Slice-of-Spice

Seasonal Spices Vol.7 (My Funky Valentine)

2011-02-14T13:59:00.000-08:00

No rambling nonsense on the blog tip today, just some love food to help y'all get your Spice swerve on tonight ;-)

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Prelude To Love Theme - Willie Hutch

Amores - Tim Maia

I Like It - Emotions, The

Bring Your Heart - Jean-Claude Pierric

Love Training - Roland Kovac

Love - Joe Thomas

Kissing My Love - Afrique

Love Song - Joe Cruz

And I Love Her - Enoch Light & His Orchestra

Love Me - Jonny Teupen

I Wanta Make Her Love Me Till The Cows Come Home - Jake Porter

Love - Fatback Band, The

If It Aint Love (It Don't Matter) - Glass House, The

Heart's Desire - Don Blackman

Love Me Right - Jimmy Ponder

Valentine's Day - Dieter Reith

Secret Admirer - Mongo Santamaria

Follow Your Heart - Manhattans, The

Ruler Of My Heart - Irma Thomas

Sexy Woman - Timmy Thomas

Baby I Love You - Wynder K Frog

Flowers - William Loose, Stu Phillips, Marvin Elling (Mudhoney OST)

Love - Roy Ayers

Hey Love - Wonder Man

Can't Hide Love - Creative Source

I Love You So Much - Ebony Rhythm Funk Campaign

Secret Love - Dorothy Ashby

Easy To Be In Love - René Costy & His Music

You - Spanky Wilson

Love's Theme - Fausto Papetti

Cupid's Holding - Alliance, The

Dedicated To Love - Mongo Santamaria

Love Alarm - Most Requested Rhythm Band

Love - Rita

I Love You - Don Jullian And The Larks

Bass In Love - Guy Pedersen

Love Scene - Johnny Hawksworth Big Band & String

Love Song - Johnny Harris

First True Love - Jimmy Ross

Sexy Girl - 9th Creation, The

Love - Virgin Sleep

Need Love - Mel Brown

I Love You For All Seasons - Fuzz, The

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Similar Spices Vol. 42 - If Loving You Is Wrong...

2010-12-28T20:14:00.001-08:00

This one is a request from Ffiti Graffizm, out of France. Thanks for the comments, and support!

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Similar Spices Vol. 41 - Yesterday's

2010-12-28T20:12:00.000-08:00

It seems like only yesterday I posted this with the intention of coming back to post my blog waffle. Ah the best laid plans of mice and men...

I'll get back to this and fill in a few blanks later, but for now there's a ton of music and posts to go up, so enjoy.

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Similar Spices Vol. 40 - Creepin'

2010-12-28T20:10:00.000-08:00

It feels like I've been creepin' around my own blog lately as pressing vinyl for Slice-of-Spice and Diggers With Gratitude has kept me crazy busy. However, the wait is over as I'm about to heat things up in here like a jalapeño stuffed with wasabi.

...hold on to those funky britches bitches!

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Hiatus Status: Exiting Incubatus

2010-12-27T14:33:00.000-08:00

What's good Slice-of-Spice fam?

I trust you're all having a very merry holiday season, and looking forward to a prosperous and happy new year. I certainly have my fingers crossed for a blessed 2011 for my family, and friends.

...that includes you too ;-)

My posts have been a little sporadic over the last few months, and with good reason. I was putting the finishing touches to the Brooklyn Flower 7 inch project with Damu The Fudgemunk, and my good friend JNOTA over at ReDef. The finished wax has arrived, and it's quite simply breathtaking. Twelve months in the making seems like a lifetime for me, but it really was a labor of love, and well worth the wait. I'll save the full story for a separate post, which will follow in the next few days. Stay tuned!

2010 also saw me officially join the Diggers With Gratitude crew, after helping out on the Tragedy, Black Rage Demos, release, which was an absolute pleasure. I've been down with these guys since my days back in London, and helped promote their releases in the US, and Japan, during my time with Wax Poetics. Now I'm holding down the Phill Most Chill/Paul Nice/Jorum Bombay 7 inch "Neva Stop Diggin'' and 'Smash!", and I have a few more treats in store for the DWG forum members, and subscribers. It's truly an honor working for what I consider to be the best indie hip hop label out there right now. As the US Operations Manager I'll be pressing up the labels first US releases, and liaising with artists and industry contacts to ensure the wax keeps coming. If you've got a slice that needs that DWG spice, drop me a line (email in comments) and we'll build.

I'll be posting details on all the wax getting pressed, on either the Slice-of-Spice, or DWG label, and there's plenty of vinyl rips and SOS Compilations in the locker, so 2011 should see normal services resumed. Hell, I may even take requests for the Similar Spice, Select F.E.W., and Cinematic Spice series.

Anyway, enjoy the rest of the holidays, and get ready for Spice to start heating things up.

Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth - The Creator

2010-11-10T05:46:00.000-08:00

I won't hide from the fact that Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth are one of my favorite hip-hop groups of all time. Can anyone other than DJ Premier come close to the title of best production in the 90s? Combined, the Chocolate Boy Wonder and C.L., had (have?) a chemistry that is rarely seen in the industry, especially these days.

So for this post let's take it back to the beginning with the dynamic duo's first release, "The Creator", taken off the All Souled Out EP in '91. For me it's a toss-up between '91 or '95 for the best single year in Golden Era hip-hop, or maybe hip-hop period. I remember not just being blown away by this record, but the quality of releases coming out of New York at that time.

At the same time PR&CL were dropping this EP ahead of their debut masterpiece Mecca & The Soul Brother, The Beatnuts, were also dropping an ear melting EP called Intoxicated Demons, ahead of their self titled and masterful debut. It seemed like these East Coast cats had so many quality beats, they didn't have enough wax to put them out on. A classic example of this is the album Mecca, which has to be one of the deepest and consistent debut albums of all time with 18 full tracks, not including the instrumental skits. Then consider that every track is over 4 minutes, with some pushing 6! Should you feel inclined to listen to the instrumental version of the album, the mixes are actually even longer in some instances, with Pete going crazy with the cuts in his basement. Don't sleep!

This record right here always goes for a tidy sum, and mostly because it is the only way you can cop the "Surfboard" mix. It's especially desirable if you can track down the blue sticker copy, more so if your a collector nerd like me.

So there's no doubt that this slice is spot on when it says "Pete Rock is The Creator", as his output during those first few years on Elekra is the vinyl equivalent of the Big Bang!

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Rivage - Sittin' On It

2010-09-23T09:19:00.001-07:00

The title of this album from '81 is slightly ironic as the current value means that most people with a copy are indeed sitting on it. If you've a spare $500+ to burn on this Miami heater then you'll likely not be looking to pass this on anytime soon.

The current pricing of this album isn't for once based off the heavy sampling of the hip-hop fraternity. It's mostly because of the current trend for rediscovering audio cool in the 80s, and the fact a large batch of these records were mis-pressed making them unplayable. Whether or not you have the record, or the money, let me treat your ears to a true modern soul classic.

I'll not lie, there's not too much I know about Rivage and this record other than it was pressed on the Tempus label, whose parent label was Sun-Glo, which is significant because it was produced by Samuel Solomon Junior, who also produce the Mighty Ryeders album Help Us Spread The Message in '78. This was their only album as a group, with "Strung Out (On Your Love)" and the title cut being release on a single the year before. But you don't really need too much of a back history to appreciated this slice.

I'm also drawn to the obscure cover art, which on initial review looks like it could be a De Wolfe library record. But once you slide a diamond down it's vinyl valley it all seems to make sense.

Once Rivage sings, people listen and listen and...

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Stark Reality - The Stark Reality Discovers Hoagy Carmichael's Music Shop

2010-09-23T09:17:00.000-07:00

Ask anyone to critique a recent animated movie and no doubt at some point they'll cover the "clever" insider jokes to keep the adults in attendance amused. In my honest opinion that's just as dangerous as allowing Tyler Durden to prepare the reels for your next Disney classic. You think kids aren't smart enough to ask "what does that mean daddy?", mine is only 15 months old and she can unlock and work my iPhone! That said my child only needs to be within 100 yards of me while I'm watching a soccer match and she's got the vocabulary skills to make a sailor blush. I digress as usual...

While the Hollywood execs at Pixar and Dreamworks slap themselves on the back for a job well done the idea of sewing nuggets into the fabric of children's entertainment to keep adults enamored is hardly original. Way back when it wasn't necessary to use toilet humor jokes or a sneaky reference to sex either. Back in the 70s it was all about the score or incidental music to keep parental heads nodding to the rhythm, instead of off to sleep.

Growing up in England during the 70s and the early 80s the only reference points I had for shorty soundtracks were Sesame Street and The Muppet Show. It wasn't until the 90s that I discovered gems like the ABC Television classic Schoolhouse Rock, and the infamous Multiplication Rock LP. Digging out those De La Soul and Diamond D samples gave me a whole new perspective on where an original break could be found. A little while later I discovered another gem which could probably only compete with Bill Cosby Presents Badfoot Brown And The Bunions Bradford Funeral Marching Band for the very long and strange name competition.

The focus of this post is the mind numbing score to the PBS children's show Hoagy Carmichael's Music Shop. The music was performed by the jazz/rock fusion band Stark Reality. They've rightly taken their place in the hall of fame for holy grail jazz-funk records over recent years with the rediscovery of this album, and release of archived material by the likes of Now-Again and Stones Throw Records. The band consisted of Monty Stark (Vibraphone/Synths), John Abercrombie (Guitar), Vinnie Johnson (Drums), Phil Morrison (Bass) and Carl Atkins (Saxophone). This album was a reworking of a Hoagy Carmichael children's album from '58, and was heavily improvised. But then what Jazz-Rock/Fusion band worth their salt wouldn't want to reinvent the wheel, or in this case the xylophone.

Classics like "Bustin' Out of Doors", "Comrades", and "Junkman's Song" are well known in the digger community, and has been sampled by leading luminaries such as Large Professor, and Main Source. If you've not heard this one before I'll let you do your own samplers I Spy, so answers on a postcard please children. It's also been known to go for crazy money, up and above $1000, so hopefully this should save y'all some money as Christmas is less than 100 days away!

To be honest this album might not be to everyone's taste, much the same as any fusion group or improvised piece of work. For me this album is similar in sonics at times to The Grodeck Whipperjenny LP. Some may prefer the simpler melodies of Schoolhouse Rock, or The Electric Company. Stark Reality made this children's show sound more like a blaxploitation flick scored by Brer Soul himself, with Earth Wind And Fire in tow. Either way we all have to live with the stark reality that they just don't make children's programs like this anymore. Let's keep our fingers crossed the Black Dynamite Sound Orchestra get signed to a new PBS kids show soon.

Thanks once again for stopping by the Spiceman's Music Shop, I hope you learned something today.

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Similar Spices Vol.39 - Caravan

2010-08-03T09:22:00.000-07:00

It's time we took the Similar Spice Series back to those Latin American influenced rhythms, and what better track than one considered the first ever Latin jazz song. The exotic sounds of "Caravan" make this an easy target for my easy listening/exotica palette, and these funktified covers will hopefully whet yours too.

This jazz standard was composed by Juan Tizol for Duke Ellington, and was first performed in 1937 by the Duke's big band. Lyrics were composed by Irving Mills, but as most versions of the track are instrumentals he tends to get left off the credits. I've attempted to fix this by including Kudu's, Esther Phillips version from '76.

The only version that's definitely been sampled is Buddy Merrill's, used by Redman, for the track "Da Goodness", featuring Busta Rhymes. But I'd be shocked if more haven't been chopped up in the odd MPC, as there's some heaters out there. My favorites from this spicy batch, are Bert Kaempfert, Gabor Szabo, Puccio Roelens, Richard "Groove" Holmes, and Hugo Montenegro.

It's funny how songs just come to you, and the this Afro-Cuban seems quite relevant right now. My wife is currently re-watching the entire first season of Dexter, which has me reminiscing about my time working on a project with Fania in Miami last year. Sometimes it's a close call between the music and Cuban food spots when I think of Miami, but then I guess they're both my vice. Then there's been the hunt for a larger apartment in Brooklyn to help accommodate our newly vertically mobile daughter, so our home is also on the move.

Feel free to hitch your wagon to this musical caravan.

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Benny Johnson - Visions Of Paradise

2010-08-01T15:02:00.000-07:00

What we have right here is a straight soul gem. Admittedly this bad boy probably goes for way more than it's physically worth, but you can't deny the audio values of this vinyl vision.

Although Benny's 7 inch version of 'Visions of Paradise' on Today Records is well known, the album by the same title is less well know, and much harder to find. Truth be told Benny himself is a hard man to track down any facts on, so for once I'm drawing a blank. Anyone who wants to fill in the dots on this artists can use the comments below.

What I do know is that the music behind the man is provided by the Julius Brockington United Chair Band. Julius was Benny's stablemate at Today, and provided funky slices like 'Sophisticated Funk', and 'The United Chair'. Don't sleep.

To be honest, you should really pick up anything you find on Today or Perception Records from the early 70s. The label itself was founded in New York which makes it all the more satisfying when I pulled it out of the cheap bins in St. Paul, Minnesota. Finding this gem amongst a crate of cheap records truly was a vision of paradise!

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Main Source - Watch Roger Do His Thing/The Large Professor (Test Press)

2010-08-01T12:22:00.000-07:00

This post is a nod to the obsessive compulsive side of my record collecting. To be honest you need a little of this regardless of what you "collect". The down side is being unable to stop yourself from buying a record you already own. I try convincing myself we're completists :)

Since the vinyl addiction struck, I've been more than a little obsessive when it comes to finding alternative version/issues of my favorite slices. This has at times lead me to pursue the standard issue, deleted or alternate issue, advance, DJ, or radio promo, test pressing, and even acetate versions of a piece of wax. To be fair in most cases this really only relates to my favorite artists or tracks, although that still doesn't quite balance out the guilty pleasure.

Main Source without doubt are one of the greatest hip-hop groups. Period! Their debut long player 'Breaking Atoms", in my humble opinion should make it into everyone's top 5 albums from the golden era. Add into the mix "Live at the BBQ" as one of the best posse cuts of all time, and 'Fakin' The Funk' as possibly the best to make a soundtrack during Hollywood's "New Jacksploitation" hip-hop love affair in the 90s, and we're talking legendary status.

I was living back in the UK when it dawned on me Main Source had actually pressed a few records before signing with Wild Pitch. Needless to say it wasn't long before I'd tracked down copies of their first slice 'Atom' and 'Roger' on Actual Records. Wild Pitch test pressings have always been hard to come by, but eventually I tracked those bad boys down, but Actual Records?

Not a sniff...until now.

To celebrate my precious find, their hip-hop genius, and my guilty crime, here's another spicy slice for y'all.

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Wanda Robinson - Me And A Friend

2010-08-01T10:54:00.000-07:00

It's been a New York minute since I've been up in here as life tends to take the lead. Personally the break has been refreshing and has given time for reflection on my musical and social blogtivity.

Let's kick things off with the great jazz-poet Wanda Robinson's, 'Me And A Friend'. This was her 2nd album on Perception Records in '73, after the successful debut, 'Black Ivory'. A performance poet also known as Laini Mataka, she is highly sought after by diggers for the use of soul-funk instrumentals behind her poems. It's a heater which is dedicated to my good friend Ed.

So what have I learnt during my hiatus?

Blogs at times can bring the egotistical "me" monster out of the best of us, where the Blogger dashboard becomes the full moon to our digital wolf. Where the comments, or lack of, and download stats feed the self importance of our anti-social network spaces. The record I'm posting is relevant as it reflects how I feel about the unsocial paradox of posts, and what music actually means to me.

I've been lucky in my years to meet a great group of people who I can truly call friends, and not some unknowns who clicked the friend request button on Facebollocks. I'm talking about the type who you haven't seen in a few years, but can pick-up in seconds exactly where you left off and start afresh. My summer has been littered with these friendship renewals and truth be told it's made it harder to come back and post to, well, strangers. Looking at the download stats you'd think I'd never been away with several posts passing the 500 mark. But with no comments, or true credibility for posting, you wonder if there's actually any point in the effort, or who you're actually doing this for?

Thankfully this summer has reminded me that music is exactly the same as those friends you haven't seen in an age. No matter how long I go without listening to a track, digging in a store, or spinning some wax, it's just as fresh as the first time, with more to learn and appreciate. A true friend indeed.

These comments aren't meant to be disrespectful to anyone, be you regular visitor, or sneaky leech. More a reminder to myself and my ego that it's not about me and a blog, it's about me and a friend.

If y'all love good music, then count yourself my friend.

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Double XX Posse - Not Gonna Be Able To Do It / The Headcracker (Remixes)

2010-05-13T08:47:00.000-07:00

Now that Mother's Day is just a bunch of wilting flowers and empty chocolate boxes it should be safe to post a track like Double XX Posse's, "Not Gonna Be Able To Do It".

What would the hip-hop game be without the odd track dedicated to, how can I put this delicately; women of ill repute. We'd certainly be missing a few classic slices from the golden-era for sure. Where Main Source and Gang Starr treated us to the classics "Looking At The Front Door" and "Ex Girl, To Next Girl", Akinyele and Kool G. Rap were certainly a little less subtle in their approach to women.

Double XX Posse probably fit somewhere in-between the two, as the lyrics on this joint are smooth, but the beat has the touch of a rapist.

Make no mistake this is a bonafied hip-hop anthem.

T-Ray's original version is dope, and that track made it to #1 on the Billboard Hot Rap Singles in '92. And here again we have another example of an unsung hero of the golden-era. He should be spoken in the same breath as the greats and has a laundry list of production credits, not least his work with Big Beat. Percee P, Mad Skillz, Artifacts, Down South, MC Thick & Double XX Posse. Needless to say I'm sure we'll be sampling more of his boom bap beats down the line.

I also want to shout out the people behind those Big Beat's. Craig Kallman who started the label in '87, went from running it from his parents apartment to CEO of Atlantic Records. It's also important to give props to Stretch Armstrong who was an A&R for the label and helped pull in an incredible roster of artists during the early 90s. He also contributed beats, such as "The Headcracker Remix" on this wax. Guess he wasn't just making the radio dial Hot in the high 90s!

This slice was Double X's sophomore release, having previously put out a twelve on the indi label Mel-o Records. After jumping labels the following year their lyrical talents were exposed to some of the best producers in New York, which resulted in two classic albums, Put Ya Boots On and Ruff, Rugged & Raw.

If you've not checked out their liquorish slices, start consuming.

As a father to a baby girl and wonderful wife the appearance of tracks like this on the Spice blog will be like the slices themselves; a rarity. It's safe to say I won't be posting my copy of "Break A Bitch Neck" up on here anytime soon. Don't ask me to either, as you should already know the response.

Nah baby, I'm not gonna be able to do it!

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Masta Ace Inc. - Maintain (Test Press)

2010-05-11T09:32:00.000-07:00

It's only been a quick minute since my last Master Ace post, but this one is a real rarity from the Spice rack.

The "Sittin' On Chrome" test press has a real surprise on the flip, the unreleased cut "Maintain", featuring Ace's I.N.C. partner Lord Digga.

I remember this being a real sneaky press back in '95 as there's only a sticker on the A side, with no reference to the actual track on the reverse. It was made even more mysterious when the cut never made it on to the album. This track never made it beyond the test press phase, so it's rare as rocking horse shit!

Instead of repeating my gushing praise for Ace, l'd like to take the opportunity to talk about Lord D. He definitely sits high up on my list of the under-appreciated artists, with talent on both the mic and MPC. One half of the Bluez Brothers production team, he hooked-up artistically with Ace during his Slaughtahouse album, adding beats and vocals. Something he repeated for the Sittin' On Chrome long player.

He had the filthy rhymes to match his gritty vocal tones but unfortunately didn't have a vinyl output to match the Master. With slices and production niceness a rarity it was great to see One Leg Up Records releasing the High Plains Drifter EP a few years back. If you haven't checked it out, do so, as there's some great early work and more Masta Ace collabo's to melt the needle on your turntable.

Spice might not be the Lord of Diggers, but I gotta maintain.

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Gang Starr Foundation (Sampler EP) - Jeru, Group Home & Big Shug

2010-05-10T10:52:00.000-07:00

This post is my belated dedication to Keith Elam, better know the world over as Gifted Unlimited Rhymes Universal.

R.I.P. Bald Head Slick.

Having had the time to reflect and consume the countless dedications and stories, I've decided to reflect on Guru's involvement and promotion of the Gang Starr Foundation. I'm not going to add to any of the unfounded rumors, but for sure the titles on this EP are quite prophetic and his separation from his Gang Starr family very sad indeed.

Without being intentionally disrespectful to Guru his solo venture highlights were when DJ Premier was to be found on the boards. It's not that Guru was a bad producer, it was just hard to compete with Preemo at the height of his boom bap period.

The first Gang Starr Foundation record was a classic example as we were treated to the phenomenal beat "Come Clean". This was Jeru's colossal solo debut, before signing with Payday, where he can be found under the title Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. It's also includes the solo debuts for both Group Home and Big Shug.

Needles to say Payday, and Chrysalis signed up the artists between them, and all but "So Called Friends" were given new single releases. Indeed Payday even released a "Guru Presents" double vinyl EP and an additional twelve including the likes of M.O.P., Bahamadia, Stikken Moov & True Master.

It's hard to say if any of these artists outside of Jeru would have received record deals without Keith's support, or a Premier beat. But this is an industry that at times thrives on not what you know, but who you know. But to them this was never about a weak link in the chain, as they were family.

I always remember listening to the lyrics to "The Meaning Of The Name", trying to understand what Gang Starr really meant.

Gangstarr, it means a lot to me
It means I’m free to bust rhymes sporadically
Gang represents my boys or a posse
So just back up off me
And the starr symbolizes the power
Making the suckers and weak brothers cower
We got strong, intelligent minds with a street sense
Crazy offense, and stupid defense
Now, have I made myself clear?
Or do I have to call on dj premier?

They were each a link in the Gang Starr chain, which in a circle could never be weakened by pressure. It's not about debating if certain members of the Gang Starr Foundation should have had a record deal. It's about being thankful that they did.

Guru was clearly selfless in helping his friends, and has left us a lasting legacy of his own music and those he promoted. If anything his final story lives to serve as a reminder to all of us that we should never let the bonds of family and friendship break.

Keith was looking out for his friends and fans from day one.

Believe Dat!

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Cinematic Spice Vol. 3 - Big Bad Budd

2010-05-07T15:00:00.000-07:00

We're returning to the Cinematic Spice series briefly for volume three with Big Bad Budd. It's time for the best of British as we sample the silver screen scoring and jazz of Roy Frederick Budd.

It's sad to think he was taken from us so early at the age of 46 back in '93. But when you consider he was playing from the age of 2 and a half, he actually spent a long time in the game. He didn't have his first solo release until '65, but just over ten years later he'd recorded eighteen soundtracks. These were mostly British films, but where he clearly excelled was scoring Crime flicks.

Like a Scorsese film without DeNiro it seemed Roy couldn't record a soundtrack unless the film included Michael Caine. Get Carter is his first and most well known crime caper score, but others included The Black Windmill, The Marseille Contract, The Stone Killer, Diamonds and more. It's hard not to reflect on Michael Caine in a 70s film without Chris Karan playing the Tabla and percussion in the background.

It's fitting that Budd's compilation should come after Quincy and Lalo, as his beats are in my opinion a cross-pollination of the two. Not too dark and brooding, but then not too soft. This compilation has a nice mix of songs, melodies and some real dirty "cop funk" incidental music. At over 50 tracks you're not going to be struggling for choice.

It's big, it's bad, it's Budd!

TRACKLISTING:

Beauty & The Bass (Diamonds)

Bayou Blues (Fear Is The Key)

Bath Of Blood (Mama Dracula)

9m2 (The Black Windmill)

Too Late (The Stone Killer)

Thief On The Prowl (Diamonds)

Theme [MC/M8] (The Marseille Contract)

Intercine Project Theme (Intercine Project)

The Windmill (The Black Windmill)

The Thief (Diamonds)

The Plant (The Black Windmill)

The Hostage Escapes (Fear Is The Key)

The Girl In The Car (Get Carter)

The Carey Treatment (Concerto For Harry)

Sun On My Face (Concerto For Harry)

Radio Music (The Black Windmill)

Plaything (Get Carter)

Pavane (Concerto For Harry)

No Co-Operation (The Black Windmill)

Mr. Easy (Intercine Project)

MC/M11 (The Marseille Contract)

Main Title (The Stone Killer)

Main Theme (Fear Is The Key)

Main Theme (Diamonds)

Main Theme (Get Carter)

M17 (Foxbat)

M5 (SK 7) (The Stone Killer)

M5 (SK 6) (The Stone Killer)

M1 (SK 10) (The Stone Killer)

Love Is A Four Letter Word (Get Carter)

Louisiana Ferry (Fear Is The Key)

Looking For Someone (Get Carter)

Kidnapped (The Black Windmill)

Jazz Source (The Stone Killer)

Inside The Vamp's Showroom (Mama Dracula)

I Think I'm Being Followed (Diamonds)

How Can We Run Away? (Theme From Something To Hide) (Concerto For Harry)

Hearts & Diamonds (Diamonds)

Hanky Panky (Tomorrow Never Comes)

Hallucinations (Get Carter)

Goodbye Carter! (Get Carter)

Free Tarrant (The Black Windmill)

End Titles (Diamonds)

End Theme [MC/M16] (The Marseille Contract)

Diamonds (The Black Windmill)

Dialogue (It's All Rotten Willie Boy) (Tomorrow Never Comes)

Dialogue (Hold The Phone) (Fear Is The Key)

Dialogue (You Wear Purple Underwear) (Get Carter)

Dialogue (You're A Big Man, But You're In Bad Shape) (Get Carter)

Cool Bossa Source (The Stone Killer)

Breakout! (Fear Is The Key)

Black Is Beautiful (The Stone Killer)

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Notorious B.I.G., Busta Rhymes, Redman, Buckshot & VA - The Points (Remixes)

2010-05-04T12:50:00.001-07:00

This record demonstrates two rules of hip-hop wax:

1. Soundtracks are a great excuse for a posse cut

2. Use producers and artists already on your label for side projects

This is a little known posse cut from Mario Van Peebles movie Panther; but it's a monster. Black Sheep were already on the label, so Mista Lawnge is called in to spice up Easy Mo Bee's original from the Soundtrack. Although the production doesn't quite hit the heights of Black Sheep's a Wolf In Sheeps Clothing, that's not really a problem. Just add a banging beat and baseline and let this posse rips things up.

Notorious B.I.G., Redman, Busta Rhymes, Buckshot, Helter Skelter, Coolio, Ill Al Skratch, and more, bolster this monster line-up. Before you ask this Mercury wax actually received an official release, but that's probably more down to marketing money off the back of the movie. But that's not really my point with this post.

This wax IS on point!

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The Legion - Jingle Jangle (Test Press)

2010-05-04T12:46:00.000-07:00

This one is for my man Colin back in the UK. Always a connoisseur of a hot slice, this is a true beast of a track. It's also dedicated to my man Idris (where are you brother?) who is obsessed with this song.

"Jingle Jangle" was The Legion's debut twelve in '93, and actually got an official release. Although true to form Mercury failed to release their long player Theme + Echo = Krill on wax.

Their label mate, Dres from Black Sheep, was called upon for his production and lyrical skills, which makes this even more deserving of crate space. If you've not peeped their album before, it's filled with Black Sheep, Showbiz & A.G. and Chi-Ali, so don't sleep.

This track reminds me of being a kid watching kung-fu flicks. It would inevitably leave you charged up enough to think you could fight anyone in your back yard like you were Kimbo Slice!

Heads flip on necks like PEZ dispensers when this beat comes on, with the horns slapping it right back into place on tempo.

Jingle Jangle?

Size it up, break it down, here you go!

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Similar Spices Vol. 38 - Superstition

2010-05-03T19:23:00.000-07:00

It's been a minute since I posted a Similar Spice compilation, so I'll be sure to make this one count.

For once I'm actually covering a song that's not a jazz standard, or a classic from the rock & roll era. This time we're dealing with a song that's a real soul treasure, and what better than an original Detroit hit straight from the Tamla/Motown label.

Stevie Wonder wrote and recorded "Superstition" after working with Jeff Beck in the studio. It was Beck who created the original drum beat which is so instantly recognizable, and if you listen closely you can hear the squeaky bass-drum peddle. Stevie wrote, arranged, produced, and performed this song at the age of twenty two. WTF?!

Who gives a f*ck about a squeaky bass-drum peddle when you can sock the pig skins like this:

I love the session drummer standing behind him with nowhere to hide looking mad embarrassed.

By the time this single and album Talking Book had came out Stevie wasn't so "Little" anymore, as he'd been writing and recording for ten years. He was also moving away from the more traditional Motown Sound and creating his own funky and soulful identity.

This song was a definite underscore to his new audio identity and has been covered many times. Rolling Stone currently ranks the song as #74 on the top 500 songs of all time. This compilation might be a little on the lean side, but it's packed with jazzy, funky covers to make your head bob and weave like the man himself in full flow.

There's some real heaters in the mix here, including the Shirley Scott cover, which is one of my favorites. The more sample minded will recognize the Melvin Van Peebles version, and might even notice I've not included the Blooblo cover, sampled by Jurassic 5. That's because I'll be posting the full Reggae Party Time album in a few weeks ;)

The bad news is that this comp is pretty narrow when it comes to genres, but the good news is that it's pretty darn funky. Back in the early 70s Little Stevie had grown into a pretty big deal.

Even a blind man could see it!

TRACKLISTING:

Superstition - Charles Kynard

Superstition - David T. Walker

Superstition - Ahmad Jamal

Superstition - Dennis Mobley & Fresh Taste

Superstition - Hugo Montenegro

Superstition - Leon Spencer

Superstition - Mazda

Superstition - Melvin Van Peebles

Superstition - Pete Moore

Superstition - Peter Herbolzheimer Rhythm Combination & Brass

Superstition - Quincy Jones

Superstition - Sergio Mendes & Brasil '77

Superstition - Shirley Scott

Superstition - Stevie Wonder

Superstition - Baltimores, The

Superstition - Ventures, The

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Maestro Fresh-Wes - Fine Tune Da Mic

2010-05-03T19:19:00.000-07:00

I figured it was aboot time we showed Canada some hip-hop love, and who better than Maestro Fresh-Wes. The only certified gold rapper from the land of the maple leaf.

The golden-era had a few surprise packages from North of the boarder such as Main Source (Sir Scratch & K-Cut), Saukrates & Choclair. But it was Wesley Williams who was the first to break into the Top 4, back in '89, with his debut "Let Your Backbone Slide". It went gold, and his album Symphony in Effect went platinum. Indeed he is the biggest selling Canadian rapper in hip-hop history.

What strikes me the most about the industry in Canada is that it seems to attain an integrity to their artistic awards that the Grammys and Oscars lack in this country. There's obvious reasons that there's no point soap-boxing about, but could you imagine Main Source, or Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth going gold or winning a Grammy?

To me it's a crime they didn't!

Unfortunately as soon as Wes decided to focus on the US market things slowed down for him, which just serves to show how fickle and unforgiving the game is in its birthplace. These days cats like Marco Polo are holding down the fort (literally, as a Fort Greene, Brooklynite) for Canada, and hip-hop in general. To audiostrate my point Marco's Port Authority album was nominated for a Juno in '08.

I digress as usual.

The focal point of this post is the Showbiz produced "Fine Tune Da Mic", taken from Wes' third album Naaah, Dis Kid Can't Be From Canada?!! In true Showbiz fashion he drops a monster beat, and guest verse. But this isn't a fluke as the whole album is pure fire, and highly prized for the additional Show' production and guest vocals from Percee P on "Pray To Da East". It's an underground gem, and should be in everyone's crates.

There's no doubting this Maestro is Fresh!

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Notorious B.I.G. - Party And Bullshit (Promo) (Lord Finesse Remix)

2010-05-03T19:12:00.000-07:00

Most people are aware of Biggie Smalls debut solo wax "Party And Bullshit", from the soundtrack Who's The Man. But the Lord Finesse remix? Not so much.

Back when Puffy was still an A&R at Uptown Records, he signed Chris up after hearing his demo, and threw him into mix on Heavy D's, DJ Premier produced "A Buncha Niggas" posse cut. Outside of guesting on Mary J Blige's two remixes, "Real Love" and "What's The 411", this wax right here was his only solo joint with Uptown.

He quickly jumped ship when Sean was sacked and set-up Bad Boy, and the rest as they say is history. Wallace wasn't the only one to follow as Easy Mo Bee (who produced the original version of "P&A") and Lord Finesse both contributed to his debut album Ready To Die.

Both get busy on B.I.G.'s debut but the stand out production is by Finesse. Echoed horns, booming bass and a symbol slapping beat hypnotize you before Biggie has even started to wrap you around his lyrical finger. For once I'd have to disagree with the title of this slice.

Ain't no bullshit with this party track!

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Masta Ace Inc. - Top Ten List (Promo)

2010-05-02T15:46:00.000-07:00

While we're on the unreleased tip, it's time to serve up a slice from one of Brooklyn's finest, Master Ace.

His grammar appeared to lapse after leaving Cold Chillin' as he became known as Masta Ace moving forwards. But it was during his time with Delicious Vinyl that possibly the greatest diss track off all time, "Top Ten List", was recorded.

To some people the claim of 'greatest' might be a little bold considering the likes of the BDP/Juice Crew efforts, Ice Cube/NWA, Nas/Jay-Z, Canibus/LL Cool J and more. To me it's all about the combination of lyrical gymnastics and banging beats, not just the back story. Which is why to me this track is closely run for the title of 'best' by Common's, Pete Rock produced, "The Bitch In Yoo".

Unlike most of these rare records from the golden era, this track eventually got an official release in '98, during Delicious Vinyl's 10th Anniversary series of twelves. This in itself is a rare record, and is prized for the fact it includes the instrumental, which was never included on the original promo.

So what was the beef?

It seems Fat Joe took offense to Ace being signed to a California based label and getting some shine on the West Coast. So much so that in a '95 interview with Ego Trip Magazine, Joe called him out for what in his opinion was fakin' the funk.

There's no doubt that his style and sound changed around the time of his label switch, but there's nothing wrong with courting a little favor with your new audience. It's like a soccer player kissing the badge of their new club. It doesn't mean they love the old club and fans any less. The most important point here is that Master Ace is a defining line in east coast hip-hop history, and within the game itself. He's continued to record quality albums for over 20 years now, and seems to have lost none of his skill or passion.

Only a fool would question his skills and standing in the game. But back then you could say the same about someone wanting to step to Joe. No one expected a response, but only a few weeks later the track appeared on a promo only release including the "Turn It Up" remix.

Produced by Saukrates, this track is simply banging, and they even use a joint from Joe's own Bronx borough against him. The chorus includes a sample from the BDP diss track "Ya Slippin'" for the KRS One quotable 'At eight your a sucker, at seven a mothafucka'. Mixed with some hard hitting lyrics it's the vinyl equivalent of Tonya Harding getting busy on your knees with a lead pipe!

At 3 verses and a truck load of curses, Fat Joe gets torn down by numbers in this lyrical massacre:

10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4
3, 2, 1 reasons you'll never be this raw
My crew is representing for bk, don't play
Or you might have to get crime watch around your way
Cause brooklyn keep on taking it, still from way back
Say black, trying to get that fortune like sajak
There must be at least twenty reasons you can't win and
In this rap game you're hopeless, here's a top ten:
10's very simple and plain, it's petty crime
It's only '94 when you wrote your first rhyme
And now you think you got more skil than power tools
But never could your feet fit up in our shoes
You only got one delivery
One-dimetional rappers is dead as chivalry
Don't get your spot blown up, block sewn up
I lift mc's to tone up, rip your zone up
I got more flavors than women's douche
Make ends with mexicans and rock dreads in flatbush
9, you can't see mine, can't find mine
Can't do mine, step to mine, when my crew find
A fronting-ass nigga, we get in this
You don't want to get beat and boxed like biz
You ain't wild cause you run with wild kids
Now the chorus is gonna tell you what 8 and 7 is

6, i bury that ass like halle
All up on tracks like a trolly, my golly
Like bob marley, we jammin', by all means
And real gangsters don't talk shit in magazines
5, never judge a rapper by the song he make
Some of the coolest rapping niggas will drop your ass in a lake
And on the other hand, some of them screaming "keep it real"
Their video's the only time they ever busted steel
4, you don't phase me, this ain't star trek
I know where you park your cars at, as far as that
Beef that's going on in all these spots
In parking lots, niggas pop more shit than shots
Funny, dummy, lyrics don't stun me
If i was your only pair of pants, you still couldn't run me
Out this rap game, it's i.n.c. for life
Niggas gonna know soon, cause brownsville's trife
All up in the mix like blenders
Offenders, life enders, whatever genders, don't offend us
Coming at you, gonna catch you, and when we find you
Don't lose count, let me remind you

One two, one two, this be number trey
Might be in the game, but i don't think you wanna play
I'm coming with the flav, getting more rich than bay
I say, this master jam more than jay
And two is, my crew is, coming with the newest
Can't do us, knock your teeth out trying to cue us
You want to step to us, come clean on the scene
Without the drama, my team making all the green
I'm in your spleen, no afro with mad sheen
In my ride, young teen girls getting mean
Every day just like mary j.
I'm downtown brooklyn where niggas play
The corners and blocks like street lamps, i beat champs
In rapping, leaving niggas wondering what happened
And that be the number one reason you can't flow
But bring back the other two shits to let 'em know

This whole scenario is reminiscent of a scene in the British crime movie Get Carter, where Michael Caine says "Your a big man, but you're in bad shape. With me it's a full time job, now behave yourself....I'll throw you in the fucking river". In this instance Ace gives Joe concrete footwear and tosses him into the Hudson!

For those thinking of dissing, let's just say real gangsta's don't talk shit in blogs. You don't want to get beat and boxed like biz!

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Jemini The Gifted One - Funk Soul Sensation (Remixes)

2010-05-02T09:14:00.000-07:00

I figured it was time we got some rare hip-hop gems up on the ol' Spice blog. To kick things off we're going to focus on my borough Brooklyn, and Jemini The Gifted One.

Sometimes it seems like PolyGram & Mercury cornered the market on rare promo only, or test press releases from the golden era. Diamond D & The Psychotic Neurotics, Black Sheep, The Legion, Ed O.G & Da Bulldogs to name a few. Unfortunately it's more like a graveyard of talent and their poor understanding of the music at that time.

For the collector it's great to dig out all these rare pieces of wax, but for the artists it was criminal not to get their work out there properly. To think classics like Stunts, Blunts & Hip-Hop, Roxbury 02119, Theme + Echo = Krill, or Scars & Pain never got official vinyl releases at the time seems beyond comprehension. They may blame it on investing in CD sales but that just demonstrated a gross misunderstanding of the culture, let alone commerce. They clearly believed vinyl beyond radio stations and A-List DJ's was dead.

How many times have we heard that one?

Unfortunately for Jemini, who was full of talent and potential, he ended up another wasted opportunity by the label. Of his 5 pieces of vinyl pressed with Mercury only one received an official release, "Funk Soul Sensation". Check out the original version's video:

Produced by Organized Konfusion, he was already off to a flyer, and the video was a great showcase of the dual personas of Gemini dueling each other. It actually sounds a little like Sadat X and Rakim going at it like Lord Finesse and Percee P up in Patterson Projects.

The vinyl I'm posting today is the highly sought after Godfather Don remix, which was a promo only release. Bet you couldn't see that coming! This piece of wax also has the Soul G. remix on the flip.

It's a great track and I'm always a sucker for the sleigh bell use on a beat. Something that seemed like a badge of honor reserved for only the finest remix producers like Pete Rock, Large Professor, Lord Finesse, Diamond D, Buckwild & Salaam Remi.

To be honest I feel the "Superman Lover" sampled Johnny Watson guitar was best used by The Beatnuts on Mad Skillz "The Nod Factor".

Despite Mercury causing pain and leaving scars on this artists early career, we're still thankful that the music made it out there.

Get lifted to the Gifted!

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Seasonal Spices 6 - Another Mutha For Ya!

2010-04-28T12:26:00.000-07:00

Once again it seems like I'm jumping the gun on a post for Mother's Day. In fairness, as I'm originally from England where the date is different, I'm all good on this one.

Simply take this as a reminder for next weekend people ;)

I have to admit that for this Seasonal Spice offering I've had some fun. I might even consider this one my favorite comp of the series so far. Needless to say digging up "mother" related tracks is an instant winner, as you're never too far away from a dirty funk track or ten!

I've take a few liberties with this selection, although I did decide it would be a little morbid to include the likes of "Mama's Dead" by James Brown from the Black Caesar soundtrack. For the majority of joints the politically incorrect and disrespectful minefield has been maneuvered safely, but there's still plenty of funk explosions.

Once again this comp is laced with a wealth of sample sources to keep your brain working while the neck is attempting to snap it out of place. For my mother I'd like to dedicate "Singing A Song For My Mother" by Hamilton Bohannon, which is the backbone to "I Got To Have It" by Ed O.G & Da Bulldogs. For my wife, and new mother, I'd like to dedicate "Mother Beautiful" by Sly & The Family Stone, simply because it's fitting. Nuttin' but love for my ladies :)

For all the mothers out there, including yours, I'd like to dedicate Another Mutha For Ya!

TRACKLISTING:

Black Mama, White Mama - Radio Promo

Synopsis Two: Mother's Day - 24 Carat Black

Soul Mama - Dizzy Gillespie

Hey Mama - Wild Tchoupitoulas

Mama Soul - Harold Alexander

Momma Jive - Charles Kynard

Mother's Theme (Mama) - Willie Hutch

Mother Beautiful - Sly & The Family Stone

Mama - The Rance Allen Group

Mother & Child - Cal Tjader Quintet

Come To Mama - Ann Peebles

Your Momma Want's You Back - Betty Davis

Momma Miss America - Paul McCartney

Momma Momma - Pazant Brothers & The Beaufort Express

You Mother You - James Brown

Sweet Children - Ceasar Frazier

Funky Mama - Rusty Bryant

Mother - Maynard Ferguson

Singing A Song For My Mother - Bohannon

Blues For Mama - Little Beaver

Ain't That A Mother's Luck - Dorothy Moore

Mama Feelgood - Lyn Collins

Momma - Ronnie Laws

Mother Funk - Jackie Mittoo

A Real Mother For Ya - Johnny "Guitar" Watson

Fat Mama - Herbie Hancock

Queen Mother Stomp - Milt Jackson & The Ray Brown Big Band

Tell Your Mama - Dave Hamilton

Little Mama - Monk Higgins

Mama Wailer - Lonnie Smith

Mothers Son - Curtis Mayfield

Mama's Groove - Richard ''Groove'' Holmes

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Similar Spices Vol. 37 - Nature Boy

2010-04-27T11:21:00.000-07:00

Nature Boy is another Jazz Standard offering dating back to 1947, written by Eden Ahbez, and first made famous by Nat "King" Cole in '48. Most people today will probably associate the song with the film Moulin Rouge! for it's slow vocal version.

Although this isn't as prolifically covered as the previous post, it's still a captivating melody with several top draw covers available on wax. The De La Soul sampled Earl Klugh version is a particular favorite, along with the vocal gymnastics of The Singers Unlimited. However, the best is saved for last as Pee Wee Ellis simply kills it!

From orchestral, to a cappella, to straight dirty funk, there's nothing standard about this genre Tapas, as there's a little something for everyone. Unlike that strange enchanted boy you won't have to wander very far to love, and be loved in return.

TRACKLISTING:

Nature Boy - Ahmad Jamal

Nature Boy - Richard Barbary

Nature Boy - George Benson

Nature Boy - Earl Klugh

Nature Boy - Lew Davies

Nature Boy - Greg Osby

Nature Boy - Down Beat Poll Winners

Nature Boy - James Brown & The Famous Flames

Nature Boy - Grady Tate

Nature Boy - Johnny Hawksworth

Nature Boy - The Singers Unlimited

Nature Boy - Jack van Poll Tree-Oh

Nature Boy - Pee Wee Ellis

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Seasonal Spices Vol. 5 (Easter Echoes)

2010-04-05T15:54:00.001-07:00

Hopefully you've come down safely from this weekends sugar rush after gorging on countless chocolates, jelly beans, and marshmallow peeps.

Now it's time for a little role reversal as I stuff my peeps full of sweet sugar sonics. But don't worry none, as there's no need to wait three days for this audio ascension.

Unzip this files wrapper and let the reverberation of these digital resurrections resonate in your eager ears.

TRACKLISTING:

A Chocolate Jam - Chocolate Jam Co.

Ascension - Teddy Lasry

Beware The Man (With The Candy In His Hand) - Dramatics, The

Brite 'N' Bunny Babe - Al Jarreau

Bun's O'plenty - Isaac Hayes

Candy - Mar-Keys, The

Candy Man - Josephine Jones

Candy Store Dilemma - Blackbyrds, The

Chocolate - Mickey & The Soul Generation

Chocolate Buttermilk - Kool & The Gang

Chocolate Candy - Soulful Strings, The

Chocolate City - Mavis Staples

Chocolate Sugar - Six Feet Under

Easter Afternoon - Ady Zehnpfennig

Easter Melody - Jordan Stevy

Easter Parade - Jimmy McGriff

Egg Eating Contest - Lalo Schifrin

Egg Foo Wa Wa - Race Street Chinatown Band

Eyes On The Rabbit - Melvin Van Peebles

Funkascensions - Robert Mason

Funky Rabbits - Rusty Bryant

Hash & Eggs - Blackbyrds, The

I Told Jesus - Stanley Turrentine

Jelly Bean - Clive Hicks

Jesus - Curtis Mayfield

Jesus Is Waiting - Al Green

Jesus Where You Now? - Cannonball Adderley

Laying Eggs - Paz

Path To Ascension - Yves Hyatt

Robin's Egg Blues - Neal Hefti

Rock Candy - Jack McDuff

Soul Eggs - Dave Pike Set, The

Suite Chocolate Mounds - Chocolate Jam Co.

The Jesus Thing - Rance Allen Group, The

Touch Me Jesus - Sylvers, The

White Rabbit - George Benson

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Cinematic Spice Vol. 2 (Sublime Schifrin)

2010-03-25T18:07:00.000-07:00

The 2nd installment has landed, and if we keep things at this pace, it'll soon line up like a murderers row of funky silver screen composers.

Lalo Schifrin is best known for his film and TV scores, and the original soundtracks to Dirty Harry, and Enter The Dragon have become synonymous with "funky film tracks", from the '70s. They've also become the staple diet for many a producers MPC!

Unlike Quincy who has more melody to complement the mood of his scores, Lalo's can be very dark and ominous. Not that I have a problem with this, but it does mean the selection process for this comp had to be a little more stringent. However, separating the sampler heaven atmospheric cuts from straight heaters wasn't too much of an impossible mission ;)

In Schifrin's defense his styles were definitely more varied than Quincy's, encompassing straight jazz, bebop, latin, funk, disco, and rock. There's a little bit in this one for everyone, and at 48 tracks deep, you'll be laying low in Lalo like it's feature length!

Tracklisting:

Ape Shuffle (20th Century 7" Version) (Theme from "Planet of the Apes")

Bikini Waltz (The Liquidator)

End Title (Bullitt)

Main Title (Bullitt)

Burning Bridges (Vocal) (Kelly's Heroes)

Cantata For Combo (Bullitt)

Charanga (Sol Madrid)

Danube Incident (Mission Impossible)

Dirty Harry (7" Version)

Main Title (Dirty Harry)

Escape From Tomorrow (20th Century 7" Version)

Fear (Mannix)

Frances' Theme

Headset Jazz (Enter The Dragon)

Hunt Down (Mannix)

Jaws

Jim On The Move (Mission Impossible)

Kelly's Heroes (Kelly's Heroes)

King Kong

La Barraca (CHE!)

Lucille (Cool Hand Luke)

Medical Center (Medical Center)

Mission Blues (Mission Impossible)

More Mission (Mission Impossible)

Theme from "Most Wanted" (CTI 7" Version)

Motorcycle Chase (Coogan's Bluff)

No More Lies, Girl (Dirty Harry)

On The Way To San Mateo (Bullitt)

Riviera Chase (The Liquidator)

Rollercoaster (Rollercoaster)

Scorpio's View (Dirty Harry)

Scorpion's View (Pts. 2 & 3) (Dirty Harry)

Secret Code (Mission Impossible)

The Big Battle (Enter The Dragon)

The Big Brawl (Battle Creek Brawl)

The Cat

The Cincinnati Kid (Instrumental Version) (The Cincinnati Kid)

The Getaway (Mission Impossible)

The Golden Trip (Sol Madrid)

The Human Fly (Enter The Dragon)

The Man from Thrush (Once A Thief)

The School Bus (Dirty Harry)

The Shadow (Mannix)

Theme from "Joy House"

Theme from "Medical Center" (Verve 7" Version)

Turn Every Stone (Mannix)

Uncle Herbert (Battle Creek Brawl)

Venice After Dark (The Venetian Affair)

*link in comments

Cinematic Spice Vol. 1 (Quintessentially Quincy)

2010-03-22T11:08:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the first installment of the new Cinematic Spice Series:

Quintessentially Quincy

I was always going to get this series started at some point, but a friend got the soundtrack spices flowing this weekend with a request for the Quincy Jones original soundtrack, Dollar.

Soundtracks, especially from blaxploitation period have always been hot property for producers and collectors, and have provided the sampling foundations to countless hip-hop gems. Coincidently Quincy's best period (in my humble opinion) was '68-'77, in which he produced a laundry list of soundtracks, albums and production work.

This comp contains 45 of his finest cinematic works from this period, and no doubt your ears will recognize many samples and loops. And there's much more to come from this sample series, so stay tuned.

Beat source material aside, the sonics of these soundtrack scores with sizzle your senses.

TRACK LISTING:

Aftermath - The Slender Thread (Quincy Jones)
Bobb's At Gunpoint - The Deadly Affair (Quincy Jones)
Bossa Nova - Come Back Charleston Blue (Quincy Jones ft. Donny Hathaway)
Call Me Mister Tibbs (Main Title) - They Call Me Mister Tibbs (Quincy Jones)
Coming And Going - The Adventurers (Quincy Jones ft. The Ray Brown Orchestra)
Cotton Curtain - In The Heat Of The Night (Quincy Jones)
Dynamite - Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (Quincy Jones)
Fat Cat Strut - The Adventurers (Quincy Jones ft. The Ray Brown Orchestra)
Fat Poppadaddy - They Call Me Mister Tibbs (Quincy Jones)
Funny Farm - The Slender Thread (Quincy Jones)
Funny Money, What the Hell - The Split (Quincy Jones)
Hot Rock Theme - The Hot Rock (Quincy Jones)
Ironside - Smackwater Jack (Quincy Jones)
It Sure Is Groovy! - In The Heat Of The Night (Quincy Jones)
It's Caper Time (Self Preservation Society Inst.) - The Italian Job (Quincy Jones)
Kifka Car Caper - The Split (Quincy Jones)
Kitty With The Bent Frame - Dollar (Quincy Jones)
Little Ghetto Boy - Come Back Charleston Blue (Quincy Jones ft. Donny Hathaway)
Main Squeeze (Instrumental) - The Lost Man (Quincy Jones)
Main Title (Alternate) - The Split (Quincy Jones ft. Arthur Prysock)
Main Title - The Hot Rock (Quincy Jones)
Monney Runner - Dollar (Quincy Jones)
Nitty Gritty Time - In The Heat Of The Night (Quincy Jones)
On Days Like These (Reprise) - The Italian Job (Quincy Jones)
Pepp-Freak Patrol Car - In The Heat Of The Night (Quincy Jones)
Pull, Jubal, Pull - Man And Boy (Quincy Jones ft. J.J. Johnson & Bill Withers)
Pussy Safe Negli, Half a Million Dollars, It's Just a Game, Love - The Split (Quincy Jones ft. Clydie King & Billy Preston)
Rack 'Em Up - The Pawnbroker (Quincy Jones)
Rubber Ducky - Dollar (Quincy Jones)
Sahara Stone - The Hot Rock (Quincy Jones)
Seduction - In Cold Blood (Quincy Jones)
Seldom Seen Sam - The Hot Rock (Quincy Jones)
Shook Up Fuzz/Mac Let's Talk - The Split (Quincy Jones)
Slo-Mo - Man And Boy (Quincy Jones ft. J.J. Johnson & Bill Withers)
Snow Creatures - Dollar (Quincy Jones)
Soul Bossa Nova - Big Band Bossa Nova (Quincy Jones)
Sweet Soul Sister - The Lost Man (Quincy Jones ft. The Mirettes & Nate Turner)
Sweet Wheat - Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (Quincy Jones)
The Time For Love Is Anytime(Piano Version) - Cactus Flower (Quincy Jones)
Threadbare - The Slender Thread (Quincy Jones)
To Sir With Love - Cactus Flower (Quincy Jones)
Trekkin' - Man And Boy (Quincy Jones ft. J.J. Johnson & Bill Withers)
Up Against The Wall (Instrumental) - The Lost Man (Quincy Jones)
Vegetable Wagon - Come Back Charleston Blue (Quincy Jones ft. Donny Hathaway)
Who Needs Forever? - The Deadly Affair (Quincy Jones ft. Astrud Gilberto)

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Seasonal Spices Vol. 4 (Play Me, I'm Irish)

2010-03-18T13:05:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day or Lá Fhéile Pádraig to my friends back home.

OK, so I'm a little late, but you wouldn't begrudge me sinking few dark jars myself. Like the color of the day this compilation has a very heavy "green" theme, which has allowed me to take a few funky liberties ;)

Nurse you're hangovers well, and soothe you senses with something that's sonically spicy.

Track List:

Ain't No Greens In Harlem - The Vibrations

Beer Can Alley - Richard "Groove" Holmes & Ernie Watts

Bein' Green - Johnny Lytle

Brother Green (The Disco King) - Roy Ayers

Goodbye Green, Hello Garber - David Shire

Greasy Greens - Pazant Brothers & The Beaufort Express

Green Door - Wynder K. Frog

Green Dragon - Joe Thomas

Green Earrings - Steely Dan

Green Earth - Pop Eye

Green Forever - William S. Fischer

Green Green Grass Of Home - Fatback Band

Green Hell - Peter Reno

Green King - Frank Ricotti

Green Machine - O'Donel Levy

Green Nails - Giancarlo Barigozzi Group

Green Onions - Jack Costanzo & Gerry Woo

Green Peppers - Wes Montgomery

Green Power - Sid Sidney Wallace & The Belairs

Green Smoke - Jean-Claude Pierric & D.Janin

Green Valley - Piero Umiliani

Green Water - Jack Dieval Quartet

Green Witch - Art Farmer

Greens - Charles Kynard

I'm So Green - Can

Irish Coffee - Kosta Lukacs Combo

Last Whisky - Eddie Warner Band

Mister Green - Bernard Fèvre

Mr. Green Genes - Laurent Petitgirard

My Favorite Beer Joint - Don Julian

Rhapsody In Green - Mort Garson

Saints & Sinners - Roger Roger

Three Leaf Clover - Booker T & The M.G.'s

Whisky - Bruno Nicolai

Whisky Sour - Janusz Poplaswki

Evergreen - Joanne Grauer

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Raise It Up For Ma Dukes!

2010-03-12T20:24:00.000-08:00

This project is important for so many reasons, so please take the time to click the link and pledge if you can. If you can't, don't worry, just pass it on to EVERYONE you know and hopefully Dana will reach goal faster.

Instead of just wearing the t-shirt that says "J-Dilla Changed My Life", why don't you help change it for his family. It's time to give back.

Raise it up for Ma Dukes people!

Similar Spices Vol. 35 (Mah Nà Mah Nà)

2010-03-02T13:22:00.000-08:00

Spice waffle to follow.

TRACKS:

Mah Nà Mah Nà - Piero Umiliani

Mahna Mahna (The Muppets Version) - Mahna Mahna & The Two Snowths

Mah Na Mah Na (Sesame Street Version) - Bip Bippadotta & The Two Snowths

Mah Na Mah Na - Electronic Concept Orchestra

Mah Nà Cowboy - Piero Umiliani

Mais Non Mais Non - Henri Salvador

Mah-na Mah-na - De Savoya

Samba Mah Na' - Piero Umiliani

Mah-Na-Mah-Na - Hot Butter

Mah-Nah-Mah-Nah - Dave Pell Singers, The

Mah-Na, Mah-Na - Leroy Holmes

Mahna, Mahna - Cake

Mahna Mahna - Ray McVay Band, The

Mah Na Mah Na - Giorgio Moroder

*link in comments

Spice Rack Vol. 2 - (Ya Mama)

2010-02-25T11:52:00.000-08:00

Spice waffle to follow.

TRACKS:

Ya Mama (Murphy Mix)

Ya Mama (Cosby Mix)

Ya Mama (Instrumental)

Ya Mama (Murphy Mix)

Ya Mama (Matt Dike Remix)

Ya Mama (Baka Boyz Remix)

Ya Mama (Kenny Dope Remix)

*link in comments

Spice Rack Vol. 1 - Nas (It Ain't Hard To Tell)

2010-02-24T14:26:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the new Spice Rack Series, which will focus on classic golden era hip hop tracks that have been blessed with multiple flavors.

The best beat chefs, using only the spiciest sampling ingredients.

Spice waffle to follow.....

TRACKS:

It Ain't Hard To Tell (Demo Version)

It Ain't Hard To Tell (Radio Promo Mix)

It Ain't Hard To Tell (Album Version)

It Ain't Hard To Tell (Album Instrumental)

It Ain't Hard To Tell (Large Professor Remix)

It Ain't Hard To Tell (Large Professor Remix Instrumental)

It Ain't Hard To Tell (The Stink Mix)

It Ain't Hard To Tell (The Stink Mix Instrumental)

It Ain't Hard To Tell (The Laidback Remix)

It Ain't Hard To Tell (The Laidback Remix Instrumental)

It Ain't Hard To Tell (10th Anniversary Remix)

It Ain't Hard To Tell (A Cappella)

*link in comments

Seasonal Spices Vol. 3 (LOVE: The Spice of Life)

2010-02-09T13:30:00.000-08:00

Spice waffle to follow.

HAPPY VALENTINES PEOPLE!

TRACKS:

About Love - Ben Sidran

Ain't Got The Love (Of One Girl On My Mind) - Ambassadors, The

Baby, I Love You - Tom Scott with The California Dreamers

Baby, This Love I Have - Minnie Riperton

Back In Love Again - L.T.D

Bring Your Heart - Jean-Claude Pierric

Close To You Love - Jerry Butler

Could I Be Fallin' In Love - Syl Johnson

Don't Change Your Love - The Five Stairsteps & Cubie

Drowning In The Sea Of Love - Joe Simon

Expressway To Your Heart - Margo Thunder

Give Me Your Love - Barbara Mason

Hallelujah, I Love Her So - Gene Chandler Situation, The

Heartbeat - Nick Ingman

Hearts & Diamonds - Roy Budd ft. The Three Degrees

I'm Gonna Love You Just A Little Bit More, Babe - Jimmy Smith

I'm Your Puppet - James & Bobby

I Forgot To Be Your Lover - William Bell

Kissing My Love - Cold Blood

Love's Theme - 20th Century Steel Band

Love And Affection - Ike White

Love Hangover - Stanley Turrentine

Love To The World - L.T.D.

Lover And A Friend - Eddie Bo & Inez Cheatham

A Lover Was Born - Lee Dorsey

My Love For You - Ramsey Lewis

School Boy Crush - Average White Band

Somebody To Love - Barbara & Ernie

Something 'Bout Love - Main Ingredient, The

St. Valentines Day - Galt MacDermot

Superman Lover - Johnny "Guitar" Watson

Trip To Your Heart - Sly & The Family Stone

We're In Love - Reuben Wilson

What You Won't Do For Love - Bobby Caldwell

Whole Lotta Love - Dennis Coffey

Yearning For Your Love - Gap Band

You Stole My Heart - Johnny "Guitar" Watson

Your Love - James Brown

2-4-6-8 - Jackson 5, The

90% Of Me Is You - Amral's Trinidad Cavaliers

*link in comments

Similar Spices Vol. 34 - My Funny Valentine

2010-02-09T13:25:00.000-08:00

Spice waffle to follow.

TRACKS:

My Funny Valentine - Brook Benton

My Funny Valentine - Buster Williams

My Funny Valentine - Charles McPherson

My Funny Valentine - Eddie Harris

My Funny Valentine - Etta James

My Funny Valentine - Freddie McCoy

My Funny Valentine - Gary Bartz

My Funny Valentine - Grant Green

My Funny Valentine - Hal Galper

My Funny Valentine - Herbie Hancock

My Funny Valentine - Hi-Lo's, The

My Funny Valentine - Jim Hall

My Funny Valentine - K. & J.J.

My Funny Valentine - Larry Young

My Funny Valentine - Los Admiradores

My Funny Valentine - Merl Saunders & Jerry Garcia

My Funny Valentine - Michel Legrand

My Funny Valentine - Miles Davis

My Funny Valentine - Paul Desmond

My Funny Valentine - Peddlers, The

My Funny Valentine - Stylistics, The

My Funny Valentine - Terumasa Hino

My Funny Valentine / You Are So Beautiful - Morgana King

*link in comments

Similar Spices Vol. 33 - Stop, Look & Listen

2010-02-09T13:22:00.000-08:00

Spice waffle to follow.

TRACKS:

Stop Look Listen - Esquires Now

Stop, Look & Listen - Bill Cosby

Stop, Look & Listen (To Your Heart) - Lionel Hampton

Stop, Look & Listen To Your Heart - Kellee Patterson

Stop, Look & Listen To Your Heart / You Are Everything - Ray Bryant

Stop, Look And Listen (To Your Heart) - Barbara Acklin

Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart) - Diana Ross & Marvin Gaye

Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart) - New Birth, The

Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart) - Stylistics, The

*link in comments

Similar Spices Vol. 32 - And I Love Her

2010-02-09T13:19:00.001-08:00

Spice waffle to follow.

TRACKS:

And I Love Her - Billy Larkin & The Delegates

And I Love Her - Bobby Womack

And I Love Her - Detroit Emeralds

And I Love Her - Enoch Light & His Orchestra

And I Love Her - Gary McFarland

And I Love Her - Grady Tate

And I Love Her - Pucho & The Latin Soul Brothers

And I Love Her - Tony Osborne Orchestra

And I Love Her - Willis Jackson

*link in comments

Similar Spices Vol. 31 - Feel Like Making Love

2010-02-09T13:14:00.001-08:00

Spice waffle to follow.

TRACKS:

Feel Like Makin' Love - Harold Ousley

Feel Like Makin' Love - Hugo Montenegro

Feel Like Makin' Love - Marlena Shaw

Feel Like Makin' Love - Millie Jackson

Feel Like Makin' Love - Rainbow ft. Will Boulware

Feel Like Makin' Love - Roberta Flack

Feel Like Makin' Love - Roy Ayers

Feel Like Makin Love - Eugene McDaniels

Feel Like Making Love - Chicago Gangsters

Feel Like Making Love - Enoch Light

Feel Like Making Love - Isaac Hayes

Feel Like Making Love - Monty Alexander

Feel Like Making Love - Paul Mauriat Orchestra, The

Feel Like Making Love - Ricardo & The Group Marrero

Feel Like Making Love - Tamiko Jones

Feel Like Making Love (I Want You) - Bob James

Feel Like Making Love (Live) - Hubert Laws

(That's The Time) I Feel Like Making Love - Jimmy Smith

*link in comments

Similar Spices Vol. 30 - Love & Happiness

2010-02-09T13:09:00.000-08:00

Spice waffle to follow.

TRACKS:

Love And Happiness - Al Green

Love And Happiness - Larry Graham & Graham Central Station

Love And Happiness - Monty Alexander

Love And Happiness - The Pharaohs

Love And Happiness - Prophets Of Soul

Love And Happiness - Rasputin's Stash

Love And Happiness - Undisputed Truth, The

*link in comments

Similar Spices Vol. 29 - The Look Of Love

2010-02-09T13:04:00.001-08:00

Spice waffle to follow.

TRACKS:

The Look Of Love - Barbara Acklin

The Look Of Love - Bill Plummer

The Look Of Love - Bobby Womack

The Look Of Love - Brass Ring

The Look Of Love - Chico Arnez

The Look Of Love - Delfonics

The Look Of Love - Dells, The

The Look Of Love - Dick Hayman

The Look Of Love - Don Jullian And The Larks

The Look Of Love - Dorothy Ashby

The Look Of Love - El Chicano

The Look Of Love - Enoch Light

The Look Of Love - Four Tops

The Look Of Love - Gabor Szabo

Look Of Love - Gladys Knight & The Pips

The Look Of Love - Gordon Staples And The String Thing

The Look Of Love - Howard Roberts

The Look Of Love - Hugo Montenegro

The Look Of Love - Isaac Hayes

The Look Of Love - Johnny Pate & Orchestra

The Look Of Love - Meters, The

The Look Of Love - Novi Singers

The Look Of Love - Odell Brown & The Organ-izers

The Look Of Love - Pat Williams Orchestra, The

The Look Of Love - Pete Moore

The Look Of Love - Ramsey Lewis

The Look Of Love - Reuben Wilson

The Look Of Love - Richard Hayman

The Look Of Love - Sergio Mendes & Brasil '77

The Look Of Love - Shirley Bassey

The Look Of Love - Soul Strings & A Funky Horn

The Look Of Love - Stanley Turrentine

The Look Of Love - Steve Douglas

The Look Of Love - Strings For Pleasure

The Look Of Love - Three Sounds, The

The Look Of Love - Tony Hatch

The Look Of Love - Unknown Artists

The Look Of Love - Val Merrall's Orchestra

The Look Of Love - Willie Bobo

The Look Of Love - 101 Strings

* link in comments

Similar Spices Vol. 28 - Dindi

2010-02-09T12:50:00.000-08:00

Spice waffle to follow:

TRACKS:

Dindi - Astrud Gilberto

Dindi - Baden Powell

Dindi - Edu Lobo, Sylvia Telles, Rosinha Da Valenca

Dindi - Eric Gale

Dindi - Flora Purim

Dindi - Frank Sinatra & Antônio Carlos Jobim

Dindi - Janet Lawson

Dindi - Jon Lucien

Dindi - Norman Connors

Dindi - Singers Unlimited ft. Rob McConnell & The Boss Brass

Dindi - Sylvia Telles

Dindi - Wayne Shorter

Dindi - Willie Bobo

Dindi - Willie Bobo & The Bo-Gents

Dindi - Antonio Carlos Jobim

*link in comments

Similar Spices Vol. 27 - The Girl From Ipanema

2010-01-28T07:35:00.000-08:00

It's time to hit you off with a classic piece of bossa nova!

There's not really much I can do to protect a song like this from it's "elevator music" references (check the end of the The Blues Brothers), especially when I included a cover by Ol' Blue Eyes himself. So I'm just going to embrace it's popularity and bless y'all with over 30 covers.

It was written in '62, with Vinicius de Moraes providing the lyrics and Aontonio Carlos Jobim the music. Originally the song was titled "The Girl Who Passes By" for a musical comedy Moraes was working on. The title clearly reference the real life girl from Ipanema (a fashionable district in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) who the pair would see walking past the Veloso bar each day. They would eventually conspired together to create "Garota de Ipanema".

Helô Pinheiro was a 15 year old girl back then, and since the song blew up in the 60s, has been a celebrity in Brazil.

The first commercial version was recorded in '62 by Pery Ribeiro but it's the one performed by Astrud Gilberto, along with João Gilberto & Stan Getz, from the 1964 album Getz/Gilberto, that really made the song an instant hit. Astrud was my first Brazilian crush, for a young kid from the UK who had no idea where Ipanema was on the map. It's safe to say these days my affections rest more with Latin music and rhythms.

The covers contained within this comp are like comparing Helô to other Brazilian women from Rio. Whether it's the original or something similar, they're all beautiful.

This girl is made of sugar, spice and a slice that's nice!

TRACKS:

Girl From Ipanema - In Crowd, The

Girl From Ipanema - Johnny Hawksworth

Garota De Ipanema - Nico Gomez & His Orchestra

Girl From Ipanema (Instrumental, 1970) - Antônio Carlos Jobim

La Fille D'Ipanema - Nana Mouskouri

La Ragazza Di Ipanema - Giovanni Fenati

The Girl From Ipanema (Disco Mix) - Astrud Gilberto

The Girl From Ipanema - Berry Lipman And His Orchestra

The Girl From Ipanema - Byron Lee & The Dragonaires

The Girl From Ipanema - Charles Wright & The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band

Garota De Ipanema - Nara Leão

The Girl From Ipanema - Enoch Light & The Light Brigade

The Girl From Ipanema - Frank Sinatra & Antônio Carlos Jobim

The Girl From Ipanema - Freddie McCoy

The Girl From Ipanema - Geoff Love

The Girl From Ipanema - Geoff Love Singers, The

The Girl from Ipanema - Herb Alpert And The Tijuana Brass

The Girl From Ipanema - Hubert Deuringer & Dieter Reith Combo

The Girl From Ipanema - Jack Parnell Orchestra

The Girl From Ipanema - Johnny Mann Singers

The Girl From Ipanema - Les McCann Ltd.

The Girl From Ipanema - Living Jazz

The Girl From Ipanema - Richard "Groove" Holmes

The Girl From Ipanema - Richard Hayman

The Girl From Ipanema - Sergio Mendes Trio

The Girl From Ipanema - Vince Guaraldi & Bola Sete

The Girl From Ipanema - Walter Wanderley

The Girl From Ipanema (Garota de Ipanema) - Stan Getz & João Gilberto

The Girl From Ipanema (Instrumental, 1963) - Antônio Carlos Jobim

The Girl From Ipanema (Live) - Antônio Carlos Jobim

The Girl From Ipanema (Vocal) - Antônio Carlos Jobim

The Girl From Ipanema (Vocal, 1970) - Antônio Carlos Jobim

The Girl of Ipanema - Peppino Principe Quartet

*link in comments

Similar Spices Vol. 26 - Django

2010-01-16T17:48:00.000-08:00

John Lewis from the Modern Jazz Quartet wrote "Django" in '54 as a dedication to pioneering jazz guitarist Jean Reinhardt. The title itself (his gypsy nickname) stands for "I Awake" in Romani, which is exactly what I want to do to your ears with this compilation.

This is a true jazz comp filled with the likes of Grant Green, Joe Pass, Modern Jazz Quartet, Cal Tjader, Dorothy Ashby, Herbie Mann, Gene Harris Gabor Szabo and more. Dorothy's harp provides my favorite cover here, but this one's definitely for the connoisseur.

Sample wise Cal Tjader's cover has seen plenty of action, but it's the Modern Jazz Quartet's later version recorded for the Pyramid LP where we hear the best use on Jeru's "You Can't Stop The Prophet".

If jazz music is a science then Djangology is definitely a class you'll want to attend!

TRACKS:

Django - Cal Tjader

Django - Dorothy Ashby

Django - Gabor Szabo

Django - Gene Harris

Django - Grant Green

Django - Herbie Mann

Django - Jim Hall

Django - K. & J.J.

Django - Rahsaan Roland Kirk

Django - Ron Carter

Django - Three Sounds, The

Django (Alternate Version) - Grant Green

Django (Original Version) - Modern Jazz Quartet, The

Django (Pyramid Version) - Modern Jazz Quartet, The

Django - Oscar Peterson

Django - Joe Pass

*link in comments

Similar Spices Vol. 25 - Never My Love

2010-01-16T17:47:00.000-08:00

After posting my copy of Solar Heat recently, it made perfect sense to make "Never My Love" the next volume in the ever growing Similar Spice series. That and my obsession with vibes!

Written in the 60s by siblings Donald and Richard Addrisi (who recorded under the Addrisi Brothers) it first found chart success through a pop-rock recording by The Association in '67. It reached #2 on the billboard chart that year, which was 10 more places than The 5th Dimension who released a recording in '71.

These seem quite moderate placements for a song that the Broadcasting Music Incorporated picked as the 2nd most played song on radio and television in the 20th century. But this compilation is much more than the sum of it's parts.

Although Tjader's version is well know for it's use by Grand Puba on "I Like It" (how underrated is his sophomore LP 2000 by the way?!), it's the Tom Scott cover that hits hardest. Pete Rock and Ed O.G. both snatched this off The Honeysuckle Breeze LP for "It's On You" and "Skinny Dip" respectively.

This compilation is the perfect response should your spouse or partner ask if you'll ever stop buying wax!

TRACKS:

Never My Love - Johnnie Taylor

Never My Love - Tom Scott & The California Dreamers

Never My Love - Astrud Gilberto

Never My Love - Grant Green

Never My Love - Booker T. & The M.G.'s

Never My Love - Cal Tjader

Never My Love - Bert Kaempfert

Never My Love - Steve Douglas

Never My Love - Four Tops, The

Never My Love - K. & J.J.

Never My Love - The Association

Never My Love - The 5th Dimension

Never My Love - Etta James

Never My Love/Ask The Lonely - Eivets Rednow

*link in comments

Similar Spices Vol. 24 - Cold Sweat

2010-01-16T17:45:00.000-08:00

I know what you're thinking. It's about time I did a Similar Spice comp giving the Godfather some love. Agreed, but this one's just as much about giving the drummer some!

"Cold Sweat" is a landmark track as it was the first where James Brown actually called out for the drummer to bless us with a heavy solo. Clyde Stubblefield was the man with sticks, and from that moment the tradition of the rhythmic "break" was born in dance music.

Often considered the first true funk song, it's a testament to his and the bands talents that it was put together and recorded in one afternoon at King Records studios in '67.

As with so many songs covered in this series, the original track comes close to being a cover itself. "Pee Wee" Ellis later admitted that the horn section was strongly influenced by Miles Davis' "So What". Alfred wrote the arrangements on a bus between New York and Cincinnati and James finished off the rest once he turned up at the studio.

Recorded in May it was released in July as a two part 45 single, and its funky ripples can still be felt to this day in the music industry.

As a peace offering to all those with a passion for the hardest working man in show business there's 8 different versions by the man himself on this comp, including an additional 10 covers. The original has been sampled by countless DJ's and producers over the years, but Mongo Santamaria's version is always a favorite, especially for it's use by the Ultramagnetic MCs on "Feelin' It".

My favorite cover has to be Bernard "Pretty" Purdie's, as the track is built for a drummer like this to rip it to pieces, which he does. It seems to be a common theme across the rest of the covers, with Brother Williams another funky 45 that stands out a mile.

It's all killer and no filler on this one.

Slice-of-Spice and James Brown are both known for their famous flames, but one taste of this comp will leave you in a cold sweat!

TRACKS:

Cold Sweat - Mongo Santamaria

Cold Sweat - Gene Dozier & The Brotherhood

Cold Sweat - Albert King

Cold Sweat - Bernard "Pretty" Purdie

Cold Sweat - Brother Williams

I Don't Want Nobody To Give Me Nothing, Open Up The Door I'll Get It Myself/Cold Sweat - Grant Green

Cold Sweat - I Cant Stand It (Live) - James Brown

Cold Sweat - John Wagner Coalition

Cold Sweat - Mighty Imperials

Cold Sweat - Truman Thomas

Cold Sweat (Ain't It Funky Version) - James Brown

Cold Sweat (Good Foot Version) - James Brown

Cold Sweat (Jazz Version) - James Brown ft. The Dee Felice Trio

Cold Sweat (Live - At The Apollo) - James Brown

Cold Sweat (Original Version) - James Brown

Cold Sweat (Part 1) (Single Edit) - James Brown

Cold Sweat (Part 2) (Single Edit) - James Brown

Cold Sweat - Phil Upchurch

*link in comments

Nat Adderley - Calling Out Loud

2010-01-16T17:43:00.001-08:00

This album covers five basic rules of digging:

1. Buy anything by Nat or Cannonball Adderley

2. Buy anything produced by Creed Taylor

3. Buy anything engineered by Rudy Van Gelder

4. Buy anything on A&M/CTI

5. Buy anything with Leo Morris (aka Idris Muhammad) on the drums

Although this isn't up their with some of Nat Adderley's best the combination of these five rules has served us well. With a sprinkling of Ron Carter, Joe Zawinul, and Hubert Laws, this album hits some real highs, as only Nat's cornet can.

Not quite the jazz funk you'd find laced over the Adderley's 70s slices, but this album still finds time to groove along nicely. The push and pull of the Idris/Ron and Nat/Joe pairings takes this album to some special places. Anyone who digs the electric period of Miles Davis and Weather Report should listen to Zawinul's early electronic piano expressions on this slice.

Ripping this album is a little tricky as Calling Out Loud is assembled like a suite, with a series of mini-movements strung together with transitional music. "Quite often you don't know when a number is over because the record is meant to be cyclic", says the arranger Bill Fischer. I feel almost dirty editing the tracks down on this one.

Nat's cornet playing took the Bop out of New Orleans and gave it some straight Florida Funk that has us all calling out loud!

Artist: Nat Adderley

Label: A&M/CTI

Catalog #: SP 3017

Country: US

Year: 1968

Genre: Jazz

Style:

A1. Biafra (6:30)

A2. Haifa (4:50)

A3. St. M (3:30)

A4. Grey Moss (5:00)

B1. Nobody Knows (6:00)

B2. Comin' Out The Shadows (5:15)

B3. Ivan's Holiday (3:07)

B4. Calling Out Loud (3:00)

*Link in comments

Similar Spices Vol. 23 - Yesterday

2010-01-04T14:46:00.001-08:00

I guess we should keep up with The Beatles covers, and this is without doubt their most significant recording.

The Guiness Book of Records rates this is as the song with the most covers with over 3,000 known recorded versions. Luckily this comp has been pared down to just 1% of that total with 30 covers.

Also voted as the #1 song of all time by Rolling Stone and MTV, it's almost remarkable that it never reached #1 in the UK charts. This is mainly due to the it not being released during the Help! album period as the band (excluding the writer McCartney) didn't think it was like any of their other recordings.

That was true indeed, as the song itself was effectively a solo, with only McCartney performing with a string quartet. It took over 10 years before it would be released as a single in the UK, in 1976.

Although the song was written solely by McCartney it is incorrectly credited to both Lennon & McCartney. To this day Yoko Ono has refused to even reverse the song writing credits, with Paul happy for Lennon to remain credited as a co-writer. Maybe that has something to do with the BMI reporting that the song was played over 6 million times in the 20th century alone. Classy lady!

It seems almost ridiculous that the song voted the greatest ever didn't even go #1 in it's own country and the sole writer can't even get it credited correctly.

This compilation is definitely jazz heavy on the covers, with a light sprinkling of soul, latin and lounge. Highlights for me are covers by Donny Hathaway, PP Arnold, Pucho & The Latin Soul Brothers, Rolf Kühn, and Wes Montgomery.

Be sure to play these covers of Yesterday, from yesteryear, today!

TRACKS:

Yesterday - Ruth Brown

Yesterday - Gap Mangione

Yesterday - PP Arnold

Yesterday - James Last

Yesterday - Ray Bryant

Yesterday - Lee Morgan

Yesterday - Les McCann

Yesterday - Marty Gold

Yesterday - Michal Urbaniak's Fusion

Yesterday - Rolf Kühn

Yesterday - Oscar Peterson

Yesterday - Freddie Hubbard

Yesterday - Paul Mauriat

Yesterday - Nelson Riddle

Yesterday - Wes Montgomery

Yesterday - Bar-Kays, The

Yesterday - Stan Hunter & Sonny Fortune

Yesterday - Jerry Butler

Yesterday - Roger Webb Sound

Yesterday - Herbie Mann

Yesterday - Sylvers, The

Yesterday - Unknown Artists

Yesterday - Xavier Cugat

Yesterday - Pucho & The Latin Soul Brothers

Yesterday - Nancy Wilson

Yesterday - Willie Bobo

Yesterday - Tony Osborne Orchestra

Yesterday - Donny Hathaway

Yesterday - Raymond Lefevre

Yesterday - Frank Chacksfield

Yesterday - Willis Jackson

*link in comments

Similar Spices Vol. 22 - Lady Madonna

2010-01-04T13:50:00.001-08:00

Having previously referenced Cal Tjader's joints on Skye in the late 60's, it made sense to post "Lady Madonna" next.

The Tjader cover in question comes from his Cal Tjader Plugs In slice, and is the backbone to two very well know and highly prized hip-hop remix rarities. Pete Rock used the opening vibes on the unreleased remix of "They Reminisce Over You" (The Vibes Mix) which can only be found on promo copies of the Straighten It Out 12 inch.

Large Professor in my opinion used it best on his remix of Slick Rick's It's A Boy, as he snatched out the best of the vibes and the bass.

Once again this comp lands at the feet of another Beatles classic, written by McCartney in '68. His inspiration for the song was Fats Domino who went on to record his own cover later the same year. Envisaged as a "bluesy boogie-woogie thing" it wasn't too long before it found its way into other genres.

Not a huge comp for this slice of Similar Spice as we traverse across some jazz, lounge and pop covers. From the up-beat pop of Paul Mauriat to the acid jazz of Shirley Scott, even mother Mary would nod her head to this selection.

"Lady Madonna lying on the bed

listen to the music playing in your head".

TRACKS:

Lady Madonna - Cal Tjader

Lady Madonna - Don Sebesky

Lady Madonna - Junior Parker

Lady Madonna - Lenny White

Lady Madonna - Peter Thomas

Lady Madonna - Ramsey Lewis

Lady Madonna - Shirley Scott

Lady Madonna - Swamp Dogg

Lady Madonna - Soulful Strings, The

Lady Madonna - Unknown Artist

Lady Madonna - Paul Mauriat

*link in comments

Cal Tjader - Solar Heat

2010-01-04T11:30:00.001-08:00

Following on from someone not so well know within the Latin jazz scene, to arguably the man who created it back in the 50s. This spicy slice is some straight Solar Heat.

There's something about the vibes that has always pulled me into a song and wrapped the melody around me like a comfort blanket. This probably stems from listening to my grandfather (miss you G-Pops) who played in the forces band with the RAF during WWII, and would play the vibes for me on visits. Not to mention bashing out beats on his Premier drum kit, or lacing the keys. Not only did he give me an education on all the classic songs, but the space within them which truly talent musicians could exploit to spice things up.

Tjader was one of these musicians with a latin bag stuffed full of it!

To say I'm a Cal Tjader addict would probably be an understatement in proportion with someone saying Tiger Woods likes the ladies. This album is one of the countless gems Callen Radcliffe Tjader, Jr. blessed us with before leaving in '82. Although Cal is mostly recognized for his offerings on the Verve and Fantasy jazz labels, this was the middle of 3 recorded for Skye between 1968-69 in New York. All of these (none more than Cal Tjader Sounds Out Burt Bacharach) showcase his ability to create cover versions of the highest order.

I'm hard pushed to find any hip-hop tracks sampling Tjader where I don't like the production (favoritism?) and this album sees "Never My Love" being used by Grad Puba on "I Like It" from his sophomore solo album 2000. Those who've sampled him reads like a list of who's who in production greats including Peter Rock, Premier, Buckwild, Large Professor, Diamond D, De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest.

This is an album you can put in heavy rotation without getting tired. Especially when this latin bag comes packed with Joao Donato, Chuck Rainey, Ray Barretto and Grady Tate who isn't actually listed on the album. Despite the lack of drumming credits, Cal has this to say about his playing, "I firmly believe he can do just about anything with drums. Here he's playing "young blood drums" but with finesse, not like those guys who just sit there and play dink-dink". One listen to the title track should be enough to have you in agreement.

When in search of hot wax always remember your shades, sunblock and a cool glass of Tjaderade!

Artist: Cal Tjader

Label: Skye

Catalog #: SK-1

Country: US

Year: 1968

Genre: Jazz, Latin

Style: Soul-Jazz, Latin Jazz

A1. Ode To Billy Joe

A2. Never My Love

A3. Felicidade

A4. Mambo Sangria

A5. Here

B1. Fried Bananas

B2. Amazon

B3. La Bamba

B4. Eye Of The Devil

B5. Solar Heat

*Link in comments

Gato Barbieri - Under Fire

2010-01-04T11:29:00.001-08:00

How can you say no to an album containing the musical musings of legends like Airto, Lonnie Liston Smith, Stanley Clarke, Roy Haynes, John Abercrombie and James M'tume?

When your album gets a quote like this in Rolling Stone from Stephen Davis you know it's on like Donkey Kong:

"The great appeal of his music is the apotheosis of heartbreakingly gorgeous melodic lines into churning, imploding kegs of rhythm and the soaring expression of feeling via tenor saxophone".

I can only imagine what Stephen's English teacher wrote on his report cards if he waxed lyrical like this on a regular basis. Thesaurus consumption aside, he is correct in every sense as Gato Barbieri fuses latin rhythms and jazz tones seamlessly, creating the most beautiful melodies packed full of raw emotion.

It's long overdue for me to post something from Bob Thiele's incredible Flying Dutchman label. Under Fire by Barbieri is definitely one hot slice. You're probably already familiar with the offerings of his stable mates Gil Scott-Heron, Richard "Groove" Holmes, Tom Scott, Sonny Stitt, Lonnie Liston Smith, Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, and more. If you're not familiar with Gato's work, then this is essential listening.

You're definitely lucky when El Gato crosses your audio path!

Artist: Gato Barbieri

Label: Flying Dutchman

Catalog #: FD 10156

Country: US

Year: 1973

Genre: Jazz, Latin

Style: Afro-Cuban Jazz, Soul-Jazz, Fusion, Modal

A1. El Parana

A2. Yo Le Canto A La Luna

A3. Antonico

B1. Maria Domingas

B2. El Sertao

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Similar Spices Vol. 21 - Aquarius

2009-12-27T07:13:00.000-08:00

When the moon is in the Seventh House, it's the dawning of a new slice to spice up your aural senses.

The last two comps in the Similar Spices series weren't exactly bursting at the seems. So it's time to drop this beast packed with 35 covers of "Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In". This is the first time a medley has been the subject of a SS comp, coming from the musical Hair. Written by the trio, James Rado, Gerome Ragni, and Galt MacDetmot, I'm sure diggers will be familiar with the latter.

The 5th Dimension were the first to cover this song for the mainstream pop audience in '69, before the floodgates opened. It ranks at #54 on the Billboards Greatest Songs of All Time and came in at #33 in the AFI's 100 years....100 Songs. No matter where it ranks on your own personal list there's no end of quality covers to be found.

This comp is a great blend of Jazz, Soul, and Lounge covers with some groovers, a few shakers, and the odd curve ball.

Take the Moog Machine's version sampled by the Beastie Boys, or the drum break that appears leaps out of Les DeMerle's cover (The man who provided OC with the "Times Up" sample) and let's not forget Galt's own funky version.

The song is based on the belief that the world would be entering into the Age of Aquarius at the end of the 20th century. An age of love, light and humanity, although many astrologers differ over these dates, suggesting we're still not there yet. Whatever the date you'll be in the Age of Spice, sharing breaks, beats & slices!

TRACKS:

Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In (The Flesh Failures) - 5th Dimension, The

Aquarius - A La Carte 4

Aquarius - Bobby Byrne

Aquarius - Cal Tjader

Aquarius - Certain Lions & Tigers

Aquarius - Charles Earland

Aquarius - Chico Arnez

Aquarius - Dennis Coffey Trio

Aquarius - Don Reeve Sound, The

Aquarius - The Electronic Concept Orchestra

Aquarius - Elio Gandolfi

Aquarius - Freddie McCoy

Aquarius - Galt MacDermot

Aquarius - George Shearing

Aquarius - Gerald Wilson Orchestra

Aquarius - Gunter Kallmann

Aquarius - Honey Cone

Aquarius - James Last

Aquarius - Johnny Dankworth

Aquarius - Les DeMerle

Aquarius - Mantovani

Aquarius - The Moog Machine

Aquarius - Original Brasso Band

Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In - The Originals

Aquarius - Peter Herbolzheimer

Aquarius - Unknown Artists

Aquarius - Undisputed Truth, The

Aquarius - Woody Herman

Aquarius (The Water-Man) - Klaus Wunderlich

Aquarius/Let The Sun Shine In - Ramsey Lewis

Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In - Bergendy

Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In (The Flesh Raptures) - Diana Ross & The Supremes

Hair-Aquarius - Hugo Montenegro

Let The Sunshine In/Aquarius - Maurice Pop Und Sein Orchester

Aquarius - Tom Scott

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Similar Spices Vol. 20 - I Wanna Be Where You Are

2009-12-27T07:12:00.001-08:00

From gonna to wanna, I assure you this blog is not actively promoting illiteracy. My dyslexia on the other hand is a different kettle of fish!

This song was written by Leon Ware and Arthur "T-Boy" Ross (Diana's younger brother) for Michael Jackson during his early solo career. Similar to my last post the writer himself recorded his own version later in '75. There have been several covers most notably by the likes of Willie Hutch, Gary Bartz, O'Donel Levy, and Marvin Gaye, for which this comp has three different recordings.

It first got my attention through it's use in the ultra rare recording of Cool V's Tribute To Scratch Pt. 2. This Cool V (Biz Markie) track got a lot of play in the UK back in the day thanks to an Acetate copy getting into the grubby hands of Tim Westwood. Marley Marl recently issued the record on his Hot Chillin' label pressing only 350 copies with all the different mixes. Check it out at http://hotchillin.com

One of the most notable sampling sources is the O'Donel Levy version, used by Pete Rock on "Good Life" from his debut wax the All Souled Out EP. I used the Leon Ware cover as my inspiration for this volume, which to be honest is a little bit of a cheat because "I Wanna Be Where You Are" didn't appear on his album until Motown reissued it in 2003. I'm sure you'll let it slide this once ;)

If you wanna be where the rest of us are then you'd best download and sample these similar spices for yourself.

TRACKS:

I Wanna Be Where You Are - Ice Man's Band, The

I Wanna Be Where You Are - O'Donel Levy

I Wanna Be Where You Are - Michael Jackson

I Wanna Be Where You Are - Leon Ware

I Wanna Be Where You Are - Willie Hutch

I Wanna Be Where You Are - Donnie Elbert

I Wanna Be Where You Are (Unedited Demo) - Marvin Gaye

I Wanna Be Where You Are (After The Dance Demo) - Marvin Gaye

I Wanna Be Where You Are - Gary Bartz Ntu Troop

I Wanna Be Where You Are - Marvin Gaye

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Similar Spices Vol. 19 - Everything I Do Gonna Be Funky

2009-12-27T07:08:00.000-08:00

This post is short but definitely not sweet. It's a little closer to sweat, as the smell emanating from this comp is decidedly funky!

Written by Allen Toussaint, and released by Lee Dorsey as a 45 on Amy Records in 1969, this is straight New Orleans funk. Allen went on to released a version himself on his self titled solo debut Toussaint on Scepter Records the following year.

It's the words in the song title written in parentheses (from now on) that ring true, as Toussaint then went on to write and produce for his house band, The Meters. It seems he was as good as his word on this one.

Suddenly the pieces of this sonic puzzle come together as Toussaint was handling the writing and production for Lee Dorsey on the majority of his work, while The Meters were his backing band. If only the US Intelligence Agency could connect the dots like this!

Without getting too misty eyed about this funky period of New Orleans slices I'm going to have to shoot straight and say that the Monk Higgins version is actually my favorite. Maybe it will make Allen feel better to know it was Monk's highest charted hit climbing to #22 in the R&B charts in '72.

The Higgin's version along with Lou Donaldson's and O'Donel Levy's can be found here. Rest assured that everything I post from now on gohn be funky.

TRACKS:

Everything I Do Gonna Be Funky - Lou Donaldson

Everything I Do Gohn Be Funky (From Now On) - Lee Dorsey

Everything I Do Gonna Be Funky - Allen Toussaint

Everything I Do Gonna Be Funky - Claudia Lennear

Everything I Do Gonna Be Funky - O'Donel Levy

Gotta Be Funky - Monk Higgins

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Seasonal Spices Vol. 2 - How The Slice Spiced Christmas!

2009-12-18T14:03:00.000-08:00

Once the snow started falling this afternoon I knew it was time to unleash the 2nd installment in the Seasonal Spice Series. During a holiday where it's better to give than receive prepare to be gifted y'all!

This musical manger is so full of the most soulful and funky Christmas specials that it's enough to make Bing Crosby bust out of the argyle sweater and slip something a little more relaxing into that pipe.

There's a great mix of soul, jazz, funk and library served up here, from the sampled, to the obscure and the obvious. You might catch the breaks on Milly & Silly, Albert King, Clarence Carter and Quincy Jones, but can you place Francis Lai?

It's also great to hear the likes of Minnie Ripperton (Rotary Connection) and Dorothy Ashby (Soulful Strings) getting loose on Cadet tracks before their solo success.

There's a pretty impressive selection of Library offerings here from The Lemon Dips, Barrie Moore Combo, The Delle Haensch Band, Jean-Claude Pierric, Steve Gray, Alan Moorehouse, and Dennis Farnon.

No stocking fillers on here!

At nearly 2 and a half hours, this compilation is going to have your media player stuffed like the family member who ate the last mince pie. This year there's plenty to go around, so let this Spicy Santa serve up a selection of the gifted who funktified your festive feast!

TRACKS:

Baby, It's Cold Outside - Jimmy Smith & Wes Montgomery

Back Door Santa - Clarence Carter

Christmas Child - Rotary Connection

Christmas Day's Evening - Trouble

Christmas Is Love - James Brown

Cold Feet - Albert King

Funky Funky Christmas - Electric Jungle

Getting Down For Xmas - Milly & Silly

I Wanna Spend Christmas With You - Lowell Fulsom

Ice & Snow - Delle Haensch Band, The

Jingle Bells - Soulful Strings, The

Latin Snowfall - Henry Mancini

Let's Get It Together This Christmas - Harvey Averne Band

Little Lord Jesus - Alan Moorehouse

Little Star Of Bethlehem - Can

Merry Christmas Baby - Soulful Strings, The

Midwinter Morn - Barrie Moore Combo

O Come All Ye Faithful - Shawn Lee's Ping Pong Orchestra

Ode To Bethlehem - Alan Moorehouse

Salute To Santa - Ben & The Platano Group

Santa's Got a Bag of Soul - The Soul Saints Orchestra

Sleigh Ride - Soulful Strings, The

Snow Ball - Jean-Claude Pierric

Snow Creatures - Quincy Jones

Snow Frolic - Francis Lai

Snowman's Stomp - Steve Gray

Snowmobile - Dennis Farnon

Soulful Christmas - James Brown

Talking After Christmas Blues - Slim Borgudd

The Christmas Song - Hank Crawford

The First Snowfall - Lalo Schifrin

The Little Drummer Boy - Soulful Strings, The

This Christmas - Donny Hathaway

Where Were You Last Winter (Instrumental) - Stevie Wonder

Winter Sadness - Kool & The Gang

Winter Song - Lemon Dips, The

Winter Time - Delle Haensch Band, The

Winter's Child - Charles Kynard

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Similar Spices Vol. 18 (Watermelon Man)

2009-12-03T17:56:00.001-08:00

Sometimes a cover for this series, both the song and the original artwork, were just meant to be.

In this case it's almost too good to be true as Ramón Santamaría, or "Mongo" as he's more commonly known, released a special disco version of "Watermelon Man" found on this Red Hot slice. Not quite watermelons, but I think it's pretty appropriate in this instance. He's also referenced in the film Blazing Saddles, and this one's definitely packing enough heat to set your pants on fire. Just ask my good friend Jon who's mother went into labor while burning up the rug to this one!

Mongo released this version 17 years after originally recording the cover for his 1962 album by the same title. Written by Herbie Hancock the story of how it ended up on this slice reads like a who's who of jazz greats. Herbie was covering the keys for Chic Corea in Santamaria's band up in the Bronx, when his friend Donald Byrd persuaded him to play the song. Let's just catch a quick break to take that all in........

Mongo asked Hancock if he could record the song and the rest is history. This song has been covered by a wealth of talent, not to mention several re-recordings by the same artists. This compilation has multiple offerings from Mongo, and both Herbie's.

My personal favorite is Herbie's Head Hunters version, and for more than one reason. It's straight fire and is the most well know version in sampling circles having been used by the likes of Ultramagnetic MCs, Organized Konfusion, Schoolly D, LL Cool J and more.

But in my book anyone who can use a beer bottle to make something this funky is a God to me. GENIUS!

Bill Summers (percussionist) blows into a beer bottle during the intro and outro of this version. Hancock and Summers were captivated by the sound of hindewhu, which is a style of singing/whistle-playing found in Africa. They first heard it on The Music of the Ba-Benzélé Pygmies (1966) and if that title seems strange it's because the style is attributed to Pygmy music. Guess these guys are too busy being funky to worry about having a Napoleon complex!

There's some really great covers up on this joint, from the Main Source sampled Johnnie Taylor version, to the crazy lounge interpretation of insanely named Paraffin Jack Flash Limited. Other highlights include Woody Herman, Jimmy McGriff, Karin Krog and Les Bonner.

Melons? Some of these tracks are straight bananas!

TRACKS:

Watermelon Man - Fred Wesley & The J.B.'s

Watermelon Man - East Harlem Bus Stop

Watermelon Man - Jon Hendricks

Watermelon Man - King Curtis

Watermelon Man (Live) - Albert King

Watermelon Men - Dave Kamien Division

Watermelon Man - Monk Higgins

Watermelon Man - Herbie Hancock

Watermelon Man - Herbie Hancock & The Headhuntes

Sandia Chicano (Watermelon Man) - Woody Herman

Watermelon Man - Johnnie Taylor

Watermelon Man (Live) - Les McCann

Watermelon Man - Jimmy McGriff

Watermelon Man - Paraffin Jack Flash Limited

Watermelon Man - Herbie Mann

Watermelon Man - Ray Bryant

Watermelon Man (Alternate Take) - Herbie Hancock

Watermelon Man - Harry Stoneham

Watermelon Man - Les Bonner

Watermelon Man - Mongo Santamaria

Watermelon Man - Marcello Minerbi

Watermelon Man (Live) - Herbie Hancock

Watermelon Man - Herbie Mann

Watermelon Man - Nat Adderley

Watermelon Man - Harold Alexander

Watermelon Man - Baba Brooks Band

Watermelon Man - Miss Elsie Smith

Watermelon Man - Karin Krog

Watermelon Man (Special Disco Version) - Mongo Santamaria

Watermelon Man - Enoch Light & His Orchestra

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