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- Genre: Hip-Hop/R&B
- Style: Funk
- Label: Delicious Vinyl
Acid jazz takes off on this U.K. groove classic.
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We Say...
Shortly after the release of this, their 1992 American debut, London's Brand New Heavies became the most successful practitioners of a style dubbed acid jazz. A cheeky response in name alone to England's acid house movement, acid jazz was instead a direct outgrowth of London's fascination with "rare groove," a particular blend of soulful disco, sophisticated funk, and danceable jazz imports championed by the city's pirate radio and club DJs of the early '80s that reached back through to the early '70s.
It's these records that the Brand New Heavies use as stylistic source material. Unlike their contemporaries in Soul II Soul, the Heavies didn't at this point modernize the analog textures of Roy Ayers, to name but one rare groove icon. Instead, they distill the essence of his rhythms and chord changes, and focus on the resulting body heat. Soon they would absorb some of the studio slickness of hip-hop and house music, but here the Heavies play like a tight and hungry live band. Their ace in the hole is N'Dea Davenport, an Atlanta-born singer of taste and serious chops. Her spirited cameos — particularly "Dream Come True," "Never Stop," and "Stay This Way" — have aged as smoothly as the band's sweet inspirations. -
They Say...
Many of the artists who were part of Britain's soul scene of the late '80s/early '90s, including Soul II Soul, Lisa Stansfield, and Caron Wheeler, took a high-tech, neo-soul approach, combining '70s-influenced R&B and disco with elements of hip-hop. The equally impressive Brand New Heavies, however, used technology sparingly, stressed the use of real instruments, and were unapologetically retro and '70s-sounding through and through. Drawing on such influences as the Average White Band and Tower of Power, the Heavies triumph by sticking with the classic R&B approach they clearly love the most. The band has a jewel of a singer in N'Dea Davenport, who is characteristically expressive on "Dream Come True" and "Stay This Way." Real horns -- not synthesizers made to sound like horns -- enrich those gems as well as the sweaty vocal funk of "People Get Ready" and "Put the Funk Back in It" and the jazz-influenced instrumental "BNH." While this fine album enjoyed cult hit status, it was sadly ignored by American urban contemporary radio.
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You Say...
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Credits
- Mike Smith - Arranger // Mike Smith - Sax (Alto) // Mike Smith - Sax (Tenor) // The Brand New Heavies - Producer // The Brand New Heavies - Main Performer // The Brand New Heavies - Horn Arrangements // Simon Bartholomew - Guitar // N'Dea Davenport - Vocals // Jan Kincaid - Percussion // Jan Kincaid - Drums // Jan Kincaid - Keyboards // Andrew Levy - Bass // Andrew Levy - Guitar (Bass) // Andrew Levy - Keyboards // Joe Primeau - Engineer // Joe Primeau - Mixing // Joe Primeau - Mixing Engineer // Ceri Evans - Keyboards // Robert Carter - Keyboards // Brian Archer - Trombone // Andy Bush - Trumpet // Paul Dias - Trumpet // Paul Dias - Arranger // Paul Dias - Horn Arrangements // Tim Garland - Arranger // Tim Garland - Sax (Baritone) // Tim Garland - Sax (Tenor) // Tim Garland - Horn Arrangements // Lascelles Gordon - Guitar // Lascelles Gordon - Percussion // Laurence Parry - Trumpet // Mike Smith - Sax (Alto) // Mike Smith - Sax (Tenor) // Mike Smith - Horn Arrangements // Ikebod Smoinei - Pipe // Ikebod Smoinei - ? // Joan Walker - Sax (Baritone) // Jim Wellman - Keyboards // Jim Wellman - Sax (Soprano) // Jim Wellman - Sax (Tenor) // John Wilmott - Sax (Tenor) // Michael C. Ross - Mixing // Rick Klotz - Design
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