It certainly is a golden time for soul and disco reissues — Wax Po HQ is overflowing with a bounty of treats we never thought we’d see back in circulation. BBE leads the pack with a hefty five-disc set of Al Kent’s notorious Disco Demands re-edits. These sly reworks of ’70s obscurities first saw light as limited, unauthorized 12-inch singles, complete with falsified track info to throw disco trainspotters off the scent. BBE has pulled the curtain back and includes all the proper credits on this legitimate release, an serious hunk of dancefloor weaponry. BBE brings us another unlikely and most welcome reissue with Sandy Barber’s terrific The Best Is Yet to Come. The young diva who would go on to sing several certified club burners turned in a stellar set of uptempo modern soul in 1977 highlighted by the addictive “I Think I’ll Do Some Stepping (On My Own),” which receives two alternate mixes courtesy of the aforementioned Mr. Kent and NYC legend John Morales. BBE’s London-Brooklyn connection continues with a quirky and entirely enjoyable mix from veterano John De Mairo, cofounder of the groundbreaking house music purveyor Henry Street Records. In perfect counterpoint to the Disco Demands rarities collection, Johnny D Presents Disco Jamms is stocked with unjustly forgotten but still affordable early ’80s winners. I know I wasn’t the only one hitting the Discogs marketplace after hearing this set.

Taking a more comprehensive approach are SoulMusic.Com Records and Big Break Records, both of whom have teamed up with UK distributor Cherry Red to reissue a fabulous array of modern soul and funk. To pick just a handful of fruit from this bounty is to ignore a plethora of worthy choices (check the websites for more) but special mention must be given to the long overdue reappearance of the first two Loose Ends albums, each with generous bonus tracks and authoritative liner notes. If you aren’t familiar with “Hangin’ On A String,” the slinkiest, sexiest ode to amorous ambivalence ever, you have some learning to do. (DJs will be pleased to see the elusive Frankie Knuckles Club Mix of “Hangin’” also included.) The URL-monikered label has recently added to its catalog some middle-era Teena Marie (Robbery and Starchild) and Patrice Rushen’s first, self-titled record on Elektra (“Hang It Up,” anyone?), making them definitely one to watch. Also in the realm of essential female-fronted soul is Donna McGhee’s lone LP, Make It Last Forever. Initially issued on Red Greg in 1978 (the album was a Greg Carmichael/Patrick Adams affair), it is a classic that has only grown in stature over the years. One listen to “It Ain’t No Big Thing” or “Make It Last Forever” (both also present in alternate edits on this reissue from Big Break) will show why.

Any mention of disco and soul reissues in the year of 2012 would be remiss if it did not single out the tremendous campaign that Harmless has undertaken with the Philadelphia International catalog. Starting with a decent enough two disc set of re-edits, the label has followed up with a stunning update of the legendary Philadelphia Classics LP, one of disco don Tom Moulton‘s crowning achievements when it was first issued in 1977. In addition to the eight long versions featured on the original album, Harmless has enlisted Moulton to revisit a jaw-dropping 23 further classics from PIR, totaling a four-CD set. Working with the original multitracks, Moulton’s mixes are a revelation, teasing glorious extended performances from beloved standards like “The Love I Lost,” “Nights Over Egypt” and “You’ll Never Find Another Love Like Mine.” If there is one disco-related release you buy this year (and you’ll forgive my lapse into blurb-speak), let it be this one. Essential.

Looking ahead, there are two exceptional reissues on the near horizon. The first comes from Boston-based label Cultures of Soul, who have collected the work of their fellow Bostonian Andre Evans into a classy package that shines a light on this hard to find material. Quirky and danceable, the Evans Pyramid singles have been a hot commodity in collector’s circles for the unique way they meld heartfelt vocal performances with unusual funk arrangements (check out “No I Won’t“).

Private Wax, due out early summer, is a compilation drawn from the vaults of London’s Zaf C. (who had a big hand in the terrific Americana comp of last year). Off-the-radar disco and boogie is the order of the day here, and a top notch selection it is. Ranging from the tough funk of Gregory Jolly’s “What’Em Doing Is My Business” to the smooth steppers groove of Chuck Strong’s cover of Gwen McRae (“Doin’ It“), Private Wax is something to look forward to. Wax Poetics readers who enjoyed our Prince special issue will also be happy to hear that it includes the rare 12-inch version of 94 East’s “If You Feel Like Dancin’.”

Last but not least is Now-Again’s Soul Cal comp of disco and modern soul from 1971 through 1982. The ridiculous mini-book (with plenty of label scans and archival photos) that comes with it explores “America’s best, independent, ’70s soul-ensembles” at a time when they transitioned from funk to disco. For the book alone, this is worth checking out. Burners like Stanton Davis’ Ghetto Mysticism’s “Things Cannot Stop Forever” and Ellis & Cephas’s “I’m Gonna Miss You Girl” make it a must for connoisseurs of the independent disco scene.

Hailing from Dollis Hill, London, Marc Mac is one half of the legendary outfit 4hero and founder of Reinforced Records, a cornerstone of early electronic music in the U.K. In the late ’90s, 4hero signed to Gilles Peterson’s Talkin Loud Records and went on to produce Two Pages and Creating Patterns before branching out on their own. Between producing music for Jill Scott, Roy Ayers, Phonte, and Terry Callier, Marc started another project called Visioneers, releasing a set of 7-inch singles and the full album Dirty Old Hip Hop (BBE Records).

Marc returns with a new Visioneers record, Hipology, which he says is “a collage of some of my personal influences as a DJ/producer growing up listening to hip-hop; it’s a real eclectic mix of breaks, beats, soul, jazz, and freaky squeaks, and not a sampler in sight. Visioneers is about revisiting my love for hip-hop; what it was and what it is, the musical influences and the culture.” Hipology will be released on BBE Records in late spring.

101 Apparel has teamed up to release a T-shirt with a limited-edition cassette.

It’s a damn shame when quality music falls through the digital cracks in this worldwide web of hype and flavors-of-the-minute. But it’s pretty unusual when that’s coupled with it actually falling through a literal crack, which may have happened to hundreds of copies of this vinyl LP that disappeared from a Brazilian ship earlier this year. That (true) fiasco aside, this solid full-length debut from the anachronistic underground supergroup Ekundayo stubbornly resists classification, another impediment to mass recognition. No relation to the respected Atlanta rapper of the same name (that name being a Yoruba phrase for “the joy that comes from sorrow”), the Brazilian/Brooklyn/Chicagoan conglomerate Ekundayo features their own veteran of the rap subterra in the form of Mike Ladd. He’s joined on the mic by two MCs from the cutting edge Sao Paulo group Mamelo Sound System. But although there are moments when Ladd’s delivery coupled with sledgehammer beats arranged by producer Scotty Hard recall Brooklyn indie rock-rap pioneers New Kingdom, the music cannot be comfortably pegged as “hip-hop.” The percussion, handled by Brazilian giant Naná Vasconcelos (renowned since the ’70s for his collaborations with Don Cherry and Pat Metheny) is far more complex and nuanced than anything in the rap world, pushing the sound towards Brazilian jazz. Add the trumpet of Chicago Underground’s Rob Mazurek and certain cuts begin to sound like outtakes from In a Silent Way—or Bill Laswell’s ambient rework of the ’70s Miles Davis joint. Unfortunately for the hypothetical record store clerk trying to categorize this release, the addition of Black Rock Coalition/Defunkt bassist Melvin Gibbs skews things once again—this time hard in the direction of funk, as on one of the album’s strongest cuts, “Freak Rocker.” Ultimately, the confusion lies in trying to fit this unique and under the radar (over the radar?) release into a pre-existing box. Unapologetically musical and undeniably funky, it will be a shame if it goes unheard by discerning listeners just because it doesn’t play by the rules.

Record Mart, 1973. © Brian Merlis Colection, www.brooklynpix.com

The Times Square Subway station is one of the busiest in the world, serving more than fifty-eight million passengers a year. Not a bad place to set up business—and in 1961, that’s exactly what Jesse Moskowitz did, opening a tiny record store in an odd crook of a subterranean tunnel that connected subway platforms to daylight above. The store lay beyond the turnstiles and could only be reached via the purchase of a token–not an issue for the underground denizens who used the station as a transfer point between downtown jobs and homes that were farther flung, particularly the first and second generation Latinos whose population was then booming in the city. Moskowitz, along with employees like future Latin music historian Harry Sepulveda, recognized this, and Record Mart, as the shop was known, developed a reputation as a go-to spot for the latest in mambo and its hip nephew salsa.

Wax Poetics contributor Pablo “DJ Bongohead” Yglesias tells the terrific tale of Record Mart and its spin-off record label, Montuno, in a hefty thirty-page booklet that accompanies a nuanced cross-section of the music from the noted independent label. Available on vinyl, CD, and digital formats from Vampisoul, Subway Salsa: The Montuno Records Story is a welcome addition to any Latin music lover’s library and a nice counterpoint to the proverbial gorila de 800 libras that is the Fania/Vaya/Alegre/Tico family.

Highlights from the twenty-eight-song compilation are many, stretching from the early Afro-Pachanga classic “Bon Bon De Chocolate” by Lou Pérez through several mid-’70s burners from Yambú (excluding, however, their disco hit “Sunny”) to solid mid-’80s offerings from Zaperoko and Airto Moreira.

Belgian tastemaker DJ LeFtO (Brownswood Recordings) joins forces with 101 Apparel with a new shirt and mixtape.

“To me, music is universal,” he says. “It has the capability of connecting like-minded people all around the world without even speaking the same language, and it all works as a magnet. Today, thanks to the Internet, musicians are able to meet and work with other musicians on a global scale, people are listening to music in shuffle mode, and musical styles mix up to create new styles. This mix is what I do, mix up styles, blend them into different styles of music to create one sound, one world. When 101 Apparel asked me to do a mix, the minute after that, I had the concept ready, and here it is. Make sure you have your passport ready for this mix and enjoy this journey around the globe.”

DJ LeFtO is currently on tour (see schedule below) and will be at the Los Angeles Homage concert.

Order the shirt and CD here, and listen to a snippet below.

DJ LeFtO Tour Dates

Lausanne, Switzerland > february 11 > Do The Dilla
Gent, Belgium > february 13 > Monsters of Rap w/ Dilated Peoples
Rotterdam, Netherlands > february 17 > Bird Club
Montreal CA > february 18 at THE GOODS
L.A. USA > february 23rd w/ Hypnotic Brass Ensemble & Phil Cohran, Spinna, Ant Val and more
Las Vegas, US > february 29th
San Jose, USA > Pagoda,  March 2nd
Chicago, USA > Fex, March 3rd
Brussels, Belgium > March 8 > Rits
Rio de Janeiro > March 9th
Brasil till April 1st
Gent, Belgium > April 13 > LeFtO Presents UNIVERSAL MAGNETIC
Brussels, Belgium > April 14th > Strictly Niceness
Cully, Switzerland > April 21st > Cully Jazz
Tokyo, Japan > May 4 > Breakthrough at The Room

French funk mag Funk-U is releasing a limited-edited 12-inch containing two previously unheard P-Funk jams from 1982. P Treasures, by Gary & Garry, was the funky brainchild of Gary “Mudbone” Cooper. “I came up with the idea of Gary & Garry in 1981,” he says, “in the funky town of Detroit, the launching pad of many great artists like Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5, the Temptations, the Supremes, Stevie Wonder, and, needless to say, Parliament/Funkadelic.” With fellow P-Funker Garry “Starchild” Shider, the two entered Detroit Studio Sounds in July 1982 and a cut a couple sides with guest superstars Eddie Hazel and George Clinton. “Eddie Hazel was around when we were recording,” Cooper says, “and heard some of the tracks and was grooving on it. So I said, ‘I need you to get on some of this.’ As always, he put it down the only way Eddie put it down: funky. Mallia Franklin was also there, and Dr. Funkenstein was in another part of the studio doing funky stuff ’n’ thangs. After Gary and I laid down the vocals, we summoned the two of them for some funky-hardy backing vocals.” The two tracks, “Dance Rockit” and “Satisfied,” were meant to be the start of a full LP, but unfortunately the project stopped there. Thanks to our French brethren, the tracks are available on vinyl for a limited time. Definitely worth checking for. Check out some snippets here:

Check out the mini-documentary on Gilles Peterson’s Havana Cultura – The Search Continues (Brownswood) and download the free track, “Vida.”

“Throughout my years of digging for records,” says DJ Spinna, “I’ve always been particularly drawn to music that is heavily influenced by the electronic revolution. There was a long stretch where I would specifically hunt for Moog, new age, jazz fusion, and experimental records…anything that involved synthesizers but still had a groove. Upon the inquiry from 101 Apparel to come up with a concept for a mix, my initial thought was it has to be unique. It was the opportune time for compiling tracks from past to present that capture the electronic experience. Future Shock is born and is without a doubt one of the most brain-crushing mixes I’ve ever done! I hope you dig it.”

Buy the T-shirt from 101 Apparel and get the mix for free.

Check out a snippet:

While the rest of the country was celebrating Labor Day, Brooklyn—as usual—was doing things a little differently, closing down several miles of Eastern Parkway for the annual West Indian Parade, a carnival that can proudly match excesses with London and Rio’s versions. Along with Soca and Calypso from Trinidad, a major component of the day’s music is from Haiti, with bands like Scorpio, DP Express and the mighty Tabou Combo getting lots of love. For those who might’ve missed the festivities, the dedicated diggers at Secret Stash Records have just reissued a firecracker of an LP from Tabou Combo, 1973’s Respect. A blinding mix of intertwined guitars and fierce percussion that balances heavy Haitian Kompa with a strong dose of American funk, it’s irresistible psychedelic island party music.

Secret Stash, a group of diehard wax fanatics from Minneapolis, have been creating gorgeous vinyl-only releases for several years now, quietly constructing high-quality, limited edition pressings of some tremendous unheralded music. Afrofunk enthusiasts shouldn’t miss their recent George Danquah reissue Hot And Jumpy (“New Dimensions in African Hustle!”) while the upcoming release of the landmark Peruvian Cumbia LP Constelación from guitarist Enrique Delgado’s group Los Destellos is an absolute must for anyone who picked up the great Roots of Chicha compilations or simply can’t get enough acid-drenched guitars and tight percussion.

When a group of rare-groove fanatics rave over the same album but each cite a different song as the “must-hear” track, there’s something special going on. Brighter Days by Stanton Davis’ Ghetto/Mysticism band is not your run-of-the-mill, late-’70s jazz-funk recording. Flugelhorn player Stanton Davis, a New Orleans–born transplant to Boston who studied at Berklee and the New England Conservatory of Music, certainly has his jazz chops together, but the influence of soul, funk, and disco that flavor the production bring to mind the further reaches of a Mizell Brothers production (or the more in-the-pocket grooves of Sun Ra, if you like).

Part of the infamous band that recorded as Stark Reality, Davis first came to the attention of the contemporary beatdigger scene when the Soul Cal division of Stones Throw Records plucked the opening cut from Brighter Days for a 12-inch single reissue in 2008. That track, “Things Cannot Stop Forever,” may be the best-known tune from the album, but it’s far from the only highlight. The Gilles Peterson favorite “Space-A-Nova” as well as “High Jazz” are too out to call disco but far too groovy to qualify as straight jazz, while “Funky Fried Tofu” could be a lost Kool & the Gang outtake. Lush, moody pieces “Play Sleep” and “Nida” evocatively fill out the album.

Only three thousand copies of the LP were pressed in 1977 on the folk label Outrageous Records, most of which quickly disappeared with little fanfare. Enter Boston-based label Cultures of Soul, who have done a loving job with their homegrown reissue, including detailed liner notes and a careful reproduction of the original artwork.

After a slew of EPs and singles, International Feel releases its first full length, Gatto Fritto, an eponymous Balearic beat blend that lays out like a breezy summer L.A. day.

It’s said that Ben Williams, the creator of Gatto Fritto “emerged from the suburban witchcraft and hard drug fallout of the late ’90s, the bastard offspring of John Dee, the Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, and the Parachute Regiment, with the sound of Terry Riley, the Belleville Three, and Glenn Branca ringing in his ears.” And it shows, as Williams stretches out in fine fashion conjuring up ghosts of electronic music’s past.

After branching out beyond underground hip-hop, with the jazz-inspired Liquid Crystal Project and soul collaborations with singer Middle Child and Stones Throw crooner/rapper Dudley Perkins, J Rawls rekindles his love affair with boom-bap rap, releasing The Hip-Hop Affect on Green Streets Entertainment.

Rawls, a habitual custom contradictor (see The Essence of J Rawls), once again takes independent hip-hop over the edge with a few unheard-of collaborative formats, including a twenty-four-person track (“We’re on Top (#OhioTakeOver)”) and a number including Oh No, Diamond D, and Kev Brown entitled “Best Producer on the Mic.”

Proclaimed by J Rawls to be an aural trek from the beginnings of his growth with music, The Hip-Hop Affect also features appearances from Rhymefest, Sadat X, Tanya Morgan, J Sands (of Lone Catalysts), Copywrite, Bad Azz, Edo G, Stalley, Casual, Count Bass D,Wise Intelligent (of Poor Righteous Teachers), El Da Sensei, John Robinson, and more.

Check out the tracklisting and listen to a free track here.

Below is the official vid for “Face It (ft. Sadat X and Wise Intelligent).”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHHd571Xljw

Stateside, African music is all the rage. From Congotronics to Nigeria’s FELA! on Broadway, the revival of sounds lesser known to eurocentric cultures in their heyday have become commonplace. On an inter(net)connected globe where revolutionary ideas are a tweet away, one could imagine that no new sounds have been left untapped.

Let’s keep in mind, though, Africa is a huge continent with not only fifty-two countries, but a countless number of less cartographically defined, yet still important cultures within each border that all have traditions, customs, and rituals of their own. For example, Kenya’s Luo nation is known not only as a people who created America’s current president, they are also the creators of the nyatiti, an eight-stringed V-shaped lyre-like instrument.

And when a small group of London-based musicians led by Jesse Hackett (Gorillaz/Elmore Judd) traveled to Nairobi to be part of a voluntary music organization called Art of Protest, they culture-clashed with Joseph Nyamungu, a traditional nyatiti player, and Charles Owoko, a heavy-backbeat percussionist. The result was a four-song demo that made its way to the ears of BBC Radio 1′s Gilles Peterson, who describes OSB’s debut as “a phat, wayward dance record with African leanings (that feels) completely right.”

The eponymous full-length is set for a May 3 release on Gilles’s Brownswood Recordings.

Rainy days, great coffee, and grunge rock are all obvious cornerstones of the Pacific Northwest’s largest city, Seattle. Some would argue that the Emerald City’s rarest undiscovered gem is its ’60s/’70s soul scene, until now.

Director Jennifer Maas and Light In the Attic’s Wheedle’s Groove, is a visual and aural trek through a record collector named Mr. Supreme’s Seattle Soul 45s. Supreme digs deep into his hometown’s supposed graveyard of soul, R&B and funk to resurrect somewhat forgotten bands such as the Black (on/and) White Affair, Robbie Hill’s (Sly & the Family Stone inspired) Family Affair, and Cold, Bold and Together, a band whose roster included Philip Woo and Kenny G. Yes, Kenny G.

A host of sound savants from other musical genres, including Mudhoney’s Mark Arm, Soundgarden’s Ben Shepherd, Death Cab for Cutie/Postal Service’s Ben Gibbard, Quincy Jones and the FastBacks Kim Warnick, all weigh in on why Seattle’s soul scene was as potent as, but less prosperous than others, contributing the lack of major success to segregation and the absence of an industry structure.

Warnick remarks that Seattle natives like Quincy Jones, Ray Charles and Jimi Hendrix all had to “go away to get anywhere,” a sharp contrast to the ’90s Seattle grunge scene, when “you just had to play at the Off Ramp, and you were on Interscope…for at least one record.”

Check the trailer for Wheedle’s Groove below…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuxdJNNlKZk

Shout! Factory is releasing long-lost footage from a 1982 Teddy Pendergrass concert on DVD today, March 29. Teddy Pendergrass Live in ’82 depicts the legend in his final concert before becoming paralyzed in a devastating accident later that year.

Pendergrass performs several of his biggest hits on this DVD, including “Close the Door” and “Love T.K.O.,” as can be seen here in all its smooth splendor.

Featuring three new joints by Atkins himself, this EP summons Detroit techno’s golden age hybrid of outer space foot-stomped dance floors. Supplementing these originals are remixes by three of today’s most respected musicians in the genre: fellow Detroit native Terrence Dixon, Worthy of San Francisco, and DJ Oliver. Short and sweet, this EP thumps your shit.

Available now in your local record store and online March 29, you can stream and download the Scion A/V Remix: Juan Atkins now here.

To learn more about Juan Atkins and the history of Detroit techno, pick up Wax Poetics issue 45  Buy Now

For more information, head to Ubiquity.

Back in 2001, Detroit garage outfit the Dirtbombs (showcased in our Rock Issue) released their seminal Ultraglide in Black, which had Mick Collins and crew performing cover versions of soul songs. Now ten years later, they’re releasing a sort of companion piece to that record titled Party Store.

But this time around the album is dedicated entirely to covers of classic Detroit Techno tracks, including a twenty-two-minute version of Innerzone Orchestra’s “Bug in the Bassbin.” With a tip of their hat to the creators of techno and fellow Detroit musicians we covered in our Dance Issue, the Dirtbombs pay homage to their hometown and its enigmatic musical past. They’ve teamed up with Scion as part of Scion A/V’s remix series, and complicated things further by releasing an EP of remixes. You can stream and download their remake of the 1981 classic ”Sharevari” and a few remixes from Scion, then purchase the entire album here. Check the original “Sharevari” video from the legendary Detroit dance show, The Scene, below.

Now available, new 101 Apparel “Afro Freestyle” t-shirt/mixtape combo honoring CChico Mann‘s syncretic approach to music history. Filling the gap between Afrobeat, Afro-Cuban, Latin freestyle, and electronic music, Chico Mann’s style is a hybrid beast of culture and tone. And with the Afro Freestyle Mixtape featuring exclusive Tkat re-edits and Caito “el Gallo” Sanchez on percussion, “Afro Freestyle” is doper than the average bear.

Pick up 101 Apparel’s “Afro Freestyle” here.

Dubspot’s innovative electronic music production and DJing courses are now expanding to the internet. Dubspot Online teaches cutting edge music software like Ableton Live, Logic Pro, and Reason & Record through hands on experience. Now you can get the same mixture of technical education and creative encouragement on your own time.

Register now for classes starting at the end of January. Additionally, get 10% off Dubspot courses (including online courses) through February 1.

James Brown talked a lot of shit.  And pretty much all of it was awesome. With music that wild and funky, its hard for anybody to hold back from dancing or keep in shouts of joy. Least of all Mr. Brown. Famous for grunts, cries, and yelps, James Brown showed the world how a front man was supposed to behave. “Get on the Good Foot” (sample heard at 0:03) provides an excellent example. Hip-hop artists have further immortalized this legacy by sampling his iconic shouts.

Mr. Lee “Pump that Body”
0:18, 4:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAFR6Qj3byg

Buckshot LeFonque “Breakfast @ Denny’s”
0:12

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMrKGkKdKYU

The Mixmaster “Grand Piano”
1:55

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRNYtTriYTs

Coldcut “Say Kids What Time Is It?”
3:09

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5V3-X6Bl_WM

Label Love Vol. 2 out today, December 16.

In the contemporary generic soundscape of multinational corporate labels, small indie outlets recall a past of unique labels that shape a signature sound through their artists. After the success of the previous Label Love compilation, Tru Thoughts’ Jasmine De La Paz comes with Vol. 2. Featuring tracks from Plug Research, Melting Pot, Ubiquity, One-Handed, and, of course, Tru Thoughts by artists like Bilal, Maddslinky, and Paul White, Label Love Vol. 2 is a must download.

Cop it here.

German filmmaker Florian Gaag’s critically acclaimed, award-winning film Whole Train is available on DVD. Following the lives of four graffiti writers, though fictional, the film provides an authentic look into the graffiti subculture and, as KRS-One has said of the film, “really captured hip-hop’s culture.” Additionally, Whole Train sports a soundtrack of great hip-hop. Featuring original material from the likes of Planet Asia, Tame One, and, of course, the Teacher, it’s worth hearing.

Peep the trailer to Florian Gaag’s Whole Train here.

Celebrating twenty years of providing choice records to the savvy vinyl-buying public, Groove Merchant releases an excellent compilation of rare grooves on Luv N’ Haight Records. Listen and purchase today!