenade", "A Song For Europe", "Mother Of Pearl", and "Sunset". CD

Legendary work from the British jazz scene of the early 70s – served up here by a group of important players who made some amazing music in the years before, two of whom would leave the planet not long after these legendary recordings! Splinters never issued a full album at the time – partly due to the loss of some members – but their music represents this key crossroads in all the development that had taken place in UK jazz during the crucial late 60s/early 70s years – maybe no surprise, given that the lineup features drums from Phil Seamen and John Stevens, who each are recorded in a different channel – plus tenor and flute from Tubby Hayes, alto from Trevor Watts, trumpet and flugelhorn from Kenny Wheeler, and bass from Jeff Clyne. The great Stan Tracey also plays piano on most tracks – and all the musicians are very much opening up their bag, even sounding more expressively experimental than on some of their famous studio sides from the period. The package features two rare live recordings from the short-lived group – 9 tracks recorded at the 100 Club, and 6 more recorded at Grass Roots. This is a very limited edition 3 CD set – housed in 12" square, 34 page hardcover book – with dozens of previously unseen images from the 100 Club and Grass Roots shows by legendary British jazz photographer Jak Kilby, and an extensive essay on the history of the group by Simon Spillett including interviews with Trevor Watts, Jeff Clyne, and Clark Tracey. CD

Say what you want, we love this album! When it came out, we were such big Jam fans that we could never forgive Paul Weller – but now, nearly 20 years later, we're stunned at how great some of the soul songs on the album are. Sure, you've got to throw away about half the tracks – because they're silly early 80s bad funk numbers – but the remaining half is way more soulful than you'd remember, with a sweet, sincere, compressed sound that's made all the better by jazzy touches from Mick Talbot and Steve White. Includes the classics "My Ever Changing Moods", "You're The Best Thing", "Blue Cafe", "Paris Match", and "Dropping Bombs On The White House". This is the original UK version of the album issued in the US as My Ever Changing Moods. LP, Vinyl record album

Mad sound library funk from a host of contemporary artists – all bands that have recorded singles for the hip ATA label, coming together here on a set of cuts that really lives up to the best funky 70s modes of famous labels like KPM or DeWolfe! The set doesn't list individual artists, but there is a nice sense of variety throughout – sometimes a bit more electric, sometimes a bit more percussion-heavy – jazzy one minute, funk the next – with a lineup of cuts that's all-killer, no filler at all! The numbers have a vibe that's every bit as strong as their evocative titles – and tracks include "Penthouse In Pernambuco", "Satan Stalks Among Us", "The Street Is Family", "Pineapple Diode Daquiri", "Ten On The Door", "Hips & Lips", and "Fear On Phobos". LP, Vinyl record album

Twenty years of music from this cruical Chicago label – one of the few Windy City imprints to continue to fly the flag of house music in the years since the early days of the 80s! When Cajmere first served up "Percolator" back in the early 90s, we were a bit unsure – almost thinking it was the end of Chicago house, with its frenzied rhythm and gimmicky vocal. Yet over the past two decades, we've come to realize that Cajmere and his Cajual imprint have come to be the saviors of the music that's made our city great – still keeping house music in its core, basic elements – without any of the too-commercial modes that seeped in at so many other corners! The Cajmere groove is always dead-on, straightforward, and plenty darn soulful – proof that great house music continues to flourish if you know where to look. 2CD set features a massive 22 long tracks – with cuts that include "Percolator (orig mix)" by Cajmere, "Brighter Days (Louie's Masters At Work mix)" by Cajmere with Dajae, "Feelin Kinda High (voc)" by Cajmere with Terence FM, "Beyond" by Glenn Underground, "Le Fusion" by Gemini, "Midnight (orig mix)" by Cajmere with Walter Philips, "U Got Me UP (Danny Tenaglia's club version)" by Dajae, "I Can't Take It" by Andre Harris, and "Say U Will (orig mix)" by Cajmere. CD

Psychedelia meets British pop – in a really special musical moment that's forever come to be known as shoegaze! The work here comes from a time when the UK scene was really moving past punk rock, and starting to let its guitarists open up in the kind of longer, fuzzy solos that were big in the late 60s – along with all the sort of heady production modes that made such music sound even better, but always with the kind of leaner, more focused lessons learned from the post-punk years! The result is a special sort of sound that can trip out as needed, but never get too overindulgent to lose the tune – the balance that first came to play on the early singles of Creation or 4AD, then found flower in so many other UK groups as the years went on. These glorious years are presented here in a big 5CD set – one that comes in a book-styled package with loads of notes on the music – alongside 87 tracks by artists who include Blow Up, The Honey Buzzards, Submarine, Bailter Space, The Curtain Society, Mercury Rev, An April March, Spacemen 3, The Hinnies, Spiritualized, Moose, Spitfire, Moonshake, Bark Psychosis, AR Kane, Jesus & Mary Chain, Lush, Ride, The Darkside, Velocity Girl, Bleach, Catehrine Wheel, See See Rider, Cranes, Chapterhouse, Telescopes, Sun Dial, Medicine, Sweet Jesus, Luna, Astrobrite, and many more! CD

The session was recorded in Rome in 1962, at a time when Chet's star had fallen quite a bit on the American scene, and it features him working with some of the hippest European players at the time – like Rene Thomas on guitar, Bobby Jaspar on tenor and flute, Amadeo Tomassi on piano, and Daniel Humair on drums. Titles include "Blues In The Closet", "Barbados", "Star Eyes", "Pent Up House", and "Ballata In Forma Di Blues". CD

Not The Cars' first album, but the one that definitely catapulted them from Boston underground to mainstream fame – quite a surprise, given the style that most of the bigger acts were laying down at the time! And of course, we say that from the more mainstream bent of our American market – where punk had yet to penetrate the radio and other outlets – which made the new wave sounds of The Cars a surprisingly strong tilt in a more contemporary direction for both major labels and broadcast radio. All these many years later, the group's elevated to classic rock status, but that's only because of the strength of the songs – a classic lineup that includes "Let's Go", "Candy O", "Night Spots", "You Can't Hold On Too Long", "Got A Lot On My Head", "It's All I Can Do", and "Since I Held You". LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe one of our favorite Doors records of all time – if only for the long Fender Rhodes solo by Ray Manzarek on the album's final track, "Riders On The Storm"! Yet the whole album is pretty darn great, too – the last to feature Jim Morrison, who would leave the planet shortly after the album was released! There's a looser, more mature feel to the whole record – still lots of the territory the group had explored on previous albums, but also maybe more relaxed in the studio – knowing when to go for a hook when needed, but also letting some of the tunes really find themselves too. Titles include the hits "Riders On The Storm", "LA Woman", and "Love Her Madly" – plus "The Changeling", "Been Down So Long", "Cars Hiss By My Window", "The WASP", "L'America", and "Hyacinth House". LP, Vinyl record album

2 massive Isaac Hayes soundtracks in one set – both from the magical cinematic year of 1974! Truck Turner is a hard and heavy soundtrack that we like even more than his classic work on Shaft! Unlike Shaft, Ike actually starred in the film Truck Turner – which may be one reason why he brought his full game to the table for the record – and scored a batch of badass tunes that still stand with some of the best funky soundtrack work of the 70s! The rhythm's especially hard on the best cuts – really crackling with a lot of intensity, and a stark, hard funky sound that's made the record a favorite of beatheads for years! Ike kicks it hard on cuts like "Pursuit Of The Pimpmobile", "House Full Of Girls", "Drinking", "Give It To Me", "Now We're One", "Breakthrough", "House of Beauty", and the massive title cut "Truck Turner". Tough Guys is deeper and more complicated than the groove of Shaft and Truck Turner, and filled with some great tunes that glow with color, life, and imagination – showing an Isaac Hayes that almost seems to be moving beyond the usual blackploitation groove! The album sports 2 really classic tunes – the title theme "Tough Guys", and the classic "Hung Up On My Baby" – both of which have a solidly funky feel that will more than please the usual soundtrack beathead crowd. But overall, the other tunes twist and turn in a delightful mix of modes – expanding on the soulful territory Ike first explored in his original soundtracks, and offering up a great range of moods and emotion. The album's got some especially great chromatic guitar work – and other titles include "Joe Bell", "Randolph & Dearborn", "Buns O Plenty", "Run Fay Run", and "Red Rooster". CD

A holy grail of funky music – the one and only album ever cut by Marie Queenie Lyons, a heck of a hard soul singer who's best known for her rare funky 45s! The album is stunning – every bit as great as any of Marie's singles, and with an incredibly unified sound that should have made the album an instant soul classic as soon as it was released. Think Marva Whitney, Vicki Anderson, Lyn Collins, and other sock-soul divas – and you've only got part of the picture, as Marie really pushes things over the top, and enjoys some great raw production that really sends the whole thing home! Plus, some of the tracks on the set were written by a young Don Pullen, who supposedly also played on the record – in a rare funky appearance in his pre-avant jazz days. Includes a funky remake of "Fever", plus the cuts "I Don't Want Nobody To Have It But You", "Your Key Don't Fit Anymore", "You Used Me", "Daddy's House", "See & Don't See", "Your Thing Ain't No Good Without My Thing", "I Want My Freedom", and "Try Me". LP, Vinyl record album

Solo guitar by Joe Pass – a beautiful little album that's a perfect showcase for the new sensitivity in his music during his years at Pablo records! The Joe Pass heard here is light years away from the guitar player who made a few gimmicky records a decade before – and this album has Joe coming across with a gentle, but sophisticated approach to his instrument that we never would have expected in the past! Titles include "Blues For Basie", "Blues For OP", "Misty", "Grooveyard", "Giant Steps", "Five Hundred Miles High", and "Limehouse Blues". CD

Really wonderful work from The Pretty Things – a vastly-underrated group who work here with a depth that rivals bigger contemporaries like The Kinks or The Who! Like both of those groups, The Pretty Things have a heck of a lot going on musically – a real range of styles that goes beyond simple catchy pop – showing a growth in style and sound that's really tremendous, given the way they sounded just a few albums back. The songs are almost all originals, and filled with themes that run from the fierce to the fragile – often pointed pictures of the human condition, delivered with surprising sensitivity. The album features some added orchestrations from Reg Tilsley, and titles include "Tripping", "My Time", "One Long Glance", "House Of Ten", "Out In The Night", "Death Of A Socialite", "The Sun", "Children", and "Bright Lights Of The City". CD features 7 bonus tracks – including "Progress", "House In The Country", "My Time", "Photographer", and "The Sun". CD

One of Sun Ra's best non-Saturn live sets of the 70s – a nice little record that shows the group mixing it up with equal parts avant garde and straight ahead jazz, all handled in that ever-growing large group style that made them a real force to be reckoned with in a concert setting! The album was recorded during the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival, and has a bit more focus and polish than some of the other Arkestra live material from the time – a mature, coherent sound that almost points the way towards some of their work to come in the 80s – when Ra and the group were finally reaching the wider audience they deserved. The set's a double-length one, and features players who include John Gilmore on tenor, Marshall Allen and Danny Davis on alto and flute, Pat Patrick on baritone, Ahmed Abdullah on trumpet, Craig Harris on trombone, and James Jackson on Ancient Egyptian Infinity drum – which is always a treat. Ra plays solar organ and moog, as well as piano – and titles include "Of The Other Tomorrow", "On Sound Infinity Spheres", "El Is The Sound Of Joy", "Gods Of The Thunder Realm", "Gods Of A Thunder Realm", "The House Of Eternal Being", and "Lights On a Satellite". LP, Vinyl record album

Say what you want, we love this album! When it came out, we were such big Jam fans that we could never forgive Paul Weller – but now, nearly 20 years later, we're stunned at how great some of the soul songs on the album are. Sure, you've got to throw away about half the tracks – because they're silly early 80s bad funk numbers – but the remaining half is way more soulful than you'd remember, with a sweet, sincere, compressed sound that's made all the better by jazzy touches from Mick Talbot and Steve White. Includes the classics "My Ever Changing Moods", "You're The Best Thing", "Blue Cafe", "Paris Match", and "Dropping Bombs On The White House". This is the original UK version of the album issued in the US as My Ever Changing Moods. CD

Unfortunately, it's not still working – Tommy Boy hasn't released a hip hop masterpiece like they routinely cranked out in their glory days in a long, long time – which is a great reason to buy this hits package featuring singles that are not simply Tommy Boy's greatest, but actually some of the best hip hop singles ever made! 16 cuts including "Planet Rock" and "Looking For The Perfect Beat" by Afrika Bambaataa & Soulsonic Force, "Me, Myself And I" and "Buddy" by De La Soul, "Ladies First" by Queen Latifah & Monie Love, "Hip Hop Hooray" by Naughty By Nature, "Sally" by Stetsasonic, "Gangsta Bitch" by Apache, "Jump Around" by House Of Pain and more. CD

A great look at the huge influence on 60s soul from Burt Bacharach – a rich legacy that goes way beyond the big hits from Dionne Warwick, to include a wealth of work from artists you might not expect! Back in the early days, Burt was the tall white guy running around the Brill Building – where he made key connections to a range of different artists, and was able to already hit the ground running – with a huge legacy that would go onto inform soul singers for years to come! In fact, we'd almost say that Bacharach's music sounds even better in the hands of these singers than in more mainstream pop artists – and although a few of these cuts are well-known hits, you'll find plenty more great ones here to discover. Titles include "Alfie" by The Delfonics, "Reach Out For Me" by Willie Tee, "Message To Martha" by Jerry Butler, "Long After Tonight Is All Over" by Irma Thomas, "Another Tear Falls" by Marv Johnson, "Walk On By" by Gloria Gaynor, "Anyone Who Had A Heart" by The Orlons, "The Look Of Love" by Nina Simone, "Forgotten Man" by Gene McDaniels, "A House is Not A Home" by Mavis Staples, "Don't Make Me Over" by Brenda & The Tabulations, "This Empty Place" by Cissy Houston, and "My Little Red Book" by Tony Middleton with Bacharach himself! CD

The first ever compilation of the best music made for MoWest – the eclectic, but still soulful cuts made when Berry Gordy Jr. relocated from Motown to the west coast in the early 70s – releasing cool and sometimes strange music with a soul background, yet toasted by LA sunshine! The MoWest subsidiary lasted just a few years, and gets overlooked in the canonization of Motown at it's most classic and revolutionary – but the legacy is pretty incredible. Funk, sunshine rock and soul fused adventurously by a stunningly diverse roster – late period Frankie Vallie & The Four Seasons (who's comp-opening track is a slept on sunshine pop-soul classic), breezy-jazzy-soul from Odyssey, the sister funk of Sisters Love, a stunning solo left turn from Spinners singer GC Cameron and more great stuff from Syreeta, The Commodores, Suzee Ikeda, Thelma Houston and others. We've been dying for a well selected MoWest comp like this for years, and Light In The Attic stepped to the plate and knock it right out of the park. The songs choices are great, the notes are great. . .everything about it is a win. Essential! Includes "You're A Song (That I Can't Sing)" and "The Night" by Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons, "Our Lives Are Shaped By What We Love" and "Broken Road" by Odyssey, "Don't You Be Worried" by The Commodores, "A Heart Is A House" Nu Page, "I Ain't Going Nowhere" by Thelma Houston, "I Can't Give Back The Love I Feel For You" by Suzee Ikeda, "You've Got To Make The Choice" and "Give Me Your Love" by The Sisters Love and more. CD

The session was recorded in Rome in 1962, at a time when Chet's star had fallen quite a bit on the American scene, and it features him working with some of the hippest European players at the time – like Rene Thomas on guitar, Bobby Jaspar on tenor and flute, Amadeo Tomassi on piano, and Daniel Humair on drums. Titles include "Blues In The Closet", "Barbados", "Star Eyes", "Pent Up House", and "Ballata In Forma Di Blues". CD

One of the last recordings made by Ed Blackwell before his early passing in 1992 – an Oakland live date recorded with an excellent lineup that includes Graham Haynes on cornet, Carlos Ward on alto and flute, Mark Helias on bass, and a bit of guest trumpet from Don Cherry! The style here is earthy and organic – never overly modern, and building in a way that echoes Blackwell's angular roots, but transforms that sound into more spiritually exploratory lines. Ward's work is especially great, and the absence of a piano means that the interplay between cornet and sax is the main driving force of most tunes. Titles include "Nebula", "Grandma's Shoes", "Pentahouse", "First Love", and the extended "Lito" suite in 3 parts. CD

A well-timed Greatest Hits set for The Commodores – because it came out in 1978, and captures the group at their best early prime! This is the stuff that made the group great long before they lapsed into cliches and soft adult contemporary pap – and a number of tracks here have a fair bit of funk in the mix, something that will come as a surprise if you only know the group's later hits. Titles include "Brick House", "Fancy Dancer", "Slippery When Wet", "Machine Gun", "Just To Be Close To You", "Too Hot Ta Trot" – and yes, ok, the record does include "Three Times A Lady". LP, Vinyl record album

A completely wonderful collection of work from the legendary 5 Royales – one of the most important groups of the R&B generation, with a strong influence on 60s soul – both in the way they handled their vocals, and the way they used their guitar! The music here is fantastic – some of the most hard-hitting of their generation, and quite different than some of the sweeter or more commercial vocal group work of the period – not really doo wop, and more a strong lead singer (the mighty Lowman Pauling), backed by some great harmonies to really send him over the top! This beautiful package features all the recordings made by the group during their key years – many cuts for the legendary King Records, plus later work for House Of Blues and a few other labels – all packaged in a cool book-style cover with loads of notes and images. 141 tracks in all – including some previously unreleased songs – all in a cool 7" hardcover book! CD

A record that maybe seemed like something of a one-off at the time of release – given that Gorillaz were more of a "virtual group" cooked up by Damon Albarn of Blur – but a set that's had surprising staying power over the years, thanks to a solid set of hip hop contributions from Dan The Automator, and guest work from Kid Koala and Del The Funkee Homosapien! The hit quality of the tracks soon eclipsed the fact that the Gorillaz were more of a studio project than a real band – and hey, maybe the whole thing was a nod at The Monkees – who had an initial start as a made-up band too. Titles include "Clint Eastwood", "Rock The House", "Latin Simone", "M1 A1", "Man Research", "Sound Check", "Double Bass", "Starshine", "Slow Country", "Re-Hash", and "5/4". LP, Vinyl record album

A record that maybe seemed like something of a one-off at the time of release – given that Gorillaz were more of a "virtual group" cooked up by Damon Albarn of Blur – but a set that's had surprising staying power over the years, thanks to a solid set of hip hop contributions from Dan The Automator, and guest work from Kid Koala and Del The Funkee Homosapien! The hit quality of the tracks soon eclipsed the fact that the Gorillaz were more of a studio project than a real band – and hey, maybe the whole thing was a nod at The Monkees – who had an initial start as a made-up band too. Titles include "Clint Eastwood", "Rock The House", "Latin Simone", "M1 A1", "Man Research", "Sound Check", "Double Bass", "Starshine", "Slow Country", "Re-Hash", and "5/4". LP, Vinyl record album

Some of our favorite work ever from the mighty Lee Hazlewood – material recorded under his own name for Reprise Records – during a stretch when he was also producing for the label with Nancy Sinatra and Dean Martin! The 2CD set features 3 full albums, plus great bonus tracks too – and the package is as great of a tribute to Hazlewood's genius as we've ever seen! First up is The NSVIPs – a set that follows up the same sort of "story song" format that Lee laid down on his wonderful Trouble album for Mercury – but done here with themes that are a bit hipper, and more wry – in keeping with his Reprise persona. Next is Friday's Child, which has some of Hazlewood's most beautifully-penned tunes – tracks that mix the whimsy of his bigger hits with some great darker elements. Last up is the amazing Love & Other Crimes – one of our favorite albums of the 60s, magically recorded in Paris with a very unique sound – and a style that's a bit different than some of Hazlewood's other records. Titles include "First Street Blues", "I Had A Friend", "Everybody Calls Me Something", "Me & Charlie", "A Real Live Fool", "Hutchinson Jail", "By The Way", "Houston", "Morning Dew", "The House Song", "Love & Other Crimes", "Pour Man", and "Wait & See". Bonus tracks are great too – and include Hazlewood tracks "Ode To Billie Joe", "Rainbow Woman", "I Am You Are", and "Charlie Bill Nelson" – plus other gems that include "Just Bluesin" and "Houston" by Sanford Clark, "A Stranger In Town" by The Vanguards, "The Whisk" by The Whisk Kids, "Zapata" by Jack Nitzsche, "What Are We Gonna Do In 64" by The Wildcats, "Our Man Flint" by The Ring A Dings, and "This Town" by Duane Eddy. 55 tracks in all – in a beautiful package with a gorgeous book! CD

Howlin Wolf sings the blues, and comes across in a way that influences an entire generation too – with that raw, raspy sound that made the singer a perfect blend of delta roots and contemporary sounds that were bubbling up in the postwar years! These tracks have a spare, simple, stark style that's still a lot more powerful than most of the records that tried to copy Wolf's modes in later years – mindblowing guitar work from Willie Johnson, harmonica lines that weave the whole thing together, and tremendous vocals that would shake the paint off your walls, even without any other instrumentation! Titles include "Crying At Daybreak", "Twisting & Turning", "Brown Skin Woman", "Morning At Midnight", "Backslide Boogie", "House Rockin Boogie", "Keep What You Got", and "Worried About My Baby". LP, Vinyl record album

The name of Kirk Knuffke on a record is always an indication of something fresh and special – and this time around, its presence is almost doubled by that of the great Joe McPhee – an artist we always keep an ear out for! The record is maybe more in the Knuffke side of the spectrum, but McPhee adapts beautifully – with that sensitivity that's always made him such an incredible improvising partner for a variety of different players – on sessions like this, which only continue to demonstrate that after many decades in jazz, Joe is still a creative powerhouse and one of the most versatile musicians of his generation. In addition to Kirk on cornet and McPhee on tenor, the group also features superb bass clarinet from Christof Knoche, plus bass from Michael Bisio and drums from Jay Rosen – on titles that include "The Essence Vibrates Love", "Keep The Dream Up", "They Will Say", "Take Me To The Spring", "Cracks Into Burning", and "Use Of Clay". CD

Two rare Charlie Parker albums in a single set! First up is Bird On 52nd Street – one of the more obscure Charlie Parker sessions of the 40s – at least in the original release! The material was recorded in 1948, on a home tape recorder, but not issued until after his death – part of a huge wave of Charlie Parker material that hit the market at the end of the 50s and start of the 60s! The sound here is quite raw – made even more so by the recording quality – but it also offers up a good illustration of the sheer power of Bird back in the day, the kind of bold, bracing energy that made even more than the regular jazz world sit up and take notice. The group's a quintet – with Miles Davis on trumpet, Duke Jordan on piano, Tommy Potter on bass, and Max Roach on drums – and there's been a few tape tricks in the mastering, in order to come up with a better version of some of the recordings. Tracks are short – in true bebop format – and titles include "Night In Tunisia", "Dizzy Atmosphere", "Out Of Nowhere", "My Old Flame", "How High The Moon", "This Time The Dream's On Me", "Hot House", and "Chasin The Bird". Next is Bird At St Nicks – a posthumous issue of an early 50s live set by Charlier Parker – one of the many that were rushed to the public in the years after his early death. The set, like many of the other live ones from the time, isn't recorded that well – but the music is still pretty wonderful. There's a real focus on Bird in the way the microphone was set up – so although you hear the rest of the band comping in the background, the album almost works like a session of solo sax work by Parker – as his alto is right out front in the mix, playing with a faltering style at times – but in a way that only seems to deepen our vision of his genius. Players include Red Rodney on trumpet and Al Haig on piano – and titles include "Ornithology", "Star Eyes", "Visa", "I Didn't Know What Time It Was", and "Confirmation". LP, Vinyl record album

Solo guitar by Joe Pass – a beautiful little album that's a perfect showcase for the new sensitivity in his music during his years at Pablo records! The Joe Pass heard here is light years away from the guitar player who made a few gimmicky records a decade before – and this album has Joe coming across with a gentle, but sophisticated approach to his instrument that we never would have expected in the past! Titles include "Blues For Basie", "Blues For OP", "Misty", "Grooveyard", "Giant Steps", "Five Hundred Miles High", and "Limehouse Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

Less funk than the title might imply, but still plenty darn great – thanks to a strong helping of work from Ann Peebles legendary years at Hi Records! Back in the 70s, Ann's work for Hi was second only to labelmate Al Green – and like Green, she worked in a similar slow-burning style that set a whole new sound for southern soul – one that updated an older Memphis mode into a more sophisticated, more adult groove that made tremendous use of Peebles' magnificent vocals! This 21 track package features some of the best tunes from those years – a great overview that includes "I Can't Stand The Rain", "99 LBs", "I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down", "Come To Mama", "Beware", "Slipped Tripped & Fell In Love", and "I Feel Like Breaking Up Somebody's Home". CD

The fantastic debut of Queen Latifah – a record that was done way before she was a star on the screen, and a set that also set a whole new standard for the female voice in hip hop as well! As you can tell by the cover, Latifah's got a proud, righteous vibe on the set – working with the Flavor Unit, and some especially great production from Mark The 45 King – who keeps things crisp and funky while the Queen serves up some fantastic lines! Other production work is by KRS One, Louis Vega, and Prince Paul – the last of whom handles the fantastic "Mama Gave Birth To The Soul Children", which features guest work from De La Soul. Other cuts include "Princess Of The Posse", "Ladies First", "Wrath Of My Madness", "Come Into My House", "Evil That Men Do", "A King & Queen Creation", "Latifah's Law", and "Dance For Me". CD

Roxy Music's third album, and a record that really shows that the group have found a tremendous voice of their own – quite a thing to do, given the heady brew of records that were coming out in the year of 1973! There's a style here that's familiar enough to draw the listener in – maybe some echoes of territory you might hear in work from David Bowie, Lou Reed, John Cale, or the now-solo Brian Eno – but once inside, you find yourself in a completely different world – a mad blend of guitars and strings, saxophones and electronics, all used in these ways that are tuneful enough to be catchy, but also deeply unsettling too – as are the lead vocals of Bryan Ferry, who comes across like some older European singer who's been let out of the madhouse for the sessions. This isn't a singles-heavy record, but instead an album-length journey that never gets old, even as the years move on – and which is as powerful to new ears discovering the record for the first time as to longtime fans. Titles include "Street Life", "Just Like You", "Amazona", "Psalm", "Serenade", "A Song For Europe", "Mother Of Pearl", and "Sunset". LP, Vinyl record album

Roxy Music's third album, and a record that really shows that the group have found a tremendous voice of their own – quite a thing to do, given the heady brew of records that were coming out in the year of 1973! There's a style here that's familiar enough to draw the listener in – maybe some echoes of territory you might hear in work from David Bowie, Lou Reed, John Cale, or the now-solo Brian Eno – but once inside, you find yourself in a completely different world – a mad blend of guitars and strings, saxophones and electronics, all used in these ways that are tuneful enough to be catchy, but also deeply unsettling too – as are the lead vocals of Bryan Ferry, who comes across like some older European singer who's been let out of the madhouse for the sessions. This isn't a singles-heavy record, but instead an album-length journey that never gets old, even as the years move on – and which is as powerful to new ears discovering the record for the first time as to longtime fans. Titles include "Street Life", "Just Like You", "Amazona", "Psalm", "Serenade", "A Song For Europe", "Mother Of Pearl", and "Sunset". LP, Vinyl record album

Sharply sinister work from Siouxsie Sioux and The Banshees – nicely hanging on the cusp of the punk edges of their earlier work, but also unfurling lots of the darkness to come! These guys do a heck of a lot with just a little space – that same economy of motion that's always made early Cure material so much better than all their overbloated copycats from later years. Titles include the classics "Christine" and "Happy House" – plus "Skin", "Tenant", "Trophy", "Hybrid", "Clockface", "Lunar Camel", "Desert Kisses", and "Red Face". LP, Vinyl record album

Two great 70s thrillers, back to back – both scored by the amazing Michael Small! The first stretch of the set features music from Marathon Man – the chilling mid 70s film directed by John Schlesinger, about a creepy Nazi war criminal living in New York! Small's music is wonderfully tense – as taut and dark as his famous work for Klute, with perhaps less of the warmth and sex of that film – and more of a focus on short, stark numbers that will set your hair on edge, even if you're not watching the movie. Film Score have done their usual amazing job here – and have come up with 37 tracks from the score – much more of Small's music than we might have hoped for – with cuts that include "Chase", "Nightmare Of The Past", "Scylla Stabbed", "Airport", "The Letter", "Szell Arrives", "Soccer Ball", "Tragedy At The Truck", and "Szell Escapes". The CD also features 11 more tracks from The Parallax View, also scored by Small – a dark thriller directed by Alan Pakula, with a really paranoid sort of narrative that Small's music fits wonderfully. The tunes are often quite short – these airy flourishes of sound made out of brooding string bits and tense woodwinds – and titles include "Gunmen Search", "Morgue", "Sheriff's House", "Joe's Final Run", and "Parallax Test". CD

Killer live work from the Lyman Woodard Trio – and a split set that shows much much the group kept grooving on the Detroit scene, even after their initial early 70s fame! The first half of the CD features material from 1974 – recorded at JJ's Lounge in the Shelby Hotel in the Motor City – very jazz-based, with soaring organ from Lyman himself, guitar from Ron English, and drums from Leonard King. The whole thing's nicely recorded, with a strong focus on that sweet and super-dope tone that's always made Woodard so great – as you'll hear on the cuts "Even Today", "Jumpin The Blues", "If You Could See Me Now", and "ESP". The second half of the set is from 20 years later – recorded in 1993 at Sully's Roadhouse – with the same trio, equally tight and funky! In fact, the 1993 set's almost funkier, as it's got some originals by Woodard that are mighty nice – the titles "Lyman's Montuno" and "Belle Isle Daze" – next to the cuts "I Got A Woman", "Drown In My Own Tears", and "A Fine Romance". CD