Review Of Vol.11 Mixed By A2DF
A2df keeps the grooves rare & the funk deep with his second outing for
Jay Ru’s “Chop Shop”. Limericks “45 king” revisits much of the same
territory as he did for his first mix & if the current resurgence of
interest in all things of a soulful persuasion has caught your
attention & you’d like to investigate it’s origins then this as good a
place as any to begin.
A quick browse of the play list may not throw up many recognisable
names but be assured all artists here are of the calibre of the more
renowned figures of the era. The 25 tracks included here all come from
the halcyon period of funk & soul & are nicely programmed with a warm
& earthy vibe kept throughout
Sunrise Movement’s much sought after “Clockwise Revolution” is a
fitting opener to the first pod cast of ‘08. Its psychedelic funk
bears more than a passing resemblance to The Temptation’s “Ball of
Confusion” & serves as an arresting opener to the mix. Of the tracks
featured here noteworthy mention must go to, for starters, the Johnny
Otis’ produced & much sampled “Humpty Dump” by The Vibrettes a
breaktastic production topped off with the competent vocals of the
female outfit.
This is followed by an artist revered in hip hop, soul & even house
circles, Manzel, here with his sublime “Jump Street”
As used on The Ultramagnetic MC’s “Ain’t it good to you”. Those who
like their beats more around the 120 mark may also be aware of his
work through remixes by Masters at Work. This is a great blend of Wah
Wah guitar& Wurlitzer keys & has a nice laid back feel.
Long time James Brown collaborator Bobby Byrd features with 2
submissions. The generic “Funky Soul” is instantly forgettable with
the opposite being true of “Got to have a job” this is one of
‘Byrd’s’, who passed just last September, finest moments Also on the
roster is his widow & the mother of Carleen, Vikki Anderson.
The rotating member of ‘The Godfathers’ soul revue delivers a perfect
slice of funky soul with “Think”
Two other tracks which stand out for me are The Showmen’s “Vogolio
Restare Solo” which is an interesting mix of Rhythm & Blues & Italian
pop & Milly and The Arkets “Little Archie” which comes on like a
soulful version of “Louie Louie” by The Kingsmen. Personal highlights
coming in the shape of Irene Reid’s “I Must Be Doing Something Right”
a track that I’m sure any soul fan will be familiar with an
undisputable gem sung with great strength & conviction. A close second
goes to “Magic Corner” a sweet ode to dating by Billita Woods
The mix closes with Gerald Wilson Orchestra’s take on “Light My Fire”
this varies from other versions in that it has a slight big band feel
to it & wouldn’t have sounded out of place on a variety show at the
time. If this track tickles your fancy then check out his version of
the Ashford & Simpson penned “California Soul”
I thoroughly enjoyed this as I have done all the Chop Shop pod casts &
it’s sure to be getting repeated listens in the future. If like me
you’re partial to this style of soul & funk then I strongly recommend
you give the Amy Winehouse album a break, check this out & subscribe
now!
Neil Corcoran
