A music blog filled with new discoveries, edits, mash-ups and general musical inspirations by DJ Glamjack, an artist and enthusiast of dance, disco, house and left field music based in Brooklyn, NY.
Happy New Year from Disco Monk! Here is a couple of tunes that I'm feeling this time of year by the fierce Detroit dance producer Omar S. This guy has been dropping some unforgettable remixes and original material for the past decade. His distinctive sound has put him at the forefront of house and techno music. He has been using old school synths and drum machines taking us back to the roots of dance and Detroit techno yet his compositions sound fresh and futuristic at the same time. So here is the Shadow Ray remix of "Here's your Trance, now Dance! Enjoy
To continue with the festivities make sure to play this tune exactly at 11:57 and I guarantee you will bring the house down old school and keeping with the New Year traditions with a disco rendition of "Auld Lang Syne Uno" by the DJ/Remix Master Ryan Cavanagh also known as Slow Hands. Cavanagh is know as the master of "make-out" disco with his sultry mixes and productions. Wishing you a prosperous New Year. Enjoy!
I'm ending the year full circle with hands down the best record of the year and it is indisputably Destroyer's Kapput. Early this past January, I did a posting titled Going Kapput nominating this fresh new release from revered Canadian musician/song writer Dan Behar, the best of 2011 and so far nothing else has matched the heart felt brilliance and sonic beauty of this album . Kapput is already a classic in my book and will be for years to come. I will never get tired of listening to this unique mature, complex, poetic, jazzy, 80's synthesizer and trumpet oddity. With the aid of gorgeous vocals from Sibel Thrasher, all of the nine songs self evolve and become magical making the listener addicted to the melodies and intricate story telling. Kapput is an exceptional record so here is the title song to prove it along with the sublime "Suicide Demo for Kara Walker". To all my dear readers and listeners, I wish you a Happy Holidays and a prosperous New Year. Thank you for tuning in for another year of Disco Monk and see you in 2012! Enjoy
Here is a fabulous disco gem to set you up this weekend by saxophonist and soul jazz organist legend Charles Earland. This is the second time around featuring Mr. Earland. I In 1978 Earland hit the disco/club scene with a track called "Let The Music Play" from his disco classic LP Perception. This move clearly made a huge mark on the disco scene with Mr. Earland's master use of the Hammond B-3 organ. Produced by Randy Muller, the main man behind Brass Construction this jazz-disco fusion is not to miss for the disco aficionado. Here my two favorites, "Over and Over" and "Let The Music Play". Enjoy!
Here is a very sexy and rare new discovery by a disco outfit called Destroyers. Very little is known about them except that they were the product of Salsoul Records and it was released as a B side of the sublime disco erotic "Letric Love". Produced by Jeffrey Lester and Rupert Holmes in 1977. I'm loving the deep vocals, piano and strings here. Hope this get you in the mood for those looming cold winter nights and to prolong this mood I'm including "Lectric Love" for good measure. Enjoy!
Happy Thanksgiving and what is turkey day without putting some Grace in your face. Every year I always give thanks for my health, family, friends, nature and Ms. Grace Jones so when the end of year holidays are here, the amazing Grace and disco icon is always on heavy rotation on my turntables. Why you might ask? Just listen to these couple of songs and perhaps you'll hear why. So to start you on a festive note here is "Love On Top Of Love (Killer Kiss)". This song was the first single from her 1989 album Bulletproof Heart and it was produced by C&C Music Factory's David Cole and Robert Clivilles. The song reached number one on the billboard Dance Chart in December of that year.
Next, it's the sublime cover of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers classic "Breakdown" from her 1980's classic LP Warm Leatherette. This song always seems poignant around this time of the year when we all reunite with family and love ones.
This love of ours is gradually fading something is wrong, or somebody's faking
Autumn changes shifting phases autumn changes turning stages surely something can help to patch it up
Too many nights sitting here waiting too many days hoping and praying
Something inside seems to be dying most of the time I just feel like crying
Autumn changes shifting phases autumn changes turning stages surely something can help to patch it up
Oh yes we can, sure we can sure we can, sure we can
Autumn changes shifting phases autumn changes turning stages surely something can help to patch it up
Oh, yes we can, sure we can sure we can, sure we can
I had to post the lyrics on this one since I have been thinking of posting this wonderful song by disco legend Donna Summer for quite a while and couldn't find the appropriate time. Until now! This is side two of the classic 1977 Giorgio Moroder production of Seasons of Love. A concept album that explores a love affair through out four seasons. "Spring Affair" was the one that became most popular but I'm loving the Caribbean feel of "Autumn Changes" here and not to mention the slow dance part of "Winter Melody" and then coming full circle with a reprise of "Spring Affair". Simply a disco classic that couldn't be more timely and timeless. Here is "Autumn Changes"Enjoy!
It's a glorious Fall Sunday in the city and it is time to tune into the spiritual side of House. Here is the relentless classic "I Get Lifted" by house diva Barbara Tucker. Ms. Tucker is a Brooklyn native whose impact on the dance music scene has been felt more in Europe than in her home country. She scored a string of six #1 hits on the US Hot Dance Club Songs chart in the 1990s and well into the 2000s and several hits on the UK Singles Chart as well. Ms. Tucker has worked with several of the best dance music producers. She arrived on the club scene during the early '90s with the emblematic "Beautiful People" and it's always been a favorite. "I Get Lifted" has a darker thumping beat with deeper message making this a footprint song that defined the new house sound during the mid to late '90s. Several mixes have been made of this song but The "Go To Church Mix" and the X.T.C. remain my all time favorites! Enjoy and get lifted!
Here is a great early '90s classic by legendary Chicago born house music producer and DJ, Lil' Louis. His actual real name is Louis Sims. "Save My Life" was featured on his follow up release Journey With The Lonely and it featured vocals by legendary club diva Joi Cardwell. This was an album full of introspection that never lived up to the late '80s classic From The Mind Of Lil' Louis which had the huge dance floor smash "French Kiss, "Blackout" and "I Called U". "French Kiss" revolutionized dance music and became a crossover hit and number one in many countries. Needless to say, Lonely had some great gems such as "Club Lonely" which was another club smash and "Jazzmen". Now that I think about it, this was released around the time when house music was way too commercial and a lot of the great producers were trying hard to brake new ground affecting their creativity. Although "Save My Life" will never live up to "French Kiss", it actually has aged pretty well and it is safe to say that it is now a classic and it never sounded better "....music saved my lie-e-afe". Enjoy!
October 29th, 1983 was a defining moment in dance music when this song made it to number #1 on the Dance Chart and went on to sell over 8 million copies world wide. "Let The Music Play" by Shannon marked the beginning of the dance-pop era of music. By the early 1980's, the backlash against disco had driven dance music off the mainstream radio stations but the rhythmic ingenuity of this amazing song included a drum machine pattern produced by a filtered Roland TR808. The song was produced by Mark Liggett and Chris Barbosa. Here is the amazing extended version that probably could make any dance floor shake with it's power. Several remixes and revisions have been made of this legendary song but never have accomplished the power of the original with one exception in 1992, when the Pet Shop Boys produced a new version for the soundtrack of The Crying Game. The vocals by Carol Thompson were a bit mediocre and didn't do justice to the original; however, the mysteriously dark and twisted house take on this legendary song is simply sublime and you should give it a listen. Enjoy!
Here is an amazing find from this Guyanese pop, reggae, electro and disco genius Eddy Grant. This 12" version of "Everybody Dance" is total disco bliss. The original version is from the brilliant 1980's LP titled Love In Exile that featured many dance classics that appealed to the Loft and Cosmic DJ crowds. This song I hear is very hard to find and it's recently having a revival among disco dance lovers on the dance floors. Enjoy!
Here is this amazing new discovery that put a smile on my face recently simply because this is Arthur Russell re-incarnated! Seriously. Same voice and sound it's and I couldn't be more thrilled with this "kindness" from the Cosmos. Kindness is the elusive name of a London based disco producer that is clearly experimenting with '80s new wave, disco and all things Arthur Russell in a fresh way. All of my favorite genres in dance music! So far, they have released a song called "Swinging Party" that it's also quite beautiful and another one called "Gee Up". Both fabulous songs with a grainy synthesizer feel and gorgeous disco melodies. I believe that Kindness will go very far! This track will be officially released October 25th on Terrible Records and it's produced by Phillipe Zdar. Check out the video below...I can tell some of it was shot in my neighborhood. Enjoy!
Here is a song that I'm really liking the more I listen by the Rambla Boys. This Italian producer duo from Venice just released this fantastic EP titled Valderrambla. It contains three original tracks and two remixes of the title song. By far, "Cocomero" it's the winner here with a fierce, fresh and aggressive base reminding me of another fierce Italian producer, Gino Soccio during his heyday; however, these boys take it to another plateau by adding some amazing Peruvian flute instrumentation giving the song a twisted Latin flavor. Well done boys and will be looking forward to more releases. Enjoy!
Happy October! In order to start this Autumn season disco proper here is an epic song by Italo Disco group Tantra. It was the master mind of Celso Valli and it became hugely popular at the famous New York gay palace The Saint during the late '70s and early '80s. Their most well known track was the equally epic "Hills Of Katmandu". "Wishbone" was similar in formula to "Hills" however this one had a more spacey, mystical Indian flavor synthesizers with a unique bass lick and those cryptic vocals giving the song a mysterious vibe. Tantra released a full length LP called The Double Album in 1980 and clearly made them pioneers of the Italo sound that later dominated the dance floors in the mid to late '80s. Enjoy
Here is a fabulous New Wave by the legendary Peter Godwin. Mr. Godwin released his debut solo single "Emotional Disguise" in 1982 soon after the break of the legendary and seminal New Wave band Metro whom I did a great posting a while back that generated great comments. This single release was backed by another great song "French Emotions" and both tracks ended up appearing on his debut album Dance Emotions. A release that paved the way for future great new weave dance classics such as "Baby is in the Mountains" and "Images of Heaven". I am featuring the original sweet and short version plus the sublime instrumental as well. Enjoy!
Here is the September 2011 mix titled "In The Big Apple". The inspiration here is New York city during late September when goals are renewed bringing the spirit of change. A time when the wheels start to move forward full speed and so much activity is happening simultaneously, left and right, front and back. A city that is shallow yet dense, humble and arrogant that never fails to deliver delivering euphoria, energy and contemplation. It is beautiful and ugly, rich and poor, crazy and sane, high and low where cultures comes to the front and clashing loudly. A city filled with extremes leading one in search of much needed balance in order to survive. Always forcing to question our identities and our essence. Visceral in nature and designed to face our demons head on but never boring and always exciting!
Track List
1. Big Apple '75 - Loudon Wainwright III
2. Intergalactic (Deep Sound Design Remix) - Beastie Boys
3. Blues City - Toomy
4. Just To See - Soho 808
5. Kill the Pig (Pig Mix) - The Blow Monkeys
6. Fujiya & Madge (Greg Wilson mash-up) - Fujiya & Miyagi & Madonna
7. Love is in control (Finger on the triger) - Donna Summer
8. Sex - Virgo Four
9. Make You MIine - Autodeep
10. Don't Beat Around The Bush - The Salsoul Orchestra
11. By The Way You Dance - Bunny Sigler
12. Right in the socket - Shalamar
13. Sinning - Grace Jones
14. A.M. (Ewan Pearson Re-Edit) - Flowers and Sea Creatures
Here is a song that hasn't escaped my mind since it's release exactly twenty years ago in 1991. A cover of Neil Young's 1970 classic, St. Etienne did due justice to the original and revolutionized 90's dance music at the same time by introducing a new lyrical dub aesthetic on the dance floor. I was a mere 24 year old when I first discovered this song and ever since it became my personal soundtrack during the whole '90's decade and on. It was included on their under appreciated debut album Foxbase Alpha. Andrew Weatherall later remixed the song to further emphasize the dub bassline. It was recorded in under two hours, got them a record deal, their first single and their first hit. Lead vocals were by Moira Lambert, as Sarah Cracknell had not yet joined the band as a permanent member. The song remains Saint Etienne's only entry in the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 97 in 1992. It did, however, top the US Hot Dance Club Play chart at number 1! Several remixes have been made but nothing beats the original until recently when I discovered this remix by Richard X. Simply brilliant! Enjoy
September is here in full force and it always bring some kind of intensity in our lives. Whether it's finishing vacations, starting a new work cycle or remembering life changing historical events that could bring out the best and the worse in ourselves depending how we choose to see it. This past weekend we all stopped and remembered the horrific events of 9/11. It's hard to believe it has been ten years, it still feels like it was yesterday. As a direct witness from across the East River in Williamsburg, Brooklyn; we all saw the world change right in front of our eyes, a jolt to the soul, that made us all New Yorkers closer and united in grief. My heart goes to the families that loss their loved ones on that day. Now we continue to carry on with our resilient nature hoping for a better day. Having said that, I thought to feature a song to clear the palette in a light and somehow escapist way appreciating the little things in life as we always continue to strive for happiness. "Bahia" by Wando was released in 1976 and in became a dance hit during that summer with a gorgeous tropical samba feel that somehow evokes a bitter sweet ending of the season. Enjoy!
What a gorgeous weekend it's turning out to be! I just got back from the P.S. 1 (MoMa) Warm Up series and caught the tail end of it with British DJ duo, Horse Meat Disco doing their magic. Highlights such as the instrumental version of Human League's "Don't You Want Me" made the crowd scream the lyrics to the song in unison. A great dance and response song idea. Also, Ashford Simpson's "It Seems To Hang On" sounding gorgeous as always and a high spirited long version of Thelma Houston's "Don't Leave Me This Way" closing the evening's festivities. It has been a while since I have attended the Warm Up at P.S.1. I feel the venue space, although outdoors, is challenging to have a good flow air and good dance space. Having said that, it still draws a huge crowd and the spirit overall was dance happy today. So to "warm you up" this Saturday, I'm going total '80s R&B with Tierra's "Together". Tierra is a Latin R&B band originally from Los Angeles, that was established in the late '70s by former El Chicano members, Steve Salas, David Torres and Andre Baeza. "Together" was their biggest hit, written by Gamble & Huff. Enjoy it and have a beautiful and restful Labor Day Weekend!
Stop the presses! It's time to rewrite House music history and the legend of the discovery of Acid House as we know it! It turns out that it wasn't 1987 when a small group of club kids led by Nathan "DJ Pierre" Jones gave Ron Hardy a record to play at the Music Box labelled "Acid Tracks" by Phuture and as the story goes, this uncompromising sound quickly clears the dance floor, but Hardy hammers the tune again and again, until the masses are converted and a new genre was born - Acid House. This is all true yet recently I found this poignant, seminal and amazing body of work by Charanjit Singh. As the story goes, it was 1982 when Charanjit, known at the time as a Bollywood soundtrack composer, intending to capitalize on the disco phenomenon that just hit India decided to combine centuries old Indian Ragas and set to a disco backing using the latest technological gadgets such as the Roland TB303 bass melody sequencer, the TR808 drum computer and the Jupiter-8 keyboard. All instruments that became the prototype for the Acid tracks that were created 3-5 years later by amateur Chicago house heads experimenting with sound. Mr. Singh basically created a sound which mirrored, and more importantly, pre-dated the first acid house record - Phuture's "Acid Track", and even preceded Chip E's 'Jack Trax' in 1985! After nearly three decades of near complete obscurity, the record resurfaced when Bombay Connection label impresario Edo Bouman first heard it while traveling in India. He inmediately contacted Mr. Singh and said: "He was most friendly and surprised I knew the album. I remember asking him how he got this acid-like sound, but he didn't quite get my point. He didn't realized how stunningly modern it was." The word "disco" in the title is a complete misnomer since there wasn't a genre called techno or house that could be invoked yet. Synthesizing: Ten Ragas To a Disco Beat is no novelty record either, capturing the hypnotic potential of acid music in the most extravagant yet simple form, making explicit the similarities with the pulsating bass sequences which defined the soundtrack of dance floors for the next 30 years. This is vintage futurism of the highest calibre and made more amazing by the fact it came from India, a place hardly renowned for it's electronic output. This is a brilliant record and it's highly recommended. Acid House came from India! Learn it!
The Summer blockbuster of the year 2011 did not arrive from Hollywood instead it was delivered, produced and directed by the Media and the Government. First we had an earthquake in Nyc with all the media focus to deter us on what's a hand with the economy and now we have hurricane Irene headed to our city. How the media and local government are doing their best to instill fear by literally projecting what could happen to NYC when in reality we probably are going to have a severe storm with perhaps some wind and heavy rain. It is important to be precocious during times like this however, the puppetry machine of the media and government is sidetracking us with what's at hand by instilling more fear. The "what ifs" seems to be more important than the "what is" of the now. Mayor Bloomberg is doing his best to change his tarnished reputation due to the lack of unpreparedness during last winter's snowstorm and using Irene as a platform to change it. One thing for sure is that fear helps the economy. I was recently at a super market and things were flying off the shelves. This leaves me only to reflect and think about what would be an appropiate song to post in here. Many ideas but rather than politicizing I prefer to "discosize" it by presenting The Love Unlimited Orchestra's "My Sweet Summer Suite" which evokes impending doom staring with a long Afro-Latin percussion intro with a relentless pattern to heighten the impact of the song's main section, so that when the strings finally burst in, as they inevitably do, it feels like a hurricane touching down. This stunning moment is worth the whole song. Just like what is happening now! I got my flash light, candles, lots of can goods and water by the way. Enjoy!
It's heart breaking to found out the passing of one of the greatest. Nick Ashford graced this earth and gave us the most beautiful and heart felt music ever written. You will be missed and your music will always live on forever in our hearts. On the dance floors you touch us like no one else. At home you soothe us with your love and warmth. Here is a song that always bring warmth to mine among the many others too hard to choose. What a gift! What a beautiful soul!
Here is a nice sweet summer tune with such perfect timing and I totally forgot about it! "Fly Away/Walking in the Sunshine" by Danish group Laid Back was recently played as the closing song during James Murphy's brilliant live mix show for Beats In Space this past Tuesday. Laid Back was formed in 1979 in Copenhagen by John Guldberg on vocals, guitars, bass and Tim Stahl also vocals, keyboards, drums and bass. They are best known for the hits "Sunshine Reggae" and the legendary dance classic " White Horse" during the early '80s. I recently discovered that they are still active and have always been releasing music since the '80s and I must say that their newer material is also brilliant. I regard them as the Danish Pet Shop Boys! This song is from their 1983 LP Keep Smiling and it's putting me in the mood for the nice vacation ahead! Enjoy
Rain, rain rain....and as far as music concerns it seems I'm on a Paul Weller fixation upon discovering this fresh new release and remix of "Starlite". Remixed brilliantly by Drop Out Orchestra which it seems like they also have a fixation with his music as well. Here is the original as well. This is pure bliss, I must say! Hope this puts you in the mood for this rainy Friday!
Enjoy!
Here is a wonderful song that has put me in a good mood after watching all the sad news of the world lately. Specially what's going on in Lybia. I hope this people find their freedom from dictatorship so they can enjoy their "promised land". I consider the Style Council to be the quintessential '80s group. Style Council was basically the brainchild of Paul Weller and Mick Talbot. With a wide diversity of styles, the band released some of the most memorable songs that clearly reflect and defined that fabulous yet fickle decade. "Promised Land" was actually a cover version of Joe Smooth amazing house classic. The song defined their desire to move to a more house sound at that time when they released the hard to find and last record titled Modernist: A New Decade which was never released officially and it was dropped by Polydor records causing the band to split. I have heard the album in bits and pieces all I can say is that is pure house bliss. I am diligently searching for a copy of this rare gem. In the meantime I'm enjoying and settling for this one and I must say that Drop Out Orchestra has done a brilliant work to this '80s house classic. Enjoy!
Here is a fabulous song that I re-rediscovered by French singer-songwriter Rose Laurens thanks to the new amazing new Horse Meat Disco's third installment disco/dance compilation. Rose Laurens became famous for her 1982 smash single "Africa", which hit number three in many European countries. She was also the singer for the original French version of the song "I Dream a Dream". Horse Meat Disco is the acclaimed London DJ collective who are responsible for bringing a series of compilations of rare disco, '80s boogie, electro, fresh edits and all-new dance floor discoveries. The collective is composed of DJs James Hillard, Jim Stanton, Severino Panzetta and Filthy Luca. Their new compilation:
Horse Meat Disco III. This is an amazing collection of fierce songs bringing some rare and familiar disco into a new realm. I just had the pleasure of experiencing them live for the first time at Gowanus Grove this past Sunday as part of the Mr. Sunday lineup and all I have to say is the that they "served church". "American Love" is a sample of what they serve. This is a must have compilation!
I have been listening to some new interesting techno lately and I have to say that I have found renewed interest on this fickle genre of dance music. Reason for this new enthusiasm is German outfit Die Vogel. Die Vogel (German word for the Birds) is a collaborative project between Jakobus Siebels and Mense Reents. Jakobus is an innovative multi-instrumentalist who has previously recorded distinctive albums for Tomlab,Chicks On Speed Records and Karaoke Kalk. The equally talented, Reents is a member of the groups Egoexpress, Die Goldenen Zitronen and Stella. He also operates the Art Blakey Studios in Hamburg, where their first EP titled Blaue Moschee, on Pampa Records, was recorded opening a can of worms on Techno with songs such the album titled track and "Empire". Both songs left a big mark on the global Techno movement. Both songs are on heavy rotation among the big Dj's of now. The duo return with two tracks of what can only be described as 'Pampa Techno'. "Fratzengulasch" is a tribal meditation sung beautifully by Jakobus and Ebba Durstewitz, otherwise known as the band Ja Konig Ja. The other song on this EP is called "Maikaferbenzin" and it will leave you speechless. They are planning on a full length release in 2012. Die Vogel are revolutionizing techno as we speak and creating a totally new sound out it along the way. Note that this song featured here will be only available for download for a few days only since this is a new release. Enjoy!
Today would have marked Larry Levan's 57th birthday. Last Sunday I happened to stumble on King Street by accident during a bike ride and couldn't believe my eyes when I happen to stop at the old site of the Paradise Garage which is now a sad Verizon parking lot. I was also stunned to discover the main door ramp open. I never had the opportunity to experience the place during its glorious days yet I feel deeply connected to the music and the myth of Paradise Garage and Larry Levan. Here are the pictures of the place and entrance where the legend and myth took place.
Building site of Paradise Garage
The famous entrance ramp.
To celebrate his birthday, here is the rare "Winners" by Man Friday. A true classic! Larry, you are truly missed and hope your are celebrating in some disco somewhere in the Cosmos. Your spirit shines on here on Earth and will always remain.
Here is an interesting take on a classic by the legendary Supremes. I came across this tune on Sound Cloud and was totally mesmerized by it. This remix was the brainchild of Drop Out Orchestra. It began as a one man and a sampler and has grown into a three man team consisting of a music teacher, a studio engineer and a music tech writer. Their true identity is a mystery making us the listener to focus on the music only. In the past they have "dropped" some awesome disco tunes using real instruments and other vintage "discoteria" with several releases including two albums and remixes for Illija Rudman, Beatfantastic, DJ Agent 86 and Kinema. In addition to these official releases they forge into reworking some of pop music's most iconic figures into something danceable. So here is an example of this forays stripping down "My World is Empty without You" and seducing us with a new fresh take making us stop and think again on the dance aspect of this song in a new way. Enjoy
