Afro-Funky - Manteca - mid 70s
This is a re-post of an mp3 I snagged from Captain's Crate over the summer. Percussion is blazing the entire time and doesn't let up. This is my #1 blog find of the year, and at the moment it's slotted as track #1 on my "Badasses walking in slow motion" mix.
Back to the Land - Nat Cole & Lester Young - 1946
Somebody Loves Me - Nat Cole & Lester Young - 1946
It was great to see Nat "King" Cole get a nod from Os Mutantes guitarist Sergio Dias in this record rundown with Wax Poetics. Cole is not someone I would have guessed as a major influence to the Mutantes sound, but I can see how Sergio would admire Cole's piano work.
Often mentioned on the shortlist of great jazz accompanists, Cole was mainly known as a pianist before becoming the famous singer of holiday songs. At the piano Cole was always smooth and elegant, even when he's just doing a walking bass line with his left hand. Check out these old recordings he did with Lester Young on tenor sax and Buddy Rich on drums. Guaranteed to put you at ease.
Erase You - ESG - 1991
As it always goes, ESG is as unheralded as they were sampled throughout the 90s. Ostensibly a hip-hop group, the Scroggins sisters from the South Bronx produced tracks like Erase You that sound more like the soundtrack to an early zombie-themed video game than 80s/90s rap. In 1992 they highlighted their own obscurity with an EP titled, "Sample Credits Don't Pay Our Bills."
Apparently neither did workers comp. In 2007, Valerie Scroggins, who was on break from her job driving a bus, got busted playing drums on tour by an MTA investigator. Oh well.
The Steve Martin - EPMD - 1988
Since I'm indulging myself, enjoy one of the great reminders that Hip Hop is all about unity: EPMD's Steve Martin-inspired dance.
