Hip-Hop News

“The Soul Of Tommy Youngblood” 1970 Kent LP had many fine tracks, especially ‘Tobacco Road North’ though it was not attributed to the rightful writer, Jimmy Radcliffe, at the time. The music has been sampled for various hip-hop adaptations, including one by Ghostface Killah of the Wu-Tang Clan, but the original stands on its own and deserves a 7” format.

The Other Brothers ‘Nobody But Me’ is another UK Kent exclusive that sold out on its first Kent Select press and is still highly sought-after and now very expensive.

2024 reissue on transparent vinyl.

Entirely produced by Dabeull and Rude Jude, Including a 30x30cm Poster.

After her featurings on the king of funk' tracks, Dabeull (DX7, You & I, Day & Night), the french r'n'b singer Holybrune returns with a solo EP 'JoyRide'. Sung in English and French and composed by Dabeull and Rude Jude, this new project is a 90's funk drive into the summer heat. Out on eponym label : Dabeull Records.

Two killers dj tools for 45 Djs ! Twice disco tracks, A side is a Disco Rap for 80, B side is a big classic Disco punched with phat drums and la little pitched up. As usual its a sure shot on 7inch.

'Debes Llorar' is the second of two super limited 7"s being dropped by Dez Andres on the fledgling Future Rootz label this month. Like the other one, this 45 pulls out plenty of the Cuban influences Dez is known for. A-side 'Debes Llorar' is all life-affirming chords that fans of his classic 'New 4 U' will recognise, but stitched over ticking and raw drum beats with a Latin shuffle and Spanish vocals. 'Aqui Estamos' takes things down a notch with a more sunset sound, hip-hop flecked deep house beats and seductive vocal sounds next to gorgeous little acoustic guitar riffs.

When you see Dr. Packer’s name on the tin you know you are in for a treat! He takes BB&Q Band’s classic “Main Attraction” and turns it with his magic into a Nu-Disco boogie-down floor fest.

Produced by Kae Willams II and with vocals by the great Curtis Hairston, the Dr. from ‘down-under’ manages to encapsulate the 80’s funk soul feel from BB& Q Band’s seminal original to carry those heady days of dancing till the sun’s up into 2023 and beyond.

Two previously unreleased recordings from Swindon Brit-Funk outfit Cloud, recorded between 1981-1983 and mixed from the original multi-track recordings by Sean P.

(clear pink color vinyl / LP with OBI) Fresh reissued magic of Funky Stuff, formerly a rare exquisite by jazzmaster Jiro Inagaki, originally released in 1975. An enduring, pioneering fusion of jazz, funk, soul and rock - the album features some of the best and most acclaimed Japanese musicians of the time, enlisting the talent-wares of Hiromasa Suzuki on keyboards, Akira Ishikawa on drums and Takeru Muraoka on sax.

"Matasuna Records" proudly presents the exclusive re-release of "Moto Moto" and "Zebra Talk" by "Renegades Of Jazz" for the first time on a 45. Both tracks were originally released in 2016 on David Hanke's critically acclaimed "Moyo Wangu" album.

After its release, Moyo Wangu quickly became a very sought-after album on vinyl for collectors and DJs. On this third Renegades Of Jazz album, Hanke combines elements of Afrofunk with his love for breakbeats with club appeal.

Having spent his early childhood in Arusha/Tanzania in the early 1980s, producing an Afrofunk album was on Hanke's list for a long time to reconnect with his time living there. With his love for African rhythms and club music, Hanke produced with Moyo Wangu a blend containing the best of both worlds.

Later, he continued his Afrofunk journey under his "Dem Juju Poets" alias and released his album "Liberated Thoughts" here on Matasuna Records in 2017, which also quickly sold out.

"Moto Moto" is featured on the a-side of our new 45, an infectious opener which captures the hot, vital feeling of a crowded dance floor throughout an amazing night out. Catchy drums and frenzied percussions meet funk guitars, a deep grooving bassline, great horns and vibrant vocals.

"Zebra Talk" on the b-side is an exciting collaboration with producer and multi-instrumentalist Ingo Moell aka "Kabanjak", also known for his projects like Deela and as one-half of Ancient Astronauts. Together they create a mesmerizing tapestry of sound that slowly builds, immersing the listener in the groove and captivating them.

Hanke and Moell continued working together on their new project The Maenads, exploring the depths of electronic club music.

PINK VINYL EDITION After the great success of Cry Me A River - voted by Craig Charles as his TOP FUNK record of 2022; Betty Black has now taken things even further. Black's cover of SWEET DREAMS is a phenomenal, 1960 sesque, up tempo, gospel vibe banger. Raw and wild she takes this tune to another level. Already tipped as the summer hit of 23', DJ's who have had a sneak preview are going nuts over it. On the b-side is a FLying Fish dub version, featuring Ed Moris on Hammond and the legendary Danny Huckridge on bass. Do not let this sassy, sexy, vibrant number pass you by, when you hear it you'll just want to hear it again and again. A hip-shaking, foot-sliding dancer: quite simply, a winner. Boom. 100 x Pink vinyl available...

Yellow vinyl reissue of the third volume of the 1997 "The Mood Mosaic" series. Contains the unforgettable French Kiss by Lil Louis, a 7 minute version.
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Complimenting the release of the new Supafunkanova Vol.3 album by Woody Bianchi is this extremely badass 7” for all those that like it at 45. Two very rare, choice cuts from the album, one of which doesn’t feature on the Vinyl version of the Compilation.

First up is the Together Band with their falsetto boogie funk track ‘Calif. Curl, Calif. Girl’ sitting somewhere between Slave & One Way with it’s killer guitar groove, disco toms and synth swells.

On the flip is The Firebolts - Firebolt Hustle an extremely hard to find cut on 7” featuring legends such as Bernard Wright and Barry Johnson. A pure badass Funk track from the Disco-Boogie era indeed!

Since first joining forces in the studio at the dawn of the 2000s, Danielle Baldelli and Marco Dionigi have released countless collaborative singles and albums, each showcasing distinctively different take on the “cosmic sound” that Baldelli did more than anyone else to define in the early 1980s.

Alloteva marks the pair’s first joint release for Leng Records, and Baldelli’s return to the label following last year’s acclaimed full-length collaboration with Marco Fratty, Oil Painting. It boasts a quartet of cuts that further refine the pair’s now-familiar joint style, which combines elements of dub disco, space rock, Italo-disco, funk and Afro-cosmic (another style which Baldelli arguably created via his DJ sets at the legendary Cosmic Club).

Those who’ve followed the experienced Italian pair’s career over the last two decades will enjoy the heavy and sweaty title track, a cowbell-sporting chunk of funk-fuelled cosmic disco decadence piled high with loose-limbed drums, throbbing synthesizer arpeggio lines, flanged guitar riffs and rubbery, low-slung bass.

The pair’s love of dub disco is further explored on the deliciously deep and warming ‘Deflector’, a pitched-down delight in which intergalactic chords, snaking saxophone motifs and echoing percussion hits rise above a metronomic beat and another headline-grabbing bassline.

‘Sonora’, which opens the flipside of the vinyl version of the release, is arguably even more cosmic and spaced-out. Light and airy thanks to a sparse, clicking drum machine rhythm, hypnotic bassline and gently pulsing synth chords, the track is marked out by some near horizontal, echo-laden jazz guitar solos that seemingly tumble down across the sound space.

To round off a strong EP, Baldelli and Dionigi deliver ‘Time is Plastic’, whose icy ambient intro and blazed spoken word samples quickly segue into another elastic cosmic funk groove. This time round, the star attraction is the duo’s classy combination of liquid bass guitar and excitement-packed slap-bass. Throw in some gnarled, flash-fried funk guitar riffs and a heady, hypnotic mood, and you have another deep space gem from the most cosmic duo in the business.

Impossibly rare and extremely obscure 45 that almost never turns up. A monstrous modern soul dancer with a funky edge on the a-side and a great boogie banger on the flip side now available to soul and funk fans around the globe at the price of a pizza for one. This version comes out of a fortunate demo on a 1/4” reel tape which is the only recording that survived a car crash Mr. Horton was involved in many years back. Johnny kindly allowed us to license this beautiful piece of music and we are very proud to bring to your decks such a testament to the Alabama sound of the seventies.

Thirty years in the making, Kraig Kilby’s Satori is an exercise in perspective. The classically-trained trombonist and pianist put down his professional roots in the Soul, Jazz, and Funk scenes of 1970s California, contributing to records by Bennie Maupin and Dynasty as well as touring and recording consistently with The Whispers and Etta James. While off the road in the SF Bay Area, he found himself adjacent to some of the most forward-thinking and far-out Jazz musicians of the time.

He asked two of them, bassist Paul Jackson and drummer Michael Clark, to help him realize a set of his own compositions. The duo, already legendary for their roles in Herbie Hancock’s Headhunters band, went into the studio with Kilby to record the foundational tracks in the spring of 1977. Throughout the next four years, he would return on his own to apply layer after layer of additional instrumentation, up to the absolute limits of what was possible with the available equipment. This exacting process gave the sessions an unusual and compelling signature that bears something in common with the contemporaneous work of the Mizell Brothers, Norman Connors’ Aquarian Dream, and Detroit’s Tribe Records, but with a depth and lyricism unique to Kilby’s sense of harmony that lies amorphously between the worlds of 70’s Jazz, Funk, and Experimental Rock. Kraig's busy touring schedule throughout the following decades would leave the album fermenting until 2007, when it was paired with two more recent improvisational recordings and self-released on CD.

Satori's mercurial twists and turns lead us through a dense sequence of melodic and rhythmic figures as calculated as they are tripped, always at the edge but navigated with a precise sense of balance. Rife with hooks that will startle even the most seasoned breakbeat sleuth and sheets of emotive texture that sound right at home with today’s wave of Cosmic Jazz torchbearers, it spins like a collector's fever dream, surely one of the most prescient Jazz albums to have fallen through the cracks. Upstart Detroit label Just Us is pleased to offer this crucial missing link on vinyl for the first time.

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Misfortunes never come singly. That way AZAR AZAR returns with a strong new EP Inner World / Space Coconut Conspiracy widening its musical universe to join Portuguese label Jazzego 2021 first physical edition.
After his first four track EP re-working Miles Davis - Bitches Brew's classic album released in April 2020, AZAR AZAR strikes again with two compositions joining the dots between Jazz-Funk and Hip-Hop grooves.
A-side opens with “Inner World” and this new single “Space Coconut conspiracy”, B-side features three club-friendly remixes from Esa Williams, K15 and Minus & MRDolly.
This new EP anticipates the already announced album Cosmic Drops set for later in 2021.

Ilija Rudman has tried to make the most of his pandemic-induced lockdown by spending as much of it as possible in the best imaginable way – by pouring his creativity into bold sonic adventures - the newly launched Ilija Rudman Presents Meteor One.

His latest endeavour is characterised by an experimental essence, live-feeling sensibilities and an extraterrestrial outlook. “Meteor One is an outlet for musical experiments recorded and performed as 'in concert' stuff, laying on L.A. Grooves, cinematic, funk and spoken words” . The long arrangements build an emotion of space travelling, moving free through the galaxy... at the same time the music can move dance floors and can set up a beautiful listening experience.”

Meteor One Music is an epic musical journey, unfolding steadily over almost 25 minutes and permeated by carefully selected vox pops and spoken-word vocal samples from deep in the Rudman archives. The often sparsely-arranged instrumentation meanders over rolling drums, while a constantly evolving bass glues together waves of synths and effects as they rise and dissipate. The arrangement glides through ultra-chilled sections into stirringly energetic periods, with Ilija's live feeling there for all to hear. The delicate music helps to cast a uniquely introspective spell, and we're looking forward to hearing how this timely series will unfold.

Yes yes, some ultra rare raw dog Miami Funk Soul R+B for your mind!
A fully legit reissue of this scarce 45 from Jame Knight & The Butlers, superb! Originally released in 1971 on the tiny CAT label, this one's long been the preserve of the deepest Funk collectors, and as such has had a hefty price tag attached. Well, we believe good music should be available to everyone who loves good music! So we got the OK from the main men and women down there in Florida to let us reissue this stunning single. Featuring all original CAT label artwork, and 2 wonderful sides that no music fan can do without. Blink and you'll miss it! Soul brothers testify!

Released with love and respect by: Above Board and TK Disco, Miami FL. 2020.

Reissue of one of the most sought-after Manu Dibango / library music albums! Originally released in 1972 for "professional sound illustration intended for the cinema, television and advertising." Essential reissue!

Sound Signature is proud to present a re-issue of the 7-inch single from Sundown titled "Spaced Outta Place".
Composed by Amp Fiddler, Spaced Outta Place was originally released in 1981 on Parkside Records.

Clear Vinyl

Anlässlich des 30-jährigen Jubiläums der Single "When You Gonna Learn?" veröffentlichen Jamiroquai das Album "Emergency On Planet Earth" neu und feiern damit das 30-jährige Bestehen einer der bahnbrechendsten und wegweisendsten britischen Bands der letzten Zeit. Nach der Wiederveröffentlichung der 25. Jubiläumsausgabe von "Travelling Without Moving" - dem meistverkauften Funk-Album aller Zeiten - feiert Jamiroquais Debütalbum "Emergency On Planet Earth" in diesem Jahr sein 30-jähriges Bestehen und wird als transparentes/klares Doppel-Vinyl mit Gatefold-Cover und bedruckten Innenhüllen mit Linernotes von Jay Kay aus den Jahren 2013 und 2017 neu aufgelegt.Pour marquer les 30 ans de la sortie du single "When You Gonna Learn ?", Jamiroquai réédite "Emergency On Planet Earth" qui marque le début de la célébration du 30ème anniversaire de l'un des groupes britanniques les plus révolutionnaires et pionniers de ces derniers temps. Après la réédition en janvier de l'édition du 25e anniversaire de " Travelling Without Moving " - l'album de funk le plus vendu de tous les temps - le premier album de Jamiroquai, " Emergency On Planet Earth ", fête cette année son 30e anniversaire et est réédité en double vinyle transparent/clair avec une couverture gatefold et des pochettes intérieures imprimées contenant des notes de Jay Kay de 2013 et 2017.

The tittle release from Kumomi Records(they are based in Japan). Okinawa salsa band 'Kachimba 1551', which fuses Okinawa folk songs and salsa. This current band started its activities in 1998 and they are based in OKINAWA .On the A side is a Okinawa folk song "Asatoya Yunta" which said to have originated on Taketomi Island in the Yaeyama Islands, and has been covered by many musicians around the world (Ryuichi Sakamoto, Haruomi Hosono, Akiko Yano, etc.). On the B side is "Uminu Chinboraa" is said to have been handed down from "Ie Island in Kunigami Gun of Okinawa" and started to be sung at traditional party settings. Both song includes a salsa arrangement cover by "KACHIMBA1551". For this　project we as Kumomi Records have gotten licensed by 3rdwave / PARTIDA RECORDS from Okinawa. We would love to recommend this to the people who like music such as Traditional world music.

P-VINE present a limited box set from their popular "Groove Diggers'' reissue series. All tracks selected by DJ Muro, one of Japan's best known DJs/producers/diggers and pressed on 7" for the first time, featuring classics from Erik Tagg, Prince Billy Mahdi Wright, Billy Wooten, Spice, & 1619 Bad Ass Band.

Official Reissue of the Rare Sophomore LP by Cloud One. Rare Disco-Experiments from the legendary Patrick Adams. Cloud One was always a studio outlet for Patrick Adams to experiment. Even after the success of Atmosphere Strut, Adams continued to experiment with synthesizers (in particular the minimoog) to make this his signature sound or 'voice' as he called it. An indeed his usage of the synth was completely different from some of his contemporaries. With titles like Jump, Jump, Jump, Funky Track, Stomp Your Feet and Dance or Music Funk, it was clear the spirit of this music was in Harlem. It's no surprise Adams felt at home in the many P&P subsidiaries. 'P&P became this place where artists could be free, as opposed to an Atlantic Records or a Columbia Records, where everything is high spit and polished...We never told anybody on P&P what they could or couldn't do, what they should or shouldn't do. It was like, 'Go for it, if you want to bang pots and pans together, that's your sound.' And what a Funky Sound it was. 'I was trying to get the most out of the instrument. I was experimenting.' - Patrick Adams

Jamaican born and Toronto raised, KG Russell is an unsung journeyman who followed the DIY path with his compelling output. Only a handful of collectors have been aware of the few releases via his private imprint Rain Sound - of which little information is known and copies very seldom seen.

A striking stand-out of Russell’s work comes via his Dance With Me album - a self-produced jewel originally recorded in 1988 with help from friends Tony Cameron and Orville Malcom on session duties. The brilliant blender of synth-soaked soul was released in 1990 on cassette only. Roughly 200 copies were manufactured and personally handed out to local record stores around Toronto.

Crown Ruler returns, plucking out three superior cuts for Last Dance and breathing new life into each via an impressive remastering effort from Melbourne sound wizard Daniel Elleson. Finally pressed to wax, this EP is clearly deservent of the 12” treatment. An island-tipped-electro-come-proto-house string of melters , guaranteed to prick the ears of lovers of the obscure and exotic. Last Dance is full of curious influences. It could be described as Caribbean flavored drum machine r’n’b. From the title track, a hypnotic boogie dancefloor filler, to Talk To Me, an electro rap meets smooth-jazz love jam, and finally Dance With Me, a bent and wasted soul ballad - Russell bares it all in another lost treasure given some TLC and repurposed for today’s DJ leaning ear

Far Out Recordings presents a double bill of two monumental Brit funk classics. Keep In Touch and Stay were the first two 12” singles by the iconic Freeez, both self-funded passion projects of its founding member John Rocca, for his own Pink Rhythm imprint.

It all started over the counter at Derek’s Records on Petticoat Lane, London in the mid-70s. Rocca - at the time a budding teenage percussionist - met the prolific guitarist, composer, producer and all round brit funk fixer Jean-Paul “Bluey” Maunick (also the father of Far Out producer Daniel Maunick). Best known as the founding member of Light of the World, Incognito, and more recently Str4ta, Bluey’s involvement in the origins of Freeez are lesser known, but no less crucial. Bluey invited Rocca to a weekly jam session in an East London basement, where they would develop their craft, form their first band Freeez and develop the idea for ‘Keep In Touch’: “Back in the basement there was this one particular track we were playing that I really loved. It had a groove that I thought I could sell” Rocca reminisces.

Going against the advice of all the musicians involved, who thought he was mad and set to lose all his money, John decided to go full DIY, hire out a high end studio in the West End to record ‘Keep In Touch’ and release it as a private press, birthing his now famed Pink Rhythm label. Featuring Bluey on guitar, Peter Maas on bass, Paul Morgan on drums, Jason Wright on keyboards, and John Rocca on percussion, Keep In Touch was a surprise underground hit selling over 5000 copies and reaching #49 in the UK, leading Freeez into a record deal with Pye / Calibre.

Still giddy from the experience of having produced and pressed his first record at the age of just 19, John set out to do it all again with ‘Stay’ and ‘Hot Footing It’, enlisting Bluey & co once again. This time Rocca attempted to take things to the next level by adding vocals into the mix. Though this new arrangement initially backfired and cost John the deal with Pye / Calibre who weren’t feeling the slight change of vibe, original copies of the Stay 12” have become one of the most in demand from the brit funk canon.

These foundational DIY 12” singles paved the way for Freeez to become a household name in the history of British funk who went on to record hits like ‘Southern Freeze’ and ‘IOU’ as well as underground cult classics like ‘Melodies of Love’ and ‘India’ as Pink Rhythm, John Rocca’s later formation of Freeez named after his imprint.

Believe! International Records proudly presents (U.N) United Nonsense – the debut album by the Swedish Afrobeat band Olumo Soundz.

The twelve band members of Olumo Soundz are solidly rooted in the great musical tradition hailing from predecessors Fela and Femi Kuti. However, the band puts their own spin on a vibrant genre, and packs a punch at each and every show with their own repertoire.

The four track album (U.N) United Nonsense – presented in a high quality 180 gr vinyl edition – is a joyous musical announcement of awareness, resistance and faith.

From 1967-1980, Kansas City's Forte Records captured nearly every iteration of popular Black music; basement beehiver-y from The Ray-Ons and Four Darlings, funky soul from Gene Williams Lee Harris, Louis Chachere, and The Fantastiks, downtempo disco ballads from James W hitney and Sharon Revoal, and the newly independent work of James Brown's former Soul Sister # 1 Marva Whitney. Compiled here are 28 of the label's enduring sides, contextualized with copious photos, ephemera, and essay, all housed in heavy weight gatefold jacket. Who knows how to do "The Hen"?

Hotlanta Orange Marble Color Vinyl.
Atlanta's original Eccentric Soul labels, Jesse Jones' Tragar & N ote concerns captured critical regional R&B, soul, and funk from 1968-1976. Compiling 34 tracks and sprawled across two LPs, this 15 year anniversary deluxe edition appears on vinyl for the first time. Featuring rareas- hens-teeth 45s by Eula Cooper, Tee Fletcher, Richard Cook, Frankie & Robert, Tokay Lewis, Nathan Wilkes, Chuck Wilder, Bill Wright, Sonia Ross, Sandy Gaye, Four Tracks, Young Divines, and several others we can't fit on a h ype sticker.

Now available back-to-back on 7” single, ‘Hogtied’ and ‘Quicksand’, two standout cuts from Chain Reaction’s debut long-player recorded in September 1975 at The Workhouse Studios, located on Old Kent Road, London. Produced by industry veteran Stanley Pemberton of Congress Productions and Mike Hugg of Manfred Mann, Chain Reaction's blend of sweet vocal harmonies, funk-inflected grooves and Motownesque arrangements have long been favoured by soul collectors and beat-fiends alike. Both recordings are alternative 7" versions from studio tapes.

Detroit's hip-hop and house hero DJ Der, aka Andres, aka DEZ Andrez is taking care of the next two releases from the Future Rootz label which started in 2019 and only dropped its second EP in February. For his part, the former Slum Village member taps into his Cuban roots with a couple of sizzling and Latin-tinged grooves. His quintessential boom-bap drums are at the heart of each tune with plenty of big horn energy, fiery vocals and sun-kissed percussion all bringing 'Wepa Sepa!!' to life next to busy, happy keys. The flipside goes a little deeper with plenty of scratching, low-key beats and rump-wiggling percussion.

"Shut Him Down” was the third song written by Michael Leonhart & Elvis Costello during the 2020 quarantine. The first two, “Radio Is Everything” and "Newspaper Pane”—both of which were produced by Leonhart —appeared on Elvis’ 2020 solo album, Hey Clockface.
Michael and Elvis first met in 2007 at the Molde Festival in Norway, where Costello and the late Allen Toussaint shared a double bill with Steely Dan, with whom Leonhart has played since ’96. The two kept in touch over the ensuing years, including joining forces in 2015 for an Elvis Costello & The Imposters/Steely Dan tour. Early on in the quarantine, Leonhart sent Costello some instrumental music in need of lyrics. Costello states “Michael sent this music to me from New York at the perfect time.” After finishing the first two songs, Leonhart asked Costello to sing over an original heavy Afrobeat song he had been recording with his Michael Leonhart Orchestra during lockdown. Costello crafted lyrics that exist at the crossroads of political commentary and existential contemplation. Leonhart then asked NY rapper, JSWISS to write a verse building off Elvis’ lyrics and the drums grooves of Nick Movshon and Homer Steinweiss. Antibalas guitarist Luke O'Malley then came on board to write and record additional guitar parts.

Side A ends with a fiery bass clarinet solo from Chris Potter, while side B features an extended tenor sax solo from acclaimed saxophonist Joshua Redman.

"Shut Him Down" was first released in March 2022 on The Michael Leonhart Orchestra album, The Norymn Suites (Sunnyside Records) and now becomes available as a limited edition 7” b/w instrumental through Mighty Eye Records in partnership with Fat Beats.

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In 1985 Michael Soward & Shelby Hurns set out to create a new gospel sound, a progressive mix of synthesized gospel soul & spiritual funk, Here are 3 edited tracks from their debut album, guaranteed to bless speakers worldwide!