why did you do it?

Gregory1, originally uploaded by thebeathunters.

STRETCH/WHY DID YOU DO IT?/GONE
ariola, 1975
well, i didn't find the dcbasehead live e.p. but i'm sure it's here somewhere and will surface someday. seems like anyone didn't get much into it anyway though i wish i had some feedback about these guys from the official hiphop blogheads, whatever.
today's track is a club classic. stretch was a seventies rock band formed by drummer jim russell and former curved air guitarist gregory kirby, who billed himself simply as "kirby" and signed this hit. plenty of info about that band british HERE
why did you do it?" charted number 16 in UK in november 1975. funny that their most successful track seems like an UFO in their discography. rated at their 1976 peak by critics as "the greatest british blues and boogie band of the era"... they "nearly blew ritchie blackmore's rainbow off stage", which sure means a lot to whom it may concern.
however, this track is a pure soulful gem and will rock any floor any time. originally issued on the "elastique" album BUY
it also appeared on the "lock, stock and two smoking barrels" soundtrackBUY

i need a joint

dc bassheads, originally uploaded by thebeathunters.

dcBASEHEAD/NOT IN KANSAS ANYMORE
imago, 1992
INTRODUCTIONS/GONE
I NEED A JOINT/GONE
THE POPEYE PHILOSOPHY/GONE
WANNA FUCK (OR WHAT)/GONE
as a follow-up to the successful PLAY WITH TOYS album, michael ivey reloaded the 4-track tape recorder batteries, invited his buddies over again, invested royalties on his favorite beer and tried to repeat the magic without taking himself or the whole thing too seriously.
as the "basshead" live intro tells: we're definitely not in kansas anymore. i guess touring the college radios and the indie circuit had some rock influence on the band but lo-fi and weed still rule. the whatdafuck philosophy keps it real all along the album with funny skits that give some edge to an otherwise hybrid patchwork of quite monotonous tracks that, to my opinion, don't reach the play with toys' album vibe. in france, dc basehead was suddenly the hype-thanks to les inrocks (see previous post) and a live e.p got released and was offered with subscriptions. i know it's here somewhere. i searched the basement for hours the other day, diggin' some forgotten gems i'll share with you asap. but i still have to grab that cd for the next post. enjoy the tracks and try to find the cd at your record store bargain bin or click here: BUY

play with toys

dcbasehead, originally uploaded by thebeathunters.

dcBASEHEAD/PLAY WITH TOYS
imago, 1992
INTRO/gone
DC2000/gone
BRAND NEW DAY/gone
dcBasehead a.k.a MICHAEL IVEY dropped his first lo-fi hiphop album in '92 and created a buzz over alternative press and college radio. supposedly recorded at home on a four-track machine with various friends, it was a new landmark in DIY music long before the idea of homestudio emerged. "laid-back, stoned hip-hop rythm tracks, pop hooks, drawled raps and pseudo folky-guitar" is the perfect description mp3.com gives away and i can't beat it.
in france, dcBasehead was da shit according to LES INROCKUPTIBLES the french rock bible mag since 1986 and PLAY WITH TOYS stood up in their TOP 20 LPS OF 1992 next to nick cave, pj harvey, neil young, REM, etc.
i agree with THIS REVIEW but wonder what u.s hipbloggers think about dcBasehead (hellooo oliverW, noz...) or any welcome guest with attitude. listen online then buy the album at yer favorite record store if available... more on mike ivey and his "NOT IN KANSAS ANYMORE" in next post.
da MOISTWORKS SITUATION
are we seeing the future of audioblogs here? by chopping one of the best blogheads they'll probably make their point. shall we organize resistance or duck down? to whom it may concern, let's talk about it.
post updated (kaotic links and blogger published it 3 times!) thanks steve for feedback and enjoy your uk trip.

jazz it up

beets cd, originally uploaded by thebeathunters.

FRED FRITH/BOOTS/gone
MACHETE ENSEMBLE OF S.F/MEDICINE MAN/gone
from BEETS: A COLLECTION OF JAZZ SONGS, elemental music,1990.
this UFO of a cd landed in my collection many years ago. tracklisting includes sun ra, anthony braxton, sonny simmons and rova saxophone quartet but these 2 tracks still get regular airplay.
FRED FRITH needs no introduction as deus ex machina of contemporary guitar and offers here a short nuclear jam.
THE MACHETE ENSEMBLE OF SAN FRANCISCO features the magic of the conch shells as interpreted by master improviser,
STEVE TURRE
i've been a long-time fan of steve turre's music, especially his first albums with his wife, cello player akua dixon. i remember seeing his trio live in a NY club back in the 90's. i was shocked everybody was drinking, eating and making loud noise, for people atjazz concerts or in clubs in europe stay almost religiously silent. the place was so small the waitress had to calculate the perfect timing for her moves to avoid being nailed by the trombone and it obviously pissed her off.i have memories of a very percussive piano player, maybe don pullen., and being thrilled by the presence in the audience of another pianist i was fond of, mulgrew miller. lately, thanks to TOTALLY FUZZY i've been listening to amazing jazz mixes provided by FREEFORM.ORG
the strata east/tribe mixe is exceptional.

the hit list

best of 2004, originally uploaded by thebeathunters.

JET SET SLAVE MIX/GONE
EVERTON SYLVESTER &Dr.JOHN
here's my top 20+1 albums for 2004, in no comprehensive order or preference.
all were played repeatedly, intensively even compulsively. my absolute best discovery is JET JAGUAR's music, thanks to Fat Planet for this one! and DWELE's SUBJECT remains my ultimate summer of soul album for 2 years in a row...
BEST OF 2004
blockhead/music by cavelight (ninja tune)
troublemakers/express way (blue note)
moodymann/black mahogani (peacefrog)
the album leaf/in a safe place (labels)
le coeur/suddenly (mental groove)
foreign exchange/connected (bbe)
boom bip/corymb (lex)
jet jaguar/is love (involve records 2003)/think about it later (capital recordings 2003)/self-titled (involve records,1999)
harold budd/avalon sutra (samahdi sound)
the brown bunny/j.frusciante &various (tulip records)
b.fleischmann/welcome tourist (morr music)
feist/let it die (polydor)
kings of convenience/riot on an empty street(source)
djkrush/jaku (sony)
the blue nile/high (sanctuary)
akira rabelais/spellewauerynsherde (samahdi sound)
arthur russell/the world of AR (souljazz records)
anja lechner/vassilis stabropoulos/chants, hymns &dances (ecm)
ocean's twelve/david holmes&various (warner)
dwele/subject (virgin)2003
ALL of these releases are available online but try first to hit your favorite record store to keep these guys in shape.

angie's nights

mister Q, originally uploaded by thebeathunters.

ANGIE'S NIGHTS
ANGIE'S SUMMER NIGHT
best wishes to everybody out there who enjoyed it there in 2004 : love, happiness and great health to take care of everybody you love and carry on with success whatever you plan or expect.
lookin' back, it was; as frankie sung, a very good year. it's just that time flies up so fast its kinda scary and as i guess we're all spending more and more time in front of a computer, i'm afraid it won't get any better 'til 2006...
for this first post, i wanted to share two of my own favorite "bootlegs/mash-ups/remixes" of 2004. maybe some of you grabbed them before on the net, thru GYBO or Fat Planet but i felt like giving them another exposure for naugahyde newcomers.
the 2 versions of "les nuits" recorded by NIGHTMARES ON WAX, from the albums SMOKERS DELIGHT(1995) and CARBOOT SOUL(1999) respectively, are very soulful reconstructions/variations of QUINCY JONES' masterpiece "summer in the city" (from "YOU'VE GOT IT BAD, GIRL" lp, A&M records,1973) and laid the foundations of my two alternate mixes.
edited vocals by r'n'b diva ANGIE STONE/"wish i didn't miss you" from her album MAHOGANY SOUL(2001) add another vibe to the instrumentals and strings arranged and conducted by claus ogerman, from BJORK's "hyperballad"/POST(1995) give a final melankolic lush.
music speaks for itself so i won't try too hard to sell these tracks to you (and you can object that with such awesome original material i couldn't really go wrong...) still, i think they work pretty well altogether. btw last summer in barcelona, i heard a very good balearic/guitar-driven remix of miss stone's track but couldn't trace it (any info?)
as these tracks are more personal than usual, comments, feedback and critics are more than very welcomed.