Akio Sasajima - Jazz (Japan)

Akio Sasajima (笹島 明夫 Sasajima Akio) (born 1952) is a jazz guitarist born in Japan and currently based in Nevada City, California. His playing style incorporates bebop, hard bop, and jazz fusion. He recorded several albums as a leader for Muse and Enja in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Humpty Dumpty (1993)

Fanga - Afrobeat, Jazz & Funk (France)

Fanga, the force of Afrobeat from France: One of France's leading Afrobeat bands, the Fanga collective is inspired by Nigeria's Fela Kuti but determined not to be a poor relation. Fanga (meaning spiritual force in the West African dialect Dioula) consists of 8 musicians that breathe Afrobeat - the hypnotic fusion of Funk and African traditional music as pioneered by Fela Anikulapo Kuti in the seventies. Fanga was born from the meeting between vocalist Yves Khoury aka Korbo of Burkina Faso and programmer Serge Amiano. 

Fanga has evolved Afrobeat to a new era, whilst keeping its foundation and instrumentation within traditional codes This evolution is helped by the use of electronics and held together by Korbo’s unique and compelling vocal style. In 2006,the band meets up with the record label Cosmic Groove leading naturally to a fruitful collaboration. Ater two 12″ releases, a number of concerts and festivals (including supports to Antibalas, Meï Teï Shô, Seun Kuti, Guem…), Fanga records its new album “Natural Juice” in collaboration with a number of exceptional artists such as Tony Allen on two tracks, Segun Damisa (ex-musician of Fela and Femi) playing percussion and vocals, as well as the singer Kaddy Diara, the rising star of Burkina Faso on the track ‘Kononi’.

Afrokaliptyc (2004)

Natural Juice (2007)

Johnny Winter - Blues Rock

John Dawson Winter III (February 23, 1944 – July 16, 2014), known as Johnny Winter, was an American musician, singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer. Best known for his high-energy blues-rock albums and live performances in the late 1960s and 1970s, Winter also produced three Grammy Award-winning albums for blues singer and guitarist Muddy Waters. After his time with Waters, Winter recorded several Grammy-nominated blues albums. In 1988, he was inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame and in 2003, he was ranked 63rd in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".

Johnny Winter 1969

Second Winter 1969 

Johnny Winter And 1970

Alternative Link

Johnny Winter And:

In 1970, when his brother Edgar released a solo album Entrance and formed Edgar Winter's White Trash, an R&B/jazz-rock group, the original trio disbanded. Johnny Winter then formed a new band with the remnants of the McCoys—guitarist Rick Derringer, bassist Randy Jo Hobbs, and drummer Randy Z (who was Derringer's brother, their family name being Zehringer). Originally to be called "Johnny Winter and the McCoys", the name was shortened to "Johnny Winter And", which was also the name of their first album. The album included Derringer's "Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo" and signaled a more rock-oriented direction for Winter.[8] When Johnny Winter And began to tour, Randy Z was replaced with drummer Bobby Caldwell. Their mixture of the new rock songs with Winter's blues songs was captured on the live album Live Johnny Winter And. It included a new performance of "It's My Own Fault", the song which brought Winter to the attention of Columbia Records.

Saints & Sinners 1974

John Dawson Winter III 1974

Johnny & Edgar Winter ‎- Together 1976

Nothin' But The Blues 1977 

Step Back (2014)

Gil Scott-Heron - Funk &Soul (USA)

Gilbert "Gil" Scott-Heron (April 1, 1949 – May 27, 2011) was an African-American soul and jazz poet, musician, and author, known primarily for his work as a spoken-word performer in the 1970s and 1980s. His collaborative efforts with musician Brian Jackson featured a musical fusion of jazz, blues, and soul, as well as lyrical content concerning social and political issues of the time, delivered in both rapping and melismatic vocal styles by Scott-Heron. His own term for himself was "bluesologist", which he defined as "a scientist who is concerned with the origin of the blues".

His music, most notably on the albums Pieces of a Man and Winter in America in the early 1970s, influenced and foreshadowed later African-American music genres such as hip hop and neo soul. Scott-Heron is considered by many to be the first rapper/MC ever. His recording work received much critical acclaim, especially one of his best-known compositions, "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised". AllMusic's John Bush called him "one of the most important progenitors of rap music," stating that "his aggressive, no-nonsense street poetry inspired a legion of intelligent rappers while his engaging songwriting skills placed him square in the R&B charts later in his career."

(1971) - Pieces Of A Man

Alice Stuart - Folk Rock (USA)

Alice Stuart (born 1942 in Chelan, Washington, United States) is an American blues and folk singer-songwriter and guitarist. She toured the UK with Van Morrison and throughout the United States with Mississippi John Hurt. Her singing, songwriting, and guitar playing secured her invitations to tour nationally and internationally with Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Doc Watson, Jerry Ricks, Phil Ochs, and Joan Baez, in addition to television appearances on The Dick Cavett Show and the Old Grey Whistle Test. In addition, Stuart's songs have been recorded by Kate Wolf, Irma Thomas, and Jackie DeShannon.

 Full Time Woman (1970)

Fugi - Funk & Soul (USA)

Signed by Chess, recorded, and promptly forgotten, Fugi is a great "what if" of American music. He carved a niche all his own as a sort of sinister Curtis Mayfield, albeit with the darker, druggier tones of early Funkadelic woven through his particular fantasy. The nuggets of something truly grand are here, especially in the paranoid fantasy of the title track. That song alone might be worth the price. One can only wonder what might have happened if he had gotten the attention he so richly deserved. A tragedy for sure.

From the vaults of Chess Records. Legendary unreleased album by the blackballed acid-funkateer.

Recorded 1968 backed by Black Merda except I'd Rather Be A Blind Man which is the first recorded version of his own I'd Rather Go Blind done before Etta James.

Mary, Don't Take Me On No Bad Trip (1968)

IMPROVED SOUND LIMITED - Krautrock • Germany

Improved Sound Limited biography (http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=2760)

This Nuremberg group began to play together as early as 1961 under the name Blizzards. They used the name Improved Sound Limited from 1966 onwards. In the late sixties, they specialised in delivering soundtracks for German television and movies by Michael Verhoeven. "Engelchen Macht Weiter, Hoppe, Hoppe Reiter" (1969) was the soundtrack from a Verhoeven film, released on the same label as the first Gomorrah album. I don't know this one (presumably a late beat rock effort), but their self-titled double album for Liberty was very inspired by the American folk-rock of Bob Dylan and The Band. Dylan was mentioned several times in the clever lyrics (from now on written by Axel's brother Bernd), for example, in "Doctor Bob Dylan". Improved Sound Limited also merged some more European elements into their folky rock style, such as some fine flute phrases. Regrettably, their passion for American music led them closer to country music on "Catch A Singin' Bird" (1973). Quite good compositions and lyrics ("The Dark Lord" was about Tolkien's "Lord Of The Rings"!), but not exactly performed in the idle way most of us like, I'm afraid. Pedal steel guitar was played by Frank Baum and Ralph Nowy guested on trumpet and sax. Improved Sound Limited changed their name to Condor in 1976 and released a much worse album: "Rathbone Hotel" (1976).

1971 - Improved Sound Limited