Parliament ‘P Funk (Wants To Get Funked Up)’
Setting the tone with its addictively deep, lazy groove, topped with deliciously spaced out word imagery and delivered in proto-Rap style, this provides the ideal opener for my selection. When this astonishing track first entered my ears in 1976, introducing me to the exploits of George Clinton and co, it was like nothing I’d heard before. It was Funk, but not as we knew it – next level stuff for sure.
Gil Scott-Heron ‘B Movie’
The current political turmoil takes me back to the climate of 1981, with the first female prime-minister, Conservative Margaret Thatcher, polarising divisions in the UK, whilst the US president, Republican Ronald Reagan, paralleled Donal Trump’s reality TV past, as an ex-actor who’d featured in low-budget or B movies. More monologue than song, Scott-Heron twists the satire like a knife, and all atop of a killer downtempo groove.
Ruthless Rap Assassins ‘And It Wasn’t A Dream’
From 1990, an ode to the Windrush generation. Great to see it recognised in Mojo’s 2006 list of the ‘The 50 Greatest British Tracks Ever’, alongside luminaries such as The Beatles, Small Faces, Pink Floyd, Sex Pistols, Kate Bush and The Special. Cuts up Cymande’s ‘The Message’, a UK track recorded in 1973 by West Indian immigrants. Of all the tracks I’ve produced, this is perhaps the one I’m proudest to have been involved with.
African Head Charge ‘Hold Some More’
Adrian Sherwood is one of the great British producers, his On-U Sound label truly formidable in its output since its 1979 launch. The Manchester ‘Pay it All Back’ tour date in 1991 is certainly one of the best gigs I’ve ever been to, featuring On-U acts including Dub Syndicate, Gary Clail and African Head Charge, who feature here with the sublime ‘Hold Some More’ from the wonderful 1990 ‘Songs Of Praise’ LP.
Shuggie Otis ‘Aut Uh Mi Head’
A prodigy lost to time until David Byrne’s Luaka Bop label re-introduced this visionary artist via the re-issued ‘Inspiration Information’ in 2001, expanded with earlier tracks including his best-known song ‘Strawberry Letter 23’. Originally released in 1974, ‘Inspiration Information’ saw him burn out in ‘a haze of drugs and paranoia’, as suggested by the title of this inclusion, one of his greatest offerings.
Tame Impala ‘Stranger In Moscow’
Perth’s Kevin Parker is, for me, one of the great contemporary songwriter/performer/producers, his creativity a breath of fresh air, evoking Lennon and the psychedelic ‘60s, but also influenced from more unobvious sources, not least ‘70s band Supertramp, he conjures a unique 21st century soundscape. Here, uploaded to SoundCloud in 2014, he gives Michael Jackson’s ‘Stranger In Moscow’ the Tame Impala treatment, taking the song to new sonic realms.
Bootsy’s Rubber Band ‘I’d Rather Be With You’
Bootsy Collins is, of course, one of the most important bassists of all. He took his teenage baptism of fire, as part of James Brown’s band, in his stride, then found his spiritual partner, working with George Clinton and Pariament/Funkadelic. His own project, Bootsy’s Rubber Band was part of the P Funk collective, with this track providing the influence for Childish Gambino’s modern classic ‘Redbone’.
Was (Not Was) ‘(Return To The Valley Of) Out Come The Freaks’
Silky smooth on the surface, but with skeletons a plenty in the closet of its lyrical content, as the Was brothers observe an array of social outcasts and oddities. There are three very different Was (Not Was) recordings of the track, this is the full-length 12” of the second version, from 1984, Harry Bowens majestic on lead vocal.
Bobby Womack ‘Harry Hippie’
This is a record I’ll forever associate with my good friend Les Spaine, the DJ at classic Liverpool club The Timepiece in the ‘70s, where it was an end of night anthem. Written by Jim Ford in 1972 and based on Womack’s brother, Harry, and his laid back / carefree attitude to life. The song took on an altogether more poignant association when, two years later, Harry was murdered by his girlfriend in Womack’s home, whilst the singer was away performing.
Flamingos ‘I Only Have Eyes For You’
I can never pass by the chance to give this Doo-Wop classic an airing in the right context. A reverb-soaked otherworldly recording from 1959, its dreamlike quality making it the perfect closing track for this late-night session.
Legendary DJ, remixer and edit exponent Greg Wilson is back at it again with the third instalment of his hugely popular ‘Credit To The Edit’ series. Almost a decade on from Volume 2, ‘Credit To The Edit – Vol. 3’, released 20th April via Tirk Recordings, draws on music from the Disco and Rave eras, adding a seminal Hip Hop cut, a Balearic favourite, as well a few contemporary tracks from the last 10 years.
A groundbreaking DJ, Greg played a key role in introducing black electronic dance music to the UK via his early ‘80s residencies at Wigan Pier, Manchester’s ‘Legend’ and ‘The Haçienda’, as well as over the airwaves on the city’s Piccadilly Radio. Working with Technics turntables, a Revox reel to reel tape machine and a razor blade, Greg carved out his reputation as a UK pioneer and champion of Electro-Funk. Whereas, more recently, following his 2003 comeback after a 2-decade hiatus, he’s gained international renown at the vanguard of a now global re-edits movement.
“This album mainly consists of straight up old-style edits, where I’ve worked with the stereo tracks, extending, re-arranging and sometimes overdubbing. There are also some reworks / remixes where I’ve had the stems at my disposal and been able to bring into play additional instrumentation, courtesy of remix partner Peza on a couple of the tracks – 2016’s ‘Hold On’ by Luxxury Featuring The Reynolds plus the futuristic ‘70s Disco hit, ‘Magic Fly’ by Space.”
With re-edits culture continuing to grow ever-stronger and becoming a staple of the contemporary dance scene, it brings back into play a whole era of music for a new generation.
“To have played a part in this recent evolution fulfils my personal criteria as a DJ, which is to draw from the past whilst informing the present. I was always cautious of nostalgia traps, where DJs fall into playing the old music in the old way, whereas this was about bringing new context to what was always great music, introducing it to a younger crowd, with the re-edits movement providing the perfect connection from then to now – my role as a ‘bridge-builder’ crystalizing as a consequence.”
Greg is pleased to share the edit of Escort’s ‘Cocaine Blues’ which you can stream here
“Escort make their second Credit To The Edit appearance, following the inclusion of ‘Starlight’ (2006), which I versioned for volume 2. The Brooklyn-based Disco collective came into my orbit once again when I remixed their 2010 single ‘Cocaine Blues’, featured here. It was a track I had a great deal of fun working on, its roots lying in 2 favourite records of my teenage years – Dillinger’s JA classic ‘Cokane In My Brain’ (aka ‘Cocaine In My Brain’)’ and Philadelphia International Funk bomb ‘Do It Anyway You Wanna’ by People’s Choice. I centred my mix around the ‘I don’t wanna stop’ vocal part, which, for me, symbolises the trap of moreish abuse that many cocaine users fall into.”
