Back catalogue: Disco/Re-Edits

Review: Miss You's latest missive takes us back to 1979 and the sole single from Italian singer Angela - a previously 7" only affair that made limited impact outside of Italy on its initial release. Lead cut 'Teneremante' is a typically colourful and camp Italian translation of disco, whose over-the-top excellence and bold lead vocal from Angela have an endearing 'easy listening era singer does disco' vibe. Musically, it soars, with the addition of lo-fi but spacey synth sounds (alongside classic disco orchestration) making it sound a bit more eccentric than it actually is. Original flip side 'Angela E Cosi' is a more suspenseful, low-slung affair built around a slower and headier groove, AOR disco instrumentation and another soaring vocal from Angela.

Review: Kalita Records are proud and honoured to announce the first ever official reissue of the four choice tracks from Randolph Baker's privately pressed sought-after 1982 disco album 'Reaching For The Stars', plus an unreleased instrumental take of 'Party Life' sourced from the original 24-track analogue master tapes.

Originally recorded at Jim Morris and Rick Miller's Tampa-based Morrisound Studios, 'Getting Next To You' features both a mixture of both local Florida talent plus jazz superstar Nat Adderley and bassist John Lamb at their finest. Originally pressed in a limited run of just one-thousand copies, with no distribution and most copies being sold in the local city and on Randolph's own merchandise table at the back of live gigs, original copies have long been sought-after by both collectors and DJs alike, acknowledged as a true grail and masterpiece in the disco scene and deservedly demanding extortionate figures to those lucky enough to find their own.

Here, in collaboration with Randolph, Kalita Records have chosen to re-release the four choice tracks from the album: 'Getting Next To You', 'Jazzman', 'Callin' Me' and 'Party Life'. The former is an in-demand horn and chant-filled disco masterpiece, which, as Randolph explains, concerns unity and "everyone on the same level in other words, everyone just loving life". It is arguably the song that Randolph is most well-known for in the disco and funk scene and perfect for the modern discerning dance floor. 'Jazzman' is an instrumental track with prominent trumpet and saxophone solos working with funky basslines to produce a truly great jazz-funk groove. It was "a tribute to Nat Adderley and Duke Ellington's bass player, John Lamb, for being so generous and saying yes to the project". 'Callin' Me' is a soulful disco number featuring the lead vocals of Laurie Erickson and is "about being on the road and ensuring loved ones that you will always come back home no matter what. It was like a promise to ensure loved ones they didn't have to worry". Lastly, 'Party Life' is a joyous disco track with a strong funk bassline and horns. As Randolph recalls, it "was the joy like after an actor finishes a movie. There was nothing but joy. It's finished; let's celebrate big time. Where everyone in the studio yelled at the top of their lungs - The End!" Here, with access to the 24-track master tapes we have been able to include the original version plus an unreleased instrumental take, allowing us to focus on the infectious bassline and make it even more ready for the modern dance floor.

Accompanied by extensive interview-based liner notes and never-before-seen photos.

Review: During the latter stages of the "Philly Soul" era, New York remixer Tom Moulton delivered a string of inspired, DJ friendly reworks for the Philadelphia International label. For proof, check this fine selection of classic Moulton mixes for the storied imprint. Check first his version of Archie Bell and the Drells' "Where Will You Go When The Party's Over", which he brilliantly teases out and increases in intensity over nine spellbinding minutes. The funkier flex of People's Choice's "Jam, Jam, Jam (All Night Long)" is a sweaty, low-down treat, while the Teddy Pendergrass rework is a soaring disco classic in the Philly Soul style. Best of all, though, is the string-drenched disco celebration that is his mix of Lou Rawls' "See You When I Git There".

Review: Archeo Recordings bring us some more Balearic Italian treasure here with some gold initially recorded in Bologna almost two decades ago. It's a collaboration between friends Bottin and Lucio Dalla that has never before been on vinyl. 'Lunedi Cinema' was an ident that played before Monday night movies on of one of the main Italian TV channels for many years. This electronic version includes the Martedi Mix from 2008, a Minibar Bonus Track and also a mix by pioneering Italian dream house dons Leo Mas & Fabrice with a Bottin dub sealing the deal. It's a superb package of real Italo music history.

Review: West End's double-pack re-edit series continues, with long-standing UK electrofunk hero and scalpel rework specialist Greg Wilson sharing a quartet of revisions. There are airings for two of Wilson's most sought-after scalpel works from the "Credit To The Edit" series - superb versions of Brenda Taylor's "You Can't Have Your Cake and Eat It Too" and Raw Silk's "Do It To The Music" - as well as a couple of previously heard rearrangements that are on-point as per usual. Wilson first adds even more mind-altering delays and low-slung dub disco flavour to Forrrce's "Keep On Dubbin'", before superbly stretching out the mostly instrumental "Melt Down Mix" of Shirley Lites' synth-laden peak-time classic "Heat You Up".

Review: Reissued from the 1983 original press on House Of Music - and subject to many a reissue since, for good reason - the Italian duo BWH hear their enduring classic 'Livin' Up / Stop' rereleased once more. Something about the collaborative effrots of Stefano Zito and Helene Zito made for a dizzying concoction in Italo, and the lasting interest in this single is backed up by the song's squeezy-clean mix and Hi-NRG synth rollicks. 'Stop' on the B-side, too, is slower and more rapacious, and without it, the single wouldn't be the same.

Review: Mondo Groove is one of the leading purveys or disco, Italo and nu-disco and it has been for ages. This new and limited 12" is packed with four hard to find gems from between the years of 1983 and 1988. They have all been taken from the original master tapes for this special reissue. Camomilla's chugging and snappy 'Queen Of The Night' opens up with a squelchy arp and heavenly melodies, Noa-Noa gets more cosmic and De Dion offers the drama and neon colour of 'Sexy Cola' with a fine extended version while Sandy Samuel's 'I Like Sado Music' is a loose limbed percussive workout.

Review: Vintage Pleasure Boutique is an excellently named label out of Poland that is fast approaching its 20th releases. This latest 12" is another dazzling Italo disco gem that arrives on translucent yellow vinyl. Claudia T.'s 'Fatal Destination' arrived originally back in 1989 at the height of the genre's popularity and very much takes you back there with its cold but compelling synth sounds and crashing drums, all very reminiscent of the era. The soaring vocals brings the glorious hook next to zippy lead synths. This was a bit hit back in the day and is sure to win over just as many global dancers second time around.

Review: If you’re serious about the legacy of Italo disco, Claudia T’s ‘Dance With Me’ should already be a familiar classic. Polish label Vintage Pleasure Boutique have revived this essential piece of Euro party gear with a range of versions to suit all manner of dancefloor situations, leading in with the original uptempo ‘Dance Version’ before dropping the tempo in seductive fashion with the ‘AP Mono Remix’. Chris Van Buren jacks it back up with some pointed Lately bass heat that holds a laser-eyed focus on the club, while the ‘Vocoder Version’ operates as a spiced up dub with some choice robs-vocal processing.

Review: Disco heads take note, here's a reissue that's been a long time coming. Cordial only have one record to their name, so perhaps it should have been called Their First (and Last), but that of course only adds to the appeal for devoted diggers. Lovingly repressed by Past Due, this three-tracker from 1979 is fit to burst with musicality, from the uptempo flourishes of 'Wave' to heartstring-tugging 'Special Love'. It's absolutely rooted in the era, with a high-end sound which makes it frankly shocking they never recorded more after this golden gem. Sharks be damned, let the music reach those who truly appreciate it.

Review: Having previously produced two tidy remixes of overlooked Patrick Cowley gem 'Get a Little', Alan Dixon has returned to the late, great producer's catalogue in order to rework another lesser-celebrated cut. This time round, he's turned his hand to Megatron Man album track, 'Lift Off', a typically throbbing, muscular vocal number that sits somewhere between thrusting robo-disco, sparkling electrofunk and synth-pop. Dixon first adds a little low-end grunt on the re-edit style 'Love Attack Mix', before delivering a sturdier and easier-to-mix 'DJ Friendly version'. On the flip you'll find Cowley's original and a rare, club-ready remix from the early '80s.

Review: First released in 1981 in the wake of the muscular, robo-disco epics 'Megatron Man' and 'Menergy', 'Get a Little' has long been one of Patrick Cowley's most underrated singles - or at least far-less celebrated. As this reissue proves, the track has lost none of its lustre over the years. A full-vocal number featuring a super-catchy chorus, the original mix (B1) and contemporaneous remix (B2) sit somewhere between electrofunk, Cowley's own brand of electronic disco and what we'd now call Italo-disco. It's a far-sighted sound that still sounds fresh all these years on. The A-side of this edition also boasts two contemporary updates from Alan Dixon, who adds subtly beefed-up house beats and a tidy nu-disco feel on both the 'Love Attack' and 'DJ Friendly Mix' variations.

Review: It's an oldie but a goodie; Patrick Cowley and Sylvester's 1982 electronic disco classic 'Do You Wanna Funk' receives another worthy vinyl repress featuring two timeless remixes. The two versions on the A side are the most commonly heard ones, with Sylvester's unmistakeable falsetto underpinned by Cowley's adrenaline fuelled and trance inducing production. Over on the flip, we have the sweltering disco inferno of 'Don't Stop'.

Review: The cover art for this limited 7" is worth the overprice alone and very much captures the nostalgic feel of the 80s disco sounds you will find within. This one marks Davey H's (aka David Humphrey) debut release for Six Nine Records and surely there will be many more after it because 'Keep Movin'' is a gem. The drums are lithe and lively, the vocals full of heart and soul and the chords cosmic. On the reverse is a T Groove UK remix that slows things down a little and ups the heft of the drums.

Review: Parisian jazz-funk, disco and boogie band Chatobaron - an outfit helmed by multi-instrumentalist Frank Chatona - have previously worked in the studio with house and nu-disco mainstay Art of Tones, so it's no surprise to see them recruiting the mighty Dimitri From Paris to mix their latest single. His A-side 'Club Vocal' mix is a genuinely riotous and celebratory affair, with strong group vocals (singing about how much they love 'your' music) and heady horns rising a jolly and joyous, piano-sporting disco-funk groove rich in low-slung bass and Cerrone style percussion. It comes accompanied not by one of Dimitri's deconstructed dubs, but rather an equally excitable 'Club Instrumental' mix that boasts all the goodness of his A-side mix minus the vocals.

Review: Earlier this year, French disco and jazz-funk combo Chatobaron joined forces with fellow Parisian Dimitri From Paris for the rather good 'I Like (The Music That You Play)'. While that was a wholehearted disco workout, this speedy sequel sees the band (and their high-profile collaborator) explore their West Coast jazz-funk influences via an inspired workout full to bursting with killer instrumental solos, dusty grooves, memorable motifs and a genuinely killer, cowbell-sporting percussion brerak. This time round, there are no Dimitri From Paris remixes; instead, dubbed-out disco favourites the Idjut Boys are on hand to smother the track in tape echo and dub delay. The result is a typically spaced-out, low-slung affair that naturally makes the most of the band's killer bassline and layered percussion sounds.

Review: Dirotta Su Cuba is an Italian jazz / funk / pop band formed in in Florence over 30 years ago. We have another pressing of their 2020 single "Nothing Is Impossible", with the smooth acid jazz of the original complemented by the low slung, Latin influenced funky house on the Cimbamix - which is worth it for the price alone. Over on the flip, hop aboard the slo-mo funk train on the splendid "Thinking Of You" (Dove Sei) (feat Sonny King) once again featuring Simona Bencini's amazing vocal work and finally a roaring cover of the soul classic "Pride (In The Name Of Love)" (feat Antonio Farao & PNUC).

Review: Disco Segreta unveils a mesmerising tale from late 1970s Italian disco that spotlights Sicilian maestro Franco D'Accardi. Leading ASA (Artisti Siciliani Associati), Franco blended genres including disco, folk and rock when, in 1979, he collaborated with American model Adrienne Edwards, releasing 'Mystic Night' and 'Disco Dancing' on a limited 45 RPM record. 'Mystic Night' electrifies with its fusion of drums, congas, and Adrienne's vocals creating a seductive disco masterpiece. Disco Segreta revitalizes these gems, including the B-side's vibrant rendition of Stanley Turrentine's 'Disco Dancing,' preserving their allure for contemporary audiences. These reissues celebrate the twilight of Italy's golden disco era in impeccable remastered form.