***honorable mentions: Unwound – Empire (Numero), Stark Reality – The Stark Reality Discovers Hoagy Carmichael’s Music Shop (Now-Again),Russ Huddleston & Robert Smith, Jr. – Original Soundtrack: Manos The Hands Of Fate (Ship To Shore), V/A – Hipshakers Vol. 4 (Vampi Soul), V/A – The Brasileiro Treasure Box Of Funk & Soul (Cultures Of Soul),
5. V/A – Royal Jesters: English Oldies (Numero)
Dimas III – I Won’t Love You Again
Ruben Molina of the Southern Soul Spinners first put the music of Dimas Garza and the Royal Jesters on my radar, during a guest DJ set back in 2013. When he dropped the needle on Dimas III’s “I Won’t Love You Again,” both myself and Oliver Wang (who also did a mini-set that day) gave each other “the look” and jumped out of our seats to see what was playing. Numero (with an assist from Ruben) did us all a solid in 2015 by releasing pretty much everything released by this San Antonio, Texas soul outfit and it’s all very necessary.
4. Gloria Ann Taylor – Love Is A Hurtin’ Thing (Luv’n’Haight/Ubiquity)
Gloria Ann Taylor – Deep Inside Of You
The music of Gloria Ann Taylor during the early 1970s, has been among the rarer bits of deep funk, generally only available to serious collectors. We had to wait a bit longer than we originally though, but late in 2015 Ubiquity released a comprehensive collection of Taylors work with her husband Walt “Wiz” Whisenhunt, recorded for his Selector Sound imprint. What’s most interesting to me about this collection is the comparison in sound between the sides that are just Whisenhunt directed, versus the two that we know without a doubt Dale Warren was involved in. While there are similarities, the way things are arranged on the 7-inch versions of “World That’s Not Real” or “Deep Inside You” bears all the hallmarks of the master of Dark Soul, which Warren perfected with his group, the 24-Carat Black. The vaunted 12” version of “Deep Inside You” adds a bit of a disco beat, but even at a faster tempo it still has that “Warren” sound. So difficult to find, it’s nice to know that this version is available to us all.
3. Waltel Branco – Assim Na Terra Como No Ceu (Mr. Bongo)
2015 was very much a year of insanely rare records getting the reissue treatment, so that people can recognize just what makes them so insanely priced. This collection of Novela soundtrack instrumentals from Waltel Branco was an album I didn’t know about until very very recently when Egon played a version of “Zorra” at his pop-up record store. Much to my great surprise and joy, Mr. Bongo had just released this record so that I got a chance to hear it in all it’s glory. One of the deepest, funkiest albums I’ve ever heard out of Brazil, which is REALLY saying something.
2. Alejandro Jodorowsky, Don Cherry & The Jazz Composer’s Orchestra & Ronald Frangipane – Holy Mountain: Original Soundtrack (Finders Keepers)
Don Cherry & the Jazz Composer’s Orchestra – Tarot Will Teach You/Burn Your Money
Jodorowsky’s Holy Mountain is one of my all-time favorite films, a psychedelic, spiritual, legendary bit of film-making. Ever since discovering it, I’ve wanted to soundtrack, only to frustratingly discover that it was never formally released. Finally,in 2007, the soundtrack (along with others) was finally released as part of the 6 disc box set of Jodo’s films. However, it took the remaining 7+ years to finally get the soundtrack released on the medium it should have been release originally. Finders Keepers does a lovely job with the packaging as always and the music speaks for itself, especially the tracks that feature Don Cherry leading the Jazz Composer’s Orchestra.
1. Bruce & Vlady – The Reality (Vampi Soul)
Bruce & Vlady – Wild Enough/Reality Monolouge
This was such a stunning surprise, something that even now, months after first discovering it, when I drop the needle on this record I still have a hard time believing that it exists. When you consider the success of Hansson & Karlsson in Sweden and Lee Michaels over here, the idea of an Organ & Drums duo makes more sense. How LA’s Bruce & Polish drummer Vlady got themselves together I’m sure is a great story. The album itself almost unfolds like a story, as Bruce mentions at the start wanting to tell the people about Reality. A really singular listening experience and absolutely the best reissued material I heard in 2015.