Bgp Vinilo y CD

Review: A whole host of crucial funk reissues are landing right now courtesy of the good folks at BGP and up there with the nest of them is this one from Chester Randle's Soul Senders, an ensemble featuring a rotating vests of musicians from America that were active in the 60s onwards. Their 'Soul Brother's Testify' came in two parts, both of which take up one side each of this 7", and were mainstays of the deep funk movement that rose up around the late 90s and early 2000s. They still do a job now with their hard hitting breaks and funky ass riffs.

Review: Bill Curtis' Fatback Band is known around the world for its soul and disco hits but their roots actually lay in funk. They were one of the most impressive outfits around in that particular genre and so they have, for those who are willing to dig deep enough, plenty of rare funk gems to call upon from their earliest days. Here we get a couple of them with 'Dance Girl' - the last tune they released in 1974 before signing to Event/Spring. It was a real classic at block parties back in the day and on the flip is a tune that will cost you over L1000 if you can find an original, namely 'Keep On Brother Keep On' - the group's second single on Curtis BC Projects II label.

Review: 'Foolish Man Part 1' and 'Part 2' by The Huck Daniels Co is one of several 45rpms the BGP label is dropping at the moment and weirdly many of them are also in two parts. This one features guitarist Daniels who was a key part of the B.B. King band ahead of later setting in Los Angeles and becoming a respected leader in his own right. He wrote just one for Kent Records and that was in 1973 as the label headed into its final days. 'Part 1' on the A-side is a driving funk cut aimed squarely at the club and heavy on inspiration from James Brown and the version on the flip levels up with organ playing from Earl Foster.

Review: Gil-Scott Heron was at the peak of his powers when he recorded Free Will as a follow-up to career highlight Pieces Of A Man. Originally released in 1972, it's steeped in the song craft of its predecessor and charged with the polemic that elevated his work to some of the greatest to ever shine a light on the Black American experience. The likes of 'Speed Kills' show just how tender Scott-Heron could be, while 'Did You Hear What They Said?' Ranks as one of the most heartbreaking tracks he ever committed to tape. 'The King Alfred Plan' and 'No Knock' prefigure rap as the legend's impassioned poetry rides on the rawest of percussion tracks. It's, quite simply, a masterpiece.

Review: This is, indeed, a compilation of mod, curator Dean Rudland's focus here is Ace Records, whose whopping catalogue provides a historic snapshot of Black American funk and southern soul. A dynamic selection of faintly jazz-intoned US soul and r&b is hauled from the net here, as delights from the likes of Richard Berry, The Merced Blue Notes, Jimmy Hughes, James Carr, Timmy Thomas and Lowell Fulsom hear them engaging in various thematic staples of the time: pining after girls, deliberating over faux pas, riffing against Hammonds, and revelling - finding joy, in fact - in the everyday blues. With a few Northern soul treats also peppered in there to contrast to the introductory southerly comforts, this is the perfect intro compilation for those seeking the best music to go with their mohair.

Review: If you have a penchant for proper funk from the genre's prime era, then This Is Street Funk is for you. It's one in a series of compilations that have been put together to appeal to vinyl lovers and features two sides packed with tunes hand-picked with TLC from Ace and compiled by Dean Rudland, who has also penned the liner notes that one with it. This one sums up the sound of Black American in the 70s with soul and streetwise attitude colouring the funk next to a mix of fatback drums, syncopated bass, rhythmic guitars and explosive vocals. Plenty of names you would expect all feature such as Fatback Band and Millie Jackson, Billy Garner and Billy Sha-Rae, Fame Gang and Larry and Tommy and more.