The Blackbyrds & Charles Earland - At The Movies (Prestige - 2001)

This economic package gathers in fact two classicblaxploitation soundtracks: Cornbread, Earl And Me, signed by The Blackbyrds and produced by Donald Byrd himself and The Dynamite Brothers, signed by Charles Earland. The latter one will satisfy the listener looking for the traditionnal blaxploitation OST experience: wah-wah guitars, crazy organs, funky breaks and tracks with cool names like Weedhopper, Razor J., Snake or Kungfusion. On Cornbread, Earl And Me, The Blackbyrds take their jazz funk road with a nice break to sample every 10 seconds and for you hip hop head the classic breakbeat of Wilford's Gone, sampled among others by Gangstarr on Say Your Prayers and Compton's Most Wanted on Straight Check N' Em. For you information, The Dynamite Brothers soundtrack has been largely used as well.

 Download - The Blackbyrds & Charles Earland - At The Movies

Scandinavian Funk Experience (Nascente - 2011)

I have already written how much the Nascente worldwide funk bargain price compilations serie is brilliant. It explores with originality and good scene the funk scene of country often ignored and always find a way to exhume pure nuggets. Richard Masip digged deep in the EMI North European 60's and 70's scene and succeed to make one of the best volume so far. Who knew that Finland, Denmark, Norway or Sweden had a  musical scene as hot as their porn flicks. Among the highlights, you can find Charles Williams, an American singer expatriated in Finland, who signs with Standing In The Way a stellar soul song. Doris sultry voice on the psychedelic You never Come Closer or on the deep soul influenced Don't is able to melt the ice while Ralph Lundsten infectious Horroscope breakbeat will infest your mind and deserves definitely its slot in any decent DJ playing list.

Download => Scandinavian Funk Experience

Jack Costanzo And Gerrie Woo - Latin Percussion With Soul (Tico - 1968)

Well, let's see what Red Schwartz says in the original cover notes, faithfully reproduced for this Vampisoul 2003 reissue, about this little latin soul burner we got here: "Jack Costanzo was Peggy Lee's main man bongo and conga drummer for many years, until he decided to attempt a career of his own (...). He worked for a year building a musical book, building an act until he was sure to make his big band impact onto the musical world. He needed (...) a female vocalist with style, with delivery, with looks, and he found one. Miss Gerrie Woo (...) was chosen to be part of the Jack Costanzo Band". The record was signed by Tico, and like everything that has the Tico label, be prepare to sweat and move your ass on this shit. The few covers, Green Onions, Words, Some Kind - A Wonderful, Jive Samba, are excellent and the original material is killing you hardly. with those latin mambo and descarga percussions .

Download =>Jack Costanzo & Gerry Woo - Latin Percussion With Soul

Eugene Blackwell - We Can't Take Life For Granted (Ubiquity - 2007)

Oh yes this guy and his band could play tight and hard. Born in Oakland, Eugene Blackwell created his band in high school and showed nearly every club available in the Bay Area what raw funk was and what can be done with a guitar in that area. He recorded a handfull of singles but stayed a local celebrities and never made it at a national level. His 7" became collectible among funky heads and rare groove diggers and it became a matter of time before his work get the proper recognition it deserved. Ubiquity gathered all the recordings Eugene Blackwell made on We Can't Take Life For Granted, with a few radio spots and live clips. Nice work and probably one of the best funk compilation of my collection. Break heads, there is plenty as well  for you here.



Download => Eugene Blackwell - We Can't Take Life For Granted

Jack Arel - Les Jeunes Loups (Riviera - 1968)

Marcel Carné is one of French greatest filmmakers. In 1968, he realised Les Jeunes Loups mixing French classic literature (the characters are inspired by the writings of Balzac) and Nouvelle Cinema with the burgeoning flower power and sexual liberation movement. Released just before the revolution of may 1968, it was announcing the events to come. The shooting is known to have been a nightmare and Marcel Carné rejected his film when it was over, even refusing to assist to the preview. Sacked by critics, Les Jeunes Loups were a flop and were even never released as VHS or DVD. In fact, nobody has seen this movie. The soundtrack is much easier to get. It was signed by French library maestro, Jack Arel. He mixed deep soul and British Invasion influences with a cool French pop vibe full of killing hammond organ licks. The vocals are credited to Tuesday Jackson, aka French MOR singer Nicole Croisille.

 Download => Jack Arel - Les Jeunes Loups

Norman Connors - Take It To The Limit (Arista - 1980)/Norman Connors - Mr. C (Arista - 1981)

I discovered Norman Connors work thanks to an article in Waxpoetics. I bougth on vinyl Romantic Journey, You Are My Starship, This is Your Life and decided to collect his entire discography. I've found Take It To The Limit and Mr. C on this budget two albums on one CD re-issue. In the sleeve notes, Ralph Tee charaterized those two albums as his personnal Norman Connors favourites. I would share that opinion for Take It To The Limit, a wonderful disco soul record with only scorchers and no fillers that matches Salsoul or Roy Ayers best releases of the time. I'll be a bit more reserved about Mr. C, that makes the funk speak and is still a winner but less good than the other albums aforementioned.

 Download => Norman Connors - Take It To The Limit/Mr.C

La Guêpe - Volume 2 (Pulp Flavor Recordings - 1999)

This excellent compilation gathers 17 French library tracks recorded during the 70'sunder the influence of soul, jazz and funk. Breaks heads will consequently find plenty to sample in that groovy banquet. among Roger Roger, Jacky Giordano, Bernard Estardy, Janko Nilovic or even Philippe Sarde works. The tracklisting is a who's who of French library maestro. There are some curiosities as well, like my personnal favorite, Afro-Disiac, an hypnotic afro track made by Uele Kalabubu & Sa Tribu and that can be found on the LP Afroground, a pretty rare but good piece of wax I'll probably post one day. Pulp Flavor Recordings was created by the same guys that were later behind the excellent labels Dare -Dare and Vadim Music that closed last spring. A pretty damn shame if you ask me. So, one of your only last chance to get your dusty hands on their music if you don't want to dig is on this blog.

 Download => La Guêpe - Volume 2

Rhythm Machine - Rhythm Machine (Lulu Records - 1976)

Now Again Records already reedited this album in 2006 and released it again a few weeks ago with a few bonus tracks. I have posted today the 2006 reedition. If you want te 2012 reedition, well, just buy it. Rhythm Machine had made a reputation as a solid touring band in their native Indiana, born on the ashes of The Highlighters (The Funky 16 Corners anyone ?). They recorded their sole album, Rhythm Machine, in 1976, delivering the kind of album you wouldn't expect from a touring band. Instead of going only the energetic tight hard funk way they're good at, they plaid a smooth spacey soul and funk as well that made me think of Roy Ayers or Earth Wind & Fire works of the same time. It's clear those guys could handle their instruments but their were very inspired as well. A brilliant album.

 Download => Rhythm Machine - Rhythm Machine

Janko Nilovic & Dave Sucky - Vocal Impressions (Montparnasse 2000 - 1971)

To start that new season of first choice musical nuggets from my record collection, there's is nothing better than this nice Janko Nilovic library LP, recorded for Montparnasse 2000 in 1971. If you speak French and want to learn more about Janko Nilovic, I advise you to read this interview realised in 2004 for the website Scopia: http://scopia.perso.neuf.fr/portrait_nilovic.html That's where I learned that the vocals on this album were made by Janko himself and Graziella Nadrigal. The overall result, between West Coast pop, jazz and bossa is absolutely nice. I haven't posted the original LP but the Vadim Music 2006 CD reedition.

Download =>Janko Nilovic & Dave Sucky - Vocal Impressions

Allen Toussaint - The Lost Sessions (Fuel Records - 2011)

Forget Memphis, Muscle Shoals or Detroit: some of the best soul music recorded in the 60's was coming from New Orleans and was essentially due to the genius of one man: Allen Toussaint. When he went out of the military in 1965, he launched several record labels with the help of Marshall Sehorn, Sansu, Dessu and Tou-Sea while still recording for other labels like New York Amy Records. Then at the peak of his inspiration, he penned scorchers and hits for the likes of Aaron Neville (Hercules and its massive bassline), Lee Dorsey (Get Out Of My Life, Woman and its break sampled a thousand times) and less well known acts like Benny Spellman, The Rubaiyats (a band composed of himself and Willie Harper) or Willie West. Allen Toussaint is featured 3 times as well on this compilation with two excellent instrumentals, the Burt Bacarach sound alike Hands Christianderson and Gotta Travel On and with his own a rendition of the biggest hits he made for Lee Dorsey, Working In The Coal Mine. The trouble with The Lost Sessions is that any other music will sound lame once you listened to it. It's probably an after effect effect of the voodoo they put in their music.

 Download => Allen Toussaint - The Lost Sessions

Montparnasse 2000 Classics (Pulp Flavor Recordings - 2003)

Guys at Pulp Flavor (aka Dare Dare , aka Vadim Music) gathered 14 nuggets from famous French library label Montparnasse 2000. You probably already know that the term library in the case of Montparnasse 2000 was synonymous of scorching tunes, that give you plenty of occasions to sample a breaks or rock any party. Every single song is a sure winner and make of Montparnasse 2000 Classics a must-have, the time you can find and collect the complete albums. I still have a personnal little preference that goes for the last track, Xenos Cosmos, a psyche jazzy orchestral infectious number by Janko Nilovic.

 Download => Montparnasse 2000 Classics

Resonance - Moto Rock b/w Safari Love (Sirocco - 1974)

I found this Resonance 45 RPM yesterday on a secondhand market for 50 cents and despite the cover was missing, it was definitely a good deal. Both titles are credited to Bacson which is in fact a duo composed of Pierre Bachelet and Mat Camison. They released several singles and one album under the Resonance moniker and all are favorites of any decent eurogroove digger. Moto Rock is a surf track with loud moto engines noises on it, trying to reproduce the atmosphere of a racing field. The real scorcher is the side B, Safari Love, an infectious tribal funk piece, charged with filth and based on percussions, animal samples, African traditional vocals and a funky guitar. 

 Download => Resonance - Moto Rock b/w Safari Love

Willie Bobo - Juicy (Verve - 1967)

What attracted me first to Juicy was its cover that looked good: an orange and a pretty lady dancing on its skin. And the music that goes with it is damn nice too. Willie Bobo and his band play latinized cover of R&B hits of the time (Knock On Wood, Mercy, Mercy, Mercy or Ain't Too Proud To Beg). But the timbales palyer is at his best when he and his pals play his own repertoire on La Descarga Del Bobo and Shing-A-Ling Baby. This album certainly won't change your life but it will give you some pretty good times and make you in a party mood which is as well what this kind of music is made for. The CD version I ripped comes with 4 alternative takes of Juicy, Music To Watch Girls By, Dis-Advantages and Shing-A-Ling Baby that don't have any real interest.

Download => Willie Bobo - Juicy

Tom Dooley - Don't Leave b/w (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction (TRX Records/Festival - 1969)

I have a theory that in every record collection there is at least one good record. Lately, I digged in a record collection that was taking dust in the cellar of old acquaitances. And I didn't expect myself at all to find that excellent deep soul 45 RPM. I haven't found much on the internet about Tom Dooley. He was a white FM deejay from Kentucky, lead his own band, The Lovelights and recorded 5 singles for Nashville based TRX Records, a sublabel of Hickory Records (http://www.79waky.com/tomdooley.htm). The band never really made it and disbandled quickly. Tom Dooley stays well known in Northern Soul circles and those both sides, especially his Rolling Stones cover, are just excellent.


Download =>  Tom Dooley - Don't Leave b/w (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction

La Formule Du Baron (CBS - 1969)

 All right all right, this one is not a that much hidden French deviant groove gem. It has been already pretty much blogged about and is famous all around the world among beat diggers, break fanatics, rare groove connoisseurs, euro groove fanatics. Bernard Estardy, to compose it, used his studio as a proper instrument and it's probably while La Formule Du Baron sounds that much unbelievably cool, still up to date and good. Some would still today sell a testicule or a kidney for that sound and that level of inspiration. The funniest thing is that Bernard Estardy, seconded here by Etienne Roda Gil, is well known to have churn out and produced thousands of cheesy pop songs for French worst and most famous singers. Nearly 99% of his work is absolute unlistenable garbage (the guy is well known to be featured on literaly hundreds records) while  the 1% left is pure genius. So enjoy his genius side and let's forget all the rest. In fact, The reputation of La Formule Du Baron is so high that even if it has been often reedited, this record is still complicated to find for a decent price whether on CD or vinyl. 

Download => La Formule Du Baron

Pucho And His Latin Soul Brothers - Yaina (Right-On Records - 1971)

Yaina is a Latin classic. In fact, it's Harold Jazzbo Alexander flute trickeries that largely steal the show and make the real worth of this instrumental album and make it fall into the " classics" category. It starts with an excellent  jazz funk Rolling Stones cover, You Can't get Always What You Want, that was not on the first original release of album but is on this 1996 Ubiquity reedition.  Then you can find the eerie anti war Cease The Bombing and burn up the dance floor with Chitterlings Con Carne, its cries at the beginning  and the flute that answers to the guitar. Those are the three stronger cuts of the album but the rest of it stays very solid.

Download => Pucho And His Latin Soul Brothers - Yaina

Can You Dig It? The Music And Politics Of Black Action Film 1968 - 75 (Soul Jazz Records - 2009)

Among all the compilation made about Blaxploitation movie, Can You Dig It? is probably the most complete and ambitious. Complete because among the 34 titles of this double CD you will be able to find the main and most interesting titles of the era (nothing important has been forgotten). Ambitious beacuse it is sold with a 96 pages real book with a rich iconography that make it by itself a necessary purchase even if you probably already possess under one form or another the majority of the titles. Coffy, Shaft In Africa, Trouble Man, Willie Dynamite, Across 110th Street, The Mack, Black Caesar, Superfly, Foxy Brown, Three Tough Guys, Shaft, Truck Turner, Hell Up In Harlem, Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song, They Call Me Mister Tibbs are soundtracks mandatory in any record collection and you will find their most emblematic songs in here. I personnaly anyways dicover less known titles like Gene Page's Blacula, Dennis Coffey's Theme From Black Belt Jones, Joe Simon's Theme From Cleopatra Jones and one of my favorite song of that era, Gordon Staples' Strung Out from the Mean Johnny Barrows soundtrack. I won't post any YouTube video with this short text as you probably already know what it's all about.

Download CD1 => Can You Dig It? 1 
Download CD2 => Can You Dig It? 2

Dou Da Dou - The Unlimited French Lostcatalogue (Vadim Music - 2005)

Vadim Music is a nice label located in the French Alps, near Grenoble, and specialized in the reedition of French pop, pysche, library, soundtracks or jazzy nuggets. Dou Da Dou is an excellent compilation of rare singles by the likes of France Gall, Jack Ary, François de Roubaix or Demis Roussos. Some of those names might afraid people familiar with French music, because they quickly fell into mainstream mediocrity but Vadim guys exhumed pretty intersting sides of their work. France Gall song, Zoïzoï, stays her most sought-after recording while Demis Roussos' A Travers Montmartre, penned with Stelios Valvianos, could be featured on any blaxploitation soundtrack. Very catchy, sexy and amazing. One of my favorite compilation.

Download => Dou Da Dou

Psych Funk Sa-Re-Ga! - Seminar: Aesthetic Expressions Of Psychedelic Funk Music In India - 1970-1983 (World Psychedelic Funk Classics - 2010)

If I consider that already ten people have downloaded yesterday's post (Bollywood Funk Experience), Psych Funk Sa-Re-Ga! should interest at least the same people. Behind World Psychedelic Funk Classics you can find Egon and the Nown Again crew. So this time, expect an Indian psyche funk music compilation that lives up to its name, with effectively a lot of funk, hard breakbeats and psyche in it. But don't expect it to be the kind of underground compilation that digged ultimate Bollywood nuggets. As you can read in the nicely illustrated booklet, this compilation serves as an introduction to the genre and in fact plenty of titles have already been compilated elsewhere, especially if you possess already the two volumes of the Sitar Beat serie (I posted them both a while ago at the beginning of this blog thing) or the excellent mixes called Shitala. For those in the shadows of ignorance, Psych Funk Sa-Re-Ga! is the best way to grab a handful of Kalyanji Anandji or R.D. Burman titles. You can even find a title from Atomic Forest's Obsession '77, Mary Long, recently reedited by Now Again, and Kalus Doldinger's Sitar Beat. This last title has nothing Indian except its influences but is German.

Download => Psych Funk Sa-Re-Ga!

Those Shocking, Shaking Days - Indonesian Hard, Psychedelic, Progressive Rock And Funk : 1970 - 1978 (Now Again - 2010)

If you are fed up with my previous Mods posts, you'll find today rarest and more unusual sounds. Egon's one and onely Now Again Records label, explores this time the Indonesian psyche scene of the 70's. American, West European and African scenes have been largely explored, compiled and reedited but the Asian artists stay relatively ignored. Egon associated his digging forces with Jason "Moss" Connoy and Benny Soebardja to release this 20 titles anthology. Those Shocking Shaking Days is your only chance to ear Rollies funkd Bad News, Shark Move's Evil War, already sampled by Madlib, Super Kid slow psyche funk People, a mix between The Temptations produced by Norman Whitfield and Roy Ayers, or The Gang Of Harry Roesli fabulous break at the beginning of Don't Talk About Freedom. All this makes me think to the Tropicalia movement that was happening in Brazil at the same time. In both countries you find artists that were trying to break traditional musical molds and using Western music forms like a breath of fresh air in a harsch political context charaterized by a dictatorship. Like always with Now Again, the reedition work is splendid. You can find a nicely illustrated book accompanying CD with pictures of all the records covers and complete notes on each songs.

Download => Those Shocking Shaking Days