Archives: Features

Norman Connors’ first release as a leader, Dance of Magic was originally released on Cobblestone with different artwork. Pure Pleasure have done justice to the later Buddha issue from the same year, showcasing a slick looking Connors on the cover, grinning wryly in a floral-patterned smoking jacket with a loud and proud afro. Released in 1972, the set features a stellar cast of soloists and respective leaders of their day: Herbie Hancock, Airto, Stanley Clarke, Gary Bartz, Cecil McBee, Eddie Henderson, Carlos Garnett and Billy Hart all add their own individual flare to the occasion. The music is texturally rich and well-staffed,...

Angie Stone returns with a new contemporary R&B/Soul album. Angie's lovely voice floats over the slow jams 'Love Is Real', 'All I Need', 'Kiss You' (based on Harold Melvin 'I Miss You'), 'Good Man' and the catchy mid tempo 'Old Thang Back' featuring a rap from her son Swayvo Twain. 'The Gym' is an R&B duet with Musiq Soulchild. 'Love The Feeling' has a little more tempo and is a highlight. Buy the CD HERE Listen below Angie Stone - Good Man Angie Stone - All I Need Angie Stone - Kiss You Angie Stone - Love Is Real Angie...

Here is a list of 50 recent reissue Soul, Funk and Jazz 45s that we have in stock. It includes many of the limited edition Record Store Day titles and recent Soul Brother, Expansion and Outta Sight titles along with Kent, Dynamite Cuts, Motherlode and others. There are some great titles here that you may have missed , many have sound clips for you to check out. You can combine with other Soul Brother singles HERE and Outta Sight singles here to optimise postage costs. Happy diggin Laurence

Yazmin Lacey hails from London but is based in Nottingham. Her previous two EPs have been well received , so her debut album is much anticipated. 'Voice Notes' is a British Neo Soul album with a slight Lovers Rock influence, and will appeal to fans of Lianne La Havas as well as her own. 'Fools Gold' is a really nice mid tempo groover, 'Bad Company' is typically neo Soul , 'Late Night People' has more tempo whilst 'Tomorrow's Child' is lovers rock. Many of the tracks like 'Where Did You Go', 'Pieces', 'Pass it Back' and 'From A Lover' have that...

Trumpeter Theo Croker hails from Shanghai China, and is a protegee of Dee Dee Bridgewater, who produced the albumfor her own label DDB Records. ‘Afro Physicist’ reveals Croker at the beginning of his upward trajectory, an stylish and sleek body of work, comprising mainly of self composed songs. ‘Realize’, ‘Light Skinned Beauty’ typify his brand of what he terms Dark Funk—his designation for the music that he makes. ‘It’s Not You It’s Me’ and ‘Wanting Your Love’ are free flowing and breezly tracks with intricate melodic passages. Dee Dee Bridgewater sings on an incredible cover of Stevie Wonder's ‘I Can’t...

We Are Busy Bodies have reissued the rare and sought after 1973 Venezuelan jazz album Espejismo (‘Mirage’) by Virgilio Armas Y Su Grupo, a rare and pleasing body of work that centres itself between cool, modal and Latin styles of jazz. The output sounds as though Horace Silver were to have made a record in Latin America: his funky and percussive style of piano playing sounds strikingly familiar to Virgilio Armas’, counterpointing rich harmonies with slick, highly rhythmical phrasing and a well-defined left hand. Little is known about Armas and his group who recorded this date in 1973 with Rodolfo...

Maysa Leak has one of the most distinctive voices in contemporary soul music, having recorded as a solo singer and as lead female vocalist for Incognito for over 30 years. Maysa returns with a 19 track 2cd album 'Music For Your Soul' ,On her own Blue Velvet Soul label. She teams up with producer and keyboardist Chris 'Big Dog' Davis and other musicians to create a very enjoyable album. 'Music For Your Soul' , 'Whatever' are nice catchy mid tempo songs, Chris Walker co-wrote, produced and duets on the mid tempo R&B/Soul 'Down With Me'. 'Spirit 222' has a different...