Unlimited（坂本昌行 , 森田剛 , 三宅健）

This guitar duo, which performs frequently on the European jazz scene, involves a pair of Sweden's best jazz guitarists. Ulf Wakenius can claim ownership of a prestigious throne in the international jazz guitar kingdom. Since 1997, he has been guitarist in the Oscar Peterson Quartet, which at least suggests a passing knowledge of every chord substitution known to mankind. He follows in the footsteps of such legends as Barney Kessel, Herb Ellis, and Joe Pass. The other member of the Swedish Guitars Unlimited is Peter Almqvist, and while he can't boast of gigging with Oscar Peterson, he has recorded with pianist Horace Parlan which actually is preferable to many jazz fans. The group has performed for several decades, building from the initial sensational fan base that was created when the guitarists first combined forces in 1980 in their picturesque hometown on the Gota river…

This vocal quartet originally started life as an extension of jazz band the Hi-Lo’s. From that prominent '50s band came Don Shelton, who decided to form Singers Unlimited after the Hi-Lo’s broke up in 1964. After retreating to Chicago, Illinois, where he worked on a series of television commercials, he enlisted fellow Hi-Lo’s veteran Gene Puerling of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to join him in the city in 1967. The group was formed along with Len Dresslar and Bonnie Herman, with the express intention of recording commercials in the doo wop/vocal group idiom. Shelton’s connections in the industry ensured the group was able to exploit the market successfully, and lucrative work rolled in. However, the 30-second snatches of songs hardly satisfied their artistic ambitions, and when they found themselves with studio time left over after one session, they recorded a take on the Beatles' "The Fool on the Hill." Through visiting jazz pianist Oscar Peterson, the demo of the a cappella recording was passed to MPS Records in Germany.

This guitar duo, which performs frequently on the European jazz scene, involves a pair of Sweden's best jazz guitarists. Ulf Wakenius can claim ownership of a prestigious throne in the international jazz guitar kingdom. Since 1997, he has been guitarist in the Oscar Peterson Quartet, which at least suggests a passing knowledge of every chord substitution known to mankind. He follows in the footsteps of such legends as Barney Kessel, Herb Ellis, and Joe Pass. The other member of the Swedish Guitars Unlimited is Peter Almqvist, and while he can't boast of gigging with Oscar Peterson, he has recorded with pianist Horace Parlan which actually is preferable to many jazz fans. The group has performed for several decades, building from the initial sensational fan base that was created when the guitarists first combined forces in 1980 in their picturesque hometown on the Gota river…

The Best of the Love Unlimited Orchestra collects 15 tracks by Barry White's groundbreaking instrumental support outfit. Their sound as assembled by White – thick layers of sweet strings, pulsing beats, chunky wah-wah guitars, plus tinkling piano and gently swelling horns – played a huge role in creating the blueprint for disco, not to mention countless porn soundtracks. In addition to backing White and his female protégées Love Unlimited, the Love Unlimited Orchestra also made their own recordings, naturally with White at the helm. Although they recorded up to 1983, their commercial heyday lasted from 1974-1977, when they charted regularly on the pop, R&B, and disco/club listings. They even scored a number one pop hit right out of the box with 1974's "Love's Theme," a watershed record in the history of disco. That's here, of course, plus the Orchestra's other chart hits: "Satin Soul," "Rhapsody in White," "Forever in Love," "My Sweet Summer Suite," "Bring It on Up," and their theme from the 1977 remake of King Kong.

A great combo from Mannheim, Germany, also known as Joy & The Hit Kids. They were mixing jazz-rock, krautrock, funk, soul, pop and psychedelic rock, with Hans W. Herkenne (drums, percussion), Albin Metz (trumpet, bass), Roland Heck (organ, piano, vibes, marimba, percussion, vocals), Dieter Kindl (bass, guitar, percussion), Gerd Köthe (saxophone, flute), Klaus Nagel (guitar, woodwind, percussion, flute) and Hans Lingenfelder (guitar). Led by extraordinary vocal skills of female singer Joy Fleming, the band released their debut 'Overground'in 1970 (released under the name 'Turbulence' in UK and 'Joy Unlimited' in the US). Their second album, 'Schmetterlinge' (which means 'Butterflies' in German) along with the debut is the most representative band's material, and certainly worth checking.

This 1975 slab by drummer Redd Holt was his second outing after the disintegration of the Young-Holt Unlimited rhythm team. Tighter and more adventurous than Isaac, Isaac, Isaac, its predecessor, Holt goes for the heart of rhythm here, letting it flower over the top of all the other arrangements. As a way of signifying this, he opens the set with a short but deeply funky and soulful rendition of Bob Marley's "I Shot the Sheriff." With less than two-and-a-half minutes of clock time, it's get out and go or nothing and Holt makes his tom-toms pop like snares, keeping only the slamming guitaristry of Randy Ford on top with him. Elsewhere, as on "Gimme Some Mo," Holt intertwines with keyboardist Eugene Curry to allow bassist Jose Holmes to cut the groove fast and deep, popping it all over the sonic spectrum like Bootsy Collins but with more finesse…