Hip-Hop News

L.A.-based soul singer Leela James started out singing backup vocals on Hip-Hop albums in the late 90s and early 2000s. In 2004, she recorded the song "No Tears" on Pete Rock's "Soul Survivor 2", shortly after she signed a deal with Warner Bros Records and released her debut album A Change is Gonna Come, named after her cover of the Sam Cooke song. A true soul singer, with a voice comparable to Mavis Staples and Betty Wright, Leela enlisted Commissioner Gordon to oversee production, which included tracks by Kanye West, Raphael Saadiq, Wyclef Jean, and Chucky Thompson. The lead single, "Music," is an ode to the soul singers of yesterday, with a Hip-Hop feel. She performs a soulful R&B cover of No Doubt's "Don't Speak" and alternates between funky uplifting tracks like "Good Time" and "Soul Food" with downtempo, soulful ballads like "When You Love Somebody" and "My Joy." Leela James departed from Warner after the release of her debut and went on to release seven more studio albums. It's been twenty years since A Change is Gonna Come was released in June of 2005, and Get On Down is proud to present this underrated gem for the first time on vinyl. The album is pressed on "Golden Pearl" colored vinyl and packaged in a gatefold jacket, limited to 1000 copies. It's been a long time coming, but this is a must-have for neo-soul and R&B music lovers.

Leigh-Anne Pinnock is ready to reintroduce herself. After conquering the pop world with one of the biggest groups on the planet and stepping out as a solo artist, she has reached a new clarity: no more compromises, no more limits.

With the introduction of her debut album ‘My Ego Told Me To’, Leigh-Anne isn’t reinventing herself, she’s restoring the woman she always was. Bold, unapologetic and free, this album is the purest expression of her artistry to date and musically reflects every facet of Leigh-Anne Pinnock - unfiltered, independent and finally on her own terms. “Everything that has been in my heart, everything I’ve wanted to do, I’m doing now. It feels like freedom. It feels right.”

'Debut album from the 2006 X-Factor winner. The album is a mixture of pop ballads and soulful R&B tracks and includes her first single 'A Moment Like This', the international hit single 'Bleeding Love' and 'Better in Time'. A double, Gold coloured LP Vinyl package. Promo & marketing activity.

Mit einem Engelsgesicht und einer Stimme mit vier Oktaven Umfang ausgestattet, eroberte sich die Siegerin der britischen Erfolgs-TV-Show "The X-Factor" innerhalb von nur zwei Jahren ihren Spitzenplatz im Pop-Olymp. Sowohl ihre Debütsingle "Bleeding Love" als auch ihr erstes Album "Spirit" erreichten Platz eins der Schweizer Charts. Jetzt gibt es die Deluxe Edition mit DVD und drei neuen Songs (incl. "Run" und "Forgive Me")

Lettuce serves up a full-course groove experience with Cook, a 16-track feast of classic funk, rich instrumentation, and deep- pocket rhythm. The album features 12 full-length tracks, including two vocal cuts, with a standout cover of Keni Burke’s “Rising to the Top” leading the charge at radio. More than just a record, Cook is a multisensory experience: the vinyl includes a recipe book of original dishes crafted by the band, each paired with a song and one of their two new wines launched alongside the album. From front to back, Cook is Lettuce at their most flavorful—soulful, funky, and made to be savored.

South London’s Lianne La Havas re-entered our musical consciousness at the end of February with her emotionally stirring soul-gem ‘Bittersweet’. This came in conjunction with an Annie Mac Hottest Record, a mind-blowing live show at the Barbican with the BBC Symphony Orchestra & Jules Buckley and an incredible Colors session – all of which helped put Lianne firmly back on the cultural map for 2020.

‘Lianne La Havas’, Lianne’s third album and her first in five years and is an album of startling beauty and insight—made entirely on her own terms which has been quite a journey. In one sense, geographically: La Havas spent a lot of time moving back and forth between the UK and the States working on writing and exploring her own identity. As a result, ‘Lianne La Havas’ feels spacious and luminous. Its sunbaked sounds recall, in places, the Brazilian singer, songwriter, and guitarist Milton Nascimento (on “Seven Times”). You might also hear the curveball chords of Joni Mitchell and Jaco Pastorious’s jazz explorations (“Green Papaya”), or the puttering drums and inviting warmth of golden-era Al Green (“Read My Mind”). And throughout the record, there’s a sense of empowerment that has its roots in the crisp ‘90s R&B of Destiny’s Child.

[a] A1. Intro In A-Minor [2:14]
[b] A2. Big Momma Thang (Featuring Jay-Z) [4:17]
[c] A3. No Time [5:00]
[d] A4. Spend A Little Doe [5:35]
[e] B1. Take It! [0:46]
[f] B2. Crush On You [4:35]
[g] B3. Drugs [4:20]
[h] C1. Scheamin’ [0:49]
[i] C2. Queen B@$#H [3:17]
[j] C3. Dreams [4:39]
[k] C4. M.A.F.I.A. Land [4:37]
[l] D1. We Don’t Need It [4:10]
[m] D2. Not Tonight [4:31]
[n] D3. Player Haters [0:54]
[o] D4. **** You [2:53]

With their 1978 double concert album Waiting for Columbus, Little Feat staked their claim as one of the premier live bands of the 1970s. Recorded over a series of dates in London and Washington, D.C. over the summer of 1977, Waiting for Columbus vividly captures the L.A. sextet at a crossroads between its swampy mid-'70s fusion of blues, country, jazz and New Orleans R&B.

Little Feat originally released Waiting For Columbus LP on February 10, 1978. The platinum-certified double album cemented the band’s reputation as one of the premier live bands of the 1970s. When it was recorded, the group included: Lowell George (vocals, guitar), Paul Barrere (guitar, vocals), Bill Payne (keyboard, vocals), Richie Hayward (drums, vocals), Sam Clayton (percussion, vocals), and Kenny Gradney (bass).

Waiting For Columbus touches on songs from all six of the studio albums Little Feat released between 1971 and 1977. The dynamic performances showcase the sextet’s inimitable fusion of blues, country, jazz, and New Orleans R&B on signature tracks like “Fat Man In The Bathtub,” “Oh Atlanta,” and “Sailin’ Shoes.”

WAITING FOR COLUMBUS: SUPER DELUXE EDITION is the definitive edition of this classic. It includes unreleased live versions of songs that appeared on the original (“Rocket In My Pocket” and “Spanish Moon”), along with several that didn’t, like “Cold, Cold, Cold,” “Rock And Roll Doctor,” “Skin It Back” and a cover of Allen Toussaint’s “On Your Way Down.”

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Member Little Richard is a musical institution. The Architect Of Rock ’n’ Roll’s 1970 return. Pressed on opaque pink vinyl. Mastered by Grammy®-winning engineer Michael Graves. Lacquers cut by Jeff Powell at Take Out Vinyl/Sam Phillips Recording Service in Memphis. Packaging contains liner notes from Bill Dahl. Some successful recording artists are lucky to enjoy a lengthy career and perhaps one successful comeback after their popularity wanes over time. Rock ’n’ roll pioneer and absolute legend, Little Richard, achieved several. In the ’50s he racked up a non-stop string of smashes for Specialty Records with producer Bumps Blackwell like the blistering cuts, “Tutti Frutti,” “Long Tall Sally,” and “Rip It Up.” The Georgia Peach was deemed too uninhibited and unpredictable for TV variety shows to present to the nation, but the records were undeniable hits. He was clearly, an artist far ahead of the culture and times. Little Richard returned in 1970 with The Rill Thing and instead of sticking around his adopted home of Los Angeles, Richard set out for Rick Hall’s FAME Recording Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama to record the album for Reprise, joined by Bumps, who was now his manager. The opening track, “Freedom Blues,” was released in April of 1970 and hit #28 on the charts. The second cut, “Greenwood Mississippi,” was also released as a single in August and also made a Billboard appearance. The marathon title track (running a whopping 10 minutes and 20 seconds) was an intense funk jam that was captured in one take. The album also featured covers of tunes by The Beatles and Hank Williams—it was a different sound by far than the savagely rocking attack he’d ridden to fame like a rocket at Specialty close to a decade and- a-half earlier, but it was every bit as effective. The Rill Thing bore the slogan “The Little Richard Sound” on its labels. “He was at his peak with his vocals on there,” says guitarist Travis Wammack admiringly. “He was just singing his booty off!” The Rill Thing is back as a 12" long player, and pressed on opaque pink vinyl with a printed inner sleeve that includes liner notes by Bill Dahl.

We are very excited about Lizz Wright’s new album, and her 2024 European tours. The initial teaser single, Sweet Feeling, is doing quite nicely on Spotify, Apple, etc. and the second single, Your Love, featuring Meshell Ndegeocello, to be released in February, will have a dance remix as well. The album will be April 12. Her London date of March 15 at Cadogan Hall is confirmed, and Virgin staff is invited. Joe Baxter is doing PR and radio for the UK.

Blues & Ballads ist Lonnie Johnsons drittes Album, das 1960 veröffentlicht wurde. Das vielfältige Angebot
an Originalen und Covers zeigt Johnsons Vielseitigkeit an der Gitarre und als Sänger. Johnson wird auf
dieser Aufnahme von seinen Zeitgenossen Elmer Snowden und Wendell Marshall unterstützt. AllMusic
erklärte, dass Johnson „mühelos seine künstlerische Bandbreite offenbart“. Inkludiert (AAA) Lacke, die
von den Originalbändern geschnitten und bei QRP auf 180-Gramm-Vinyl gepresst wurden. Eine ReplikaTip-On-Hülle vervollständigt das Paket.
Ab dem 28. Februar ist die 1LP erhältlich.

Als Reaktion auf die Nachfrage von Sammlern, Fans und DJs verkündet Decca Records, zwei äußerst
begehrte 7-Inch-Singles wieder verfügbar zu machen. Diese Veröffentlichung lässt jeweils eine seltene Single
aus der Mod-Ära der Sechziger Jahre wieder aufleben, komplett mit ihren Original-B-Seiten. ”Crawling Up
A Hill/Mr. James” von John Mayer & The Bluesbreakers sowie ”Tax Man/That’s It” von Loose Ends sind
ab dem 02.08 erhältlich

Lou Bond only made one album but what an album it was. Politically charged, deeply introspective, and wonderfully lyrical, 1974’s Lou Bond is reminiscent of the Eugene McDaniels releases Headless Heroes of the Apocalypse and Outlaw (both out previously on Real Gone) in its outspoken, idiosyncratic social commentary. But there is a sensitivity here that’s devastating; Bond’s falsetto soaring over his strummed acoustic guitar brings to mind Bill Withers (whose “Let Me into Your Life” he covers) at his most affecting, while the orchestrated arrangements summon What’s Going On vibes. With comparisons like those, you know this record is special, but Lou Bond is a one-of-a-kind album that really defies comparison (despite our best efforts). For this ALLANALOG reissue, we had our friends at Well Made Music cut lacquers directly from the original tapes, and pressed the record at Gotta Groove Records. Available either in black vinyl or clear yellow. Both Outkast and Mary K. Blige sampled Lou Bond…that’s because it’s one of the lynchpin albums of Memphis soul.

Primary Wave Music und Legacy Recordings, die Katalogabteilung von Sony Music Entertainment, sind stolz darauf, die Wiederveröffentlichung der ersten beiden Alben des legendären R&B-Künstlers - "Luther" und "This Close to You" - bekannt zu geben und damit Musikliebhaber und Fans von Luther Vandross weltweit zu begeistern. Ursprünglich bei Cotillion Records erschienen, werden diese bahnbrechenden Alben nun zum ersten Mal seit über vierzig Jahren wieder im Handel erhältlich sein. Beide Alben können ab sofort in verschiedenen Konfigurationen vorbestellt werden, darunter Vinyl, CD und Digital. Die Wiederveröffentlichung erfolgt zeitgleich mit dem auf dem Sundance Film Festival vorgestellten Dokumentarfilm "Luther: Never Too Much", der als einer der am meisten erwarteten Dokumentarfilme des Jahres 2024 gepriesen wird und seinen ikonischen Status in der Musikwelt unterstreicht. Im Juni 1976 veränderte sich die R&B-Landschaft für immer mit dem Debütalbum "Luther" von Luther Vandross, das sein außergewöhnliches Gesangstalent, seine Songwriting- und Produktionsfähigkeiten unter Beweis stellte. Das Album enthielt den Hit "Funky Music (Is A Part Of Me)", den Luther Vandross und David Bowie für Bowies kultigen Film "Young Americans" zu "Fascination" umarrangierten, wobei Vandross' Einfluss durch seinen Hintergrundgesang und seine Arrangements deutlich wurde. Außerdem wurde "Everybody Rejoice (A Brand New Day)" aus dem preisgekrönten Musical "The Wiz" aufgenommen, was die einzige Aufnahme von Vandross' Interpretation des Songs darstellt. Am 23. März 1977 verzauberte Vandross' Album "This Close to You" mit seiner Band Luther die Zuhörer mit gefühlvollen Melodien und tiefgründigen Texten und festigte damit seinen Status in der Musikwelt

Luther Vandross was more than just a great singer. An elegant and warmhearted New Yorker who became one of popular music's most beloved performers, from his solo breakthrough in the early '80s to his untimely death in 2005, Vandross was a vocalist whose understanding of singing as an art form was so profound, he changed notions of what it could be. On March 23, 1977, Vandross's album 'This Close to You', with his group Luther, enchanted listeners with soulful tunes and deep lyrics, further cementing his status in the music industry. This is a x12 trk, standard Black LP vinyl & CD. Marketing activity.

Après une série de singles, deux EPs intitulés "Le Temps des Sentiments" et "3x5", une tournée, des live sessions et une vidéo COLORS, LYNN se prépare maintenant à sortir son premier album. En attendant ce nouvel opus, le vinyle "Early Works", pressé en quantité très limitée, regroupe les morceaux qui lui ont permis de se faire connaître, tels que “Rêve Éveillé”, “Tes Petites Fesses” ou encore “Qu’en Est-Il”.

LYR return with their second, remarkable album, The Ultraviolet Age on Fri 30 June 2023 via Clue Records/EMI North. For a second, compelling time, the band concocts ethereal, pulse-altering, extraordinary sounds by combining the creative powers of British poet, Simon Armitage, singer-songwriter Richard Walters and multi-instrumentalist and producer Patrick J Pearson.

UK superstar M Huncho announces the release of his long awaited debut album, dropping May 20th, which will be entitled ‘Chasing Euphoria’ . The album will consist of 22 tracks embodying Huncho’s versatile Trapwave sound.. M Huncho is the slick masked artist who has helped engineer a lucid, ultra-smooth lane for a new strand of high-end UK music that matches melodic lyricism with trap bite. British artist Reuben Dangoor designed the iconic artwork which see’s Huncho floating in his own hands against a euphoric backdrop. Having just come off a sold out tour across the UK, his fanbase is constantly growing and his upcoming ‘Huncho’s Wolrd’ festival taking place in Barcelona in May sets precedent for M Huncho’s worldwide takeover. His last solo project ‘Huncholini The 1st’ was released in 2020 and peaked at #5 in the official charts. Now, two years on, he is in the best place of his life musically and his debut album is a clear reflection of that. Huncho is back, he’s better and he is not slowing down.

About Last Night… is Mabel’s second debut studio album by English singer and songwriter Mabel, released on 15th July 2022 by Polydor Records. Mabel worked with artists such as 24kGoldn, Lil Tecca, Jax Jones, Galantis, Joel Corry on this album. A candid, positive and important voice in contemporary pop, the Brit Award winner’s new music emerged not just in the wake of a startling few years in the public eye, but through the life-changing lens of the pandemic. Right at the beginning of lockdown, Mabel and her dogs moved back in with her parents, she threw herself into dance classes, and channelled everything she missed (close friends, the big night out, young love, feeling unafraid) into this brand-new musical chapter. As she continued work on the record in the UK, US and between various lockdowns, Mabel first teased what she had been working on with first single ‘Let Them Know’ – an unapologetic anthem about dressing up with nowhere to go, and projecting confidence for anyone who needs it. Recent single ‘Good Luck’ distilled influences of house, heartbreak and female solidarity into perfectly realised pop – and the empowering song you need, when getting ready to go to the party of ‘Overthinking’. Pulling all these strings and tying them together is Mabel herself, with much more on the project to be revealed soon.

'Soul Food - Cooking with Maceo' blends raw, old-school funk with the
flavours of the New Orleans school of music
Parker worked with Ivan Neville, Nikki Glaspie and Tony Hall, as well as a host of
local musicians to record the songs. The funky flavour of the city weaves its way
through the album as the funk father and his band take on iconic songs of the
Mississippi masters such as Dr. John's voodoo funk of 'Right Place, Wrong Time',
The Meters 'Just Kissed My Baby,' 'Yes, We Can Can' recorded by Allen Toussaint
as well as takes on Aretha Franklin's 'Rock Steady', Prince's 'The Other Side of the
Pillow' and Maceo's long-time hero and Ray Charles Saxophonist, David "Fathead"
Newman's 'Hard Times'. We also get funky workouts from Parkers own back
catalogue on 'Maceo' and 'Cross The Tracks'. The latter adopted by Giles
Peterson at the staple song of his iconic WAG Club in Soho, London in the 1980s.
The amazing P-funk Parker has been at it with his legendary sound for time that
dates back to the 1960's. That's when Maceo and his drummer brother Melvin
climbed on board the James Brown funky soul funk train. It wasn't long before
James coined the solo summoning signature, "Maceo, I want you to Blow!". To
most musicologists it's the musically fertile group of men from this period of
James Brown's band who are recognized as the early pioneers of the modern
funk and hip-hop whose sounds we still jump to in the present day.

Magda Drozd is deeply concerned with listening in her artistic practice. Her second album, 18 Floors, Drozd focused on the apartment building she called home for several years, compiling a corpus of field recordings in and of the building, which she approached as a living organism rather than static material. The result challenges current assumptions about living together in urban settings. The field recordings were woven into eleven speculative tracks consisting of sounds including violins, guitars, synthesizers, drum machines, and Drozd’s voice. The music moves between sound art, ambient, indie rock, and R&B.
18 Floors presciently emphasizes the importance of the home, which has become glaringly obvious in the age of Corona. Her foresight constitutes her avant-gardism as much as her preference for documenting what might be over what actually is. The result is an album that creates a space for what is transient, uncertain, and unstable. And it creates a space for opportunities, which we need now more than ever.

Blaney describes A Room With A Door That Closes as “a love letter to her blue,” an emotional state that she defines as “a kinetic, intense, and dark energy that needs to be expressed as soon as it is felt.” The eleven songs on the album span radioactive kiss offs, sorrowful meditations on yearning, and gossamer reveries about self image.

The music has a fittingly tumultuous, intricate sound: 1960s soul samples melt into warm drum n bass percussion, blips of glitch ping pong against grating synth, and Blaney’s vocals range from searing punk exclamations to gentle, exploratory croons. It’s the sound of a singer peering deeply within herself and presenting the world with everything she finds, unadulterated, in real time. Blaney produced the new project along with a tight team of three producers: Emerson Fossett, Harlan Steed (Show Me The Body), and Alex Farrar (MJ Lenderman, Wednesday, Squirrel Flower, Snail Mail).

Blaney had just started playing guitar and producing around the time she began writing the songs that would become the album. Being new to both producing and guitar playing opened up a sense of exploration and freedom for her. She felt emboldened to employ more adventurous riffs and unconventional song arrangements when she was writing. A Room With A Door That Closes is a collection of songs that rigorously pursue honesty, that present feelings as they arise without rushing to categorise them or explain them away. In the process of understanding her rage or discomfort, Blaney often lands on a sense of pride and assurance, but that’s never the ultimate goal. She eschews the easy comfort of neat resolution for the excitement of ongoing discovery. The album is an exercise in unfiltered self-expression, and a celebration of life at its messiest.

Time Out, a pause, like an injunction to suspend the course of events in order to project oneself into a more serene future, is the title of Malted Milk's eighth album. From the haunting Afro beat of the title track to the decadent boogaloo of "I Feel Numb", via the ballad "What a Night" and the funky "It's Alright" , the band demonstrates i ts mastery of arrangements, its creative ability and its talent for revisiting the soul/funk genre. As with the previous album, 1975, Marco Cinelli is back on writing and production duties, bringing undeniable added value to the band's sound and aesthetic. The live translation of this album bears Malted Milk's trademark precision, energy, instrumental talent and group cohesion. Malted Milk once again demonstrates its musical strength and affirms the special place the band occupies on the current soul scene.

In demand mid paced R’n’B Female popcorn melter.

Mamie Perry’s super-rare her 1959 ‘Pioneer’ recording “Lament” that captures our attention and that of collectors across Europe, here we also feature Anne Belle Caesar’s debut cut “Little Annie” from 1962.

Well known for his tight, aggressively grooving brand of rhythm playing, whether in the service of the Grammy Award-winning band Snarky Puppy, the Fearless Flyers or on his six solo albums, guitarist Mark Lettieri has found the perfect algorithm for the funk.
Merging the influences of ‘70s and ‘80s rhythm and rock guitar icons like Prince and Eddie Van Halen, along with inspiration from George Clinton and P-Funk, Chuckii Booker, Periphery, Stevie Wonder, Steely Dan, and others. This Fort Worth, Texas resident has been insinuating his razor-sharp licks into the consciousness of funkateers since joining Snarky Puppy in 2008. Created during the pandemic, ‘Deep: The Baritone Sessions Vol. 2’ is a triumph of ingenuity built upon Lettieri’s life-long love of funk and rock and showcases the breadth and depth of Lettieri’s nasty, low-end brand of funk.
The guitarist’s Fearless Flyers bandmate, drummer Nate Smith, is also onboard for this cavalcade of groove, along with Bobby Sparks, Justin Stanton and such guests as vocal sensation Jacob Collier, former Prince drummer TaRon Lockett, Rascal Flatts pedal steel guitarist Travis Toy, French harmonica ace Frédéric Yonnet, Lettuce and former John Scofield drummer Adam Deitch, Ghost-Note drummer Robert “Sput” Searight, Snarky Puppy keyboardist Shaun Martin, tenor saxophonist Keith Anderson, and special guest guitar soloist Steve Lukather.

Marvin Gaye always dreamed of being a smooth crooner, “sitting on a stool, possibly behind a piano,” delivering velvety songs like Nat King Cole. But Motown had other plans. Pushed between raw R&B and polished pop, Gaye fought to find his own voice, eventually rising to become one of the greatest soul singers in history.

Motown Records released the first Marvin Gaye record in 1961 "(I'm Afraid) The Masquerade Is Over", a single intended for (radio) promotion from the singer's debut album. This was followed up by the officially released "Let Your Conscience Be Your Guide" a week later. Gaye scored his first real hit with "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" in 1962, which he had co-written himself, joking about his alleged stubbornness. He found his own unique style with the single released at the end of the year: "Hitch Hike". The foundations were now laid for an enormous series of chart successes: "Pride And Joy", "Can I Get A Witness", "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)" and "Ain't That Peculiar" are all Motown classics from 1963-1965 which are still being regularly played today after all these years. The duets he recorded with Kim Weston ("It Takes Two"), especially Tammi Terrell and Diana Ross were certainly at least as good.

He scored his biggest ever hit with "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" in 1968. "What's Going On" from the same titled album became a number 1 hit in the USA. The album was received as a masterpiece and is regarded as one of the most important records in pop history. In 1973, the artistically and commercially very successful, "Let's Get It On" album was mainly a musical ode to Marvin's love for his new muse Janis Hunter. His journey continued after a turbulent relationship, addiction and a dramatic creative rebirth in Belgium, where he crafted the global hit “Sexual Healing in 1982.

Marvin Gaye left behind timeless hits, groundbreaking albums, and a legacy that shaped the sound of modern soul. His story, from ambition to artistry, from struggle to brilliance, remains as powerful as the music he created.

Music On Vinyl proudly presents a special coloured vinyl edition of the Marvin Gaye Collected album which is available as a limited edition of 10.000 individually numbered copies on white (LP1) and silver coloured vinyl (LP2) and includes a booklet with liner notes.