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A rare slice of work from the great Sandie Shaw – material she recorded for broadcasts, at the time she was also serving up her classic material for Pye Records – easily some of the coolest, grooviest Brit female pop of the time! The presentation here is a nice change from the famous singles – in that although there's a fair bit of material penned by Chris Andrews, who gave Sandie some hits, there's also some nice covers of tunes of the time too – done in some straighter readings for BBC Top Gear shows, and given a different spin on some Shindig recordings, and a number of tracks from the Sandie Shaw Supplement program! The set's got 19 tracks in all – and titles include "I'd Be Far Better Off Without You", "Girl Don't Come", "Homeward Bound", "Route 66", "Day Tripper/Ticket To Ride", "Coconut Grove", "Love Letters", and "Do You Know The Way To San Jose". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic array of really cool songs – all written and recorded by Tom Dawes of The Cyrkle – as part of a big career as a jingle writer after his group cut a famous theme song for 7 Up! The music here is great – work from a time when jingles for TV and radio ads were like mini songs in and of themselves – often as catchy as anything on the charts, if not more so – so that the tunes you'd hear for a few short seconds would stick in your head all day long! If you dig sunshine pop, there's plenty to love here – and remember that the great Roger Nichols also gave the world a wonderful tune that was originally designed as a jingle. Some of the tracks here never made it to the TV screen, others are classics – and the set includes songs written for Windex, GI Joe, Alka Seltzer, Calgon, Stridex, Murine, Hartford Insurance, Thom McCann, Life Savers, Timex, Ford, and many others. LP, Vinyl record album

Rare work from obscure Chicago tenor player Vito Price – recorded back in the days when there actually used to be a jazz scene in the city's center – also known as The Loop! Price was a New Yorker by birth, but worked in Chicago clubs, TV, and radio in the 50s – and was most likely brought to Argo for this session by Chubby Jackson – with whom he'd worked on a previous date for the label. Price has a strong, bold tone in his horn – swing-based, but with a fluid sense of movement that's absorbed plenty of bop – and on the album, he's playing in two different settings. Side one features a largeish group with two more trumpets and two trombones, and side two features a quintet with a slightly more intimate sound. Lou Levy plays piano in both groups, and titles include "Credo", "Eye Strain", "Swingin The Loop", "Mousey's Tune", and "Duddy". LP, Vinyl record album

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A really haunting little sound library record, and one that's very different than just about anything else we can think of in the genre! The set is filled with spare keyboards and electronics – almost in the territory of Terry Riley, but slowed down in pace – so that it's more spacious and meditative, with these elements that almost feel like they'd be perfect for tripping out in a planetarium and watching some nighttime star show! The work was originally used in the film In Kluis, but works beautifully here as a meditative album on its own – with titles that include "Fences", "Nude", "The Wall", "Tree Angle", "Observations", "Problems", "Inside", and "Desire". LP, Vinyl record album

A set that hugely expands the legacy of British 80s singer Tracie Young – a great artist, but one who only got a single record issued back in the day! First up is that set, Far From The Hurting Kind – a fantastic bit of soulful UK pop from the 80s that was originally issued on Paul Weller's Respond label, and done with plenty of the touches that Weller was bringing to his own Style Council music at the time! Tracie's got a voice that's right at home in some of the British period styles, but which sounds even better with some of the mod soul inflections that Weller's production brings to the record – definitely 80s in instrumentation and execution, but with a richness that really seems to open up the vocals of singer Tracie Young. Titles include "The House That Jack Built", "When You Sleep", "Moving Together", "Thank You", "I Can't Hold On Till Summer", "Souls On Fire", and "Spring Summer Autumn". Next is the album No Smoke Without Fire – a second set that was not issued at the time, and which has maybe some deeper soulful currents in the music – a bit like the work that Corinne Drewery would do with Swing Out Sister. Titles include "Italian Girl", "I Think You're Lucky", "When You Call Me", "No Smoke Without Fire", "Invitation", and "Fingers Crossed". Both albums are presented here with bonus tracks – and the package features lots more too – CD3 adds in 17 more Rarities, with remixes and singles; CD4 features live material and later radio mixes; DVD adds in some rare promo videos and TV appearances too! The whole package is huge – 84 titles in all. CD

An album that really lives up to its name – as the music here definitely has a sense of shape in space – really careful construction of tracks with keyboards and electronics, in ways make for a very unique project overall! The album's got a headier vibe than you'd expect from work on a sound library label – maybe much more at home on Brian Eno's Obscure label, and even a match for some of the best of his early Ambient projects too – as Reinhard Vandbergen has a wonderful sense of sound, tone, and space – really letting these electronic elements flow out in a gentle way as they find shapes of their own. Titles include "Pentagon", "Hexagon", "Rhombus", "Star", "Trapezium", "Triangle", "Circle", and "Parallelogram". LP, Vinyl record album

Two slices of never-issued work from pianist Bill Evans – material recorded on two different dates in Denmark in 1964, both featuring work from his fantastic trio that featured Chuck Israels on bass and Larry Bunker on drums! Both players were key to helping Evans develop the sound that he would carry forth strongly into the 70s – Bunker with a very subtle, open touch on the drums – and Israels with a modern conception of basswork that followed strongly from some of the experiments that Scott LaFaro had begun with Evans a few years before. The set features one batch of tracks recorded for Danish Radio, another for TV in Copenhagen – and titles include "Give", "I Didn't Know What Time It Was", "Waltz For Debby", "Sweet & Lovely", "My Foolish Heart", and "How My Heart Sings". CD also features a bonus track – a 1969 Denmark recording of "Round Midnight", with Eddie Gomez on bass and Marty Morell on drums. CD

Most folks can't even find Estonia on the map, much less tell you about its music – yet that might change soon, thanks to the legendary quality of the rare gems on this set! As the title implies, there's a great mix here of funky styles – some clubby, some more jazz-based – and the music represents a really lost legacy of grooves from a very unlikely source – tracks that are nicely different than some of the other Eastern Bloc material from the period, and which often have a cool, classy vibe that's quite a nice surprise! The track selection here is every bit as great as the wonderful first volume – and titles include "Maskeraad" by Marju Kuut & Apelsin, "Nuud On Mul Muusika" by Laine, "Mind Veel El Ole (short inst)" by Jaan Kumani, "Veerev Paev" by Els Himma, "On See Hea (inst)" by Pirita, "Malestus (short)" by Eesti TV & Radio, and "Hoia Ennast Koos" by Teravik. LP, Vinyl record album

The magma here is plenty hot – cooked up with a blend of funky rhythms and soaring strings – all with a mighty strong nod to disco styles of the time! Yet the music is also a bit more diverse, too – bringing in soaring soundtrack modes, almost creating a cop/crime TV show vibe on a few tracks – while others go for more of a straight groove that would be perfect for the club! The titles are a bit hard to pronounce, but the set's all instrumental, and has a very universal appeal – on tracks that include "Disco In E", "Magma", "Temat", "Latajacy Spodek", "Marzenie", and "Czarna Gwiazda". CD features four bonus tracks too! CD

A very cool collaboration between Greg Foat and James Thorpe – a set that's billed more as a sound library session than some of Foat's other jazz projects – even though the sound is equally appealing if you love those records too! The set is self-described as "futuristic analogue cosmic synth library cues for TV, film, and radio" – but it's also got a much warmer sound than you might expect, very much in keeping with the natural image on the cover – as Foat and Thorpe eschew some of the colder keyboard styles of other library records, and instead really let things glow with that organic vibe that usually informs Greg's music, as gentle rhythms set the pace for Fender Rhodes, Hohner pianet, and a host of Korg and Roland keys. There's also a touch of vibes, some field recordings, and other cool touches – on tracks that include "Balloon Ride", "Circadian Rhythms", "Grockle Box", "Living The Dream", "Platform Game", "Stacey's Theme", and "Elementary Physiology (parts 1 & 2)". CD

A very cool collaboration between Greg Foat and James Thorpe – a set that's billed more as a sound library session than some of Foat's other jazz projects – even though the sound is equally appealing if you love those records too! The set is self-described as "futuristic analogue cosmic synth library cues for TV, film, and radio" – but it's also got a much warmer sound than you might expect, very much in keeping with the natural image on the cover – as Foat and Thorpe eschew some of the colder keyboard styles of other library records, and instead really let things glow with that organic vibe that usually informs Greg's music, as gentle rhythms set the pace for Fender Rhodes, Hohner pianet, and a host of Korg and Roland keys. There's also a touch of vibes, some field recordings, and other cool touches – on tracks that include "Balloon Ride", "Circadian Rhythms", "Grockle Box", "Living The Dream", "Platform Game", "Stacey's Theme", and "Elementary Physiology (parts 1 & 2)". LP, Vinyl record album

It's been nearly 20 years since Natalie Cole first sang duets with her father through the magic of technology – so the time's long overdue to throw a host of other talents into the mix! The style here is a bit like the Verve Remixed albums – in that the record takes older classics by Nat from the 40s and 50s, and updates them strongly with contributions from a host of contemporary mixers and producers. However, there's also a key difference here in that the album also features a fair bit of extra vocals too – from Bebel Gilberto, Natalie Cole, Nas, The Roots, and Izza Kizza – all of whom help to make the album a bit more than the simple remix effort you might expect. Nat's own vocals are a bit buried in the mix at times, but that's no problem if you're eager to hear more from the younger generation – or re:generation, as the case may be! Titles include "Day In Day Out" with Cut Chemist, "Straighten Up & Fly Right" with Will I Am & Natalie Cole, "Lush Life" with Cee-Lo Green, "Walkin My Baby Back Home" with The Roots, "The Game Of Love" with Salaam Remi & Nas, "El Choclo" with Brazilian Girls, "Pick Up" with Just Blaze, "Nature Boy" with TV On The Radio, and "Anytime Anyday Anywhere" with Amp Fiddler. CD

The title here might not roll off the tongue, but the set's full of fantastic funky sounds that will have you fast forgetting you can barely speak the name of the record! Henryk Debich is one of the true European sound library greats of the 70s – but unlike his better-known contemporaries in London, Paris, and Rome, he did most of his work behind the Iron Curtain, for an assortment of radio and TV productions that were never shown on Western screens! Yet with work like this, Debich proves that he's got all the chops of soundtrack and film score greats like Lalo Schifrin or Quincy Jones – as the music is full of great funky rhythms at the core, plenty of riffing guitar and keyboard solos, and even a few more sensitive jazz-based moments too. The set's one of the first to expose the music of Henryk to a larger audience, and as such features notes in English and Polish – alongside cuts that include "Puma", "Wampiry", "Sjesta", "Zblizenie", "Marzanna", "Ostinato Riff", "Blyski I Ciene", and "Wewnatrz I Na Zewnatrz". LP, Vinyl record album

Two slices of never-issued work from pianist Bill Evans – material recorded on two different dates in Denmark in 1964, both featuring work from his fantastic trio that featured Chuck Israels on bass and Larry Bunker on drums! Both players were key to helping Evans develop the sound that he would carry forth strongly into the 70s – Bunker with a very subtle, open touch on the drums – and Israels with a modern conception of basswork that followed strongly from some of the experiments that Scott LaFaro had begun with Evans a few years before. The set features one batch of tracks recorded for Danish Radio, another for TV in Copenhagen – and titles include "Give", "I Didn't Know What Time It Was", "Waltz For Debby", "Sweet & Lovely", "My Foolish Heart", and "How My Heart Sings". LP, Vinyl record album

Mad mad work from the great Nino Nardini – one of the greatest keyboard players to ever grace the sound library scene! This album was never officially issued, but is an incredibly strong bit of "commercial music", created initially for use by radio and TV stations, but just as good as anything that was on the market at the time. The music is a mix of jazz funk and 70s exotica – played on electric and acoustic instruments, mixing piano, moog, and congas into a swirling blend that's similar to the group Mandingo, but which also has lots of other 70s soundtrack elements. The track "Jungle Obsession" begins with a nice little drumbreak, then rolls into some wild bass-y moog riffs punctuated by other bits of computer music. Other tracks have voices, percussion, and even a bit of strings – and the whole thing's an extremely fresh bit of jungle funk! Titles include "White Snake", "Bali Girl", "Murmuring Leaves", "Jungle Spell", "Creeping Danger", and "Mowgli". Features the bonus tracks "Tropical" and "Safari Park". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the trippiest entries into the Trip series – and one of the newest selections of tunes too! While most of the other Trip collections bring together some older bits from the Universal catalog, this one mostly sticks to recent years – and melds together a nice blend of electronica and left-of-center pop and rock tracks from the past decade or so – all picked by Gary Lightbody with a bit of help from Roy Kerr. The 2CD version is mixed on both discs – with the tracks sliding into one another nicely. Titles include "You Can't Stop It" by Kojak, "Way Behind" by Low & Springheel Jack, "My Sex" by Sir Drew, "Staring At The Sun" by TV On The Radio, "Everywhere" by Machines, "With Arms Outstretched" by Rilo Kiley, "Christmas Song" by Joy Zipper, "Sleaze" by Harco Point, and "Green Green Grass Of Tunnel" by Mum. 32 tracks in all. CD

The sounds here aren't that unusual at all – and in fact, they're mostly pretty darn groovy – a superb selection of sound library funk from the glory days of the European scene – collected here together in support of the book of the same name! In case you're new to the scene – the Euro sound library world of the 60s and 70s was a place where extremely creative musicians could come together and create their own sort of grooves without a worry for placement on the record charts – as most of these cuts were locked in the vaults, then licensed briefly for use on radio, TV, or commercials – which led to a few of these gems getting some famous, but anonymous play on classic cop or crime shows at the time. The compilation brings together some of the best examples of this scene – loads of cuts that have been our favorites over the years – a whopping 20 tracks that include "Half Forgotten Daydreams" by John Cameron, "Funky Fanfare" by Keith Mansfield, "Weeping Eelgrass" by Mladen Franko, "Mild Maniac" by Peter Patzer, "Dream Number Two" by Roland Hollinger, "Soft Wind" by Gary Pacific Orchestra, "Tropicola" by Stringtronics, "Survivor" by Klaus Weiss, "La Dimonstrazione" by Daniele Patucchi, "Feeling Tense" by Stefano Torossi, "Xenos Cosmos" by Janko Nilovic, "Night Breeze" by Franco Micalizzi, and "Fancy Good" by Electric Machine. CD

A well-done batch of music for the initial season of Japanese TV show Long Vacation – served up with a sense of variety and depth that's a great change from American television music for a program of this nature! Cagnet put the whole thing together, but they've got a good sense of variety throughout – shifting singers and styles of music, and moving between vocal numbers and instrumentals that have a nice mix of beats and soundtrack elements. Titles include "Long Vacation" by Anna McMurphy, "Silent Emotion" by Calin, "Little By Little" by Section S, "To Live & Die" by David, "What Will I Do" by Natalie Burks, and the tunes "Tiny Tale", "Back Ground", and "Short Wave Radio". CD

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Sweet funky grooves from 70s Poland – material by a radio/TV orchestra, but one who've clearly learned a lot from Barry White's Love Unlimited Orchestra and some other great American acts of the time! Keyboards, basslines, and tight drums really set the stage for the tunes – so that when the larger orchestrations come into the mix, things are still plenty darn groovy – yet maybe a bit more down to earth than more polished mainstream disco of the period! Titles include "Cos", "Ballada Dla Malgosi", "Legenda", "Bez Zmian", "Hymn Proximy 2", and "Dekoder". CD features four bonus tracks too! CD

Funky sound library instrumentals, done for Polish radio at the end of the 70s – which means they've got a fair bit of disco and club influences thrown into the rhythms for good measure! In fact, there's plenty of tracks here that would be great to drop on a disco dancefloor – although most are just a few minutes long, which will leave you moving fast for your next segue – as bumping basslines, soaring strings, and solo instrumentation serve up sounds that are maybe a tighter take on territory of groups like MSFB and Salsoul Orchestra from the US. Titles include "Anonimowy Sen", "Widok Swiata", "Net", "C'Est Si Bon", "Cztery Godziny Spoznienia", "Szybkie Rozdanie", and "Meczbol". CD features four bonus tracks too! CD

A well-done batch of music for the initial season of Japanese TV show Long Vacation – served up with a sense of variety and depth that's a great change from American television music for a program of this nature! Cagnet put the whole thing together, but they've got a good sense of variety throughout – shifting singers and styles of music, and moving between vocal numbers and instrumentals that have a nice mix of beats and soundtrack elements. Titles include "Long Vacation" by Anna McMurphy, "Silent Emotion" by Calin, "Little By Little" by Section S, "To Live & Die" by David, "What Will I Do" by Natalie Burks, and the tunes "Tiny Tale", "Back Ground", and "Short Wave Radio". LP, Vinyl record album

A really cool collection of work from Polish sound library talent Henryk Debich – all 70s material that was designed to evoke the feel of the modern city – including many tracks that were issued in a special cassette series for daily commuters! The material was recorded at the Polish Radio studios, and mixes groovy 70s elements with fuller orchestrations – some disco rhythms at points, mellower soundtrack touches at others – keyboards often stepping out strongly from the fuller arrangements in a way that's a bit like Italian or UK sound library material at the same time! Titles include "UFO", "Obsydian", "Marmyszka", "City", "Choral I Final", and "Perforowany Parmezan". CD features four bonus tracks too! CD

With Jayo Felony and LA Nash. 12-inch, Vinyl record

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... 12-inch, Vinyl record

A rare look at a very obscure sound library from the European scene – the Belgian Selection label, home to some very groovy sounds from the late 70s! The music here resonates with Belgian soundtrack and jazz work of the period – and shares some musicians from those genres too – and the titles within mix funky jazz with larger arrangements – all instrumental, and handled in a strong array of styles – some upbeat, some midtempo, and some cool and laidback! Titles include "Black World" by Stern Selection, "Space Shuttle Jazz" by Jacques Siroul, "Crystal Waltz" by Rene Costy, "Chief Of Freen Bean" by Bob Porter, "No Thoroughfare" by Jordan Stevy, and "Osmoses" by Leonard D Messina. LP, Vinyl record album

"Ol' Time Killin" features IRS, Wio-K, Jully Black and Allistair. Money Jane features Sean Paul (!?!) and Jully Black. 12-inch, Vinyl record

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Featuring Redman & Method Man on "Rock & Roll", Rottin Razkals on "Rah Rah", Lil Jon & Chyna White on "Wild Muthaf*ckas", and Pink on "what You Wanna Do". 12-inch, Vinyl record

Weezer's second album – nearly ignored by fickle alternative rock radio programmers and Mtv after their debut was such a surprise smash – and now rightly remembered as a classic! Much has been made over the years about the sadder, angrier songs on Pinkerton, as well as the occasional keyboards and fuzzier, less glossy sound. Still, it's Weezer, therefore catchy as hell, and not without a sense of humor, even if it's outwordly sad and a little cynical. Tracks include "Tired Of Sex", "No Other One", "Getchoo", "The Good Life", "El Scorcho", "Falling For You", "Butterfly" and "Why Bother". (PS: If there's a better 90s rock loser anthem than "Why Bother", we haven't heard it.) CD

Posse track with verses from Afu Ra, QNC, Jane Blaze, Fat Cat Kareem, Starang Wondah, TEF, and Krumbsnatcha; with production by Curt Cazal. 12-inch, Vinyl record

Weezer's second album – nearly ignored by fickle alternative rock radio programmers and Mtv after their debut was such a surprise smash – and now rightly remembered as a classic! Much has been made over the years about the sadder, angrier songs on Pinkerton, as well as the occasional keyboards and fuzzier, less glossy sound. Still, it's Weezer, therefore catchy as hell, and not without a sense of humor, even if it's outwordly sad and a little cynical. Tracks include "Tired Of Sex", "No Other One", "Getchoo", "The Good Life", "El Scorcho", "Falling For You", "Butterfly" and "Why Bother". (PS: If there's a better 90s rock loser anthem than "Why Bother", we haven't heard it.) LP, Vinyl record album

Great grooves galore – a sweet selection of tracks from the late 60s onwards, none of which were made available to the public at the time! The French Tele Music company was one of those secret sound library labels – recording top shelf tracks during the 70s, but then only passing them along to TV, radio, and film producers – for possible use in later projects! This meant that there was a rich array of wonderful sounds that never made it to records that the public could buy in stores – and the result is a collection like this, which is overflowing with killer grooves that you're not likely to have in your record collection at all. Styles range from funky jazz to clubby grooves, with plenty of soundtrack-styled funk numbers in the mix – and titles include "Gang Train" by Bernard Estardy, "West Coast Drive" by Pierre Alain Dahan & Mat Camison, "Mitsuko" by Jean Jacques Debout, "Percussionissimo" by Hervey Roy, "Suspense Time" by Michel Gonet, "Meteor One" by Sauveur Mallia, "Pop Percussions" by Janko Nilovic, "Rocket 2" by Bernard Lubat, and "Les Copans De La Basse" by Guy Pedersen. 26 tracks in all – selected by Lord Funk & DJ LC! LP, Vinyl record album

A posthumous collection of work from Freddie King – material recorded in a variety of different sources, but all of it with Freddie's well-honed guitar sound in the lead! Some tracks were done down at Criteria Studios in Miami, and have a warmly southern sort of glow – others were done in the UK with Mike Vernon with a bit more of a rockish feel, and a few more were done for radio, with a slightly rougher edge than the rest. Titles include "Pack It Up", "Shake Your Bootie", "Tain't Nobody's Bizness If I Do", "Woman Across The Bridge", "Sweet Home Chicago", "Sugar Sweet", "TV Mama", "Gambling Woman Blues", and "Farther Up The Road." LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark record – even if nobody thought so at the time! The Buggles were the first group of Trevor Horn – soon to be more famous through his work with Yes, Art Of Noise, and the ZTT label – and the group's lasting legacy will forever be the tinny pop number "Video Killed The Radio Star", contained on this album, and the first video ever played on MTV. The rest of the album's pretty darn great – in a similar mode to the more famous tune, with quirky little pop styles colliding with each other, all handled by Horn and Geoff Downes, in a flutter of keyboards, spare backings, and slight guitars – kind of a last gasp of the British mainstream pop sound of the 70s, trying to exist in a post-punk world. Titles include "Kid Dynamo", "Living In the Plastic Age", "I Love You Miss Robot", "Astroboy", and "Johnny On The Monorail". . LP, Vinyl record album