Saturday 30 April 2022

Truth In The Palm Of Her Hands

Side 1 of a mixtape, compiled 13th April 1998, pairing Lionrock (Side 1) and The Grid (Side 2),
 
Justin Robertson has been a long-time favourite of mine, but very poorly served by this blog. Time to redress this unacceptable situation with a selection of Lionrock "singles".

One of my first discoveries in my forays into t'internet in the early 2000s was The Lionrock Den, latterly the Den of Lions and Thieves, a repository of discography info and links relating to Justin Robertson that predated but was ultimately made redundant by the gargantuan Discogs project. I was the happy competition winner of a Gentleman Thief CD single back in the day.

Ironically, I recorded this mixtape a month before what would prove to be the final Lionrock single, Scatter & Swing, released in May 1998. The selection also skips the previous single, Rude Boy Rock, an unexpected UK Top 20 hit in March 1998.

A core member of the 1992-98 Lionrock line up was MC Buzz B aka Sean Braithwaite, who had previously appeared solo on Channel 4's The Word with the Bruce Hornsby-sampling Never Change in 1991. I loved what he brought to the Lionrock sound and it seemed little short of criminal that none of the singles that he featured on got any further in the UK than the lower Top 30.

Lionrock released two excellent albums; only the first, An Instinct For Detection, (just) made the UK Top 30. 
 
However, Justin Robertson's reputation as an exceptional DJ & remixer has quite rightly grown over the decades, via a variety of aliases - Gentleman Thief, Revtone, Deadstock 33s - as well as solo material, all of which could justify a selection in their own right. Watch this space.

1) Tripwire (Radio Mix By Justin Robertson & Mark Stagg) (1994)
2) She's On The Train (Edit By Justin Robertson & Roger Lyons) (ft. MC Buzz B) (1997)
3) The Guide (Full Length Version By Justin Robertson & Mark Stagg) (ft. MC Buzz B) (1993)
4) Morning Will Come When I'm Not Ready (1996)
5) Call A Cab (ft. MC Buzz B) (1996)
6) Lionrock (Most Excellent Mix By Justin Robertson & Mark Stagg) (Edit) (1992)
7) Straight At Yer Head (Remix By Justin Robertson & Roger Lyons) (Edit) (1996)
8) Fire Up The Shoesaw (Vocal Mix By Justin Robertson & Roger Lyons) (ft. MC Buzz B) (1996)
9) Carnival (Are You Ready To Testify?) (Remix By Justin Robertson & Mark Stagg) (Edit) (1993)
10) Packet Of Peace (7" Edit By Justin Robertson & Mark Stagg) (ft. MC Buzz B) (1993)
11) Wet Roads Glisten (Single Version By Justin Robertson & Roger Lyons) (ft. MC Buzz B) (1997)
 
1993: Carnival EP: 3, 9
1993: Packet Of Peace EP: 10
1994: Tripwire EP: 1
1996: Fire Up The Shoesaw EP: 8
1996: Morning Will Come When I'm Not Ready (Jockey Slut promo 7") / An Instinct For Detection: 4
1996: [Progressive House Classics]: 6
1996: Project Now EP: 5 
1996: Straight At Yer Head EP: 7
1997: She's On The Train EP: 2 
1997: Wet Roads Glisten EP: 11
 


4 comments:

  1. Well done Khayem. I follow Justin Robertson for a very long time and he never disappointed me with any of his aliases.

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    1. Thanks, Walter, I agree! I really enjoyed his albums as Lionrock and Revtone and seeing his name listed as a remixer or DJ will usually be incentive enough to buy without listening first. As you say, he's never disappointed.

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  2. Big fan of JR too, rarely lets me down.

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    1. And a JR remix appeared in my 'favourites of 2021' lists, proving he's still got it, three decades on.

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