There’s a cool new DJ site at
InfinityTunes.co.uk
It features DJs from the around the world and I’ll be contributing some mixes starting this Friday and mixing live on there in the upcoming weeks.
There’s some very cool sounds there so check it out.
There is some disagreement about what the ‘first’ Acid House was. I’ve heard some people say I’ve Lost Control by Sleazy D which did come out long before Phuture and has some weird keyboard sounds, but I certainly wouldn’t call it acid. Land Of Confusion by Armando came out around the same time, but I’m pretty sure that Phuture was the first.
I just saw that Youtube changed their time limit from 10 minutes to 15, so I thought that Acid Tracks would be the best way to celebrate that. At 12:29, all previous versions on Youtube had been cut off before the end.
Enjoy this classic track and it’s B-sides, Phuture Jacks (which I like even better than the A side) and the anti-drug song Your Only Friend.
I spent the last few days reorganizing my record collection. Once you wait enough years, it becomes quite the adventure since you forgot about a lot of the stuff that you have.
Damn – I have a lot of Jesse Saunders stuff.
Yello….remixed by Derrick May?!?!
What is Candy Flip and why did I buy it?
Why on earth do I have two copies of an Erasure song?
I knew I had that Phil N The Blanks album!
The music that came out of Detroit in the 80s was like a cousin to house music in the family tree. You could see a few similarities but it was completely unique.
And when it comes to classic techno – it doesn’t get much better than Strings Of Life.
Here are four mixes of that song. Two from the original single on Transmat. A remix on Jack Trax. And the ’89 mix done by Juan Atkins. I’m not too fond of the 89 mix. It somehow loses the song’s classic vibe. But at least it came with some wild cover art.
And what does Youtube suggest for tags. House? Ohh, you’re going to upset the purists there, youtube. Olympic Games? Was this song used in some Olympic ceremony? Gangsta? Ok youtube, now you’re just trippin.
I love how it often suggests ‘vinyl’ for my uploads. I think thats their polite way of saying “too much static”.
Flam-Boy-Ant Mix
Jack Trax Exclusive Remix
Strings Of Life ’89 (Juan’s Magic Mix)
Let’s face it. Most albums are a hit single or two if they are lucky and the rest is just filler. It’s rare to find one that is good from start to finish. The house artists who released albums in the 80s were no different. But there is always an exception or two. A prime example is Mickey Oliver’s first (and I believe only) album – In-Ten-Si-T. Damn good music from start to finish. Although, at 30-something minutes, we might have to call it half an album, but let’s not nitpick.
You have the single In-Ten-Si-T which was a huge hit (if it doesn’t immediately ring any bells, it’s vocals are a Speak And Spell saying – You make me want, you make me cry, you’re the one for me, I like your intensity), and Pump Up The Beat is an interesting Pump Up The Volume tribute?/parody?/ripoff? , but when I would be driving around with my buddies, I think we grooved the most to You Make Me with it’s catchy latin keyboards and percussion.
The vocals on most songs are by Shanna Jae which I just learned from Google is actually Paris Grey – most famous for her work in Inner City. Although I wonder if this is some internet-propagated misinformation since there is a picture of a woman on the back of the album (presumably Shanna Jae) and I’m not sure that it looks like Paris Grey.
Shanna Jae
Paris Grey
The rest of the album:
Track 1 – Never Let Go
Track 2 – You Make Me
Track 4 – Pump Up The Beat
Track 5 – Heart On Hold
Track 6 – I Like It
Track 7 – Mega Mix In
I’ll be uploading a bunch of classic tunes to Youtube – but I may miss a day here or there so don’t take ‘song of the day’ quite so literally.
When I first got into house music and mixes in the 80s, there weren’t any good music stores out in the suburbs with a good selection of 12 inch singles. Feeling frustrated, I finally called one of the distributors listed on one of the singles (probably Quantum), and they gave me a few suggestions. One of them was Importes Etc. It seemed like a big adventure for a buddy and me to drive into downtown Chicago to go to some hidden, dingy little record store. (And make no mistake – back in 1986, Importes was pretty dingy. They remodeled a few years later.)
I spent a bunch of money that day, probably mostly Trax and DJ International stuff. The only record I specifically remember buying was Legion by Mark Shreeve. I was so excited that they had it. It was a record I had heard in a bunch of mixes on WBMX and WGCI. The reason I remember it is because – when I went to check out, the guy ringing up my purchases yelled to a co-worker something like “Hey – we finally got someone to buy our last copy of Legion.” I had the distinct impression that this guy was mocking me and my white boy, suburban tastes. Or it could have just been that they had bought too many copies and were finally glad to get rid of them all. Who knows? Don’t get me wrong – I was at that store 1000 times after that and everyone was always cool, but for my first impression, I wasn’t so sure about that place.
Mark Shreeve – Legion (Razor Mix)
Other versions of the song from the 12 inch:
Here’s a live turntable mix from the archives.
A bunch of hip house, other house, and other stuff – cause thats the way I like it – a little bit of everything.
Get the torrent here
or here – Torrent Magnet link.
Or if torrents leave you confused – get it directly here.
The full song list
Grand Piano – The Mixmaster
Git On Up – Fast Eddie featuring Sundance
Get Busy – Mr Lee
Feel The Beat – Mix ‘N’ Tel
Party Time Remix – Edward Crosby & Singing DJ
Elektric Dance – Jungle Crew
How Do Ya Feel – White Boy Mike & The Strength
Heat It Up – Wee Papa Girl Rappers
Check It Out – The Lincoln Boys
Yo Yo Get Funky – Fast Eddie
Turn Up The Bass – Kool Rock Steady
(You’re My One And Only) True Love – Seduction
Rock This Place – Mr Lee
I Feel Love – Fax Yourself
Walking On Sunshine – Fax Yourself
Keep It Movin – White Knight
Pump Up The Jam – Technotronic
Everybody Dance – Brother D
Rock This Party Right – Cool House
Addicted To Bass – M.C. Krash
French Kiss – Lil Louis
Lost In The Bass – The Bass Boyz
My House – Nelson ‘FFWD’ Cruz
It’s Percussion – Steve Silk Hurley Featuring M Doc
Work It Out – Steve Silk Hurley
Get Into The Dance – Maurice
Get Up – Diva
Get Funky – Royal House
Just Keep Rockin’ – Double The Trouble & The Rebel MC
Let’s Go – Fast Eddie
Rock This Party – Maximum Strength
Try Yazz – Two Without Hats
Can U Feel The Beat – To Kool Chris
The Flight – The Fascination