Tracklist:
A1. Fly Hi ft. Mel Tormé - Original
A2. Fly Hi ft. Mel Tormé - Zanzibar Mix
A3. Fly Hi ft. Mel Tormé - Morel’s Flying Underground Remix
B1. Gimme - Original
B2. Gimme - Move D Remix
B3. Gimme - Gimme Shelter Mix

Re-issue alert! Whirlpool Productions "Fly Hi/Gimme" appeared first in 1993 on the one time and made up label 5th&Madison. The fascination that a young Justus Köhncke had for the then bubbling sounds, strictly rhythms and nu grooves of New York house music sparked the idea to join in the chant with a production of his own. Add his co-producer Fred Heimermann, the buzzing DJ and brilliant music journalist Hans Nieswandt and a visitor from San Francisco named Eric D. Clark, the singer Heather Sachs and samples by Mel Tormé to the flamboyant picture and you know why the records sounds like it does: swinging house music through the lenses of a colorful cast or how some German people thought New Jersey's Zanzibar would sound. Fly Hi embodies the sophisticated deep and soulful approach, while Gimme satisfies the more hysteric approach. Favoured and championed by DJs like Tony Humphries at the time, officially released by Snap's Logic Records and never vacated from Move D's record bag, it's re-issued in all its glory for the first time on Running Back. Additionally, Move D puts his fingerprint on it with a disco leaning and upbeat remix of "Gimme". Extensive liner notes by Hans Nieswandt upon request. Life is still in hi-fly!



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2023 Repress

Tracklist
A1. Open Door (original) 11:31
B1. 00000000 (original) 18:42

C1. Open Door Theo Parrish Behind Closed Doors Remix 10:32
D1. D1 (Unreleased) 08:04
D2. Open Door (Gerd Remix) 08:51

Release Info:
In certain circles, this is a record that would easily be called „eternal“. Back in 1996, when it was originally released, it sounded like nothing else - and still does. The sixth record of Frankfurt’s soon to be imperial Playhouse label and Losoul’s first outing on the label, it hot-wired many things at once: house and techno, US roots and European fruits, grittiness and wittiness, high tech funk, the expansion pf playtimes and the concept of minimalism in dance music. Elegance met effectiveness.
A composition that hooked you and also caused a stir elsewhere. Daniel Bell licensed it to his Elevate label and commissioned a very young Theo Parrish to remix it, Michel De Hey did the same with his EC Records and treatments by Gerd among others.
Here you finally get both of those carefully restored, remastered and reissued next to the originals. Amply placed on a double 12“, it also features the previously unreleased D1. Stemming from the same time and era as Open Door it rings and feels like a compact lost brother. Addictive as on the very first day and here to stay.




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2x12"

Liner Notes by Gerd Janson

Tracklist

A1. Surprise - Original
A2. Surprise – Isolée Remix
B1. Surprise – Fake Jazz Mix
C1. Surprise – Holy Bassline Mix
D1. Surprise – Losoul Remix

In its main mix, Surprise is a classic early nineties house track that heavily nods towards the Big Apple, house music’s disco roots and the power of swinging drum programming, albeit with meticulous production work and engineering. In short, it sounded and sounds as un-German as Germans can. The Holy Bassline Mix on the other hand is already in the shape of things to come. Carried by a Roland TB-303, sprinkled with trance bits and elegiac pads, its in perfect balance.
Others thought so as well. Heavily supported by David Holmes and Andrew Weatherall, it was the manager of the latter who licensed it to Eye-Q Records UK with the addition of the Fake Jazz Mix and ordered remixes by freshmen Isoleé and Losoul who became pillars of Playhouse. The first known for his idiosyncratic and sculptural ways of creating dance music meets the irresistible funk of his peer and both add spice to the already great menu. Here you have the chance to listen and digest Surprise in all its glory and entirety for the first time. Carefully remastered and processed by Lopazz and packaged by Running Back. Remember the good times and get some more.





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Tracklist

A1. Mermaids
A2. Mermaids (Demo Version)
B1. Slacker (Unreleased Extended Version)

Mermaids is many things at once: The debut single by Fila Brazillia (named after the mishearing of a Brazilian mastiff breed mentioned on the radio), the second release on Pork Recordings, a deep house master piece, the brainchild of the summer of love, a pen friend to A Man Called Adam’s Barefoot in the Head and most of all pure balearic bliss. Originally released in 1991 and subsequently featured on Old Codes, New Chaos, which according to Frank Tope at Mixmag, is "the Best Dance LP ever made”, it marked the beginning of a long and illustrious partnership for Hull natives Steve Cobby and David (Man) McSherry.
Mermaids still sounds as good and as addictive on any kind of beach or natural environment as it supposedly did on Boris Dlugosch’s Front dance floor or any other basement suffused with strobe lights at the time (or any hedonistic place for that matter). Having been already part of the latter’s and Klaus Stockhausen’s Mastermix Front Compilation, it has now been dusted off and remastered for an individual performance. Added for the first first time though is the original demo version that makes use of a different yet not less enchanting bass line.
Also included is Fila’s 1994 trippy, dare we say progressive, UK house blueprint Slacker. A seismic shift from the traditional tropes of house, it set an example for what should rock the dance music boat just a few years later. Delivered in a previously unreleased extended version for your utmost enjoyment.
Artwork note: The sleeve photograph is a proto-selfie taken by Steve in 1983 (the year the two first met). Man still has those braces.



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Re-issue of a 1990 German deep house novelty record that ended up being a Tony Humphries Powerplay on KissFm. Re-mastered, re-issued and re-designed with care and affection. Includes Original, Instrumental and Cheveux Rouge dub.

Tracklist
A1. Das Rote Haar
A2. Das Rote Haar (Cheveaux Rouge Dub)
B1. Das Rote Haar (Instrumental)

Release info:
I first stumbled across this record on a Tony Humphries Kiss FM Mastermix from 1990. While my obsession with vintage Humphries radio shows is no mystery, „Das Rote Haar“ stayed one for a while. With all the ingredients of a novelty record (German lyrics about someone falling in love with a red haired person), but graced with a backing track that sounded somehow like a Ben Cenac or Larry Heard production and not German at all, it was almost impossible to be placed in any corner. A few years down the line, I finally found out that it was by a - surpassingly enough - short-lived German studio project called Love Club. Behind it was one of Germany’s longest-serving DJs: Jens Lissat. Together with Peter Harder they recited a poem by Francois Villon that was made popular by the late German actor Klaus Kinski and built a deep house instrumental around it. According to the creator the idea was indeed to find a groove that was similar to those of the „cool records going out of Chicago and New York at the time“. So there you go. Re-issued, re-mastered and with a re-designed picture cover, it’s your chance to share my joy with a record that is as balearic as it is basement ready. Including a dub and in case the vocal creeps you out, an instrumental version par excellence. But maybe you will fall in love with the red hair, too.


Gerd Janson



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Repress Black Vinyl

Tracklist
A1. Test 1
B1. Test 2


Shortinfo:
Acid House re-release alert! For the first time after its initial release on Playhouse Records, Roman Flügel’s sought-after and classic Acid Test 10“ is available again. Now, pressed on pink coloured vinyl (first edition only!) as a Running Back 12“ Double Copy and remastered from the original recordings. But, before writing an essay about the art school of TB303-acid-tracks, we hand it over to the man himself to hear about the genesis of this project:
„I’ve always enjoyed Acid House the most when it still has that raw simplicity.
When I recorded Acid Test One & Two in the bedroom of my parents’ house around 1993, Acid House was of course already an established genre since it’s origin in Chicago in the mid 80’s. But Acid Test was actually the first time for me to record an Acid House session I was finally happy with.
It took the usual suspects of the Roland TB 303, TR 808 and TR 909 Machines along an Ibanez Time Machine Flanger and some cheap Yamaha Digital Reverb, to create the perfect balance of the few ingredients that makes good Acid House so powerful. Two or three attempts of mix downs before the right version was recorded to DAT Cassette - only some of my own favourite records were made like this and I’m happy to see it’s re-release on Running Back so many years later.“





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Tracklist
A1. Hemisphere
A2. Hemisphere (Blade Mix)
B1. Magic Phantasy
B2. The Traveller


Shortinfo:
Subtle Houzze were Boris Dlugosch and the late Gary D. The joint venture of Hamburg’s golden boy and Front resident Dlugosch and his Unit/Tunnel counterpart Gary D was like a moment in love. Written & produced in 1992, it cast the grappling statues of techno soul and deep house in bronze. Save for two tracks of the original release, albeit graced with another and previously unavailable mix of „Hemisphere“, all the glory of the future of the past is available again. Remastered, restored and reconfigured via the Running Back Double Copy series. If you need more proof, we want to redirect you to this quote from Discogs user guigui612 from 26. September 2019: „Super good EP. Very diverse, full of deepness and emotions“.




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A little while before Metro Area came into life, there was Acronym City....

Tracklist
A. Powermoves
B. Powermoves Remix
B2. The Push

Shortinfo:

A little while before Metro Area came into life, there was Acronym City. Originally released on Sub Freq Recordings in 1996, Darshan Jesrani's moniker deals with the impact that electronic music from Detroit had on some inhabitants of said metro area. Long out of print, now carefully restored, re-mastered and slightly re-edited by Gerd Janson, Darshan Jesrani finds the missing link between techno soul and the sort of contemplative and playful heavy deep house that New York's underground was bringing forth in the early nineties. Without plagiarizing the one or the other, Acronym City naturally explores form and function of a sound that will never grow old. Backed up by an ethereal stop and go remix version of "Powermoves" by DJ Sprout and escorted by "The Push", this one is for the users.




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Tracklist:
A1. Äkäsha (edit) B1. Thank You Larry (edit) B2. Let's Take A Break (edit)

Shortinfo:
Being selfish, is one of the good things about running your own label. If you please, you can just try and re-release that certain record that you always wanted for yourself, but never could get your hand on it. Now, you can just edit it the way you always wanted it to be (oh, those fade-outs...) and press it up. This is one of these occasions.
When Kalk (the collaborative project of Philippe Heinen and Joffrey Becker) was released on Julien Briffaz' label Brif in 1999, I just had started to DJ out at a Club in Darmstadt (the late Café Kesselhaus) and the restrained, yet punchy house tracks symbolized what I liked about deep house back then: a mellow alternative to the BPM hunt and rigid attitude in mainstream techno, while not losing itself in chin-stroking wisdom or pesky noodling.
It seemed that there weren't too many around with the same desire. Otherwise "Akasha" wouldn't have remained a diamond in disguise and not what Morgan Geist so aptly named an "unclassic". By his definition, that is: an old by and large forgotten record that would have deserved to be hit. If you take discogs as an indicator, more and more people start to think so though. Here is your second chance to obtain a copy of the spirit of Kalk. Mildly edited and restored in the best human-possible way. Mind you, it's old house music from days of Yore. If you look for the production values of a Phil Collins, please go somewhere else.

DJ GJ


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Tracklist
A1. It Works
A2. Without Thought (Bassline 1)
A3..Without Thought (Bassline 2)
B1. Lakeview Slang (First Mix)
B2. Lakeview Slang (The Mix)


Shortinfo:
Running Back Double Copy Re-issues the Final Cut Mateo & Matos Holy Grail Lovingly Re-mastered


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Track B2 = Vinyl Exclusive

Tracklist:
A1. Tooker: Nang'o feat. Labdi
A2. Tooker: Nang'o (Instrumental)
B1. Tooker & Shawna: Baladi
B2. Tooker: Undone (vinyl exclusive)

Release Info:
For Chris Tooker, the first decade of his artistic journey was immersed in bands while the
second was engaged in wandering the realms of electronica in the form of creator, composer and engineer for DJ duo KMLN.
Today, after many incarnations, Tooker returns to the source of himself while carrying both the treasures of his past and a vision for the future. Tooker has long been called to pursuing obsessive trails through the greater cosmos. On these journeys, he seeks particles with a hypnotic essence. Once found, he interprets this magic in his own special way, through the most universal language - music.
His music tells stories of fascinating adventures through the dust, the palms, and the gritty
streets of yonder. It is colorful, deep, and disco laced. It flaunts rare collected percussion (delivered live in his sets), various instruments and sometimes whispers a touch of voice.
Now his solo-debut EP Nang'o drops on Acid Pauli and Nico Stojan's label Ouie.
For the lead track Nang’o, Tooker recruits the phenomenal talents of Kenya’s multi-instrumentalist Labdi. Labdi’s oruto (a western Kenyan fiddle instrument) and bewitching vocals provide the hooks for this subtle, shuffling track, presented here as both a full version and as an instrumental.
Baladi features Shawna Hofmann both on co-production and vocal duties - this time a more driving, rolling groove develops with Shawna adding sultry, evocative vocals to the mix.

Undone rounds off the physical release - another signature exercise in subtlety and restraint, as an infectious groove folds in bubbling synths, crisp percussion and dubby effects.






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1. LTD LP - Territory: WW Minus UK/Eire,Usa, Canada

- Limited Edition (300 copies worldwide
- Limited Transparent Green vinyl
- Printed on heavyweight board outer sleeve
- Vinyl comes in black poly-lined protective bag
- Housed in a heavyweight PVC protective outer sleeve
- Hype front sticker
- Vinyl pressed at Optimal media GmbH
- Printed at Delga in the UK


2. GENRE/S: Alternative / Experimental / Ambient

3. TRACKLISTS: see next page

Please add track lists for all listed formats.


A1. Future Sand (feat. David Lackner)
A2. Soft Power (feat. David Lackner)
A3. Pose Beams (feat. Jefre Cantu-Ledesma, Robbie Lee)
A4. Flutter Intensity (feat. Russell Greenberg)

B1. The Big Clock (feat. David Moore, Britt Hewitt)
B2. There Was Somebody There (feat. David Moore, Jefre Cantu-Ledesma)
B3. Get Some Rest (feat. Mary Lattimore)




4. SHORT INFO:


Ezra Feinberg's third album Soft Power sees the composer-guitarist enlist an impressive array of fellow musicians including Mary Lattimore, David Moore (Bing & Ruth), Jefre Cantu-Ledesma, Robbie Lee and share the life affirming lead single 'Future Sand'.

Defined by its abundance of melodies, repeating figures and ecstatic improvisations, Soft Power exudes an enlightened and transformative spirit to empower the listener. Feinberg, a practising psychoanalyst and former founding member of the San Francisco psychedelic collective Citay (Dead Oceans / Important Records) resides in the artistic enclave of upstate New York's Hudson River valley. Initial recordings emerged in the late summer of 2020, before added synthesis with collaborator John Thayer (Arp, Sunwatchers) during early 2021. Soft Power follows previous albums 'Recumbent Speech' (2020) and 'Pentimento and Others' (2018).

Feinberg artfully transcends the listener to an enriched place, his compositions distinguished by the deep humanity that lies at their core, plugging the listener into a state of wide eyed being, open and alive. Soft Power then is Ezra's own mantra but also one of power giving - a colourful catharsis translated into music.

Feinberg's music always speaks to the listener, but Soft Power, in whispering, speaks loudest.

"Much like everyday life, I wanted to convey these very plain, simple, tranquil, nearly quotidian aspects, but each piece contains this arc in which that form expands, is broken out of, so what starts out like a painting of flowers in a seaside motel turns into a riot of color and sound, or you feel slipped into a dream that feels like it could go on forever"




5. VITAL SALES POINTS:

- PR + Radio campaign by Five Worlds (UK/USA) / Dense PR + Radio campaign (EU)

6.

Ezra Feinberg - Previous Press / Quotes



"Invites you to a world so vivid and intricately textured that you might feel like you are part of it"
- Pitchfork

"Gently propulsive gems that evoke the kosmische sounds of Michael Rother, Brian Eno at his most sublime"
- Aquarium Drunkard



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Tracklist:
A1) Puzzle Loop 06:52 min
A2) Hopeless Beat 06:38 min
B1) Xoh 05:08 min
B2) Xoh dub 05:23 min
B3) 7 Loop 06:36 min

Short info:
Eden Burns, the prophet. He who shares the fruits of his garden w/ no strings attached. All he wants:
is for you! to dance & prance.
He now returns with another instalment of the “Big Beat Manifesto”, counting Vol. VIII
„Beat moves feet. Feet do dance. Dance brings joy. Joy is life. Life is special.“


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Genre: Deep House

Track list:

A1 That Rhythm
A2 Maceo
B Clive by Night

Release Info:

Clive From Accounts is finally back on Dirt Crew Recordings! After some excellent contributions and remixes for the highly acclaimed New York based “Razor-N-Tape” imprint, he graced us again with three new gems that show the great diversity in his productions. Since his first “Cooking the Books EP” in 2021 and the follow up “Pearls EP” in 2022 he has continued to build a strong following of fans, so we know for sure a lot of you have been waiting on new tracks by him.

The uplifting opener “That Rhythm” is a smooth deep house roller with chopped up dusty samples, inspired by the US and French masters but with a heavy UK sub bass added. Following up is the wonderfully crafted “Maceo”, a groovy instrumental jazz funk workout built around the genius of The JBs legends Fred Wesley and Maceo Parker.

Closing out this new EP is the acid laden and also title track “Clive by Night”, deep and lush house music that we love him for since his first release on our label, here he’s finding joy in deep evolving repetition, it’s an ode to the 303 and Xpander. Best played at night.

Get in these 3 new hitters from Clive now, we are looking forward to hear these played out in dark clubs and wide open fields this late summer and golden fall. Enjoy!

All tracks mastered by Salz Mastering in Cologne. Photography & Art by Break 3000.





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Format Notes: 2023 reissue, 140g vinyl, remastered for this edition by Simon Francis

Territories: Worldwide no restrictions

Track List:

A1 Can You Feel It (Part 1)
A2 You Better Believe It
A3 Soul On Your Side
A4 Zone

B1 Funk-N-You
B2 Street Dreamin'
B3 You're My Last Girl
B4 Monterey
B5 Can You Feel It (Part 2)

Release Notes:

The Rhythm Makers's Soul On Your Side is flawless proto-disco funk. The Bronx-based band - that later went on to form heavyweight disco outfit GQ - originally released this treasure in 1976 and it's long been a hard to find record. It's also rare to find a record this hard. Captivating funk at its rawest, no doubt.

Storming out the gate with the rollicking Loft/Garage staple "Can You Feel It (Part 1)", the listener is immediately put on notice that this LP is just a little bit special. The title track, "Soul On Your Side", is a classic dancer and the basis of GQ's future hit "Disco Nights". But it's perhaps "Zone", a huge Baldelli track, that the record is best known for. Hypnotic psyched-out cosmic-disco / cosmic funk, it's an unrelenting groove that really thrusts the party into hyperdrive. With doses of scintillating Latin and pulsating African rhythms driving the pumping tune, atop an unstoppable bassline and imaginative, soul-slathered keyboard figures, it's basically a full-on funk assault. You might need a lie-down after this.

But there's no let-up on the B-Side, immediately grooving thanks to "Funk-N-You", a laidback glider that just rolls in the sleek style. Gorgeous harmony skills are displayed on "Street Dreamin'". Beautiful and gritty funk, by turns. "You're My Last Girl" is an airy ballad with two leads before the legendary "Monterey" enters the fray. A much-sampled instrumental and heavy disco-funk nugget, it contains an amazing B-Boy drum break making the whole LP worth the price of admission. "Can You Feel It (Part 2)" closes out this spectacular set.

The Rhythm Makers had been gigging around New York City since the late ’60s, having initially come together as Sabu and the Survivors, named after bassist Keith “Sabu” Crier. They eventually - for this album at least! - settled on The Rhythm Makers and cut one record for the small De-Lite subsidiary Vigor. The core lineup featured Crier, keyboardist Herb Lane, drummer Kenny Banks and rhythm guitarist Rahiem Leblanc.

Mastered for vinyl by Simon Francis, cut by Cicely Balston for Alchemy at AIR Studios with artwork restored at Be With HQ, this new edition should hopefully bring this album into the homes and record boxes of many more people.


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12”, 180 gr. vinyl


GENRE/S: Deep House

TRACKLISTS:
A1. Cecile (with Eliana Glass) (Charles Webster Remix)
A2. By The End They Will (C.K Remix)
B1. Olympia (Timmy Regisford Instrumental Remix)
B2. By The End They Will (Octo Octa's Dazed These Days Dub)

SHORT INFO:
Frank and Tony’s long history together has produced many seminal moments, and the release of the Ethos album this year on their own Scissor & Thread imprint marked yet another high point.
The album saw the friends and long term collaborators produce a body of work that was both joyous, thoughtful and politically charged. Adding to that is this five track remix EP which enlists artists of a distinct pedigree to reimagine some of the tracks, and to stunning effect. First up is Cecile featuring Eliana Glass, the pianist and singer who graces a pair of tracks on the album and this EP. Charles Webster is responsible for the flip - a typically moody and atmospheric vibe brings out new layers in the original. Eliana Glass also features on Timmy Regisford’s remix of Olympia, which exhibits some of the New York legends greatest attributes - a hypnotic, uplifting masterclass ensues. Regisford’s instrumental version of Olympia is also shared here. Elsewhere C.K brings the heat with a rework of By The End They Will, creating a bumping, raw cut. The same track is flipped by Octo Octa, who takes the vibe fathoms deep and produces an idiosyncratic ravey version while honouring the spirit of the original.













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Limited „vinyl only“ edition of two new cuts/edits on Kaskadeur Records.

Tracklist:
A 1 - AN
B 1 - NE

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2LP

Tracklist:
A1. HÄÄlene ___
A2. the beauty
A3. HE is stupid
A4. Ha
B1. green
B2. malady
B3. horizon
B4. anima

mindSET is the ninth album from enigmatic producer SW., directly following this summer’s excursion into his trademark techno, IDM and bleep soundscapes, on the myDEFINITIONS Vol II album. But with his mindSET album SW. takes a left turn, as pioneers often do, and we find ourselves on the lesser traveled side roads of electronic music history. Or in SW.’s own words: “the more abstract leftfield elements.”
It’s in these less-defined areas that SW. finds his sweet spot, building dancefloor soundtracks that defied definition. And with mindSET the sounds and the machines might have changed, the methodology remains the same.
“It draws from what was more generally seen in leftfield as a term for the slightly off-kilter house and broken beats that didn’t fit neatly into classic genres, whether that was Chicago house, French garage, drum and bass, or broken beat. It’s more about those in-between sounds that never really took off, only appearing briefly in the early to mid-90s and then quickly disappearing. There was a certain magic in that moment, which I wanted to capture. Also, the entire album was produced using classic analog equipment, with old machines that were used during that era. That’s the approach I’ve taken.”
The eight tracks on mindSET are shaped out of de-tuned techno pop synths and heavy, syncopated drums, grooving along chopped-up polymeters to create an eerie mood, as if orbiting an undiscovered planet for the first time. The harmonic movements are often bent out of shape, sometimes veering towards Gherkin Jerks or Cristian Vogel territory. But in the end, the sounds are less important than the atmosphere, and the tracks represent an attitude or an approach - to creating the music as well as experiencing it. mindSET is a nod to those dancers sharing an oddball moment, and for those of us on the same wavelength, it's a vibe we can all get inside.



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Territories: World ex Japan

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2023 repress

Format Notes: 140g vinyl, remastered from the original tapes

Territories:
Worldwide no restrictions

Track List:

A1 : Flying High (3:35)
A2 : Going Home (2:46)
A3 : Walking In The Dark (4:42)
A4 : Fighting For Life (3:37)
A5 : Feeling Tense (4:05)

B1 : Running Fast (4:42)
B2 : Loving Tenderly (3:27)
B3 : Fearing Much (3:35)
B4 : Being Friendly (2:54)
B5 : Having Fun (4:00)

Release Notes:

More than once Jay Richford and Gary Stevan’s Feelings has been described as the greatest library record ever released. Of course Be With can’t be seen to be playing favourites, but we have to admit, it’s pretty good. Insanely rare and immensely sought-after, it’s a tough funk, street jazz masterpiece coveted for many years by collectors of all musical genres.

Since its original release on Italian label Carosello in 1974, Feelings has appeared on several labels with different sleeves and even under a different artist. Indeed cult library label Conroy put it out in one of their iconic red sleeves in 1976 and yes, Feelings has indeed had more than one modern re-issue since these “original” releases. But a record this special deserves to be kept in press and we think it deserves the Be With treatment.

No, Jay Richford and Gary Stevan aren’t two of the most Italian sounding names. As the story goes these were the pseudonyms adopted by Stefano Torossi and Giancarlo Gazzani who wrote the album but couldn’t use their real names on the original release for legal reasons. But Stefano Torossi himself later both clarified and confused the tale further by explaining that Feelings was the work of four people not just Gazzani and himself. Fellow composers and musicians Sandro Brugnolini and Puccio Roelens also worked on the album and as Torossi himself explained “we all worked together”, with all four gents “dividing the royalties in equal parts… that’s the story.” Right, so, with that all sorted out let’s get back to talking about the music. And what music it is.

Long hailed as a holy grail of library music, Feelings is the epitome of the sort of cinematic orchestral jazzy funk that is “that 70s library music sound”. Infectiously funky, deliciously melodic and with impeccible, elegant production, this record is the showcase for a stunning set of compositions and arrangements and with performances that are nothing short of virtuoso.

The record’s first side lifts off with “Flying High”, soaring brilliant and shimmering. Funk licks, menacing strings and swaggering horns combine for an ice-cold intro groove that Isaac Hayes would surely have envied, before the steady-paced drums deliver the slo-mo TKO. The string-drenched cop-funk of “Going Home” raises the tempo. All funky quick-fire bass lines and killer electric guitar soloing. A real thriller.

“Walking In The Dark” positively drips in blaxploitation-funk drama strings and horn struts, all laced with delicate drums, velvet piano and more filthy wah-wah. “Fighting For Life” is another funk-fuelled workout built around an effortlessly relentless drum track that refuses to give up until even the stiffest-necked head is nodding.

The loping, open drum break that guides the much-loved “Feeling Tense” through its early stages would be good enough on its own. The heavy bass gloss, swirling strings and ominous horns that follow take things to the next level.

The second side opens with another favourite “Running Fast”, and the track does precisely that. This is one fine rollicking chase theme underpinned by frenetic (yet funky) Fender Rhodes and skipping bass and drums. Those sweeping strings are a gorgeous extra. It’s a deliciously feel-good groove that sets the heart racing.

“Loving Tenderly” envelops us in warm, velvety night-time vibes with easy listening horns and slinky strings dialing up the seduction. Definitely one for the lithe lovers out there. The pace picks up on the electrifying “Fearing Much” where strings dart around deep bass, buzzing guitars and another funky drum break. The lush, melancholic “Being Friendly” is another easy beauty, all warm Rhodes and strings. Majestic stuff that puts an aural arm around you. The climactic “Having Fun” rides a pulsating, bass-heavy drum break with snatches of a funky guitar refrain, some luxurious keys, sweeping strings and triumphant horns. Sensational.

“Feelings” is a profoundly appropriate title for such an emotionally funky and genuinely affecting record. Groove-laden bass, irrepressible horns, sweet flute lines, warm Rhodes, lush string arrangements, blaxploitation-styled wah-wah guitars and so, so much more make this one of the finest instrumental soul LPs of the 70s, if not of all time.

The audio for this re-issue of Feelings comes from the original analogue tapes and has been remastered for vinyl by Be With regular Simon Francis and cut by Pete Norman. The same care has been taken by the Be With team to restore that glorious original Carosello sleeve. Feelings is almost too good to be true. Feels good all over.


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