#90s funk

Today’s compilation:

Spike's Choice: The Desco Funk 45' Collection 1998 Funk Revival / Funk

This entire compilation consists of funk songs that sound like they were recorded in the 60s or 70s, but were actually recorded in the 90s. And that’s because the label that was responsible for releasing all of these songs, Desco, only used equipment from the 60s and 70s in order to get that good, vintage funk sound. Based out of New York City, Desco’s main mission was funk revivalism, and they were probably the best label to do it at the time. Desco were also the ones who gave the late, great Sharon Jones her start (god rest her beautiful soul) and provided a home for veterans like Joseph Henry. And then there was the amazing sitar coffeehouse funk of Bill “Ravi” Harris, for whom they developed an elaborate backstory, when it was just Desco’s co-founder Gabriel Roth the whole time. Awesome stuff.

Twelve 45s from the Desco catalog crammed here into one, excellent compilation. You could surreptitiously take any of these songs and put them in a 60s/70s funk playlist, and unless someone recognized the songs themselves or the voices of the singers, there's no way they'd know that these songs were actually from the 90s. Like, the sound really is that authentic. You, yourself, could try your hand at playing a 60s or 70s funk tune note-for-note, but it wouldn't sound like these tunes do because the recording equipment you'd be using is different than the equipment that was used in the 60s and 70s. But Desco had that equipment, which is why this comp sounds like a bunch of old, never-before-heard funk gems.

As a label, Desco wanted to reproduce the sounds that old school funk junkies would spend hours digging through crates in musty basements in search of and they consistently managed to knock it out of the park. Good variety on here, too. Slow, midtempo, and fast; fully instrumental and also vocal. Just a bunch of superb odes to a bygone era.

Highlights:

1990s Funk Playlist (YouTube)

This entire playlist consists of funk songs that sound like they were recorded in the 60s or 70s, but were actually recorded in the 90s. And that’s because the label that was responsible for releasing all of these songs, Desco, only used equipment from the 60s and 70s in order to get that good, vintage funk sound. Based out of New York City, Desco’s main mission was funk revivalism, and they were probably the best label to do it at the time. Desco were also the ones who gave the late, great Sharon Jones her start (god rest her beautiful soul) and provided a home for veterans like Lee Fields and Joseph Henry, too. And then there was the amazing sitar coffeehouse funk of Bill “Ravi” Harris, for whom they developed an entire fake backstory, when it was just Desco’s co-founder Gabriel Roth the entire time. Awesome stuff.

This playlist is ordered as chronologically as possible and links are provided below to songs that have been posted about previously in order to give them more context:

The Other Side - “You Do Something I Don’t Do Nothing” Ravi Harris & The Prophets - “Path of the Blazing Sarong” Ravi Harris & The Prophets - “Hot Pants Road” Sharon Jones - “Damn It’s Hot (Part 1)” Sharon Jones - “Damn It’s Hot (Part 2)” Sharon Jones - “Hook and Sling Meets the Funky Superfly (Part 1)” Soul Providers - “Soul Jasper” Joseph Henry - “Who’s the King? (You Know That’s Me)” Joseph Henry - “I Feel Right” Sharon Jones - “I Got the Feeling” Lee Fields - “Hay Sallie Mae Get Off My Feet”