A Japanese only compilation of one of our all time favorite hip hop groups! Includes "Just Hangin Out", "Fakin The Funk", "Just A Friendly Game Of Baseball (rmx)", "Peace Is Not The Word To Play", "Live At The Barbeque", "Snake Eyes", "Looking At The Front Door", "Watch Roger Do His Thing" and "Down Low" + 9 more! CD

A record that no hip hop home should be without – the debut album from Main Source, but a set that's more than strong enough to stand next to the best from contemporaries like De La Soul, Tribe Called Quest, and Black Sheep! Like all three of those groups, these guys have a way of bringing together fresh rhythms and samples, sharp-edged writing, and a keen sense of wit – all part of that next-generation level of intellectual hip hop that made them so groundbreaking at the time – and which still makes this album a fantastic delight all these many years later! The album introduced the world to the genius of Large Professor – and continues to shine for decades, thanks to tunes that include "Snake Eyes", "Looking At The Front Door", "Live At The Barbecue", "Just A Friendly Game Of Baseball", "Peace Is Not The Word To Play", "Watch Roger Do His Thang", "He Got So Much Soul (He Don't Need No Music)", and "Just Hangin Out". CD

A record that no hip hop home should be without – the debut album from Main Source, but a set that's more than strong enough to stand next to the best from contemporaries like De La Soul, Tribe Called Quest, and Black Sheep! Like all three of those groups, these guys have a way of bringing together fresh rhythms and samples, sharp-edged writing, and a keen sense of wit – all part of that next-generation level of intellectual hip hop that made them so groundbreaking at the time – and which still makes this album a fantastic delight all these many years later! The album introduced the world to the genius of Large Professor – and continues to shine for decades, thanks to tunes that include "Snake Eyes", "Looking At The Front Door", "Live At The Barbecue", "Just A Friendly Game Of Baseball", "Peace Is Not The Word To Play", "Watch Roger Do His Thang", "He Got So Much Soul (He Don't Need No Music)", and "Just Hangin Out". CD

A record that no hip hop home should be without – the debut album from Main Source, but a set that's more than strong enough to stand next to the best from contemporaries like De La Soul, Tribe Called Quest, and Black Sheep! Like all three of those groups, these guys have a way of bringing together fresh rhythms and samples, sharp-edged writing, and a keen sense of wit – all part of that next-generation level of intellectual hip hop that made them so groundbreaking at the time – and which still makes this album a fantastic delight all these many years later! The album introduced the world to the genius of Large Professor – and continues to shine for decades, thanks to tunes that include "Snake Eyes", "Looking At The Front Door", "Live At The Barbecue", "Just A Friendly Game Of Baseball", "Peace Is Not The Word To Play", "Watch Roger Do His Thang", "He Got So Much Soul (He Don't Need No Music)", and "Just Hangin Out". LP, Vinyl record album

A long-delayed album from Main Source – one that was recorded back in the early 90s, but never really saw the light of day until 5 years later – a record that features a revised version of the group, but still working with all the best energy that made them so wonderful on their debut! Large Professor is out, but Mikey D does a mighty nice job as the MC – working with cuts that are mostly produced by K-Cut, with a few more by Sir Scratch – all sharing that lean love of key samples and laidback vibes that make Main Source such a standout act, even all these many years later! The style here is almost a refinement of the Native Tongues approach, taking things to a core, while also adding a bit of NYC street to the mix – on titles that include the classic "Set It Off", plus "F*ck What You Think", "Down Low", "What You Need", "Where We're Coming From", "Hellavision", and "Diary Of A Hitman". CD features the bonus track "Breaking It Down". CD

A fantastic cut from Main Source – one that steps loud and proud with a killer Lou Donaldson sample and some mighty Idris Muhammad drums! "Vamos A Rapiar" is one of the overlooked nuggets on their first album – served up here on a limited and mighty nice 7" picture disc single! 7-inch, Vinyl record

A great pairing of early genius from Main Source – their drum-snapping "Live At The Barbeque" – matched with a majestic ode to "Large Professor" – all served up on a very cool, limited edition 7" pic disc! 7-inch, Vinyl record

The never-issued second album from Main Source – and a set that's a very worthy successor to their classic Breaking Atoms! As with that record, the production here is superb – Large Professor at his best, with all the right sort of early 90s jazz influence in the samples, balanced with the group's trademark bite and wit in the lyrics – all at a level that makes for a record that shoulda been a classic back in the day! The set's got a fair bit of interludes, maybe to space out the vocal tracks for the full length release – but given the production, and great ear for found spoken bits, they seem to further the delightful quality of the record, as on an early De La set. Titles include an uncut version of "Looking At The Front Door", an unreleased version of "Fakin The Funk", and the tracks "Hellavision", "How My Man Went Down In The Game", "Time (part 2)", "Raise Up", and "Bootlegging". LP, Vinyl record album

The never-issued second album from Main Source – and a set that's a very worthy successor to their classic Breaking Atoms! As with that record, the production here is superb – Large Professor at his best, with all the right sort of early 90s jazz influence in the samples, balanced with the group's trademark bite and wit in the lyrics – all at a level that makes for a record that shoulda been a classic back in the day! The set's got a fair bit of interludes, maybe to space out the vocal tracks for the full length release – but given the production, and great ear for found spoken bits, they seem to further the delightful quality of the record, as on an early De La set. Titles include an uncut version of "Looking At The Front Door", an unreleased version of "Fakin The Funk", and the tracks "Hellavision", "How My Man Went Down In The Game", "Time (part 2)", "Raise Up", and "Bootlegging". CD features the bonus track "Fakin The Funk (soundtrack version)". CD

A record that no hip hop home should be without – the debut album from Main Source, but a set that's more than strong enough to stand next to the best from contemporaries like De La Soul, Tribe Called Quest, and Black Sheep! Like all three of those groups, these guys have a way of bringing together fresh rhythms and samples, sharp-edged writing, and a keen sense of wit – all part of that next-generation level of intellectual hip hop that made them so groundbreaking at the time – and which still makes this album a fantastic delight all these many years later! The album introduced the world to the genius of Large Professor – and continues to shine for decades, thanks to tunes that include "Snake Eyes", "Looking At The Front Door", "Live At The Barbecue", "Just A Friendly Game Of Baseball", "Peace Is Not The Word To Play", "Watch Roger Do His Thang", "He Got So Much Soul (He Don't Need No Music)", and "Just Hangin Out". LP, Vinyl record album

A record that no hip hop home should be without – the one and only album from Main Source, but a set that's more than strong enough to stand next to the best from contemporaries like De La Soul, Tribe Called Quest, and Black Sheep! Like all three of those groups, these guys have a way of bringing together fresh rhythms and samples, sharp-edged writing, and a keen sense of wit – all part of that next-generation level of intellectual hip hop that made them so groundbreaking at the time – and which still makes this album a fantastic delight all these many years later! The album introduced the world to the genius of Large Professor – and continues to shine for decades, thanks to tunes that include "Snake Eyes", "Looking At The Front Door", "Live At The Barbecue", "Just A Friendly Game Of Baseball", "Peace Is Not The Word To Play", "Watch Roger Do His Thang", "He Got So Much Soul (He Don't Need No Music)", and "Just Hangin Out". LP, Vinyl record album

A great single-only track from Main Source – and maybe the greatest thing ever about the White Men Can't Rap project! The tune's a sharp attack on wanna-bes in the hip hop world, served up by one of the best of the time – all delivered with that sharp crackle that makes Main Source so wonderful over the years! "He Got So Much Soul" is great too – this really skittish little number that cascades with funky drums, bassline, and a bit of trumpet as Main Source spins out their rhymes effortlessly! All served up on a limited pic disc single too! 7-inch, Vinyl record

One of our favorite cuts ever from Main Source – the tremendous "Looking At The Front Door", a tune that rides strongly on a great Donald Byrd sample to give it a righteous jazzy groove! Single also includes "Snake Eyes" from the Breaking Atoms LP – and the feel of this limited pic disc 45 is mighty nice! 7-inch, Vinyl record

A special mix of sultry soul tunes from the Naked Music label – all hand picked and put together by Japan's Soul Source Production! Although other Soul Source sets are often strongly aimed at the dancefloor, this one's often nicely laidback and late nite – very much in the mellower soul side of the Naked Music label, yet still with a few more upbeat groovers from time to time. If you know the Naked groove, you know what to expect – plenty of warm tones, soulful vocals, and a style that's contemporary, yet graced with a range of classic influences. Titles include "Afterhours" and "Sean" by Aya, "Nowhere (Onda Sgt Pepper mix) and "True Love (Streetlife Originals voc)" by Aquanote, "Give It Back" by Gaelle, "Let It Ride (Jimpser main voc)" by Lisa Shaw, "All I Need (Cpen's late night rework)" by Andy Caldwell, "Music & Wine (Mig's Petalpusher voc)" by Blue Six, "Everyday (Bougie Soliterre main mix)" by Central Living, "Sidewaze" by Nightsource, and "Try" by Arvid with Ernesto. CD

A pivotal album from the early 90s – one that not only furthered the rebirth of live funk instrumentation at a time when ditigal elements dominated the scene – but also really opened up that mode to a whole new generation of hip hop as well! At a time when the music was all about the samples and beats, Brand New Heavies took it back to the generation before – and provided live instrumentation for a host of fantastic talents – a legendary lineup that includes performances from Main Source, The Pharcyde, Black Sheep, Kool G Rap, Gang Starr, and Masta Ace – all young and at the top of their game, with a quality level that alone would make the album great – then really sends it over the top when paired with the instrumentation! The whole thing's amazing – still maybe yet to be topped in such a style – and titles include "Who Makes The Loot", "It's Getting Hectic", "Wake Me When I'm Dead", "Soul Flower", and "Bonafide Funk". LP, Vinyl record album

A keyboard classic from Henry Mancini – and one of his greatest soundtracks ever! The album's far far different than most of Mancini's other work – a stripped-down, slow-funk batch of tracks that mix together keyboards and organ, riffing out over rhythm and strings, in a mode that would make Quincy Jones weep! The main theme is a stunner – and it rolls out again and again in different versions with a nice moogy bit behind it, sounding almost like an Italian soundtrack tune – but with a lot more spacey soul! The rest of the soundtrack follows suit – sliding forward in a brilliantly slinky way – all without any common cliches of the time, and an amazingly balanced groove. Titles include "Tail Gate", "Jackie's Theme", "Dog Eat Dog", "Theme From Thief Who Came To Dinner", "Getaway", and "First Job". CD features a huge amount of bonus tracks – 17 more numbers that include rare additional soundtrack tunes, a few demos, and even some odd "country source music. Great stuff all around – and put together with sublime Film Score mastering, photos, and notes. CD

Killer dub from a main source, featuring Jammy going strong on batch of his own productions – laid at Channel One by an all star cast! PJ was inspired by the kung fu cinema craze at the time, creating a crackling, hotly simmering instrumentals set that seriously transcends the dub sound style of the time. Players includes Sly & Robbie, Santa Davis, Jah Mickey, Chinna Smith, Duggie, Bo Peep, Bingy Bunny, Winston Wright, Ansell Collins, Augustus Pablo, Keith Sterling, Skully Sims, Cool Sticky, Bobby Ellis and Deadly Headley Bennett! 10 deadly tracks in all, including "Throne Of Blood", "Brothers Of The Blade", "Shaolin Temple", "Kamikazi", "Oragami Black Belt", "Fist Of Fury", "Opium Den", "Swords Of Vengeance", "Downtown Shanghai Rock" and "Waterfront Gang War". LP, Vinyl record album

The soundtrack to John Singleton's landmark film that set the stage for so man inner city set films to come from the big Hollywood and indie studios – putting the city of Compton on the map for a lot of folks, and making Ice Cube a household name! What makes Boyz N The The Hood – the album stand the test of time so well as that it wasn't really a snapshot of the sounds of 1991, fairly diverse and far reaching even at the time. Includes Main Source's " Just A Friendly Game Of Baseball (Remix)", some nice early West Coast G Funk tracks like Ice Cube's "How To Survive In South Central" and Compton's Most Wanted's "Growin Up In The Hood", KAM's "Every Single Weekend", Yo Yo "Mama Don't Take No Mess", and songs from from Tone! Toni! Tony!, Monie Love, Tevin Campbell. 14 in all. CD

Queen Latifah's second album – still very much in the prime of her early hip hop career! Latifah's got some great help here – and is working with beats by the 45 King, Naughty By Nature, K Cut of Main Source, and an incorrectly credited Louie Vega – all of whom bring some sharper edges to the work than you might expect from her later years. Titles include "Latifah's Had It Up 2 Here", "Nuff Of The Ruff Stuff", "Give Me Your Love", "Fly Girl", "Nature Of A Sista", "That's The Way We Flow", and "How Do I Love Thee". CD

Nice hip hop mix with tracks from All Natural, DJ Cam, DJ Revolution, Dilated Peoples, Oh No, Tha Alkaholiks, Rasco, Big Noyd, Main Source, Jurassic 5, and more. CD

A pivotal album from the early 90s – one that not only furthered the rebirth of live funk instrumentation at a time when ditigal elements dominated the scene – but also really opened up that mode to a whole new generation of hip hop as well! At a time when the music was all about the samples and beats, Brand New Heavies took it back to the generation before – and provided live instrumentation for a host of fantastic talents – a legendary lineup that includes performances from Main Source, The Pharcyde, Black Sheep, Kool G Rap, Gang Starr, and Masta Ace – all young and at the top of their game, with a quality level that alone would make the album great – then really sends it over the top when paired with the instrumentation! The whole thing's amazing – still maybe yet to be topped in such a style – and titles include "Who Makes The Loot", "It's Getting Hectic", "Wake Me When I'm Dead", "Soul Flower", and "Bonafide Funk". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the darkest Roy Budd scores ever – designed to accompany a brutal police film starring Charles Bronson! The main theme has a nice electronic sound that's kind of like the "Mystery Movie" theme from the 70s – then the score moves into some nicely moody regions that feature spare Fender Rhodes riffs underpinned by dark orchestral scoring! Occasional beats and jazzy rhythms move into the picture from time to time, and the album has one nice groovy vocal track – the sweet "Black Is Beautiful", which features Roy on electric keys, and some nice female vocals, very much in the tradition of one of the vocal numbers from Get Carter. Titles include "Jazz Source", "Cool Bossa Source", "Too Late", "Main Titles", and "M3 (sk 1)". Nice stuff, and one of Budd's best moments from the 70s – served up here in an expanded version, with 27 tracks in all! LP, Vinyl record album

Queen Latifah's second album – still very much in the prime of her early hip hop career! Latifah's got some great help here – and is working with beats by the 45 King, Naughty By Nature, K Cut of Main Source, and an incorrectly credited Louie Vega – all of whom bring some sharper edges to the work than you might expect from her later years. Titles include "Latifah's Had It Up 2 Here", "Nuff Of The Ruff Stuff", "Give Me Your Love", "Fly Girl", "Nature Of A Sista", "That's The Way We Flow", and "How Do I Love Thee". LP, Vinyl record album

A long-overdue package – one that finally brings together all the many strands of music from underground Cali rock legend Merrell Fankhauser! CD1 features some of Merrell's earliest music – a host of early singles by Merrell & The Exiles, some of which were issued on the Glenn and Golden Crown labels – mixed here with rare unissued titles too – for a whopping 19 tracks that offer up a rare look at Fankhauser's earliest years! CD2 features the classic Fapardokly record – a lost bit of legend from the west coast scene of the 60s – and a record that's maybe best-known as a showcase for the early genius of Merrell Fankhauser – who wrote most of the songs on the set, a good number of which were actually recorded for the record by his previous group, The Exiles! Yet despite that little bit of trivia, there's a great vibe going on here – a seminal shift in the Cali scene from garagey work to trippier modes – served up beautifully on titles that include "Glass Chandelier", "Suzie Cryin", "Tomorrow's Girl", "Lila", "Mr Clock", "No Retreat", "Gone To Pot", "When I Get Home", "Supermarket", and "The Music Scene". CD3 features the album Things, recorded by Merrell Fankhauser & HMS Bounty – a perfect blend of Fankhauser's earlier garage rock modes and latter trippier styles! The tunes are short and wonderfully tuneful – produced at Gold Star studios, with a simple, straightforward style that makes all the deftness of the songwriting come through even more – an approach that, although supposedly steeped in Pacific Ocean inspiration, almost feels more like that great moment when some UK groups of the mid 60s were tripping out, but not too much. Titles include "Lost In The City", "Your Painted Lives", "In A Minute Not Too Soon", "A Visit With Ashiya", "The Big Gray Sky", and "Rich Man's Fable". CD4 features MU – an incredible record, and one that really lives up to all its well-deserved legend over the years – one of those sets that's not just rare, but which has all the chops to really deliver the goods! A few short years before, Merrell Fankhauser was recording garage and psych on the LA scene – but here, he steps off the latter with a bit of post-60s hangover – working with a current of darkness that really changes things up, while still providing a great outlet for his legendary work on guitar – and his mindblowing sense of a lyric! Titles include "Ballad Of Brother Lew", "Eternal Thirst", "Too Naked For Demetrius", "Mumbella Baye Tu La", "The Clouds Went That Way", and "Nobody Wants To Shine". CD5 features MU's The Last Album – 20 more tracks recorded in 1974, but unissued for many years – and CD6 features the legendary Maui album from the enigmatic Merrell Fankhauser – a self-released set that drew inspiration from his time in Hawaii – even though the set was mostly recorded in LA and San Francisco! The tunes are beautiful – nicely evolved from Merrell's psych of earlier years, with a much more personal vibe – yet all without some of those west coast cliches that were creeping into more mainstream music of the period. You might get the vibe partly right if you could maybe imagine a more personal singer/songwriter take on the AOR vibe of the period – with leaner, better instrumentation and unslick production – but that's also only part of the picture too! Titles include "On Our Way To Hana", "Make A Joyful Noise", "Garden In The Rain", "Waterfall", "The Source", "Sail It Over The Ocean", and "We Were All Free". Box set features a very detailed book of notes – bonus tracks added to most of the albums, and a massive 95 tracks in all! CD

Never-issued performances from Sun Ra and his legendary Arkestra – recorded live at Slugs in New York, and featuring the group in two very different modes! Side one features "Calling Planet Earth/We'll Wait For You" – from the same performance that also gave the world the Universe In Blue album – but presented with a very wild, freely improvised sound! The tune runs for well over 20 minutes, and features lots of shifts in presence and power from the individual instruments – with some especially great bass clarinet from Eloe Omoe, who takes a great solo – as well as work from John Gilmore on tenor, Danny Davis on alto, Ronnie Boykins on bass, and Kwame Hadi on trumpet. June Tyson also sings a bit – although the instrumental passages are the strongest draw. The remaining two tracks are much more in the Strange Strings sound of the group – although maybe looser and freer than the work on that album – as they feature mostly stringed instruments, from a variety of global sources, mixed with some woodwind elements and a bit of percussion – almost with a vibe that's like the mid 50s Moondog discovering free jazz! Titles for these two tracks include "Moonshots Across The Sky" and "Thunder Of The Gods". CD

Never-issued performances from Sun Ra and his legendary Arkestra – recorded live at Slugs in New York, and featuring the group in two very different modes! Side one features "Calling Planet Earth/We'll Wait For You" – from the same performance that also gave the world the Universe In Blue album – but presented with a very wild, freely improvised sound! The tune runs for well over 20 minutes, and features lots of shifts in presence and power from the individual instruments – with some especially great bass clarinet from Eloe Omoe, who takes a great solo – as well as work from John Gilmore on tenor, Danny Davis on alto, Ronnie Boykins on bass, and Kwame Hadi on trumpet. June Tyson also sings a bit – although the instrumental passages are the strongest draw. The remaining two tracks are much more in the Strange Strings sound of the group – although maybe looser and freer than the work on that album – as they feature mostly stringed instruments, from a variety of global sources, mixed with some woodwind elements and a bit of percussion – almost with a vibe that's like the mid 50s Moondog discovering free jazz! Titles for these two tracks include "Moonshots Across The Sky" and "Thunder Of The Gods". LP, Vinyl record album

A great little collection that's maybe the opposite of the long-running tradition of "desert island discs" – in that the music here is hardly essential, but would be plenty of fun to hear if you were trapped alone with nowhere else to go! Think of the set as the darker side of exotica at the end of the 50s – a spot where tropical sounds mix with Latin rhythms and some rockish touches too – material from the years before surf guitars were really hitting the mainstream, but older modes were being infused with a bit of electricity and new modes of production – all in ways that make for some very cool cuts collected in the set! The package brings together rare singles from a variety of sources – and titles include "Jivaro" by Harvey Anderson, "Babalu" by Phyllis Branch, "The Lonely Sea" by Rick & Trisha, "Strictly Polynesian" by Davy Jones & The Dolphins, "Midnight" by Hank Levine, "Bongo Heat" by Coral & The South Seas, "Martinique" by Ty & Ed, "Atlantis" by Blue Bells, "Rumba Rhapsody" by Hector Cari & The Dancing Strings, "Ho Ba La La" by Dariel Kay, and "Miserlou" by Vitin Aviles Y Su Orquesta. LP, Vinyl record album

A huge record in its day and it hasn't aged a minute since! On Psychocandy the Reid brothers took all the underground Brit indie psych revival modes and filtered them through the Velvet Underground at their noisiest, then paired melodies learned from sources as sweet as 60s Wall Of Sound pop and the Beach Boys to ferociously fuzzy guitars – and stunning found a way to spring this onto to fringes of the mainstream on both sides of the Atlantic! Hugely influential – a record that points the way towards sounds so many would soon follow. Titles include "In A Hole", "The Hardest Walk", "Taste The Floor", "Just Like Honey", "Never Understand", and "You Trip Me Up". LP, Vinyl record album

Jazzy goodness galore – a set of really well-chosen tracks that we're not sure we've ever seen reissued before – mostly from obscure sources that might well have remained underdiscovered otherwise! Jazz is at the key, but there's also some soulful vocal moments too – and most tracks are long, and have a vibe that's a nice change from funky jazz or spiritual modes – even though there's still plenty of soulful energy throughout the set! Instrumentation is both electric and acoustic, and styles change up nicely – in ways that make each new track a great discovery, even if you've got ears that are well-trained on years of record digging. Titles include "On Dit" by Sara Alexander, "On A Winder's Day" by Afrodisax, "For You" by Dave Plaehn, "Pre-Stretch Warm Up" by Rick Panzer, "Du Ar Frisk" by Roger Ekman, "Philosophy" by Anne Marie Giortz, "Sengakuji" by Urban Hansson, and "Alcohol" by Rene Van Helsdingen. LP, Vinyl record album

A very groovy entry in this all-great series – a set of compilations that have been giving us really wonderful funk for many years, and which just seems to get better and better with each new entry! The tracks here are a hip mix of styles – not just familiar funk and soul sources, but some funky tracks from other surprising records too – presented together in a way that makes for a nice sense of variety, even while the cuts are all still staying in the groove! Titles include "Who Is She & What Is She To You" by Madelaine, "Golden Ring" by American Gypsy, "Just One Time" by Juicy Lucy, "Condor" by Geoff Love, "Steal Away" by Photoglo, "The One You Love" by Joey Newman, "Metropolis" by Walter Hawkins, "Happiness Is Just Around The Bend" by Main Ingredient, "Seacoast" by Archie Whitewater, and "Strange Games & Things" by Love Unlimited Orchestra. CD

A hilarious book, and one that's exactly what it promises in the title – a huge compendium of once-popular advertisements that are now pretty darn creepy by today's standards! Almost all the ads are from old magazines, presented here in both color and black and white – depending on the original source – and they're about as sexist, racist, and misguided as you might imagine – filled with bad advice, false claims, surprising images, and all sorts of goofy stuff that makes the book as funny as it is historical. 166 pages, color, softcover. Book

Surprisingly great post-Philly International work from Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes – recorded at a time when the group had actually let a female singer into their ranks! Sharon Paige is the lady here – and she creates a nice sense of interplay with the male singers in the group – that sort of back and forth that you might find in some of Al Hudson's work with One Way, or in a variety of other funky club acts who were rising in the mainstream at the time. Harold Melvin produced, and there's some definite late Philly moments in the tracks "Prayin" and "Baby I'm Back" – but the greatest charm of the album possibly comes from tracks that change things up a bit, including "I Should Be Your Lover", "Tonight's The Night", and "Your Love Is Taking Me On A Journey". LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful collection of Alan Lomax field recordings from the southern US at the end of the 50s/dawn of the 60s – Lomax's legendary Southern Journey – in which he set out to document the still made southern folk music that had decades earlier influenced the jazz and blues that changed popular music in the US forever! Lomax travelled throughout the American South with the support and resources of Atlantic Records, essentially proving that traditional American folk music – mountain songs, work songs, weary ballads, spirituals and more songs of the poor was still being made. Many of the recordings went on to be released in the early 60s on Atlantic's Southern Folk Heritage series, and many more on the Prestige label. Selections from those, as well as some previously unreleased tracks are on this great vinyl series on Mississippi. Compiled and annotated by Nathan Salsburg. Titles include "Number 111" by JE Mainer's Mountaineers, ""61 Highway" by Fred McDowell, "Shout Lula" by Emma Hammond, "I'm Going Home" by Ervin Webb & Prisoners, "I'm Gonna Live Anyhow Until I Die" by Miles & Bob Pratcher and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Two amazing works from Belgian electronic genius Alain Pierre – both appearing in this form for the first time ever! Side one features 11 minutes of continuous music that Pierre created for the short film O Sidarta – music that mixes a range of electronics, keyboards, and acoustic percussion with studio effects and voice – all with a result that almost feels like some of the longer-form prog creations of the German scene of the time – although with qualities that are much more varied, less rock-based, and with occasional nods to the earlier generation of musique concrete! The flipside features the 17 minute "Notions De Physique Intererieure" – a work that uses a wide array of electric sources in a very short space – theremin, Arp sequencer, Telefunken echomixer, and more Arp, Kort, and Oberheim keyboards – all in this slow-building, wonderfully spacey sort of mode – almost hinting at some of the straighter fantasy soundtracks that Pierre would create in the mainstream – as the piece has the feel of a story in sound! LP, Vinyl record album

Really great sounds from the legendary Denny Zeitlin – an entry in his series of electro-acoustic improvisations with drummer George Marsh – and a record that has Zeitlin on a range of keyboards and electronics, in addition to his more familiar acoustic piano! It's that instrument which first brought Denny attention in the 60s, but over the years, he's also developed a surprisingly strong ear for electric sources – often using them in very different ways, sounding especially great in the freer setting of duo improvisations like these! George handles a bit of percussion, but mostly makes his main magic on the drum kit – and titles include "The Ascent", "Fillmore Dreams", "Hadron Collider", "Disagree To Agree", "Quicksilver", "Hatching", and "Black Hole". CD

Don't be put off by the cheesy look of the cover – as the set's filled with cool, classy funk rarities – a really wonderful selection of tracks that features plenty of gems that work perfectly here together! The long-running Mood Mosaic series has been at it longer than most – and they've continued to really grow and expand their musical palette as the years have gone on – so that by the time of this 18th volume, you'll find an amazing blend of cuts from jazz, soul, Brazilian, rock, and other global sources – brought together in a really beautiful mix of funky moods and modes! Titles include "Growing" by Hareton Salvanini, "Ceddo" by Manu Dibango, "Love To Fly" by Venus Gang, "Gang Train" by Bernard Estardy, "Coasting" by A Band Called O, "Some Kind Of Fever" by Maxine Sellers, "Slabo Day" by Peter Green, "Soul Raga" by Mehrpouya, "Main Theme" by Rosebod, and "Nijana" by Jana Koubkova. LP, Vinyl record album

Surprisingly great post-Philly International work from Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes – recorded at a time when the group had actually let a female singer into their ranks! Sharon Paige is the lady here – and she creates a nice sense of interplay with the male singers in the group – that sort of back and forth that you might find in some of Al Hudson's work with One Way, or in a variety of other funky club acts who were rising in the mainstream at the time. Harold Melvin produced, and there's some definite late Philly moments in the tracks "Prayin" and "Baby I'm Back" – but the greatest charm of the album possibly comes from tracks that change things up a bit, including "I Should Be Your Lover", "Tonight's The Night", and "Your Love Is Taking Me On A Journey". CD

Weird and wild garage tracks from the mid 60s – but work that's usually got a feel that's a lot different than more familiar sounds from the time! Lots of these tunes are from weird, offbeat sources – some overseas, but still mostly American – but produced by artists who have a very personal, offbeat vibe – with lots of strange echoes of styles that are quite far from the mainstream. Plus, we've never seen any of these tracks before – and the package is way different than the usual collection of this nature. Titles include "Last Drop Of Wine" by Jimm Olson, "How I Feel" by Little Willie & The Wonders, "Like Stoned" by The Bohemians, "Gone To The Moon" by The Savages, "Leaving My Old Life Behind" by Jonathan Halper, and "Don't Break My Heart" by Vicki Lynn. LP, Vinyl record album

A very groovy entry in this all-great series – a set of compilations that have been giving us really wonderful funk for many years, and which just seems to get better and better with each new entry! The tracks here are a hip mix of styles – not just familiar funk and soul sources, but some funky tracks from other surprising records too – presented together in a way that makes for a nice sense of variety, even while the cuts are all still staying in the groove! Titles include "Who Is She & What Is She To You" by Madelaine, "Golden Ring" by American Gypsy, "Just One Time" by Juicy Lucy, "Condor" by Geoff Love, "Steal Away" by Photoglo, "The One You Love" by Joey Newman, "Metropolis" by Walter Hawkins, "Happiness Is Just Around The Bend" by Main Ingredient, "Seacoast" by Archie Whitewater, and "Strange Games & Things" by Love Unlimited Orchestra. LP, Vinyl record album

Don't be put off by the cheesy look of the cover – as the set's filled with cool, classy funk rarities – a really wonderful selection of tracks that features plenty of gems that work perfectly here together! The long-running Mood Mosaic series has been at it longer than most – and they've continued to really grow and expand their musical palette as the years have gone on – so that by the time of this 18th volume, you'll find an amazing blend of cuts from jazz, soul, Brazilian, rock, and other global sources – brought together in a really beautiful mix of funky moods and modes! Titles include "Growing" by Hareton Salvanini, "Ceddo" by Manu Dibango, "Love To Fly" by Venus Gang, "Gang Train" by Bernard Estardy, "Coasting" by A Band Called O, "Some Kind Of Fever" by Maxine Sellers, "Slabo Day" by Peter Green, "Soul Raga" by Mehrpouya, "Main Theme" by Rosebod, and "Nijana" by Jana Koubkova. CD

Japanese disco from a host of very cool sources – most of which appear to be rare 7" singles, pictured inside the cover – but which seem to also include music from a number of film and pop stars as well! This is definitely disco on the poppier side of the spectrum, but the grooves are plenty great – and full of some of the more electric modes you'd know from mainstream Japanese music of the time – really delightful sounds from the generation before city pop, and music that's often put together with a style that really points the way forward to the 80s generation to come! Notes and all titles are in Japanese – as is the language of all tracks – and the set features work from a nice variety of different artists, with 16 tracks in all. CD