Funk | Soul 147 Items

“The only time you wear a Tuxedo is when it’s time to party.”

So says legendary West Coast player Snoop Dogg on the opening track of “Tuxedo II”. The blessing of the Doggfather is of special importance to Mayer Hawthorne and Jake One, whose second album as a duo finds them at the forefront of a new wave of gangster boogie - one that owes as much to G-funk as P-funk.This is the territory of pre- and post-hydraulic low riders: a mélange of Cali boom-bap, analog synth bass and elegant disco that resonates truth and authenticity in an era where so many are faking the funk.

Bonding over a shared love of Chic, Parliament, and the other signs in the greater funk Zodiac, Mayer Hawthorne (Aquarius) and Jake One (Taurus) were early predictors of the sea changes that American music would undergo in 2016. Their first release of 2015 debuted at #1 on iTunes America’s RnB charts, christened as “Dance Floor Catnip” by the Boston Globe, and “Pure disco-funk hot fire” by Okayplayer. Considering their individual successes (Mayer’s four solo albums, Jake’s production work for the likes of Drake, Future, The Weeknd, and De La Soul) and five Grammy nominations between the two of them, it’s no surprise that their powers combined have yet again yielded a bevy of absolute slappers that are packaged perfectly for dance parties in 2017. The material here, while wholly original, is an exercise in honoring its forebears. “Tuxedo II” recalls the future funk wobble of Zapp, Gap, Jam/ Lewis and Junie Morrison, while nodding lyrically to Mtume, Jodeci and Cameo.The crystallization of the album’s concept comes courtesy of its message of universal love; thanks to the signature combination of soul and pop sensibility that have come to define Mayer’s hooks.

“You gotta do what you love...” says Mayer in a recent interview with Nordstrom’s style blog, one of the many fashion outlets to cover Tuxedo’s rise. After all - the transcendental ritual of the party and the rippling self affirmation of the funk are of one spirit: the spirit of self love...of self expression. “Tuxedo II” is a modern testament to unity and positivity in trying times. It is a reminder that the dance floor will always be there to welcome you, whoever you are.

Check out this essential garage Zamrock/Soul/Funk single as the first official reissue of the celebrated band’s one and only album!

The musical style that became known as Zamrock came to embody the economic despair that followed the 1973-1974 oil crisis, which flung Zambia into recession and exacerbated a wide range of social tensions. Much of Zamrock also captured the controversy of wider politics in Africa and the world. Perhaps the finest example of this is Black Power by The Peace. - The Guardian The Boyfriends, from Kitwe’s Chamboli Mine Township, supplied the founding members for Zamrock’s most famous band, Witch, and kick started one of Zamrock’s best bands, Peace. Their sole Zamrock entry, “Black Power”, recorded at Malachite Film Studio circa 1973/4 and issued circa 1975, sounds like nothing else in the Zamrock canon: a lost message drifiting from the flower power era, imbued with a fiery Zambian voice.

Following up on the success of Lady Wray’s solo debut album Queen Alone, we are
proud to give you another 45 offering, this time showing another side of Nicole.
Known worldwide for her early career as a Hip Hop / R&B singer, then more recently
for her more matured Soul inspired writing, the A side of this one “Underneath My
Feet” shows just how hard it is to put Lady Wray in a box. If you haven’t seen her live
show, you may have no idea that she has a healthy bad ass Rock and Roll side to her,
commanding crowds with a raucousness that likens Betty Davis. Underneath My Feet
is a tough blend of glam rock drums and guitar stabs that Nicole takes to like a fish to
water. A self proclaimed voodoo woman, putting a spell on the listener, warning all of
her unbridled power.
The B side is the heart wrenching Guilty, a song Wray wrote to cope with the
incarceration of her brother. One listen and it is impossible to doubt the sincerity,
again showing Cole’s songwriting prowess with imagery of no one to cheers with, and
not wanting to experience the comforts of home knowing her brother was locked up in
a cell. A solid 2 sider showing a different side of Lady Wray than she is typically known
for all wrapped up in a beautiful picture sleeve cover.

After a strong debut in 2016, Durand Jones & The Indications are
hitting the road this spring with a new 45 from their debut LP. The
lead album cut, “Make A Change” is powerful message soul at its
fnest! Never more powerful and never more relevant! Meanwhile,
the B-side is a cookin’ lowrider soul jam featuring the sweet falsetto
of drummer Aaron Frazer. A two-sided burner.

Back in! It all started in a local club in Pine Bluff Arkansas where Mojo and Spider played in their first group together Zodiac in the mid 70s. Spider played lead guitar, and Mojo held the brass section. Sam "Spider" Rice was also the music director for a vocal group called "La Pinch" which included vocalist Gary Pinchom (Pinch). As the 80s approached La Pinch was looking for a new sound. After relocating to the East Coast "The Pinch" was born. New York and Jersey was quite a change. Spider wanted to write a song to address the drug abuse he was seeing all around him. "Shot Out was a street term we used to describe someone with an excessive drug habit", recalls Spider. "We built a voice box from a horn driver, a couple of switches, and some tubing". They had some money stashed from a Zodiac gig and picked up a Prophet 5 and Roland Drum machine. After recording the track in 1981, the song was mastered at the legendary Power Plant in NYC. That would prove to be the major limitation for the release, since they were out of money now and could only afford to press 200 copies of the 7". Distributed in Texas and locally on the east coast, "Shot Out" would be the only release from The Pinch. UNTIL NOW! Re-mastered for the first time on 12" vinyl, this 80s funk masterpiece is finally back on wax.

Side A's cover of "Tearz" is as much an homage to the Wendy Rene sample as it is to the Wu-Tang Clan track. The song starts as a glazed over cover of "after laughter, comes tears" with Shannon Wise of The Shacks singing Wendy Rene's timeless mantra. Halfway through, the mood dramatically shifts and the drums and organ that drive the original RZA sample take over. A dubbed out Lee Fields taps in like only he can, and the song spirals into outer space.Side B finds EMA dipping into the deeper side of the Wu catalog with Raekwon's "Verbal Intercourse." Mixing the grimy, gritty production aesthetic of the original with elements of dubbed out reggae, El Michels Affair once again pushes the definition of a "cover" and truly makes it a tune of their own.

The past few years have found Sean McBride, the artist behind Martial Canterel, in a state of flux, ebbing back and forth between material displacement and musical aestheticism. His expert pedigree in electronic sound and arrangement bridges the gap created by an undecidability between life at home and abroad His new album, Lost At Sea, is an attempt for the artist to locate this elusive common ground.The album's introductory track, Giving Up, has all of the hallmarks that Martial Canterel has utilized in the past_melodic chorus, upbeat rhythm and classic sequential dynamism. Where the song diverges is in its core theme of nature: nature's return to a period of restoration after the failures and recklessness of humankind.The slower pace of songs like Scampia and Puszta yearn for McBride's complex love affair with far flung destinations. Re-evaluating the political strife and social unrest in these historical locations, McBride delves deeper into political and geological reference points creating symbolic representations using mechanized percussion, white noise and various sine waves.The conceptual nature of Lost at Sea reaches even deeper depths within the waveforms of Astralize, a track based upon academic Donna Haraway's pre-civilized theories of human neglect after the `azstralization'.

Yet another highly in-demand 12" from the Philadelphia International stable and an artist whose records never go out of date! This is a killer double-sided beauty with the frenetic and jazzy "Life On Mars" from his debut 1976 album on the top-side and the mellow all-time classic and soul boy anthem "The Sweetest Pain" from 1979 on the flip.
Two very different sides of a great artist, both of which show the level of diversity that he was capable of producing. The last legitimate release of this was back 1999 and a Mint copy will currently set you back circa £50, if you can ever find one.
Fully remastered on limited edition 180 gram heavyweight vinyl.

The 7" comes with a free Funky Chimes 45rpm adapter.

Stix Recordings rounds up all those essential Mato 7" anthems onto this extended player, with all the cuts remastered for the occasion! Includes two unreleased hits featuring Blackstreet (No
Diggity) & Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre (The Wash). Woopiwoop, that's the sound of reggae-hip hop perfection!

As humans, we are aware of our inner beast and should therefore be able to control it. We understand our hard-wired primal urges and why they exist in an evolutional sense. We understand the relationship between mind and body. Highly evolved and intelligent, we should be able to recognize these genetic hangovers and control them as a means to act positively and move forward as a compassionate species. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Recent global eve...

The Afro Soul Prophecy project welcomes the Spring of 2017 with a series of two exclusive 7-inch records, for a total of four fully instrumental new compositions. This second 45rpm of the series consists of the main track “Daddy’s Groove”, a catchy funky song with wah-wah guitars and a long middle sax solo part, paired with the romantic slow-paced “Let Me Be Your Lover”. Once again Alex Puddu has lent his creativity and put his music signature on these tracks, for an exciting and charming result!

The pop world lost one of the most important soul singers ever to grace the world on 1st April 1984. Marvin Gaye has left behind a series of fantastic hits plus a big handful of tracks which deserve the title of masterpiece, all Collected on this album.

New label Smiling C starts off with a compilation LP of released and unreleased works by the Arabic rapper, Shams Dinn.
For their first ever reissue, Smiling C connects with the Arabic rapper Shams Dinn to release a compilation his best songs, including the hit "Hedi Bled Noum". The compilation covers his entire career of with songs made between 1985-1990, most of which went unreleased at the time. One of the few Moroccan rappers to ever be recorded on vinyl back in the 80s, Shams Dinn was a pioneer of Arabic flow. Starting his career because he wanted to be a positive light for the Arabic immigrants living in France. He earned his status participating in freestyle competitions, and performing in small clubs around Europe. His career came to a turning point when he was asked by a major label to record a full LP. Unfortunately, the label decided they didn't want to promote Arabic music (largely because of the Gulf War) - and asked Shams to translate the Arabic to French. Shams Dinn wouldn't stand for that, and he was dropped from the label. The following years he worked at a school, teaching kids how to rap and express themselves through words.
The reissue comes with newly imagined art, and an inner sleeve with interview and photos.

Just 3 Words: Stone Cold Classic!

A few years ago, Melodies family members Floating Points and DJ Red Greg got their hands on a couple of original 70s obscurities. While these standout records shone brightly in their own right, the two DJs saw the potential to create their own edits behind the scenes, finely attuning the original versions to modern-day dancefloor standards. Of these new recordings, they cut only five copies for themselves and a few DJ friends of theirs.

Today, Melodies International is very proud to bring you MEL006 and MEL007. Fully licensed, lovingly mastered to the highest possible standards and carefully edited to dial up that dancefloor enjoyment, these two ‘You’re A Melody’ classics weren’t originally meant to get official releases. But due to popular request, they are now available to play and share in very special moments at parties around the world.

15 years ago, Ludovic Llorca was an up and comer in the French house scene but also somewhat adjacent to it, pulling his samples from low-key jazz instead of the glitzy disco numbers immortalised by Daft Punk. His critically acclaimed debut New Comer went largely under the radar but has retained a modest cult following, its chic, blissed-out mood something of an antecedent to the kind of sound now well-served by the folks at Mood Hut.
Longtime fans anticipating a fresh helping of jazz-oriented deep house will be surprised to the hear the The Garden is both stylistically and structurally different from Llorca’s earlier material. Funk and soul are to The Garden what jazz was to New Comer but rather than sample the classics, Llorca fashions new tunes in the style of the greats with the help of several guest vocalists, making this is very much a collection of songs rather than beats.
All Right conjures a sticky urban atmosphere with bluesy sustained piano chords that recalls Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On?, while Trigger Happy, with its squelchy synth lead, is an unmistakable nod to Stevie Wonder’s Superstition. Add to that list You, a jaunty finger snapping homage to the Jackson 5, and it’s obvious that The Garden is less an experimental reimagining of familiar sounds than it is a retro revival project along the lines of Dâm-Funk, and a good one too.
The record’s standout moment and black sheep however, is Waiting. The only track without a featured guest, it’s a noir-ish swagger of a groove is built around an irresistible bassline that keeps on giving. With its icy strings and descending minor chords, it’s sinister and strange in a way unlike anything else on The Garden and yet oozes the very essence of the funk.

In 1980, during her run on Broadway in the musical, “Ain’t Misbehavin’” and before being cast in “Dreamgirls”, singer, actress and Detroit native Roz Ryan teamed up with the legendary team of Dennis Coffey And Mike Theodore on a six song album that wound up being unreleased.

Recently, the folks at Super Disco Edits released this 45 featuring Roz’ taking on Preston Glass’ “Keep Shining / Put Love Back” composed by Eric McClinton.

Both tracks were from the Theodore and Coffey sessions and make their debut for lovers of dancin’ (“Keep Shining”) and romancin’ (“Put Love Back”). Enjoy!

Having had access to the longer version of the Northern classic ‘Gone With The Wind Is My Love’, this Kent 45 of Rita & the Tiaras’ masterpiece is the first time we have issued the Doré single as it was originally put out. We’ve added the glorious instrumental to the flip for lovers of that LA soul orchestral sound.

“Superbacana” marks the return of S-tone Inc., an EP that anticipates a new album due to release in autumn 2017. Produced by Stefano Tirone, who co-wrote all the tracks with Tomaz Di Cunto - alias Toco - it contains four tracks (one in two different versions) wi th a funky Brazilian flavour, inspired by the Black Rio sound that represents the encounter between sa mba and the American soul funk music since the ’70s. An outstanding groovy effort that raises the expectations on what S-Tone Inc. will produce in the nearby future...

Soopastole is back with anaother pair of amazing jazz-funk-reworks!

Modernism goes vinyl! After two successful CD volumes, Kent’s look at the sort of R&B and club soul that could have been danced to by the original mods – if only they had known about it – arrives with a special vinyl edition.

Gathering up favourite discoveries from the CDs, this 14-track LP is augmented by other tracks culled from the mod jazz series together with a couple of exclusives.

This compilation is a selection of high spots, with something for every mod fan whatever the style. Classic club soul from Bob & Earl, Bessie Banks and Jeb Stuart jostles with jazzy R&B from Floyd White and Clarence Daniels plus some almost-funk from Chuck Higgins and Chet Ivey.

Three tracks are released on vinyl for the first time whilst many others are seeing their first reissue on the format. One of these is the super rare ‘Go’ by Little Johnny Hamilton and the Creators, a band that would go on to become 1970s chart-toppers War.

With their first two Daptone albums – Get an Understanding, and as featured singers on Como Now – The Como Mamas established themselves as three of the strongest voices in gospel music today.

In December of 2015, they cemented that reputation by taking their first trip from their home in Como, MS up to Harlem, NY to crush the Apollo Theater as part of the Daptone Super Soul Revue. Taking full advantage of their presence in town, the Daptone crew brought Ester Mae Wilbourn, Della Daniels, and Angelia Taylor into the House of Soul the week after the show to join forces for the first time with the musicians and studio that has defined their label’s sound. Jimmy Hill, Thomas Brenneck, Homer Steinweiss, and Bosco Mann, all stalwarts of the Daptone stable, came together as “The Glorifiers Band,” to put down a churning musical foundation for these amazing singers. The results are some of the heaviest tracks that Daptone has cut to date. If you don’t like raw, soulful gospel music, you’re really gonna hate this one. Move Upstairs is a real mother!

Back around the early 1970's Bell Telephunk was formed around the New Jersey area. Some members moved to Clevleand Ohio where the group performed in these early days at bars and clubs. The band disbanded early on and the name lie dormant for a few years. Around 1975/76 Michael Calhoun and a few others decided to rejuvenate the name again. They played often at the Kinsman grill located in Kinsman road Cleveland where they cut their teeth! They ventured into the studio just once to record a series of 6 songs. We are now pleased to bring them to light the newly formed Kinsman Record label. Once you hear these you will fall in love instantly with Ron Thatch's amazing vocals skills. This is crossover ghetto soul of the highest order...

Some twenty years after René Costy's passing, his work - finally - goes global. Moreover, this being a selection out of more than 400 tracks from a virtuoso, versatile andinsatiable artist, it is hard to underestimate the importance of this compilation, which focuses on Costy's library music production from the 70's.

Mayer music without his voice is still Mayer music!

Some records are timeless and never age - "Happiness Is Just Around The Bend" by The Main Ingredient is one of those records. Originally released in 1974, "Happiness" was a record before it's time - had it been released a year later it would undoubtedly have been one of the first 12" discs - so as a result, most discerning DJs at the time chose to play the album cut.
The song is actually a cover of UK Prog-Jazz band Brian Auger's Oblivion Express's version from the year before but Main Ingredient took the song to a whole new level and, 44 years later, it has become one of the most revered dance tunes of all-time.
Main Ingredient were unlucky with 12" releases, which is why we're delighted to give "Evening Of Love" it's first-ever 12" release! Once again this was a 1981 album track which years later it would become a Modern Soul anthem and rightfully be regarded as one of their best records.

The 7" comes with a free Funky Chimes 45rpm adapter.

The 7" comes with a free Funky Chimes 45rpm adapter.

Big Crown Records presents another killer two sider pulled from Lee Fields & The Expressions instant classic "Special Night". With Lee touring the world from sold out show to sold out show supporting his album, we give the DJs and collectors another must have 45.

The A side "Never Be Another You" finds Lee & The Expressions taking another turn on the formula their success has been built on. An unorthodox track to find on a soul album made to fit perfectly, once again pushing the aesthetics of analog soul further into the present. Lee confesses his love and appreciation for his woman walking the fine line of vulnerability and strength.

The B- side "Lover Man" is equal parts rough and smooth. The production and the band come off with a thunderous backing track that takes it's time to get to full sail while Lee lays down some tell it like it is lyrics. Fields comes to the microphone with the confidence only a man with his track record could putting down what life is like with him if the woman he is after just let's it be that way.

Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings' final studio album, Soul of a Woman is a lush, orchestral masterpiece. A true testament to the life and career of Daptone's fearless leader and one of the world's greatest performers.

Though we’ll never again see her electric form shimmy across the stage, Sharon Jones continues to give us her soul and her music. She died nearly a year ago, but only now can we hear her final creation. Soul of a Woman captures a singer and a band at the peak of their power. Cutting one last time to eight-track tape at Daptone’s House of Soul studio in Bushwick, Brooklyn, the band endeavored to create a record that stretches the limits of their soulful sound in all directions, giving us both their rawest and most sophisticated recordings to date. A final statement by one of the most influential rhythm and blues voices of the 21st century.

Originally scheduled to be the second Funkadelic 45, ‘Can’t Shake It Loose’ was cancelled before release. The song had been a single (and northern soul classic) by Pat Lewis, whilst the Supremes had recorded it for Motown. It’s fascinating to hear George and the boys’ treatment released on 45 for the first time. It is backed by one of the great breakbeats – Funkadelic’s actual second single ‘I’ll Bet You’. The opening break sounds amazing on this newly mastered 45.

First in a series of split 12inch singles, PPU-019 features the rare 80s funk recordings of Durham North Carolina’s Willie Hill and Milwaukee Wisconsin’s Roshell Anderson. “Delicate Rose” blossomed on the PPU Video Party DVD, due to many requests for it PPU decided to release the vinyl. “Wild Dreams” originally released in the late 80s only came out locally in Milwaukee on Deerfield Records.

From the archives of the legendary BELTER and DISCOPHON labels, essential to understand the birth of the Catalan Rumba and Flamenco-Pop genre in Spain, we’ve selected 14 dance-friendly tracks taken from overlooked LPs and 45s.
This is the real gipsy–funk sound, full of screaming flamenco vocals, funk drums, electric guitars, wah–wah, organ, electric bass, exotic percussions, soulish horns, latin and even oriental touches...
Featuring folkloric ye-yé singers, gipsy princes, teen rumba stars and groovy rumba–pop bands: DOLORES VARGAS “La Terremoto”, CHANGO, ROSA MORENA, RUMBA 3, EL PRÍNCIPE GITANO, EL NOI...

The two songs included in this 7-inch, “Spooky” and “Hurt So Bad”, directly come Andrea Balducci debut album “Bloom” (Schema Records, 2012, SC 459): two evergreen standards modernized and rearranged in a smooth, refined groovy soul key; a voice ins pired by crooners such as Frank Sinatra, Jamie Cullum and Michael Bublé, over music played by an exceptional team of musicians. These are songs that speak to the heart.

2LP gatefold with liner notes, 180gr vinyl. 'Funky Chimes' is a two-hour collection of excellent and unique grooves. It contains 27 of the most interesting yet long forgotten Belgian dance tracks from the seventies.

You have to really search through the Doré catalogue to find the soul 45s, but when you do it is hugely rewarding. Its jewels have only been revealed to Northern Soul collectors over time and several are ridiculously scarce; Little Johnny Hamilton’s ‘Keep On Movin’’ and the Swans’ ‘Nitty Gritty City’ remain one-off disc discoveries. Guaranteed dancefloor classics abound, including Rita & the Tiaras’ ‘Gone With The Wind Is My Love’, Little Johnny Hamilton’s ‘Oh How I Love You’ and the Puffs’ ‘I Only Cry Once A Day Now’.

The Superbs’ ‘Wind In My Sails’ and Milton James’ mesmeric ‘My Lonely Feeling’ represent the funkier end of the Northern Soul sound, while tracks by Ray Marchand and the Shades Of Jade are subtle mid-tempo soul of the highest quality. Nearly all are rare, expensive and beautiful, while Kenard’s ‘What Did You Gain By That’ is highly imaginative, and the Fidels’ ‘I’m Givin’ You Notice Baby’ is just a classic 60s soul stomper.

All together on beautiful 12-inch vinyl, they are irresistible.

produced by Erykah Badu, 9th Wonder, James Poyser, Shafiq Husayn, Kariem Riggins, J Dilla, Madlib, Georgia Anne Muldrow. The Ankhh is backck!

Limited edition vinyl!

Transcendent : “Surpassing the ordinary; exceptional”
2007 - 2017 : Heavenly Sweetness is turning 10 years old!
They are celebrating with 3 birthday parties, and 2 compilations! One is a best of the label’s production, and the 2nd one is made of exclusive tracks, composed for this occasion.
This compilation is a very subjective best of the label’s production, from each album or single we had the chance to produce, with great artists.
A journey through 10 years of music, a great introduction to the label’s universe, but even the experts will discover unknown tracks.
Including well known artists such as Guts, Blundetto, Sly Johnson, Anthony Joseph, but also more confidential artists: Robert Aaron, Jacaranda Muse, Patchworks (and his tribute to Gil Scott-Heron) and many others!

Eight long years have passed since the previous S-Tone Inc.’s full-length (“Moon in Libra”, SCCD/LP 407) and, even if Stefano Tirone hasn’t released anything under his popular pseudonym until Spring 2017, the longtime collaboration and friendship with Tomas Di Cunto (a.k.a. Toco) has never expired: Tirone in fact produced Toco’s “Memoria” in 2014 (SCCD/LP 467), and since then has never stopped working with Toco, who’s the co-author of 8 out 10 tracks of this release.
As anticipated by the “Superbacana” EP (SCEP 479), the sound of the new album is widely influenced by the Brazilian soul-funk sound of the late ‘70s known as Black Rio. But there’s more, starting from the opening “Sands of Time”, an up-tempo groovy track with a lyrical cello melody and Manuela Ravaglioli’s dreamy vocals, and the mellow disco flavor of “Vontade de viver”, sung by Toco. Manuela is another historical S-Tone-Inc. artistic partner, together with Laura Fedele, who sings in the soulful downtempo “I can’t keep up with your love”. Barro and Qinho, two emerging singers from the new Brazilian scene, respectively perform in “Vale do mistério”, a downtempo tune that borrows some guitars from the alternative rock scene and cites Pirandello’s “Uno, nessuno e centomila” in its lyrics, and in “Chuva de verão”, with Qinho crooning over a track deeply influenced by Isaac Hayes and Curtis Mayfield. The closing track, “Estrada real”, that features Luzia Dvorek on vocals, reminds of Sergio Mendes and Brazil 66 from the “Stillness” era, with its acoustic guitar-led groove and its silky flute performed by Carlo Nicita. The remaining tracks are three funky grooves from the “Superbacana” EP, featuring the Sao Paulo quartet of 4Maré, consisting of Toco, Luzia Dvorek, Bruno Morais and Kika.
Despite its various influences, “Onda” does not sound as a mere copy of what’s already been done at all: S-Tone Inc. took all the necessary time to produce a new record, and the result is a strongly original and personal effort!

180g audiophile vinyl.

This legendary floor-filling Philly Northern Soul all time classic is now available on a nice reissue 45-single.

Repress edition comes in plain white generic sleeve!

Killer Unreleased mid 70's Blue Eyed Soul/AOR!
Between the sessions at Wishborne Sound Studios, the session musicians Terry Woodford, Clayton Ivey, Muscle Shoals horns among others, got down to record some of the finest funky soul and AOR. They took the name Mirage, aiming for stardom. Unfortunately no album was ever released and many tracks went on the shelves in the studio. Over 40 years later, Preservation Records are releasing two of their finest tracks on an exculsive 7". Only 500 pressed

An extremely rare and in-demand record from the disco-funk group has been unearthed and restored. The Movers enjoyed huge success in the 1970s, releasing album after album of ground-breaking sounds, including fusions of South African marabi jazz, funk, disco and jive. The line up of the band shifted throughout its existence - however this particular album produced by David Thekwane features musicians Jabu Sibumbe, L Rhikoti, Lloyd Lelosa and Sankie Chounyane.

12 tracks of horn-led funk from one of the great unsung bands of the late 1960s. The Pazant Brothers, Ed and Al are jazz and funk royalty having played with Kool & The Gang, Pucho & The Latin Soul Brothers and Lionel Hampton.

Their recordings for GWP were made under the auspices of producer Ed Bland. They are highly sought after by producers and DJs, and represent the very best of their recorded work. This is the first time that this work has been available on LP.

Includes sought-after singles ‘Skunk Juice’, ‘Juicy Lucy’ and ‘Chicken Scratch’, as well as a previously unreleased version of ‘High Heel Sneakers’ and two vocal tracks with Betty Barney recorded live at MOMA which have never been on vinyl before.

Originally released on a promo-only limited edition special 12" mix in the U.S., "Anung Anunga" was pressed in extremely limited quantity, making it one of the rarest Columbia 12" releases ever - a mint copy will currently set you back around £100.
Produced by veteran dance music producer Bert Decoteaux, "Anung Anunga" is the perfect fusion of red-hot Cuban musicians with a contemporary dance production.
The result is simply stunning and continues the tradition of artists like Candido and Joe Bataan crossing over into the Dance Music world.

This is the instrumental version of Lee Fields’ latest album.

Produced by Leon Michels and Thomas Brenneck, and brilliantly performed by the Expressions, “Special Night” was written, recorded, mixed, and mastered entirely to tape in three weeks at the legendary Diamond Mine Studios in Queens, NY. A sense of urgency, equal parts fun and inspiration, and a decent amount of beer and Jack Daniels were the driving forces during the sessions that produced Lee Fields & The Expressions latest offering.