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7"
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COS 116EP
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$10.00
PREORDER
RELEASE DATE: 3/19/2021
"Following on from the success of Greg Belson's Divine Disco series Greg Belson and Cultures of Soul team up again to explore the world of Gospel Funk. Belson, one of the world's leading collectors and DJs of gospel music, has assembled a collection of some of the rarest Gospel funk records for Greg Belson's Devine Funk. In addition to the full-length, available on CD and LP, choice selections from the compilation will be released on 7-inch singles in limited quantities. First up in the Devine Funk 7-inch series, a split 7 inch from the Christian Harmonizers on the A-Side and The Gospel Travelers on the flip. Also available this time out, The Wearyland Singers 'If You See Me Doing Wrong' with 'Nobody But Jesus' by The Chariettes Gospel Singers on the B-Side."
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7"
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COS 117EP
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$10.00
PREORDER
RELEASE DATE: 3/19/2021
"Following on from the success of Greg Belson's Divine Disco series Greg Belson and Cultures of Soul team up again to explore the world of Gospel Funk. Belson, one of the world's leading collectors and DJs of gospel music, has assembled a collection of some of the rarest Gospel funk records for Greg Belson's Devine Funk. In addition to the full-length, available on CD and LP, choice selections from the compilation will be released on 7-inch singles in limited quantities. First up in the Devine Funk 7-inch series, a split 7 inch from the Christian Harmonizers on the A-Side and The Gospel Travelers on the flip. Also available this time out, The Wearyland Singers 'If You See Me Doing Wrong' with 'Nobody But Jesus' by The Chariettes Gospel Singers on the B-Side."
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CD
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COS 032CD
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$16.00
PREORDER
RELEASE DATE: 3/19/2021
"Following on from the success of Greg Belson's Divine Disco series Greg Belson and Cultures of Soul team up again to explore the world of gospel funk. Belson is one of the world's leading collectors and DJs of gospel music. You hold in your hands a collection of some of the rarest Gospel funk records from Belson's amazing collection featuring everything from the laidback breakbeat laced 'I Don't Want to Be Alone' by Allen Gauff Jr to the high octane and socially-on-point take of the Gospel classic 'This Little Light Of Mine' by the Gospel Ambassadors to drum break funk of the Wearyland Singers 'If You See Me Doing Wrong' to the sublime soulfulness of Zella Jackson's 'Days Are Just Like People.' Without a doubt though, all of the artists included in this compilation, believed in themselves, the message, and the direction of the gospel funk intensity you hear within these grooves. Gettin' on the good foot for God? Listen and decide for yourselves!"
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LP
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COS 032LP
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$26.00
PREORDER
RELEASE DATE: 3/19/2021
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CD
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COS 031CD
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"The 1980s were an epoch of upheaval and rapid change in South Africa. The decade began with the country's apartheid government fighting to maintain its institutionalized racial segregation in the face of global protests and demands for the release of human rights activist Nelson Mandela, who had been jailed since the early 1960s. By 1990, Mandela was free, and apartheid was on the way to being dismantled. On the music front, things were changing too; At the beginning of the decade, the main music style of black South Africans was the jazzy indigenous jive of mbaqanga, a provincial style that had held its place as the sound of South Africa since Mandela was first imprisoned. By the end of the decade, South African music stars were making international waves with bubblegum, a flashy variety of Afro-techno-pop. In Saturday Night: South African Disco Pop Hits, Cultures of Soul explores this period of change, and the intermediary forms that filled the gap between mbaqanga and bubblegum. The years when South African musicians and producers wrestled with the incursion of foreign disco and formulated their own style of homegrown disco-pop. Starting from the early '80s, when bands like Varikweru, Black Five and Soundburger essayed local attempts at boogie and jazz-fusion, through experiments like the Madonna-cloned diva Margino, who domesticized the burgeoning Italo-disco and NYC electro sounds, up through the massive breakthrough of Brenda and the Big Dudes, who arrived at the right mix between native and international influences to point the way forward for South African pop. The sound on these records is ostensibly familiar, drawing heavily on models from the 1980s dance culture in Europe and America, but if you listen closely enough you can hear the distinct South African-ness of it all -- from the deep, burbling basslines, the brightly hypnotic melodies, and chant-like lyrics -- and with sounds as intoxicating as these, you will sure want to listen closely. And often!"
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LP
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COS 031LP
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LP version. "The 1980s were an epoch of upheaval and rapid change in South Africa. The decade began with the country's apartheid government fighting to maintain its institutionalized racial segregation in the face of global protests and demands for the release of human rights activist Nelson Mandela, who had been jailed since the early 1960s. By 1990, Mandela was free, and apartheid was on the way to being dismantled. On the music front, things were changing too; At the beginning of the decade, the main music style of black South Africans was the jazzy indigenous jive of mbaqanga, a provincial style that had held its place as the sound of South Africa since Mandela was first imprisoned. By the end of the decade, South African music stars were making international waves with bubblegum, a flashy variety of Afro-techno-pop. In Saturday Night: South African Disco Pop Hits, Cultures of Soul explores this period of change, and the intermediary forms that filled the gap between mbaqanga and bubblegum. The years when South African musicians and producers wrestled with the incursion of foreign disco and formulated their own style of homegrown disco-pop. Starting from the early '80s, when bands like Varikweru, Black Five and Soundburger essayed local attempts at boogie and jazz-fusion, through experiments like the Madonna-cloned diva Margino, who domesticized the burgeoning Italo-disco and NYC electro sounds, up through the massive breakthrough of Brenda and the Big Dudes, who arrived at the right mix between native and international influences to point the way forward for South African pop. The sound on these records is ostensibly familiar, drawing heavily on models from the 1980s dance culture in Europe and America, but if you listen closely enough you can hear the distinct South African-ness of it all -- from the deep, burbling basslines, the brightly hypnotic melodies, and chant-like lyrics -- and with sounds as intoxicating as these, you will sure want to listen closely. And often!"
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CD
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COS 030CD
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"In a genre that has classically been driven primarily by hot twelve-inches, it can sometimes be hard to find a disco album that delivers the goods from end to end -- let alone a disco LP that could be described as 'perfect.' Does such an animal even exist? We're pretty sure it has to, and we can probably think of a few candidates ourselves. Cultures of Soul Records presents Sparkle's self-titled album which many disco aficionados would put into this category. Sparkle was a female vocal trio from Connecticut, assembled by the producer Harold Sargent, erstwhile drummer of the sterling funk band Wood, Brass & Steel, and creator of manifold drum breaks that would go on to be sampled for decades. Originally released in 1979, the album and the group are fittingly titled as the music is a scintillating, radiant collection of shimmering disco and dazzling funk, performed by Too Much Too Soon -- the multiracial R&B band that featured Evan Rogers and Carl Sturken, the writing/production team that would discover Rihanna and power her career to global dominance fifteen years later. Also on hand is musical prodigy Rahni Harris, whose Sargent-assisted club classic 'Six Million Steps' is also included on the album. The result is an album that by far exceeds the sum of its parts, delivering a truly transcendent disco experience."
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CD
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COS 020CD
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"When most people think of the musical legacy of San Francisco, the first thing that usually comes to mind is the Summer of Love. Much less likely are you to hear about the City by the Bay's rich heritage of gospel music. Cultures Of Soul is proud to revisit this chapter in the city's history with the reissue of The Sound Of The San Francisco Christian Center. The San Francisco Christian Center was one of the first churches to open its doors to disaffected hippies searching for a deeper spiritual substance. This era saw new, youth-driven forms of 'Jesus music' that fused gospel messages with rock aesthetics. Chief amongst these new-style gospel artists was the San Francisco-based Andraé Crouch, who was one of the influences behind this recording. As a historical document, it provides a breathtaking view into the roots of contemporary gospel music, but as just pure music, it is a transcendent listening experience."
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LP
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COS 020LP
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"Previously only available on private pressing. Housed in a gatefold jacket filled with photos and liner notes by Uchenna Ikonne. When most people think of the musical legacy of San Francisco, the first thing that usually comes to mind is the Summer of Love. Much less likely are you to hear about the City by the Bay's rich heritage of gospel music. Cultures Of Soul is proud to revisit this chapter in the city's history with the reissue of The Sound Of The San Francisco Christian Center. The San Francisco Christian Center was one of the first churches to open its doors to disaffected hippies searching for a deeper spiritual substance. This era saw new, youth-driven forms of 'Jesus music' that fused gospel messages with rock aesthetics. Chief amongst these new-style gospel artists was the San Francisco-based Andraé Crouch, who was one of the influences behind this recording. As a historical document, it provides a breathtaking view into the roots of contemporary gospel music, but as just pure music, it is a transcendent listening experience."
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LP
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COS 030LP
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"In a genre that has classically been driven primarily by hot twelve-inches, it can sometimes be hard to find a disco album that delivers the goods from end to end -- let alone a disco LP that could be described as 'perfect.' Does such an animal even exist? We're pretty sure it has to, and we can probably think of a few candidates ourselves. Cultures of Soul Records presents Sparkle's self-titled album which many disco aficionados would put into this category. Sparkle was a female vocal trio from Connecticut, assembled by the producer Harold Sargent, erstwhile drummer of the sterling funk band Wood, Brass & Steel, and creator of manifold drum breaks that would go on to be sampled for decades. Originally released in 1979, the album and the group are fittingly titled as the music is a scintillating, radiant collection of shimmering disco and dazzling funk, performed by Too Much Too Soon -- the multiracial R&B band that featured Evan Rogers and Carl Sturken, the writing/production team that would discover Rihanna and power her career to global dominance fifteen years later. Also on hand is musical prodigy Rahni Harris, whose Sargent-assisted club classic 'Six Million Steps' is also included on the album. The result is an album that by far exceeds the sum of its parts, delivering a truly transcendent disco experience."
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LP
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COS 029LP
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"A classically trained multi-instrumentalist, Don Laka began his career in the '70s and then joined the seminal jazz outfit Sakhile in the early '80s. Already an established musician by this time, Laka was at the forefront of exploring the latest synth sounds of the day. Being introduced to synthesizers by Harari's Alec Khaoli, Don soon began experimenting with different synths like the Oberheim, Juno, and Prophet 5 while using a Commodore 64 to sequence them. Constantly striving for the latest sounds, Laka's early explorations culminated in his debut solo album, I Wanna Be Myself. I went and did an album, recorded tracks at Downtown Studios [in downtown Johannesburg]. Most of the album, except for 'Let's Move the Night,' was done straight with a Fairlight at a different studio, of the guy that owned the Fairlight, Adrian Strydom. He was the only guy in the country who had a Fairlight, I think on the continent. 'This was the first commercial record made on a Fairlight in this country. I remember the other instrument I used was Jupiter 8, which was a very expensive Roland synth, and I used a Juno-60. I would layer them. The only thing I programmed was the drums. You can hear the snare sound, I think it was a mix of some cracked bottles and something that we just mixed.' Holed up in the studio, Laka remembers getting special input on I Wanna Be Myself from master bassist Bakithi Khumalo, who would also feature prominently on Graceland. 'I remember I played all the instruments on it. I played bass, I played all. Bakithi walked into the studio and I said, 'You know, I'm not a bass player. Baks, do you wanna do it?' And he nailed it, in one take!' Reissued for the first time is Don Laka's masterful album."
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12"
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COS 509EP
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"Belizean artist Bredda David Obi set out to put Belizean music on the map in 1984 with the release of his debut LP No Fear. With this album he introduced the world to a new Belizean groove he called kungo (or cungo). A mélange of traditional Belizean brukdown music and sprinklings of the rock, funk, calypso and reggae. He would further develop this modern tropical sound on subsequent albums, integrating more and more elements from Belizean niche genres like sambai and paranda. Years later DJs and record collectors found his records in basements of record stores in Los Angeles and Brooklyn. These DJs incorporated his music into their DJ sets to the excitement of dance floors all over the world. The DJs and remixers on this 12" took it a step further and edited and remixed David's music. DC based DJs -- Sol Power All-Stars morph 'Dancin'' from an electro brukdown breakbeat into a four on the floor acid house track with an Afro-Caribbean feel. Los Angeles based DJ and record collector DJ Duckcomb tastefully melds both the dub and original versions of 'Experience' into one epic reggae discomix. My Rules Records owner and DJ/producer Justin Van Der Volgen uses his heighten production skills to turn Bro David's 'Sunshine' into a heady trippy cosmic version of the track. Last but not least LA-based Heatwave DJs turn 'Cungo Music' into a dancefloor tested and approved extended anthem."
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LP
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COS 028LP
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"The Caribbean has long been an incubator for the sounds that will animate and shape the culture of the rest of the world for decades to come: From the rhythms of Cuba helping to shape American jazz, blues and rock n' roll, to Trinidadian calypso introducing a bouncy lightness and gaiety to American party music, to Jamaica's reggae showing a new way to rebel against convention. But what about the music of Belize, the Caribbean nation that holds the odd position of being a former British colony on the coat of Spanish-speaking Central America? Most people don't know about the country at all, let alone about the rich sounds it has to offer. Bredda David Obi set out to change that in 1984 with the release of his debut LP No Fear, and the introduction of a new Belizean groove he called kungo (or cungo). A mélange of traditional Belizean brukdown music and sprinklings of the rock, funk, calypso and reggae he had played in various bands during his years as a journeyman musician in the United States. He would further develop this modern tropical sound on subsequent albums, integrating more and more elements from Belizean niche genres like sambai and paranda. Cultures of Soul is proud to take part in documenting Bredda David's journey into the soul of Belize with an anthology of his early recordings including tracks from No Fear, Cungo Musik (1987) and We No Wa No Kimba Ya (1990) albums. Bredda David's kungo is hard to describe exactly -- its various ingredients make it feel somewhat familiar, but the recipe with which he blends them is slightly strange, fresh and intriguing. But one thing is for certain, it is sure to electrify the dance floor and make everybody jump up and bruk down! Housed in a gatefold jacket with extensive liner notes by Uchenna Ikonne."
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CD
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COS 026CD
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"By the mid-70s many established and independent gospel artists started creating records with a tight four-on-the-floor beat that touched both churchgoers as well as patrons of the drug-fueled establishments of the '70s. Second instalment of Greg Belson's Divine Disco -- for this collection he dug deep into his crates to undercover the rarest independent and private press gospel disco records ever recorded. Many tracks are under the radar or recently discovered such as Harrison Jones's 'On that Other Shore', Converters' 'I've Been Converted' and the super limited self-released 45 by Mr Jesse R. McGuire, 'Jesus Is On the Mainline'. Only 50 copies were ever pressed. This volume even includes gospel disco from the UK with Paradise's brilliant 'Keep the Fire.' This compilation also includes remixes and edits by Steve Cobby (who was a member of Fila Brazillia) and the Divine Situation production duo of Greg Belson and Paulo Fulci."
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2LP
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COS 026LP
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RSD 2019 release. "By the mid-70s many established and independent gospel artists started creating records with a tight four-on-the-floor beat that touched both churchgoers as well as patrons of the drug-fueled establishments of the '70s. Second instalment of Greg Belson's Divine Disco -- for this collection he dug deep into his crates to undercover the rarest independent and private press gospel disco records ever recorded. Many tracks are under the radar or recently discovered such as Harrison Jones's 'On that Other Shore', Converters' 'I've Been Converted' and the super limited self-released 45 by Mr Jesse R. McGuire, 'Jesus Is On the Mainline'. Only 50 copies were ever pressed. This volume even includes gospel disco from the UK with Paradise's brilliant 'Keep the Fire.' This compilation also includes remixes and edits by Steve Cobby (who was a member of Fila Brazillia) and the Divine Situation production duo of Greg Belson and Paulo Fulci."
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LP
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COS 027LP
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"After the phenomenal response to our previous survey of disco and boogie sounds from early eighties South Africa, we decided to wade a bit deeper into the pool to focus on one of the most compelling acts to emerge from that theater, the Space Cats. Hailing from the small, insular music scene in the coal-mining city of Witbank, the Space Cats were a five-man band fronted by singer/bassist Themba 'T'Rex' Mzwakali and singer/guitarist Santy Dladala. Operating as a semi-professional live combo rather than a studio-driven aggregation, they stood out from the slick, highly polished conventions of the day. And when they took the stage they offered a take on disco that was stripped-down, raw, rugged and inspired by Afro-rock groups like Harari and Hedzoleh Soundz. While the Space Cats' moment in the spotlight was short-lived -- the band played together for barely a year before management issues necessitated a breakup -- they managed to produce one endearing document of their brief career. Something New, their first and only album, released in 1981, features ten tracks of jittery, hard-edged disco-boogie-funk that capture the flavor of their performances in the rollicking dancehalls of Witbank. Issued on the tiny Rejoice imprint, Something New had a very limited distribution reach even within South Africa and has remained heard by very few people over the last thirty-eight years. So we're proud to make it available for the first time to the wide audience it surely deserved upon its initial release."
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2LP
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COS 024LP
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Double-LP version. "In the 1970s reggae music burst forth from its birthplace of Jamaica and took over the world. Who would have ever thought that one of the first outposts it captured on its way to global domination would be an unlikely city known mostly for its Brahmin heritage and blue-collar brawlers as well as for violent racial polarization? Boston, Massachusetts was the first region in the US to really 'get' reggae, adopting it as early as 1973 when the city's huge student population turned the low-budget Jamaican B-flick The Harder They Come into a midnight cult classic. The city would gain a reputation as a key market for any international reggae act trying to gain a foothold in America. But besides being early enthusiasts and advocates for the music, Bostonians would also become bountiful producers of reggae as well, with a network of clubs, singers and musicians coalescing to form an organic Boston roots scene: A scene that would yield acts as varied as Zion Initation (a solid, spiritually-inclined Rasta band), to the I Tones (an ambitious, multiracial group that set a new standard for pop success), and even reaching across New England to embrace the Vermont-based Lambsbread (a latter-day reggae reincarnation of the legendary African-American proto-punk trio Death, later made famous by 2013's revivalist documentary A Band Called Death). Boston-based music journalists/historians Noah Schaffer and Uchenna Ikonne have teamed up with Cultures of Soul to compile an overview of some of the most crucial cuts to emerge from Boston during the height of the reggae boom in the 1980s. Formatted on CD or 2LP set both configurations come with a 28-page book documenting the rich history of this music scene with in-depth analyses and photos of the reggae artists involved. Almost all of this music is reissued for the very first time, including rare gems such as Danny Tucker's 'Our Father's Land,' Zion Initation's 'Think About It,' I Tones' 'Love is a Pleasure' and Lambsbread's 'Two Minute Warning' are sure to delight both roots connoisseurs and newcomers to the genre, and open up a time tunnel to a little-known golden age of American reggae, and an even less-known scene that facilitated the expansion of the music into an international phenomenon."
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CD
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COS 024CD
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"In the 1970s reggae music burst forth from its birthplace of Jamaica and took over the world. Who would have ever thought that one of the first outposts it captured on its way to global domination would be an unlikely city known mostly for its Brahmin heritage and blue-collar brawlers as well as for violent racial polarization? Boston, Massachusetts was the first region in the US to really 'get' reggae, adopting it as early as 1973 when the city's huge student population turned the low-budget Jamaican B-flick The Harder They Come into a midnight cult classic. The city would gain a reputation as a key market for any international reggae act trying to gain a foothold in America. But besides being early enthusiasts and advocates for the music, Bostonians would also become bountiful producers of reggae as well, with a network of clubs, singers and musicians coalescing to form an organic Boston roots scene: A scene that would yield acts as varied as Zion Initation (a solid, spiritually-inclined Rasta band), to the I Tones (an ambitious, multiracial group that set a new standard for pop success), and even reaching across New England to embrace the Vermont-based Lambsbread (a latter-day reggae reincarnation of the legendary African-American proto-punk trio Death, later made famous by 2013's revivalist documentary A Band Called Death). Boston-based music journalists/historians Noah Schaffer and Uchenna Ikonne have teamed up with Cultures of Soul to compile an overview of some of the most crucial cuts to emerge from Boston during the height of the reggae boom in the 1980s. Formatted on CD or 2LP set both configurations come with a 28-page book documenting the rich history of this music scene with in-depth analyses and photos of the reggae artists involved. Almost all of this music is reissued for the very first time, including rare gems such as Danny Tucker's 'Our Father's Land,' Zion Initation's 'Think About It,' I Tones' 'Love is a Pleasure' and Lambsbread's 'Two Minute Warning' are sure to delight both roots connoisseurs and newcomers to the genre, and open up a time tunnel to a little-known golden age of American reggae, and an even less-known scene that facilitated the expansion of the music into an international phenomenon."
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12"
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COS 508EP
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"Cultures of Soul is very excited to announce this killer tropical reggae cover of Sade's 'Smooth Operator'. Recorded at Circle Sound Studios in Miami the backing track was recorded by members of the famous reggae outfit Inner Circle with vocals by local area rising star at the time, Sabrina Rich. Sabrina (her real name is actually Sabrena) had been making records in her and her ex-husband's studio in their garage for years. The result of which was the disco 12" Exit/Whispering. Around this time Sabrina was performing in the Palm Beach / Boca Raton area of Florida and performed with Jimmy Bo Horne. Sometime after Sabrina worked with a man named Kenneth Corey who mastered her recordings. Kenneth referred her to Roger and Ian Lewis of Inner Circle to help press up their vinyl. They became friends and around 1985 recorded 'Smooth Operator'. During this time they were working and partying hard and experimenting with different ideas and sounds. The track was originally released in small numbers as sort of a demo and never really took off. Shortly after Inner Circle went on tour in Europe and the single went into obscurity until many years later when copies of the record turned up in New York and Toronto. This 12" includes a special discomix edit by Duckcomb aka Patrick Billard, DJ and record collector extraordinaire."
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LP
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COS 023LP
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"In 2016, Cultures of Soul Records released Boston Creative Jazz Scene 1970-1983, a groundbreaking compilation spotlighting the often-overlooked progressive jazz environment that thrived in Beantown through the seventies into the eighties. Now, following up on this groundbreaking work, Cultures of Soul is proud to present a crisp reissue of the eponymous (and sole) album by the Boston jazz-fusion outfit Thing. Formed by confederates who met at the Berklee School of Music and led by the creatively restless saxophonist and jazz educator Arni Cheatham, Thing were a regular fixture in Boston clubs in the seventies, as comfortable plying the rock and funk idioms as they were in jazz. Their 1972 album documents two of their live sets, showcasing their simmering, funky and spiritual freeform jazz, very much in the vein of early seventies jazz-rock experiments by Miles Davis, Weather Report and the Mahavishnu Orchestra. The two suites featured on the album are fully improvised, featuring the musicians spontaneously generating and developing musical motifs in real time, bouncing ideas off each other in a communion that is equally suitable for meditating...or dancing like tomorrow will never arrive. Thing is a worthy glimpse into the experimentation and adventurousness that made the seemingly uptight city of Boston a magnet for musical mavericks."
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LP
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COS 025LP
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"Having remained continuously active since 1971, the Yoruba Singers are the longest-running musical group in Guyana. Emerging from a music scene mostly dominated by slick, commercial entertainment, the Yoruba Singers brought a new dimension to Guyana popular music, cooking up a potent stew of afrocentric vibes, steeped in a committed invocation of the country's African heritage. The Yoruba Singers released several recordings during their imperial period in the nineteen seventies and eighties, but what is broadly regarded as the group's magnum opus is the 1981 album Fighting For Survival. The album sums up the group's first decade of operation, serving up a heavy mix of calypso, jazzy funk, reggae and afrobeat. Initially released on the short-lived Interculture label and later reissued on a Guyana-only compact disk, the album has long been more talked about than actually heard. But thanks to Cultures of Soul a new edition is now available in wide release, and with it comes the opportunity to experience some of the deepest grooves the Caribbean has to offer!"
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LP
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COS 022LP
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"The album We Want A Piece Of The Pieis the product of a joint effort between Los Angeles songwriter/producer Anthony Browne and the Woolfolk Brothers of Oklahoma, with their seven-piece funk band, Septimus. The two parties sent tape reels back and forth to each other in the mail to assemble this masterpiece of buoyant and spiritual R&B... and 36 years later, those tapes have found their way into the hands of Cultures of Soul Records! Remastered from the original tapes, this new edition of We Want A Piece Of The Piepresents the legendarily rare LP to a broad market for the first time, radiating all its sunny optimism and infectious dance grooves."
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12"
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COS 603EP
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"Cultures of Soul Records has teamed up with local Boston disco queen Saucy Lady to put together a 12", released in conjunction with their Tokyo Nights: Female J-Pop Boogie Funk compilation. This 12" features a cover of the sublime song 'Town,' originally recorded by Minako Yoshida. The B-side is a cover of 'Honey B,' originally written and recorded by Toshinobu Kubota. Both tracks are recreated and produced by Saucy Lady and Yuki 'U-KEY' Kanesaka. Originally from Japan with a bi-cultural background, Saucy Lady is a character with an attitude of confidence and sensuality. She represents in her music what we've all admired about the disco era. Saucy Lady brings back the eclectic, outrageous fashion and cultural diversity that comprised the nightclub scenes in the '70s and '80s."
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2LP
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COS 021LP
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2020 repress; double LP version. "Following successful disco excavation from the Caribbean to South Africa, Boston-based label Cultures of Soul booked a first class ticket to Narita to bring you the latest release, Tokyo Nights: Female J-Pop Boogie Funk: 1981 to 1988. This compilation presents 12 of the most memorable and sought-after songs of the era recorded by female artists. The music is a reflection of the unbridled optimism, technological achievement, excess and exuberance of Bubble-era Japan. More than catchy melodies and funky baselines, these are reflections of a time when Japan was the center, and future of the world. The Bubble can be characterized as an endless, extravagant party where personal and corporate wealth soared through the explosion of real estate and stock prices. Scores of young Japanese men and women moved to cities in search of affluence, transforming them into neon wonderlands. Changes in morals, values and gender roles followed suit. Prosperity leads to indulgence, and the taste for nightlife, from flashy restaurants to glitzy discotheques, was unquenchable. A soundtrack to this new, lavish lifestyle was necessary and the latest sound, City Pop (urban pop music for those with urban lifestyles), epitomized these attitudes. While influenced by American R&B and boogie, elements of fusion, YMO style Technopop, and adult-oriented rock (AOR) are front and center. Sung primarily in Japanese (with a word or two of English sprinkled in), City Pop is Japanese music for Japanese people. Producers like Tatsuro Yamashita, Toshiki Kadomatsu, and Haruomi Hosono were quick to embrace the latest studio equipment and technology. Synthesizers like the Yamaha DX7, Roland Juno-60, ARP Quadra, Moog Polymoog and Oberheim OB-8, as well as drum machines like the Linndrum, were prevalent. Digital reverb was applied liberally. Compiled by Eli Cohen (Alliance Upholstery) and Deano Sounds (Cultures of Soul), Tokyo Nights includes tracks by Hitomi Tohyama, Junko Ohashi, Mizuki Koyama, Kaoru Akimoto, Aru Takamura, Mariko Tone, Rie Murakami, RA MU, Kikuchi Momoko and Yumi Seino. Each selection celebrates the unique traits and meticulous production that define the sound. Think sandy beaches and metropolitan skylines; illumination and romance. Embrace the feeling of movement, from a coastal highway stretching towards the horizon or the city sprawling into the future. Turn on the hi-fi and slip into these Tokyo Nights."
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CD
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COS 021CD
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"Following successful disco excavation from the Caribbean to South Africa, Boston-based label Cultures of Soul booked a first class ticket to Narita to bring you the latest release, Tokyo Nights: Female J-Pop Boogie Funk: 1981 to 1988. This compilation presents 12 of the most memorable and sought-after songs of the era recorded by female artists. The music is a reflection of the unbridled optimism, technological achievement, excess and exuberance of Bubble-era Japan. More than catchy melodies and funky baselines, these are reflections of a time when Japan was the center, and future of the world. The Bubble can be characterized as an endless, extravagant party where personal and corporate wealth soared through the explosion of real estate and stock prices. Scores of young Japanese men and women moved to cities in search of affluence, transforming them into neon wonderlands. Changes in morals, values and gender roles followed suit. Prosperity leads to indulgence, and the taste for nightlife, from flashy restaurants to glitzy discotheques, was unquenchable. A soundtrack to this new, lavish lifestyle was necessary and the latest sound, City Pop (urban pop music for those with urban lifestyles), epitomized these attitudes. While influenced by American R&B and boogie, elements of fusion, YMO style Technopop, and adult-oriented rock (AOR) are front and center. Sung primarily in Japanese (with a word or two of English sprinkled in), City Pop is Japanese music for Japanese people. Producers like Tatsuro Yamashita, Toshiki Kadomatsu, and Haruomi Hosono were quick to embrace the latest studio equipment and technology. Synthesizers like the Yamaha DX7, Roland Juno-60, ARP Quadra, Moog Polymoog and Oberheim OB-8, as well as drum machines like the Linndrum, were prevalent. Digital reverb was applied liberally. Compiled by Eli Cohen (Alliance Upholstery) and Deano Sounds (Cultures of Soul), Tokyo Nights includes tracks by Hitomi Tohyama, Junko Ohashi, Mizuki Koyama, Kaoru Akimoto, Aru Takamura, Mariko Tone, Rie Murakami, RA MU, Kikuchi Momoko and Yumi Seino. Each selection celebrates the unique traits and meticulous production that define the sound. Think sandy beaches and metropolitan skylines; illumination and romance. Embrace the feeling of movement, from a coastal highway stretching towards the horizon or the city sprawling into the future. Turn on the hi-fi and slip into these Tokyo Nights."
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