SPRING IN THE DANCESTEP

03.11.07

More crate essentials courtesy Turntable Lab, DJ Hut, Soul Strut and eBay..

1.  Boz Scaggs - Lowdown [white label] The smooth blue-eyed R&B classic on a nice loud 12

2.  Nelly Furtado & Boz Scaggs - Promiscuous Lowdown [n/a] Nelly Furtado nestles up nicely with Boz Scaggs in this tasty MP3-only mash-up, courtesy Soul Strut.

3.  Soothsayers - Blinded Souls (Quantic Remix) [Red Earth] Dope mid-tempo afro-funk remix by Quantic.

4.  The Staple Singers - I'll Take You There [Stax] The Staple Singers socially conscious gospel vocals over a reggae-fied backing. A Stax classic!

5.  Gwen McRae - Funky Sensation [M&S Records Inc.] Early 80s instant party-starter on an NYC underground 12 inch single.

6.  Nephews of Phela - Mulah [Nephews of Phela] Dope re-edit/remix of the groovy Mulatu Astatke tune 'Yegelle Tezeta (My Own Memory),' widely recognized by its use in the Jim Jarmusch film Broken Flowers. Mulatu's original groove gets twisted into a slow-burn acid house afro funk monster.

7.  Danny Krivit - Feelin' James [T.D. Records, Inc.] Danny Krivit's first venture (dating back to the early 80s) into cut'n'paste editing. Seamlessly stitching several classic James Brown breaks together, this kills it on the floor.

8.  Hollertronix - You Can Call Me Al [Money Studies] Paul Simon's funky afro-pop 80s classic (Chevy Chase's video appearance is still funny) gets the big dumb Baltimore Club treatment it doesn't deserve on Hollertronix EP #6.

9.  Ghostface Killah - Ghost is Back [Def Jam] Only 1 of many choice cuts off Ghostface's devastating follow-up to Fishscale, More Fish. Updating Eric B. & Rakim and making it his own, this is a heavy hip-hop dancefloor jam.

10.  Rebel Crew - It's Gonna Getcha [BSTRD Boots] Saving the best for last, The Rebel Crew drop this Latin-flavored hip-hop instrumental jam, just one of several killer cuts. On brooklyn downtempo kings Bastard Jazz's new BSTRD Boots re-edit label.