Disco | Boogie Vinyl 409 Items

In 1977, the Portland Trailblazers were at the peak of their game. Anticipating the team’s meteoric rise toward an NBA championship, songwriter Ron Stassens assembled his own dream team. Featuring members of Pleasure, Transport, and Slickaphonic, Stassens penned a theme song to amplify the team’s ascent and wound up with an album’s worth of soulful, disco-funk material.

Centering on Slickaphonic frontman, Milton Davis, the band was hopeful. But like the vast majority of Portland's musical output, the reels received a dose of regional airplay before being shelved. Davis left town. Stassens and the backing band moved on. Years later, we now this artifact, featuring a who's who in the Portland's musician community - banded together on this sole release.

But the album stretches beyond the confines of “Blazermania” with a deep connection to this era in Albina. "Let Me In" signifies Davis' yearning to be seen by his peers at a time when local musicians’ aspirations for fame and fortune were all too unlikely in Portland’s gatekept club scene - a quaint industry both culturally and geographically isolated from national access. Few musicians made it out. And Black musicians redlined in the city’s Albina district were disproportionately affected. Buried within a love song, Davis’ crooning on “All I Wanna Do” spells it out:

‘Some people want to drive a cadillac car / Some people want to be a Hollywood star / Oh no, not me / My poor heart just can’t break free / All I wanna do is think about you.’

Mystery surrounds Davis' background and why this tremendous suite of recordings has remained unreleased. In its time, the “Blazermania” single was successful enough that the band performed it on repeat during the team’s championship celebration (images of this can be seen on ESPN’s recent “30 For 30” featuring Bill Walton, as well as on the album’s back side jacket). What we do know is that Davis came of age in the Houston area where in high school he joined The Four Tempos - a soul group that would make their way to Los Angeles, cutting a few 45s for Rampart Records. When the group disbanded, he steadily worked his way up the West Coast Chitlin Circuit before landing in Portland. There he would fall in step with Albina's finest, fronting Slickaphonic for a short time. It is believed he would later front Doc Severinsen’s big band on European tours throughout the 1980s and produce R&B singles for major label artists throughout the 1990s. Davis passed in late 2020, having remained largely disconnected from Albina’s musician community since the time of this recording.

As with all releases in our catalog, listeners may now appreciate a piece of Albina’s legacy otherwise buried by selective history producers and the ensuing memory-making that has occurred in our region’s popular culture. These recordings document an important albeit buried moment. Its fleeting impact has been obscured in such a way that even Stassens, engineer Bob Stoutenburg, and the participating musicians on these takes can’t fully recall the entire cast of players on the three sessions that make up the record. Years of interviews and sleuthing the highest quality tape dub have produced the record we have here - a recording that all these years later demands, “Let me in.”

Disco divas, Funky queens and Glam ladies in 70's and early 80's Taiwan!Due to its extremely complex history, Taiwan in the 70's saw the creation of some incredibly special music in which the sounds coming at the moment from the west collided with the special sensitivity of Taiwanese musicians, creating a delicious mixture you'll need to hear to believe."Taiwan Disco" shines a light on the music created by Taiwanese women during those years (70's and early 80's) to present a mind-blowing collection of songs with sounds ranging from wild Funk to apace Glam, exotic Disco or fuzzed out Soul. Here's the ticket to some crazy Taiwan nights, get those dancing shoes ready, it's time to shake it!Artists:A1. Wu Xiu Zhu A2. Hua Yi Bao A3. Cui Tai Jing A4. Zou Juan JuanA5. Chen Lan Li A6. Wang Xiang Ling SIDE BB1. Tian Lu Lu B2. Liu Guan Lin B3. Wu Xiu Zhu) B4. Luo Yan Li B5. Yu San Shan B6. Zhang Bei Xin

When it comes to warming, quality, life-affirming live blends of house and disco, Italian duo Micky More and Andy Tee are in a league of their own. Logo Side Sees "Celebrate” Feat. Kathy Brown & Sheree Hicks; A beautiful original song with a great energetic two-voice chorus full of intensity; Hypnotic guitars and explosive strings surround the voices of Kathy Brown and Sheree Hicks. Feel-good house music with disco and soulful influences. On The Flip “So Wide Open” Feat. Angela Johnson is a horn-heavy, disco and funky-fired organic house number. Quality dance music as we like it.

A slice of seriously sought after US disco from La She Ba on Heavenly Star Records that has been a firm favourite of master selector Hunee and trades hands for £125+ on the secondhand market, gets a fresh reissue and remaster for a new generation of listeners.

Formed of Catherine Miller on vocals, produced and written by Harvey Miller and arranged by the mighty Patrick Adams, La She Ba – You've Been Hunchin' hits in all the right spots. Exquisite instrumentation with swooning strings, enchanting chords and tight drums laying the foundation for Miller’s celestial vocals to be the star of the show. Heavenly by name, heavenly by nature this is a must have 12 inch for any collection.

Ukokos & Jabco's follow up from their massive "Keep Rising All Night Long" and this time they come with double pressure. The formula remains the same though, huge gospel vocals and strong melodies merged with a soulful production from the boys. The only difference now is the approach, gone is the hip hop and instead they deliver a more house(ish) track flipped with a disco friendly jam (you'll def recognise this one!).

Another banger from the Time Records catalogue claiming for a re-issue. Super Time Records sound from 1985. This was originally released without a cover but we decided it deserved one! Another banger from the Time Records catalogue claiming for a re-issue. Super Time Records sound from 1985. This was originally released without a cover but we decided it deserved one! Another banger from the Time Records catalogue claiming for a re-issue. Super Time Records sound from 1985. This was originally released without a cover but we decided it deserved one!

One of the productions of Roberto Zanetti vel Robyx aka Savage, loved by Italo disco fans. A successful composition and excellent production from 1987, which conquered many dance floors in Europe and Asia and became a secret weapon in the cases of many DJs. Today it returns with a special reissue including, as a bonus, a remix by Alex “A” and Patrick Delay, which was released in 1988 in Hong Kong.

“Why Can’t We Live Together” is a song written and recorded by Timmy Thomas in 1972. A chart hit in the following year, it was included on the album Why Can’t We Live Together. It was one of the first major hits to feature the use of a rhythm machine! From his organ! Very apt for our times, this song simply gives a heartfelt antiwar message. The track has been re-recorded by the likes of Sade, MC Hammer, Santana and Steve Winwood over the years but it’s the original that has the magic of it’s creator!

Ben Liebrand ups the bpm’s for his mix. He creates a percussive jam that pumps with pure emotion. Absolute club class.

Included on this release is Ben’s (now admittedly taking ownership after 43 years) 1981 Bootleg which chugs with soul and funk goodness.

Otto is back with a Maximal Super Sound Maxi 12″ on Eine Welt. The label, run by Alexander Arpeggio concludes this 12″ series with an obscure banger by the Berlin-based Organ Band Otto. On the A-side: Obscure uptempo Italo Madness, bassline-heavy, and featuring dirty vocoder Ansagen.

On the other A-side: a driving and full of surprises midtempo groover with mysterious german voodoo ritual chants. Get a copy of this limited 12″ and get your fun fair ceremony started. Limited 300 Copies only – special cover finish with metallic look.

Welcome to another fine episode of SIRS aka »Sounds in real Stereo«! After last years' arrival on LARJ with his »Arrived EP«, Berlin based versatile DJ & producer Daniel Klein is back with »Travel To HDF.Y3D« - an utopian (or more likely dystopian) ode to space travel:

The last few remaining humans are traveling with 140bpm to the most distant galaxy in the universe on a mission to seek out a new space for mankind to live after many years of exploiting good old Mother Earth. What sounds like a horror scenario if you start thinking about it, SIRS manages to wrap up in quite a positive musical message. Thus »Travel To HDF.Y3D« becomes that hopeful uplifting slightly dreamy tune we all need these days - not unlike Christian Bruhn's theme of a certain Captain called Future back in 1980 …

It's also nice to have two more versions of such a strong tune at hand: The first one is a true first one for »Cocktail D'Amore« DJ BUDINO as she comes up with her first remix and production work ever. Budino's approach is a slightly darker, maybe indeed more dystopian one. The synthesizer bass lines dominate her remix and by getting rid of the original's playful melody she creates a very special melancholic feel.

Leipzig based PANTHERA KRAUSE's take isn't quite that different from Budino's as he too focuses on the darker vibes of this journey in space. It's his added extra dose of punch that surely will keep dancers on the floor for sure.

The former »Space Ibiza« resident SIRS now takes over the controls again with »Summer Desire« which too is destined to rule dancefloors not only in Ibiza but all over the world with its lovely airy vibe.

»Travel To HDF.Y3D« returns for one last time in form of the spoken word prolog - a nice extra tool to play with.

''More Than Ever'' is another impeccable pearl of Roberto Ferrante, considered one of the most extraordinary and evocative Italo-Disco productions, one of those songs that attracted millions of followers and made everyone fall in love with the genre. GLAM's original 1985 12inch is no ordinary record. This vinyl reissue from Planet Records Classics with stunning new mastering makes it even more special. The voice of GLAM is Clio, according to followers one of the favorite singers in the distorted and mirrored world of Italo-Disco; she always has full control of the voice, therefore a perfect interpretation, full of emotion. If you listened to ''Faces'', ''Feel the Fear'' or ''Eyes'' by Clio and liked them, I'm sure you'll love this epic piece too! Thanks again to Roberto Ferrante for this new powerful mastering of ''More Than Ever'' fresher overall, performed with much more vitality and energy.

Known for her powerful vocals, dynamic stage presence, and diverse musical influences, LA-based soul and funk singer Nikka Costa returns from a musical career break with future-forward disco-inspired sounds on ‘Dirty Disco’.

The lyric “Everyone is welcome, everyone’s an Avatar” denotes a place where anyone can go to be themselves and let their freak flag fly! and sets the tone for her disco and soul fused, progressive album, which is recorded with and produced by Justin Stanley (Prince, Jamie Lidell, Beck etc). Along with the talents of versatile musicians such as Brandon Coleman (Kamasi Washington, Thundercat, Donald Glover, Flying Lotus), Greg Phillinganes (Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder) and Kaveh Rastegar (John Legend, Beck), Nikka Costa invites you to immerse yourself in her “Dirty Disco” world.

“Dirty Disco is about a place anyone can go to be themselves and let their freak flag fly! It’s about a place where no one is looking, no one cares what you're doing or what you're into. It could be a disco, but it could also be another planet or headspace or vibe. It's dark and sparkly, blue and purple. Gritty, raw and sexy. Whatever you want it to be.” - Nikka Costa

Roulade Records returns with a second imprint : let's welcome Roulade 3000, Occibel, Hearthug and Wooka on Huguette's birthday !

A further exercise in musical curation, Child Of Nature is our latest sonic confluence of self-released tracks from the loners, hippies and outsiders of the 70s and early 80s. A collection of privately pressed music, able to breathe and be created free from the constraints of heavy handed commercialism, yielding a pure vision of artistic expression. Child Of Nature features ten songs of brooding soft rock and psychedelic folk steeped in melancholia. Some ache for better times or past lovers, while others seek spiritual fulfillment or social progress.

A compilation to evoke the raw and unobstructed, to summon the occult, to fundamentally conjure a vivid portrait of our untamed natural environment. Recorded on the north coast of California, Luellen Reese’s ethereal “Silvery Waterfalls” drifts and swirls with electric guitar as her unearthly vocals transcend across a seven minute opus, fit for the golden age of labels like 4AD or Dedicated. “The flowers are dancing just for you …”, Reggie Russell croons over glistening Key Of Creek’s title track “Child Of Nature”, evoking a utopian world of natural harmony free from the present day realities of industrial decay.

Tap into your inner primal being, to embrace wholeheartedly, with frivolity and without reserve, your own child of nature.

Drawing inspiration from the depths of late 70’s NYC proto-rap disco instrumentals, Nigerian boogie, Jamaican dub and modern jazzy house - The Lahaar is a Trans-Tasman collaboration between Julien Dyne, Horatio Luna and Surprise Chef’s Lachlan Stuckey, featuring Mara TK and Toby Laing on vocals. The EP embarks on a 5-track rollercoaster - kicking off with “Doin’ It”, fast-paced jazz-funk peppered with marimba and organ riffs, balanced out by the siren vocals of Mara TK. “Step 2” suddenly brakes and swerves into cruise mode, repurposing the trumpets and dub echoes - picking up tempo in the soulful melancholia of “Work Work Work”. In the last two tracks the organs and guitars make a frenetic comeback by way of disco-house, ending with a nod to 70s cop movie funk.

A holy grail for fans of French boogie, early hip hop, Arabic funk and Balearic bops,"Ettika" has been seriously sought after since Vidal Benjamin found it in the 1€ bin back in 2006. Teasing the ears of the underground via Vidal's 'Balearic Nightmare' mix for Noncollective, copies of the original were soon snapped up completely, and the later adopters were sated by a Blackdisco edit from Alexis Le-Tan (himself gifted Vidal's second copy), which is now also rare as hen's teeth. The fervour for the track is easy to understand. Underpinned by an endlessly buoyant bass groove, chanted female vocals dart out the speakers like a post- modern mantra while synth vamps flare in stuttering stereo. Middle-Eastern motifs add an air of mystery, but this truly belongs in a dance floor utopia. That the track was the product of a 'back-to-work' scheme aimed at unemployed immigrant youth in Rouen only adds to the appeal. Led by teacher Bernard Guégan, a quartet of students delivered lyrics in French and Arabic inspired by their rejection letters, serving a little social commentary and a lot of funk. If you're mad on Ahmed Fakroun and Shams Dinn, or even those folks in the Bush of Ghosts, then this is a must have for you.
Archeology isn't just about excavation, there should be interpretation too, and in this case it comes from Italian duo Hear & Now and Leeds' The Veteran Delinquents. The former furnish the 12" with two radical takes, the dreamy downtempo stroll of their French Remix - all unhurried percussion, Gilmour-riffing and coastal élan - and the peaktime pump of their Arab Remix, which transports the original vocal into a land of desert new beat and Balearic trance with a little space left for some frazzled fretwork. If you've followed their work with Claremont you know the quality on show. The Veteran Delinquents, the collaborative vehicle of Leeds stalwarts Craig Christon and Tim Hutton, condense a lifetime of club experiences into their remix, establishing the infectious groove of the original before subverting with chugging bass and winking acid, all augmented with their own slick synth work. The original was an all time classic at Craig's Joe's Bakery nights way back when, and this new interpretation is both respectful and revolutionary.

Finally available on single LP format! All 5 parts of Dam-Funks magnum opus!

“New” album recorded 1988-1992 ... At the request of Peanut Butter Wolf, Dam went through many of these recordings, all made on cassette, going back to his teenage years. As Wolf tells it, “Dam told me, ‘this is your project Wolf. Do whatever you want with it. I leave it in your hands. I don't even wanna see it til it's done. Have fun.’” ... so have fun, people! LP is limited to 1000 copies!

Doug Willis returns with a club banger in the form of “The Mighty Douglas”. A euphoric ride in the sky with live gospel organ-led instrumentation, whilst vocals are provided by Taka Boom (Chak Chak Chaka Khans Lil sis). Hallelujah! We then have Mr Basejam delivering one of his groovy chugging mid-tempo mixes of this forthcoming ZR release by Mr Wrightangle. Live strings, syncopated clav and overly loud organismic dog howls are the order of the day here. On the flip we have the prolific Atjazz who turns his hand on that classic Jakatta track ‘American Dream’. He reconstructs it elements with great precision as he lays out swinging drums & sparkling percussion to back up a seriously groove led bassline and slick synth work. The legendary US soul funk act of “Come Go With Me” fame release a brand new song in the shape of optimistic gospel tinged “Work It Out”. Dave Lee works his magic on the mix to tease in some of their classic old sound into the instrumentation.