A Pocket Sized Mixtape Vol. 10: The Boogie Back

'The Boogie Back' is Vol. 10 in the 'Pocket Sized Mixtape' series, and it sees the selection narrowed to some funk and soul-filled, disco-flavoured boogie bangers that always make me shake what my momma gave me. And then some.

You can listen AND download from SoundCloud or MixCloud. If you're interested in a playlist, I suggest you head towards MixCloud...

Enjoy. And watch this space for Vol. 11 dropping soon...

The Taste Of: Playlist 'In The Pocket with 90' Tue 9 Oct on Radio Ponsonby

Every Tuesday on 'In The Pocket with 90' I'll be laying down 'The Taste Of', a selection of music with a common thread running through. It could be locality, genre or label features, it might even be DJ-mixes or compilations; whatever it is, I'll be looking to give you a taste of my take on things.

This week, it's The Taste Of: Lazer Funk, Raw Disco and Cosmic Boogie.

Lalo Schifrin | Quiet Village
Bob James | Nightcrawlers
Pyramid Plus | Comin' At Ya
Deodato | Keep On Movin'
Plush | Free And Easy
Esther Williams | I'll Be Your Pleasure
The Fatback Band | Let The Drums Speak
Gonzalez | (I Want To Get) Closer To You
Lakeside | Fantastic Voyage
Jacqui & The Rumor | Just Don't Break-A-My Heart (inst.)
Linx | The Ice Is Melting
Side On | A Magic Version
Zalmac | What's In It For Me?
Sumy | Soul With Milk
Yo Yo Dance | Kabbala
Sylvester | I Need You (unreleased mix)
K.I.D. | Don't Stop
Atmosfear | Extra Special
MdCL Presents Sy Smith | Teena (Lovergirl Syberized)
Karlmarx Project | OSC

Review: Various Artists 'Private Wax'

Various Artists
PRIVATE WAX
Super Rare Boogie & Disco 
[BBE]

This is the kind of compilation which gets nerdy record loving guys of my ilk very hot under the collar indeed. Lovingly put together by a completely obsessed record collector who works in the renowned Reckless Records in London's Berwick Street, Private Wax is an excursion through some of the most excitingly raw and real disco and boogie tracks ever pressed. Not just any old pressings, mind, these fifteen tunes are by genuinely independent artists who had these songs privately pressed to vinyl; an obsessiveness only matched by the fellow who put this collection together. The man we should thank for tracking down (or stumbling upon) this super rare boogie and disco goes by the name Zaf (his Zafsmusic.com website is well worth a look for anyone searching for really, really rare vinyl records), and his taste is immaculate. It's difficult to single out songs from a compilation of such quality as this, but being that I'm writing on a blog, I feel I must: Party Track by Mr Fox takes a ride on a squiggly synth riff which winds its' way through Marvin Gaye's Got To Give It Up via The Gap Band; Chuck Strong frees up a cracking version of the Willie Hutch-penned, Gwen McRae-sung boogie classic Doin' It; and smooth-ass Chicagoans Yohon raise the temperature with Fly With Me, throwing the kitchen sink of disco elements - including laser sounds - at an effortless groove and Jackson 5-alike vocal performance. Flawlessly funky from top to bottom, this set is a sure-fire floor-filler at the most discerning of disco and boogie parties. Next time you're having one of those eparties, make sure you do two things: a) play this, and b) invite me please.

4 stars from 5

For an extra special 45min mix by DJ Chris Read, check this link. I recommend you do.

Review: Frank Booker Boogie Tape

Various Artists
FRANK BOOKER BOOGIE TAPE
Compiled and Mixed by Frank Booker
[Independent]

SoundCloud really is a bloody marvellous thing. DJs, producers and musicians can upload their tunes, edits and mixes onto their own page on the site for Joe Blow to listen to in his/her own time. Perhaps it's the simplicity which makes it so attractive. Whatevers. The reason I'm blathering on about this (and I probably should acknowledge that if you've made it as far as reading my blog, you inevitably already know wtf SoundCloud is...) is that I've recently been spending a lot more time on the site, and would like to begin sharing some of the goodness I regularly stumble upon. Starting right here: the Frank Booker Boogie Tape is a 50+min "pause tape" of classics soul and boogie tunes from the likes of The Jones Girls, Deodato, Chanson, Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway, Unlimited Touch, Central Line and many, many others - there's even an MJ tune (in the form of the classy, understated Todd Terje edit), all lovingly put together by Mr Booker himself. I can't fault a single selection, as they're all top drawer stuff. Get amongst this mix and cop his vinyl releases on Wonderful Noise, Untracked, Fine Art and Sleazy Beats.

4 stars from 5

Check out the whole tape here and you can even download it for free.
Also worth a gander is the Hit It and Quit It Radio Revue Vol. 1, compiled and mixed by Recloose and Frank Booker.