MINIMAL WAVE, MAXIMUM EFFECT

Crash Course In Science: Flying Turns
From The Minimal Wave Tapes, Volume One (Stones Throw, 2010)

The '80s aren't my favorite period of music, which is funny considering that was the era of my formative years. Pop music just was not in a good space throughout most of that period, in my humble opinion, although to be fair there was some great music, too.

One of my beefs with the '80s is that new wave was never a big sub-genre I cared to hear. A few weeks ago I got a promo of this set and popped it in the player even though I wasn't sure it would do much for me, but what can I say? - I'm a whore for music.

My impression overall for the musical performances themselves were what I'd call historically futuristic. The vocals certainly sound dated typically, and to an end the production does, too. There's just something about the way they use some of their synths in these tracks that sounds like something that you could hear at a rave alongside some techno here in the present. I can only imagine the effects that listening to them while under the influence of your drug of choice (not that I'm promoting that lifestyle).

For example, “Flying Turns” by Crash Course In Science on first listen doesn't sound like it was created in 1981 (minus the vocals). Those computerized, fuzzy tones that blast throughout sound like something Timbaland would have cooked up for Justin Timberlake's “Futuresex/Lovesounds” sessions as some sort of bastardized version of “Sexyback” or as a second movement to the track. (Don't front, you know that shit was/is hot no matter how many times you heard it on the airwaves).

The entire compilation has its roots in the “wave” movement whether you want to call it new wave, minimal wave, whatever. These tracks earned their name with their minimalist approach to the music as well as to their original distribution, which was either vinyl or cassette (yikes!). Whether or not they have stood the test of time – and some of these tracks have done that more than others – isn't so much the issue as is the premise of collecting a capsule of the experimentation of the period, like it or not – and this set in particular was more hit than miss.

If songs like this pique your interest, there's plenty more where they came from via Minimal Wave (the label) curator Veronica Vasicka who releases them on vinyl only. She also runs her own show on East Village Radio, a station we've highlighted here previously on Record Racks.

AFRO ROCK AND AFROBEAT ABOUND

Steele Beautttah: Africa
From VA: Afro Rock, Vol. 1 (Strut, 2010)

March 16th will see the reissue of a previously out-of-print compilation (originally issued by indie Kona) highlighting African funk and soul. Its original issue helped to spark a surge to mine music from the Motherland. One song by Jingo (“Fever”) will at least sound familiar if you've seen “The Last King Of Scotland.”

Steele Beautttah's “Africa” provides an excellent example of the general feel of the album. In an ode to his home continent, Beautttah takes pride in singing praise to Africa. A funky flute loop accompanies the singer in the chorus. Three-fourths into the song a guitar solo pops up before we're lead to the song's exit through the chorus once again.

The album bounces around to different countries – Zaire, Kenya, and Nigeria – to provide a crash course in Africa's brand of soul. While these countries each have their own distinct culture, they are linked together by a similar course in rhythm and tempo. Get a bonus track by the Latapaza Band that isn't featured on the album from Strut. Act now, before it's taken down!



Dan Satch And His Atomic 8 Dance Band: Woman Pin Down
From VA: Black Man's Cry: The Inspiration Of Fela Kuti (Now Again, 2010)

To be clear, this CD/LP is not a collection of work by famed Nigerian Fela Kuti (as I thought it would be when I first saw that it was being issued). What it is, however, is a collection of songs of artists who were inspired by his work and message. Guess I should have taken the “inspiration of” part of the title a little more to heart.

The latter fifth of the album collects a few recent pieces that pay tribute to Fela. Two have been released within the last 18 months and feature Jay Whitefield through 2 musical projects he's been involved with: The Whitefield Brothers and Karl Hector & The Malcouns.

Throughout the rest of the album is older material from the likes of Bola Johnson, Jerry Hansen, and Dan Satch & His Atomic 8 Dance Band. The Satch track is classic Afrobeat with its conga-laden background. The lead vocals are geared more toward message than to wow you with range. The same can be said for Johnson's “Hot Pants,” in which he sings in both English and Yoruba. It's almost a patois, of sorts, of African language. “Hot Pants” tempo is similar to the Satch number, which could explain their order back-to-backon the disc.

The overall design of the packaging is quite nice (I have the CD copy) with its book-like cover and binding. My only complaint is that the disc was hard to get out from the tight sleeve. I didn't want to stretch the sleeve, but at the same time I nearly had to just to get the disc out. It's a small misfire in an otherwise exemplary showcase for music and knowledge as afforded us by the extensive liner notes contained within.

JACK JOHNSON AND FRIENDS HELP SAVE THE WORLD?

There's a new compilation called 1% For The Planet featuring numerous indie artists (Josh Ritter, Angelique Kidjo) as well as household names like Jackson Browne, Jack Johnson, and G. Love And Special Sauce. 41 tracks in all.

You can see more videos about the movement and the music over on their YouTube page. Aside from helping to create more awareness about environmental consciousness and supporting non-profits dedicated to improving our environment, you get tons of great music for under $10.

Note: It's a digital release only, available at all major digital outlets including Amazon and iTunes. Select independent B&M stores have a recyclable download card that you can use to obtain the album via download.

DETROIT SOUL IS MORE THAN JUST MOTOWN

The New Holidays: My Baby Ain't No Plaything
From VA: Westbound Detroit Northern Soul (Ace/Kent, 2010)

To some, Motown was Detroit. To others, it was the home of some – but not all – of Detroit's great soul music heritage. Ace/Kent recently released a compilation highlighting some of the lesser known, but not lesser quality, soul songs to come out of Detroit. Instead of the more pop-oriented soul that Berry Gordy saw fit to unleash upon the world, Westbound released more traditional sounding soul. In later years, much of this style of soul was classified as Northern soul.

Much of the material falls within the first few years of the '70s, although a few songs were cut at the tail end of 1969. The set starts off with a stomper in Denise Lasalle's “Do Me Right.” With a rhythm section that keeps your foot tapping, horns accent the mixture to keep the momentum going. Denise appears a few songs later in a duet with Abe Tilmon, the lead singer of the Detroit Emeralds (who also appear on the disc), in “Ain't That Lovin',” a track that was previously unissued.

Both Denise and the Emeralds had taken a sabbatical down to Memphis to record some music with Willie Mitchell. Apparently, that influence was carried back as there is more than one song on the compilation that has a bit of that fat backbeat sound. Take Damon Shawn's “Feel The Need,” itself a remake of a previous album cut belonging to the Detroit Emeralds, whose intro cries of the the late Mitchell's handiwork, albeit slightly sped up. Mitchell would've slowed it down a touch to give it more breathing room, but in its faster-paced presentation it also works well. In other Memphis inspired material, Caesar Frazier does his best Al Green vocal interpretation. The music doesn't necessarily remind you of the Hi sound, especially the chorus, but Frazier's inflections along with his enunciation and cadence lean heavily on Green.

The compilation fares its best with songs that do have a distinct Detroit sound to them. The New Holidays, whose music has been brought back to awareness as Mayer Hawthorne covered “Maybe So, Maybe No” last year, with their doo-wop inspired “My Baby Ain't No Plaything” is pure soul goodness. It's happy-go-lucky in sound, although the lyrics are a warning to potential competition encroaching upon the lead's girlfriend.

It's quite an accomplishment when a compilation features a song by Funkadelic (in tamer form from the psychedelic trip they'd wander off for a couple years later) that gets nary a mention and names like Denise LaSalle and Damon Shawn attract the focus. Compilations don't have to feature eight #1 hits that have been beaten to death to be a pleasure to listen to throughout. It's nice to be introduced to new-to-you music, even if it is 40 years old, as this set proves through its 26 tracks.

DAPTONE RETROSPECTIVE

Cynthia Langston And The Gospel Queens: I Need You To Hold My Hand
From Daptone Gold (Daptone, 2009)

This time of year everyone is looking back on the year that was, or, as the case is now that 2010 is near, the decade that was. Daptone is doing the latter with Daptone Gold, meant not so much to signify the best is in the past, as many greatest hits packages normally imply, but as a retrospective of where they've been.

Although the label hasn't been around for a full decade (at least not as Daptone, they rose from Desco Records) – Daptone's first full length was in 2002 – now seemed as appropriate time as any to reflect. The album successfully meets is goal of covering a variety of releases, some even previously unreleased, but just as successfully avoids repeating many of the selections from their digital-only compilations The Daptone 7-Inch Singles Collection Vol. 1 and Vol. 2.

Over one-third of the album features its flagship act, Sharon Jones and The Dap-Kings, in some shape or form. They've certainly been at the forefront of not only the label but of keeping a light on feel good soul music over the last decade. However, when given a chance, other acts shine just as brightly. Take the gospel number “I Need You To Hold My Hand,” which starts out with a “Having A Party”-like intro before pleading with the Lord to accompany the singer (Cynthia Langston), who didn't even get top billing on the album from which it came, through life's journey.

Three previously unreleased tracks make their way here for the first time: the instrumental backing the introduction song, “Giving Up” by Sharon Jones and The Dap-Kings – an acceptable cover of the Gladys Knight classic but in no way touching the Donny Hathaway version, and “A Lover Like Me” by Binky Griptite with The Sugarman Three.

It's a great sampler for those who have yet to fully dive in to the Daptone sound, and even for those who have, the previously unreleased songs as well as five songs formerly only available on 45s (that may now be out of print) make it a worthy album to purchase. They have done a great job of trying to play both sides of the fence making it a place where you can hang out with old friends and meet some new ones along the way.

IN THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT

Electric Jungle: Funky Funky Christmas
From In The Christmas Groove (Strut, 2009)

It's that time of the year again where we get to hear yuletide songs everywhere. Where I live there's a radio station that gets flipped every year (starting in late October/early November) to play only Christmas music. It can take its toll on your nerves as you hear standard after standard or (bad) cover after (bad) cover.

Don't get me wrong, Christmas music can be great, but it has about a one week shelf life year in and year out. The one exception for me is Donny Hathaway's “This Christmas,” which I could listen to on a hot July day (and have).

So if you need some new (or new to you) Christmas tunes to listen to, Strut has just released a great compilation that gathers some odds and ends from mostly unknowns, aside from Jimmy Reed and the Harvey Averne Band. Songs range from Reed's soul-blues “Christmas Present Blues” (wow, what a harmonica!!) to a sleigh bell-infused instrumental jam in Milly & Silly's “Gettin Down For Xmas” to an almost melancholy “Black Christmas” by the Harlem Children's Choir.

Electric Jungle takes you on a “Funky Funky Christmas” journey – not to be confused with this. Instead, they jam like they've OD'd on egg nog and are hyper from eating the plate of cookies left for Santa.

These are the kind of gifts you hope for as a stocking stuffer. Speaking of which, Daptone has a new 45 out of Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings on the A-Side with Binky Griptite spitting a holiday message on the flip that you can either 1) buy, 2) get free with the purchase of $30 from their online store, or 3) get a free digital copy of just by signing up for their online newsletter. You can preview the A-side here.

Now that's some Christmas spirit!

THEN AND NOW: CHARLES WALKER

Charles Walker And The Daffodils: No Fool No More
From Night Train To Nashville, Vol. 2: Music City Rhythm & Blues 1945-1970 (Lost Highway, 2005)

Then...

Charles Walker with The Daffodils singing a 1950's style doo wop (1959 to be exact) with a tune written by Ted Jarett (who passed in March of 2009). Making an appearance is Johnny Jones on guitar, who I read recently had also passed in October. Jones was part of the house band on The !!!! Beat TV show from 1966. You can buy the entire series on DVD, which is expensive but worth every penny.

The Dynamites Featuring Charles Walker: Burn It Down
From Burn It Down (Outta Sight/Thirty Tigers, 2009)

Now...

Making a career revival of sorts with fellow Music City band The Dynamites, Walker is throwing down harder soul Dap-Kings style. If you're in ATL around New Year's Eve, you can catch them at The Tabernacle for a 2-night stint.

HOLY HAVANA!

Los Caneyes: Suspirando por el Chikichaka
From Si Para Usted Vol 2: The Funky Beats Of Revolutionary Cuba (Waxing Deep, 2009)

Cuba has such a rich and proud cultural diversity. As shown on the latest installment of Si Para Usted, there are such varied styles of music. It was interesting to read the liner notes and learning about how the music industry was run by the state. Record sales meant virtually nothing, and there was no rhyme or reason as to music distribution around the country.

Some bands are more well-documented than others. Los Caneyes, a band of which little is known, displays an uncanny ability to mix it up in “Suspirando por el Chikichaka.” What starts out as a nice polyrhythm and a fuzzy guitar coming in and out of the mix stirred in with building horns turns into a bed for a smooth-voiced singer and those two elements fall out completely before being brought back in about 20 seconds later and then dropping out again. It's an exercise in building up tension and then releasing it. Before you know it, that fuzz guitar is back midway through the song and leads into a repetitive chant by the rest of the band exclaming, “Chikichaka!” Meanwhile, the rhythm section is just going to town. And who is that guy on bongos/congas?

Orquesta Cubaan de Musica Moderna turns in a rousing cover of Ides of March's “Vehicle,” flipping it on its head with a Latin arrangement. The vocals are replaced by an organist who is playing like his life depends on it (and who knows, it may have?), and again, we are treated to a nice fuzz guitar solo. At the end, the organist returns, and if you were to start it right at this part, it almost sounds like an episode of Church For Shut-Ins before a hi-hat chimes in and the horn section bops you over the head and exits out of the jam. This is one of the few times that we get to hear a song with American ties; typically, the government repressed such a recording.

Juan Pablo Torres' has a quasi-disco, quasi-jazz record called “Y Aparecio el Trombon” that sounds in part like “Think Twice” by Donald Byrd in the first 45 seconds. The song, believe it or not, appeared on a record that was intended for aerobics classes. If that's what they played at my local YMCA during classes, I'd be tempted to sign up.

For a country that held such tight control of its music industry, the government also gave their musicians a surprising bit of latitude, although it had the final say of what was recorded and released. This compilation is an excellent starting point for the world to catch up on what was going on in Cuba in the '70s. The revolution may not have been televised, but it was certainly captured on wax for the rest of us to listen in.

GREAT DEAL ON DIGITAL DAPTONE GOLD RIGHT NOW

UPDATE: This sale is on through Monday, November 23.

Before it makes its official physical debut, Amazon.com has the upcoming Daptone Gold compilation out for an astounding $2.99 NOW, which includes an exclusive bonus track to boot. While I'm not sure how long this special will be going on, at this low price you have no reason to not hop on board.

Check it out. A review is forthcoming here at Record Racks!