Juno Recommends Soul Best of 2020

Review: When copies of Raw Soul Express's The Way We Live crop up online, they regular fetch eye-watering sums of money. Originally released back in 1977 on T.K Records' soul/funk offshoot Cat, it remains the greatest single work by the short-lived Miami band. "The Way We Live" is a superb example of sun-kissed, feel good, conscious disco/soul/funk fusion, built around a killer, horn-toting groove and emotion-rich vocal. The jazzy, low-slung flipside "This Thing Called Music" is less in demand, but almost as good. As a result, this is a surprise reissue that all funk, soul and disco diggers should crave.

Review: February 2020 marks the tenth anniversary of the release of Gil Scott-Heron's final studio album "I'm New Here", a set that was later brilliantly reworked by Jamie XX in 2011 ("We're New Here"). To celebrate the album's tenth birthday, XL Recordings has decided to offer up "We're New Again", a fresh "reinterpretation" of the Richard Russell produced set by contemporary jazz hero and beat-maker Maya McCraven. His vision is loose, languid, deep and jazzy, with languid jazz drumming, tight hip-hop beats, soft-touch instrumentation, liquid jazz solos and funk-fuelled basslines combining beneath Scott-Heron's gravelly spoken word vocals. It's an inspired re-invention all told and one fully in keeping with the essence of Scott-Heron's own work. In other words, it's a must-have.

Review: 2020's inaugural Love Record Stores campaign is an exciting prospect for those who love coloured, marbled and "split" vinyl releases. The latest essential album to get this treatment is Black Pumas' self-titled 2019 debut. Helmed by multi-instrumentalist Adrian Quesada, the Austin-based band's trademark sound tends towards the psychedelic end of soul, offering up songs that variously doff a cap to Tower of Power, Sly and the Family Stone, Rotary Connection, Terry Callier and the Chambers Brothers - all topped off with impassioned, effortlessly soulful lead vocals from mic man Eric Burton. Given the inspirations, it's no surprise that the band's tracks sound authentically old, though there's also an inherent vibrancy and freshness that means they never stray into hollow pastiche.

Review: US soul and rare groove outfit Heaven Sent & Ecstasy are a mysterious duo who only made this one record, but boy what a record it is. It first came in 1980 and has a weird sub title, but that doesn't detract from the gloriousness of the music. Some of its tunes were included in the soundtrack of Scrolls, The Book of Life and this is the first time it has landed on vinyl after a 2006 CD reissue. There are intricate moments of r&b pain, soaring jazz-funk grooves that will make any dance floor move and more raw funk jams driven by hard hitting kick and angular guitar riffs.

Review: Mamiya Takako cut her teeth in late-'70s Japanese girl group Pao before striking out on her own with 1982 debut album Love Trip. Full of sweet, sugary, synth-laden pop songs that drew on then contemporaneous jazz-funk and soul sounds, the album sold relatively poorly at the time but is now considered something of a classic. It has been proceeded by a seven-inch single offering up two of the record's more sought-after cuts, but now this full album reissue offers the ultimate collector's piece. It's packed with undeniably loved-up gems, FM synth sounds, soft focus sax solos and bubbly jazz-funk bottom-ends.

Review: Leon Michels's El Michels Affair band spearheaded and instrumental funk movement when it emerged 15 year ago and now their famous cinematic soul sound gives rise to another gorgeous album of golden sounds on Big Crown. Swirling moods and romantic vibes, plaintive piano playing and sombre horns all add to a rich tapestry of sound that ebbs and flows through moments of passion, lust and love. Form the more densely orchestrated "Rubix" and "Villa" via "Life of Pablo", which features a debut from Leon's son, there's subtle narrative tot he album which keeps you locked through harder drum grooves on "Hipps" and sophisticated soothers like "Kill the Lights."

Review: For those who don't always pay as much attention as they should to the contemporary modern soul scene, Expansion's annual Soul Togetherness compilations are a godsend. There's naturally plenty to set the pulse racing on the 2020 edition, including a bunch of killer modern soul and 21st century ER&B gems that have never before appeared on wax. Highlights include the slick '80s soul revivalism of DW3's 'Never Gonna Stop', the smooth soulful house warmth of Will Downing's 'Right Where You Are', the early '80s boogie flex of Cool Million's 'Keep On', the sparking '70s disco heat of Privat Projekt's 'Don't Walk This Way' and the head-nodding positivity of Carmichael Musiclover's 'Pure Sweetness'.

Review: When it comes to modern soul albums of the mid-to-late 1970s, you'll find fewer more rare or sought-after than Timeless Legend's 1976 debut album Synchronized. Here the little-known Colmbus, Ohio-based group's masterpiece is given a special Record Store Day 2020 reissue courtesy of the soul diggers at Ohio Records. It's full of musically detailed, immaculately produced treats, with highlights including the summery grooves, dewy-eyed vocals and jazzy electric piano solos of 'Checking You Out', the snaking horn solos and impeccable group harmony vocals of 'Lonely Man', the heavy funk-rock-goes-R&B flex of 'River Boat Queen' and the pleasingly dubbed-out, effects-laden psychedelic soul of 'Ghost of Love'.

Review: Introducing the first ever compilation from the Big Crown crew, which is a celebratory look back at some of the label's biggest moments over the last three years. The tracklist takes in new school names as well as now well known stars of the soul world and they all have their own distinctive personalities. Some go for sombre blue-eyed styles, others more raw and old school. Our picks: El Michels Affair with their unique jazz influences on "Tearz" and Brainstory's "Dead End" which is a gorgeous late night lullaby for lovers. There's lots to love here, so big up Big Crown for three years of goodness.

Review: Although renowned for the quality of their soul and jazz-funk reissues, Expansion continues to champion contemporary soulful music - something the label has tried to do from the very start of its existence. For proof, check their annual Soul Togetherness compilations, which astonishingly have appeared every year for the last two decades. There's natural plenty of killer modern soul and 21st century R&B gems to be found on 2020's edition of the popular series, with highlights including the slick '80s soul revivalism of DW3's 'Never Gonna Stop', the smooth soulful house warmth of Will Downing's 'Right Where You Are', the early '80s boogie flex of Cool Million's 'Keep On', the sparking '70s disco heat of Privat Projekt's 'Don't Walk This Way' and the head-nodding positivity of Carmichael Musiclover's 'Pure Sweetness'.

Review: Symphonical Records serve up a fantastic and thorough in-depth exploration of black and brown American soul artists from back in the day on this new compilation. It's a super sweet sound that offers up a number of obscure singles which have previously been private press only. Most of the artists are unknown but they shouldn't be as these tunes sit up there with some of the most beautifully heart aching soul sounds you could wish to hear. There are languid rollers like 'Take A Good Look', sentimental love songs like 'Fools Love' and plenty in between. Importantly, each song is released in direct collaboration with the artists and producers themselves.

Review: Japanese P-Vine re-issue of the rare Positive Force and Denise Vallin's AOR/Soul album which was originally released on small private press label and can fetch up to $500 for the first pressing.

Review: In the past, Memphis has enjoyed plenty of props for its STAX-era soul music, but little attention has been given to the city's output during the "modern soul" era of the late '70s and early 1980s. To put the record straight, Light In The Attic has gathered together 20 mostly obscure and hard to find gems from the previously overlooked scene. There's more highlights than it's possible to list in this review, but our current favourites include the synth-fired squelchiness of Tom Sanders' "I'll Get To That", the kaleidoscopic P-funk of Captain Fantastic and Starr Fleet's "Keep It To Yourself", and J-Phakta's seductive slow jam "Is It Love". This edition also comes with a bonus 7" of Mark Anthony's private press rarity "I'm Just A Boogie Roller".

Review: A couple of years ago Family Groove Records offered up a tidy seven-inch single featuring previously unheard music from Latrell, an overlooked and obscure artist who briefly recorded solo material during the boogie era. Here they go one better by delivering an album of long-hidden and unreleased cuts recorded by the American electrofunk artist in 1983 and '84. The standard is dizzyingly high throughout, with Latrell and his musical accomplices giddily sprinting through an octet of kaleidoscopic synth-funk jams that sound like a dream studio collaboration between Prince, Parliament, Roger Troutman and Rick James. In a word: essential.