Category Archives: Funk
THE GAP BAND-THE GAP BAND VII.
THE GAP BAND-THE GAP BAND VII. For The Gap Band, commercial success didn’t come overnight. Quite the opposite. Instead, it took three albums. Neither 1974s Magician’s Holiday nor 1977s The Gap Band charted. Then when The Gap Band signed to Mercury Records, their third album The Gap Band reached number seventy-seven in the US Billboard …
SKYY-SKYY LINE.
SKYY-SKYY LINE. By the time Skyy released their fourth album for Salsoul Records, Skyy Line, which was recently rereleased by BBR Records, Salsoul, and indeed music, had changed dramatically. Between 1975 and 1979, Salsoul Records had established a reputation as disco’s premier label. Salsoul Records gained a reputation as an innovative and influential label, who …
JOHN MORALES PRESENTS THE M&M MIXES VOLUME 3 INSTRUMENTALS.
JOHN MORALES PRESENTS THE M&M MIXES VOLUME 3 INSTRUMENTALS. Compilations of John Morales’ remixes are a bit like London buses, you wait ages for one, then two come along at once. After releasing the critically acclaimed and commercially successful The M&M Mixes Volume 2 in March 2011, John Morales spent the next years working not just …
DISCO RECHARGE: EVELYN THOMAS-I WANNA MAKE IT ON MY OWN AND HAVE A LITTLE FAITH IN ME.
DISCO RECHARGE: EVELYN THOMAS-I WANNA MAKE IT ON MY OWN AND HAVE A LITTLE FAITH IN ME. On 1975, DJ and producer Ian Levine headed to America is search of artists he could record for his newly founded production company Voltafine. Ian’s idea was to record American soul singers, then lease the recordings to major …
DISCO RECHARGE: GRAND TOUR ON SUCH A WINTER’S DAY AND SOUTHERN EXPOSURE HEADIN’ SOUTH-SPECIAL EDITION.
DISCO RECHARGE: GRAND TOUR ON SUCH A WINTER’S DAY AND SOUTHERN EXPOSURE HEADIN’ SOUTH-SPECIAL EDITION. Back in 1976, in Toronto, Canada, a musical partnership that resuled in some of the most innovative music of the disco era was formed. This partnership was made up of Willi Morrison, who was born in Scotland, but moved to …
GIORGIO MORODER-ON THE GROOVE TRAIN VOLUME 2 1974-1985.
GIORGIO MORODER-ON THE GROOVE TRAIN VOLUME 2 1974-1985. One of the founding fathers of Euro Disco was the Italian born producer Giorgio Moroder. His career started back in 1966, when he released several singles as Giorgio. It wasn’t until 1969 when Giorgio Moroder first enjoyed commercial success. His 1969 single Looky, Looky, which was released …
OVERDOSE OF THE HOLY GHOST-COMPILED BY DAVID HILL.
OVERDOSE OF THE HOLY GHOST-COMPILED BY DAVID HILL Sometimes, compilations can be anodyne affairs, with record labels and compilers scared to release compilations of innovative, leftfield music. This results in labels playing it safe and releasing compilations that although not innovative, will pay the bills. Thankfully, there are some labels out their willing to release …
SALSOUL PRESENTS: DISCO DIVAS AND SOULFUL SISTA FLAVAS.
SALSOUL PRESENTS: DISCO DIVAS AND SOULFUL SISTA FLAVAS. when you look back at the history of Salsoul Records, you realize they weren’t short of some stunning female vocalists. Loleatta Holloway, First Choice, Charo, Carol Williams, Jocelyn Brown from Inner Life, The Sweethearts of Sigma, Brenda Gooch and Claudja Barry. Each of these divas feature on …
GARY CRISS-RIO DE JANEIRO.
GARY CRISS-RIO DE JANEIRO. Recently when I was reviewing a new Salsoul Records compilation, The Salsoul Records Story, which was recently released by Gold Legion, I was pleased to discover that the compilers had included Gary Criss’ Rio De Janeiro. This was the title-track to the only album Gary Criss released on Salsoul Records. Rio …
JOHN DAVIS AND THE MONSTER ORCHESTRA-THE MONSTER STRIKES AGAIN.
JOHN DAVIS AND THE MONSTER ORCHESTRA-THE MONSTER STRIKES AGAIN. By 1979, John Davis and The Monster Orchestra had released three albums between 1976 and 1976. Their debut albums for SAM Records was 1976s Night and Day. 1977s Up Jumped The Devil and 1978s Ain’t That Enough For You followed. These three albums cemented John Davis …
DISCO RECHARGE-THP ORCHESTRA-EARLY RISER AND TOO HOT FOR LOVE.
DISCO RECHARGE-THP ORCHESTRA-EARLY RISER AND TOO HOT FOR LOVE. One of the phenomenons of the disco era was the disco orchestra. Following the success of The Salsoul Orchestra, other record companies decided they too, wanted their own disco orchestra. Soon, disco orchestras were springing up throughout America. It seemed no American city was immune from …
THE T.K. RECORDS STORY VOLUME 1.
THE T.K. RECORDS STORY VOLUME 1. Throughout his life, Henry Stone has been immersed in music. Indeed, ever since he was discharged from the US army in 1947, Henry Stone’s life has revolved around music. His career started in sales and distribution, at Modern and Jewel Records in 1948. After that, he moved to Miami, …
THE MANHATTANS-THERE’S NO ME WITHOUT YOU.
THE MANHATTANS-THERE’S NO ME WITHOUT YOU. Like so many other groups, success took time to come The Manhattans’ way. Indeed, The Manhattans released seven albums before making a commercial breakthrough with 1976s The Manhattans. It was certified gold, and 1977s It Feels So Good and 1980s After Midnight repeated the feat. However, before their 1976 …
FERN KINNEY-GROOVE ME.
FERN KINNEY-GROOVE ME. After taking a break from music to raise her young family, Fern Kinney decided to mount her musical comeback. Little did she realize that she was about to release what not only what become a disco classic, but a song that would become synonymous with her and transform her career. That song …
YESKING-RE-RECORD NOT FADE AWAY.
YESKING-RE-RECORD NOT FADE AWAY. For Yesking’s sophomore album Re-Record Not Fade Away, which was released by BBE Music on 11th March 2013, it appears founder Rhys Adams has looked to the past for inspiration. Rather than release a sprawling fifteen track album, Yesking have returned to the vinyl age for inspiration. Back in the golden-age …
JOHN DAVIS AND THE MONSTER ORCHESTRA-AIN’T THAT ENOUGH FOR YOU.
JOHN DAVIS AND THE MONSTER ORCHESTRA-AIN’T THAT ENOUGH FOR YOU. By 1978, John Davis had established a reputation in music as a successful songwriter, arranger and producer. Ever since the early seventies, he’d been working in Philly, with groups like First Choice, The Intruders, The Soul Survivors and artists like William DeVaughn. Then when he …
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