Juno Recommends Disco November 2020

Review: Z Records founder Dave Lee continues to celebrate 30 years of his iconic house and disco label with an ongoing series of various artist EPs. The fourth instalment is another belter opened up by the boss himself in Disco Blend form. He serves up libidinous synths and steamy vocals that get you on your toes and then sinks into a smooth and seductive deep house mould for his remix of Mistura's 'Smile. On the flip, disco don The Revenge works his magic on a lush afro disco cut and then comes a The Reflex version of The Secret Life Of Us which has big strings and a tight rhythm section all bringing the sunshine.

Review: Dark Entries is humbled to continue digging through the archives of legendary producer Patrick Cowley. While best known for his production on chart-topping cybernetic disco anthems such as Sylvester's 'You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)' or his own 'Menergy', Cowley, who passed away from AIDS-related illness in 1982, left us with a substantial body of work. Since 2009, Dark Entries has been working with Cowley's friends and family to shed light on the lesser known facets of this singular artist's output. This has resulted in a string of celebrated archival albums, including Catholic (featuring Jorge Socarras), School Daze, Muscle Up, Afternooners, and the recent Mechanical Fantasy Box. Some Funkettes, the latest addition to this series, is a collection of previously unreleased cover songs recorded from 1975-1977. These raw, unembellished tributes both showcase Cowley's early musical interests and chart the development of his production techniques.

Review: Last year Caserta and friends had their wicked way with a classic Luther Vandross acapella, brilliant re-framing the soul maestro in a late 1980s NYC club style. A year on they're at it again on 'Luther 2', which naturally repurposes another superb performance from the legendary vocalist. On the A-side, Vandross's vocal rides a smooth revivalist disco groove created by an all-star cast including Serge Gamesbourg (bass) and Natasha Diggs (piano, Fender Rhodes). It's a genuinely impressive revision that sounds like it could have been recorded sometime in the early 1980s (despite being made during lockdown). Diggs plays an even bigger role on the flip, a hazy and groovy deep house version in which she adds her own sassy spoken word vocals in reaction to the Vandross acapella.

Review: Ron's Reworks, a series of scalpel jobs and lightly beefed-up reworks from Crazy P co-founder Jim Baron AKA Ron Basejam, has now reached its fourth volume. Predictably, the included material is every bit as well-crafted as its' similarly inclined predecessors. The standout is undoubtedly A-side 'They Speak Colour', a loopy, soft-focus disco-house jam whose relentless grooves, synthesizer splashes and simmering orchestration make it sound like Soundstream after a bong full of Marijuana smoke and several disco biscuits. Elsewhere, 'The City' is a canny revision of an unusual disco-boogie number that builds through sections of drums and cut-up, scat style vocals before finally flourishing late on, while 'The Cull' is a deep and meandering head-nodder tailor-made for warm-up sets and sit-down bar gigs.

Review: Much loved funk, soul and disco innovators Fat Back Band are the subject of this remix EP featuring long time UK lend Joey Negro. He adds some extended breaks, more modern production twists and a certain je ne sais quoi to '(Are You Ready) Do The Bus Stop', which is deep cut funk with natty riffs and sliding drums. The original is also include for those who irk to keep it OG, and on the flip comes an instrumental. Last of all, Fat Back's sleazy 'Backstrokin' brings the funk with ass wiggling hooks and happy trumpet toots.

Review: Felix Dickinson has been donning the Bastedos re-edit alias on and off for 18 years, occasionally popping up with a fresh selection of superb scalpel jobs. Here the Bristol-based veteran delivers two more incendiary rearrangements. The undoubted highlight is A-side 'What's Your Secret (Bastedos Edit)', a near ten-minute rework of a Clavinet-sporting AOR disco epic that moves through waves of spacey grooves, soaring female backing vocals, impassioned blue-eyed lead vocals and more low-slung sections designed to raise temperatures out on the dancefloor. Dickinson changes tack on flipside 'Do You Blow?', successfully dubbing out an oddball chunk of electro-era quirkiness built around a killer bassline, scat vocals, breathy flute solos and body-popping drum machine beats.

Review: To close the 3 EP reissue series of Neville King and Lee Laing's King & City label, the all female group Charisma are presented with their summer infused Lovers cut, Everything Is Fine.

Three Lewisham friends, Angela Richardson on lead vocals, with Geselle and Janie backing, were active from 1982 to 1990, but are really remembered for the early recordings made with Neville King. Their debut, Everything Is Fine rides the Lovers sound at its peak. Written with One Blood's Lloyd Robinson, with the rest of band of Robinson brothers providing the rhythm section, this is pure South London sound system music.

Recorded again at TMC (Tooting Music Centre) Recording Studios - working alongside the likes of Dillinger, Tradition and New Musik - Everything Is Fine rides a beautiful soul reggae rhythm as Trevor (Drums) and Lloyd (Bass) Robinson set the foundations, while One Blood provide the Dub mix.

A true love's lament, a song of hope, serenity and pure vibes. Label head Chuggy slides behind the mixing desk for an extended Discomix that stretches, loops and dubs the vocal and dub back forth, to close a glimpse at this uniquely British phenomenon, taking reggae closer to it's heart and soul.

Review: Here's the latest Sirisounds Recordings edit EP by Lovebirds aka veteran producer Sebastian Doering, swiped straight from the beaches of Bali and dancefloor tested (when still allowed, of course) - finally seeing the light of day. On the A side, we have a deep yet funked-up version of a rather stylistic classic on 'People', followed by the sensual and sweltering latin vibe of 'Piaui'. The B-side deservedly belongs to the life-affirming soul power of 'Burning Love' which you could easily imagine dancing wildly to at a tropical sundown on a balmy summer night.

Review: More from the cheeky scamps behind the Disco Bits label, an imprint whose releases regularly blur the boundaries between re-editing, re-making and remixing. Here they welcome back imprint regulars Cannon & Mirrorball (we laughed, at least), who once again serve up two guaranteed disco floor-slayers. A-side 'Hot Lovin (Don't Stop, Don't Quit)' sits somewhere between disco-house and hip-house, with excitement-building raps lifted from vintage hip-hop cuts sitting atop a non-stop beat crafted from tooled-up elements from a celebratory disco favourite. As the title suggests, 'Shack Attack' cheekily blends elements from Banbarra classic 'Shack Up' and B-52s hit 'Love Shack', adding some other choice samples to create a tidy, well-made mash-up that sounds tailor-made for disco dancefloors.

Review: The Rollover Edit series from Anything Goes reaches volume number 5 with four more fantastic reworks that cover plenty of ground. Lele Sacchi serves up a a folk and Americana tinged version of 'Enzo' that is new age and organic. Jack Torsani takes 'Giorgia' into disco territory with big choruses and crashing hits all forming a strident groove while 'Espresso' delivers a direct caffeine hit in rolling disco form. The best might be saved for last, though, because 'The Duke Arrives (Pyramiden rework)' is a high speed police chase with funky bass and bristling grooves that are alive with great samples.

Review: Denie Corbett, Marva Hicks, Susan Beaubian, Sylvia Striplin and Vivian Prince are Eighites Ladies, a vocal ensemble best known for their hit 'Turned On To You'. An iconic rare groove gem from the 80s, it has since been sampled any number of times by giants like A Tribe Called Quest. An edited version has been put out before on an Expansion 7" but an extended version has alway been sought after. Well, here it is along with 'Give Me Your Love', a solo tune from Sylvia. 'Sing Me' also makes the cut to ensure this soul gem is an essential pick up.

Review: Demi Riquisimo's burgeoning label Semi Delicious has another gem on its hands here. Various artists contribute but all take you on a nostalgic trip back in time to a period when disco was in its heyday and house music barely had its name. Importantly, the early realness and roughness of those genres is captured too - nothing here is too shiny or polished, but that's not to say that are plenty of dazzling arps, crystalline basslines and hands in the air grooves that will make you want to get up to get down. Label boss Demi delivers 'Judy' to kick off and from that point on the EP is pure class.

Review: Apparently it has been six months in the making but finally Kiko Navarro makes a big arrival into the Rocksteady Disco family with the impossibly upbeat and joyous 'E-MA GIN'. It's a tropical and steamy cut with chanting vocals and pounding drums. The whole is on an upward trajectory that sweeps you right off your feet. On the reverse is 'ex & Love Affair', a string-laced disco stomper with a smile as wide as the Atlantic and gurgling cosmic synths that take you on a real adventure. These are two full flavour, brilliantly characterful cuts for any party.

Review: s. Here's the next release from the Berlin based collective of music aficionados known as Pina. Another limited and lovely 7" platform for club-ready flipped classics. There is a very familiar hook on the A-side cut 'Disco Bass' which, like its name suggests, is a rolling and low-end driven funk jam that's sure to get those heads down on the dancefloor. On the flip, the dub shows more restraint but allows all the life-affirming soul power to fully shine though - tip!

Review: Horse Meat Disco has long been one of the capital's most poly-sexual and out there celebrations of life, and disco. Now the men behind it have pulled together a selection of gloriously upbeat cuts that define the sounds you will hear on their dancefloor. It comes on a pink - what else - vinyl and with a fold out poster on Defected. Legendary names like Kathy Sledge and The Phenomenal Handclap Band sit next to Amy Douglas and Doug Hiller on this most feel good and floor filling double gatefold.

Review: The irrepressible Gamm label knows a thing or two about disco, funk and soul. Yet more irrefutable evidence for that claim comes from this tidy 12" two tracker featuring some lost remixes. 'I'm In Love Dancin' takes source sounds from Arthur Russell's classic 'Is It All Over My Face' and repurposes them with gangling percussive lives, sunny flutes and mad horns to make for something that will shake your body loose. Flip it over for the steamy, sensuous, intense disco stomps of 'Imma Phreak' complete with fame coos and cries and plenty of dance floor clout. The legendary Rahaan and DJ Emanuel are in fine form here.

Review: Samosa has had a fine year in 2020 and still has time to squeeze out one more vital disco offering. Following on from afrocentric Souldynamic and C. da Afro releases for the 19th volume of their VA compilation, this time drafted in is Mexican producer The Funk District who serves up four dazzling gems. High energy sounds, 70s film references, Latin flair and cosmic disco all feed into these tracks which are packed with bristling good times, feel good grovers and plenty of hands in the air moments. For us, 'La Rapina' is straight Latin dance floor gold that takes the EP's top slot.

Review: Los Angeleno disco/funk extraordinaire LUXXURY "sings as if he were peering into the future from the world we've all just - and so, very recently - left behind" on his latest EP Set Me Free on his very own Nolita imprint. Features the sexy late night mood music of 'What Are We Gonna Do?', the low slung and emotive soul of 'Make It Right' on the A side, while on the flip is the addictive Italo influenced anthem 'At Any Moment' which will be familiar to his fans after repeated airplay on LA tastemaker station KCRW.

Review: House of Disco throw open their doors to Boots & Kats for a jolly good time across three originals and a remix from German house artist Johannes Albert. His version of 'Party Talk' sure is a fine one, with colourful arps and pixelated leads all vying for your attention of driving drums. 'Seratona' is a retro-future disco stomper to open with and 'Park Talk' is a manic disco-house workout that will leave you breathless. 'Gorlami' is a glistening melodic explosion that surges through the cosmos on a wave of positivity. These are the sort of good time grooves that we all need right now.