Friday 25 February 2011

Blackjack feat Frances Mary - On Fire

Blackjack On FireWhile we seem to be on something of a soulful tip, I guess now's a good time to tell you about this one, which is FAR more soulfully-inclined number than you might expect to find on TIWWD as it's become. But a) there's a local (ie, Bristol) connection and b) it is actually rather nice!

The Original Vocal Mix is straight-up early 90s-style street soul, the kind of thing that will appeal to fans of Driza Bone, D*Note, Des'ree, D*Influence and, er, other people like that beginning with D. Then mix-wise, it goes all over the place, but always with the soul intact: there's Blackjack's Broken Vox Mix for the bruk beat crew, there's the COF Mix for those into the jazzier end of the 'soulful house' scene as it stands right now (think Nathan Haines, Reel People, etc), and then there's Flex's Old School Mix, which is another reason it's featuring here – with its thumping 4/4 beats and synth string stabs, this comes on like the Musto & Bones, Eric Kupper or Steve 'Silk' Hurley mixes you used to find lurking on the B-sides of ORIGINAL 90s street soul 12s. If you ever shopped at Expansions Records in Manchester (which you probably didn't, admittedly), you'll know the kind of thing.

I'm not sure I'd play this now… but I would've back in the day, for sure. So in a nostalgic mood, I might, actually.

Out: This week

About: Blackjack is part of the Circle Of Funk collective (COF, y'see?), along with Lee Robinson, Paul Stephenson and Andy Caulfield, all of whom who can boast impressive CVs in the UK dance industry from hip-hop to house to UKG. And some of whom are from Bristol, as I said. Between them they also run the label this is on, Slapped Up Soul, who can be found on MySpace. Show some love, eh?

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