Record cover for "Curtis / Live!" by Curtis Mayfield, in shrink wrap with various hype stickers. Features a photo of Curtis playing live in a yellow shirt with a guitar.

Yellow label on a vinyl record showing the red, blue, and orange Curtom Records logo at the top with their tag line “We’re a Winner,” and the album and song info below in black letters.

Curtis Mayfield - Curtis / Live! (Curtom 1971 / 2023 reissue)

A live album so intimate and visceral I can almost smell the liquor and wooden tables at the Bitter End. Hard to think of a live R&B record that tops it, though Donny's at the same club comes close.

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#randbsky
#vinylcommunity

Oh yes, classic funk! 🔥🔥🔥

Album cover showing “The McCrary” in stylized glowing font against a dark brown/black background, above an image of a cracked egg shell.

Red label on a vinyl record with the album, artist, and label info in black font.

The McCrary - Emerge (Cat’s Eye 1973 / 2025 BBE reissue)

A record so rare I’ve never even heard more than a few minutes of it digitally, until this reissue (the first since 1973). The McCrary family were a gospel group and this is their first secular R&B / funk record. Mind blowing stuff!

#funksky

Yeah, I agree about Miles Smiles!

Record cover for “Nefertiti” by Miles Davis featuring an 3/4 side angle close up photo of Miles’ face.

Red label on a vinyl record with the two Columbia “eye” logos on the left and right sides in white, label info in white typeface at the bottom and top, and the album and artist info in black typeface in the middle.

Miles Davis - Nefertiti (Columbia, 1968)

Miles’ second great quintet in absolutely peak form, featuring what may be the greatest recorded drum solo in jazz history by Tony Williams on the title track. OG two-eye stereo copy.

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#jazzsky
#vinyl
#milesdavis
#wayneshorter

They actually did one other batch earlier this year with Charles Rouse, Stanley Cowell, Pharoah Sanders, and Music Inc 🔥

Tim Maia - Musica Nova Do Brasil View credits, reviews, tracks and shop for the 1972 Vinyl release of "Musica Nova Do Brasil" on Discogs.

Ah ok it is on Discogs! I’ve only seen that toucan and “Musica Nova do Brasil” on this Tim Maia record, didn’t realize it was a thing beyond that www.discogs.com/release/9686...

Interesting, I’ve never seen that cover of Elis & Tom before and I don’t think it’s on Discogs. Is that a Mexican pressing?

Record cover of “The Awakening” by Ahmad Jamal featuring a circular portrait of Jamal in the center over stacked half-circles in different shades of red leading down to three horizontal stripes in purple, red, and blue.

Black label on a vinyl record with the Impulse / ABC logo at the top and the artist and album info in gray typeface, with a red circular border.

Ahmad Jamal Trio: The Awakening (Impulse 1970).

I happened upon a somewhat beat up OG copy of this legendary record. But it’s just as glorious even with a bit of snap, crackle, and pop. As usual for this period, Ahmad is joined by Jamil Nasser on bass and Frank Gant on drums.

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#jazzsky

Record cover for the self-titled album by keyboardist Don Blackman, featuring a close-up photo of the artist wearing beads in his hair against a blue background. A Vinyl Me Please OBI is on the left.

Yellow label on a vinyl record with the Arista GRP logo at the top with the artist and album info in black typeface.

Don Blackman: Don Blackman (1982 / 2024 VMP)

Relentlessly funky album from one of the core members of the “Jamaica Kats” crew from Queens behind so many killer early 80s cuts on Arista GRP (folks like Marcus Miller, Omar Hakim, etc). Dennis Chambers is monstrous on the drums!

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#funksky

Record cover for Losers Weepers by Etta James, featuring a sepia tone close-up photo of Etta’s face singing with her eyes closed.

Blue label on a vinyl record, with the red, white, and blue Cadet Records logo at the top and the album and artist info in the middle in black letters.

Etta James: Losers Weepers (Cadet 1970)

Few artists poured their heart and soul into a song like Etta James. Her 70s albums don’t get the acclaim of her great 60s work like “At Last,” but this is an Etta who has been through some stuff and she WILL make you feel it.

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#soulsky
#randbsky

Record cover of “Sneakin' Sally Through The Alley” by Robert Palmer, featuring an overexposed, green-tinted photo of Robert Palmer stumbling through an alley with a woman whose eyes are covered by a black bar.

Black label on a vinyl record with the colorful Island Records logo at the bottom and the album and artist info in white letters.

Robert Palmer: Sneakin' Sally Through The Alley (Island 1974)

If you only know Palmer from the 80s music videos with the girls in tight dresses, you’ll be surprised how deep the funk gets on this one. Backed by The Meters on some tracks and Bernard Purdie + the crew from Stuff on others.

#funksky

Black and red CD cover of Elis Regina & Jair Rodrigues – Dois Na Bossa Número.

Silver face of a compact disc with the Philips logo at the top and the album info in blue typeface.

Elis Regina & Jair Rodrigues: Dois Na Bossa Número 2 (1966). #CDFriday

Few countries put out as many live recordings (“ao vivo”) as Brazil, though sound quality is not always top tier. But some recordings radiate so much power and chemistry that it doesn’t matter. This one an old fav.

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That record is gonna go to the grave smoking a pack a day.

Record cover of “The Shadow” by Ojiji, featuring a colorful illustration of a beach landscape with a rainbow and a man sitting cross legged with his arm reaching toward the sun.

White label on a blue-green colored vinyl record, with the Continued Sound logo on the left, and the album info in blue typeface, along with a Canadian flag with the words” Made in Canada.”

Ojiji: The Shadow (1979 / 2025 reissue)

My pal Graham at Continued Sound just reissued this wild funk-jazz-reggae album by Rupert Ojiji Harvey, a Jamaican-Canadian artist who got his start playing in Jackie Mittoo’s band as a teenager. This record slaps, check it out!

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#funksky
#vinyl

The Ellington & Coltrane album is in my top 5 for jazz albums.

The “Masterpieces by Ellington” album (which has this song) is incredible. One of the first 12” LPs to have extended songs like that (which wasn’t possible on 78rpm and 10” records). Truly groundbreaking genius!

Record cover for “Until The Eagle Grins” by The Crownhate showing three small vertical pictures depicting a tornado in silver and blue against a navy blue background.

Black label on a vinyl record with the Dischord Records logo at the bottom, a picture of a cloud at the top, and the album info in gray typeface in the middle.

The Crownhate Ruin: Until The Eagle Grins (Dischord 1996)

Feeling nostalgic today so I pulled out a record I’ve had for nearly 30 years. Great @dischord.com band I used to see all the time. Features members of Hoover and 1.6 Band. Some of the best musicianship you’ll find in this genre!

#vinylsky

Bill Stewart is phenomenal! A truly unique and musical drummer. Really hard to stand out in an era where you’d think all the cool licks and styles had already been invented, but Bill Stewart definitely does.

I have an older model Humminguru and love it. I don’t know how I collected vinyl without it, frankly.

Cover of the “Never My Love: The Anthology” CD boxset, featuring a black and white photo of Donny wearing a hat, turtle neck sweater, and peacoat or trench coat.

Face of a compact disc designed to look like a 7” single with yellow label and ATCO pinwheel logo on the left.

Donny Hathaway: Live at the Bitter End 1971, previously unreleased performances (Rhino, 2013)

I can never get enough Donny. Especially this disc from the “Anthology” CD boxset, with unreleased cuts from the set featured on Side A of his legendary “Live” album.

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#randbsky
#soulsky

I think this joke is very annoying and not funny.

Album cover for “The Peace-Maker” by the Harold Land Quintet, featuring four vertical columns in red, brown, yellow, and green showing what appears to be Ancient Greek statutes, against a bright yellow background.

Blue label on vinyl record, with the red, white, and blue Cadet Records logo at the top and the album and artist info in the middle in black letters.

Harold Land Quintet: The Peace-Maker (Cadet 1968).

Truly gorgeous record from one of the all-time great jazz pairings: Harold Land and Bobby Hutcherson. Part of the fantastic Cadet box set, which is probably my favorite VMP release.

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#jazzsky
#vinylcommunity

Ron Carter once said that to appreciate how huge Elvin’s influence was, simply listen to a jazz drummer before Elvin Jones and listen to a jazz drummer after Elvin Jones. That says it all. Elvin changed everything about drumming!

Album cover of "The Sun, Moon & Herbs" by Dr. John, featuring a surreal illustration by John Millerburg of a half-man/half-lion on the left, a topless woman with wings on her robe on the right, and Dr. John as the Night Tripper in the middle.

Yellow label on a vinyl record with the ATCO pinwheel logo on the left and the artist and album info in black typeface.

Dr. John: The Sun, Moon & Herbs (ATCO 1971)

The last of Dr. John’s psychedelic Night Tripper albums, this one nicely captures the transition to his more funky, New Orleans influenced era (Gumbo, Right Place, etc). W/ appearances by Eric Clapton Mick Jagger & the Memphis Horns.

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#funksky

Ok that reference I had to look up 😂

Then you definitely won’t want to buy my 16-cassette course on tape on how AI can make you rich (the first cassette is free if you send me a self-addressed stamped envelope).

Shelly Manne on drums 🔥🔥🔥

I’m not a doomer, but I am a bit concerned about this House making mischief out of Article I, Section 5 with regard to 2026 House election results. I know the rationale would be baseless and contrary to law, but is there really no reason to be worried about this?

The album cover for MM by Marisa Monte, featuring an overexposed blue-tinted black and white photo of Marisa with an old style Shure mic against a black background.

Black label on a vinyl record with the EMI box logo on the upper left, two big overlapping Ms at the top in beige and gray, and the album info in beige letters at the bottom.

Marisa Monte: MM (EMI 1989).

The debut album this legendary Brazilian singer. And only a next-level talent like Marisa could pull off releasing a live album as her first album! Showcases her range in a variety of styles (jazz, show tunes, Mutantes and Tim Maia covers, etc.)

#nowplaying
#vinylsky