Pete Jolly: "Seasons"

An album that sounds for all the world like early electronica, ten to twenty years before its time.  Pete Jolly’s reputation as a jazz pianist was long solidified by the time he made this record, a deliberately experimental attempt at capturing the electric piano/early synth zeitgeist in its infancy…and what an attempt.  Jolly plays piano, Wurlitzer, Musette, Sano Vox, Hammond B-3 and even accordion, on what is a very contemplative, zoned-out set of mellow yet grooving jazz.  “Plummer Park” is likely the funkiest track here in the break sense, but this album actually works better taken as a whole, as piecing it apart cut by cut detracts from what is meant to be a seamless, full-LP listening experience.  Each song flows smoothly into the next, and the other musicians that accompany Jolly (including Paul Humphrey, Milt Holland and Emil Richards) feed symbiotically off of the shifting moods and spontaneity.  This music is extremely fertile ground for sample-heads seeking loops, as it presents a fairly limitless set of possibilities to the modern beat producer, but do yourself a favor and rock this LP in its entirety the first time you hear it.  Sublime waves of shade, texture and sound await.

King Hannibal: "Truth"

Gritty funk heaviness from King Hannibal AKA The Mighty Hannibal, who, sadly, passed away this last month.  Hannibal’s larger-than-life performance aesthetic, combined with his willingness to address social issues in many of his songs, make him an important figure in the history of soul and funk, and make his a legacy worth examining.  This album, which he cut for the Aware label in 1973 under the “King” Hannibal moniker, is his sole long-playing effort, with the rest of his material being released in the 45/singles format.  Adding to Hannibal’s already formidable presence are other great, underground funk names like Lee Moses (anybody who’s got a line on his “Time And Place” LP hit me up ASAP) and Herman Hitson on grungy guitars.  At times the music drifts into mellow Southern soul, and at other times it’s full-on funk-rock more indebted to Funkadelic, but even on the slower numbers, the psych-fuzz guitars wash over everything, leaving a delightfully hazy gauze perched atop the simmering rhythms.  My choice tracks are the funk stormers—“I Got That Will,” “The Truth Shall Make You Free,” “Wake Up”—but I also dig the dreamy psych-soul of “Party Life,” and the dark, desolate gospel-blues meditation “Hymn No. 5.”  It’s a shame Hannibal only ever got around to releasing this one complete record; to listen to it, he surely had many more like it waiting in the wings.  Thank goodness he did this one, though.

The Emotions: "Untouched"

One of those albums that becomes more and more elusive as the years go by; once a forgotten relic from the Stax/Volt empire, now forever sought after for the frequently sampled “Blind Alley.”  This early Emotions material is fantastic—before Maurice White/Charles Stepney/EWF came in and polished up the group’s sound, sacrificing some of their trademark gospel grit in the process—and this LP certainly represents the peak of their Volt tenure.  Isaac Hayes, David Porter and Don Davis produced, and with The Movement and The Bar-Kays in the rhythm section, you know this stuff hits on all cylinders.  There’s the sweet soul of “Take Me Back” and “Tricks Were Made For Kids” (the latter of which sounds like it could have been recorded in Philly and not Memphis), the raucous funk of “Blind Alley” and “Boss Love Maker,” the off-kilter, odd-time “Love Ain’t Easy One-Sided,” and the proto-modern-soul stroll “If You Think It (You May As Well Do It).”  The Emotions’ powerful, churchy vocals hold sway over the surroundings, and work in tandem to drive their positive soul message home.  Though they were still years away from monster hits like “Best Of My Love,” The Emotions were already experts at their craft, even at this early stage.

Eddie Russ: "See The Light"

This is a severely underrated LP.  Eddie Russ is a jazz keyboardist with an inclination towards the heavy funk, and on this album more than any other, his ambition and influences coalesce into a Herbie Hancock- or George Duke-level jazz-funk-synth masterpiece.  Beginning with a cover of Earth, Wind & Fire’s classic “See The Light,” Russ springboards from there and doesn’t let up, grooving in an uptempo funk-fusion mode that almost borders on disco at points, but not in a bad way.  My personal favorite track here is the slinky, laid-back, almost P-Funk-esque “Poko Nose”—by far the hardest funk groove on the record—and I also love the breezy, melodic “Tomorrow Is Another Day” and the Latin-infused “Zaius.”  Eddie Russ gets wild tones out of his keyboards on every tune, and offers up a versatility and experimentalism often associated exclusively with the widely-recognized “greats” of the instrument.  This music elevates Russ to pantheon status, and puts him in the company of the aforementioned Hancock and Duke, as well as such heralded electronic funk pioneers as Lonnie Liston Smith and Bernie Worrell.  Find this.

The Fatback Band: "People Music"

A live-in-the-studio funk jam released as an LP, and all the better for it.  I have to admit, I didn’t gravitate towards The Fatback Band’s music the first time I heard it—even their earliest, rawest stuff had this proto-disco underpinning that wasn’t my thang—and so I passed on their records for years.  Yet over time, I’ve gained a respect for both the group’s prolific nature (SO many Fatback albums out there), and for their unique approach to the funk.  That being said, this LP is definitely one of their heaviest funk outings, and more in my wheelhouse as far as the kind of earthy funk I prefer goes.  Every track here echoes the ambiance of a smoke-filled studio in NYC (Fatback’s home turf) on a Saturday night, with the band just getting down as they please, trying all sorts of grooves on for size, and succeeding with each one.  Highlights are the dancefloor-driven “Njia Walk (Street Walk),” the band’s musical statement of purpose “Fatbackin’,” the slow-burning, spacy “Baby Doll,” and my personal favorite cut from the LP, the outstanding, b-boy-breaking “Kiba.”  This was an exciting time for East Coast rhythm evolution, as the Latin sounds of Spanish Harlem collided head-on with James Brown-style funk, begetting in the process a style that would eventually be called “disco,” with The Fatback Band being at the very forefront of the new wave.

Ray Barretto: "The Other Road"

The cover is what first grabbed me about this record, with “the other road” referenced in the title leading to some sort of futuristic, Oz-like city, set against a mountain sunset.  Add to that the fact that this was released at the moment in time when master conguero Ray Barretto was starting to blend his Latin styles with funk grooves and vice versa, well…obviously, this became a must-locate item for me instantly.  Straight out the gate, you hear the Latin-funk-fusion “smack!” of Billy Cobham’s fatback drums, and you know you’re in for a total audio experience.  The crystal-clear production spotlights Barretto’s congas and the cascading keyboards of Eddy Martinez beautifully throughout, with highlights along the way being the classic Latin jazz title track; a percussive yet lyrical take on Thelonious Monk’s “Round Midnight”; Latin funk fiesta “Lucretia The Cat”; the deeply spiritual, ruminative “Oracion (The Prayer).”  Ray Barretto says about this album in the liner notes, “this is the source of pride for me, that we LATINOS got together and played some jazz.”  The group here doesn't just play—they re-invent.