The J.B.'s - Funky Good Time: The Anthology (2 CD, 1995/FLAC)

The J.B.'s recorded under various billings in the early '70s, including the J.B.'s, Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s, Maceo & the Macks, the First Family, the Last Word, and others. This double CD gathers 30 of the prime tracks by all of the above configurations from the first half of the '70s, including all nine of their chart hits and quite a few rare singles and long versions. Often, James Brown himself chips in with incidental vocals (though this is mostly instrumental) and keyboards. The two-and-a-half-hour program can start to sound monotonous if taken all at once, but it's prime, often riveting funk, jammed with lockstep grooves that vary between basic R&B vamps and imaginative, almost jazzy improvisation.

James Brown (vocals, organ, synthesizer, drums); Lyn Collins, Vicki Anderson (vocals); Phelps "Catfish" Collins, Hearlon "Cheese" Martin, Jimmy Nolen (guitar); Jimmy Parker (alto saxophone); Maceo Parker (alto saxophone, flute); St. Clair Pinckney (tenor saxophone); Darryl "Hasaan" Jamison, Jerone "Jasaan" Sanford, Russell Crimes, Isaiah "Ike" Oakley (trumpet); Fred Wesley (trombone, vocals); Bobby Byrd (piano); Dave Matthews (electric piano, organ); William "Bootsy" Collins, Fred Thomas (bass); John "Jabo" Starks (drums); Johnny Griggs (congas).

 

 

James Brown - The Singles Vol. 1-10 (1956-1979) [20 CD, 2006-2011]

In 2006, Hip-O Select Records began a multi-volume reissue of James Brown's complete singles (both A-sides and B-sides) on CD. As of March 2011, ten volumes have been released, covering the periods 1956–1960, 1960–1963, 1964–1965, 1966–1967, 1967–1969, 1969–1970, 1970–1972, 1972–1973, 1973–1975 and 1975-1979.

James Brown - The 50th Anniversary Collection (2 CD,2003/FLAC)

 James Brown's two-CD 40th Anniversary Collection gathered 40 of the soul-funk giant's biggest hits, and in keeping with its title, The 50th Anniversary Collection is just that little bit bigger and better, with (could you guess?) 50 of his most famous tracks. From 1956's "Please, Please, Please" to 1988's "Static, Pts. 1 & 2," it has almost all of his biggies, though the absence of the 1986 Top Five hit "Living in America" is puzzling indeed. But that's a minor quibble given the dozens of classics onboard, which taken as a whole not only represent the best Brown compilation on the market, but also make a plain case for the singer as one of the major talents of 20th century American music.

James Brown - Star Time (4 CD, 1991/FLAC)

 Star Time is a 1991 71-track, 4-CD box set by James Brown. Its contents span most of the length of his career up to the time of its release, starting in 1956 with his first hit record, "Please, Please, Please", and ending with "Unity", his 1984 collaboration with Afrika Bambaataa. Writing in 2007, Robert Christgau described it as "the finest box set ever released... as essential a package as the biz has ever hawked, not just because it's James Brown, but because compilers Cliff White and Harry Weinger invested so much care and knowledge in it." Its title comes from the question Brown's announcer would ask concert audiences, as heard on the album Live at the Apollo: "Are you ready for star time?"