Author: djtbird

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Starting the show off is the new cut \”Fingerlero\” by George Benson, definitely one of the greats!  This is from his new album from this year released October 4th called Guitar Man–appropriate name, no?  By the way, you can get your own high-quality mp3 of the track by clicking here.  Heading back a few years, we follow with \”Run To The Sun\” by N.E.R.D. off their debut album In Search Of.  A jazzy house instrumental is next, \”Rude Movements\” by Sun Palace.  I found it on a compilation by one of the first modern DJs, David Mancuso presents The Loft.  Next up, \”O.S.T.\” is a hiphop tune with a bit of ragga(muffin) vibes from hometown heroes (i.e., Los Angeles) People Under The Stairs featuring Odell.  More hiphop from the collection Blue Note Street, but this time with the latin jazz vibes of \”Afrodisia\” by Muro–covering Dr. Lonnie Smith.  Upshifting to more clubby sounds, \”Power On Me\” by Katy B is another from her album On A Mission.  \”Want You Back\” with funky grooves by Snug follows in the mix, from the compilation It\’s All House on Brighton, UK based label Public Recordings.  Latin flavors mixed in from \”Pachacuti\” by Soul Ascendents from another UK based label (this time London) the now defunct Nuphonic.  Keeping the London vibes, broken-beat masters Bugz In The Attic present Homecookin\’s \”Stay Away\” which wraps the uptempo part of the show.
Mellow track \”Don\’t Stop Me Now\” by Toto feat. Miles Davis eases us into the closer, \”Vein Melter\” by Herbie Hancock from classic jazz-funk album Headhunters.
A pretty jazzy mix, this time out…

Addendum: I incorrectly state that Muro was covering Dr. Lonnie Smith, in actuality it is a cover of Kenny Dorham\’s \”Afrodisia\” from a great album called Afro-Cuban.  The good doctor\’s track is the title track from album Afrodisia (note slightly different spelling.)  I should have realized the difference as Lonnie Smith\’s album is from the label Groove Merchant, not Blue Note.

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We\’re all over the place this week (kind of a regular occurrence here, no?)  Starting out mellow with \”River Man,\” Andy Bey\’s cover of the Nick Drake classic.  Given that Andy is known primarily as a \”jazz\” singer (many of you will know him from work with Gary Bartz, such as \”Celestial Blues\”) it seems interesting that he would pick  a track from a 70s English singer/songwriter. I was first turned onto this version via a mix CD, INCredible Sound of Gilles Peterson.  Keeping it classic, bass legend Stan(ley) Clarke\’s \”Bass Folk Song\” is next from his \’73 album Children of Forever.  I\’d been looking for this track since hearing an old dj partner play it years ago at our event called Jazzid Up! (Shout out to DJ Junior Roach, The Empressario [Nickie Black,] and Elson Trinidad!)  \”That Voice Again\” by Peter Gabriel is from his breakthrough album So.  He\’d had hits before, such as \”Solsbury Hill\” and \”Shock The Monkey,\” but So was the first album he\’d made on his own (he was the original lead vocalist for Genesis) that charted in the US top 10.  He\’d charted in the UK top 10 with his 2nd solo album, Peter Gabriel (aka Scratch–because of the cover art.)  \”Me Dough feat. Lil\’ Shaker & Yaa Pono\” by Kay-Ara is some new hiphop from Ghana!  Thanks to Benjamin Lebrave of Akwaaba Music you can read about hiphop in Ghana and other musical trends at The Fader.  \”Whole Latin Love\” by La Familia R

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Whenever – Les Gammas
Fusao – Mr. Gone
I Don\’t Want Nobody To Give Me Nothing (Open Up The Door I\’ll Get It Myself) – James Brown
Everybody (feat Evelyn Champagne King) – Miguel Migs
Hung Up On My Baby – Isaac Hayes
Six To Four – George Benson
Love Issue – The Rebirth
Smiley Fonk – Los Chicos Altos
Vintage Keys (The Art) – Fusion Forum
Don\’t Fret – Diablo

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Starting us off is \”No Name Bar\” by Isaac Hayes, an instrumental from one of the most successful movie soundtracks of all time, Shaft.  Naturally, this is followed by \”Rankin\’ #1,\” Latyrx funky boast explaining why they are the best!  Although this always has to be taken with a grain of salt (or two) I enjoy the braggadocio element of hiphop music when it\’s done cleverly.  80s Brazilian superstar, Djavan brings us \”Aquele Um.\”  I remember him practically being a household name in the 80s with the \”smooth jazz\” crowd and you can see why with his lovely voice and solid songwriting.  I still love his collaboration with Manhattan Transfer, \”Soul Food To Go.\”  The next tune is a well done cover version of another 80s legend, Oliver Cheatham\’s \”Get Down Saturday Night.\”  That track has wound up on European compilations from the UK & Spain.  This version is by The Wonderful Sound Of Induce! and even though it\’s not slavishly faithful to the original, it still has that 80s \”boogie\” vibe, \”Get Down Saturday Night (Renzo Remix.)\”  Keeping it retro, the next two tracks are heavily influenced by vintage music, \”Lights (Shook Remix)\” by Ellie Goulding with slowjam elements and \”Frantic Moment (Boogie Mix)\” by Quango openly stating it\’s boogie influence, which makes sense as the original version of this song is from the P-Funk family\’s legendary guitarist, Eddie \”Maggot Brain\” Hazel.  Speaking of P-Funk, \”Pumpin\’ It Up\” by P-Funk All Stars adds even more weight to the boogie/P-Funk connection with the fat bass lines and funky keyboards.  Usually, I can\’t stand \”funny\” songs, i.e., music with primarily on the idea of being humorous rather than stellar music that also *happens* to be comical.  I can\’t imagine that Indian Ropeman\’s \”Dog In The Piano (Danielsan\’s Pet Rescue Mix)\” was made without trying to induce laughter, but fortunately it\’s also a great track without the comedy.  The vocals are from a routine from the Jerky Boys, who did whole albums of recorded prank calls with ridiculous (false) premises–this one, of course, is about a dog stuck inside a piano.  One of the things that seems to be disappearing in the iTunes single-oriented digital music world is the \”maxi-single\” with alternate versions of a track.  \”Blast Jam (Percussion Jam)\” by Konk is from a vinyl single I\’ve had for ages.  I never liked the original tune (cheesy post-punk art-dance from NYC) but the percussion track always worked for me.  \”Earth Is The Place (Restless Soul Peaktime Mix)\” by Nathan Haines is a soulful house track with remix duties by Phil Asher.  \”Baby Laser Love (Dapuntobeat Remix)\” by Ursula 1000 feat Ms. G is one of those email box promos that I love!  Ursula 1000 going electro-style again with a fun grrl-rap (think Peaches, but safe for work.)  The closer downshifts for an easy glide home with Jeff Beck\’s \”The Final Peace.\”

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As you may know from reading this blog, I love discovering the sources of samples in music.  A popular sample a few years ago comes from our opener, \”Drumbeat\” by Jim Ingram.  It showed up in everything from house tunes to DJ sets.  The source itself reminds me of my youth in the 1970s when Afro-Americans (as we were known then) were proudly claiming and seeking out their African heritage, as evidenced most popularly by Alex Haley\’s book and the popular mini-series based on it, Roots.  Another part of that social movement was \”The Black National Anthem,\” officially titled, \”Lift Every Voice And Sing.\”  This version is by Kim Weston from the film Wattstax (a documentary of a concert commemorating the Watts Riots) and the money from the single was donated to the United Negro College Fund.  Kim had a huge tune in the 60s, a duet with a fellow Motown recording artist Marvin Gaye called \”It Takes Two.\”  Next up, another track with 70s written all over it, \”Kind of Funky\” by Kool & The Gang.  \”Nautilus\” is a jazz-funk standard written by CTI Records legend, Bob James.  The rework by Sexteto Exellencio (another alias of Lance Ferguson of The Bamboos and Cookin\’ On 3 Burners) completely flips the script by doing a salsa version–

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\”Deus Me Fa

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So last time I mentioned that I got some records during my trip to Copenhagen… This week\’s show is a mix of things I got on that trip plus a number of DJ promos I\’ve received recently, so there\’s a lot of new music!
Most of the music from Copenhagen is music I used to own, but there\’s a few things that were new to me, like the opener \”Snapped (Audible Doctor Master Edit)\” by Skull Snaps. It is a clever re-edit of the classic break-beat track \”It\’s A New Day\” by Skull Snaps. The next tune is from a new album that was sent to me by Nickodemus recorded by a band he\’s been championing for years, The Pimps of Joytime. They are on Wonderwheel Recordings, the label that Turntables On The Hudson compilations have been coming out on since the beginning. The title track, \”Janxta Funk\” is a great introduction to the new album by The Pimps of Joytime–expect an album review soon. Coming from the Acid Jazz label, \”As If (Smoove\’s Latin Remix)\” by Smoove is another Copenhagen find that was new to me. I love the way he pokes fun at himself and the 90s music scene in his rhymes yet the track doesn\’t sound dated! A compilation that I\’ve treasured for years is the first volume of Electric Chair, which was selected by Manchester\’s Friends & Family resident DJs, The Unabombers. The wide range of material from downtempo, to house to classic funk, soul & disco has kept it in my record box since its purchase ages ago. The Unabombers also make music under the name Elektrons and I was pleased to find the Get Up EP in Copenhagen. The title track is a driving tune with the power to make you *get up.*
Freestyle Records has many tracks that get featured on this show, the one of newest being \”The Things\” by Randa And The Soul Kingdom. I remember A&R man Greg Boraman mentioning a while ago during a Barcelona visit that their intention was to become more \”freestyle\” musically–as the name might imply. They are off to a great start on that goal with music in the latin vein from Ray Lugo, afrobeat from Shaolin Astronauts, funky disco-tinged sounds from Randa and the Soul Kingdom, and next on the show, New Orleans flavored jazz-funk from Greg\’s own The Fantastics! with \”Up Yours.\” I still remember years ago being blown away by the clever re-edit that is \”Don\’t Stop Till You Get Enough (AJ Mix)\” of Michael Jackson\’s classic. Unfortunately, I had a record box stolen on one of my trips to Barcelona before I moved there and this was one of the tracks I lost that was IMPOSSIBLE to find digitally. Imagine how pleased I was to encounter it in Copenhagen! Another find from that same trip is the single of
\”Urban Illusion (Cuica City To City Mix)\” by Funky Lowlives. I just noticed the other day when glancing at the cover that Nappy G of Turntables On The Hudson is featured on vocals! \”Ela\” by Curumin is from the new collection Red Hot + Rio 2, in support of the great Red Hot Organization for HIV/AIDS research, expect to hear more from this album. Fela Kuti continues to be a major influence years after his death from HIV/AIDS related illness–there is a Red Hot tribute to him, Red Hot + Riot. Two of his sons have taken up the musical torch, Femi Kuti and younger brother Seun Kuti. Seun took over his father\’s last band, Egypt 80, shortly after his father\’s death and continues to make music with them, such as \”You Can Run\” from their newest release From Africa With Fury: Rise. \”Boogie No More\” by Dorfmeister v MDLA is a clever re-imagining of disco hit \”Boogie Oogie Oogie\” by Taste Of Honey and naturally has been a dancefloor favorite for several years. \”Flair\” by La Rochelle takes things in a newer tech-house vein although it\’s easy to hear the italo-disco influence from tracks such as Donna Summer\’s \”I Feel Love.\” A promo I received just the other day, \”Skankin Riddim (Busta Remix)\” by Omegaman gives you a taste of the best dubstep has to offer–fat bass with the pre-requisite \”wobble\” and other sonic tweaking keeping things interesting, yet danceable. Downshifting for the closer, I dug in the crates literally, finding my vinyl copy of \”Dusted (Pressure Drop Remix)\” by Leftfield feat Roots Manuva. The original was always a great track and I felt that Pressure Drop turned it up that extra notch…
I\’ve still got lots of new music to share and there\’s even more from the Copenhagen trip, so who knows what is in store for next time! Enjoy and see you soon.