Afro-Cuban Delight

After my recent post on Dizzy Gillespie's Afro-Cuban classic "Manteca" (see Funky Manteca), many readers where asking me about similiar artists, songs, and records that fall in line with that Afro-Cuban sound that "Manteca" captures so brilliantly. The first album that comes to mind that falls along the same line musically as the Gillespie classic is Kenny Dorham's 1955 album Afro-Cuban. The album, which features Dorham on trump as well as jazz giants like Art Blakey on drums, Horace Silver on piano, Hank Mobley and Cecil Payne on saxophone, and some excellent work on the congas by Carlos "Potato" Valdes, consists of some solid Afro-Cuban gems like "Minor's Holiday", "Basheer's Dream", and the funky classic "Afrodisia". This album showcased a different side musically for the trumpeter, who went on to release many more "smooth sounding" jazz records. Overall, when it comes to Afro-Cuban jazz, Dorham's Afro-Cuban album is an absolute masterpiece and a record that I highly reccommend. Enjoy!

Kenny Dorham - Afrodisia

Enjoy the long weekend

Thursday's post will be my final post until next Tuesday (June 1st), as I take a much needed vacation. Enjoy the long Memorial Day weekend!

Time for some sun!

Kilimandjaro My Home

Today I thought I would share one of my all-time favorite African songs in "Kilimandjaro My Home" by Eko. This hard-to-find gem was orginally featured as the title track to an album that Eko (full name Eko Roosevelt Louis)released during the seventies. The song, which successuly blends together elements of African funk, Afrobeat, and jazz has a unique and funky groove that is very powerful in its overall sound. Since hearing this song for the first time a few years back, I haven't been able to pin down the exact year it was released, however given it's sound and the little information I know, I believe it came out during the early to mid seventies. The song was also more recently featured on the third volume of the outstanding "Bilongo" compilation series that was reeased by Comet Records back in 2000. Overall, it's an amazing track that sits right there at the top, in my opinion, when it comes to great African funk songs. Enjoy!

Eko - Kilimandjaro My Home

Jungle Music

I was excited to receive an email this week that the good people over at Strut Records are gearing up to release the first multi-label retrospective on legendary DJ/ remixer Walter Gibbons, titled Jungle Music. During the mid to late seventies, Gibbons became one of the first to make his own reel to reel edits that where specifically designed for the dancefloor. His multi-track re-working of Double Exposure's 1976 track "Ten Percent" became the foundation and blueprint for all disco twelve-inch mixes. Gibbons' went on to be a staple, re-working mixes for many of the Salsoul twelve-inch releases, and in the end became the only remixer that Arthur Russell trusted which led to his fabulous re-working of "Go Bang!", "Let's Go Swimming", and "Treehouse/ School Bell". He also went on to remix classic dancefloor cuts from artists like Gladys Knight, Arts & Craft, Sandy Mercer, and many others. This compilation, which includes many of Gibbons best remixes, is due out sometime in July. Here is a one of my favorite Gibbons' remixes, that unfortunately won't be on the compilation, titled "Rocket Rock" by Luv You Madly Orchestra. Some called his style "Jungle Music", I would just call it pure brilliance. Enjoy!

Luv You Madly Orchestra - Rocket Rock (Walter Gibbons Mix)

You Need a Change of Mind

Let's start the week right where we left off last week with another Loft and Gallery classic in "Girl You Need A Change Of Mind" by Eddie Kendricks. This funky soulful disco gem was originally released on the ex-Temptations' 1972 solo album People... Hold On. The seven-plus minute track was one of the singer's most defining moments, making a name for himself, not just as a former Temptation member, but as a solo recording artist. As already mentioned, the song also went on to be a crowd favorite at both The Loft and The Gallery during the seventies. Overall, it's a classic song that started a string of great disco and soul songs released by Kendricks throughout that decade. Enjoy!

Eddie Kendricks - Girl You Need a Change of Mind

Every Time I See That Woman

It's Friday so let's keep it simple and sweet with the disco classic "Woman" from one of my all-time favorite groups in Barrabas. Going through the archive pages of this site, I was very shocked to find that I've never featured this song in a post until now. The song "Woman", was a huge Loft and Gallery classic back in the early to late seventies, and is probably the most recognized song from all of the group's releases. The track has that overall signature Barrabas sound, blending elements of disco, rock, and Latin instrumentation together to produce one of the most influential and played songs of the seventies. Enjoy your weekend!

Barrabas - Woman

Funky Manteca

I'm going to post something a little different today in sharing one of my all-time favorite Afro-Cuban jazz songs in Dizzy Gillespie's thirteen minute extended version of "Manteca". One of the reasons I'm posting this track is because I can almost single handily credit this funky jazz gem for opening up me to the world of jazz. From the song's Fela Kuti-like horn intro to the funky Latin percussion breaks, I fell in love with this track from the first time I heard it. Some might consider this track as Dizzy's greatest work and a turning point in his prolific career as he branched out from bebop to Afro-Cuban jazz. As with many jazz songs, their have been many different versions of "Manteca" that have appeared on various albums and with array of different lineups, however this is the version that appears on the 1973 album titled The Source. Since being turned on to this funky jazz classic, I've seeked out more Afro-Cuban music and have come across many other great artists from that genre that I had once not heard about including Machito, Manteca, The Har-You Percussion Group, Kenny Dorham and many more. Even though this track is not the sort of song that typically get's featured on this site, it has been one that has helped re-shape my music tastes in quite an impacting way. For those who have yet heard this song, hopefully it will a similiar impact as it did on me. Enjoy!

Dizzy Gillespie - Manteca

Cabana Disco Vol.04 Out Now!

I'm excited to announce that Cabana Disco Vol.04 is now out in stores! Like most of the tracks from the series, this record has an overall tropical Afro-disco groove. Starting off on the A-side is an edit of the 1975 heavy-hitting Afro-disco track "Advice From Father" (renamed "We Are The Africans") by Buari. The opening cut on the B-Side is an edit of the Chocolat's 1978 French disco classic "African Choco" (renamed "Afro Choco"). Volume four of the series concludes with an edit of Black Soul's 1977 African funk gem "Dakar Sound" (renamed "Disco in Dakar"). I'm really excited about this release, as I feel like this record continues along the same journey that volume 03 started. Like the rest of the volumes in the series, I did a super-limited pressing of only 300 copies, therefore when they are gone, they are gone. ENJOY!

Buy the record at these and many other fine locations:
Juno Records
Piccadilly Records
Phonica Records
Fat City Records (Recieved Record of the Week Honors)

Buari - Advice From Father (Pat Les Stache Re-edit)



UPDATE: I was excite to hear the "We Are The Africans" re-edit on Gilles Peterson's BBC radio broadcast early this morning (5/26/10). You can stream the entire broadcast by going here.

Doin' It Underneath the Lights

The new Cabana Disco record should be showing up in record stores sometime this week. I apologize for the delayed release, as the twelve was planned to be released during the last week of April. The pressing plant fell a bit behind, therefore causing the delay. To tie you over until then, here is a new re-edit of L.A.X.'s 1979 disco gem "Dancin' at the Disco". The original version was included on the group's album Under Cover Lover. I re-worked the original and placed more emphasis on the song's overall groove and less on the lead vocals. As always, I would love to hear every one's feedback regarding the edit. Enjoy!

L.A.X. - Dancin' at the Disco (Pat Les Stache Re-edit)

Kiss Me Again

This month I'm celebrating the four year anniversary of this blog, and what better way to do that than post my all-time favorite song and one of the earliest tracks to ever appear on this site in Dinosaur's 1978 classic "Kiss Me Again". If there has been one thing that has stayed the same on this site throughout the last four years, it has to have been the constant discussion and sharing of Arthur Russell's music and influence. This track which represents Arthur's first exploration into disco and dance music, was co-produced with legendary Gallery deejay Nicky Siano. Unfortunately, the single was considered by many in the industry at the time as a failure, as the record initially sold very poorly. As I've mentioned in previous posts, Arthur blamed the record's bad showing due to both Jimmy Simpson's more dancefloor-friendly extended mix and Sire Records' lack of promotion and willingness to get behind the twelve-inch single. A better argument for the song's lack of success,in my opinion, is that the track was just well ahead of it's time as many Arthur Russell songs have shown to be. That would explain the reason why the original twelve-inch single continues to be one of the most sought after records by disco collectors worldwide. Regardless of the song's early tough goings, judgement of the track has gotten better over time and "Kiss Me Again" is now looked at as a true disco masterpiece and one that I proudly stand by as my personal favorite track of all-time. Enjoy!

Dinosaur - Kiss Me Again (Jimmy Simpson Mix)



UPDATE: I regret that I forgot to mention that this week (May 21st) we celebrate Arthur's 59 birthday. It's been almost twenty years since he passed at the young age of 40. He obviously left this world way too early, however we will continue to honor him by enjoying and appreciating the music and legacy that he left behind. Happy Birthday Arthur...

You Can't Change A Man

Let's end the week with a soulful African disco gem titled "You Can't Change A Man" by Christy Essien Igbokwe. This funky rare cut was released on Igbokwe's 1979 album One Understanding. Finding an the original might be quite a task as the record is very hard-to-find, however the song became a little easier to obtain as it was included on Kon & Amir's recent compliation release titled Kon & Amir Present Off Track Volume III: Brooklyn which I recommend checking out. Overall, it's a great track from an artist that produced a number of solid African boogie gems. Enjoy!

Christy Essien Igbokwe - You Can't Change A Man

Jungle Talk

Today I thought I would share one of the most interesting and unusual tracks I've come across for quite sometime in Bob Chance's 1980 novelty cut "Jungle Talk". This tropical funk gem is included on Chance's 1980 album It's Broken. I first came across this record when I was record shopping at San Francisco's Groove Merchants record shop. One of the clerks was playing this track and I immediately became mesmerised by the heavy overall groove mixed together with the assortment of tropical sound effects. The record became even more interesting after the clerk showed me who was actually behind the tropical funk gem. I couldn't imagine that this funky track, which sounds like something from an artist like Manu Dibango, came from this complete "cheesy looking" one-record-to-his-name Bob Chance. It's safe to say that the rest of the record is not very good, however I still became sold with the heavy funkiness of "Jungle Talk". For those that enjoy this track, Groove Merchants has a few more copies in stock. Overall, the record makes for one of the most interesting of my personal collection. I would love to see someone license this and include it on an upcoming compilation. Until then, sit back and enjoy some "Jungle Talk" from Bob Chance.

Bob Chance - Jungle Talk

The Power of the Golem

A few years back, a number of great disco re-edit twelve-inches were released under a series titled Les Edits Du Golem. Most of the releases featured edits of some of the most obscure disco tracks one could even think of or find. Furthermore, the releases never mentioned or gave credit to the people that were responsible for the actual edits, therefore adding a bit of "mystique" to this already interesting series. In all, the series consisted of six releases with the last coming in 2008 titled "A.L-T.s Summer Outtings". My favorite record from the series is actually the first release of the series which consisted of funky re-edits of Clout's "Sunshine Baby", an unkown re-edit titled Sumak, and a 1977 tropical disco gem by Ahmed Fakroun titled "Nisyan" (re-titled "Pyramide"). Unfortunately I haven't been able to hunt down who actually did these edits, therefore I can't give the apropriate credit due for these fine edits. Regardless, the overall series was a good one that I was saddened to see come to an unexpected end. Nevertheless, we still have the music from this collection to always enjoy, and that is exactly what I plan on doing.

Les Edits Du Golem - Pyramide

Let's Talk About It

When I first started this blog, I found myself constantly trying to check out other people's music blogs and sites. As time has gone on and I've become a lot more busy in my day-to-day schedule I haven't been able to keep up as much as I have liked. Therefore I wanted to ask all of you, the readers of this blog, some of the music sites that you check out and recommend. I know there has to be many new ones that have popped up over the last few years that I haven't learned about or checked out yet and would love to get some feedback and/or recommendations.

I also invite everyone to give me some feedback regarding this site. I've felt that there has been a real lack of back-and-forth communication, therefore I would love to know how everyone is enjoying the day-to-day posts. Are there any recommendations or requests. Please feel free to fill up the comments section. I look forward to hearing from everyone!

Theme De Yoyo

Believe it or not, I've been in a pretty major free jazz mode as of late. I was recently doing my usual record hunting and came across the Art Ensemble of Chicago's 1970 motion picture soundtrack album Les Stances A Sophie. With my recent jazz obsession, I've been getting into some of AEC's (Art Ensemble of Chicago) recordings and thought I would be purchasing this record more for listening pleasure with no intent of including it on this site. That all kind of changed the more I listened to the record's opening track "Theme De Yoyo". The track, even though containing some heavy free jazz moments, possessed an overall funky groove alongside some soulful vocals from Fontella Bass, who was a short-lived addition to the group. Fontella made a name for herself as a soul singer with hits like "Rescue Me" in the mid-sixties. She was married to AEC regular Lester Bowie and went on to contribute to a few of their records. Fontella and Bowie are obviously the backbone of this specific track, drawing upon their more soulful roots with the sophisticated instrumental arrangements that usually are present in any AEC track. Overall I think this song is a great crossover track with just enough structure and funkiness to appeal to a more broader audience. Enjoy!

Art Ensemble of Chicago - Theme De Yoyo

Every Way But Loose

Let's start the week off with a funky African disco classic by Plunky & Oneness of Juju titled "Every Way But Loose". The original version of this track was the title track on the group's only album that both Plunky and the Oneness of Juju ever collaborated on, which was released back in 1982. Legendary deejay Larry Levan did an extended mix of the track which was release as a twelve-inch single that same year. Even though the song was released during the early eighties, the song in my opinion has a seventies funk feel to it blended together with some nice African traditional instrumentation. Overall, "Every Way But Loose" is an great track and one of the most notable pieces of work for both Plunky and the Oneness of Juju. Enjoy!

Plunky & Oneness of Juju - Every Way But Loose (Larry Levan Mix)

Got to Find a Disco

Ending the week with another funky disco classic in Love Exchange's 1978 cut of "Got to Find A Disco". Love Exchange was another production from disco producer Greg Carmichael, who also helped produce the group's The Universal Robot Band and Bumblebee Unlimited among others. This specific track was released only as a single and doesn't feature the group's previous lead vocalist Pam Todd, who contributed to the group's debut album Let's Get Together in 1977. Overall, a solid yet hard-to-find track from another one of Carmichael's short lived disco projects. Enjoy!

Love Exchange - Got To Find a Disco

Do The Beat

Here is a very hard-to-find disco rarity in Sweet Talks 1979 "Do The Beat". This classic cut was released as a twelve-inch single, and served as the opening track to the groups self-titled record. I believe this was the only release from the group. The album and single were produced by McKinley Jackson who also helped produce artists like First Choice, Tower of Power, The Jones Girls, Lamont Dozier, and many others. Overall, Sweet Talks' "Do The Beat" is a rare funky classic that continues to remain one of the most sought after tracks by record collectors, deejays/producers, and disco enthusiasts. Enjoy!

Sweet Talks - Do The Beat

Nu Yorica Roots!

First off, Happy Cinco De Mayo! I don't have a Mexican song for you, however I am going to keep it very Latin. Here is just a couple of the many great tracks off of the Soul Jazz released compilation titled "Nu Yorica Roots!". This compilation which was released back in 2000, features some of the best Latin music to come out of New York in the 1960's. The compilation includes classic cuts from some of the best Latin artists from that period like Sabu Martinez, Tito Puente, Ray Berretto, Tito Rodriguez, Machito, Joe Cuba and many more. I was very excited to find a used copy of this record recently as it's become one of the harder to find compilations from Soul Jazz. I noticed on a couple of record shop sites that the record looks to be reissued again sometime in the near future. Until then, enjoy!

Sabu Martinez - The Oracle



Mongo Santamaria - Druma Kuyi

Hedzoleh Soundz!

It might be safe to say, at this point, that the people at Soundway Records are releasing some of the best and most hard-to-find African gems right now. The string of great releases continues with a couple of rare full-length reissues including the long forgotten album by Hedzoleh Soundz simply titled Hedzoleh. This record was the collection of music the group recorded months before the band met and decided to become the backing band for African jazz legend Hugh Masekela. The group and Masekela went on to record the highly acclaimed album Masekela - Introducing Hedzoleh, which even though brilliant in it's own self, unfortunately helped overshadowed the original group's previous work. Before teaming up with Masekela, the group were a staple, playing their brand of unique Afro-funk and highlife at the notorious Napoleon nightclub in Ghana. The essence of that material and those performances can be found on this solid new reissued release which includes funky African gems like "Rekpete", "Mee Bee (When)", "Yei Baa Gbe Wo" and "Hedzoleh!" among others. Overall, the record is one of the better reissues that have been released over the last couple of years, giving life to the forgotten and lost sounds from one of Africa's most notable groups. Enjoy!

Hedzoleh Soundz - Hedzoleh!

Disco in Dakar

Because I couldn't help to wait any further, here is the third re-edit off of the soon to be released twelve Cabana Disco Vol.04. This re-edit of Black Soul's 1977 Afro funk gem "Dakar Sound" rounds out the fourth edition of the Cabana Disco Series which also includes re-edits of Buari's "Advice From Father" and Chocolat's "African Choco". As many might know, I also did an edit of Black Soul's "Black Soul Music", however in the end I decided to go with this edit of "Dakar Sound". That being said I hope to, at some point, release the other edit as well. As far as the release of the new Cabana Disco twelve, the record should be available in stores worldwide in a little over a week, therefore look for it at your prefer ed record shop soon. You can now pre-order a copy of the limited edition twelve-inch right now at Piccadilly Records. Of course I will keep everyone posted on when the record is actually released. I'm very excited to get this new twelve out to everyone as I think the record serves as a nice addition to the ever growing Cabana Disco series. I would love to hear everyone's feedback on this edit and the others that appear on the record. Enjoy!

Black Soul - Dakar Sound (Pat Les Stache Re-edit)