Monday, October 15, 2007

same old story back again



is it just me or there's so many cool places around it's hard to keep up with 'em on a regular basis... even the rss and such a genial organizer as netvibes tends to make this blog thing ridiculous.
however, among my latest fave spots i couldn't help but recommand CATASTO'S FRIENDLY FIRE-, HUMBLE PIE'S INNER SANCTUM- definitely the best jazz live jams around,
MY FAVORITE SOUNDS, with whom i collaborated on a Bobby Pierce gig (catch it while it lasts), MY JAZZ WORLD is insanely consistant with underrated gems. on a hip-hop tip, WHEN THEY REMINISCE..., SWEET BLACK MUSIC and EFFICIENCY ONE are my best groove providers right now and deserve much respect.
you'll find these guys on the link section and be sure to pay them a visit.

i'm a sucker for covers, mash-ups and good remixes and stumbled on an excellent Angie Stone reggaestruction by NUFFWISH at CAPTAIN'S CRATE. it reminded me i myself got busy in the homestudio a few years ago, messin' with the same Angie track: "Wish i didn't miss you".

the backbone of both remixes are Nightmares on Wax' "Les Nuits", two slightly different versions taken respectively from "Smoker's Delight" (1995) and "Carboot Soul" (1999) albums.
Nightmares On Wax-aka George Evelyn-seemed to be particularly fond of Quincy Jones' "Summer in the city"- and who isn't?- which inspired him these definitive chill-out classics.

i remember hummin' the strings arrangements, blending naturally with Eumir Deodato's own lush signature of Björk's "Hyperballad", ending with the absolute/perfect (yes, baby...) soundtracks for Angie's words and adlibs.

hope you'll enjoy both versions, spread the good word and show some love.
ANGIE'S SUMMER NIGHT
ANGIE'S NIGHT

Sunday, October 07, 2007

the taste of you



today's post is a rarity i'm sure you'll enjoy:
THE ERROL PARKER EXPERIENCE, recorded in NYC on april 1977, for Sahara records (errol's parker -a.k.a the dude on the album cover- own label) feat. clyde tate on vocals, monty waters on alto & soprano saxes, errol parker on both electric and acoustic piano, tambourine and cowbell, james"fish" benjamin on fender bass , clyde lucas on drums. you can grab more info about the man here

i couldn't track this piece of vinyl anywhere. google dug it out on some japanese rare records website so grab it while you can (at 320 kbps) and enjoy: it's a loose, groovy and almost "spiritual" jazz session, the kind of live jam with ups, downs and mishaps but full-flavored of funky seventies spirit.
now, obviously sahara studios were far from rudy van gelder's sonic standards and the drums, cowbell and hi-hat are pushed a little too loud and upfront for my taste but hey, if it was alright with errol, it's fine with me...
so pick up the pieces and feel the basement funk like back in the days...

in case you missed it, i collaborated with those cool guys celoduro and jazzypier for a Bobby Pierce post @ my favourite sound , be sure to pay them a visit on your way out, there's more than plenty of amazing stuff down there.

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

africadelic's the name, volume one



hi music lovers worldwide. i'm finally back with one rare and sought-after piece of library music composed and played by Gérard Levecque and Claude Romat in the seventies.
it's stamped n° 54 on the MP 2000 label and the first volume of a twofer in their african sound collection. for your knowledge, vol.2 which is even rarer-and funkier.

side one is full of catching breaks, drums loops, bass and funky flute, trumpets and wah-wah guitars
01-call me africadelic
02-djidji lights
03-jungle mania
04-bakaloo dance
05-the elephants track
06-bremeye voodoo

side two is drums & percussions only and will more appeal to the mature and dedicated beatmakers
07-green pepper
08-white peppers
09-red pepper
10-grey pepper
11-black pepper
12-scarlet pepper

at 192 bitrate, i hope you"ll enjoy it

by the way i find very odd that side 2 of the AIR album generated less downloads than side one... one could argue that this side is less exciting than the first one (which isn't the case) but how could you know if you didn't dwl it in the first place?
anyway, last chance to listen to this great album before i'll pull the plug to the links.

hope to hear from you here, african drums' way

Thursday, May 17, 2007

are you experienced?


Thanks to the blogosphere's energy, several Miles Davis live performances from the seventies are floatin' around. (props to the Heat Warps, James at Nothing Is, Curved-air and the whole in-crowd, you know who you are) these gigs are so inspiring, uplifting and fresh that i had to contribute to the chorus in some way.
the Miles at Isle of Wight lp is one of these odd vinyl artefacts Sony indulged to fill the bins with while Miles kept away from the charts in the 80's, offering the live concert on side one and various alternate 70's studio takes on side b. however, the band was a dream team: Keith Jarrett, Chick Corea, Gary Bartz, Dave Holland, Jack DeJohnette and Airto Moreira. the performance is one of the band's more focused and crisp from this era, with a perfect balance of power and spirituality. a wonderful DVD "Miles Davis - Miles Electric - A Different Kind Of Blue " is available at your favorite online or physical spots (hey, these guys deserve to make a decent living, too) and you need to watch it to catch the intense excitment of the set.
anyway, here's side one ripped at 320 from the vinyl. feel free to show some love and spread miles' spirit around.
enjoy

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Three Blind Mice in the Air


if you're into Miles Davis' early electric atmospheres, Air's eponym lp will probably make your day. recorded at Epicurius Studio, Tokyo on april 12 & 20, 1977 - yeah, that's exactly 30 years ago - by a bunch of laid-back xperimental jazz cats, namely Yasuo Shimura on saxes, flute, shô, ARP, voice, percusssion and radio - Reinkichi Hayasahi on Fender stratocaster, blue box, crybaby and super gas - Nobuyoshi Ino on electric & acoustic bass, turkish guitar, perc, tape recorder - Hiroshi Muramaki on Yamaha drums, cowbell and perc - Yuji Imamura on conga drums, tabla, the album sounds as fresh and exciting as it probably was, in deep and introspective ways.
strangely, very little online data is available on this gem or its protagonists but always a reliable source on such UFO's , the Kozmigroove connection provided this brief but accurate resume and description:
"Not to be confused with the Henry Threadgill project, nor the Googie Coppola joint (who dropped exactly one album on Herbie Mann's Embryo subsidiary before disappearing), nor the more recent sleazy-listening duo from France. This Japanese quintet of Yasuo Shimura, Renkichi Hayashi, Nobuyoshi Ino, Hiroshi Murakami, and Yuji Imamura continued to preach the gospel of Get Up With It, years after even Miles himself lost the faith. Yessir, this is elevated music, pure in spirit and intention and absolutely mindblowing in effect. Air's sole (eponymous) album is two sidelong cuts of psychedelic electric jazz, testified by five heads who mix Eastern and Western instrumentation into a thick brew of prime Kozmigroov: ringmodulated guitar lines, windchime swirls, ARP dissonance, deep bass echoes, wood flute invocations, processed saxophone, tape effects, subtly assertive grooves, omnipresent layers of percussion... mercy! The brazen shuffle which seizes the last quarter of the record actually reaches the same jazz/rock peak intensity of Jack Johnson's "Right Off." Three Blind Mice are an audiophile label who've reissued an armful of their back-catalog titles on compact disc. Although this album still awaits aluminum rebirth as of May 1999, Takeshi "Tee" Fujii (TBM prez) has promised an XRCD version."

ripped at 320 kbps, hope you'll enjoy and testify
part one
part two

Friday, March 23, 2007

pop74





.
well, here's a collector's one for you beat/breakdiggers out there.
a gift from a great friend of mine who stumbled on several fresh mint copies on a street corner a few years ago and made a small fortune on ebay and records dealers back when library music was the craze.
jean claudric used to be a popular composer and conductor for various french commercial artists, namely anybody from michel sardou to annie cordy-which could certainly be held against him, as french bloggers will undoubtely testify.
anyway it's a light funky session you might enjoy while i'm warmin'up for further more serious posts...
feel free to leave your feedback and comments
pop 74
on Jasmin Productions
  1. shooting star
  2. gust of wind
  3. a trump card
  4. hurly burly
  5. stifling night
  6. high cranberry
  7. dog days
  8. misdeal
  9. it looks like rain
  10. mildness