One of the most soulful albums to come out of the Australian scene of the 70s – and the crowning achievement of jazz singer Joyce Hurley – a vocalist we'd easily rank with Dee Dee Bridgewater for depth of righteous expression! Joyce's voice is definitely different than Dee Dee's – with some very unique phrasing – but this album's got the same sort of uncommonly expressive vibe as Bridgewater's legendary Afro Blue set. Backing is by a small combo with nice reed and electric piano work – usually letting Joyce take the lead at most moments, but with horn help to shape the sound of the tunes in really nice ways – a balance that few jazz records of the time ever hit this well – and which continues to uphold the soulful power of Hurley's vocals! The album's got loads of great numbers – including the jazz dance classic "Sunbath", a wicked take on "Maiden Voyage", and the instrumental number "Sambole" – plus other titles that inlcude "Blues For Joyce", "Left Alone", "How Are You Dreaming", and "Threedom Street". ~ Dusty Groove
A cooking set of live performances by The Ventures – key proof that their searing guitar sounds weren't just the result of some studio trickery! The set features the group in three different settings – at home in the US, over in the UK, and in Japan – where they enjoyed a huge amount of fame in the 60s! All cuts are mighty smoking – core grooves that are heavy on tight, fuzzy guitar lines – and driven by drums that are arguably even more pounding than on the studio albums. The applause is quite high at times – possibly dubbed in – and titles include "Driving Guitars", "Yellow Jacket", "Wipeout", "Journey To The Stars", "Caravan", and a sweet medley of "Walk Don't Run/Perfida/Lullaby Of The Leaves". ~ Dusty Groove
One of Baden Powell's grooviest albums ever – a brilliant blend of his bossa roots with the freer 70s grooves of MPS! The album follows the mode of some of his other European recordings, but is still a bit different – in that the overall sound is a bit freer than before, with tracks that really open up beautifully – including one or two that hit a nicely heavy groove! The lovely Janine De Walyene sings these wonderful wordless vocals on some of the album's best tracks – scatting heavily on the famous jazz dance number "Blues A Volante" – and drifting moodily behind the guitar on other numbers. Other instrumentation includes bass, drums, and a bit of Brazilian percussion – and titles include the classic "Blues A Volante", plus "Violao Vagabundo", "Canto", "Ate Eu", and "Conversacao Comigo Mesmo". ~ Dusty Groove
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