Juno Recommends Funk / Rare Groove / Reissues : July 2023

Review: Proper boogie-funk stylee from Rome Jeffries, first recorded in 1983 as a paean to confident, smooth loving. The sultry mood of the song is backed by its cut-up claps, bouncy synth piques, and weighty veneer, which all went on to contribute to its later status as a sought-after diggers' slab. As much is ever-more evidenced on the instrumental B-side, which has an unprecedented - dare we say cheek-slapping - grit to it.

Review: Dimitri From Paris has always been pretty much a whole sound world unto himself. He draws on disco and filter house in his own unique ways and never fails to cook up steamy cuts for sweaty clubs. This time out he is in edit mode and has carefully worked his magic on The Soul Searchers tune 'Ashley's Roachclip'. His version for this limited edition 7" via DFP Vaults has jazzy flutes leading the way over churning funk drums with plenty of guitar riffs adding some girt under busy trumpets. An original 7' edit is also included and is slightly less weighty in the low end.

Review: The legendary edit king Mr. K is back with more of his trademark sonic treatments here, this time focussing on some lick funk sounds from the Motor City. His mid-tempo selections on this Detroit-themed 7" open-up with G.C. Cameron, a Motown mainstay with a wide vocal range as demonstrated on this classic rare groove cut, 'No Matter Where.' On the backside is more rare groove from Detroit but this time from the 80s and Candye Edwards's 'Time Is What You Need.' Edwards was part of the Detroit funk powerhouse One Way and through that got connected with songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Kevin McCord. They cooked up real gold together on a solo debut album with this being the standout cut from it. Perfect for warm outdoor dancing.

Review: In case you didn't know, Domo Domo are the duo of Japanese sound engineer Yas Inoue and DJ Takaya Nagase, both based in New York. They both love of digging deep for source material to rework. Next up for them is 'Happening In The Streets' which looks to pay tribute to the 70s and 80s legends and jazz-funk supergroup The Voltage Brothers with two new reworks. This limited 7" is the same as a 12" offering the same tunes also on Vega and has two cleverly put-together edits of the eponymous rare groove original come with many filtrations, lengthenings, effects and sonic tweaks.

Review: Asha Puthli's 'Space Talk' is one of those quintessential diggers delights, hardly a secret weapon any more but widely recognised as a magical slice of misfit cosmic disco from the genre's golden era, fronted by Puthli's ethereal vocal. Now the track gets a remix package courtesy of Naya Beat, and the versions aren't to be trifled with. First up comes the mighty Dimitri From Paris, who ladles the funk on thick, trips out the atmosphere and sends the track even further away from terra firma. Flip the record over for Dimitri's even trippier dub when you really want to juice the dance up. There's also a neat and tidy 2023 mix of the track and the original extended mix, making this an essential purchase for those craving the beauty of the OG version as well as those hungry for a classy-as-hell new twist on a dead cert classic.

Review: Described by Legere Recordings as a 'widescreen instrumental pop anthem soaked in summer sun', 'She's In LA' sees experienced Welsh musician (and former Colorama front man) Carwyn Ellis daydream about moving to the City of Angels with a little help from Shawn Lee and Andy Platts ALA Young Gun Silver Fox. Authentically Californian in vibe and execution, with Ellis's weary lead vocals recalling the likes of Boz Scaggs and Donald Fagen above a sun-soaked, synth-sporting West Coast groove. It's utterly gorgeous and undeniably life-affirming, as is the vocal-free instrumental take showcased on side B. A future Balearic favourite, no doubt.

Review: Australian DJ and producer Dave Mathmos serves up an obscure edits entree, sampling/reworking a whopping seven disco cuts from the late 1970s and early 1980s, but adding just enough modern flair to essentially make them his own. A well-rounded, sticky quality is heard on this septagonal crock of heaters, with the downtempo slink-funk of 'Late At Night' and the equally sumptuous, string-backed plod of 'Wonderful Feeling' remaining our highlights.

Review: Black Sugar were a Peruvian Latin funk band who formed in the late 1960s but unfortunately disbanded in 1975, leaving a wealth of musical trace magic behind. One such collection of vestiges now comes in the form of 'Baila', an EP comprising four tracks that were first released as singles between 1971 and 1974, and which takes its namesake from the band's greatest hit. The titular opener lays bare their blitzing blend of Latin funk via brass bellowings and organ solos, while the likes of 'Checan' and 'Too Late' deal in black-market flutes and loose-wristed percussion breaks, perfect for sunning by the shore, or wining in a winding, cobbled street somewhere in the Mediterranean.

Review: The latest in the 'Superfunkanova' series hears Woody Bianchi unearth little-heard-before rarities in the genre, with two rather naive and lo-fi but ultimately delightful songs peeking through the fold. The deep-friend strings of 'Calif Curl Calif Gurl' by the Together Band helms up the A-side, while the inflammable, instrumental soul mass that is 'Firebolts Hustle' by The Firebolts comes hits us like a Flaming Moe on the B.

Review: Addmoro were a lesser known Los Angeles-based disco outfit active throughout the late 70s and early 80s, and their sound was unique for its ahead-of-its-time weight and phonk, not to mention a difficult-to-match versatility, both traits evidenced by this Kalita reissue of the obscurity 'Rock & Roll Skate' here, first released on their very own Addmoro Records. The titular A-sider and 'Keep On Tryin' were released originally in 1985, with the former coming as a ploddy but groovy hard-hitter - which could've easily predicted the reams of modern-day producers who would the style on for size decades later (but not quite achieve it so well) - and the latter a surprise-taking curveball in a stumbly-funky, disco-electro mood.

Review: The JalapeNo label sure does like it hot and this one is no different. It sees the return of label regulars Skeewiff for a new series of outings that take the form of reworked covers of some of their favourite library tracks, inspired by greats of the genre such as Keith Mansfield, Brian Bennett, and Alan Hawkshaw. First up is 'Exclusive Blend,' a rather classic instrumental composition by Mansfield. 'Spanish Flea' is on the flip and is a version of a very famous work by Herb Alpert and his Tijuana Brass Band. It's a funky take with lots of percussive energy and big strings.

Review: Collins & Collins was a short-lived but no less significant collaboration between American soul brother-sister duo Bill and Tonee Collins. They've been the subject of many-a-reissue over the years but none so far have harked back to the obvious: their debut, self-titled album, which contained a wealth of slick covers of soul standards like 'Top Of The Stairs' and 'Can't Turn Down Love', effectively amounting to a wordless masterclass in loving cool. The sound is snappy and high-fidelity, owing to the unsung but rather lengthy production going in, and it's beautifully backed up by both members' sweet voices, which resonate in a high-low, yin-yanging, equal-opposite musical dao.

Review: 'Good Good Music' and 'Chicago' are two gems taken from Roy Ayers's 1983 disco funk album Silver Vibrations, which was last reissued back in 2019 by BBE. This 7" pairs off two of its most vibey cuts. 'Good Good Music' has mad synth squelchy, big organic disco licks and a diva vocal full of soul. On the flip is a late-night romancer, a slow motion smoother with under vocal wishers, low slung funk bass and rich, golden chords for a luxurious feel. Two very different but equally devastating tunes.