Feb 8, 2008

Into The Groove (17)

Hello, Into The Groove is getting funky today, when i got my mind made up i thought seventies disco funk, should be able to shake those bones loose tonight. Instant Funk were a sought after backing and studio band, but obviously they had something to say themselves aswell, this resulted in their 76 debut album Get Down With The Philly Jump. They weren't lucky with their choice of label because after their third album, containing that millionseller Got My Mind Made Up, for the third consecutive time the label they were assigned to folded (makes you wonder did they ever see any money) anyway the ' funk' was gone and they split. Cameo 's debut was right in yr face funk, macho stuff . If you were into hard, tough funk in 1977, it was impossible not to be excited by Cardiac Arrest. For funk lovers, this is essential listening. Finally Fatback, by 77 they dropped the Band , and when pronouncing just Fatback sounds much more direct and funky. Brite Lites, Big City is, you guessed it about New York, a town they rarely left , they never scored mega hits but had enough to offer for 20 albums over the years, word has it they still jam the funk whenever...

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Instant Funk - Get Down With The Philly Jump (76 ^ 85mb)

Instant Funk came out of New Jersey consisting of Raymond Earl, Scotty Miller and guitarist Kim Miller. The group was then called The Music Machine and they were very successful as a back-up band for The Manhattans, Bunny Sigler and also the TNJs. Throughout their careers, Instant Funk would be the back-up band for many stars, including Lou Rawls, Loleatta Holloway, The O'Jays, MFSB, Curtis Mayfield and Evelyn Champagne King (they are the backing band on the hit single, "Shame").

The group relocated to Philadelphia in 1976 to release its first album, Get Down With the Philly Jump, as they started to formulate their own sound. Instant Funk had one foot in the sophisticated Philly soul/disco sound and the other in the gritty, down-and-dirty funk of pre-J.T. Taylor Kool & the Gang -- put those things together, and you have a group that was certainly unique and risk-taking. Bunny Sigler produced Get Down with the Philly Jump at Philly's famous Sigma Sound Studios, the material is generally decent; one can hear Instant Funk's potential on infectious tracks like "I Know Where You're Coming From," "Hup Two, Hup Two (Get in Line, Say Get in Line)" and "Philly Jump." that said, the best was yet to come for Instant Funk.

Instant Funk followed this album up with a release for former MFSB guitarist Norman Harris' new record label Gold Mind, with front man Bunny Sigler entitled "Let Me Party With You".The Gold Mind label folded, and Instant Funk's new cut "I Got My Mind Made Up" was transferred to the Salsoul label, which pushed the record heavily to all of the disco clubs. The remix of this song by club DJ Larry Levan and engineer Bob Blank quickly became the talk of Manhattan. "I Got My Mind Made Up" hit #1 on both the R&B and disco charts and #20 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the spring of 1979. Instant Funk initially stayed together to tour , but then Salsoul folded. They eventually disbanded, and Bunny Sigler went on to perform as part of The Trammps.



01 - It Ain't Reaggae (But It's Funky) (3:46)
02 - The Mack Is Back (3:09)
03 - Philly Jump (5:07)
04 - Give Me Your Love (3:17)
05 - I Know Where You're Coming From (4:05)

06 - Hup Two, Hup Two (Get In Line, Say Get In Line) (4:02)
07 - So Glad I'm The One (3:15)
08 - Funky Africa (4:34)
09 - We Can Work It Out (2:58)
10 - Go For Yourself (4:05)

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Cameo - Cardiac Arrest (77 ^ 87mb)

Formed in 1974, Cameo started out as a 13-member group created by Larry Blackmon called the New York City Players. Signed by Casablanca Records to their Chocolate City imprint in 1976, the group soon changed its name to Cameo after concerns "New York City Players" might cause confusion between them and the funk band Ohio Players. Cameo started with a deep, funky sound, but it was obvious from the start their sights were set on the dance floor. For the most part, this is an album of aggressive, unapologetically gritty funk. On classics like "Rigor Mortis," "Funk, Funk," and "Post Mortem," one can pinpoint Cameo's influences -- namely, Parliament/Funkadelic, the Ohio Players, and the Bar-Kays. But at the same time, these gems demonstrate that even in 1977, Cameo had a recognizable sound of its own. Their first albums Cardiac Arrest, Ugly Ego, We All Know Who We Are, and Secret Omen contained dance floor songs such as "Rigor Mortis", "I Just Want To Be" and "Find My Way," the latter which was a major disco smash and was included on the soundtrack to Thank God It's Friday. By the time Cameosis came out in 1980, Cameo had gained considerable momentum through singles such as "Shake Your Pants". Albums such as 1981's Knights of the Sound Table and 1982's Alligator Woman saw the band playing up their eclectic style.

In 1982 they packed up and set up shop in Atlanta. Pared down to a quintet and located in a less hectic city. Blackmon started his own label, Atlanta Artist. The label's first LP, Style, also marked a significant shift in sound, inspired by the edgy synthesizer arrangements being pushed forward by the new wave groups of the time, he moved the band into a hard-core "electronic funk" direction. It utilized heavily sequenced drum machines, bass and occasional horn arrangements. Paydirt was struck with 1984's She's Strange; the title cut, a late-night slithery smolder, topped the R&B chart and eclipsed the Top 50 of the pop chart, kicking off a remarkable three-album run that made Cameo one of the most popular groups of the '80s. Single Life and Word Up!, released respectively in 1985 and 1986, continued the hot streak. The singles from those two albums -- "Attack Me With Your Love," "Single Life," "Word Up," "Candy," and "Back and Forth" -- held down the Top Five plateau of the R&B chart. "Word Up" even went to number six on the pop chart, giving them their biggest bite of the mainstream. The song was everywhere.

What goes up must come down, and that's exactly what happened to Cameo. Neither Machismo nor Real Men Wear Black performed well as albums. After 1991's Emotional Violence, the group's profile was lowered significantly, but they did tour sporadically to the delight of hardcore fans as well as plenty of misguided people who thought Cameo was all about "Word Up" and nothing more. Notably, Blackmon spent a few years of the '90s at Warner Bros., as the vice president of A&R. Cameo's presence continued to be felt through extensive sample use and less tangible influences upon younger artists and producers, aswell as several compilations.



01 - Still Feels Good (4:13)
02 - Post Mortem (4:14)
03 - Smile (3:46)
04 - Funk Funk (4:41)

05 - Find My Way (3:33)
06 - Rigor Mortis (5:16)
07 - Good Times (4:52)
08 - Stay By My Side (4:19)

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Fatback - Brite Lites, Big City (79 ^ 92mb)

Formed in New York City in 1970, The Fatback Band was the concept of Bill Curtis, an experienced session drummer, inspired to merge the "fatback" jazz beat of New Orleans into a funk band. In addition to Curtis, the band's initial line-up included guitarist Johnny King, bassist Johnny Flippin, trumpet player George Williams, saxophonist Earl Shelton, flautist George Adams, and keyboardist Gerry Thomas. The band specialized in playing "street funk".The Fatback Band signed to Perception Records and had a hit single that summer with "Street Dance". The band released the albums Let's Do It Again, People Music, and Feel My Soul before signing to Event Records in 1974. In the mid-1970s, the band incorporated jazz elements and moved more towards a disco sound .

Now recording for Spring/Polydor, late 1977 the shortened their name to Fatback, and in 1978 they found their first Top Ten single with "I Like Girls". The song "King Tim III (Personality Jock)" is often considered to be the first commercially released rap single, having shipped just a week before The Sugarhill Gang's "Rapper's Delight" in October 1979. In 1980, Fatback had a pair of their biggest hits with "Gotta Get My Hands On Some (Money)" and "Backstrokin'". Keyboardist Gerry Thomas was simultaneously a member of The Jimmy Castor Bunch, so the band elected to remain close to the New York area instead of extensive touring. They had substantial success in South America, especially in Brazil (with "Money", and "Backstrokin'"). The band is still currently touring and actively recording new material.



The Joint
01 - Freak The Freak The Funk (Rock) (7:23)
02 - Let Me Do It To You (5:09)
03 - Big City (6:27)
Mellow
04 - (Do The) Boogie Woogie (5:38)
05 - Hesitation (6:00)
06 - Wild Dreams (5:28)

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All downloads are in * ogg-7 (224k) or ^ ogg-9(320k), artwork is included , if in need get the nifty ogg encoder/decoder here !

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