NEW RELEASES - GENE PAGE PRODUCED BY BARRY WHITE - HOT CITY; DISCO REGGAE VOLUME TWO; GABOR SZABO & BOBBY WOMACK - HIGH CONTRAST

GENE PAGE PRODUCED BY BARRY WHITE - HOT CITY

An excellent album of Barry White-styled instrumentals – put together by Barry's right hand man Gene Page, and produced by Barry himself! The record's one of the best that Gene Page ever cut – apart from his seminal blacksploitation soundtracks – and it's very much in the mode of White's Love Unlimited Orchestra albums from the same time, although perhaps with less of a string section – and more of an emphasis on funky drums at the bottom. Players are an all-star cast of LA studio groovers that includes David T Walker and Ray Parker on guitar, Ernie Watts and Wilton Felder on saxes, and Clarence McDonald on keyboards – and tracks are mostly originals by Page and White. Titles include "Jungle Eyes", "She's My Main Squeeze", "I Am Living In A World Of Gloom", "Satin Soul", and "To The Bone". Bonus tracks include 7" versions of "Satin Soul" and "All Our Dreams Are Coming True". ~ Dusty Groove

DISCO REGGAE VOLUME TWO

Fantastic sounds from this ultra-cool project – music that's neither straight disco, nor really reggae – and instead a great dubby reworking of dancefloor modes from a few generations past! The range of material here comes a number of different settings – but is all worked together carefully with a very cohesive feel – thanks to a selection of like-minded artists and producers who've made this Disco Reggae project one of the better experiments of this nature in recent years! Most tunes are familiar numbers, but remade in this fresh new vision – and titles include "Tainted Love (Grandmagneto orig 7")" by Grandmagneto, "Watermelon Man (Taggy Matcher disco reggae mix)" by Taggy Matcher, "Sabadi (7 Samurai electro disco reggae mix)" by Lucas Arruda, "Stand On The World (7 Samurai electro dub mix)" by Joubert Singers, "I'll Do Anything For You (Mato reggae mix)" by Lee McDonald, and "Queen Of The Minstrels (Taggy Matcher disco reggae mix)" by Mr Day. ~ Dusty Groove 

GABOR SZABO & BOBBY WOMACK - HIGH CONTRAST

Excellent early 70s work from jazz guitarist Gabor Szabo – a super-dope album that's one of the best he ever recorded! Part of the success of the record has to do with the presence of Bobby Womack – normally a soul singer, but also a heck of a guitarist, playing here alongside Szabo in a very cool twin-guitar style that makes for an amazing sound. Both players have a hollow, warm tone to their work on the strings – stepping around a blend of soul and jazz that's nicely tripped out in a 70s Blue Thumb style. The highlight of the record is the massive track "Breezin", a sample track used by more than one group over the years – but the whole record's amazing, filled with slow, trippy grooves that were years ahead of their time! Titles include "I Remember When", "Just A Little Communication", "Amazon", "Fingers", and "Azure Blue". ~ Dusty Groove.