Three full albums from Atlantic Starr – with lots of bonus tracks too! All In The Name Of Love has Atlantic Star at the height of their catchy commercial fame – bouncing along with rhythms that crossover nicely to the mainstream, yet still keep a bit of their previous funky edge intact! The groove here is almost in the style that Atlantic Starr inspired in so many other younger groups in the earlier part of the 80s – although it's also a bit more polished too. Most instrumentation is electric, and tunes are mostly written by the team of David and Wayne Lewis – both of whom sing on the record. Barbara Weathers also handles female vocals, and titles include "Once Lover At A Time", "Let The Sun In", "My Mistake", "I'm In Love", "Always", "Don't Take Me For Granted", and a version of Sam Dees' "All In The Name Of Love". We're Moving Up is one of the last in a long run of 80s hits from Atlantic Starr – a group who were already moving up the soul charts before the release of the album! The set continues their move into commercial territory started a few records before, but it also shakes loose of some of the colder sounds of 80s soul – and picks up a somewhat warmer vibe on the keyboards and rhythms. Porscha Martin sings female vocals with the group, and titles include "Under Your Spell", "Love Ain't Fair", "Woman's Touch", "We're Movin Up", "My Sugar", "You Deserve The Best", and "Don't Start The Fire". Love Crazy is a set that's got a nice change in groove from Atlantic Starr – a sound that's still got a lot of their best elements intact, but which also seems to bring on some of the best elements that were being introduced by the British scene too! Rhythms at points are maybe more in the Soul II Soul or Lisa Stansfield modes – which makes for some great tunes that really reinvigorate the group and update them for a new jack generation, while still holding onto the charms of the past. A few moments get more in a mellow quiet storm sound – all with the balance that made earlier Atlantic Starr albums classics – on titles that include "Love Crazy", "Hold On", "Masterpiece", "Girl Your Love's So Fine", "I Can't Wait", "If You Knew What's Good For You", and "Come Lover". 3CD package features all albums in tiny LP-styled jackets – with bonus tracks that include "One Lover At A Time (ext)", "Always (edit)", "Let The Sun Shine IN (ext rmx)", "All In The Name Of Love (single)", "My First Love (ext)", "Bring It Back Home Again (Joe Smooth ext mix)", "My First Love (7" edit)", and "Bring It Back Home Again (Joe Smooth underground mix)". CD

Three great albums from Alice Coltrane – all late 70s albums for Warner Brothers that really show her taking off as both a solo performer and a spiritual force! First up is Eternity – seminal 70s work from one of the most righteous jazz musicians ever! On this set, Alice Coltrane moves past the rawer spiritual sound of her Impulse albums – working with a more focused vision and an approach to jazz that takes her way past the identity of just being "Mrs Coltrane", into territory that's a more perfect expression of her spiritual vision. The approach calls for more ambitious orchestrations, yet never in a way that overwhelms the jazz basis of the music – and Alice herself is on Fender Rhodes, organ, and harp – working with players who include Fred Jackson and Hubert Laws on reeds, Oscar Brashear on trumpet, George Bohannon on trombone, Charlie Haden on bass, Ben Riley on drums, and Armando Peraza on congas. Titles include "Spiritual Eternal", "Om Supreme", "Morning Workshop", "Wisdom Eye", and "Los Caballos". Radha Krsna Nama Saknirtana is pure spiritual loveliness from Alice, and a record that features a lot of additional playing by Indian musicians! Clearly, the Hari Krishnas have gotten to the lady here – as you can tell by the orange robe she's wearing on the cover, and the blank stare in her eyes – but that doesn't stop the album from being a nice one, filled with the soaring spiritualism of her best 70s work, and infused with a cross-cultural approach to jazz that makes for a wonderfully expansive sound. Tracks include "Om Namah Sivaya", "Hare Krishna", and "Govinda Jai Jai". Transcendence is a beautiful record from Alice Coltrane – a swirling mix of spiritual jazz and themes from Indian music! Alice plays organ, Fender Rhodes, and harp – building the sound as the album progresses, from simple airy strings to an earthier groove that features vocal refrains in unison with the keyboards, chanting away, over and over, stretching to the heavens in a cosmic groove! The record features a lot of variations on traditional Indian themes – including "Sivaya", "Ghana Nila", and "Bhaja Govindam" – plus the original tracks "Transcendence" and "Vrindavana Sanchara". CD

A pair of Warner Brothers albums from Grand Funk – with a bonus track too! Grand Funk Lives is early 80s work from Grand Funk – off the Railroad by this time in their career, but still very sharp at providing the kind of tracks they first did so well back in the day! Given how much hard rock had hit the mainstream by the early 80s, the record's almost as if the group are showing the rest of the younger pack how it's done – effortlessly spinning off guitar riffs and catchy vocals on tunes that include "Testify", "Good Times", "Stuck In The Middle", "Greed Of Man", "Wait For Me", and "No Reason Why". What's Funk is a record that asks a musical question with the title – although one that provides an answer that's different than you might expect if you're a fan of soul music! Still, if you've been a lover of Grand Funk right from the start, you'll find plenty to please your ears here – a slight 80s twist in the production and instrumentation – less organ and more keyboards, but still plenty of guitars – and the usual top-shelf vocal presentation from Mark Farner at the head of the group. Titles include "Borderline", "El Salvador", "Don't Lie To Me", "Life In Outer Space", "Innocent", and "Still Waitin". CD features the bonus track "Let It Happen". CD

A trio of wonderful records – plus rare bonus tracks too! First up is the classic Oh Good Grief – one of the coolest, grooviest albums that pianist Vince Guaraldi ever recorded – a set that's got the same Peanuts theme as his earlier dates for Fantasy Records, but which also features some sweet electric touches that only make things even better than before! In addition to his warmly vamping piano, with all those lyrical touches we love so much, Vince is playing an electric harpsichord too – which makes for some very groovy moments – in a cool quartet that features guitar from Eddie Duran, bass from Stanley Gilbert, and drums from the great Carl Burnett! All tunes are Peanut-themed – the music that Guaraldi wrote for the TV specials – but they're sometimes taken at a looser style that's even jazzier overall – as you'll hear on the classic "Linus & Lucy", plus "Red Baron", "Peppermint Patty", "Great Pumpkin Waltz", and "Rain Rain Go Away". The Eclectic Vince Guaraldi nicely expands Vince's sound of earlier years – by taking his lyrical piano groove and adding in a bit of electric harpsichord – plus slightly larger arrangements that feature a bit of electric bass, guitar, and just the right light touches of strings. The resulting sound is wonderful – as deeply reflective as some of Vince's better-known work, but with some cool late 60s touches that really give the album a fresh kind of feel. And heck, Vince even sings on 2 Tim Hardin tracks – "Black Sheep Boy" and "Reason To Believe" – using a great raspy style of vocals that we didn't even know he had! Other titles include a great electric version of "The Beat Goes On", plus cool originals "Nobody Else", "Coffee and Doe-Nuts", and "Lucifer's Lady". Alma-Ville was cut during Vince's late 60s hipster phase – and it combines work on piano with a bit of electric playing, plus hip LA arrangements that include drums by Dom Um Romao, guitar by Herb Ellis, and added percussion by Rubens Bassini. Tracks are mostly originals – short groovers and sing-song numbers, a lot cooler than some of Vince's earlier work – all dancing along in a sweetly breezy groove that makes for a heck of a delightful little album! Titles include "Rio From The Air", "Cristo Redentor", "Uno Y Uno", "Detained In San Ysidro", "Jambos", "Alma Ville", and "The Masked Marvel". 2CD set features 4 bonus tracks – "Oh Happy Day", "The Sharecropper's Daughter", "Do You Know The Way To San Jose (take 15)", and 'The BEat Goes On (alt take 14)". CD

An amazing set – all four of the legendary Warner Brothers albums by harmony giants Harpers Bizarre – plus bonus tracks too! First up is Feelin Groovy – the fab first LP by Harpers Bizarre! The group were one of the strangest pop ensembles operating in the seminal LA scene of the mid 60s – ostensibly a sweet harmony vocal group, but with a strangely childish approach that also had an ear open for the mind-blowing production styles of the Brian Wilson era. Van Dyke Parks was a big supporter of the group – and they perform a sublime version of his tune "Come To The Sunshine" as the leadoff track on the album – and even though Van Dyke didn't handle the arrangements of the record, the style of the music is very similar to his own, with guitar, bass, and drums coming into play with strings, woodwinds, and baroque orchestral touches. The record is as dark as it is sublime – one of those pop gems that hit big, but which has a brooding depth bubbling underneath the sugary coating – ala Pet Sounds. Tracks include "Happy Talk", "The Debutantes Ball", "I Can Hear The Darkness", "Raspberry Rug", and their huge hit version of "59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin Groovy)". Next is Anything Goes – the group's second album – and while it has a lot of similarities with the first, it's also a lot deeper of an expression of their strange blend of harmony vocals, sweet 60s pop, and the nostalgia for the early 20th century that was running through the Burbank Warner scene that included a young Van Dyke Parks, Randy Newman, Lenny Waronker, and other LA underground of the mid 60s. The whole record fits together beautifully – beginning with an old-timey radio kind of announcer, then sliding into sublimely crafted harmony tunes that include originals from the LA luminaries and the group, plus a few other surprising covers. Titles include the hit version of "Anything Goes", plus "The Biggest Night Of Her Life", "Milord", "Virginia City", "High Coin", "Jessie", "This Is Only The Beginning", and "You Need A Change". The Secret Life Of Harpers Bizarre is the third album by Harpers Bizarre – and one that shows them growing in leaps and bounds with each new release! The record is a sublime fusion of sweet pop California 60s harmonies (ala The Sandpipers or The Lettermen), baroque arrangements with a fake dreamy nostalgia (ala Van Dyke Parks or Randy Newman), and drug-addled underground takes on the eazy sound of the generation (ala Brian Wilson or Love). This album is one of their most perfectly-realized visions, and it features a great blend of older songs, all hipped-up to modern LA arrangements by the likes of Nick De Caro, Perry Botkin, and others. The record has an approach that's simply mindblowing when you consider the amount of funds and effort that must have been put into a record that would only be truly appreciated 40 years later – and it's filled with great titles that include "Me, Japanese Boy", "Look To The Rainbow", "Funny How Love Can Be", "Mad", "Green Apple Tree", and "Las Mananitas". Last up is the group's fourth album, unfortunately, the last Warner album by Harpers Bizarre – one of the few testaments of genius left to us by this incredible group! The record shows the group moving past the sweet pop and dreamy nostalgia of earlier albums – tentatively stepping into the haze of the late 60s LA scene with a blend of songs that share a lot musically with earlier work, but which also seem to have a more adult approach to some of their themes. Arrangements are by the group mostly – with help from pop geniuses like Jack Nitzsche, Nick De Caro, Lenny Waronker, Harry Nilsson, and Perry Botkin Jr. The harmonies are sublime – and the group effortlessly blends original tunes like "Soft Soundin Music", "All Through The Night", "When The Band Begins To Play", and "There's No Time Like Today, along with bizarre covers like "Hard To Handle", "Something Better", "I Love You Alice B Toklas", and Jim Pepper's "Witchi Tai To", which is worth the price of the record alone! Bonus tracks include "Both Sides Now", "Small Talk", "Poly High", "If We Ever Needed The Lord Before", "Malibu U", "Cotton Candy Sandman", "Lost My Love Today", and "Bye Bye Bye". CD

Peter Ivers's entire output for Warner Brothers in the mid 70s – including the original LPs Terminal Love & Peter Ivers, plus the Nirvana Peter compilation, which didn't appear until the mid 80s and STILL sounded ahead of its time – in a complete 2CD set! Peter has a distinctive voice and offbeat lyrical sensibility that feels a lot more akin to the arty fringe of the major labels in the early 80s than it does to 1974 or 1976, he's really a pioneer. It's no surprise at all that he'd end up being the host of LA television's legendary music program New Wave Theatre in the early 80s, but it's surprising he doesn't get more credit these days for influencing the kind thing that'd come to be called "new wave" years after his contributing work! Disc 1 includes the Terminal Love and Peter Ivers LPs, with "Alpha Centauri", "OO Girl", "Modern Times", "Holding The Cobra", "Even Stephen Foster", 'Audience Of One", "I'm Sorry Alice", "Eighteen And Dreaming", "Peter", "Rock And Roll Embarrassment", "Child In A Chair" and more. Disc 2 (the Nirvana Peter comp) features a few tracks from his 2 proper LPs and rarities. The 2CDs have 33 tracks in all. CD

A pair of early 70s albums from the mighty Alexis Korner – back to back in a single set! First up is Bootleg Him – a record with a strange mix of elements on the outside – a confusing title, a proggy-cover image – but one that's got a sound that's a perfect maturation of the fantastic sound of Alexis Korner in the 60s! Korner's one of the overlooked heroes in British music – a strong devotee of American blues, and maybe so much so that sounds more like his inspirations than most – but never in a slavish way, as Alexis is always able to full absorb the sound, and make you feel like it's coming from his own deep soul – and over the years, he really shifted things in these slight, but powerful ways – making his music a huge influence on a big generation of UK rock acts to come. Here, the double-length set is almost a "thanks back" affair – as Korner records with a huge all-star array that includes folks like Robert Plant, Jack Bruce, Charlie Watts, Ginger Baker, Graham Bond, Lol Coxhill, Dick Heckstall-Smith, Ray Warleigh, Harry Beckett, and many more – a fantastic crossroads of all that's hip in British rock, blues, and jazz at the start of the 70s. Titles include "I Got A Woman", "Rockin", "She Foold Me", "I Wonder Who", "Dee", "Love Is Gonna Go", "Clay House Inn", "Evil Hearted Woman", "Mighty Mighty", "Sunrise", and "Hellhound On My Tail". Accidentally Borne In New Orleans (title correct, by the way!) is a record that really has Alexis Korner stretching out from the straighter blues of his 60s material – using his fantastic style on a set of tunes that show as much New Orleans influence as you might guess from the title – but also an evolved British roots rock quality too! The group is very interesting – relatively lean, and with loads of saxophone solos from Mel Collins – the reedman who made some early 70s King Crimson albums so great – plus second guitar from Peter Thorup, who also adds a bit of slide, and makes for a strongly guitar-based groove amidst some of the slightly funky rhythms. Titles include "Gospel Ship", "Lo & Behold", "County Shoes", "Don't Change On Me", "Rock Me", and "Sweet Sympathy". CD

A big overview collection of work from the key years of reedman David Sanborn – a player who certainly knew how to hit the heights with the sales of his records, but also had a surprisingly strong, rich career over the years! If you only think of Sanborn as a smooth jazz pioneer, then you'll find plenty to open up your mind here – as David first recorded as a solo act for Warner Brothers at a time when he was making key contributions to sessions for other artists, then found ways to consistently stay ahead of the fusion and electric jazz mainstream – to the point where in the later recordings here, he's almost back to basics in a really surprising way! As with other great anthology collections on this label, there's a really strong track selection – one that not only features key album tracks, but singles and even a few live cuts too – a really well-chosen batch of 46 tunes that include "Believer (12" mix)", "Love & Happiness (live)", "High Roller", "Flight", "Heba", "Short Visit", "This Masquerade", "Lesly Ann (radio)", "Smile (live)", "Infant Eyes", "Naked Moon", "Brother Ray", "Imogene", "Come To Me Nina", "Lotus Blossom (live)", "Daydreaming", "Same Girl", "Bang Bang (single)", "Summer", "I Do It For Your Love", "The Water Is Wide", "Got To Give It Up (rmx edit)", "Slam (7" version)", and "Duck Ankles". CD

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One of the funkiest box sets we've ever seen – and amazingly issued by an American major label! The 4CD package is a treasure trove of funky work from a decade of Warner Brothers, Atlantic Records, and related labels – tunes pulled both from mainstream album releases and much more obscure 45s – all expertly collected here into a whopping batch of 91 tracks, all packaged in a cool little box with an 80 page booklet! This one goes way past some of the silly "decade" sets from Rhino, and really displays a new level of cool and connoisseurship – one that finally appreciates the rich depths of funky work at their fingertips, most of which has not been properly reissued in the US! Titles include "Almendra" by Macondo, "Goin Down" by Allen Toussaint, "Wah Wah Man" by Young Holt Unlimited, "Spinning Wheel" by Wade Marcus, "Hard Times" by Baby Huey & The Baby Sitters, "What's So Never The Dance (parts 1 & 2)" by Houseguests, "8 Days On The Road" by Howard Tate, "Getting Uptown" by United 8, "Wanoah" by Black Heat, "Let It Crawl" by Society's Bag, "Flute Thing" by Seatrain, "Try It Again" by Bobby Byrd, "Funky To The Bone" by Freddi Henchi & The Soul Setters, "Improve" by Darrow Fletcher, "Rien Ne Va Plus" by Funk Factory, "Gossip" by Cyril Neville, "Spreadin Honey" by Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, "Stoned Soul" by Artie Christopher, "Sexy Coffee Pot" by Tony Alvon & The Belaires, "Tampin" by The Rhine Oaks, "Jan Jan" by The Fabulous Counts, "Sing A Simple Song" by The Noble Knights, "It's All In Your Mind" by Soul Angels, "Funky John" by Johnny Cameron, "Don't Come Around Here Any More" by Mark Putney, "Keep On Dancing" by The Commodores, "Right On Brother (part 1)" by South Shore Commission, "Pop Popcorn Children" by Eldridge Holmes, and "The Deacon" by Brute Force. CD

Mindblowing music from The Association – a heady double-length package that features every single the group ever cut for the Valiant and Warner Brothers label – which together make for an amazing evolution in sound! Although best remembered for their few soft rock hits, The Association were a hell of a group who never stopped growing back in the 60s – from sublime folksy harmonies at the start, to more complicated baroque pop as years went on, to some psych elements, and even a return to rootsier sounds they never had in the first place – always delivered with qualities that were head and shoulders above most of their contemporaries – and perfectly put together in the best LA studio styles, with help from giants like Curt Boettcher, Gary Paxton, Bones Howe, and others. The group also became quite skilled in the studio themselves – as you'll hear in the book's copious notes and comments from members themselves – all a perfect package for a set that features 37 mighty tunes that include "Six Man Band", "Goodbye Columbus", "Like Always", "No Fair At All", "Standing Still", "Pandora's Golden Heebie Jeebies", "Looking Glass", "Birthday Morning", "Makes Me Cry", "PF Sloan", "Just About The Same", "Traveler's Guide", "I Am Up For Europe", "Hear In Here",a nd "Forty Times" – not to mention some bigger hits! CD

The complete Warner Brothers recordings of Sly Stone – and a much-needed look at an oft-ignored side of his career! The set features the full tracks from the albums Back On The Right Track and Ain't But The One Way – as well as 5 previously unissued demos, which have a rough and ready feel that almost makes them the best of the bunch! The work on the albums is surprisingly great – not classic early Sly, but with this warmly compressed groove that extends his sound nicely – and which has a really great mainstream funk appeal. Sly's using the studio as an instrument more than ever before – getting some great sounds out of the way he brings the vocals, drums, and guitars all together in the mix – and reinventing himself a bit, without losing his groove. Titles include "The Same Thing (Makes You Laugh, Makes You Cry)", "Shine It On", "It Takes All Kinds", "Who's To Say", "Sheer Energy", "LOVINU", "One Way", "High, Y'All", "Ha Ha Hee Hee", "You Really Got Me", "Sylvester", "You're The One (inst demo)", "In Other Words (demo)", "Hand Of Love (demo)", and "Get Back (backing track takes 2 & 3)". CD

Brazilian grooves all over the place – and a wonderful assortment of tunes from the Warner, Atlantic, and Elektra vaults of the 60s and 70s! The set list goes way past the pop-bossa numbers that you might think from the cover, which is a cop from an old Atlantic compilation of the 60s – and includes some lesser-known tracks cooked up in Brazil during the 70s, as well as some of their American counterparts. Titles include "Celebration Suite" by Airto, "Jive Samba" by Jon Hendricks, "Eu Bebo Sim" by Osmar Milito, "Mr Funky Samba" by Banda Black Rio, "From The Lonely Afternoon" by Flora Purim, "Upa Neguinho (live)" by Elis Regina,"Manha De Carnival" by Louie Ramirez, "Barsanova Brown" by Eddie Cano, and more. CD

Includes 22 tracks. CD

Warm, mellow, and completely sublime – the mighty America at the height of their powers – working with a quality that nobody else can match! The trio wrap together all the best ideas that were bubbling under in the LA scene of the late 60s – vocal harmonies, studio perfection, and even touches of rootsy instrumentation – yet find a space to work all these elements together in a rich sound that's completely unique – amazingly understated at times, despite a near-perfect level of production! The whole album's great – even their original version of "Muskrat Love" – nestled in here next to "Rainbow Song", "Submarine Ladies", "Molten Love", "Green Monkey", and "Goodbye". CD

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An expanded double-length set from Ashford & Simpson – one that features three sides of live material, plus some great studio work as well! The concert material makes up the core of the album – a really wonderful demonstration of the genius of Nick and Valerie away from the studio – still every bit as tight as on previous Warner albums, with perhaps an even more jaw-dropping appreciation of their talents – given the way they put things together on a stage! Things are nicely changed up – some cuts extended, some shortened, and the duo are clearly as great of live entertainers as they are in the studio – if we can judge from the crowd response. Live cuts include "Don't Cost You Nothing", "Landlord/Clouds/The Boss/Is It Still Good To Ya", "Love Don't Make It Right", "Bourgie Bourgie (inst)", "Nobody Knows", "You're All I Need/Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing/Ain't No Mountain High Enough", and "It Seems To Hang On". Studio cuts are great too – and include "It Shows In The Eyes", "It's The Long Run", and "Come On Pretty Baby". LP, Vinyl record album

Fantastic dreamy pop from one of the greatest harmony groups of the 60s – a set that really has The Association hitting their stride, and finding a way to really let their vocals soar! The sound here really sets the group apart from some of the more old-school harmony acts of the decade – and the shift is almost like that in the Beach Boys at mid 60s, the way that things got more complicated and sophisticated, but more powerful too – even when the tunes have some really sing-song charms that made them hits! Production is by Bones Howe, who really gets the sound right – and the album features the giant hits "Windy" and "Never My Love" – plus "Happiness Is", "On A Quiet Night", "We Love Us", "Reputation", and "Requiem For The Masses". This great expanded mono edition has 11 bonus tracks – including "Autumn Afternoon", "Windy (Mono 45)", "Requiem For The Masses (Mono 45)", "Sometime (Instrumental)", "We Love Us (Instrumental)" and more. CD

A hell of a debut from The B-52s – and a record that's become surprisingly timeless over the years, despite a retro-styled approach by the group! These guys aren't the silly group of later years here – and instead, they've got this moody darkness that's wonderful – a re-envisioned postwar America, one in which the neuroses are all on the outside – served up with instrumentation that's stark, but incredibly tight – snapping drums, riffing guitar, and these great organ lines that sound beautiful next to the vocals of Fred and the girls. The set gave the group their perennial hit "Rock Lobster" – but taken as a whole, it's an incredibly different landscape – as you'll discover on tracks that include "Planet Claire", "52 Girls", "Dance This Mess Around", "Lava", "There's A Moon In The Sky (Called The Moon)", "Hero Worship", "6060-842" and "Downtown". LP, Vinyl record album

The album that really broke the B52s out of the box – the one that took them from being an underground favorite in the clubs and the party scene, to being the kind of group that finally got the exposure they deserved! Of course, some of the help here comes from superproducers Nile Rodgers and Don Was – who really help the group focus on their hooks and crossover groove – all summed up perfectly on the album's hit "Love Shack" – a tune that still gets heavy play around the globe all these many years later. Other tracks include "Roam", "Channel Z", "Cosmic Thing", "Dry Country", "Topaz", "Follow Your Bliss", and "Bushfire". LP, Vinyl record album

They may look goofy on the cover, but the young B-52s are incredible here – working with this spare sense of power that almost makes us think that we didn't need most of what happened in rock and roll during the 70s – given the way these guys can distill a mood or moment down to just a few deft instrumental turns and offbeat lyrics! The record's not punk, but it's also not new wave either – at least in the conventional way – and there's a darkness here that goes way past any simple cliches you may have associated with the band – a haunting feel that transcends most of what they were ever capable of in later years. We might even say this one tops their debut – and titles include "Party Out Of Bounds", "Dirty Back Road", "Runnin Around", "Give Me Back My Man", "Private Idaho", "Devil In My Car", "Quiche Lorraine", "Strobe Light" and "53 Miles West Of Venus". LP, Vinyl record album

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One of the most iconic rock and roll shows of all time – the late 70s farewell to The Band – and quite famously, much more than a final concert by an esteemed band, it's actually a rock, pop, folk, blues and soul summit that features The Band as the house band. This landmark document of the event has always been one of rock's more opulent releases – with appearances by Muddy Waters, Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, Dr. John, The Staples and more. Includes "The From The Last Waltz", "Up On Cripple Creek", "The Shape I'm In", "Down In South New Orleans" with Bobby Charles, "Forever Young" with Bob Dylan, "I Shall Be Released (Finale)", "Rag Mama Rag", "Further Up The Road" with Eric Clapton, "Dry Your Eyes" with Eric Clapton, "Evangeline" with Emmylou Harris, "The Weight" with The Staples and more. CD

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The Beau Brummels' debut for Warner Brothers – surprisingly, a record of all cover versions – but one that's still plenty darn great! Although the tunes here are all quite familiar, they're also give some pretty unique treatment – often Brummel-ized with a mix of rootsier rock influences, and topped with tremendous lead vocals from Ron Elliott – easily one of the most distinct voices of his generation! Elliott's inflections and the group's instrumentation really turn these tunes into something new – and the album's a great illustration of the old adage that "it's not the song, but the singer!" Titles include "Bang Bang", "Play With Fire", "Woman", "Yesterday", "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away", "Homeward Bound", "Mrs Brown You've Got A Lovely Daughter", and "Monday Monday". LP, Vinyl record album

Titles include "Beyond The Sea", "No One Emotion", "Please Don't Walk Away", "New Day", "Hold Me", "Stand Up", and "You Are The Love Of My Life". CD

A super huge hit for George Benson – and the record that took him from being a funky jazz guitarist into an R&B superstar – opening up sides of his talent that first emerged on his 50s R&B recordings as Little George Benson, but taken here into some very hip 70s territory! The album features George both playing and singing over arrangements by Claus Ogerman – some of Ogerman's best of the 70s, work that mixes together his trademark pillow of sound with a slightly funky bounce that's perfect for Benson's groove. The result is incredible – and the album is filled with loads of great songs – including George's excellent version of Bobby Womack's "Breezin", the hit version of "This Masquerade", and the cuts "So This Is Love", "Six To Four", and "Affirmation". LP, Vinyl record album

A super huge hit for George Benson – and the record that took him from being a funky jazz guitarist into an R&B superstar – opening up sides of his talent that first emerged on his 50s R&B recordings as Little George Benson, but taken here into some very hip 70s territory! The album features George both playing and singing over arrangements by Claus Ogerman – some of Ogerman's best of the 70s, work that mixes together his trademark pillow of sound with a slightly funky bounce that's perfect for Benson's groove. The result is incredible – and the album is filled with loads of great songs – including George's excellent version of Bobby Womack's "Breezin", the hit version of "This Masquerade", and the cuts "So This Is Love", "Six To Four", and "Affirmation". LP, Vinyl record album

All the 70s classics – "On Broadway", "Give Me The Night", "Livin Inside Your Love", "Breezin", "This Masquerade", and lots more! LP, Vinyl record album

Titles include "Ode To A Kudu", "We As Love", "Lady Blue", "Windsong", "Weekend In LA", "It's All In The Game", and his classic take on "On Broadway". CD

This one's far more of a straight soul album than most of George Benson's earlier vocal sets – but as usual, the work is pretty high caliber throughout – and George is definitely on top of his game here, effortlessly beating others at the style they'd all started to cop from Benson by the time! Production is mostly by Narada Michael Walden, with that mix of warmth and depth that graced most of his soul sides from the time – but other tracks also get production from Kashif and Tommy LiPuma, who definitely up the pop quotient on the set. Titles include "Teaser", "Shiver", "While The City Sleeps", "Kisses In The Moonlight", "Too Many Times", and "Did You Hear Thunder". LP, Vinyl record album

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A very groovy record from Italian trumpet legend Fabrizo Bosso – one that features a group referred to as his Spiritual Trio, but a combo that's maybe got more of a soul jazz vibe overall – as the lineup features Alberto Marsico on organ and Alessandro Mnetto on drums! The spare format is great – open in ways that always seem to bring out the best phrasing in Bosso's horn, but with just the right moments of groove that have the trumpet and organ dancing together nicely – almost a newly-conceived variation on the the older 60s pairing of tenor and Hammond! Mario Biondi provides guest vocals on a remake of the Donny Hathaway tune "Someday We'll All Be Free" – and other instrumental tunes include "Sermonette", "Cold Duck Time", "Bernie's Toon", "I Shall Wear A Crown", "Forward", "A Lullaby", and "Say It Loud". CD