This is an odd choice. Actually, it's not even so much about the video as it is the song itself. I really don't find the kaliedescopic effects all that weird or surprising for Erykah. The really bizarre part, for me, is that it's featuring Lil Wayne!??? What the HELL is/was she thinking!? Now, he doesn't completely ruin the song but let's just say that I'm glad his verse is at the end. I'd go as far as saying that the dude isn't the worst person I've heard but I'm just not a fan and I still think Lil Wayne is a fucking idiot!! All in all though, I'm feeling this song and looking forward to the new album.
I'm not the biggest Police or Sting connoisseur but of all of their songs that I do know & love this is by far my favorite. Second place goes to "Voices Inside My Head" (although I prefer the deeper dub disco version by Common Sense). Anyway, this song really speaks loud as much now as it did 30 years ago. Excellent song writting, arrangement and production. If I knew how to make music I'd attempt to cover this, and probably fail! hahaha...seriously though, there's certain songs that always sound better by the original artist. Maybe that's why you haven't heard a successful cover of this? I think The Roots could pull it off in a way that makes sense. Perhaps U2 and possibly even Prince & NPG but it would be really tough to top the Police.
This came up today while my iTunes was on shuffle. I did this mix to be given out at a party I did back in 2004. This was recorded at about 10am on a Wednesday in one session with just a stack of some of my favorite records from the '80s. The theme of the party and the mix was to highlight some of the '80s joints that get overlooked when people talk about "80s music" and to put in context with some of the more familiar classics. Enjoy!
I've been overwhelmed by a tidal wave of music recently. Here are 4 of my favorite songs from the past week. Unfortunately all this new music has been digital :( someday when I'm really ballin' I'll buy these on vinyl. That's about $1200+ worth of wax right there IF you can actually find copies for sale. I know the Magnum LP has been reissued and songs off the Copa 7 LP appear on compilations. Good luck on finding clean copies of the Ofege albums..they had 4 albums between 1974-78 and they're all exxxxxpensive!
Everybody Feels The Same by Ofege from "The Last Of The Origins" LP EMI Nigeria 1974
Natural Juices by Magnum from "Fully Loaded" LP Phoenix 1974
I didn't even know there was a video for this until just now. If I ever saw it as a young'n I don't remember and probably didn't even like it back then. This has become one of my favorite songs by Stevie though...too bad the sound quality sucks here because the mix and mastering on this is phenomenal.
Ok...I'd feel bad if you couldn't actually hear the song so I took the time to add this for you.
This one is kinda strange because the video seems to have nothing to do with the song. In the end, I like the video and think it's a good video for what was probably a $20 budget. Plus, this is one of my favorite rock jams in the past year.
This was playing in my iTunes earlier and I was really into the selection & the mixes so I checked to see who it was. Turns out that it was me! This part of a live session from a few years ago at that party Lil Dave & I did for a while. On this mix is some latiny funk, soul, & afro-beat. In case it matters to you, this happened to be all vinyl. Be sure to download the other live session from this party that I posted a while back. Go to the downloads section or click >> HERE <<
I've been listening to my iTunes a lot of shuffle lately to try to rediscover stuff in my own collection. I've got a pretty large and very diverse collection so it's pretty fun. Here's a few of the 'new' rediscoveries. That Dimenzio post from a couple weeks ago is also technically part of this.
First up is by avant garde '80s funk rockers The Flying Lizards. This group is amazing! They also do a cover of 'Money' by Don Covay which is one of my favorite 7"s to play in the most random places & times. Some of you hip-hop heads will recognize this song even if you've never actually heard it.
The Flying Lizards "Her Story"
Next is a song I never really paid attention to by one of the greatest groups of all time to come out of the African funk & afro-beat movement. They but out a few really good albums that are very expensive when found in good condition...actually even in poor, nearly unplayable, condition these albums still aren't cheap. This is from their compilation on Strut records and is long out-of-print.
Blo "Preacher Man"
Here's a track from a serious jazz group with a silly name on Gilles Peterson's label, Brownswood. They also have the creepiest album cover in this post so let's give it up for Soil & "PIMP" Sessions.
This song produced by Domu with Pete Simpson on vocals is just beautiful. Excellent composition, lyrics and harmony. The latin swing combined with the cadence of the vocals work well together to carry the song without losing your attention. The house remixes are worth checking out too.
Domu presents Pete Simpson "Won't Give Up (album version)"
WHOA! This is a monster tune! I'd expect nothing less from an early eighties Hungarian jazz/fusion group named Dimenzió. Unfortunately, I do not own this record and have not heard the rest of the album yet. From what I could learn this album, Pepita, is the only album they released. Someone should really buy this record for me! This is the kind of music that vinyl was made for.
WHOA!!! GET THIS ALBUM! The new Sa-Ra album coming out June 9th is crazy....definitely one of the best albums that will come out this year. What is it with Ubiquity records and constantly putting out quality music!? Keep it up! And if you haven't got it already, pick up that Abundance album while you're at it (listen here).
I'm broke but I couldn't resist buying a few of these limited edition Serato 45s co-released by Jazzman and Serato. Of course, Jazzman had to give you a bonus nugget too- on the flip is the ultra rare version of "What's Going On" by Mr. Clean. The purist in me would have preferred the large center hole but these are definitely convenient.
I've been feeling this song for a minute now. It's a video for Stone Throw Records artist, Mayer Hawthorne I still need to get the record though :/ This video is dope and I'm especially feeling how the actual record is the object of attention and desire here. It's subliminally telling me/you that the music is more important than the video and we need to love it and buy the cool heart-shaped vinyl- which is a throwback to Bobby Caldwell's 1978 classic, "What You Won't Do For Love", that was also pressed on clear red vinyl and cut into a heart shape.
I've been wanting to post this for a while now but it's better late than never! Just go buy the new album by Platinum Pied Pipers, 'Abundance'. It's rare in modern music for an entire album to be thorough from start to finish and really hold my attention. Abundance does just that. It's a beautiful amalgamation of r&b, funk, latin and house. The range of emotions captured in the lyrics help to quantify the diversity in the styles of music represented here. Focusing on the talents of lesser known artists solidifies the passion in the songs. From the uptempo single 'On A Cloud' to the more laid back 'Pigeon Hole' and to the club tracks like 'American Pimp' and 'Rocket Science' this album keeps you hooked in for the duration. The only disappointing part is when it ends, in which case you'll likely press play again or flip the record over.
Buy it direct from Ubiquity. While you're at it, buy their first album too if you don't have it yet (which you should).
Another classic by the original funky soulstress, Nina Simone. Last time I posted a new video for the classic Feelin' Good and now is this epic live recording of one of my personal favorites "Ain't Got No...I've Got Life". Man, I wish I had this version on vinyl...I just have the studio version on 45, which is still dope. Her outfit and hair here reminds me of the cartoon character in several Miles Davis gatefold covers such as 'On the Corner' and 'Big Fun'. You'll want to watch this again so, bookmark it (or just bookmark my custom search).
Chances are you've heard at least something either produced or remixed by Quantic at some point in the last 8 years even if you have no idea who he is. This is because the man behind Quantic, WIll Holland, is nothing short of a musical prodigy in the modern sense of the word. He is one of the most prolific people in modern music and covers a wide range of styles from raw funk, house, trip-hop, broken beat, reggae, hip-hop, latin, jazz and afro beat. Since 2001 he has released over 20 albums and singles, has done dozens of remixes and still finds time to DJ and even did a rare funk compilation a few years back. To put it bluntly, he is nothing short of amazing and has been a major force in the underground music scene since releasing his first album 'The 5th Exotic' on Tru Thoughts.
Shack Up (UPDATE: w/ Don't You Worry About A Thing)
I love the original classic by Banbarra but there's something about A Certain Ratio covering this song that makes it edgier. Maybe it's the punky guitars, the British accents or even the slightly faster tempo? I recommend owning both since the work for different types of moods. They were one of the main groups from this scene..other groups of the 'punk/funk' scene include ESG, Pigbag, Gang Of Four, The Dance, Defunkt and Liquid Liquid amongst many others.
Over the last few weeks I've added a MASSIVE amount of new music to my fairly large digital collection (over 10gb to the existing 35k songs) As I have time I'll be sharing some of these new gems with you and continue to share a little of my existing collection. I just imported some deep funk/soul stuff and one of the first songs I clicked on was this monster disco gem taken from Keb Darge's Legendary Deep Funk volume 2. It's funny because I've actually had the 7Samurai edit of this for about 6 months and only played it a few times and forgot about it until now. The original is where it's at though:
This next tune is a new song that addresses the similar issues but after we've been 'modernized' for more than 30 years since the release of the previous song. This whole album by Beck is definitely worth the money. Maybe one of the best albums of 2008?
This is one of my favorite joints off The Renaissance...I'm surprised and happy to see a video for it. You need to go buy that album! (oh and can someone please buy the vinyl for me!!! I haven't been able to buy that yet either!)
I heard about this months ago but just saw the vid. Sersiously, is there any crowd they can't rock for!!?? They must've had a blast doing this performance for the kids show Yo Gabba Gabba...I need to get this for my nephews!.
Here's some songs that came to mind when Barack Obama got elected and I posted his speech from Chicago here. I was just reading about him in the Person Of the Year issue of Time and it reminded me to post these songs. It's always amazing to me how some songs with political or social messages can always remain current and relevant. This post could really go on and on and on....there is sooooo much good music to choose from for this. Keep in mind that this is just a handful of hundreds of songs I could put here. Enjoy!
This is one of my favorite songs by great Curtis Mayfield. His genius is felt in the way the arrangement and feeling of the music complements the lyrics perfectly. One of the best songs ever made in my opinion which is why it's at the top of this list. Curtis Mayfield "Move On Up"
I don't know any other material from Steve Parks but I'm sure it's good based on this tune. This is been in heavy rotation in my collection for years now and I'd like to share it with more people. Steve Parks "Movin' In The Right Direction"
Another one of my favorite songs of all-time. This never goes out of style and has been remixed and remade several times in recent years. Still, the original is always my favorite and blends well with the Movin' In The Right Direction (mentioned above). Cymande "Brothers On The Slide"
This is some obscure soul/disco track by Heem The Music Monsters from the mid '70s. Thanks to Jazzman Records for re-issuing this gem. Heem The Music Monsters "Wake Up People"
I've been playing this track a lot since I bought it. One of my favorite 12"s in the past 5 years by far. I own the original 12" also but this just seems to work better. This re-edit by Samuri 7 keeps all the important pieces of the original in-tact and just puts a little modern twist on it to make it more workable on a 21st century dance floor. This track KILLED when I played at Back 2 Basics a few months back. As Norman Jay might say "epic"! haha.. Willie Hutch "Brothers Gonna Work It Out (Samuri 7 rework)"
This is a track from the "one of the best albums I'm glad I bought but don't get to play enough" category. (yes, that's a real category for real DJs/collectors..heads know the deal..) It's produced by Blaze..do I really need to say anymore. But DAAAAM! This cut really hits a nerve with me and even without some live band, this still has more soul than a lot of new 'afro-soul' groups coming out. This is an old formula for Blaze though...their "25 Years Hence" album in the early '90s was also amazing. (I still need that on vinyl..*hint*) Blaze presents: James Toney Jr. Project "Revolution Poem"
Next is another modern banger from the Ubiquity label. So, you know it's flavour. This was one of the standout tracks from the HVW8 Presents: compilation. Unfortunately the compilation as a whole was lack-luster but there were some really solid tracks that made it worth buying. This is one of them. This was also on John Arnold's "Style & Pattern" album. Vocals by Paul Randolph, who seems to be everywhere! John Arnold f/ Paul Randolph "Rise Up"
This next track is kind of an underground classic now. Only a few years old, it's become a staple in many DJs sets. Nice remake of a classic Billy Paul tune. At the right moment, this can still work the crowd in even a full room of people that don't even know who Steve Spacek or J Dilla are! That's how dope Dilla is/was...R.I.P. Steve Spacek "Let The Dollar Circulate"
Ok, and finally a tune that everybody in America above the age of 4 has probably heard at least a few times in their life. There's just something about this song that never get's old. It's catchy and not too rock, not too soul but is well written with a positive message. There's something to be said for songs that are played in supermarkets and clubs 3 decades later. Essential for all humans to own this song..some people could really benefit from really listening to the lyrics. I think this song really hits home with people that work their asses off to barely survive in this country. Robert Palmer "Every Kind Of People"
I can't believe I'm a couple months late on getting this. Usually I'm pretty on top of new releases as important as this but as I've said before...school's a muhfuka! That's still not a good excuse for missing this release... Ahhhh...where to start!! Well, how about with the immediately apparent presence of mostly live instruments...not what I was expecting from Jazzanova but not surprised either. (remember the Sonar Kollektiv Orchestra album from earlier this year?) As producers of quality music, Jazzanova rarely let me down but there's not much they've done that really blows me away or gives me chills. Oh, and keep in mind, these dudes are from Berlin! It seems like a lot of the best soul & funk music is coming from Europe (or at least gets more support there). I have to wonder though...what happened to their sense of album art??!!! Seriously..it's some of the worst album art I've ever seen in my life and I'm being as nice as I can with that statement! hahahaha.. SUPPORT GOOD MUSIC, BUY THE ALBUM.
Here's the first part of a session from the Adidas Originals store here in Philly. It's always weird to play these transient kinds of gigs but also a lot of fun since it's like spinning for several micro parties within the course of the set. It's too bad I didn't get a recording of my set from the Armani Exchange in-store I did a few months back. It was a weird day but the set was really good...isn't that always the case though- you play a great set and it's all just a memory. That is part of the beauty in the artform though...it can be either temporary or permanent. Basically DJing is the equivalent to graffiti. Yeah, aural graffiti. Ok, time for bed.
Live from Adidas Originals in Philly (September 22, 2007 pt.1) Download this mix
If you've noticed, I've stayed true to my word and didn't post nearly as many songs this time! Also, I hope you've been checking out the mixes I've put up for you to listen to in the player and to download (click on that big 'download' icon at the top right). Anyway, I had a bout six 45's just sitting here by this desk and I can't remember why these were singled out. Maybe you can help to remind me!
A couple of years ago my man Lil Dave (of Illvibe..click that giant link on the side of this page!) & I tried doing this party called 'High Postin'. Unfortunately, we didn't do the party for more than a couple of months but we have fun spinning together and we did get some good recordings. Here's a short clip of me finishing out the night. I was more than a little tipsy by that point in the night so, maybe it's amazing that I could even operate turntables without spilling my drink on them!!
High Postin' : Live! October 11, 2006 (end of the night) Download this mix
Here's another one of those, "damn! someone beat me to it!" ideas that's on display in Eindhoven, Netherlands. It is by a Stockholm based artist by the name of Anders Jakobsen (also known as Lagombra) and was made with scraps from scaffoldings and such. It looks really fun to ride but it's really just a track and not a rollercoaster.
I have A LOT of records. Waaaay too much for any normal person. But, for a vinyl obsessed music addict like myself, there is no such thing as too much when talking about music. I know some of you understand but for those of you who don't: it is us that keep music alive and have allowed for some music to finally be heard by the world. Think of us as librarians doing a public service for the good of humanity.
Having a lot of music also means that, unless you stop acquiring more, you always have a lot to reacquainted with. Sometimes we get so busy with other things that we don't have time to listen to new things we buy or only get to listen once every couple of years. So, from time to time, it's good to go back and check out some of the things you've forgotten about or just wanted to hear again. After a year of living in my current house I've finally started to resort my collection since it got all messed up during moving and settling in. While going through this process I'm rediscovering a lot of things I forgot I had or have just never listened to. So, I figured it would be a good starting point for a new series of posts. There will be some obscure & rare things here as well as some familiar records I just haven't listened to in a while and don't have mp3 for yet.
This will be an all vinyl series and will not include recent digs- only stuff that's been sitting on my shelves for at least a few months.
ENJOY!
Exile One - Fism (1976 Barclay)
Ole Ole
He Never Knows
Move Mama Move
Terry Callier - 12" single (Talkin' Loud)
Love Theme From Spartacus (4 Hero main mix)
Jessica Lauren - Siren Song (1994 Soul Jazz)
Serengeti
Shaft's Big Score! (MGM)
Move On In
Black Heat - self-titled (1972 Atlantic)
The Jungle
Hot Butter - More Hot Butter (1973 Musicor)
Space Walk
Sunbear - self-titled (1977 Soul Train)
Mood I "L.O.V.E. Love"
Mood II "Love At First Sight"
Gene Harris - Hot Lips (1982 J.A.M.)
Hot Lips
Swamp Dogg - 12" single (1979 Atomic Art)
Come On And Dance With Me (snippet)
Phil Upchurch and Tennyson Stephens - self-titled (1975 Kudu)
Don't I Know You?
Open Door - Limited Edition Remix EP (2001 Sole)
Get Into You
Fallin
Lights
New Sector Movements - The Sun 12" single (2001 Virgin)
The Sun (Kenny Dope main remix)
(NO! I will not be posting this much music in a single post anymore. Just wanted to give a solid intro.)
So, finally a 'real' music posting. This is in-fact one of my main reasons for starting this blog. My sole purpose for getting into DJing was to share good music with people that may otherwise never get to hear it. Without getting too deep into it, I've been addicted to music and collecting it since about age 6. I got into collecting vinyl only about 11 years ago and about 3 years ago I started collecting music in digital format as well. So, over the years I've acquired a considerable amount of music and knowledge but I never have or will claim to be an expert in any area. Even though my collection is pretty damn big I am consistently amazed by how much great music has been made in the past 50-60 years and always humbled. Music is like any other form of knowledge- "the more you learn, the less you know." (trust me, that statement makes perfect sense)
I'll get into some issues at another time but for now you need to hear these-
I love reissues and compilations. Especially when people take the time to find and release jewels that were rare even in their day. This collection of rarities by Amnesty is simply amazing. From the 7"s I had from them I was expecting more funk there are some funk bangers on there too!!) but this album has really grown on me and especially the songs with little instrumentation. Their harmony and arrangement is perfect while their message and delivery maintains a raw feeling that gives me chills. The passion & soul pours right from the music and flows through you making you almost feel as you are one with them. This song really makes you feel like crying for so many reasons. To think that it was recorded over 35 years ago and is still completely relevant makes you realize that America is not as far along in it's progress as it should be. Until human beings reach a point where nobody struggles songs like this will always be around. "give a cry out for liberty"
This company has consistently releasing some of the best soul compilations ever done. You don't even have to listen before you buy...just get it while you can! Now, I'm not a religious person and am not really into gospel music. I am into good music though no matter what form it takes and this compilation just took my by surprise. I was expecting maybe 2 or 3 songs that I'd really listen to and hopefully play out sometime. Nearly all the tracks are 10s. This song isn't even one of the best ones! Seriously, that's how good this record is.
This song is weird. It's talking about serious stuff but makes you want to smile & dance as if that's going to solve the problems their singing about. Sadly this wasn't true but this song gives hope. Ok, enough talking...just listen to the music.
