This takes salsa away from the dreadful dance classes and back to the streets, raw and edgy. 15 great tracks which include Ozomatli, Spam Allstars, Alex Wilson, Cuban Cowboys, Los Amigos Invisibles and two for special note – Baku and ‘Desde Cuba Hasta Afghanistan’ and Roberto Rodriguez featuring Irving Fields ‘Wolfie’s Corner’ remix. Great compilation.

Graham Radley

Great debut album from this group of Francesca Amati (vocals) Mattia Mercuriali (guitar) Marco Trinchillo (acoustic guitar/drums) and Paolo Gradari (trumpet/guitar/keys) from Ravenna in north eastern Italy. The pointers/influences are Bjork, Aphex Twin and Belle & Sebastien with folk at the core but this is music that evolves beautifully in its own chilled world.

Graham Radley

Wildly good this one, Champeta is the vibrant Afro-Colombian sound from the street’s of Colombia’s Caribbean coast with Congolese soukous, Ghanaian highlife, and Nigerian Afro-beat meeting Latin and exploding in rhythms. The project took 3 years to put together and has Colombian champeta stars Viviano Torres, Luis Towers and Justo Valdez jamming with African legends Dally Kimoko, Diblo Dibala, Sékou Diabaté, Nyboma and Rigo Star.
Afro-Colombian grooves meet Africa and I’d buy it just to hear Diblo & Rigo fingers caressing those guitar strings into life. Highly recommended.

Graham Radley

The Birmingham collective hook up with some of the city’s finest reggae musicians – Moses and Jaffa from the excellent Crucial music plus Conrad Kelly (Steel Pulse/UB40) aka the Mighty Tree who set down a mighty rhythm structure for the GCorp team to weave in their dub magic. You also get a limited edition cookbook with original recipes for classic West Indian food plus original artwork by Ninety. Absolutely ******* brilliant, the queue starts here for Volume 4!

Graham Radley

Excellent live recording, at this jazz festival, from accordionist Richard Galliano which was the first appearance of this new group made up of Alexis Cardenas, Rafaël Mejitas and Philippe Aerts. The concert also features Hamilton De Holanda on mandolin. Very good.

Graham Radley

Film tunes from the vaults of Warner & Atlantic with 21 classic tracks which include ‘Theme From Lawrence Of Arabia (Les Baxter) Batman Theme (The Markettes) A Taste Of Honey (Esther Phillips) Midnight Cowboy (Young-Holt Unlimited) Theme From Mash (Jimmy Smith) Our Mann Flint (Herbie Mann) and 77 Sunset Strip (Warren Baker). A good dose of nostalgia.

Graham Radley

A second album, and a great new singer in Gaelic vocalist Calum Alex MacMillan who joins Angus MacKenzie, Colm O’Rua, Gabe McVarish, James Bremner and Ross Martin who are variously from the Scottish West Highlands, Cape Breton, Ireland and America. Produced by Iain MacDonald who adds flute and whistle on several tracks, plus some excellent guests – Anxo Lorenzo (Galician gaitas, Baroque recorder), Xose Liz de Cea (bouzouki, lute) and The Clachnabrochan Gaelic Choir. Very good.

Graham Radley

One of Africa’s biggest selling artists, it’s been six years since his last release ‘Baro.’ The main theme looks at developing Africa’s strengths and getting Africans themselves to see that what they have can be worth a lot and is worth championing. The familiar range of Malian styles is adapted on the track ‘Afriki’ by some nifty Pee Wee Ellis horn arrangements, this is music from the soul and from the heart and is just superb.

Graham Radley

Fourteen tracks on this second CD from the Manchester based singer songwriter. Patrick is a bit special on the acoustic guitar with his songs having a folk heritage and dealing with intimate and concerning issues. Nick Drake will spring to mind but only as a pointer as Patrick has his own niche. Good stuff.

Graham Radley

Chris Brann’s Ananda Project follow up their ‘Fire Flower’ EP from a few months back with a full length album packed full of deep house flavours. Included from the EP are the blissful ‘Into The Sunrise’ which is underpinned by subtle Latin rhythms and features Terrance Downs on vocals and the outstanding ‘Remember When [The Wind Destroyed Our Village]’, an intense atmospheric instrumental with a popping bass line, dirty keys and haunting wind effects. ‘Time And Space’ again fronted by Terrance Downs is a fine example of uplifting soulfulness but also check the Latin jazz dancer ‘Free Me’ and ‘Where The Music Takes You’, a superb slice of synth laden disco-boogie. Classic house music!

Andy Allen