Back catalogue: All genres

Review: Bill Curtis' Fatback Band is known around the world for its soul and disco hits but their roots actually lay in funk. They were one of the most impressive outfits around in that particular genre and so they have, for those who are willing to dig deep enough, plenty of rare funk gems to call upon from their earliest days. Here we get a couple of them with 'Dance Girl' - the last tune they released in 1974 before signing to Event/Spring. It was a real classic at block parties back in the day and on the flip is a tune that will cost you over L1000 if you can find an original, namely 'Keep On Brother Keep On' - the group's second single on Curtis BC Projects II label.

Review: Daniel David (FKA Trailer Limon) makes a great impression on Bastard Jazz with his first solo record. This 7" finds him link with the Jazz Mafia for a feature after he has done plenty of work with the legendary San Francisco duo the Pendletons. Because of that he is credited with helping to kickstart the Bay Area's modern funk resurgence but here he shows he has plenty of his own skills too. 'Tambor De Cura' (with Guinu) is bustling jazz that is vibrant and vivacious with big horns, steamy jungle atmospheres, humid pads, bird calls and many other great details that form a hefty groove. 'Devotion' is then a funky jazz fusion with cosmic pads and lush vocals.

Review: The Mountain 45 label has been giving us some unique music that cross genres since its inception just a few years ago. Like previous editions, Double A contributes 'Super Badman Riddim' which is both catchy and clever. Featuring James Brown samples thrown in the mix takes this dub related track to the limit of fun. For the B-side, James Nasty's 'Fan Dem Off' with a peak time party song that should take the dancefloor to another level. These attention getters are ideal for being addictively fun and different. It's hard to categorise music like this, which is a sign of its originality.

Review: Jim Sharp presents his sophomore Mountain 45s release, following up the absolute banger of a debut, 'Westchester Eagle'. Coming full circle, we hear Sharp team back up with fellow producer Double A here; on the A we've got the latter's 'Iko (Never Felt This Way)', a fearless cross-section of big beat, Latin funk and sampled West African refrains, while Sharp helms up the B-side this time around, with a full-horseshoe'd rerub of an (ashamedly on our part) unknown funk delight.

Review: 'Foolish Man Part 1' and 'Part 2' by The Huck Daniels Co is one of several 45rpms the BGP label is dropping at the moment and weirdly many of them are also in two parts. This one features guitarist Daniels who was a key part of the B.B. King band ahead of later setting in Los Angeles and becoming a respected leader in his own right. He wrote just one for Kent Records and that was in 1973 as the label headed into its final days. 'Part 1' on the A-side is a driving funk cut aimed squarely at the club and heavy on inspiration from James Brown and the version on the flip levels up with organ playing from Earl Foster.

Review: Jah Screechy's 'Walk & Skank' on the Just Is label will have you doing just that. It is a tune that really will ignite dancefloors with its infectious rhythm and rich reggae vibes and is a rather timeless anthem that showcases Screechy's distinctive vocal style. It blends effortlessly with the track's pulsating bassline and hypnotic beat to embody the essence of Jamaican dancehall culture. On the flip is a signature 'Dubwise' version with even heavier drum rotations and party-pumping energy. Jah Screechy's status as a reggae legend is assured and this is sonic proof.

Review: Nuremberg's Jayl Funk is a true torch-bearer for the art of funked up breaks to start a party anywhere and everywhere. He's back on Danish label Breakbeat Paradise with another sure-shot 7" of feel-good vocal grooves that should appeal to a huge spectrum of cats ready to get down, not least the A-side joint 'Shake & Boogie' with its infectiously sunny demeanour. 'Not Today' is a more disco-styled affair with snappy Philly string stabs and a slippery groove you could just sink your teeth into. Just watch out for that epic piano breakdown, it might just raise the roof off the joint.

Review: Sound Exhibitions is back with more of that irresistible old-school dancefloor heat that comes courtesy of this new EP from Jayl Funk. It comes on a limited edition red 7" but features some seriously big sounds. The opener 'Get On Ya Feet' has vamping chords and diva vocals with big glossy strings. It's a characterful and big-hearted cut for good-time fun. 'Waiting For You' is a different proposition - it's a more funky tune with horn-laced grooves and a characterful female vocal that gets flipped into an old school hip-hop verse with dusty breaks.

Review: Staten Island's The Jazztronauts return to Nu Tone with a smooth cruising single which capitalises on the slick fusion style they do so well. There's a reflective, season-shifting mood to 'This Thing Of Ours' which feels perfectly suited to the time of year, whether it's David Giordano's wistful guitar chops or Josh Glazer and Shawn Rhoades' brass section pealing out over the laconic rhythm. 'When It Hits' on the flip is a more sprightly affair which sees drummer AJ Pantaleo setting a snappy pace and Jesse Blum flexing out on the keys, once again maintaining the buttery smooth style the band are so well loved for.

Review: Deep house on a 7" is a rather rather thing but this 45rpm certainly is worth your while. It is the first we have heard from Jazztronik, all producer and keysman Ryota Nozaki, since his Universal Language album last year. He has been at this now for 24 years and brings all that know how to these two jams. 'Evoke' is a lively broken beat workout with squelchy bass and improvised jazz keys that are restless and energizing with rich leads. 'Beat Hopper' (The 3rd Session) appears on the flip with more innovative keys and party-pumping broken beats. A tasteful duo for sure.

Review: An iconic soundtrack to a classic blaxploitation flick, JJ Johnson and Martha Reeves & The Sweet Things turned a collective head when they simultaneously composed their core themes for Willie Dynamite, directed by obscure director Gilbert Moses. This ineluctable screen treat stars Roscoe Orman and Diana Sands in a quintessential portrayal of early '70s New York pimping, with the central character's foibles giving rise to a latent conscience when he comes into contact with a young social worker. As is often the case with the blaxploitation genre, Willie Dynamite begins with the lead character cruising down the streets of New York in some kind of fancy car, and 'tracked by the central theme: the theme of Reeves' 'Willie D' is clear as day, lyrically portraying D's hustle as 'magic', "never treating two girls the same", "it's no different from any other industry". 'Keep On Movin' On' contrasts this with a note of modesty, signaling the movie's inevitable tonal shift; nor should you miss the B-side instrumentals 'Willie Chase' and 'Parade Strut'.

Review: Durand Jones & The Indications' third LP, Too Many Tears keeps on offering up superb singles and after the latest back in November, we now get this new one 'Ride or Die.' This band is a regular on the Colemine label and they do it all from slow motion seductiveness to blue eyed soul and sophisticated lounge pop. This time we get lovely harmonies and breezy soul on 'Ride Or Die' with its lead falsetto set to melt anyone's heart. The flip, things take a tender turn with more vulnerable vocals and gently rhythms that come alive with serene strings, gentle tambourines and neat basslines.

Review: This 45rpm from Jr Thomas & Cutlass Cream will have your heart full and your mind dreaming. 'Reflections' is a first single from the pair that finds Thomas moving away from the more Jamaican influenced music he made with The Volcanos for labels Truth & Soul Records and Colemine Records and toward more vulnerable and honest song writing. It could be a reissue of a 60s classic but it isn't and is instead a fine collab with old friend Albert Perez Jr. from Minneapolis. The slow motion rhythms and twinkling melodies are perfect accompaniment for his smoky and downbeat vocals tones.

Review: London reggae band Junior Dell & The D-Lites are mainstays of the Original Gravity label, which really knows its stuff when it comes to old school cool. Many of their greatest tunes have all been repressed and reissued over the years and this is the next one to get its moment in the sun. 'Twenty Flight Ska' has a nice rough edge and ska-styled horns with languid rhymes up top and liquid bass down ow. On the flip is 'Orange Street Breakdown' which is even more laidback, relaxed and sunny in its disposition.

Review: This one was only reissued back in summer but such its is enduring appeal and superb impact once played through a beefy sound system, here it comes again. It is another top 7" version of Fatboy Slim's megahit 'Praise You', in authentic rocksteady style, performed by Jamaican vocal group Junior Dell & The D Lites, who've been active since the 1960s. "Mi haffi praise you", gleefully intones Dell, against an impressive interpretive backdrop of jubilant brass and cabareting bubbles. The B-side procures a more curious and laid-back instrumental, Woodfield Rd Allstars' 'Cool Cool Runnings'. Do not sleep.

Review: The Alloy Cuts label is back with another sweet 45rpm that collides some of the greats of hip-hop past into two new fusion and mash-up jams designed to do plenty of damage to dancefloors. First up is Jurasoc 5 vs Booty Haul with 'Divided Conformelution' which has some sick low ends and booming kicks overlaid with funky guitar riffs and hard bars. Booty Haul's 'Conformstumental' then appears on the flip side as the original sample source for the a1. It's more physical with the bars stripped away and still has plenty of raw funk.