Review: Jazz saxophonist Tony Lavorgna, sometimes known as Captain Bad, recorded Chameleon with the St Thomas Jazz Quartet in 1982. The title track is a cover of Herbie Hancock's classic from Head Hunters, given a fresh lick on this superlative album of incredible renditions of long time favourites. Ray Charles' 'Georgia On My Mind', War's 'The World Is A Ghetto' and Dave Brubeck's 'Take The 'A' Train' all get a look in, given a soulful treatment which goes down very smooth indeed. On the strength of these, it's a shame the group never recorded more music together, covers or otherwise.
Review: Jazz doesn't come much more wildy expressive, idiosyncratic, off the cuff, challenging and dense that this album from 1977. The Human Arts Ensemble came together in 1970 in St. Louis adn was a loose collective that associated themselves with the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) and the Black Artists' Group (BAG) collective. They had no rues and no restrictions on who could play and it shows as different instrments shoulder their way to the front and vie for attention, from the drums to the keys, the sax to the double bass. This reissue features the original artwork as well as all new remastered audio and fresh liner notes by Howard Mandel that provide great context.
Review: The glorious Athens of the North label will always be one of our favourites. It is pretty much buy on sight for lovers of soul, funk and disco and this month it is serving up two more unmissable long players. Here it is Ike and The Uptights and their superb sounds which make, what me might bravely, say, could be one of this always high class label's finest releases. Formed by Henry Bradley in Forrest City, The Uptights recorded for Memphis label Action Records and here we get a perfect window into their world of raw and guttural funk.
Cream/Well Done/I Want U/In The Socket (Medley) (11:12)
1999/Baby I'm A Star/Push (Medley) (9:40)
Gett Off (6:50)
Gett Off (Houstyle) (7:24)
Review: This Price album was originally part of the 2023 Diamonds and Pearls Super Deluxe box set, but now the triple vinyl live recording arrives on standalone yellow vinyl in a fancy triple gatefold sleeve. It was initially captured on January 11, 1992, at Prince's Glam Slam club in Minneapolis and is a performance that showcases Prince and The New Power Generation at their creative peak, just ahead of their epic world tour. Spanning over 100 minutes and 14 tracks in all, the still electrifying set focuses on material from the Diamonds and Pearls era and includes a preview of the then-unreleased 'Sexy M.F.' to make for a fine snapshot of a new era in Prince's evolving sound.
The Time Is Right For Love (Swing-O aka 45 remix) (4:34)
Coffee High (Bellevilloise) (1:01)
Snake Charmer (instrumental) (3:32)
Free Vibes (part 2 - vocal version) (2:59)
Burn This Disco Out (live) (3:13)
Magic Time Machine (live)
June (live)
Hold Fast (Jr Blender remix)
The Time Is Right For Love (Flute version)
Working (part 2 - instrumental) (0:05)
Review: Some 15 years after its original release in 2009, This Is ... by Gizelle Smith & The Mighty Mocambos remains a classic in the sister funk genre. Raw, melodic, and vibrant, the album hasn't aged a bit and now, as a result of that, it's being re-released with unreleased bonus tracks, rare remixes and a limited-edition double vinyl. With standout tracks like 'Working Woman,' which became a global DJ fav, the album brims with Gizelle Smith's unique style and powerful vocals. Blazing horns, soulful guitars and dynamic production all help bring them to life on a record that is rooted in the golden era of soul but coloured with modern charm.
Review: Funk Night returns with this magnificent new album Vibrant Kaleisdosonic Rhythms from Zanzibar. It is well infuse by a wide range of worldly sounds, rhythms and moods and kicks off with a melange of incidental jazz keys and raw horn sounds that are super exotic. 'Night In Casablanca' is as steamy as you would expect with a low slung groove, 'Badmington Baobab' is another flute lead sound with mystery and intrigue and 'Hologram Water' is more reflective and inward in its lush keys and delicate organic percussive layers. A nice escapist instrument funk album for laid back times.
Don't Rush The Process (feat The Easy Access Orchestra) (5:06)
Just Not Right Rudi (0:48)
All I Need (1:57)
We Chillin' Out (feat The Easy Access Orchestra) (5:07)
Knocknee Donkey (3:15)
Any Flavour (2:38)
Funky Fool (1:31)
Sooretama (feat Robert Mitchell) (4:33)
Runnin' Tru (3:59)
What A Dream (2:20)
Mind Yourself (0:42)
Review: Kaidi Tatham is a master of broken beats and a widely respected figure in the London music scene. His new 12 track album takes us on a lush and louche trip through all his myriad musical skills and styles. Boogie, gospel-tinged hip-hop, jazz-funk and more all colour the futurist grooves with contributions from The Easy Access Orchestra, and pianist Robert Mitchell. This is a fourth solo album from the man and maybe his best yet, even though it has come so quick on the heels of the release of An Insight To All Minds in 2021.
Review: A decade after it first surfaced on CD and digital, Kaidi Tatham's superb contribution to Jazz:Refreshed's now legendary 5ive series of mini-albums has finally made it onto vinyl. We don't expect these to hang around in stock too long, in part because it's one of the most consistently on-point and musically expansive sets in Tatham's vast catalogue - and that's saying something. For proof, check the soulful bruk-up business of 'To My Surprise' (reminiscent of the best of the collective Bugz in the Attic project he was a big part of), the fluid, spiritual jazz-funk brilliance of opener 'Don't Hide Your Love' and the expansive, up-tempo excellence of 'Organic Juggernaut', where fluttering flutes, squelchy bass and sparkling pianos catch the ear.
Pat Thomas & Ebo Taylor - "Ene Nyame Nam A Mensuro" (6:16)
Review: In afrobeat circles, Ghanaian highlife guitarist Ebo Taylor has long been regarded as one of the scene's most undervalued talents. During his golden period during the 1970s, Taylor was responsible for some landmark recordings - not just as an artist, but composer, arranger and producer. This comprehensive set from serial crate-diggers Strut revisits that fertile period, gathering together the best of Taylor's solo, collaborative and production work. For those with a passing interest in afrobeat and highlife, it's near-essential. Highlights come thick and fast, from the strangely spaced-out grooves of "Peace On Earth" and lazy afro jazz-funk of "Ohiana Sua Efir" to the epic American R&B stylings of "Aba Yaa".
Review: Ebo Taylor And The Pelikans were Afro-funk masters of the seventies. Their self-titled 1976 record is one of the most well-regarded and highly sought-after Ghanaian funk offerings and now it gets a high-quality reissue by Comet Records. This album contains the legendary 'Come Along' and is the first time revered artist, arranger, musician and producer Ebo sang the seminal Ghana funk tune. He is joined throughout by the 12-piece Cape Coast collective The Pelikans led by Bessa Simmona with rhythm guitarist Fifi Orleans Lindsay.
Review: Tchiss Lopes's Stranger Ja Catem Traboi is as good a debut album as you could ever wish to hear. It is a world fusion of great rhythms, high-energy grooves, politically and socially aware vocals and reggae and funana collisions that brims with life and vitality. It was recorded in Rome after the artist spent 11 months at sea and was drawn from his personal and collective experiences of hardship, education, love and the loss of lives at sea. Though now 40 years old, the album has stood the test of time musically and lyrically and now gets a welcome reissue on CD.
Review: Many will know Teaspoon & The Waves' incredible 'Oh Yeh Soweto' - a brilliant Afro-disco riff on Lamont Dozier's 'Going Back To My Roots' that has appeared on countless compilations and re-edit releases over the years - but fewer have heard the rest of the tracks on the South African band's incredible 1977 debut album (in part because original copies are rather hard to find). To those people, we'll say this: check out this Mr Bongo reissue right now! Blending Afro-jazz with jazz-funk, soul, deep funk and disco, every single track is a winner, with highlights including the celebratory 'Friday Night', the dazzling, duelling solos and heavy percussion of 'Saturday Express' and the life-affirming brilliance of 'Got Me Tight'.
Review: Mad About's latest reissue is a doozy for funk fans. Telstar's Orbiting is a soulful, ghetto-vibed masterpiece that comes all the way from Barbados and is back on wax fr the first time since its original pressing. This album blends infectious rhythms with powerful, emotive vocals that epitomise the essence of 1970s funk and Caribbean-influenced grooves. A standout track is Kool & The Gang's funky version of 'Kool Reggae,' which adds a unique twist to the classic while other highlights like 'World of Tomorrow' and 'Making a Living' have become DJ favs thanks to their killer grooves and timeless appeal.
You Make Your Own Heaven & Hell Right Here On Earth (2:44)
Hum Along & Dance (3:57)
Take A Stroll Thru Your Mind (8:34)
It's Summer (2:38)
War (3:13)
You Need Love Like I Do (Don't You) (4:01)
Friendship Train (7:52)
Review: The 12th album from The Temptations for Berry Gordy's influential Motown label came in 1970. It was written in its entirety by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong and produced by Whitfield, and despite the label it came on, Psychedelic Shack pretty much tore up the usual Motown template and instead delved deep into psychedelia. The acid-tinged title track breaks new ground thanks to the influence of the B-52s and they maintained this vibe on 'Hum Along and Dance' but ventured into different territories with the experimental 'You Make Your Own Heaven and Hell Right Here on Earth' and 'Take a Stroll Thru Your Mind.' The album peaks with tracks like 'It's Summer' and the Whitfield-penned classic 'War.' This album remains timeless and a great example of the band's evolution
Review: Originally released on Flying Dutchman in 1973, Leon Thomas' Blues and the Soulful Truth is an outstanding slice of soul funk from one of the genre's all time greats. Thomas came to fame working with Pharoah Sanders on 'The Creator Has A Master Plan', but on this album he was in full flight writing his own songs, backed up by Pee Wee Ellis as a conductor and with Bob Thiele as producer. Thomas had an unflinching approach to his message, best heard on incredible cuts like 'Shape Your Mind To Die', but there's tenderness to match the toughness. Just listen to the sweetness of 'China Doll' on this long overdue reissue and take in the full spectrum of the Leon Thomas sound.
Review: Recorded and initially released in 1976, Stage 2 was one of a trio of killer albums that highlife legend Pat Thomas recorded with the Marjarita backing band. Although amongst his most popular sets in his native Ghana, the album has never been released outside Africa - until now. This remastered edition, which comes pressed on clear vinyl, is therefore long overdue. It remains a superb set all told, with Thomas and his collaborators serving up a fuzzy, sometimes fiery fusion of Afro-Soul, highlife, Afro-funk, rocksteady, reggae and Afro-rock. Thomas is in terrific form throughout, delivering effortlessly soulful and impassioned vocals that turn an otherwise excellent album into a genuinely terrific one.
Review: We love RSD only for one thing, and that's providing us with inaccessible records that have been snapped-up by Discogs sharks over the years. This timely reissue of Pat Thomas second LP from 1976, the wonderful Marijata, is one such record that has become impossible to find in its original format, and one which allows us to have some access to the highlife beat, one of our biggest loves. While much of this album rests in classic soul and funk, Pat Thomas' Ghanaian influences are loud and present, whether through the guitars, the aesthetics of each instrumental and, of course, the quality of the recording itself. Funk out to some ORIGINAL STYLE. Cop it quick!
Review: Chicagoan trumpeter and flugel hornist Malachi Thompson made some fine records during his lifetime, though none are better than his 1980 solo debut The Seventh Son. It's been an in-demand item amongst jazz collectors for some time, making this belated vinyl reissue a welcome development. The set is spiritual in tone, but musically draws just as much from soul-jazz and fusion as it does the more freewheeling end of spiritual jazz. As a result, the tracks are largely warming, melodious and alluring, with Thompson's dexterous and imaginative playing leaving a lasting impression. Our highlights include 'Street Dance' and the epic 'Denise', but to be honest the whole set is essential listening.
Review: American r&b and funk band Tower of Power hail from Oakland, California and have had several lead vocalists, the most notable being Lenny Williams. Their most successful album was their self-titled third long player in 1973 - the first Williams featured on. It went gold in the US and has their most well-known single 'So Very Hard to Go' alongside plenty of other silky soul sounds that go from the downbeat and string-laced wallowings of 'Will I Ever Find A Love?' to the more funky and upbeat grooves of 'Get Yo' Feet Back On The Ground.'
Review: Soul Jazz Records is back with another crucial reissue, this time of Dedication by Tribe, a rare gem from the 1970s funk, soul and jazz era as a special limited-edition coloured vinyl for Black Friday 2024. It has been fully remastered and comes with original artwork and mirrors the eclectic sounds of Mandrill, The Blackbyrds and Kool and the Gang. Tribe, led by multi-instrumentalist Earl J Foster and producer Big Dee Ervin, blended funk, jazz, rock, Latin and soul into a singular style on the album which was originally released independently in 1977 and has been out of print for over 45 years. Dedication is a masterpiece that offers a deep, spaced-out fusion.
Review: The timeless power of gospel music will never wane and if you want proof, listen no further than this fine reissue of Together by Gloster Williams and The King James Version. Originally released in 1977 on Gospel Roots Records, this classic album is now available once more on vinyl through Regrooved Records. Led by Gloster Williams, the choir blends traditional gospel with elements of soul and r&b to create uplifting and inspiring music. The title track, 'Together' is a real gospel favourite that is celebrated for its message of unity. Remastered from the original recordings, this high-quality vinyl reissue preserves the authentic sound so it's a great one to have on the racks for when you need a hit of emotion.
Review: Unlike previous instalments in the 180g label's Wamono series, this isn't a compilation in the strictest sense of the term, but rather a retrospective. It showcases a range of killer jazz-funk and rare groove tunes recorded at Nippon Columbia studios in the mid 1970s by arranger Kiyoshi Yamaya, koto legend Toshiko Yonekawa and shakahuchi master Kifu Mitsuhashi. Highlights come thick and fast throughout, from the mellow, slow-burn lusciousness of 'Nanbu Ushioi-Uta' and the up-beat, guitar solo-laden brilliance of 'Hohai-Bushi', to the all-time Japanese jazz-funk classic that is 'Saitaro-Bushi' and the solo-laden brilliance of 'Asadoya Yunti', whose dazzling Fender Rhodes solos are reminiscent of the early '70s work of the late, great Billy Preston.
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