The MJQ always manage to sound especially great when working on music for film – and this album's a great illustration of that fact! The work here is written by John Lewis, for a movie that never lasted the test of time as much as the record – and it's some of John's most evocative writing of the time – almost imagistic enough without the film – filled with tones and colors that are quite visual, especially in the hands of this great group! Selections are played by the core quartet of Milt Jackson on vibes, John Lewis on piano, Percy Heath on bass, and Connie Kay on drums – and titles include "The Golden Striker", "One Never Knows", "The Rose Truc", "Venice", "Cortege", and "Three Windows". CD

The actual film was weaker than the first Exorcist movie, but the soundtrack's a great one – a wonderful Ennio Morricone score, right up there with his better-known classics of the 70s! Some tracks have a full, sweeping style that's sublime – that compressed Morricone approach to orchestrations that nobody else could touch – a redemptive sound which is then mixed with some much darker elements underneath – including some rough percussion, spooky voices, and other earthy touches that really stir things up. In fact, the overall effect of the record might scare you a lot more than the film – especially if you played it alone at home, late at night, with the lights off, and your head spinning round! Titles include "Great Bird Of The Sky", "Little Afro-Flemish Mass", "Regan's Theme", "Pazuzu", "Night Flight", and "Exorcism". CD

The actual film was weaker than the first Exorcist movie, but the soundtrack's a great one – a wonderful Ennio Morricone score, right up there with his better-known classics of the 70s! Some tracks have a full, sweeping style that's sublime – that compressed Morricone approach to orchestrations that nobody else could touch – a redemptive sound which is then mixed with some much darker elements underneath – including some rough percussion, spooky voices, and other earthy touches that really stir things up. In fact, the overall effect of the record might scare you a lot more than the film – especially if you played it alone at home, late at night, with the lights off, and your head spinning round! Titles include "Great Bird Of The Sky", "Little Afro-Flemish Mass", "Regan's Theme", "Pazuzu", "Night Flight", and "Exorcism". CD

A goofy little score to a goofy little heist movie from the early 70s – put together with music that's as playful as the images on the screen! There's a real carnivalesque feel to John Morris' music for the film – and at many points, the tunes almost feel more like the kind you'd get in some old Warner Brothers cartoon than a 70s film of this nature! Instrumentation is heavy on horns, and often leaps around with a jaunty sense of rhythm – really animating the whole thing in ways that you wouldn't find in other contemporary soundtracks – as sonically exciting as the images on the screen. There's one sweet slow funk number – titled "Groovy LA" – and other titles include "A Beautiful Shot", "The Escape", "Away We Go", "On The Way To LA", "Chasing The Bank", "Moving The Bank", "Silhouettes On Parade", and "A Merry Freeway Chase". CD

On this double LP Prince Paul delivers one of the funniest and most original hip hop projects we've heard in a long while. He puts together a hip hop b-movie, along the lines of Lightning Rod's legendary "Hustler's Convention." "Prince Among Thieves" goes through the journey of the journey of an MC, Tariq (played by Breezly Brewin' of Jugganauts), to get signed. And along the way he encounters all the usual subplots of drugs, sex, violence, and betrayal. In addition to Breeze, Prince Paul uses whole batch of MC's (including Sadat X, RZA, Biz Markie, Everlast as Officer Bitchkowsky, and Kool Keith as a gun-selling ex-marine) and industy people form Rodd Houston to Wendy Day. Prince Paul is definitely one of hip hop's unsung creative forces – from his start with Stetsasonic, to his work with De La Soul, to Resident Alien on his short-lived Do Dew Man label and the Gravedigga's and Psychoanalysis projects. Don't miss this destined-to-be-classic LP. LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful little soundtrack from Armando Trovajoli – the best sort that he did in the 60s, at a time when he and a few other Italian soundtrack artists were helping push things forward from straighter jazz into the sorts of groovy modes that would make their scene stand out from the rest! The tunes are often spare and slinky, with a good amount of space between the notes – but in a way that's different than Morricone, maybe warmer and sweeter, with a great approach that lets you focus on a tinkling piano part, an unusual bassline, an organ riff, or all the other great elements that go into the tunes! The set begins with the swinging "Anyone Can Play" – a nice little vocal number – then runs into a whole host of great instrumentals. CD

A wonderful bit of cinematic jazz from the 50s – played by the Chico Hamilton group as part of the soundtrack! The combo was a key part of the LA scene at the time, but are oddly featured as a regular club act in the movie's New York setting – but we'll gladly forgive that geographic error, given that the music on the set is so great. The quality's a bit like some of the Hamilton Quintet work on World Pacific – but there's a slightly freer, more urgent feel here too – work that's sometimes somewhat driving, and beautifully blended from the guitar of John Pisano, clarinet of Paul Horn, cello of Fred Katz, piano of Carson Smith, and drums from Chico. Side one features a lot of short incidental cuts – like "Susan", "Cheek To Chico", "Jam", and "Night Beat" – and side 2 is an extended "Concerto Of Jazz Themes From The Soundtrack Of Sweet Smell Of Success". LP, Vinyl record album

An unusual album from Neal Hefti – all instrumental, with a nice bit of flute and harpsichord – not as jazzy as his work with Basie, but still with some of the groovy touches of his soundtrack material! LP, Vinyl record album

A killer little soundtrack – and one that's quite different than the usual blacksploitation set, but still pretty funky overall! The film Black Girl was a surprisingly sensitive movie directed by Ossie Davis in the early 70s – not as much about action as it was about the everyday life, and the hopes and dreams of the lead characters – all of which made for some really well-rounded music, of the sort you'd find on some of the other great Fantasy Records soundtracks of the time, especially the classic Cornbread Earl & Me score. Ed Bogas and Ray Shanklin put together the whole thing, and the album's a mix of hip instrumental tracks with some other vocal ones – a really nice range that draws from singers like Betty Everett, Rodger Collins, and JJ Malone – and jazz players like Sonny Stitt and John Hunt (plus organ from Merl Saunders on one cut.) Titles include "BJ's Step", "Black Girl", "Sister", "Earl (Still A Pearl)", "Mothers Day Song", "Power", "Get Me To The Bridge", "Chock-lite Puddin", and "Black Girl Cue". CD

Excellent album recorded by vibist Walt Dickerson during the mid 60's. Ostensibly a "soundtrack session", Dickerson freely improvises on themes from the movie A Patch Of Blue, and turns the score into a great platform for moody jazz playing on vibes and piano. Even more surprising is the fact that Sun Ra is the pianist in the quartet, making a rare non-Arkestra appearance – and on a major label, too! Titles include "Bacon & Eggs", "Alone In The Park", "Selina's Fantasy", and "Thataway". CD

All the good stuff from Joe Pass, and none of the gimmicky sessions – all in one great package, with lots of unissued tracks! Includes material from sessions for the Joe Pass albums Catch Me, Joy Spring, For Django, and 12 String Guitar Movie Themes – plus the Les McCann albums On Time and Soul Hits – both of which have Pass playing with McCann's group! CD

A beautiful document of the late, great pianist Joe Albany – music put together in support of the film Low Down, and packaged here in a really lovely format! The movie is a poetic look at Albany – an important west coast player from the bop years onward, but one who never reached his full potential, due to a lifetime of heroin use. Yet during his career, he certainly touched plenty of hearts and ears – with recordings that begin in the 78rpm generation, and stretch right up to his final years – almost every one a masterpiece of melancholic piano, with these blue undercurrents that often make Joe's music very distinct. Both the film and this set get at that quality, and intersperse original performances by Albany with a few tracks by contemporaries – like Coleman Hawkins and Max Roach – as well as a few musical bits by Ohad Taylor, who scored parts of the film in a very sympathetic manner. Titles include "Angel Eyes", "Lush Life", "Everybody Knew But Me", "Lotus Blossom", "Barbados", and "AB Blues" by Joe Albany – plus "AJ Blues" and "Daahoud" by Ohad Taylor, "Deeds Not Words" by Max Roach, and "Think Deep" by Coleman Hawkins. CD

A jazz soundtrack double-header – one that features both the small combo and larger band version of the soundtrack to The Sweet Smell Of Success! Part of the CD features the Chico Hamilton Quintet's album of music – a wonderful bit of cinematic jazz from the 50s. The combo was a key part of the LA scene at the time, but are oddly featured as a regular club act in the movie's New York setting – but we'll gladly forgive that geographic error, given that the music on the set is so great. The quality's a bit like some of the Hamilton Quintet work on World Pacific – but there's a slightly freer, more urgent feel here too – work that's sometimes somewhat driving, and beautifully blended from the guitar of John Pisano, clarinet of Paul Horn, cello of Fred Katz, piano of Carson Smith, and drums from Chico. Side one features a lot of short incidental cuts – like "Susan", "Cheek To Chico", "Jam", and "Night Beat" – and side 2 is an extended "Concerto Of Jazz Themes From The Soundtrack Of Sweet Smell Of Success". The second half of the CD features the full orchestral version of the Sweet Smell Of Success soundtrack – but done in a style that's almost as jazzy and swinging as the small combo one! Elmer Bernstein's at the helm here – and the music's a wonderful pastiche of modes that's right up there with his sublime score for The Man With The Golden Arm – done in a similar blend of driving jazz, somber moments, and some slightly more raucous touches! As with that album, the players are all great – and soloists on the album include Pete Candoli, Ted Nash, and Shelly Manne – west coast players despite the New York setting of the film, and playing here with a fair bit of grit in their groove. Titles include "The Street", "Hot Dogs & Juice", "Toots Shor's Blues", "Nite Spot Rock", "Love Scene", and "Out Of Darkness". CD

Buddy takes his Swinging Shepherds crew to the movies on this one – serving up a set of tunes from 40s and 50s films that all come off perfectly with the group's multi-flute approach! The sound's nicely mellow at times, but still has that tightly arranged west coast modern style that made the group's first record so great. Players include Paul Horn, Bud Shank, and Harry Klee on flutes – plus Jim Hall on guitar, Red Mitchell on bass, and Shelly Manne on drums. Titles include "The Bad & The Beautiful", "The Shrike", "Invitation", "Ruby", "Swinging On A Star", and "Intermezzo" LP, Vinyl record album

A jazz soundtrack double-header – one that features both the small combo and larger band version of the soundtrack to The Sweet Smell Of Success! The first half of the CD features the Chico Hamilton Quintet's album of music – a wonderful bit of cinematic jazz from the 50s. The combo was a key part of the LA scene at the time, but are oddly featured as a regular club act in the movie's New York setting – but we'll gladly forgive that geographic error, given that the music on the set is so great. The quality's a bit like some of the Hamilton Quintet work on World Pacific – but there's a slightly freer, more urgent feel here too – work that's sometimes somewhat driving, and beautifully blended from the guitar of John Pisano, clarinet of Paul Horn, cello of Fred Katz, piano of Carson Smith, and drums from Chico. Side one features a lot of short incidental cuts – like "Susan", "Cheek To Chico", "Jam", and "Night Beat" – and side 2 is an extended "Concerto Of Jazz Themes From The Soundtrack Of Sweet Smell Of Success". The second half of the CD features the full orchestral version of the Sweet Smell Of Success soundtrack – but done in a style that's almost as jazzy and swinging as the small combo one! Elmer Bernstein's at the helm here – and the music's a wonderful pastiche of modes that's right up there with his sublime score for The Man With The Golden Arm – done in a similar blend of driving jazz, somber moments, and some slightly more raucous touches! As with that album, the players are all great – and soloists on the album include Pete Candoli, Ted Nash, and Shelly Manne – west coast players despite the New York setting of the film, and playing here with a fair bit of grit in their groove. Titles include "The Street", "Hot Dogs & Juice", "Toots Shor's Blues", "Nite Spot Rock", "Love Scene", and "Out Of Darkness". CD

One of the greatest moments ever from Willie Hutch – and one of the greatest blacksploitation soundtracks too! Willie really knocks it out of the park with this one – and sounds funkier and heavier than on all of his other studio albums – with a deep sound that really matches the legendary spirit of the film – which itself was one of the more gritty, down to earth movies of the genre! The film's virtually a handbook for junior grade hoods – one that had surprising pull over the years, especially with the first wave of 90s gangsta hip hop – and the record's filled with classics that have gotten plenty of play over the years because of that influence, but which sound even better here in their original context. Titles include "Brothers Gonna Work It Out", "Vampin", "Mack Man", "I Choose You", "Theme Of The Mack", "Mack's Stroll/The Getaway", and "Slick". LP, Vinyl record album

A pretty nice jazz tribute to the Billy Wilder film of the same name – and one that reprises a number of tunes from the film, especially popular songs of the 20s – but brings them back in a way that's still got plenty of hip 50s jazz touches! The record's nicely without the hoke that came with a lot of the music in the movie – thanks to a lineup that includes Art Pepper (on tenor, alto, and clarinet!), Joe Gordon, Jimmy Rowles, and Jack Marshall – playing a bit of rhythm guitar in addition to Barney Kessel's main solo one! And if there ever was a record to illustrate the old jazz adage "it ain't the song, it's the singer", this record may be it – because Barney and crew really work some magic with old chestnuts like "I Wanna Be Loved By You", "Sugar Blues", "Sweet Georgia Brown", "Runnin Wild", "By The Beautiful Sea", and "I'm Through With Love". CD features 2 bonus tracks! LP, Vinyl record album

A mighty hefty package – one that features expanded soundtracks for the final three Pink Panther films in the original run, plus bonus tracks too! First up is Trail Of The Pink Panther – a mighty nice Henry Mancini soundtrack – penned for the final Pink Panther film to star Peter Sellers in the lead – and served up by maestro Mancini at the top-shelf level that's always made his music such a crucial part of the series of movies! The set has a number of renditions of the main theme, mixed in with other modes – but also uses these other moments with really well-crafted, all acoustic orchestrations that are filled with imagination and whimsy – such a nice change for a period when so many others were relying on mostly electric instrumentation to get the music across. Titles include "Hong Kong Fireworks", "Shot In The Dark", "Simone", "Inspector Clouseau Theme", and "Trail Of The Pink Panther". Next is Curse Of The Pink Panther – a strange entry in the Pink Panther series – as the film was done at the same time as Trail Of The Pink Panther, but with a different actor in the lead – a competing project by Blake Edwards, who had parted ways with Peter Sellers! Yet as with that other film, Henry Mancini still handles the music – and there's plenty of that special Mancini magic to make things wonderful – the balance of whimsical, playful themes that were Hank's trademark for the movies – mixed with those careful, suspenseful moments that reminded us that the films did have a bit of action too. Titles include "First Shoot", "The Plan", "Bruno's Theme", "Watching The Tube", and "Viva Valencia". Son Of The Pink Panther is maybe the most unusual one here – an early 90s film that starred Roberto Benigni in the lead, and which is given some still-great scoring from the great Henry Mancini! Mancini seems to use both more brooding moments at times, and some more globally-conscious elements – but always with that strong ear for beautiful orchestrations that show that he never lost his touch, even as the decades moved on! The 3CD set features a huge amount of music – 82 tracks in all, and almost three hours of music! CD

An early soundtrack from Ennio Morricone – and a more unusual setting than some of his famous later work of the 60s and 70s! The movie is a prison comedy, and is handled by Morricone with style that's heavily in the crime jazz side of the spectrum – maybe more in the mode of Piero Piccioni in the early 60s, and occasionally mixed with some more dramatic tracks, and a few playful comedic moments. The whole thing is a very different slice of the maestro than expected, and still pretty darn great – a key look at his roots before stardom. Titles include the vocal number "Oh Little Birdy" – plus "Gangsters", "Al Night Club", "Bossa Per Gloria", "Incontro Dei Boss", "Le Sedie Elettriche", "Ballando Ballando", and "Il Tempo Che Passa". CD

A pretty striking little record in the Frank Zappa catalog – the double-length soundtrack for the movie of the same name, and a set that explodes the Zappa palette of sound even further than some of his previous albums! A number of tracks feature a full studio orchestra – sounding as if they were lined up to perform a conventional Hollywood film score, but somehow tricked into working with Frank when he showed up on the podium to conduct the proceedings! Other tunes echo more of the Mothers Of Invention material, but with shorter selections, and lots of twists and turns along the way – all of which make the whole record this really mad pastiche of songs, sounds, and sonic interplay. Titles include "This Town Is A Sealed Tuna Sandwich", "Redneck Eats", "She Painted Her Face", "Janet's Big Dance Number", "Daddy Daddy Daddy", "The Girl's Dream", "A Nun Suit Painted On Some Old Boxes", and "Mystery Roach". LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing movie in sound – supposedly music (and more) that was going to be used in a film project, issued to the public while Zappa was trying to raise money for production! The album's one of the most tripped-out studio efforts to date from the group – loads of overdubbing, and wonderfully complicated instrumentation – with some especially great keyboards from Don Preston and Ian Underwood, whose keys alone almost preface the future of fusion – while, at the same time, display some key links to 20th century avant music as well! Vocals are dropped in at just the right time, but the instrumental interplay is what really makes the record special – over many short tracks that include "Mr Green Genes", "We Can Shoot You", "Dog Breath Variations", "Sleeping In A Jar", "The Legend Of The Golden Arches", "Uncle Meat", "Cruising For Burgers", and "King Kong" in many variations. LP, Vinyl record album

Something weird, and something very cool too – a set that brings together a whole host of strange and unusual tunes from the glory days of exploitation cinema! These cuts are all from a time when the b-movie underground was playing it fast and loose – trying to get more folks into the theaters with some ultra-sleazy themes – which resulted in wilder music than you might have heard in movies just a few short years before! The package is presented by Something Weird – the video company who've reissued lots of these exploitation films over the years – and the package is kind of a "best of" their on-screen efforts – as it also includes some spoken passages from films, which further make the tunes sound great. The package is divided up into themes – Psychedelic Hippie Freak Out, Rock O Rama Go Go, Deliriously Demented Ditties, and Sleazy Swinging Sounds – with work by Johnny Hawksworth, John Barry, The Group, The Love Generation, Joe Bisko, Alan Hawkshaw, Lee Dowell, The Penny Arcade, Billy Lee Riley, Betty Dickson, John Gabriel, Neil Patrick, Meg Myles, and The Huntington Astronauts. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the more obscure Roberta Flack albums from the classic years – but maybe not as obscure as the movie for which it was created – as the strength of the record has helped the album circulate a lot longer than the film stayed on the screens – to the point where it's a great chapter of Roberta's rich career, and one that goes way past the hits! Flack produced the whole set herself – and there's a nice mix of modes going on here, including some jazzier bits that get to showcase keyboards nicely – played both by Flack and by Barry Miles. Peabo Bryson sings on one track, and Luther Vandross helped Flack with the vocal arrangements – on titles that include "Love Always Commands", "Lovin You Is Such An Easy Thing To Do", "Rollin On", "Qual E Malindrinho", and "Hittin Me Where It Hurts". LP, Vinyl record album

That's a pretty savage image on the cover of this one – and the music's definitely got a spirit to match! This early 60s score by Riz Ortolani is one of the more dramatic ones we've heard from the blood and sandals generation – put together with orchestrations that rage strongly right at the start, and only step back for some more playful moments once things get going. Some of the lighter tracks make great use of creative woodwinds and a bit of strings – and throughout the whole soundtrack, there's a great sonic sensibility – really moving past simple use of instruments, and often creating these rich bursts of sound that really hold us rapt. Way more than you might expect – and put together here with a whopping 25 tracks in all! CD

Great stuff from one of Eddie Harris' greatest periods! This one was cut in the late 60s – when Eddie was creating his famous electrified Varitone sound – unique among other jazz players in that it actually added a lot to Eddie's work, instead of detracted from it (as with some other boppers who briefly picked up the instrument.) The Varitone gives Eddie a cool flat tone works extremely well with some of the album's mutedly funky tracks – like the long version of "Listen Here", the groovy "Sham Time", the Latiny "Spanish Bull", or the incredible "Theme In Search Of A Movie", written by the great Charles Stepney. Great bass work by Melvin Jackson, too! LP, Vinyl record album

Our favorite album ever from French soundtrack maestro Philippe Sarde – and maybe one of our favorite French soundtracks too! There's a really special quality to this music – as rich as some of Sarde's other scores, but maybe linked more towards the new wave of subtle expression that came about in French cinema after the nouvelle vague – that quality that you might hear in the music of Francis Lai at his most subtle moments, handled perfectly here. Tracks are relatively short – mostly spare variations on a sad, dreamy little melody that's played in the film as the car of the main character slowly crumbles in an accident – a death that begins the movie, which then tells the story backwards! The tune only features swells of strings and piano, but it's compelling enough to hear in a number of variations here – and mixed with a few other great melodies too, including one song sung by the film's stars Michel Piccoli and Romy Schneider. Titles include "L'Accident Ralenti", "Prelude A L'Accident", "La Chanson D'Helene", and "La Mort". Also features a bonus 12 minute suite of work from "Nelly Et Mr Arnaud" – as well as German and Italian versions of the "La Chanson D'Helene", and a 6 minute "La Choses De La Vie" suite. CD

A wonderful little album by Mel Torme – easily one of his best albums of the 50s, despite the tighter focus implied in the title! Although the set's a tribute to Fred Astaire. the album's got a very similar feel to Mel's classic album with Marty Paich's Dek-Tette for Bethlehem – arranged by Paich, and done in a similar style of small-orchestra jazz – with great lines and solos from key west coast players who include Herb Geller on alto, Bob Enevoldsen on trombone, Jack Montrose on tenor, and Don Fagerquist and Pete Candoli on trumpet. There's a smooth, warm brilliance to the album that's undeniable – and although many of the tunes are older ones from Fred Astaire movies from decades back, they're updated beautifully by Marty Paich's arrangements! Titles include "The Piccolino", "Nice Work If You Can Get It", "A Foggy Day", "They All Laughed", and "Let's Call The Whole Thing Off". CD

Way more than just a James Bond cash-in record – and instead an ultra-hip jazz session from the west coast scene of the 60s! The James Bond at the helm of the record is actually Jimmy Bond – the great bassist who worked on some key sessions of the late 50s and early 60s as a sideman, and who turns out to be a surprisingly great leader on this rare mid 60s date! The record is more jazz than anything else – played with a crime/spy bent, to be sure – but also flowing with really great solos and a fair bit of a bossa influence in the rhythms! The group here is more than hip enough to make the record work – with Harold Land on tenor sax, Bobby Bryant on trumpet, and Buddy Colette on flute and tenor – all working in a sextet led by Bond, with plenty of round, warm, almost modal lines on his bass – punctuated nicely by piano from Joe Parnello and drums by Joh Guarin. Arrangements are by Dick Groove – who keeps things very groovy – and many of the tracks here are actually original numbers written by Bond and Warren Baker, titled after Ian Fleming books that had not yet been made into movies at the time of this album! Titles include "Casino Royale", "Moonraker", "For Your Eyes Only", "007 Theme From Dr No", "Man With The Golden Gun", "Diamonds Are Forever", and "Live & Let Die". CD

Silent film score by trumpeter Dave Douglas – with Jamie Saft on wurlitzer, Marcus Strickland on saxophones, Brad Jones on bass, Gene Lake on drums, and DJ Olive on turntables. Tracks include "Just Another Murder", "Fatty's Day Off", "Famous Players", and "Barnyard Flirtations" – plus a DVD featuring the original 1916 Fatty Arbuckle movie "Fatty & Mabel Adrift" with score by Douglas. CD

A beautiful jazzy score by Duke Ellington – and a fitting companion to this classic Otto Preminger film! The record captures Ellington at a perfect moment – right during his Indigos period of increased sophistication, when his band was at an all-time level of perfection – and really shaking free of the too-familiar modes of the past. Ellington's music has a wonderful range of feeling here – even more so than usual, given the shifting scenes of the film – and the players are an all star lineup that includes Clark Terry on trumpet, Paul Gonsalves on tenor, Johnny Hodges on alto, and Jimmy Hamilton on clarinet. Titles include "Upper & Outest", "Almost Cried", "Sunswept Sunday", "Happy Anatomy", "Flirtibird", and "Low Key Lightly". Plus, the CD features a huuuuge amount of bonus tracks – including other tunes from the movie, outtakes, and even the original single version of the theme! 26 cuts in all! CD

A beautiful jazzy score by Duke Ellington – and a fitting companion to this classic Otto Preminger film! The record captures Ellington at a perfect moment – right during his Indigos period of increased sophistication, when his band was at an all-time level of perfection – and really shaking free of the too-familiar modes of the past. Ellington's music has a wonderful range of feeling here – even more so than usual, given the shifting scenes of the film – and the players are an all star lineup that includes Clark Terry on trumpet, Paul Gonsalves on tenor, Johnny Hodges on alto, and Jimmy Hamilton on clarinet. Titles include "Upper & Outest", "Almost Cried", "Sunswept Sunday", "Happy Anatomy", "Flirtibird", and "Low Key Lightly". Plus, the CD features a huuuuge amount of bonus tracks – including other tunes from the movie, outtakes, and even the original single version of the theme! 26 cuts in all! CD

A wonderful little album by Mel Torme – easily one of his best albums of the 50s, despite the tighter focus implied in the title! Although the set's a tribute to Fred Astaire. the album's got a very similar feel to Mel's classic album with Marty Paich's Dek-Tette for Bethlehem – arranged by Paich, and done in a similar style of small-orchestra jazz – with great lines and solos from key west coast players who include Herb Geller on alto, Bob Enevoldsen on trombone, Jack Montrose on tenor, and Don Fagerquist and Pete Candoli on trumpet. There's a smooth, warm brilliance to the album that's undeniable – and although many of the tunes are older ones from Fred Astaire movies from decades back, they're updated beautifully by Marty Paich's arrangements! Titles include "The Piccolino", "Nice Work If You Can Get It", "A Foggy Day", "They All Laughed", and "Let's Call The Whole Thing Off". LP, Vinyl record album

Despite the fact that Sophia Loren's name is prominently displayed on the cover, and despite the fact that she's pictured on the front, most of the record is instrumental work by Barry – although there is a vocal track or two by Loren! The sound is pretty groovy, and the tracks have a nice soundtracky feel that's in keeping with Barry's best work for films from the time. It's not the full soundtrack, but 6 of the tracks appear here. The other side of the album features songs from the "Bride Wore Yolande" movie. LP, Vinyl record album

Way more than just another collection of work by The Drifters – as this 3CD set goes way past all the other greatest hits compilations on the market, and brings together all sorts of wonderful overlooked tracks from their later years on Atlantic Records! At this point, former singer Clyde McPhatter and Ben E King have left the flock – leaving most of the lead work to Johnny Moore, and a bit to Rudy Lewis – in a lineup that maybe has the group even more unified as a whole, with a tremendous sense of harmony vocals that just keeps getting better and better as the 60s move on – and as the group try out all sorts of new rhythms and songs in the process. We really love The Drifters, and can't get enough of their special sound – and this set features plenty of unusual cuts to really keep our interest – a set of 76 tracks that includes "Up In The Streets Of Harlem", "We Gotta Sing", "Aretha", "Baby What I Mean", "Up Jumped The Devil", "I Dig Your Act", "You & me Together Forever", "Black Silk", "Desafinado", "Follow Me", "Come On Over To My Place", "Answer The Phone", "I Remember Christmas", "Spanish Lace", "I Don't Want To Go On Without You", "He's Just A Playboy", "Saturday Night At The Movies", "Looking Through The Eyes Of Love", "The Outside World", "My Islands In The Sun", "You Can't Love Them All", "Country To The City", "Still Burning In My Heart", and lots more! CD

It's the late 60s, and Eddie's creating his famous electrified Varitone sound – unique among other soul jazz players in that it actually added a lot to Eddie's work, instead of detracted from it (as with some other boppers who briefly picked up the instrument.) The Varitone's cool flat tone works extremely well with the original tracks on Electrifying Eddie Harris – like the long version of "Listen Here", the groovy "Sham Time", the Latiny "Spanish Bull", or the incredible "Theme In Search Of A Movie", written by the great Chicago soul genius Charles Stepney. The album Plug Me In features Harris along with some fantastic arrangements by Stepney. Stepney's work on the album is amazing, and he contributes incredible touches like prepared piano and funky strings, both of which make the album one of the best that Harris ever did! Titles on the session include "Live Right Now", "It's Crazy", "Winter Meeting", and "Theme In Search Of A TV Commercial". CD

A killer record from the Japanese scene of the 70s – one that begins with a funky drum break, then only gets better and better as things move on! Hiromasa Suzuki plays plenty of sweet keyboards on the record – at a level that's definitely influenced by Herbie Hancock's work from the time, but which also brings in some of the best funky currents of Japanese soundtrack material – so that there's a blend of electric jazz with some great crime/cop movie modes too – served up with some nice saxophone solos from Takeru Muraoka on a few tracks, and tenor from Mabumi Yamaguchi on the rest. Titles include a sweet remake of "Watermelon Man" – plus "Skip Step", "Ratafia", "Orpheus Negro", "Gentle Wave", and "Greenseleves". LP, Vinyl record album

A wonderful little album by Mel Torme – easily one of his best albums of the 50s, despite the tighter focus implied in the title! Although the set's a tribute to Fred Astaire. the album's got a very similar feel to Mel's classic album with Marty Paich's Dek-Tette for Bethlehem – arranged by Paich, and done in a similar style of small-orchestra jazz – with great lines and solos from key west coast players who include Herb Geller on alto, Bob Enevoldsen on trombone, Jack Montrose on tenor, and Don Fagerquist and Pete Candoli on trumpet. There's a smooth, warm brilliance to the album that's undeniable – and although many of the tunes are older ones from Fred Astaire movies from decades back, they're updated beautifully by Marty Paich's arrangements! Titles include "The Piccolino", "Nice Work If You Can Get It", "A Foggy Day", "They All Laughed", and "Let's Call The Whole Thing Off". CD

One of the most fantastic soundtracks of the 70s – and maybe even of all time – thanks to a non-stop blast of insane styles and grooves – all quite different than other blacksploitation records of the time! For this, his masterpiece film, Melvin Van Peebles composed a non-stop collage of crazy sounds and funky jams, played by himself and a very young Earth, Wind, & Fire – then pasted together in a pastiche of music, dialogue, and sound effects that serve as an audio document of the film! If you've ever seen the movie – and even if you haven't – you'll find that the soundtrack works as a 40 minute version of the film, shifting back and forth with a loose narrative progression. Of course, the real appeal is the funky music – and you'll hear more than enough of that on tracks like "Sweetback's Theme", "Hoppin John", "Come On Fee", and "Sweetback Getting it Uptight". LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing document of adult love – as important to the easy generation as Barry White's work was to the soul crowd – and the kind of record that makes you willing to throw away all your prejudices about Rod McKuen! The set's got a simple, snakey sort of approach – one that uses electric bass underneath light string arrangements by Anita Kerr – in a way that has the same sexy, slinky appeal as some of the best mellow easy from the end of the 60s – that period when the genre had firmly shaken off the mood music audience of housewives, and was hitting a younger, lustier crowd on the FM airwaves. There's a compressed perfection to this album that's beyond belief – not just in Kerr's sublime arrangements, but also in the incredible interpretation of McKuen's writings by Joey Benson – spoken into the microphone in a way that makes a simple whisper speak volumes, and which has this breathy, Bacharach-era brilliance that's dripping with mature sexuality. McKuen's words are presented beautifully by Benson – given just the right pauses, phrasing, and power to unlock a playfully illustrative sense that doesn't always come through in other collaborations with Anita Kerr. A real lost treasure – the kind of record we never expected we'd ever like at all – but which has held us rapt with its brilliance – almost a Scott Walker for the American easy crowd of the late 60s! Titles include "Foreign Movies", "Why I Follow The Tigers", "Love Hasn't Any Windows", "Make A Bigger Circle With A Softer Touch", "For Lovers", "No Loving Without Losing", and "Looking Up Through Wednesday's Silence". LP, Vinyl record album