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With Cynthia Gooding. CD

Current Rage were one of the more obscure groups to come out of the Athens, GA scene in the early 80s – but they've also got all the instantly creative energy that made that short-lived world of music every bit as exciting as some of the best New York sounds at the time! There's a nicely choppy approach to the rhythms going on here, and plenty of strong guitar play too – deft music that's somewhere in the territory of Pylon, and like that group, maybe a warmer US answer to British post-punk sounds of the same time. Titles include "Right Side Of The Brain", "Bitte Schoen", "Sweet Torture", "My Dog Sam", "Looking Through Gels", and "Scream In The Dark". Expanded version features bonus tracks that include "Adventures In America", "Punch A Clock", "The Theme", "Constant Hiss", and live tracks "My Dog Sam", "AF", "Tequila", and "The Book Pressed Flowers". LP, Vinyl record album

A really unique album from the great Etta Jones – a session recorded down in Muscle Shoals, and not in Chicago – a setting that gives James an extra sort of deep soul power! The backing is nicely different than some of the other Chess material – killer work from the legendary Fame Studios lineup that included Barry Beckett on organ, Charles Chalmers on tenor, and Roger Hawkins on drums – all coming together with the great Rick Hall at the production helm! Etta's back in hard-belting R&B-tinged territory here – a bit more sophisticated than the 50s, with a good mix of hard soul numbers and ballads, opening up in some southern territory that really suits her well. Titles include "The Same Rope", "Watch Dog", "Tell Mama", "I'd Rather Go Blind", "Just A Little Bit", and "Don't Lose Your Good Thing". LP, Vinyl record album

The kind of funky bluesy rock album featuring Gary Moore – produced with a very raw jamming sound that lets the band's heavy drum sound come out nice and strong. Tracks include "Mad Dog Woman", "Virgo Daughter", "After I'm Gone", "For Those Who Do", and "Unco-Up Shwowband Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

Excellent work from pianist Hal Galper – and proof that he was one of the most electric keyboardists of his generation, even when working acoustically – as on this record! The only real electric element here is the presence of guitarist John Scofield in the quartet – but Galper seems to match his spirit in the way he approaches the keys of his acoustic piano – using them spaciously and flowingly, almost as if he were working working in a CTI-type setting! The rest of the group features Wayne Dockery on bass and Adam Nussbaum on drums – and titles include "Yellow Days", "Ivory Forest", "Continuity", "My Dog Spot", and "Rapunzel's Luncheonette". CD

King Curtis brings the sound of Memphis up to the New York studios of Atlantic Records – working here in an all-instrumental mode that serves up his own sax-heavy takes on the big 60s hits of Stax Records! The album's maybe a bit telling – given the way that a year later, Atlantic took most what Stax had built themselves – but it also illustrates the strong power the southern scene had on the style of New York soul at the time – as the album's easily one of the most hard-hitting full length sets from Curtis – done with much deeper vibes overall, and less of the ballads that showed up on some of his previous records. Titles include "The Dog", "Good To Me", "Hold On, I'm Coming", "You Don't Miss Your Water", "Last Night", and "Jump Back". LP, Vinyl record album

Howard Tate is one of the most overlooked soul singers of the late 60s – and this is his only album from that decade – issued here in an unusual self-titled package! Part of the problem was probably that he recorded for Verve, a label that didn't really put its soul catalog that well (even though the label cut some excellent uptown sides in the late 60s.) Don't let the label fool you, though, because this is prime soul material, with Jerry Ragovoy doing the production, and Howard singing a great mix of hard soul and smoother uptown sounds. Tracks include "Part-Time Love", "Get It While You Can", "Baby, I Love You", "How Come My Bull Dog Don't Bark", and "Look At Granny Run Run", which is kind of goofy. LP, Vinyl record album

Two great Memphis instrumental groups, back to back on one CD – in a smoking little live set that keeps the Stax Records sound strong – even away from the studio! The set's actually heavier on work by Booker T & The MGs than it is cuts by The Mar-Keys – as Book and crew handle seven out of the record's ten tracks – all with that sublime Hammond-heavy groove that makes them so great – and which takes on an even rawer sound here in the live setting! But The Mar-Keys are pretty sweet too – maybe a bit looser than on their singles – and we mean that in a good way. Booker T & The MGs play "Green Onions", "Hip Hug Her", "Tic Tac Toe", "Booker Lou", "Gimme Some Lovin", "Outrage", and "Red Beans & Rice" – and The Mar-Keys serve up "Last Night", "Grab This Thing", and "Philly Dog". LP, Vinyl record album

An incredibly evocative record – one of the strangest of its kind, and an audio treasure that we've loved for years! Eden Ahbez first came into public prominence as the man who wrote "Nature Boy" for Nat King Cole – a dark, moody tune that was as mysterious and earthy as the man who wrote it! This album was recorded nearly a decade after Cole's original hit, and features Ahbez almost in Moondog-like territory – working in an amazing setting of odd instruments and exotic percussion – but also singing in this almost spiritualist kind of way! The record's got plenty of ties to the exotica scene of the late 50s – but also stand out from the pack with a mad vision that's all its own – a strange intersection of lines that one might draw between Moondog, Martin Denny, and Anton La Vey! Tracks include "The Wanderer", "Eden's Island", "Tradewind", "Full Moon", "Mongoose", "Market Place", "The Old Boat", "Island Girl" and "La Mar". Great expanded package – with bonus tracks that include the unreleased "Surf Rider", plus "The Wanderer (alt)", "Tobago (45 rpm mix)", "Jam Session 78", "India (demo)", "Big Square From Nowhere", and "The Planet Song". Also includes related tracks "Sahara" by Bob Romeo, "Song Of The Fool" by The Crew Cuts, "End Of Desire" by Jack Powers, "The Shepherd" by Herb Jeffries, "Hey Jacque" by The Mt Holyoke V8s, "Monterey (alt version)" by John Harris, "Big Rock Steam Roller" by Biggie McFadden, "Green Flamingo" by Robbie Lester, and "Lonely Island" by Gene Chandler. LP, Vinyl record album

Not the instrumental music from the animated feature, but 15 tracks used in the film – including "It's All Too Much", "All Together Now", "Love You To", "Yellow Submarine", "Nowhere Man", "When I'm Sixty Four", "Baby You're A Rich Man", "Think For Yourself", and the always wonderful "Hey Bulldog". LP, Vinyl record album

Sure it's a soundtrack, and sure it's got a number of songs that are just instrumentals from the film – but the record also features some excellent late Beatles tracks that can only be found here – including the killer tracks "Hey Bulldog" (almost a funky nugget), "Only A Northern Song", and "All Together Now". Also includes "Yellow Submarine" (natch) – plus "It's All Too Much" and "All You Need Is Love" – and side two features a number of groovy instrumentals from George Martin – including "Pepperland", "Sea Of Holes", "March Of The Meanies", and "Pepperland Laid Waste". CD

Tracks include "Sweet Georgia Brown", "Dinah", "Bye And Bye", "Yellow Fire", "Dippermouth Blues", "Bud Billiken", and "If I Had You". CD

Fantastic work from this legendary trio – one of their best for RCA! LP, Vinyl record album

A classic early full length set from the young Johnny Cash – a record that pulls together a range of great material done for Sun Records in the years before his near-lifetime move to Columbia Records! Here, you'll hear the evolving Johnny Cash sound at its best – some raw, rumbling numbers that have that choppy guitar sound and tight backing from the Tennessee Two – mixed with a few others that show the label trying out some of the larger production modes that Columbia would add in – but still in a very spare style overall. Titles include the classic first recording of "Folsom Prison Blues" – plus "I Walk The Line", "Remember Me", "Cry Cry Cry", "I Heard That Lonesome Whistle", "Doin My Time", "I Was There When It Happened", and "So Doggone Lonesome". LP, Vinyl record album

Titles include "I'm A King Bee", "Carol", "Route 66", "Little By Little", "I Just Want To Make Love To You", "Walking The Dog", "You Can Make It If You Try", "Tell Me", and "Honest I Do". LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe one of the first-ever rock and roll full-length albums – with Bill Haley's big title cut – plus "Shake Rattle & Roll", "Two Hound Dogs", "Razzle Dazzle", "ABC Boogie", "Burn That Candle", "Rock A Beatin Boogie", "Birth Of The Boogie", "Dim Dim The Lights", and "Mambo Rock". LP, Vinyl record album

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A collection of 40s sides by the Kansas City team of singer Joe Turner and pianist Pete Johnson – recorded a few years after their initial rise to fame in the 30s, but still very much at the height of their early powers! The style is bluesy jazz – with Johnson providing the core groove on piano, and Joe singing over the top in that amazing tone of his. Titles include "SK Blues", "Johnson & Turner Blues", "Howlin Winds", "Watch That Jive", "Doggin The Blues", "Rocks In My Bed", and "Nobody In Mind". LP, Vinyl record album

A cool compilation of earlier material – some nice lost bits, pulled together in one sweet little set! Titles include "Now I'm A Farmer", "Little Billy", "Glow Girl", "Put The Money Down", "Pure & Easy", "Long Live Rock", "Naked Eye", and "I'm The Face". This excellent 2LP version expands the whole thing out to 25 titles in all – with an unreleased take of "The Seeker", a studio version of "Young Man Blues", and alternates of "Water" and "Dogs (part 2)" – cut at Abbey Road as a half-speed master, with colored vinyl, and the cool die-cut cover of the original album! LP, Vinyl record album

A classic 50s compilation from the legendary King Records – one that really shows off the grittier, bluesier side of their catalog – and features some key crossover cuts from the postwar years too! The music here is a wonderful mix of modes – instrumental R&B, jukebox jazz, and some rootsier blues – all captured with that core intensity that really made King's singles stand out from the rest of the pack – maybe even more than labels like Chess or Vee Jay at the time. The tunes work together wonderfully, in a surprisingly unified vibe – and titles include "Long Gone (parts 1 & 2)" and "Mellow Blues (parts 1 & 2)" by Sonny Thompson, "After Hours" by Jimmy Nolen, "What's New" by Bill Jennings, "Midnight To Dawn" by Earl Bostic, "Ooh Midnight" by Pete Guitar Lewis, "In The Morning" by Washboard Bill, "Eventide" by Bill Doggett, and "Blues For The Red Boy" by Todd Rhodes. LP, Vinyl record album