Category Archives: Records

Electronic single released in 2003 by Compost Records in Germany, a label that would also put out albums on the joint Jazzanova Compost Records imprint. Rima is made up of mostly Dominick Stanton and Enrico Crivellaro, and has a distinctly British future/acid jazz feel. I bought the record because Amp Fiddler contributes two remixes, but […]

Great album from Warren Zevon, released in 1978 and following the release of a self-titled album in 1976 that would bring success. Zevon released five single from Excitable Boy, including Werewolves of London, Nighttime in the Switching Yard and Send Lawyers, Guns and Money. Zevon was a great songwriter, and along with Roland the Headless […]

Classic jazz-fusion album from 1973, and the last to feature the original lineup of Jan Hammer, Billy Cobham, Jerry Goodman on violin and Rick Laird on bass. This still represents one end of the fusion spectrum, with double-necked guitars, Minimoogs and Miles Davis covers, and is an essential listen to understand what John McLaughlin and […]

Classic Soul II Soul song from 1989, and like Keep On Movin’ features vocalist Caron Wheeler and strings from the Raggae Philharmonic Orchestra. An early song from Jazzie B and co-produced by Nellee Hooper, it still is a great dance track. Back To Life earned the group a Grammy and reached No. 1 in the […]

This gold album from Roger Troutman and his brothers was brought about by the influence of the Collins brothers, Bootsy and Catfish, who were friends with the Troutmans in Ohio and introduced Troutman and George Clinton. This album carries more of that P-Funk feel than the later Zapp albums, but the funky grooves and talkbox […]

1980 Herb Alpert album that features one side of original songs, and one side of covers. It was recorded after the success of the the title track, which held No. 1 on the Billboard charts for weeks, and was created by Alpert’s nephew Randy ‘Badazz’ Alpert and Andy Armer. A lot of the songs play […]

This 1973 album from ECM Records was recorded in Oslo and features Gary Burton on vibes with Chick Corea playing piano. The collaboration materialized after a jam session in Munich left only the two playing at the end of the night according to jazz legend. It is heavily melodic, and an exceptionally pleasing listen as […]

Picked this up for a couple bucks, it has four tracks from 2002’s In Search Of… : Truth or Dare (feat. Kelis and Pusha-T), Run To The Sun, Tape You, and Brain. These were some of my favorite tracks on the album, and the hip-hop/rock/funk mix is mostly satisfying on these tracks, which were performed […]

Jeff Beck performs some fantastic guitar work in Blow By Blow, his first solo album and purely an instrumental one. It sounds very jazzy and funky, mostly due to the drums and the Rhodes, and it is not only a showcase for Jeff Beck’s guitar but full of complementary interplay. It is more jazz than […]

Released in 1971, this Sergio Mendes album took a more pop approach to songwriting with forgettable songs like So Many People. But the songs that stray from that formula, like Zanzibar, Tonga and the standard Asa Branca are the best on the album, along with Pais Tropical. Lani Hall was replaced by Gracinha Leporace on […]