https://soundsoftheuniverse.com/img/Snd4ZGpoQ0tTRkpCeVdIWTBUeWJQZz09/sjr-lp507-life-between-islands-sleeve.jpeg
Soundsystem Culture : Black Musical Expression In The UK 1973 - 2006SOUL JAZZ RECORDSSoul Jazz Records new ‘Life Between Islands’ collection is released in conjuction with Tate Britain’s exhibition of the same name. This landmark exhibition explores the links between Caribbean and British art and culture from the 1950s to now.Soul Jazz Records album, sub-titled “Soundsystem Culture – Black Musical Expression 1973-2006,” focuses on the most important Black British musical styles to emerge out of the distinctly Caribbean world of sound systems. The album features an all-star line-up including Dennis Bovell, Shut Up and Dance, Cymande, Digital Mystikz, Brown Sugar, Funk Masters, Janet Kay, Ragga Twins and more.The album is a lightning-rod journey across Roots Reggae, Jungle/Drum & Bass, Jazz-Funk, Lovers Rock, Jazz, Dubstep and more. Much of Soul Jazz Records’ catalogue comes out of these genres and this album is partly an overview of some of Soul Jazz’s earlier releases (including Digital Mystikz’ long-deleted groundbreaking and now highly-collectible single, ‘Misty Winter’) alongside some choice rare and classic tunes that span over 30 years of sound system culture.Many of the tracks represent how Black British artists defined their own identity with songs such as Brown Sugar’s righteous ‘Black Pride’, ‘I’m In Love with A Dreadlocks’ and Tabby Cat Kelly’s powerful ‘Don’t Call Us Immigrants’. Aside from being musically rooted in the distinctly Jamaican-born phenomenon of the sound system, much of this identity is also shaped by the triangular relationship of being British-born, of Caribbean heritage, and with an equal love of African-American Jazz, Funk and Soul, as evidenced with many Lovers Rock tunes reggae covers of American soul tunes (such as those of Jean Carn, William de Vaughan and Rose Royce featured here). This stateside influence can also be heard in groups such as the Funk Masters, a group formed by reggae radio DJ Tony Williams, whose jazz-funk music successfully crossed over into New York’s clubland, as well as the great Cymande, whose unique street-funk became staple material for numerous US hip-hop artists in the years that followed.In the early 1990s, jungle and drum and bass artists took the essence of reggae’s soundsystem culture – MCs, dubplates, crews – and applied them to their own music, applying heavy reggae bass lines to intense double-speed drum breakbeats. At the forefront of this new movement were the duo Shut Up and Dance, working closely with The Ragga Twins, aka Deman Rocker and Flinty Badman, both MCs for North London’s infamous Unity reggae soundsytem. In the early 2000s, dubstep, spearheaded by Digital Mystikz, became the latest instalment in this ever-evolving soundsystem culture.Soul Jazz Records’ ‘Life Between Islands’ shows how these many styles are interconnected. The album comes as a heavyweight triple vinyl (+ download), deluxe double CD with slipcase and digital release. Lloyd Bradley (author of the classic book on reggae ‘Bass Culture’, and ‘Sounds Like London’), provides the excellent sleevenotes, which are also accompanied with exclusive and striking photography.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------"There is probably no better or more appropriate way to celebrate the Tate Britain’s exhibition, Between the Islands: Caribbean-British Art 1950s – Now, than with an accompanying compilation album. As with the art itself, music has all the possibilities to reflect its surroundings through an array of lenses limited only by the creator’s imagination. Hence this astutely conceived and compiled soundtrack is as beautiful and as varied as the art itself, offering stories of immigration and settlement that can exist without filters or outside interference, providing a vivid snapshot of one of the cornerstones of black British culture.” Lloyd BradleyLife Between Islands: Caribbean-British Art 1950s-Now is at Tate Britain 1 Dec 2021 until 3 April 2022.REVIEWS:"It’s yet another example of Soul Jazz Records winning combination of historical insight and high quality, often exceptional music, the label spreading knowledge with nary a trace of academic dryness." Vinyl DistrictRough Trade - Top 10 Compilation of the year
Soul Jazz Records new ‘Life Between Islands’ collection is released in conjuction with Tate Britain’s exhibition of the same name. This landmark exhibition explores the links between Caribbean and British art and culture from the 1950s to now.
Soul Jazz Records album, sub-titled “Soundsystem Culture – Black Musical Expression 1973-2006,” focuses on the most important Black British musical styles to emerge out of the distinctly Caribbean world of sound systems. The album features an all-star line-up including Dennis Bovell, Shut Up and Dance, Cymande, Digital Mystikz, Brown Sugar, Funk Masters, Janet Kay, Ragga Twins and more.
The album is a lightning-rod journey across Roots Reggae, Jungle/Drum & Bass, Jazz-Funk, Lovers Rock, Jazz, Dubstep and more. Much of Soul Jazz Records’ catalogue comes out of these genres and this album is partly an overview of some of Soul Jazz’s earlier releases (including Digital Mystikz’ long-deleted groundbreaking and now highly-collectible single, ‘Misty Winter’) alongside some choice rare and classic tunes that span over 30 years of sound system culture.
Many of the tracks represent how Black British artists defined their own identity with songs such as Brown Sugar’s righteous ‘Black Pride’, ‘I’m In Love with A Dreadlocks’ and Tabby Cat Kelly’s powerful ‘Don’t Call Us Immigrants’. Aside from being musically rooted in the distinctly Jamaican-born phenomenon of the sound system, much of this identity is also shaped by the triangular relationship of being British-born, of Caribbean heritage, and with an equal love of African-American Jazz, Funk and Soul, as evidenced with many Lovers Rock tunes reggae covers of American soul tunes (such as those of Jean Carn, William de Vaughan and Rose Royce featured here). This stateside influence can also be heard in groups such as the Funk Masters, a group formed by reggae radio DJ Tony Williams, whose jazz-funk music successfully crossed over into New York’s clubland, as well as the great Cymande, whose unique street-funk became staple material for numerous US hip-hop artists in the years that followed.
In the early 1990s, jungle and drum and bass artists took the essence of reggae’s soundsystem culture – MCs, dubplates, crews – and applied them to their own music, applying heavy reggae bass lines to intense double-speed drum breakbeats. At the forefront of this new movement were the duo Shut Up and Dance, working closely with The Ragga Twins, aka Deman Rocker and Flinty Badman, both MCs for North London’s infamous Unity reggae soundsytem. In the early 2000s, dubstep, spearheaded by Digital Mystikz, became the latest instalment in this ever-evolving soundsystem culture.
Soul Jazz Records’ ‘Life Between Islands’ shows how these many styles are interconnected. The album comes as a heavyweight triple vinyl (+ download), deluxe double CD with slipcase and digital release. Lloyd Bradley (author of the classic book on reggae ‘Bass Culture’, and ‘Sounds Like London’), provides the excellent sleevenotes, which are also accompanied with exclusive and striking photography.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"There is probably no better or more appropriate way to celebrate the Tate Britain’s exhibition, Between the Islands: Caribbean-British Art 1950s – Now, than with an accompanying compilation album. As with the art itself, music has all the possibilities to reflect its surroundings through an array of lenses limited only by the creator’s imagination. Hence this astutely conceived and compiled soundtrack is as beautiful and as varied as the art itself, offering stories of immigration and settlement that can exist without filters or outside interference, providing a vivid snapshot of one of the cornerstones of black British culture.” Lloyd Bradley
Life Between Islands: Caribbean-British Art 1950s-Now is at Tate Britain 1 Dec 2021 until 3 April 2022.
REVIEWS:
"It’s yet another example of Soul Jazz Records winning combination of historical insight and high quality, often exceptional music, the label spreading knowledge with nary a trace of academic dryness." Vinyl District
Rough Trade - Top 10 Compilation of the year
More info, audio:https://soundsoftheuniverse.com/sjr/product/life-between-islands
― dow, Tuesday, 13 December 2022 03:28 (one year ago) link
Saxophonist Marzette Watts only ever made two albums — Marzette & Company for ESP-Disk, and The Marzette Watts Ensemble for Savoy, the latter of which was produced by Bill Dixon. It's been out of print since 1969, never reissued on CD. The Portuguese label Mad About Records is doing a limited edition vinyl run and selling it digitally:
https://madaboutrecordslabel.bandcamp.com/album/the-marzette-watts-ensemble
The word is, this is not a "legit" reissue because Savoy has nothing to do with it; they got the tapes from Marty Cook, who plays trombone on the record and is the last living member of the group. But since Savoy (which is now owned by Concord) has never bothered to do anything with the album, I say fuck 'em, get it how you can. I've wanted to hear this music for more than 20 years and now I can.
― but also fuck you (unperson), Tuesday, 13 December 2022 03:40 (one year ago) link
Didn't know about that one---is Sonny Sharrock on there again?
D-I-Y or Die ! Art, Trash, Neon - Punk 45's In The UK 1977 - 1978SOUL JAZZ RECORDSSoul Jazz Records’ long-lasting Punk 45 series are high-quality editions of early punk 45s. While previous editions have focussed on the early days of punk in Los Angeles, Cleveland, Akron, France, and proto-punk, this new edition focusses on mainly do-it-yourself, or self-released 45s, all made in the UK in the early days of punk.While only a handful of Punk 45s were released in 1976, the following two years produced an avalanche of them. Aside from the few punk bands who signed to major labels, many of these singles were self-released private press 45s or independent label 45s. With limited distribution and access to the media, many of these sunk without trace and were lost in history. This album features many of these independent punk 45 gems, lost nuggets of gold from the sea of time!The bands featured here come from all across the United Kingdom. Here you will find The Drive, Scotlands’ answer to the New York Dolls, Dansette Damage from Newcastle, Stormtrooper, from the Isle of Wight and many more - a snapshot of some of the finest private-press 45s ever made. Other bands include Cybermen, The Exile, Neon as well as the early punk incarnations Johnny and The Self-Abusers (who later became Simple Minds) and The Killjoys (led by Kevin Rowland who later formed Dexy’s Midnight Runners).These are all one-off and super rare releases from bands that you have probably never heard of! – totally hidden gems from the wastelands of the early days of punk. Totally in keeping with the spirit of the time, this is high-octane, righteously-independent - DIY or die!Resident - Top 10 Compilation of the year
Soul Jazz Records’ long-lasting Punk 45 series are high-quality editions of early punk 45s. While previous editions have focussed on the early days of punk in Los Angeles, Cleveland, Akron, France, and proto-punk, this new edition focusses on mainly do-it-yourself, or self-released 45s, all made in the UK in the early days of punk.
While only a handful of Punk 45s were released in 1976, the following two years produced an avalanche of them. Aside from the few punk bands who signed to major labels, many of these singles were self-released private press 45s or independent label 45s. With limited distribution and access to the media, many of these sunk without trace and were lost in history. This album features many of these independent punk 45 gems, lost nuggets of gold from the sea of time!
The bands featured here come from all across the United Kingdom. Here you will find The Drive, Scotlands’ answer to the New York Dolls, Dansette Damage from Newcastle, Stormtrooper, from the Isle of Wight and many more - a snapshot of some of the finest private-press 45s ever made. Other bands include Cybermen, The Exile, Neon as well as the early punk incarnations Johnny and The Self-Abusers (who later became Simple Minds) and The Killjoys (led by Kevin Rowland who later formed Dexy’s Midnight Runners).
These are all one-off and super rare releases from bands that you have probably never heard of! – totally hidden gems from the wastelands of the early days of punk. Totally in keeping with the spirit of the time, this is high-octane, righteously-independent - DIY or die!
Resident - Top 10 Compilation of the year
https://soundsoftheuniverse.com/img/VVFpWE9lRXE0aUl4ZVV5czVieUJNdz09/sjr-lp505-punk-45-diy-sleeve.jpg
― dow, Tuesday, 13 December 2022 03:43 (one year ago) link
― dow, Tuesday, 13 December 2022 03:44 (one year ago) link
Steve ReidOdyssey of the Oblong SquareSJRew special one-off pressing v.limited edition gold vinyl edition (and gold CD edition!) of this intense and radical jazz classic album.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------"A Truly Phenomenal Artist' Gilles Peterson"Steve Reid is one of the greatest drummers. He is a musical genius." Kieran Hebden, Four Tet“Reflects the spirit of a generation- Art Ensemble of Chicago, John Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders, the Black Artists Group.” The Wire.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------'Odyssey of the Oblong Square'---featuring heavyweight players Arthur Blythe, Charles Tyler, David Wertman and Muhammad Abdullah---was originally self-released by Steve Reid in 1977 on (his) own Mustevic Sound record label (where it came out in an edition of 1000 copies) and has been a serious collectors album ever since.These special gold vinyl and CD editions are both one-off pressings, which, like the original, are limited to 1000 copies worldwide.Steve Reid became known worldwide for his radical collaborations with Kieren Hebden after they first recorded together on the Steve Reid Ensemble album Spirit Walk released on Soul Jazz in 2005, releasing five joint releases together in the following years... up until his untimely death in 2010.Steve Reid is steeped in musical history and a true pioneer of US deep left-field jazz. He played in Sun Ra’s Arkestra, was a Motown session drummer and backed James Brown at the Apollo! He was a Black Panther, imprisoned during the Vietnam war as a conscientious objector and lived in Africa in the early 1970s. Reid worked with Freddie Hubbard, Gary Bartz, Ornette Coleman, Lester Bowie, Fela Kuti, Leon Thomas, Miles Davis and many more in his long illustrious and groundbreaking career."A Truly Phenomenal Artist' Gilles Peterson"Steve Reid is one of the greatest drummers. He is a musical genius." Kieran Hebden, Four Tet“Reflects the spirit of a generation- Art Ensemble of Chicago, John Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders, the Black Artists Group.” The Wire.
ew special one-off pressing v.limited edition gold vinyl edition (and gold CD edition!) of this intense and radical jazz classic album.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"A Truly Phenomenal Artist' Gilles Peterson
"Steve Reid is one of the greatest drummers. He is a musical genius." Kieran Hebden, Four Tet
“Reflects the spirit of a generation- Art Ensemble of Chicago, John Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders, the Black Artists Group.” The Wire.
'Odyssey of the Oblong Square'---featuring heavyweight players Arthur Blythe, Charles Tyler, David Wertman and Muhammad Abdullah---was originally self-released by Steve Reid in 1977 on (his) own Mustevic Sound record label (where it came out in an edition of 1000 copies) and has been a serious collectors album ever since.
These special gold vinyl and CD editions are both one-off pressings, which, like the original, are limited to 1000 copies worldwide.
Steve Reid became known worldwide for his radical collaborations with Kieren Hebden after they first recorded together on the Steve Reid Ensemble album Spirit Walk released on Soul Jazz in 2005, releasing five joint releases together in the following years... up until his untimely death in 2010.
Steve Reid is steeped in musical history and a true pioneer of US deep left-field jazz. He played in Sun Ra’s Arkestra, was a Motown session drummer and backed James Brown at the Apollo! He was a Black Panther, imprisoned during the Vietnam war as a conscientious objector and lived in Africa in the early 1970s. Reid worked with Freddie Hubbard, Gary Bartz, Ornette Coleman, Lester Bowie, Fela Kuti, Leon Thomas, Miles Davis and many more in his long illustrious and groundbreaking career.
More info, audio:https://soundsoftheuniverse.com/sjr/product/steve-reid-odyssey-of-the-oblong-square
https://soundsoftheuniverse.com/img/ZC80RTRsNVRaWk4vSHRmN2QzdVRjZz09/sjr-lp514c-steve-reid-odyssey-slve.jpg
― dow, Tuesday, 13 December 2022 03:58 (one year ago) link
For more 2022 Soul Jazz Records releases, see:https://soundsoftheuniverse.com/sjr
― dow, Tuesday, 13 December 2022 04:01 (one year ago) link
I think they're all downloads as well, though storefront plays up the more expensive formats.
― dow, Tuesday, 13 December 2022 04:03 (one year ago) link
― but also fuck you (unperson), Monday, December 12, 2022 10:40 PM (yesterday) bookmarkflaglink
Bill Dixon (who also plays piano on one of the tracks, "Play It Straight") called Savoy a "plantation." Fuck 'em seconded.
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Tuesday, 13 December 2022 16:42 (one year ago) link
FTR, bassist Steve Tintweiss is also still among the living. In fact, I interviewed him earlier this year about Albert Ayler:
https://daily.bandcamp.com/features/albert-ayler-revelations-interview
― but also fuck you (unperson), Tuesday, 13 December 2022 16:45 (one year ago) link
welp
Dear buyer, unfortunately, we will have to provisionally withdraw the reissue of The Marzette Watts Ensemble LP due to discrepancies in the authorisation we had to do so. Mad About Records is firmly against unofficial releases, and we strictly adhere to this policy. With this reissue, some discrepancies have arisen, and we don't want to operate in a territory where there could be any suspicion. Until we have a clarification, we will withdraw the disc from the market until then in pre-sale. We apologise for what happened and the damage caused. We will immediately refund the purchase and ensure that this reissue is a reality so that we can all enjoy the excellence of this record.
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Thursday, 15 December 2022 17:27 (one year ago) link
One of my favorite Latin spiritual jazz albums, trumpeter Luis Gasca's For Those Who Chant, has been reissued on CD in a nice mini-LP sleeve by some South Korean label I've never heard of, but I just bought one on eBay, so I guess I'll report back on the quality of the remastering etc. when it arrives in, like, February. The personnel on this record is fucking mind-blowing, and it really should be better known and never out of print:
Trumpet, Flugelhorn – Luis GascaTenor Saxophone – Joe HendersonFlute – Hadley CalimanGuitar – Carlos Santana, Neal SchonPiano, Electric Piano – George Cables, Gregg Rolie, Mark LevineOrgan – Richard KermodeBass – Stanley ClarkeVibraphone – José "Chepito" Areas Percussion – Garnette Mims, Joan MacGregor, Rico Reyes, Snooky FlowersCongas – Mike Carabello, Victor PantojaTimbales – Carmelo Garcia, Coke EscovedoDrums – Lenny White, Mike Shrieve
― but also fuck you (unperson), Tuesday, 20 December 2022 20:15 (one year ago) link
So he's got pretty much all of early Santana-the-band on there, along with Joe Henderson and George Cables and Stanley Clarke etc.?!
― dow, Tuesday, 20 December 2022 20:31 (one year ago) link
Yep. He had an interesting career — only made a few albums under his own name, but he was a member of Woody Herman's band, played with Mongo Santamaria and did sessions for Janis Joplin, Van Morrison, Santana (he was also on the live album with Buddy Miles), Malo, George Duke, and Joe Henderson.
― but also fuck you (unperson), Tuesday, 20 December 2022 20:42 (one year ago) link
good lord, that lineup
― lets hear some blues on those synths (brimstead), Tuesday, 20 December 2022 20:52 (one year ago) link
holy shit, that lineup is nuts. definitely let us know how the quality is, that sounds like something i will totally keep an eye out for.
― Maxmillion D. Boosted (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Tuesday, 20 December 2022 21:21 (one year ago) link
did the marzette watts reissue on mad about get scrapped? the link is now dead.
― budo jeru, Tuesday, 20 December 2022 21:58 (one year ago) link
it did, I think there was a post above abt that?
― sleeve, Tuesday, 20 December 2022 22:01 (one year ago) link
Yeah, it's down. The copy I purchased is now set to "Private" in my Bandcamp account and I can't download the files anymore. Fortunately I downloaded them the minute the transaction went through...
― but also fuck you (unperson), Tuesday, 20 December 2022 22:13 (one year ago) link
Do you have the full line-up? Was wondering if Sharrock was with him again (def his apprentice work on the ESP-DISK, but wondering if they did more, when he could play a bit more).
― dow, Tuesday, 20 December 2022 22:18 (one year ago) link
I haven’t been able to find a definitive listing of the personnel (there may be one out there; I’m just lazy), but Sharrock isn’t on it. The drummer I believe is J.C. Moses and, as I posted upthread, Bill Dixon produced, and played piano on one track.
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Tuesday, 20 December 2022 22:23 (one year ago) link
The lineup (and instrumentation) are pretty interesting — credits via Discogs:
Cornet – George TurnerTenor Saxophone – Marzette WattsTrombone – Marty CookViolin – Frank KipersPiano – Bobby FewBass – Cevera Jeffires, Juini Booth, Steve TintweissDrums – J.C. Moses, Tom BergeVocals – Amy Sheffer, Patty Waters
― but also fuck you (unperson), Tuesday, 20 December 2022 22:55 (one year ago) link
Sorry; the first bassist's name is Cevera Jeffries.
― but also fuck you (unperson), Tuesday, 20 December 2022 22:56 (one year ago) link
― sleeve, Tuesday, December 20, 2022 4:01 PM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink
yeah, sorry, missed that!
― budo jeru, Tuesday, 20 December 2022 23:46 (one year ago) link
whoa, this is big news. iirc this is one of those German records that routinely fetches $500+
https://www.forcedexposure.com/Catalog/wegmuller-walter-tarot-2lp/KK.2258003LP.html
― frogbs, Wednesday, 21 December 2022 15:41 (one year ago) link
Also a 4CD reissue:
Four CD version. Includes two remastered versions, each on two CDs. Four-CD version includes two remastered versions, each on two CDs; first remaster by Dierks/Flüchter and then a completely different mastering by Dieter Wegner, who has already remastered many albums of the krautrock catalog, including the albums of the Cosmic Jokers.
― Maxmillion D. Boosted (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Wednesday, 21 December 2022 15:59 (one year ago) link
that rules, always wanted to hear that since reading about it in Krautrocksampler
― lets hear some blues on those synths (brimstead), Wednesday, 21 December 2022 16:06 (one year ago) link
you can hear it on YouTube, it sounds like a mash-up of Ash Ra Tempel & Amon Duul II. really cool and definitely something I've always wanted to own. plus the intro where he introduces the band is (accidentally?) hilarious
― frogbs, Wednesday, 21 December 2022 16:08 (one year ago) link
yeah I'm super stoked, this has long been on my wishlist
― Maxmillion D. Boosted (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Wednesday, 21 December 2022 16:09 (one year ago) link
Just found this posted elsewhere today:
Mechanical royalty rates are calculated in a completely different manner for European labels, so what may be possible for European labels is not viable for U.S. labels. There's a reason why European labels can include a ton of songs on a disc and sell it for a low price, or sell 4-fers for the cost of a single disc, or do box sets with tons of great content for a low price, while U.S. labels cannot do the same. The law in Europe is that the mechanical royalties (the money paid to the songwriters) are calculated and paid as a percentage of the wholesale price of the disc. If the wholesale price of the disc is $8, the amount paid in mechanical royalties would be the same whether the disc had 10 tracks or 50 tracks. In the U.S., it's a statutory rate paid per song -- and a 32% increase in that statutory rate just went into effect this year.
I vaguely knew that royalty payouts were higher in the U.S. when they included more songs on an album (one reason why U.S. versions of U.K. albums in the '60s had less songs), but I didn't realize how much of a difference that made in the CD era.
― birdistheword, Thursday, 16 March 2023 23:47 (one year ago) link