This Ain't Chicago: The Underground Sound Of UK House & Acid 1987-1991 CD

It's a commonly held belief that, bar a few exceptions, early UK house wasn't very good. Here, Richard Sen sets out to prove otherwise, digging through the archives to unearth a string of dusty gems. Eschewing the usual hits ("Carino", "Voodoo Ray" etc), Sen proves conclusively that British producers were every bit as talented as their Chicago and New York counterparts "back in the day". Interestingly, many of the cuts here are deeper and more musically well-rounded than their US equivalents - hell, Baby Ford's "Crashing" could easily pass for Dream 2 Science or Mr Fingers - while the more aggressive acid cuts (see the contributions from Man With No Name and Return Of The Living Acid) are every bit as raw as you'd expect.