Sofrito - Haiti Direct ep

 Hypnotic Carnival rhythms, DIY electro and Compas experiments from Haiti

Claudette & Ti Pierre£s 1979 version of the folk song ë Zanmi Camarade jumps straight out of leftfield. Haunting vocals are accompanied by a heavy drum machine and arpeggiated synth backing for a Kraftwerk-in-Port-au-Prince vibe. Stockholm£s Tropical Treats crew give the track the subtle edit treatment, bringing out the bass and rounding off the sound.Ti Marcelës rugged, hypnotic Rara track ëNan Point La Vieë is dominated by the single-note ëVaksin bamboo flute • natures sub-bass • and comes to life with Siwoës one-take drum machine update, a serious carnival mover. 

On the B-side the Ibo Combo cover Coupe Cloue£s evergreen ëMateau, adding beautiful horn arrangements to the acoustic original for a masterclass in the Mini Jazz sound. Les Loups Noirs offer up ëPile ou Face£ (heads or tails), an unhinged slice of psychedelic compas, replete with swirling organs, screeching vocals and a heavy bassline. Link

Wayne Mc Guie & Sounds Of Joy ( 1970)

Holy Grail” of Toronto Funk! In 1967 Kingston-born musician Jo-Jo Bennett, then living in Toronto, sent word to Jamaica: Jo-Jo needed a band. Wayne quickly responded to the call, moving from Montego Bay to Toronto that year. Possessed with an intensifying vision, in the winter of 1969, Wayne assembled a stellar cast of musical friends and Studio One vets to begin the sessions for the Sounds of Joy album, recorded during off-hours at Art Snider£s Sound Canada Recording Centre. Wayne was 23 at the time.

Twelve musicians are credited on the LP sleeve including Alton Ellis, Ike Bennett, Everton Paul, and Lloyd Delpratt; others, including Jackie Mittoo, are rumored to have sat in. Of the 10 songs, six were McGhie originals, and as the material moved from funk, to soul, to reggae/R&B crossover, it is Wayne£s pure and soulful voice that sets the tone. Although the band started to gig in support of the album, Birchmount did nothing to promote it. Months later, an accidental fire at the pressing planet destroyed all remaining copies of the record. The album was lost, never to be repressed. The Sounds Of Joy was gone and forgotten. Link

East New York Ensemble de Music - At The Helm (Folkways Records, 1974/2010)

 The East New York Ensemble was a group with a broad range of musical and cultural ideas. We are particularly concerned musically with modulating from one groovy layer of polyrhythmic textures and colors to another,î writes member Bilal Abdurahman in the liner notes accompanying the album. Listeners will encounter music from an eclectic mix of cultures, including an improvisation based on a Turkish religious melody and the composition ™Sunflower,î which features an ancient reed instrument given to Abdurahman by a villager in Pusan, Korea. At the Helm, The East New York Ensembles only album, showcases a variety of musicians demonstrating a variety of multicultural influences. Link

VA - Mocambo Funk 45's

 

This unique compilation spotlights the best tracks of Mocambo Records' scarce 7 inch vinyl releases that took the deep funk scene by storm in summer 2006. The original 7inches 45-1002 to 45-1011 are long out-of-print. Along with the labels own productions (Mocambo Allstars, The Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band and Gizelle Smith), the first releases host new recordings by obscure English groups like The Delta Rhythm Section, The Sound Stylistics and the supreme Vinylizor Productions team (Jay Glover, Gary Crockett & Dominic Glover), together with unreleased tracks by all time greats such as the James Taylor Quartet and Speedometer.  Not only the fact that all of the recordings were previously unreleased gems, but it was also the way in which the 7" singles were released, that made the records desireable collector's items in their own right. While it would have been possible to sell a 1000 copies of each, the label decided to stick with the charm of obscure and forgotten Funk 45s by pressing no more than 300 copies of each release.Manufactured at a private pressing plant in Germany, the records not only delivered the sound of rare Funk 45s, but also the look and of course, the quantity. One of the Delta Rhythm Section's 7 inches did not even reach the amount of copies that had been licenced because the stamp broke before the whole edition could be finished. The selection of tunes included in this compilation is a broad variety of styles in the genre of funk. Link

Meridian Brothers Y Grupo Renacimiento - La Policia 7'' (Colombia, 2018)

 

As the year end approaches, it’s great to see heat just being delivered daily. This one is about a month old, but needs to be heard, so here we go! NYC Trust continue their tradition of doing things their own way, and delivering their own heat and unique sounds to the masses. This record is a tribute to the 1970’s sounds of Salsa Colombiana from the maestro Eblis Alvarez. Two tracks of unmistakably great salsa with rhythms that grab you by your arms and straight to the dance floor. The A, “La Policía” tells the story crooked/ dirty cops in Bogotá first hand. Not just great to move to, but an up close account of what really goes on. The flip, “Poema del Salsero Resentido” translated to “Tale Of A Bitter Salsero”, throws out the situation of the salsa scene in Bogotá. Link

Colman Brothers (Wah Wah 45, 2011)

Brothers Matt and Andrew Colman have become something of a force to be reckoned with on the international jazz scene. Their eponymous debut, released on Wah Wah 45s in 2011 caused quite a stir, highlighting as it did not only the duo’s flair on trombone and trumpet/flugelhorn respectively, but also their ear for producing contemporary dance floor jazz that pays respect to originators like Dizzy Gillespie, Peter Herbolzheimer and Francy Bolland, as well as today’s more electronic inspired producers – although no one does it quite like the Colmans. Check the dancefloor Jazz numbers 'Another Brother' & 'El Nino'. Link

VA - Covers from James Brown

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VA - Covers from Curtis Mayfield

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VA - Covers from Marvin Gaye

 

 

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VA - Covers From Isaak Hayes

 

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Conjunto Miramar - Cumbias Con El Miramar (vampi soul, 1965)

Cumbias con el Miramarî is a very hard-to-find, sought-after album released by Discos Fuentes in 1965. Full of excellent cumbias and gaitas for dancing, the record actually is a lot more diverse than the title leads one to believe, as there are lots of other hot rhythms and arrangements on it, taken from Cuban genres like guajira, guaracha, guaguanco, charanga and son montuno. All but one of its compositions come from the conjunto£s own musicians, with the bulk being written by Hernan Builes and Hector Quintero. Throughout the album the very simple, spare elemental sound is consistent. The band members at this time included Dario Restrepo (aka ™Guayabitaî) on piano, Ruben Dario Restrepo (™El Magoî) on guitar, Hector Quintero on saxophone, clarinet, flute, xylophone and vocals, Hugo Gil (™Chamizoî) behind the drum set as well as on tumbadora (conga) and vocals, with Hernan Builes being the band£s director and bassist (and occasional accordionist). Link

Los Charly's Orchestra ‎– Rediscovering The Big Apple (Imagenes, 2013)

 

Imagenes Recordings proudly present Los Charly's Orchestra 2nd album - Rediscovering The Big Apple.The two Venezuelan producers Juan Laya & Jorge Montiel keep digging their inspiration and interest in bringing back to live the spirit of the sounds of New York City in the late 60's and 70's from their own Charly's perspective.
The release contain 10 songs including some brand new material plus some of the tracks that were previously released as singles on collectable 7" over the past two years, all 100% analogically re mastered for a deeper sound.
Fania, Salsoul, Joe Bataan, Cal Tjader, Willie Colon, Joe Cuba, Charlie Palmieri, Bobby Matos, etc, etc, etc, they are all clear influences and inspiration on the making of this musical journey that travels from the very early times of Latin Funk, Soul & Boogaloo, to the genre that was to unify the whole Hispanic America under one groove: Salsa, and beyond.
The old and the new school of heavy Salsa merges on the tune "Ten Cuidao" in a pure barrio styled groove directly from the heart of Seven Sisters. Imagine Charlie Palmieri & Willie Colon meets Joe Arroyo & Los Charly's Orchestra... for a new collaboration... while the super refreshing Cha Cha sound of "On the Other Side" fuses with the soul of lead vocalist Andre Espeut's for the latest LCO's Cha Cha-Soul experiment which sounds as if Roy Ayers was making Latin music. Link

The Eliminators - Loving Explosion (Brc, 1974)

 

Originally released in 1974 on BRC Records (Brunswick Records Corporation). This is rare and in demand LP  from this North Carolina  band formed in high school. This is a rare funk treasure, with soulful vocals and tight instrumentals on tracks like "Get Satisfied," "Love Your Woman," and "Rump Bump." Link

VA - Global Psychedelic Moods

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VA - Mozambique

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Zebra - Simple Song /I Forgot To Say (Athens of the North, 45" - 2017)

 70s dancefloor killer (Huge on the deepfunk scene in the early 2000s). LInk

Kit Andrée - Jazzman (Hoctor)

 

Perfect soul jazz  cover version on Carole King (& from The Counts) song "JazzMan" (1974). Link

VA - P&P Funk A Collection Of Classic Funk From The Vaults Of P&P Records (2005)

Raw & rare funky treasures from the legendary P&P Label. The vaults of New York’s P&P Records are a goldmine of weird, off-brand disco and funk music. All killer, No filler! Link

VA - Freestyle Explosion

 

 

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The Seven Ups (Seven Ups Australia Label, 2015)

In February 2015, The Seven Ups (7 piece Funk band from Melbourne) released their debut, self-titled album on limited edition yellow vinyl. The album was premiered on Wax Poetics (USA), feature album on PBS fm, album of the week in Beat magazine, top 10 on KEXP (USA) and continues to receive airplay on BBC Radio 2 and 6, KEXP (USA), Triple J, and community radio around the country.”The Seven Ups would sound great as a soundtrack to your police chase…these guys are a fun fun fun band!” Chris Gil – RRR fm. Blending influences from 70s Afrobeat   with Funk & Jazz. Link

Jimmy Owens - Jimmy Owens (Horizon, 1976)

Disco-Funk-Jazz Experimentations from Horizon Label. Check the Fussion "Caravan" or the Latin jazz version of "Secret Love". Link

Ibo Combo - La Fraicheur (Shango Records, Haiti-1975)

 Brilliand Haiti Latin-Compas by one of the best bands.  Check the killer Latin Jazz tune "Naked". Link

VA - Like a Breeze (Royal Ear Force-Germany, 2001)

 

22 German & English Easy Listening & Library Groove classics from the brillant-musik archives. Recorded in 1969-1975. Link

VA - New York Soul

 

 

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VA - Konn & Amir - Off Track vol. 2 (2008, bbe)

 Legendary DJs Kon & Amir's fanatical love of music and inexhaustible appetite for the next sound makes them the undisputed kings of their very own genre "off track." Years ago it was called "rare groove" but in the age of digital information, previous conceptions of what constitutes so-called "rare" have gone out the window. Few can keep up with the digging abilities of this pair. This second installment in the Off Track series has Kon taking us on a magical disco mystery tour, peppering his mix with his custom re-edits.All Killer, No filler! Link

V.A. - Canadian Racer (2003)

 A Fine Selection Of Obscure Tracks From The Canadian Vaults. Check the heavy instro-funk   "Savin' Grace" from Doug Riley & 'Foxy lady' Ost and the hard to find Killer Latin-Jazz "Coco Boogaloo" from Martinique pianist Marius Cultier (One of his best tunes!). Link

VA - Sweet Smell Of Bossa Nova

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Stelvio Cipriani Ost - Mark Il Poliziotto (1975)

 This was the first in a trilogy of "Mark" cop movies. The soundtrack by Stelvio Cipriani is typical of this genre with it's funky main theme (along with it's variations) mixed with some nice slower  tempo ones. Check the 'blaxploitation' "Mark Il Poliziotto" & the dramatic "Tenerezza".  Link

Bennie Maupin — Slow Traffic to the Right (Mercury, 1977)

 

If you like the sophisticated psychedelic groove music of Herbie Hancock's early 70s bands and soundtracks, then you will probably like this brilliant spin-off by Bennie Maupin. Check the Funky precursor of 90's Acid Jazz 'It Remains to be Seen'. Link

VA - Sexploitation

        

                                                  

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VA - Blaxploitation Explosion

 

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VA - Latin Covers

                   

 

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Les Loups Noir - ...Toujours (Haiti, Macaya Rec. 1972)

 

 

Les Loups Noirs (The Black Wolves), led by charismatic singer Gardner Lalanne, were a very popular band in Haiti in the 1970s, recording many albums and often combining the Haitian compas with a touch of psychedelic and latin influences. Beautiful album from start to finish.Link
 

VA - AFTER MIDNIGHT

 

 

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VA - Cities Of The World

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VA - Hong Kong Beat

 

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