Lost J.B.'s material on vinyl! Leave it to Now-Again to dig up unreleased and unheard material from James Brown and the JB's (led by Bootsy Collins!) and give it a proper pressing (previously only for Record Store Day). These Are The J.B.'s was originally recorded in 1970 and given to King Records as a test press, only to be shelved until now. For the longest time, the album was only rumored to exist, but here it is in all its funky greatness. From Now-Again - "This album is the epitome of funk music, Brown’s innovation that influenced everything that came after it, from Afro-beat to disco to hip-hop. And if there is any funk ensemble as influential as Brown’s in the post-“Cold Sweat” musical landscape, it’s the Bootsy Collins/Parliament/Funkadelic contingent. Those two streams, as Grammy-winning James Brown historian Alan Leeds details in this album’s liner notes, converged for the first time here, making this a Rosetta Stone of funk’s dominant idioms." First commercial issue, mastered specifically for vinyl by Elysian Master's Dave Cooley from original 2 inch master, and housed in thick, tip-on Stoughton jacket. Also includes a 12 page book of liner notes by Leeds and Egon and many unpublished photographs and ephemera. Recommended.

• reissue of long lost J.B.s album
• mastered specifically for vinyl by Elysian Master's Dave Cooley from original 2 inch master
• 12 page book of liner notes by Leeds and Egon and many unpublished photographs and ephemera
• music label: Now-Again Records 2015

reviewed by Sir Nose 08/2016