Three front-rank reggae singers — with extensive credits for such producers as Coxsone Dodd, Augustus Pablo and Glen Brown — whose work at Wackie’s without question includes their very best. Originally two 10s.

Four years of singles on the Lloyd and Deep City labels run by Willie Clark and Johnny Pearsall: sixties Miami’s rarest of the rare, including the vinyl debuts of Betty Wright and Paul Kelly.

The history of the Chicago label, and the life of its owner Arrow Brown: twenty tracks of blistering R and B, sweet soul, and discofied funk. Now on vinyl, in a sumptuous Numero box-set.

Short for ‘Capital City Soul’, this Columbus, Ohio label ran for five years during the 1970s. Founded by Bill Moss, a local singer and DJ, Capsoul released just a dozen 45s and one LP.

Thirty-four sides originally released by Jesse Jones’ twin labels out of Atlanta, between 1968-1977. Southern to Northern, classic R&B to modern soul, dancers to romancers.

Drawing on Dick Smart’s group of soul labels run out of Wichita, Kansas, from 1963-75 — like Solo, Kanwic, Vantage and Lee-Mac.

Quality sweet soul, ballads, thumping dancers, girl-group and the rest from Abe Epstein’s San Antonio label, late-1960s. Curtis and co in the air. Fine singing, big drums, strong horns, sophisticated arranging.

‘The twentieth volume of our flagship series has all the boxes checked: gun-toting record producers, child stars, rip-offs, ‘The World’s Greatest Bail Bondsman’, soaring falsettos, and a dwindling rust-belt cityscape offering mere glimpses of hope before the record industry escaped for the coasts. Helmed by the O’Jays Bobby Massey, Saru was a creative vortex pulling into Cleveland the best talent in Cuyahoga County — the Out of Sights, the Elements, Pandella Kelly, David Peoples, Sir Stanley, the Ponderosa Twins + 1, Ba-Roz, Bobby Dukes and — of course — The O’Jays.’

‘From a humble storefront studio located in a shoeshine parlor on Norfolk, Virginia’s Church Street, Noah Biggs built a world. Hustler by day, gambler by night, the always-in-a-suit Biggs took a gaggle of off-brand singers and combined his connections and charisma to forge timeless soul music during a period of deep upheaval. Compiled here are 25 of Shiptown’s most compelling sides recorded between 1965-1977, spread across 2 LPs, from the likes of Ida Sands, The Soul Duo, The Anglos, Dream Team, The Grooms, Positive Sounds, Barbara Stant, Wilson Williams, Art Ensley, and yes, Flip Flop Stevens.’

Twenty-six shots of late-night R&B out of Jim Kirchstein’s Cuca studio, in the late sixties.
Originally released via minuscule pressings into the Wisconsin wilderness, tracing the paths across the hinterlands of Highway 12 between the Chicago, Milwaukee and Rockford soul scenes.
The likes of Harvey Scales, Betty Moorer, The Twiliters, Birdlegs & Pauline, The Esquires, Artie & The Pharaohs… in another gem-studded chapter of the alternate history of soul music.

‘Bridging the gap between American primitive pioneers John Fahey and Leo Kottke and the California Modernists… the private side of the solo guitar movement from 1966-81.’ 40-page booklet, usual Numero class.

Male folk singers mithering and dithering all the way from 1970 to 1983: very introspective, sombre, spare and intimate, most of it originally pressed privately, plenty of it beautiful and haunting.

‘Gram Parsons had been orbiting the idea of Cosmic American Music for some time. In ‘68, he’d parted ways with the Byrds and was looking to take air with a new project. “It’s basically a Southern soul group playing country and gospel-oriented music with a steel guitar” he told Melody Maker, on the subject of The Flying Burrito Brothers. So it was that when A&M’s Burrito Brothers debut The Gilded Palace of Sin made it to shelves in February of 1969, early adherents to the Cosmic American gospel were already echoing its message from areas flanking Gram Parsons’ Southern California hills and canyons. There was F.J. McMahon in coastal Santa Barbara, Mistress Mary further inland in Hacienda Heights, and Plain Jane of Albuquerque, New Mexico…’

Seventies Caribbean soul and funk — one ear tuned in to nearby Miami, with reggae and jazz in the mix too — from Frank Penn’s Freeport operation.

Almost preposterous, this beautiful snapshot of a US expat community fetched up in Dimona, Israel, in the second half of the seventies, holding faith with its love of Chicago soul and spiritual jazz.

Smoking mid-seventies Latin from Carlos Ruiz’ Ebirac label, headquartered back then in a bustling Puerto Rican community centre on the west side of the city.

French-Belgian electro-samba, cornered. A mini-LP on the Brussels label, Les Disques Du Crepuscule, from 1982; augmented here by the first Antena EP, a few B-sides, compilation tracks, and unreleased cuts.