This has been a good year dance music’s trailblazers getting deserved props, Ministry’s Masterpiece and R&S’ Classics series to name two. Tony Humphries is a perfect choice to launch the former label’s new Moments In House line highlighting monumental events in dance music’s history. He was already a legend when he undertook his 1993 residency at the club having created jawdropping mastermixes on New York’s KISS FM since 1981, held a long-running residency at Newark’s Club Zanzibar which defined the ‘New Jersey Sound’ while racking up scores of productions and remixes. His eight month residency at Ministry of Sound became regular euphoric celebrations of classic disco, house and garage, the stuff of legend. The two CDs, complimented by Bill Brewster’s liner notes, are mixed by Humphries with inimitable flow and intricacy, consisting of major tunes he played, floorfillers of the time including names like Seven Grand Housin’ Authority, Masters At Work, Clivilles & Cole, Mr Monday, X-Press 2, Martha Wash, Romanthony, Kamar, Reese Project and harder stuff by Glenn Underground, DJ Duke and Sagat’s immortal ‘Fuck Dat’. It also reminds what a total monster Peter Daou’s ‘Surrender Yourself’ was and deserves further props for working in DJ Pierre’s Wild Pitch Mix of Yo Yo Honey’s ‘Groove On’. Against today’s soul-less laptop wonder-kids it sounds like a different time but there’s a warmth, passion and soul flaming on here which totally justifies the lofty banner under which it’s released.
5 Out Of 5
Reviewed By: Kris Needs