A three-CDs-for-one package that captures the heady time when rock, jazz and, lummee, commercial success briefly coalesced. The eponymous debut remains the highlight of the trio. Essentially Scott's bar band to get away from the nine-to-five of his lucrative session and movie work, the original L.A. Express crackled with the verve of youth and the spark of guys who just want to play. That several key cuts are group compositions helps, giving the album a unity later recordings couldn't touch. Sample, on a brief hiatus from the Crusaders, shimmers and glisters and Carlton has an edge that was never replaced. But by Tom Cat, a perfectly accessible R&B-funk work out, the writing's on the wall, with Sample gone and a smoother production tone. With New York Connection, the L.A. Express as a band is long forgotten and plush recording and a swathe of sessioneers are on board. But just for a moment on that first album, when ‘Bless My Soul’ kicks in, well, the title says it all.