EARTH WIND & FIRE Vinyl & CDs

Review: Dynamite Cuts' latest extra-special double "45" mines ones of the earliest albums from soul and funk legends Earth, Wind & Fire, a 1971 set that was notably more psychedelic in sound than many of their more celebrated later releases. Opener "C'mon Children" is fiery, weighty and driving in the style of San Francisco funk-rock heavyweights "Tower of Power", while "Bad Tune" more than lives up to its title in a "bad meaning good" way (it also includes some crazy solos, which is no bad thing). Over on disc two, "Help Somebody" is an insanely up-tempo, horn-heavy Boogaloo style romp, while "Momet of Truth" is a low-down funk number straight out of the top drawer.

Review: Danny Krivit's officially sanctioned re-edits of Earth Wind & Fire's "Brazilian Rhyme" and "Runnin" have been sought-after since they first appeared on a Japan-only 12" back in 2004. In fact, such is demand that even later bootleg pressings now go for silly money online. As this reissue proves, though, they're arguably amongst Krivit's strongest scalpel works. Certainly, his three-minute revision of the always too short "Brazilian Rhyme" teases it out to just the right length, in the process delivering a sweltering, sing-along summer anthem. The flipside revision of the equally as summery "Runnin" is every bit as good, with Krivit making merry with the original's life-affirming scat vocals and killer piano solos.