RAINER TRUEBY PRESENTS SOULGLIDING.

dereksmusicblog ♦ February 13, 2020 ♦ 1 Comment

Rainer Trueby Presents Soulgliding.

Label: BBE Music.

For the past three decades,  Rainer Trueby has enjoyed a successful DJ-ing career, and has been a familiar face in the DJ box at top clubs and festivals all over the world. Still this globetrotting DJ has managed to find the time to run his own long-running and successful club night Root Down, in Freiburg. Part of its success is Rainer Trueby’s eclectic musical taste which he hopes will comfort the audiences and make them smile. To do that, he spins everything from broken beat, disco and drum ’n’ bass to Nu-Jazz, salsa and soul. This election selection of American, British and Brazilian music has proven popular with dancers who hold Rainer Trueby in the highest regard. However, he’s much more than a DJ.

He’s also a producer,  is a former member of A Forest Mighty Black  and was one of the founders of the Truby Trio who in 2003, released the genre classic  Elevator Music on Compost Records. Then there’s compilations.

Since the early nineties, Rainer Trueby has also compiled many compilations.  This includes the critically acclaimed and much loved Glücklich compilation series which was released between 1994 – 2002. The year previously, 2002, Rainer Trueby compiled an instalment in the long-running DJ Kicks series which was released on K7! However, recently returned with Rainer Trueby a new compilation that has its roots in a Facebook group.

This is Rainer Trueby Presents Soulgliding which was recently released by BBE Music. It’s a compilation with a difference, as Soulgliding originally started life as a Facebook group. 

The phrase Soulgliding was coined by Rainer Trueby to describe laid-back, languid and smooth, silky sounding tracks that can include anything from boogie, jazz,  modern soul and 2-Step. It’s almost case of anything goes. That’s as long apart from tracks can’t exceed 110bpm. Apart from that there’s no other rules. Unlike some genres, the Soulgliding tracks don’t need to be from one era, and instead, span several decades. That is part of the Soulgliding’s success. 

Soulgliding also has a trademark sound.  Listen carefully to the thirteen tracks on Rainer Trueby Presents Soulgliding and try to describe the music. Words like airy and spacious to expressive, evocative as well as poignant and powerful. It’s music that takes the listener on a dreamy, cinematic journey across disparate genres where the listener can let their imagination run riot. It’s case of sit back and enjoy the musical journey that is Rainer Trueby Presents Soulgliding.

There’s a total of thirteen tracks on Rainer Trueby Presents Soulgliding, and it’s Peter Brown’s Without Love that opens the compilation. It’s a Peter Brown composition that was produced by Cord Wade and released on TK Records in 1977. It floats and shimmers it dreamy, empyreal sound setting the bar high for the rest of the compilation.

Les Hooper’s jazzy Lady Of The Night picks up where Peter Brown left off, floating along with rasping horns and glistening keyboards joining forces with the rhythm section. It’s a track that will make the listener want to hear more from Les Hooper as blissful journey continues.

Ambiance’s Camouflage is another jazzy track with a hint of funk. Playing a leading role in the sound and success of this track from 1979 are the tight wordless harmonies that bob along soothing the even the weariest of souls.

Mellaa’s Making Love In The Fast Lane was released in 1983 and features a beautiful heartfelt and sensual vocal and lyrics penned by Andre Williams. This is a hidden gem that is one of the highlights of Rainer Trueby Presents Soulgliding.

In 1982, Nature Boy was released by Ray and James on LaJam Records. The track was written by Eden Anbez and was produced by Jesse Thompson Jr, and is best described as funky and soulful. Adding the soulfulness to this rarity is the twin vocals of James Back and Willie Ray Norwood.

There are a number of tracks on the compilation that are regarded as staying true to the original 2-Step sound. This includes the smooth, soulful sound of Bridge’s Next To Me from 1985. Soulful and funky describes Demo Cates’ wistful sounding Memories Of Moments. Diva Donna McGhee contributes the poignant sounding It Ain’t No Big Thing which was produced by Greg Carmichael. He uses lush strings which compliment a heart-wrenching vocal on this sweet slice of soul.

Fifth Of Heaven released the dreamy and spacious sounding Just  A Little More in 1989. It’s a quite beautiful track which combines elements of soul, funk and boogie. So does Patrice Rushen’s To Each His Own which features a tender, breathy and soulful vocal.

One of the best vocals on the compilation can be found  on Cast’s 1981 track Sweetness. The vocal is beautiful, heartfelt and sensuous. It’s accompanied by a arrangement that gradually unfolds, all the time complimenting and never overpowering this breathtaking vocal.

Crystal Winds’ contribute Lover’s Holiday, a slice of boogie from their album First Flight. It was reissued by BBE Music a few years ago and is well worth looking out for.

Closing Rainer Trueby Presents Soulgliding is Dust To Dust by Cloud One. It was written by Peter Brown and Patrick Adams and floats along squelchy sci-fi synths making occasional appearances during this dreamy and otherworldly sounding track that fuses proto-boogie with soulful harmonies. It’s a case of saving one of the best until last.

In an overcrowded compilation market, Rainer Trueby Presents Soulgliding is one of the best compilations of recent months. It features a mixture of familiar faces, hidden gems, obscurities and rarities that are sure to capture the imagination of the listener. 

Much of the music on Rainer Trueby Presents Soulgliding has a cinematic quality and paints pictures in the mind’s eye as it takes the listener on a journey lasting thirteen carefully chosen tracks. They glisten and shimmer, floating and gliding along inspiring and posing questions resulting in the listener ruminating and letting their imagination run wild. That’s no surprises as the music on Rainer Trueby Presents Soulgliding is variously beautiful, dreamy, empyreal, ethereal, sensual, soulful, spacious, funky, jazzy and otherworldly.  This makes Rainer Trueby Presents Soulgliding a must-have compilation, especially for anyone who likes their music laid-back and languid.  

Rainer Trueby Presents Soulgliding.