VA - The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 11a (1971) [5 CD, 2007/FLAC]

 

Robert Palmer - Best Of Both Worlds - The Anthology 1974- 2001 [2 CD, 2002/FLAC]

  

There are usually thought to be two phases to Robert Palmer's career: an earlier one running from 1974 to 1983, when he explored New Orleans second-line funk and reggae, backed by members of Little Feat and the Meters and turned out a series of critically acclaimed, modestly successful recordings, and a later one, from 1985 on, when he rode his good looks, some high-fashion videos, and some simplistic hard rock/pop to a series of big hits on his own and with the Power Station. This two-CD set responds to that view by devoting its first disc to the earlier phase and its second disc to the later one.

Booker T. & The MG's - Original Album Series (5 CD, 2012) [FLAC]

 

• 1962 Green Onions
• 1965 Soul Dressing
• 1966 And Now!
• 1967 Hip Hug-Her
• 1968 Doin' Our Thing

VA - The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 10 (1970) [6 CD, 2007/FLAC]

 

VA - The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 9 (1969) [6 CD, 2007/FLAC]

 

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.

VA - The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 8 (1968) [6 CD, 2007/FLAC]

 Artist development at Motown was comprehensive. Equal parts finishing school and academy of popular arts, the company provided its acts with elaborate choreography under the tutelage of Cholly Atkins. Young women raised in public housing projects, like the Supremes, were schooled in the social graces, and chaperones accompanied the package-tour bus cavalcades that brought Motown to other parts of the United States during the company’s early years.

VA - The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 7 (1967) [5 CD, 2007/FLAC]

 Motown had an extraordinary house band (known as the Funk Brothers) made up of some of the best nightclub and bar musicians in Black Detroit, including Earl Van Dyke on keyboards, Benny Benjamin and Uriel Jones on drums, and James Jamerson on bass. They played a huge role in the development of the Motown sound, a branch of soul music that featured more sophisticated arrangements and orchestration than the grittier Southern soul that contemporaneously flourished at as the Memphis Sound.

Aretha Franklin - Complete On Columbia - Take A Look (11 CD, 2011) [FLAC]

 

Take a Look demonstrates how Aretha was born the "Queen of Soul" paying loving care and attention to every facet of her years at Columbia. The package includes CD's of Aretha's seven full-length albums for Columbia; two CDs reflecting her collaborations with producers Bobby Scott (in 1963) and Clyde Otis (in 1964); and a bonus CD of singles produced by Bob Johnston and rarities that were "sweetened" and released after Aretha left the label. The set will also includes a DVD featuring Aretha, at the piano, performing several songs on The Steve Allen Show in 1964. Among the highlights of Take a Look is a previously unreleased version of Yeah!!! In Person With Her Quartet which strips away the artificial club ambience that was added to the album's studio performances, revealing Aretha at the peak of her powers. Another high point is an unreleased album called A Bit of Soul. Though it contains previously released material, the original album is presented here for the first time in its master form. Other revelations include riveting studio conversation between Aretha, John Hammond and pianist Ray Bryant during the making of Aretha's debut album in the summer of 1960.

CD01 - Aretha (With The Ray Bryant Combo)

CD02 - The Electrifying Aretha Franklin

CD03 - The Tender, The Moving, The Swinging Aretha Franklin

CD04 - Laughing On The Outside

CD05 - Tiny Sparrow: The Bobby Scott Sessions

CD06 - Unforgettable: A Tribute To Dinah Washington

CD07 - Take A Look: The Clyde Otis Sessions

CD08 - Runnin' Out Of Fools

CD09 - A Bit Of Soul

CD10 - Yeah!!! In Person With Her Quartet

CD11 - The Queen In Waiting

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?" 

VA - The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 6 (1966) [5 CD, 2006/FLAC]

 

Not only did Motown’s acts become famous but its songwriters and producers also became household, or at least familiar, names. Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Eddie Holland, who wrote and produced most of the Supremes’ mid-1960s hits, were nearly as famous as the Supremes themselves, and their squabble with Gordy over money, which resulted in a nasty lawsuit and their departure from the company, was major industry news. Robinson was an important songwriter at Motown, as were Sylvia Moy, Norman Whitfield, Mickey Stevenson, Ivy Joe Hunter, and Gordy himself. All these songwriters were also producers. Some were assigned by Gordy to work with specific acts. Such fame did some of Motown’s writers achieve and such problems did their fame cause for Gordy that, when the Jackson 5 were signed by the company in 1969, the team that wrote the group’s early hits was credited simply as the Corporation.

Rare Earth - Fill Your Head: The Studio Albums 1969-1974 [3 CD, 2008] [FLAC]

Rare Earth combined R&B, funk, and psychedelic rock on hits like "Get Ready" and "I Just Want To Celebrate," but FILL YOUR HEAD tells the story of their classic years in detail. Encompassing the five studio albums from their prime period, this box set includes not only the band's best-known material, but all the additional album cuts that simultaneously contextualize and complete the Rare Earth legacy. Get the lowdown on one of finest, funkiest rock bands ever to grow from the Motown family tree.

VA - The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 5 (1965) [6 CD, 2006/FLAC]

No Motown act of the 1960s matched the success of the Supremes, a girl group that scored number-one hits with “Where Did Our Love Go,” “Baby Love,” “Come See About Me” (all 1964), “Stop! In the Name of Love,” “Back in My Arms Again,” “I Hear a Symphony” (all 1965), and “You Can’t Hurry Love” (1966). Not only were they the second most successful singing group of the decade—surpassed only by the Beatles—but they remain the most successful female singing group of all time. The group’s glamorous lead singer, Diana Ross, went on to a remarkable solo career as a singer and a moderately successful career as an actress. 

 

VA - The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 4 (1964) [6 CD, 2006/FLAC

 

 Motown often utilized the same core session musicians on their records, which helped lay the Motown sound's basic rhythmic foundation of bouncing bass and echoing drums. But their arrangements were frequently lush and elaborate, adding strings, horns, woodwinds, piano, extra percussion, or whatever else might enhance the music's urbane stylishness. This polished pop craftsmanship, when matched with the smoothly soulful vocals of the Motown artist roster, became ubiquitously popular during the early '60s, with songwriters like Smokey Robinson and the team of Eddie Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Brian Holland turning out one gem after another with almost assembly-line regularity.

 

VA - The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 2 (1962) [4 CD, 2005/FLAC]

 Motown played an important role in the racial integration of popular music as an African American-owned label that achieved crossover success. In the 1960s, Motown and its subsidiary labels (including Tamla Motown, the brand used outside the US) were the most successful proponents of the Motown sound, a style of soul music with a mainstream pop appeal. Motown was the most successful soul music label, with a net worth of $61 million. During the 1960s, Motown achieved 79 records in the top-ten of the Billboard Hot 100 between 1960 and 1969.

 

VA - The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 1 (1959-1961) [6 CD, 2005/FLAC]

 Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of motor and town, has become a nickname for Detroit, where the label was originally headquartered.