This year marks the 50th anniversary of Cymande’s Promised Heights, a record that closed out an historic three album run of seminal early '70s Afro-soul that also included their 1972 self-titled debut and 1973’s Second Time Round.

The xx producer and percussionist Jamie Smith takes a stab at recontextualizing Gil Scott-Heron's excellent 2010 album, I'm New Here.

The Atlanta-based critically acclaimed duo of Big Boi and Andre with yet another innovative contribution to hip-hop.

Hot on the heels of Mordechai, the critically acclaimed third album from US psych-rockers Khruangbin, the Texas trio become the latest act to present their own Late Night Tales in the popular, long-running musician-curated album series.

Sweet, sensual and atmospheric, with plenty of unlikely gems and forgotten classics for the heads to enjoy, it surprises and impresses with each successive track.

Given the pace of Michael Jackson's post-Thriller release schedule, it's striking that off the wall appeared between two albums with his brothers, Destiny (1978) and Triumph (1980), on which the twenty something phenomenon was also fully engaged.

Following on almost exactly a year to the day from the release of their acclaimed debut “For the first time”, the band have harnessed the momentum from that record and run full pelt into their second, with “Ants From Up There”.

Blue Note Re:imagined is a brand-new collection of classic Blue Note tracks, reworked and newly recorded by a selection of the UK scene’s most exciting young talents.

Marc Moulin’s Top Secret is a mixed bag of downtempo jazz treats and sweet-sounding rhythmic forays into the dark of night

Caught at the beginning of her career in 1985, Sade's cool vocals and exotic looks grabbed everyone's attention. But equally as important to Diamond Life's success was the velvet muscle of the band's accompaniment, a sinewy after-hours groove, laden with minimalist funk. Eight of the nine tracks are self-penned. Straddling R&B and pop, this album lays out the hooks and sultry allure that became Sade's soulful standard - intelligent and sexy at the same time.

By 1994 the Beasties had settled into their cultural role as the grand arbiters of cool, and 'Ill Communication' is pretty much a catalog of coolness

GNX is Kendrick Lamar's first album following his departure from longtime labels Top Dawg Entertainment and Aftermath Entertainment.

Nala Sinephro’s sophomore album, titled Endlessness, expands her scope from the inward journey of Space 1.8 into widescreen orchestral ambient jazz compositions.

First released in January 1967, The Doors is one of rock music's most famous debuts. It delivered the number 1 signature smash "Light My Fire", plus "Break On Through", "The Crystal Ship", and "The End".

The DNA of Purple Rain can be felt throughout pop culture at large. It is a timeless body of work with an immortal resonance exemplified by smashes such as Let’s Go Crazy, When Doves Cry, Darling Nikki, the title track Purple Rain and more.

Covering themes of insecurity, social issues and personal relationships, Badu delivered a highly intimate and personal album that reached Platinum two months after its release.

All in all, a rare treat composed of, er, rare treats. Thoroughly recommended.

The album’s new stereo mix was sourced directly from the original four-track session tapes and guided by the original, Beatles-preferred mono mix produced by Giles’ father, George Martin.

The album has cemented its place in hip-hop history and has since gone on to achieve 6x platinum certification in the US, selling over 3.5 million copies, and has achieved platinum status in the UK as well.

For most artists who are discovered behind the mixing boards, making the transfer from producer to MC proves a daunting task. Fortunately for Kanye West, his verbal skills more than rise to the challenge of his consistently superior beats.

Zero 7 were formed in 1997 by producers Henry Binns and Sam Hardaker. In 2001 their debut album Simple Things was released selling over a million copies to date and was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize. Zero 7 were also nominated as Best Newcomer at the Brit Awards 2001.

Soundway Records present a new compilation of twenty rare and mostly unavailable tracks from the slick and sassy world of Nigerian pop music and club culture of the early 1980s.

Daft Punk’s new album, Random Access Memories, finds them leaving behind the highly influential, riff-heavy EDM they originated to luxuriate in the sounds, styles, and production techniques of the 1970s and early ’80s.

In a career laden with highlights and hallmarks in the annals of soul history, Just As I Am is rather overlooked as one of the best soul debuts ever issued.

It’s a deeply personal oering about her trek to falling back in love with musical composition over the past four years.

George Evelyn's solo step as Nightmares on Wax, Smokers Delight, is a whole delightfully irreducible to its parts, which, is largely electro, hip-hop, and soul.

Double vinyl remastered from the original masters and pressed extra loud for DJs. There are very few albums across any genre that stand the test of time better than 93 ‘Til Infinity, the classic debut record from the Hieroglyphics crew’s very own Souls of Mischief.

Compiled by legendary producer Arthur Baker, ‘Breakers Revenge’ is a neardefinitive collection of original funk, soul, latin, disco and electro classic tracks from 1970 to 1984.

A stylish selection of city pop, funk and modern soul from Japanese label Nippon Columbia, selected by DJ Notoya and featuring cult classics and rarities by Hiroshi Sato, Hatsumi Shibata, Hitomi 'Penny' Tohyama & many more.

Formed of Laura Lee on bass, Mark Speer on guitar, and Donald “DJ” Johnson on drums; Khruangbin’s sounds are rooted in the deepest waters of world music infused with classic soul, dub and psychedelia. Their 2015 debut album ‘The Universe Smiles Upon You’ was heavily influenced by 60’s and 70’s Thai cassettes the band listened to on their long car journeys to rehearsal in the Texan countryside. ‘Con Todo El Mundo’ takes inspiration not just from South East Asia but similarly underdiscovered funk and soul of the Mediterranean and the Middle East, particularly Iran.

Now approaching platinum status in the UK, this is a seamless journey through the many moods of clubland, encompassing house, hip-hop, left-field and disco-funk. Marketing.

Although Simone covers songs by Bob Dylan and The Beatles, among others, most of the versions feature arrangements substantially different from the original recordings.

No matter how controversial, it remains one of the greatest and most influential hip-hop albums of all time.

2000 Blacks Got To Be Free is a musical collaboration between the African American vibraphone player Roy Ayers and Fela.

Get out! Fight!” The Lijadu Sisters’ Horizon Unlimited is the insurgent afrofunk their second cousin Fela strived to create.

Space 1.8 is Nala Sinephro’s debut album; each contributing piece is part of a connected, collaborative and deeply personal body of music.

Recorded on 15th February 1954 and 23rd / 30th July 1956 in Hollywood, California. Baker’s 14-track debut vocal album, originally released on Pacific Jazz in 1956.

Van Morrison went a long way towards defining his wild Irish heart with his first two classic albums: the brooding, introspective Astral Weeks (1968), and the expansive, swinging Moondance.

Six years after their second album Kingdoms in Colour made them one of the hottest names in electronic music, Hertfordshire duo Maribou State return with their third full length album.

Witch was the first band in Zambia to release a commercial album — 1973’s Introduction.

The Bristol-based trip-hop pioneers had, potentially, a huge task on their hands to follow up the hugely influential 1991 debut album ‘Blue Lines.’ But they managed it with apparent ease, delivering a record that would end up in a Rolling Stone list of the ten coolest albums of all time. Co-producing with Nellee Hooper, the Massive Attack collective delivered another masterstroke by utilising guest musicians and vocalists throughout the album, as they had on ‘Blue Lines.’ This time, without Shara Nelson, they included Nigerian singer-songwriter Nicolette, Jamaican reggae veteran Horace Andy and, perhaps most memorably, Tracey Thorn of Everything But The Girl on the title track, which became a UK top 15 single. Credit: udiscovermusic

Khruangbin’s fourth studio album, A La Sala (“To the Room” in Spanish), is an exercise in returning in order to go further, and doing so on your own terms.

After putting down the saxophone, the instrument he has become synonymous with, Shabaka returns with his first full length album under his own name.

The double album is Lamar's first studio album release since Damn (2017), his first album release under his creative collective PGLang, and his final project with TDE (under which he previously released four albums and was one of their flagship artists).

Dorothy Ashby was an American jazz harpist, one of the very few who used her instrument to play credible jazz and bebop.

London Brew is inspired by Miles Davis’ album, Bitches Brew. Recorded in December 2020 at the Church Studios, this three-day recording session brings together 12 London-based artists

It is with great joy that we present the Mr Bongo edition of Marcos Valle's 1983 self-titled masterpiece. A pure vintage that features the ultimate Brazilian-boogie cult-classic 'Estrelar' and iconic 80s cover art that sees a gloriously sun-drenched Marcos dressed in a pink v-neck t-shirt surrounded by a generous selection of deadly-looking neon cocktails.

Lou Reed's second solo album Transformer is an album that everyone should own. 

Aretha Franklin disproved the notion that once you leave the church, you can't go back. She returned in triumph on this 1972 double album, making what might be her greatest release ever in any style.

Million selling album originally released in 1999 on Jive Records.

The 4th Led Zeppelin album, untitled but commonly known as "Led Zeppelin IV" or "Four Symbols". Originally released in 1971 it became their biggest seller and one of the biggest selling albums of all-time.

Kingdoms In Colour is Maribou State’s hotly anticipated new album and the follow-up to 2015’s breakthrough debut album Portraits on Ninja Tune’s Counter Records imprint.

Often cited as one of the best hip-hop albums of the '90s, 'Illmatic' is the undisputed classic upon which Nas' reputation rests.

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Live! is an album recorded in 1971 by Fela Kuti's band Africa '70, with the addition of former Cream drummer Ginger Baker on two songs.

The definitive female singer songwriter album of the 70's 1971's Blue is just about as perfect as an album can be.

For this classic encounter, the only collaboration ever between Duke Ellington and John Coltrane, Duke sat in with the John Coltrane Quartet for a set dominated by Ellington's songs

Small Changes is the eagerly anticipated follow-up to Michael’s eponymous third LP, the Mercury Prize winning, and Grammy Award nominated Kiwanuka.

Island Records presents Nick Drake's second album 'Bryter Layter' in the Back To Black format.

Long before the likes of Daft Punk and Air, Ludovic Navarre, better known as St Germain, was breaking new ground as one of the original french dance artists.

Females have never figured strongly in the ranks of blues and rock guitar players, but the woman featured on this LP can claim to be one of the formative influences on modern rock ‘n’ roll guitar.

In Ghana “to chop” is to eat, so the phrase No Funk, No Chop quite simply means; deliver afro funk and disco bombs, or no one will eat today.

Following the critical and commercial success of their debut album last year and 18 months' extensive touring and festival appearances, Public Service Broadcasting release their eagerly anticipated second album, 'The Race For Space'.

This collection features sixteen of the most renowned salsa and Latin soul singles released on Fania Records, and its subsidiaries, between 1964-1978, making it the perfect introduction to the legendary catalog.

Brian's pioneering Ambient album from 1978.

A tripped- out, cosmic, Spanish language version of Jamie Principle & Frankie Knuckles' all-time classic 'Your Love', complete with an extended club re-edit from Luke Una & Luke Solomon.

Lost In Translation was the soundtrack to Sofia Coppola’s Academy Award winning movie of the same name.

Celebrate the holidays with Phil Spector's 1963 classic album, A Christmas Gift for You.

A Tribe Called Quest weren't rap's biggest hit makers, but their signature numbers indeed fill this collection with style, eclecticism, and laid-back but deliberate flow; indeed, the group's stature seems to have grown since its 1998 breakup.

Simon Green (AKA Bonobo) returns with his fourth and finest album, Black Sands. 

The idea for this album is centred around Cole's childhood. 2014 Forest Hills Drive is the address of his childhood home in Fayetteville, NC - which he bought back this year - coincidentally also in 2014. 

Carole King brought the fledgling singer / songwriter phenomenon to the masses with Tapestry, one of the most successful albums in pop music history. A remarkably expressive and intimate record, it's a work of consummate craftsmanship.

"People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm" is the debut studio album by American hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, released in 1990.

Disco from a label that digs for Japanese jazz, funk, soul, rare groove and disco music.

Timepeace was recorded in 1998 after a 15 year long career break and won the United Nations's Time For Peace award for outstanding artistic achievement contributing to world peace.

Recorded live at the Village Vanguard on June 25, 1961, the same night as Sunday At The Village Vanguard, this set rounded out what became known as an early "full" portrait of Bill Evans.

Mercurial bassist and bandleader Charles Mingus was signed to Columbia records for the briefest of time during 1959.

Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Expanded Edition) celebrates the original album’s 30th anniversary.

The British jazz / hip hop fusion collective Us3 founded in 1992 in London and its notable members included producers Mel Simpson and Geoff Wilkinson. 

In a career spanning over 50 years James Brown became known as a progenitor of funk music and influencing the development of many other genres. All his hit songs, hidden gems and collaborations are now bundled on Collected.