When it comes to latin influenced disco, Joe Bataan, is definitely one of the early pioneers. That being said, it took me personally a while to get into some of his music, probably because I think I got off to the wrong foot by first being introduced to one of his popular singles, "Rap-O Clap-O", which didn't really do it for me. However as I've been listing to more and more of his releases, I'm actually finding that as a whole, Bataan's music is pretty amazing, especially when he moved to Salsoul Records during the mid to late 1970's. One of the tracks that I cam across recently was his cover version of Isaac Hayes' 1972 instrumental cut "Theme From The Men", which served as the B-Side track to his heavily popular Theme From "Shaft" single. Bataan, like most of his tracks, puts a nice latin flavored groove to the epic original. Overall, a solid effort from the man who really helped define the sound of latin influenced disco and dance music during the 1970's.

Download Joe Bataan's cover of Isaac Hayes' 1972 track, Theme From The Men by going here.

One of my favorite cuts of all-time has to be the very hard-to-find erotic disco gem "Mucho Macho" by Macho. Not only is this track hard to find physically, however finding information on this track might even be harder to locate. I haven't been able to hunt down an original copy of the track, however, the song has been released recently as part of BGP Records' Living In The Streets 2 compilation as well as being re-edited by prins Thomas's amazing Major Swelling record. However, one thing is for sure, if it was produced by Macho's Mauro Malavasi then you understand why the track is so great.

Keep in mind as some great soundtrack music for your upcoming HUMP video submissions!

Macho - Mucho Macho

The Hold Steady have posted a new single on MySpace. It's called "Sequestered in Memphis" and it is, as it always seems to be, about drinking and dancing and making out in a bathroom--"In bar light, she looked alright/In daylight she looked desperate."

Nothing really new to the sound, it's in the same vein as Boys and Girls in America, but I like it. Lots of sing-a-long parts, handclapping, it'll make for a good dance party when they play the Block Party Saturday July 26.

The new album, Stay Positive, will be out July 15.

Click here to listen to it.

Stream Beck's new single, "Chemtrails," at www.beck.com.

Last Friday, I went and checked out local Seattle deejay, DJ Riz, at his weekly Friday night gig at the Re-bar. He really blew me away a couple of weeks ago at Studio! where he played a special rare set of disco and funk cuts. I was excited to see him at his usual residency, which consisted of more deep house and funk grooves. I found the set to be as equally brilliant as a few weeks back. That being said, he ended his set with Edwin Starr's 1978 disco classic "Contact" and I haven't been able to get it out of my head ever since. This track, which was released on the Clean LP, can be described as Starr's re-emergence into the club and disco scene of the late 1970's. The track has some solid percussion work, and does a nice job blending the lines between his move into the disco realm and his earlier soul roots. It's safe to say Edwin Starr had a very accomplished musical career with many solid releases during the late 60's and 70's, however there might not be another song in his collection that can move a floor like "Contact".

Download Edwin Starr's classic disco boogie cut "Contact" by going here.

I would also recommend checking out DJ Riz every Friday night at the Re-bar (1114 Howell Street) for some great mixing of deep house and funk.

One of the more "sexy themed" disco compilations to come out is thefifth volume in the The Mood Mosaic series entitled, Supervixens. This compilation that was released by Discomagic Records in the mid 1990's brings together some of disco's more erotic rarities. The record also tends to standout a bit more from the others in the The Mood Mosaic series, which tend to lend themselves more for cocktail lounge hour rather than a disco floor. This very rare album consists of some real disco gems including Marta Acuna's "Dance, Dance, Dance", Roundtree "Get On Up", Black Devil's "Follow Me", Chain Reaction's "Dance Freak" and Sylvia's sexy disco classic "The Lollipop Man" among others. Overall this is a great themed disco compilation that puts some disco's more harder-to-find classics all in one place.

Download Sylvia's "The Lollipop Man" and Roundtree's "Get On Up by going here.

Recently, I've been getting into Brazilian conductor Sérgio Mendes' late 70's material. I came across Mendes' records here and there however, didn't really know much about the artist until recently. Even though I definitely can't vouch for all of his music, I can say that I'm a pretty big fan of both Sérgio Mendes & The New Brasil '77's 1977 self-titled LP and Sergio Mendes & Brasil '88 1979 Magic Lady LP. Both albums, which I've picked up recently, are somewhat departures from Mendes earlier work with his Brasil '66. The New Brasil '77 record has a laid back, however funky latin-disco sound to it with standout tracks like "The Real Thing", "Why", and "Mozambique". Magic Lady, on the other hand, contains one of Mendes most high energy dance cuts with "I'll Tell You", as well as other funky disco numbers like "Lonely Woman" and "Let It Go". Overall, Sérgio Mendes is one of those complicated artist to get into because he touches so many musical genres with many of his releases being very unique to themselves, however for people who enjoy the more funky disco era stuff, like myself, I highly recommend checking out both The New Brasil '77 and Magic Lady albums.

Dowload both Sérgio Mendes & Brasil '88's "I'll Tell You" and Sérgio Mendes & The New Brasil '77's "The Real Thing" by going here.

A few weeks ago I found a copy of Five Special's "Why Leave Us Alone" while diggin through crates of records. I had previously never heard of this track, so I didn't know what to expect, however with one listen I knew I found a soul flavored disco gem. I wondered why I'd never of heard this track until recently, specially after doing some research and finding that this single broke the top ten of the R & B charts back in 1979 and was also a favorite of Paradise Garage's Larry Levan. This detroit based group only lasted for a few years during the late 70's with little success, however, not before putting out a solid dancefloor classic in "Why Leave Us Alone".

Download Five Special's 1979 funky soul classic "Why Leave Us Alone" by visiting this site.

It's safe to say that I just fell in love with Ray Martinez and every single track that he produced in the 1970's. From Amant's "If There's Love" to Passion's classic "Don't Bring Back Memories", from George McCrae's "Kiss Me (The Way I Like It)" to his solo cut of "The Natives Are Restless", Martinez made a name for himself as a break through disco producer and musician during the 1970's. Helping solidify the "Miami Sound" of the late 70's, this Cuban native went onto create Miami based Paris International Records where he released records by Amant, Celi Bee, and others. Overall, Martinez is a dance music icon that helped influence disco and dance music forever.

Click Here to download a couple of Ray Martinez's produced songs, including Passion's classic "Don't Bring Back Memories" and Amant's "If There's Love".

You have to love a great gospel song, and one of my favorite's is Larry Levan's unreleased edit of the The Joubert Singers' 1985 classic "Stand On The Word". This edit came out on the bootlegged record label, Larry, which is a label dedicated to putting out rare unreleased white label edits and mixes by Larry Levan. You might not think a track like this, that has a heavy gospel influence, can work a dancefloor, however give it a couple of listens and you'll definitely find yourself moving to the groove as the track is very addicting. On this rare warm day in Seattle, what could be more fitting.

The Joubert Singers - Stand on the Word (Larry Levan Edit)

"Don't judge a book by it's cover". Well that's a great statement when describing the Glitter Band's 1976 disco hit "Makes You Blind". After this previously soft rock glam band cut ties with their old sound and founder Gary Glitter, the group "went disco" like many others at the time, with this mostly instrumental funky disco classic. This track became an instant hit with in the underground disco community and promoted the group to release other dance oriented cuts like a cover of The Bee Gees "Gotta Get A Message To You" in 1977. This band, that might of made their early name on soft rock glam jams, might be remember by many for this amazing disco gem.

Download The Glitter Band's 1976 disco classic "Make You Blind" by going here

One of the highlights of the past few Wednesday night's, at the Havana, have been the night's closing track, which has been a Dimitri From Paris extended edit of Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes's 1975 soul classic "Don't Leave Me this Way". Every week I play it and I constantly get people asking me what the track is and how much they love it. This amazing re-edit is the final track on Dimitri From Paris' 2002 mix compilation After The Playboy Mansion, as well as being included in the vinyl-only release After The Playboy Mansion (Uplifting Selection) LP which consists of some of the compilations highlights unmixed. And because it's Wednesday, I thought it would be apropriate in sharing. Enjoy!

Download Dimitri From Paris' re-edit of Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes' 1975 soul classic "Don't Leave Me this Way" by visiting here

The band Free Kitten, featuring Kim Gordon, Yoshimi, and Julie Cafritz, will release their Inherit on Ecstatic Peace next month. This song, "Seasick," will be on it.

Free Kitten - "Seasick"

(Thanks to Ari for finding the photo above.)

Sub Pop just posted a new CSS song from their upcoming album Donkey (to be released June 22).

CSS - "Rat is Dead (Rage)"

Here is two edits that I recieved from "recently located Seattle resident" Pat les Stache. This time around, Mr. Les Stache, put his touch on John Tropea's 1979 cosmic classic "Livin' In The Jungle" and Gepy & Gepy's 1979 disco gem "African Love Song". Both edits, I hear, will probably be included on a new re-edit 12-inch, Pat Les Stache Presents: Cabana Music Vol.01, which should be coming out later this Spring. The record will also include an edit of Black Ivory's 1974 funky soul classic "What Goes Around (Comes Around)". All in all, just some more disco edits to make the world go round!

Pat Les Stache - African Love Song
Pat Les Stache - Lovin' In The Jungle

Jump in my ride.......It's Friday Night!

Bell & James - Livin' It Up (Friday Night) (1978)

Every generation has its way to dispose of old, unwanted albums. Vinyl: fill a crate and drag it to a garage sale. Cassettes: get some Scotch tape out and record your new faves on the old tapes (NKOTB transforms into Alice in Chains' Dirt). CDs: cover a wall with their flipsides, breaking a few on occasion to make the dorm room look "tough" (or, as an engineer pal taught me so many years ago, sit in a passenger's seat while a friend drives really slowly, then hold CDs against the moving pavement until they melt).

Nowadays, the delete key isn't nearly as dramatic a farewell to the music we eventually tire of, but the disposability of MP3s has its own quirks. I'm not sure how everyone else here downloads music, but I tend to hit MP3 and torrent sites like I've just won a Toys 'R Us Shopping Spree from the '80s, only my cart isn't weighed down by oversized My Pet Monsters. I'll download stuff from sites' "most active" lists just for the hell of it, then pile on all matter of other recommended tunes, to the point where half of what I grab, I don't listen to more than once. I'll occasionally clear out obvious junk from my "recent downloads" catalog, but this week, I've been doing some deep cleaning. Everybody has their fair share of outdated or embarrassing albums, though I guess it's interesting what piles up when everything is free--Keane, Jonathan Fireeater, a really bad J Dilla/Pet Sounds mashup, that Redman/Method Man album, the William Shatner record from a few years ago, the most recent Foo Fighters records ... When these musical whims and crapshoots collect dust, they become sad mirror images of your darker musical side, as if you owned a ragged puppy that you didn't feed or bathe on a regular basis.

But what really struck me were the number of decent-sounding records that I am never, ever, ever going to listen to in their entirety. Even after deleting the most obvious stuff, I'm still sitting on 130 GB of music--and there is no sensible reason to have this much on here, on top of the CDs and records I already have. Who's to say I'm ever going to listen to these three Califone albums on repeat when their folder is just five away from Buffalo Tom's Let Me Come Over? I see the latter, get a rush of My So-Called Life nostalgia, and bust out "Taillights Fade" like a damn fool. Do I really need the second Dead Boys album--as if I don't ignore Young Loud and Snotty enough? I've never gotten through Disintegration Loops I and felt immediately eager to put parts II, III and IV on the stereo. I no longer give a shit about the Russian Futurists. I never actually play these Bloc Party songs. And so on and so forth, until I run into... Ryan Adams? Maybe I should delete everything with the words "Ryan" and "Adams" today.

It hasn't all been shame and crap--Gorky's Zygotic Mynci is currently reminding me how they long to feel that summer in their heart. After that album cheered me up, I started queuing up some other dusty gems--the bedroom pop of Suburban Kids with Household Names, an old Morphine bootleg, the dark-wave of Memphis' Lost Sounds--but then my dumb ass had to go and do a daily torrent site check. Whoop! The Tim & Eric comedy CD is out! And this band name, The Child Readers, that sounds pretty cool, so I'm gonna grab that, too.

It begins...

My friend: "Megan, have you heard the Beautiful Clarks?"

Me: "I've heard the name, I think I've heard a couple songs. I can't remember..."

My friend: "You should check them out. At the last couple shows the singer wore a dress and army helmet onstage. He's kind of crazy. But they're good."

Me: "What do they sound like? And why was he wearing a dress?"

My friend: "I dunno, I think he just wanted too. But they're like... alt country/folk stuff maybe?"

Me: "And why the dress?"

My friend: "I have no idea."

Here's the Beautiful Clarks' Billy Hatcher in that dress and army hat:

And here are some of their songs, that are good, but still don't explain where the dress and/or army helmet come in:

"Sweet Gravel"

"What Kinda Fool"

"Laid Up"

Did you ever want to know what a 'Flute Salad' tasted like? Well maybe not. Regardless, here is the rare funky jazz classic by Ju-Par Universal Orchestra. "Flute Salade" is just one of the many classic cuts off the groups remarkable Moods And Grooves LP which was released back in 1976. Moods And Grooves is definitely one of my favorite jazz records, with it's heavy afro-funky and soul influenced grooves. It's a great record to put on during that late night lounge hour. I recently saw this LP in a local record store going for eighty dollars and I kinda wished I would of splurged. Oh well, maybe next time.

Download an MP3 of Ju-Par Universal Orchestra's "Flute Salad" and more by clicking here.

This week there was been some great new cosmic/disco releases. Here are a few that I highly recommend checking out:

Dimitri From Paris - Return To The Playboy Mansion
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Dimitri From Paris returns with his highly successful 'Playboy Mansion' compilation series with some more classic and rare disco, house, soul, and dance gems. This very diverse mix compilation touches all the bases with dance cuts ranging from newer tracks like Jamiroquai's "Cosmic Girl" and The Brand New Heavies's "Never Stop" to 1970's disco rarities like Don Ray's "Got To Have Your Loving" and Gary's Gang "Let's Love Dance Tonight". The compilation also includes some solid new re-edits from the French deejay, including Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terell's "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" and Goldie Alexander's "Show You My Love". Another great addition to Dimitri's growing series of 'Playboy Mansion' themed releases.

Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terell - Ain't No Mountain High Enough(DFP re edit)(Mp3 sample)
Buy Record Here

The Popular People's Front - Limited Series Vol.02 12"
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The Popular People's Front return with their second in the best selling labels Limited Series, with a new white label re-edit 12". With this record, PPF puts their spin on some rare disco and dance cuts including a solid edit of Candi Staton's cover of "Listen to the Music". Their first 'limited series' 12" sold out very quickly, so I would recommend picking up a copy while they still last.

Candi Staton - Listen to the Music(Allenby Chilton edit)(Mp3 sample)
Buy Record Here

Various - Deep Disco Culture Vol Two: Album Sampler 12"
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The good folks over at Salsoul/Suss'd records have just released the second 12-inch album sampler to the widely acclaimed disco compilation Deep Disco Culture Vol Two: Underground Disco Rarities & Future Club Classic for all of the disco and vinyl enthusiasts. They couldn't have choosen three better cuts from the CD-only compilation to include on this sampler with the Rhythm Makers's "Zone, Sparkle's "Disco Madness", and Patrick Cowley classic mix of Tantra's "Hills Of Katmandu". A great record for disco collector's that don't want to go broke trying to hunt down the high priced and rare 12-inch originals.

Sparkle - Disco Madness(Mp3 sample)
Buy Record Here

(Q: Why is Otis Redding dressed up like a cowboy?

A: Ours is not to question Otis Redding.)

Funky 16 Corners has an mp3 up of an entire side of an Otis Redding live LP. Otis is performing at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967, six months before his death.

And Holy Sweet Jesus is it good. I don't know if I've ever heard the man perform live before, but he must've been something to see. He's literally gasping for breath in between songs. He stops the band and makes them replay bits of the song he really likes, and he has what sounds like an epileptic fit at the end of a song and the crowd devours every single droplet of sweat.

There's even a cover of "I Can't Get No Satisfaction" that starts out about as lame as any cover of "I Can't Get No Satisfaction," but it turns into a jumping, screaming revival that, as near as I can tell, beats the shit out of the original.

He dedicates "Try A Little Tenderness" to "all the girls in the miniskirts," and he nails "Respect" after he complains about how "That little girl stole my song."

I can't think of anybody who does anything like this on stage now. Maybe it's for the best--maybe it would automatically kill someone dead within a matter of months. But I still wish I could have seen him live before he died.

UPDATED to acknowledge that Otis Redding wrote "Respect." I don't know how that escaped me.

I just happened across this post that has a link to a remix of Ashlee Simpson's "Outta My Head," remixed by Brad Walsh. I'm possibly the only person in The Stranger offices who has never seen an episode of Project Runway--no cable, you understand--so I missed the Brad Walsh music on the Season 4 Finale, and so I know I'm coming to the party late, but this is actually a pretty awesome song, no thanks to Ashlee. It sounds sleazy, in a coked-up kind of dark 80's dance way.

And then, on Walsh's MySpace page, the song "Do It in the Street" sounds pretty fantastically dirty. I didn't know you could make those kinds of sounds in electronic music without molesting the speakers.

With the current interest or exhaustion of the current presidential campaign, I thought that this 1977 latin flavored disco track "Hail To The Teeth" by District of Columbia for some reason felt appropriate. I recently came across this Salsoul Records release, and it's quickly becoming one of my favorite disco cuts. Enjoy the campaign.

District of Columbia - Hail to the Teeth

Gnarls Barkley has released their album The Odd Couple for free on the internet. Only it's called elpuoC ddO ehT and it's the entire album compressed into one thirty-something minute-long track, played backward.

I've listened to it, and, honestly, I kind of love it. I had no idea that backwards music could be so soothing. I think it helps that Gnarls Barkley don't use a lot of guitars in their music; guitars sound really grating when they're played backwards. But the beats on this album make a soft sucking sound--as in the sound of suction and not the sound of badness--and it's trance-y and mellow for the majority of the album.

Parts of songs sound like calliope music, and Danger Mouse clearly uses backward samples, because occasionally, there'll be the sound of something--a bird song or a sound effect, say--that goes forward while everything else is going backward. Those work like freaky little signposts, to remind the listener that the album is not being played in the proper direction. It's actually pretty easy to forget. The most vibrant song on the album is "nuR," the reverse of the current single "Run." It's fast and jerky and it sounds like a schoolyard fight between two large armies of children. There don't seem to be any calls for the listener to commit suicide or surrender their lives to Satan, which is a little disappointing.

When I was record store shopping this weekend, I found a mint copy of Linda Hopkins's 1977 12" single It's In Your Blood in a bargain bin for $1.99. I had never previosuly heard this rare disco gem, however after hearing the track at one of the record store's listening stations I immediately fell in love with the track. The song was written by disco legend Billy Nichols as well as being produced by Bert DeCoteaux who also worked on one of my favorite Lonnie Liston Smith tracks in the 1978 cosmic jazz cut "Space Princess". I find that sometimes bargain bins are mostly full of common finds, and one can go months and maybe years before finding anything worthy of the time a person put's into digging through crates and crates of records however on this certain day I felt like I really scored big with this 12-inch gem.

To download Linda Hopkins 1977 rare disco gem "It's In Your Blood" go here OR come out to Havana tonight for STUDIO where I plan on playing the classic track!

For those stocked for Les Savy Fav's set at this year's Block Party, check out this little ditty posted earlier today on Stereogum:

Les Savy Fav playing "Precision Auto" by Superchunk.

In 1980, songwriter Pino Massara wrote the classic rare instrumental disco track "Margherita" under the aliase Margueritas. This track has always been a favorite of mine ever since I heard it on Morgan Geist's 2003 Unclassics LP. I didn't know this untill recently however, that Frank Farian's known disco studio project Boney M. did an alternative version of the song that same year. Boney M.'s version included full vocals and was appropriately renamed "Felicidad (Margherita)". This track was released in 12-inch and 7-inch formats, and remains to be a highly sought after collector's item for many disco enthusiasts, which would definitely include myself in that group. This is a great example of a group taking an already amazing song and putting a very unique and successful spin on it.

Download an mp3 of Boney M.'s 1980 "Felicidad (Margherita)" by going here.

Here's a very entertaining video of Bony M performing there highly successful hit "Daddy Cool" to get you through the day:

Sub Pop have posted a pretty rad song, "Eraser," from No Age's forthcoming album, Nouns, due out May 6th. It's one of those No Age songs built out of just two parts—jangle, then fuzz-burst—but it sounds just a little bit sweeter than similarly simple songs from their last record. Et voila:

No Age - "Eraser"

No Seattle tour dates yet.

(ht brooklynvegan)

Who says disco never made it see the 1980's. Leave it up to legendary disco songwriter/producer, Patrick Adams to put the critics to rest. In 1980, Adams teamed up with Christine Wiltshire, under the name Center Stage to release a 12" single that featured the classic disco track Never. Wiltshire, like Adams had been a very active member of many great disco projects and productions, including Musique, Phreek, Class Action, and Poussez! to name a few. Over all this 1980 cut works as a nice bridge between 70's and early 80's dance music. Nice work again, Mr. Adams.

Download Center Stage's 1980 single "Never" plus a lot more by clicking here.

Later this month, the Defected label will be releasing Dimitri From Paris's new mix compilation, "Return to the Playboy Mansion", which I'll be doing a full review of once I get my hands on a copy. However, I bring the compilation up because it will feature plenty of great obscure disco cuts including a classic cut by Lorraine Johnson entitled, "The More I Get, The More I Want" that I've been listening to a lot lately. This break through cut from Johnson was released back in 1977 and was written by legendary soul songwriters/artists McFadden & Whitehead. During the same time Philadelphia's Teddy Pendergrass also did a rendition of the track with initially more success than Johnson. After her debut with Prelude records, she went on to do some backing vocals for the Saturday Night Band as well as some session work for both L.T.D. and Les McCann. Even though, Lorraine Johnson's "The More I Get, The More I Want" wasn't seen with much success back in the late 70's, the song remains to be a collectable single for disco fans of today.

Download Lorraine Johnson's "The More I Get, The More I Want" by going here.

Here's what I said in this week's column about Maga Bo's appearance tonight at Nectar (with DJ Struggle & AC Lewis):

Touring in support of his debut album, Archipelagoes, Maga Bo draws from all points on the globe, but the result is hardly "world music." Instead it's a world tour through low end, with Bo intuitively collecting the tracks that inspire the urban masses to move on his travels. As with labelmates DJ /rupture and Filastine, it's a fool's errand to pin a genre on the resulting sonic mélange, but Maga Bo's studied approach maintains momentum even when the beats accelerate into madness or dissolve into noise.

An even better introduction to Bo's music is to check out his mixes, of which he's got plenty on his site. Here's an example, recorded in Rio De Janeiro.

The late 70's French disco group, The Salsoul Invention, can easily be mistaken for the more known Vince Montana Jr. brainchild The Salsoul Orchestra. The confusion could be rooted from the fact that on the groups only LP, Salsoul Explosion, released back in 1977, which covers many Salsoul Orchestra classics like "Nice 'N' Naasty", "Salsoul Hustle", "Get Happy". The Salsoul Invention, from what I can find, seems to be France's take on the, at the time, growing popularity of Philadelphia's Salsoul label and artists, including The Salsoul Orchestra. The album also finds the group covering other disco classic's like Walter Murphy's version of "A Fifth Of Beethoven" and Jesse Green's "Nice and Slow". That being said this excellent record doesn't rely purely on classic covers as some of the album's best cuts lie within the original productions like "Double Action", "Soul Machine", and "Follow me into the car". Overall, this an excellent album and a rare collector's item for any fan of early Salsoul productions as well as fans of The Salsoul Ochestra and Vince Montana Jr.

You can download "Nice and Slow" and "Double Action" from The Salsoul Invention's 1977 LP Salsoul Explosion by clicking here.

On this Friday, I think I'll post a classic cut from Le Pamplemousse's 1979 self-titled LP for no other reason other than it came on my ipod this morning and I found myself really getting into it. Le Pamplemousse is another project from legendary disco producers/writers Laurin Rinder and W. Michael Lewis's who were also the minds behind other classic disco groups like El Coco, Discognosis, Tuxedo Junction, Rinder & Lewis, and Saint Tropez to name a few. Le Pamplemousse was one of Rinder and Lewis' longer lasting projects that produced some great disco cuts like "Le Spank", "Get Your Boom, Boom (Around The Room)", "Give Up Your Love", "Back Street City Lights", "Sweet Magic" plus many many more. Overall, Le Pamplemousse, turned into another classic project put together by some of disco's brighter minds.

Download Le Pamplemousse - Back Street City Lights by clicking here.

Yesterday I found a copy of Invisible Man's Band 1980 self-titled LP While I was searching for some last minute gems for tonight's Studio. I can honestly say that I wasn't completely feeling this album when I first heard it a while back, however over time, the record has grown on me. This LP falls in-line with that disco music that came out at the very tail end of the genres' golden era that helped transition the remaining disco's smoothly into the dance era of the 80's. Classic cuts like "All Night Thing" and "Love Can't Come / Love Has Come" tend to really grow on you after a few listens, and admittingly has a bit of a Earth, Wind, & Fire smooth feel to it. Overall, after a few listens, I was happy to have found the hard-to-find LP, making it a nice addition to anyones disco collection.

Invisible Man's Band - All Night Thing

I also think I'll drop "All Night Thing" tonight at Studio! for your listening pleasure. Let me know what you think.

In the 1970's, Producer/Songwriter Dexter Wansel, like many other jazz rooted musicians at the time, including Herbie Hancock, Herbie Mann, Eumir Deodato, Roy Ayers, and Lonnie Liston Smith were able to successfully bridge the gap between jazz, funk, soul, and disco. This Philadelphia-born keyboardist, starting in 1976, put together a string of solid and successfull releases including Life On Mars, What The World Is Coming To, Voyager, and 1979's Time Is Slipping Away. Lately I've been absorbing the opening track of Wansel's Time Is Slipping Away record, titled "I'll Never Forget (My Favourite Disco)", which is a smooth dancefloor cut that tends to lend itself more to the disco/funk side. "I'll Never Forget" is without a doubt, the best track on the record, whith the rest of the album focused a little bit more on funk and slower anthem tracks. Overall, however, "I'll Never Forget" represents just one of Wansel's many classic productions during this era of jazz influenced disco/dance music.

Dexter Wansel - I'll Never Forget (My Favourite Disco)

Out of the goodness of their hearts Stereogum have rounded up talented musicians from around the globe to pay tribute to the Bjork masterpiece Post, and are offering the album for free on their site. Notable acts include Liars, Dirty Projectors, Xiu Xiu, Final Fantasy, Atlas Sound and No Age. The compilation can be downloaded or sampled here.

Via Punknews.org:

Joel Gausten, former drummer of Pigface, the Undead and Electric Frankenstein, has posted two Misfits demos from recording sessions in 1995. The lineup is the most interesting part of the recordings, featuring Gausten on drums, Jerry Only on bass, Doyle Wolfgang Von Frankenstein on guitar and Eric Weiss on vocals. The songs were part of an 11-song recording engineered by future drummer Dr. Chud.

You can hear the demos for "Astro Zombies" and "London Dungeon" at Gausten's MySpace page and (conveniently) Gausten has recently published a book detailed his time with the band in his new book Tales of Horror: The History of The Misfits & The Undead.

Click here to visit Gausten's Myspace and hear the songs.

One of my all-time favorite songs to play out and listen to is The O'Jays' 1975 classic "I Love Music". From the original to the Dimitri from Paris extended edit, the song is a true classic. That's why I became extremely excited when I found a Vince Montana Jr.'s 1978 LP I Love Music, which features a female vocal cover version of the Kenneth Gamble & Leon Huff written original. I wouldn't go as far as to say that Montana's version is as moving as The O'Jays rendition, however the female vocals definitely put a little bit of a different spin on the track. Overall, Montana stay's with the basic feel of the original while adding a little of his "Salsoul" signature production, in order to create a solid alternative.

Montana - I Love Music
The O'Jays - I Love Music (Dimitri from Paris Re-edit)

L.A. blog Aquarium Drunkard has just posted a live acoustic set of M. Ward and My Morning Jacket's Jim Jones performing at a 300 capacity church at SXSW. There are solo songs from both artists as well as collaborations. Enjoy.

(ht Stereogum)

One of my most sought after records right now has to be Danny Krivit's 2003 un-mixed re-edit compilation "Edits By Mr. K". And Probably by the time I'm done doing blogs, I will have posted most of the entire compilation. It's some of Krivit's best work in my opinion, re-editing classic disco and soul cuts by artists' like Diana Ross, Lenny Williams, Caress, L.T.D., The Sisters Love, and many many more. Lately, however, my favorite track lately has been Krivit's edit of Betty Wright's 1974 uptempo soul classic "Where Is The Love". He successfully takes this rare soul classic and turns it up a notch, creating a very funked-out and more dancefloor friendly disco gem. Nice work, once again by the man known as Mr. K. Now if I can only get my hands on a vinyl pressing of the record.

Get Danny Krivit's edit of Betty Wright's "Where Is The Love" and much more disco classics by clicking here.