Dave Lee ‘Produced With Love II’ (Z)

Although the master himself may have changed his name (which might confuse some of you regarding the album title) , the headz will know who Dave Lee, formerly known as Joey Negro amongst many other aliases such as Prospect Park, Z Factor, Mistura, Doug Willis, AC Soul Symphony or Jakatta to name but a few, is.

He is one of the leading figures Disco and House music have and he’s been delivering the goods via his countless releases and DJ sets all over the world, for decades.

His brand new album, Produced With Love II, continues the work he started with 2017’s superb collection. Incorporating aspects of house, soul and disco and crafted with the attention to detail you’d expect from someone of Lee’s heritage and calibre, Produced With Love II comprises 12 brand new songs. You will guess, those new songs are not just any instantly produced tracks with pseudo instruments, they are all of the quality we expect from Dave Lee-ergo live instrument driven Soul, Funk, Disco and House with the crème de la crème of vocalists on top of it. We got a little taster with the Omar vocalised ‘Starlight’ earlier this year, a track that topped international charts and is still being played by many essential jocks.

Further vocalists include Tiffany T’zelle, Xan Blacq, Lifford, Billy Valentine or Angela Johnson, who serves vocals for a brand new Sunburst Band track on the album.

And that’s what you get throughout Produced With Love II – an attention to detail and level of creative collaboration rarely seen. It’s why a Dave Lee album is a rare thing. These things take time, but when they do come along, it’s something worth treasuring.

Key tracks of the longplayer are all 12 to be honest, but standouts are the immensely funky instrumental ‘Magnificent Mango’ and ‘Do It Again’ with vox from Lifford, which is also the current single taken off the album. All in all this is a must have record in any format of your choice!

HOUSE / DISCO

5 out of 5

Reviewed by MANNIX