I was at this gig and man… one of the best sets of rare soul that I’ve heard in recent memory. It’s a real pleasure to post this mix (thanks Aaron!)

Be sure to check out Peoples Records if you’re in the D!

Here is a beautiful jazz LP that just passed through the shop.

Mystic Beauty was released on the tiny Los Angeles-based H.M.E. imprint, the H and the M of which stood for its owner Harry Mitchell. The label released a few latin- and soul-flavored jazz releases, including a record or two by the Harold Johnson Sextet (thanks to Office Naps for the tip).

EDIT Reggie Andrews nowadays teaches music in the Los Angeles school district - he’s instructed plenty of greats, from Patrice Rushen to The Pharcyde - and was also in the 70s/80s disco-funk outfit Dazz. Also he’s got some school band material out there that’s worth seeking out. Great to hear he’s still living in music. Here’s an interesting interview with the man himself on NPR (not related to his old records, per se).

This album is deep, latin-influenced, primarily acoustic jazz. Influences range from the cerebral to the soulful, but it defies any one-dimensional tag like “spiritual jazz” or “soul jazz” or “jazz funk”. Sure it’s from L.A. but it doesn’t sound particularly “west coast”. It’s a beautiful session all around, really something special, very much worth every dollar of it’s high price tag. Enjoy - Jonny

Download HERE

In preparation for a new afro-disco party (separate from the already-running, already-famous Brooklyn afro-funk party, Voodoo Funk) our boy Frank, pka DJ Soulpusher, formerly of parties like NYC’s classic Vampyros Lesbos and Germany’s Soul Explosion, has put together a new, killer mix full of obscure, rare, unknown, and simply amazing disco bangers.

Peep it out below. Try to name a cut or two! We’re not telling….

Longtime contributor S dot Grizzly aka Young Scrappy aka Bob Bannister aka DJ Jumex (ah, you like that!) comes back to us following the winter’s hibernation with another beautiful mix of slow music from Africa.

Sounds of creation, of birth, of mourning and prayer, all held in place, vibrating, like the air on a humid day. Nimble guitar runs and deep percussive rhythms of the heart and womb. Hypnotic and circular. I love this stuff. Track list below the fold…

Download HERE

(more…)

Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings take on Shuggie Otis.

We have no right to have something this awesome in our midst.  Amazing!

Thanks to Fred Wilson for the tip.

Good Afternoon One And All, I hope everyone had a fantastic Valentine’s Day. And if you didn’t, here’s a little something to get you through… my Brother From Another Mother Justin Torres with yet another BEAUTIFUL mix from back in the day that heads pretty much Rip Van Winkled on; that is, until now. “The Break Up Letters” is/was Justin’s statement on love and loss, made at a time when he and I both were dealing with those conflicting feelings. From want to need to desperation to dejection, depression, and finally redemption, the mix covers all grounds of love unrequited. This is a real treat for anyone out there that’s feeling blue today or any fan of Deep Soul Music in general.

Also worth noting is that portions of this mix were culled from raw reels rescued from the vaults of famed Berkeley distributor/record shop Music City. So there are songs on here that are completely unknown and unavailable on vinyl… The absolutely killer funk-psych burner “Choirs In My Teardrops” is perhaps the most criminal example of a record that never was, but Real Heads will notice the DJ Shadow-remixed “This Time” (here as “Untitled”) by, simply, “Joe”. This mix is the first appearance of the track and the Genesis of Shadow’s piece.

So take note kiddies - there’s a lot of rare stuff on here! Some of which is not available ANYWHERE else. Enjoy, and keep your heads up. The girl or boy of your dreams is out there, waiting for you to walk right into their life… with that in mind, keep it moving. With Love - Jonny

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Tagged D/L: The Break Up Letters

I was drinking whiskey last night, and this is normally the time that I decide to call the homie Aaron “Breakself” Anderson. Anyway, we talked about the world, the sun in the sky, and why there is not a bean in a bean pie, and I asked him to bless my site with this mix. He berated me for only drinking a half pint of Jameson (”that’s why it’s called ‘half’ - you gotta drink another one!”) but reluctantly granted my wish, grumbling the whole time that record dudes used to be able to toss back a drink or three.

Anyone who knows anything knows Aaron has all kinds of heat in his collection and he’s slapping us silly with it here. So put a Frickin’ Gerbil on your Christmas list because even Santa can’t find these records.

Enjoy!
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So for today’s guest mix I am proud to give you all the following from Great Collectro, Part Time Good Records NYC Employee, and Great Friend… Simon “Scrappy” Greenberg. It is titled “Slow Music From West Africa” and while the tempo is generally as described the mood varies from mellow, to jubilant, to mournful, to absolutely facemelt trippy… I live for this kind of stuff. Some tunes here have turned up in the shop but you might as well forget trying to get your hands on most of it.

Simon has been traveling in Africa for most of the past couple months but he sent me the flicks you see above, and I was able to persuade former Turntable Lab reviewer Bob Bannister to come out of cushy retirement and write the following review of this mix:

“I’ve only ever been to Africa in a haze of misappropriated Counting
Crows-soundtracked shwarma stands and faceless shiny heads singing Sinead O’Connor in decapotable Frankenstein locomotives. That may or may not apply to this mix and its syrupy, hammock induced nostalgia for things I may or may not have experienced… but I think it does. Everything I’ve ever seen in Africa is ambiguous, and this mix is no exception. Even listening to it in a basement that smells faintly of acetylene, all i can really feel is thick air and wet cash from the ‘pockets’ under a boubou.”

That about sums it up… enjoy.

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Tagged d/l: Slow Music From West Africa

Presenting my mans and them Justin Torres and Matt Webb on a mix they hit me with way back… an hour and change featuring nothing but funky, soulful, deep gospel… some rarities in there but a lot of stuff you might be sleeping on in the cheap bins. Peep game…

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Tagged D/L: Holy Ghost Trippin’

Peace,
Jonny