Salsoul UK

Review: We can think of few more qualified to play around with the vast Salsoul Records archive than long-serving disco lothario and re-edit maestro Dimitri From Paris. On Salsoul Mastermix, he delivers two contrasting but equally essential CDs. On disc one, he takes on the role of original Salsoul and Prelude "mastermixer" Shep Pettibone, crafting a whirlwind tour through the legendary imprint's catalogue rich in original disco scorchers, electrofunk slammers and boogie dubs. There are familiar favourites included, but also lesser-known highlights that have previously only been championed by serious disco diggers. On disc two, he dips into his own vaults of DJ-friendly re-edits, offering up killer scalpel interpretations of cuts from Skyy, Love Committee, Charo, Double Exposure and Loleatta Holloway.

Review: First Choice's era-defining disco funk anthem "Love Thang" gets dusted off by Salsoul. Timeless struts, silky bass flurries, huge orchestration and gutsy vocals; this still sounds spotless today. Complete with an acapella and instrumental, the real boon here is Kon's edit. If anyone is going to edit such a classic appropriately it's this guy; with a more mix-friendly, break and vocal focused intro, dynamic stripdowns and build ups and a big drum-focused pay-off, Kon reminds us how artful editing can be in the right hands... Again.

Review: Dimitri has been very generous with his edits this year, having unleashed some of his finest DJ weapons in the form of the "Brooklyn Edits" EP and this refreshed trilogy of classic Salsoul revisions. They need little introduction as we take off with the iconic harmonies and horns of "Ooh I Love It" land with the incredible soul fusion of Love Committee's oft-covered (never bettered) feels odyssey "Just As Long As I Got You". With trips to New York for silky disco with Skyy and a synth boogie freak-out from The Jammers, it's once again another reminder that no one does edits quite like the man from Paris.

Review: London-based "multi-track edit" specialist the Reflex is the latest producer to have his way with gems from Salsoul's epic back catalogue. All four rubs are up to his usual high standard - he begins by dubbing out and rearranging "Mama Don't Papa Won't", a lesser-known Loleatta Holloway cut from the halcyon days of disco, before turning piano-and-percussion-heavy Candido favourite "Dancin' and Prancin'" into a sweaty, all-action extended workout. On the second record he heads towards boogie territory, giving Skyy's "Let's Celebrate" a sweet, synth-and-delay-laden makeover before making great use of the urgent, bass-heavy groove underpinning Rafael Cameron's brilliant "Boogie's Gonna Get Ya". Recommended.

Review: Salsoul strutted through many shades during its lengthy tenure but its early 80s funk boogie output was especially vital. Proof, if needed, can be found right here on this brand new fully remastered collection. Ranging from the deep spacey disco chugs of Larry Levan's epic take on Skyy's "First Time Around" and breath taking oomph of Leroy Burgess's "Heavenly" to much dreamier jams such as Surface's romantic dancefloor ballad "Falling In Love" and the poppier sing along of Aurra's "Checking You Out", this is Salsoul at its most direct and funkiest. With edits from Kevorkian, Pettibone and Levan, this marks some seriously important waymarks from disco to house.

Review: Following two well-received volumes, Salsoul presents a third celebration of the records championed by Larry Levan at the Paradise Garage. There are, of course, plenty of must-have disco and boogie jams present (think Skyy's "Here's To You", Jimmy Castor Bunch's "It's Just Begun", Ripple's sweet "The Beat Goes On And On" and Inner Life's peerless "Moment Of My Life"), alongside a selection of less-celebrated - but no less essential - cuts. In this category we'd put The Salsoul Orchestra's grandiose, heavily percussive "Magic Bird of Fire" and Orlando Riva Sound's "Moonboots", a decidedly epic, almost psychedelic chunk of heavy instrumental disco that deserves wider recognition.

Review: With the exception of Tom Moulton, no remixer did more to shape the sound of Salsoul's club-focused 12" singles than Shep Pettibone. Here, Salsoul celebrates his immense contribution to their disco and boogie output by gathering together some of greatest "Mastermixes". There are naturally plenty of familiar favourites present - think Loleatta Holloway's soaring "Love Sensation", Pettibone's much-sampled rework of First Choice's "Let No Man Put Asunder" and the soulful, synth-heavy brilliance of Leroy Burgess's "Heartbreaker" - alongside lesser-known but no less killer re-rubs of the Salsoul Orchestra, Candido, Instant Funk (a righteous, ten-minute workout in the style of Larry Levan's remixes of the period) and Weeks & Co.

Review: The current owners of iconic disco label Salsoul have previously been criticized for some of their remix choices - most notably Marquis Hawkes' revisions of classic Logg tunes - but we can't envisage many finding fault with this superb compilation. It features revisions of classic and little-known cuts from DJs and producers associated with Italy's Sounds Familiar crew. Highlights include a killer cover of Candido classic "Thousand Finger Man" by GE-OLOGY (here titled "ReFingered With Love"), a superb re-edit of The Strangers' P-funk cut "Stimulation" by Twice and Volvov, a dusty, Theo Parrish's Ugly Edits style tweak of "Salsoul Rainbow" by Kai Alce, and a typically on-point rearrangement by Mark Grusane of Civil Attack's little-known boogie floorfiller "On The Phone".

Review: On the latest installment in their Mastermixes series of remix retrospectives, Salsoul shines a light on the legendary DJ-turned-mixer who provided the world with the first ever commercially available 12" rework: Walter Gibbons. Fittingly, the collection begins with that pioneering revision - a near ten-minute extension of Double Exposure's expansive "Ten Per Cent" - before running through some other sought-after Gibbons revisions from their bulging vaults. Alongside well-played versions of New York disco anthems by Loleatta Holloway, Love Committee and First Choice, you'll also find inspired but lesser-known extensions of Love U Madly Orchestra's soaring, string-drenched "Rocket Rock" and Cellophane's largely forgotten - but rather good - 1978 B-side "Dance With Me (Let's Believe)".