Buscar:1977

A landmark recording from one of Ghana"s great musical architects, Ebo Taylor"s 1977 self-title release marked the first solo LP by the legendary guitarist, arranger, and composer after years behind the scenes shaping the sound of modern highlife.

Alan Parsons Project second studio album "I Robot", widely regarded as one of the greatest concept albums of all time, is re-issued in a variety of different formats including a limited edition 180gm clear vinyl, half-speed remastered by Miles Showell at Abbey Road studios. The album was originally released in July 1977, and draws conceptually on author Isaac Asimov"s science fiction Robot stories, exploring philosophical themes regarding artificial intelligence. The album was a worldwide hit selling in excess of two million copies, achieving platinum and gold status in numerous countries including the USA, Germany, Australia and Canada. Limited Edition 180gm heavyweight clear vinyl. Featuring a half-speed remaster by Miles Showell at Abbey Road Studioa. Insert contains a sleevenote featuring quotes from Eric Woolfson

DEVO’s Hardcore documents the group’s beginning as pre-punk outcasts in the fertile Akron, Ohio, underground rock scene. Spawned at the nearby college of Kent State, site of the infamous May 4 Massacre, DEVO formed as a conceptual art project armed with the radical philosophy of de-evolution. Brothers Mothersbaugh (Mark, Bob and Jim) and Brothers Casale (Jerry and Bob) along with drummer Alan Myers soon whipped up an otherworldly brand of “devolved blues” that could hold its own alongside the beatnik groove of 15-60-75 (a.k.a. The Numbers Band) or the primal rock poetry of The Bizarros. Recorded on various four-track machines and in tiny studios, basements and garages between 1974-1977, Hardcore reveals their strikingly clear vision: rock ’n’ roll stripped bare of its collective cool and jerked back into propaganda fit for post-modern man. It’s no surprise that these transmissions would soon catch the eye and ear of Brian Eno, who later produced their landmark 1978 debut album. Noisy synth, strangled guitar chops and a primitive rhythmic thud power the early DEVO sound. Threaded beneath it all are lyrical themes of post-McCarthy paranoia, middle-class ephemera and DEVO’s long-running topic of choice: sex, or lack thereof. Few moments in pop music history can match the grinding, pent-up energy of “Mongoloid” and the spastic bounce and sputter of “Jocko Homo” (two anthems presented in their earlier and superior versions here). Cult favorites like “Mechanical Man” and “Auto-Modown” make Volume 1 essential listening. Superior Viaduct and Booji Boy Records are proud to present DEVO’s Hardcore to a new generation of spuds, lovingly packaged with Moshe Brakha’s stunning cover photography. As David Bowie said in 1977, DEVO is indeed “the band of the future.”

Returning with its final instalments, Die Schachtel's Decay Music series extends its explorations of inspired contemporary experimental efforts of the ambient, ethereal, and emotively abstract with Luigi Turra and Elio Martusciello’s “Liminale” and Sergio Armaroli and David Toop’s “And I Entered Into Sleep”, two astounding electroacoustic gestures of blurred space and time, plumbing complexity of meaning bound to sonority. Creatively groundbreaking and inspired, radically rethinking the terms of what ambient music can be perceived to be, they stand among the most striking efforts to appear within the series to date.

Reconfiguring the notion of bridge building on a multitude of terms, it feels fitting that the tenth and final installment of Die Schachtel’s Decay Music series, Sergio Armaroli and David Toop’s “And I Entered Into Sleep”, was co-created by an artist whose work featured in the first suite of LPs issued by Brian Eno’s Obscure Records in 1975, the groundwork toward which Decay Music’s own efforts nod. Since that auspicious debut, “New and Rediscovered Musical Instruments” — his split with Max Eastley — David Toop has been regarded as a pioneer in British experimental and improvised music: a sonic voyager who has continuously challenged the sources and materiality of sound through rigorously thoughtful performances, a vast catalog of recordings, and a steady flow of highly influential texts. Be it as a member of Alterations, his group breaking group with Peter Cusack, Terry Day, and Steve Beresford that ran between 1977 to 1986, or through is noteworthy work with artists like Rie Nakajima, Thurston Moore, Paul Burwell, Rhodri Davies, Lee Patterson, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Akio Suzuki, Elaine Mitchener, and numerous others, collaboration has always played a central role within Toop’s singular practice, but few can claim the sprawling sense of beauty and intimacy that’s achieved by “And I Entered Into Sleep”, his first recorded outing with Sergio Armaroli.

A composer, percussionist, vibraphonist, and multidisciplinary artist, Armaroli has been issuing radical and forward-thinking musical gestures for decades, working as one of Italy’s most noteworthy interpreters of composer’s like Giacinto Scelsi, John Cage, Franco Evangelisti, Giancarlo Schiaffini, and Walter Branchi, as both a solo performer and member of the highly regarded Rib Trio, as well as forging a singular practice as a composer, intertwining his efforts as a painter, concrete percussionist, fragmentary poet and sound artist, within a total art, rooted “within the language of jazz and improvisation” as an “extension of the concept of art”. Like Toop, Armaroli’s career has been populated by many collaborators, notably with Riccardo Sinigaglia, Alvin Curran, and Walter Prati, among others, setting the stage for a remarkable meeting between the pair.

Featuring Armaroli on vibraphone and prepared vibraphone and Toop on electronics, “And I Entered Into Sleep” is “a sonic journey, a Proustian suggestion à la Recherche, into the unconscious between electronic and acoustic sounds”. Using a bell that sounds at the beginning of Proust’s “À la Recherché du Temps Perdu”, which reappears more than 3,000 pages later — signaling a transition of phases, as well an auditory trigger of memory — as a departure point, as an association to the percussive vibraphone pulses that thread the album’s two sides, the pair weave a striking interior world of immersive psychological depth. Feeling almost subaquatic at times, like captured glimpses of rumbling, shadowy ecosystems lost within murky ambiences, before washing ashore in a series of pointillistic, highly detailed alien landscapes of the mind, each artist’s markedly different sound-sources, and treatment of the subsequent material elements, dance in abstract grace, incorporating subtle nods to minimalism, free jazz, and musique concrète within its seamless total form of sparse texture and tone.

Easily one of the most striking and memorable releases by either artist to appear in recent years, Sergio Armaroli and David Toop’s “And I Entered Into Sleep” traverses uncharted realms at the borders of literary reference, sound art, ambience and abstraction through delicately musical sounds, revealing new depths at every turn. Issued as the tenth and final album in Die Schachtel’s Decay Music series, highlighting inspired contemporary experimental efforts of the ambient, ethereal, and emotively abstract.

"TIME" was the second album released in 1977 by keyboardist Sato Hiroshi, whose albums "AWAKENING" and "ORIENT"continue to receive acclaim around the world. The 7-inch title "Yamate Hotel c/w Bad Junkie Blues", released as a pre releasepromo single and now it has finally been reissued officially with new artwork!! SIDE A "Yamate Hotel" is a mellow sophisticated soul/reggae superb track that starts with beautiful synth work, with lyrics by Matsumoto Takashi and percussion by Saito Nobu. It is a fantastic double-sider along with SIDE B "Bad Junkie Blues", which features a New Orleans funk-flavored arrangement that has been praised by Hosono Haruomi and others

Vinyl AudiophilAls Pavlov's Dog im vergangenen Jahr die Veröffentlichung des karriereübergreifenden Boxsets Essential Recordings 1974 - 2018 feierten, arbeitete die Band bereits hart an einem neuen Album mit Originalmaterial. Dieses Album, genannt Wonderlust, ist 2025 erschienen. Und das ein halbes Jahrhundert, nachdem ihre Debüt-LP Pampered Menial und der darauf enthaltene Hit „Julia“ Pavlov's Dog kurzzeitig zu den Lieblingen der Progressive-Rock-Szene der 1970er Jahre machte. Das neue Album ist ein äußerst kreatives Werk mit Songs, die auf intelligentem Songwriting, erstklassiger Musikalität und einem untrüglichen Gespür für das Dramatische aufbauen, das den Sound der Band über all die Jahre geprägt hat.

Pavlov‘s Dog wurde Anfang der 1970er Jahre in St. Louis, Missouri, gegründet und erlangte mit seiner einzigartigen Mischung aus Rock, Klassik und Folk Kultstatus. Ihr damaliger Erfolg war jedoch nur von kurzer Dauer: Bereits 1977 löste sich die Originalbesetzung auf. Leadsänger, Gitarrist und Hauptkomponist David Surkamp machte weiter und schloss sich 1990 mit seinem Gründungsmitglied Doug Rayburn zusammen, um das Album Lost in America aufzunehmen. Doch das zweite Kapitel in der Karriere von Pavlov Dog kam erst nach der Jahrtausendwende so richtig in Schwung, als eine talentierte Gruppe von Musikern der nächsten Generation das Erbe weiterführte. Unter der Leitung von Surkamp hat sich die Band in den letzten Jahren weiterentwickelt. Eine neue Welle des Interesses an Prog-Rock ermöglicht es ihr, regelmäßig zu touren. Die aktuelle Besetzung hat die ursprüngliche Version von Pavlov's Dog in puncto Langlebigkeit inzwischen weit übertroffen: Sängerin Sara Surkamp, Geigerin Abbie Steiling, Bassist Rick Steiling und Keyboarder Mark Maher bilden zusammen mit dem Gründer David Surkamp seit sieben Jahren den Kern der Band.

Bereits auf dem gefeierten Album Prodigal Dreamer aus dem Jahr 2018 vertreten, beweist dieses erfahrene Team von Musikern – mit Unterstützung von u.a. Schlagzeuger Steve Bunck und Gitarristen Phil Ring – nun auf Wonderlust einmal mehr sein Können. Schon beim ersten Hören sind die große Tiefe, Reife und Vision der elf Tracks spürbar. Einige Songs, wie der Opener „Anyway There's Snow“, bei dem Abbie Steilings wunderschöne Geige im Vordergrund steht, glänzen durch große Dramatik. Das von Streichern durchtränkte „Another Blood Moon“ ist ein weiteres Beispiel der für Pavlov’s Dog typischen, musikalischen Melancholie. Auf einem Album voller eindringlicher Gesangsperformances erreicht Surkamp hier wohl seinen Höhepunkt.

Dennoch sollte man nicht vergessen, dass Pavlov's Dog in erster Linie eine Rockband ist. Stücke wie das treibende „Mona“ und das knallharte „Collingwood Hotel“ treffen ins Schwarze. „Jet Black Cadillac“ klingt wie der Titel einer klassischen Rock'n'Roll-Nummer, doch der Song beginnt wehmütig. (Seien wir ehrlich: Pavlov's Dog klingt fast immer zumindest ein bisschen wehmütig.) Doch sobald der titelgebende Cadillac im Refrain auftaucht, erhebt sich der Song und das Traumauto fungiert als Mittel zur Flucht vor dem Blues. Hinzu kommen der freche Charme von „Solid Water, Liquid Sky“ und die Hardrock-Anleihen von „Can't Stop The Hurt“.

Besonders langjährige Fans, die mehr von dem wollen, was typischerweise „Prog“ ausmacht, können sich über die zweite Hälfte des Albums freuen. Auf dem von Abbie Steiling geschriebenen, instrumentalen Prunkstück „Calling Sigfried“ entfesselt die Band kurzerhand ihre gesamte musikalische Brillanz. Das Album schließt mit einem Trio von Songs, die Surkamp gemeinsam mit seinem früheren Songwriting-Partner, dem inzwischen verstorbenen Doug Rayburn, geschrieben hat. Von diesen verströmt vor allem „Canadian Rain” die abenteuerlichen Vibes des Progressive Rock der 1970er-Jahre mit zahlreichen Tempowechseln und einem elektrischen Slap-Bass-Solo wie aus heiterem Himmel.

Auf Wonderlust klingen Pavlov's Dog wie die Veteranen, die sie sind; diese Musiker sind schon lange genug dabei, um zu wissen, was sie tun. Doch gleichzeitig beweisen sie, dass ihre kreative Quelle immer noch sprudelt. Das langersehnte Wonderlust ist ein Album voller geschickt eingespielter, vollständig realisierter Rockmusik, bei dem Surkamp zeigt, dass er stimmlich keineswegs nachgelassen hat und, dass ein alter Hund doch ein paar neue Tricks lernen kann.

Gute Musik wie diese wird nie aus der Mode kommen.

Two Seminal albums from cult Ghanaian musician Alhaji K. Frimpong and his group the Cubano Fiestas, recorded in 1976 and 1977 respectively and considered to be some of the best highlife albums ever recorded, at the pinnacle of West African musical tradition and innovation. Both originally self titled, they have become known by the colour of the covers - Blue and Black respectively. The Blue Album brings new arrangements to traditional Ghanaian melodies and features the masterpiece Kyenkyen Bi Adi M"awu (come back my love) - universally known in Ghana, covered and sampled by artists such as Chronnix, Gnarls Barkley and many more. The Black Album expands the electronic elements and features the equally visionary Hwehwe Mu Na Yi Wo Mpena, although the real gem is hiding on the B side: the extended groove of "Adam Nana". Sinuously evolving guitar lines, clavinet vamps, harmonised vocal snatches and otherworldly percussion expand and contract over a full quarter of an hour - a Ghanaian repost to the Afro Jazz experiments going on at the same time on the other side of the Atlantic. Although popular in Ghana at the time of the release, the albums were never distributed internationally and original copies of the album are extremely rare. The albums got a limited reissue in 2011 and have been unavailable since - even reissue copies sell for high prices on the second hand market.

'Oh Snap' features twelve very personal songs by Salvant (plus a cover of a verse from the Commodores’ 1977 hit “Brick House), mostly recorded outside of a traditional studio environment, and which showcase her genre-spanning tastes and influences. The MacArthur Fellow and three-time Grammy-winning singer and composer wrote these short, intimate songs as part of a creative quest: to place spontaneity and joy at the centre of her writing process, and originally recorded them alone, at home, never intending for them to be released, using digital tools and effects that she had never played with before, like GarageBand, Logic, AutoTune, Midi plugins, drum loops, vocal effects, reverb, and filters. The songs reflect Salvant’s wide-ranging musical influences from her 1990s childhood in Miami—from boy bands to grunge to classical to folk—and include party tracks with beats, samba grooves, and quiet folk songs. The album features longtime collaborators Sullivan Fortner, Yasushi Nakamura, and Kyle Poole, as well as cameos from singers June McDoom and Kate Davis.

"Oh Snap features twelve very personal songs by Cécile McLorin Salvant - plus a cover of a verse from the Commodores’ 1977 hit “Brick House” - mostly recorded outside of a traditional studio environment and showcasing her genre-spanning tastes and influences. The album features longtime collaborators Sullivan Fortner, Yasushi Nakamura, and Kyle Poole, as well as cameos from singers June McDoom and Kate Davis. Salvant has US and international tour dates throughout the summer and autumn; find more details at nonesuch

The MacArthur Fellow and three-time Grammy-winning singer and composer wrote these short, intimate songs as part of a creative quest: to place spontaneity and joy at the center of her writing process. She originally recorded them alone, at home, never intending for them to be released, using digital tools and effects that she had never played with before, like GarageBand, Logic, AutoTune, Midi plugins, drum loops, vocal effects, reverb, and filters. The songs reflect Salvant’s wide-ranging musical influences from her 1990s childhood in Miami - from boy bands to grunge to classical to folk - and include party tracks with beats, samba grooves, and quiet folk songs.
"

A first-time 7-inch release of Free Soul-style covers of classics by Bill Withers and Tania Maria!

Mallorcan DJ and trackmaker Pepe Link brings an exciting new 7-inch release! This limited-edition Japanese release includes specially edited versions by Pepe himself.

Side A features a Balearic-flavored cover of Bill Withers' 1977 classic "Lovely Day," featuring the soulful vocals of Glen Anthony Henry. Side B presents "Vem Menina", a devilishly slick samba-bossa nova version of the Brazilian funk classic 'Come With Me' by Tania Maria, poured over with flamenco guitars and the effortlessly beautiful voice of Brazilian singer Marta Santamaria.Especially for this release, Pepe himself handled the editing, making this the first-ever 7-inch release as a Japan-exclusive edition!

Wah Wah 45s present two very special cover versions from our beloved Afro-electronic duo, Raz & Afla, available on 12" vinyl for the very first time! Having recently released their sophomore LP, Echoes Of Resistance, to great acclaim and support ranging from Nick Grimshaw on BBC 6 Music to Tash LC on BBC Radio 1, and the follow up remix project Remixes Of Resistance, the pair offer up their unique takes on two very different slices of club culture on twelve inches of wax.

First up, the pair tackle Aphex Twin's sleazy and sinister turn-of-the-century dance floor bomb Windowlicker and take it somewhere completely unexpected, as Raz explains:

"We wanted to go to a different place from our influences for this one. When we told people we will cover this tune everyone said 'but how?!' In Raz & Afla style. We had an idea of what elements to recreate from the original and how we can reference it within our spectrum of sounds. It was so much fun to do and really kicks off at our live shows."

It's a heavily percussive reinterpretation, replete with spooky wordless vocals, funky guitars and spine tingling synths that builds into something of a future Afro-house anthem, whilst respecting the genius of the original recording.

On the flip, Going Back To My Roots has become a mainstay in Raz & Afla's live sets, and means a lot to them personally, as Raz once again explains:

"We love this song. The lyrics resonate with us, talking about the meaning of connection to a land and its people. The history of this song is also fascinating, from Hugh Masekela and Orlando Julius through Odyssey and Richie Havens. We wanted to give it our own flavour. You can't choose your heritage and where you are born. It is always a part of you and we like to celebrate that."

Written and first recorded by Lamont Dozier in 1977, Going Back To My Roots was famously covered by Richie Havens in 1980 before becoming a huge crossover hit when interpreted by disco outfit Odyssey in 1981. Raz & Afla very much give their version their own unique dance floor feeling. It's one which has received much support on BBC 6 Music.

The legendary 'Rhythm of Life' by American soul star James Mason returns with a series of remixes on this vinyl-only EP. Fresh interpretations come from DJ Mitsu the Beats, Dego and Yukari BB who all do their thing to cuts from sometime Roy Ayers Ubiquity man Mason's 1977 solo album. Dego's jazzy remix of 'Free' and Yukari BB's synth-heavy take on 'Good Thing' are standouts and DJ Mitsu the Beats adds percussive warmth to both 'Free' and 'Mbewe' by infusing the originals with mellow funk and hip-hop grooves. This one packs a super hot jazz-funk punch for the more open-minded dancefloors

Analogue Productions' UHQR, the pinnacle of high-quality vinyl! 45 RPM Ultra High Quality Record release limited to 5,000 copies Mastered from the original tapes by Ryan K. Smith at Sterling Sound Pressed at Quality Record Pressings using Clarity Vinyl® Purest possible pressing and most visually stunning presentation and packaging!

By the time Bob Marley died, he was one of the world's first global superstars, famous and lauded from Europe through Africa and the Americas. Some even saw him as not just a reggae singer but as a folk hero, a sort of freedom fighter, and to this day his enduring image feels greater than the music he made, writes Pitchfork. In the 21st century, Bob Marley is a global cultural icon and the first Jamaican inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. 1977's Exodus — recorded in London exile after a failed attempt on his life — turned out to be Marley's biggest-selling studio album.

Time magazine named it the greatest LP of the 20th century. Other Marley discs had bigger hits and still others had better album tracks, but the balance Marley strikes between politics, religion, and romance on Exodus — compare and contrast the urgent title track and the laid-back "Jamming" — shows a pop star at the peak of his powers.

Now, Analogue Productions presents perfection — Exodus in UHQR 45 RPM format on Clarity Vinyl. This Ultra High Quality Record release will be limited to 4,500 copies, with gold foil individually numbered jackets. After the success of 1974's Natty Dread and 1976's Rastaman Vibration, Bob Marley was not only the most successful reggae musician in the world, he was one of the most powerful men in Jamaica. Powerful enough, in fact, that he was shot by gunmen who broke into his home in December 1976, days before he was to play a massive free concert intended to ease tensions days before a contentious election for Jamaican Prime Minister.

In the wake of the assassination attempt, Marley and his band left Jamaica and settled in London for two years, where he recorded Exodus. Exodus represented a subtle but significant shift for Marley; while he continued to speak out against political corruption and for freedom and equality for Third World people, his skill as a songwriter was as strong as ever, and Exodus boasted more than a few classics, "including the title song, 'Three Little Birds,' 'Waiting in Vain,' and 'Turn Your Lights Down Low,' tunes that defined Marley's gift for sounding laid-back and incisive at once," writes AllMusic. This UHQR is remastered at 45 RPM by Sterling Sound's Ryan K. Smith from the original analog master tapes. Each UHQR will be pressed on 180-gram vinyl at Acoustic Sounds' industry-leading pressing plant Quality Record Pressings (QRP) using hand-selected Clarity Vinyl® with attention paid to every single detail. These records will feature the same flat profile that helped to make the original UHQR so desirable. From the lead-in groove to the run-out groove, there is no pitch to the profile, allowing the customer's stylus to play truly perpendicular to the grooves from edge to center. Clarity Vinyl allows for the purest possible pressing and the most visually stunning presentation. Every UHQR will be hand inspected upon pressing completion, and only the truly flawless will be allowed to go to market. Each UHQR will be packaged in a custom clamshell box and will include a booklet detailing the entire process of making a UHQR along with a hand-signed certificate of inspection. This will be a truly deluxe, collectible product.

Sneakin' Suspicion ist das vierte Album der englischen Band Dr. Feelgood, das 1977 veröffentlicht wurde. Während der Aufnahmen zu Sneakin' Suspicion stand die Band kurz vor der Auflösung, nachdem Gitarrist, Songwriter und Frontmann Wilko Johnson die Band verlassen hatte. Das Album erreichte im Juni 1977 Platz 10 der britischen Albumcharts und blieb sechs Wochen lang in den Charts. Es brachte auch ihre erste Single hervor, die in die entsprechenden britischen Singlecharts kam – „Sneakin' Suspicion“. 2025 remastered auf 140g-Vinyl und CD

999 were one of the true punk rock originals came together in November 1976. 999 quickly became a cornerstone of the scene in the UK, releasing their debut single ‘I’m Alive’ in July 1977.  Within a couple of years, they were touring the USA extensively, building up a significant following Stateside and earning them some action on the US Billboard Album Chart. Throughout the late 70s and early 80s, a series of classic singles alongside the albums ‘999’, ‘Separates’, ‘The Biggest Prize in Sport,’ and ‘Concrete’ kept the band’s star in the ascendancy.
‘Live at The Basins Nightclub’ recorded in June 1987 catches the band firing on all cylinders.

Penguin Cafe Orchestra’ is the second studio album by the Penguin Cafe Orchestra, released in 1981, and recorded between 1977 and 1980.  By this album, the line-up for the band had expanded greatly, with contribution including Simon Jeffes, Helen Leibmann, Steve Nye and Gavyn Wright of the original quartet, as well as Geoff Richardson, Peter Veitch, Braco, Giles Leamna, Julio Segovia and Neil Rennie.
All pieces were composed by Simon Jeffes, except for ‘Paul’s Dance’ (Jeffes and Nye), ‘Cutting Branches’ (traditional), and ‘Walk Don’t Run’ (by Johnny Smith).
The cover painting is by Emily Young.
‘Cutting Branches For A Temporary Shelter’ is based on the traditional Zimbabwean song, ‘Nhemamusasa’, a field recording of which can be heard played on mbira on the Nonesuch Records album ‘The Soul of the Mbira’.

The Boston Globe opined that “this is one of the most eccentric records released this or any year... It’s also one of the most delightful.”
In 2021, ‘Penguin Cafe Orchestra’ was named among The Fifty Best Albums Of 1981 by Spin.
This repress uses the 2008 remaster.

Pressed on apricot vinyl.

The Kinks kündigen den dritten und letzten Teil ihrer ganz besonderen Anthologie-Reihe an: „The Journey
– Part 3“.
„Part 3“ behandelt ihre transformative RCA/Arista-Zeit von 1977 bis 1984, eine Zeit, in der die Band
endgültig in Amerika durchbrach, ihre legendären Pop- und Experimentalphasen hinter sich ließ und zu
einem frischen und prägnanten Stil des klassischen Songwritings zurückkehrte, der von ihrem eigenen,
ausgeprägten britischen Selbstverständnis zeugt.
CD 1 / LP 1 enthält Klassiker und Hits aus dieser Zeit, persönlich von der Band ausgewählt und von den
Original-Sampler- und Produktionsbändern remastert, darunter „Come Dancing“, „Destroyer“ und „Living
On A Thin Line“.
CD 2 / LP 2 enthält bisher unveröffentlichte Aufnahmen des Hit-reichen Auftritts der Band in der Royal
Albert Hall im Juli 1993, darunter fesselnde Interpretationen von „You Really Got Me“ und „Till The End
of the Day“ und vielen anderen.
Sowohl unsere 180-g-Doppel-LP als auch die Doppel-CD enthalten Track-by-Track-Kommentare der Band
sowie neue Linernotes von Phil Alexander.

Lifelong friends Richard Lowe and Rob Bendelow formed their first band “Lammergier” during the mid 1970’s together with bassist Barry Yates. Following their first love performance in 1977 the band gigged extensively across the British midlands. The standard of these performances combined with their unique brand of symphonic rock saw “Lammergier” amass a large and loyal following. Then a new decade arrived changes were made, the music remained the same, but they called themselves “Saracen”.

After several months on the road Saracen decided it was time to record an album, and in October 1981 they released “Heroes, Saints and Fools” to critical acclaim. Saracen tracks received regular airplay on Tommy Vance’s Friday night rock show and the single “We have arrived” was recorded. In 1983 line-up changes occurred and the band eventually stopped touring in 1985.

Two decades later and the band re-appear with a vengeance and the release of “Red Sky” in March 2003 put the band firmly back on the map, and it was a rework of some of the old classics with new tracks added. The band regained its popularity, and a further three albums have emerged to critical acclaim, namely “Vox in Excelso”, “Marilyn” and “Redemption”.

With renewed interest in the vinyl format of recorded music “Vox In Excelso” has been re-released in 2025 as a numbered limited edition with new artwork and now “Red Sky” is to follow, again with new artwork. These are beautiful works of art and the recordings sound fresh and vibrant, its classic progressive rock brought into the present day and it doesn’t get better than this..

Bobby Lyle is a keyboard legend from the fusion period of jazz in the mid to late 1970s. He was the pianist with Young Holt Unlimited and played with Jimi Hendricks, booked to go on the road with him just ahead of the untimely death. In 1974 he moved to Los Angeles and went on the road with Sly & The Family Stone, and then through dates with Ronnie Laws he met ex-Crusader Wayne Henderson who took him to Capitol Records where this, the first of three iconic albums was released in 1977. Bobby also became Wayne’s keyboard player of choice on his solo albums and productions through the remainder of the 70s and early 80s, contributing to the ‘At Home Production’ sound which defines these albums. “The Genie” was rediscovered in the ‘rare groove’ period of the 80s and is from which Bobby gets his nickname for the lightning pace and magic of his playing. This album is ultimate jazz funk from a period that gave us artists like Lonnie Liston Smith, Joe Sample and Bob James. Bobby still tours to this day with artists like George Benson and Anita Baker.

Santana Bridges the Divide Between Live and Studio Material on Moonflower: 1977 Double Album Features Extraordinary Performances, Soulful Vibes, and Dynamic Mix of Latin, Rock, Funk, and Blues
Sourced from the Original Master Tapes and Strictly Limited to 3,000 Numbered Copies: Mobile Fidelity’s 180g 33RPM 2LP Set Plays with Audiophile-Quality Detail, Balance, and Imaging
1/4” / 15 IPS original analogue non-Dolby master to DSD 256 to analogue console to lathe



Though it may seem strange now, Moonflower stood for nearly 15 years as Santana’s first and only live record released in the United States. This despite the fact that roughly half of the double album consists of new studio songs, including a zesty cover of the Zombies classic “She’s Not There” that reached the Top 30 of the singles charts.

However unconventional, the “split” strategy went over like gangbusters. Moonflower reached the Top 10 of the Billboard Top 200 and achieved double-platinum status — feats the group would not again replicate for 22 years. These, and the beautiful quality of the program itself, are among the reasons why the 1977 effort remains viewed by critics and fans alike as must-have Santana.

Sourced from the original master tapes, pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing in California, housed in a Stoughton jacket, and strictly limited to 3,000 numbered copies, Mobile Fidelity’s 180g 33RPM 2LP set of Moonflower presents the record in audiophile sound for the first time on a domestic reissue. Part of the MoFi’s Santana catalog restoration series, this collectible version features quiet surfaces and black backgrounds that expose the critical details, liquid tones, and dynamic interplay central to Santana’s music.

The enhanced sonics extend not only to Carlos Santana’s six-string wizardry, but to the rhythmic, melodic, and vocal elements that course throughout both the studio and live cuts on Moonflower. The grip and depth of the bass lines; the wash of the organ; the scope and carry of the vocals; the extension and weight of the low-end frequencies; the rich textures of the guitars, percussive devices, and keyboards: all appear amid wide, balanced soundstages and image with right-sized dimensionality.

Significantly rooted in the styles and approaches that inform the group’s first three records, Moonflower captures the final appearances of iconic percussionist Jose “Chepito” Areas and go-to keyboardist Tom Coster on a Santana album. As he did during the preceding five-year stretch, Coster inhabits a large role here, sharing songwriting credits on a majority of the new cuts and helping steer the arrangements toward spiritually minded albeit concise directions that encompass vibrant Latin, rock, and blues themes that began to escape the ensemble shortly after his departure.

Close your eyes and feel the warmth of the sun on the R&B-kissed “I’ll Be Waiting,” anchored by Carlos Santana’s gliding fretwork and Greg Walker’s creamy vocals. Enter the cosmic universe of “Zulu,” on which Coster’s nimble phrasing opens the gate to polyrhythmic beats, knotty grooves, and interlocking funk. Grab the album cover and drift off to paradise amid the equally evocative “Flor d’Luna (Moonflower),” a romantic slow dance that Carlos Santana ensures tiptoes en route to its blissful destination. Channeling a different spirit animal, the guitarist later lets loose on the hard-hitting “El Morocco,” on which he seemingly engages in a shootout with himself and wades into the rippling psychedelia that elevated the band’s early material.

Speaking of the past, Moonflower triumphs on that level as well. In more ways than one, the live selections — and the caliber of the performances — chosen for inclusion represent an abbreviated greatest-hits survey of the band up to that point. And, at the very least, a convincing argument about why Santana had progressed into one of the most formidable bands you could hope to see on a stage in the mid ‘70s.

Simultaneously representative and illustrative of the group’s breadth, tracks stem from the collective’s eponymous debut, Abraxas, and Santana III as well as the then-more recent Amigos and Festival. Whether you fall for the sidewinding spell of a spicy rendition of “Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen,” lose your head to the positively epic momentum of “Soul Sacrifice/Head, Hands & Feet,” or keep dropping the needle on the savory grace of the brilliant reading of “Europa (Earth’s Cry Heaven’s Smile),” this pressing of Moonflower puts you — and Santana’s first-chapter legacy — in good hands.

1976, ein Jahr nach der Gründung der Band, stand die bahnbrechende Besetzung von Motörhead fest. Die „Drei-Amigos“-Ära von Motörhead – Lemmy (Bass/Gesang), Fast Eddie Clarke (Gitarre) und Phil „Philthy Animal“ Taylor – schlossen sich zusammen und begannen ihre außergewöhnliche Reise an die Spitze der Hardrock-Elite. Im August 1976 traf sich die Band im legendären Manticore Studio von Emerson, Lake & Palmer in Fulham, um zu proben und die neue Besetzung zu präsentieren. Dort nahmen sie zum ersten Mal gemeinsam auf. 49 Jahre später wurde das lange verschollene Band entdeckt, entstaubt und in all seiner Pracht restauriert, um das 50-jährige Bandjubiläum zu feiern. Erhältlich als klassische schwarze 1-LP, CD und als Deluxe-2-LP-Bookpack. Alle Formate enthalten zusätzliche alternative Takes und Instrumentalstücke für einen einzigartigen Einblick in die Entstehung dieser legendären Band. Darüber hinaus enthält das Deluxe-Bookpack eine zusätzliche Bonus-LP – den klassischen Bonus „Live: Blitzkrieg on Birmingham ’77“ sowie eine Bonus-7-Zoll-Platte mit zwei bisher unveröffentlichten LiveTracks von Barbarellas Birmingham 1977. Außerdem gibt es ein 24-seitiges Booklet mit Linernotes von Kris Needs, unserem langjährigen Kollaborateur.

1976, ein Jahr nach der Gründung der Band, stand die bahnbrechende Besetzung von Motörhead fest. Die „Drei-Amigos“-Ära von Motörhead – Lemmy (Bass/Gesang), Fast Eddie Clarke (Gitarre) und Phil „Philthy Animal“ Taylor – schlossen sich zusammen und begannen ihre außergewöhnliche Reise an die Spitze der Hardrock-Elite. Im August 1976 traf sich die Band im legendären Manticore Studio von Emerson, Lake & Palmer in Fulham, um zu proben und die neue Besetzung zu präsentieren. Dort nahmen sie zum ersten Mal gemeinsam auf. 49 Jahre später wurde das lange verschollene Band entdeckt, entstaubt und in all seiner Pracht restauriert, um das 50-jährige Bandjubiläum zu feiern. Erhältlich als klassische schwarze 1-LP, CD und als Deluxe-2-LP-Bookpack. Alle Formate enthalten zusätzliche alternative Takes und Instrumentalstücke für einen einzigartigen Einblick in die Entstehung dieser legendären Band. Darüber hinaus enthält das Deluxe-Bookpack eine zusätzliche Bonus-LP – den klassischen Bonus „Live: Blitzkrieg on Birmingham ’77“ sowie eine Bonus-7-Zoll-Platte mit zwei bisher unveröffentlichten LiveTracks von Barbarellas Birmingham 1977. Außerdem gibt es ein 24-seitiges Booklet mit Linernotes von Kris Needs, unserem langjährigen Kollaborateur.

After the explosive Comme à la radio, infused with the free jazz energy of the Art Ensemble of Chicago, Brigitte Fontaine and Areski Belkacem released six albums together or separately between 1972 and 1977. Their music, often stripped down to voice, guitar, and percussion-or performed a cappella-stood in stark contrast to the orchestrated French pop of the time. This minimalist and spontaneous approach highlighted the poetic power of the lyrics and the intimacy of the melodies, earning them recognition in the counterculture and underground scenes. By the end of the 1970s, Fontaine sought to make her work more visible without losing its originality. The Baraka album marked this transitional moment, initially recorded in a home studio without external musicians. Its title (meaning "blessing" in Arabic) hinted at a desire for success. Mixing introspection, absurd humor, and bold stylistic choices, the album was technically ambitious, featuring stereo duets and layered vocals, and lyrically rich, tackling everything from metaphysical themes to playful nonsense. However, the project ultimately veered off course. After moving the recordings to the massive Studio Davout and bringing in producer and guitarist Martial "Mimi" Lorenzini, the album lost its original intimacy. Overproduced arrangements clashed with the simplicity of Fontaine and Belkacem's initial intent, resulting in an album-renamed Les églantines sont peut-être formidables-that the artists later disowned, refusing to allow its commercial release. Recently rediscovered demo tapes, stripped of their bombastic layers, reveal the raw, emotional core of the songs-showcasing the duo's voices with a rare authenticity. These recordings bridge a missing link in their discography, between their experimental lo-fi years and their later, more accessible work. Decades on, Fontaine and Belkacem remain defiant originals, never settling into a formula, always evolving, and continuing to shake the foundations of French chanson.

Available 13 June 2025 on double translucent orange vinyl, Trios captures the magic of Buddy Rich's legendary three- man jam sessions-- performances that have never been officially released until now. Recorded live during international concerts in 1976 and 1977, Trios showcases Rich alongside extraordinary talents: bassists Jon Burr and Tom Warrington, and young piano prodigy Barry Kiener. These trio interludes--recorded by Rich's alto saxophonist Alan Gauvin--feature Rich playing with brushes in an intimate setting, spotlighting his dynamic range and nuance. "These trio sets were often played to give the brass section a break," says Gauvin. "But what Buddy did with those moments was extraordinary. It was a masterclass in restraint, creativity, and musical interplay." Among the album's ten tracks are beautifully reimagined standards such as "Just Friends," "Stella by Starlight," and "My Romance." Each performance highlights Rich's desire to step back and allow the piano and bass to shine--something unheard of for a drummer of his stature. The release also serves as a tribute to Barry Kiener, the immensely gifted pianist who tragically passed away at 30. "Barry had been like a son to him," remembers Buddy's daughter Cathy Rich, who serves as an Executive Producer. "This album is a rare glimpse into Barry's brilliance and the deep musical bond he shared with my father." Trios was recorded and produced by Alan Gauvin, mastered by Tom Swift, with cover art by Michael Patterson, the award-winning visual artist and USC professor known for his work on a-ha's iconic "Take on Me" video.

TWICE A MAN pflanzten die Saat für "The Coloured Breeze Is a New Dimension" mit dem Song 'Dahlia', einem "neuen" Stück, das sie zur Ergänzung der Albumkompilation "Songs of Future Memories" geschrieben hatten. Drei Jahre lang düngte und hegte das schwedische Dark-Electronic-Trio den Keim, bis er feste Wurzeln in ihrem musikalischen Erbe fand und damit begann, neugierige Ableger in neue fruchtbare Böden jenseits der zuvor errichteten Klanggartenmauern zu senden. "The Coloured Breeze Is a New Dimension" ist ein organisches Gebilde, das etwas Neues schafft, indem es seine musikalische DNA auf verschiedene Weise rekombiniert. Als Ergebnis erblühen die frischen Songs in vielen elektronischen Farbnuancen. TWICE A MAN waren schon immer Vorreiter. In ihrem Heimatland Schweden waren sie die anerkannten Pioniere der elektronischen Musik. Und schon lange bevor es in Mode kam, positionierten sich die Schweden als selbstbewusste Umweltschützer. Musikalisch wurden sie liebevoll mit Bezeichnungen versehen wie: "Ultravox auf Gras - wenn auch melancholisch und ohne zuckriges Pathos" oder "wie ein trauriger Gary Numan, aber mit einem warmen, organischen Touch". In ihrem Sound finden sich auch sanfte Anklänge an TANGERINE DREAM, KLAUS SCHULZE und THE HUMAN LEAGUE neben vielen anderen möglichen Referenzen. Als sich Sänger, Gitarrist und Keyboarder Dan Söderqvist im Jahr 1977 mit dem Synthesizer-Spieler Karl Gasleben zusammenkam, gründete das Duo zunächst COSMIC OVERDOSE, die erste elektronische Band Skandinaviens, aus der dann TWICE A MAN hervorging. Während ihrer bemerkenswerten Karriere veröffentlichten die Schweden zahlreiche Alben, inklusive spezieller Projekte, und zwei Kompilationen. Sie spielten zahllose Konzerte und schufen den Soundtrack für sieben abendfüllende Theateraufführungen im Königlichen Dramatischen Theater in Stockholm, Musik für Filme, Ausstellungen, Tanzaufführungen und sogar Computerspiele. Die Natur spielt auch in den Texten und im Sound von "The Coloured Breeze Is a New Dimension" wieder eine große Rolle. TWICE A MAN haben ein musikalisches Äquivalent dazu geschaffen, Trost in der Natur, Kunst und der Freude an Büchern zu finden, um zumindest für eine Weile den Übeln der modernen Welt zu entkommen.

To kick off Ace Records 50th Anniversary we are delighted to offer up a 2-LP version of one of the most seminal and important heavy metal albums of all time.

Funded by and released on Chiswick Records in 1977, Motörhead’s debut album was a sonic blister of epic proportions capturing the musical lighting generated by Lemmy (bass/vocals), Phil Taylor (guitar) and Eddie Clarke (drums).

This 2-LP set not only offers up this classic first album featuring tracks like ‘White Line Fever’, ‘Violator’ and ‘Keep Us On The Road’ but also collates together, on sides three and four, ‘City Kids’ the “Beer Drinkers EP” as well as different mixed and alternative versions of ear-bleeding classics like ‘Motörhead’, ‘The Watcher’ and ‘Keep Us On The Road’.

The album cover features a silver hot foil replication Joe Petagno’s original Motorhead logo in all its glory. Sleeve notes are by Ted Carroll who takes the reader through the story of how Chiswick Records managed to scrape together the money to fund the recording and write themselves and Motörhead into rock and roll history.

It’s one hell of a way to kick off Ace’s 50th Anniversary re-issue schedule.

Bad Company's Burnin' Sky, released in March 1977, continued to showcase the band's bluesy rock roots, with Paul Rodgers' soulful and powerful vocals leading the way. The album's musical style is characterized by its gritty, guitar-driven sound and blues-infused melodies.

The 12 songs were recorded in France at studio Château d Hérouville, where David Bowie would record Low later that same year. The album's hit single and title track "Burnin' Sky" reached No. 78 on the U.S. Billboard pop singles chart. The album peaked at No. 15 on the Billboard 200 chart.

This 180-gram 45 RPM 2LP of Burnin' Sky is the definitive reissue of this chart-making classic.

Girls At Our Best! were one of the greatest and most influential bands to emerge in the early 1980s as part of a new wave of independent acts. DJ John Peel championed them, playing their singles repeatedly and inviting them to record a session for his programme. Wry vocalist Judy Evans and brutal yet melodic guitarist James Alan who’d met at art college in Leeds fronted Girls At Our Best!, the proto-Indie band that formed from the ashes of Alan’s 1977 punk band SOS! Pleasure, the sole album, reached number two in the Indie Chart. It was an album so different from the rest of the post-punk indie pack that you can still play it now and completely baffle new listeners. As John Peel said about Roxy Music, it just doesn’t seem to relate to anything else.

Girls At Our Best! were one of the greatest and most influential bands to emerge in the early 1980s as part of a new wave of independent acts. DJ John Peel championed them, playing their singles repeatedly and inviting them to record a session for his programme. Wry vocalist Judy Evans and brutal yet melodic guitarist James Alan who’d met at art college in Leeds fronted Girls At Our Best!, the proto-Indie band that formed from the ashes of Alan’s 1977 punk band SOS! Pleasure, the sole album, reached number two in the Indie Chart. It was an album so different from the rest of the post-punk indie pack that you can still play it now and completely baffle new listeners. As John Peel said about Roxy Music, it just doesn’t seem to relate to anything else.

Abaeté, a vocal trio from Bahia, made a remarkable debut with masterfully crafted jazz-funk sambas, at a time when Bahian musicians were true masters of the genre. There"s virtually no information about the band, apart from the music itself, which seems to be limitedto two releases: a single and that much-loved 1977 self- titled album, now a cult classic. A collection of killer tunes, funky samba, synthesizer sounds and free rhythms with a North Brazilian flavour. The band also wrote songs for Clara Nunes and Elza Soares in the 70s. Mixed by Waldir Lombardo Pinheiro (Tom Ze, Zeca Do Trombone...).

t's been a half century since Pavlov's Dog burst onto the burgeoning progressive rock scene of the early 1970s. Hailing from the city of St. Louis, Missouri, their heady blend of rock, classical and folk music turned them into cult legends. The band has seen lots of lineup changes and internal turmoil over the years, leading to extended breaks between album releases. But today, David Surkamp - lead singer, main songwriter and last remaining original member of Pavlov's Dog - continues to fly the banner high, accompanied by an accomplished group of musicians that is a credit to the band's good name. For decades, Pavlov's Dog's "lost album" - "Has Anyone Here Seen Siegfried?" - recorded in St. Louis in 1977 - was available only in inferior quality. With the rediscovery of the master tapes several years ago, it became possible to hear the album as originally intended. Tensions within the band had reached the boiling point as they entered the studio and would lead to a breakup soon thereafter. Nevertheless, tracks like the piano ballad "Only You" and the somber "Suicide" are brilliant additions to the band's canon.

Freddie McKay’s self-produced 1977 LP Harsh Words has finally returned to circulation. Initially released in Jamaica on Gorgon Records, a subsidiary of Sonic Sounds, it was issued in the US by Salsoul Records’ sister label Salsoul Salsa Series in 1982. The album includes 10 tracks, featuring previously issued singles from the ’70s along with exclusive songs like the title track Harsh Words, Feel So High, and Travelling. McKay’s gritty, soulful voice is backed by top-tier musicians, including Sly & Robbie, Fish Clarke, Flabba Holt, Bingi Bunny, Ranchy McLean, Ansel Collins, Winston Wright, Bobby Ellis, Don D Jr, and Sticky.

The nearly simultaneous reissue of Freddie McKay’s LP Harsh Words by France’s Only Roots under McKay’s Amethyst label and Switzerland-based Reggae Fever under the Kismet label raises some eyebrows. France’s Only Roots claims a licensed release from Freddie McKay’s estate, while Switzerland-based Reggae Fever acknowledges Patrick Harty as the producer behind their release. Harty owns Jamaican label Kismet, known for its unofficial releases.

The multi-media project Kraftwerk was started in Düsseldorf, Germany 1970 by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. They set up their electronic Kling Klang Studio where they conceived and produced all Kraftwerk albums.

Kraftwerk created the soundtrack for the digital age of the 21st century. AUTOBAHN 1974, RADIO-ACTIVITY 1975, TRANS EUROPE EXPRESS 1977, THE MAN-MACHINE 1978, COMPUTER WORLD 1981, TECHNO POP 1986, THE MIX 1991, TOUR DE FRANCE 2003. Their compositions, using innovative techniques, electronic sounds and synthetic voices combined with computerised rhythms, had a major musical influence on Electro, Hip Hop, Techno and Synth-Pop. 

Eine sehr schwer zu findende Veröffentlichung der enigmatischen Soul/Funk-Band Sound Investment. Zwei Tracks aus ihrer einzigen und superraren LP, die 1977 auf Brunswick erschien und heute für 500£ den Besitzer wechselt. Zweimal Heavy-Funk-Groove mit "Funky Skunk" und "Dirty Man", die beide zum ersten Mal auf 7" Vinyl erscheinen. Limitierte Auflage von nur 400 Exemplaren.

The Ibex Band, with Giovanni Rico and Selam Woldemariam at the creative helm, provided the musical backbone for legends like Aster Aweke, Girma Beyene, Tilahun Gessesse, Mulatu Astatke, and Mahmoud Ahmed, including the iconic album Ere Mela Mela, shaping modern Ethiopian music as we know it today. This 1976 album (Ge’ez Year 1968) played a pivotal role in that legacy and has now resurfaced to set the record straight.

There’s a tendency to talk about the seventies as a golden age of Ethiopian music. There are good reasons for that, and just as good reasons against it. However, the notion of a golden past privileges the role of Western explorers and suggests that the pinnacle of Ethiopia’s musical culture is something only a foreigner can appreciate and unearth. It downplays the complexities of Ethiopia’s culture and history, creating an artificial divide between then and now. And it underestimates the constantly evolving sound that has followed.

The legendary musical outfit The Ibex Band, later metamorphosed into The Roha Band, has played a central role in defining the sound of many of the greatest stars on the music scene of Ethiopia from the mid-seventies onwards–but their golden output has never really waned. The story of the origins of the band that provided the musical backbone for greats such as Aster Aweke, Girma Beyene, Tilahun Gessesse, backing the solo career of group member Mahmoud Ahmed as well as backing Mulatu Astatke and many others has yet to be properly told.

Two misconceptions plague the image of Ethiopian music, one is that the music is pure because it is, by some notion, unexploited, the other is that it is all traditional. To begin with, a combination of political changes between the late sixties and the mid-nineties created an environment where only the most dedicated and skilled musicians struggled on and pursued a musical career against fierce odds. The whole Ibex Band, with Giovanni Rico and Selam “Selamino” Seyoum Woldermarian at the creative helm, are arguably the origo of the vibrant scene in the mid-seventies, and the said pair are foremost responsible for not only navigating the band through troubled times, but also modernizing the 6/8 chickchicka rhythm to a contemporary form. Giovanni laid the rhythmic foundation with heavy looped basslines that reinvented traditional melodies as dance music, and with Selamino’s innovative guitar work they influenced scores of musicians from Abegaz Kibrework Shiota to Henock Temesgen. Even Giovanni’s Fender bass and Selamino’s Gibson guitar inspired younger musicians in their choice of instruments. Not only in choice of instruments but also in sound–even as the digital revolution hit Ethiopian music, a lot of popular music still took its cue from the masters from Ibex and Roha.

Ibex emerged out of the ashes of the sixties group the Soul Echos band, adding Giovanni and Selamino to their ranks and taking their cues from a slew of influences, such as Motown and The Beatles, fused with traditional music. A tighter-knit unit than most bands at the time – Ibex has remained six to seven members throughout their whole career, compared to many bands that were as large as fifteen or sixteen men strong when Ibex set out. Their playing has been viciously focused, economical yet heavy. Just a year before the recording sessions of the album in your hands, Giovanni and Selamino made a contribution to the popular musical lexicon of Ethiopia that was simply defining the popular sound: their arrangement and recording of bandmate Mahmoud Ahmed’s solo effort and real commercial breakthrough tune and eponymous album, Ere Mela Mela, from 1975.

Selamino has never limited himself to being an adroit lead guitarist, but has always been a scholar of history, and as such he has probably contributed as much to modern Ethiopian music with his guitar playing and compositions as with a deepened understanding of modern or contemporary – Zemenawi – Ethiopian music. Selamino’s contributions serve as a metaphor for those of the whole band, at one and the same time creating and defining a new, danceable and updated sound anchored in Giovanni’s bass, whilst also elevating the broader scene through their support for others on the scene and on top of that, increasing the understanding of the music.

There is an understandable desire to romanticize the musical heyday Ibex and Roha were at the forefront of, because so much of the output is sorrowfully hard to come by. Ibex creativity was nothing short of ridiculously fierce compared to many of their Western contemporaries. Based on their sheer recorded output alone they could have usurped the title “hardest working in show business” from James Brown, recording more than 250 albums or 2500 songs in the seventies and eighties. Some only surface as cassettes today, others were never given full LP release, and some are simply impossible to find today. In the light of that, it’s nothing short of a miracle that the recording Stereo Instrumental Music from 1976 (Ge’ez Year 1968) has resurfaced. Unearthed in perfect condition on a chrome cassette, this is musical history comes alive–to set the future straight. Stereo Instrumental Music was recorded in collaboration with Karl-Gustav Lundgren, a Swedish national working for the Radio Voice of the Gospel. It took two sessions at the Ras Hotel ballroom in Addis Ababa. The Ibex Band was the first band in Ethiopia to employ a four-track recorder for their recording (the first available in the country, lent by Karl-Gustav). Later the same week, Giovanni and Selamino realized that, lengthwise, the recorded material fell short of what they wished for, so they recorded four more tracks in one more session on a single-track recorder. The Ras Hotel and Ghion Hotel, where the Ibex Band held musical residencies were to Ethiopia in general and Addis Ababa in particular what Motown was to the USA and Detroit a few years earlier – a hotbed of musical creativity and showmanship.

The most astonishing thing about Ethiopian music of the last half century is how tradition and modernity are intertwined. Because of this feature, it’s kind of hard to tell when there ever was or when we are in a “golden age”. So much of music from the past has been criminally neglected, but because of the hardships in the past, it would be an oversimplification to say that said past was a golden age. Probably, the golden age is what we are approaching, because for the first time both the past and future are accessible, and the monumental contributions from before can lay a firm foundation for a thriving music scene today. The Ibex Band stands firmly in the past, present and the future. That, if anything, is golden.

The detailed history of Stereo Instrumental Music is in many ways unique. To begin with, it couldn’t have been recorded earlier (there were no four-track recorders available) and it really couldn’t have been recorded afterwards either, at least not in the years directly following, because of the toll the musical scene took from the unfavorable political climate that followed when the nascent Derg regime and rival groups tried to assert themselves, the musical equipment lent from The Voice of Gospel Radio simply disappeared from Ethiopia when the radio station folded in 1977. Karl-Gustav Lundgren,
the Swedish foreign national who assisted during the recording, worked with the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus at the time, recalls how they only had about fifteen minutes to get the microphones in place for the recording as to not alert neither the management at Ras Hotel nor the authorities and most importantly, to complete the recording before the curfew came into effect at midnight. In leaping to the opportunity to use previously unavailable equipment to push their sound forward and improvising to meet the logistical challenges, the Ibex Band displayed the very avant-gardism and adaptability that explains their longevity as a band through the years. The recording of Stereo Instrumental Music is from a given time in history, but it sounds as beyond time.
Much of the energy that burst out of the scene that Stereo Instrumental Music came out of dissipated or got sidetracked during the societal changes Ethiopia went through in the 1970s and 80s. Whilst leaders might have professed to be revolutionary, the work ethic of the Ibex Band can truly be described as that. They never called it quits, but adapted, toured extensively abroad in Africa, Europe, and the Middle East, and found ways to work even in the face of the curfew that curtailed a lot of musical life. They even played major arenas in the nineteen eighties, despite said curfew and restrictions. The whole extent of their legacy has never been told, but their music speaks louder than words, so therefore… tune in to the Ibex Band’s Stereo Instrumental Music.

By the mid-1970s, trumpeter Dennis Mpale was a consummate musician with an auspicious resume that located him at all the key turning points in the evolution of modern South African jazz. In his mid-20s, he led the trumpet section of Chris McGregor’s Castle Lager Big Band and participated in the ensemble’s landmark 1963 album Jazz/The African Sound. 1968 saw him recording I Remember Nick with The Soul Giants, which joined a wave of notable late-1960s releases, including The Mankunku Quartet’s Yakhal' Inkomo and The Chris Schilder Quintet’s Spring, that ignited the ambitions of South African jazz artists and producers in the 1970s. In 1975, Mpale co-founded the “rock jazz” ensemble Roots, inaugurating the era of jazz fusion in South Africa and opening the door for Pacific Express and Spirits Rejoice.

By 1977, Mpale had earned the right to an album of his own and, having participated in the 1975 recording of Abdullah Ibrahim’s African Herbs, turned to producer Rashid Vally of the As-Shams/The Sun label for his solo debut. Vally financed the project and seized an opportunity to license it to the local subsidiary of a major international label. As such, Our Boys Are Doing It was issued in South Africa on the Mercury label in 1977. Featuring saxophone heavyweight Kippie Moketsi, the album was a response to the global direction taken by trumpeter Hugh Masekela on The Boy's Doin' It in 1975. In contrast, seeped in the bump jive style of popular urban township music, Our Boys Are Doing It was a manifesto for an authentic, exuberant, homegrown variety of South African jazz.

Limited edition of 500 copies.

Hard Top assembles the previously unreleased 1975 recordings of legendary South African saxophonist Kippie Moketsi (also spelled Moeketsi). The 2LP vinyl edition is presented in a gatefold sleeve featuring artwork by Mafa Ngwenya and comes from As-Shams Archive on the heels of the Tete Mbambisa's previously unreleased African Day album in 2024.

By 1975, at the age of 50, saxophonist Kippie Moketsi had already earned his stripes as a South African jazz figurehead. His tenure with the Jazz Epistles and the cast of the "South African Jazz Opera" King Kong in the late-1950s had not only marked his own rise to fame but also seen him help catalyse the ambitions of a younger generation of iconic artists who would go on to become the defining figures of modern South African jazz. While he didn't enjoy the same international attention as his protégés Miriam Makeba, Hugh Masekela and Abdullah Ibrahim, his humble and challenging career on the local jazz scene until his death in 1983 saw him forge an enduring legacy.

Owing to the efforts of record producer Rashid Vally, Kippie Moketsi's journey through the 1970s is beautifully documented, most notably on the albums Dollar Brand + 3 (1973), Tshona! (1975) and Blue Stompin' (1977), in which he shares the spotlight with Abdullah Ibrahim, Pat Matshikiza and Hal Singer respectively. As a featured performer on Soul of the City's Diagonal Street (1975) and Dennis Maple's Our Boys are Doing It (1977), Moketsi is seen embracing the popular orientations of South African jazz in 1970s but, having come up in the 1940s and 1950s, he never forgot his roots as a dedicated admirer and scholar of traditional American jazz.

While Moketsi did write some memorable compositions, it was in the role of interpreter that he shone most brightly. With its title derived from a good-natured nickname that nodded to Moketsi's elder status by way of his receding hairline, Hard Top is a covers album that looks back in time to the era of rhythm and blues while also indulging 1970s pop and funk with a decidedly South African vibe. Officially joining Kippie Moketsi's catalogue 50 years after it was recorded, Hard Top provides an opportunity to celebrate the multiple dimensions of a South African jazz legend and reflect on the unwavering support of his fan, producer and friend Rashid Vally, who passed away in December 2024.

Das zweite Soloalbum von Bennie Maupin aus dem Jahr 1977 spiegelt die Erfahrungen wider, die der
Saxofonist und Bassklarinettist in den bahnbrechenden Fusion-Bands von Miles Davis (u.a. auf “Bitches
Brew”) und Herbie Hancock (”Mwandishi” und ”The Headhunters”) gesammelt hatte, zeigt aber auch
seine unverwechselbare eigene musikalische Persönlichkeit.

For Fans of, KISS, Starz, Angel, and 70’s classic rock! Employing a dazzling mix of glam rock, hard rock, and progressive rock, Angel's outrageous, white-satin-heavy image and equally over-the-top stage shows, making them one of the more colourful arena rock bands of the mid-'70s and early '80s. Discovered by KISS bass player, Gene Simmons, the group issued their eponymous debut album in 1975, which hewed closer to prog rock than the glam pop that would inform future endeavours like On Earth as It Is in Heaven(1977) and Sinful(1979). The group released a total of 5 studio albums and 1 live album before going their separate ways in 1981.Formed in Washington, D.C., the group's self-titled 1975debut was recorded for the flamboyant Casablanca Records label--home to KISS--with a line-up comprising Frank DiMino (vocals), Punky Meadows (guitar), Gregg Giuffria (keyboards), Mickie Jones(bass), and Barry Brandt(drums). A heavy slab of heavy pomp rock with lengthy songs swathed in Giuffria's atmospheric keyboards and featuring the longtime stage favourite "Tower". Now to celebrate the50thAnniversarythis classic has been remastered and is being released on both a 6-pane l CD digipak and on 180G vinyl with liner notes by Rock Candy journalist Dave Reynolds. There are only 700 of the Black-Blue swirl worldwide. A must have for any Angel fan with classics like “Tower” and “Rock & Rollers”

Mit der Verve Acoustic Sounds Serie bietet Verve Vinyl-Fans in Zusammenarbeit mit dem bekannten
amerikanischen Acoustic-Sounds-Label seine erste audiophile LP-Serie. Die Fertigung erfolgt mit rein
analogen Produktionsschritten vom Erste-Generation-Masterband bis zur 180g-Pressung bei Quality Record
Pressings in den USA. Den luxuriösen Rahmen bieten laminierte Tip-On-Gatefold-Sleeves und wattierte Innenhüllen.
Multiinstrumentalist Roland Kirk, der 1977 mit nur 42 Jahren starb, war ganz sicher eines der skurrilsten Originale des Jazz. Dass er auch ein außergewöhnliches Händchen für betont groovige Musik hatte,
bewies er 1967 erstmals auf dem Verve-Album ”Now Please Don’t You Cry, Beautiful Edith”.