James Hamilton's Disco Page

HAPPY NEW YEAR! … I regret that there is no room for more than the Hammy Awards this issue, which means that the conclusion of Les Adams’, and my Capital Radio five hour New Year’s eve party music will have to wait a further week (but then, if you heard it, you know by now what was in it), along – most irritatingly – with a huge pile of new reviews … US imports doing the biz before Christmas included not only Tyree’s ‘T’s Revenge‘ (US Underground) on 12 inch but also his album ‘Tyree’s Got A Brand New House’ (US DJ International Records), from which the ‘Think (About It)’ punctuated and previously mentioned ‘Turn Up The Bass‘ is in extremely similar “hip house” style to the now 12-inched Fast Eddie ‘Yo Yo Get Funky‘ (US DJ International Records), while other import hits (check this and the last issue’s Club Chart for relevant BPMs) have been Peter Black ‘How Far I Go‘ (US DJ International Records), Phortune ‘String Free‘ (US Hot Mix 5 Inc), the DJ Mark The 45 King-produced Gang Starr ‘Gusto‘ (US Wild Pitch), Bipo ‘Why?‘ (US Jump Street) … Ten City ‘That’s The Way Love Is’ has been white labelled by Atlantic here (ahead of late January US release of its parent album), Stock Aitken Waterman’s remix of Kool And The Gang ‘Celebration’ (Club) is now out in addition to the Moet Mix, while other new UK Releases this week should include the already well known Turntable Orchestra ‘You’re Gonna Miss Me’ (RePublic Records), Adeva ‘Respect’ (Cooltempo), Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock ‘Get On The Dance Floor (The ‘Sky’ King Remix)’ (Supreme), Sterling Void ‘Runaway Girl’/Sterling Void & Paris Brightledge ‘It’s All Right’ (ffrr), Cash Money & Marvellous ‘Find An Ugly Woman’ (Sleeping Bag Records) … I never wrote that Quantize ‘You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling/Loving Suite’ (Passion) was “badly” duetted – it should have read as “blandly”! … 1989’s Technics UK DJ Mixing Championships’ heats kick off next week, at Glasgow’s Hollywood Studios (Monday 9), Stockton-on-Tees The Mall (Tuesday), Leeds The Warehouse (Wednesday) – weather permitting, I will be making every effort to be at all the mainland UK heats, so come up and say hello! – the UK final, as previously warned, now having moved to February 15 at Leicester Square’s Empire (rather than the Hippodrome) … GIVE IT SOME OF THAT!

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“GET OFF!” Yo, MC Jammy Hammy here, and to the “hip house” backing of yet another riff sampled from ‘A Day In The Life’, it’s time to book the Royal Albert Hall, get James Brown out of jail, and present the annual club music awards that show what really happened in 1988. The results may not be the way you would like them to be in retrospect, but – sticking strictly to the statistics to be derived from the year-end Hi-NRG and Club Charts (printed in the Christmas issue of rm) – this is how they stack up in fact.

THE CLUB CHART HIT OF 1988: d. Mob ‘We Call It Acieed’ (ffrr), number one in the year end chart if both mixes are combined (its main chart impact being in the promoed LP mix).

RUNNERS UP: Inner City ‘Big Fun’ (10 Records), at number one in the actual year end chart, was separated by only one point from Ten City ‘Right Back To You’ (Atlantic), and by only eight points from The Todd Terry Project ‘Weekend’ (Sleeping Bag Records), the latter being likely to leap over the lot had there been a chart for week ending December 31 (in which hypothetical case, Inner City ‘Good Life’ would also have vaulted up spectacularly from the low placing of 96 that just three weeks in the Top 30, albeit at Number One, had earnt it).

RECORDS AT NUMBER ONE FOR LONGEST (all with five weeks): Joyce Sims ‘Come Into My Life’ (London), previously 1987’s import of the year, S’EXPRESS ‘Theme From S’Express’ (Rhythm King), Inner City ‘Big Fun’ (10 Records), d. Mob ‘We Call It Acieed (The Matey Mix) (ffrr).

THE CLUB CHART ARTISTES OF THE YEAR: Inner City featuring Kevin Saunderson

RUNNERS UP: The Todd Terry Project, Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock, S’Express, The Pasadenas, Keith Sweat, Joyce Sims, Eric B & Rakim, Will Downing, Kid ‘N Play, Coldcut

PRODUCERS OF THE YEAR (tie): Todd Terry – The Todd Terry Project ‘Weekend’/’Just Wanna Dance’ and ‘Bango (To The Batmobile)’, Swan Lake ‘In The Name Of Love’, Royal House ‘Can You Party’, and arguably Jungle Brothers ‘I’ll House You’ (which uses ‘Can You Party’ as backing track); Marshall Jefferson – Ten City ‘Right Back To You’/’One Kiss Will Make It Better’, Kym Mazelle ‘Useless’, Truth ‘Open Our Eyes’, and just as arguably Royal House ‘Can You Party’ and Jungle Brothers ‘I’ll House You’ as both are underpinned by his bassline from ‘Move Your Body’!

BRITAIN’S DJ PRODUCERS: Mark Moore (S’Express), Tim Simenon (Bomb The Bass), Les Adams (LA Mix), Matt Black & Jonathan More (Coldcut), Norman Cook, Simon Harris, Eddie Richardson (Jolly Roger)

RAP ACT OF THE YEAR: Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock

RUNNERS UP: Kid ‘N Play, Eric B & Rakim, Public Enemy, and anyone called Roxanne!

IMPORT OF THE YEAR: Jungle Brothers ‘I’ll House You’ (US Idlers)

REISSUE OF THE YEAR: Rose Royce ‘Car Wash’/’Is It Love You’re After’ (MCA Records)

THE CLUB CHART LABELS OF 1988: 1 (–) ffrr, 2 (1) Cooltempo, 3 (2) Breakout, 4 (re) MCA Records, 5 (–) Rhythm King, 6 (4) Champion, 7 (5) Fourth & Broadway, 8 (3) London, 9 (re) 10 Records, 10 (–) Elektra, 11 (6) Atlantic, 12 (–) Sleeping Bag Records, 13 (–) FON, 14 (11) Urban, 15 (–) CBS, 16 (15=) Club, 17 (–) CityBeat, 18 (–) Reprise, 19 (–) Syncopate, 20 (7) Warner Bros

RECORD COMPANIES OF THE YEAR (labels ranked by hit strength): 1 (5) London (ffrr/London), 2(2) WEA (Elektra/Atlantic/Reprise/FON/Warner Bros/WEA), 3 (1) Chrysalis (Cooltempo/Chrysalis/Ensign), 4 (4) A&M (Breakout), 5 (13) MCA (MCA Records), 6 (–) Rhythm King, 7 (3) CBS (CBS/Def Jam/Tabu), 8 (6) Champion, 9 (8) Island (Fourth & Broadway), 10 (15) Virgin (10 Records), 11 (11) Phonogram (Club/Fontana), 12 (11) Polydor (Urban/Urban Acid/Scotti Bros), 13 (7) EMI (Syncopate/Manhattan), 14 (–) Sleeping Bag UK, 15 (–) CityBeat, 16 (–) Big Life (Ahead Of Our Time), 17 (–) Supreme Records, 18 (–) RePublic Records, 19 (–) US Idlers, 20 (14) Serious (RIP)

WE TRY HARDER: WEA

WHATEVER HAPPENED TO?: Soul Music

HI-NRG HIT OF 1988: Michelle Goulet ‘Over And Over’ (Saturday)

RUNNERS UP: Natalie Cole ‘Pink Cadillac’ (EMI-Manhattan), M&H Band ‘Popcorn’ (French Family, making it import of the year), Barbara Doust ‘If You Love Somebody’ (Saturday)

HI-NRG HITS AT NUMBER ONE FOR LONGEST: Eria Fachin ‘Savin’ Myself’ (Saturday), starting its chart career on Canadian Power in 1987, was number one for 13 weeks during that year and for another five weeks in 1988, making 18 (non-consecutive) weeks in all – otherwise, restricted to 1988 (with eight weeks), Yazz & The Plastic Population ‘The Only Way Is Up’ (Big Life)

HI-NRG ARTISTE OF THE YEAR: Hazell Dean

RUNNERS UP: Quartzlock, Eria Fachin, Seventh Avenue

HI-NRG LABELS OF 1988: 1 (–) Saturday, 2 (–) EMI, 3 (1) Nightmare, 4 (–) Reflection, 5 (4) London

WHATEVER HAPPENED TO: Passion, 1 in 1986, 5 in 1987, nowhere (not one hit in the year end Top 40) in 1988

RECORD COMPANIES OF THE YEAR (new award): 1 Nightmare (Saturday/Nightmare), 2 EMI (EMI-Manhattan/Parlophone), 3 Reflection, 4 London (London/Ibiza), 5 PWL (PWL/Lisson Records)

That’s where the strict statistics end. From now on things may get more contentious!

THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY: Ten City ‘Right Back To You’ (Atlantic)

TURNTABLE TURNAROUND: Turntable Orchestra ‘You’re Gonna Miss Me’ (US Music Village Records, now on RePublic here)

BREAK BEAT OF THE YEAR: Lyn Collins ‘Think (About It)’

(GREEDY) BEAT ON THE STREET: ‘Get On The Good Foot’

GIMME A (go go) BEAT AND I CAN USE IT (over and over again): Ben Liebrand, and Phil Harding & Ian Curnow

GIMME A CHANT AND I CAN ABUSE IT: Dancin’ Danny D (“acieed!”)

GIMME ANYTHING AND I CAN SAMPLE IT: Todd Terry

GIMME A BASSLINE AND I CAN REWRITE IT (but don’t you copy me!): Stock Aitken Waterman

“THIS IS WHAT WE DANCED TO ON OUR HOLS” Paul Oakenfold, Nicky Holloway, Danny Rampling, Johnny Walker

“CAN I COME TOO?” Pete Tong

“GIVE IT SOME OF THAT, KID!” Pete Waterman, on the now hugely enjoyable ‘The Hitman And Her’

‘TOP OF THE POPS’ VIDEO STAR: MC Jammy Hammy

WHO THANKS WHO? Brandon Cooke and Roxanne Shanté

THIS YEAR’S THING: “hip house”

LAST YEAR’S THING: “acieed!”

Finally, thank you to the closedown of BBC Radio London for turning me on to LBC, and the pleasure of talk radio! Continue reading “January 7, 1989: The Hammy Awards for 1988”

BEATS & PIECES

RM’s 1988 Hammy Awards will appear in the next issue, the first of the new year, so that this week’s new Hi-NRG and Club Chart positions will count in the reckoning of the various annual performance awards – can you stand the suspense? … Serious Records are indeed being put into liquidation, although Mahesh Bajaj’s other Needle Records and Low Fat Vinyl labels will continue to trade, the previously mentioned winding up petition against Serious having frozen the company’s accounts and caused cash flow difficulties (as so often happens in similar cases) … Rob Manley, now that he is installed as club promotions manager for Virgin’s labels, has relocated to the offices of Siren/10 Records at 61-63 Portobello Road, London W11 3DD (telephone 01-221 7535) … EMI dance label Syncopate’s staff believe in Kym Mazelle so much that they have done something that in my long experience is unprecedented – sent their mailing list DJs a record from a rival company, RCA, on which Kym duets with Dr Robert of the Blow Monkeys, calling the act though Robert Howard & Kym Mazelle for the good breezily galloping if derivative 119¾bpm ‘Wait’, due out on January 9 … CJ Mackintosh & Dave Dorrell’s remix of Eric B & Rakim ‘The R’ has surfaced commercially first on import (US UNi Records UNI-8012) … Cooltempo are creating a big buzz ahead of January 23 release on the Dancin’ Danny D produced terrific Monie Love ‘I Can Do This (Uptown Mix)’, a Whispers ‘And The Beat Goes On’ synched infectious jumpy 115⅓bpm female rap jiggler by 18 years old Monie and scratching DJ Pogo, who hits a harder James Brown groove for the flip’s Downtown Mix … Phonogram are finally about to reissue on Casablanca 1982’s Jeff Young re-edited 0-126¼-126-125¼-125½bpm megamix version of the late Patrick Cowley’s remix of Donna Summer ‘I Feel Love’, better late than never as it was much revived in “acieed” mixes during the summer of love … Les Adams has remixed Bäs Noir ‘My Love Is Magic’, as also supposedly has Ben Liebrand, although it’s the 122¾-0bpm original Ronald Burrell & Tommy Musto mix that’s been promoed ahead of January 19 release – meanwhile, Les’s US-issued mix of the Funky Worm ‘Hustle (To The Music)’ is top of Billboard’s US Club Play chart … Bomb The Bass’s separately charted “remix” (as I was told it was) of ‘Say A Little Prayer’ seems really to be the original, harder, album version! … Richie Rich’s previously UK released ‘Salsa House’ and ‘Turn It Up’ have been coupled back-to-back and are selling here on US Mercury … UK copies of The DJ Fast Eddie’s LP (DJ International Records DJART 902, via Westside Records), as warned when reviewed on import, include a Double Trouble created ‘Jack To The Sound (Megamix)’ of its tracks, 0-122-126⅓-0bpm, which is strange, as nothing on the album runs quite as slow or fast as those outer parameters! … 4AD Records, apologising unreservedly for not first obtaining permission before M|A|R|R|S used a two second sample of Stock Aitken Waterman ‘Roadblock’ in ‘Pump Up The Volume’ – to complete last week’s report – gave a donation at Pete Waterman’s request to the Great Ormond Street Hospital For Children, and a substantial contribution towards legal costs … Dee Clark, melismatic falsetto swooping soul stylist of the Fifties/Sixties/Seventies, meanwhile is looking forward to the possibility of a place in a home for fallen rock ‘n’ roll stars that a current US Revival tour of more mobile veteran rock, pop and soul stars is hoping to fund … ITV’s ‘The Hitman And Her’ comes from Hammersmith’s Le Palais on New Year’s Eve – it’ll be interesting to see if Pete Waterman can whip up the blasé London crowd as much as the livelier ones he (quite rightly) prefers up north … Donald ‘Shuggy Bear’ Hughes, presenting Radio Forth’s Dance Music Chart on Saturdays 5-6pm and a Scottish Chart on Sundays 2-4pm, has a special 5-7pm programme on Hogmanay (New Year’s Eve to sassenachs!) featuring 1988’s best dance tracks, including his own megamixes … Big ‘H’, Russell Potts and Barry Jeffrey have a 2pm-midnight Boxing Day alldayer at Slough’s Furze Hotel, while Richard Searling, Pete Haigh and more take it all day from 3pm-2am on the same soulful December 26 at Whispers between Leyland and Bamber Bridge … Chris Wright, Simon Goffe, Gordon Mac and Paul Anderson make it ‘Slide’ at Camden Town’s Electric Ballroom next Wednesday (28), for the more discerning class of groover … DJs Jazzy M and Steve Harris, whose Vinyl Zone London record store is in fact at precisely 112 New Kings Road, Fulham, host the “sound of progressive dance” Thursdays at Brixton’s Fridge … British Record Industry Awards nominees for best international male artist are Michael Jackson, Prince, Alexander O’Neal, Luther Vandross and Terence Trent D’Arby – in America’s equivalent, that would be the R&B line-up … MCA Records’ UK managing director, Tony Powell points out that much less inter-relationship than originally envisaged will take place between the black music rosters of MCA and Motown in the States, solo albums by group members and duets by each other’s artists being the probable limit of the label hopping … Billboard’s dance music columnist Bill Coleman makes a guest vocal appearance on the Clivilles & Cole created ‘Seduction’ by Seduction, presumably doing some of the philosophical muttering along with Carol Cooper … Jan Hammer’s Marathon Mix of ‘The Runner’ (the “shattered” Bob Geldof milk guzzling scene) turns out to be a Graeme Park mix … Chris Brown calculates that Jean-Michel Jarre ‘Revolutions’ played off 45rpm at 33⅓rpm plus 8% would be 104bpm – however, the calibration on Technics desks’ slider controls of +8 and -8 do not correspond to actual mathematical percentages, as a check against the separate strobe control will show … Gary Grimmer kindly points out that of course the shrill guitar “noise” from Big Daddy Kane ‘Set It Off’ is from the guitar break in the full length album version of James Brown ‘Get Up, Get Into It, Get Involved’ – thanks! … thanks also for your many cards and seasonal greetings – please manage to get charts to us in the mail as soon after Christmas as possible too, so that there isn’t too great a hiccup … Mistletoe & Wine, Dandelion & Burdock, Light & Mild, Coke & Crisps, whatever you’re on – HAVE A GOOD ONE!

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THE BIZ are a carefully assembled glamorous British answer to Shalamar, though with the different sexual ratio of Yasmin Evans, Austin Howard and Suzette Smithson — almost a black Bucks Fizz! — whose debut 113bpm ‘Falling‘ 3-track 12in has already sold out on white label advantage pressing but is due this week again in its fully remixed final form from the new Midas label. If your club gets offered them for a PA, grab ’em — as we discovered at Gullivers last Saturday, they really do do “the biz”!

Look closely at the above! It’s the photo and caption we ran about six years ago which introduced Yasmin Evans to the world. Who? She’s now better known as YAZZ!

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HOT VINYL

BELOVED ‘Your Love Takes Me Higher (Sex Mix)’ (WEA YZ 357T)
Detroit’s ‘Magic Juan’ Atkins has used a fairly naff UK effort as the basis for a remixed blazing, bounding and twittering unstoppable 124½-124¾-125bpm basher with some female whispering and groaning buried in the mix halfway, plus an alternative similarly driving before then title-repeating 124½-124¾-125-0bpm Rise-Up Mix, only on promo at the moment just waiting to explode.

LIZ TORRES featuring MASTER C&J ‘Touch Of Love’ (Black Market Records BLMK 004, via PRT)
Instantly massive, this anxiously plaintive pleading hi-hat hissed and bass bubbled simple purposeful strider is almost more like Hi-NRG than house, and should have much gay appeal, in 123½bpm Club Mix, 123¼bpm Radio Mix, 123⅓bpm Club Dub Mix and Dub Edit versions, all with different sound density.

SEDUCTION ‘Seduction (Vocal Club Mix)’ (US Vendetta Records VE-7014)
Clivilles & Cole (or, as they put it here, Cole & Clivilles) created shouting started but then bass burbled philosophically muttering 0-120¼-120⅓bpm pattering pulser, this and the amusing comments and Arabic chanting started more percussive 120¾bpm Club Mix both being needlessly interrupted halfway by the Brat Pack’s “don’t be so f***in’ serious”, while the flip has vigorous hammering piano jangled jack tracking 0-123bpm ‘Every Body “Jump”‘ and bass and synth thrummed jittery 120½-0bpm ‘Devote Yourself‘ instrumental bonus tracks plus an acappella girl started more tranquil flowing organ instrumental (0-)120¾-121bpm The Reprise Loft Mix. Continue reading “December 24, 1988: Beloved, Liz Torres featuring Master C&J, Seduction, Intense, Jocelyn Brown, 1988 Year End charts”

BEATS & PIECES

Stock Aitken Waterman’s case against M|A|R|R|S (for the unauthorised use of a snip from ‘Roadblock’ in ‘Pump Up The Volume’), long anticipated as a test case about sampling, appears to have ended up by being settled out of court in Pete Waterman’s favour, thus depriving the industry of some possible legal precedents … DJs (as well as actual radio stations) convicted of pirate radio broadcasting after January 1 will be personally barred from working on any legal community stations for five years – and, to ease the pressure of the anticipated applications, it seems that each local London station’s licence will be offered in staggered stages, one licence every three months or so … I was right in suspecting that the UK final of the Disco Mix Club’s UK Mixing Championships might be moved (probably to February 15) to prevent a clash on the originally announced night with the BPI Awards ceremony – which Tony Prince and entourage obviously want to attend, too! … Ten City will be appearing live at the Prestatyn weekender over Easter weekend … Jazzy M (possibly London’s leading authority on house) and Steve Harris have opened a Vinyl Zone London record shop down at the Putney Bridge end of the New Kings Road … Tyree’s terrific ‘Tyree’s Got A Brand New House’ album, on scarce white label ahead of ffrr release, is going to explode for the 124¼-0bpm ‘Turn Up The Bass’, which uses the Lyn Collins ‘Think (About It)’ break beat similar style to The DJ Fast Eddie’s ‘Yoyo Get Funky’ … “garage” and “deep house” are obvious forecasts for 1989, but what’s the betting “hip (hop) house” will be even bigger? … E.S.P. ‘It’s You’ (US Underground UN 108), first reviewed two years ago, is the latest “deep house” revival, a space bass underpinned gently pulsing 119bpm synth throbber with quietly muttered moaning, and what at the time seemed like a European flavour … S’Xpress’s next single will be ‘Hey Music Lover (G-oo-d Vibration Mix)’, an acidically twittering 0-124-0bpm jerky bounder eventually quoting from Sly & The Family Stone’s ‘I Want To Take You Higher’ and ‘Dance To The Music’, the commercial pressing (not due for six weeks!) adding a more vocal 124-0bpm Music Is My Life Mix while the promo is flipped just by the repetitive thumping twittering 0-114¾-0bpm ‘Have A Nice Day’ (in a Hide The Sausage Mix?!) … MCA Records have circulated US promo pressings of Pebbles ‘Do Me Right’, a quite soulful repetitive (0-)107⅙-0bpm jogging swayer co-penned by ConFunkShun member Michael Cooper and produced by Charlie Wilson, rather than the often ubiquitous seeming L.A. & Babyface this time … Wee Papa Girl Rappers’ commercial pressing of ‘Soulmate’ is flipped by a more vocal 118⅙bpm Reactor Mix as well as the now 117⅚-0bpm Phosphoric Mix of the tedious jerkily acidic ‘We Know It’ … Westbam ‘I wanna do Monkey Say Monkey Do’ is indeed now out here on Doctor Beat (DRX 612, via Dance Trax) … Hemel Hempstead’s Chris Britton apparently missed my original review of Ben Liebrand’s Summer ’88 Remix of The Four Seasons featuring Frankie Valli ‘Oh What A Night (December 1963)’ – suitable for 25th anniversaries right now? – when it was revealed to be 105⅙-104-106-104-105⅙(break)-104bpm, out here as in Holland on br. music (1245277, via Prism Leisure Corporation) … do pay attention! … I reviewed a few weeks back what turns out to have been one of only 250 initial private pressings of the Dynamic Guv’nors’ ‘Rock The Discotheques’/’Acid Jackson (Let’s Go)’, which to satisfy the (deserved) demand that resulted, is now being pressed up and promoted properly … Manchester’s Stu Allan, presenter on Key 103 (the new name for Piccadilly Radio’s new split frequency MW service) of Thursdays’ 8-10pm ‘Bus’ Diss!’ hip hop and Sundays’ 10pm-2am ‘Souled Out’ soul/house shows, is another radio jock who’s set up his own label, 061 Records debuting next month with the Roxanne Shanté-ish dissing Lady Tame’s ‘Loud Ladies’, while Stu himself will record as M19 using guest vocalists to suit different types of music (in Jellybean style) … Nigel ‘Nick’ Halkes, writing to me since he was a 14 year old DJ in Bristol, now runs the club mailing list at Secret Promotions, 83 Clerkenwell Road, London EC1R 5HP (send a stamped addressed envelope for an application form) … Jude James is promotion manager at the brand new S.P.J. Records, 2 Queens Parade, Brownlow Road, London N11 2DN, where he’s building a club list for an upcoming new single by Freeez … ‘And The Break Goes Acid’ on the Frankie ‘Bones’ presents Bonesbreaks Volume 2 EP is apparently ‘Bailando’ by Alaska, which Julian Palmer (part of the Democratic 3, who produced it!) claims has been lifted from the Matey Mix seven inch edit … Tricky Dicky Scanes’ most recent Balearic sales chart from his Trax shop in Soho’s Greek Street listed: 1 Amnesia ‘Ibiza’ (Belgian InDisc), 2 Taste Of Sugar ‘Hmm Hmm’ (Belgian Antler), 3 A Split Second ‘Flesh’ (Belgian Antler), 4 William Pitt ‘City Lights’ (Sierra), 5 Lexicans ‘Asia Girls’ (Italian House Label), 6 2 To The Power ‘Make Your Body Groove’ (PWL white label), 7 Raul featuring J. Bonell ‘Guitarra’ (Spanish Spitfire Music), 8 Tijeritas ‘Bamboleo’ (Spanish Epic), 9 Code 61 ‘Drop The Deal’ (German BCM Records), 10 Turntable Orchestra ‘You’re Gonna Miss Me’ (US Music Village) … Belgian “new-beat” could be wiped out at a stroke if the tabloid press latch onto the fact that Belgium has the highest percentage of heterosexual AIDS victims of any country outside Africa, surely making “new-beat” in the eyes of The Sun a far greater threat to our nation’s youth than even “acieed!”? … I.D.J. jazz dancers appear with DJs Malone, Turbo and Gilly this Friday (16) at Colchester Venue’s Xmas Jazz Bop … Westerham’s Roadblock posse take a return double decker Brighton bus Trip 4 to the Club Savannah this Saturday (17), with pick up points in Bromley and Croydon too (£7 tickets on 01-668 1527, evenings) … Kid Batchelor, Colin Faver, Eddie Richards plus guest jocks, MCs and rappers head a special Warriors Dance night at Confusion this Sunday (18) in Soho Greek Street’s Billstickers … Dakeyne cuts up Electrik Curcus next Monday (19) in Bristol’s Papillon … Jeff Thomas has gone deep, deep, deep, (that’s house-wise) up the valley to Merthyr Tydfil Charbonnier’s on Thursdays … DJ Kid ‘The DFM’ Smurf spins acid/rap/funk/soul at Leicester’s Bear Cage Thurs/Saturdays – ‘DFM’ stands for Dance Floor Master, by the way! … ‘Teddy’s Jam’ is due in a killer remix from Teddy Riley’s group Guy … ‘Love Follows’ will at last be Steven Danté’s next single in four weeks’ time … Bobby Brown already has ‘Roni’ (from his album) hitting as follow-up to ‘My Prerogative’ in the US, where Luther Vandross’s new single is ‘She Won’t Talk To Me’ (with a Clivilles & Cole remix rumoured to be due) … I think it needs pointing out how long it takes to BPM accurately some of the current multi-version releases – for instance, with four different subtly shifting mixes, Boyz In Shock took me something like three quarters of an hour to review, just one single (once I’d established that the first version wasn’t running smoothly, I had to check every minute over and over to get it right, which is nothing less than the devotion to accuracy that you surely expect, but it does explain why there isn’t time to review everything!) … NANU NANU!

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HOT VINYL

INNER CITY ‘Good Life’ (US Virgin 0-96591)
British chart rules unfortunately limit the length that a record must be to qualify as a single, which means that this far better value 40 minutes long (yup, count ‘em!) six-tracker even at import prices is a more economical buy than the suddenly puny seeming UK 12 inch, smash hit though that may be. Now you can get on one piece of vinyl the brand new excitingly frantic 125-125¼bpm Steve ‘Silk’ Hurley, more garage styled 121-121¼bpm Kevin ‘Master Reese’ Saunderson, and twiddly acidic 125⅓-125½bpm Mike ‘Hitman’ Wilson mixes, plus (elevated on import to track one, side one) the fluttery urgent 125-125¼bpm Derrick ‘Mayday’ May and (our A-side) the now rather thin seeming 125¼bpm ‘Magic Juan’ Atkins mixes, as well as the 122¼bpm Les ‘L.A. Mix’ Adams remix of ‘Big Fun’. Go for it!

CAMEO ‘Skin I’m In (12” Remix)’ (US Atlanta Artists 872 315-1)
While this afro chanting introed sleazily lurching 0-102bpm return to their exaggeratedly enunciated smacking wriggly old ‘She’s Strange’ style is not exactly original now, it’s at least back in a groove that we always used to go for here – but that was five years ago (102bpm Dub, 0-101⅔-0bpm Album Version, and ‘Candy’-copying short 0-107½bpm ‘Honey’ too). Single sided 0-101½-0bpm UK promo pressings (Club JABX 77) are of the album version, for some reason.

BIG DADDY KANE ‘Wrath Of Kane’ (US Cold Chillin’ 0-21082)
This very violently frenetic and exciting 125½-0bpm rap ‘n’ scratch (with an abrupt dead stop halfway, followed by “bring it back, Cee” and a slithery scratched turbo-charged re-start!) is definitely hip hop rather than house, but nevertheless hits the hot ‘n gettin’ hotter “hip house” groove and has exploded as the brand new flip that’s selling the A-side’s Staple Singers based slinkily cranking 98⅔bpm ‘I’ll Take You There (Remix)’ (more harshly mixed 98⅔bpm Edit, too). Continue reading “December 17, 1988: Inner City, Cameo, Big Daddy Kane, ‘The Garage Sound Of Deepest New York’, Maurice”

BEATS & PIECES

STOCK AITKEN WATERMAN have remixed Kool And The Gang’s ‘Celebration’ for supposedly rush release, but have just been preceded by Jon Williams & Carl Daniel’s rival 121¾-122-121⅔-121¾ surprisingly unincongruous acidically twittering ‘Celebration ’88 (The Moet Mix)‘ (Club JABX 78), with a similar though thinner 121⅔-121¾-121⅔ Chandon Mix flip — when I broke the news to Mike Stock, he said “It sounds like someone’s pulled a flanker, I’ll get right on that!” … Home Secretary Douglas Hurd has declared that anyone convicted after January 1 of illegal broadcasting will be barred for five years from applying for the new “community of interest” local radio licences — to put this in perspective, the DTI’s radio investigation service has so far this year made over 300 raids on 58 pirate stations in London alone (I hope they caught the idiot who was swamping Capital Radio’s FM frequency in Central London last Wednesday!) … Channel 4 this Wednesday (7) show at 10.10pm an hour long documentary on ‘Club Culture‘, looking at rap, house and a bit of Balearic in a rather wordy way, talking to names who matter and more who don’t in a poorly researched style — mis-spelling Africa Bambaataa, Danny Dee, and (sniff!) not once mentioning RM … MCA Records, number one in just about all sales categories for 1988 in the US trade papers’ year-end lists, are nevertheless making sweeping staff redundancies right through their American operations, and are about to move their many successful black acts over to Motown (which they now own) to leave the parent label for — dare one say? — white acts … Serious Records would appear to have survived a court hearing for their winding up, but meanwhile of course the company’s Mahesh Bajaj has also recently started the separately run Low Fat Vinyl label along similar lines … Adeva ‘Respect’ is out here on January 3 … Adonis apparently is disguised as Jack Rabbit Martin for the deep house-ish ‘Only Wanted To Be‘ (on promo white label ahead of inclusion in Westside Records’ imminent ‘Acido Amigo‘ double LP), romantically mumbling through a loosely flying 125½bpm beat, city sound effects and gently wailing background girl, his vocal electronically slowed down for the otherwise galloping 125¼bpm seriously acidic flipside version … Tyree’s upcoming ffrr album declares “from Tyree Cooper —Todd ain’t God!” … Double Trouble have just completed a reputedly “killer” Todd Terry megamix for Germany’s ZYX label … Dutch house is what’s going to happen instead of Belgian “new-beat”, if you believe a certain rotund A&R star … Jade 4 U is possibly the artist, not 101, on the confusingly labelled Belgian ‘Rock To The Beat’ version … Chris Paul, now acid is cooling off here, has started a possibly weekly Wednesday acid night guest with London DJs at Tito’s — in Palma, Majorca! … Chicago DJ Fast Eddie, whose next UK single will be ‘Hip House’, is touring here this month at Maidstone’s Warehouse and Folkestone’s Tonights (Thursday 8), Birtley’s Libertys (Fri 9), Chippenham’s Gold Diggers (Sat 10), Twickenham’s The George (Sun 11), Swansea’s Martha’s Vineyard (Mon 12), Peterborough’s Gables (Tues 13), Westerham’s Grasshopper Inn and London’s Dingwalls (Thurs 15), Gravesend’s Slammer (Fri 16), Gillingham’s Catch 22 (Sat 17), Welling’s The Station (Sun 18) — why so much in Kent?… Key 103FM’s hip hopper Stu Allan has his fortnightly dance night at Preston’s Gatsby on Monday (12) … Phil Collins ‘Two Hearts’ is of course 155½bpm, not as printed last week — incidentally, I picked up on the comment hidden in last week’s Kiss AMC ad, and after careful comparison agree that ‘Let-Off’ does go back to the Supremes rather than to Phil Collins for its ‘You Can’t Hurry Love’ bassline (they use some ‘Reflections’ too, I now notice), but what had made me assume otherwise at first was the suspicious fact that both Kiss AMC and Phil are exactly 196bpm, the Supremes however being around 194-198 … NANU NANU!

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Capital Radio/Night Network star rap presenter, Tim Westwood (above) and studio engineer Chris Bevington have launched their own rap label with their self-produced TROUBLE ‘I Get Hype’ (Justice JTT 002), an exciting Public Enemy-ish frenetically churning and scratching ‘Give It Up Or Turnit A Loose’-based fast talker by North London’s M.C. B, D.I Jay and beat programmer Reinforced Gus (like it!), in 111¼bpm main vocal, 111⅓bpm Mono and 111bpm Instrumental mixes (sparsely booming slow chatting 84¾bpm ‘I Guess It’s Dope’ too), plus MICHEE MEE & L.A. LUV ‘Run For Cover’ (Justice JTT 001), a Scott La Rock and KRS-1 produced (obviously some time ago) in Canada plaintive scolding 90⅓bpm jiggler by the Toronto based West Indian female rap duo (lurching 93½bpm ‘Elements Of Style‘, and instrumentals, too).

Confusingly, these girls also have out on import the newer MICHIE MEE & L.A. LUV ‘Victory Is Calling’ (US First Priority Music 0-96593), a reggae toasting style started guy heckled lead swapping jittery 98⅚bpm wordy throwdown (funkily backed similar stark strident 0-94⅔bpm ‘On This Mic‘, and dubs, too), the word play being all important and very good.

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IF IT’S DECEMBER, IT MUST BE BELGIUM – PART TWO!  Continue reading “December 10, 1988: New Beat Part 2, Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock, Alexander O’Neal, Vicky Martin, Dee Major, Jomanda”

BEATS & PIECES

MCA RECORDS have, in their usual style, released US pressings here at UK prices of Bobby Brown ‘My Prerogative’ ahead of full UK availability this week (as MCAT 1299) … Black, Rock and Ron ‘Black, Rock and Ron’ is of course based on Ripple’s ‘The Beat Goes On’, whose ‘I Don’t Know What It Is But It Sure Is Funky’ is used by Kid ‘N Play ‘Rollin’ With Kid ‘N Play’ — incidentally, the latter’s ‘2 Hype’ album, reviewed in full on import recently, is now out here on Cooltempo (CTLP 10) … Raze ‘Break 4 Love’ was released here by Champion back in May but is charting now in its current US hit pressing (on US Columbia 44 08164) which seems strange as its 119⅓-0bpm Spanish Fly and 119-0bpm French, Italian, and Caught In The Act mixes were all in fact out here then … Adeva’s Rough Mix and Rough Dub turn out to be a slightly slower 117½bpm, the other three versions being confirmed at 119bpm … Les Adams has created a much beefier remix of Code 61 ‘Drop The Deal’ (an early example of “new-beat”), whereas his 0-125-0pm remixes of Maurice ‘This Is Acid (A New Dance Craze)’ (due on Breakout in a fortnight) could rekindle the whole “acieed” thing, fiercest being the flip’s ‘A Day In The Life’ adopting K & T Mix — that’s the Kev & Trev Mix, the S & T Mix being Sharon & Tracyl … Les has also totally remade (stripping away all of Patrick Cowley’s backing to leave just the original vocal) Sylvester’s ‘Do You Wanna Funk’ in updated beefier style for European release, something which maybe Domino Records should investigate as a replacement for their big selling original version and Housey Housey Mix here —incidentally, this Portsmouth based label has just reissued its old pairing of Donald Byrd ‘(Fallin’ Like) Dominoes’/ ‘Change (Makes You Want To Hustle)’ (DOMT 5) following both tracks’ recent use by respectively Stetsasonic and Blow … ‘Hello Children … Everywhere‘ (EMI EM 1307), a double album of children’s favourites from the Fifties and earlier, looks as if it could be useful for mobile and party jocks … I hope that all the really good mixers whom I keep being assured do exist in Bristol will enter the upcoming UK DJ Mixing Championships heat there (as detailed last week), and the same applies to mixers everywhere — if you all enter and make the contest truly tough this time, you’ll leave no room for the amateurs who sometimes get through at certain heats just to make up the numbers (that way there’ll be no shame even if you don’t win when competing against your equals) … Disco Mix Club’s UK final of the DJ Mixing Championships at the Hippodrome on February 13 now clashes with the BPI’s annual televised British Record Industry Awards at the Royal Albert Hall, which could well deflect record company interest from the mixing (in turn, the World DJ Mixing finals at the Royal Albert Hall on March 14 will also be filmed by BBC-TV, and will be an advance ticket only affair this time, to cut out the rude boys) … Cash Money shows off his New Music Seminar US mixing champion’s belt on the sleeve of his new single, evidently in the belief that this award has more relevance for his American audience than the fact that he beat the whole world in London! … Run-DMC’s movie ‘Tougher Than Leather’ would appear to be causing murder and mayhem in some US cinemas, patrons shooting each other in the stalls … ‘I’m Housin’‘ will be EPMD’s next US single … Arnold Jarvis ‘Take Some Time Out‘ is yet another current “deep house” revival, from April last year .. Steve ‘Silk’ Hurley — inspired by his OMD mix? – has just remixed New Order ‘Fine Time’ … Chris Moore now presents both weekend soul shows on Cardiff’s Red Dragon Radio, 5-7pm Saturdays and 7-9pm Sundays (he obviously wants all soul/dance-type records sent to the station to be addressed to him) … Tim Westwood, Richie Rich, and Hardrock’s Max ‘N’ Dave are joined this Tuesday (29) at Camden Lock Dingwalls by the Demon Boyz, Too Tuff, Trouble, The London Posse, DJ Pogo, Cutmaster Swift … The peripatetic Shoom! seems to have settled every Wednesday at Busbys in London’s Charing Cross Road … Mark King has moved from Putney to present upfront Fridays at Camberley JW’s … Les Adams’ mixing night at Milton Keynes’ The Club at The Point has switched to Friday, as they couldn’t afford him on a Saturday! … John ‘Superstar’ Saunderson is at Southend-on-Sea Mr B’s Thurs/Sat, Ealing Broadway Boulevard Fri/Sun … Michael Jackson’s ‘Bad’ album may have sold over 2,250,000 copies here but neither it nor the singles from it have had anything like the lasting impact that ‘Thriller’ did, at disco or any other level … ‘Twist And Shout’ was first recorded by the Top Notes on US Atlantic, released here at the time oddly as a Nino Tempo & April Stevens B-side, their version being continuously flat out frantic and very different from the subsequent Isley Brothers recording … ‘The Hitman And Her’ has become much improved now that it visits clubs where better camera angles can be used, and especially now that Pete Waterman has come out from behind the turntables, the result being really good madcap (if still shambolic) fun, Pete’s comments and asides being the best ingredient … Pasadenas producer Pete Wingfield playing piano behind Robin Beck on ‘Top Of The Pops’ — the real thing? … You all know my feelings on acid house, but we’d like to know yours, being DJs and acid club goers, so fill in the questionnaire on page 12 and get it back to us pronto… NANU NANU!

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LES ADAMS and I are for the next few weeks creating the five hour continuously mixed New Year’s Eve party music tape for Capital Radio, and in the process finding out just how good is this, Les’s brand new home studio. No longer in South London’s Worcester Park, this custom fitted, totally carpeted, and at last relatively spacious studio is 50 miles up the M1 in Les and Emma’s recently purchased Newport Pagnell house (close to the third L.A. Mix member, Mike Stevens).

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IF IT’S DECEMBER, IT MUST BE BELGIUM

WHY BELGIUM? Why should this country have reduced music to a bare electronic minimum, to create a local craze that is now being aggressively promoted as the new beat, or “new-beat”, “nieuw-beat”? It’s a country with no black music tradition (despite the Congo!). Instead there is a prosperous Silicon Valley electronics industry, and the emphasis in everyday living is on technology, the conspicuous consumption of the latest cars and electronic equipment setting the lifestyle of the well-heeled young. Already CD singles have a significant share of the dance music market. Television beams in from all around Europe, Britain included, making Belgium a melting pot. A soulless melting pot. It seems inevitable that electronic music would get a hold on such a place. Slow to change, the clubs there were still hung up on the Barry White/Gloria Gaynor “disco” syndrome until an Antwerp DJ called Fat Ronnie started to build a reputation for himself in 1985 by playing German and British electro-pop. As an antidote to fast “disco”, he and others began playing Hi-NRG and instrumental B-sides at the wrong, slow, speed, which created new low frequencies and phase shifts. Using Technics decks, it become common for 45rpm records to be played at 33⅓rpm “plus 8%” (on the vari-speed control). As Fat Ronnie had ended up in a club called Ancienne Belgique, the music became known by the club’s initials as “A.B.-Sounds” (hence the mysterious subtitle on the previously reviewed ‘New Beat — Take 1‘ compilation LP). Just as club trends spread here, so the word spread across Belgium and neighbouring countries, the mobile club crowd driving from city to city on the right nights for the right venues. Inevitably, purpose made records then were made for this still underground market, but — just as with the big “house” hits here — certain surprise hits leapt up the local charts without any radio support (the big difference in Belgium is that now they just don’t dance if the beat is fast — and it’s a totally drug-less scene). Only recently did the name of the music change to “nieuw-beat”, as several record companies set about catering to the market, a market based largely on Antwerp’s influential USA Import record shop. The best records however tend to be made by the DJs themselves, the worst being cynical cash-ins (sound familiar?). The first company to recognise the trend, Antler Records set up the Subway label, whose Maurice Engelen actually wrote to me about “new-beat” some months before the style’s records were more widely available here. He describes it as “a new form of repetitive dance music, combining post-electronic synthesisers and samplers, a dose of pathos and a portion of passion, a diet of ’round about 110bpm and the typical Belgo-European sound as it was developed by bands such as Front 242, A Split Second, Cabaret Voltaire and D.A.F.” I can see why I wasn’t terribly interested at the time — just the sort of stuff I’ve tried to avoid! If “new-beat” has any real effect in Britain, I feel it’s more likely to accelerate the next revival cycle, and reawaken interest in the late Seventies/early Eighties “new romantic” era British electronic acts who originally inspired the Belgians. The time gap seems about right for history to repeat itself, each generation looking back with nostalgia to the music of their big brothers and sisters, as any study of the UK charts will show. In the meantime, today’s Belgian kids are packing places like Ghent’s Boccaccio on Sunday night and doing a pose-y slow standing still dance to the stuff that Belgian record companies are hoping they can persuade us to like as well.

As previously mentioned, a variation on Reese & Santonio’s ‘Rock To The Beat’ has been huge in Belgium, the hit that’s assimilated it being GHENTLON ‘Cheebala’ (R&S Records 880011), most ‘Back To The Beat’-like in the flip’s thuddingly tumbling and twittering 119⅓-0bpm Jolly Boy Mix, the Acid Freak Mix being more routinely acid house-like. However, there is also a confusingly labelled “ecstasy, ecstasy”-introed phonetic (0-)121bpm remake of the actual Reese & Santonio tune, 101 ‘Rock To The Beat‘ (Speed 001), with a noisily chugging 117⅓bpm ‘Saigon Nightmare‘ flip.

Previously mentioned, THE MAXX ‘(The Biggest Illegal Export) Cocaine‘ (German BCM Records 12009) is a documentary quoting and “cocaine”-repeating ploddingly thumping 0-109⅚-0bpm twittery synth chugger, while The Maxx created (back in February) one of the big “new-beat” hits, CONFETTI’S ‘The Sound Of C…’ (German Ariola 611 891), a synth driven thumping and twittering 0-109⅓-0bpm lurcher with deadpan male repeated elaboration of the title line insisting “this is a new style of music”.

More recent are JADE 4 U ‘That Boy (Acid Mix)’ (Subway Records SUB 043), a Tubeway Army type buzzing synth chorded rolling 107⅙bpm instrumental chugger with monk-ish wordless chanting, enough like 1979 to sound comfortingly familiar now; T.99 ‘Slidy‘ (Who’s That Beat? WHOS 4), breathily intoned and phonetically rapped “it’s new beat, it’s a new style” 109bpm synth tinkled lurching chugger; MISS NICKY TRAX ‘Acid In The House‘ (KAOS dance records KAOS 004), dull monotonous sibilant title chanting jittery 114¾bpm twittering lurcher. Another usefully exhaustive compilation album is ‘New Beat — A New Style Of Music‘ (German BCM Records 33015), which by the looks of things I’m going to have to detail next week as I’m running out of room!

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HOT VINYL 
Continue reading “December 3, 1988: “If It’s December, It Must Be Belgium” – New Beat report”

BEATS & PIECES

DISCO MIX CLUB’s 1989 UK Mixing Championships heats will be in January on Mon/Tues/Wednesdays, at Glasgow Hollywood Studios (9), Stockton The Mall (10), Leeds Warehouse (11), Manchester Hacienda (16), Liverpool The State (17), Nottingham New York New York (18), Swansea Martha’s Vineyard (23), Bristol Papillon (24), Southampton New York New York (25), Ealing Broadway Boulevard (30), Romford Hollywood (31), and in Northern Ireland at Portrush Traks on February 1 (a separately organised event) … Regional Finals follow likewise in February, at Sheffield Cairo Jax (6), Chippenham Goldiggers (7) and Leigh Reubens (8), with the UK Final at London’s Hippodrome on Monday, February 13 … DJ competitors should contact John Saunderson on 06286-67124 for entry details, while rappers wanting to enter the regional finals’ three rap heats should send demo cassettes to him at PO Box 89, Slough SL1 8NA … I hope to be judging as usual at all the mainland dates, snow and Thursday dawn deadlines permitting on the Wednesday nights (you may have noticed the increased number of Northern venues, which reflects the far greater response this contest gets the further it is from London!) … RePublic Records’ back-to-back pre-released Turntable Orch and Kym Mazelle tracks will not be released separately until after Christmas, provisionally on December 28 … Kym Mazelle ‘I’m A Lover‘ (misprinted anyway but on closer examination 118-118½-116⅔-116¾bpm, with an 116⅓-0bpm dub) first surfaced on import back in January, and was returned largely in Manchester charts for some weeks but I regret was never reviewed then as my local record shop either couldn’t get it or wasn’t shifting it — however, Turntable Orch ‘You’re Gonna Miss Me‘ (confirmed in its 12″ Extended Ver. as 0-115¾bpm, with an 116-0bpm Dub Ver.), which surfaced on 0-115½bpm import in March, was reviewed soon after with perhaps some foresight as an “excellent hopefully not over subtle piano nagged unhurriedly jittering burbling garage groove”, but failed to hit The Club Chart at the time … Ce Ce Rogers’ piano plonked moaning smooth Marshall Jefferson-created 119⅓-0bpm deep house ‘Someday‘ goes back even further, first showing up in Manchester during July/August 1987, peaking early December again without quite hitting The Club Chart — now it’s on UK promo and much revived … Rickster ‘Night Moves‘ (originally on import in January), Raze ‘Break 4 Love‘ (from the spring), Julian Jonah ‘Jealousy & Lies’ (hottest for the trumpet washed Alkaline and Litmus remixes), the enduring Night Writers ‘Let The Music (Use You)‘, Ten City ‘Devotion‘ (and even ‘Right Back To You’), Park Ave. ‘Don’t Turn Your Love‘, Ralphi Rosario ‘You Used To Hold Me‘, Joe Smooth ‘Promised Land‘, and (bouncing off the similarly Ronald Burrell-produced Bäs Noir’s success) Tech Trax Inc ‘Feel The Luv‘ are some of the other notable “deep house” revivals that the “acid” backlash has suddenly brought to the surface … ‘Don’t Believe The Hype’, the News At Ten inspired 0-126-0bpm acid track, has appeared as by Mista E now on Urban (URBX 28), impersonator Steve Coogan of ‘Spitting Image’ replacing the original promo’s actual Alastair Burnet, Sandy Gall and Paul Gambaccini voices (a jokey The Copyright Mix is due to follow!) … Champion Records’ UK pressing of the Royal House newie is fractionally slower than the import, making ‘Yeah Buddy’ 122½-122¾-123-0bpm, ‘The Chase’ 0-106⅙-0bpm, ‘Can You Beats (Dirty Beats)’ (0-)122⅙-0bpm … Cherrelle’s ‘Affair’ album is out here now (Tabu 460734 1) … Stock Aitken Waterman’s commercial pressing of ‘S.S. Paparazzi’ contains the Hassell-Bladder and Yoyo’s Dub Mixes on the B-side but has two new The Crowning King and The Boys Have A Go Back Mixes as A-side, still 124½bpm — thanks for making me waste effort and time … Arista’s correct catalogue number is 611 916 for the Four Tops ‘Loco In Acapulco’, which also turns out to be in a pH Balance Mix and pH Dub — it would be so much easier if they labelled their promos properly to begin with — and likewise, The Boozin Bang’n Dance Crew have become just B.B.D.C. on UK issued Priority Records (PX 22) … grrr! … I tend to wait for most of the UK releases to get near The Club Chart before bothering to BPM and review them these days, as there just are too many bloody records coming out to keep up with them all — I haven’t had time to review Alexander O’Neal’s ‘My Gift To You’ LP (typically treated vigorous, and some slushy, Christmas songs!) amongst others this week, for lack of time … Paul Oakenfold “playing” guitar with Electra on ‘The Hitman And Her’ — get right on one matey … NANU NANU!

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HOT VINYL

INNER CITY ‘Good Life (Magic Juan’s Mix)’ (10 Records TEN X 249)
Another ‘Big Fun’-style breezily bounding 125bpm vigorous “techno” galloper with Paris Grey chanting, cooing and wailing the catchy lyrics, flipped by Derrick May’s rattling 125¼bpm Mayday Club Mix, plus Les Adams’ old “industrial” 122⅓bpm L.A. Big Big Fun Remix of ‘Big Fun’ for some reason again.

RHYTHIM IS RHYTHIM ‘It Is What It Is (Majestic Mix)’ (US Transmat MS 6)
Derrick May produced nervily pulsing, fluttering and sizzling synth washed 124¼-124½-0bpm techno twitterer in washing machine style, already known from 10 Records’ ‘Techno!’ album, flipped (at 33⅓rpm) by the brand new frantically acidic 129¾bpm ‘Beyond The Dance (Bizarro Mix)‘ and electronic drums thrashed skittery 124⅔-123¾bpm ‘Feel Surreal (Subconscious Mix)‘, all instrumentals.

ADEVA ‘Respect (12” Extended Version)’ (US Chrysalis/Cooltempo 4V9 43329)
Paul Simpson mixed gentle synth burbled (0-)119bpm rambling girl wailed superb fluidly weaving “garage” adaptation of what you suddenly realise in surprise is Otis Redding’s classic, quite unlike The Real Roxanne’s current treatment (in five mixes), sure to be huge at deep house/garage gigs. Presumably Adeva equals “a diva”? Continue reading “November 26, 1988: Inner City, Rhythim Is Rhythim, Adeva, Black Rock & Ron, Armando”

BEATS & PIECES

NEW ALBUMS I regretfully had neither the time nor space to review this week include the ‘Hearsay’ remixing Alexander O’Neal ‘All Mixed Up’ (Tabu), his ‘My Gift To You’ Christmas album not being out here until next month; Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis-created surprisingly soulful Pia (Zadora) ‘When The Lights Go Out’ (Epic); likewise surprisingly good Sheena Easton ‘The Lover In Me’ (US MCA Records); break beats based The 45 King ‘Master Of The Game’ (US Tuff City); subdued rapping Sweet Tee ‘It’s Tee Time’ (US Profile); sweetly squeaked sultry Angela Bofill ‘Intuition’ (Capitol); rare grooves compiling Various Artists ‘Boogie Tunes 2‘ (Graphic Records) … 12 inch imports similarly include the nervy twittering Rhythim Is Rhythm ‘It Is What It Is (Majestic Mix)‘ (US Transmat), flipped by two acid newies; sampling, scratching and shouting Black, Rock and Ron ‘Black, Rock and Ron‘ (US Popular); James Brown/Brothers Johnson/Masters At Work/Kraze/etc sampling Only In The Dark ‘Make Noise‘ (US Profile); Criminal Element Orchestra/T La Rock & Jazzy Jay/etc sampling Todd Terry-type Bad Boy Orchestra ‘Hip Hop Salsa‘ (US Smokin’); Gaz ‘Sing Sing’-based rapping Ms. Melodie ‘To Sing All Night‘ (US Jive); Troggs adapting drily rapped Tone-Loc ‘Wild Thing‘ (US Delicious Vinyl), with a better hoarsely sinuous ‘Loc’ed After Dark‘ flip … Reese & Santonio’s old ‘Back To The Beat’ (with ‘The Sound’)’ coupling, the deadpan girl muttered title line repeating (0-)122bpm ‘Rock To The Beat’ thumper has apparently become something of a Belgian disco anthem in a local “new beat” cover version, and so is due to be added to commercial pressings of their current ‘Truth Of Self Evidence’ too … Belgian new beat may be the hot hype at the moment but even so, the Balearic Electra ‘Jibaro’ is being reissued this week in its various mixes … ‘Ford Trax‘ is the title of Baby Ford’s new excellent instrumental B-side — and also of a nine-track 12 inch twin-pack due out next month … K-9 Posse rap group member Vernon Lynch seems to be the brother of Eddie Murphy! … ffrr rather than Supreme Records have picked up the Ultramagnetic MC’s LP, plus Sterling Void’s ‘Runaway Girl’ … Original Concept’s ‘Straight From The Basement Of Kooley High!’ LP is now out here (Def Jam 462978 1), as finally is EPMD’s ‘Strictly Business’ LP (Sleeping Bag Records SBUK LP 1) … Carolyn Martin is opening a New York office and US branch of the Disco Mix Club … Def Jam are launching in the US a new Black Gold label for soul rather than rap releases, switching over to it Oran ‘Juice’ Jones, Tashan, Chuck Stanley and Alyson Williams, and singing veteran group Blue Magic … Jeff Thomas was persuaded to stay full time at Swansea’s Martha’s Vineyard, where he has so radically altered the Mon/Wed-Fri/Saturday night policy to solidly black music that now anyone turning out in conventionally “smart” dress is actually refused admission (there being plenty of other clubs locally all vying for that market) — also, he’s started rap/acid/deep house Sundays at Neath’s brand new First Base American bar and diner … Norman Cook cuts up Worthing’s Sterns this Thursday (17) … Plymouth Sound’s soul presenter Chris Dinnis and Bob Smith hold a rare groove/classic soul/funk/jazz ‘Humdinger 3’ at Boxes on Exeter Quay next Wednesday (23), when Eon Irving starts a weekly garage/funk ‘Inside America’ night at Mayfair’s Prohibition in Hanover Street … ‘Hype House’ every Thursday at Bradford’s The Palace has house/funk/soul/rap/rare groove with the “beats per minute posse”, DJ Cool Cutz, DJ Vibe Alive, Mixmaster Eazy and Master JMP, while Cool Cutz and Eazy also spin acid and hard hip hop on two levels in the Dance Zone at the nearby Jokers every Fri/Saturday … Prestatyn’s mayor came to check out the LiveWire weekender and nobody believed who he was to begin with — he’s a 28-year-old biker! … Tom Astor was amongst the party I took to Prestatyn — he owns South London’s Orinoco Studio, at which Enya recorded ‘Orinoco Flow’ … Keith Sweat (who reputedly cost £30,000 for his Prestatyn show) was so paranoid that when a fan penetrated his bus to say hello, Keith bleated to security “He could have shot me!” — which says more about America than anything else … Pete Tong closed down Saturday night’s music at Prestatyn by playing the Gipsy Kings’ terrific ‘Bamboleo‘, about which I raved when it was first released, and which if reserviced could yet become a Christmas smash … Breakout’s main man Mike Sefton took paternity leave two weeks ago — he’s the proud dad of a baby daughter … Taboo’s ‘No. 6‘, the recently reviewed revamp of TV’s ‘The Prisoner’ theme, turns out to be by none other than Keith West of ‘Excerpt From A Teenage Opera (Grocer Jack)’ fame in 1967 — the first psychedelic era (when indeed the TV series was first shown) … Les Adams and I are again creating Capital Radio’s New Year’s Eve continuous party music tape, running this year from 9pm until 2am … NANU NANU!

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PRESTATYN SOUL WEEKEND 4

ADRIAN WEBB has lost count of the total number of weekenders that he has promoted, something like 38, but knows for sure that the Prestatyn Soul Weekend 4 was his 26th soul weekender. No wonder by now he knows how to get all the arrangements right, the most remarkable aspect of the event being the complete lack of trouble. This, despite over 4,000 revellers being present, divided into different musical factions — although, as DJ John E Walker shrewdly observed, the crowd these days is not really that interested in the music. First timers tended to be togged out in “acieed” style, but although a lot of fast house was played the only jock who really catered for them was Paul Oakenfold. Elsewhere, the acid backlash had begun to bite — which rather unsettled the event’s equilibrium. Had it been held even just a month earlier, I am sure that “acieed!” would have dominated.

As things turned out, few of the jocks seemed fully confident about what they ought to play. Robbie Vincent and Chris Hill had their late night ‘Acid Free Zone’, but were not the only ones to structure whole sets around Seventies soul, Ian Reading being one other example, while Gilles Peterson and Chris Bangs typically churned out vintage funk and jazz. There seemed to be much less feedback between the DJs and the crowd than in earlier years, perhaps because, unlike in the past, few DJs could actually claim that any particular segment of it was in fact “their” crowd. The one exception was superstar Tim Westwood, whose hip hop session was perhaps the most crucial of the weekend. Keith Sweat’s live show was rapturously greeted, but the scrappy PAs that followed were often embarrassing (I missed Royal House who appeared in the afternoon). Karyn White and Troop, slick US chart stars, were by far the best.

Chris Hill, still “The Godfather”, as usual presented the grand finale, and reverted to a tried and trusted formula (that hadn’t been tried for several years), declaring “This is tradition, like Stratford On Avon, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, the last night of the Proms”, as he launched into ‘Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now’ and ‘Bring The Family Back’. He then said, “Some people think they invented going ape shit crazy six months ago, well we invented going ape shit crazy 10 years ago” — and played ‘Shout’! I doubt if anyone ended up having a bad time, but in comparison with past weekenders over the last 10 years it didn’t strike me as being memorable. However, for those who want memories of it, a full length colour video of the highlights will be available for £16.99, while tickets for Prestatyn 5 (over Easter, March 24-26) are also now bookable from LiveWire on 01-364 1212. Continue reading “November 19, 1988: Prestatyn Soul Weekend 4, Keith Sweat, Turntable Orchestra, Cherrelle, Marshall Jefferson presents Truth, Royal House”

BEATS & PIECES

CLARE SHAVE, having brought renewed credibility to especially 10 Records’ dance product, has left her club promotions post at Virgin to go independent as Pure Beat Promotions, working in tandem with Jimmy O’Rheilley’s management company Pure Music at 32 Wardour Street, London W1V 3HJ (01-287 2072) – where she’s still reassembling her missing Filofax ‘phone numbers … Rob Manley meanwhile is leaving Breakout at the end of next week to take over at Virgin as of December 5 (things moved rather faster than anticipated once Clare had made her feelings known, Siren/10 Records wanting to keep an in-house promotion department instead of retaining an independent) … Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock’s ‘It Takes Two’ album is now indeed out here on Supreme Records (SU 4), who are also rush releasing the Ultramagnetic MC’s album reviewed on import only last week … Gee St Recordings’ UK version of the Jungle Brothers’ ‘Straight Out The Jungle’ (GEEA001) adds to the album’s originally reviewed tracks the Richie Rich reconstructed ‘I’ll House You’ hit, plus, with the first 5,000, a bonus 12 inch containing a ‘Because I Got It Like That’ (and thus also Sly Stone) based 0-108-107⅚bpm Ultimatum’s Ultramix, flipped by its chuggingly drummed 107⅚bpm Jungle Beats and brief Jungle Bass … SLF’s album will contain an extended club mix of the excellent ‘Show Me What You’ve Got’ vocal version … Tim Jeffery’s Cool Cuts chart was a little bit too upfront last week, Republic Records not even having cut their Turntable Orch/Kym Mazelle and Younger Generation pressings (the latter in fact won’t be about for ages)! … Timeless Records are including club jocks in their mailing list now, contact Miss Rakha Desai for an application form on 01-961 3889 … Fred Dove, Jane Evans, Les Adams, Emma Freilich and myself all turned up with invitations to the grand opening last week of Milton Keynes’ refurbished The Club at The Point only to find all the outside doors locked – after ages, a jobsworth did come and open a door but then wouldn’t let us in as, guess what, the doors close at midnight (and this, after 20 minutes of freezing outside, was at half a minute actually before midnight!) … I was not initially very impressed once we did get in, first impression of The Club being a glass box with flashing lights and dreadful distorted sound (the latter remained true), but on closer examination, particularly when the lights came on at the end of the night, it proved to be rather more attractive, and the mirrored tower over the dancefloor up which the lights operate is quite impressive … Pat Sharp, who was almost forcibly stripped after getting a girl to flash her boobs for a T-shirt, had been the evening’s star MC, Rob Manley, Mike Allin, and Joe Field being the jocks until Les Adams (who starts a Saturday slot there as a result) joined Joe for a double handed mixing session … Stock Aitken Waterman apparently have produced an acid house treatment of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, by none other than the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra — will ‘Top Of The Pops’, ban that? … ‘TOTP’, to be consistent, will presumably also ban all mention of “ecstasy” and — one they may not yet be aware of — “fantasia”? … Fantasia appears to have a more sinister drug-related meaning than being just the name of a club, despite the televised protestations of certain DJs involved that there’s no link between drugs and the music (honest, guv’nor) … TV-am last Thursday featured America’s most widely networked radio talk show host, English born Michael Jackson (no relation) — back in 1980, Robbie Vincent and I visited him at his KABC base in Los Angeles, where even then his show beat all the music stations in the ratings … London’s Evening Standard described the Prince and Princess of Wales as “jiving energetically to ‘Choo Choo Train Driving’ by the Pasadenas” — shurely shome mishtake? … Eon Irving points out that the “I tell you I can’t relax, you know” quote in The Real Roxanne’s ‘Respect’ is by American cult comedian Rodney Dangerfield … Norman Cook and Streets Ahead were cockahoop at Brighton’s Downbeat last Wednesday when Run-DMC and Jam Master Jay jammed on the mic, with Derek B and Public Enemy in the house too … Nicky Holloway, Pete Tong, Rocky & Diesel start Deep in Uxbridge at Regals this Tuesday (8), playing deep house, garage, new beat and Balearic, but no acieed … Sheikh Jnr every Wednesday (9-11pm) at the free admission Blue Notes in Wantage’s The Swan, and in a one off this Friday (11) at Newbury College, says it’s “dress tuff, music likewise” … Graeme Park currently hosts ‘Steamer’ Wednesdays at Sheffield’s Leadmill, ‘Phreek’ Thursdays and ‘Phreek 2’ Saturdays at Nottingham’s Kool Kat (ex-The Garage), and joins Mike Pickering on Fridays at Manchester’s Hacienda, playing hip hop and early electro as well as house … Steve Roberts (Putney Mr Micawbers), in a chart that’s otherwise acid, deep house and soul, has revived Yazoo’s ‘Don’t Go’ — it had to happen! … Radio Sheffield’s dance master Holcott Foster and Radio Manchester’s living soul legend Mike Shaft have started Saturdays together at Huddersfield’s PleasureDome, where Holcott alone handles seriously acidic Fridays … John Matthews at Wealdstone’s Tudors on Thursdays has absolutely no acid, just soul/funk/jazz … Alexander O’Neal’s new US album is a Jam & Lewis produced (and partly penned) Christmas set called ‘My Gift To You’!… John Dunn rather than Bill Grainger now manages Kelly Marie … Record Mirror’s legendary Norman Jopling was never “Normal”… NANU NANU

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HOT VINYL

THE TODD TERRY PROJECT ‘To The Batmobile, Let’s Go’ (Sleeping Bag Records SBUKLP 002)
Not due for UK release until November 21, this eagerly awaited album doesn’t have so much that’s new and essential as nearly half the tracks are already known, the giggly jumping (0-)124bpm ‘Bango‘, Class Action girls wailed (0-)123-0bpm ‘Weekend‘, Third World underpinned 121⅔-122-0bpm ‘Just Wanna Dance‘, and excitingly nervy scratching and leaping 121-0bpm ‘Back To The Beat‘. However, the brand new ‘Batman’ effects introed acidically sizzled typical jittery leaping instrumental (0-)121-0bpm ‘The Circus’ is certainly hot, other fresh cuts being the tensely jittering 118-0bpm ‘It’s Just Inhuman‘, “you bad”-repeating jiggly tugging hip hop-ish 0-103⅔-0bpm ‘You’re The One‘, funky drummered rambling scratched and rapped 102⅓-0bpm ‘Made By The Man‘, and attractive but odd atmospherically doodling 0-87-0-87-0bpm ‘Sense‘.

KID ‘N’ PLAY ‘2 Hype’ (US Select Records SEL 21628)
Producer Hurby Luv Bug ransacks the Sixties and early Seventies for funk riffs to back this strong rap set, with the “oh la, oh la” chanting infectious go-go 0-103bpm ‘Rollin’ With Kid ‘N Play’, ‘Funky Broadway’, based 105bpm ‘Brother Man Get Hip‘, Sam & Dave bass-lined 0-113-0bpm ‘Soul Man‘, James Brown based (and grunted) 0-111⅓bpm ‘Do The Kid ‘N Play Kick Step‘, sorta ‘Walk On The Wild Side’/’Thank You (Falletinme Be Mice Elf Agin)’ combining (0-)111-0bpm ‘Can You Dig That‘, ‘Uptight’ based 0-134½-0bpm title track, fast talking jittery 115-0bpm ‘Damn That DJ (The Wizard M.E.)‘, The Real Roxanne-duetted swaying 0-93½-0bpm ‘Undercover‘, previously released 105bpm ‘Gittin’ Funky’, 99bpm ‘Last Night’, 115bpm ‘Do This My Way’.

THE REAL ROXANNE ‘The Real Roxanne’ (US Select Records SEL 21627)
Rapping “Roxanne” Martinez gets soft on some slowies which add to this good album’s variety, but stays tougher than ever on the furiously fierce, Public Enemy “boyee” and Royal House/Jacksons “can you feel it” shouted, ‘Shaft’ wukka-wukked 114¼bpm ‘Don’t Even Feel It’ (this set’s ‘Get On The Dance Floor’), catchy Dixie Cups/Shirelles flavoured jiggly singalong 106bpm ‘Luv Scandal‘, tensely jittering vaguely Jackson 5-ish 92bpm ‘Look But Don’t Touch‘, huskily talked/sung and “la la”-ed (off a crackly old record) (0-)97-0bpm ‘Early Early (La La)‘, soulful piano chorded attractive swaying 80⅓bpm ‘Infactuated‘, plaintively sung Tiffany-ish (0-)76⅓-0bpm ‘Oh Darlin’ (Like We Used To)‘, JB-based jaunty old 114½bpm ‘Roxanne’s On A Roll‘, current Aretha reviving 112-0bpm ‘Respect’ and ‘Pick Up The Pieces’ backed 0- 104½bpm ‘Her Bad Self’. Continue reading “November 12, 1988: The Todd Terry Project, Kid ‘N’ Play, The Real Roxanne, OMD, George Benson”

BEATS & PIECES

George Benson has added an extra date this weekend at Wembley, and so won’t be a surprise visitor to North Wales (where I’m sorry to hear that Prestatyn will be a firework free zone) … Supreme Records picked up the Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock album here, from which ‘Get On The Dance Floor’ will inevitably be their first single but not until January … DJ Bob Masters incidentally has just joined the label as dance music product and club promotion manager … Westside Records now have exclusive UK rights to Chicago’s Trax Records product, the long term deal covering all back catalogue and future releases … Motown, newly reinvigorated following their purchase by MCA Records, have signed the Pointer Sisters and Leon Sylvers, amongst others … Sharon Davis has written a weighty ‘Motown – The History’ (Guinness Books, £14.95) which covers the legendary record company’s entire existence, perhaps a little bit too thoroughly during the most recent era with which she herself has had her closest involvement, Gordon Frewin supplying an exhaustive looking discography which will doubtless prove most useful (and throw up some surprises?) … ‘The Hit Factory Vol 2’ (Fanfare/PWL Records HF4), continuing the compilation of “the best of Stock Aitken Waterman”, already includes their only just US released SOS Band/Princess-style 100bpm ‘Tell Him I Called’ by Miami girl duo Sequal … Bananarama’s ‘Greatest Hits Collection’ album is being promoted by a probably quite useful 0-120½…126bpm ‘Bananarama Megamix’ of their biggest hits on special limited edition “not for resale” promo (ffrr MEGA 5) … Timerider’s typically European (0-)119⅓bpm thudding electro instrumental ‘Cocoon’ (Lisson Records DOLEQ 8) has, as previously warned, been reissued from last year now that it’s used both as the theme tune to TV’s ‘The Hitman And Her’ and in ‘The Fruit Machine’ film (from Germany’s XYZ Records, and apparently 1985, it is not a PWL creation) … Kym Mazelle’s import pressing of ‘Useless’ (US EMI-Syncopate V-15406) contains all the Marshall Jefferson and Clivilles & Cole mixes on one piece of vinyl, making better value than the split UK release … Vesta Williams’ ‘Vesta 4 U’ LP is now out here (Breakout AMA 5223) … Neneh Cherry ‘Buffalo Stance’, reviewed last week off an uninformative promo pressing, turns out to be produced by Tim Simenon … I had forgotten that Rickster ‘Night Moves’ was in fact American, on US Vinyl Pak back around January … Children Of The Night ‘It’s A Trip’ is wrongly labelled, the Killer Instrumental Mix properly being Mike ‘Hitman’ Wilson’s Psychedelic Remix … I can’t say I’m looking forward to BPM-ing Ten City’s upcoming album, which producer Marshall Jefferson confesses uses live drums (by Philly veteran Earl Young) and will “mess up a lot of DJs”! … Stetsasonic’s follow-up, advisedly for the pop market, will be their album’s revival of the Floaters’ ‘Float On’ … Derek B appears to be having trouble coming up with a crucial enough mix of his long delayed next single, ‘Who Dares Wins’ … Roger Tovell is now head of music at Severn Sound, where the new librarian/producer Jerry Hipkiss’s 6-9pm ‘Saturday Soul’ show plays soulful dance music and deep house, refusing to revive the flagging careers of failed pop musicians/computer programmers who’ve jumped on the nearest passing bandwagon (we know just who he means!) … I fear that Capital Radio’s clever rescheduling of their Saturday night black music programmes, with Pete Tong starting his chart rundown at 7.30pm, followed by Tim Westwood at 8pm, must be keeping many people tuned who might otherwise have switched over to Radio 1 for the inestimable Robbie Vincent soul show – Robbie, by the way, had over 5,000 callers to the “information line” he plugged on Radio London prior to moving to LBC! … Greater London Radio, as Radio London has now become, isn’t anything like as good with presenters as it was during its continuously segued test transmissions, which seemed to attract more listeners than ever while they were running! … Stuart Coleman’s excellent Sunday ‘Echoes’ oldies programme sadly has not carried over to GLR (maybe LBC could give him a slot?), one of his last guest interviewees being Record Mirror’s legendary 1960s journalist Norman Jopling – who has recently resurfaced, writing the liner notes for a scrappy Ike & Tina Turner compilation on Start, and promoting the new 12 Inch Grooves series of “collectable club favourites” that Old Gold Records have just started, the first CBS originated batch including back-to-back Marlena Shaw ‘Yuma/Go Away Little Boy’/Starship Orchestra ‘New York, New York’, Ned Doheny ‘To Prove My Love’/Hawk & Co ‘Nite-Life’, Eddie Murphy ‘Boogie In Your Butt’/’Party All The Time’ and others by Melba Moore, Bobby Glover, Jimmy Messina, Kenny Loggins, The Futures, Dee Dee Sharpe Gamble … Stylus Records seem likely to get a puzzled reaction to their TV advertised ‘The Rare Groove Mix’ album, a follow-up to their successful ‘60s Mix’ series, which for some misguided reason they didn’t think would sound so commercial if titles ‘70s Mix’ – far from “rare groove”, the totally pop contents contain such real rarities as Dawn ‘Knock Three Times’, Mud ‘Tiger Feet’, and Derek & The Dominos ‘Layla’! … Finesse Conditioner’s telly commercial use of Irma Thomas’s ‘Time Is On My Side’ reminds me that at the same time in 1964 that I sent Bessie Banks’ ‘Go Now’ over from New York as material for the Moody Blues, I also sent Irma’s record, which London based Denny Cordell then passed on to the Rolling Stones, whose cover version became their very first US hit! … I can recommend for any hungry Prestatyn visitors this weekend to try at lunchtime the eat as much as you like for around £6, help yourself starters, main courses and puds at the Dinorben Arms in Bodfari, a picturesquely sited hilltop village about 10 miles due south of Prestatyn down the western slopes of the Clwydian Range – leave the camp as if for London, first right (after the railway bridge and sharp bend) on the A547 towards Rhuddlan, once you’ve got into the countryside turn left in a dip (soon after passing the dramatically big hill) to go through Dyserth, and then head straight (with just one right hand fork as you leave the houses) along a country road through Rhualtt and Tremeirchion to Bodfari, where the pub is impossible to miss as it dominates the village (the food may be more “gourmand” than “gourmet”, but I promise you won’t regret the outing) … I myself, if you’re all there, will be further down the Vale Of Clwyd at the even better Cerrigllwydion Arms in Llanynys, my “local” when in North Wales – and if you feel bold enough to find that, you’ll have to buy a map! … Gilles Peterson and Rob Galliano join Hugh Bryder to “acid jazz” Liverpool’s Mardi Gras Club on Thursday (3) … Saturday (5) finds Kid ‘N’ Play, Salt-n-Pepa, MC Duke and the Fly Girls at the Brixton Academy, while Ray Keith, Guy Palmer, Dave Malone and Turbo bring acid, deep house and def beats to Colchester’s The Venue … Jeff Thomas is joined at Swansea Martha’s Vineyard by Royal House on Monday (7), and James ‘D Train’ Williams the following week … Nigel Hill, after five years mobile, is now resident six night a week at Weston-Super-Mare’s Mr B’s, where he starts an acid house night next Wednesday (9) with guests the Moody Boys and This Ain’t Chicago, plus Baby Ford the following week … Dave Evans has also jumped on the bandwagon, with acid Mondays at Stockport Hamiltons … Norman Cook sends greetings from Brighton to point out that it was of course he who created the “illegal mix” of the Osmonds’ ‘One Bad Apple’ (something not made apparent by its plain white label), and that he’s now jocking at Downbeat with Streets Ahead on Wednesdays and Jacky on Saturdays … Barry Island’s veteran (though not that old) jock, Steve Wiggins would welcome a change of South Wales scenery if anyone in clubland is interested (on 0446-733196, office hours) – he offers upfront soul, reggae, pop, golden oldies, party sets, even fruit from his shop! … Dee Dee Wilde supports Will Downing on his UK visit later this month, at Manchester’s Apollo (19) and London’s Hammersmith Odeon (20/21) … Castle Beat ‘I Shot The Sheriff/Deputy Of Love (Medley)’ finally appeared in someone’s chart, at number one for Danny Rampling of London’s legendary Shoom, no less … DJ Trix has at number one in his Birkenhead Bassment chart, “DJ Trix Live On Stage’ – like it! … Glyn Prince at Swindon’s Brunel Rooms Ampitheatre combines The Mafia ‘ABC’ and Osmonds ‘One Bad Apple (Illegal Mix)’ in a megamix … Mark Devlin (Witney) tips that the original mix of Bam Bam ‘Give It To Me’ synchs perfectly with the Patrick Cowley remix of Donna Summer ‘I Feel Love’ (which was due to be reissued but now appears to have been put on hold) … Mike Shawe (2 Marlwood Drive, Brentry, Bristol BS10 6SJ) offers any price for a copy of Blare ‘Nightlife’ … NANU NANU!

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‘NEW BEAT’

The gadfly of dance music fashion has darted on, just as you thought “acieed!” was where it’s at. Those same pace-setting London jocks who launched the still locally limited “Balearic beat” trend, but who ironically ended up better publicised for the “acieed!” orientation of their gigs, have dropped acid like a hot brick now that it has crossed over commercially (naturally, they cite a variety of other justifications!) and instead are latching on to the Balearic related Belgian variant of electro Europop known as “new beat” (about which I mentioned several weeks ago, although it became garbled in the printing, that the previously reviewed Amnesia ‘Ibiza‘ is a prime example). Already, dedicated fashion victims are following their lead and snapping up copies of a domestically distributed Belgian compilation album, A.B.-SOUNDS ‘New Beat — Take 1‘ (Subway Records SUB 034, via Rough Trade), even though it merely sounds like the experimental electro tinkerings of Blancmange, Yazoo and other similar British “new romantics” of the early Eighties, but without such strong songs. Its biggest tracks, which are indeed OK, include the tinkling, twittering and muttering densely chugging 0-112bpm A SPLIT SECOND ‘Flesh‘, “taste of sugar” and “do you wanna suck my (bleep)?” punctuated James Brown-cutting 0-114bpm TASTE OF SUGAR ‘Hmm, Hmm‘, and to an extent the imperatively muttered and girls entreated martial chugging 108⅔-00bpm EROTIC DISSIDENTS ‘Move Your Ass‘, the rest being the dialogue overlaid nervily jittering deceptively slower sounding 0-120bpm S.M. ‘S.M.‘, “hey Mister Dee Jay” chanted jauntily synthed rolling 112bpm ELECTRIC SHOCK ‘Don’t Talk About Sex‘, Oriental flavoured ploddingly attractive jogging 98½bpm JADE 4 U ‘Rainbows (Instrumental)‘, “Chinese” girls chatted trotting 112bpm SECRETS OF CHINA ‘Chinese Ways‘, Tibetan flavoured jiggling 108bpm SHAKTI ‘The Awakening‘, gruff “dance” prodded drily electronic lurching 108⅙bpm BEAT BEAT BEAT ‘Beat In The Street‘, droningly undertowed simplistic Euro-rapped 0-110⅓bpm DIRTY HARRY ‘D’Bop‘, sometimes old “electro”-style instrumental 0-113-0bpm IN-D ‘Virgins In-D Sky’s‘ and monotonous depressing dense 110⅓-0bpm SNOWY RED ‘Euroshima-Wardance‘. I can’t say they do anything for me, much. From the some Belgian Antler Records source and selling on 12 inch for several weeks now, MAJOR PROBLEM ‘Acid Queen (Dirty Version)‘ (KAOS dance records KAOS 003) is a kinky “show me your pussy”/”get down on your hands and knees” muttering and groaning purposefully lurching 113bpm twittery heavy thudder (fully instrumental flip), while getting “new beat” attention also has been LAIBACH ‘Sympathy For The Devil’ (Neue Slowenische Kunst/Mute 1MUTE80T), the Rolling Stones tune being most recognisable in the AA-side’s frequency fluttering juddery (0-)117⅔-0bpm electro treatment with sampled stuttery Jagger chatter, the A-side being a resonant throbbing and chugging 123bpm instrumental that doesn’t seem particularly related (it’s hard to know from blank white labels, there also being a more recent and properly printed but confusingly labelled remix three-tracker).

The above are only a few examples, there being a lot of good material according to Nicky Holloway, just back from trawling through record shops in Belgium, who incidentally points out that nobody actually sat on the floor at Rockley Sands as only about half a dozen acid trax were played there over the entire weekend, the Balearic groove having already moved on to new beat (in combination with other stuff) by then! Nicky is in fact returning to London’s Astoria this Saturday (November the Fifth), leaving Prestatyn early, to start a weekly Made On Earth night in the new non-acidic style (absolutely NO Smiley T-shirts admitted), with guest jocks Mark Moore and Trevor Fung this first night after which Pete Tong will be his regular partner. Meanwhile, Paul Oakenfold’s Monday night at Heaven has already changed its name to Spectrum Presents Fantasia, with a similar acid-free policy of new beat, garage and deep house. Could it be that “Belgique, Belgique!” (as in, “Bel-jeek, Bel-jeek!”) will become the new “acieed!” chant? Inevitably, Pete Tong is ensuring that London/ffrr are in on the new trend at the beginning, the series-continuing ‘Balearic Beats Vol 2 — New Beat’ album already being in the pipeline, as basically the above reviewed Belgian compilation with its more duff tracks substituted by better. I can already anticipate the first Hercule Poirot Remix…

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HOT VINYL

THE PARTY BOY ‘The Twilight Zone (Remix)’ (Urban Acid URBX 27)
Chris ‘Bam Bam’ Westbrook recorded here for the ‘Urban Acid’ album (its best track) and subsequently remixed this mystically muttered, child giggled, synth bubbled and twittered 123bpm sparse simple acid treatment of the TV theme, a real mood piece for trance dancing (alternative 123bpm B-side mix more like — but not — the album version).

ERIC B & RAKIM ‘Microphone Fiend (Remix)’ (MCA Records MCAT 1300)
Also separately promoed with its own instrumental and seven inch version as flip but commercially available like this, the US choice of follow-up is this DJ Mark-The 45 King (rather than Red Alert) remixed wordy slow rumbling 93½bpm murkily churning jogger with bursts of jingle bells and a fiercely scratched finish, AA-sided by the more UK compatible fast talking jittery ‘Put Your Hands Together’ in the already separately promed (0-)111-0bpm Fon Force Mix, overlaid by resonant synth tones, and (the decisive winner on promo in The Club Chart) Graeme Park’s (0-)112bpm Parkside Mix, with Humphrey Bogart “play it!” intro and overlaid “acieed” sirens nagging away.

S.L.F. (STREET LEVEL FUNK) ‘Show Me What You Got’ (Warriors Dance WAAF 005T, via Spartan)
North West London’s Keith Franklin, Keith Sealy, Eddie Andrew and Birmingham’s vocalist E Major create an impressive “acid soul” fusion on the vigorous old fashioned soulfully harmonised but acidically backed frantically flying and sadly short 124¼bpm Vocal Mix, well worth hearing, the piano plonked and synth twittered clonking instrumental 125bpm Acid Mix Part 1 and 124½-0bpm Acid Mix Part 2 being fierce though nowhere near so distinctive or interesting. Continue reading “November 5, 1988: New Beat: “The gadfly of dance music fashion has darted on, just as you thought “acieed!” was where it’s at.””

BEATS & PIECES

LIVEWIRE PROMOTIONS’ Prestatyn weekender on November 4/5/6 will be the busiest yet with over 4,000 booked in already (it’s doubtful but there may be last minute room left on 01-364 1212, no day passes being available so don’t turn up on spec at the gate), the big live attraction of Keith Sweat being supplemented by the James Taylor Quartet plus PAs by Karyn White, Kym MazeIle, d. mob, Adrenalin MOD, Electra, Jazz & The Brothers Grimm, Heaven & Earth, Troop, Reid, while Tim Westwood’s Saturday night rap special will feature the Ruthless Rap Assassins, plus hopefully Salt-n-Pepa and Kid ‘N’ Play … 4am is the new closedown time on both nights … Chris Hill and Robbie Vincent running a soul room to counter the inevitable acid overkill elsewhere – however, care is being taken to ensure that not every room is playing the same music (Kev Hill has declared himself an acid free zone!) … Bobby Brown and Cherrelle are already being mooted as the possible stars at the next Easter Prestatyn, while this one might just be graced by the surprise appearance of singing twanger surnamed Benson (but I didn’t tell you that, OK?)! … Stock Aitken Waterman and Bananarama, or their “pop dance” equivalents, will be collecting awards in a separate ceremony to the “black dance” acts at the 1989 International DJ Convention, thus preventing any ugly clash as occurred this year, the Disco Mix Club organised event taking place in London next March with an opening party and pop awards on Sunday 12th at the Hippodrome, all day seminar and World Mixing eliminations on Monday 13th at Leicester Square’s Empire, and Technics World DJ Mixing finals and black awards on Tuesday 14th at the Royal Albert Hall … Virgin seem to have snapped up the Ronald Burrell created Bäs Noir import hit, presumably to keep everything in the family … Phase II ‘Reachin’’ has been temporarily deleted to build up sales demand to help it cross over when put back in the shops … Republic Records are releasing here the months old but still much played Turntable Orchestra ‘You’re Gonna Miss Me‘, from US Music Village Records, out separately although promoed back-to-back with Kym Mazelle ‘I’m A Lover‘, one of Marshall Jefferson’s earlier productions by her on Lower Level Records … Robert Clivilles & David Cole may have signed to Breakout as The Brat Pack for ‘Do It Properly Part II‘, but they’ve also signed to Syncopate under the old name of 2 Puerto Ricans A Blackman And A Dominican! … Damon Rochefort is behind the controversial Mr E ‘Don’t Believe The Hype‘, so far only one solitary acetate which shuttles between Jeff Young and Pete Tong for radio play, being an acid track that samples Sir Alistair Burnett and the recent ITN ‘News At Ten’ report on acid house … Les Adams is remixing Maurice Joshua ‘This Is Acid’ … MCA Records have serviced a 33⅓rpm five track promo of the buoyant trotting 116bpm Mac Band featuring The McCampbell Brothers ‘Jealous (Remix)‘, ahead of November 14 release here — the label has also launched a ‘Sunset Sound of L.A.’ album series, compiling recent UK and US issued singles (regardless of whether recorded in Los Angeles) which readers of this column will know … Ben Liebrand’s Summer ’88 Remix of the Four Seasons featuring Frankie Valli ‘Oh What A Night (December, 1963)’ turns out here as in Holland to be on br. music (1245277, via Prism Leisure Corporation) … Jive have added the She Rockers to a roster that already includes the Wee Papa Girl Rappers … Sleeping Bag Records’ UK launch party was definitely the hottest ticket in town last week (in fact to get in you had to wear a special T-shirt!), everyone being there to make it a pleasant social occasion, but as a music showcase it never took off (although people appreciated the house and rap sets spun by Graeme Park and Tim Westwood) … Dance Aid has finally been given full charitable status by the Charity Commissioners … Westside Records owners Jacqueline and Morgan Khan are the proud parents of two month old Fallon Jasmine Khan, while Breakout’s label manager Mike Sefton is anticipating imminent fatherhood too … Harrow’s Jon Jules had his £1,100 mobile yuppie ‘phone stolen out of his bag while travelling on the tube, and had to fork out for another one, all on top of moving house and finding the ceiling leaks … Virgin’s club plugger Clare Shave had all her belongings swiped at the Rockley Sands weekender, including all her personal telephone contact numbers, and would appreciate being reinformed about people’s private numbers (the sort that wouldn’t be on official file) … I hear that everyone sat on the floor at Rockley Sands when Nicky Holloway started to play acid house — so thankfully the backlash against the commercialisation of “acieed” has begun, just as happens whenever any sort of underground music crosses over — and also that Gary Haisman of d. mob apparently had something against his allocated caravan! … Top Shop has just banned the sale of “Smiley” T-shirts … Pete Haigh (Blackpool), boosting garage and street soul, observes that he saw drugs ruin the northern soul scene in 1974-6, and the backlash then became jazz/funk! … Jeff Thomas’s Mondays at Martha’s Vineyard remain unchanged while as of the opening night this Thursday (27), he crosses the road in Swansea to join Peter Helyer on Thurs/Fri/Saturdays at the newly refurbished Ritzy (formerly Mayfair) … Liverpool “urban funk band” Raw Unlimited play with DJ Desa this Thursday (27) at the Bassment, inside the Comet car park behind Hamilton Square station in Birkenhead — in which town on Monday (31) The Defhouse Twenty Four is at Atmosphere with Desa, Kenni James, Dave Ralph and PAs by Projection, Children Of The Night, Hit & Run … Eartha Kitt is a delighted Norman Scott’s special Hallowe’en guest on Monday (31) at London’s Bang … Steven Danté’s progress in The Club Chart with ‘Imagination’, as of last week, had the neat symmetry: 77 – 38 -30 – 38 – 77 … NANU NANU!

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TODD TERRY (pictured here for the first time in rm) got behind the decks at the Wag during Sleeping Bag Records’ UK launch party last week, and mixed up all his hot floor filling productions. It would be nice to say that the result was an event to remember, but in truth, and sadly, it was about as interesting and exciting as hearing any DJ in any club anywhere mixing the same records (which, let’s face it, you are likely to encounter everywhere right now).

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Les Adams dropped to one knee bearing a bunch of red roses at his L.A. Mix partner Emma Freilich’s 21st birthday, and said, “I haven’t got you a present, so instead, will you marry me?” Shocked and delighted, Emma luckily answered “Yes!” All together now, “ahh…”

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HOT VINYL

THE TODD TERRY PROJECT ‘Weekend (Club Version)’ (Sleeping Bag Records UK SBUK 1T, via The Cartel)
The hottest import for a while is due out here next week, this Class Action girls sampling (0-)122⅔-122¾-122⅔-122¾-0bpm jerkily jumping canterer having proved bigger than the now B-sided Third World ‘Now That We Found Love’ pulsed and other samples zapped jittery leaping instrumental 121⅓-121⅔-0bpm ‘Just Wanna Dance (Club Version)‘ (Radio Versions too).

CHILDREN OF THE NIGHT ‘It’s A Trip (Tune In, Turn On, Drop Out)’ (Jive JIVE T 189)
Kool Kat recorded very calculatedly commercial frantic twittering and jittering acid bubbler from Manchester, borrowing d. mob’s “acieed!” chant and the Fini Tribe’s ‘De Testimony’ chimes, in 127bpm Hacienda and Instrumental Mixes, 0-126bpm Killer Instrumental Mix, likely to do well in the current crossover climate without winning any marks for originality.

BIG DADDY KANE ‘Set It Off (Extended Mix)’ (Cold Chillin’ W76761)
Finally out commercially, this Marley Marl produced/remixed excitingly churning drums throbbed (0-)116¼bpm new wave rap swirler has a naggingly repeated piercing tinny guitar noise that’s even more brain chewing than Public Enemy’s noises (fast talking 0-118⅔bpm LP version too, and tricky fatback funk drummed dubwise 98½-0bpm Bobby Byrd-cutting ‘Get Into It‘). Continue reading “October 29, 1988: The Todd Terry Project, Children Of The Night, Big Daddy Kane, The Real Roxanne, Young M.C.”