Juno Recommends Funk / Reissues: June 2022

Review: Krafty Kuts join FF45's repertoire with 2 deft new tunes, both of which work their proper remixy mashup magic. On Side A, they merge Nas' 'Made You Look' together with Placebo's 'Humpty Dump' for a busy and bustling chill hip hop bit, 'Humpty Nas', all cloudy and energetic... Side B meanwhile reinterprets Kenny Dope's 'Get On Down' with original production flair.

Review: FF45 continue in their mission to fuse and mash only the hottest classics together. This time they welcome two Berliners, Soul Brigada and Voodoocuts, to the fore for a hybridized chimera mixing the fabled verses of Ludacris with Aretha Franklin on the B, and an apparently completely original cut on the A (although it sounds very 'classic' - if it is sampled, then it's a rarity for sure!). Don't sleep on this 7"...

Review: The Soul Sisters label once again pays tribute to the great voices of soul music from over the years. This one comes from the studio of Jm Sharp, who was looked away during look down, keeping himself warm on cold long nights with his own effervescing edit jobs. his one is a sure fire floor filler with side-a intertwining two versions of tunes that pay homage to the Sunshine State with boom bap drums. On the flip, the Monte cold Roy Ayres classic 'Everybody Loves the Sunshine' gets reworked into a noodling slow motion funk jam with fat g-funk bass.

Review: Adeen Records comes with its series of funk, soul, disco and jazz only edits label called The Bird. And it's first releases comes from label head Camille and Spanish graffiti artist and dj Cad73, and edited by DJ Boring. These two 7" gems came from each selectors childhood memories from living in Detroit and Barcelona respectively. While Camille draws such tunes as "Stop Bajon and Carino" from influences Detroit, Cad73 pulls "Shakedown and The Vulture" from early radio and parties growing up around Barcelona. Already a staple series amongst Adeen's catalog, This "The Bird" series may be the label we've been craving.

Review: As the Record Store Day releases keep on getting rolled out at various times owing to various pressing delays, sometimes we're presented with a pearler out of the blue. This is one of them and it comes in the form of a Steely Dan cover. Obviously that is brave territory because not much can be improved upon when it comes to Dan, but Deep Heat's version of 'Do It Again' bucks that trend with super funky styles. It first came on small Detroit label, Cu-Wu, and original copies are hard to find and expensive when you do so be sure to snap this one up.

Review: The 1978 self-titled album by the free soul band Lemuria remains much talked about around rare groove circles. Formed by Kirk Thompson of the iconic Kalapana, it's a proud statement of Hawaiian AOR, and highlights the magic touch of Thompson as both a keyboardist, and behind the mixers, his work as the album's serving producer. For this new reissue edition, P-VINE is including three bonus tracks and two alternate takes for the first time on vinyl, resulting in this deluxe fourteen track double gatefold package.

Review:  Another highly anticipated reissue from the vaults of the legendary 70s label TSG here that has already been put out late last year by P-Vine Japan. But Reality's unknown classic Disco Party is always going to sell out quick so we're certainly happy about another pressing. Almost nothing is known about the band apart from their association with TSG, the label had a divine touch in picking out the best unknown musicians from New York's bustling funk and soul scene. Their music is full of vibrant riffs and funky bass and cannot fail to detonate in the club.

Review: Spanish-born, Swiss-based reissue label Rocafort invite Sabrosa to lay down some instrumental, funkified grooves in homage the mighty Beastie Boys. On the A side of this little 7" we get 'Sure Pow' an organ and wah-wah guitar soaked expansion on the iconic licks that define all-time classic 'Sure Shot'. On the B-side we get 'Tangerine Shot', a sweetly dubbed cover version of 'Suco De Tangerina' from the Beastie's 2007 album The Mix-Up. Both versions travel some distance from the source material, making this much more than an affectionate rip off. If you dig on sunkissed instrumental funk, this is a surefire selection to slip in a bag of sevens.

Review: La Casa Tropical out of South Africa takes us back to 1986 when enigmatic artist Vumani Mthethwa served up his enduring debut album Isiqedakoma. The record kicks off with what could be a Chicago house tune from the same era thanks to its big piano chords, and then it takes in the super fun and playful singles 'Black Mampatile' and 'Guy Fawkes.' Truth is, all of these tunes have big, bold basslines and standout melodies that lodge deep in your brain as you shake your limbs to the analogue beats. Colourful and charming, this is a perfect party record with its own sense of style.

Review: The Echomen's song 'Let's Get Together' first appeared on the third volume of the Movements compilation series many many years ago. Now repressed via Tramp, it's a soul-swing anthem for positive change, calling on people young and old to make peace with their own communities. It rails directly against individualism, opting for humility; the B-side 'Talk Is Cheap' echoes a similar sentiment, but within the context of a relationship.