BEATS & PIECES
MOTOWN RECORDS have teamed up with Harlem’s legendary black talent showcase the Apollo to launch a new Apollo Theatre Records label . . . Gilles Peterson, the Anglo/Swiss presenter of the late lamented BBC Radio London jazz show, as previously mentioned now has a day job at Phonogram, in fact setting up a new Talkin’ Loud label for jazzily inclined projects in parallel with a separately headed soul/dance label yet to be announced . . . Dancin’ Danny D has signed his Slam Jam Productions to WEA/Warner Bros Records and is now actively seeking new acts for his Slam Jam label at Unit 32, Ransomes Dock, 35/37 Parkgate Road, London SW11 4NP (01-228 4000) . . . Toronto based Bigshot Records have opened a London office headed by Don Gallacher at Media Business Associates, 9 Carnaby Street (01-437 2747), to field all the enquiries for their hot product . . . Les Adams and LA Mix are now managed by Jimmy ‘Shamus’ O’Reilly at nearby Wardour Street’s Pure Music (01-287 2072) . . . BBC2 last Wednesday morning surprisingly showed an excellent ‘Don’t Believe The Hype’ educational documentary about job prospects in the world of hip hop (I think that was its intention, or maybe it was originally on Def II?), with interesting contributions from Jazzie B, Monie Love, Cutmaster Swift, Doctor K and many more . . . Simon Harris’ latest purpose built album of basic ‘Beats, Breaks & Scratches Vol 4‘ (Music Of Life MOMIX 4) has had all its BPMs calculated by yours truly, and if there is any discrepancy between running speed of the original acetate and the finished pressing it is so infinitesimal that for once you can be assured of accuracy! . . . Birmingham’s old Powerhouse reopens this Thursday (28), with a VIP party the night before, as the totally refurbished £2,500,000 triple venue Ritzy, with resident DJ Kenny Jaymes . . . Foster McElroy’s album, reviewed last week, is called ‘FM²’ — which, word processor incompatibility permitting, should have a small 2 after the FM as in ‘FM squared’ (the pound sterling symbol doesn’t seem to print either incidentally, amongst other things!) . . . Paul McCartney ‘Ou Est Le Soleil?’ appears to be out here too now (Parlophone 12 SOL 1), the same BPM as in last week’s import review . . . Wrecks ‘N’ Effect’s import album is also out here (Motown ZL72679) . . . October 2 is building up as a heavyweight release date for dance product, most of the currently promoed pre-release club hits being due commercially then (surely not following Eddie Gordon’s previously revealed strategy, the start of the month being when punters have money to burn?!) . . . Electribe 101 ‘Tell Me When The Fever Ended’ turns out to be on Mercury (hard to tell from an info lacking white — or rather, pink — label), and out on October 9 just to be different, along with other releases from Phonogram . . . I do wish Rhythm King could make up their minds once and for all about the different mixes of S’Xpress’ ‘Mantra For A State Of Mind’: now the previously promoed and mentioned 120.2bpm Club Vocal/Groove Mantra/Mantra System versions have indeed been released commercially too (LEFT R35T), but as ‘The Club Mixes’ rather than the Levitation Mix (which always was a separate different version, white labelled to some people even before the others), while yet another brand new Baby Ford remix should be out next week — a pity the actual tune isn’t really good enough to warrant all this! . . . DJ Kid Smurf usefully points out that the bassline from Faze-0 ‘Hi’ backs the Fresh 4’s ‘Wishing On A Star’ . . . Sydney Youngblood’s ‘If Only I Could’ seems to use much the same rhythm as Raze ‘Break 4 Love’ (does Mel ‘Litigation’ Medalie realise this yet?), while it is of course the Richie Havens version of the ‘Going Back To My Roots’ rhythm that Judge Jules uses for his Georgette Della Rosa ‘D’ Ya Wanna’ remixes . . . Jon Williams and Judge Jules mix up Italo house for Rusty Egan’s Saturday nights at Mayfair’s Wall Street . . . Jon Jules, Jerry Green plus other DJs and road crew were arrested before they had even started what the tabloid press would doubtless call an ‘acid house’ gig near Southampton two weekends ago (it was actually being promoted by a solicitor!), were locked up but not charged, and when brought before the beak were merely bound over to keep the peace for a year — for doing what? . . . Joyce Sims guests at the Unique 3’s fast becoming legendary the Sound Yard this Sunday (October 1) in Bradford’s Club Rio . . . Da Posse featuring Martell ‘Searchin’ Hard‘ (US Dance Mania), first hot in June, is now suddenly hotter than ever . . . David Peaston proves to be the younger brother of ‘Rescue Me’ immortalising mid-Sixties soul veteran Fontella Bass . . . Kevin Saunderson’s modern remix of the classic Evelyn ‘Champagne’ King ‘Shame’ is now scheduled for RCA release here . . . Jay ‘Mixbuster’ Davis has created a megamix of every track for inclusion in a Salsoul compilation box set coming soon on Indigo Music’s label Garage Trax . . . Frankie Knuckles Presents ‘Your Love’ is included in the currently released UK album compilation ‘Chicago Trax LP Vol 1′ (Trax Records TRAXLP 701, via Radical Records) . . . Jeff Lorber has been in London producing an album by, believe it or not, Brother Beyond (but on his own next set returns more to jazz) . . . I may have been mischievously misinformed about some of DMC’s current affairs, and, if so, naturally apologise should I have overstated the situation (after all they’ve achieved for the DJ world, and the fun we’ve had together, I certainly don’t wish ’em ill) . . . Marlborough for a cream tea was unfortunately the extent of my foray into last week’s brilliant weather — BUT NOT FOR LONG!
HOT VINYL
SUENO LATINO featuring Carolina Damas ‘Sueno Latino (The Latin Dream Mix)’ (BCM Records BCM 323 X, via Pinnacle)
Differently subtitled but the same as the import’s Paradise Version, this haunting here (0-)117.4-0bpm massive Italian groove patters, pants, sighs and sexily mutters through bursts of some sort of bird noise that becomes its most nagging hook out on the dancefloor (beat losingly introed then more acidic instrumental 117.2bpm Cutmaster-G Mix, and A Cappella).
UNIQUE 3 ‘The Theme (Unique Mix)’ (10 Records TENX285)
Minus the Mad Musician now and co-produced instead by FON Force’s Rob Gordon, this Sheffield re-recording of last year’s hard to find enduringly huge northern “sleeper” by the DJ team from Sundays at The Sound Yard in Bradford’s Club Rio is a crowd effects and rap started then tinny synth piped jittery twittery throbbing unhurried 0-120.6-0bpm deep house instrumental (with a further brief burst of rap), flipped though by the arguably still better more haunting bass synth underpinned fully instrumental (0-)122.8-122.6-122.4-122-122.4-122.6bpm Original Chill Mix, the version whose few pressings on Chill Records first caused all the fuss (new quietly ticking 120-0bpm ‘7 A.M.‘ too), not due fully until October 9.
ADEVA ‘I Thank You (The Philadelphia Mix)’ (Cooltempo COOLX 192)
The outstanding track from her album remixed by Paul Simpson, a gradually building then rompingly whomping emphatically wailed brisk (0-)121.4bpm stomping and swinging strider, not due fully until October 9 but flipped on promo at any rate by Paul’s even better and breezier gloriously loose limbed soulfully sung and tinklingly vibed 119.6bpm Philly Dub Mix, for my money the side to check. Continue reading “September 30, 1989: Sueno Latino, Unique 3, Adeva, De La Soul, Janet Jackson”