One of my favorite drone records in recent memory (Streets=X, see above) gets the remix treatment from a who's who of NZ artrock / dronerock / freerock artists. Birchville Cat Motel, Seht, 3rd Octave Band, AM and a bunch more, take the sound of the Street=X record, all droning shimmering high end skree, and try to make it their own. Birchville Cat Motel, smooths the edges and adds some humming dreaminess. Seht chops and pastes and adds the sounds of a busy highway. 3rd Octave Band turn up the volume and add some layers ofgrit and grime, feedback and amp buzz. Paul Wickham slows it all down and adds even more hum and hiss. A pretty amazing remix project in a world that certainly doesn't need anymore. It helps that the original was so goddamn good!!
Wow, what an amazing artifact! Smithsonian Folkways have just reissued this 1959 release of urban folk song recordings made by six 11 and 12 year-old youths from the Harlem projects. With only bongos and bottles to beat out percussive rhythms, the kids make rhyming songs, chants, and stories that relate to their experiences of rough street life and how they cope with them. An argument can be made that these recordings are the nascent beginnings of what would later become rap, but the song's basic forms sound much more rooted in early blues, call and response rhymes, and tribal African rhythms, in that they still have the feeling of being tied to an older tradition of folk music. That they are being made by kids with such exuberance and charm in the face of real hardship make these recordings truly special.
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
Truely unique recordings of Cumbias, Tamboritos, anad Mejoranas. Starts off reasonably enough, but just as you relax, you're treated with a 'grito': what seems like a version of kecak performed by imitating dogs barking. And later, a group of drummers are accompanied by several choruses of women singing call and response from what sounds like opposite ends of town.
MISSISSIPPI ALERT!!!!MISSISSIPPI ALERT!!!!MISSISSIPPI ALERT!!!!MISSISSIPPI ALERT!!!!
One of two new Mississippi releases we're listing this week, both incredible additions to the already impossibly impressive Mississippi catalog, and as we often mention, there are plenty of people who buy every single Mississippi release, regardless, and most aQ-ers definitely fall into that category, but really, any one at all interested in world music, and we're not talking the Starbucks / Paul Simon variety, we're talking real world music, the sounds you here on the streets and in the homes played by real people in real places all over the world, if that stuff holds any interest for you, then pretty much every single Mississippi release is essential, and without fail, each one will open up a whole new world of sound, and reveal all manner of musical magic to jaded Western ears.
The tracks here were recorded in Indonesia in the late seventies by a field recordist named Jack Brody, and this sampling offers up lots of the different flavors of street musicians at the time, displaying the various influences from Indian Bollywood music, American rock and roll as well as traditional Javanese folk musics, all wound into these unique and personal sonic expressions. The sound seems to be mostly vocal driven, with the majority of the vocalists female, the voices high and clear and soaring, lots of call and response and unique harmonies, strings buzz over simple hand drums and minimal percussion, many of the tracks here are simple and spare, but others are impossibly lush. And as these are all recorded on the streets, the music is peppered with the sounds of life, cars and buses, kids playing, adults talking, babies crying, horns honking. There are a couple of tracks featuring male vocalists, one in particular stands out, the vocalist singing in a super raspy Popeye/Tom Waits voice, over just intricate drumming, his vocal delivery rapid fire and super dexterous, the result dizzying and exhilarating. We could go track by track, but every song here is a gem, and like most Mississippi releases, we find ourselves spinning this over and over and over and getting totally lost in these incredible sounds.
Housed in a super heavy old school tip-on style jacket, and includes a massive booklet filled with liner notes on the music, the region, the performers, including lyrics and actual musical notation, as well as lots of photos and a bonus 7"!
The 19 tracks on Streets Of Lhasa were recorded by Zhang Jian, a member of Beijing, China's fm3 arts collective during a visit to Tibet in August 2003. Jian would hire the musicians for an entire day, paying them in cash and food, and record their performances in the relatively quiet surroundings of a city park. Most of the recordings are of either solo performers (singing a cappella, or accompanying themselves with a lute or fiddle) or in small ensembles. Many of the performers are children, often singing with their parents. Particularly cute is the father / son duet (with fiddle accompaniment). In addition to these private performances, Jian also made several recordings of ambient sounds and music on the streets of Lhasa: market sounds, prayer bells, children playing, trains, and a 12 minute track of monks heatedly discussing scripture and apparently clapping to puncuate their arguments, though the clapping sounds almost like a crackling fire. The result is a picture perfect audio post card to a place most of us will likely never visit.
All you Mississippi Records fanatics should just stop reading now and click on the ADD TO CART button, because there's just no question that you are going to want, nay NEED this! Baltimore-based record store owner and record collector Ian Nagoski (who also compiled the excellent Black Mirror compilation for Dust-To-Digital) has put together another stunning collection of vintage 78 recordings from around the globe spanning between 1918-1952: Tanbur improvisations from Turkey, Vietnamese classical chamber music, Greek cabaret, Jamaican rural folk, Serbian dance, Spanish prayer song, Romanian Jewish mourning song, Italian opera, Highland Music of West Java; Arab classical music, Zuni Indian harvest chants, Ukrainian Hutzel music, Hindustani classical singing and Armenian folk music. Whew! It's a whirlwind tour of the world in beautiful, lonely and sometimes devastating bursts, colliding folk and popular styles, upper and lower classes, the famous and the obscure in a captivating melange of audio wonder. And apparently, there's more to come as this release also marks the debut of Nagoski's Canary Records imprint dedicated to International musical obscurities and the stories that hide within. Extensive liner notes with pictures included. Amazing!!
Guitar tribute record featuring performances by Noel Akchote, James Plotkin, Loren Mazzacane Connors, Thurston Moore, Imagho, justin Broaderick and other avant/underground guitar heroes.
Last Summer, legendary New Zealand rocker Chris Knox, of the mighty Tall Dwarfs, suffered a life altering stroke, rendering him bed ridden, mostly unable to speak, and facing a long slow recovery. Stroke is a benefit record to help pay for Knox's recovery, and is a celebration of his life and music, featuring tons of rock luminaries, paying tribute, in the form of covers of songs from throughout Knox's long career. And judging from the folks participating, it's easy to see weren't the only ones who loved Knox and his music.
The most hyped track here is not surprisingly, the first actual new recording from Neutral Milk Hotel's Jeff Mangum, since, well, since the last NMH record, and it's of course awesome. That voice, the stridently strummed acoustic guitar, and the fact that it's one of Knox's best tracks, "Sign On The Dotted Line", so perfect. And for those new to Knox, you'd be forgiven for thinking it was a Mangum original, clever lyrics, unforgettable melody, so good. Worth the price of admission alone for NMH superfans, as is the chance to help out someone who's given us so much amazing music. But it's not just Mangum, there's Bill Callahan of Smog, AC Newman from New Pornographers, Lambchop, The Verlaines, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, The Mountain Goats, Alec Bathgate (the OTHER Tall Dwarf), Hamish Kilgour, Pumice, Shayne Carter, Skygreen Leopards, Stephin Merritt, Portastatic, David Kilgour, The Chills, Jay Reatard (RIP) and more!
And it's a testament to the songs of Chris Knox, that all of these versions sound incredible. Whether it's Callahan's darkly moody twang flecked slow burn take on "Lapse", or AC Newman's woozy sunshiney version of the perfect pop gem "Dunno Much About Life But I Know How To Breathe", or Oldham's gorgeous super stripped down, voice about to crack creep of "My Only Friend", or Lambchop's lush old timey lilting "What Goes Up", or Jay Reatard's reverbed, hand clapped "Pull Down The Shades", or Stephin Merritt's super tripped out glitchy, noisy, psychedelic "Beauty", or the dreamy washed out West Coast psych folk take on the Tall Dwarf's "Burning Blue"... We could go on and on, but by now you should have more than enough reasons to pick this up, helping out Knox, snagging a killer collection of amazing songs, by some of your favorite musicians (not to mention all the bands we've never heard of, all of whom impress). Plus hopefully, in addition to supporting Knox in his recovery, folks who have yet to discover the music of Chris Knox and the Tall Dwarfs, will now wonder how they lived without, and can rush out and buy everything they can get their hands on. Cool diecut yellow and black slipcover-ed sleeve too!
Volumes four and five of Toyo's Science Series of split singles, scientifically restructured for confusion and discomfort. Artists featured this time around (unintentionally?) reside in the regions of San Francisco, CA and Olympia, WA. Erase Errata kick off the
As is stated on the back of this cd, this compilation features "original works and modern treatments of legendary recordings performed by today's top artists" for the video game Stubbs The Zombie.
Totally retro, totally future, totally now! Not that this collection isn't chockful of pop goodies, but noticeably absent are a few formerly omnipresent, like-minded compilation stalwarts Man Or Astro-man?, Apples In Stereo or They Might Be Giants. Participants include The Flaming Lips, The Raveonettes, The Walkmen, Ben Kweller, Cake, Phantom Planet, and Death Cab For Cutie. In the zombie spirit of bringing something back to life, these artists attempt to breathe new life into these vintage (albeit far from lifeless) songs. Some stick pretty close to the originals, while others venture out into their own (outer)space. The former is exemplified by Ben Gibbard and Co.'s cover of "Earth Angel". Anticipated to be one of the highlights, it's definitely pleasant, but surprisingly by-the-books. Ah well, if you're seeking the latter, you'll definitely find it on many of the others. Really, by the time we reached Rogue Wave's dreamy cover of Buddy Holly's "Everyday" we noted that the songs were more juicily infused with the artists' own personal touches. Highly entertaining!
Pretty much all of Soul Jazz's Studio One reggae comps have been great, so how darn good d'you think one entitled "Studio One Classics" is gonna be? Yeah, that's right...classics. An inevitable, admittedly incomplete sampling of the best of Studio One's output over the years (since the '60s), from ska to rocksteady to dancehall to dub. This disc is intended as something in the way of a tribute to Studio One's legendary producer Clement "Sir Coxsone" Dodd, who passed away last May at the age of 72. He had a hand in recording each of the 18 tracks found here, which include cuts by the likes of The Skatalites, Horace Andy, The Wailers, Alton Ellis, Burning Spear, Dennis Brown, Sugar Minott, Prince Jazzbo, Sound Dimension, Johnny Osbourne, and others. With that array of talent, a stellar compilation is more-or-less assured, eh? ...But what's that? Think you don't like reggae? C'mon at least give this one a shot. There's definitely gonna be something on here that you'll dig, or well...ok you don't like reggae, but we tried!
Soul Jazz does it again. This time the label tackles the classic DJ cuts produced by Coxsone Dodd at Studio One from the beginning of the 60's through the early 80's. Unlike the common DJ of repute who was content to merely play records, Jamaican DJ's have always been of a mind to persistently interject their own thoughts, off the cuff remarks, vocal sound effects over what they played. Such was the heavy competition between Sound Systems in Jamaica, that merely having the freshest cuts would win an audience. A charismatic master of ceremonies was crucial drawing crowds. Out of this developed the Jamaican DJ: U Roy, I Roy, Big Youth, Dennis Alcapone, Count Machuki, Prince Jazzbo et al. Coxsone Dodd, having already been the owner of one of the biggest sound systems in Jamaica by the end of the 50's, continued in the capacity of producer to become the institution he is today with vaults of the most popularly versioned rhythms in Jamaica. 'Studio One DJ's' takes a look at not only some of the most successful DJ's to work with Coxsone, but also some great obscure one's that you may never have heard. You won't find either U or I Roy on this collection, but that shouldn't dissuade you (we can set you up with great discs of either) as their's no shortage of awesome tracks on here from the sparse interjections of Count Machuki to the non-stop-almost-out-of-breath toasting and cocka-doodle-dooing of Dennis Alcapone, to the ever so gruff and foreboding chanting of Prince Far I, there's an impressive variety of artistry represented here.
Wow! And we also just discovered that there's a short video on Studio One included on the CD that you can watch on your computer. Brief interviews with Coxsone and Norma, plus footage of notable DJ's Lone Ranger and a pissed off looking King Stitt. Looks like it's a sneak peak of a full length documentary that Sould Jazz will be releasing on DVD and video in the near future. We're all waiting on the pins and the needles for its release!
Most of us have come to know the DJ as a behind the scenes mover and shaker, not so much the star attraction, but more of a journeyman, playing the records, not playing ON the records, but the DJ in the heyday of reggae and dub culture was very much right in front of the action. The main attraction in most cases. Often adding their own voice loud and proud over the top of whatever sounds happened to be spinning. Screaming, singing, rapping, goofing, adding much of the DJ's individual personality to the dubbed out grooves. Soul Jazz has once again used its master key to the Studio One vaults for this, the second collection of Studio One DJ's. Digging deeper into the dancehalls of Jamaica in the 70's and coming out with a bunch of gems. If you're a fan of all things Soul Jazz, Trojan, Dancehall and the like, this is absolutely essential.
Similar to the extended dance mixes that were ever so popular in the US, the disco mixes coming out of Jamaica were remixes, often combining a dub and vocal version, designed for dance clubs to keep a song playing longer. Part of the inspiration from Dodd's stable at Studio One was to counteract the then rampent versioning of Studio One rhythms by the other recording studios. Given that these tracks were being cut to 12" discs, they could run anywhere from 5 to over ten minutes in length. A few years back the label Heartbeat released one such collection of disco mixes from Studio One called Nice Up The Dance (no, not to be confused with the album by the same name released by Soul Jazz a couple years later) and it immediately became a favorite here. So we were pretty excited to learn that Soul Jazz was going to do their own collection. The only shortcoming with the Soul Jazz comp is that many of the tracks here are hardly "extended" mixes. Over half of the tracks on this collection are between 2 and 3 minutes in length. It's a fine collection nonetheless, filled with updated classics spanning some ten plus years of Studio One's output. While some tracks are merely remixes of the original tunes, many feature newer vocalists (at the time) reversioning the Studio One classics, as well as some vocalists updating their own tracks, like Alton Ellis' own 1980 revoicing of a tune he cut in 1960.
It's with bittersweet feelings and a sorrowful heart that we find ourselves writing about the newest of Soul Jazz's tributes to Jamaica's finest cultural treasure. Sadly, Clement Sir Coxsone Dodd passed away on Tuesday, May 4th. It was only four days previous that Brentford Road, the street where Dodd's studio has been located for the last 41 years, was renamed Studio One Boulevard and a celebration was held in his honor. Farewell Coxsone, your legacy will continue to grow for generations to come. Suitable it is that a collection of dub from Studio One should grace us at this time, not solely as how a collection of music stripped of voices could be seen as a symbolic moment of silence, but because of all the creative musical innovations to come out of Jamaica, dub has had the most profound effect on modern music today and the real artists behind dub aren't the musicians, but the engineers -- in this case Coxsone Dodd and Studio One's house engineer at the time Sylvan Morris. The 17 tracks on this collection span the gamut of the artistry of dub: from the sparse to the full blown, balls out effects laden masterpiece. Case in point is Dodd's "Chase Them Version" in which the master tape is somehow manhandled to sound as if it is being eaten by the machine. We've heard all sorts of cases of master tapes being sped up, slowed down and played backwards, but this was a first for us... unless you count Faxed Head (strange how far dub's influence stretches). As for rhythms, of course Studio One's got the pick of the litter and most of the dubs here are ultra rare cuts originally released as silk-screened limited editions. Along with a kick ass cover, Soul Jazz has included a booklet with interviews of both Sylvan Morris and Coxsone Dodd. Highly recommended!
Pessimistic as it sounds, there's not much in life you can really depend on. Luckily Soul Jazz and its series of Studio One releases have never let us down and we think it's pretty safe to say that they never will. How could they as they get to dip in the richest of vaults mining the sounds of Studio One in Jamaica. This time out it's the second in the series of dub's best offerings from the '60s and '70s. With Studio One's house band Sound Dimension, Marcia Griffiths, Soul Vendors, The Gladiators and more you know you can't go wrong. Thank you Soul Jazz and your always such right-on selections from the stellar vaults of Studio One. We could say more, but why bother, this music speaks for itself, just listen to the sound samples...
Volume ten, if anyone's keeping count, in Soul Jazz's homage to Coxon Dodd and his Studio One recording studio / label / school / cultural institution. We already heard Studio One Soul, and we know how much Jamaican music was influenced initially from sounds up north in the states. Dodd himself used to make regular forays up to the US to pick up the newest, hottest singles to play on his sound system early in his career. So why not put together a collection tracing funk through Jamaica's most influential music stable? Studio One Funk is a little different from its Soul counterpart in that there's much more original material here, less covers, than the previous collection. Studio One Funk does have its share of cool versions of American funk tunes including a great instrumental reworking of the theme from "Shaft" by our beloved Cedric Im Brooks, Alton Ellis doing "It's A Shame", Booker T. & The MGs' "Melting Pot" is given a twist by the Underground Vegetables (no doubt just a creative moniker for whatever the studio group happened to be that day) and "Funky Broadway" done here by Delroy Wilson. Lloyd Wilson's "Reggae Feet", while not technically a cover, is about as close a James Brown impersonation you can expect from Jamaica!
We can never ever get enough of the sweet sweet side of Studio One. Groups is another collection from their deep vaults, this time focusing on the harmony filled groups that helped make the label famous, like The Heptones, Bob Marley & The Wailers, The Maytals as well as some of their lesser known but equally great groups like The Ethiopians and Royals and The Bassies. these groups were integral to the evolution of Jamaican music and reggae in all its forms (roots, ska, dub, rocksteady). Studio One's Clement Dodd launched so many groups/singers careers, as everyone from Bob Marley to Lee Perry to Prince Buster worked at Studio One at one time or another. Marley, in fact had the job of listening to all the new American 45's that came their way to suggest songs that he thought should be covered. These songs show the close connection that Studio One had to American doo-wop and soul for sure. Not a loser in the bunch, really nice!
Another in an amazing string of great Studio One collections compiled by the seemingly infallible Soul Jazz label. The title of this one says it all. These are the heavy hitters in Studio One's rich history. Harkening back to the classic 60's and 70's Jamaican sound, a glorious golden musical era, which included rocksteady, ska, roots, and lovers rock. Classic and rare tracks are collected from the likes of Alton Ellis, Ken Booth, John Holt, Delroy Wilson, and an amazing 10 minute Dylan cover by Freddie McGregor, and of course so much more. Much like its female counterpart, The Women of Studio One, which came out a couple years ago and STILL stands as one of our favorite collections, Studio One Kings has that same impeccable lineup, working as an album as much as a collection, perfect from start to finish and not at all just a bunch of random good songs. A wonderful combination of breezy confidence and deep deep passion. With spring in full bloom and summer within arms reach we can't think of a better ways to soak in the sun then with the kings of Studio One.
Okay everybody, open up those stockings! Here's one helluva great stuffer or if you love, but have yet to dive into, the music from Jamaica's finest years (from Jamaica's finest studio) it's also a great gift for one's self. Purchased as a slipcased box set, each disc comes to only $12 each. While numerous talent has come and gone through this small island, no other figure has had such a long lasting and spectacular career as Coxsone Dodd and his Studio One recording facility/label. In fact more stars have passed through his doors than any other in Jamaica. People used to crowd the front lawn of the tiny recording studio everyday for a chance to audition for Mr Dodd. The five discs in the collection are broken up by theme: Rockers, Soul, DJ's, Roots & Scorcher.
The first, Rockers, is an all around best of, an excellent collection covering rocksteady on up to dancehall. Studio One Soul, as the title implies, consists entirely of soul tracks cut by Studio One. The covers of classic soul songs, recorded in the 60's and 70's, are quite a bit different than the American originals.
Studio One Roots is possibly the best in the series. As we wrote of it when we listed it back in November of 2001: "Not only are there some great tracks on here, but there are plenty of rare cuts as well. And although Dodd may not have been known as much for his roots reggae productions, he certainly has a few in his vault that can stand alongside the best. From the very beginning of this album with the Cyclones & Count Ossie's ball busting instrumental "Meditation" you know you've got a great comp in your hands. Featuring a barking and growling Hammond B3 backed by pounding nyabhinghi drumming and deep bass, it's a shame the cut is only three minutes long. There are plenty of great tracks on here -- both instrumental and vocal -- including crooner Alton Ellis' haunting and bizarre "Blackish White" in which an impassioned Ellis tests the range of his tenor, and Lennie Hibbert's jazz influenced "More Creation" with its dreamy vibraphone solo."
Studio One DJ's is another great collection. Yet again, let's excerpt from our review of May, 2002: "Unlike the common DJ of repute who was content to merely play records, Jamaican DJ's have always been of a mind to persistently interject their own thoughts, off the cuff remarks, vocal sound effects over what they played. Such was the heavy competition between Sound Systems in Jamaica, that merely having the freshest cuts would win an audience. A charismatic master of ceremonies was crucial drawing crowds. Out of this developed the Jamaican DJ: U Roy, I Roy, Big Youth, Dennis Alcapone, Count Machuki, Prince Jazzbo et al. Coxsone Dodd, having already been the owner of one of the biggest sound systems in Jamaica by the end of the 50's, continued in the capacity of producer to become the institution he is today with vaults of the most popularly versioned rhythms in Jamaica. Studio One DJ's takes a look at not only some of the most successful DJ's to work with Coxsone, but also some great obscure one's that you may never have heard. You won't find either U or I Roy on this collection, but that shouldn't dissuade you (we can set you up with great discs of either) as their's no shortage of awesome tracks on here from the sparse interjections of Count Machuki to the non-stop-almost-out-of-breath toasting and cocka-doodle-dooing of Dennis Alcapone, to the ever so gruff and foreboding chanting of Prince Far I, there's an impressive variety of artistry represented here."
Last, but not least, there's the Studio One Scorcher collection of instrumentals which we listed in October of 2002: "Usually, when one thinks of the concept of the instrumental in conjunction with the island of Jamaica, it's dub and the mounds of reverb + delay that accompany it that come to mind. But even before and after King Tubby reigned supreme with his custom modified mixing board and effects, the instrumental for instrumental's sake was already huge on the island including reworkings of classics with solos in place of vocals and entirely new rhythm tracks that -- for lack of any vocal that fit it -- became instrumentals. That the previous four Studio One collections celebrating the career of Coxsone Dodd have been so damn great shouldn't be too surprising considering Dodd's huge contribution to the wealth of music on the island. But taking into account that even the rarest of tracks on these collections are still heads above many of his competitor's greatest productions is a sign that the man had ears nothing short of 24 karat status. So it is with this fifth volume of tracks culled from Studio One's glorious past; from ska to rock-steady and on through reggae. Among the greats here are the Skatalites' rare and treasured "Coconut Rock" from the mid 60's, an amazing disco remix (one of Dodd's earliest) of "Cleopatra" dubbed "Shockers Rock" by Tommy McCook & the Skatalites that extends to almost 8 minutes and stuffed to the gills with organ solos, a laid back and soulfull version of "Walls of Jericho" courtesy of keyboardist Jackie Mittoo & guitarist Ernest Ranglin, a truly bizarre twangy southern soul "Bugaloo" by Jackie Mittoo's Soul Brothers, and a couple of heavy buru drumming backed cuts "Money Generator" and "Black Up" featuring the mellow jazz saxophone of Karl Bryan and his Afrokats with Count Ossie. There's really not a dud on the album, and even if you might be familiar with some of the rhythm tracks, you'll be impressed by these workings of them."
Five great collections at one great price!
From Soul Jazz, the label that brought us the 100% through 400% Dynamite comps and the Jackie Mittoo "Keyboard King At Studio One" comes this collection of tracks culled from the Studio One archives. Started by Coxsone Dodd in the mid 1950's, Studio One is the single most important record label in Jamaica. From the Skatalites to Bob Marley to Burning Spear -- just about anyone who's anyone in the Jamaican music biz in the day worked with Coxsone Dodd and Studio One. The tracks on this compilation, like Soul Jazz's successful "Dynamite" series, are an excellent mix of classic and obscure cuts from the archives -- ska, rocksteady, reggae and dancehall are all represented here. Most notably exceptional track is Dawn Penn's haunting and devastatingly sad "No, No, No".
On the heels of their unsuccessful "500% Dynamite" compilation, comes the third installment of Soul Jazz's "Studio One" series of themed anthologies culled from Coxsone Dodd's highly influential studio. As a collection "Studio One Roots" is perhaps the best
Fanciers of vintage reggae and dub can't go too wrong with a Studio One comp. The late Coxsone Dodd's label recorded the best of 'em, so it hasn't been hard for Soul Jazz to come up with some pretty excellent comps of stuff culled from the Studio One vaults. And the original Studio One Roots collection they put out was itself indeed pretty fine. So Roots 2 seems like it would have to be good, and it is! The 19 tracks (seven of them previously unreleased!) include cuts from such artists as Cedric Brooks, Tommy McCook, Joe Higgs & Ken Boothe, Zion All Stars, Zoot Sims, Willie Williams, Jackie Bernard, Prince Francis, Devon Russell, Winston Matthews, Joseph Hill, The Saints, Larry Marshall, The Gladiators, Al Campbell, and several others. Lots of soulful, laidback, positive rasta vibes here! The most downtempo and moodiest are our faves, especially the reggae-jazz instrumentals from Brooks and McCook. But there's some gorgeous vocal tracks on here as well, such Winston Matthew's take on Bob Marley's "Sun Is Shining".
There are not many things in this world you can count on, so it's so damn comforting to know that every time Soul Jazz puts together a compilation from the vaults of Studio One the results are going to be golden! Volume 3 in the Studio One Roots series has been blazing us with its warmth. Wow, did they know how to capture raw and soul melting melodies inside Clement Dodd's studio. What's also so telling about this and all of the Studio One compilations is how strong quality control was inside Dodd's studio. There just doesn't seem to be any duds or lackluster performances. Anyone with an affinity for roots reggae will find much to love on this collection but we also really think people who have never thought of themselves as big reggae-heads should check this out as it really is the cream of the crop, and what often gets overlooked in this heyday of Studio One recordings is how great the songwriting is. The duel influence of American doo-wop and soul with the African tradition of Burru rhythms made for a sound oozing with conviction and sensuality. Another stellar collection from the goldmine of Studio One.
Every time we get a new Soul Jazz collection from the Studio One vaults we keep thinking ok this one is finally gonna be a dud, but that never seems to happen! This time out it's classic '70s era Studio-One with a grip of rare tracks from the likes of Willie Williams, Cornell Campbell, The Ethiopian, Horace Andy, Jennifer Lara, and a whole lot more. Liner notes by music historian Chris Salewicz do a really nice job giving the music a context in the political and musical climate of Jamaica during the '70s. Yet more rock solid proof documenting just how rich and deep those Studio One vaults really are.
Thankfully it doesn't seem like the Studio One vault has been tapped out yet. Soul Jazz has been releasing collections from the vaults of Studio One for years now and have managed to expose the wealth of musical richness contained in those deep vaults. This is volume two in the Scorcher series which focuses on the great instrumental tracks which were the very heart of Studio One, from rock steady to dub explorations, every single track here is amazing! Not a dud in the bunch. Even so there are some definite standout moments along the way that will make you wanna keep listening to this record over and over and over. As the sun's been shining in SF as of late this is pretty much the perfect collection to be blasting, as the the warmth in these scorchers mixed with the sun in the sky pretty much equals blissed out perfection! We sell a copy or two pretty much every time we play this. Highly recommended!
Usually, when one thinks of the concept of the instrumental in conjunction with the island of Jamaica, it's dub and the mounds of reverb + delay that accompany it that come to mind. But even before and after King Tubby reigned supreme with his custom modified mixing board and effects, the instrumental for instrumental's sake was already huge on the island including reworkings of classics with solos in place of vocals and entirely new rhythm tracks that -- for lack of any vocal that fit it -- became instrumentals. That the previous four Studio One collections celebrating the career of Coxsone Dodd have been so damn great shouldn't be too surprising considering Dodd's huge contribution to the wealth of music on the island. But taking into account that even the rarest of tracks on these collections are still heads above many of his competitor's greatest productions is a sign that the man had ears nothing short of 24 karat status. So it is with this fifth volume of tracks culled from Studio One's glorious past; from ska to rock-steady and on through reggae. Among the greats here are the Skatalites' rare and treasured "Coconut Rock" from the mid 60's, an amazing disco remix (one of Dodd's earliest) of "Cleopatra" dubbed "Shockers Rock" by Tommy McCook & the Skatalites that extends to almost 8 minutes and stuffed to the gills with organ solos, a laid back and soulfull version of "Walls of Jericho" courtesy of keyboardist Jackie Mittoo & guitarist Ernest Ranglin, a truly bizarre twangy southern soul "Bugaloo" by Jackie Mittoo's Soul Brothers, and a couple of heavy buru drumming backed cuts "Money Generator" and "Black Up" featuring the mellow jazz saxophone of Karl Bryan and his Afrokats with Count Ossie. There's really not a dud on the album, and even if you might be familiar with some of the rhythm tracks, you'll be impressed by these workings of them. Highly recommended!
As a bonus, the CD includes yet another teaser video (completely different than the one included on the Studio One DJs CD) to the upcoming Studio One documentary DVD that Soul Jazz is releasing.
More classic discomixes a la "Nice Up The Dance".
Soul Jazz continues their tribute to Coxsone Dodd with a fifth Studio One collection, this time devoted to the ska era. While Dodd had a major influence in nearly every development in Jamaican music on up to dancehall, it is ska that was really where he played his most important role and it is also with ska that Jamaica really came into its own musically. Dodd already had an advantage over all competitors (no one but Duke Reid had the same financial might and brand recognition) with his popular sound system and ability to press his own vinyl, but when he put together a stable of Jamaica's top young musicians -- thereafter known as The Skatalites -- he pretty much sealed his place at the top. With the immeasurable talents of Jamaica's equivalent of Booker T. & the M.G.s behind him, Dodd cultivated a roster of vocalists who would eventually become legends on their own in Jamaica and internationally: Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Delroy Wilson, The Ethiopians, Toots & The Maytals and much more. On Studio One Ska, Soul Jazz puts together some of the most compelling vocal and instrumental tracks alike to be recorded at Dodd's studio between 1962 and 1967.
The newest collection from the Soul Jazz label's new "Studio One" series collects 18 tracks of American soul as interpreted by Jamaican artists and released during the sixties and seventies on the Studio One label. Much like Trojan's "Soulful Reggae" three cd box set which came out last year, "Studio One Soul" demonstrates not only just how much Jamaican artists looked towards the
If there were any doubt how deep and rich the vaults of Studio One were, Soul Jazz has shown that it's pretty much a bottomless well of amazingly rich sounds. This time it's the second in their Studio One Soul series, which shows the influence of American soul & funk on the roots of Reggae. The way that the sounds of folks like Curtis Mayfield, Al Green and early Roberta Flack influenced the music coming out of Jamaica, played itself out so nicely in the delivery from artists in Studio One. The mixture of classic soul melody and roots reggae instrumentation made for a sound that perfectly incorporated two so very important movements in black music in this century. Hearing Jerry Jones tackle the Eugene McDaniel's penned "Compared to What" or The Heptones taking on Curtis Mayfield's "Choice of Color" doesn't sound as much like an homage or cover as it does a solidarity of soul and spirit that makes so much sense and sounds so totally wonderful.
It's finally here! You've seen the teasers on the previous two Soul Jazz Studio One releases, now's your chance to have the whole kit n' kaboodle for relative little pocket change. 4 hours, yes four friggin' hours of video for your pleasure. The meat of the footage is an extended interview (over two and a half hours) with Coxsone Dodd in his Kingston studio and hanging out in Kingston at some of the old dancehall locations surrounded by adoring fans and Studio One stable staples. Interspersed throughout are additional brief interviews with King Stitt, Alton Ellis, Ken Booth, Studio One engineer Sylvan Morris, Sister Ignacious of the Alpha Boys School (who produced some of the island's greatest musicians) and many other old timers from Studio One's glory days recounting the label's illustrious history. As bonus features to this documentary are some interviews with Alton Ellis, Norma & Courtney Dodd, Ken Boothe, King Stitt, Dennis Alcapone and more. But wait, there's more! And it's not a collection of steak knives. Soul Jazz has also thrown in a best of Studio One collection (LP or CD, your choice) that seriously kicks ass and a 100 page book filled with archival pictures and bios. Considering the huge role Studio One / Coxsone Dodd had in shaping Jamaican music through the sixties and seventies (not to mention the lasting effect the treasure of Studio One rhythms continue to have on the island's music) this document is an excellent source of historical info.
I can't close this up without expressing one bone to pick with the creators of this film. You'll notice when you pop this puppy on your DVD player (by the way, the discs we've got are region free NTSC) is a horrible video title generated frame that surrounds the picture -- kind of like the trademark frame that surrounds all the Soul Jazz Studio One releases. No, this doesn't go away ever during the film and no, you can't get rid of it if you want to. It really sucks and I can only suspect the most nefarious of reasons that Soul Jazz would include it throughout the entire film. Shame on them for that. Chances are, like us, you'll mentally crop that frame out soon enough. This thing is just too damned good to let a stupid frame ruin it! Can I also say that it makes an excellent stocking stuffer? (the CD version anyway, the LP you might have to have a big ass sock to fit it.)
Soul Jazz has been doing a great job of digging into the studio one vaults, unearthing some amazing, classic reggae and dub sounds but one thing that had been lacking were the ladies! Luckily they had the good sense to do some more exploring and find these 16 tracks by women from Studio One spanning the mid 60's to the beginning of the 80's. It's so nice to hear a feminine touch to the classic studio one sound. Their is a hazy sweetness that drips from this collection. When Dela Humphrey sings of a "Dream Land" you just might find yourself with an outbreak of goose bumps like we did. What's so nice about this collection is how it shows the blend and merging of motown, doo-wop and the classic studio one sound. The Soulettes and Jerry Jones would be just as comfortable in the soul section of AQ as they are in reggae. The Tonettes show off their production chops with a dub track that gets nice and loopy. Jennifer Lara makes the most appearances on the comp (3 times) with a sound that's oh so rich and reminiscent of early Burning Spear. Once again a great job by Soul Jazz, this is another essential collection!
This is the one. If you've never gotten a Studio One compilation or you have, but have been wondering which one to get next, the answer is right here. Soul Jazz pretty has pretty much selected the best, warmest and most memorable cuts by amazing reggae artists from Studio One spanning 1963-1980. We've been playing this almost non-stop in the store, as this really does represent some of the best music ever made. Studio One rivals Motown for being responsible for so much amazing and timeless music. All our favorites are here: Horace Andy, Marcia Griffith, The Heptones, Prince Jazzbo, as well as some stunning tracks by a few folks who had somehow slipped under our radar like Super & Sleepy, Michigan & Smiley, and Doreen Schaffer. It's got everything we love about the Studio One sound, from the super dubbed out, to song sizzling with sensual warmth. Every single track on this kills. This is a no brainer, an absolute must have.
Sub Pop's contribution to the Record Store Day craziness was this super limited compilation, which we first took to be sort of a cash grab, as it looked sort of like a sampler of songs from bands that had recently signed to the label. But upon closer inspection, it seems that in fact, that was not the case, instead the fine folks at Sub Pop essentially made us a mix tape of some of their favorite jams, from some of their favorite bands. And we can tell you, that based just on the bands we know (and love), someone at Sub Pop has wicked taste. His Electro Blue Voice, Iron Lung, Peaking Lights, My Disco, Soldiers Of Fortune, and those are just the ones we know. Also included are Starred, Ed Schrader's Music Beat, Lori Goldston, Protomartyr, Chancha Via Ciruito. Phew.
We have to say we were actually a little disappointed when we discovered this WASN'T a label sample, cuz we've been a bit obsessed with His Electro Blue Voice, ever since we got their split single with Nuit Noire, and ever since, we've been tracking down every single we could find with no sign of a proper full length. So the thought of an imepnding full length on Sub Pop got us pretty excited, and we're guessing you'll feel the same way after listening to their track here, a gloriously twisted chunk of noisy, synthy, distorted garagey new wave weirdness that might be worth the price of admission alone. But then Iron Lung deliver a searing slab of noise drenched heaviness, twisted experimental powerviolence fused to churning doomy metallic crush, Peaking Lights get all swirling kosmische pop, My Disco deliver a bit of brooding haunting electro pop minimalism, Soldiers Of Fortune conjure up a baffling drugged out psych jam, that sounds like it was captured at some obscure music festival in 1969.
Of the other tracks, Protomartyr kick out the awesome old school style grunge jams, brooding and fuzzed out, sounding a bit like Mudhoney crossed with Interpol, and sounding right at home on Sub pop, Lori Goldston's track is some cool abstract doom psych heaviness, while Starred traffic in a hushed sort of acoustic folk dreaminess.
God stuff all around. Includes a big booklet, and a download code!
Third installment of Word Sound's notorious Subterranean Hits compilations. More fucked up hip hop than you can shake a corn dog at. If nothing else, the pre-pubescent antics of Hawd Gangkstuh Rappuh MCs Wid Ghatz track on this will have the snot running out of your nose and make you scream for more... Or less. Once again these freaks single handedly make this album worth its cost. But wait, there's more: you also get excellent tracks by Sensational, Scotty Hard, Spectre and more!
Sequel to excellent first volume of Crooklyn's best...Spectre, Rob Swift, Sensational, the inimitable Hawd Gankstuh Rappuh Emsees Wid Ghatz, Prince Paul, others.
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
The "Ptolemaic Terrascope" finds itself in financial straits and luckily has many admirers and friends. The upshot: this stellar compilation of (virtually all) previously unreleased tracks from a galaxy of your and our favorite musicians, including Flying Saucer Attack, Cul De Sac, Magic Hour, the Olivia Tremor Control, the Marilyn Decade, Charalambides, Ghost, Green Pajamas, the Bevis Frond, Bardo Pond, Strapping Fieldhands and the list goes on and on and on. Highly recommended.
35 current stoner rock bands, doing covers of cheesy 70's classic rock songs. 156+ minutes. The bands range from well known to not known at all. Highlights include: Raging Slab "We're An American Band", Los Natas "Brainstorm", Alabama Thunderpussy "Hymn 43", Fireball Ministry "Doctor Doctor", Spirit Caravan "Wicked World", Gideon Smith & The Dixie Damned "The Pusher" etc.
This low priced double disk set of Sugarhill Records' greats includes tracks from The Sugarhill Gang, Grandmaster Flash, Trouble Funk, Spoonie Gee, Positive Force, Treacherous Three and more. It also comes with liner notes documenting the entire history of Sugarhill Records.
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
Somehow we missed the first volume of Summer Of Fuzz, but managed to get these just in the nick of time, still in the hea(r)t of Summer, which for most of you probably means fun and sun and beaches and top down convertables, but for us means sweaters, and scarves and hoodies, and fog and clouds, but screw it, we'll get our summer kicks sonically, with some kick ass fuzz pop and garage rock jams, perfect to blast from your ride, top down (or not), plenty of three chord jangle, soaring fuzzed out choruses, old school style sixties glam pop stomps, crunchy riffs, bouncy beats, hooks galore, there are a handful of bands here you probably know (and maybe love), Warm Soda, Burnt Ones, Cool Ghouls, the Drags, but plenty of new to us (and maybe you) groups like Bad Lovers, Sabba Rabba, The Flytraps, Rich Hands, Lust Cats Of The Gutters (great name!), Viva L'American Death Ray Music (also a great name!), Sexploits and more more more. Worth it just for the exclusive Warm Soda and Burnt Ones tracks, but there's plenty more good time summer fuzz pop jams to be had here for sure!
David Greenberger, NRBQ, accordionstress Miss Murgatroid (who gets better with each new recording we hear from her), Elliot Sharp (a.k.a. E#), the Residents, Splatter Trio, the Graham Connah Group, the Billy Tipton Memorial Saxophone Quartet, the Coctails with Ken Vandermark, Thurston Moore with Ezra La Plante, Eugene Chadbourne, and that's less than half the con-"tribut"-ors to this collection.
The lowdown on this disc is pretty simple: it's a collection of original radio spots for over fifty different classic (and not-so-classic) '70s blaxploitation flicks. Pretty much all of 'em feature a smooth-talking baritone dude talking up the movie's titular hero or heroine backed by snippets of dialogue, machine gun fire, and all kinds of scorching funk/soul soundtrack music. It actually sounds like the same guy doing the voiceover on about 90 percent of these! You get promo clips for the likes of Black Caesar, Trouble Man, J.D.'s Revenge, Truck Turner, Blacula, Dr. Black & Mr. Hyde, Ghetto Freaks, Sheeba Baby, Black Belt Jones, Trick Baby, Slaughter's Big Rip Off, Shaft, Coffy, The Mack, etc., etc.
Rudy Ray Moore's "Human Tornado" rap is certainly a highlight, though all the teasers about mean super-chicks and jive hustlers are pretty entertaining -- for sure they'll get you running to your local video store hoping their blaxploitation section (if they've got one) is well-stocked. Kitschy and way over-the-top. Here are a few examples:
"She's six foot two inches of black beauty. She handles a car like a gun. She handles a gun like a man. And she handles a man like like Cleopatra. Cleopatra Jones!"
"Coffy. The baddest one chick hit squad that ever hit town... Coffy. She's got a body men would die for. And lately, a lot of them have."
"He drives the most expensive car because second best never enters his mind. He'll bet a hundred thousand dollars on the turn of a card because he don't believe in losing. And he's about to take on a small army with TNT -- he means, 'taint nothin' to it. [explosion] There's only one stud who could rip off New York, ruin Rome and stay alive to run a number in Africa. That Superfly dude is back, black, and beautiful."
On cd and vinyl (cool for the djs!).
