Disco Juggernaut

This one goes out to all the ladies. Some Harlem disco to get the juices flowin':

Johnson Products - Johnson Jumping
Clyde Alexander - Got To Get Your Love
Chain Reaction - Dance Freak
Scott Davis - New York Applejack

Pretty weird, right? For those who like their music auteur, that is, brimming with an almost deranged levels of personality, P&P takes the disco cake. A label founded by Harlemites Patrick Adams and Peter Brown and packed to the gills with similarly minded producers, P&P was no slouch when it came to laying down the thickest grooves, nastiest percussion, and dreamiest keyboard lines. And while no stranger to hits (Musique and Inner Life come to mind right away), P&P has lately become more the talk of dysfunctional record collectors and music geeks rather than the popular music critico web sect. Being witness to the explosion of creativity in the international house scene which seems to have grown staggeringly experimental of late (software is so cheap these days; it seems like everybody is an avant-garde house producer) I see lots of parallels between the underground dance music of the 70s and today. While it may not seem like it to you, consider how far from pop music this stuff is. These tracks average 10 minutes a pop and they sample the gamut: moogs, xylophones (or ice cubes clinking in a mixed drink?), train conductors, etc. And all this is mixed it seems with very little regard to tiny radio speakers: the details can only really be revealed on a proper stereo or even better, one of those newfangled disco soundsystems that started popping up in the early 70s.

So if you want to start getting your hands on this stuff, the most recent related release is a compilation of Patrick Adams productions,The Master of the Masterpiece. I haven't picked up a copy yet, but the tracklist looks pretty money.

Those that want to get extra nerdy about it can head down to Gimme Gimme Records on the lower east side, 325 E 5th St. The guy who runs it is named Dan. Tell him Dan sent you. He won't have any idea who you're talking about but he'll probably laugh anyways. So he stocks a lot of great records, one of them which I believe Dan put out himself. This is something that my friend Dan, told me. Dan, Dan, Dan...must be something with the name... Anyway, it's called Uptown Disco Juggernaut and is a pain in the ass to find anywhere but Gimme Gimme Records. Any why is this a big deal? Because one of the tracks ends with the sound of an atomic bomb exploding and a baby crying. Let's just say I posted some of P&P's more accessible tracks...Patrick's website says "Patrick Adams is nominated as a record producer for induction into THE DANCE MUSIC HALL OF FAME 2005 but looks like it hasn't been updated in at least a decade. I'm sure in his own funky world he's the ultimate rockstar. Here's a couple good ones to finish off with:

Golden Flamingo Orchestra - The Guardian Angel Is Watching You
Margie Lomax - Gods Greatest Gift To Man Is Woman

Oh and all these tracks I'm posting? Got them from a compilation called Danny Krivit Introduces P & P Records. That's probably the package you really want. UK import though.