Mr. Fingers feat. Robert Owens, "Can You Feel It [alternate mix]"
Mr. Lee, "House This House"
Farley "Jackmaster" Funk, "Jack The Bass"
Maurice, "This Is Acid (radio mix)"
The Housemaster Boyz, "House Nation"
Deeper into Chicago house we go, this time taking a look at one of, if not the, most important label of the music, Trax Records. The label was begun in 1983/4, when Larry Sherman bought the only Chicago vinyl record pressing plant in the city. He soon was attracting some of the most creative people in the city, who were putting together a new sound influenced by disco, new wave and the avant garde. This meeting created a label and the music finally had its source of vinyl and legitimacy.
I'm going to get more into the Chicago house scene in the next post or two, but just wanted to give the background of Trax Records that I know. This is the starting point for recorded house music, giving it its start and some of its most famous hits, like Adonis' "No Way Back" and Larry Heard's "Can You Feel It." It helped take the music out of Chicago and bring it to a worldwide stage.
The songs above come from Disc 1, which is mixed by Trax Records' Maurice Joshua and Paul Johnson. I decided to give you a little taste of the mix, a few songs right in a row. While it doesn't make for the best uploading, this mix sequence is perfect listening. It helps replicate the club feel, that continuous vibe that keeps you moving and engaged. I think that these might be my favorite songs that we've looked at so far, ones that have clearly stepped further from the disco model than anything else. First off, the vocals start to become more robotic and masculine, less diva-centric and uplifting. The beats become more mechanical, losing the strings and Broadway/Philly Soul influences, in favor of European synth/new wave. They stripped disco down, let more darkness in and created something more removed and interesting to my ears. Much more to come on this compilation, beliedat.
No comments:
Post a Comment