THE SYLVERS-SHOWCASE AND NEW HORIZONS.
THE SYLVERS-SHOWCASE AND NEW HORIZONS.
In these recessionary times, even the most dedicated music fan is feeling the pinch. With people having less disposable income than ever to spend on life’s essentials like music, it’s always a bonus when a record company releases two albums on one CD. This is what the good people at SoulMusic Records have done with two of The Sylvers’ albums Showcase and New Horizons, which will be rereleased on 23rd July 2012. Showcase released in 1975, was The Sylvers’ first album for Capitol Records. It featured The Sylvers’ biggest hit single, and only number one single Boogie Fever, which reached number one in both the US Billboard 100 and US R&B Charts. New Horizons was released two years later in 1977, and was the followup to 1976s Something Special. This proved to be The Sylvers’ final album for Capitol Records, but was from the most successful period of their career. Before I tell you about the music on Showcase and New Horizons, I’ll tell you about The Sylvers and their career.
Having started their career as The Little Angels, a Los Angeles based family group, appearing on television shows with Ray Charles and Johnny Mathis, The Little Angels started to grow up. This meant a change of name for the group, with The Little Angels becoming The Sylvers. With a new name, The Sylvers would sign the their first record contract and then release their first album in 1972.
With now renamed The Sylvers signed to Pride Records, they released their eponymous debut album in 1972. The Sylvers reached number 180 in the US Billboard 200 and number fifteen in the US R&B Charts. Sales of the album were helped along by two successful singles, Fools Paradise and Wish I Could Talk To You. This was an encouraging start to The Sylvers nascent recording career.
After the success of their debut album The Sylvers, they released the followup a year later in 1973. Entitled The Sylvers II, the album reached number 164 in the US Billboard 200 and number thirty-seven in the US R&B Charts. While the album didn’t perform as well in the US R&B Charts, the two singles released from the album Stay Away From Me and Through the Love In My Heart failed to match the success of Fools Paradise and Wish I Could Talk To You. After releasing two albums for Pride, The Sylvers signed to a major label MGM.
Now signed to a major label, MGM The Sylvers career stalled. They only released one album for MGM The Sylvers III. Neither the album, nor the single I Aim To Please charted. This meant that The Sylvers time on MGM was brief. However, having left MGM, The Sylvers would sign to another major label Capitol Records.
It was at Capitol Records that The Sylvers would enjoy the most successful period of their career. This commercially successful period started with their first album for Capitol, Showcase. The ten tracks on Showcase included three tracks written by Leon F. Sylvers, the bassist and vocalist, who was the second oldest member of the group. Freddie Perren who’d produce Showcase would cowrite five tracks with Kenneth St. Lewis, three of them with Yarian Perren. With the material for Showcase written, producer Freddie Perren and arranger Wade Marcus headed to Total Experience Recording Studios in Los Angeles with The Sylvers. When Showcase was released, The Sylvers would embark upon the most successful period of their career.
Before the release of Showcase, the first single from the album Boogie Fever was released. Written by Freddie Perren and Kenneth St. Lewis, this proved to be The Sylvers most successful single, selling over one-million copies. Boogie Fever reached number one in both the US Billboard 100 and US R&B Charts. When Showcase was released later in 1975, it surpassed the minor success of their previous albums reaching number fifty-eight in the US Billboard 200 and number twenty-three in the US R&B Charts. Cotton Candy was the second single released from Showcase, reaching number fifty-nine in the US Billboard 100 and number nineteen in the US R&B Charts. It seemed that The Sylvers’ career had taken off, but could they continue the momentum they’d built up with the followup to Showcase?
Something Special the followup to Showcase was released in late 1976. Again it had been produced by Freddie Perren, who cowrote six of the tracks on the album. It reached number eighty in the US R&B Charts and number thirteen in the US R&B Charts. The two singles released from Something Special would give The Sylvers top ten US R&B hits. Hot Line reached number five in the US Billboard 100 and number three in the US R&B Charts and like Boogie Fever, solo over one million copies. High School Dance then reached number seventeen in the US Billboard 100 and number six in the US R&B Charts. Although Something Special didn’t fare so well in the US Billboard 200, it proved more popular in the US R&B Charts. However, for their third and final album for Capitol, New Horizons, there would be a change of producer and songwriters. Would this affect sales of New Horizons?
For their third album for Capitol, New Horizons, there wasn’t just a change in producer for the album. Unlike their two previous albums for Capitol, the ten tracks on New Horizons were written by The Sylvers, with various members contributing tracks. Leon F. Sylvers wrote one track and cowrote the other nine tracks. Having written all the songs on New Horizons, the nine members of The Sylvers decided to produce New Horizons. Considering the ages of The Sylvers, some people queried this decision. They thought its was either a brave decision or gamble. For The Sylvers, this wasn’t the case. They’d watched every producer they’d worked with, absorbing what they were doing. So to The Sylvers, producing New Horizons was far from a gamble. Like before, New Horizons was recorded at Total Experience Recording Studios in Los Angeles. How would all these changes affect the success of New Horizon upon its release?
On the release of New Horizons, it reached number 143 in the US Billboard 200 and number forty-three in the US R&B Charts. To some people, it seemed that The Sylvers’ decision to write and produce New Horizons hadn’t paid off. When Any Way You Want Me was released as a single, it reached number seventy-two in the US Billboard 100 and number twelve in the US R&B Charts. The title-track New Horizons reached number forty-five in the US R&B Charts. New Horizons would prove to be the last single and album The Sylvers released for Capitol Records.
New Horizons brought an end to The Sylvers time at Capitol Records. It proved to be the most successful period of their career. A number one single and two milion selling singles were proof of this. However, what does the music on Showcase and New Horizons sound like and should New Horizons have been a bigger commercial success? That’s what I’ll tell you, when I pick some of the highlights of Showcase and New Horizons.
SHOWCASE
Opening Showcase is the second single released from the album Cotton Candy. Straight away, you’re hooked by the track’s uptempo, sweet sound. You’re also struck with similarities with The Jackson 5 and real Philly Sound influence. A pounding rhythm section, sizzling guitars and percussion combine with lush cascading string as the vocal enters. It’s joyous, accompanied by tight dramatic harmonies. Similarly, the arrangement is bold, growing and growing. Stabs of piano, swirling strings, percussion and a powerful rhythm section augment the peerless harmonies and a youthful, but confident vocal. Why this wasn’t a bigger commercial success on its release as a single seems strange, given its hook laden quality.
The Roulette Wheel of Love sees a change of style from The Sylvers. They deliver a heartfelt ballad, with the tempo is dropped way down. Lush strings, a deliberate rhythm section and piano accompanying Olympia’s tender, beautiful vocal. Wade Marcus’ arrangement has a much more understated sound, with chiming guitars, piano and percussion key to this. Meanwhile, the rhythm section add bursts of drama, as the vocal grows in power and emotion. It’s the vocal, laden with emotion and totally impassioned that makes this such a beautiful, track together with some equally heartfelt harmonies.
Boogie Fever was The Sylvers’ most successful single, selling over one-million copies and being certified gold. Pounding drums, percussion and a buzzing bass combine to build up the drama. A searing guitar and flamboyant flourish of piano and then the track explodes. The vocal is powerful, with punchy harmonies augmenting it, while strings sweep and swirl. Again, there are similarities with The Jackson 5. Key to the track’s sound and success is the pounding rhythm section, which drives the track along, providing a pulsating heartbeat, while The Sylvers’ showcase their considerable vocal prowess. This they do with aplomb, resulting in an irresistible sounding disco track.
I Can Be For Real was written by Leon F. Sylvers and demonstrates a talented songwriter developing. It’s another slower track, with another understated arrangement. The tender vocal is accompanied by a suitably subtle arrangement. A piano plays an important part in the arrangement, with slow, strings sweeping and the rhythm section playing with a tenderness. Similarly, the rest of The Sylvers add tender harmonies. This is in keeping with rest of the understated arrangement and the addition of a harpsichord works wells.
The final track from Showcase I’ve chosen to mention is Keep On Keepin’ On (Doin’ What You’re Doin’). Again it’s a slower track, with a lovely floaty, spacious arrangement. Olympia takes charge of the vocal, her beautiful vocal reminding me sometimes of Karen Carpenter. She’s accompanied by swathes of strings, the rhythm section, guitars and keyboards, while the harmonies are some of the best on Showcase.
NEW HORIZONS.
New Horizons was the first album The Sylvers produced themselves. Opening New Horizons was the title-track and second single released from New Horizons. From the opening bars, there’s a difference in sound. It’s as if The Sylvers were trying to produce a much more grownup sounding album. The track meanders into being, the arrangement spacious, before taking on a tougher sound. Sizzling, rock-tinged guitars and a punchy rhythm section accompany an impassioned vocal. Layers of strings and soaring harmonies are added, as the arrangement grows. There’s a late sixties influence to the lyrics and arrangement. Later, the tougher sound continues, with blazing horns added. Although this is a quite different sounding track, the change in direction shows a group not just maturing and developing, but growing up.
Dressed To Kill is the perfect example of the change in The Sylvers’ sound. Although there’s a much tougher, harder edge to the track, the track isn’t short of hooks as The Sylvers fuse funk and soul. Again the track has a much more grownup sound. A driving rhythm section, sizzling guitars and piano combine with bursts of punchy, rasping horns. The vocal is impassioned and sassy, with tight and soaring harmonies accompanying it. Not only does this new sound from The Sylvers really works, but demonstrates The Sylvers to be accomplished songwriters and producers.
Straight away, you realize why Any Way You Want Me was chosen as the lead single from New Horizons. A pounding, dramatic rhythm section and bursts of blazing horns accompany the powerful and passionate vocal. The tempo is quick, with lush strings and soaring harmonies added, as the catchiest track on the album unfolds. It’s unavoidable, but comparisons must be drawn with The Jacksons, especially their first album for Philadelphia International Records. Any Way You Want Me has a similar quality to several tracks on that album. This hook-laden Magnus Opus isn’t just the best track on New Horizons, but should’ve been a much bigger commercial success.
Another Day To Love is one of the slow tracks on New Horizons. On Showcase, The Syvlers delivered some beautiful ballads. This is just as good, with percussion, chiming guitars and rhythm section creating an understated, melodic arrangement. The vocal is tender and heartfelt, with equally impassioned harmonies accompanying it. Key to the track’s success are some of the lushest strings on the album. They cascade, adding to the beauty and emotion of vocal and arrangement.
My final choice from New Horizons is You Bring the Sunshine (Back Into My Life). When the track opens, the strings, rhythm section and guitars combine to grab your attention. They give way to the joyous vocal, while handclaps, harmonies and growling horns accompany it. The growling horns, toughen up the track’s sound, and is much more representative of The Sylvers’ new sound. Later, a rasping saxophone solo adds to the drama of the vocal and arrangement, as The Sylvers. It gives way to The Sylvers’ vocals as they joyously combine to bring the track to an uplifting end.
Although I’ve only mentioned five tracks from Showcase and New Horizons, I found both albums showing quite different sides of The Sylvers. On Showcase, the album is a slick and polished fusion of soul, R&B and disco. There’s a youthful sound to some of the tracks, with The Sylvers sounding not unlike The Jackson 5. This sound changes when Olympia takes charge of the lead vocal. She’s responsible for two of the best tracks on Showcase, The Roulette Wheel of Love and Keep On Keepin’ On (Doin’ What You’re Doin’) with its floaty, spacious arrangement. Of the two singles released from Showcase, although Boogie Fever gave The Sylvers the biggest single of their career, selling over one-million copies, Cotton Candy is blessed with a much more catchy, hook-laden sound. It was one of three tracks that Freddie and Tayian Perren cowrote with Kenneth St. Lewis. Only two of the ten track on Showcase was written by The Sylvers. One was I Can Be For Real, written by Leon F. Sylvers. It shows Leon maturing and developing as a songwriter. He’d put his songwriting skills to good use on New Horizons. Overall, Showcase was a slick, polished album where The Sylvers flit from soul, disco and R&B, spraying hooks, melodies and harmonies in their wake. From the opening track you realise just why Showcase was so successful. However, The Sylvers couldn’t keep producing albums of similar sounding music. Instead, they were growing up and maturing. After the release of their next album Something Special, The Sylvers decided to change their sound, seeking New Horizons.
New Horizons is a very different album to Showcase, with the group maturing and developing. They were growing up and maybe, had outlived the sound that featured on Showcase and Something Special. While deciding to produce New Horizons was seen perceived as a gamble by some people, helping them find their own sound was writing their own songs. These songs, plus a different approach to production lead to this much more grownup, mature sound with its tougher edge. Their new sound saw The Sylvers fuse funk, soul and disco across ten tracks. With rasping horns and lush strings aplenty, the sound was still polished, but tougher. While The Sylvers revisited the slick sound of Showcase, they didn’t do this often. Instead, they concentrated in creating their own grownup sound. Sadly, this new sound didn’t find favor with The Sylvers’ fans, with the album not selling in the same quantities as Showcase as Something Special. The fans that overlooked New Horizons missed an album of quality music. Although New Horizons is quite different to Showcase, both albums have one thing in common…the quality of music. To me New Horizons is something of a hidden gem, that deserved to fare bettter commercially. After being unavailable for many years, both Showcase and New Horizons which will be rereleased on 23rd July 2012 by SoulMusic Records. These albums feature some of the best music of The Sylvers’ career, during the most successful period of their career. The Sylvers career at Capitol Records, is best describes as a time when they were able to Showcase their considerable vocal talents, before changing their sound seeking New Horizons, and once again, producing Something Special. Standout Tracks: Cotton Candy, Boogie Fever, Any Way You Want Me and You Bring the Sunshine (Back Into My Life).
THE SYLVERS-SHOWCASE AND NEW HORIZONS.
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SATOSHI FUMI-COLOURS.
SATOSHI FUMI-COLOURS.
The genesis of Satoshi Fumi’s musical career was when he discovered house music in the mid-nineties. It was the house music coming out of Detroit, Chicago and New York that first interested Satoshi. Having discovered dance music, Satoshi embarked upon a life long love of dance music, which lead to a career as a DJ and producer. He started collecting synthesizers and building a home studio. From there, he began making his own music, experimenting with sounds a variety of musical genres. Over time, Satoshi developed his own unique and unmistakable sound, fusing various genres, from techno, Acid House, click, tech house and deep house. Since then, Satoshi Fumi hs become a prolific producer, releasing his debut album Sweet Sensation in 2008. Now four years later, Satoshi Fumi will soon be releasing his second album Colours on pioneering Japanese label Fountain Music on 26th July 2012. However, before I tell you about the music on Colours, I’ll tell you about Satoshi Fumi’s career so far.
Once Satoshi Fumi had built his own studio, he set about experimenting, fusing various genres of electronic music. Into Satoshi’s melting pot went everything from techno, Acid House, click, tech house and deep house. Soon the fruits of labor would pay off. His nascent production career got a big break in 2002 when Washington DC’s dance duo Deep Dish discovered Satoshi Fumi’s track Protlex. Deep Dish released Protlex on their own label Yoshitoshi Records, albeit under the name Satoshi Fume. Later in 2002, Satoshi’s track The Dub Beatlex featured on Desyn Masiello’s Symphonic compilation for DJ Magazine and on Phil K’s Balance 004. 2002 proved to be a big year for Satoshi Fumi. His career was up and running, less than ten years after discovering house music and he’d soon become a prolific producer.
Since then, Satoshi Fumi has released a number of EP, twelve-inch singles and has contributed tracks to a number of compilations. This has included a quartet of EPs. Madness and Thereness EP was released in 2005, with the Treasure EP released in 2006 and his Pod EP following in 2007. The same year, Satoshi and Osamu M. collaborated on an EP entitled Reminiscence. Throughout this period, Satoshi was releasing twelve-inch singles on various labels. A year later, Satoshi Fumi would release his debut album, Sweet Sensation.
Just six years since Deep Dish discovered Satoshi’s track Protlex, Satoshi Fumi would release his debut album Sweet Sensation. Sweet Sensation was released on the Greek label Klik in 2008. It featured nine tracks, where Satoshi combined deep house and tech house. With his debut album Sweet Sensation released, it wouldn’t be long before Satoshi Fumi released another album, this time a collaboration with Osamu M.
Two years after Satoshi Funi and Osamu M collaborated on their Reminiscence EP, they’d release an album. This was Outerspace, release in June 2009, ten tracks of house music, ranging from minimal to tech house. Having released two albums in the space of two years, it would be another three years before Satoshi Fumi would release another album.
Now four years after the release of Sweet Sensation, Satoshi Fumi’s second solo album Colours will sound be released on Fountain Music. Colours feature eleven tracks where fusing various genres, from techno, Acid House, click, tech house and deep house. These tracks are variously sensual, melodic, dramatic bold wistful, melancholy and beautiful, as you’ll see when I tell you about the music on Colours.
Colours opens with Applism, where marauding pounding beats and percussion combine before stabs of dark, dramatic synths enter. You get the sense that Satoshi is toying with you, building up the tension and drama. This proves to be the case, when melodic synths and rhythm patterns unfold. By now there’s a real teach house sound developing. Layers of synths and drums create a sound that’s almost hypnotic, but hugely catchy. Later, addition of squelchy Acid House synths sees Satoshi pay homage to the early days of house, as he continues to mesmerize with his creativity and inventiveness, using each of the Colours in his musical palette.
Beautiful Life sees Satoshi combine darkness and light, while fusing a variety of musical genres. During the track, you hear elements of tech house, techno and even an ambient sound, provided by the airy synths. As the track opens, there’s a darkness which gradually recedes. Pounding drums reverberate, before Satoshi introduces another set of drums that give the track a techno sound and feel. Then when Satoshi introduces light, melodic synths, they add a bright, joyous sound. Having discovered this synth sound, Satoshi wisely exploits it fully. Along with galloping beats, percussion and stabs of keyboards, the result is a track where darkness and light meets and melts, as Satoshi mixes elements of tech house, techno and ambient music.
Fuji has a very different sound to the previous two tracks. From the opening beats, you hear a different side to Satoshi, one that’s really soulful and sensuous. While the drums sound different, it’s the introduction of retro, ambient sounding synths that give the track a very different sound. Then when a sensuous sounding saxophone enters, the track takes on a soulful house sound. This results in something you’d expect to hear on a Naked Music compilation. Truly, it’s absolutely irresistible. Not only is Fuji soulful and sensual, but it’s blessed with a real summery, feel-good sound.
Light and Breez sees the reintroduction of the ambient sounding synths. They meander elegantly along, their glacial sound unfolding in waves. The introduction of pounding drums, hissing hi-hats and percussion adds a new dimension. It sees the track head in the direction of ambient house. Dreamy synths are combined with stabs of a piano that’s influenced by Italian piano house. Meanwhile, drums drive the track along. By now, you’re spellbound, by the ethereal sound of the track. Things get even better when the drums are dropped out. Subtle swathes of synths and a crystalline piano combine during a breakdown, as Satoshi builds the beautiful, arrangement back up, resulting in one of the best Colours on the album.
Metropolitan is a track with more than a few surprises in store for the listener. When the track opens, it’s with crunchy drumbeats and percussion combining, before a prolonged stab of synths is added. So far, no surprises have been sprung by Satoshi, with the sound more deep than tech house. It’s only when an acoustic guitar is added while wave upon wave of synths unfold, that you realize something is happening. Then as a piano is added to the guitar that the track takes on a jazzy house sound. As jazzy house and deep house combine the result is melodic, elegant and quite beautiful.
It’s just keyboards that you hear when Myth You unveils its wistful sound. Drums provide a gentle heartbeat, while lush strings add to the track’s melancholy beauty. You lose yourself in the track, allowing it to tug at your heartstrings and toy with your emotions. Wistful, melancholy and bewitching, this track is all this and much, much more.
After the wistfulness of Myth You, Nacht Musique is the polar opposite of the previous track. Thunderous drums, flourishes of dramatic keyboards and swathes of synths power the track along, like a journey on an express train. Adding a contrast to the boldness and power are tinkling, melodic keyboards. Hissing hi-hats join the mix, as this explosive track powers along, trailing drama in its midst. By the end of the journey, you’re spent, exhausted, by the sheer thunderous power and drama of the music.
Not only is the drum sound on each of the tracks on Colours different, but Satoshi introduces something imaginative and inventive during each track. Pizzi Katze is no different. It’s a track made up of layers of contrasting sounds. Drums pound and crack, before swathes of haunting, fragile synths offer a contrast. They meander along, their ambient sound providing a contrast to the boldness of drums. Occasional bursts of percussion, stabs of piano and the lushest of strings add further contrasts, as Satoshi combines elements of Italian piano house, jazzy house and deep house seamlessly. In doing so, he demonstrate’s just how imaginative, inventive and innovative a producer he truly is.
Thundering drums boom, testing the tolerance of your speakers as Signal gets underway. Stabs of synths and percussion are added, as one of the boldest sounding tracks on Colours unfolds. The combination of the beats and synths are hypnotic. Later, squelchy Acid House synths are unleashed, as Satoshi pays homage to the pioneers of house. Although this isn’t Acid House, it’s a Tech House Magnus Opus, one that’s bold, dramatic and thunderous.
Closing Colours is Su My Lee, a track that’s broody and moody from the get-go. There’s a dramatic undertone, with drums, dark piano and the saddest of strings combining. Here, classical strings are mixed with slow, spacey drums that have a real retro sound. These drums are like something an early drum machine would produce. They’re really effective though, adding to emotive sound. Then Satoshi moves from broody and moody to wistful and melancholy seamlessly, adding an elegant, but pensive piano solo. This results in pensive, ambient soundscape, that’s although moody and broody, is wistful, melancholy and bewitching.
Although there’s been a gap of four years between Satoshi Fumi’s debut album Sweet Sensation and the followup Colours, it’s been well worth the wait. The eleven tracks prove just how imaginative, inventive and innovative a producer Satoshi Fumi truly is. On Colours, the latest release from pioneering Japanese label Fountain Music, Satoshi journeys through a variety of musical genres, including Acid House, ambient music and deep house, before visiting jazzy house tech house and techno. It’s a compelling musical journey, with each track blessed with its own unique sound. This ranges from bold and dramatic, moody and broody, right through light and melodic and even encompassing wistful, melancholy and beautiful. That’s how wide the range of Colours in Satoshi Fumi’s musical palette is. Satoshi uses his musical palette well, creating an accomplished musical canvas, where layers of sounds are merged majestically, resulting in one of the most inventive, innovative and imaginative house albums I’ve heard for a long time. Standout Tracks: Light and Breez, Metropolitan, Myth You and Su My Lee.
SATOSHI FUMI-COLOURS.
DISCO RECHARGE: VOYAGE-VOYAGE.
DISCO RECHARGE: VOYAGE-VOYAGE.
When Harmless Records launched their new label Disco Recharge back in June 2012, the new label’s first release was Voyage’s eponymous debut album Voyage. Released in 1978, this sees Voyage embark upon a worldwide whistle-top tour, where they pay homage to various styles of music. Their whistle-top tour ends in America, the spiritual home of disco. Voyage close their debut album with Lady America, a glorious slice of classic disco. Although Voyage pay homage to the world’s music, they manage do so in just seven tracks. These seven tracks that comprise Voyage would become a Euro Disco classic. However, the first volume of Disco Recharge, Voyage’s Voyage, there was much more to the album than seven tracks. Disco Recharge is a double album, where Mr. Pinks and everyone at Harmless Records dug deep, way deep. On Disc One, there are nine bonus instrumental tracks, while Disc Two has sixteen bonus tracks. For disco lovers everywhere, then Harmless Records new label Disco Recharge was Disco Heaven 127, especially given Voyage’s debut album is a Euro Disco classic, which I’ll now tell you about.
When Marc Chantereau, Pierre-Alain Dahan and Slim Pezin started collaborating on Voyage’s debut album Voyage, they hit upon a theme for the album. This theme saw Voyage pay homage to the various musical style of the various regions of the world. The idea was Voyage jumped on a jet, and in true jet-setting style, made a whistle-top tour of the world, before returning the disco’s spiritual home America. With the idea in place, Marc Chantereau, Pierre-Alain Dahan and Slim Pezin cowrote seven tracks.
With the seven tracks that became Voyage written, Voyage set about recording the seven tracks. Marc Chantereau, Pierre-Alain Dahan and Slim Pezin would arrange the seven tracks, with Roger Tokarz producing the album. Many of the instruments on Voyage were played by the trio of Marc Chantereau, Pierre-Alain Dahan and Slim Pezin. They brought in a variety of other musicians to play the more specialized instruments like fiddles and bagpipes, which gave the album’s its authentic “world” sound. One women was vital to Voyage’s sound and success…Sylvia Mason. She added her crystalline vocals, with the backing vocalists the Birds of Paris accompanying her. Among the Birds of Paris were Madeline Bell, Kay Garner, Sue Glover, Stephanie De Sykes and Vicki Brown, some of whom had sung on albums by Cerrone and Don Ray. With such talented personnel having collaborated on Voyage, surely the album would become a huge commercial success, especially since disco was at its commercial peak?
On the release of Voyage’s debut album Voyage in 1978, it reached number forty in the US Billboard Charts and number fifty-seven in the US R&B Charts. Voyage fared even better in the US Disco Charts, reaching number one. One of the singles from Voyage, From East To West reached number eighty-five in the US R&B Charts. Over in the UK, East To West reached number fifteen in the UK charts. It seemed that not only had Voyage embarked upon a whistle-top tour of the world, but were sitting on top of the world, after the success of their debut album Voyage. However, why was Voyage so successful? That’s what I’ll tell you after I’ve told you about the music on Voyage?
Voyage’s jet-setting journey begins as they head From East To West. For a minute, Voyage’s pounding rhythm section, guitars and keyboards and combine, creating a dark, dramatic sound, which unfolds in waves, The drama builds and builds, but soon, things change drastically. From the darkness comes light. Layers of keyboards, wah-wah guitars and percussion create a joyous, melodic slice of disco. Lush strings are added, as you’re transported to Disco Heaven. Just when you think things can’t get any better, Sylvia Mason’s beautiful vocal enters, with bursts of punchy horns and handclaps accompanying her. Later during a breakdown, Voyage take a detour into dramatic funk. You get the sense they’re building the drama up. That’s the case, with Sylvia and the Birds of Paris floating atop the lush strings while horns serenade her. Although this is just the opening leg of Voyage, this will prove to be the most memorable Voyage you’ve experienced.
Point Zero sees Voyage touch down in the hot, humidity of the African jungle. The track is like something from a Cameroon saxophonist and vibes player Manu Dibango’s seventies albums. Interestingly, when Manu settled in Paris, Voyage guitarist Slim Pezin played on several of Manu’s album. Maybe this is where the inspiration for Voyage fusion of funk with Afrobeat emanates from. Here, Voyage mix spiritual chants, rich in glorious rhythms, with rolls of dramatic drums and swathes of percussion augment the chants. While they provide an authentic Afrobeat sound, sizzling, searing guitars add a contrast. However, it’s the irresistible Afrobeat arrangement that has you spellbound and mesmerized majestically,
From the heart of Africa, we’re aboard the Orient Express, with Voyage in the driver’s seat. They combine Asian and Japanese music seamlessly. It’s a compelling combination, with percussion, synths, cascading string and drums combining. Just as you’re enjoying this fusion of musical melodies, Voyage throw a curveball. Rock-tinged guitars enter, with the West meeting East. The guitars strut across the arrangement, giving way to the strings that dance gracefully and elegantly. Meanwhile whistles, percussion and pounding drums combine as the rocky guitars and strings toy for your attention, Western and Eastern influences and music combine to create a track that’s both elegant and dramatic.
As someone born in Scotland, I’ve always thought that the bagpipes were just a bit twee, a bit one-dimensional. Many people think that, but after hearing Scotch Machine, you’ll change your mind. Why? Well, you’ll hear bagpipes played in a way that you’ve never heard before, playe with swing to a disco beat. Before that piano, wah-wah guitars and a driving rhythm section combine. Swathes of synths resonate above the arrangement as Voyage create a blistering, funky arrangement, complete with pulsating disco beat. Then Voyage throw another curveball, the bagpipes enter swinging along. Thankfully, the bagpipes are used sparingly as Voyage fuse funk with a pulsating disco beat.
When Voyage arriving in Bayou Village it’s not to a disco but a square dance. Fiddles and drums combine at breakneck speed, while whoops and hollers aplenty encourage Voyage to sample another, very different type of dance. Disco it isn’t, bit regardless of that, Voyage enjoy the party atmosphere.
With only two legs of Voyage left, Voyage embark upon a Latin Odyssey. It’s an arrangement with two different sounds and sides. While percussion and drums provide an authentic Latin heartbeat, sizzling guitars, sweeping, swirling strings, a punchy rhythm section and blazing horns provide a flamboyant, dramatic side, full of flourishes. As the two merge, the results is compelling and irresistible. The longer the track progresses, the more the flamboyance, flourishes and drama grows. It’s truly impossible to keep still, it’s music for the heart and the feet.
As Voyage’s Voyage ends, we head for the spiritual home of disco America, meeting Lady America, the First Lady of Disco. It’s as if Voyage was building up to this track, heading to the home of disco music. Pounding drums and piano combine before a male vocal enters, accompanied by the Birds of Paris’ tight harmonies. They coo “America” as if giving thanks at the altar of disco. Bursts of punchy blazing horns punctuate the arrangement, as the rhythm section and piano take turns at driving the arrangement along. Later, percussion and vibes enters, taking their reference point from the Philly Sound and percussionist Larry Washington and vibes supremo Vince Montana. So good is this part of the Voyage that you hope it’ll never end. Sadly, after seven minutes your whistle-top tour of of the regions of the world is over, but what a place to finish your Voyage in the spiritual home of disco…America.
Although Voyage’s Voyage was only a seven stop whistle-stop tour, where they pay homage to various styles of music, there’s much more than that on the first installment of Disco Recharge. Apart from the seven tracks that comprise Voyage, Disc One of the double album features nine instrumental tracks, which are a combination of Voyage’s first two albums Voyage and Fly Away. Among the highlights of these nine tracks are the instrumental versions of Souvenirs, From East To West and Latin Odyssey. As if that’s not enough of a bonus, Disc Two features eleven single and twelve-inch versions, plus various remixes. The Special Extended version of From East To West the original twelve-inch version of Lady America are two of the many highlights of these tracks. Added to this are two tracks Voyage recorded as V.I.P. Connection, Please Love Me Again and West Coast Drive. Both the original single and twelve-inch versions feature here and are a very welcome addition and bonus. These twenty-four extra tracks extend Voyage’s Voyage making it more akin to a Grand Tour of old, albeit with a pulsating disco beat. Harmless Records and Mr. Pinks deserve credit for unearthing Voyage’s classic disco album once again. It’ll prove a very welcome addition to many disco lover’s collection. So whether you’re rediscovering again, or discovering Voyage’s Voyage for the first time, enjoy the journey. Standout Tracks: From East To West, Orient Express, Latin Odyssey and Lady America.
DISCO RECHARGE: VOYAGE-VOYAGE.
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WAH WAH WATSON-ELEMENTARY.
WAH WAH WATSON-ELEMENTARY.
Whenever I listen to music, one thing I always do is look at which musicians play on an album. One man whose played on more sessions than the average musician has had gigs, is the one and only Wah Wah Watson, virtuoso guitarist and a man who weaves that unmistakable wah wah guitar sound. If I was to try to list the albums Wah Wah has played on, then I’d still be writing his list of credits later this week. These include The Temptations, Marvin Gaye, Quincy Jones, Rose Royce, The Beach Boys, Eric Clapton and Rose Royce. As I say, these are just a snapshot of artists Wah Wah’s accompanied. He’s been the go-to-guy for jazz, soul and funk artists since 1970. However, there’s much more to Wah Wah Watson than just a session guitarist. He was a member of Motown’s famous studio band The Funk Brothers, worked with every major Motown producer and is a songwriter and producer. While I’m reeling of remarkable facts about the master of the wah-wah pedal, I’ll give you one more fact about Wah Wah Watson. Twenty-six years ago in 1976, Wah Wah Watson released his only solo album Elementary, which will be released by BBR Records on 30th July 2012. For anyone wondering about the title Elementary, just check out the album cover to Elementary. There’s Wah Wah complete with Sherlock Holmes deerstalker hat and puffing furiously at a pipe. No you’ll realize, to misquote Sherlock Holmes it’s Elementary my dear Wah Wah Watson. One thing you’re probably wondering though, why was Elementary Wah Wah Watson’s only album? That’s what I’ll tell you now.
How Wah Wah went from session musician came after he worked on Herbie Hancock’s 1975 album Man-Child. Wah Wah played on Herbie Hancock’s 1975 album Man-Child, forging a musical partnership that would see Herbie play on Herbie’s 1979 album Feets Don’t Fail Me Now and his two 1980 albums Mr Hands and Monster. Once the Man-Child was recorded, Bruce Lundvall president of CBS heard Herbie Hancock’s band live, with Wah Wah Watson weaving his wah-wah guitar and was astounded, totally blown away. There was Wah Wah with a bank of pedals, speakers and tubes surrounding him, all of which brought about this unique and unmistakable sound. Bruce realized hehad to sign Wah Wah Watson. After all, the guy was an innovator, totally way ahead of the musical curve. Soon, Wah Wah Watson was signed to CBS, with work ready to start on his debut album. For a musician like Wah Wah Watson, an experienced songwriter, musician and producer, this would be Elementary.
For his debut album Wah Wah Watson wrote three tracks, using his real name Melvin Ragin. The other seven tracks he wrote with various songwriting partners. This included writing two tracks Love My Blues Away and Love Ain’t Something (That You Get For Free) with Ray Parker Jr, who’d play guitar on the album. Dave Gruisin cowrote I’ll Get By Without You with Wah Wah. Herbie Hancock would cowrite Bubbles with Wah Wah. These tracks, plus five other tracks would be recorded with some of Wah Wah’s heavyweight musician friends joining him.
To produce what would become Elementary Wah Wah drafted in David Rubinson and Friends Inc. Recording sessions took place at several studios, in Los Angeles, including Village Recorders and Quad Tech. Wally Heider Recording studios in Los Angeles and San Francisco were used, as were Funky Features in San Francisco. In these studios, the all-star band would record. Herbie Hancock would join Wah Wah for the record sessions, while Ray Parker Jr played guitar, Joe Sample played piano and Sonnie Burke keyboards. The brass section included tenor saxophonist Ernie Watts and soprano saxophonist, while a rhythm section of drummer Ollie Brown and bassist Louis Johnson provided the album’s heartbeat. Wah Wah played guitar, while demonstrating his innovative side playing synths, Echoplex and a multitude of innovative instruments. Soon, the ten tracks that became Elementary were recorded. All that was left was for the Elementary to be released later in 1976.
On the release of Elementary in September 1976, the album sold poorly and failed to trouble the US charts. The same month Goo Goo Wah Wah was released as a single in the US, and again, failed to chart. A month later, in October 1976 Love Ain’t Something (That You Get For Free) was released as a single in the UK. Again, it failed to chart. Maybe the problem was that Wah Wah Watson’s debut album Elementary was far too ahead of its time, and record buyers would need to grow into his innovative, imaginative sound. Was that the case. That’s what I’ll decide, once I’ve told you about the music on Wah Wah Watson’s debut album Elementary.
Goo Goo Wah Wah opens Elementary, with Wah Wah’s unmistakable guitar drenched in echo, dancing its way across the arrangement, with the rhythm section, hissing hi-hats and keyboards for company. The sound is big, bold and dramatic with Wah Wah using the Voice Bag to good effect. His crack team of musicians combine with Wah-Wah as he innovates, not just with guitar, but with his effects. He fuses jazz, funk and even elements of rock, for six minutes, slowly and dramatically trailing the words “boogie, boogie, boogie using his Voice Bag.” In doing so, he innovates in such a way, that’s totally unique and absolutely compelling.
Love My Blues Away has a much straight forward sound, with bursts of subtle horns, accompanying the rhythm section as Wah Wah delivers a tender vocal. The tempo is slow, the band playing in such a way that matches the drama and hurt in the lyrics. They don’t overpower the tenderness of the vocal, with backing vocalists subtly accompanying Wah Wah. Later, after just two minutes, a blazing, emotive horn solo is unleashed by Ernie Watts, which is key to the song’s success. Lush strings are added, while the rhythm section grow the arrangement, which unfolds in waves. Similarly, Wah Wah’s vocal grows in power and pain, resulting in the best track on the album.
Cry Baby sees the rhythm section take charge of the track, before Wah Wah, accompanied by a jaunty piano delivers the vocal through the Voice Bag. This is effective, with the broody, dramatic rhythm section, keyboards and guitar enveloping his vocal. Although Sonny Burke’s piano playing plays an important part, it’s the rhythm section and of course the unmistakable sound of one and only Wah Wah Watson weaving his magic through the track that’s at the heart of the track’s inventive, innovative sound.
From the inventive, innovative sound of Cry Baby, My Love Comes and Goes sees the introduction of the legendary backing vocalists The Walters Family. Their cooing, tender vocals are accompanied by keyboards, growling horns and lush strings while the rhythm section provide the track’s beautiful heartbeat. Wah Wah’s heartfelt vocal demonstrates just how good a vocal he is. He’s foregone the trickery of the previous track, his guitar playing more straight ahead. This results in a heart achingly beautiful track, that you’ll never, ever tire of. That I can promise you.
The unique sound of Wah Wah’s guitar opens the blistering Together (Whatever). It’s complete with gospel-tinged vocals from The Walters Family. With Wah Wah and his band creating a backdrop where funk and jazz combine, this is an intriguing combination. Punchy backing vocals accompany Wah Wah’s guitar which helps drive the track along, as The Walters Family add glorious testifying vocals. Again, Sonny Burke’s keyboards are at the heart of everything that’s good. He helps drive the track along, playing his part, before a sizzling, blazing horn adds the icing on this irresistible musical cake.
Elementary is a bit like Forest Gump’s box of chocolates, “you never know what you’ll get next.” Unlike Forest’s box of chocolates, there’s no chocolates that remain uneaten in Wah Wah’s box of delights. When Sunset Boulevard opens, you wonder where Wah Wah wah-wah guitar is heading. Then his backing band provide a jaunty backdrop with the piano, rhythm section and horns combining. Meanwhile The Walter Family add some tight harmonies, their vocal exploding dramatically. Lush strings are added, while Wah Wah’s vocal is accompanied by an arrangement that sometimes, heads in the direction of jazz. Swathes of strings and backing vocalists add to the track’s drama and beauty. By the end of the track, you’re left with a feeling of contentment, at the track’s uplifting, feel-good sound.
It’s just drums and hissing hi-hats that open Love Ain’t Something (That You Get For Free), before Wah Wah weaves his wah guitar. Then his vocal enters, full of hurt and sadness, while The Walters Family add soaring, dramatic backing vocals. As the vocal drops out, the rhythm section, keyboards and Wah Wah’s guitar take charge. Meanwhile, strings cascade adding to the emotion and hurt in Wah Wah’s vocal. However, when Wah Wah and The Walters Family combine, this is a perfect combination. So good are the backing vocals, this seems to lift the band, as they lift their game even higher. The result is one of the most soulful, emotive and dramatic offerings from Wah Wah Watson on Elementary.
I’ll Get By Without You is a slow track, one that usually, the arranger would have a sound that’s sad, filled with emotion and heartache. Maybe this would be strings, even a haunting saxophone solo or piano. They wouldn’t usually add a wah-wah guitar. This is what happens here, but at the start, it’s played with subtlety, while Wah Wah’s vocal is filled with heartache and hurt. A piano, subtle rhythm section and strings combine with The Walters Family heartfelt vocals. Later, Wah Wah’s guitar grows in power, but neither overpowering, nor sounding out of place. Instead, it plays its part this in what is a soulful song about love gone wrong, but with a twist.
Bubbles is an apt description for the track, with its slow, floaty sound, where Wah Wah’s guitar resonates, disappearing wistfully into the ether. He’s accompanied by the rhythm section, who play slowly, while Herbie Hancock adds electric piano. The arrangement meanders along, with Wah Wah’s wah-wah guitar augmented by a dreamy sounding guitar that provides a contrast. Keyboards, percussion and Herbie on piano provide the track’s laid-back jazzy sound that you lose yourself into. Its sound beckons, drawing you in. You don’t hesitate, you succumb, losing yourself for just over three mellow minutes.
Closing Elementary is Good Friends which has a quite different sound from the previous track. The album was released in 1976, at the height of disco’s popularity, so Wah Wah decides to close Elementary with a disco track. You’re swept along atop a combination of beautiful vocals from The Walters Family, Wah Wah’s guitar and a rhythm section, complete with buzzing bass. Lush strings and Wah Wah’s heartfelt vocal and woodwind all enter, adding to the slick, polished disco-esque sound. The vocals, strings and rhythms are perfect for this dance-floor track, which floats elegantly and beautifully along, bringing Elementary to a surprising, but very satisfying end.
Having wondered whether Wah Wah Watson’s debut and only solo album Elementary was was far too ahead of its time, I think that was definitely the case. Listening to Elementary, what I found was an innovative, imaginative album, where Wah Wah Watson fusea funk, soul, jazz, disco and even a touch of rock. Wah Wah moves seamlessly and comfortably between musical genres. One minute he’s at home funking it up on Goo Goo Wah Wah, before heading down a very different road on the ballad Love My Blues Away. From there, Cry Baby sees Wah Wah the innovator, unleashing his box of tricks, wah-wahing his way through the track using his Voice Bag. My Love Comes and Goes sees Wah Wah Watson balladeer enter, and this isn’t the last time. Love Ain’t Something (That You Get For Free) and I’ll Get By Without You see the reappearance of Wah Wah Watson balladeer. Then on Together (Whatever), Wah Wah up the ante, accompanied by gospel-tinged vocals from The Walters Family. Bubbles sees Wah Wah enter a mellow mood, with Herbie Hancock playing electric piano. Nothing however, prepares you for the sublime Good Friends, a disco floater that closes Elementary. You’re swept along by lush strings, The Walters Family’s beautiful vocals and of course a crack rhythm section. However, it’s ironic that it’s Good Friends a disco track that closes Elementary, because the album was released at the height of disco’s popularity. That another reason record buyers weren’t buying albums like Elementary. Basically, Elementary was released at the wrong time. Its innovative, imaginative sound was years ahead of its time and released when disco was King. Even with its nod to disco Good Friends, Elementary which will be released by BBR Records on 30th July 2012 remains a hidden gem of an album that awaits unearthed by music lovers. Maybe if it had been released in a different time, Wah Wah Watson would’ve been a superstar. So take my advice, introduce all your Good Friends to Wah Wah Watson, a multitalented singer, songwriter, musician and producer one his only album Elementary. Standout Tracks: Love My Blues Away, My Love Comes and Goes, ove Ain’t Something (That You Get For Free) and Good Friends.
WAH WAH WATSON-ELEMENTARY.
MY SALSOUL SELECTED AND MIXED BY DANNY KRIVIT.
MY SALSOUL SELECTED AND MIXED BY DANNY KRIVIT.
Regular readers of this blog will have noticed that recently, I’ve been writing various articles on Salsoul Records. This has included Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology, Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983 and John Morales-The M&M Mixes which features previously unreleased Salsoul remixes. Many people will be wondering why I’ve decided to focus on Sasoul? Obviously, regular readers will know that along with Philadelphia International Records, Salsoul is one of my favorite labels. However, I’m not writing about Salsoul because it’s one of my favorite labels. Not at all. The reason is that recently, Christmas has come early for lovers of Salsoul. Two labels have announced they’d be rereleasing Salsoul’s back-catalogue. In the UK, BBR Records will be releasing albums by The Salsoul Orchestra, First Choice, Instant Funk and Double Exposure. This should give Salsoul fans something to look forward to. As if that’s not enough, in the US, Ultra Records will be undertaking a digital rerelease of Salsoul’s back-catalogue. So, for fans of Salsoul who can’t wait until then, I’ve decided to write several articles about some of the best Salsoul compilations I’ve come across. Having bought most of the ones released, I’ve separated the good, the bad and ugly, to save you having to do so. Recently, I’ve written about two of the best DJs and remixers ever in Walter Gibbons and John Morales, plus Larry Levan another talented and high-profile DJ and remixer. The next DJ whose Salsoul compilation I’ve chosen to review is Danny Krivit’s My Salsoul Selected and Mixed By Danny Krivit which I’ll now tell you about.
Released in 2003 on Suss’d Records, My Salsoul Selected and Mixed By Danny Krivit features fourteen tracks. Among the tracks are tracks from Double Exposure, The Salsoul Orchestra, First Choice, Instant Funk, Inner Life, Candido and the unisputed Queen of Salsoul Loleatta Holloway. These tracks are a mixture of remixes, twelve inch singles and in the case of First Choice’s Let No Man Put Asunder, a medley of remixes by Frankie Knuckles, Walter Gibbons and Sheb Pettibone, which are then edited by Danny. Edits are something which have played an important role in Danny Krivit’s career. Danny Krivit is famous for his innovative, inventive and imaginative reedits. For any young person thinking of trying to forge a career as a DJ and producer, Danny Krivit should be a role model. owever, for anyone wanting to learn to make an edit, here’s how Danny Krivit started his career,
It was thirty years ago in 1982, Danny Krivit first reedited tracks. This was long before the software packages that are used nowadays. Instead, he’d have to rely on cutting up reel-to-reel tape and patiently, splicing it back together. This was time consuming, laborious work. Like many DJs of that time, these reedits were for using during their sets, not designed for being released commercially. Eventually, Danny was approached by a record company who wanted to release some of these reedits. When these were released on TD Records, Danny decided to use the pseudonym Mr K for the release of the reedits. Two of the tracks were The Chi-Lites’ My First Mistake and the Philly Soul classic from the Philadelphia All Stars’ Let’s Clean Up the Ghetto. Little did Danny know prior to their release, that very soon, these reedits would attain legendary status. However, reedits would play a big part in Danny’s DJ career.
After this, Danny found himself DJ-ing at New York’s Roxy indoor roller skating arena and it was there that Danny decided to try mash-ups. Here, he’d reedit a track and combine two tracks that worked well. This would later influence hip hop DJs and went down well at venues like the legendary Paradise Garage and Roxy. Like his earlier reedits, Danny chose to reedit and mash-up hidden gems and forgotten classics, exposing them to a new, appreciative and much wider audience. Since then, Danny has gone on to reedit numerous tracks, during his long and successful career as a DJ. For anyone wanting to hear some of Danny’s legendary and best edits, then I can recommend two compilations on Strut Records Danny Krivit’s Edits By Mr K and Edits By Mr K-Volume 2: Music of the Earth. Both compilations feature a master craftsman at work, Danny Krivit.
Now Danny Krivit as most people know is also one of the best DJs in the world today and on My Salsoul Selected and Mixed By Danny Krivit, Danny’s mixing is flawless and peerless. Again, for a young DJ listen and learn. If you use Danny as a role model and can become even half as good as him, then you’ll have a successful career. Another thing Danny Krivit is blessed with is impeccable taste in music. On My Salsoul Selected and Mixed By Danny Krivit he picks fourteen Salsoul classics, of which I’ll now pick the creme de la creme.
Opening My Salsoul Selected and Mixed By Danny Krivit, Danny throughs a curveball straight off. The track that opens his mix is Joe Claussell’s Acapella Remix of Everyman. This was a track from their 1976 album Ten Per Cent, arranged and produced by Norman Harris of the Baker, Harris, Young rhythm section. Just as you start to revel in the powerful, impassioned vocal accompanied by tight, soulful harmonies and percussion, the track’s over. Danny teases you with one minute of the track, before the mix explodes into life.
The explosion is caused by The Salsoul Orchestra’s track twelve inch mix of Getaway. This is a track from their 1977 album Magic Journey, arranged by vibes virtuoso Vince Montana. The track literally bursts into life, with blazing horns, rhythm section, sizzling guitars and a proliferation of percussion. Here, The Salsoul Orchestra are at their very best, fusing funk, soul, jazz, Latin and disco seamlessly. Blazing horns and lush swirling, sweeping strings courtesy of Don Renaldo help power the track along. Earl Young’s drumming is powerful, providing the track’s heartbeat, while Bobby Eli, and T.J. Tindall unleash sizzling, rock-tinged guitar solos. From the opening bars to the closing notes, you’re spellbound, as The Salsoul Orchestra fuses genres seamlessly and peerlessly, and in the process provide a track that’s a dance-floor filler and classic.
Two tracks after the Saloul Orchestra explode into life Danny teases the listener again. He throws in a stonewall classic Instant Funk’s I Got My Mind Made Up. This was a track from their 1979 album Instant Funk. It was Instant Funk’s second album of 1979, and was produced by Bunny Sigler. Sadly, the You Can Get It Girl) (Beat) is only a tantalizing thirty-seconds long. Having said that, it whets your appetite nicely, resulting in you digging out the original, and reveling in seven minutes of Salsoul bliss.
Later in the mix comes another Salsoul classic, one of the creme de la creme. Inner Life’s Moment of My Life was released on Salsoul Records in 1982. The version Danny Krivit introduces is his edit of Shep Pettibone Remix. This was a track from Inner Life’s third and final album for Salsoul Inner Life II. Arranged by Leroy Burgess, who co-produced the track with Greg Carmichael, it features a stunning, diva-esque vocal, full emotion and passion, delivered with power. This is delivered against a backdrop of crunchy drumbeats, percussion, keyboards and the funkiest of bass line, while gospel tinged backing vocalists augment the lead vocal. The tempo is 114 beats per minute and like so many of the Salsoul releases, is just a quality slice of disco, with elements of funk and soul featuring in Leroy’s fantastic arrangement.
Having referred to Inner Life’s Moment of My Life as a classic, Danny trumps this with a track from the undisputed Queen of Salsoul Loleatta Holloway, where she was transformed from Southern Soul singer to disco diva. One of her greatest tracks in Dreamin,’ a stonewall disco classic. Here she demonstrates just what it took to be a true disco diva. Dreamin’ was a track from Loleatta, her third album, released in 1976, on Salsoul. The song was released in March 1976, and produced by Baker, Harris, Young. Danny chooses a mix where the original track is mixed an acapella version during the second half of the track. In its original form, this track would become a true disco classic. Loleatta delivers a sassy vocal, before vamping her way through the track. With the Salsoul Orchestra accompanying her, everything is in place for a seminal track. Sweeping, swirling strings, Earl Young’s peerless drumming, percussion, Ron Harris’ bass and then Norman Baker’s guitar give way to Loleatta’s impassioned, sassy vocal. From there, Loleatta gives a masterclass of a vocal, accompanied by soulful backing vocalists. Add to that Vince Montana Jr.’s vibes playing and blazing horns that punctuate the track adding drama, and you’ve the recipe for one of the greatest disco tracks of the seventies.
First Choice released their debut album Armed and Extremely Dangerous on Philly Grove Records in 1973. By 1977, they were signed to Norman Harris’ Gold Mind Records and released their fourth album Delusions. It featured two of their classic tracks, Dr. Love and this track Let No Man Put Asunder, both produced by Baker, Harris, Young. Rochelle Fleming’s lead vocal is a sassy vamp, from a true disco diva. The interplay between Rochelle’s and her backing vocalists helps build up the drama and emotion of the track. This she does against a backdrop where the rhythm section, percussion and keyboards combine. For eight minutes Rochelle teases and tantalises with her peerless, sassy vocal as Danny’s edited medlry takes in mixes by three great remixers Frankie Knuckles, Walter Gibbons, & Shep Pettibone Remix’s. So good is Danny’s medley, it’s nearly worth buying the album just to hear it.
The Salsoul Orchestra feature three times on My Salsoul Selected and Mixed By Danny Krivit. 212 North 12th was a track from their 1979 album Street Sense, mixed by Tom Moulton. A powerful, dramatic, diva-esque vocal, drenched in delay opens the track. It’s accompanied by blazing horns, pounding rhythm section, guitars percussion and stabs of keyboards. Backing vocalists and swathes of the lushest strings are added, as the Salsoul Orchestra combine their unmistakable combination of soul, funk and disco. They sprinkle hooks aplenty, while Earl Young and the rest of his rhythm section provide a pounding, dance-floor friendly track, mixed by the Godfather and inventor of the remix and twelve inch single. With personnel like this involved in making the track, it’s no wonder it’s a genuine Salsoul classic.
My final choice from My Salsoul Selected and Mixed By Danny Krivit is Ripple’s The Beat Goes On, with Danny choosing the Jim Burgess 12″ Mix. The track is from Ripple’s only Salsoul album Son of the Gods and produced by Floyd Smith. A combination of Latin percussion, pounding rhythm section, melodic keyboards and the lushest of strings combine brilliantly. Then things get even better when a soaring, emotive female vocal enters. She’s accompanied by backing vocalists, while swathes of strings, percussion and the tight, pounding rhythm section combine with braying horns. It’s a glorious sound, with an uplifting, feel-good sound where Ripple provide you with “sweet music” as The Beat Goes On. So good is the track, that it’s one of the highlights of My Salsoul Selected and Mixed By Danny Krivit.
My Salsoul Selected and Mixed By Danny Krivit proves that Danny Krivit is a world-class DJ, capable of producing some innovative and imaginative edits of tracks. A case in point is reedit of First Choice’s Let No Man Put Asunder, a medley of remixes by Frankie Knuckles, Walter Gibbons and Sheb Pettibone, which Danny transforms seamlessly into a medley. So good is that one track, it’s almost worth buying My Salsoul Selected and Mixed By Danny Krivit to hear it. However, there’s much more to My Salsoul Selected and Mixed By Danny Krivit than one track. During the compilation, Danny’s mixing is flawless, totally peerless. To me, he’s one of the major league DJs, up there with John Morales et al. Not only that, but Danny Krivit’s one of the best re-editors and remixers. For any young DJ, Danny is a DJ to use as a role model. He’s paid his dues over the years, learning the art of DJ-ing, plus taught himself to edit and remix tracks. When he learnt to edit a track, it was strictly old-school, cutting up reel-to-reel tape and patiently, splicing it back together. Now Danny’s progressed to the major league, remixing tracks for some of the biggest artists in music and playing at the world’s biggest nightclubs. Danny’s also embraced technology, adding VJ-ing to his CV. Unlike other DJs who cling to memories and refuse to embrace technology, Danny Krivit has embraced and mastered technology, using it as another string to his bow. For anyone whose not heard Danny Krivit live, then My Salsoul Selected and Mixed By Danny Krivit is the next best thing. Then to hear his editing skills, stop by your local record shop and pick up Edits By Mr K and Edits By Mr K-Volume 2: Music of the Earth. Both compilations feature a true master at work. Obviously, there are many other Danny Krivit compilations out there, but stick to Edits By Mr K, Edits By Mr K-Volume 2: Music of the Earth and My Salsoul Selected and Mixed By Danny Krivit and you’ll realize why Danny Krivit has enjoyed such longevity and become one of the true giants of DJ-ing, editing and remixing. Standout Tracks: The Salsoul Orchestra Getaway, Inner Life Moment of My Life, First Choice Let No Man Put Asunder and Loleatta Hollway Dreamin.’
MY SALSOUL SELECTED AND MIXED BY DANNY KRIVIT.
MYSTIC MERLIN-MYSTIC MERLIN.
MYSTIC MERLIN-MYSTIC MERLIN.
Many times, I’ve mentioned how when you’re crate digging in a record shop, desperate for something new to listen to, but finding nothing inspirational, you’ve got to think laterally. One thing I, and many other people I know do, is look for an album cover that stands out. Ideally, you’re looking for something very different, maybe something totally leftfield. Whether it’s something almost psychedelic, striking or downright wacky, then sometimes, you’ll unearth a real hidden treasure. Conversely, the opposite can happen. I’m one of these people that likes to buy a couple of albums a week at least. I remember one time, having searched the usual record stores, I’d found nothing of interest. I was getting quite desperate, needing to feed my need for new music. Then I saw it, an album cover that fitted the bill. The cover was really striking, a mixture of psychedelia, with the members of band dressed in outlandish garb. I’d never heard of the band, but they had a really unusual name. That was even better. Sometimes, a band with an unusual or weird name can prove interesting. Many a hidden gem of an album I’ve found in this way. However, not this time. I took the album home, unwrapped it and played it. What I discovered was an album of excruciatingly unlistenable free jazz, played by a group of musicians who sounded as they’d spent a lifetime smoking twenty jazz cigarettes a day. So my theory fell down that time. Recently, my theory was tested again, when I received Mystic Merlin’s 1980 debut album Mystic Merlin. Here was a group with a great name and a really striking, unusual album cover. Straight away I was intrigued, would my theory of unusual name and album cover equal a hidden gem of an album? Here’s what I found when I listened to Mystic Merlin’s debut album Mystic Merlin, which will be rereleased on 30th July 2012 by BBR Records.
Mystic Merlin were a New York band, formed in the mid-seventies when funk was hugely popular. Bands like Parliament, Funkadelic, Brass Construction, B.T. Express were among the best funk bands of the time. Soon, there would be a new kid on the block, ready to challenge for funk royalty for their crown. However, this was a band with a difference. Formed by bassist and magician Clyde Bullard, guitarist Jerry Anderson, saxophonist and keyboard player Barry Strutt plus drummer Sly Randolph. The name came about because the band used to include magic tricks in their concerts. Chris Bullard was the man with the magic tricks, which gave the band what would now be called a unique selling point. However, with gimmicks like this, sometimes this detracts from the main thing…the music. This wasn’t a new idea, Screaming Jay Hawkins had pioneered this.
Having spent time perfecting their sound in practice studios, Mystic Merlin started playing live. Their combination of funky music and magic tricks drew in a curious audience. Once they heard the music, they were hooked. Soon, the band built up a large, loyal following. Sadly, all wasn’t well behind Mystic Merlin’s magic cloak.
Soon, the group needed a new lead singer. Their original lead singer left the group, so other members would join Mystic Merlin’s Magic Band. Vocalists Betty Brown and Lesley Dorsey who also played keyboards. The final member was Keith Gonzales, vocalist and harmonic player. Now Mystic Merlin’s Magic Band had the lineup that would eventually record their debut album. With their live shows attracting attention from music fans, record companies also started checking the band out, including Capitol Records.
By the time the band attracted the attention of record companies, two things had happened. One was the band shortened their name to Mystic Merlin and were on the verge of splitting up. Thankfully, the record deal happened just at the right time. Once the contract with Capitol was signed, Mystic Merlin were ready to record their debut album which would become Mystic Merlin.
With a sense of detente, the now settled lineup of Mystic Merlin set about recording their debut album. Producing the album was Charles Kipp, who previously, had worked with Gladys Knight and The Pips, David Ruffin, Melba Moore and Aretha Frankin. The members of Mystic Merlin wrote or cowrote seven songs, which they recorded at New York’s Penny Lane Recording Studios. They brought in four session musicians, including keyboard player Richard Turner, percussionist Oseiku, harpist Corky Hale and Gary Valente to play trombone solos on two tracks. With seven tracks recorded where Mystic Merlin fused funk and soul, which Charles Kipp moulded into their debut album Mystic Merlin was ready to be released in April 1980.
Before Mystic Merlin was released in April 1980, Burned To Learn was released as the lead single in March 1980. It failed to chart however, as did the album Mystic Merlin on its release in April 1980. Worse was to come. The album was dropped in the US, meaning no radio play or promotion. May 1980 saw the release of Just Can’t Give You Up. Sadly, it too failed to chart. However, over in the UK, British music fans discovered the delights of Mystic Merlin. Just Can’t Give You Up reached number twenty in the UK in April 1980. Then in July 1980 Got To Make the Best (Of A Bad Situation), which described Mystic Merlin’s situation, also reached number twenty in the UK. With neither single nor their album Mystic Merlin charting, the members of Mystic Merlin must have been downhearted, despairing at the way their nascent career had turned out. One minute their record company were desperate to sign them, the next Capitol dropped them like the proverbial hot brick. One wonders what would’ve happened if Mystic Merlin had been promoted? Would Mystic Merlin have been more successful. However, did Mystic Merlin’s debut album Mystic Merlin deserve to be promoted more? Was Mystic Merlin an album of quality music? That’s what I’ll tell you, once I’ve told you about the music on Mystic Merlin.
Opening Mystic Merlin is the lead single Burned To Learn, written by bassist Clyde Bullard. Straight away, the sound is funky, but with a real twist. A pounding, funky rhythm section is joined by sinister vocals that laugh uncontrollably. They drop out, sizzling rock-tinged guitars joining, before we hear the song’s main course. Its a fusion of funk and soulful vocals. The vocal is shared, changing hands while equally soulful harmonies augment it. Percussion, the rhythm section, wah-wah guitars and keyboards provide the mainstay of the arrangement, while rasping horns and lush strings add a contrast. It’s an intriguing and compelling combination that grabs your attention. Saying it’s catchy is an understatement. Likewise saying it’s funky does the track a disservice. Best just say it’s a sizzling, irresistible track, with mystical properties.
Don’t You Want To Be A Star is an ironic title, given Mystic Merlin wanted to be stars but their record company weren’t seemingly doing their part. It’s a much more soulful track, with the funky sound of the previous track still present. The lead vocal is emotive, powerful and almost frustrated, while the massed harmonies of Mystic Merlin are soulful in the extreme, Sometimes, they’re dramatic, as if emphasizing their hunger. Searing guitars cascade across the arrangement, with a pounding rhythm section adding the track’s funky heartbeat as keyboards and percussion combine. Wah-wah guitars are added as the track his funk overdrive and the vocalists deliver the lyrics with passion and hunger. While the track is much more soulful, Mystic Merlin don’t forget one vital ingredient funk.
Dreams is a much more downtempo, soulful track. Just guitars, slow drums and swathes of lush strings combine, before a lone wistful horn solo signals the arrival of a heartfelt vocal. It’s delivered with a tenderness and sincerity, while the arrangement has a much more understated, soulful sound. The addition of cascading strings is a masterstroke. Later, backing vocalists add dramatic harmonies, while the vocal grows in power. From there, the track is six minutes of beautiful, heartfelt and dramatic soulful music. Of all the tracks on the album, Dreams is a one of the best, a real hidden gem, one that must be unearthed by many more people.
The title of this track is an accurate description of what’ll happen when you hear it. Can’t Stop Dancing (No Matter What I Do) is a track that’s guaranteed to fill a dance-floor. Mystic Merlin provide an infectiously catchy, funky track blessed with a real uplifting, feel-good sound. From the opening bars you’re hooked. Whoop, hollers, handclaps, bursts of horns and a funky rhythm section accompany a joyous vocal from Lesley Dorsey. Chiming guitars, percussion and a harmonica are added, and all work. Tight joyous harmonies play their part in ensuring you’re spellbound and swept away atop the swathes of lush strings. Resistance is absolutely impossible, you loose yourself in the music and Can’t Stop Dancing (No Matter What I Do).
Layers of slow, lush strings are accompanied by bursts of horns and the rhythm section as the Clyde Bullard penned Dark Side of Your Love begins to reveal its beauty. Here, Keith Gonzales takes charge of the lead vocal, as Mystic Merlin reveal their tender, soulful side. Just a piano, strings, rhythm section and harmonica combine with the heartfelt harmonies. Later flourishes of harp are added as Mystic Merlin demonstrate a very different and quite beautiful side of their music, with another of the highlights of Mystic Merlin.
Got To Make the Best (Of A Bad Situation) has more of a funky and dramatic side to the track, with the rhythm section, chiming guitars, keyboards and percussion combining. Then rasping horns punctuate the arrangement, before the impassioned, powerful vocal enters. It’s accompanied by harmonies delivered sharply, as the rhythm section drive the track along, providing a pounding heartbeat. Swathes of strings add a contrast, as does moody, broody half-spoken vocal. It adds drama, before the arrangement rebuilds, building in drama with the impassioned, powerful vocal at the track’s pounding heart.
Closing Mystic Merlin is Just Can’t Give You Up gave Mystic Merlin a number twenty hit single in the UK, but failed to chart in the US. Given the quality of the track, this seems strange. Punchy harmonies, delivered unaccompanied are joined by melodic keyboards, rasping horns, chiming guitars and a pounding rhythm section. They provide the track’s funky heartbeat, although there’s a jazz-funk sound to the arrangement. Tender harmonies and percussion combine with the rasping horn that drifts above the arrangement. Flourishes of piano, sweet swirling strings and chiming, Chic inspired guitars join, before a deep, impassioned vocal. It’s delivered with emotion, and although it works well, the track would’ve worked as well without a lead vocal. Instead, the harmonies drifting in and out would’ve worked as well, if not better, giving the track a Salsoul sound. Having said that, Mystic Merlin have kept one of their most magical tricks to last with Just Can’t Give You Up.
Sometimes, when you listen to an album like Mystic Merlin’s debut album Mystic Merlin, you can’t believe the album was a commercial failure. From the opening track, Mystic Merlin cast a spell over me. Seven times they weaved their wand, and seven times the result was a quality soul and funk music. Not once did I ever consider skipping a track. Instead, I was listening to track two or three times, so much had I enjoyed them. While Mystic Merlin were a talented funk band, they were even better when they revealed their soulful side. The ironically titled Don’t You Want To Be A Star, Dreams and Dark Side of Your Love let us hear the soulful side of Mystic Merlin and these are three of the highlights of the album. Just Can’t Give You Up sees Mystic Merlin fuse soul, funk and jazz funk, with the track having a slight Salsoul sound. If there was no lead vocal, which wasn’t really necessary, given the harmonies worked beautifully, a great track could’ve been much, much better. Of the other three tracks Burned To Learn was the funkiest on Mystic Merlin, while Got To Make the Best (Of A Bad Situation) was funky and dramatic. Can’t Stop Dancing (No Matter What I Do) was a fusion of funk and soul that resulted in a joyous, uplifting dance-floor track with an infectious feel-good sound. Overall, the seven tracks on Mystic Merlin are an absolute hidden gem of an album, which will be rereleased on 30th July 2012 by BBR Records. For anyone who loves soul and funk music, and wants to either discover or even rediscover Mystic Merlin’s debut album Mystic Merlin, then remember to pick up a copy on 30th July 2012 and let then let them weave a spell over you. Of all the reissues available just now, then Mystic Merlin is one not to miss. It also proved my theory about unusual name and album cover equaling a hidden gem of an album. Once you’ve put Mystic Merlin, let the them weave their wand and a cast a music spell over you, then believe me, you’ll find you Can’t Stop Dancing (No Matter What I Do). Standout Tracks: Don’t You Want To Be A Star, Dreams, Dark Side of Your Love and Just Can’t Give You Up.
MYSTIC MERLIN-MYSTIC MERLIN.
ARETHA FRANKLIN-ARETHA.
ARETHA FRANKLIN-ARETHA.
By 1978 and the end of Aretha Franklin’s time at Atlantic Records, her career had stalled, lost direction. She wasn’t enjoying the hits that were a regular feature of her early Atlantic. Granted there were occasional bright spots, with Break It To Me Gently, which although it gave Aretha a US R&B number one single, had very little crossover appeal, reaching a lowly eighty-five in the US R&B Charts. Here 1976 album Sparkle had been certified gold. After that, Aretha’s three albums sold in much smaller quantities. Sweet Passion released in 1977 reached just number forty-nine in the US Billboard 200 and number six in the US R&B Charts. Almighty Fire, released in 1978 proved disappointing, reaching just number sixty-three in the US Billboard 200 and number twelve in the US R&B Charts. This was a long way from albums like Lady Soul, Aretha Now and Young Gifted and Black, which were all certified gold. Worse was to come though. La Diva, Aretha’s 1979 album would be her least successful album since 1964, reaching a number 147 in the Billboard 200 and number twenty-five in the US R&B Charts. Having had seven number one albums in the US R&B Charts, this must have been a huge disappointment for Aretha. What was needed was a new start. Clive Davis head of Arista Records was a man who could make this happen, transforming Aretha’s career to the heights she’d enjoyed during the early years of his career. So, Aretha left Atlantic Records, her home since 1967, signing for Arista in June 1980. Four months later, in October 1980, Aretha released her first album for Arista Aretha, which will be rereleased on July 30th 2012 by BBR Records. Would Aretha see Aretha Franklin’s career get back on track?
Now signed to Clive Davis’ Arista Records, work started on rejuvenating Aretha Franklin’s career. This would be very different from the disco-tinged La Diva, produced by Van McCoy. To help relaunch Aretha’s career, two producers were hired Arif Mardin and a man who’d wanted to work with Aretha for over a decade Chuck Jackson. Arif Mardin had an impressive track record, producing Aretha’s 1974 album Everything I Feel In Me, plus producing The Bee Gees’ Main Course and albums by Bette Midler, Carly Simon, The Average White Band and another soul diva Chaka Khan. While Chuck Jackson hadn’t such an impressive production resume, he was a talented songwriter and experienced producer. With the producers in place, all they needed were some songs to record.
Nine tracks were chosen for what would become Aretha. Chuck Jackson cowrote United Together with Phil Perry, while the pair cowrote Together Again with Aretha, who wrote School Days. Mark Gray wrote What It Is, while there were several cover versions on Aretha. One of these was Can’t Turn You Loose written by Otis Redding. Another was a cover of the Doobie Brothers’ What A Fool Believes, written by Kenny Loggins and Michael McDonald. These tracks would be recorded at The Record Plant in New York.
Accompanying Aretha were a band that included a number of high profile musicians and backing vocalists. This included drummer Jeff Porcaro, bassist Louis Johnson, guitarists Steve Williams and Steve Lukather. David Paich played organ, while trumpeter Michael Brecker, trombonist Barry Rogers trombone and baritone saxophonist Lew Delgatto were part of a horn section. Added to this were a string section plus backing vocalists Cissy Houston, Estelle Brown, Myrna Smith and Hamish Stuart. All these musicians and backing vocalists played their part in the recording of the nine tracks that became Aretha. Would Aretha manage to rejuvenate Aretha Franklin’s career?
On the release of Aretha on October 1980, the album reached number forty-seven in the US Billboard 200 and number six in the US R&B Charts. This was Aretha’s most successful album since 1976s Sparkle. United Together was the first single released in November 1980, reaching number fifty-six in the US Billboard 100 and number three in the US R&B Charts. What A Fool Believes was released in February 1981, reaching number seventeen in the US R&B Charts. Come To Me was the final single released from Aretha, reaching number eighty-four in the US Billboard 100 and number thirty-nine in the US R&B Charts. Over the Atlantic in the UK, What A Fool Believes reached number forty-six in the UK in November 1980, giving Aretha her first top fifty single since Until You Come Back To Me (That’s What I’m Gonna Do). I Can’t Turn You Loose was released in UK in February 1981, but failed to chart. Overall, Aretha had rejuvenated Aretha’s career, but why was that? That’s what I’ll tell you when I tell you about the music on Aretha.
I always think that it’s important that the opening track on an album makes an impact. Although Come To Me is a slow ballad, it features a heartfelt vocal from Aretha. A piano plays, before synths and percussion join, with the rhythm section adding to the track’s drama. Their entrance signals Aretha’s vocal growing in power and emotion. She’s accompanied by the rhythm section, lush strings, percussion and piano, while soulful backing vocalists augment her powerful, passionate vocal. The longer the track progresses, the better it gets, especially Aretha’s vocal. This resulting in the desired impact and momentum any album needs with its opening track, keeping the listener interested and wanting to hear much more.
On Can’t Turn You Loose, Aretha rolls back the years to her Atlantic years, delivering a blistering vocal. The tempo is quick, with the rhythm section, sizzling guitars, percussion and keyboards and accompany by punchy horns. Aretha’s vocal is powerful, laden with emotion and passion, while gospel-tinged backing vocalists accompany her. It’s a storming start to Aretha, with Aretha relishing working with Arif Mardin and such a talented band.
United Together is an intriguing track. Swathes of strings cascade, drums and percussion give the track a big, bold sound, before things settle and Aretha’s tender, heartfelt vocal is accompanied by a slow rhythm section, layers of sweeping strings, piano and guitars. Tender backing vocalists compliment Aretha’s vocal, as does the understated arrangement. Gradually, the arrangement builds up, with Aretha’s voice growing in strength, while strings cascade and the rhythm section add bursts of drama. Key to the track are the arrangement, with the strings and backing vocalists playing important roles in the track’s sound and success.
Take Me With You has a much more contemporary sound, allowing Aretha to deliver her vocal with confidence and a little sass. The arrangement has a bigger sound, which when you listen carefully, is influenced by the Philly Sound. Blazing horns, percussion, keyboards and the rhythm section combine, creating a swinging backdrop for Aretha. Her vocal is strong, confident and sassy. She literally struts her way through the track, backing vocalists adding tight harmonies. Of all the tracks on Aretha, this has the catchiest, hook-laden sound. It’s literally impossible to resist its charms and delights. Why it was only the B-side of United Together seems a missed opportunity.
Like Take Me With You, Chuck Jackson produced Whatever It Is. It’s the polar opposite of Like Take Me With You. The arrangement is much more understated as the track opens, with just a piano accompanying Aretha’s tender vocal. Then Chuck adds rasping horns, the rhythm section and lush strings. To this he adds percussion and keyboards combine, as the track grows in power, becoming much bolder. Good as the track is, and it’s a great track, maybe more tracks like the previous track, would’ve attracted a new audience to Aretha’s music. However, it would take two more years before Luther Vandross achieved this.
What A Fool Believes, originally recorded by The Doobie Brothers is one of these tracks you either like or loath. I’ve never been a fan of music like that. It’s far too AOR. However, with Aretha singing the track, I’ll wipe the slate clean, give her a fair chance. Aretha grabs the track by the scruff of the neck, shaking it out of its AOR stupor. Instead, she injects some much needed soul, delivering the vocal in a way the song comes alive. Her band play their part, injecting a mixture of soul and funk. Keyboards, keyboards, percussion and guitars are combined, with the song sounding looser, delivered with a swing. By the end of the track, I find myself enjoying Aretha’s version, especially with the funky bass-line that dances across the arrangement with a blazing horn, with Aretha’s version is the best I’ve heard.
Producer Chuck Jackson, Phil Perry and Aretha cowrote Together Again, where Aretha turns back time, demonstrating why she was called the Queen of Soul. Aretha arranged the track, with its gospel tinged backing vocalists, lush strings and punchy, rasping horns that accompany her vocal. That vocal is one of the best on Aretha. It’s vintage Aretha. She fuses power, passion and emotion, with joy, sounding as if she’s enjoying herself, has been reinvigorated. The use of top-class backing vocalists like Cissy Houston really helps the track, their experience transforming a great song into one of the highlights of Aretha.
An almost jaunty, jazzy piano solo opens Love Me Forever, before it’s all change. The rhythm section, guitars and gospel-tinged backing vocalists enter. Blazing horns work well, as do the piano which is key to the arrangement. When rocky guitars make a brief entrance, they seem out of place. Then when blazing horns enter, it’s almost as if they’re trying to overpower the guitars. Thankfully, the guitars drop out, allowing Aretha and her backing vocalists to testify. This they do brilliantly, and with her band help the track to swing gloriously along, as Aretha revisits her gospel roots, albeit with a twist.
Closing Aretha is School Days, written by Aretha herself. It’s just Aretha’s thoughtful vocal accompanied by an understated arrangement comprising just piano and punchy backing vocalists. Then all of a sudden, the track explodes. Aretha’s determined to close the album on a high. Blazing horns, a driving rhythm section, piano and percussion accompany Aretha. Her vocal is powerful and joyous, while backing vocalists and swirling strings accompany her as the track reveals it secrets at breakneck speed. Just as I said the track that opens an album needs to make its mark and grab your attention, the track that closes an album should leave you wanting more. School Days leaves you wanting to hear much more of Aretha Franklin on Aretha.
It seems that the change of record label was just the shot in the arm Aretha Franklin’s career needed. Her career had stalled at Atlantic Records, some people might say stagnated. At Arista, Clive Davis arranged for Arif Mardin and Chuck Jackson to produce Aretha. This can be risky, as different producers have different styles. Using two producers can often result in what sounds more like two mini albums. Not here. Aretha flows along, with a mixture of ballads and uptempo tracks. These tracks see Aretha deliver soul, sometimes tinged with gospel, while other tracks are much more dance-floor friendly. Aretha was just the first step in the rejuvenation of Aretha Franklin’s career. After this came 1981s Love All the Hurt Way then 1982s Jump To It, which was certified gold. Jump To It was produced by Luther Vandrosss, who also produced 1983s Get It Right. Then Aretha’s next two albums were certified gold and platinum. Who’s Zooming Who, released in 1985 was certified platinum, while 1986s Aretha was certified gold. However, Aretha, which will be rereleased on July 30th 2012 by BBR Records was the album that relaunched what was an Indian Summer for Aretha Franklin’s career. For fans of Aretha Franklin, then Aretha, Jump To It and Get It Right are the best albums of this Indian Summer that Aretha Franklin enjoyed. Standout Tracks: Come To Me, Can’t Turn Me Loose, Take Me With You and Love Me Forever.
ARETHA FRANKLIN-ARETHA.
CHERYL LYNN-INSTANT LOVE.
CHERYL LYNN-INSTANT LOVE.
When Cheryl Lynn released her eponymous debut album Cheryl Lynn, it contained a single that since then, has become synonymous with Cheryl, Got To Be Real. It reached number one in the US R&B Charts, while her debut album was certified gold. Since then, Got To Be Real has become a disco classic. However, there’s much more to Cheryl’s career than just one song. After this, Cheryl released eight further albums between 1978 and 1989. While Cheryl Lynn reached number twenty-three in the US Billboard 100 and number five in the US R&B Charts in 1978, her next two albums weren’t as successful. Her second album In Love, released in 1979, reached number 167 in the US Billboard 100 and number forty-seven in the US R&B Charts. Two years later, in 1981, In the Night reached number 104 in the US Billboard 100 and number fourteen in the US R&B Charts. For Cheryl’s fourth album Instant Love, which will be rereleased on 30th July 2012 by BBR Records, Luther Vandross was drafted in by Columbia Records to produce the album. Could Luther Vandross, then an up-and-coming producer change Cheryl Lynn’s fortunes on Instant Love?
While Cheryl Lynn had released three albums since 1978, she’d worked with three separate producers. David and Marty Paich had produced Cheryl’s debut album Cheryl Lynn, while Barry Blue produced In Love and Ray Parker Jr, had produced In the Night. This meant there was no continuity, as every producer had their own way of working and sometimes, their own sound. Different producers used different arrangers and musicians. Luther Vandross was no different. By 1982, Luther Vandross had established a reputation as a singer, songwriter and producer. He also had his own tried and trusted team of arrangers, musicians backing vocalists, who he call upon on Instant love.
Luther’s team for the recording of Instant Love, included a number of people he’d worked with before on other projects, including two Aretha Franklin albums Jump To It and Get It Right. This included Marcus Miller and Nat Adderley, Jr. Luther and Marcus would cowrite two tracks on Instant Love, the title-track Instant Love and Sleep Walkin.’ Marcus would also arranged these two tracks with Luther, while playing bass and synths on Instant Love. Nat Adderley, Jr would arrange the other six tracks plus played keyboards and piano. Paul Riser another of Luther’s trusted team, arranged the strings and horns. Joining Luther’s team were percussionists Paulinho Da Costa and Earl “Crusher” Bennet and guitarist Steve Love. Backing vocalists Fonzi Thornton and Michelle Cobbs from Luther’s days singing backing vocals with Chic were among the backing vocalists that would feature on Instant Love when it was recorded.
The eight tracks that would become Instant Love were recorded at New York’s Media Sound Studios and Los Angeles’ Village Recorders. This included Day After Day written by backing vocalist Tawatha Agee and Say You’ll Be Mine which she cowrote. Ashford and Simpson contributed Believe In Me, while Cheryl and Luther sang a duet on Marvin Gaye’s If This World Were Mine. Cheryl cowrote just one track on Instant Love, I Just Wanna Be Your Fantasy. These tracks, plus the two Luther and Marcus cowrote were recorded by Luther’s band and backing vocalists accompanying Cheryl. However, would Instant Love see an upturn in Cheryl Lynn’s fortunes?
Instant Love was chosen as the first single from the album, and was released in May 1982. It reached number 105 in the US Billboard 100 and number sixteen in the US R&B Charts. When Instant Love was released a month later in June 1982, it reached number 133 in the US Billboard 200 and number seven in the US R&B Charts. Although Instant Love didn’t fare as well in the US Billboard 200, it nearly matched the success of Cheryl’s debut album in the US R&B Charts. Things improved with the release of the Marvin Gaye penned If This World Were Mine in August 1982, which reached number 101 in the US Billboard 100 and number four in the US R&B Charts. This became Cheryl’s most successful US R&B single since Got To Be Real. Look Before You Leap was the third and final single released from Instant Love, reaching number seventy-seven in the US R&B Charts in December 1982. Overall, Instant Love had seen an upturn in Cheryl Lynn’s fortunes. However, what does Instant Love sound like? That’s what I’ll now tell you.
Opening Instant Love is the title-track and lead single from the album Instant Love. Written by Luther Vandross and Marcus Miller, whose pounding and synths play an important part in the track’s sound along with Nat Adderley Jr’s keyboards. The arrangement mixes soul and funk, while the synths and keyboards add an eighties electronic sound. When Cheryl’s vocal enters, it’s strong and fiery, delivered with equal amounts of passion, emotion and sass. Punchy, soaring backing vocalists match Cheryl’s vocal for drama. Meanwhile the keyboards, synths and rhythm section provide a backdrop that veers between drama and a joyous sound. This means the arrangement is in perfect synch with the vocal, which has Cheryl’s trademark sound and soulfulness. It’s no wonder this track was chosen as the lead single from Instant Love, as it’s one of the highlights of the album.
By the early eighties, Luther Vandross was in his prime as a songwriter, and Sleep Walkin’ demonstrates this. Chery’s vocal is laden with confidence as she struts into the track, with the rhythm section, guitars and percussion accompanying her. Tight, soaring backing vocalists enter, adding to the energy of the track. Soon, Cheryl’s vocal is more considered and thoughtful, displaying a tenderness.The arrangement takes on a similar understated sound, meandering along with keyboards, funky bass and chiming guitars combining. Later, Cheryl finds her earlier sassiness, feeding off the bursts of soulful backing vocalists. From there, the track veers between its two sides, with Cheryl teasing and tantalizing the listener. Why a track as good as this wasn’t released as a single seems amazing.
On Day After Day written by Tawatha Agee, a very different, but soulful side of Cheryl Lynn is introduced. Here, Cheryl delivers a beautiful ballad, her voice tender but impassioned and emotive. Key to the track’s sound and success are lush, cascading strings arranged by Paul Riser. They’re augmented by Nat Adderley Jr keyboards and percussion, while Steve Ferrone’s drum’s provide the track’s slow, beautiful heartbeat.
Look Before You Leap sees Cheryl up the tempo, delivering the track with confidence, strutting her way through the track. Her vocal is stronger and sassier, accompanied by a dance-floor friendly arrangement. The rhythm section, with Marcus Miller’s bass at its heart combines with guitars, keyboard and synths providing a backdrop that swings along. Meanwhile, Cheryl sounds as if she’s having a ball. Her vocal’s a mixture of power, passion and poise. As she struts her way through the lyrics, she and her band trail hooks aplenty in her wake.
Marcus Miller’s unmistakable bass opens Say You’ll Be Mine, another uptempo track. While Marcus and the rest of the rhythm section provide a funky, dance-floor friendly backdrop, Cheryl’s soulful vocal is accompanied by swathes of strings. Cheryl powerful vocal is accompanied by backing vocals, which Cheryl contributes. With the lushest of strings dancings, percussion and breathy backing vocals accompanying Cheryl, she delivers a vocal that’s impassioned and powerful. Not only that, but she demonstrates that whether ballads or dance-floor friendly tracks, Cheryl Lynn can deliver them just as well.
I Wanna Be Your Fantasy is the only track on Instant Love that Cheryl cowrote. Her breathy, sensuous vocal is accompanied by a funky rhythm section, chiming guitars and light, elegant percussion from Paulinho Da Costa. Providing a contrast are occasional dark synths and keyboards. Tender backing vocalists accompany Cheryl, complimenting her vocal and sit well with the rest of the arrangement from Nat Adderley and Luther Vandross. They provide the perfect backdrop for Cheryl’s breathy, sensual vocal, with the use of percussion from Paulinho Da Costa an absolute masterstroke.
Ashford and Simpson were one of the best songwriting partnerships of the last fifty years, writing many classic tracks. Believe In Me is one of their tracks, with a quite beautiful, understated arrangement accompanying Cheryl’s impassioned and emotive vocal. It’s just piano and lush strings that accompany her vocal. It isn’t every vocalist who can successfully deliver a vocal against such an understated arrangement, but here, Cheryl does so beautifully, showing us another, very different side to Cheryl Lynn.
Closing Instant Love is Marvin Gaye penned If This World Were Mine, where Cheryl sings a duet with Luther Vandross. This gave Cheryl her most successful US R&B single since Got To Be Real. Luther’s vocal opens the track, with just Marcus Miller’s bass, percussion and keyboards accompanying his heartfelt vocal. Guitars and the rhythm section enter, playing subtly. When Cheryl’s vocal enters, it’s tender and heartfelt, with swathes of strings accompanying her. Soon, you’re spellbound, spellbound at the beauty of the arrangement and their heartfelt vocals. Their vocals sit well together, one complimenting the other. The finishing touch is Luther and Nat Adderley’s beautiful, understated and lush sounding arrangement. This is the perfect way to close Instant Love.
Instant Love is quite an unusual album. The reason for this is that there isn’t a bad track on the album. This is unusual on any album. Usually, there’s always one track that doesn’t quite work. Not here. From the title-track Instant Love penned by Luther Vandross and Marcus Miller, who also cowrote Sleep Walkin,’ the quality keeps on coming through the next six tracks, right up to If This World Were Mine, written by Marvin Gaye. These six tracks are a combination of ballads and dance-floor friendly tracks. On each track, Cheryl’s vocals range from tender to powerful, with each track delivered with a mixture of emotion and passion. Cheryl brings out the subtleties and nuances of the lyrics, sometimes, leaving you absolutely spellbound. She’s accompanied by a band featuring some of the most talented musicians Luther Vandross knew. While they played an important part in the Instant Love’s success, the backing vocalists played just as important a part, if not more. They fed of Cheryl, while she fed of them, adding to the energy and drama of the music. All this makes Instant Love the best album Cheryl Lynn released since her debut album Cheryl Lynn. Although her two previous albums In Love and In the Night were good albums, Instant Love surpasses them. Key to this was Luther Vandross’ production skills, plus Marcus Miller and Nat Adderley Jr’s arrangements. Luther’s production style was slick and polished, much like the The Chic Organization who he’d learned so much from, during his time singing backing vocals for Chic. During this time, Luther Vandross was one of the best producers around, responsible for producing some really successful albums, including Aretha Franklin’s Jump To It. To this list, add Cheryl Lynn’s Instant Love, which will be rereleased on 30th July 2012 by BBR Records. To me, Cheryl Lynn and Luther Vandross were the perfect fit. After Barry Blue and Ray Parker Jr, Cheryl had found the producer she’d been looking for. This spurred Cheryl on to greater heights of soulfulness. That’s why there isn’t a bad track on Instant Love and why the album proved more popular than her two previous albums In Love and In the Night. Standout Tracks: Instant Love, Sleep Walkin,’ Day After Day and Believe In Me.
CHERYL LYNN-INSTANT LOVE.
JOHN MORALES-THE M & M MIXES.
JOHN MORALES-THE M&M MIXES.
Over the past few months, I’ve reviewed a number of compilations of remixes from some of the best and highest profile remixers in the history of disco. Recently, I’ve reviewed Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology and Larry Levan-The Definitve Salsoul Remixes 1978, while previously, I reviewed Philadelphia Classics-The Tom Moulton Remixes, to name but three. These three remixers, Walter Gibbons, Larry Levan and the Godfather and inventor of the remix and twelve inch single Tom Moulton are a trio of the most talented remixers in the history of modern dance music. To this trio, I add one other name, John Morales who was responsible for one of my favorite compilations of 2011, John Morales-The M&M Mixes Volume 2 on BBE Music, which I reviewed some time ago. Two years previously in 2009, John released his first volume of remixes John Morales-The M&M Mixes on BBE Music. Like Volume Two, John Morales-The M&M Mixes is a double-album, featuring nineteen remixes, including previously unreleased Salsoul remixes. Now given John’s track record of being responsible for some of the best Salsoul remixes and that I was a huge Salsoul fan, buying this album back in 2009 was a slam dunk. What could be better? Here was one of the pioneers of modern dance music, a remixer who was innovative and imaginative releasing a double album, with these unreleased Salsoul remixes an added bonus. For anyone whose yet to discover John Morales-The M&M Mixes, here’s what I found.
John Morales’ love of music started at an early age, working in an after-school job at a local record shop. He was only about twelve at the time, with the record shop paying him in singles. By fourteen, John formed a band, the F Band. They played gigs at local high schools, but nothing became of the F Band. However, even then, John knew that he wanted to make music a career. Then his collection of singles, which he’d started when working in the record shop lead to a career in music.
When John started DJ-ing in 1975, he played first at small clubs and bars in his native Bronx. Then when the rollerskating craze started in the early eighties, John started working at the Bruckner Roller Dome. From there he played at other rollerskating venues, before heading into New York, where he’d DJ at various bars and clubs. Soon he was playing the Limelight, Pippins and Studio 54. With Sergio Munzibai, John opened a club, with 1018 becoming M&M. However, during that period, John had established another career which ran parallel with his DJ-ing career.
This other career was working at New York’s WBLS radio station, where Frankie Crocker, was musical director. John was responsible for the midday and weekend mixes. These mixes required John to teach himself to reedit tracks. He had to make them longer, because the records were far too short. To do this, John bought a Sony reel-to reel tape recorder. At home, he taught himself to edit tracks, splicing the tape up, rejoining it, lengthening breaks and making them much more dance-floor friendly. Remember there were no Apple Mac’s running Logic, ProTools or Ableton Live. This was an example of John was learning his craft, something many modern producers no longer do. However, John Morales, like Tom Moulton learnt his trade and next step would see John as one of the best remixers of the mid-seventies and early eighties.
Soon, John Morales and Sergio Munzibai launched one of the most fruitful and prolific remixing partnerships in dance music history. After their first remix, they decided that each of their remixes would feature the M&M name. John says his first credited remix was Inner Life’s Caught Up, although before that, he’d undertaken a number of remixes. Ironically, on Caught Up, his first credited remix, John’s name was spelt wrongly. Since then, they’ve undertaken literally hundreds of remixes, all featuring the M &M logo. Of all the remixes John’s undertaken, his Salsoul remixes are some of his best known.
After meeting Patrick Adams and Greg Carmichael, John Morales became their favorite remixer for their Salsoul work. The Patrick Adams and Greg Carmichael’s production team’s partnership with John Morales at Salsoul Records proved to be a fruitful one. It’s not just Greg and Patrick’s Salsoul recordings John remixed, he also remixed non-Salsoul acts like Universal Robot Band. However, it was for his remixes of Greg and Patrick’s Salsoul recordings John became best known for. This saw John remix tracks by Inner Life, Logg, Aurra, Sky, Funk Deluxe and Instant Funk. Several of John Salsoul remixes feature on Disc Two of John Morales-The M&M Mixes, including previously unreleased remixes. Remixing such high-profile tracks helped John’s career no end. It helped him become one of the most successful, busiest and highest profile remixers of eighties and early nineties. By 1989 John and Sergio ended their remixing partnership. Then in 1993, illness had a huge impact upon John’s career.
Sadly, John became ill in 1993, with the illness lasting a decade that meant time away from the recording studio. However, this gave him the opportunity to test learn the musical software that would soon dominate the music industry. During this period, John tested what would become Cubase for Atari Computers. In some ways, this must have given John an advantage over other producers for his return the recording studio. Since his return to the studio, John has been even busier than ever, remixing some of the highest profile names in dance music. He’s now spent forty years as a DJ and remixer. During that time, John has becomoe one of the most respected DJs and remixers, respected by everyone within dance music. On John Morales The M&M Mixes nineteen of John’s mixes feature on two discs, which I’ll now tell you about.
DISC ONE.
On Disc One of John Morales The M&M Mixes there are ten underground New York disco anthems, including five tracks from men who’d play a big part in John’s remixing career. Two tracks are from Universal Robot Band produced by Greg Carmichael, while Bumblebee United were produced by Greg Michael and Patrick Adams. Greg and Patrick would also produce many tracks for Salsoul, with John their favored remixer. La-Rita Gaskin was another Greg Carmichael produced track. Class Action featuring Chris Wiltshire was written by James Calloway and Leroy Burgess, with whom John would work at Salsoul. Among the other tracks on Disc One are Ronnie, Dyson, Julia and Company and Cubie Burke. Most of the tracks on Disc One were remixed in the early eighties. However, what are the highlights of Disc One of John Morales The M&M Mixes?
My first choice from John Morales The M&M Mixes is Class Action featuring Chris Wiltshire’s Weekend. This is the JM After-Session M&M Mix which was remixed in December 1982. The track was released in 1983 on Sleeping Bag Records and written by James Calloway and Leroy Burgess, while Bob and Lola Blank produced the track. Punchy, soulful and sassy backing vocalists beckon your attention. With voices like that, you can’t ignore them. They’re joined by pounding drumbeats, before swathes and stabs of synths are joined percussion. Soon you’re hooked, smitten by the track’s delights. Chris’ diva-esque vocal vamps and struts its way through the track, while the beats, synths, keyboards and percussion provide a backdrop that combines disco with eighties synths and a soulful vocal from Chris. Although nearly thirty-years old, the track still retains a contemporary sound.
Ronnie Dyson’s All Over Your Face was a track from his 1983 album Brand New Day. Written by Norman Ingram, Butch Ingram arranged and produced the track. Here, the JM After-Session M&M Mix, remixed in May 1983 is chosen. Straight away, you realize how good and underrated a vocalist Ronnie Dyson was. His vocal is emotive, impassioned and powerful. He’s accompanied by Latin percussion, while the rhythm section are augmented by layers of synths. Barbara Ingram, one of the Sweethearts of Sigma adds backing vocals. Later, a prolonged synths solo adds to the track’s drama and impact. When Ronnie’s vocal reenters, he delivers it with the confidence of someone like Teddy Pendergrass. The remix transforms the original track, turning it into a dance-floor epic that’s irresistible and laden with hooks.
Julia & Company released Breakin’ Down (Sugar Samba) in 1983, on the District of Columbia label. It’s a track John remixed in March 1984. His JM After-Session M&M Mix opens with crunchy drumbeats, percussion and synths combining with handclaps. When stabs of keyboards, a sultry lone and Julia’s vocal enters with swathes of strings cascading, you’re spellbound. Truly, Julia makes the song swing. From there, things get even better. Julia’s vocal grows in power and passion, while bursts of horns and backing vocalists take the track to new heights. Key to the track is Julia’s vocal, with the strings, percussion, keyboards and horns providing an arrangement where soul, disco, jazz and Latin music are fused. Together they create a track that’s enchanting and captivating.
The version of La-Rita Gaskin’s Never Can Say Goodbye that appears on John Morales The M&M Mixes is a Demo Version. Why a track this good was never released, seems incredible. Her vocal is one of the best on Disc One, strong, laden with emotion and passion. La-Rita just struts her way through the track, delivering her vocal forcefully, not unlike Loleatta Holloway in her prime. Blazing horns, a pounding rhythm section, percussion, handclaps and backing vocalists accompany her. While La-Rita’s vocal is outstanding, so is the band’s performance and the production. Mind you, with Greg Carmichael producing the track and Peter Jacques of The Peter Jacques Band the engineer, it’s no surprising this track is as good as it is. For me, this is a real hidden gem, one of the highlights of the compilation.
Barely Breaking Even by the Universal Robot Band is another Greg Carmichael production, released in 1982 on Moonglow Records. This track was remixed back in November 1981. It’s very different to Never Can Say Goodbye, when the track opens, with an almost space-age sound combining with boogie. Percussion, pounding beats and peels of bells combine, before a funky bass-line enters. The bass races ahead, while the rest of the arrangement meanders along. It’s a compelling combination, with surprises aplenty revealed during nearly thirteen minutes. Synths, a dramatic keyboard solo and vocoder combine before an impassioned, joyous vocal enters. Gospel-tinged backing vocalists and guitars are added, as the track starts to unfold. You’re taken on an action packed, joyful musical journey, where surprises are sprung by John Morales and Sergio Munzibai.
Disc One of John Morales The M&M Mixes sees ten of John’s early eighties mixes, with five of them tracks written, arranged or produced Greg Michael, Patrick Adams and Leroy Burgess. These three men played an important part in John’s remixing career, especially their productions for Salsoul Records. However, there’s more to Disc One than these five tracks. Of the other five tracks, the tracks from Ronnie Dyson, Julia and Company and La-Rita Gaskin are of the highest quality. Why La-Rita Gaskin’s Never Can Say Goodbye wasn’t commercially released is astounding, given how good a track it is. Like Julia and Company, the success of La-Rita Gaskin’s track is the vocal, which is sassy and struts its way above the arrangement. While many people might not have heard several tracks on Disc One of John Morales The M&M Mixes, they don’t know what they’re missing. These tracks are of the standard you’d expect from a release baring the M&M logo. Will that be the case on Disc Two of John Morales The M&M Mixes where we hear the delights of John’s Salsoul remixes?
DISC TWO.
Unlike Disc One, Disc Two of John Morales The M&M Mixes is given over to nine of John’s unreleased Salsoul releases. On Disc Two, there are remixes from Inner Life, First Choice, Logg, Skyy, Funk Deluxe and Instant Funk. During a period of his career, John became synonymous with Salsoul Records, being the chosen remixer of Patrick Adams and Greg Carmichael. John also remixed several of Leroy Burgess’ releases, including Logg, who have three tracks on Disc Two. Many of the tracks are late-period Salsoul, very different from the early Salsoul sound. Several of these tracks feature a much more electronic sound than say, Loleatta Holloway, Double Exposure and The Salsoul Orchestra featuring the Baker, Harris, Young rhythm section, vibes supremo Vince Montana and Don Renaldo’s swirling strings and horns. How will this affect the tracks on Disc Two of John Morales The M&M Mixes?
Like so many Salsoul releases, Inner Life’s Ain’t No Mountain High Enough, a track from their 1981 album Inner Life, has a real timeless sound. It’s hard to believe that it was originally released back in August 1981. This timeless sounding arrangement is combined and a stunning vocal from Jocelyn Brown. Her vocal is diva-esque, as she delivers Ashford and Simpson’s lyrics. Produced by Patrick Adams and Greg Carmichael, the version chosen is the JM 4AM Mix. It’s a track that after a subtle, hesitant start, where drums, percussion and then Jocelyn’s vocal combine. Then the track literally bursts into life. Drums pound, strings swirl, percussion, keyboards and chiming guitars combine before Jocelyn’s powerful, emotive vocal enters. After that, the track just gets so much better. Handclaps and bursts of backing vocalists join the arrangement, combining power and drama and gives the track its uplifting, joyous and energetic sound.
From one of the highlights of John Morales The M&M Mixes comes another, First Choice’s Happy Love Affair. This was a track from First Choice’s final Salsoul album Breakaway, released in 1980. John remixed the track in December 1982, with the JM After-Session M&M Mix the result. Here he has a great track to begin with, with Rochelle Fleming’s vocal a mixture of tenderness, power and passion. She’s accompanied by tight, punchy soaring harmonies, while Don Renaldo’s strings sweep and swirl and his punchy horns rasp. As usual, the track’s driven along by the Salsoul rhythm section, with Bobby Eli adding guitar. Keyboards add drama, as percussion is sprinkled throughout the arrangement. However, it’s Rochelle, Debbie Martin and Annette Guest’s vocals that are key to the track’s sound, along with Don Renaldo’s Swinging Strings and Horns. Tracks like this, and Ain’t No Mountain High Enough are what made Salsoul the greatest disco label ever.
Logg were the brainchild of Leroy Burgess and John Morales was Leroy Burgess’ chosen remixer for Logg’s tracks. On Disc Two of John Morales The M&M Mixes three tracks by Logg feature. These are Lay It On The Line, and (You’ve Got) That Something, my favorite of the trio. All three tracks featured on Logg’s 1981 album Logg. The version chosen is JM After-Session M+M Mix, which has a real Leroy Burgess sound and feel. Percussion, drums, a crashing cymbal and then funky bass gradually build up the track. Next comes guitars, layers of keyboards and then Leroy’s vocal, accompanied by tight, punchy backing vocals. From there, boogie, funk and disco are combined, with synths and keyboards adding to the Leroy Burgess sound. Although Logg only produced one album for Salsoul, if you’re only going to produce one album, make it one as good as Logg’s.
Funk Deluxe are another group who only produced one album for Salsoul, their 1984 album Funk Deluxe. The album was written and produced by Randy Muller. This Time was a track from that album and has a very different sound to early Salsoul albums, Whereas early albums featured the Baker, Harris, Young rhythm section, vibes supremo Vince Montano and Don Renaldo’s strings and horns, Funk Deluxe has a much more electronic sound. Synths, keyboards and a vocoder are combined, with the drums having an electronic sound too. One thing stays the same, a classy, sassy female vocal. It’s contrasted by a male vocal that’s deiver without emotion, sometimes rapped, while a vocoder to the adds to the electronic sound. However, what makes the track is the vocal, which is sassy and emotive, plus John’s hypnotic sounding M After-Session M&M Mix.
The last track I’ve chosen to mention is Instant Funk’s No Stoppin’ That Rockin,’ a track from their penultimate Salsoul album Instant Funk V in 1983. The original track was produced by Bunny Sigler, with John’s JM After-Session M&M Mix mixed in October 1982. Again, the track has a much more electronic sound, with a vocoder opening the track. Similarly, the drums have a more electronic sound, with synths and a funky bass contrasted by a tender vocal. Tight backing vocalists accompany the vocal, which when it changes hands, grows in power and is replaced by the vocoder. While the track has a real electronic sound, there’s still a really funky side to the track and sometimes, a really soulful vocal escapes. All this plays its part in giving the track a compelling, hypnotic sound, where soul, funk and electronic music unite as one.
Although many of the tracks that feature on Disc Two of John Morales The M&M Mixes are late-period Salsoul releases, they’ve one thing on common with the earlier Salsoul music…quality. The track bursts into life with Inner Life’s Ain’t No Mountain High Enough. Then comes First Choice’s Happy Love Affair, another of the real highlights of the compilation. Rochelle Fleming’s vocal is key to the track, as is Leroy Burgess’ vocal on the trio of tracks by Logg. While Funk Deluxe’s Funk Deluxe and Instant Funk’s No Stoppin’ That Rockin’ have a quite different sound from Inner Life and First Choice’s, it shows Salsoul as a label changing. Disco was dead, with boogie and electronic music taking over. This is reflected in several of tracks on Disc Two. Still, the quality is there however, with Salsoul Records’ providing the perfect material for John to remix. This he does with flair, imagination, innovation and an eye to what works on a dance-floor. Like the ten tracks on Disc One, John deconstructs them, then reconstructs them, giving them his own unique twist. These nineteen tracks are a mixture of well-known tracks, hidden gems and previously unreleased remixes. For anyone who wants to hear one of the greatest remixers in the history of modern dance music doing what he does so well, then John Morales-The M&M Mixes is the album for you. After that, why not look out for John Morales-The M&M Mixes Volume 2, which features another twenty M&M remixes. For any nascent producers, then remixes like the ones on John Morales-The M&M Mixes show a remixer at the peak of his powers. Along with Tom Moulton and Walter Gibbons, John Morales is one of the greatest remixers in modern dance music. John Morales-The M&M Mixes and John Morales-The M&M Mixes Volume 2 both released on BBE Music proves this perfectly. Standout Tracks: Julia & Company Breakin’ Down (Sugar Samba), La-Rita Gaskin Never Can Say Goodbye, Inner Life Ain’t No Mountain High Enough and First Choice Happy Love Affair.
JOHN MORALES-THE M&M MIXES.
JEFFREY OSBORNE-ONLY HUMAN.
JEFFREY OSBORNE-ONLY HUMAN.
During his time as a member of L.T.D., and as a solo artist, Jeffrey Osborne spent a total of eighteen years with A&M Records, during which he enjoyed the most successful period of his career. Between 1977 and 1979, L.T.D. saw 1977s Something To Love and 1979s Devotion. certified gold, while Togetherness was certified platinum. Then in 1980, Jeffrey and his brother Billy left L.T.D., launching solo careers. For Jeffrey, the success continued with eighteen of singles charting. Among these singles were I Really Don’t Need No Light, On the Wings of Love, Stay With Me Tonight and On the Left, the only number one US R&B single of his career. By early 1990, ten years after launching his solo career, Jeffrey left A&M, signing to Clive Davis’ Arista Records. Later that year, Jeffrey released his only album for Arista, 1990s Only Human, which will be rereleased on 16th July 2012 by SoulMusic Records.
This wasn’t Jeffrey’s first involvement with Arista. Previously, he cowrote All At Once with Michael Masser, which was the B-side of Whitney Houston’s hit single Saving All My Love For You. All At Once also featured on Whitney’s debut album Whitney. Two years later in 1987, Jeffrey sang a duet with Whitney’s cousin Dionne Warwick. Love Duet gave the pair a number one single in the US AOR Charts, while reaching number twelve in the US Billboard 100 and number five in the US R&B Charts. So when Jeffrey Osborne signed to Arista Records, people within Arista felt that Jeffrey and Arista were a perfect fit. Would he enjoy the same success with Arista he’d enjoyed at A&M, and during his previous collaborations with Arista, and would Only Human see Jeffrey achieve the same success on his early albums?
To produce Jeffrey’s debut album for Arista Barry Eastmond was hired by Clive Davis. He felt that Barry was the perfect fit for Jeffrey’s debut album for Arista. Not only did Barry produce what became Only Human, but wrote six of the album’s eleven tracks, plus played synths, keyboards and programmed the drums. Jeffrey only wrote one track, Baby Wait A Minute. Among the other tracks, were the Eugene McDaniels’ penned Feel Like Making Love, Sam Dees’ Getting Better All the Time and David Barratt’s If My Brother’s In Trouble.
Recording of Only Human took place at several studios, including Right Track Studios, Axis Studios and Greene Street Recording in New York. Other tracks were recorded at Soundcastle Studios in California. Among what seems like a huge cast of musicians accompanying Jeffrey were drummer Buddy Williams, bassists Anthony Jackson and Sam Sims, plus guitarists Mike Campbell, Georg Wadenius and Nicky Moroch. Grover Washington played alto saxophone on Lay Your Head, while Yolanda Lee, Tawatha Agee and Nicki Richards sang backing vocals. Eventually, the eleven tracks that made up Only Human were recorded. All was set for the release of Only Human later in 1990. Would Only Human replicate the success of Jeffrey Osborne’s albums and singles for A&M?
On the release of Only Human later in 1990, the album reached number ninety-five in the US Billboard 200 and number nine in the US R&B Charts. While Only Human wasn’t as successful as Jeffrey’s five albums for A&M, maybe the singles would fare better? Chosen as the first single was the title-track Only Human, which reached number three in the US R&B Charts. This was Jeffrey’s most successful single since 1988s On the Left, which reached number one in the US R&B Charts. The next single was My Brother’s In Trouble, which reached number eleven, helped along by Shep Pettibone’s remix turning the track into a club favorite. The Morning After I Made Love To You was then released as a single, reaching number twenty-four in the US R&B Charts. Overall, Jeffrey Osborne’s debut album for Arista Only Human had proved a success, reaching the top ten in the US R&B Charts and featuring a top ten US R&B single. After Only Human, many people expected Jeffrey to release further albums for Arista. That never happened. Only Human was his only album for Arista, which I’ll now tell you about.
Opening Only Human is My Brother’s In Trouble which became a club hit after Shep Pettibone’s remixed the track. Written by David Barratt the track only features keyboard player Terry Burrus, programmer Alan Friedman and backing vocalists. Together Terry and Alan create an impressive and contemporary sounding arrangement. Crisp drums, swathes of strings and keyboards create a dramatic arrangement, before Jeffrey’s vocal enters. His vocal is powerful, emotive and impassioned vocal. It’s accompanied by soulful, soaring, gospel-tinged backing vocalists. The longer the track progresses, the more the drama, soulfulness and passion builds. So good is the track, you can’t wait to hear the rest of the album.
On Only Human, a beautiful ballad written by producer Barry Eastmond, the tempo drops way down. Jeffrey’s delivery is heartfelt, full of sincerity, accompanied by whispered backing vocals. Meanwhile, the arrangement sees synths, keyboards and drums combine with guitars. This arrangement compliments Jeffrey’s powerful, passionate vocal. His delivery is irresistible, turning back the years, demonstrating why he was one of the best soul singers of the eighties. Given the quality of the track, it’s no wonder it reached number three in the US R&B Charts.
Good Things Come To Those Who Wait is quite different from the previous tracks. Gone is the balladeer of the previous track, replaced by a contemporary sound, where he fuses elements and influences. Crunchy drums, keyboards and bass combining before Jeffrey’s vamping vocal enters. His vocal is enveloped in delay, with tender backing vocalists accompanying him. It’s soul music but, given a twist, fusing funk with dance and electronic music. Here, Jeffrey’s trying to make his music appeal to a new audience, trying to update his sound for a new decade. This he manages to do, demonstrating another side to Jeffrey Osborne and his music.
After the diversion into new and unchartered territory for Jeffrey, he’s back doing what he does so well, delivering a ballad, The Morning After I Made Love To You. Here, Jeffrey’s accompanied by keyboards, synths and the rhythm section who provide a slow, melodic and sometimes, dramatic arrangement. Jeffrey’s vocal veers between tenderness and power, combining emotion and passion. He’s accompanied by some of the best backing vocalists of the time, including Yolanda Lee, Tawatha Agee and Nicki Richards. They’re the perfect foil to Jeffrey’s power, their vocals tender and soulful. Later, the finishing touch is Vincent Henry’s sultry saxophone solo. All of this makes this track one of the highlights of Only Human.
Lay Your Head has a much more electronic sound than the previous track. This is apparent from the opening bars, where synths, drum machines and keyboards combine with the guitar. When Jeffrey’s heartfelt vocals enters, you realize the quality is just the same. Jeffrey adds subtle backing vocals, as his vocal grows sassy and confident. As his vocal drops out, Grover Washington lays down a sensuous alto saxophone solo. Then Jeffrey delivers a lesson on soulfulness, pleading his way through the rest of the track.
Baby Wait A Minute has much in common with Good Things Come To Those Who Wait. Here, Darryl Duncan plays all the instruments, namely synths, keyboards and drums. This results in a bold, dramatic sound. Washes and stabs of synths combine with drums, while Jeffrey’s vocal matches the arrangement for drama and boldness, adding one other ingredient soul. Backing vocals compliment his vocal, before later Bright Eyes unleashes a sassy rap. The result is Jeffrey Osborne, electronic music and hip hop uniting as one.
It seems during Only Human, Jeffrey mixes his more traditional style with a contemporary sound, like the previous track. Sending You A Love Song is back to the “old” Jeffrey Osborne, delivering a ballad with an unrivalled emotion and sincerity. This he does against an arrangement where of keyboards and drum machines, while Jeffrey and Yolanda Lee add backing vocals. The result is a track that’s deeply soulful, featuring one of Jeffrey’s most fervent, impassioned vocals.
Feel Like Making Love sees Jeffrey deliver a very different version of the Eugene McDaniels penned track. Washes of synths, drums that crack and keyboards accompany him, while backing vocalists add sensuous backing vocals. Jeffrey’s vocal is a mixture of passion and power, as he seeks to give a classic track a nineties makeover. Here, Jeffrey and producer Barry Eastmond deconstruct the track, before reconstructing it in a way that had never been done before.
Back In Your Arms is the last of the tracks Barry Eastmond wrote. It’s another slow song, with a vocal from Jeffrey full or hurt and sadness. He’s accompanied by melodic keyboards, synths and bassist Anthony Jackson. Key to the track’s sound are subtle, soulful backing vocalists that compliment Jeffrey’s vocal. While lush strings add to the emotion and sadness of the track, it’s Jeffrey’s vocal, plus the backing vocalists that make this such a beautiful track.
Nighttime was the only track on Only Human Jeffrey wrote. Pounding drums, synths and keyboards accompany him as the track reveals its secrets. Tender backing vocalists accompany Jeffrey, before their voices soar, matching the emotion in Jeffrey’s vocal. Later, Jeffrey’s vocal grows in power and sincerity, as he delivers the lyrics as if he means each word. Meanwhile, the slow arrangement compliments Jeffrey’s vocal, meandering melodically along, complimenting and providing the perfect backdrop to Jeffrey’s passionate deliver.
Closing Only Human Getting Better All the Time, penned by Sam Dees, one music’s best kept secrets. Melodic keyboards open the track, before Jeffrey scats, then delivers a vocal that’s heartfelt and intense. Lush strings cascade above his vocals, while the rhythm section, synths and keyboards combine slowly. Unlike other tracks, Jeffrey’s vocal is much more tender, perfect for Sam Dees beautiful lyrics. This results in another of the highlights of Only Human.
Although Only Human never matched the success of Jeffrey Osborne’s early albums for A&M, the music on the album is a combination of the soulful side of Jeffrey’s music that people knew and love, plus a more contemporary sound. This meant there was something for his old fans, plus something to attract new fans. On tracks like Only Human, The Morning After I Made Love To You, Sending You A Love Song, Back In Your Arms and Getting Better All the Time the more traditional soulful side of Jeffrey Osborne comes to the fore. The more contemporary sound of Jeffrey Osborne can be heard on Good Things Come To Those Who Wait, Lay Your Head, Baby Wait A Minute and Feel Like Making Love, while My Brother’s In Trouble is a fusion of both styles. Although there’s much to commend both styles of music, it’s the more traditional side of Jeffrey Osborne that I prefer. It seems that Jeffrey’s at his very best delivering emotive, impassioned and heartfelt ballads. Between 1980 and 1990, Jeffrey Osborne was one of the best soul singers of that time. However, his career had started way before that, back in 1974 with L.T.D. Their best albums were the trio of Bobby Martin produced albums Something To Love, Togetherness and Devotion are the place to start. After leaving L.T.D., Jeffrey’s solo career started with 1982s Jeffrey Osborne and 1983s Stay With Me Tonight, his two best solo album. Three further albums followed for A&M, 1984s Don’t Stop, 1986s Emotional and One Love: One Dream in 1990. Sadly, Only Human was Jeffrey Osborne’s only album for Arista. It was another ten years before Jeffrey Osborne recorded another secular album That’s For Sure in 2000. His absence from music was music’s loss, as you’ll realize when you hear Only Human, which will be rereleased on 16th July 2012 by SoulMusic Records. Standout Tracks: My Brother’s In Trouble, Only Human, The Morning After I Made Love To You and Getting Better All the Time.
JEFFREY OSBORNE-ONLY HUMAN.
MIXED WITH LOVE-THE WALTER GIBBONS ANTHOLOGY.
MIXED WITH LOVE-THE WALTER GIBBONS ANTHOLOGY.
Recently, I reviewed Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983 and this provoked some controversy. The controversy was whether Larry actually remixed some of the tracks on the compilation. These rumors weren’t new to me, as they’ve been circulating for many years. I hoped my review would bring these rumors out into the open and provoke debate. Similarly, many people responsible for these mixes or around between 1978 and 1983 seem unwilling to perpetuate the myths that Larry remixed several of these tracks. John Morales said as much in an interview with disco disco. While we’ll never know beyond reasonable doubt who mixed what tracks, what I do know, is that during the period Larry Levan was remixing for Salsoul, Larry lead quite a chaotic lifestyle and was known for his lack of punctuality. This has since lead to accusations that remixes credited to Larry, were remixed by either studio engineers, or DJs like John Morales or Walter Gibbons. One example is the Patrick Adams and Greg Carmichael productions, including groups like Inner Life and Logg. John Morales was Patrick and Greg’s favored remixer, and is thought to have remixed the tracks by Inner Life and Logg on Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983. Again, John Morales said as much in the aforementioned interview. While the truth may never be known, one thing I do know, is that remixers like John Morales and Walter Gibbons’ remixes were some of the best and most successful Salsoul remixes. So successful were Walter Gibbons remixes, that a three-disc box set of his remixes Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology was released by Sussd Records in 2004. It’s Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology which we can safely say, was mixed by Walter, which I’ll tell you about.
Previously, I’ve reviewed another Walter Gibbons’ compilation Walter Gibbons-Jungle Music released by Strut Records in 2010. In that article. I remarked how Walter Gibbons was one of the most talented, innovative and influential remixers, who’d influence a whole generation of remixers. Not only that, but Walter was a DJ who other DJs would go to watch. One of the biggest compliments people play to Walter is that he was a DJs’ DJ. However, During his remixing career Walter Gibbons’ name became synonymous with one label in particular…Salsoul Records.
Walter Gibbons was born in 1954 in Brooklyn, New York, growing up with his mother, sister and two brothers. People described him as quiet and unassuming. Having grown up in Brooklyn, Walter headed to Queens and some people might say his life started all over again when he started DJ-ing at the Galaxy nightclub.
When Walter stood behind the decks at the Galaxy nightclub, a different Walter Gibbons emerged. He became a pioneer of New York’s disco scene from its very early days. He was one of the first DJs to pioneer beat-matching, while his sets were imaginative and experimental. From his early days at the Galaxy, Walter’s mixing was flawless, precise, focusing on extending a track’s percussive breaks, so that he was almost remixing tracks live. By switching between tracks, he’d seamlessly mix breaks from one track to another. In doing this, he was willing to sacrifice the melody for the sake of the dancers, who he teased relentlessly with his mixing. While this required maximum concentration and dexterity, and must have proved exhausting. After all, the breaks didn’t last long, maybe thirty-seconds maximum. There was neither Traktor nor Ableton Live back then. Instead, he’d to mix another record into the previous one. Then Walter’s hit on an imaginative, innovative idea.
This idea came about almost by accident. Walter was putting his mixes on reel-to-reel tape and decided to edit the tracks. It allowed him to extend breaks, rearrange tracks so they were longer and more dance-floor friendly. What Walter was doing was similar to what Tom Moulton had pioneered. By doing this, a two-minute track could be extended to four-minutes and rearranged in such a way that suited the dance-floor. Walter was like a musical Alfred Hitchcock, building up the tension and drama, before unleashing a track that raised the roof. Soon, he came to the attention of a man who owned a record label Ken Cayre, owner of Salsoul Records.
Salsoul Records had just released their first album, The Salsoul Orchestra’s The Salsoul Orchestra. Ken Cayre gave Walter a track to remix from a group he’d recently signed, Double Exposure. This was Ten Percent, which would become Walter’s first remix for Salsoul. Although the track was referred to as a remix, it was actually more like a reedit of the master. What Walter did was more akin to what he’d been doing at home. Regardless of whether it was a reedit or remix, it became a classic, and was perceived as the best twelve inch single released until then. For remixing the track, Walter was paid $185. However, it was the start of a relationship with Salsoul that lasted until 1979, after which Walter didn’t play such a big role in remixing Salsoul’s tracks. Then came what some people refer to as Walter’s first true remix. The track was from the Queen of Salsoul Loleatta Holloway. Hit and Run would go on to sell over 300, 000 copies.
Among the many Salsoul artists that Walter went on to remix, were some of the label’s biggest names. This includes Salsoul royalty, including the Queen of Salsoul Loleatta Holloway, The Salsoul Orchestra, Double Exposure, First Choice, Love Committee and Anthony White. Many of these tracks feature on the three discs of Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology. The three discs are separated into Disc One-The Madness Begins, Disc-Two The Madness Continues and Disc Three-Total Insanity. Several of the same tracks feature on all three discs, but with different remixes. This is intriguing, demonstrating how Walter brings something new to a track, sometimes three times. In total, there are twenty-nine remixes, but I’ll pick the best tracks from Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology which I’ll tell you about.
DISC ONE.
Disc One of Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology features ten tracks from Walters’ early days of remixing Salsoul tracks is entitled The Madness Begins. We’re taken on a journey through some classic Salsoul, written, arranged and produced by luminaries like the Baker, Harris, Young songwriting and production team, plus Vince Montana and Ron “Have Mercy” Kersey. Loleatta Holloway and Love Committee feature twice, while Double Exosure, Anthony White, First Choice and True Example all make appearances. Each of these tracks are remixed by Walter, extending the original and making them even more dance-floor friendly. Here are my selections from Disc One of Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology.
The track that opens Disc One of Probably Walter Gibbons’ Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology is one of Walter’s earliest Salsoul remixes Double Exposure’s Ten Per Cent. Released on Salsoul, and produced by the legendary Baker, Harris, Young rhythm section, formerly of M.F.S.B. and then The Salsoul Orchestra this is a genuine disco classic. Percussion, rhythm section and handclaps open the track, before strings cascade and join the arrangement. Straight away, this is a track that could only have been released on one label Salsoul. This is The Salsoul Orchestra at their finest, with the Baker, Harris, Young rhythm section providing the track’s heartbeat. It takes nearly three minutes before punchy backing vocals enter. When they do, they briefly soar above the arrangement. Flourishes of piano enter, joining the frenzied guitars, pounding drums and percussion. Add in the lush strings and dramatic, punchy blazing horns, and you’ve the recipe for what was required for a classic disco track. Later, when the vocal enters it’s impassioned and emotive, perfect for the arrangement. With a tempo of 124 beats per minutes, this is just a stunning slice of delicious disco, one that deserves to be called a classic.
Anthony White’s Block Party was produced by Earl Young, who knew him from his Philadelphia International days, when he released his Could It Be Magic album in 1976. Written by Baker, Harris Young, this is one of the most underrated tracks in Walter Gibbons’ back-catalogue. Just pounding drums and percussion open the track, before a rumbling bass-line from Ron Baker accompanied Earl’s drums beat for beat. A Hammond organ enters, before horns growl and the arrangement builds and builds. Swirling strings become the latest addition as this track reveals its secrets. Later a myriad of percussion, wah-wah guitars and the best rhythm section of the seventies combine. They creating a track where Walter teases and tantalizes mercilessly, for nearly six majestic, drama packed minutes.
First Choice’s Let No Man Put Asunder is another Salsoul of Walter Gibbons’ best known remix. Originally, released in 1977, and produced by Ron Baker, Norman Harris and Earl Young, who were originally part of M.F.S.B. at Philadelphia International Records. They left to become the Salsoul Orchestra and played and produced numerous Salsoul classics. Let No Man Put Asunder is very definitely one of their very best productions. They provide Walter with the basis for a classic remix. Against a backdrop of the brilliant Baker, Harris, Young rhythm section, percussion and handclaps Loleatta Holloway’s sassy vocal enters, full of bravado and confidence. While backing vocalists accompany her, Loleatta vamps her way through the track. Although the word classic is used far too easily, this track is worthy of being referred to as one.
While many compilers always plump for one of Loleatta Holloway’s better known tracks, it makes a pleasant change to hear We’re Getting Stronger (The Longer We Stay Together). Released in 1977, but a track Loleatta’s 1976 album Loleatta. Produced by Norman Harris, the track reveals a really soulful side to the Queen of Salsoul. Again the Baker, Harris, Young rhythm section are key to the track’s sound and success, combining with keyboards and rasping horns, before the track takes on melodic, hooky sound. Cascading strings enter, before Earl’s dramatic drums signal’s the Queen’s entrance. Her voice is emotive, impassioned and deeply soulful. Sizzling guitars, a pounding rhythm section, lush strings and braying horns accompany Loleatta’s vocal as she veers between tenderness and power. This is an irresistible combination, as Loleatta demonstrates her Southern Soul roots.
Although I’ve only mentioned four tracks from Walter Gibbons’ Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology, I could’ve mentioned several others. Most of the tracks picked themselves, with Double Exposure’s Ten Percent starting Walter’s career at Salsoul, while First Choice’s Let No Man Put Asunder is another classic Walter Gibbons mix. Anthony White’s Block Party is one of the most underrated tracks on the compilation and I couldn’t not pick a track from Loleatta Holloway, the undisputed Queen of Salsoul. Having said that, tracks from The Salsoul Orchestra and Love Committe would’ve been worthy of a mention too. Will my choices be just as easy on Disc Two of Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Salsoul Anthology?
DISC TWO.
The Madness Continues, which is the title of Disc Two of Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Salsoul Anthology is a fitting description of disco’s hedonistic heyday. Here, ten tracks that provided the soundtrack to disco’s hedonism are remixed by Walter. Some old friends from Disc One reappear, like Loleatta Holloway, Double Exposure, Anthony White and The Love Committee. True Example are the only newcomers on Disc Two, where The Madness Continues.
Before becoming The Salsoul Orchestra, its members had found fame as M.F.S.B., Philadelphia International Records’ house-band. Many of its members including the Baker, Harris, Young rhythm section and Vince Montana would go on to write, arrange and produce many classic Salsoul tracks. This was the case on Salsoul Orchestra’s 1976 album Nice ‘N’ Nasty. The title-track, Nice ‘N’ Nasty written, arranged, conducted and produced by Vince Montana. Pounding drums and hissing h-hats give way to a sizzling guitars, before horns blaze, strings swirl and breathy female vocals enter. From there, you’re swept away, atop lush strings, while horns serenade you. Later, Norman Harris lays down a peerless guitar solo. A proliferation of percussion, backing vocalists, punchy horns and dancing, shimmering strings are key to the track’s success and its joyful, uplifting sound.
One of Walter’s most commercially successful remixes was his remix of Loleatta Holloway’s Hit and Run a track from her 1976 album. It gave Loleatta a surprise hit single, selling over 300,000 copies. Since then, it’s become one of Loleatta’s best known songs, remixed by many remixers. Walter’s version still stands out from the crowd, lasting eleven minutes. However, what made the track was the sound of the Salsoul Orchestra. With the Baker, Harris and Young rhythm section at the heart of the trackm driving the track along, Loleatta embarks upon a sassy, sultry vamp. She mixes power and passion, while percussion, guitars, blazing horns and Vince Montana’s vibes accompany the rhythm section. Along with tracks like Dreaming and Runaway, Loleatta Holloway was the greatest diva of the disco era. Here, her powerful and sassy vocal along with the multitalented Salsoul Orchestra, make this not just one of the greatest tracks of the disco era, but a Salsoul classic.
Another track produced by Baker, Harris, Young is Double Exposure’s My Love Is Free, from their 1976 debut album Ten Percent. The introduction is extended, so that the combination of drums, shakers, swirling strings, guitars and flourishes of piano seemingly and thankfully go on forever. Eventually, the vocal drifts in and out fleetingly. Here, the arrangement has made in Phialdephia stamped all over it. With rasping horns, cascading string, percussion and the Baker, Harris, Young rhythm section provide the track’s pounding heartbeat. However, while the remix is of the highest quality, Walter sacrifices the vocal at disco’s altar, ensuring this pounding slice of soulful disco is sufficiently dance-floor friendly. This is quite definitely the case..and then some.
Where Will It End is one of two tracks from The Love Committee on Disc Two. It’s produced by Baker, Harris, Young and is another underrated track from Salsoul’s back-catalogue. That’s why I’m so pleased it features here. The track literally bursts into life, blazing horns combining with cascading strings and the rhythm section. Percussion and tight soulful harmonies are added, as the track grows and grows. Horns growl, keyboards drift in and out then the throaty vocal enters. Quickly, it changes hands, each vocal adding to the track’s quality. Here, The Salsoul Orchestra’s performance is peerless, as is Baker, Harris, Young’s production. For over seven minutes, they seamlessly combine soul, drama and peerless disco joyfully.
Choosing just four tracks from Disc Two of Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology wasn’t as easy as I’d thought. With so many great tracks, I could’ve chosen just about any of the tracks. Loleatta’s Holloway’s Hit and Run picked itself, as did Double Exposure’s My Love Is Free. Picking the other two tracks wasn’t as easy, but The Salsoul Orchestra’s Nice “N’ Nasty shows how seamlessly and peerlessly they could fuse disco, funk and soul. Similarly, The Love Committee’s Where Will It End is another track where disco and soul unite joyously. Among the other tracks, Anthony White’s I Can’t Turn You Loose is one of the highlights, and a track I could’ve chosen just as easily. Like Disc One, Disc Two features a consistently high standard of music. Will that be the case on Disc Three of Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology?
DISC THREE.
Although the first two discs of Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology feature some of Salsoul’s biggest names, on Disc Three Total Insanity, many of these names are absent. Just The Salsoul Orchestra and Loleatta Holloway are present, with the Luv You Badly Orchestra, Cellophane and the Robin Hooker Band featuring. This sees covers of Tammy Wynette’s Stand By Your Man and Hank Williams’ My Cheating Heart, given a disco makeover by Salsoul and remixed by Walter Gibbons. Does the inclusion of these leftfield choices affect the quality of music on Disc Three of Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology?
The Salsoul Orchestra’s Magic Bird of Fire (Fire Bird Suite) was released in 1977, from the album Magic Journey. This track is arranged, conducted and produced by Vince Montana Jr., another former alumni of M.F.S.B. and Philadelphia International Records. While it’s just crunchy drumbeats that open the track, it gives way to a dramatic, almost grandiose combination of strings and percussion. It reminds me of something you’d hear in the soundtrack to a movie, at the point where they were trying to create an element of suspense. Joining this is fast, funky bass line and then piano and punchy blazing horns. Although set to a disco beat, with the tempo 128 beats per minute, this could’ve worked well on a movie soundtrack. Flourishes of harpsichord and woodwind are just the latest in a hugely eclectic selection of instruments to join the arrangement. Together, they combine to produce something very different from what you’d expect of The Salsoul Orchestra, but something full of suspense and drama, where you never know what will happen next.
Luv You Madly Orchestra’s Moon Maiden was released in 1978, on their Luv You Madly Orchestra on Salsoul. The project paid tribute to Duke Ellington, with disco tracks composed by the Duke. Here, crispy drumbeats pound, flourishes of flute cascade, before a thunderous bass enters. It’s joined by keyboards, percussion and female backing vocalists. Strings cascade, sweep and swirl, before synths make a brief appearance. Things change when a soulful soaring female vocalist enters, accompanied by tight, equally soulful harmonies. The result is quite different from the other Salsoul tracks on the compilation, but still has the trademark quality of a track featuring the famous Salsoul label.
My final choice from Disc Three is another track from the Queen of Salsoul, Loleatta Holloway, Catch Me On The Rebound. This is a track from her 1978 album Queen of The Night, produced by Norman Harris. It features the Baker, Harris, Young rhythm section, who combine with blazing horns, keyboard and percussion to create a track that’s steeped in drama. You’re anticipating Loleatta’s vocal, awaiting her grand entrance. You’re not disappointed. Her mixture of power, passion and emotion is present, while Earl Young’s drums pound. The Sweethearts of Sigma add punchy harmonies, before Ron Baker’s bass bounds across the arrangement. As Loleatta vamps, percussion and gospel-tinged backing vocals add to the drama of the track. All this makes this the best track on Disc Three and demonstrates just why Loleatta Holloway was the real First Lady of Disco. No-one else came close.
While I only picked three of the nine tracks on Disc Three of Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology, the inclusion of some leftfield choices didn’t affect the quality of music. Luv You Madly Orchestra’s Moon Maiden was very different from other tracks on the compilation. So were Robin Hooker Band’s covers of Stand By Your Man and My Cheating Heart. Although disco and country songs seem strange bedfellows, they somehow work well. In the anything goes days of disco, this was the case, with artists covering all sorts of tracks. The Salsoul Orchestra and Loleatta Holloway were the only familiar faces on Disc Three, with Loleatta’s Catch Me On The Rebound another welcome inclusion, rather than more familiar tracks like Dreamin’ or Love Sensation.
Loleatta Holloway is one of Salsoul’s biggest names that feature on the three discs of Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology. She’s joined by Double Exposure, The Salsoul Orchestra and First Choice, plus a few other welcome additions. These include Anthony Jackson, Love Committee and True Example. Each of the twenty-nine tracks on the three discs see Walter Gibbons remix the track, bringing something imaginative and innovative to the original track. He knew what worked on the dance-floor, plus was able to lengthen the tracks so that he was no longer constantly mixing between tracks to lengthen breaks. On some tracks, Walter lengthens the breaks so much, that you feel they’ll last forever. Then, Walter allows the track to explode, with joy and drama escaping at last, after teasing and tantalizing dancers. Many of Walter’s remixes are timeless classics, but we must remember that with many of the tracks, he’d the perfect starting point for his remixes. This includes track produced by Baker, Harris, Young and vibes virtuoso Vince Montana. With The Salsoul Orchestra providing the musical soundtrack for each artist, these tracks were some of the best tracks Walter Gibbons would ever produce. For anyone who loves disco, Salsoul or Walter Gibbons’ remixes, then Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology is essential listening. On Mixed With Love-The Walter Gibbons Anthology, you’ll hear some of the best music of the disco era, which I can safely say were remixed by Walter Gibbons…unless of course you know different.
MIXED WITH LOVE-THE WALTER GIBBONS ANTHOLOGY.
THE STAPLE SINGERS-THE STAPLE SINGERS.
THE STAPLE SINGERS-THE STAPLE SINGERS.
By the early eighties, The Staple Singers had spent over thirty years performing and recording. Their career started in 1948, with the group singing in churches in the Chicago area. Four years later in 1952, they signed their first record contract, releasing their debut album Uncloudy Day in 1959. Since then, The Staple Singers had released over twenty albums. In 1984 Pops Staples celebrated his seventieth birthday, and announcing on Soul Train that he was ready to retire. He’d been trying to retire for several years, but kept getting asked to record more albums and perform even more concerts. When Pops announced his attention to retire, it had been three years since the release of their last albums Hold On To Your Dream and This Time Around in 1981. However, retirement would have to wait, after Private I Records offered The Staple Singers a new recording contract. This would see them collaborating with David Byre of Talking Heads. This unlikely alliance lead to Slippery People, a dance hit for The Staple Singers. It was a track from their 1984 Turning Point album produced by Gary Goetzman and Mike Piccirillo. So impressed was Pops Staples with their production, that he asked them to produce the followup, The Staples Singers’ which will be released on 9th July 2012 by SoulMusic Records. Again, the unlikely alliance of David Byrne and The Staple Singers would collaborate, the result of which was Life During Wartime, one of several songs exploring various social and political issues. Would The Staple Singers see a continuation of the success they’d enjoyed with Turning Point the previous year?
For what was The Staple Singers’ twenty-sixth album and would become The Staple Singers, Gary Goetzman and Mike Piccirillo cowrote four of the album’s eight tracks. There were two themes running through social and political issues. These were issues The Staple Singers had explored in some of their older albums. Other songwriters were involved, with David Byrne contributing Life During Wartime. Of the other three tracks, the standout track was Are You Ready, a cover version of the title-track of Pacific Gas and Electric’s 1970 album. It got the album of to an explosive start. These eight tracks were recorded at Can-Am Recorders in Tarzana, California.
Producing The Staple Singers at Can-Am Recorders were Gary Goetzman and Mike Piccirillo. Mike was also part of the small, tight band who played on the album, playing guitars and drums. He was joined by Ron Jeffries who played bass, synths and keyboards, while Paul Schaffer played the keyboard solos on Nobody Can Make It On Their Own and Reason To Love. David Byrne played guitar on Life During Wartime, with Paul Jackson joining him on guitar and laying down a sizzling guitar solo that’s key to the track. Although this was just a small band that played on The Staple Singers, if the result was similar to Turning Point, then fans of The Staple Singers were in for a pleasant surprise. Would this be the case though?
On the release of The Staple Singers, disappointingly, it didn’t make any impact on the US charts. Whereas Turning Point reached number forty-three in the US R&B Charts, The Staple Singers failed to chart. However, the two singles released from The Staple Singers fared better, achieving limited success. Are You Ready reached number thirty-nine in the US R&B Charts. Then when Nobody Can Make It On Their Own was released as a single, it reached just number eighty-nine in the US R&B Charts. However, while The Staple Singers was a commercial failure, did the album deserve to fare better? That’s what I’ll tell you, after I’ve told you about the music on The Staple Singers.
Opening The Staple Singers is Are You Ready, a cover of a track originally released by Pacific Gas and Electric’s 1970 in 1970. It’s an explosive, dramatic sounding track, with keyboards, sizzling rocky guitars and the rhythm section driving the track along. At the heart of the action is Mavis’ vocal as she asks: “are you ready..are you living your life in a way that when he comes, you will be one of the chosen ones.” This is perfect for Mavis’ vocal, a mixture of soul and gospel, accompanied by the rest of The Staple Singers adding joyful, gospel-tinged harmonies. The searing rocky guitars add to the drama and theatre of the track, with Mavis’ vocal what makes this the best track on the album.
Life During Wartime was the result of a collaboration between David Byrne and The Staple Singers. While Slippery People from their previous album Turning Point was dance hit, this was quite different. The dual guitars of David Byrne and Paul Jackson are key to the tracks sound, sounding like gunfire, while washes of synths and the rhythm section accompany Mavis’ sassy, frustrated vocal. Soon the vocal changes hands, but it’s Mavis whose vocal has most impact. Later, Paul Jackson weaves a guitar solo that’s sizzles its way across the arrangement. You can’t help but be impressed by his skill, even if like me, you’re not a big fan of rocky guitars on soul albums. Here, I make an exception, for a track as good as this.
Nobody Can Make It On Their Own is the first of four tracks that Gary Goetzman and Mike Piccirillo cowrote. It was also the second single released from the album, and has a real Staple Singers’ sound. Listen carefully, and you can hear their hit single Respect Yourself’s influence. This influence helps gives the track it’s catchy, hooky sound. Washes and stabs of synths, rhythm section and guitars provide the backdrop for Mavis’ vocal. She sings “no-one can change things on their own…no-one is an island.” Peace not war she sings, blaming the worlds ills on politicians. Later, Paul Schaffer’s keyboard solo adds the icing to The Staple Singers’ cake, and along with Mavis, plays an important part in the track’s sound and success.
Back To the War is another of the Gary Goetzman and Mike Piccirillo penned tracks, with war and conflict as its theme. Stabs of synths, keyboards and percussion are at the heart of the arrangement, with Mavis delivering vocal, her voice tinged with anger and frustration as she sings “what makes you think you can change the world with a gun in your hand.” This strikes home, making you think. As the vocal changes hands, the delivery is equally powerful. Later, the vocal is replaced during a breakdown by synths, keyboards and percussion, which has a real eighties sound. However, what’s important is the song’s message which like The Staple Singers delivery, is potent and powerful.
Very different is Reason To Love, which is best described as caribbean-tinged and soulful, with keyboards and synths at its heart. This gives the track a light, bright, joyous sound. Similarly, the vocal is gentle, but impassioned and emotive. The harmonies are tight and uplifting, what we’ve come to expect of The Staple Singers. Later, things change, with rocky guitars making a fleeting appearance, before Paul Schaffer unleashes another keyboard solo. Then the joyful vocal and harmonies return. Again, Mavis grabs the vocal delivering it with equal amounts of emotion, joy and sincerity.
We Stand (Together Forever) is a track that’s would’ve made a great single back in 1985. It has a pounding beat driving the track along. It’s augmented by waves of synths, chiming guitars and a sassy, impassioned vocal. From the opening bars you’re hooked by the track’s irresistible sound. Here, the synths and keyboards work well, with intricate guitars played subtlety. They don’t dominate the arrangement by veering into a rocky sound. Instead, they combine well with the synths, while The Staple Singers add soulful, harmonies. Sometimes, you’re reminded of Womack and Womack’s classic track Teardrops. This track has a similar pounding dance-floor friendly beat and hook-laden sound.
Pops Staples sings lead as Start Walking begins. His vocal might not have the power of Mavis,’ but he delivers the lyrics with an intensity, while subtle, soulful harmonies accompany him. The rest of the arrangement is bolder, with guitars, keyboards, synths and the rhythm section providing a backdrop for his vocal. A sizzling, guitar solo is unleashed, contrasting with Pops tender, sincere vocal. It adds drama, while later, synths and keyboards that are a sympathetic replacement for Pops vocal. Although Pops Staples was seventy-one when he recorded this album, his vocal still has the quality of their earlier years. Maybe it’s as well he postponed his retirement, as he still had much to offer music.
Having opened The Staple Singers on a high with Are Ready, they’re determined to close the album with a similar flourish. Love Works In Strange Ways is the perfect track to do so. It’s the last of the tracks Gary Goetzman and Mike Piccirillo cowrote. With the rhythm section, guitars and keyboards providing a slow, understated backdrop, a tender vocal tinged with sadness and hurt enters. The lyrics are some of Gary and Mike’s best, delivered with feeling by Mavis. She has you spellbound with her delivery, fusing soul and gospel as she sings “Love Works In Strange Ways.” Meanwhile, the arrangement is much more understated, allowing Mavis to take centre-stage, complimenting rather than dominating her vocal. Although the track hasn’t the boldness of the opening track, it has a similar power and quality.
A year after prematurely announcing his retirement live on Soul Train, Pops Staples and the rest of The Staple Singers returned with the followup to Turning Point. The Staple Singers was their second album since Pops made a U-turn about his impending retirement. It was lucky that The Staple Singers didn’t call time on their career, as they still had much to offer. Having said that, much of what they had to offer was down to Mavis Staples. Her vocals were impassioned, emotive, powerful and deeply soulful. She was key to the group’s sound, at the heart of so much of their success. Even without the rest of The Staple Singers, Mavis would’ve been a star. Many people believe The Staple Singers they were stronger as a whole than the the sum of their separate parts. Their harmonies complimented Mavis’ lead vocal. While Pops was the de facto leader of The Staple Singers, Mavis was the star. This is the case on The Staple Singers. Mavis gets the album of to a storming start on Are You Ready, continuing in the same vein on Life During Wartime, Nobody Can Make It On Their Own, We Stand (Together Forever) and closing the album with Love Works In Strange Ways. Pops plays his part, delivering the vocal of Start Walking, with a mixture of tenderness, humility and sincerity. Gary Goetzman and Mike Piccirillo’s production style pleased Pops so much on Turning Point, that he invited them to produce the followup The Staple Singers. Their style sees them fuse soul, R&B, rocky guitars and poppy hooks, resulting in an album that showed a very different side to The Staple Singers. So did David Byrne on Life During Wartime, which was his contribution to the album. Although they were unlikely bedfellows, The Staple Singers and David Byrne’s collaborations worked well. What The Staple Singers showed and many artists can learn from it, is that even aged seventy-one Pops Staples was wanting to try new things musically. Pops wasn’t content to stand still, releasing similar sounding music to previous albums. Instead, he absorbed and welcome collaborations, new ideas and innovations like he did on The Staple Singers, which will be released on 9th July 2012 by SoulMusic Records. Standout Tracks: Are You Ready, Nobody Can Make It On Their Own, We Stand (Together Forever) and Love Works In Strange Ways.
THE STAPLE SINGERS-THE STAPLE SINGERS.
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KC AND THE SUNSHINE BAND-KC AND THE SUNSHINE BAND.
KC AND THE SUNSHINE BAND-KC AND THE SUNSHINE BAND.
Imagine this scenario. You’re part of a band whose just released your debut album which fails to chart. A year later, you release the followup which not only reaches number one in the US R&B Charts and is certified triple-platinum, but features two singles that reach number one in the US Billboard 100 and US R&B Charts. Although this sounds somewhat far-fetched, and not unlike the scrip for a low-budget movie, it really happened back in 1975. The band were KC and The Sunshine Band, whose debut album Do It Good was released back in 1974, but failed to chart. Then when KC and The Sunshine Band released Get Down Tonight in April 1975, the single reached number one in the US Billboard 100 and US R&B Charts. Three months later in July 1975, KC and The Sunshine Band released their second album KC and The Sunshine Band. It reached number four in the US Billboard 200 and number one in the US R&B Charts. By now, KC and The Sunshine Band were one of the biggest bands of 1975, but in August 1975 they’d release a track that since then, has become synonymous with them That’s the Way (I Like It). This single replicated the success of Get Down Tonight, reaching number one in the US Billboard 100 and US R&B Charts. However, KC and The Sunshine Band which will be rereleased on 9th July 2012 by BBR Records, was just the start of a four year period when KC and The Sunshine Band became one of the biggest funk bands in America. Once I’ve told you about the making of KC and The Sunshine Band, I’ll tell you why the album KC and The Sunshine Band was so successful.
After the disappointment of the commercial failure of their debut album Do It Good, Harry “Wayne” Casey and Richard Finch the two original members of KC and The Sunshine Band set about writing new material for their next album. They cowrote eight tracks, plus chose to cover a track they cowrite for George McCrae’s Rock Your Baby album, I Get Lifted. The eight new tracks were heavy on hooks, and sometimes, are unkindly referred to as “bubblegum funk.” While it’s true the music isn’t the heavier funky sound of P-Funk, that’s doing KC and The Sunshine Band a disservice. They fuse funk with soul and disco, succeeding in turning many people onto funk, something James Brown and George Clinton had tried to do for many years.
Recording of the album took place at TK’s Miami Studios. After the disappointment of the commercial failure of their debut album Do It Good, Harry “Wayne” Casey and Richard Finch were joined by the other band members. While Harry sang lead vocal, Richard played bass, drums and percussion, with guitarist Jerome Smith and drummer Robert Johnson key to the band’s sound. Together with a horn section and backing vocalists, the nine tracks were recorded, with Harry and Richard arranging and producing the nine tracks that became KC and The Sunshine Band. Soon, the lives of the members of KC and The Sunshine Band would be transformed, when the first single was released from KC and The Sunshine Band.
Get Down Tonight was chosen as the first single to be released from KC and The Sunshine Band. It was released in April 1975, reaching number one in the US Billboard 100 and US R&B Charts. This bode well for the release of KC and The Sunshine Band. On its release in July 1975, it reached number four in the US Billboard 200 and number one in the US R&B Charts, resulting in the album being certified triple platinum in the US and platinum in Canada. KC and The Sunshine Band’s success continued apace, when they released the second single from KC and The Sunshine. That’s the Way (I Like It) was released in August 1975, replicating the success of Get Down Tonight, reaching number one in the US Billboard 100 and US R&B Charts in September 1975. One further single, Boogie Shoes was released in February 1978, reaching number thirty-five in the US Billboard 100 and number twenty-nine in the US R&B Charts. While this was slightly disappointing, given the success of the two previous singles and the album KC and The Sunshine Band, the lives of the members of KC and The Sunshine Band had been changed forever. However, what made KC and The Sunshine Band such a successful album? That’s what I’ll now tell you.
Opening KC and The Sunshine Band is Let It Go (Part One), where percussion and pounding drums give way to Harry’s vocal which signals the track bursting into life. The track heads in the direction of funk, with blazing horns, percussion and the rhythm section driving the track along. Harry’s like a cheerleader, encouraging the band on. Having expended so much energy, KC and The Sunshine Band regroup during a breakdown, before rebuilding and driving the track along to its close. This whets your appetite nicely, for what’s about to unfold.
You don’t have long to wait for something really special to unfold, with a track that’s since become synonymous with KC and The Sunshine Band That’s the Way (I Like It) bursting joyously into life. Suddenly, it’s late summer of 1975 again, with KC and The Sunshine Band providing the soundtrack. The familiar strains of the backing vocalists soaring above the massed ranks of the rhythm section percussion and rasping horns. Then comes Harry’s impassioned vocal, made even better by the continued presence of the backing vocals. Layers of backing vocals, a buzzing bass and punchy horns all play their part in the track’s success and sound. It’s impossible not to get caught up in the song’s hook-laden, good-time, joyful Miami sound as KC and The Sunshine Band fuse funk, soul and disco seamlessly.
How do you follow a classic track like the previous one, is something I’ve always wondered. Although Harry and Richard never knew how successful That’s the Way (I Like It) would be, they must have had an inkling. So whatever track follows has a hard act to follow. Here, Get Down Tonight sees KC and The Sunshine Band combine elements of funk and soul. There’s plenty of punchy, rasping horns that are key to sound, that are accompanied by a pounding, funky rhythm section. Harry’s vocal drifts in and out the track, not unlike Let It Go (Part One). However, it’s the band that take centre-stage, producing a track that although isn’t as hooky as the previous track, is catchy, good-time funk and far from the “bubblegum funk,” that KC and The Sunshine Band were unkindly accused of producing.
Boogie Shoes was the third and final single released from KC and The Sunshine Band and closed Side One of the original album. Like That’s the Way (I Like It), this is another track that demonstrates what made KC and The Sunshine Band’s music so successful. From the opening bars, they have you’re attention with the combination of rhythm section and growling horns. The lyrics are simple, memorable and have a feel-good sound. Importantly, the whole track is dance-floor friendly. Harry’s vocal is full of joy, all hollers and happiness, with the horns ever-present throughout the track, while the rhythm section and percussion provide the track’s heartbeat. Similar to the other two singles, Harry and Richard ensure the track isn’t short of hooks, and has a real feel-good sound that’s dance-floor friendly. That’s why it’s my favorite song from the album.
Ain’t Nothing Wrong was the track that opened Side Two of KC and The Sunshine Band. You can imaging having listened to Side One, flipping the record over and wondering can it match the quality of Side One. Instantly, you’re aware of a more laid-back sound wafting out of your speakers. There’s still rasping horns, but the track is much more soulful. Just the rhythm section, piano and backing vocalists accompany Harry’s gentle, heartfelt vocal. The track along meanders, with flourishes of piano, guitars and growling horns key to the track’s sound and success. Meanwhile Harry spreads his message of love, while demonstrating a much mellower, soulful side of KC and The Sunshine Band.
I’m So Crazy (About You) sees a driving, pounding rhythm section open the track, before being joined by punchy, braying horns. Harry’s vocal is soft, tender and contrasts with the rest of the arrangement. This makes you focus on his vocal and the lyrics. The punchy arrangement suits the song, and is another example of Harry “Wayne” Casey and Richard Finch’s ability to write songs with catchy, memorable lyrics. There’s a poppy quality to the lyrics and the arrangement, even though the band are fusing funk and soul. Although this is an example of a good pop song, it’s tracks like this that lead to unkind accusations of KC and The Sunshine Band producing “bubblegum funk.” Mind you, many of these barbed arrows came from less successful funkateers, jealous of the band’s success.
What Makes You Happy sees another change in style from the band. The tempo drops way down, with guitars and the rhythm section producing a track with a sixties sound. The addition of the Hammond organ and Harry’s vocal adds to this. Gone is the joyous vocal from Harry, replaced by a more thoughtful delivery. He’s accompanied by growling horns, while the rhythm section take the arrangement in a direction where rock and funk combine. This is a very different song from other tracks, and rebuts the accusations of KC and The Sunshine Band producing “bubblegum funk.
I Get Lifted was a track that Harry and Richard cowrote for George McCrae’s debut album Rock Your Baby. KC and The Sunshine Band ‘s cover version gives new meaning to the track. Harry uses his vocal to produce a sultry exploration of the lyrics subtleties and nuances. Similarly, the rest of the band take the song in a new direction. There’s space to the arrangement, which the rhythm section and guitars leave. Chiming, crystalline guitars, a buzzing bass and percussion provide the backdrop for Harry’s sensual, joyful vamping vocal. Together with the rest of the band their interpretation of this song brings new life and meaning to it.
Closing KC and The Sunshine Band is Let It Go (Part Two), which is a perfect two minute reminder of the track that started the album. My theory is that it’s designed to remind you how good the track is and that you’ll flip the record over and listen again. Nowadays we don’t even need to do that, just press play again. Before that there’s the small matter of three bonus tracks, the single versions of Get Down Tonight and That’s the Way (I Like It). Then there’s Tom Moulton’s stunning remix of Get Down Tonight. After that, and only after that, you can press play again.
KC and The Sunshine Band was just the first of four KC and The Sunshine Band’s albums that would be certified platinum. When KC and The Sunshine Band released their next album The Sound of Sunshine failed it to chart. Thankfully, this was just a temporary hitch, explained by the fact It was an instrumental album, credited to just the Sunshine Band. Normal service was resumed with 1976s Part 3, which was also certified triple platinum. Two years later in 1978, Who Do Ya (Love) was certified platinum, as was 1979s Do You Wanna Go Party. Following Do You Wanna Go Party KC and The Sunshine Band never enjoyed the same commercial success. Seven further albums followed, with 2007s Yummy the last of these. For five years, KC and The Sunshine Band were one of the biggest funk bands around, fusing their unique brand of funk, soul and disco. The album that started it was 1975s KC and The Sunshine Band. This was a long way from their 1974 debut album Do It Good, which failed to chart. However, any album that featured three singles of the quality of Get Down Tonight, That’s the Way (I Like It) and the brilliant Boogie Shoes was destined for greatness in 1975. Having said that, there’s more to the album KC and The Sunshine Band than just three tracks. Let It Go (Part One), Get Down Tonight, Ain’t Nothing Wrong and I’m So Crazy (About You) are proof of this. For me, KC and The Sunshine Band, which will be rereleased by BBR Records on 9th July 2012, and its mixture of funk, disco and sunshine soul is the perfect soundtrack to the long summer nights that lie ahead. KC and The Sunshine Band is guaranteed to get any party started and have everyone looking for their Boogie Shoes. Standout Tracks: Get Down Tonight, That’s the Way (I Like It), Boogie Shoes and Ain’t Nothing Wrong.
KC AND THE SUNSHINE BAND-KC AND THE SUNSHINE BAND.
JOHN AND GINA CAREY-THE FAMILY THAT LIVE, LAUGH AND LOVE TOGETHER.
JOHN AND GINA CAREY-THE FAMILY THAT LIVE, LAUGH AND LOVE TOGETHER.
This year, 2012, has been a big year for John and Gina Carey, releasing three albums so far. On St. Valentines’ Day 2012, which was quite apt, considering how devoted to a couple they are, they both released their new solo albums. John released his album Smooth, Soulful and Funky, which was a perfect description of the music on the album. As usual, John’s playing was the standard what we’ve come to expect from the Urban Soul Guitarist, who incidentally, is a true multi-instrumentalist who can play bass, keyboards, drums and percussion. Smooth, Soulful and Funky demonstrated why he’d opened for legends of music, including Earth Wind and Fire, George Benson, Buddy Guy, Norman Brown and Rose Royce.
Meanwhile, Gina had been working just as hard. Not only did her vocals feature on John’s Smooth, Soul and Funky, but she released what would be her first album of the year, Love Letters. This was the followup to Melodic and found Gina fuse a delicious mixture of Nu-Soul, smooth soul, R&B and jazz. Then in May 2012, Gina released the followup to Love Letters, Love Letters 2. It featured four tracks from Melodic and Love Letters, plus three new tracks from her forthcoming album Live, Laugh and Love. This whetted Gina’s fans appetite nicely for Live, Laugh and Love.
With John and Gina having released three albums so far during 2012, you’d think that the hardest working family in soul and jazz music would take a break. Not at all. Later this year, John will release his second album of 2012 Family. I’ve been given a sneak preview of his new single Family, title-track to his forthcoming album Family, which I’ll tell you about.
John describes his new single family as a “smooth jazz,”…”nothing to funky, but not sleepy either.” That’s the perfect description for the track. It’s what John’s forthcoming album Family will sound like. As the track opens, there’s a real smooth jazz sound to the track. John’s crystalline guitar playing is accompanied by the rhythm section. His playing is slow and accurate, quickening as Gina’s vocal drifts in. Gina’s warm, heartfelt Nu-Soul vocal soars, mixing emotion with controlled power. When her vocal drops out, John’s vocal takes centre-stage. He plays each note with care, as he embarks on an intricate journey up and down the fretboard. The result is a delicious sounding track, where John’s guitar playing is central to Family’s smooth jazz sound, with Gina’s vocal the finishing touch to another beautiful, slide of smooth jazz from the multitalented John Carey.
Having listened to Family many, many times since I received it last night, I can’t wait to hear the rest of John’s forthcoming album Family. I’m sure the rest of Family will be of the same standard as his new single is. This year has been a huge year for both John and Gina Carey. John released Smooth, Soulful and Funky, whose title is a perfect description of the music on the album. Gina’s two albums Love Letters and Love Letters 2 were a delicious, flawless fusion of Nu-Soul, smooth soul, R&B and jazz. Soon, the next chapter in the story of John and Gina Carey will unfold, when John releases Family and Gina Live, Laugh and Love. Given the quality of music on their previous albums, I can’t wait to hear these new albums from John and Gina Carey, one of the hardest working family in soul and jazz, and the Family that Live, Love and Laugh together.
LARRY LEVAN-THE DEFINITIVE SALSOUL MIXES 1978-1983.
LARRY LEVAN-THE DEFINITIVE SALSOUL MIXES 1978-1983.
Recently, when I reviewed Salsoul Nation-Mixed and Compiled By Luke Howard, I mentioned how although Salsoul Records was one of the most important labels of the disco era, but no record company had undertaken a comprehensive and extensive reissue of its back-catalogue. However, not long after I wrote that article, I discovered that not one, but two labels are planning to reissue Salsoul’s illustrious back-catalogue. In the UK, BBR Records will begin reissuing Salsoul’s back-catalogue in late August 2012. Starting with albums by The Salsoul Orchestra, Double Exposure, First Choice and Instant Funk, Salsoul fans will at long last, be able to rediscover these albums once again. As if that’s not enough, Ultra Records in the US, are planning a digital release of the Salsoul back-catalogue. With two labels making Salsoul’s back-catalogue again, this is Disco Heaven. So, for those of you who can’t wait until then, I thought I’d review some of the best Salsoul compilations available. The first compilation I’ve chosen is Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983, a double-album released in 2005 by Sussd Records. Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983 features twenty of the remixes over two discs. On the compilation are remixes of tracks by Loleatta Holloway, The Salsoul Orchestra, First Choice, Aurra, Instant Funk, Skyy and Inner Life. Before I tell you about some of the music on Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983, I’ll tell you about the role Larry Levan played in making Salsoul Records the most important label in disco’s history.
By the time Salsoul Records became the label disco lovers know and love, Larry Levan was a twenty-one year old DJ. He’d grown up in Bedford, Stuyvesant in Brooklyn, New York and had started DJ-ing alongside Frankie Knuckles at the Continental Baths. He got his next break there, when he replaced Nicky Siano who founded The Gallery. From there, Larry started DJ-ing around New York, becoming a regular fixture among New York’s club scene. By 1977, Larry Levan was offered a residency at the club which would become synonymous with him..Paradise Garage.
Michael Brody who owned Paradise Garage, had intended to transform the club into something akin to Studio 54. In the beginning, Larry attracted a following that crossed the social spectrum. Soon, the club became restricted to members only. Membership restricted to a carefully selected clientele, who were allowed through the hallowed doors of what was just a somewhat anonymous building from the outside…until you got inside.
Once inside the Paradise Garage, you were immediately struck by the sheer size of the club. In total, there was twenty-thousand square feet, so this required a very special sound and lighting system. Designed by Richard Long, it featured a Bozak Mixer, plus to help get the sound into every nook and cranny of the club the Levan Horn Bass Speakers. The Paradise Garage wasn’t an easy club to design a sound system for, but Richard Long managed to do so. All that was left was for Larry to do his part, attract the club-goers.
Soon Larry Levan began to become one of the biggest draws in the New York club scene. He would remix tracks live, fusing different parts of track seamlessly. He’d lengthen introductions, mix in instrumental parts, tease dancers with breakdowns and then throw in an accapellas. Essentially, he was taking part of one track, mixing it with another, resulting in a new track being born. This is what he’d go on to do at Salsoul, a year after he’d started DJ-ing at the Paradise Garage.
Although Salsoul had opened its doors as a disco label in 1975, Larry was something of a latecomer when it came to remixing Salsoul’s music. He joined the ranks of DJs like John Morales and Walter Gibbons, and would create some of Salsoul’s best known remixes. One of his first remixes for Salsoul was Instant Funk’s Crying. After that, he worked his way through Salsoul royalty, remixing tracks by the Queen of Salsoul Loleatta Holloway, whose The Greatest Performance of My Life Larry Remixed in 1981. Soon, Instant Funk, Skyy, Logg, Double Exposure,The Salsoul Orchestra and Inner Life were remixed by Larry. Along with Walter Gibbons and John Morales, Larry’s reputation grew.
During a five year period between 1978 and 1983, Larry Levan’s profile as a remixer and DJ soared. Indeed, his profile got so high, that he became the first DJ to release a remix album, Larry Levan’s Greatest Remixes Volume 2. This confused record collectors, as there had never been a Volume 1. Back in 2003, Sussd Records collected twenty of Larry’s Salsoul remixes on Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983, which I’ll now tell you about.
DISC ONE.
Among the ten Larry Levan Salsoul remixes on Disc One of Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983, there’s a mixture of well known and what I’d call leftfield choices. Some of his better known tracks have been eschewed, with compiler Jeremy Newall deciding to introduce listeners to some of his less well known tracks. Tracks like Inner Life’s Ain’t No Mountain High Enough, Instant Funk’s Crying, Logg’s I Know You Will and Bunny Sigler’s By the Way You Dance all feature. Joining them are Loleatta Holloway’s The Greatest Performance Of My Life, The Salsoul Orchestra’s How High, Aurra’s When I Come Home and Jimmy Castor’s Tellin’ On The Devil. As you can see, there’s plenty of great tracks, so choosing just a few to mention won’t be easy.
My first choice from Disc One of Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983, is a Salsoul classic, Inner Life featuring Jocelyn Brown’s Ain’t No Mountain High Enough. Released in 1981, from Inner Life’s album Inner Life, it has a real timeless sound. It’s hard to believe that it was originally released back in August 1981. This timeless sounding arrangement is combined and a stunning vocal from Jocelyn Brown. Her vocal is diva-esque, as she delivers Ashford and Simpson’s lyrics. Produced by Patrick Adams and Greg Carmichael, it’s a track that after a subtle, hesitant start, where drums, percussion and then Jocelyn’s vocal combine, literally bursts into life. Drums pound, strings swirl, percussion, keyboards and chiming guitars combine before Jocelyn’s powerful, emotive vocal enters. After that, the track just gets so much better. Handclaps and bursts of backing vocalists join the arrangement, combining power and drama and gives the track its uplifting, joyous and timeless sound.
Bunny Sigler’s By the Way You Dance (I Knew It Was You) was a track from his 1979 album I’ve Always Wanted To Sing…Not Jut Write Songs. Here, Larry takes the original seven minute song and stretches it to just over ten minutes. A pounding, funky rhythm section, percussion and guitars combine, with Larry teasing the listener, extending the introduction. When Bunny’s vocal enters, he delivers it in powerful, punchy bursts, with the rhythm section and percussion for company. Layers of keyboards are added, with backing vocalists added to an arrangement, where Latin, funk and disco are combined. Later, Bunny struts his way through the track, with percussive breaks and the pounding rhythm section playing their part in the track’s inspirational, uplifting and good-time sound.
First Choice, who featured the vocals of Rochelle Fleming were one of Salsoul’s biggest groups. Double Cross, was a track from their Hold Your Horses album, released in 1979. Written by Norman Harris and Ron Tyson, and produced by Norman Harris this is a classic from First Choice. Just the dramatic soaring vocal opens the track, before grand strings cascade, blazing horns and the rhythm section enter. They provide the perfect backdrop for Rochelle’s vocal, while tight, soulful harmonies accompany her. As her impassioned vocal drops out, a bass pounds, horns rasp, and flourishes of strings are joined by a wistful flute and jazz-tinged guitars from Bobby Eli. All this makes Double Cross one of the best remixes on the compilation. Mind you, Larry had a good starting point, with Rochelle’s stunning vocal and Norman Harris’ peerless production.
On many Salsoul compilations, when a compiler chooses a Loleatta Holloway track, it’s usually either Dreamin,’ Hit and Run or Love Sensation. Not here. Instead, The Greatest Performance Of My Life, a track from her 1979 album Loleatta Holloway. Produced by Floyd Miller, just a wistful piano and subtle guitar accompany Loleatta’s heartfelt vocal, before percussion enters. Soon, the track reveals its secrets, with the rhythm section and guitars joining, as lush strings add to the emotion of the track. When Loleatta’s vocal drops out, Larry builds the track up. Percussion, keyboards, strings and drums are dropped in, just at the right moment. Unlike other tracks Loleatta doesn’t vamp her way through the whole track. Instead she restricts her vamp to later in the track, revealing a much more soulful side to her music.
One of Larry Levan’s best known remixes is Instant Funk’s Crying. It was one of the first Salsoul remixes he undertook, back in 1978 and appeared on their 1979 album Instant Funk. There’s an almost space-age sound to the track, before the pounding drums and powerful vocal enters. The rhythm section are key to the track’s sound, while guitars and keyboards play their parts. Blazing horns signal the arrival of tight, soulful harmonies. Then at last nearly two minutes into the track the growling, emotive vocal enters. It’s well worth the wait, with seven more minutes still to come. They fly by, with Larry’s remix highlighting everything that makes this a classic track. This means the vocal, harmonies, swathes keyboards, punchy, blazing horns and not forgetting the pounding rhythm section. These pieces of the jigsaw are put together by Larry in a way no-one else had thought of, resulting in Salsoul classic.
While I’ve only mentioned five of the ten tracks on Disc One of Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983, this is no reflection on the quality of the other tracks. It’s just certain tracks chose themselves, with Inner Life’s Ain’t No Mountain High Enough, First Choice’s Double Cross and Instant Funk’s Crying three of them. Loleatta Holloway’s The Greatest Performance Of My Life showed a quite different, soulful side to her music. Among the other tracks I could’ve mentioned, were tracks by The Salsoul Orchestra, Logg and Aurra. Really, the quality of remixes was so high that I could’ve chosen nearly every track. Will that be the case on Disc Two of Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983?
DISC TWO.
On Disc Two of Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983, rather than ten separate artists like on Disc One, Instant Funk feature four times and Skyy twice. The four other tracks are from Jimmy Castor, Sparkle, Steve Arrington and Inner Life Featuring Jocelyn Brown. Will the tracks on Disc Two of Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983 match the quality of Disc One?
Instant Funk don’t just feature once or twice on Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983, but five times. Larry remixed a number of their tracks, including their ten-minute epic I Got My Mind Make It Last Forever. Hailing from New Jersey, Instant Funk backed Loleatta Holloway, The O’Jays and Curtis Mayfield. The track reached number one in the US R&B Disco charts in 1979, and was from their 1979 Instant Funk. I Got My Mind Made Up was sampled by De La Soul on A Rollerskating Jam Named Saturdays. Over nearly ten minutes, where a proliferation of percussion, a loping bass line, punchy drums and backing vocals, the track combines Latin, funk and disco music. With breathy backing vocals, accompanying a really soulful lilting lead vocal, this was Instant Funk’s biggest hits. Not only that, but it’s a highly memorable, timeless classic from Salsoul label, mixed by Larry Levan.
Skyy’s First Time Around was released and remixed by Larry in May 1979. Opening with just a wandering bass, before a male vocal enters. Then sizzling guitars, swirling strings and pounding drums combine. The arrangement is dramatic, while sweet, sensuous vocals drift in and out of the track. This track has a quite different sound, with rocky guitars providing a contrast to the lushness of the strings and the pounding drums. There’s even synths which occasionally reverberate above the arrangement, as the track reveals its charms and secrets. Although I’ve heard various remixes and edits of this track, Larry’s version is one of the best versions of a track from one of disco’s biggest groups.
Jimmy Castor never released an album for Salsoul, but several of his tracks became favorites of remixers, including Larry Levan. Probably his best known is It’s Only Just Begun. Stabs of keyboards, bursts of braying horns and the rhythm section give the track a loose, funky sound with a Latin twist. Then when Jimmy’s vocal enters, he delivers it with a swing, perfect for the arrangement. Backing vocalists are added, helping percussion, handclaps and growling horns, creating the loose, catchy sound. This results in a quite un-Salsoul sounding track. There’s neither the big production of other tracks, nor the vocal that grabs your attention. However, it still works, still results in a catchy, some might say irresistible sounding track. Personally, although I appreciate the quality of this tracks, it’s one of my least favourite tracks on the album. My reason for this is its quite un-Salsoul sound.
Sparkle’s Handsome Man is a track Larry remixed for Salsoul but which was never released by the label. When Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983 was released, this was the first time the track was ever available. A pounding bass-line, percussion and handclaps are combined, with guitars and keyboards added. There’s even a slight Chic sound to the track, especially the guitars. The vocal seems a bit weak, sitting far back in the mix. It’s accompanied by backing vocalists and blazing horns. Soon, you realize it’s a track that you want to love, but the vocal lets it down. If someone like Rochelle Fleming or Loleatta Holloway was singing the vocal, it would be a much better track. Instead, it’s good, but not great.
The last track I’ve chosen to mention is by the group who were my first choice from Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983 Inner Life featuring Jocelyn Brown’s. Make It Last Forever was remixed by Larry in 1981 and is a track Patrick Adams and Greg Carmichael cowrote and produced for their Inner Life album. This is a thirteen-minute Magnus Opus, with swathes of cascading strings, joined by the rhythm section and percussion. Then Jocelyn’s vocal heartfelt, impassioned enters, with tight, soulful harmonies accompanying her. Her vocal and the way the strings are used are key to the track. They’re the perfect accompaniment to Jocelyn’s vocal, and are augmented by the rhythm section, keyboards and percussion. As Jocelyn sings “Make It Last Forever,” you wish the track would indeed last forever, given it’s one of Larry best remixes. While it doesn’t last forever, it’s a thirteen minute epic.
On Disc One of Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983 there were ten separate artists on the disc. No artist was featured twice. This isn’t the case on Disc Two, where Instant Funk feature four times and Skyy twice. Mind you, given Larry’s association with both groups, this may be understandable. For some people however, they’ll be disappointed by two groups featuring eight times on the compilation’s twenty tracks. It could be argued that maybe, the compilers could have chosen some of Larry’s other Salsoul mixes. Personally, I think as long as the quality is there, then the compiler can be forgiven for featuring Instant Funk and Skyy as often. Having mentioned quality, there’s only one track that didn’t quite work for me. This was Sparkle’s Handsome Man, which previously, had never been commercially available. Everything was in place for a great track, except one thing…the vocal. To me, it was weak, sitting too far back in the mix. If Loleatta Holloway or Rochelle Fleming had delivered the vocal, the track would’ve been far better. The two tracks from Jimmy Castor, who never recorded an album for Salsoul, didn’t have what I’d have what I’d call a Salsoul sound. Despite this, It’s Just Begun is actually a really good dance track , but one of my least favourite tracks on the compilation. I’m not so sold on Tellin’ On The Devil, with its proto-rap vocal. To me, that’s the only weak track on Disc One. Apart from just three tracks, the other seventeen on Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983 feature some of his best mixes. Of these tracks, some of them are bona fide Salsoul classics, including Inner Life’s Ain’t No Mountain High Enough, Instant Funk’s Crying, First Choice’s Double Cros, Skyy’s First Time Around and Inner Life’s Make It Last Forever. They’re closely followed by Bunny Sigler’s By the Way You Dance (I Knew It Was You) and Loleatta Holloway’s The Greatest Performance of My Life. For anyone who loves either disco, Salsoul Records or Larry Levan, then Larry Levan-The Definitive Salsoul Mixes 1978-1983 is well worth buying. It contains some Salsoul classic, classics that Larry Levan played at the Paradise Garage between 1977 and 1987, when he was one of the biggest, highest profile DJs in the history of dance music. Standout Tracks: Inner Life’s Ain’t No Mountain High Enough, First Choice’s Double Cross, Loleatta Holloway’s The Greatest Performance of My Life and Inner Life’s Make It Last Forever.
LARRY LEVAN-THE DEFINITIVE SALSOUL MIXES 1978-1983.
RICHARD SEN PRESENTS THIS AIN’T CHICAGO.
RICHARD SEN PRESENTS THIS AIN’T CHICAGO.
When I first received Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago released on Strut Records in June 2012, I was instantly transported back to 1985, when I first heard the first wave of Chicago House music. Straight away, I realised that things were about to change. This wasn’t just a musical fad, this was something very different. Fast forward two years to 1987, and the Acid House scene was exploding in the UK. For the next few years, the old order was overthrown. Frankly, it was about time. People were fed up of the exclusive and sometimes, discriminatory policy of certain soul and rare groove nights. Trying to get into some of these nights, was akin to getting a camel through the eye of the needle, if you’re face or race didn’t fit with the “door policy.” Given that these clubs were playing soul, funk, R&B and rare groove, this was somewhat ironic. Irony, was something certain organizers didn’t quite get. Soon, things would change, soon there was a changing of the guard, soon there would be a revolution, a musical revolution.
The revolution came with the Acid House explosion. Now the tables were turned. This was a musical, social and cultural revolution. Not in the faux revolutionary sense of punk and post punk, with public school boys masquerading as musical revolutionaries. Quite the opposite. There was a sense of inclusion, togetherness and being part of a scene where the rules were made up as you went along. There were many welcome changes. Gone were selective door policies and the clubs that perpetuated this form of discrimination. They were replaced by an inclusive come one, come all policy. Suddenly, race, wealth or social position didn’t matter. Everyone was welcome, everyone danced side by side, with the music policy truly eclectic.
Unlike the soul scene, with its constant petty bickering about whether a track was too Northern or Modern, music like people, was equal. Anything and everything was played, with a new breed of UK producers making their own unique brand of Acid House. These nascent producers took their lead from the Windy City, Chicago, the spiritual home of House.
These tracks produced by new producers were inventive, imaginative, unique and would provide the soundtrack to many a memorable Acid House night. However, even then, Acid House had its critics. Fans of rock music clutched their Prog Rock albums, whining that: “these aren’t real musicians, playing real instruments.” Other music fans music fans complained the tracks had no soul. Critics and embittered DJs who’d lost their venues to Acid House nights smugly said, Acid House was a passing musical fad. In their opinion, it neither had a future, nor would it enjoy longevity. Well, twenty-five years later Acid House is still alive and thriving, with twenty-four of these tracks, recorded between 1987 and 1991, featuring on Strut Records recently released Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago.
Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago is a double album of twenty-four UK House and Acid House tracks recorded between 1987 and 1991. These producers were among the first wave of UK producers. Unlike nowadays, there were no Apple Macs running Logic, Ableton Live or Pro Tools. Instead, it was all very different, with the equipment much more basic or lo-fi. Drum machines, synths, samplers and sequencers were all you had. Either you recorded these tracks onto a basic four-track recorder, or if you had the money, hired a recording studio. Sometimes, a vocalist was used, but all too often, samples were all the producer had.
Like the early hip hop pioneers, they scoured charity shops, record shops and dank, dusty warehouses for vinyl, borrowing many a sample. These were added to their productions, and for the lucky few, picked up by a DJ and played at an Acid House night. Sometimes, this resulted in the track being picked up by hungry record companies, desperate to get a slice of this new, underground scene. Often, contracts were hurriedly drawn up, all too often signed, in haste by an artist desperate for their track to be released. Their idea was, grab a slice of the action before it’s all over. Despite people saying UK House and Acid House wouldn’t enjoy longevity, people still are hungry to discover or rediscover the heady sounds of twenty-five years ago. Step forward Richard Sen, whose new compilation Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago will sate the appetite of either veteran or newcomers to the UK House and Acid House scene. So settle down, relax and enjoy a return to the heady glory days of Acid House, as I pick my top ten tracks from Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago.
DISC ONE.
On Disc One of Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago, Richard has chosen thirteen slices of UK House and Acid House. These are from the period between 1987 and 1991, and are the fruits of UK producers. These new, young producers were among the pioneers of this new scene. They were based throughout the UK, ranging from Manchester in the North West, Birmingham in the Midlands and London in the South. Among them, are Bang the Party, Baby Ford, The Man With No Name, May and Julie Stapleton, these will bring back memories of clubs like Manchester’s Hacienda and Heaven in London. They’ll also be the soundtrack to many a forty-something’s clubbing days. However, twenty-five years after some of the tracks on Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago were released, how do they sound? Have they lost any of their magic and sparkle, or do they still evoke the seem feelings and memories?
My first choice from Disc One of Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago, is the track that opens the album Bang the Party’s Bang Bang You’re Mine (Full Vocal Release). This was released in 1989 and was written, arranged and produced by Lawrence Bachelor and Leslie Lawrence. Crispy beats, a myriad and synths and a haunting, tortured vocal from Lawrence “Kid” Bachelor is combined. The vocal, wrapped in delay, melts into the distance, while pounding beats and washes of synths combine with percussion. Listening to the track, it’s hard to believe it’s twenty-three years old. It has a contemporary, dramatic and dynamic sound and is a perfect reminded of the glory days of Acid House.
Julian Jonah’s Jealousy and Lies, released in 1988 is a track that takes its reference points from Chicago House. This is apparent from the track’s opening beats. While it hasn’t the drama of Bang the Party’s Bang Bang You’re Mine, it’s a track that leaves an impression. From the opening bars you’re hooked. Handclaps, percussion and pounding beats give way to squelchy synths. Stabs of synths signal the track to reveal its secrets and reference points. A moody, broody vocal is enveloped by beats, percussion and layers of synths. Suddenly, you’re transported back to the late eighties, remembering dark warehouses on the edge of cities, with tracks like this providing the soundtrack to many a memorable evening. It’s like having you’re own time machine, one that takes you back to when you were younger, before reluctantly, you had to grow old up and grow older.
The Man With No Name sounds like a gunslinger from an old Western movie, rather than Martin Freeland, who back in 1990 released From Within The Mind Of My 909. Released on Spiral Cut, the track supported the Freedom Party, who were opposing politician’s plans to change legislation stopping all night raves. Here, Martin combines pounding beats, dark synths and percussion, before gradually revealing the track’s subtleties. Flourishes of synths compete with a piano house inspired keyboard solo and drumbeats that test the tolerance of your speakers. Squelchy synths are dropped in, before dramatic synth solos unfold, with beats and percussion constant companions. His production style sees layer upon layer of complex, dramatic and joyful music unleashed. This only serves to remind you just why you loved this music all this years ago.
Safety Zone released in 1989 on Catt Records isn’t quite unleashed like an Exocet thankfully. There’s no devastation, instead, just old school Acid House. There’s squelchy synths, beeps and bleeps aplenty. It meanders along, before gradually the tempo increases, becoming deceptively fast. Eventually, the stabs and washes of squelchy synths and crispy beats create a futuristic sounding soundscape, while the tempo reaches a 122 beats per minute. As I listen to this glorious sounding track, with its unmistakable Acid House sound, I can hear the crusty old hippies stroking their beards and saying: “this isn’t music.” To them I say, it’s all a matter of opinions, and thousands or ravers can’t be wrong.
May’s Love Me Baby (Garage House Mix) is my final choice from the tracks on Disc One of Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago. Released on Rhythmbeat Records in 1989, and produced by P. Mac, this track is different in style, more garage-house than Acid House. Amongst the surprises May spring during the track’s five minutes, are an ethereal vocal. Crashing hi-hats, pounding drums, dark broody synths are all there, before a sinister male vocal assails your senses. Then comes that ethereal vocal from Mavis Clarke, soulful and sassy. Bursts of dramatic synths, crunchy beats and percussion accompany Mavis, whose vocal, along with P. Mac’s production make this one of the highlights of Disc One.
While I’ve only picked five tracks to tell you about, another day it might be different. The reason for this is that the quality is consistently high throughout Disc One of Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago. Sometimes, it’s hard to limit yourself to just five track. Inwardly, I’m debating the merits of one track over another, constantly considering which tracks to tell you about. I could just as easily mentioned Window Smashers’ Free To Be or Rio Rhythm Band’s Cuba Jakkin’ recorded in a garage using just the most basic equipment. Then there’s Playtime Toons’ Shaker Song, a favorite in clubs like Land of Oz, Trip and Shoom. Choice, choices indeed. Hopefully, the quality of music on Disc Two of Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago will be just as high and my choices just as difficult.
DISC TWO.
After the thirteen quality tracks that made Disc One of Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago such compelling listening. It was like being transported back in time, to the heady days of Acid House. You remember its carefree, inclusive, come one, come all attitude, dancing in dank, dark warehouses after spending half your evening traipsing up and down motorways, A roads and dimly-lit side-streets. Eventually, you arrived, following the noise of the P.A. and the stream of up-for-it ravers. Once there, you danced to a soundtrack similar to that on Disc Two of Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago. Here, Richard Sen has only room for eleven tracks, with producers like Sly And Lovechild, Static, Colm III, The E.L.F. and Annette entrusted with bringing back hazy memories of hedonistic nights, where anything went and usually did. Among the backdrop for your night of hedonism, chaos or carefree fun were tracks live the five I’ve chosen from Disc Two of Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago.
Sly And Lovechild’s The World According To Sly And Lovechild (Andrew Weatherall Soul Of Europe Mix) is my first choice from Disc Two of Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago. Released on 1990 on the Heavenly label, it’s certainly designed to grab your attention. Opening with the sampled sound of a half-spoken vocal and subtle jazz-tinged piano, Eastern percussion adds to the moody sound. Soon, you think, the track is ready to explode. Drums pound, swathes of synths unravel, with the vocal central to track’s sound and success. Percussion enters, with Andrew Weatherall fresh from mixing Loaded, remixing the track. Things get even better when a diva-esque vocal enters, adding to the dramatic, dynamic sound. You’re hooked, swept along by a track that although over twenty years old, still has a contemporary sound.
Static’s Iron Orbit (J. Saul Kane Mix) was released in 1989 on the Static label and demonstrates a much heavier, industrial sound. This is apparent when the drums pound so much your speakers complain at the punishment. Layers of synths maraud along, while a pulsating bass, percussion and a myriad of industrial sounds join the fray. They produce a sound that’s abrasive, industrial and pulsating. It was perfect for the cavernous warehouse and clubs that were the cathedrals, where Acid House followers came to give thanks to its sounds and delights.
Show Me What You Got by S.L.F. was released back in 1988, and has taken as its inspiration two different musical genres. Keyboards are inspired by Italian piano house, while squelchy, synths crispy, pulsating drumbeats give the track its Acid House sound. This is a combination that works seamlessly. Hypnotic beats, a myriad of bleeps, beep and squelches are at the heart of the track’s sound. Unlike many tracks from this era, the track still has a contemporary sound. It’s aged well, like a bottle of fine wine. Drop this track in any club and the place would explode.
Bizarre Inc.’s Technological (Detroit Mix) is another track that owes a debt of gratitude to the spiritual home of house and techno music Chicago. Released in 1988 on Blue Chip Recordings, the track mixes 4/4 beats with a synth sound that sound not unlike Mr. Fingers’ classic Chicago House track Washing Machine. Maybe this is just Bizarre Inc. paying homage to the Chicago House pioneer, but you can’t mistake the passing similarity. This was a groove designed with some hard jacking in mind. Just the beats, with the Detroit sounding marauding synths is all it takes to create a track that fuses house and techno seamlessly.
The last track I’ve chosen to mention on Disc Two of Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago is US’ Born In the North. This was the brainchild of a collective of Manchester based musicians, poets and artists. It’s a track that’s full of satire and political comment. Released in 1988, on Wooden Records, during a time when politicians, media and social commentators were fixated with the south of England, and London in particular. Here, US cock a snook at the London fixated politicians and media. Using a mixture of layers of synths, percussion, pounding and punchy horns, US fuse satire and sarcasm. Edward Barton’s dark, calm, but angry vocal articulates the feelings of everyone North of Watford, while a female vocalist parodies then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The result is a track which isn’t just satirical and sarcastic, but was one of the first protest songs of the Acid House era.
Having posed the question whether Disc Two of Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago would match the quality and consistency of Disc One, I can say that not only does he manage to do so, but in some cases surpasses the quality on Disc One. During the eleven tracks, you rediscover the delights of Sly And Lovechild, Static, S.L.F., Bizarre Inc and US. These five artists are joined by artists of the calibre of Ability 2, Com III, M. D. Emm and Rohan Delano. Add these eleven tracks to the thirteen track on Disc One of Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago and you’ve twenty-four classics from the dawn of UK House and Acid House scene. Whilst writing this review, I was horrified to realize that it’s now twenty-five years since some of these tracks were first released. It doesn’t seem so long ago when these tracks were part of something very special, something new and something where everyone was equal. No longer were you turned away at the door because your face or race didn’t fit. Quite the opposite. During the Acid House years, it was all inclusive, with rich and poor and all colors and creeds dancing side by side. Friendships were made that lasted the next twenty-five years, while those that said the whole dance scene wouldn’t last long, have been proved wrong. Not only did Acid House prove to have longevity, but proved to be the springboard for new scenes. House music became one of the biggest, most important musical genres during the nineties and beyond. For those who were there back at the birth of UK House and Acid House, then Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago will bring back magical, heady memories of the whole scene. For newcomers, who weren’t around back in 1987, then Richard Sen Presents This Ain’t Chicago will introduce you to some of the best tracks from the glory days of UK House and Acid House. Standout Tracks: Bang the Party Bang Bang You’re Mine (Full Vocal Release), Julian Jonah Jealousy and Lies, Sly And Lovechild’s The World According To Sly And Lovechild (Andrew Weatherall Soul Of Europe Mix) and S.L.F. Show Me What You Got.
RICHARD SEN PRESENTS THIS AIN’T CHICAGO.
THE DELLS-ONE STEP CLOSER.
THE DELLS-ONE STEP CLOSER.
The last time I reviewed an album by The Dells, it was their 1978 album Love Connection. Like their previous album, They Said It Couldn’t Be Done But We Did It Anyway, it was produced by Norman Harris’ The Harris Machine. Along with some of Philly’s finest musicians, The Harris Machine gave The Dells a Philly Sound makeover. Sadly, neither albums was the commercial successes the music deserved. Love Connection was The Dells’ final album for Mercury. After this, they signed to ABC, releasing two albums, New Beginnings and Face To Face. New Beginnings released in 1978, saw an upturn in The Dells’ fortunes, reaching number 169 in the US Billboard 200 and number fifty-five in the US R&B Charts. Face To Face, released in 1979 reached reaching number 203 in the US Billboard 200 and number seventy-one in the US R&B Charts. For 1980s I Touched A Dream, The Dells signed to 20th Century Fox. It became their most successful album since The Mighty Mighty Dells, reaching number 137 in the US Billboard 200 and number twenty in the US R&B Charts. Thinking their career was on an upturn, The Dells released Whatever Turns You On, but it failed to chart. Without a record deal, The Dells didn’t release another album for three years, until 1984s One Step Closer, which was released by SoulMusic Records on 18th June 2012. Would One Step Closer, The Dells’ twenty-second album, get their career back on track?
After a two year absence from the recording studio, the five members of The Dells Marvin Junior, Mickey McGill, Verne Allison, Johnny Carter and Chuck Barksdale signed to Los Angeles based Joe “Hitman” Isgro’s Private I Records. Since the release of their last album for Cadet, 1975s We Got To Get Our Thing Together, The Dells had spent time on Mercury, ABC and 20th Century Fox Records. Their previous album, 1981s Whatever Turns You On had been the least successful album of their career. Now thirty-one years after forming in 1952, The Dells were ready to record the twenty-second album of their career for Private I Records. Their new label had previously revived the careers of The Chi-Lites, Staple Singers and Bonnie Pointer. Could they do the same with The Dells?
For what would become One Step Closer, a number of producers and songwriting teams would work with The Dells. Chuck Jackson and Martin Yancy cowrote three song and produced five of the songs on One Step Closer. David Williams wrote one track, cowrote another and produced two tracks on the album. The other track, I’m Your Man, written by Ashford and Simpson, was produced by David Johnson and Archie Russel. These eight tracks would becme One Step Closer, The Dells twenty-second album of their thirty-two year career. However, unlike their previous albums, One Step Closer was recorded on a budget.
Whereas The Dells had been used to recording albums for big labels like Chess, Mercury, ABC and 20th Century Fox, Private I Records didn’t have such deep pockets. Recording was taking place in Chicago and California, but during the recording sessions, The Dells felt violins were needed for a track. This needed more money, $2,500 to be precise to pay the arranger. After a trip to see label owner Joe “Hitman” Isgro, The Dells had the money to pay their arranger. Even then another problem arose. The booth was really small. Indeed, it was so small, that the strings had to be recorded sitting on the steps inside the building. Eventually, the sessions were completed and One Step Closer was One Step Closer to being released.
One Step Closer was released in 1984, reaching number forty-nine in the US R&B Charts. Three singles were released from One Step Closer. You Just Can’t Walk Away reached number twenty-three in the Us R&B Charts. The title-track One Step Closer reached number forty-six in the US R&B Charts. Love On was the final single released from One Step Closer, reaching number sixty in the US R&B Charts. After the disappointment of Whatever Turns You On not charting, One Step Closer saw The Dells making a comeback. However, what did One Step Closer sound like?
Opening One Step Closer is the title-track One Step Closer, one of the three singles, and a track Chuck Jackson and Martin Yancy cowrote and produced. The tempo is quick, with the rhythm section and washes of synths giving way to The Dells’ tight, urgent harmonies. Then comes Marvin Junior’s lead vocal. He’s lost none of his vocal prowess during their three year absence from recording. Very different is the arrangement, with its reliance on synths and drum machines. It’s very difference from The Harris Machine productions on Love Connection, with Philly’s finest musicians. Having said that, Marvin’s vocal and the harmonies are just as good. Welcome back The Dells.
Love On was the third single released from One Step Closer. It has a dramatic introduction, designed to grab your attention. This it does. What follows is one of Marvin’s best vocal. His vocal has a tenderness, but is impassioned and full of sincerity. Stabs of keyboards,a rhythm section that’s both soulful, but slightly funky provides a fitting backdrop. The rest of The Dells add equally tender, impassioned harmonies. Bursts of punchy rhythm section ensure The Dells have your attention. This they do, on one of the highlights of One Step Closer, delivering vocals and harmonies like only The Dells can.
You just know when the mid-tempo You Just Can’t Walk Away begins, that this is another gem from The Dells. Comparisons can be drawn with Teddy Pendergrass in the with its subtle heartfelt delivery. The other Dells deliver some tight, tender harmonies, while the arrangement sees keyboards and the rhythm section playing around The Dells, allowing them to do what they’d been doing so well since 1952. As the song progresses, Marvin’s vocal grows stronger, full of feeling, longing and love. Realizing just how good Marvin’s vocal is, the rest of The Dells lift their game. Their harmonies are the perfect accompaniment, fries to Marvin’s burger. No wonder this track gave The Dells their biggest single since 1980s I Touched A Dream, reaching number twenty-three in the US R&B Charts.
Even though One Step Closer is made on a budget, with synths and drum machines replacing what many people would call “real musicians,” Come On Back To Me still works. Here, the synths and drum machines are augmented by bass and guitars, giving the track a real eighties synth sound, this doesn’t matter. They provide the appetizer, while The Dells vocal talents provide the main course and dessert. Drums pound, while washes of synths and keyboards precede the vocal. Soon, Marvin takes over the lead vocal, throwing himself into the vocal, combining power and passion. Quickly, the vocal changes hands again, with the other Dells adding punchy harmonies, accompanied by equally punchy drums which crack. It’s the vocal that grab your attention, and what you focus on. However, I wonder what the song would’ve sounded like with the musicians that played on Love Connection?
A piano meanders in, before lush strings cascade and Holdin’ On, a dramatic, heartfelt and emotive ballad unfolds. The vocal is shared, with each Dell adding to the drama and emotion. They deliver the lyrics as if they mean every word, getting across the subtleties and nuances of the lyrics. One of the best arrangements on One Step Closer unfolds. There’s less reliance on synths, with a the piano and rhythm section providing the perfect backdrop for the vocal. Then there’s the strings recorded on the studio’s steps. Even they work really well, adding to the track’s irresistible sound.
Don’t Want Nobody sees a change in producer, with David Williams taking over. Straight away, a very different sound emerges from your speakers. Gone are the synths and drum machines. Instead, percussion, a pounding, funky rhythm section and keyboards combine. There’s even a Latin feel and sound to the arrangement. You sense this will lead to The Dells raising their game. Marvin grabs the song by the scruff of the neck, his vocal powerful and passionate. Tight, soaring harmonies augment his vocal, while the percussion heavy arrangement is enchanting and beguiling.
I Am Your Man written by Ashford and Simpson, sees the introduction of another production team, with the track produced by David Johnson and Archie Russel. They’re responsible for an arrangement that features keyboards, rhythm section and slow, sweeping strings whose lush sound are perfect for The Dells’ vocals. Marvin’s vocal is slow, heartfelt and sincere, delivering the vocal as if he means it. The when the other Dells add harmonies, they match Marvin stride for stride, their delivery just as intense and fervid. Of the eight songs on the album, Ashford and Simpson provide the
Closing One Step Closer is Jody, which was produced by David Williams. It sees another change in sound. Percussion, rhythm section and rocky guitars combine, with the bold guitar sound dominating the arrangement. Marvin’s vocal is equally bold. Quickly, the vocal changes hands, with each vocal probing, questioning “who is this Jody?” Although very different, with its marauding, rocky guitars, adds to the drama and of the arrangement, which incidentally, has a much more electronic sound than the other David Williams produced track.
Although The Dells had been without a recording contract since the commercial failure of 1981s Whatever Turns You On, The Dells that can be heard on 1984s One Step Closer, hadn’t lost any of their vocal prowess. Marvin Junior’s vocals were just as emotive, impassioned and sometimes, powerful as on Love Connection. However, the production style on One Step Closer was very different from The Harris Machine produced Love Connection. On Love Connection, Norman Harris and some of Philly’s finest musicians produced a really polished album where he gave The Dells a Philly Sound makeover. It wasn’t possible to produce as polished a sounding production on One Step Closer given the much lower budget available for The Dells. They’d even to ask for just $2,500 to pay someone to arrange the strings. So instead of the big production of Love Connection, synths and drum machines replaced what some people call “real musicians.” What the three producers or productions came up with were a variety of production styles. Sometimes synths and drum machines were used, other times the rhythm section, had percussion and strings added. While this wasn’t what many people must have expected from a Dells’ album, it worked well, with The Dells’ trademark vocals still of the quality you’d expect. Tracks like Love On, You Just Can’t Walk Away, Holdin’ On, Don’t Want Nobody and I Am Your Man may have differing production styles, but they’re a fitting accompaniment to The Dells. While One Step Closer is quite different from albums like They Said It Couldn’t Be Done But We Did It Anyway and Love Connection, one thing stays the same…The Dells vocals and harmonies. For anyone whose a fan of The Dells, R&B and soul music, then The Dells twenty-second album One Step Closer released by SoulMusic Records on 18th June 2012 is something of a hidden gem in their long and illustrious back-catalogue.To me, it’s hidden gem that’s well worth unearthing and comparing to They Said It Couldn’t Be Done But We Did It Anyway and Love Connection, when The Harris Machine gave The Dells a Philly Sound makeover. Standout Tracks: Love On, Holdin’ On, Don’t Want Nobody and I Am Your Man.
THE DELLS-ONE STEP CLOSER.
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DENIECE WILLIAMS-I’M SO PROUD.
DENIECE WILLIAMS-I’M SO PROUD.
Sometimes, the difference an experience and talented producer can make to an artist’s career can’t be underestimated. While everyone has their own examples, Deniece Williams certainly felt this when she first met Thom Bell. Instantly, they realized they were musical soul mates. By that time, Thom Bell was a vastly experienced producer, having worked with artists like The Delfonics, Detroit Spinners and The Stylistics. So, in hiring Thom Bell to co-produce Deniece’s 1981 album My Melody, it was no surprise when the albumwas certified gold. Given the success of My Melody, it’s no surprise that Thom was hired to co-produce the followup Niecy. However, when Deniece came to record her sixth solo album I’m So Proud, Thom Bell wasn’t available. Considering how well they worked together and the musical results, this must have been hugely disappointing. With Thom Bell unavailable, another producer was needed. Rather than choose one producer, instead, production duties were shared between Deniece, jazz legend George Duke and Bill Neale. George Duke and Deniece had met at a party and spoked about working together in the future. A few months later, this collaboration was underway, with George sharing production with Bill Neale. How would the sharing of production duties and Thom Bell’s absence affect I’m So Proud?
For Deniece’s sixth studio album I’m So Proud, a mixture of new material and cover versions were chosen. Deniece wrote one track and cowrote three tracks. Two of these she cowrote with producer George Duke. The other track Deniece cowrote was Love, Peace and Unity, which she cowrote with Scott Sigman. Among the other four tracks, were covers of a track Curtis Mayfield wrote for The Impressions, I’m So Proud. Two other tracks were They Say which Skip Scarborough and Theresa McFaddin cowrote, plus Heaven In Your Eyes written by Raymond Jones and Love. On So Deep In Love, which Jeff Barry and Bruce Roberts cowrote, Deniece is reunited with Johnny Mathis and they shares the lead vocal. With the eight tracks chosen, Deniece headed to various studios, one in New York and Los Angeles with producers George Duke and Bill Neale.
With two producers working on I’m So Proud, recording took place at various studios. For the four tracks produced by George Duke, the tracks and vocal were recorded at The Complex in Los Angeles. Later, guitars, keyboards and percussion were overdubbed at Le Gonks West in Los Angeles. Not only did George Duke produce these four tracks, but played keyboards and drums on these tracks. Given the recordings took place at different studios, George used different musicians to Bill Neale.
For the three tracks that Bill Neale produced, two studios were chosen. Monterey Sound Studios in Glendale California and Sunset Sound Studios in Hollywood were chosen. Bill arranged and produced the three tracks, while using different musicians to George Duke.
The other track, Love, Peace and Unity was produced by Deniece, with the track recorded at New York’s Sigma Sound Studios. Given recording of the eight tracks on I’m So Proud were recorded at five separate studios, a long list of musicians were used
Among the long list of talented musicians that would play on I’m So Proud, were a rhythm section of guitarist Paul Jackson Jr., bassist Louis Johnson and drummer Rickey Lawson. Accompanying them were percussionist Paulinho DaCosta and keyboard player Jerry Peters. Not only did George Duke produce four tracks, but played keyboards and drums on these tracks. Eventually, the eight tracks that became I’m So Proud were recorded. All that was left was for I’m So Proud to be released. Would it match the success of Deniece’s two previous Thom Bell produced albums My Melody and Niecy?
Before the release of I’m So Proud in May 1983, Do What You Feel reached number 102 in the US Billboard 100 and number nine in the US R&B Charts. On the release of I’m So Proud in May 1983, it reached number fifty-four in the US R&B Charts and number ten in the US R&B Charts. This didn’t match the success of Deniece’s previous album Niecy. It had reached number twenty in the US Billboard 200 Charts and number five in the R&B Charts. July 1983 saw the release of the title-track I’m So Proud, which reached number twenty-eight in the US R&B Charts. The final single was Heaven In Your Eyes, released in September 1983, but failed to chart. Unlike Niecy, the singles released from I’m So Proud didn’t prove as popular. Niecy had contained It’s Gonna Take A Miracle, which gave Deniece a US R&B number one single, plus two other hit singles. Although I’m So Proud didn’t match the success of Niecy, how do the two albums differ? That’s what I’ll tell you, once I’ve told you about the music on I’m So Proud.
Do What You Feel opens I’m So Proud, and is a track Deniece and George Duke cowrote, with George producing the track. There’s a real George Duke sound to the track from its opening bars. Funk and soul are fused during the track. When the keyboards open the track, you’ve no hint of what’s about to unfold. The pounding rhythm section is funky, while chiming guitars and blazing horns punctuate the arrangement. Here, Deniece’s vocal is looser than on tracks on Niecy, but still soulful. It soars high, quivering, replacing the sizzling horns. Sometimes, the horns showboat, grandstanding as they’re played with power. However, Deniece holds her own, mixing power and emotion. She copes well with the fusion of funk, jazz and soul, demonstrating a quite different side to her music.
I’m So Proud was written by Curtis Mayfield and recorded by The Impressions, giving them a hit in 1965. Here, Bill Neale takes over production duties, producing the perfect arrangement for Deniece’s tender, heartfelt vocal. He combines keyboards, guitars backing vocalists and the rhythm section. They produce a slow, spacious and understated arrangement. Later, a harmonica solo adds the finishing touch to the arrangement. It’s replaced by Deniece’s vocal which soars, trembling and quivering emotively, while backing vocalists accompany her. Here, Deniece and Bill Neale give an old song a new twist, breathing new life and meaning into it.
So Deep In Love sees Deniece joined by Johnny Mathis, who sing a duet. As the arrangement begins, it’s dark and dramatic, stabs of piano, layers of pounding guitars and the rhythm section combining. It’s unlike anything else on I’m So Proud, but has the required effect. It grabs your attention. You’re intrigued and certainly not disappointed. The combination of Deniece and Johnny is a potent one. There’s a chemistry between them that’s almost tangible. Their voices compliment each other, while the dramatic arrangement provides a fitting backdrop to the emotion and chemistry in their voices.
I’m Glad It’s You is another of the George Duke production, but quite different from his production on Do What You Feel. He produces a much slower, more soulful sounding backdrop for Deniece’s tender, impassioned vocal. Gone is the funk and blazing horns. They replaced by melodic keyboards, percussion and the an understated rhythm section. They combine, producing an arrangement that not only suits the song, but compliments Deniece’s vocal. This suits the song, and is much more Deniece Williams in sound. That’s what makes this one of the highlights of I’m So Proud.
Punchy drums pound, augmented by percussion, before the rhythm section and chiming guitars combine on Heaven In Your Eyes. It’s a much bolder sound, Deniece’s dramatic, emotive vocal swept along amidst waves of keyboards, a driving, slightly funky rhythm section and guitars. Later, George Duke adds jazzy keyboards, mixing jazz and funk. Again, this is a very different Deniece Williams from the one we heard on Melody and Niecy. Having said that, her vocal is full of life and energy, on a track that shows how versatile a vocalist she is. Whether soul, funk or jazz, she’s just at home.
They Say was co-written by Skip Scarborough and Theresa McFaddin and isn’t just one of the best songs on I’m So Proud, but one that could’ve been written with Deniece in mind. There’s also another change of producer, with Bill Neale taking charge. He produces a seven minute epic track that has you spellbound Immediately, you realize something impressive is about to unfold. You’re not disappointed. Waves of keyboards and rhythm section combine, before Deniece’s vocal enters. As the arrangement meanders along, the emotion in Deniece’s vocal is palpable. Backing vocalists accompany her, sometimes sharing the lead vocal. Here, Deniece seems totally at home, delivering a heartfelt, impassioned vocal against an arrangement that’s elegant and beautiful.
Deniece and Scott Sigman cowrote Love, Peace And Unity, a track packed full of social comment and optimism. She also produced the track, which has a very different sound to other tracks on I’m So Proud. When the track opens, it’s with sizzling rocky guitars, before it’s all change. An almost reggae style is revealed, with keyboards, the rhythm section and percussion responsible for this. Her vocal is filled with optimism and sincerity, as the arrangement flows along. Suddenly, there’s space within the arrangement, filled by percussion, dramatic drums and her deliberate vocal. This is really effective, ensuring you listen to the lyrics.
Closing I’m So Proud is It’s Okay, which Deniece and producer George Duke cowrote. Chiming jazz-tinged guitars, stabs of dark keyboards combine, before giving way to a joyous sounding arrangement. Deniece’s vocal almost floats along, atop the jazzy arrangement spreading her message of hope. Meanwhile, the rhythm section, guitars, rasping horns and percussion combine. Later, a braying horn dances above the arrangement, before Deniece’s vocal returns. When it drops out, she’s joined by a children’s choir, percussion and whistles that give the track a carnival atmosphere. This is the perfect way to close I’m So Proud, with its positive message, hope, and a joyful sound.
Earlier I wondered how having three separate producers would affect I’m So Proud? In some ways it worked well, allowing Deniece to explore new musical styles. George Duke took her music in a different direction from Thom Bell, fusing funk, jazz and soul, sometimes within the same song. This was the case on Do What You Feel, which has a trademark George Duke sound. You could pick a George Duke production out any musical lineup. After that, he changed his production style, making it suit Deniece’s vocal. Gone were the showboating, blazing horns that were a feature of Do What You Feel. On I’m Glad It’s You, in came a much more mellow, understated arrangement from George, much more suited to Deniece’s delivery. Then came I’m Glad It’s You, which is the best of the four tracks he produced.
Of the other four tracks on I’m So Proud, Bill Neale produced three of them. Deniece’s cover of The Impression I’m So Proud breathed new life, meaning and energy to the track. However, it was on They Say, which Skip Scarborough and Theresa McFaddin cowrote, that Bill Neale surpassed everything else on the album. It features a heartfelt vocal from Deniece, with an elegant, beautiful and complimentary arrangement from Bill. This to me is the highlight of the album. The other track Love, Peace And Unity, which Deniece produced herself has a quite different, compelling sound but is full of hope and optimism.
I’m So Proud has a much more eclectic selection of songs than My Melody and Niecy. The album was produced by two talented and experienced producers, whose approach was quite different to Thom Bell’s. For me, Thom Bell’s sound has always been polished and tight. The musicians don’t have the freedom that say Gamble and Huff would give them. Here, George Duke gave Deniece more freedom to try to explore new styles of music, while Bill Neale’s “sound” was much more Deniece Williams. Although this results in an album of quality music, it wasn’t as successful as My Melody and Niecy, Deniece’s two previous Thom Bell produced albums. Whether you prefer the tighter, more polished Thom Bell sound or the production style of George Duke and Bill Neale will be down to personal taste. For me, as a lover of the Philly Sound and an admirer of Thom Bell’s work my preference is for My Melody and Niecy. However, I’m So Proud, which was rereleased by BBR Records on 25th June 2012, has one thing in common with My Melody and Niecy…its quality. Standout Tracks: I’m So Proud, I’m Glad It’s You, Heaven In Your Eyes and They Say.
DENIECE WILLIAMS-I’M SO PROUD.
CHAKA KHAN-NAUGHTY.
CHAKA KHAN-NAUGHTY.
After Rufus released their sixth album Street Player in 1978, Chaka Khan decided the time was right to launch her solo career. Her peerless vocals played a huge part in the success of Rufus, resulting four of their albums being certified gold and 1977s Ask Rufus being certified platinum. Chaka’s solo career started where her career with Rufus had ended with another hugely commercially successful album Chaka. It reached number twelve in the US Billboard 200 and number two in the US R&B Charts in 1978. Adding to the success of Chaka was a track that since then, has become synonymous with Chaka Khan, I’m Every Woman. On its release in 1978, it reached number one in the US R&B Charts and number twenty-one in the US R&B Charts. Since then, I’m Every Woman has become a feminist anthem. With such a successful debut solo album, you’d have thought Chaka would head straight back to the studio and record the followup to Chaka? That however, wasn’t the case. While she headed to the studio, it was to record Rufus’ 1979 albumI Masterjam. Billed as Rufus and Chaka Khan, it was certified gold. A year later, Chaka would release her second solo album Naughty. However, could it match the commercial success of 1978s Chaka, or even Masterjam, her final album with Rufus?
For Naughty, ten tracks were chosen for what was the followup to Chaka. Two of these, were written by Ashford and Simpson. These were Clouds, the first single to be released from Naughty, plus Our Loves In Danger. Greg Diamond would write another of the singles, and another track that’s become synonymous with Chaka, Papillon (Hot Butterfly). Chaka cowrote just one track on Naughty, What You Did. It wouldn’t chosen as a single, with Get Ready, Get Set was cowritten by Kathy Anderson, Ellison Chase, Bill Haberman and Art Jacobson chosen instead. Producing Naughty would be Arif Mardin, who’d produced Chaka.
For the recording of the ten tracks that would become Naughty, Arif Mardin put together a multitalented band. In total, over fifty musicians and backing vocalists would play their part in recording sessions at Atlantic Studios in New York. Some musicians played on one track, others several tracks. Among these musicians were bassist Marcus Miller, guitarists Phil Upchurch, Hiram Bullock and Steve Khan plus drummer Steve Ferrone. They were joined by keyboard player Leon Pendarvis, percussionist Sammy Figueroa and tenor saxophonist Michael Brecker. Backing vocalists included Whitney and Cissy Houston, Luther Vandross and Ullanda McCullough. With the ten tracks the became Naughty recorded, the album was set for release in 1980. Could Naughty match the success of 1978s Chaka?
On the release of Naughty, it reached number forty-three in the US R&B Charts and number six in the US R&B Charts. Although this didn’t match the success of Chaka, Naughty didn’t have a single like I’m Every Woman. Instead, the Ashford and Simpson penned Clouds was the most successful single, reaching number ten in the US R&B Charts. Clouds/Papillon (Hot Butterfly) would reach number thirty-one in the US Dance Music Club Play Charts. The third and final single was Get Ready, Get Set, which reached just number forty-eight in the US R&B Charts. However, although Naughty didn’t replicate the success of Chaka, how good is the music on the album?
Opening Naughty is Clouds, the first of two Ashford and Simpson penned tracks. Pounding drums and keyboards open the track, before cascading strings and soaring backing vocals signal Chaka’s arrival. She picks up where she left of on Chaka. Her vocal is powerful, strong but soulful. Backing vocalists accompany her, while guitars augment the pounding rhythm section and keyboards. It’s noticeable that Chaka’s vocal range in widening. She delivers the lyrics with a mixture of power and passion, accompanied by a band that fuses funk, soul and even rock guitars, with plenty of drama thrown in for good measure.
Like Clouds, Get Ready, Get Set was one of three singles released from Naughty. It’s track that benefits from a more understated arrangement. The rhythm section, synths and guitars accompany Chaka, whose vocal is softer and subtler. Sometimes, she unleashes her full vocal range, while backing vocalists add understated harmonies. Again, the sizzling guitars soar above the arrangement, matching Chaka stride for stride and note for note. Unlike Clouds, this track has a looser, spacier arrangement, one that suits Chaka’s impassioned vocal.
Jazz-tinged guitars, sweeping strings and the rhythm section create a meandering arrangement, as Move Me No Mountain starts to reveal its hidden depths. Chaka’s vocal starts of heartfelt, much gentler, perfect for the arrangement. That doesn’t mean Chaka won’t demonstrate her full vocal range. Soon, she’s off and running. Her voice soars, while strings cascade as guitars, percussion and the rhythm section combine. Bursts of moody horn give way to an arrangement that bursts into joyously into life. From there, Chaka and her backing vocalists indulge in some dynamic, dramatic vocal interplay. This is just the finishing touch to a track that would’ve made a great single.
A melodic keyboard solo opens Nothing’s Gonna Take You Away, before Chaka’s slow, dramatic vocal enters. The tempo is much slower, with the rhythm section, swathes of strings, percussion and some of the most soulful backing vocals accompanying Chaka. Still the melodic keyboards, jazzy guitars and backing vocals are key to the track, before producer Arif Mardin drops in a sultry saxophone solo. After that, Chaka vamps her way through the rest of the track, competing with the saxophone. Eventually, it wins out, closing the track with its sultry, seductive strains.
So Naughty explodes into life, horns blazing, Chaka’s vocal strong and dynamic, soaring high, while a punchy, funky rhythm section punctuate the arrangement. With a drum roll, things change. A much more understated sounding arrangement arrives. Chaka’s just accompanied by keyboards, guitars and the rhythm section. They’re joined by bursts of blazing horns, while Chaka and her band explore two sides of the song. One minute it’s punchy, dramatic and full or energy, the next much more understated in sound. Backing vocalists accompany Chaka, who throughout the track delivers a vocal that’s sassy and confident, as she and her band fuse elements of funk, soul and jazz flawlessly.
Too Much Love has a very different sound when the track begins. Waves of jagged, rocky guitars assail you, driving the track along. They’re almost ever-present, dominating the arrangement. This is a pity, because Chaka delivers a vocal that’s powerful and impassioned, quite different in sound. Here, her voice is different to the the Chaka Khan we heard on Chaka, due to her range increasing. Throughout the track she’s accompanied by backing vocalists, who compliment her vocal. Percussion, the rhythm section and keyboards replace the guitars, before they make they’re return. They’re then joined by frenzied percussion, that like the guitars, detracts from the arrangement. This could’ve been a much better track, if not for the rocky guitars and frenzied percussion.
Funky is the best word to describe All Night’s All Right. The rhythm section and guitars combine with blazing horns, playing slowly but funkily. Chaka’s vocal is slow, starting way down low and gradually, soaring high. Punchy, soaring backing vocalists add a soulful side to the arrangement. Fiddles are used, but don’t sit well, their sound grating and out of place. The rest of the band, play slowly, leaving space within the arrangement, which Chaka and her backing vocalists fill. However, by the end of the track, you’re left with the feeling that the track lacks something. Funky and soulful in parts it is, but sadly, It lacks the sparkle of the first five tracks.
After two disappointing tracks, What You Did sees Chaka get Naughty back on track. Again, the arrangement displays a funky side, while Chaka adds the required soul. The rhythm section, guitars, keyboards and backing vocalists combine, as the track meanders along, while bursts of growling horns punctuate the arrangement. Later, another searing, rocky guitar is unleashed. Thankfully, it only makes a brief appearance, with producer Arif Mardin heeding the maxim less is more. Here, it’s Chaka and her backing vocalists who play the biggest part in the track’s sound and success. She mixes power, passion and emotion perfectly and purposely, getting Naughty back on the right road after two wrong turns.
Probably the best known track on Naughty is Papillon (Hot Butterfly) written by Greg Diamond. His version is the definitive version, wonderfully over the top, but Chaka’s comes a close second. Here, she delivers her best performance on Naughty. She’s helped along by her backing vocalists and a truly stunning arrangement. The arrangement literally bursts into life, a wistful harmonica giving way to pounding drums, guitars and keyboards. Then comes Chaka, strutting her way through the track, the interplay between her backing vocalists peerless. Lush strings, percussion, keyboards and later, the addition of a harmonica solo is a masterstroke. It breaths even further energy into the track, as if it needs it. As this hook-laden, joyous classic track ends, you find yourself pressing play again. No wonder, it’s a truly irresistible track from Chaka. Now check out Greg Diamond’s version.
Closing Naughty is Our Love’s In Danger, which Ashford and Simpson cowrote. It has a quality you expect from such a talented songwriting team. Flourishes of keyboards, cascading strings and a pounding rhythm section combine, accompanying Chaka’s frustrated, emotive vocal. Backing vocalists add to the drama of the track, adding some of the best and most soulful harmonies on the album. Similarly, the band are tighter, mixing funk and soul flawlessly. Blazing horns, lush strings, soulful harmonies and a funky rhythm section. It’s all there, with the band raising their game one more time, ensuring Chaka ends Naughty on a real high. Maybe having such a good song to sing and play helped everyone lift their game. It’s just a pity Ashford and Simpson didn’t supply more songs for Naughty.
After a gap of two years since she released her debut solo album Chaka, Chaka Khan returned with the followup Naughty. It didn’t match the success of Chaka, which had featured the classic, anthemic track I’m Every Woman. There was no such track on Naughty, although Papillon (Hot Butterfly) became one of Chaka’s most popular tracks and a staple of her live shows. Ashford and Simpson provided Naughty’s two of the best tracks on Naughty, Clouds and Our Love’s In Danger. While these were the highlights, Too Much Love and All Night’s All Right didn’t have the same quality. Here, Chaka was let down by the production, which just didn’t work and to be kind, grated and lacked sparkle. With two tracks in a row that didn’t work, Naughty was in danger of coming off the rails. Luckily, things improved on What You Did, before finishing on a high with Papillon (Hot Butterfly) and Our Love’s In Danger. Overall, Naughty was two tracks away from being an album that matched her debut album Chaka. What it lacked was a hook-laden single like I’m Every Woman. Obviously, tracks of that quality and stature are one-offs. However, maybe the solution was to hire successful songwriters with a proven track record. Who better than Ashford and Simpson, who’d had long and established track record? They could’ve provided help not just as songwriters but as producers. Maybe then Chaka’s career would’ve taken a different road? Although her fortunes improved with her next album, 1981s What Cha Gonna Do About Me, by 1982 she was collaborating on an album of jazz standards Echoes Of An Era, with jazz musicians including Joe Henderson, Chick Corea and Freddie Hubbard. By 1983, Chaka was back with Rufus, releasing the live album Stompin’ At the Savoy. Then in 1984, Chaka released the platinum selling album I Feel For You. I’ve always wondered whether, if things had been different, with different songwriters providing material for Chaka Khan, whether the huge success she enjoyed with I Feel For You could’ve come earlier. After all, Naughty was only two songs away from being a great album, rather than the good album it was. Standout Tracks: Clouds, Move Me No Mountain, Papillon (Hot Butterfly) and Our Love’s In Danger.
CHAKA KHAN-NAUGHTY.
BARA BROST-KOKOLORES.
BARA BROST-KOKOLORES.
Sometimes, very occasionally, an album comes along, that from the moment it you first play it, you’re hooked, swept away by its charms and delights. This is what happened when I first received Bara Brost’s second album Kokolores, which will be released by BBE Music on 9th July 2012. From the opening bars of The Gunman, Bara Brost, provide the perfect soundtrack to the long hot summer months that lie ahead. From there, they take you on a journey, where you meet a cast of characters and guest artists. With tracks Juicy Lady, My Mess, Tony Curtis and Stupid Little Story of A Bass Drum, you can’t help but be intrigued. I know I was. Once I put Kokolores on, I didn’t budge until I’d heard the fourteen tracks. During that time, Benjamin Quint and Markus Schwarzbauer, aka Bara Brost introduce guest artists Conan Kowalski, Capey Cash, Igid Pop and Domonique. They all play their part in Kokolores sound and success, as Bara Broest, fuse their unique brand of Deep and Funky House, with elements of disco, poppy hooks and a subtle twist of Detroit Techno. The result is Kokolores, an enchanting, charming and compelling collection of tracks, that are designed to instantly win you over. Before I tell you about the music on Kokolores, I’ll tell you about Bara Brost.
Although the two members of Bara Brost Benjamin Quint and Markus Schwarzbauer have been friends since school, they’ve only been producing music together for a few years. The story of Bara Brost began when Benjamin and Markus started sharing an apartment in the Neukolln district of Berlin. A shared love of house music lead to them converting part of their apartment into a studio. This is where they recorded their debut album Elephancycle, which was released on BBE Music in September 2012.
Elephancycle was what many people would call a concept album, about a night spent at the circus. During the fourteen tracks, Bara Brost introduce you an almost surreal cast of characters. There’s Madame Milla, who heats up the circus tent with her brass band. Then there’s Zebril, an African crocodile who somehow, has managed to swallow a zebra. This brings us to the star of Bara Brost’s show, the bashful elephant Pete, whose speciality is doing tricks on an undersized bicycle. All this takes place against a backdrop of deep and tech house, with Bara Brost supplying hooks aplenty. On the release of Elephancycle, critics were one over by its delights, which was designed to put a smile on dancers and listener’s faces. This it did..and then some.
The following year, 2011 Bara Brost returned, with Elephancycle-The Remixes Part 1, a six track E.P. This whetted the appetite of their ever-growing fan-base, while Benjamin and Marcus worked on the followup to Elephancycle.
Now less than two years later, the followup to Elephancycle, Kokolores is completed, and will be released on 9th July 2012. Kokolores which many people won’t be aware of, is a German word meaning nonsense. It’s a word that’s origins are the sound of a rooster’s crow, but the word was used to describe the nonsensical, cocaine fueled chatter of Berlin’s bohemians and hipsters. However, this music is the polar opposite of nonsense or cocaine fueled chatter. Instead, Bara Brost bring you some enchanting, joyous music.
On Kokolores Benjamin and Markus of Bara Brost collaborate with a trio talented musicians, plus guest artists. They’re key to the fourteen tracks sound and success. Pianist Jonathan Moore, drummer Michael Neuber and Phillipp Stevens play a part in creating the lush melodies, warm welcoming sound, and proliferation of hooks that feature on Kokolores’ fourteen tracks. Along with guest artists Conan Kowalski, Capey Cash, Igid Pop and Domonique Bara Brost fuse Deep and Funky House with elements of disco and pop. These track on Kokolores, not only are blessed with a warmth, but are melodic and hook-laden as you’ll realize, when I tell you about some of the highlights of Kokolores.
My first choice from Bara Brost’s second album Kokolores is The Gunman, which features a vocal from Conan Kowalski. His wistful, melancholy vocal is perfect for the track’s haunting, thoughtful lyrics. They set you thinking. Who is this flawed character that Conrad sings about? He deliver his vocal against a backdrop of meandering, melodic synths and keyboards. Then, Bara Brost throw their first curve-ball of Kokolores. His vocal gives way to crunchy hypnotic beats, while waves of synths, hissing hi-hats and percussion provide a backdrop that’s variously light, melodic, hypnotic and infectiously catchy. Now Bara Brost have your attention, they’ll continue to hold it for a further thirteen tracks.
My Mess Part 1 sees the track head in the direction of Deep House, albeit with a twist of Detroit Techno thrown in. From the get-go, the track is mesmerizing and bewitching, with quality written all over it. A combination of pounding beats, stabs of keyboards and synths that create an entrancing backdrop. Then Bara Brost add the next and vital ingredient. This one is the finishing touch to the track’s sound and success. It’s seductive, sultry vocal from Igid Pop. Her vocal drifts sensually in and out of the track, providing a contrast to the dark beats and stabs of synths. By the end of the track, you realize that this is one of the real highlights of Kokolores.
Let Go features another of the guest artists that Bara Brost introduce over the fourteen tracks that comprise Kokolores. This time it’s Domonique whose the guest vocalist. Her vocal is sweet and soulful, reminiscent of many a soulful house or Nu Disco track. Here, Bara Brost provide a backdrop that sees wave upon wave of synths, pounding beats and percussion combine seamlessly. The result is more than pleasing. They create a track that’s not only blessed with a summery sound, but is anthemic and hook-laden. I’m sure this will be one track that will be a favorite of many a DJ this summer.
On Jimmy, Bara Brost reveal a different side to their music. The arrangement starts off slow and spacey, giving the track a pensive, introspective sound. Unlike other tracks the beats aren’t as crispy, with layers of synths and keyboards unravelling, reverberating, while the vocal is impassioned, heartfelt. There’s even an indie feel and sound to the vocal, which considering the dark, spacious electronic arrangement makes this a compelling and intriguing combination.
Captivating is the only way to describe Like We Do, as it begins to reveals its secrets and subtleties. Immediately, you’re hooked. Swathes and stabs of synths, percussion and dark pounding beats are combined by Bara Borst as the track begins. Then comes Capey Cash’s sassy vocal. It’s accompanied by handclaps, melodic synths, percussion and broody beats. They offer a contrast to the light, bright, melodic synths. Soon, the tempo hits 123 beats per minute, with the track revealing a good-time sound, that has more than its fare share of hooks. For nearly six minutes, Bara Brost have you captivated with their uplifting, refreshing and unique brand of house music with a twist of disco.
Igid Pop whose vocal features on My Mess Part 1 returns on Aerobic. Whether this is a coincidence or not, Aerobic is another of the highlights of Kokolores. It’s an irresistible track, which is full of contrasting sounds. Key to this are the melodic keyboards that are central to track’s sound. They sit well with crystalline guitars, while the beats and percussion drive the track along. Offering a contrast are regular bursts of a dark vocal, which is contrasted by Igid’s carefree, sassy vocal. Soon there’s sensual chemistry developing between the two vocals, the interplay between them, adding to the track’s irresistible quality.
All Over Now sees the return of Domonique, whose vocal on Let Go was key to the track’s sound and success. Stabs of synths and crunchy beats combine to drive the track along, before Domonique’s whispery, breathy vocal enters. Immediately, you realize the vocal is the same quality as on Let Go, but is different. This time, her vocal has an air of mystery. It drifts in and out of the track, resulting in you awaiting its return. Too soon it’s gone. It’s replacement are layer upon layer of synths. These are unleashed in waves, cascading joyously. They sweep you along, on a joyful, melodic journey, while the crunchy drumbeats provide the track’s heartbeat. The result is a glorious slice of Deep House, fused with elements of disco and poppy hooks that again, has the makings of a summer anthem.
Closing the musical adventure that’s Bara Brost second album Kokolores, is Meli Melo. This is just a short two minute track, but demonstrates another side of Bara Brost. Gone is the Deep House of previous tracks. Instead, it’s replaced by an enchanting vocal from Igid Pop. It’s delivered slowly and joyously, while guitars, bass and keyboards create a wistful accompaniment. Soon, the tempo quickens with percussion and stabs of keyboards add to the song’s wistful charms and delights. Far too quickly, the track is over, leaving you wanting to hear much more of Meli Melo and indeed Bara Brost and the subtleties and charms of Kokolores. Soon, you find yourself reaching over, pressing play and enjoying the journey aagin.
Although I’ve only mentioned eight of the fourteen tracks on Bara Brost’s second album Kokolores, I could just as easily have mentioned any one of the album’s fourteen tracks. Given that there’s usually some filler or padding to an album that stretches to fourteen tracks, this is testament to Bara Brost’s musical prowess. To me, Kokolores is essential summer listening, with Bara Brost fusing house with elements of disco and pop. This they do flawlessly, with melodies and hooks aplenty. Tracks like My Mess Part 1, Let Go, Like We Do, Aerobic and All Over Now are proof positive of this and I’m sure several of these tracks will be on heavy rotation during the summer months. Any DJ worth their salt, will unleash tracks like Let Go, Like We Do and All Over Now. They should become many a DJs’ secret weapon. Similarly, anyone whose heading of in pursuit of sun, fun and hedonism should ensure that when packing their bags, among the essentials is an iPod containing a copy of Bara Brost’s second album Kokolores. By then, BBE Music will have released Kokolores, Bara Brost’s second album. on 9th July 2012 So, for anyone looking for a soundtrack to their summer vacation, then Bara Brost’s Kokolores is just as essential as suncream and swimming costumes. Standout Tracks: My Mess Part 1, Let Go, Aerobic and All Over Now.
BARA BROST-KOKOLORES.
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