September Purchases.....

UNCLE FUNKENSTEIN - Together Again (JMANLP023)

"Jazzman Records creates the finest, most comprehensive and exhaustively curated CD and LP collections of Soul, Jazz and Funk in the world. No expense is spared in tracking down artists, producers and master tapes to provide the highest quality product that can be done. If you're into funk or soul music - you need it!"

"Kicking off a new series of Jazzman Reissues, our Holy Grail series will include the rarest and most coveted soul, funk & jazz LPs ever released on CD and limited edition numbered vinyl".

"The CD booklets will contain pictures, interviews and information on the making and history of the record, while the LPs will be exact copies of the original, with a unique number denoting the limited issue on the back".

Background

" And that's what Uncle Funkenstein is all about. Never before on eBay and impossible to find, this is an ultra-rare LP that funk collectors talk about but never see. One of the ultimate private press funk/jazz LPs, with just a handful of known copies. The original album bears all the hallmarks of the local, private press album - black and white budget cover, home-made "conceived on a kitchen table" sleeve design, self-produced and on a shoe-string budget. Some of these kind of records are over hyped and have all kinds of amazing things said about them - only for the MUSIC itself to disappoint. Not so with Uncle Funkenstein - you'll know that from the moment you hit Track 1 and the awesome bass blows you away…"
" 12 page colour cd booklet with in-depth liner notes interviews and previously unpublished photographs"
" Never before reissued - previously only available as a privately pressed and highly collectable LP valued at well over $1000". (JAZZMAN RECORDS)


MARY LOU WILLIAMS - Credo/It Ain't Necessarily So 7" (JM068)

"Since 1998 Jazzman Records has led the way in reissuing the rarest and best soul, jazz & funk 45s".

7" singles offer no hiding place for lame, goofy or weak music. The music is naked and one side of a disc for all to hear. Just 3 minutes of sound. No extended edit, no remixes, no acapella, no versions - just the song on its own as it was always meant to be heard".

"Always on premium vinyl, and always with warm, rich, analogue sound! " With the belief that jazz was the only true art form and Catholicism the only true faith, pianist, composer, arranger, author and philanthropist Mary Lou Williams headed to the studio in 1964 to record her album Black Christ of the Andes. Ten years previously she had turned her back on the 'devil's music', and this was her first recording session in all that time. During those years she had been involved in the church, and spent much of her time and money personally helping drug-addicted jazz musicians back to health. But with the civil rights movement in full swing and the growing conflict in Vietnam, she felt an even greater calling for her talents, and the recording studio beckoned".

Background

"The album included a much slowed-down version of the Gershwin classic It Ain't Necessarily So. Built upon a melancholy bass figure in 6/8 time, there is a clarity and purity about the arrangement, with single notes from her right hand picking the melody out of the blues, with the left hand adding subtle chords. As captioned on a Williams pic in Life magazine - 'Cool as the smoke off dry ice'. Spiritual jazz indeed! In 1971 the instrumental version of Credo was recorded, having been recorded with a vocal accompaniment the previous year. During this period in her life Williams was primarily engaged in the writing and recording jazz for performance in church, and most notably for singing at Mass. In Credo we can hear influence from the street, as the funk rhythms of the day were omnipresent, permeating even the church and its hallowed walls". (JAZZMAN RECORDS)


TOLBERT - I’ve Got It 7" (SOUL45003)

"Another NEW 7” Reissue from From SOUL 45 / Jazzman Records – WE DIG DEEPER!

The 7” label dedicated to the sounds of soul gets an official re-release of the rare and hugely in-demand modern soul gem ‘I’ve Got It’ by Tolbert. They’ve mastered this one good n loud from the original tapes for DJ use!

Lauded by soul collectors all over the world as a true gem that could single handedly define the term ‘modern soul’, Tolbert’s ‘I Got It’ is a mid-tempo clubber from ’82 that has recently approached anthemic status. The ultra-rare status of the original 45 means only a select few DJs such as Ian Wright and Soul Sam have been able to give it plays, as the $4000 price tag has been a stumbling block for many soul fans".

Background

"It’s taken them three years to organise the release of ‘I’ve Got It’, including a special trip to NYC to meet songwriter Bill Mersey and collect the precious master tapes in person" (JAZZMAN RECORDS)


ROOTS MANUVA - Again & Again 7" (BDS 122)

"A dinky little slab of summer soundsystem niceness from roots Manuva with the radio and Matt Helder of Arctic Monkeys versions of lead single 'Again and again' from his new album. The radio version benefits from a little beefing up from Shy FX, making for a solid and uplifting dancehall ditty, while Matt Helder has a crack at a GarageBand version, adding a heavy guitar chops and shuffling the beats into a dubstep compatible effort". (BOOMKAT RECORDS)

1. Again & Again (Radio Edit)
2. Again & Again (Arctic Monkeys Remix)


ROOTS MANUVA - Again & Again 12"(Moody Boyz Remix)(BD 122)

"Bouncing soca-basment versions of 'Again and again' from The Moody Boyz, with a vocal version refitting Manuva' vox over a kinetic riddim developing into hi-end staggered delays and sinister synthlines for a killer and effective DJ tool, while the B-side dubs Manuva's voice into a croaked mutterance and swings the delays and FX into wild styles for an even more effective floor version". (BOOMKAT RECORDS)

1. Again & Again (Moody Boyz Remix)
2. Again & Again (Moody Boyz Remix Dub)