... LP, Vinyl record album

A double-length set from The Rascals – possibly their most stretched-out exploration of ideas, at least during their initial run for Atlantic Records! The 2LP set features a fair bit of shorter, catchier tunes on the first record – many with some righteous soul overtones – but on the second record, the group really open up – hitting some longer jamming tunes on side three, and moving into a 15 minute instrumental on side four! Vocals are great from all three singers – Gene Cornish, Eddie Brigati, and Felix Cavaliere – and the rhythms are rock-solid too, often augmented with a bit of Atlantic-styled backings by Arif Mardin, to further enforce the soulfulness of the set. Titles include the hit "People Got To Be Free", plus "American The Beautiful", "Any Dance'll Do", "A Ray Of Hope", "Look Around", "Boom", "Heaven", "Cute", "Baby I'm Blue", and "Adrian's Birthday". LP, Vinyl record album

Titles include "How Can I Be Sure", "It's Wonderful", "A Beautiful Morning", "Love Is A Beautiful Thing", "Good Lovin", "Groovin", and "A Girl Like You". LP, Vinyl record album

Possibly the biggest album ever by The Rascals – a wonderfully tight batch of tunes that has the group hitting perfectly on all their best fronts! Blue eyed soul mixes wonderfully with some rougher garage-styled rock – and the execution here is perfect enough to please listeners on both sides of the fence. Perhaps most noteworthy is the presence of Arif Mardin arrangements on some of the album's key tracks – a factor that really helps the group find their groove, and sparkle even more brilliantly than before. Titles include "Groovin", "If You Knew", "A Girl Like You", "Find Somebody", "I'm So Happy Now", "Sueno", "How Can I Be Sure", and "It's Love". CD

Harder rocking and almost deeper soul than before – and a tremendous evolution in the music of The Rascals – light years past the pop hits of a few years before! The group co-produced the album with Arif Mardin, and the sounds here are even more sophisticated than their Once Upon A Dream album – in modes that are sometimes rootsy rock, sometimes looser jamming, all woven together with the complexity of some of the hipper groups recording for Columbia Records at the time. The vocals are even more confident than before – as are some of the tunes in the set – and titles include "See", "I'd Like To Take You Home", "Remember Me", "Real Thing", "Away Away", "Carry Me Back", "Nubia", and "Temptation's Bout To Get Me". LP, Vinyl record album

Nothing too peaceful here – at least not in a sleepy sort of way – as The Rascals are really hitting on all burners, and starting to mix a bit of funk in with their groove! The record's a great extension of the group's last work on Atlantic – and it takes that already-righteous territory, and furthers it a bit more with some heavy rhythms on the bottom, and nicely jamming guitar work on the top! There's a great sense of soul that informs the whole album – even at some of the more rockish points – and titles include the excellent side-long cut "Peaceful World", a long instrumental workout with a nice slow bubbling funky sound that's almost in the style of Chicano rock. The albumf eatures guest work from jazz players like Hubert Laws on flute, Alice Coltrane on harp, Garnett Brown on trombone, Joe Garrell on tenor sax, and Joe Newman on trumpet – and other titles include "Little Dove", "Visit To Mother Nature Land", "Happy Song", "Icy Water", "Sky Trane", and "In & Out Of Love". CD

... CD

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

If you think you know Boz Scaggs, think again – because this early Columbia album features a whole different sound! The Scaggs here is a really loose and soulful one – as Boz steps out of the freewheeling late 60s Bay Area scene with a really wonderful take on blue-eyed soul – an approach that's clearly informed by the sound of The Rascals and some of the New York scene, but which also has some tasty California touches that really transform the mood. Boz vocals are pure and straightforward – and the instrumentation on the set has a tight, but laidback sort of feel – no surprise, as Boz' band of the time was really great. There's a real Free Soul sort of feel to the record – and tracks include "Moments", "Downright Women", "Painted Bells", "Alone Alone", "Near You", "We Were Always Sweethearts", "Can I Make It Last", and "We Been Away". LP, Vinyl record album

23 tracks from Bobby Vee, the Lovin' Spoonful, the Searchers, the Kinks, the Zombies, the Association, the Exciters, the Rascals, the Grass Roots, Three Dog Nights, and more. CD

3 discs worth of great soulful house, mixed to perfection by Blaze! Includes tracks by Dajae, Blaze, Louie Vega, Abicah Soul Project, Truby Trio, Ian riday, Stephane Cook, Nicky Lawrence, Kerri Chandler, Tortured Soul, Jeremiah Santiago, Kings Of Tomorrow, Mood II Swing, Funky People and Black Rascals. CD

Killer funk, soul, and jazz tunes from the Warner and Atlantic catalogs – including more than a few that rank with our favorite funky cuts of the era! As with previous volumes in this series, the titles are selected with a focus on tunes that have or can be sampled – so there's lots of sweet jazzy brakes, warm keyboards, and tasty drums on the package! Titles include "Wah Wah Man" by Young Holt Unlimited, "Nuki Suki" by Little Richard, "Mama Soul" by The Soul Survivors, "It's Love" by The Young Rascals, "Funky Canyon" by Phil Moore Jr, "Everything I Do Gonna Be Funky" by Claudia Lennear, "Soul Bowl" by Memphis Horns, "Shiloh" by David Newman, "Let Me Fix It" by Brook Benton, "Angela, My Sister" by Richard Evans, "When She Made Me Promise" by The Beginning Of The End, "Moment Of Truth" by Earth, Wind, & Fire, "Bumpin On Young Street" by Young Holt Unlimited, and "Mortgage On My Soul" by Keith Jarrett. CD

Includes tracks by the Black Rascals, Swing 52, Space Jam, Dubtribe, Jori Hulkkonen, Deep Sensation, and UBQ Project. CD

A lost late 60s gem from Reprise Records – the only album ever recorded by this young band from the Greenwich Village scene! There's a great post-folk feel to the set – warm harmonies and a bit of acoustic instrumentation to show the influence of the earlier generation – but a bit more focus on the tunes overall, and a subtle dose of soul that's really nice. Jon Lind is the lead vocalist, and he's totally great – with almost a Rascals-like approach to his music, especially when harmonizing with Peter Gallway, the other vocalist in the group. Instrumentation includes acoustic and electric guitar, keyboards, and even a bit of flute – and the tracks include the incredible "Eden Rock" – a sweetly tripping number that easily rivals Kenny Rankin's best work! Other tracks include "Good Lady Of Toronto", "Fast Freight", "Country Time Rhymes", "Calamity Jane", "Faithful Be Fair", "Angel", "In Hollywood", and "Cockeyed Shame". LP, Vinyl record album