Of the many multi-volume collections released in the '90s by Irma, the Italian label's Groovy collection is one of the most engaging. The collection is subtitled "A Collection of Rare Jazzy Club Tracks" and indeed lives up to its name, compiling obscure jazz records that are lively enough -- either in terms of funk or soul -- to warrant play in a dance club setting.
The collection go all the way back to the '50s and up to the '80s, compiling a little bit of everything, from traditional jazz to non-traditional jazz-inflected styles of music. Highlights of the second volume include Billy Paul's "East," Donovan's "Barabajagal," Marc Dorsey's cover of the Stylistics' "People Make the World Go Round," and Ray Barretto's cover of Stevie Wonder's "Pastime Paradise."