Thursday, April 16, 2015

NEW RELEASES: THE VERY BEST OF IDRIS MUHAMMAD: BOOGIE TO THE TOP; PAUL WILLIAMS – A LITTLE ON THE WINDY SIDE (EXPANDED EDITION); NICOLE WILLIS & THE SOUL INVESTIGATORS - PAINT ME IN A CORNER

IDRIS MUHAMMAD - THE VERY BEST OF IDRIS MUHAMMAD: BOOGIE TO THE TOP

This collection includes the Jazz Funk Classics Could Heaven Ever Be Like This, Boogie To The Top and Turn This Mutha Out, and the 7 versions of these three tracks are also added as bonus tracks. Some amazing Jazz musicians play on tracks featured on this compilation, including Grover Washington Jr, Eric Gale, Bob James, Ralph MacDonald, Fred Wesley, Hiram Bullock & The Brecker Brothers. The CTI / Kudu albums were recorded between 1974 & 1978 a real purple patch for Idris with the release of four albums in that period namely Power Of Soul, House Of The Rising Sun, Turn This Mutha Out & Boogie To The Top Tracks on these albums were produced by Creed Taylor & Dave Matthews. The track Lorans Dance was sampled by both The Beastie Boys (For All The Girls) and Fatboy Slim (The Weekend Starts Here), Could Heaven Ever Be Like This has also been sampled notably by Jamiroquai (Alright). ~ Amazon

PAUL WILLIAMS – A LITTLE ON THE WINDY SIDE (EXPANDED EDITION)

In a Grammy, Oscar and Golden Globe-winning career that’s taken him from Tiny Tim to Daft Punk, Paul Williams has seen his songs recorded by Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Elvis Presley, David Bowie, The Carpenters, and of course, Kermit the Frog. During his reign as perhaps the Seventies’ most in-demand songwriter, Williams also kept busy as an actor, television personality and recording artist. He came into his own as a vocalist at Reprise and A&M Records on albums such as Someday Man and Just an Old-Fashioned Love Song before moving to Epic Records’ sister label, Portrait. At Portrait – also the home of Heart and, briefly, Ringo Starr – Williams recorded what he later described as “one of the most listenable and good-feeling records I’ve ever been associated with.”  That record was A Little on the Windy Side. The album was recorded in Nashville with Paul’s brother Mentor Williams—the songwriter of Dobie Gray’s Top 5 hit “Drift Away” and Paul’s onetime bandmate in The Holy Mackerel—and featured Music City’s top session cats including David Briggs, Reggie Young and Troy Seals (a talented songwriter in his own right.)  Despite a wealth of strong material including movie tunes “Here’s Another Fine Mess” and “My Fair Share,” fan favorite “For Goodness Sake,” and a collaboration with Brill Building legend Jeff Barry, A Little on the Windy Side all but disappeared when the Portrait label was briefly shuttered.  Years later, a limited edition Japanese CD release came and went, too.  Real Gone Music and Second Disc Records have come to the rescue with this freshly-remastered first-ever American reissue.  Even better, four bonus tracks have been added to this Expanded Edition!  Three never-before-heard outtakes (including Paul’s own rendition of “When the River Meets the Sea” from the beloved holiday special Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas and “Love Conquers All,” originally performed by Seals & Crofts) and a rare mono single round out this package, which features new liner notes from The Second Disc’s Joe Marchese and remastering by Sean Brennan at Battery Studios in New York.  

NICOLE WILLIS & THE SOUL INVESTIGATORS - PAINT ME IN A CORNER

Now and then you might find yourself painted in a corner. It is usually the case that you can only blame yourself for ending up there. The painter of shapes and words, Nicole Willis has painted herself for the past ten years into the periphery of Helsinki, Finland, only to sing her soul out. Now she's back at grinding her vocal axe with The Soul Investigators. Approaching the release of their third joint album in late 2015, it's time to test the waters with Paint Me in a Corner b/w Where Are You Now. Neither of the tracks carries much of a humour element. The first one points its pounding existential finger towards us all, urging us to break the chains of normality, while the beautiful melancholia of the second track rocks the listener in a mid-tempo groove paradise. These two tracks might be just the thing to kick you in the chest with enough soul in order to get out of the house. Maybe even dance by yourself in a desolate corner of the bar.


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