September 2007

Sunday, September 30, 2007

Chakachas - 1972 - Jungle Fever

Chakachas - 1972 - Jungle Fever

A1 Chica Chica Bau Bau (3:45)
A2 Un Rayo Del Sol (2:45)
A3 Cha Ka Cha (2:15)
A4 Latin Can Can (3:55)
A5 Yo Soy Cubano (2:37)
A6 Eso Es El Amor (2:50)

B1 Harlem Nocturne (3:25)
B2 Ay Mulata (3:00)
B3 El Canyon Rojo (2:32)
B4 El Rico Son (3:10)
B5 Jungle Fever (4:20)


Album Review
Any music fan that digs the Latin music sounds of the 1970s from late pachuco soul to Latin funk and disco and salsa, or, any serious fan of sampladelia in hip-hop circles knows the single "Jungle Fever," by Chakachas. It was a truly infamous hit in the United States in 1971 and 1972, mainly for the moaning, breathy sexual overtones of its female vocalist (though there are some male grunts in the mix too) but it was also beat crazy.

The band that created this smash, were, to all but hardcore music connoisseurs, virtually unknown. That's ok, its record company at the time Polydor, wanted it that way. That's because this group from Belgium, was almost completely white, made up nearly entirely of Northern European men (with the notable exception being vocalist Kkeri Kenton who was of Cuban origin), most, either Dutch or Belgian.

Chakachas have a curious history. Formed in the late 1950s by pianist Nico Gomez and percussionist Gaston Bogaert, they were imitators of the Latin sounds that were taking the world by storm at the time, from cha cha, to mambo to hybrid exotica to rumba. They made records and seldom played outside Brussels or its environs. They disbanded in '65 and Gomez began making his own albums (most are killer and are now VERY collectible), often using former bandmates as session players. Later in the decade, other groups from the region began making Latin -style recordings and making some headway in sales and in the press.

The group's producer, Roland Kluger convinced all but Gomez to return and recorded the Jungle Fever LP-of which the title track was buried at the dead end of side two. Polydor nonetheless issued the cut as a single and the rest is history-except for one interesting fact: they understood the record would die if anybody knew this band was white. For an appearance at the Apollo, they hired a group of African-American men to impersonate the band on stage. Since no known photos of the real Chakachas existed they were in the clear. The hit was a one off, a fluke, but what a boon. It has had a steady life in the whisperings of DJs for the past three-plus decades and is oft-sampled in both dance music and hip-hop circles.

As an album, Jungle Fever is a revelation. While their single is the stuff of legend, the album in some ways, places it in its rightful place at the end of the disc. Dusty Groove with their impeccable good taste as both a record store and as a label, reissued this baby on CD and let the rest of us in on the secret. This is one wild, unusual, infectious set of Latin funk with killer horns-that play against the rhythms in some cases, vocals that seemingly come from Latin music's past and are at odds with the more contemporary grooves being laid down by the band. According to the liners, this is because of Will Albimoor, the group's arranger and new composer (mostly under the nom de plume "Bill Ador"). Though some songs remain form the Gomez repertoire, they have been radically altered in terms of contrapuntal polyrhythms, strange key signatures, and weird fills by the horns, vocals, and piano. And there are mad loads of drums; they are everywhere, breaking, slipping, twisting, turning, spiking and hovering about these tunes. Checkout "Un Rayo Del Sol," for the great drum breaks, or the smooth vocals with the razor wire electric guitars and horns in "Cha Ka Cha," with Sergio Mendes-like choruses blended with weird Latin soul cadences. "Yo Soy Cubano," is as pure a rumba as one is likely to hear anywhere-until the choruses--and one hears the odd harmonic structure written in between the guitar and piano. Then there's the tough, barroom cha cha of "Ay Mulata" and the seamless, nearly psychedelic mambo meets samba that is "El Canyon Rojo," with bits and pieces of a spaghetti western soundtrack thrown in just to stretch the listener's brain a little futher. This disc is not some insider avant garde joke; there is no irony here. The playing is sincere, innovative and breaks an intentional sweat. It's no academic exercise made by studio hacks. It's as accessible an early Latin-styled funk recording as one is likely to find. It's only after repeated listens that the quark strangeness in its mix sets in, but that doesn't detract from the listening --and dancing--experience. There is also a beautiful cha cha reading of Earl Hagen's classic standard "Harlem Nocturne" with a funky bassline and tight guitar break. Here again, the horns' contrapuntal arrangement adds an even deeper element of mystery to the well known noir-ish tune, while keeping it firmly in a danceable groove-especially in the middle eight. When one gets to the title track at the end, it's almost superfluous; the set is so delightfully, joyous, sophisticated and hip, "Jungle Fever" is just some naughty, nasty, icing on this exotic cake.

As an album, Jungle Fever is singular in not only for its origins, but also for its achievement as music. Its endurance is well well-deserved; this is a finger-popping, hip-twitching, classic.
~Thom Jurek, All Music Guide

Get it here :
http://rapidshare.com/files/55146808/Chakachas.rar

Saturday, September 29, 2007

17 Hippies - Halbe Treppe [soundtrack, 2002]

17 Hippies - Halbe Treppe

1. OROS I
2. GELB ZWO DREI
3. ISABEAU
4. KEIN FEUERZEICHEN
5. SANDGATE
6. FISCHE
7. ELF-ACHTEL
8. TANZ DES BAUERN...
9. GABIS LIED
10. ISA AUF DER BRÜCKE
11. DIE OROS
12. IMMER NOCH KEIN FEUERZEICHEN
13. DORFWALZER
14. FAHRSTUHLMUSIK
15. IM SCHNEE
16. EL BALADO
17. GATOR ´S GRIN
18. E MAJOR
19. VESPA
20. KOLOMEYKE
21. E MAJOR
22. MAD BAD CAT

Based in Berlin, Germany, the 17 Hippies started off in 1995 as a trio playing the otherwise unlikely mix of Cajun and Baroque music. Gradually, they expanded their line-up and eventually ended up as an orchestra consisting of twenty, sometimes even thirty musicians. Coming from different backgrounds like rock, jazz and classical music, the band members assimilated virtually any musical style available and blended all of this into their own unique sound. Thus, they feel equally at home whether playing at boisterous wedding parties or in the chamber music room. Appearances at the renown SXSW festival in Austin, Texas in 1998 or the simultaneous release of CDs in French, German and Italian in the respective countries in 1999 all contributed to the growing global reputation of this ensemble of world citizens. The band also pursued other projects such as the release of a book of music for children (1999) and the soundtrack for the Andreas Dresen movie Halbe Treppe (English title: Grillpoint) (2002) which won a prize at the 2002 Berlinale, the renown Berlin film festival, and is one of the highlights of post-reunification German cinema.
[allmusic guide]

V.A. - Lost Deep Soul Treasures Vols 1-5 -2001- [192k]

Thom Jurek;
This series commences to provide a well-needed service to fans of '60s soul: provide rare tracks by well-known artists alongside the work of lesser of unknown performers of equal quality. From the well known to the obscure, this is raw soul, lovemaking soul, tear-my-heart-out-a-piece-at-a-time soul. Where the South was cranking out the Stax/Volt side and Atlantic had a virtual factory of hitmakers, there were many of these cats and kittens who were making records for no other reason than to get them on the juke at the corner bar or perhaps in a neighboring county so they could get a gig or a radio appearance to perform their tracks before disappearing into the oblivion of day jobs forever. For a few years at least, these folks and their art get to live again on compilations like this one that rescue those treasures, package them well with reasonable liner notes, and place them out there for the fanatics, the curious, and the lovelorn to seek out the only kind of music that came from the spiritual human body: soul. And this is deep soul at that. [Allmusic.com]

I will only add the track list of the first album to give you an idea on what you can find on those 5 albums


Track list Vol. 01;
01 Sam Dees - It's All Wrong (It's All Right)
02 Nelson Sanders - Tired Of Being Your Fool
03 Clay Hammond - No One Else Would Do
04 Dicky Williams - Oh Dreamy Me
05 James K-Nine - Counting Teardrops
06 Willie Small - Say You Will
07 Bobby Thomas & The Afros - Darling Don't Come Back
08 Winfield Parker - Oh My Love
09 Betty Bibbs - First Come First Served
10 Valentine Adams - I Found A Love (The Falcons)
11 Lee Mitchell - Where Does Love Go
12 New Bloods - Found A Love, Where It's At (Eddie & Ernie)
13 Don Hollinger - I Had A Nightmare
14 Eddie Billups - No Love Have I
15 Otis Clay - You Hurt Me For The Last Time
16 Ronnie Mitchell - I Don't Want To Go On Without You
17 Billy Young - Still My Life Through
18 Bobby Parker - Don't Drive Me Away
19 Jimmy Garland - Baby One More Time
20 Gene Allison - If I Ever Needed Your Love
21 Willie Mcdougal - I Can't Wait
22 Curtis Blandon - Young, Dumb
23 Tommy Collins - Oh What I'd Give
24 Bell Brothers - Throw Away The Key
25 Lee Moses - I'm Sad About It

Link Vol. 01


Link Vol. 02


Link Vol. 03


Link Vol. 04


Link Vol. 05

Thursday, September 27, 2007

The Kay Gees - 1974 - Keep On Bumpin' & Masterplan

The Kay-Gees' greatest LP -- and far and away better than anything else they ever did! Grabbing up this one is like finding a lost Kool & The Gang LP from the early years --which is no surprise, since Ronald Bell of the group produced it and wrote a lot of the songs with the group. The band are incredibly tight instrumentally -- with lots of hard drums, choppy guitar, and the rolling party feel that made Kool & The Gang so great during their best years. There's some great horns that blast in and out, sounding very off-beat at the best moments -- like the classic "Who's the Man With the Master Plan", sampled by YZ many years ago -- or other funky cuts like "Ain't No Time", "Get Down", and "You've Got to Keep on Bumpin".

Label: Gang Records
Catalog#: GANG-101
Format: Vinyl, LP
Country: US
Released: 1974
Genre: Soul
Style: Funk

Tracklisting
A1 Get Down (4:30)
A2 Let's Boogie (5:05)
A3 My Favorite Song (2:33)
A4 You've Got To Keep On Bumpin' (8:10)

B1 Master Plan (2:48)
B2 Who's The Man? (With The Master Plan) (1:53)
B3 Ain't No Time (Part 1) (1:45)
B4 Wondering (4:18)
B5 Ain't No Time (Part 2) (4:55)

B6 Anthology (2:28)

The Review

The debut LP from Kay-Gee's proved that the band led by Kevin Bell (brother to Kool & the Gang's Ronald) had all the deep, driving grooves, kinetic energy, and street-corner vibes of funk's master outfit. Produced by Ronald Bell and Kool & the Gang, Keep on Bumpin' & Masterplan featured a pair of strong lead tracks and plenty more strong material, like "Hustle Wit Every Muscle" (used as the theme song to the television show Party). The Kay-Gee's' horn section was equal to Kool & the Gang's, and if they lacked a few of the awesome hooks that propelled Ronald Bell's group into the R&B charts on a regular basis, alto/soprano Pete Duarte was a superior soloist and female vocal trio Something Sweet filled in the gaps on the great jam "Let's Boogie" and "Wondering." Kay-Gee's were also better at locking into great grooves, while Kool & the Gang spent too much time mixing up their style. True, a Kool & the Gang singles collection would blow Kay-Gee's' out of the water, but even they never recorded an album as good as Keep on Bumpin' & Masterplan. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide

Bio

A funk outfit formed in Jersey City, NJ, Kay-Gee's had some valuable mentors in Kool & the Gang — specifically Ronald Bell, who was happy to serve as producer, arranger, and sometimes songwriter for his younger brother Kevin's band. In addition to Kevin Bell on guitar and several other instruments, Kay-Gee's featured saxophonist Peter Duarte, brass player Ray Wright, woodwind player Dennis White, keyboardist Kevin Lassiter, bassist Michael Cheek, drummer Callie Cheek, and percussionist Wilson Beckett. Signed to Kool & the Gang's own Gang imprint, Kay-Gee's issued their debut album Keep on Bumpin' & Masterplan in 1974. With Ronald Bell penning the majority of the material, Kay-Gee's' sound was highly similar to the hard, tight grooves of early Kool & the Gang; singles like "You've Got to Keep on Bumpin'," "Who's the Man? (With the Master Plan)" (yes, the source of that ubiquitous hip-hop sample), and "Get Down" gave them an enduring reputation among hardcore funk connoisseurs. Burn Me Up followed in 1975, producing the single "Hustle Wit' Every Muscle," which became the theme song for the TV series Party. By the time of 1976's Find a Friend, Ronald Bell's involvement with the group had begun to decrease, resulting in a flirtation with disco on cuts like "Find a Friend" and "Waiting at the Bus Stop." Their final album, 1978's Kilowatt, was a full-fledged disco-funk extravaganza released on New York's De-Lite label, and featured several popular club singles, including "Cheek to Cheek" and "Tango Hustle." However, they disbanded not long afterward.

Get it here 256@

kay_gees_-_1974_-__keep_on_bumpin____master_plan.rar

Monday, September 24, 2007

Count Basie - Atomic Swing

Atomic Swing is the great old Basie band in fine form with the Count himself manning the ivory, not the current incarnation of the band that still lives on. One of the greatest swing bands ever--only Benny Goodman's and Duke Ellington's bands were better--Count Basie's Kansas City stride piano and sizzling horns provided Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett with the best backing they ever received on a series of essential jazz recordings. On Atomic Swing, the band stands alone in a group of incendiary tracks from 1957-1962.

source : www.popmatters.com/music/reviews/spotlight/spotlight-swing.shtml

download it here :

http://rapidshare.com/files/57945836/Count_Basie.rar

Sunday, September 23, 2007

V.A. - 1977 - Westbound Sound

For those who liked the sound of C.J. & Co album, this is a compilation of Westbound in 1977 with the great Dennis Coffey on every track.

Label: WEA Filipacchi Music
Catalog#: PRO 1006
Format: Vinyl
Country: France
Released: 1977
Genre: Funk / Soul
Style: Disco

Tracklisting

A1 C.J. & Co - Devil's Gun (7:14)
Written By - B. Green , G. Shury , R. Roker
A2 Mike Theodore Orchestra - The Cosmic Wind (6:58)
Written By - Mike Theodore
A3 Dennis Coffey - Free Spirit (5:46)
Written By - Dennis Coffey
B1 Mike Theodore Orchestra - The Bull (6:15)
Written By - Mike Theodore
B2 Fantastic Four - I Got To Have Your Love (5:00)
Written By - Lawrence Perry
B3 King Errison - Manhattan Love Song (7:22)
Written By - Michael Theodore

"In 1977, disco was the new funk, the new afro-american popular music across the western world, and Westbound Records was expecting to be a part of it.
This compilation was issued in order to promote this sound through the French audience, via the Parisian dept. of WEA: Filipacchi Music.

It could have been released as a true Dennis Coffey compilation: he plays guitar on each track, sometimes he's also the producer, and there's of course a song from his own album of the moment.

Anyway, the whole is very coherent, and is like a one-band record with various singers, featuring only top disco pearls.

Have fun, sexy people."

This post is an idea of our friend Bureau l'Imprimante who has done all the hard work and we would like to thank him.


Get it here
http://www.zshare.net/download/36875247f886b4/
or
v.a._-_1977_-_westbound_sound.rar

Wayne Shorter - 1964 - JuJu

Fulfilling the potential promised on his Blue Note debut, Night Dreamer, Wayne Shorter's Ju Ju was the first really great showcase for both his performance and compositional gifts. Early in his career as a leader Shorter was criticized as a mere acolyte of John Coltrane, and his use of Coltrane's rhythm section on his first two Blue Note albums only bolstered that criticism. The truth is, though, that Elvin Jones, Reggie Workman, and McCoy Tyner were the perfect musicians to back Shorter. Jones' playing at the time was almost otherworldly.

He seemed to channel the music through him when improvising and emit the perfect structure to hold it together. Workman too seemed to almost instinctively understand how to embellish Shorter's compositions. McCoy Tyner's role as one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time was played here as well, and his light touch and beautiful, joyful improvisations would make him a much better match for Shorter than Herbie Hancock would later prove to be.JuJu rests in the uphill portion of Shorter's creative peak. While the sidemen may have been an even better match for him than the ensembles he would put together for later albums, he was just beginning to find his footing as a leader.

His performances were already showing evidence of great originality — yes, they were influenced by Coltrane, but only in the way that they broke apart the structures of the bop sound to create a sound that had all of the variety and flexibility of the human voice. On later albums like Speak No Evil and The Soothsayer, however, Shorter would rise to an even higher level as a performer with more powerful, confident playing that reached farther afield in its exploration of melodic textures. What really shines on JuJu is the songwriting. From the African-influenced title track (with its short, hypnotic, repetitive phrases) to the mesmerizing interplay between Tyner and Shorter on "Mahjong," the album (which is all originals) blooms with ideas, pulling in a world of influences and releasing them again as a series of stunning, complete visions.

Review
by Stacia Proefrock AMG

Download It Here :

http://rapidshare.com/files/57674044/Wayne_Shorter.rar

Friday, September 21, 2007

Graham Bond - 1967 - Love Is The Law

Graham Bond - 1967 - Love Is The Law

Tracks :
1 Love Is The Law 4:31
2 Moving Towards The Light 4:29
3 Our Love Will Come Shining Through 3:05
4 I Couldn`t Stand It Anymore 4:08
5 Sun Dance 2:24
6 Crossroads Of Time 2:35
7 Bad News Blues 2:49
8 Strange Times, Sad Times 4:00
9 The Naz 5:10
10 The World Will Soon Be Free 3:55
Bonus Tracks :
11 Long Tall Shorty (A'side 1964) 2:21
12 Long Legged Lady (B'side 1964) 2:17
13 Tell Me (A'side 1965) 2:50
14 Love Come Shining Through (B'side 1965) 2:03
15 Lease on Love (A'side 1965) 2:46
16 My Heart's in Little Pieces (B'side 1965) 3:22
17 St. James Infirmary (A'side 1966) 3:39
18 Soul Tango (B'side 1966) 3:10

Graham Bond :Keyboards, Saxophone, Vocals
Dave Sheehan :Drums, Percussion
Diane Stewart :Vocals
Hal Blaine :Drums

After Graham Bond moved to the US in the mid '60's having lost Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce from his band to Cream, he recorded two weird moody albums for the US label Pulsar.
This is the first one and it's a spooky occult tinged keyboard/mellotron led collection
of bluesy, jazzy, soulful rock.

~@~@~

Grahame Bond was an innovative rock musician from England, who would have certainly been more well known today had he not died at the age of 37. Bond sings and plays every instrument on this record, except for the drums.

Although a musical genius, he spent a great deal of his time dabbling in the Occult and believed he was Aleister Crowley’s son.

He was an innovator in the British rhythm & blues boom in England in the 60’s, and also the first rock musician to use a mellotron. His previous band, The Grahame Bond Organization (GBO), was known for playing the most evil-sounding and dirty r&b heard in the UK in the sixties. That band also included Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker.

Bond’s personal life included much substance abuse, and he was known for continually fighting depression. Near the end of his life, Bond’s friends say he was getting even deeper into the occult. He died under the wheels of a train in London in 1974, and his death was ruled a suicide.

~@~@~

Bio :
An important, underappreciated figure of early British RB, Graham Bond is known in the U.S., if at all, for heading the group that Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker played in before they joined Cream. Originally an alto sax jazz player -- in fact, he was voted Britain's New Jazz Star in 1961 -- he met Bruce and Baker in 1962 after joining Alexis Koerner's Blues Incorporated, the finishing school for numerous British rock and blues musicians. By the time he, Bruce, and Baker split to form their own band in 1963, Bond was mostly playing the Hammond organ, as well as handling the lion's share of the vocals. John McLaughlin was a member of the Graham Bond Organization in the early days for a few months, and some live material that he recorded with the group was eventually issued after most of their members had achieved stardom in other contexts. Saxophonist Dick Heckstall-Smith completed Bond's most stable lineup, who cut a couple of decent albums and a few singles in the mid-'60s.

In their prime, the Graham Bond Organization played rhythm blues with a strong jazzy flavor, emphasizing Bond's demonic organ and gruff vocals. The band arguably would have been better served to feature Bruce as their lead singer -- he is featured surprisingly rarely on their recordings. Nevertheless, their best records were admirably tough British RB/rock/jazzsoul, and though Bond has sometimes been labeled as a pioneer of jazz-rock, in reality it was much closer to rock than jazz. The band performed imaginative covers and fairly strong original material, and Bond was also perhaps the very first rock musician to record with the Mellotron synthesizer. Hit singles, though, were necessary for British bands to thrive in the mid-'60s, and Bond's group began to fall apart in 1966, when Bruce and Baker joined forces with Eric Clapton to form Cream. Bond attempted to carry on with the Organization for a while with Heckstall-Smith and drummer Jon Hiseman, both of whom went on to John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and Colosseum.

Bond never recaptured the heights of his work with the Organization. In the late '60s he moved to the U.S., recording albums with musicians including Harvey Brooks, Harvey Mandel, and Hal Blaine. Moving back to Britain, he worked with Ginger Baker's Airforce, the Jack Bruce Band, and Cream lyricist Pete Brown, as well as forming the band Holy Magick, who recorded a couple albums. Bond's demise was more tragic than most: he developed serious drug and alcohol problems and an obsession with the occult. He committed suicide by throwing himself into the path of a London Underground train in 1974.
~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide


Get it here @ VBR (192-224)
Graham Bond - 1967 - Love Is The Law

Thursday, September 20, 2007

Timi Yuro - 1964 - The Amazing Timi Yuro

Timi only recorded one album with Mercury, produced by Quincy Jones, arranged and conducted by Bobby Scott. It was her most "grown up" album she ever did and it consisted of several standards.

The recordings are truly memorable, and it's easy to understand why, of all her albums, "Amazing" was purportedly Timi's personal favourite. Even in monaural, her incredible voice never sounded better.

This is a vinyl (320@) rip of my original Mercury MG20963 LP, except B1 which was taken by the reissue CD, cause this song was destroyed in the LP.

Tracks

A1. I'm Afraid the Masquerade Is Over
A2. All I Need Is You
A3. I Love My Man
A4. I Didn't Know What Time It Was
A5. I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)
A6. If

B1. Maybe You'll Be There
B2. I Can Dream, Can't I?
B3. Johnny
B4. There Must Be a Way
B5. My Foolish Heart
B6. I'm Still Around

The Reviews

1

This album is the most "adult" set of recordings she ever made, and they will never date. Her voice is sheer perfection, and Tim wrings every ounce of emotion she has on each one. My own personal favourite is "All I Need Is You", but they are all gems. She was a terrific singer, and to me outshone Streisand and Franklin and all the other female singers. I think she suffered from very bad promotion and management, as she should have been a huge star. I have every record she made, some are signed by her, which I treasure. I also now have almost everything she did on cd, which saves me from playing my treasured vinyl which I will never part with. I also have fan club material which I have kept from the sixties, plus a couple of letters she wrote to me. The last one was very sad, as she was telling me that she had just recorded what she called "the last thing I can ever offer to you", which was her superb album with Willie Nelson. She knew she would never record again due to her wicked cancer, which eventually took her from us. She is so very sadly missed, not only as a lovely little lady, but also as possibly one of the greatest white soul singers who ever lived. Why she never reached the top I just don't know as she certainly deserved to be there.... (Mike Rossiter)

2

Oh my lord there is only one and It is the GREAT TIMI YURO. She is the greatest female singer that ever lived! I've heard people say she's the greatest white female soul singer, take out the word white and you'd be right. I first heard Timi when I was sixteen years old and knew then this woman could sing like no other. Her voice would make an angel smile. There are so many of her songs that are amazing. It's hard to pick one out. I have many of her albums and love every one of them, she's the best, back and beyond. You can't go wrong buying her music If you're new to TIMI Start with her early recordings, If you live 100 years you'll never hear a woman with a more powerful voice. Yes the little white girl could sing!! (B.Richardson)

3

"The Amazing Timi Yuro" is full of some of the most extraordinary renditions of songs I have ever heard. Timi belts her songs in a lower range, which strongly appeals to me, and she sings with total sincerity and emotion. She really puts her all into everything song she sings -- and sometimes the strain on her vocal chords does show, as when her voice cracks in "I Didn't Know What Time it Was" (I am not sure if her throat cancer was due to her singing, but I assume it was). Every song in "The Amazing Timi Yuro" is wonderful. I've been listening to this album for 23 years now, and I never tire of it. Timi really was "soul." Many of her contemporaries, most notably Barbra Streisand, were much into technique, but Timi specialized in capturing the emotion and soul of a song. Really, she's the most amazing singer I've ever heard………….
…….To cite the cliche, if I was to have only one CD on a deserted island, it would definitely be "The Amazing Timi Yuro." It is an astonishing achievement. Taken in conjunction with her Liberty recordings, it reveals an incredibly gifted artist whom the gods graced with almost superhuman talent only to take it all away with bad timing (she was undermined the British invasion in the late '60s) and health issues. Her fans don't need a record title to tell them Timi was amazing: we've known that for years. (R.Buller)

You can buy the CD that chronicles Timi's years on Mercury Records 1964-1967. The 24 track CD starts out with Timi's only LP she released on Mercury Records in 1964, the last 12 tracks on this compilation include most of the singles Timi released on Mercury between 1965 and 1967.

Get Amazing Timi LP here

Timi_Yuro_-_1964_-_The_Amazing_Timi_Yuro.rar

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

The Cecil Holmes Soulful Sounds - 1973 - The Black Motion Picture Experience

A little gift for blaxploitation fans, especially for those of you, who already dig all original soundtracks. Here goes a nice bunch of blax-covers - instrumental versions of all-time black hits.
Label: Buddah Records, LPBUDD5129

Tracklisting:

A1. ACROSS 110th STREET (B.Womack-J.J.Johnson)
A2. SLAUGHTER (Billy Preston)
A3. BEN (W.Scharf-D.Black)
A4. ALSO SPRACH ZARATHRUSTA (2001)
A5. SUPERFLY (C.Mayfield) Curtom

B1. TROUBLE MAN/T STANDS FOR TROUBLE (M.Gaye)
B2. SHAFT (Isaac Hayes)
B3. LOVE THEME FROM LADY SING THE BLUES
B4. FREDDIE'S DEAD (C.Mayfield)

Review By: Motown67 [www.soulstrut.com]
Cecil Holmes was an executive at Buddah Records as well as a recording artist himself. This was one of his solo releases. It was aimed at capitalizing on the huge popularity of Blaxploitatin movies during the time. Many of the songs seemed shortened, but still keep to the original arrangements. Holmes included most of the well known hits like Curtis Mayfield’s Superfly and Marvin Gaye’s Trouble Man/T Stands For Trouble. Also Sprach Zarathursta (2001) has a short but sweet open drum break.

Download link:
http://rapidshare.com/files/65063875/chss-tbmpe1973_320_-www.musicdawn.ru.rar

Monday, September 17, 2007

Marva Whitney - 1969 - It's My Thing

Marva Whitney is a true legend among funk fans for her raw and powerful performances on classic cuts like 'Unwind Yourself' a Root Down dancefloor favourite.

Along with fellow divas Lyn Collins and Vicki Anderson, Marva made her name singing with the James Brown Revue in the late sixties. In 1969, Marva made her first solo recordings for James Brown's King label scoring a Top 20 hit on the R&B charts with "It's My Thing (You Can't Tell Me Who to Sock It To)".

The follow-up, "Things Got to Get Better (Get Together)" just missed the Top 20 R&B charts. Despite the lack of hits, tracks like the heavily sampled "Unwind Yourself" and the duet "You Got to Have a Job (If You Don't Work)" helped cement her reputation among record collectors and funk fans worldwide.

Her only studio LP, 'Its My Thing', was released in 1969 (re-issued recently in the UK by Soul Brother records) and has been heavily bootlegged and sampled by numerous DJs; her 'Live and lowdown at the Apollo' LP also commands hefty price tags. The LP was basically a collection of singles Marva recorded with James Brown and his backing group of fine musicians.

Tracks

1. It's My Thing, Pt. 1
2. It's My Thing, Pt. 2
3. Things Got to Get Better (Get Together)
4. What Kind of Man
5. If You Love Me
6. In the Middle [Instrumental]
7. Unwind Yourself
8. You Got to Have a Job (If You Don't Work, You Can't Eat)
9. I'll Work It Out
10. Get Out of My Life
11. I'm Tired I'm Tired I'm Tired (Things Better Change Before It's ...)
12. Shades of Brown [Instrumental]
13. I Made a Mistake Because It's Only You, Pt. 1
14. I Made a Mistake Because It's Only You, Pt. 2
15. What Do I Have to Do to Prove My Love to You
16. He's the One
17. This Girl's in Love With You
18. Sunny - James Brown, Marva Whitney

The Soul Brothers Records reissue CD includes five bonus tracks, including a duet with James Brown ("Sunny"). Some of the tracks on this cd are made from a vinyl record you can hear the surface noise etc.

The Reviews

1
Like any disc produced by James Brown and featuring the mighty JB's as a backing group, It's My Thing is a stone-cold funky record. Marva Whitney sang in the James Brown Revue from 1967 to 1969, and in 1969 she released this record. Not only did Brown produce but he wrote or co-wrote most of the tracks and it basically sounds like a James Brown record with a female singer. A tough, aggressive female singer. Marva sounds like she could take any comers and leave them shaking in their go-go boots. From the opening blast of "It's My Thing, Pt. 1 and "Pt. 2," a rewrite of the Isley Brothers' "It's Your Thing, she shouts, exhorts, wails, and basically lets it all hang out as the band lays down groove after groove. Thankfully after four exhausting tracks, Marva slows it down with "If You Love Me," an Otis Redding-style broken-hearted ballad. After an instrumental break she jumps right back into the funky fray with "Unwind Yourself," which features a classic horn line and some gritty vocalizing from Marva. The rest of the record follows this pattern of a couple of stompers and a ballad. The highlight of the record is "I'm Tired I'm Tired I'm Tired (Things Better Change Before It's Too Late)," a funky (yes, every track on this disc is funky) lament that details just how tired Marva is of society putting her down. Check out Brown going wild in the background about halfway through the song. The disc has five bonus tracks added to the original album, including the slow-burning "I Made a Mistake Because It's Only You, Pts. 1 2" and a duet with James Brown on "Sunny." This is a great record and it is a pity that it is on such a tiny label and not one of the major reissue labels because Marva deserves wider recognition.

By all means seek this one out (AMG)

2
A wonderfully expanded version of this classic of funky funky female soul! Marva Whitney was one of the greatest singers in the James Brown stable of stars during the late 60s -- and she sang with a hard raw style worth of The Godfather himself! Brother James produced and wrote a good part of this classic album -- and the record is one of the greatest JB albums of all time! Nearly every cut's a winner (Dusty Groove America)


3
What a voice this young lady had. Hard to imagine having marva whitney,lyn collins,myra barnes as your back up singers, but this is what james brown had. The jb's lend there funk to the backing of this album, thats why "its my thing", "unwind your self" are so god damd funky. In my opinion couple of the best female funk tracks ever put on vinyl. Marva Whitney had moderate sucess but not to the level she deserved. Propbably why this albulm origanal on vinyl go's for over £100 mint. So feel blessed its available on cd. its a shame apart from the live albulm this being her only long player.

IF YOU LIKE FUNK/SOUL/MUSIC THIS IS A MUST BUY

Get the Funky Lady here

marva_whitney_-_1969_-_it_s_my_thing.rar

Sunday, September 16, 2007

Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers - 1962 - Caravan

By the time that jazz icon/bandleader/percussionist Art Blakey and his Jazz Messengers began recording for Riverside in the fall of 1962, Blakey had already been the spiritual center of the group for nearly 15 years. The unprecedented caliber of performers who had already passed through the revolving-door personnel reads like a who's who of 20th century jazz.

On Caravan — his first of several notable sides for the venerable label — he is joined by a quintet of concurrent and future all-stars. Likewise, it could be argued that each has never again been presented in such a fresh or inspired setting as on these recordings. In order to establish with any authority just how heavy (even for purveyors of hard bop) the players in this band are, they need only to be named: Curtis Fuller (trombone), Freddie Hubbard (trumpet), Wayne Shorter (tenor sax), Cedar Walton (piano), and Reggie Workman (bass). With Blakey (drums) firmly at the helm, these Jazz Messengers deliver a scintillating synergy that doesn't sacrifice intensity for the sake of cadence. The trademark give-and-take that graces the laid-back and sophisticated pop and jazz standards "Skylark" and "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning" likewise is responsible for the palpable energy brought to the sizeable contributions from Shorter and Hubbard — which make up half of the album's material.

The title and leadoff track liquefies Duke Ellington's original arrangement and ignites it, fueling this extended fiery interpretation. Hubbard's first solo harks back to his own recording of "Caravan," which can be heard on the Impulse release Artistry of Freddie Hubbard and was recorded earlier the same year.

Coincidentally, that disc also features Curtis Fuller as well as a rare non-Sun Ra-related appearance from John Gilmore (tenor sax). Blow for blow, however, this reading has more than just an edge — it possesses the entire blade. The melody snakes in and out of Blakey's strident flurry of syncopation. Another highlight is Shorter's interjectory solo, recalling his ability to succeed John Coltrane in Miles Davis' coterie. Among the original compositions, Shorter's upbeat "Sweet 'n' Sour" stands out as the most cohesive and ensemble-driven, although the singular group dynamic is well applied to the lively "This Is for Albert" as well. By contrast, Hubbard's "Thermo" is more angular — taking full advantage of the musicians' aggressive chops. The 2001 20-bit remaster from Fantasy contains two bonus tracks: take four of "Sweet 'n' Sour" and take two of "Thermo." This release can be considered definitive Blakey, bop, and Jazz Messengers.

Review by Lindsay Planer AMG

Download It Here :

http://rapidshare.com/files/56121584/art_blakey___the_jazz_messengers_-_caravan.rar

Saturday, September 15, 2007

V.A - The Doors Of Perception

Dope funk, psychedelic soul and acid jazz from New York City '70-'74.


Goin' To See My Baby - Fatback Band
Matrix - Dizzy Gillespie
Get Some Of This - Madhouse
A Possibility (Back Home) - Wanda Robinson
Naturally Good - Bartel
Rock Steady - Julius Brockington
Heritage Hum - James Moody
Alive - Larry Young
Surrender - Black Ivory
Brother (Title) - Adam Wade & Johnny Pate
Conseqences Of A Drug Addict Role - Shirley Horn
Fatbackin' - Fatback Band
I Can't Get No Higher - The Eight Minutes
Summer In The City - Bartel
I Just Got To Know - The Brockingtons
Stop Me - Benny Johnson
Too Sad To Tell - Debbie Taylor
Life, Love & Peace - The Exciters
Alligator - Dizzy Gillespie
Honeybuns - Bobby Rydell

UK compilation featuring 20 soul, funk and jazz classics from the legendary underground label best known for their acts, the Fatback Band and Black Ivory who are both represented here along with Dizzy Gillespie, Bobby Rydell and many more. Original vinyl from Perception and it's twin label today goes for a small fortune and has been sampled by DJ Shadow and KRS-One.


Download It Here :
http://rapidshare.com/files/55865927/va-_the_doors_of_perception.rar

Friday, September 14, 2007

Dee Dee Bridgewater - 1978 - Just Family

Dee Dee Bridgewater - 1978 - Just Family

Tracks:
A1 Just Family (5:12)
A2 Maybe Today (6:53)
A3 Children Are The Spirit (Of The World) (3:04)
A4 Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word (4:53)
B1 Sweet Rain (3:03)
B2 Open Up Your Eyes (5:28)
B3 Night Moves (3:12)
B4 Thank The Day (5:17)
B5 Melody Maker (2:22)


Credits:
Bass - Abraham Laboriel (tracks: B3) , Alphonso Johnson (tracks: A4, B1) , Ken Wild (tracks: A2, B4) , Stanley Clarke (tracks: A1, A3, B2)
Drums - Harvey Mason (tracks: A4-B2) , Leon Ndugu Chancler (tracks: A1, A3) , Norman Farrington (tracks: A2, B3, B4)
Guitar - David T. Walker (tracks: A2, B4) , Ray Gomez (tracks: A1, A3-B2)
Keyboards - Bobby Lyle (tracks: A2, B3, B4) , Chick Corea (tracks: B5) , George Duke (tracks: A1, A3) , Ronnie Foster (tracks: A4, B1, B2)
Percussion - Airto Moreira
Producer - Stanley Clarke
Violin - Scarlet Rivera (tracks: A4)


Reviews :

1
This one's a real shift from her earlier jazz-based work, or her recent recordings for Verve -- and a sweet funky fusion album that Dee Dee recorded for Elektra in the late 70s. The set was produced by Stanley Clarke, and has a soul/fusion sound that's not that different than his own work of the time, and which works very well with Dee Dee's sweet vocal approach. Players include Bobby Lyle, Ronnie Foster, George Duke, and other strong 70s fusion players -- and overall, the record's probably Dee Dee's best non straight jazz album of the 70s.
~ Dusty Groove America

2
Even though Just Family was produced by Stanley Clarke and employs a lot of musicians who had jazz backgrounds -- including Chick Corea, George Duke, Airto Moreira, and Bobby Lyle -- this is an R&B album first and foremost. Dee Dee Bridgewater would return to jazz in a major way in the 1980s, but in the late 1970s, she was emphasizing adult-oriented R&B and going after fans of artists like Phyllis Hyman and Minnie Riperton. The strongest tracks on this LP, which was recorded when Bridgewater was 27, range from the playful title song and the Earth, Wind & Fire-ish "Children Are the Spirit (Of the World)" to the dreamy "Sweet Rain" and an emotional cover of Elton John's "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word." Also noteworthy is the Brazilian-influenced "Night Moves," a Michael Franks tune. Those who know Bridgewater for her hard-swinging jazz CDs of the 1980s and 1990s should be warned that Just Family isn't a jazz album at all. It must be judged by R&B standards, not jazz standards.
~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide


Bio :
One of the best jazz singers of her generation, Dee Dee Bridgewater (who was married to trumpeter Cecil Bridgewater in the early '70s) had to move to France to find herself. She performed in Michigan during the 1960s and toured the Soviet Union in 1969 with the University of Illinois Big Band. She sang with the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis orchestra (1972-1974) and appeared in the Broadway musical The Wiz (1974-1976). Due to erratic records and a lack of direction, Dee Dee Bridgewater was largely overlooked in the jazz world by the time she moved to France in the 1980s. She appeared in the show Lady Day and at European jazz festivals, and eventually formed her own backup group. By the late '80s, Bridgewater's Verve recordings were starting to alert American listeners as to her singing talents. Her 1995 Horace Silver tribute disc (Love and Peace) is a gem and resulted in the singer extensively touring the U.S, reintroducing her to American audiences. She would find even more success with her tribute album, Dear Ella, which won a Grammy in 1997.
~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide

Get it here @ 320
Dee Dee Bridgewater - 1978 - Just Family

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

C.J. & CO. - 1977 - Devil's Gun

This is a great find for Disco and Funk lovers, very difficult to be found on mp3 especially 320@. This is a fine vinyl rip.

A disco-fied up-tempo funk - recorded for Westbound during their Atlantic years, and featuring some very strong production by Mike Theodore & Dennis Coffey in a style that was similar to T-Connection's early records.

Westbound Records (US) / 1977 / WB 301 LP

Producer(s) : Mike Theodore and Dennis Coffey
Mixer/Remixer : Tom Moulton

Tracks

Side A

1. Devil's Gun (7:14)
2. We Got Our Own Thing (9:30)

Side B

1. Free To Be Me (5.03)

2. Get A Groove In Order To Move (5:11)
3. Sure Can't Go To the Moon (7:30)

The group's musical direction took a dramatic turn with the arrival of a song from England called Devil's Gun. The song, penned by a group of lads who'd achieved chart success in the UK with Barry Blue, proved to be a monster disco smash during the summer months of 1977. Hitting #1 on the dance charts from coast to coast, in the US, the track, aided by a Tom Moulton mix, enjoyed similar action in the UK. The album also included the much sampled and ready-for-a-cover-version "We Got Our Own Thing".

Achieved No.12 on the Billboard Black Albums chart and No.60 on the Pop Album chart.

"Devil's Gun" the single reached No.1 on the Club Play Singles chart,No.2 on the Black Singles chart and No.36 on the Pop Singles chart.

Bio
Best known for its number two RB hit "The Devil's Gun," C.J. Co. was a short-lived vocal group that combined disco with Detroit soul. The quintet was assembled in the Motor City by guitarist Dennis Coffey, who was among Detroit's busiest RB session players of the 1960s and 1970s. Coffey formed C.J. Co. in 1977, uniting three male singers (Cornelius Brown Jr., Curtis Durden, and Charles Clark) with two female singers (Joni Tolbert and Connie Durden). That year, C.J. Co. signed with Westbound and recorded their debut album, which was also titled The Devil's Gun and was produced by Coffey and Mike Theodore. With the title song having been a smash, Westbound released "We Got Our Own Thing" as a follow-up single. But that single didn't fare nearly as well as "The Devil's Gun," and C.J. Co. went down in history as one-hit wonders. In 1978, Westbound released the group's second album, "Deadeye Dick", which was also produced by Coffey and Theodore. That LP received very little attention and C.J. Co. broke up without ever recording a third album.

To me this is a great disco - funky album which is highly recommended.
I really want to know your opinion too.

Grab it here

C.J.___CO_-1977___Devil_s_Gun.rar

Saturday, September 8, 2007

Bettye Swann - 1969 - Don't You Ever Get Tired (Of Hurting me?)

A treasure of late 60s southern soul from the great Bettye Swann, this is her 3rd and final album (2nd for capital records, after she jumped for the indie Money Records).

Sadly, the move didn't turn Bettye into the major star Capitol no doubt expected to arise and these fantastic tracks were largely unappreciated at the time.

There's an achingly great southern soul feel to these tunes, which range from fragile soul ballads with sweet harmonies to poundingly righteous stompers. The feel is just loose enough, with roomy arrangements that leave plenty of space for Bettye's sweet vocals, but still with the ability to tighten up and pound at the crack of a whip!

Masterful lost soul and a joy to experience.

Tracks

A1. Don’t You Ever Get Tired (Of Hurting Me)?
A2. Little Things Mean A Lot
A3. You’re Up To Your Same Old Tricks Again
A4. Today I Started Loving You Again
A5. Just Because You Can’t Be Mine

B1. Traces
B2. Chained & Bound
B3. Ain’t That Peculiar
B4. Stand By Your Man

B5. Willie & Laura Mae Jones

The Reviews
1
When you hear this recording for the first time you will be absolutely astonished that you have not heard it before. To make up for lost time you will then play it constantly. While Bettye has a beautiful voice and the songs are almost all killer, what really astonishes are the production values. The horns slink in and out and the atmosphere is conducive to dark romance. Go ahead and double this up with the Candy Staton, grab your honey and hold on tight. You can thank me later.
Including her countrified funk version of Marvin Gaye's "Ain't It Peculiar", Ottis Redding “Chained & Bound”. Unfortunately, her duet with Buck Owens on "Today I Started Loving You Again" remains in the vault, but her solo version was released and is quite wonderful. Bettye Swann certainly deserves to be discovered

2
In the great musical sixties this great and wonderfully soulful singer hit big with "Make Me Yours" in 1967 and continued making great recordings as witnessed in this 2nd Capitol Record output which must not have been properly promoted as this is a prime example of the best from that era and really holds up and sounds great today having a timeless classic quailty...amazing this tremendous collection of varied and masterful performances missed making Bettye Swann a household name as she makes all these great songs her own! Anyone who loves a superb singer in a magnificent collection of songs all brilliantly arranged will find this tour-de-force set of winners a must have...

The covers are from my original Capitol ST-270 LP, very rare to be found.

Bio
http://www.answers.com/topic/bettye-swann?cat=entertainment

Get it Here
Bettye_Swann__1967_-_Don_t_you_ever_get_tired_of_hurting_me.rar

Tuesday, September 4, 2007

The Dynamics - 1969 - First Landing

Another Lost Soul Classic

Hailing from the Motor City, The Dynamics have mixed their soulful sound with some southern flavor and created First Landing. Backed by some incredible grooves, this is a rare treasure whose luster will bewitch fans of soul music.

Managed by Aretha Franklin's husband, the Detroit band the Dynamics featured four singers, each able to take the lead with a different vocal style. Following in Franklin's footsteps, the band headed to Memphis to mix their sound with Stax-flavored soul. Produced by Tommy Cogbill and Chips Moman, responsible for hits like Elvis' "Suspicious Minds" and the Box Tops' "Cry Like A Baby," 1969's First Landing never fully caught on with R&B fans, with only a minor hit in "Ice Cream Song."

Tracks

1. I Don't Want Nobody To Lead Me On
2. Ain't No Love At All
3. Dum-De-Dum
4. Ice Cream Song
5. Ain't No Sun (Since You've Been Gone)
6. What Would I Do
7. The Love That I Need
8. Too Proud To Change
9. I Want To Thank You
10. Since I Lost You
11. Fair Love
12. Murder In The First Degree

The Reviews

1

An overlooked treasure from the Atlantic vaults -- the first album by The Dynamics, and arguably a much greater record than the group's better-known set from the 70s! The Dynamics were a Detroit group from the late 60s, with that heavy harmony sound that was becoming a standard for the city's soul scene -- and they were managed by Aretha Franklin's husband Ted White, who was probably responsible for getting them to record at Atlantic. Oddly, this session was recorded in Memphis, not Detroit -- with production by Tommy Cogbill and Chips Moman -- who give the group a deep soul bottom that adds a lot to their still-rough vocal style. There's a great mix of deep and smooth going on here -- a style that reminds us a bit of the few great Memphis vocal groups of the period, but which also has a Detroit tightness at times too. The tracks are a great mix of originals by Don Mancha, Fred Baker, Ronnie Shannon, and others -- and titles include "Ain't No Love At All", "I Don't Want Nobody To Lead Me On", "What Would I Do", "Fair Love", and "Murder In the First Degree".

A killer, and the kind of record you started collecting soul for!

2
The Dynamics' 1969 release "First Landing" is great, but an interesting reminder that the R&B music from 1945 to the synthetic "dark ages of Black music" from 1983 to very recent times was so great, that countless wonderful albums like this were considered mediocre at the time, but brilliant today! Muscially, these guys are first cousins to the (also underrated) Mad Lads. This combines Northern streetcorner doo-wop with gritty-but-pretty Southern Soul (like the Mad Lads, this was also recorded in Memphis). Their signature tune "Ice Cream Song" is a revelation of all that works well in a Soul record-Wonderful harmony, catchy hooks, rotating leads, superb musicianship, clever lyrics and heartfelt singing. "Since I Lost You" is another standout here. Here, our man gets into a preaching mode midway though to the end of the tune that almost puts James Brown to shame! Other fine sings are "Dum de Dum" (not as bad as the title would imply), "What Would I Do" (which is simply beautiful), and "I want to Thank You."

Get it here

dynamics__1969__-_first_landing.rar

Saturday, September 1, 2007

Otis Redding - 1966 - The Soul Album [192k]

Otis Redding's talent began to surge, across songs and their stylesand absorbing them , with the recording of The Soul Album. In contrast to The Great Otis Redding Sings Soul Ballads, which was an advance over its predecessor but still a body of 12 songs of varying styles and textures, rising to peaks and never falling before an intense, soulful mid-range, The Soul Album shows him moving from strength to strength in a string of high-energy, sweaty soul performances, interspersing his own songs with work by Sam Cooke ("Chain Gang"), Roy Head ("Treat Her Right"), Eddie Floyd ("Everybody Makes A Mistake"), and Smokey Robinson ("It's Growing") and recasting them in his own style, so that they're not "covers" so much as reinterpretations; indeed, "Chain Gang" is almost a rewrite of the original, though one suspects not one that Cooke would have disapproved of. He still had a little way to go as a songwriter — the jewel of this undervalued collection is "Cigarettes And Coffee, co-authored by Eddie Thomas and Jerry Butler — but as an interpreter he was now without peer, and his albums were now showing this remarkable, stunningly high level of consistency. Also significant on this album was the contribution of Steve Cropper, not only on guitar but as co-author of three songs. Further, as revealed in the remastered Rhino CD, Stax Records was starting to put more into his LPs in thew recording, taking more time and delivering a better, fuller sound than on the two preceding albums, especially where Al Jackson's drums and The Mar-Keys' horns are concerned [Allmusic]

Track list;
01 - Just one more day
02 - It's growing
03 - Cigarettes and coffee
04 - Chain gang
05 - Nobody knows you (when you're down and out)
06 - Good to me
07 - Scratch my back
08 - Treat her right
09 - Everybody makes a mistakes
10 - Any ole way
11 - 634-5789

Link

Style; Soul