Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters & Do Diddley :
Ooh, Baby / Wrecking My Love Life
taken from the album “Super Super Blues Band” on Checker (1967)

Bo Diddley : A Good Thing, Hey Jerome, & Take It All Off
taken from the album “Where It All Began” on Chess (1972)

Snooks Eaglin : Boogie Children, Lucille, & Drive It Home
taken from the album “The Legacy Of The Blues Vol. 2” on Sonet (1971)

Back from EUROPE! This time I really mean it when I say I’m gonna be getting back on track with regular posts. I SWEAR! My first proper Euro exploration (meaning I spent more than 4 days travelling) was highly rewarding, even if it cost me an arm and a leg (cottdamn EURO is beating the DOLLAR into oblivion right now). Also found some cool vinyl digs along the way – including a random reggae collection from an otherwise dead flea market in a tiny Austrian suburb – which will get posted soon. But TODAY, finally home and showered and in fresh clothes and feeling more happy than ever to be in The States (twisted, right?) I’m taking it back to some rootsy, funky and all the way American music.

The Snooks Eaglin – funkiest, rawest blues ever in my opinion – is a record I’ve had and treasured for many years, but these other two are new acquisitions, and total revelations too. I’d heard more than a couple people reccommend Bo Diddley but it wasn’t until I scooped up the Super Blues Band LP that I first understood what everyone was raving over. In ’67 these cats had a proto-wah-wah reverb (gotta be Diddley) and hard-as-bricks drum sound that would set the stage for funk to come. The looseness of the impromptu vocals and their sense of humor makes me feel like I’m sitting in the room with them (the panning of the vocals helps too) while they just play around on a single riff and shoot the shit.

Then most recently I picked up Diddley’s “Where It All Began” and again I was flabbergasted by the funkyness. The subject matter has this simple warmth and humor (cue “Take It All Off”) that is unmistakably blues, but the backbeat and the syncopated picking is all funk. I know he’s got some other records I need to pick up as well including this new addition to the wants list.

Stay tuned, more posts coming VERY SOON.

The Beatards : Scooby Snack and That’s How It Is
taken from the upcoming mixtape…

So this is the reason my posts have been dwindling to a mere trickle lately- I haven’t been lazy, just hustling like mad. For the past year or so, I’ve been doing parties and rocking shows with two partners in crime under the guise of The Beatards. We’ve also been recording songs and remixes here and there. Just recently, we went into HIGH GEAR. It’s no strectch to say that I’ve never worked this hard on anything before- talking about 10 – 13 hour long days for almost 3 weeks straight. There’s no real studio, and none of us have any “real” engineering knowledge, but we make the most of our little bedroom facilities.

These two songs are just the freebies, the official real deal will debut on our mixtape that’s due to drop in less than 14 days (the hustle conitnues). I will definitely be hyping that and making it available here when it’s done, but in the meantime, I wanted to give you a little something to bob your head to and remind you that I’m not dead.

Expect a mix of hip hop, pop, punk, and booty music that’s not quite like anything you’ve heard. I’m not trying to toot my own horn here, it’s just the truth. Our music, especially our newest songs, are just downright weird. See the Turntar in the pic above (don’t try jacking our idea, shit is patented already fool), that’s what I’m talking about. More of this gumbo funk coming at you soon…

DJ Sandrinho : Berimbau
taken from the Baile Funk Masters EP on (2007)

Nickodemus : Conmigo
taken from the Mi Swing Es Tropical Remix 12″ on Candela (2007)

Spiritual South : Hullabaloo
taken from the Hullabaloo 12″ on Raw Fusion (2007)

Boys And Girls Club : Summer In The City
taken from the album A Simple Night Of Dancing With… independently released (2007)

Just setting the mood for the BIG PARRRRRTY this Friday at Cielo. I’ll be DJ-ing alongside Nickodemus, Chris Annibel, and Derek Beres in celebration of the Vieux Farka Toure Remixed: UFO’s Over Bamako record release party. The album is fire (my remix of “Ana” is on there), proceeds go to help fight malaria in Mali, and the party itself will no doubt be reeedonkulous.

All of today’s tunes come from singles that you really ought to have, produced by indie artists that you really should support. Brazil’s DJ Sandrinho is making that boom for your butt. Nickodemus continues heating things up with this new single, the flipside contains a perfect reggae remix of “Mi Swing Es Tropical” (which became the new iTunes ad not that long ago). The remix allows Dj’s like myself to play this dancefloor favorite again without feeling like we’re just jumping on the iTunes bandwagon- COP IT. Spiritual South has also been really consistant with their “Worldwide Future Music” output lately- more gumbo funk greatness. And this last track from The Boys And Girls Club helps wind down the night smoothly. Lookout for more from these cats, associated with the Nuclear Family right here in Brooklyn.

Ray Rivera : Guava, Sumptin’ Like Dat & Afro Girl
taken from the album “The Now Sound Of The Ray Rivera Orchestra” on MGM (1970)

Ray Rivera : Night Flight To Puerto Rico & Mambo At The Corso
taken from the album “Puerto Rico To Soulsvill” on Zanzee (1972)

I’m not even going to try a proper post right now. Just upping some tunes I’ve been meaning to share for a while now. Not your standard latin soul, certainly not salsa, and too funky for latin jazz – this album lays in that little niche between them all. On Soulsvill (no “e” on the end is how he spelled it), Rivera is joined by fellow latin groove maestro Pucho as well as Brazilian fusion don Eumir Deodato. Wishing I was on that flight to PR right about now…

Congratulations to Tim Kearns & Joe Galante who e-mailed me: Hector Juan Perez Martinez- “La Voz” Lavoe’s birth name.

Willie Colon & Hector Lavoe : El Dia De Mi Suerte
taken from the album “Lo Mato… Si No Compras Este LP” on Fania (1973)

Willie Colon & Hector Lavoe : Aguanile
taken from the album “El Juicio” on Fania (1972)

Spanish Harlem Orchestra : Sacala Bailar
taken from the album “United We Swing” on Six Degrees (2007)

Over the past year and a half I’ve become so engrossed in the world of Latin music that I’ve actually had to struggle to keep from turning this into a strictly salsa and boogaloo blog. Luckily, there’s a lot of other good music out there to keep me from doing that, but I’ve found that increasingly the records I buy tend to be vintage Latin. And when I’m doing housecleaning or cooking dinner, it’s usually a salsa record that I throw on. Not to mention that my most consistent gig for the past two years has been my weekly Latin night at Bembe (come check it out if you haven’t yet!). That being said, when I first saw the preview for El Cantante, I knew that I would have to see it, despite what I may think about J-lo and Marc Anthony. This past week I saw it (a weekly frequenter of my Thursday nights handed me a bootleg copy of the DVD), and I’ve gotta say, it exceeded my expectations. Marc can actually act, and sing, and aside from a little obligatory Hollywood cheese, the movie represented a powerful pocket in history that still gets so little shine in the mainstream. Of course, for any real fans of Fania, I also have to reccomend watching all these films as well – that’s the real deal raw version.

Seeing the movie prompted me to post some of my favorite Willie Colon & Hector Lavoe sides, and then I found out that some other cats out there beat me to it, and went about one hundred steps further by posting the entire Hector Lavoe discography!. Cop it while you can.

Seeing that blog reminded me that I’m well overdue in updating my own blogroll, so I went and did that (check the list on the right). And it also reminded me why I love the blogosphere so much, and just how big it is, and that it’s important for me to give ample respect to those that deserve it. I had to cut out some of the old blogs that don’t post music anymore, or do so very infrequently, but there’s always so many new ones popping up (and increasingly, they’re doing the whole album – mixed feelings about that). So in the upcoming week I’ll be posting some appreciation for these other blogs that I love, but I don’t really have time for that right now.

Instead, I wanted to share some music from one of the greatest groups keeping that classic Fania sound alive: The Spanish Harlem Orchestra. This group continues to put out music that is, to my ear at least, the most true to that Salsa gumbo first developed by Johnny Pacheco and crew back in the late 60’s and early 70’s. Also, I happen to have a couple of copies of their newest release to give away (say thanks to Six Degrees for that).

If you want the new album, answer me this:
What was Hector Lavoe’s birth name?

email answers to: captainplanet@bywayof.net

Third World All Stars : Repatriation Remedy, Rebel Rock
and Soothing In The Mind
all taken from the album “Rebel Rock” on Third World (1976)

Stumbled upon a little stash of reggae records on my lunch break yesterday. This instrumental roots LP was one of the ones I took home. The others will probably make an appearance here in the near future- Royals?? Dandy?? Audrey?? Some great discoveries for me.

The Third World All Stars lineup includes trombonist Rico Rodriguez (when that name caught my eye I knew I had to snag it) and Eddie ‘Tan Tan’ Thorton on trumpet. Rebel Rock fills a surprisingly small niche in the world of Jamaican music – consistant, jazzy reggae with simple, clean arrangements and nice production (although I’m not a fan of the somewhat grating effect they put on Rico’s trombone during “Soothing”). The soloing is compelling enough that I don’t miss having a soulful vocalist here. I have to admit though, one of my first thoughts after hearing “Remedy” was how perfect this song would be in a mash-up (uh-oh). Bottom line, I need to find more albums like this. Absolutely the perfect soundtrack to summertime laziness.