Review: Stone cold New Jersey funk business; Calender's seminal "Hypertension" has been a waymark in dancefloor developments since '75 and its big strings, high energy and nagging vocals still have total resonance to this day as proved by this rolling, conga fuelled twist from Mexican maestro Hotmood. Flip for more relevance as "Ritmo Latino" (from Calender's '76 album "It's A Monster") gets a cheeky breakbeat facelift from Voodoocuts. Now there's no excuse not to get funky every single day of the year.
Review: GC Cameron was born and raised in McCall Creek, Mississippi, and by the age of 22 he was already famous having joined Motown Records. He was signed up as lead singer of the legendary group The Spinners and had several web recover tunes and a few hits such as 'It's A Shame,' which was co-written and produced by Stevie Wonder. After that, Cameron left the group and went solo and teamed up with Harvey Faqua, Greg Crockett and Elgie Stover to record his best-ever work, which now makes its way onto this fine four-track EP courtesy of Soundway.
Review: Brazilian talent Rafael Cancian has grown in stature thanks to solid outings on the tasteful likes of Razor-N-Tape and Hot Pot Records. Now with that profile established, he heads out with a new label of his own in the form of About Disco. He inaugurates it with a quartet of edits that he has already been deploying to great effect on various dancefloors around the world. 'Sounds Chicago' does indeed with raw drums and great keys dancing over the beats. 'Ti Amo' has a more funky undercarriage and disco percussion, 'D'Afrique' again brings a funky bass riff to the fore with some psyched-out sounds for company and 'Opera' shuts down with some late-night and soul-drenched synths over intimate and stripped back house drums.
Review: Late 70s funk fusion from Tunisia: capturing the moment leading Tunis bands Dalton and Marhaba Band joined forces for some legendary disco fusion. "Alech" ignites with a Doobie Brothers style shiny guitar, big slap bass and soaring synth work while "Hanen" is a little more introspective and soulful with its honeyed harmonies and cascading chord sequence. Complete with instrumentals.
Review: The Carver Area High School Seniors' 'Get Live '83 (The Senior Rap)' is a stone cold party hip hop classic. It has been out of print for some four decades, however, and so has become a rather hard to find and expensive record. Thankfully, Soul Jazz Records have got the rights to this full reissue which was first pressed in 1982 on the private press label Challenger. The cut featured as the standout on Soul Jazz Records' recent 'Yo! Boombox' collection and now standalone as a seven minute stunner. It's an old school party disco delight with great rap and killer beats, all presented with the original artwork.
Review: Fresh from the Harlem hotpot, 1980: Harold Sargent's Chain Reaction teamed up with Sound Of New York's founder and producer Peter Brown for a star-lit, horn-baked, organ-licked disco creation that still funks hard 36 years down the line. With its maximal approach, disco bubbles and emphatic gutsy vocals, it could be argued that this funk even harder today due to it ticking every possible disco, boogie and funk box possible.
Review: Charles Green, who performed under the name Chas, released his debut album For Your Love on Love Joy Records in 1985. The album's soulful r&b accompanied Green's smooth vocals and heartfelt lyrics at the forefront. The album's title track was also released as a single and received some airplay on radio stations at the time and helped to establish Green as a promising new voice in the soul and r&b music scenes. Green went on to be a keyboardist for boogie, funk, soul and house releases such as Scott Grooves & Roy Ayers 'Expansions' in 1998 among others.
Review: Electro Wayne's mid 80s-focused Circuitry project get busy on Peoples Potential Unlimited with two starlit synth boogie originals; "She's Just That Type Of Girl" is a playful east coast funk flex with a slight freestyle touch to it. Harmonies, light touches on the keys and exceptional drum production, it's a sassy slice that will warm-up any floor. "Under Pressure" lowers the tempo but thrusts up the sensual urgency with great percussion and come-to-bed spoken word. Authentically done.
Review: A vibrant homage to 80s electrofunk and disco, packed with lush grooves and melodic finesse. Side-1 kicks off with 'Freak', a shimmering track steeped in 80s-inspired electrofunk, blending sleek melodies with a polished, retro vibe. 'Last Days Of Cybotron' follows, maintaining the melodic theme with a funky, futuristic edge that nods to the electro era's pioneering spirit. On Side-2, 'The Chiller Thriller' slows things down with a cool, laid-back electrofunk groove, perfect for low-key moments. 'Radio Station P You' channels early 80s R&B funk and electro in the vein of the Gap Band, delivering a nostalgic yet fresh energy. Wrapping up the release is 'Sassy Strutt', an infectious fusion of funk and house with undeniable dancefloor appeal. This collection masterfully bridges the gap between vintage electrofunk and nu-disco, making it an essential pick.
Sono Come Sono (Whodamanny instrumental remix) (4:29)
Sono Come Sono (Whodamanny remix) (4:00)
Sono Come Sono (Whodamanny extended instrumental remix) (6:26)
Review: Internationally acclaimed Italian singer, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Chiara Civello unveils a new single, 'Sono Come Sono', blending a mixture of Neapolitan funk and club-infused rawness into four mixes. With the title roughly translating to 'it is what it is', the tune is a true, happy reflection on all things being immutable, and struggle being ultimately futile. Party on!
Review: Patrick Adams was responsible for producing tons of terrific disco records during the late 1970s and early '80s, but few are quite as dizzyingly good as Cloud One's 1976 cut 'Atmosphere Strut'. Created by Adams with the assistance of regular collaborator Peter Brown, the 9-minute plus track is notable for the extensive use of superbly spacey synthesizer lines, an infectious deep disco groove and a typically head-in-the-clouds lead vocal from Margo Williams. This reissue naturally offers-up Adams' original, must-have 12" club mix, but also a brand-new re-edit from disco rework specialist KON. He lengthens the intro, beefs up the bass and makes crafty use of some improvised vocals from Adams and Williams that were previously buried on the multi-track master tapes.
Review: This latest is a reissue of a Congress Productions EP featuring their seminal 'Neptune'. The much-sampled early 80s jazz-funk classic comes in original form next to two unreleased cuts. The first is a rare boogie cut 'Live It Up' that has been extended for more dancefloor heft having first been dropped under the D'aile' alias as a B-side. Then comes 'Kevin's Funk' which is named in reference to Incognito trumpet player Kevin Robinson, who played as part of a Congress-associated line-up for this session.
Review: NYC Records looks outside its in-house stable for the first time here and signs the delightful nu-disco delights of Constellation. This duo hails from Miami and focuses on space disco sounds that fans of the famous Metro Area style are sure to love. They remain mysterious themselves but their beats are brilliantly designed with plenty of retro-future pads, cosmic arps and tight basslines full of colour, texture and soul. Like Daft Punk but deeper and more dubbed out. All four of these cuts are sure to get floors going but also bring plenty of style.
Review: It's a damn shame Cool Runners aka the duo of Paul Tattersall and Chris Rodel and was such a short-lived group because the tunes they made are next level. This reissue proves that with their 1982 single 'Checking Out' served up on a 12" with the sought-after 'High on a Feeling' on the flip. The open is lush street soul with boogie bass and twanging funk guitar riffs topped off with a gorgeous vocal. The second offering 'High On A Feeling' has leggier drums and more of a disco feel, but still plenty of brilliant boogie in the bass. Two cult classics, then.
Review: This killer UK boogie 12-inch by Tony Crockett was originally recorded and released in 1982. It has some brilliant raps delivered in an aloof style, with plenty of swagger, and a touch of campness. They sound dated but in a good, nostalgic way, while the music around still sounds fresh with the sleek bass and big flutes, low slung drums and warm chords. On the reverse is /Plane Jane', another cheeky bit of UK boogie that oozes funk and cool. These are fun tracks for sure and come in a full picture cover.
Chez Madame La Baronne (Idjut Boys Fazz Junk version)
Review: Earlier this year, French disco and jazz-funk combo Chatobaron joined forces with fellow Parisian Dimitri From Paris for the rather good 'I Like (The Music That You Play)'. While that was a wholehearted disco workout, this speedy sequel sees the band (and their high-profile collaborator) explore their West Coast jazz-funk influences via an inspired workout full to bursting with killer instrumental solos, dusty grooves, memorable motifs and a genuinely killer, cowbell-sporting percussion brerak. This time round, there are no Dimitri From Paris remixes; instead, dubbed-out disco favourites the Idjut Boys are on hand to smother the track in tape echo and dub delay. The result is a typically spaced-out, low-slung affair that naturally makes the most of the band's killer bassline and layered percussion sounds.
I Like (The Music That You Play) (club vocal) (7:30)
I Like (The Music That You Play) (club instrumental) (7:07)
Review: Parisian jazz-funk, disco and boogie band Chatobaron - an outfit helmed by multi-instrumentalist Frank Chatona - have previously worked in the studio with house and nu-disco mainstay Art of Tones, so it's no surprise to see them recruiting the mighty Dimitri From Paris to mix their latest single. His A-side 'Club Vocal' mix is a genuinely riotous and celebratory affair, with strong group vocals (singing about how much they love 'your' music) and heady horns rising a jolly and joyous, piano-sporting disco-funk groove rich in low-slung bass and Cerrone style percussion. It comes accompanied not by one of Dimitri's deconstructed dubs, but rather an equally excitable 'Club Instrumental' mix that boasts all the goodness of his A-side mix minus the vocals.
Review: Freestyle 'Turn Up The Music' courtesy of this new 12" from Roy Hamilton, Cosmo Bowen and Dennis Palmer. The trio worked together way back in the 80s and back then it was as part of a nine-piece outfit known as Breeze. Anyone who attended the iconic Ronnie Scott's in London back then will probably have heard them play upstairs with the likes of Hi Tension and Gonzalez. In 1984 they decided to lay down this one and only 12" on the HBS label they ran. It's a stomper but a laid-back one that is now well in demand on the funk and soul scene.
Review: Legendary Harlem label Queen Constance brought the world the most raw and authentic disco direct from the source. Years later, collectors and dancers alike still fawn over plenty of its output and now two of its more notorious tracks get on-point edits by contemporary stars Kon and Moplen. With Kon at the buttons, High Voltage's "Rock Spank Freak" is tweaked and coerced, with extended funk breakdowns and heavier bottom ends. Moplen then adds some extra colour and pumps up the trumpet lines to make for an unabashedly glorious disco stomper. This is a 100% legit reissue with fresh remastering, so do not sleep.
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