Back catalogue: Funk

Review: Bristolian turntablist and crate digger Andy Smith has long been renowned for the depth of his funk, soul and hip-hop selections, though it's only in recent years that we've discovered the quality and diversity of his disco collection. He continues to flex those credentials on the third instalment in his Reach Up - Disco Wonderland series. While there's plenty of obscurity on show, as you'd expect, Smith has chosen to include contemporary nu-disco cuts and fresh re-edits alongside vintage picks. So, while we cuts from The Sunshine Band, the disco-highlife of Orlando Julius and some late 70s electro-disco courtesy of French outfit Quartz, we're also treated to fresher tracks and edits from BB Soul, Birdee and Nick Reach Up, Yam Who and Full Intention. Throw in a killer DJ mix of the same material by Skratch Bastid and you have a genuinely essential collection.

Review: The Salsoul Recordings (1976-1979), a comprehensive 4xCD box set by the legendary Philadelphia group Double Exposure. This 46-track collection highlights the trio of albums they recorded for Salsoul's Gold Mind Records: Ten Percent (1976), Fourplay (1978), and Locker Room (1979). Each album is presented in an expanded edition, with the set's final disc offering a curated selection of remixes, instrumentals, and a cappella versions from their Salsoul discography. Key tracks include the groundbreaking 12" single Ten Percent, the soulful My Love Is Free, and other fan favorites like Everyman and Newsy Neighbors. The packaging includes a 28-page booklet designed by John Sellards. DJ Dyn-o-Mite of Jointzoftheday.org provides the liner notes, offering deep insights into the group's contributions to the disco era. This release is part of a larger 2024 series by SoulMusic Records/The Second Disc, celebrating the Salsoul and Gold Mind catalogues. The collection is an essential addition for any soul-disco lover.

Review: In 1977, American jazz composer, pianist and organist Weldon Irvine helped create the musical Young, Gifted & Broke, which was in part inspired by Aretha Franklin's 1969 anthem 'Young, Gifted & Black' - a song whose lyrics were penned by none other than Weldon. Irvine was naturally responsible for the writing the soundtrack, which was recorded at the time but only released for the first time 12 years ago. It's an exceptional set all told, joining the dots between jazz, Blaxploitation funk, soul and gospel, with inspired instrumentals sitting side by side with songs that showcase the talents of both the lead characters and a talented chorus of backing singers.

Review: Daisuke Kuroda has ben DJing since 1990 when the rare groove movement in his native Japan was in full flow. He slowly evolved into the funk world and is now regarded as one of deep funks finest ever DJs over in the Far East. He started Japan's leading deep funk club event series SEARCHING and runs his own Wah Wah party each month, amongst several other things. He heads up a 45 reissue label founded at the beginning of 2015 so is the perfect man to be asked to curate From Kingston To Miami: King Sporty Works 1971-1983, a collection of deep cut funk sounds that span the world from the 70s to the 80s.

Review: This brand new 2xCD set celebrates Level 42's 1985 top three album World Machine, which was produced with Wally Badarou. The album reached #3 in early 1986 and features the hit singles 'Something About You' which peaked at #6, and 'Leaving Me Now' which went on to reach #15. In the U.S., a Shep Pettibone remix of 'Something About You' became their highest-charting single by hitting #7 on the Billboard Hot 100. CD1 includes the original album, while CD2 offers some fresh 7" edits, 12" extended versions, remixes and B-sides. The set also features a booklet with lyrics, photos and a foreword by Simon Carson and Paul Waller.

Review: Prolfic producer Neiro 'Papik' Poggi founded the Soultrend Orchestra almost 15 years ago as a vehicle for his acid jazz, funk, soul, disco and jazz-funk fantasies. The project has been 'on ice' for a while, with Now Imagine, officially the band's second studio set, appearing a decade after its predecessor. It's a typically musically rich affair with a string of guest vocalists joining the expansive 'orchestra' to run through happy, sun-splashed tracks. Highlights come thick and fast throughout, from a lightly Latin-tinged cover of Sister Sledge disco classic 'Lost In Music' and the Jamiroquai-esque warmth and soul of 'Wiser' (featuring Wendy D Lewis), to the vibraphone-wielding smooth grooves of 'Touched By Your Love' and the glossy jazz-funk-goes-house rainbows of 'You Came Along' (featuring Steve Biondi).

Review: Prince Buster, born Cecil Bustamente Campbell in 1938, was a key figure in the birth of ska and rocksteady, and infamously embodied the term "rude boy"; he'd come to enshrine a symbol of rebellious youth culture in Jamaica. A leading conspirator in early soundsystem culture, Buster's story stretches as far back as the days of systems such as Tom The Great Sebastian as well as variou Kingston-bound stacks operated by Coxsone Dodd. Now this eagerly awaited third volume from Rock A Shaka continues to compile Buster's best works, the standouts among them being 'A Tribute to The Toughest' from 1967 - believed to be a precursor to the long-loved 'Ghost Dance' - and his cover of James Carr's 'Dark End of the Street,' Ernest Ranglin's 'Come Get Me,' and Winston Samuels' 'I'm Still Here.'

Review: The expansive box set celebrating The Salsoul Orchestra's groundbreaking albums, meticulously curated and remastered, is a must-have for any disco aficionado. Boasting 103 tracks across six albums, including collaborations with icons like Carol Williams and Charo, it encapsulates the essence of the legendary Salsoul sound. Led by Vincent Montana Jr, the orchestra delivers floorfillers like 'Salsoul Hustle,' 'Magic Bird of Fire,' and 'Run Away' featuring Loleatta Holloway, showcasing the signature Philly soul sound with vibrant brass, infectious rhythms and lush strings. The inclusion of rare tracks from The Salsoul Strings and remixes by esteemed producers adds depth and variety to the collection, ensuring there's something for every disco lover. The deluxe booklet, featuring comprehensive notes by Joe Marchese, provides valuable insights into the albums and the era, making it a treasure trove of musical history. With its stellar lineup of musicians and timeless grooves, this box set truly embodies the spirit of Salsoul and proves once again that disco is indeed good for the soul.

Review: Steel pan, disco and dub from the 1970s in Steel An' Skin's 'Reggae Is Here Once Again'. Yet another lost gem from EM. Ultra-postive consciousness from Afro-Caribbean London, circa 1979. Members of the legendary 20th Century Steel Band (one of Grand Master Flash's favourites) sailing Trinidad-wise over gratifyingly intricate African ritual rhythms. Strong vocals compliment reggae, funk, disco and soul influences to form a relentless groove machine. Steel 'n' Skin, a unit composed of young nightclub musicians born in Ghana, Nigeria, St. Kitts, Trinidad and the U.K., who once performed with Ginger Johnson's Afrikan Drummers, a highlife band under the tutelage of the late Ginger Johnson and played at Johnson's Iroko Country Club in Hampstead, London. Steel 'n' Skin began performed concerts and workshops in London schools, expanding nationwide to schools, prisons, psychiatric hospitals and summer festivals, including the world-famous Notting Hill Carnival. The group combined a mix of musical forms with community outreach, non-cynical and untainted by preachiness or "social work." Good feelings from good hearts. This EM reissue consists of Steel 'n' Skin's 1979 debut 12 inch single "Reggae Is Here Once Again", featuring "Afro Punk Reggae (Dub)", a fine disco-dub workout, plus 2 tracks from their 1984 LP ACID RAIN as well as one un-issued track. Also included is documentary DVD by Steve Shaw featuring commentary from Steel 'n' Skin's founder Peter Blackman, killer live and rehearsal footage of the band, workshop scenes (check out the 1970s suits and parkas!) and devastating views of inner-city Liverpool. Steel 'n' Skin soars above the 1970s ruins.

Review: The UK's number one independent soul label Expansion Records commences each year with the label's most anticipated collection, Luxury Soul. The success of the series comes down to the quality of tracks sourced from independent soul artists, focusing on the major and emergent names of the year - this time including Will Downing, Con Funk Shun and Narada Michael Walden. For many of the 35 tracks featured on the compilation, this is the first time they'll have ever appeared on CD, having landed in the soul charts either at number one or in the top ten over the last 12 months. Further exclusives include The Requestors feat. Vivienne McKone, Kloud 9 feat. Kenya, and The Paradise Projex with an exclusive mix of 'Here & Now'. The release is to coincide with the Luxury Soul Weekender in January 2024, and includes tracks by three artists performing live at the event.

Review: The making of Congo Funk!, Analog Africa's long-awaited journey to the musical heart of the African continent, took them on two journeys, one to Kinshasa and one to Brazzaville. A tale of two cities, the fourteen pieces included on this double LP showcase the many facets of the Congolese capitals, and highlight the bands and artists, both famous and obscure, who pushed Rumba to new heights, ultimately influencing the musical landscape of the entire continent and beyond.

Review: Four Flies continue their mission to plunge Italy's funk-historical depths. The pinnacle of their search so far for the sure-to-exist pearly gems on the sands thereunder is the new Africamore compilation, which homes in like a heat-seeking torpedo on the particular Afro- ends of the funk sound prevalent in the nation, in the crucial years between 1973 and 1978. This period was notable for its facilitating fertile ground for the emerging discotheque market in Italy at the time. From psychedelic-tinged tunes like Jean Paul & Angelique's 'Africa Sound' to Afrobeat-esque club banger 'Kumbayero' by Albert Verrecchia; from groundbreaking Afro-cosmics like Chrisma's 'Amore to mind-blowing floor-fillers like Beryl Cunningham's 'Why O', this is a multivalent compilation, among the best out there to document the burblings of that crosswise stew of disco, funk, electro and world musics.

Review: Although Salsoul Records and West End Records are more widely associated with the original New York Disco story, SAM Records - founded by Romania-born Sam Weiss in 1975 - also released a wealth of killer material during that era. This three-disc retrospective, which comes accompanied by detailed liner notes by the Guardian's Alexis Petridis, tells the story of the label via a mix of genuine disco anthems, early boogie gems, key 12" versions mixed by the likes of Shep Pettibone, John Jellybean' Benitez and Jonathan Fearing, and lesser-celebrated cult classics. All the label's key artists (think John Davis & The Monster Orchestra, K.I.D, Gary's Gang and Rhyze) are present, along with noted 'one-hit wonders' such as David McPherson, Mike & Brenda Sutton, Vicky D and Lucy Hawkins. A must-have for disco heads old and new!

Review: Whether the 42 full-length tracks showcased on this four-CD set really are 'the greatest soul, funk and disco' 12" singles of the 1970s and 80s is open to debate, but there's no denying that it's a fantastic collection of classic cuts and dancefloor anthems from the pre-house era. Much of it will be familiar - see Earth, Wind & Fire's 'Boogie Wonderland', McFadden & Whitehead's 'Ain't No Stopping Us Now', Freeez's 'Southern Freez', Chic's 'Good Times' and so on - but there's no denying the quality. What it really delivers is an instant party-starting set of guaranteed floor-fillers from the 70s and 80s that touches not only on disco, soul and funk, but also jazz-funk, boogie and 80s soul. Plus, any compilation that features Hi-Tension's 'Hi-Tension' is alright by us!

Review: WAR's The Collection 1977-1994 is a deep celebration of the band's legacy, featuring five remastered albumsiPlatinum Funk (1977), Galaxy (1'977), The Music Band (1979), Outlaw (1982), and Peace Sign (1994)ishowcasing WAR's evolution as a "sophisticated pop machine" with their signature fusion of funk, soul, and rock. The box sets commemorate WAR's 55th anniversary and follow the success of their The World Is a Ghetto: 50th Anniversary Collector's Edition. The previously rare Platinum Funk, which includes hits like 'L.A. Sunshine', and Outlaw, featuring classics such as 'Cinco De Mayo', highlight the band's diverse musical prowess. With over 50 million records sold globally, WAR's rich sound continues to resonate, solidifying their status as one of music's seminal groups. Fans can anticipate these releases as a treasure box of rhythm and history.