Hopeful is a spectacularly vibrant, historically monumental, and masterfully synchronized contemporary electro-funk and nu-jazz studio masterpiece engineered by the legendary French instrumental vanguard collective Electro Deluxe, released in 2007 by the independent creative preservation imprint Such Production. Spanning over 62 minutes of deeply infectious, heavily syncopated organic-digital interactions across 13 definitive tracking alignments, this high-fidelity document serves as an absolute peak monument in mid-2000s European groove archaeology. Marking their sophomore studio ledger following the groundbreaking success of Stardown, the core rhythm engine of Electro Deluxe utilizes this expansive sonic laboratory to execute a fierce, forward-thinking blueprint that seamlessly fuses horn-driven old-school funk power with crisp synthesizer arrays, slick urban hip-hop loops, and soul-stirring vocal architectures.

Five CD box set containing every studio recording that this American trio released during their '60s heyday and their short-lived '70s reunion plus alternatve versions, etc. Although Scott Engel, Gary Leeds and John Maus were not actually brothers, they achieved enormous success in England and Europe and are now considered to be one of the most influential musical forces of their time. The 115 songs include 'The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore', 'Make It Easy On Yourself', 'There Goes My Baby', 'Doin' The Jerk', 'Everything's Gonna Be Alright' and many many more.

Original Hits: 70s is a decent six-disc set, highlighting 111 pop singles released in that decade. Along with the original versions of radio classics by Al Stewart, Blondie, the Knack, KC & the Sunshine Band, and Dr. Hook, are less-than-obvious inclusions by Peter Tosh, XTC, the Move, and Benny Hill!

Sade made a strong comeback in 2000 with Lovers Rock, her first album in eight years. She sealed the deal in 2002 with Lovers Live, a collection of performances from her very successful summer tour. It's proof that Sade hasn't lost a note and her fans haven't missed a beat. Above all things, the record is smooth. Sade's new songs mix seamlessly with classics from every stage of her career. An energetic eight-piece band breathes new life to the old tunes and offers another look at the Lovers Rock material.

Diva Nancy Wilson was among contemporary music's most stylish and sultry vocalists; while often crossing over into the pop and R&B markets – and even hosting her own television variety program – she remained best known as a jazz performer, renowned for her work alongside figures including Cannonball Adderley and George Shearing. Born February 20, 1937, in Chillicothe, Ohio, Wilson first attracted notice performing the club circuit in nearby Columbus; she quickly earned a growing reputation among jazz players and fans, and she was recording regularly by the late '50s, eventually signing to Capitol and issuing LPs including 1959's Like in Love and Nancy Wilson with Billy May's Orchestra.

Three CD set. Ministry of Sound's hugely successful Soul Jams series returns with the irresistibly funky '80s Soul Jams Vol. II. Expect three discs of soul-pumping, dance-floor groovers and legendary disco anthems from Aretha Franklin, Kool & The Gang, Luther Vandross, Alexander O'Neil, The Jacksons, Marvin Gaye, Billy Ocean, Womack & Womack and many, many more. So, get down on it and feel the groove with 60 tracks of pure '80s Soul Jams fire.

Long-awaited CD reissue of La Toya Jackson’s 1981 sophomore album including six additional long-unavailable bonus tracks. Essential collector’s item for all Jackson fans and completists.

The Best Seventies Album contains the defining tracks of the decade and features some of the biggest hits from artists including T. Rex, Mott The Hoople, Sweet, The Jacksons, David Essex, Earth, Wind & Fire with The Emotions, Nilsson, Eric Carmen, Baccara and many more.

NOW That’s What I Call 70s Soul brings together 88 era-defining tracks from one of the most powerful decades in soul music, featuring classics from Motown legends, Philly Soul pioneers, smooth balladeers and funk innovators… Out April 24th!

Alicia Keys' debut album, Songs in A Minor, made a significant impact upon its release in the summer of 2001, catapulting the young singer/songwriter to the front of the neo-soul pack. Critics and audiences were captivated by a 19-year-old singer whose taste and influences ran back further than her years, encompassing everything from Prince to smooth '70s soul, even a little Billie Holiday. In retrospect, it was the idea of Alicia Keys that was as attractive as the record, since soul fans were hungering for a singer/songwriter who seemed part of the tradition without being as spacy as Macy Gray or as hippie mystic as Erykah Badu while being more reliable than Lauryn Hill. Keys was all that, and she had style to spare – elegant, sexy style accentuated by how she never oversang, giving the music a richer feel. It was rich enough to compensate for some thinness in the writing – though it was a big hit, "Fallin'" doesn't have much body to it – which is a testament to Keys' skills as a musician. And, the fact is, even though there are some slips in the writing, there aren't many, and the whole thing remains a startling assured, successful debut that deserved its immediate acclaim and is already aging nicely.

A fiery blend of rhythm and raw vocals, / this album captures the peak of their synergy. / Tina's powerful voice meets Ike's tight arrangements, / making this an essential piece of classic Soul history.

Gospels und phantasievolle Lieder is a spectacularly vibrant, deeply moving, and masterfully harmonized studio album by the regional German vocal ensemble Unlimited Voice Company, independently issued in 1995 under the label code LC 5800. Spanning nearly 56 minutes across 14 beautifully arranged tracks, this high-fidelity document serves as an excellent monument to the European choral-jazz and contemporary gospel movement of the mid-1990s. The project's overarching production strategy features a luxurious, highly agile vocal matrix: blending rich multi-part choir layers and soaring solo performances with light, jazzy piano arrangements, subtle electric basslines, and warm soul-funk percussive foundations that infuse traditional spirituals with an updated, contemporary pop flair.

Simply Red Under the leadership of vocalist Mick Hucknall – the only member to play in all the many incarnations of the band – Simply Red turned from New Wave soul upstarts into British pop institutions, specializing in immaculately tailored, impeccably polished adult contemporary pop with a soulful accent. While Simply Red were hardly unknown entities in the United States – they reached the top of the Billboard charts twice in the '80s, once with the slow-burning original "Holding Back the Years" and again with a cover of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes' "If You Don't Know My by Now" – the group dominated adult-oriented music in Britain and Europe from the late '80s into the early 2000s, racking up such blockbuster albums as 1991's Stars, 1995's Life, and 1998's Blue. Shifting fashions in the 2000s eventually led to the group's disbandment in 2010 but their retirement didn't last long: Hucknall and his longtime saxophonist Ian Kirkham assembled a new lineup of the band in 2015, releasing the album Big Love that year and embarking on a 25th anniversary tour of Stars the next. Over the next decade, Simply Red continued to tour, as well as releasing the occasional new studio album, like 2023's Time.

After The Break is a spectacularly eclectic, deeply nostalgic, and masterfully sequenced cross-generational compilation album, curated and issued in 1997 by the specialized television marketing division of Sony Music. Spanning nearly 68 minutes across 20 beautifully remastered tracks, this high-fidelity studio document frames a highly compelling retrospective concept: gathering iconic, radio-defining vocal masterpieces that capture an atmospheric, laid-back mood across several musical eras. Rather than restricting itself to a single decade or genre, the anthology fluidly moves between multi-faceted cornerstones of American and British music history, effortlessly weaving together mid-century traditional jazz pop, 60s sunshine folk rock, 70s funk/soul foundations, and late-80s club-infused rhythm and blues.

For Life, Simply Red retain the basic influences that fueled their earlier albums, especially American R&B of the early '70s, specifically the Marvin Gaye of What's Going On? and Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes-era Teddy Pendergrass. Mick Hucknall's singing has calmed down and smoothed out on such songs as "You Make Me Believe" and "So Many People," but that only makes them sound more like the product of Philadelphia International Records. On "Fairground," he opts for a Latin-tinged sound that ends up evoking Herb Alpert more than Milton Nascimento; reggae turns up on "Out on the Range," and the big-time closer, "We're in This Together," is a South African-style anthem, complete with Hugh Masekela's flugelhorn. Stripped of the international superstar trappings, Life is, of course, pretentious, but it does have a couple of promising songs, notably "So Beautiful" and "Remembering the First Time."