The six-CD R&B Box is impressively ambitious, arching as it does from the "race record" era to the day before disco. Jump blues, boogie, postwar vocal groups, shouters and honkers, early rock & roll, doo-wop, and myriad varieties of soul music all rear their heads here; while the selections may often seem obvious to longtime listeners, the set will certainly knock out anyone new to the history of these sounds.

Tracklist:

Disk One: Jumpin’ the Blues (1943 - 1950)

1. Five Guys Named Moe - Louis Jordan
2. When My Man Comes Home - Buddy Johnson & His Orchestra
3. Flying Home, Pt. 1 - Illinois Jacquet
4. Honeydripper - Joe Liggins
5. Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra
6. Driftin' Blues - Johnny Moore's Three Blazers
7. R.M. Blues - Roy Milton & His Solid Senders
8. Ol' Man River - The Ravens
9. King Size Papa - Julia Lee & Her Boy Friends, Julia Lee & Her Boy Friends
10. Fine Brown Frame - Nellie Lutcher & Her Rhythm
11. Elevator Boogie - Mabel Scott
12. Chicken Shack Boogie - Amos Milburn
13. Hucklebuck - Paul "Hucklebuck" Williams
14. Deacon's Hop - Big Jay McNeely
15. Drinkin' Wine, Spo-Dee-O-Dee - Sticks McGhee & His Buddies
16. Baby Get Lost - Dinah Washington
17. Cupid's Boogie - Little Esther, Johnny Otis & His Orchestra, Johnny Otis & His Orchestra, Mel Walker
18. Please Send Me Someone to Love - Percy Mayfield

Disk Two: Teenagers are Diggin’ It (1951-1954)

1. Rocket 88 - Jackie Brenston, Jackie Brenston
2. Glory of Love - The Five Keys
3. Lawdy Miss Clawdy - Lloyd Price & His Orchestra
4. (Mama) He Treats Your Daughter Mean - Ruth Brown
5. Hound Dog - Big Mama Thornton
6. Crying in the Chapel - The Orioles
7. Shake a Hand - Faye Adams
8. Drunk - Jimmy Liggins
9. Honey Hush - Big Joe Turner
10. Tipitina - Professor Longhair
11. Sunday Kind of Love - The Harptones,Willie Winfield
12. Lovey Dovey - The Clovers
13. Goodnight, Sweetheart, Goodnight - The Spaniels
14. Sh-Boom - The Chords
15. Earth Angel - The Penguins
16. Tweedlee Dee - LaVern Baker, The Gliders
17. Sincerely - The Moonglows
18. All Night Long - Joe Houston Orchestra

Disk Three: Rockin' 'N Rollin' (1955-56)

1. I Got a Woman - Ray Charles
2. Pledging My Love - Johnny Ace
3. What' Cha Gonna Do - The Drifters, Clyde McPhatter
4. Bo Diddley - Bo Diddley
5. Feels So Good - Shirley & Lee
6. I Hear You Knocking - Smiley Lewis
7. At My Front Door (Crazy Little Mama) - The El Dorados
8. Smokey Joe's Cafe - The Robins
9. Speedoo - The Cadillacs
10. Please, Please, Please - James Brown, The Famous Flames
11. I'm in Love Again - Fats Domino
12. I Want You to Be My Girl - Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers, Jimmy Wright
13. In the Still of the Night - The Five Satins
14. Candy - Big Maybelle
15. It's Too Late - Chuck Willis
16. Oh, What a Night - The Dells
17. Since I Met You Baby - Ivory Joe Hunter
18. Goodnight My Love (Pleasant Dreams) - Jesse Belvin

Disk Four: Goin' Nationwide (1956-61)

1. Girl Can't Help It - Little Richard
2. Young Blood - The Coasters
3. Reet Petite (The Finest Girl You Ever Want to Meet) - Jackie Wilson
4. Little Bitty Pretty One - Thurston Harris, The Sharps
5. Maybe - The Chantels
6. Don't You Just Know It - Huey "Piano" Smith & the Clowns
7. For Your Precious Love - Jerry Butler & the Impressions
8. Lover's Question - Clyde McPhatter
9. Kansas City - Wilbert Harrison
10. I Only Have Eyes for You - The Flamingos
11. Hey Little Girl - Dee Clark
12. Gee Whiz! (Look at His Eyes) - Carla Thomas
13. At Last - Etta James 14. Spanish Harlem - Ben E. King
15. Every Beat of My Heart - The Pips
16. I Pity the Fool - Bobby "Blue" Bland
17. Mother-In-Law - Ernie K-Doe
18. Blue Moon - The Marcels

Disk Five: Soul Brothers & Soul Sisters (1961-65)

1. I Like It Like That, Pt. 1 - Chris Kenner
2. Just Out of Reach (Of My Two Open Arms) - Solomon Burke
3. Gypsy Woman - The Impressions
4. Duke of Earl - Gene Chandler
5. One Who Really Loves You - Mary Wells
6. Any Day Now (My Wild Beautiful Bird) - Chuck Jackson
7. Green Onions - Booker T. & the MG's
8. Release Me - Esther Phillips
9. Just One Look - Doris Troy
10. Pride and Joy - Marvin Gaye
11. Mickey's Monkey - The Miracles
12. Quicksand - Martha & the Vandellas
13. Mercy Mercy - Don Covay & the Goodtimers
14. Hold What You've Got - Joe Tex
15. Hurt So Bad - Little Anthony & the Imperials
16. We're Gonna Make It - Little Milton
17. I Can't Help It - The Four Tops
18. Over the Rainbow - Patti LaBelle

Disk Six: The End of the Golden Age 1966-72

1. This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You) - The Isley Brothers
2. 634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.) - Wilson Pickett
3. When a Man Loves a Woman - Percy Sledge
4. Ain't Too Proud to Beg - The Temptations
5. Summertime - Billy Stewart
6. Knock on Wood - Eddie Floyd
7. Love Is a Hurtin' Thing - Lou Rawls
8. Tell It Like It Is - Aaron Neville
9. Try a Little Tenderness - Otis Redding
10. Dark End of the Street - James Carr
11. Do Right Woman, Do Right Man - Aretha Franklin
12. I Thank You - Sam & Dave
13. Slip Away - Clarence Carter
14. Who's Making Love? - Johnnie Taylor
15. Thrill Is Gone - B.B. King
16. Rainy Night in Georgia - Brook Benton, Cold Grits
17. Proud Mary - Ike & Tina Turner
18. I'll Be Around - The Spinners