LEO'S SUNSHIPP レコード& CD

Review: Leo's Sunshipp is an iconic rare groove record that gets a reissue here on Expansion. The special Record Store Day 2021 limited and hand-numbered 7" offers up two different versions, both of which are primed and ready to add at least 10 degrees of heat to even the sunniest DJ set. The original US 7" mix is languid and long legged, laidback and in a hurry to go nowhere fast. The soaring strings and steamy vocal, tumbling perc and distant horns capture a lazy afternoon soaking up some rays. The extended UK 7" Grapevine RED 3 mix ups the ante a little for slightly more energetic moves.

Review: You'll find few jazz-funk era rays of sonic sunshine better than 'Give Me The Sunshine', the career highlight of relatively short-lived American soul band Leo's Sunshipp. It originally opened their 1978 debut album, We Need Each Other, but later became something of an anthem throughout the UK on the jazz-funk and rare groove scenes. If you don't already own a copy, you should cop one of these reissues. The full six-minute version of the track featured on the A-side is little more than a languid bob through sun-soaked pastures full of liquid bass, simmering strings, whistling synth lines and a smooth, ear-catching lead vocal. Also worth a listen is flipside 'Back For More', a more up-tempo modern soul club cut that's not quite as incendiary but every bit as alluring,