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Where soul and R&B are concerned, Ace’s mostly male A&R team makes make no secret of its total admiration for the music of the fairer sex. We like to release as much of it as we can, as often as we can. If you don’t believe us, take an in depth look at the Ace website or our printed catalogue. You’ll find the titles of dozens of great compilations by some of soul’s foremost females from the past 50 years. That great declaration of admiration made by the Impressions and Jerry Butler almost 50 years ago is as true today as it was in the mid-60s – “The Woman’s Got Soul”.

The women we love recorded up north, down south and from coast to coast – as can be seen from the cross-section of releases just across the page – and always with an excellence to match and often exceed their male counterparts. There are no two ways about it, when it comes to singing about “the good, the bad, the hurt”, women have never been the weaker sex in soul music.

We could probably fill a whole edition of Sure Shots with fantastic packages by our soul girls, and still have plenty left over for the next one. Rather than do that, we’ll tantalise you with a representative selection, and leave the rest of the voyage of discovery to you. It doesn’t matter if you prefer your lady soulsters to sound sweet’n’teeny like Nella Dodds, sassy’n’saucy like Millie Jackson or gritty’n’gospel like Mitty Collier, we definitely have lots to suit you.

Let’s hear it for the girls!

When Bob Thiele launched Flying Dutchman Records in 1969 he had just emerged from eight years as the head of Impulse, ABC’s jazz label. The former pop A&R man – who in the 50s had signed Buddy Holly and Jackie Wilson – had been responsible for the creation of some of the most important and challenging music of the decade, as well as a series of highly satisfying recordings by older giants of jazz. This reached unparalleled heights in his collaborations with John Coltrane which allowed the saxophonist to pursue his distinct and personal vision on such masterpieces as “A Love Supreme” and “Ascension”.

Flying Dutchman was Thiele’s personal statement. When he set up the label, 60s counterculture and black power were in full swing. If the 48 year-old Thiele seemed like an odd fit, his credibility as Coltrane’s producer allowed him entry into those worlds. He released masters by progressive jazz musicians such as Leon Thomas, Lonnie Liston Smith and Gato Barbieri, new recordings by Count Basie and Earl Hines, political speeches and audio journalism – and in Gil Scott-Heron he discovered one ofAmerica’s most original voices, recording his earliest and most important musical statements.

The releases on Flying Dutchman showed an attention to detail that belied its independent status and lack of funds. Glossy gatefold sleeves, exquisite photographs and the best studios were what Thiele’s productions had received at ABC, and this was what he felt they deserved at Flying Dutchman. It was always a struggle, but he went it alone for five years in an increasingly difficult economic situation before the success of Gato Barbieri and Lonnie Liston Smith saw him hook up with RCA. By then the political spirit of the early years had faded but was kept alive in the cosmic jazz of Lonnie Liston Smith and his worldwide hit ‘Expansions’, the crowning glory of the label’s second chapter.

Our reissue campaign has focused on a mixture of Flying Dutchman’s biggest acts and some of the lesser-known artists and releases. We feel it is a fitting way to deal with such a fantastic legacy. 

We're pleased to announce that Lonnie Liston Smith will be returning to the UK in August for a full tour. 

Best known for his 1974 jazz funk classic Expansions, keyboardist Lonnie Liston Smith has played with some of the mightiest artists of our times including Miles Davis, Pharoah Sanders, Art Blakey, Marvin Gaye and countless others. Since emerging from the 60s free jazz scene, Smith has successfully created his own fusion style incorporating jazz, funk and soul.

This is a rare opportunity to see Lonnie so don't miss out..

If you go to the Media Space at London’s Science Museum between now and 27^th July you can experience the remarkable sound of the 27 feet long Exponential Horn built in 1929 by R. P. G. Denman, then the museum’s curator. The man behind the restoration is Aleksander Kolkowski, who Damned fans will recognise as the violin player on the alternative version of ‘Anti-Pope’ currently featured on ‘The Chiswick Singles: And Another Thing’. But this is a minor part of his extensive CV and since those heady youthful days Aleks has moved relentlessly into the past whilst creating the most contemporary of music using archaic instruments and recorders long abandoned by others to produce original and at times challenging music. The Exponential Horn fits into this picture perfectly and delivers a unique and spectacular sound impossible to reproduce using more contemporary equipment.

** We regret to inform you that Little Bob's London date has been postponed until the spring. (Bob had a bad fall in Le Harve yesterday and broke his arm in two places). **

Legendary French rockers Little Bob Story see their classic 1977 album "Off The Rails" reissued this month and to celebrate, their frontman plays a super-rare London show with his new band Little Bob Blues Bastards at the 100 Club.