i’ll house you July 18, 2008

i can’t believe house music has been in the charts for 20 years now. in that respect, it has lasted much longer than so many other genres.

when it first arrived in the mainstream, circa 87/88, scenes of loved up club kids dancing in warehouses were completely alien, especially to those of us who weren’t old enough even to have experienced sticky carpet clubs of the 80s and view the contrast.

i love how so much of the music can be played today in any club, and clubbers of all ages seem to know it. a lot of it sounds even better now that it did back in the day. but is that because back then it was a dodgy three minute version on a deep heat tape?

download 80s acid house mix

wee papa girl rappers – heat it up

krush – house arrest

tyree – hip house is the style

black riot – a day in the life

nightwriters – let the music use you

tyree – i fear the night

tyree – turn up the bass

petra and co – just let go

ralphi rosario vs richie rich – you used to salsa

reese and santonio – the sound

deskee – let there be house

bam bam – give it to me

minute men – ok alright

turntable hype – i’ll bass you

landlord –  i like it

voodoo doll – women beat their men

28th street crew – i need a rhythm

jungle brothers – i’ll house you

lnr – work it to the bone

de-lite and oscar child – wild times

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garage city: masters at work June 25, 2008

by 1993 it was clear that us heavyweights david morales and masters at work would define the 90s garage scene. david went for the house crowd with vocal club bangers and the big money remixes. masters at work retained their latin flavour and took on leftfielders like jamiroquai and brand new heavies.

i made my first trip to the ministry of sound that year and was almost perplexed by the alcohol free bar and bizarre location. a million miles from the clubs up and down the country who were rocking the hell out of ‘oh carolina’ and ‘mr vain’ and peddling test tube cocktails.

how different my 17th birthday could have been if I had lived in London and able to frequent the ministry more often…instead of technicolour vomit and fat djs I could have been shaking it to a legend.

download 1993 mix

bizarre inc – took my love

hardrive – deep inside

sound of one – as i am – fire island mix

jamiroquai – emergency on planet earth – danny tengalia remix

shara nelson – down that road – def classic mix

mariah carey – dreamlover – def club mix

dajae – u got me up – danny tenaglia mix

ten city – fantasy – masters at work mix

janet jackson – if – brothers in rhythm mix

joe roberts – lover – k-klass klub mix

judy cheeks – so in love – west end in love club mix

martha wash – give it to you – maurice’s underground playground mix

aftershock – slave to the vibe – club mix

black sheep – strobelight honey – def mix

house of virginism – i’ll be there for you – stone’s club mix

masters at work – i can’t get no sleep – her fantasy mix

reese project – so deep – k.o.k club mix

incognito – givin’ it up – uplifting club mix

garage city 1992

garage city 1991

you better work it girl October 27, 2007

 

for all the chilly nights in student houses, and a diet consisting mostly of bagels, my overriding memory of my student days in london is of the glitz and glamour of the handbag house scene.

every saturday night i transcended my student status to dress in fluffy boots, satin skirts and babydolls dresses in subzero temperatures. in those days, cabs were not an option, at least not on the way into town. no we braved the cold and the disapproving or amused stares of more sensibly dressed tube passengers. oh we had the figures for it then, we didn’t care…

we shopped in big apple in covent garden and hyper hyper on kensington high street, we wore love hearts jewellery and dressed like giant sweets. we sucked on lollipops and took feather boas out clubbing that we would drape over the nearest person who wasn’t dancing.

these were great clubs for girls who wanted a hassle free night out. most of the male clientele were gay, and fabulous. the whole scene was borne out of an appreciation of the supermodels, house music and er, rupaul. it was colourful, flamboyant and more than a little cliquey. 

perhaps the ultimate downfall of the scene was that the clubs – malibu stacey, puscha, miss moneypenny’s, love to be – were so focused on aesthetics that there simply weren’t enough good looking customers to meet their exacting standards.  or enough girls willing to dress up as hello kitty.

still, it was fun while it lasted and on the nights we were dressed ludicrously enough to gain entry. we posed on podiums, sashayed and pretended we were in a george michael video.

download here

corona – baby baby

yosh – it’s what upfront that counts

20 fingers – short dick man

livin’ joy – don’t stop movin’

e-motion – naughty north sexy south

happy clappers – i believe

loveland – don’t make me wait

outrage – tall and handsome

tin tin out and espiritu – always something there to remind me

new atlantic – sunshine after the rain

mozaic – sing hallelujah

nush – u girls

baby d – let me be your fantasy

alex party – don’t give me your life

strike – u sure do