Back catalogue: Funk

Review: Given his reputation as Japan's "king of digging", you'll be unsurprised to learn that DJ Muro's latest scalpel-style Diguma Edits are of thoroughly obscure, hard-to-find disco cuts. For example, an original copy of Best Friend Around's hard to find modern soul-goes-disco number 'It's So Good to Know' - a warming and glassy-eyed cut full of hazy grooves, super-sweet vocals and spacey synth sounds - would cost you hundreds of pounds; Muro's shortened, light-touch edit seems a bargain at a fraction of the cost. Foaster Jackon Group's similarly rare 'Feel the Spirit', a carnival-ready slab of Brazilian influenced jazz-funk/disco-funk fusion, is given the Muro touch on the flip, with equally as exemplary results.

Review: If edits are your game then the Galaxy Sound Co is certainly the name. Along other labels like Mukatisuku, these dudes know how to repackage lost and rare soul 7"s, and this new two-headed funk bullet from Thelonious Gillespie is just painfully on target. The first edit is of "Soul Food" by Frankie Seay & The Soul Riders, a moody, dusty percussion bomb brimming with breaks and a grainy guitar accompanied by fine brass waves. Lyn Christopher's "Take Me With You" is pruned and reshaped into a glorious soul ballad with a hard edge, and a driving rhythm led by gliding electronic guitars and an inimitable bassline. Fine work right here.

Review: Ten Lovers always manage to find a perfect sweet spot between jazz and house on the music it serves up. This new various artists' effort proves the point well: Marcello Cassanelli lunches the trip with groovy and nodding bass synths and airy vocal cries on 'Fantasia.' Zarenzeit then sinks into a bubbly groove with killer drums and sun-worshiping synths before Stefano De Santis drops some excellent broken beast on his squelchy synth workout 'Song For George D.' Future Jazz Ensemble takeoff into the cosmos and Caruso gets romantic on 'Vestimenta'.

Review: Two more rare grooves purloined from Cultures Of Soul's Brasileiro Treasure Box Of Funk & Soul and delivered on a sweet 45: Celia's "A Hora E Essa" is a steamy Latin funk workout from 72; all horns, cuicas and soft, honeyed vocals. Franco's "Ei, Voce, Psiu!" takes a more US funk idea with Franco's spoken vocals giving off a strong air of bandleader as the band lock down a tight groove beneath. Watch out for samba flip towards the end. Blink and you'll miss it.

Review: The fourth in Numero's ongoing disco 12" series comes from the archives of the Bronx's Tap label. Found on a reel simply marked "Rub A Dub", the eight minute disco-rap achieved 'classic' status on our office stereo within an hour via its infectious whistles, key steps and synth vamps. Included here are the vocals and the extended instrumental form the Fabulous 3 MC's. Warning, this release in limited to 1000 copies!

Review: Previously unreleased and coated in a stunning artwork, this limited 7" from Spanish funkateers The Faith Keepers is a must-check for all groove connoisseurs... The band's unique Latin boogaloo fusion is felt in full effect throughout the rather dark title track as we're faced with hurricane vocals, rich textured percussion and a groove so hot it could melt concrete. "Don't Worry Bout Later", meanwhile, sees the band in a slightly deeper frame of mind as a more sun-kissed, Latin soul groove is laid down under more infectious, butt-wriggling percussion. Essential.

Review: Expansion have been busy recently with a wealth of superb releases all dropping in relatively quick succession. This one comes from 70s and 80s Us soul family, Family Brown. They put out just one album in 1978 and a couple of singles with these two tunes now pressed onto 45rpm some of the best. On the a-side is the slow motion stepper 'Never Had A Love' which has pirouetting strings and male and female vocals playing off in seductive fashion. On the flip is the more groovy but just as melodically lush 'Listen.'

Review: Ralph Lamb and his confrere Andy Ross are The Family Fortune. They serve up their own unique twists on sounds you would expect from James Brown with classic dance floor vibes and powerful vocals from the one and only Jessica Darling. This fresh new slice of funk gold comes on tasty 7" via the Skyline label. Both tracks are super short but super sweet. Up first is 'Andy Cafe '68' (part 1) with its prickly drumming, big horn work and playful swing. Flip it over and 'Andy Cafe '68 (part 2)' works the chords more but aside from that carries on where part one left off. Two tidy bits of funk of ever we did hear them.

Review: Lotus Land Record's amazing underground funky disco release from Pittsburgh was originally released in 1980 on Jeree Records. Both sides of this 45 have went on to become firm underground classics of today. A side "I Wanna Be Loved By You" is a monstrously catchy uptempo disco tune which instantly captivates even the toughest dance floors, regarded by many as a deep house classic even though it is disco from 1980. B side "Please Be Truthful" is a brooding female vocal accompanied by blaxploitation rhythms. Both tunes are desperately sought after and until now virtually unavailable to the public. Original copies of the records will sell for over US$600, this may be the only chance today's DJs have to own this classic record.

Review: Earlier in the year, rare and unissued soul specialists Cordial Recordings offered up a fine album of previously unreleased recordings by Family of Swede, an obscure Oakland, California-based band who were briefly active in the mid 1970s. The label has now decided to follow this up by releasing the full, near 12-minute recording of album highlight 'Set Me Free', a deliciously spacey, slow-motion cosmic soul number that sounds like a Californian stoner's take on some of Cymande's most laidback and intergalactic work. It's rather brilliant all told, as is flipside opener 'Mellow', a synth-laden trip through up-tempo space-funk territory that's as infectious as Covid 19 at a student house party. 'Life', a funky slab of blue-eyed soul brilliance, completes a must-have EP.

Review: Rooted in the musical vibrancy of New Orleans, The Family Underground was led by Roland Treaudo and Manuel Herrera Jr and transcended cultural boundaries with their fusion of Baptist and Hispanic influences. Their legendary Sunday residency at Whitey's Devil's Den was consistently packed beyond its 400-person capacity and showcased Manuel's piano prowess and Roland's magnetic stage presence. For over 250 consecutive weeks, the band's electrifying performances continued into the early hours without promotion, drawing crowds far and wide. Amidst relentless touring, their limited studio time birthed timeless classics 'Everybody Knows' and 'For The Love Of You' which now arrive on this special 7" for Record Store Day.

Review: New tunes taken from the upcoming album from this French Afrobeat crew on the Cosmic Groove label. If you like Antibalas then this is for you! Everybody who bought the first twelve inch from Fanga knows what time it is! Tony Allen didn't join the group for this record, but nonetheless it's a long funky trip in true style! Yes, we have to say it again, Fela Kuti mode...Pure spiritual African music. Great!

Review: "Authentic afrobeat that sounds straight out of Lagos circa late 70s early 80's. Fans of Tony Allen’s solo recordings will love this, issued on 12" to give ample time to groove. It stands up against original and the best new afrobeat. One for the record collection." Martin Lawrie's review (soulgeneration - UK)
'Crache La Douleur' featuring Tony Allen was already playlisted by Gilles Peterson and many others, and is offered here in a totally new re-mastered version more powerful and percussive than ever. It will make you feel Fanga is playing in your living room. The highlight of this new release from Les Disques Cosmic Groove is the title track 'Noble Tree' featuring Segun Damisa, and the amazing remix version featuring Mike Ladd, who transcend the already terrific track in a totally new monster, adding a pinch of spiritual jazz feeling, a super dope dancefloor oriented broken beat and some joyful eerie female vocals. A totally new approach of the now standard Fanga's cut that demonstrates that Fanga has now become a super famous and talented band, and that The Cosmic Groove is a label you now have to consider as a super groove and beats seeker. An astral travelling from Lagos to France! Don't miss it .-D.O. 's Review

Review: The Fantastic Freeriding's "The Next Chapter EP" contains four flamin' new tracks by all Switchstance heads, painting the by now trademark collage of the label's various styles all anew in bright and shiny colours. Opening the EP is Gypsy Soul by Kabanjak - a dreamy yet percussive reflection that takes you right back to a campfire near the mediterranean shore. New March is pure Protassov: Beats, way fatter than his own bum, plus sounds, melodies and samples that go their own ways but always right forward. Deela here makes a glorious return (were they ever gone?) with Ghost Song, a fine specimen of broken beats that is sure to rock the more advanced dancefloors. Closing the EP is an uptempo funk track that was conceived right after Ancient Astronauts survived their first DJ trip to beautiful Greece - involving hardly any sleep, a near plane crash and totalling at a hectic 36 Hours. All tracks on the "The Next Chapter EP" are exclusives and not included on the album of the same name, to be released in July '06. "From spliffed up beats to jazzed out grooves, Switchstance is the source for dope tracks across the board!" - Fort Knox Five (USA) , "From Jazz to Cinematic sounds, from Rare Groove to Reggae and from Hip Hop to Post Rock: this is a trip and you'll go far beyond ! Congratulations for the album, this is really good!" - Kid Loco (FR), "Thank God for Switchstance! Mellow, deep, dubby freeriding for the folks out there that wonder what happened to Kruder and Dorfmeister. Now I've got my soundtrack for Summer!" - Gunnar Hissam (Om Records/USA), "I enjoy the many different shades & moods of the music presented here, hold together by a passion for funky hip-hop breaks & laidback atmospheres. Relaxed, soulful & deep while still danceable. I'm lovin' the whole compilation!" - David Borsu (Counterpoint Rec./B), "Switchstance Recordings continue establishing their unique sounds with another strong release. Respect!" - Karsten John (Vinyl Vibes/D), "Great label that always brings the funk!" - Rob Life (Breakin Bread Rec./UK), "Expect to see "36 Hours" as No. 1 in my next chart, it's a Jelly Jaz rocker cut!" - Pete Isaac (Jelly Jazz/UK), "Amazing EP!!! Chart: #1 This really really blew me away! All amazing tracks but will be caining the '36 Hours' track this time next year! Fast & funky! will be in the box for a few months!" - Diesler (Tru Thoughts/UK.)

Review: Australian label Melbourne Deep Cast return! Originally released as part of this year's Record Store Day activities, this Snooze For Days 10" from Melbourne's finest deep house operators is now widely available and features cuts from the Man Fantastique, Andy Hart and Max Graef. Each has supplied some excellent beat down edits of material that some might recognize and others won't; Fantastic Man's slow burning "Paradise" for example is based around a devilishly pitched down vocal of a late 90s neo soul classic that only really comes apparent when the "yeah you might laugh" refrain comes looping into focus. Andy Hart is on straight up discofunk sleaze form with "My Queen" whilst Max Graef cranks up the dust on "Das Brett" which has the best double bass manipulation since Roni Size's "Brown Paper Bag".

Review: Freestyle serve up 2 James Brown tributes as a sampler for the recent Modern Funk compilation. It has been argued that 2007
was the year that the underground funk movement finally started to make its presence known in the mainstream. Huge selling
artists such as Mark Ronson, Kanye West and Amy Winehouse spearheaded a movement towards a more organic and authentic
sound, selling thousands of records in the process and whisking bands, who have been gigging in small sweaty clubs in the UK
for years, off on world tours. The music itself harks back to the golden years of Motown, Watts and Stax, as well as hundreds of
unknown smaller labels, but given the all important production values of the 21st century, making it perfect for the dancefloor -
hence the tag 'Modern Funk'. The a-side finds The Fantastics (previously known as Reverend Cleatus and The Soul Saviours)
getting busy with The Godfather's 'Give It Up Or Turnit A Loose', sticking pretty close to the original but slapping their unique style
all over it. Over on the flip Speedometer and Ria Currie take on 'Answer To Mother Popcorn', originally a Vicki Anderson number,
giving it a update for the dancefloor in 2008.

Review: Standby for a fantastic cover Evelyn King's boogie classic 'I'm In Love'! by The Far East, which do a similar job to the version serve dup by Jennifer Lara but with mare contemporary edge. The perfect paced lovers rock gem has a lush flute melody off in the distance as the steely drums trundle along. The vocal is super sweet and the languid chords add that sense of lazy afternoon heat. On the flip is a truly deadly dub with killer knob twiddling and vast bass. As the weather warms up and days grow longer this is always the sort of music you want to reach for.

Review: Greg Belson is a world leading gospel collector and DJ who had great success with his Divine Disco series. He continued his vital work with Cultures of Soul on the Devin Funk compilations series and now the label are serving up the many highlights on 7". Here we have
Pearl Farano & The High Lights Of Joy with 'Who's Your Boss', a high speed funk gem with in the pocket drum playing and energetic guitar riffs. The real star of course is the coarse vocal that cannot help but light your fires. On the flip, Zella Jackson's vocal soars next to summery flutes and raw, dense rhythm sections.

Review: 5 Borough Breaks always serves up the working DJ with the sort of vital tools they need to get beat loving floors jacked up and moving. Here a load more iconic of the ages are chawed up and spat out on a new two track 7 " that features none other than legendary MC KRS One as well as American champ Fat Joe and Sammy Nestico. 'Bronx Tale' goes first with a nice laid back beat, funky bass and some edgy breaks that build a vibe while the KRS One rhymes come hard. Flip it over for 'Shoreline Drive' which is a soul led tune with soaring wind sounds, big cinematic drama and a hint of 60s style.

Review: The Dynamite Cuts crew serve up another scorching 45 here with two legends taking one side a piece. Both of these tracks are making their first ever appearance on vinyl here, the first being by the funk pioneers The Fatback Band. Their 'Fatbackin' is a rare groove classic that has long got b-boy's excited and brims with energy. Flip it over and you'll find 'Matrix' by jazz trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie - famous for his humungous cheeks once he starts playing. It's a massive tune that has been sampled endlessly by the hip-hop world and has a sweet jazz-funk groove that'll make you move.

Review: From the aquatically-focused Pirahna & The Posse Productions crew, the Octoposse label has a simple premise, to give you bang tidy rub downs of crucial funk cuts. No nonsense, just a razor sharp instinct for razor and tape in pursuit of the good groove. They kicked off some four years ago with edits of Dexter Wansel and Pleasure, and now they're going in on a smoking hot 7" featuring one of the greatest cuts The Fatback Band ever committed to tape. '(Are You Ready) Do The Bus Stop' is widely considered one of the best in all of funkdom, and for good reason. As well as a funked up remix on the A-side, you get a smouldering instrumental ride out on the flip, all the better to get those bodies locked in rhythm.

Review: Fatboy Slim has recorded his own version of Kraftwerk's "Radioactivity". The b-side is by the one and only Bootsy Collins, written by Paul 'Beautiful South' Heaton.

Review: Starting out as a group called The Dreams, Washington DC's Father's Children hit their stride in 1972, recording some early sessions before hitting the road around America. Unfortunately their career never quite gathered momentum despite releasing an album in 1979, but fortunately the masters from their early days were preserved and finally unearthed for a 2011 reissue on Numero. It's from this reissue that two of their finest early singles are pulled for this perfect soul nugget on Soul Direction, the slow and funky 'Everybody's Got A Problem' and the joyous, dreamy 'In Shallah'.

Review: Favourite step up with a 7" of two distinct halves, digging some niche funk cuts up from hidden corners. Leading up on the A side is Paul Fathy with 'Funky Baby Love', which was originally the flip to his 1982 single Je N'Speak Que L'Amour. The track is a pristine slice of disco funk in the Shalamar tradition which can't fail to get a floor filled up good and proper. That track is backed up with 'Karukera C'est Comme ca', a sunkissed slice of zouk goodness from Guadeloupe in 1988 by Corail' - the kind of thing you could imagine Palms Trax rinsing out during a feel-good day time session somewhere on the Adriatic coast.

Review: REPRESS ALERT!: The Fossils label has been unearthing more musical treasure for its fifth outing, and this one takes you directly to the Middle East for some twisted disco-funk with red hot grooves courtesy of Fava Luva & Dr. Professor. The source of the tunes is obscure and unknown but the pair bring plenty of their own goodness with additional layers of live instrumentation really bring them to life. 'Lahatz' is steamy and full of sensuous vocal magic and cosmic synth work that will get the floor into action, while 'Kerem' is even more topical and exotic with its rich array of strong melodies and downtempo beats making for a woozy and wonderful trip.

Review: 
The Dynamite Cuts 45s series is back with another of their funk fuelled double 7" packs of wonder. FBI were Funk Band Inc, the UK's original jazz funk outfit back in the seventies. This double 45rpm was originally put out in 1977 and has since become a hugely in demand collector's item. The self-titled opener is a languid limb-loosener to open up with Parliament style bass riffs and popping horns, then 'Talking About Love' picks up the pace for a high seeped funk chase with seductive sax work and 'Bad Deal' slows down once more to a more libidinous vibe. Bright Rhodes solos and buttery vocal seduction defines closer 'Love Love Love.'

Review: The man with more beats than a Columbian drug lord has marching powder makes his debut release on Freestyle with "Audio Fdelity". Hailing from Perth Australia Fdel has been a name on the music scene down under for many years. Making his name with the Triple J playlisted "El Questro" in 2002, he's been steadily building his career as party rocker number one and sample slinger par excellence. Packed with more cuts and 'breakface' inducing hooks than you can shake a stick at, this one man production outfit is ably assisted by Downsyde's DJ Armee on the scratches. Finding it's home amongst the funk/hip hop/breaks scene, fans of Fort Knox Five, Dynamo Productions and Kraak & Smaak will not be disappointed with the bouncing breaks packed into tracks such as "Rocksteady", "Get Up On Ya Feet" and "Ladies And Gentlemen".

Review: One of Good Groove's most popular releases gets an exclusive repress on clear dark blue vinyl before the label ends its run of sample based funk-outs in order to focus on original output. Catskills artist Feature Cast gets busy with a bunch of accapellas including a certain woman of the ghetto over an uptempo horn heavy funk groove. On the flip the mysterious QDUP foundation drown a cavalcade of classic hip-hop samples over a loose mid tempo bump.

Review: A delightful mix of nu-jazz and jazzanova, the German group comprising of Jeff Ozdemir, Daniel Gahn, Ozgur Bayraktar and Treetop (aka Michael Voss, who personally hand-stamped these gorgeous 7" records) are serving up a drum-fueled slice of electro jazz, with some buttery sax that makes 'Cihangir's three and a half minute runtime pass you by in an instant. The 7"s replay value is infinite, from the title track's more Lounge rooted sensibilities, to side b's 'Feed lala' with its groovy electronica synths competing with subdued piano notes over the groups classic drum focus. Just one listen is enough to send you on a 3 hour jazz dive. Don't pass up on this extremely limited piece of jazz perfection.

Review: Another week, another masterful 7" reissue from the unstoppable Athens Of The North. Moreover, it's another sublime find from the label, and it sticks closer to their usual trick of finding one-off soul singles from much coveted artists of the '70s and '80s. Felony Theft only released this one single back in 1972, "When You Have Love", but you can understand why AOTN would want to resurface its dusty percussion for the modern audience; it's one of those rare tunes that sounds like nothing else from the genre, a quirky piece of magic for the diggers. "Run For Cover" is fun, upbeat but less alluring than its A-side sibling, but that is not to say that it isn't also a fine slice of soul-funk mastery. Go.

Review: Hilton Felton's 'Be Bop Boogie' is a delightful classic from the man originally from Norfolk, Virginia. The jazz organ player worked with the likes of Chuck Brown and The Soul Searchers as well as Eva Cassidy at points in his career, and his debut solo album from which this is taken is impossible to find these days. This rare groove jazz funk nugget was recorded in the same place as 'The Bottle' by Gil Scott heron and uses all of its seven minute play time to really get deep under your skin. On the flip is part 2, a rare Japanese 7" edition from 2011.

Review: Keyboardist Hilton Felton's 'The Power Of Love (It's In My Heart)' has never been available on standalone 7", until now. It has been newly remastered for the occasion and finds the talented Felton at his best as he lays down his signature mellow grooves. For proof look no further than the groovy soul of 'The Power Of Love (It's In My Heart)' has Angela Winbush as a youth on vocals and features great musical depth, while s 'The Power Of Love (It's In My Heart)', which has never been released as a single, and 'Spreading Fever (Part 1)' is as smooth as they come with its silky and seductive lead sax.

Review: New Zealand-born Lance Ferguson has been the beating heart of Melbourne's modern funk and soul scene for the best part of two decades. It's this that allowed him to gather many of the city's best musicians together to record "Rare Groove Spectrum", an album of fresh covers of rare and classic funk, soul and Latin jams. This sampler seven-inch contains two killer covers. On the A you'll find Ferguson and company charging through the deep funk brilliance of "Egg Roll", an instrumental track that first rose to prominence when Keb Darge reissued an un-credited test pressing of mysterious origin. Over on the flip, Ferguson's charges deliver a heady, exotic and intoxicating interpretation of "The Dump" by Soul Vibrations.

Review: Jet-set instrumental funk from Lance Ferguson, sifted from his rare early release 'Rare Groove Spectrum Vol. 1'. The pieces are technically covers; the A, of Earth, Wind & Fire's 'Brazilian Rhyme', and the B of 'Sweet Power Your Embrace' by James Mason. This Japanese 7" edition contains no end of wally funk, baggy brass trills and bossa nova clave, musically emanating straight from the heart of Melbourne, Australia.

Review: The mighty DFA label has always come at dance music from a rock and indie perspective and for that reason has always brought plenty of new ideas to the dancefloor. Fernando Pulichino has long been at the heart of the operation with his fusion of rock, funk, and electronic beats and here he is again with more of the same. 'I Got, She's Got' is a raw, energetic track, while the remix offers clarity and rich arpeggios. 'She's Playing With Fire' with saxophone by Gustavo Buchiniz, meanwhile, adds another explosive element meaning that all three tracks deliver pure club-ready firepower.

Review: Pure Puerto Rican party business, "Hallelujah" was well ahead of its time... Originally released on INS in the 70s, its madcap drum dynamics and bass have more relevance now than they did back in the day. Hyper-limited, original presses have changed hands for over L500 and didn't sound particularly good due to poor pressing issues. AOTN have added their mastering magic in a major way... And thrown in the soundtracky Latin drama of "Jonny's Theme" for good measure. What a package.

Review: Having coaxed greats like Roy Ayres and Gwen Guthrie into the studio to collaborate, German producer Ferry Ultra has done it again by guiding Northern Soul legend Ann Sexton into the booth on "Rising Up". His album mix keeps faithful to the brassy and organic sounds of classic Northern Soul, but with enough sequenced beats in it to pack a punch. Atjazz sparkles on the remix, aiming it squarely at the floor with minimal clear-as-crystal kicks and some spacey atmospheric pads. South African Trancemicsoul also goes on a deep soulful adventure with Sexton's vocals, as does Soul Minority who superbly brings out the yearning in the singer's voice.

Review: One of funk's longest standing representatives, Fields continues to contribute to myriad genres, including contemporary acts like Kraak & Smaak. For this reissue, however, Tramp take us back to 1979 with a snapshot from his debut album Let's Talk It Over. Tight swings and frenetic horn work give both sides a real JBs thrust while The Devil's Personal Band are allowed to let loose on their own on "The Bull Is Coming". Another successful reboot of a once rare-as-hens-teeth 7", Tramp have well and truly spoilt us.