Juno Recommends Soul: July 2022

Review: Kim Tibbs is another artist in the business of imitating 70s sounds. Writing, singing, playing and producing the entirety of 'Where Would I Be Without You' the talented multi-instrumentalist and songwriter - an all-round soul Polymath - ponders her luck and counts her blessing on this one-off. Tibbs' sweet, twee and rushing voice sounds just as good on the 33rpm B-side, allowing DJs maximum versatility - of course, this isn't one they'll want to miss out on throwing into the mix.

Review: Mr K (Danny Krivit) is back once again with another vital selection of his edits kicking off with the title track 'It Should Have Been Me' a lazy and heart wrenching soul jam with deep cut bass, guttural female vocals that are as raw as you can imagine and some lush strings. It's a great vision of a stone cold classic that will never fail in any setting to get tears going. On the flipside, 'Brand New Lover' picks up the pace with a silky disco-funk-soul groove to carry you into a lovely headspace.

Review: Original Gravity Records breeze through their quest to 'gravitate to the centre of the universe' on the intergalactic magic carpet that is soul and reggae - their latest comes in the form of 'You Gotta Set Me Free', two incredible 45" cuts for the dancefloor and reinterpretations of the same song by vocalists Raye Cole and Rachel Maxann respectively.

Review: Floating Points reissued the 1976 debut album Open Soul from Chicagoan soul/jazz-funk fusionists six-member outfit Tomorrow's People on his Melodies International imprint. Now P-Vine serve up a couple of singles from it, one of which has had a T Groove edit. Spanning a wide range of soul and jazz-funk styles, 'Open Soul' has a rubbery bassline and sock chord work with some big vocals and smooth grooves. It is an epic trip into space-soul territory. On the flip is 'It Ain't Fair', a much more slow and sentimental cut with romantic vocals and yearning chords.

Review: It's time for another one of Athens of the North's magnificent reissue albums, this time with Arthur Ponder in the spotlight. The Georgia resident started singing in the 1960s, at first replacing Otis Redding in Johnny Jenkins & The Pinetoppers after Redding left. His first recording came in 1970 after years spent gigging hard and then he carried on well into the 80s making great tunes. It is that decade which is represented here with some solo tunes and some alongside local group Side Show. She are unreleased, some have previously been on 45 pm, all are gold.

Review: Dark Entries presents a reissue of Shawn Pittman's 1989 Dreams, an obscure and highly sought-after private press gem produced and written by Art Forest. An undersung figure in the development of the late 80's Detroit techno sound, Forest collaborated with, produced, or penned material for many of the key players in the movement, including Inner City, Suburban Knight, and the Belleville Three themselves (on Kreem's "Triangle of Love"). This reissue gives Forest's own productions some shine while providing a thrill for both dancers and collectors.

Review: Jalapeno Records welcome back Soopasoul for a brand new, specially commissioned 7" series of edits of a track from the artist's new 'Pushin' Weight/Brand Nu' single, also on the label. First up is the 142 original Studio mix that is all big horn work, powerful and driving drums and feel good soul celebrations that will lift your spirit no end. The lush female vocal layers in extra rich feels that will swell the heart. On the flip, the 'Brand Nu' (142 Slippy Wah instrumental) pairs things back and picks up the pace.

Review: Duktus and Maya Killtron is a perfect coming together of vocalist and beat maker and this new 7" is simply irresistible. 'So Natural' opens with glossy soul vocals and boogie bass but also has some epic balearic guitar riffs to bring that beauty sundown vibe. It's a heartfelt tune but one that goes big for dancers too. On the back-side is 'It's Our Time' again featuring Maya Killtron, but this time it is a more seductive and late night sound. The scuffed up drums echo Dam Funk and the boogie bass, retro synths and superb vocal all melt the heart.

Review: Izipho Soul is exactly the sort of label you need in your life when the temps go up. It is a gold standard outlet for sunny soul with real musicianship and heart. And that's just what we have here from The Ray Alexander Technique. 'Taking The Long Way Home' is warm and classic soul with driving rhythm section and lush chords under the lead vocal. 'I Am In Love With You' then slows right down, with dusty drum work and elegant strings sounds before 'I Wonder Why (feat Chris Bartley)' ends on a feel-good note with buttery vocals.

Review: Colemine labelmates Ben Pirani and Ghost Funk Orchestra once again disprove lockdown's creative juice-sapping reputation with a remote collaborative single, 'Modern Scene / Can't Get Out Your Own Way', two intense new soul tunes that while pressed to 45" wax, were born from the file-sharing era. Exchanging remixes of existing material, both tracks are touted as remixes without the originals being known to us: 'Modern Scene' is a VHS-hissy lo-fi indie drawl through avant-garde synth orchestration and a dreamcore visual palette, while the B upends this dream-mood with one of the most shoegazed-up funk bangers we've heard to date.

Review: The Finish scene owes a lot to the Timmion label and this is further proof why. Carlton Jumel Smith returns to the label with another of his infectiously groovy and romantic offerings. This contemporary soul star won plenty of fans over with his last album for the 1634 Lexington Ave. label and now he's back with a trilogy of new tunes. The first is 'Devoted To You' on this 7" and it is a gorgeous affair with languid horns and seductive acoustic guitars while the soaring vocals bring realness and rawness. On the flip is a stripped back instrumental that allows the musician to really breath.

Review: Izipho Soul is having a busy time at the moment, and that's music to the ears of soul lovers, literally. Here we have two of Ripple's finest and they are real golden cuts. The legendary 79s band migrated from the Mid-West to Atlanta and soon hit the big time with their debut single. Two cuts that were never released at the time are now presented here - the lush falsetto of Maybe It's You' with all its jazzy soul. Then comes the fusion sound of 'Sweet Lady' which mixes up funk, Latin and soul. Both come with lush keys, catchy rhythms and proper seductive vocals.

Review: Sol Set is a Detroit-based collective, an amalgamation of composers, musicians, artists and vocalists brought together by producer John Beltran, whose new label All Good Music chooses its debut album for its inaugural release. John Beltran and Shane Donnelly preside over seven sumptuous and confident slices of modern, sub-kissed soul and Latin sure to put a smile on anyone's face, even those of us faced with an altogether more British summer. Influences range from the Steve Wonder-style double vocals of 'Bliss Mode' to the South American 'Rhythm of the Sun', which echoes the beach bum haziness of Jorge Ben, but the vibe remains joyful and skillfully yet effortlessly executed throughout. Gorgeous.

Review: Expansion's latest must-have release brings together two killer cuts from Sylvia Striplin's brilliant 1981 album "Give Me You Love", which originally appeared on Roy Ayers' Uno Melodic label. Ayers produced and arranged both cuts alongside regular collaborator James Bedford. "Give Me Your Love" is, of course, something of an anthem in underground disco circles, with Striplin's breathy and emotionally rich vocal rounding off a superb cut that's rich in crunchy Clavinet lines, walking bass, snappy drums, sensual synth doodles and rising horns. Flipside "You Can't Turn Me Away", meanwhile, is closer in sound and vibe to Roy Ayers' jazz-funk cuts from the period, which is no bad thing.

Review: Joey Quinones and his band Thee Sinisters deliver a retro new one, testifying their ability to operate masterfully in an old style of soul while releasing new music all the while. This split 7" 45 finds the LA falsetto lending his services to lo-fi reggae on the A side (There Myst Be Something'), before giving in to the bittersweet past on the B-side ('Love Me Like You Used To'). Expect a pleasing foray through hurt, tripletty slow-jam soul.

Review: Mamiya Takako cut her teeth in late-'70s Japanese girl group Pao before striking out on her own with 1982 debut album Love Trip. Full of sweet, sugary, synth-laden pop songs that drew on then contemporaneous jazz-funk and soul sounds, the album sold relatively poorly at the time but is now considered something of a classic. This seven-inch single offers up two of the set's more sought-after cuts: the glossy, glassy-eyed and undeniably loved-up title track, 'Love Trip' - think FM synth sounds, soft focus sax solos and bubbly jazz-funk bottom-end -and the slightly more up-tempo, funk-flecked sunset breeze that is 'Midnight Joke'. The latter is particularly delicious thanks to some sublime horn arrangements.

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