Suche:big joe

Big Joe Williams is seen by many as the ultimate incarnation of the Delta Country Blues player, and several of his songs have become standards in the Blues canon. Known for being rough on his guitars, it's one of the reasons for the ongoing tinkering that led to the construction of his first nine string instrument. This fine studio album was released in 1962 on the Folkways Label after being recorded the year before. It contains King Highway Blues, a slow and at times almost spoken track. Where as Somebody's Been Foolin' is fairly driven along by Ransom Knowling's Bass. In 1968 Downbeat Magazine, simply stated that "Big Joe Williams' Blues is a beautiful experience". Listen to this album and you'll agree.

Rock and Rock roots, deep down under You'd better believe it! The roots of Australian rockers AC/DC lie in the whirlwind of original fifties rock and roll.
In the early days the group would cut their teeth on the club circuit with a live set that would include a handful of band originals,a few Rolling Stones numbers plus many crowd pleasing Rock and Roll classics.
The Sydney club and bar scene was rough so you had to get the punters on your side.
With their original singer Dave Evans at the helm the group who play residencies at the likes of the New Hampton Court Hotel in Sydney entertaining with their own brand of loud guitar takes of 'Carol' and 'Bye Bye Johnny'by Chuck Berry,'Tutti Frutti'by Little Richard,as well as rocking standards like 'Shake,rattle and roll' and 'Blue Suede Shoes'.
Cranking out cover versions didn't die even when the group composed more original material,a version of 'School Days' by Chuck Berry would appear on their second album' TNT',whilst 'Baby Please Don't Go' would be pulled from their original 1975 debut album'High Voltage' and issued as a single in America.
These roots are the reason that AC/DC have become one of the best loved bands on the planet who never fail to deliver the goods everytime.......

With his third album, The Big Swim, due out in December 2022 on Bongo Joe records, Augenwasser ventures once again into the paths of synth wave exploration with a pop feel. Still laced with the folk textures of his early days, he nevertheless develops a dance approach that can at times be akin to melancholic drone. His music takes you to an imaginary, dark club, lulled by a haunting rhythm, surrounded by the fumes of the night, where it is possible to indulge in that quiet voice that has already confessed that it is too late but will never stop repeating its soft, cold poetry:

'Bobbie Gentry's The Delta Sweete Revisited' is
Mercury Rev's committed and affectionate
resurrection of an album that anticipated by three
decades their own pivotal expedition through
transcendental America, 1998's 'Deserter's Songs'.
From their recording lair in New York's Catskill
Mountains, the founding core of Jonathan
Donahue and Grasshopper with Jesse Chandler
(previously in the Texas group Midlake) honour
Gentry's foresight and creative triumph with
spacious invention and hallucinatory flair.
Gentry's stories and original resolve are brought to
new vocal life and empowerment by a vocal cast
from across modern rock and its alternative paths:
among them, Mazzy Star's Hope Sandoval; Laetitia
Sadier, formerly of Stereolab; Marissa Nadler;
Margo Price, the fiery new country star with a
punk rock heart; and Norway's Susanne Sundfør,
who cuts through 'Tobacco Road' with arctic-Nico
poise. Phoebe Bridgers, whose first record was a
softly stunning 2015 single for Ryan Adams' PAX
AM label, hovers through the acid-western
suspense of Gentry's 'Jessye Lisabeth' with floating
calm, like a comforting angel.

22 track double gatefold vinyl version of the album (CD) which was released July 7th. Collaborators include Beyonce, Jay Z, Nas,Travis Scott, Alicia Keys, Nicki Minaj, Rihanna, Bryson Tiller, Rick Ross, Big Sean, Calvin Harris, Justin Bieber, Quavo, Lil Wayne, Chance the Rapper & more. Support across radio, TV & press. Online & social media activity.

Belgium 'Popcorn' borrows its name from the 1969 James Brown LP, The Popcorn, which also became the moniker for the Popcorn Club in Vrasene, Flanders which, in its heyday, attracted 3,000 youths to its Sunday sessions. It was DJ Gilbert Govaert who pioneered the sound, blending blues, soul, jazz, latin, doo-wop and high-school pop in a unique melting pot that appealed to dancers seeking that chugging cha-cha beat.
Our POPCORN SOUL PARTY carries on the tradition with many tracks culled from the original playlists and others, such as the incredibly elusive Willie J Charles Feelin' Kinda Lonesome' which has become popular in more recent times.
This unique set will appeal to Popcorn oldies fans, new breed Northern Soul fans and R&B collectors alike. Look out for new-to-vinyl reissues courtesy of Ki Ki Page and Chance Halladay!
The Party Continues...

Mit gerade mal 17 Jahren releaste Joey Bada$$ sein erstes Mixtape "1999" welches den Sound der goldenen Hiphop-Ära der 90er Jahre adaptierte, so authentisch und selbstverständlich als sei er mit dabei gewesen.
Die Kritiker überschlugen sich in ihren begeisterten Rezensionen und es folgten Features mit Asap Rocky, Kendrick Lamar, Mac Miller & Action Bronson. Der junge Brooklynite ist schon längst mehr als nur ein Geheimtipp. Die ersten audiovisuellen Kostproben gab es in den vergangenen Monaten in Form von "Big Dusty" und "Christ Conscious". Am 20. Januar erscheint nun sein Debütalbum, das den Titel "B4.DA.A$$" trägt.

Hot Creations Spring 2026 Vinyl Sampler featuring four of the Hottest recent release on Hot Creations.

After a year in which Joe Rolét’s ‘No Hesitating’ on Hot Creations became one of the biggest tracks of 2025 earning a spot in Mixmag’s ‘30 Best Dancefloor Bangers of 2025’, UK favourite Max Dean’s own
interpretation give s whole new energy to the track. Max’s remix reframes it even further for maximum peak-time impact. The bassline is murkier, the cuts sharply, and the overall momentum makes it a powerful weapon for DJs looking to keep crowds moving. Next up is ‘Sweat’, a collaborative drop from in-demand rising talents Locky and Mad.Again, bringing together two distinct voices shaped by London’s underground. ‘Sweat’ is a monster of a track, delivering punchy, driving drums, weighty bass, and tightly coiled grooves designed for peak-time floors, it’s a collaboration that feels rooted, purposeful, and built for the club!

On the flip and L.P Rhythm delivers his 90s-driven house aesthetic with ‘Want Somebody’, leaning into the warmth and swing of the era he draws so much influence from, the production blends crisp percussion, squiggly acid basslines, and soulful vocal flashes into a sharp, club-focused flip of a ’90s house classic - built and re-purposed for packed rooms and late-night energy. Final track ‘Freaks’ from Joshwa, brings a hypnotic blend of infectious vocal chops, punchy percussion, and growling low-end heat built for late-night dancefloors. Another four track banger!

Welcome to THE VAULT for 1985. A collection that digs deeper into the year’s musical landscape – uncovering singles that may not have always reached the highest chart positions but remain essential to the rich and diverse pop story of 1985. Some were overshadowed at the time, some were highlights from albums that had already sold huge amounts, some found greater success internationally – but all deserve their place in this continued celebration of 80s pop.

45 tracks across 3-LPs – pressed in gorgeous green vinyl – NOW Yearbook – The Vault: 1985.

LP1 opens with a trio of tracks from huge-selling albums:- Bruce Springsteen’s ‘My Hometown’, the sixth single in the UK from ‘Born in the U.S.A’ - one of the best-selling albums of the decade, followed by Bryan Ferry with the stunning ‘Windswept’ from ‘Boys And Girls’ and Sting’s ‘Love Is The Seventh Wave’, taken from his solo debut ‘The Dream Of The Blue Turtles’. Next up, Go West with a U.S single release ‘Eye To Eye’, Scritti Politti with ‘Perfect Way’ – their biggest hit in America, and ABC with ‘Be Near Me’. The first side closes with two established bands; Heaven 17 and Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark… Flip the LP over for Adam Ant with ‘Vive Le Rock’, Midge Ure, Blancmange and the second collaboration between Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder with ‘Good-Bye Bad Times’. The Style Council’s ‘Welcome To Milton Keynes’ leads to LP1’s closer’s from Simply Red and Fine Young Cannibals who followed their debut ‘Johnny Come Home’ with ‘Blue’.

LP2 opens with Cocteau Twins and the dream-pop atmospherics of ‘Aikea-Guinea’, ahead of The Jesus And Mary Chain with ‘Just Like Honey’, and The Dream Academy with ‘The Love Parade’.

Brilliant with their cover of James Brown’s ‘It’s A Man’s Man’s Man’s World’ and jazz-influenced pop from Matt Bianco are up next ahead of the sublime ‘Castles In The Air’ from The Colourfield and Elvis Costello & The Attractions, who released the 1979 track ‘Green Shirt’ to promote their ‘Best Of’ collection … and the side closes with The Clash’s ‘This Is England’ which would become their last originally released hit…whilst on the other side…celebrate the dancefloor, with a vibrant mix of Hi-NRG, soul, electro and club-influenced pop:- Opening with Sheryl Lee Ralph’s ‘In The Evening’ and Barbara Pennington’s equally superb ‘On A Crowded Street’, the hi-energy continues with Miquel Brown and Hazell Dean ahead of a US hit from Laura Branigan (‘Spanish Eddie’) and Divine’s cover of ‘Twistin’ The Night Away’. LP2 finishes with a massive U.S. dancefloor smash for Eddie Murphy with ‘Party All The Time’.

The final LP kicks off with a bunch of singles that achieved bigger hit status in the US than here and opens with Billy Joel’s ‘You’re Only Human (Second Wind)’, a track written exclusively for his ‘Greatest Hits – Volume I & II’ compilation, ahead of pop-rock from John Mellencamp plus an anthemic smash from Bon Jovi. Pat Benatar’s ‘Invincible’ features ahead of The Power Station’s third US Top 40 hit…whilst back in the UK Chris Rea enjoyed his biggest chart hit to date with ‘Stainsby Girls’ and the side is completed by Marillion with ‘Heart Of Lothian’ the third hit from their huge ‘Misplaced Childhood’ album… Flip to the final side for the stellar vocals on ‘Act Of War’, the huge collaboration between Elton John & Millie Jackson ahead of dancefloor smash ‘New Attitude’ from Patti Labelle and ‘Show Some Respect’ a U.S. single from Tina Turner. Sophisticated pop-R&B from Michael McDonald and Daryl Hall & John Oates come ahead of the collection’s closers- and two outstanding vocal performances: Chaka Khan’s ‘Through The Fire’ and the U.S. breakthrough hit from Whitney Houston with ‘You Give Good Love’ – signalling the arrival of one of the decade’s brightest new stars.

NOW Yearbook – The Vault: 1985 – A deeper dive into an unforgettable year in pop.

Bahamadia’s 1996 debut album Kollage is rightly regarded as one of the greatest rap albums of the 1990s. For the first time ever, Be With present the definitive double LP version of this eternal hip-hop classic, including the legendary "Path To Rhythm" which never appeared on the original LP or on vinyl, anywhere. An indelible VIBE from start-to-finish, Kollage presents Bahamadia's swirling rhymes delivered with an irresistibly butter flow and razor-sharp assuredness over a steady slew of smoothed-out, jazzed-up, blunted beats. Achingly cool and effortlessly funky throughout, it's an absolute must for true 90s hip-hop fanatics.

The entire Kollage project was recorded at D&D Studios and the ties to Gang Starr are keenly felt, with DJ Premier producing five tracks in addition to the killer songs Guru had already produced with her. Working with the cream of the mid-90s East Coast sound, Kollage is, accordingly, a record that demonstrates a varied musical taste with disparate influences, as Bahamadia has previously stated: “The title Kollage was a reflection of my state of mind. I first got interested in music from playing my parents’ and grandparents’ records, as well what I heard on the radio. I wanted Kollage to reflect that diversity both lyrically and sonically."

With intelligent, poetic lyricism and a laconic verbal style bursting with both warm texture and deceptive energy, Bahamadia’s flow was as inspired by Aretha and Nancy Wilson as it was Q-Tip, Schoolly D and Lady B. Swaggering out the gate, "WordPlay" finds Bahamadia confidently showcasing her considerable old-school battle-rhyme skills over a Guru beat that utilises an infectiously bouncy bassline with splashes of sultry jazz horns and a Jeru vocal snatch for the hook. Up next, the quietly shimmering and ruggedly beautiful "Spontaneity" is one of the most alluring on the record, Da Beatminerz crafting a brilliantly soulful and jazzy soundscape for Bahamadia's effortless vocals to float across. It's followed by "Rugged Ruff", where the rapper carefully constructs a swift off-beat flow over Premier's raw jazzy fire.

With smooth spacey synth vibes overseen by former Geto Boys producer N.O. Joe, "I Confess" is, without question, a fly love song and soothing (p)-funk groove. "UKNOWHOWWEDU" is an airy, chilled tribute to her hometown. Produced by Ski Beatz & DJ Redhanded, it rides a gloriously mellow break. It's a true Philly anthem, shouting out a who’s who of the entire city’s scene. Early banger "Total Wreck" follows, presenting a murky Guru instrumental elevated by jazzy horns. Bahamadia invokes the title's suggestion, firing her brilliant bars more aggressively than we’re accustomed to. More Beatminerz-brilliance comes in the way of "Innovation", an opportunity for the MC to invoke Freestyle Fellowship in her forward-thinking and literary verses. "Da Jawn" features hometown buddies The Roots, with Black Thought gliding into a back-and-forth with Bahamadia over ?uestlove’s warm, snapping percussion. With the strut club banger "True Honey Buns (Dat Freak Sh*t)", DJ Premier provides some laidback vibrant boom bap for Bahamadia to share a wild, cautionary tale about a night out with her girl, Kia.

Fan favourite "3 Tha Hard Way" is a hypnotically sinister cut, with Bahamadia, K-Swift and Mecca Star taking star turns to coast over DJ Premier’s raw beat whilst the tender "Biggest Part Of Me" is a heartfelt stunner dedicated to her son. Incredibly, only the European and Japanese CD versions of Kollage was released with the brilliantly breezy “Path To Rhythm”, featuring Ursula Rucker. Whilst ostensibly a "bonus track", it's anything but, to our ears. Very much in sonic conversation with KRS-One's stretched-out sleeper classic "Higher Level", it's absolutely essential so we had to include it, appearing on wax for the first time here, exclusively. Quite a coup.

Somewhat predictably, whilst Kollage was released to significant critical acclaim, it suffered from disappointing sales. In the intervening years - and for far too long - it was a criminally underrated record, an increasingly hidden gem. We hope this double LP reissue - which looks and sounds amazing - will go some way to correct this. This 2024 Be With double LP re-issue has been mastered for vinyl by Simon Francis, cut by Cicely Balston and pressed at Record Industry. It's too bold and beautiful to remain overlooked and underserved.

Celebrating three decades of geek-rock history, Nerf Herder returns with Nerf Herder redux, an acoustic reimagining of their seminal 1996 self-titled debut originally released on Arista Records. Produced by the legendary Joey Cape (Lagwagon), this 30th-anniversary collection breathes new life into fan favorites, featuring stripped-back versions of the hit single "Van Halen" and the streaming powerhouse "Sorry." With a tracklistbolstered by refreshed takes on "Golfshirt," "Diana," and "Nosering Girl," the album serves as both a nostalgic deep-dive for longtime fans and a fresh entry point for the band's massive digital audience. Nerf Herder's enduring cultural footprint_from composing the iconic Buffy the Vampire Slayer theme to lead singer Parry Gripp's Emmy-winning career and 2 million YouTube subscribers_ensures a multi-generational appeal. Having shared stages with titans like Weezer, Circle Jerks, and Reel Big Fish, the band maintains a loyal, active fanbase. This release arrives ahead on their European 30th Anniversary Tour in late May and early June.

If – in some parallel universe (or perhaps a not-so-distant-future version of the one we’re already sentenced to living in) – the evil overloads of artificial intelligence were actually successful in their attempts to create convincingly enjoyable “original music,” more specifically tasked with wholly encapsulating my own personal tastes by data-chugging some cocktail of – oh, I don’t know – the posters on my wall, the records in my “most listened to” pile, the mixtapes I made for others, intensive physical scans of my auditory cortex, amygdala, hippocampus, heart strings, whatever else they have splayed out on their autopsy table with the intention of generating one all-encompassing “perfect band” based on the fruitful sum of their findings – that band, for me, would be (or would at least sound exactly like) the Tara Clerkin Trio. It is, quite simply, without exception, the music I wish to hear.

Formed in Bristol UK (where none of them are from yet all of whom are deeply engrained) in 2020, the Tara Clerkin Trio – as it somewhat democratically exists today, despite the singular authority implied by its name – consists of the titular Tara Clerkin, her partner Sunny Joe Paradisos, and Sunny’s brother, Patrick Benjamin. I’ll confess, I don’t know what their respective roles are within the operation and there’s only a very small part of me that cares to learn, as one of my favorite qualities in an objective listening experience is the mystery of who is playing what, which sounds are “authentic” versus synthesized, which chunks are performed “live” in a room together versus meticulously Frankenstein’ed from measure to measure, or how exactly the overall sound is so (seemingly) effortlessly achieved. Though, I suspect, if and when I do witness a live performance by this band at any point, my enjoyment of the music will not be lost in my better understanding of it.

With two extraordinary mini-albums – In Spring (2021) and On The Turning Ground (2023) – making a splash on London’s formidable World of Echo label in wake of their self-titled 2020 debut, this upcoming Somewhere Good LP is, in many ways, the band’s most realised work. In running their usual gauntlet of idiosyncratic (*an overused adjective for which here there is regrettably no sufficient alternative) approaches, Clerkin & co. colour in and outside of compositional lines over the course of 40+ celebratory minutes - never wallowing, despite inherently somber subject matters of self-defeat, disease, displacement, restlessness, gentrification - allowing their arrangements and improvisations ample space and time to situate, stretch out, breathe, cross-pollinate, and ultimately take deeper hold on the listener’s imagination – all while somehow sounding more like themselves than ever before.

Of course, there are traceable influences herein, if one felt that such comparisons were necessary to properly examine and enjoy this music (they aren’t)… Being the big dumb American from the small boring town that I am, cornfed on ‘90s alternative radio with the enchantingly exotic sounds of Maxinquaye and Mezzanine emanating from my chunky tube television, I can’t help but to make a blatantly obvious reference to a “Bristol sound”, ie the whole trip-hop trip, the pastoral crooning over the suggestive urban grime of cracked electro/piano treatments, the digitally-yet-primitively reconstructed James Bond soundtrack string-beats, etc.. But the Tara Clerkin Trio is so infinitely much more than that. There are elements of avant-pop, modern classical, kraut-folk, audio verité, dare I say indie rock (and not of the beer guzzling, masturbatory fuzz-flex variety but perhaps more like a Trish Keenan-fronted Faust, Adrian Sherwood at the mixing desk of If You’re Feeling Sinister, or – in expanding on our alternate reality – a world in which High Llamas cut a full-length for Warp Records with Andrew Weatherall on coffee duty).

The hazy, unmappable skyline-mirage of droning harmonium, upright bass, peculiarly accentuated wind instruments, acoustic guitar, hushed yet literally mighty keys combine to hypnotizing effect. The band may make underlying nods to jazz, sure, but it’s not appropriation, it’s that they have the actual chops to build it out. Beneath the janky samples and oddball percussive embellishment lies actually great drumming. Beyond the manipulated vocal witchery and woefully reflective plain-spoke moments are Tara’s subtly inspired melodies, sung with what might honestly be the glue to the whole crazy equation. A calming consistency throughout the otherwise unpredictably dynamic, boldly intuitive, uniquely British exploration of this (their own) universe in song. – Ryan Davis (Chicago, February 2026)

Hip Hop icon and one of the genre’s most distinctive voices, Big L returns with 'Harlem's Finest: Return Of The King', the latest release in Mass Appeal's 'Legend Has It...' series.

Features guest appearances from Nas, JAY Z, Mac Miller, Joey Bada$$, Method Man and more

Bruno Berle is a singer, songwriter, producer, multi-instrumentalist and figurehead of a contemporary Brazilian music movement. With a quiet mastery of songwriting and an astonishing voice, his music has won hearts around the world. Since the release of his debut album No Reino Dos Afetos (2022), Berle has performed across the UK, Europe, Japan, South Korea, and China, only leaving his home country for the first time in 2023. Shaped by these journeys, Berle’s third studio album, Sem Fronteiras (Without Borders), reflects a utopian vision of a unified world.

Recorded across London, São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Germany, and Maceió, the album–co-produced alongside his longstanding musical partner Batata Boy–is the most expansive canvas Berle has worked on to date. Shot through with the imagery that has always animated his songwriting: open skies, morning light, vivid colours and the magic of human connection, Berle’s carefully crafted poetics and warm, delicate instrumentation drive this vivid body of work.

“I came from nothing”–Berle doesn’t take his rise to global prominence for granted.

Born to a working class family from Brazil’s northeastern Alagoas state, one of Brazil’s most economically deprived, Bruno moved frequently in his youth to follow any job opportunities his parents could find, before eventually settling in the coastal capital of Maceió. “I used to travel to Caruaru, Santa Cruz, Recife, Garanhuns, Arapiraca, which I loved and feel it made me ready to be in this rhythm i’, but at the same time I think not having friends from childhood and being in constant change made me a little numb to the constant upheaval”. On Sem Fronteiras, there is a similar duality at play. The album celebrates the collective joy and human connection that live touring brings, but it also sits with the darker realities of crossing borders. While music moves more freely around the world than ever before, our bodies are not granted the same privilege.

Though he’s never lacked self-belief, Berle recognises that talent alone doesn’t guarantee opportunity. “Before my second album No Reino Dos Afetos 2 everything I had ever recorded was made with the help and kindness of people who believed in my ability”. Determined to pay that kindness forward and help others from the sharp end of Brazil’s desperately unequal society, Berle produced and featured on the recent self-titled albums by his northeast Brazilian compatriots, Nyron Higor and Phylipe Nunes Araújo (both 2025), helping propel both onto the international stage. In turn, following the successes of Nyron & Phylipe’s albums alongside his own, Bruno finds himself at the forefront of a thriving community of artists now based in São Paulo, but primarily originating from northeastern states like Alagoas and Pernambuco.

Much like the famed Clube Da Esquina movement that spawned in 1970’s Minas Gerais, they operate with a free-exchange of ideas, writing songs with and for each other, performing on each other’s albums and on the live circuit together. Lead single ‘Manha’ flows from this ethos. It was written by Berle’s friend and fellow Alagoan João Menezes (writer of ‘Ate Meu Violao’ and ‘Te Amar Eterno’ from Bruno’s previous albums) and Marvin Viera, and originally recorded on their 2018 album Areia e Mar.

Sem Fronteiras opens with ‘Você Já Sabe Que Eu Te Amo’, just six beats of one nylon guitar chord ring out before changing key, paving the way for the gentle strike of fender rhodes and the arresting call & response duet between Berle and Higor. On ‘Amor Inteiro’, the album reaches a celebratory burst of catharsis, with the punch-packing drums of Pedro Lacerda and Nina Maia’s joyous backing vocals encapsulating the live energy that Berle and his band bring to the stage.

With the abundant talents of this musical community at its heart, Sem Fronteiras releases 10th July 2026 via Far Out Recordings, supported by a summer tour across Europe. Bruno Berle will perform in a four-piece band alongside Nyron Higor, Phylipe Nunes, and Batata Boy, culminating in an appearance at Roskilde festival, Berle’s biggest live show to date. He’ll continue to carry a hopeful vision of a world where artists and musicians can move as freely as their music flows.

Tracklist:

A1 “Você Já Sabe Que Eu Te Amo”
(Nyron Higor / Bruno Berle)
Nyron Higor – drums, bass, acoustic guitar, electric piano, synthesizers, vocals
Bruno Berle – piano, vocals
Batata Boy – piano
Jorik Bergman – score preparation and conducting
Klara Gronet – violin
Ségolène de Beaufond – violin
Cristina Ardelean Montelongo – viola
Ilektra Stevi – cello

A2 “Não Posso Viver Sem Você”
(Batata Boy / Bruno Berle)
Batata Boy – electric piano, organ, synthesizer
Bruno Berle – drums, bass, synthesizer, vocals
Jorik Bergman – score preparation and conducting
Klara Gronet – violin
Ségolène de Beaufond – violin
Cristina Ardelean Montelongo – viola
Ilektra Stevi – cello

A3 “A Noite de Estrelas”
(Nyron Higor / Bruno Berle)
Nyron Higor – synthesizers
Bruno Berle – bass, drums, vocals

A4 “Outra Noite”
(Bruno Berle)
Nyron Higor – drums
Bruno Berle – acoustic guitar, bass
Felipe Berle – congas
Lucca Francisco – guitar, vocals

B1 “Amor Inteiro”
(Bruno Berle)
Pedro Lacerda – drums, choir
Nyron Higor – bass, choir
Batata Boy – guitars, organ, electric piano, choir
Nina Maia – choir
Bruno Berle – guitars, acoustic guitar, congas, vocals

B2 “Ideias Mágicas”
(Batata Boy / Bruno Berle)
Heloisa Alvino – trombone
Batata Boy – synthesizers, beats, electric piano, organ, bass
Bruno Berle – synthesizer, vocals

B3 “Vim Dizer”
(Batata Boy / Bruno Berle)
Batata Boy – electric piano, organ, synthesizer
Thomas Stankiewicz – synthesizer
Nyron Higor – synthesizer
Bruno Berle – acoustic guitar, bass, vocals

B4 “Tô Assim”
(Bruno Berle)
Bruno Berle – acoustic guitars
Batata Boy – synthesizer
Nyron Higor – bass, synthesizer

B5 “Manhã”
(João Menezes / Marvin Silva)
Bruno Berle – acoustic guitar, vocals, congas, shaker
Batata Boy – piano, shaker, electric piano, vibraphone, synthesizers
Nyron Higor – drums, bass

B6 “Sem Fronteiras”
(Bruno Berle)
Filipe Mariz – guitar
Bruno Berle – acoustic guitar, vocals, bass
Jennifer Souza – vocals, acoustic guitar
Rudson França – drums

Credits:

Produced by Bruno Berle and Batata Boy
Mixed and mastered by Bruno Berle, Batata Boy and Felipe Berle

Audio engineering:
Nyron Higor (track 1 – production; track 4 with Felipe Berle)
Joe Osborne (tracks 7 and 9)
Victor Gelling (strings on tracks 1 and 2)
Filipe Mariz (track 10)

Photography: Claudio Virgínio
Design: Minchai

Recorded in:
Maceió, Alagoas, Brazil
Tamandaré, Pernambuco, Brazil
Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
London, England
Cologne, Germany

Indiana Jones never dug this deep.
Church – the brainchild of Joe Washington – were a band both lucky and cursed to come up in the seventies. Lucky, because they rode a wave of community activism, uplifting messages and a moment when music truly mattered. Cursed, because those same times meant their tight, heartfelt output went overlooked.
Mid-sixties to circa 1980 soul and funk were extraordinarily rich. The era’s big releases have aged like fine wine, yet countless hidden gems remain buried. Church’s only single was one of them. Their hypnotic 1976 release “How Long” b/w “Da Da Song” arrived the same year as Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life, Marvin Gaye’s I Want You, Diana Ross’s Diana, and at a time when Black mainstream music was shifting toward disco. Church, however, sounded like Sly & The Family Stone in an alternate timeline — gritty, focused, stripped of additives.
“Da Da Song” is pure grits and gravy: furious, tight drums and lyrics that sound like both a plea to DJs to play their record and an insistence to keep the party alive, noticed or not. It cooks from start to finish in just two and a half minutes.
“How Long” is its own universe. Where “Da Da Song” is skeletal, “How Long” blends key strands of Black music in under three minutes: touches of spiritual jazz with a Gary Bartz-like sax, gospel-blues undertones, and echoes of the era’s flower-power-tinged Black creativity — The Undisputed Truth, The Family Stone, even the poetic freedom of Nikki Giovanni. The lyrics are a timeless plea for love.
Church formed in the Bay Area in the early seventies, shaped by the movement, culture and activism of the time. Joseph Washington, based in San Jose, never chased a music career — for him, music was a way to bring people together. Before Church, he led a backing band called Wash, then added gospel singer Linda Williams (née Stephens) and New York–born Joel Como on xylophone to complete the group.
They rehearsed in Joe’s garage, spread through word of mouth and played every gig they could: Black colleges, opening slots for The Whispers, neighbourhood house parties. Some members studied at Nairobi Junior College in East Palo Alto, then a hotbed of Black community activism, with revolution in the air and messages woven naturally into the music.
This single is a message from that era, resurfacing at last — ready to be sampled just as another Joe Washington track, “Look Me in the Eyes”, was on Drake and J. Cole’s “First Person Shooter”. These rare, spirited tunes are begging for new life through samplers, again and again.

What can be said about Joey Beltram’s ‘Energy Flash’ that hasn’t be said already! The track still gets rinsed, week in, week out, across radio stations, clubs and festivals, testimony to the sheer importance of this techno classic.

Released originally in 1990 on the R&S Records label, ‘Beltram Vol. 1’ included the aforementioned ‘Energy Flash’, alongside three equally ground-breaking dance tracks that possibly get overshadowed by the big lead track. But tracks like ‘Subsonic Bass’ broke the mould and went on to influence a raft of rave and drum ‘n’ bass tunes, thanks in part to its use of the now legendary ‘hoover’ bass sound. The sinister acid of ‘Jazz 3033’ still sounds as fresh today as it did 33 years ago, and the menacingly titled ‘Psycho Bass’ reveals the EP’s most passive moment, as its solid breakbeat cuts through ethereal tones and chugging synths.

‘Beltram Volume 1’ has been remastered by Beau Thomas at Ten Eight Seven Mastering, and the release comes in an updated sleeve, faithfully recreating the 1990 packaging.

‘Beltram Volume 1’ by Joey Beltram is available on R&S Records from 10th February 2023.