Unsung Champion

45 minutes of Faithless for no other reason than "Why not?"

No epic-length cuts here, a few remixes, a fistful of hits, loads of guest vocalists and at the centre, the trinity of Rollo, Maxi Jazz (RIP) and Sister Bliss.

Enjoy!

1) Fatty Boo (Extended Version ft. The Hiites) (2005)

2) Insomnia (Original Radio Edit) (1995)

3) Hour Of Need (Skinny Mix By Matt Benbrook ft. Jamie Catto & Rachael Brown) (1999)

4) Crazy English Summer (Album Version ft. Zoë Johnston) (2001)

5) Killer's Lullaby (Nightmares On Wax Mix By George Evelyn) (1999) 

6) Muhammad Ali (Radio Edit ft. Pauline Taylor) (2001)

7) Miss U Less, See U More (Single Mix ft. LSK) (2004)

8) Reasons (Saturday Night) (Album Version ft. Ian Dury) (2005)

9) If Lovin' You Is Wrong (Cleaned Up Edit ft. Pauline Taylor) (1996)

10) We Come 1 (Wookie Rmx By Jason Chue) (2001)

11) Bring My Family Back (Album Version ft. Rachael Brown) (1998)

 

1995: Insomnia EP: 2

1996: If Lovin' You Is Wrong EP: 9 

1998: Sunday 8pm: 11

1999: Saturday 3am: 3, 5

2001: Muhammad Ali EP: 6

2001: Outrospective: 4 

2002: Reperspective: The Remixes: 10

2004: Miss U Less, See U More EP: 7 

2005: Fatty Boo EP: 1

2005: Forever Faithless: 8 

Unsung Champion (45:07) (KF) (Mega)

Can't You See That I Am Not Afraid?

You can blame Patrick Swayze for this one. I somehow found myself watching his 1989 'classic' film Road House - one of those nights where there's naff all on TV and you're too tired to watch anything too taxing. I won't dwell on the film - it's truly awful - though I managed an inward chuckle when I saw that the director's first name was Rowdy. Very apt.

 

Unsurprisingly, The Doors' Roadhouse Blues makes an appearance, albeit performed by the movie's bar band, in reality The Jeff Healey Band. Jeff also has a few lines with Swayze in the film, proving that he's also a great... guitar player.

Rather than going for the obvious and posting The Doors' original version of Roadhouse Blues, I've gone a bit Marmite and shovelled up a pile of 21st century remixes, which I guess you'll either love or hate. I'm in the former camp. Given the choice, I'd rather listen to this than the original motion picture soundtrack of Road House, even if it is currently going for 85p on Discogs...

 

1) Break On Through (Infected Mushroom Swing Remix) (2007)

2) People Are Strange (Reggae Version By Andy Rehfeldt) (2017) 

3) Riders On The Storm (N.O.W. Mix By Nightmares On Wax aka George Evelyn) (2000)

4) Hello I Love You (Adam Freeland Club Mix) (2006)

5) Strange Days (Thievery Corporation Remix) (2006)

6) Peace Frog (Andy Caracas Funk Re-Edit) (2016)

7) Roadhouse Blues (Mindelight Remix) (2007)

8) You're Lost Little Girl (Go Home Productions Remix By Mark Vidler) (2005)

9) Touch Me (The Reflex Re√ision) (2017)

10) The End (Riva Starr ReTrip) (2009)

Can't You See That I Am Not Afraid? (56:31) (KF) (Mega)

 

 

 

And if that's not enough to make you choke on your Corn Flakes... 

 

Light My Fire (Steptoe & Son Remix By Richard Whitehead): The Doors (2015)

 

(2024 update: Sadly, the video has since been removed from You Tube. The spoilsports!)

In The Middle Of This Contagious World

If I were a stickler for observing anniversaries, I'll have just missed the boat with this mix, as it was originally transmitted on NTS Radio on 22 June 2019. This is legendary producer Adrian Sherwood giving the Warp Records label an ON-U Sound rinse. 30 years of brilliance in 40 minutes. 

The title of today's post is a line from track 2, Licking An Orchid by Yves Tumor, originally released in 2018, the words seem especially appropriate in the present time. 

1) Wilmot: The Sabres Of Paradise (1994)
2) Licking An Orchid: Yves Tumor ft. James K (2018)
3) Flip Ya Lid: Nightmares On Wax (2006)
4) Nikels And Dimes: GonjaSufi (2012)
5) Auntie's Harp: Flying Lotus (2008)
6) Leyendecker: Battles (2007)
7) Dutty Bounce: Harmonic 313 (2012)
8) Alberto Balsalm: Aphex Twin (1995)
9) We'll Take It: Oneohtrix Point Never ft. Anohni & James Blake (2012)
10) Blood And Form: Mount Kimbie (2013)
11) Now Is The Time: Nightmares On Wax (2013)
12) Lion: Harmonic 313 (2012)
13) Simon From Sydney: LFO (1991)
14) Clonk's Coming: Sweet Exorcist (1991)
15) Pen Expers: Autechre (2001)

Warp vs. On-U Sound Mix: Adrian Sherwood (39:57)

 

Slip Into Something More Comfortable...

June 2015 mix, re-posted on my Mixcloud page in 2020, which includes the Hannes Fischer remix of Summertime Sadness that I mentioned in Sunday's post. Starting with Christopher Guest as Spinal Tap's Nigel Tufnell and finishing with John Thaw as The Sweeney's Jack Regan, and slipping in a few of my amateur edits along the way. Simplesmente is a simple splice of two Tom Middleton mixes. I like the Edie Sedgwick/Nightmares On Wax mash-up and I think the Shift K3y/Lana Del Rey segue works well although in retrospect I maybe should have extended the intro of the latter. And, of course, any excuse to shoehorn in a Julian Cope song...

 

1) "This one goes to 11…”: Spinal Tap (1984)
2) Slip Into Something More Comfortable (Original Instrumental Version): Kinobe (2000)
3) Edie Sedgwick Bleu My Mind (Khayem Mash-Up): Nightmares On Wax ft. Edie Sedgwick, Andy Warhol & Merv Griffin (2015)
4) Irganda (Red Snapper Remix): Songhoy Blues (2015)
5) Once In A Lifetime (Luxxury Edit): Talking Heads (2015)
6) Simplesmente (Tom Middleton Balearic Cosmos Remix) (Khayem Re-Edit): Bebel Gilberto (2015)
7) “Let’s face it Roger, that dress is you”: Zero Mostel, Gene Wilder & Christopher Hewett (1967)
8) Get Lucky (Live Medley @ MTV Awards): Daft Punk ft. Pharrell Williams, Nile Rodgers & Stevie Wonder (2014)
9) Not Into It (Original Mix): Shift K3Y (2014)
10) Summertime Sadness (Hannes Fischer Radio Edit): Lana Del Rey (2013)
11) Au Pays Des Merveilles De Juliet (Psychemagik Tour De Force Remix): Yves Simon (2014)
12) I Left My Wallet In El Segundo (Independence Mix By Norman Cook): A Tribe Called Quest (1990)
13) Rhythm & Blues World Service: Alexis Korner (1967)
14) State Of Independence (Long Version By Quincy Jones): Donna Summer (1982)
15) The Forest (Richard Norris Remix): Black Rivers (2015)
16) Wonderwall (Liam Gallagher & The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra IDC Mix): Oasis (2014)
17) Let Me Down Gently (Prins Thomas Diskomiks): La Roux (2014)
18) Burning Disaster (Groove Armada Bedtime Story Mix): Language Lab (1999)
19) Sunspots (Album Version): Julian Cope (1984)
20) “Get your trousers on, you’re nicked”: John Thaw (1975)

 

Slip Into Something More Comfortable... (1:21:11)

 

 

Wanna Hear Me Testify As A Witness Through The Business Of My Life

Released as a bonus CD with initial quantities of 2002's Mind Elevation by Nightmares On Wax, NoW (Tha Journey) is exactly that, a winding path through the back catalogue, past and present intersecting seamlessly. 23 tracks in under 40 minutes.

 

This one's for Dave Scantlebury, who lent me his copy the week it came out (I got my copy very soon after) and shared so much good music with me over the years. Dave passed on in 2009, but is never far from my thoughts when I'm listening to music.

 

NoW (Tha Journey) (Mixed By George Evelyn aka E.A.S.E.) (39:27)

1) Nights Introlude

2) Back Into Time

3) Use Ya Dub

4) Survival

5) Rise

6) Finer

7) Capumcap

8) Humble

9) Environment

10) Burn Me Slo (ft. O.C.)

11) Ethnic Majority

12) Know My Name

13) Easejimi

14) Date With Destiny

15) Days Like These

16) Keep On Rockin

17) (Man) Tha Journey

18) E.A.S.E.

19) BBH (Bongo-Brk-Haven)

20) Play On (ft. Corrina Joseph)

21) Playtime / Omara / Groove St.

22) Praying For A Jeepbeat

23) Bless My Soul  

 

NoW (Tha Journey) (39:27)

50@50, Part Three: 1990-1999

Side One (30:09)

21) Loaded (Andrew Weatherall Mix): Primal Scream (1990)

22) 101 (Sonic Shuffle) (Remix By Andrew Weatherall & Hugo Nicholson): Finitribe (1991)

23) Fallen (Nancy & Lee Mix By Andrew Weatherall & One Dove): One Dove (1992)

24) What Godzilla Said To God When His Name Wasn't Found In The Book Of Life (Home Demo): American Music Club (1993)

25) Becoming More Like God (Radio Edit): Jah Wobble's Invaders Of The Heart ft. Anneli Drecker (1994)

Side Two (25:11)

26) Planet Telex (Album Version): Radiohead (1995)

27) Les Yper-Sound (Album Version): Stereolab (1996)

28) Dry The Rain (Single Version): The Beta Band (1997)

29) Feelings: Leila ft. Donna Paul (1998)

30) Les Nuits (Album Version): Nightmares On Wax (1999)

Side One (30:09)

Side Two (25:11)

This could have been a shorter Side One if I'd included the radio edits of Primal Scream and Finitribe, but it would have been a disservice to both tracks so in true K-Tel tradition, I went for the full half hour side of vinyl for this one, and be damned with the quality. I first heard Loaded on The Chart Show, but the full 12" version was like something transmitted from a parallel universe. And so began my lifelong love affair with the genius that is Andrew Weatherall. Finitribe had previously been an industrial dance act, but 101 took them to a whole new level and again Weatherall provided the extra push over the cliff, not quite chucking in the kitchen sink but slinging a clacking computer printer into the mix. As if that wasn't enough, he enabled Glasgow's One Dove to shine brightly although sadly all too briefly. American Music Club had some major label interest in the early-mid 1990s and I was lucky enough to see them live in concert around this time,  but one of my favourite songs (and song titles) is a scrappy home demo from their Mercury album. Jah Wobble is Jah Wobble. 'Nuff said. The Bends is my favourite Radiohead album and Emperor Tomato Ketchup is my favourite Stereolab album, who were also awesome live in concert. My friend Stu introduced me to The Beta Band via The Patty Patty Sound EP, but it was a defining moment to hear John Cusack drop this song in a pivotal moment in the film version of High Fidelity. Likewise, listening to Leila's Like Weather album in Stu's London bedsit in the wee hours after a night on the town was a defining moment. It was another friend, Dave (long departed, never forgotten), who educated me in all things Nightmares On Wax, including this pre-millenium gem. Our mutual love of electronica and dance music shimmied us into the 21st century, seeking newer and weirder beats. And we got them. And more. Much more.