SEALED

Soul Jazz Records are releasing Tee Mac's 'Night Illusion', a lost classic Nigerian Afro soul meets disco boogie funk album originally released in Nigeria in 1980 as a private-press release of 1000 copies on the enigmatic artists' own label. Impossibly hard to find, the record remains practically unknown outside of Nigeria.Tee Mac Omatshola Iseli is a multi-instrumentalist, composer and arranger and features on Soul Jazz Records' recent collection Nigeria Soul Fever - Afro Funk Disco and Boogie alongside Joni Haastrup, Christy Essien and others, as well as on a recent compilation 'Nepa Oh Nepa' (released on Hot Casa earlier this year). The timelessness of this soulful, ground-breaking funk jazz lost masterpiece 'Night Illusion' leads to comparisons with James Mason's legendary lost classic album Rhythm of Life, with his unique individualism and intensity hinting at the boogie funk of groups such as Mass Production and Slave so loved by artists such as Moodyman and Theo Parrish. While Fela Kuti is now a cultural icon of Nigerian music throughout the world, the recent crossover success of William Onyeabor shows just how much undiscovered Nigerian music remains waiting to be explored outside of the country.Tee Mac was born in Lagos, the son of a Nigerian princess and a Swiss diplomat. He picked up the flute at age 7 and ten years later was studying classical musical in Switzerland under his uncle the composer J.J. Direndirger. Returning to Lagos, Nigeria in 1970 he formed the heavyweight afro rock group Tee Mac and Afro Collection (which included Johnny Haastrup on keyboards and The Lijadu Sisters on vocals). This band was famously joined by the legendary Cream drummer Ginger Baker who came to Nigeria to play with them in 1971 (captured in the film Ginger Baker in Africa).At age 24, Tee Mac moved to Germany where he co-wrote and recorded the European disco group Silver Convention (whose 'Fly Robin Fly' became number one in the USA charts). This enabled him to return to Nigeria where he formed his own label SKJ Records to release his self-financed album Night Illusion, as well as buying two nightclubs and also investing in a number of mineral mining companies!Tee Mac continues to live in Lagos today and travels the world as a composer - one of whose pieces is The City of Mer Kailash (2009), a two-hour ballet featuring over 60 dancers and a 100+ piece orchestra.Strictly limited-edition 1000 copies worldwide exact-replica artwork reproduction LP (+ sleevenotes + free download).

The reissue of Gemini’s most complete and varied album – 1997’s ‘Imagine – A – Nation’, originally released on Cajual subsidiary Relief.

New Rick Wade 12" back on his own Harmonie Park imprint. 4 deep Detroit house tunes in Rick's trademark style...

Reginald Omas Mamode IV is set to release his self titled debut album via Five Easy Pieces.The cult Peckham soul artist caps the release of three highly praised EPs with an album featuring his most confident songwriting to date. The album paints a collage of dusty drum hits, Sly Stone-esque bass lines and Mamode’s own one-take vocals. Themes go from the personal, such as relationship communication breakdown, to the universal, in the anti-war theme of ‘The Value’.It remains grounded in a love of syncopated drums, played out in the Dilla-esque ‘Talk To Me’, or the free jazz of ‘Omas Sextet’. Elsewhere, on album opener ‘Bruk Out’, the broken beat scene collides with the groove based jazz fusion of Herbie Hancock and the Headhunters, whilst on ‘Drums Of The Positive’, Mamode channels the “slave island music of my father’s heritage… Maloya, Sega, Nyabinghi”."Nowadays music seems to be used more as a crutch for humanity.. Most people seem to have forgotten it's a life blood of our species. The natural rhythms of our hearts beating and the melodic instrument 'the voice' gifted to us at birth, are some physical examples of how inherent music is within our being. We all need this thing we call music. Just as all our ancestors did." - Reginald Omas Mamode IVThis past year has seen Mamode perform live and DJ at the relaunch of London’s Jazz Cafe, Shapes, Ronnie Scott’s, Gottwood festival and dates in France, Netherlands and beyond. Headline UK and EU live dates will follow the album’s release in the autumn.Part percussive ancestral music, part post-Dilla funk, Mamode’s debut album is a galactic, joyful, and above all funky record. It is a statement of intent from this rising underground star. “A man of simple pleasures: soul sounds, peoples and stories, brothers, friends and family” Gilles Peterson“Spiritual similarities to the likes of D'Angelo, Theo Parrish, J Dilla, and John Coltrane” Dummy Mag“Cosmic-soul super talent. You need this guy on your radar” Stamp The Wax“The equivalent of an aural hug” Boiler Room“Imbued with the sounds of funk, Latin, soul, African Nubian music” Hyponik

Barcelona based Alma's 3rd hearkens back to the root of Afrobeat, extended, elegant arrangements, socially & politically charged lyrics, & irresistible grooves. B side f/ remixes from DJ Farmo, DJ Quiet, DJ Phader, Los Kalakos, & Ray Lugo.

Gatefold 180 gram vinyl 3xLP + 2xCDOriginal Ghanaian Highlife & Afrobeat Classics 1967-1981 ?Ghanaian highlife master and “The Golden Voice Of Africa”, Pat Thomas,returns with his first full career retrospective on Strut this Autumn, covering his late ‘60s big band highlife recordings through to the “burger highlife” movement of the early ‘80s. Growing up with music around him (“my uncle, King Onyina, was an important highlife musician”), Thomas was inspired to become a singer after hearing vocalist Joss Aikins: “He sang with Broadway Dance Band and Decca in Ghana chose him to sing with any group that came into their studios.” When a new incarnation of Broadway Dance Band was created in ‘67, led by Ebo Taylor, Thomas received his first big break. “Ebo started to write new songs. I added the lyrics and sang them and it worked well.” The partnership with Taylor would become one of the enduring forces in Ghanaian music during the ‘70s, creating a fresh, progressive new highlife sound. They played with the Blue Monks band before, in 1974, forming Sweet Beans with the backing of Ghana’s Cocoa Marketing Board: “The album, ‘False Lover’, was the first under my own name and my first for Gapophone,” Pat reflects. “Reggae was “on” at that time - Jimmy Cliff was the guy - so I tried reggae fusions and brought in some soul.” The album established Thomas across Ghana. Sweet Beans disbanded but the musicians stayed together as Marijata. “The guys initially used Jewel Ackah as their vocalist but they involved me and I re-vocalled the album. This became the ‘Pat Thomas Introduces Marijata’ LP. At that time, I would go to George Prah at Gapophone to ask for money and he would say, ‘if you want me to pay you, go and write a song!’ So, tracks like ‘Coming Home’ came about that way, written on the spot.” A second Marijata album followed before a damaging coup in Ghana in 1979. “Jerry Rawlings’ “house-cleaning” was designed to stop corruption but it seriously damaged our country’s music culture.” Thomas left for Berlin and stayed true to his highlife roots, becoming the first Ghanaian to record highlife there. “In Ghana, people ex-pats living in Germany called themselves ‘burgers’, so the scene became ‘burger highlife’.” Thomas travelled to Togo and London, before settling in Canada: “I ended up there for ten years playing for universities, Ghanaian societies and festivals.”Pat is now back with Kwashibu Area Band and touring worldwide: “Today, highlife has become the world’s music and I am proud to still bring it to so many people.” ‘Coming Home’ is released on 2CD, 3LP and digital and features exclusive photos and a full interview with Pat Thomas.First ever career retrospective of key Ghanaian highlife figureCovers ‘60s highlife to heavy ‘70s Afrobeat and later highlife disco periodfull official release, produced in conjunction with Pat Thomas. Many tracks released internationally for the first timeincludes two previously unreleased tracks: ‘No Money, No Love’ and ‘Sack The Devils’ recorded with Ebo Taylortouring around album globally with Kwashibu Area Band during 2016-7

Favorite Recordings presents this new official album reissue of The Parker Brothers: Maybe one of the best Blue-Eyed-Soul/Modern-Soul private press albums you can imagine, surprisingly highly unknown and underrated.Produced in 1981 by George P Grexa and released in a private-press version on his label Crown Vetch Enterprises, this album is filled with memorable material from the first note to the last, mixing Modern-Soul, Boogie, cross-over Jazz and Rock elements, for a result reminiscent of the WestCoast music’ golden years, however being recorded in Pittsburgh.As one of the longtime favorite collectable piece for Charles Maurice, it’s a real honor and proud for Favorite Recordings, to finally officially reissue it from the original master tapes and for the first time on vinyl.