About as classic as you can get for The Spinners – and one of the group's marvelous 70s collaborations with the mighty Thom Bell! Before hooking up with Philly, The Spinners were already a wonderful vocal group – but here, in the hands of Bell, they hit a sound that's completely sublime – a mix of well-crafted harmonies and well-directed backings – soaring one minute, gently fragile the next – all delivered with the same sort of charm that you might expect from Blue Magic or The Stylistics at their best. Like those groups, The Spinners here manage a depth that goes way beyond simple hitmaking soul – as you'll hear on the album's wonderful assortment of tracks that include "Mighty Love", "He'll Never Love You Like I Do", "Love Don't Love Nobody", "Ain't No Price On Happiness", "Since I Been Gone", and "I'm Glad You Walked Into My Life". CD also features 4 bonus tracks – "I Wish I Could Sleep", "I Just Gotta Make It Happen", "Mr Big Man", and "You Sure Are Nasty". CD

Tremendous work from Bill Evans – one of his rare non-trio sides of the 60s – and a stunning batch of tunes with backings from the mighty Claus Ogerman! Most of the tunes here are of classical origin, but they're recast by Evans and Ogerman with almost a soundtrack sensitivity – Bill's piano up front, moving spaciously at very much its own pace – none of the too-virtuoso styles of other 60s jazz-meets-classical players. And Ogerman's backings are also great too – hardly ever strong, and more just light shading amidst the notes of Bill's piano – beautifully sliding in to bring a nice level of warm to the tunes. Titles include a sublime reading of "Pavane", plus the tracks "Granadas", "Time Remembered", "Blue Interlude", "Elegy", and "My Bells". LP, Vinyl record album

A really cool little record that's essentially the start of the great musical legacy of Ellen McIlwaine – a group effort, but one that still features Ellen on vocals and arrangements – as well as work on harmonica, guitar, and organ! The style is more blues-influenced than some of the acoustic moments of McIlwaine's great Polydor records from a few years later – but as with those, there's also a genre-defying approach that's mighty nice – with some currents of funk in the offbeat arrangements, which really keeps things interesting! Lead guitar is from Chris Zaloom, who has a heavier, headier quality than you might expect – and titles include "Crawling Kingsnake", "The Letter", "Mossy Dream", "Billy Gene", "Born Under A Bad Sign", and "Bow'd Up". CD

BB King soars into the 70s with this smoking little set – a record that still holds onto all the raw energy of his best 60s recordings, but which also gives the whole thing an even more soulful focus too! There's no arranger credited for the core of the record – which is attributed to "everybody" in the group, which you can definitely hear in the wickedly spontaneous playing of the combo – especially the mighty drummer Herbie Lovelle, whose work here really gives King a new sort of kick. Bert DeCoteaux adds a bit of larger backings at points, but usually very gently – in ways that are hardly noticeable at all – as BB's guitar is right out front, wailing with lots of raw energy. Titles include "Key To My Kingdom", "Confessin The Blues", "No Good", "You're Losing Me", "So Excited", and the classic "Thrill Is Gone". LP, Vinyl record album

A rare soul treasure – previously unissued work from Little Willie John, cut for Capitol Records by the mighty David Axelrod! The pairing is quite unique, but it's a great one – and if anything, Little Willie John sparkles here even more than on his later King sides – finding a hipper 60s groove that moves way past older R&B modes! Willie's vocals are still wonderful, and they're set up here with arrangements from HB Barnum – who brings in plenty of bounce, snap, and vamp to the grooves – similar to his more famous Axelrod productions for Lou Rawls, but rougher and grittier here in the company of John. A few cuts bring in more ambitious backings – taking Little Willie into the same space as his longtime fan and supporter James Brown – at least in the way Brown hit ballads during the 60s – and given Axelrod's hand in the studio, there's a clarity here that the singer hardly would have found at King Records, who blocked the initial release of this material back in the 60s. CD features 20 tracks in all – a number of alternates, and the master takes – with tunes that include "Crying Over You", "Country Girl", "Suffering With The Blues", "Never Let Me Go", "I Had A Dream", "In The Dark", "Welcome To The Club", "I Need Someone", and "Early In The Morning". CD

One of the greatest albums ever from the legendary soul singer Curtis Mayfield – even though it's different than most of the rest as well! Curtis is captured here in a small club, with a tight band, spinning out these extended readings of some of his best tunes – both tracks he sang with The Impressions, and as a solo act – completely transformed here in the righteous energy of the setting! The vibe is similar to the classic Donny Hathaway Live album from the same time – save for the fact that this set is double-length, and maybe even more powerful as Curtis sings and plays guitar in a small group with additional guitar, bass, and drums – and some very hip percussion from Master Henry Gibson, of Pharoahs fame. Tracks include "We the People Who Are Darker Than Blue", "Stare and Stare", "Check Out Your Mind", "Stone Junkie", "I Plan To Stay A Believer", "If There's A Hell Below We're All Going To Go", "Mighty Mighty", and "The Makings Of You". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest albums ever from the legendary soul singer Curtis Mayfield – even though it's different than most of the rest as well! Curtis is captured here in a small club, with a tight band, spinning out these extended readings of some of his best tunes – both tracks he sang with The Impressions, and as a solo act – completely transformed here in the righteous energy of the setting! The vibe is similar to the classic Donny Hathaway Live album from the same time – save for the fact that this set is double-length, and maybe even more powerful as Curtis sings and plays guitar in a small group with additional guitar, bass, and drums – and some very hip percussion from Master Henry Gibson, of Pharoahs fame. Tracks include "We the People Who Are Darker Than Blue", "Stare and Stare", "Check Out Your Mind", "Stone Junkie", "I Plan To Stay A Believer", "If There's A Hell Below We're All Going To Go", "Mighty Mighty", and "The Makings Of You". CD

One of the greatest albums ever from the legendary soul singer Curtis Mayfield – even though it's different than most of the rest as well! Curtis is captured here in a small club, with a tight band, spinning out these extended readings of some of his best tunes – both tracks he sang with The Impressions, and as a solo act – completely transformed here in the righteous energy of the setting! The vibe is similar to the classic Donny Hathaway Live album from the same time – save for the fact that this set is double-length, and maybe even more powerful as Curtis sings and plays guitar in a small group with additional guitar, bass, and drums – and some very hip percussion from Master Henry Gibson, of Pharoahs fame. Tracks include "We the People Who Are Darker Than Blue", "Stare and Stare", "Check Out Your Mind", "Stone Junkie", "I Plan To Stay A Believer", "If There's A Hell Below We're All Going To Go", "Mighty Mighty", and "The Makings Of You". LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent set of material from the Bay Area bassist James Leary – a package that brings together one rare album, and a whole host of unreleased recordings as well! The core album is Legacy – originally issued on the tiny Blue Collar label at the start of the 80s, and a wonderful set that features plenty of tenor work from Joe Henderson – a really much-needed document of Joe's tremendous sound during this under-recorded period of his career – and very heavy in those sharp, dark tones he used on the Mirror Mirror album! The rest of the group is great – a core combo with George Cables on piano, Eddie Marshall on drums, and Kenneth Nash on percussion – augmented by some larger backings at times, but always in a relatively subtle way that preserves the energy of the core. Titles from that session include "Twenty Five/Mister X", "Remember To Smile", "Today's Song", "So Far So Good", "Legacy", and "Wajumbe". CD also then features 90s recordings made by Leary with some mighty hip players in the southern Cali scene – a shifting lineup that features vocals from Dwight Trible on two numbers, plus trumpet from James Smith, tenor from George Harper, and piano from Eric Reed. Titles include "Song For My Mother", "Little Birds", "Come & Talk", "Together", and "Expose". CD

The first two volumes in this legendary series – back to back in one set! Volume 1 is an amazing collection – and one that really helped completely revise our understanding of Caribbean music! The collection features a fair bit of artists with roots in the West Indies, but who made a huge impact on London's postwar immigrant population – the new rise of non-native residents who were swelling the ranks of the city in the years after the way – bringing with them new cultures, new sounds, and new traditions – with all the requisite ideas and politics that might imply! The work here often has a subtle social agenda – working through themes important to these new Londoners, yet still echoing modes of the homeland as well – often with great musical backings that's heavy on percussion, jazzy instrumentation, and very upbeat rhythms. Titles include "London Is The Place For Me" by Lord Kitchener, "I Was There" by Young Tiger, "Some Girl Something" by The Lion, "No Carnival In Britain" by Mighty Terror, "Jamaica Hurricane" by Lord Beginner, "Birth Of Ghana" by Lord Kitchener, "Victory Test Match" by Lord Beginner, "Spanish Calypso" by The Lion, "Bulldog Don't Bite Me" by Timothy, "My Landlady" by Lord Kitchener, "If You're Not White You're Black" by Lord Kitchener, and "Aguiti" by Lord Invader. Volume 2 compiles the stylistically varied music coming from the emergent West Indian and African communities of 50s and 60s London – far more than just the topical, and often quite whimsical calypso tunes of the era! Calypso is well represented, but the set includes strains of jazz, percussive instrumentals that veer towards native Trinidad and Nigeria, and loads of Caribbean grooves! It's all exceptionally bright – with some lovingly, and knowingly, naive vocals that are as sweet as they are wise. A truly wonderful compilation. Essential! 20 tracks in all: "Calypso Be" by Young Tiger, "Yolanda" by Ambrose Campbell, "Calypso Blues" by Mona Baptiste, "My Wife's Nightie" by Lord Kitchener, "Ominara" by West African Rhythm Brothers, "Gerrard Street" by King Timothy, "ET Mensah's Rolling Ball" by West African Swing Stars, "West Indian Drums" by Russ Henderson, "Gbonimawo" by Rans Boi's Ghana Highlife Band and more! CD