Friday 28 December 2012

James Brown's Funky People

This Saturday the VINYL VETERANS once again present their annual tribute event celebrating the music of THE GODFATHER JAMES BROWN at THE GREEN DOOR in Brighton. Ain't it funky now...

Monday 24 December 2012

...and a Happy New year


Sunday 23 December 2012

Ron Diggins and his Diggola

This story will be of interest to some of my fellow beat digging heads, and especially to those with an interest in DJ history. When I say DJ history, I'm referring to the times before we had all of these DAVID GUETTA types and your celebrity so-and-so DJs who frankly do little more than push a few buttons and play pre-recorded laptop sets (to an often musically ignorant crowd). In fact I'm even talking about whaaay whaaay back two decades before KOOL HERC, AFRIKA BAMBAATAA, GRANDMASTER FLASH, JAZZY JAY and GRAND WIZARD THEODORE etc. turned the art of DJing into the backbone of Hip Hop music. The story I'm gonna tell stretches back to the 1950s music scene right here in the UK. So you thought you knew about the term "Diggin'"?? Just read on....


When I was growing up in the 70s and first took an interest in buying records, I remember my parents insisting (as parents do) that when they were teenagers they would go out to music venues and party the night away to the sounds of the local mobile DJ. I never paid much attention at the time, but I always remember the name of the DJ - RON DIGGINS. Now I look back I laugh at how apt his surname now is, but there's more. RON DIGGINS can be credited with being one of the first DJs in the UK to have his own equipment incorporating not one but TWO turntables. This of course allowed him to play music constantly without pauses interrupting the dancing. And not only did DIGGINS build his own twin turntable machine, but he named it the "DIGGOLA". RON DIGGINS (AND HIS DIGGOLA) was what you would call a genuine "celebrity" DJ. My Mum and Dad have both confirmed that wherever DIGGINS and his DIGGOLA were playing across county, the teenagers would follow by whatever means it took. He had all the latest records and he knew exactly what the kids wanted to hear.





It seems "diggin'" goes whaay back long before any of us even knew! Before DAILY DIGGERS, and before DIGGIN IN THE CRATES. Of course RON DIGGINS would have been completely unaware of the co-incidental similarity between his name and what we now refer to as Diggin' (record buying). But I'd like to think if he saw the turntable culture that we witnessed explode during the 70s 80s and 90s, he would have a wry smile on his face and be thinking "I've done that!".


Excerpt below from DJ History (Copyright 2008 Frank Broughton)


"In the wilds of Lincolnshire a recent auction of ’40s and ’50s DJing equipment sheds light on the career of a pioneering post-war disc jockey, one of the very first mobile DJs. Monster wooden consoles, ancient bakelite gear and big clunking wind-up double decks, strictly for 78s. The equipment belongs to Boston hero Ron Diggins, who died last December aged 91, having started DJing in 1947 and enjoying a career spanning 50 years.

Ron Diggins was a professional radio engineer with a business providing public address systems. "I'd been playing background music and doing voice-overs out the back of my van at school sports days and the like,” he told the Boston Standard. “It was nothing to do with dancing – that was the last thing on my mind." But in September 1947, the farm girls from the Swineshead Land Army decided Ron’s gear could be put to better use: "They were passing the office, saw the van and came in to ask if it could be used for dancing. They were having a harvest supper with some of the Italian POWs. Well, I'd never thought of it before, but I didn't want to lose the booking – so I said I'd give it a go."

"Back then there was just the waltz, the quick-step and the Palais glide – and I always ended up with the National Anthem," he explained. "It was unheard of at the time to play records at a dance and it just took off from there – although I had no idea how things would snowball."

Ron’s 78s proved wildly popular, no doubt because his record selections gave audiences slightly grander music than they were used to. "When I started out, the ordinary village halls danced to live piano and drums – that's all. If it was something extra special, they'd have a violin as well."

In 1949 he built his famous ‘Diggola’ a wonderful art deco mobile DJ booth modelled on the bandstands of the jazz era. The first of six, it came complete with double decks for 78s, a home-made mixer, lights, microphone, amplifier and ten speakers. "It took me about six weeks to build the first Diggola. We couldn't get plywood in those days, so soon after the war. So I had to make it out of coffin boards."

Diggins was not alone in his pioneering efforts. In his Radio 4 documentary ‘The Other Mobiles’ Chris Eldon Lee tracked down a series of DJs operating in the 1940s and ’50s, including Bertrand Thorpe, who as far back as 1941 was rocking the crowds with his 30-watt amplifier. Bert recalls how he’d stand with his back to the audience flicking three 40-watt light bulbs on and off in time to the music.

In the ’50s Ron Diggins’ fame had spread so widely around south Lincolnshire that he had to hire two other DJs to keep up with his bookings. His success angered the Musicians’ Union, who used their clout to prevent him playing larger venues. So sadly, though he’d set his heart on it, Ron never played Boston’s Gliderdrome. He retired in 1995 after playing around 20,000 parties. The most he ever charged was £50."

"I've invented nothing," RON DIGGINS insisted on his 90th birthday. "I put the same things to a different use, that's all..."






Thursday 20 December 2012

Barber Shop Chop

LARGE PRO has a new video for his "Barber Shop Chop" beat from the "Professor @ Large" LP. The video not only takes in a trip to the barber's shop, but also a journey to BIG CITY RECORDS in NYC before it closed a month or so ago.



Nice & Chill

PAUL NICE and PHILL MOST CHILL (aka THE FABREEZE BROTHERS) are back with more banging beats and ballistic rhymes for your mind! "The Pack Up" 45rpm 7" single is going to be available for pre-order from this coming Friday on their SURE SHOT RECORDS website - make sure you get your copy before they evaporate into thin air. This time around the BROTHERS FABREEZE are also dropping the single on Winter White vinyl for the connoisseurs out there. And with a name like FABREEZE you know this is gonna be the freshhhhhest!




Wednesday 19 December 2012

Sampling Documentary

Here's an early documentary about sampling ... check it out.



Fluido Jam 7 Highlights

Leacy Still Rocking Them Breaks

Check out LEACYBROTHERS website where you can pick up your Christmas supply of BREAK DJ LEACY t-shirts, park jam slipmats, and of course download some of LEACY's unbeatable mixtapes.


Freshly uploaded you will find LEACY's 1999 MIAMI PRO-AM mix; I've added a snippet below but you need to go to the website to download the full version. I've already featured live audio of his MIGHTY FOUR battle set HEREwith KEN SWIFT on the mic, but this mix is more of a montage of original breaks and beats in true school tradition.
I firmly believe BREAK DJ JAMES LEACY (who passed in 2004) has his 1s and 2s set up next to Heaven's Pearly Gates, and he is rocking the breakbeats for those b-boys and b-girls that join him in eternal peace. Keep doing the do JIM - rest in beats my brother.




"To every new generation of breakers and those of us that embrace the movement, DJ LEACY is recognised for progressing the art of playing break-beats and championing the rhythms that drive a cypher. Inspired by the original New York masters, his pioneering influence of b-beats carries on tradition, unearthing gems whilst referencing the sounds of the early NY park jams and roots itself in the original form and definition of hip-hop DJing."

King Asiatic

New York production duo FREQNIK & WDRE are back with some more dope on plastic to follow up their "Favela B-Boy Funk" 45 that dropped in September. Although this time around they have given us a new twist on BIG DADDY KANE's monster classic from 1988 "Set It Off". The FREQNIK & WDRE remix is a nod of appreciation to the "golden era" of Hip Hop music and to KANE himself, and will no doubt fill the dancefloor just as "Favela B-boy Funk" does!
It always surprised me that "Set It Off" never received a proper US release on 12" vinyl despite the UK COLD CHILLIN' department being happy to release it on both 12" and 7" format (both now very collectable). "Set It Off" was always a huge record here in the UK, and for those that got to see KANE perform the track live in London it only cemented it's appeal on UK shores. Hence it's good to see FREQNIK & WDRE give "Set It Off" some proper love. You can grab a copy here in the UK through JUNO, or through DUSTY GROOVE or DOWNTOWN 304 in the US.


Tuesday 18 December 2012

Diggers Delight

Here's some footage from this year's TOOLS OF WAR TRUE SCHOOL PARK JAM SERIES, specifically the DIGGERS DELIGHT jam at St. Nicholas Park NYC. Shouts to BREAKBEAT LOU going in on those 45s!!!

Saturday 15 December 2012

Goose Hunt

If anyone is looking to keep themselves extra warm this winter, then take a peep at these leather DOUBLE GOOSE jackets which are all up for grabs to the right buyer. FARED from MIAMI recently stumbled upon a stash of unworn vintage bomber jackets in various colours. Sizes vary, and he does have one incredible v-stitch bomber in Royal Blue in size large, still unworn and with original tags.
Get in touch with me through the usual channels and I can put you in touch with FARED if you are keen to own one of these jackets. It is most unlikely you are ever gonna see an OG Goose stash like this again in the future - feast your eyes!



Friday 14 December 2012

Gone Diggin' the Remix





Possibly the most essential new vinyl release at the moment is the "Gone Diggin' Remix" b/w "33.3" 10 inch single available on SLICE OF SPICE RECORDS. Nothing pleases me more to see two people I consider bastions of real Hip Hop music combine forces on vinyl at long last. I am of course referring to Strong Island hot property OXYGEN, and Brighton's own DJ FORMAT. FORMAT has taken the diggers anthem "Gone Diggin'" and laced it with oodles of breakbeat goodness to mirror OXYGEN's lyrical references. On the flipside the pair continue the vinyl hunting theme with a new track called "33.3". If you cannot guess what the track is about then I'm guessing you landed on this website by mistake!
Take a peep at the soundclips, and get yourself over to the SLICE OF SPICE site to bag your copy before they're all gone. I had lots of people ask about the 45rpm 7" version months after it sold out, so don't be one of those who misses out on this project. You will regret it. Shout out to my good friends (and fellow VINYL VETERAN members) OXYGEN and DJ FORMAT; the shit is dope fellas ... I'm proud to be associated with you both.



Photo courtesy of DAN LOVE.

Wednesday 12 December 2012

Funky 45s

Here's another compilation of funky 45s for your listening pleasure - I have included plenty of classic funk beats and some off the radar floor fillers from other genres. I hope you dig it and tell your friends that we are pushing dope over here!



Monday 10 December 2012

Psycho Monday

The MOBILE MONDAYS crew have another very special guest spinning 45s with them at their weekly night of funky vinyl shenanigans. It cannot be easy trying to follow some of their previous guest DJs; names like LORD FINESSE, BREAKBEAT LOU, DJ SPINNA, DANNY DAN THE BEAT MANN, MAC MCRAW, FORREST GETEMGUMP, J-ZONE, EPMD's own DJ SCRATCH and other Hip Hop icons have all blessed the turntable at a MOBILE MONDAYS event.
But somehow the MM crew have done it again with tonight's invited DJ, one half of Queens crew THE BEATNUTS ... namely PSYCHO LES. I'd like to give props to OPERATOR EMZ, SNEAKER JOE, NATASHA DIGGS, JOEY C and MISS REBECCA for putting on such a fine list of vinyl selectors over the last year. It goes without saying THE BEATNUTS have always been a favourite crew for us here at DAILY DIGGERS. I can imagine PSYCHO LES will be dropping some ill funk records plus maybe a few classic 'NUTS samples. I wish I could be in NYC to witness the funk myself.



Saturday 8 December 2012

Prosperity

Cinematic dope shit from CHAUNDON featuring YC THE CYNIC and DJ FLASH. This stuff is sinister!

Thursday 6 December 2012

Brand New Good For You

I always aim to bring you only the freshest stuff here on DAILY DIGGERS, at the same time filtering out the weak and wack. So without delay, here is the latest infectious beat mix from ADE aptly titled "Brand New Good For You". This mix is almost 90 minutes long and full of funky records of all genres all mashed together with samples, comical interludes and under the radar breakbeats, with even a few bargain bin records thrown in for good measure. I always feature ADE's mixes here on this site - not because I know him personally, but because they're always so dope. In fact ADE gives away very little about himself, even to me in our emails. I guess he prefers his music to do his talking. And it speaks volumes!
"Brand New Good For You" is essential listening if you're an avid beat digger. Check it out below ... and of course I'd like to point out that these ADE mixes are always exclusive to DAILY DIGGERS. It's brand new, and good for you!


Wednesday 5 December 2012

Stick Up Kids Stay Away

Once again this Winter DOUBLE GOOSE are opening up a pop-up store in NYC. This time the store will be purveying not only the finest leather goosedown jackets fit for the harshest of Winters, but they will also be stocking a range of superfly CAZAL sunglasses so you don't have to get snow blindness at the same time!
Now if you were a kid back in the 80s you will know these two items are probably the most robbed items of fashion alongside the craze of NIKE AIR JORDAN thefts that came slightly later on in the decade. Here's hoping that the stick up kids have grown up and now live a more legitimate lifestyle. Even so ... watch your Goose adorned back!

Ill Adrenaline Pumping...

Lovers of that 90s boom bap sound will be pleased to see a handful of heavy vinyl releases from ILL ADRENALINE RECORDS are due to drop anytime soon. This time the young label has some dope material from NEEK THE EXOTIC, THE LEGION, BENEFICENCE, and PURPOSE & CONFIDENCE hitting vinyl for the first time. Shouts to BENNY at ILL ADRENALINE who I have known for a few years - this dude is a solid hip hopper who has so much passion for the 90s sound that he has "put his money where his mouth is" when it comes to releasing the dope shit for us all to share. I shall be copping as many of these releases as I can possibly afford. I suggest you do the same. Check out ILL ADRENALINE RECORDS where you can check out soundclips, videos and order the vinyl. Check out the videos below for NEEK THE EXOTIC ft. BUMPY KNUCKLES joint taken from NEEK's "Coming In Piles" EP. And secondly the new LEGION sureshot.






...and a new video from NEEK THE EXOTIC to accompany the EP release.

Ko'Rok Two

So far the reactions to our DAILY DIGGERS REMIX on the new KO'ROK TWO & OXYGEN 12" have been more than encouraging. I'd like to say thanks to everyone who has taken the time out to let me know what they think, and more importantly a huge thanks to everyone who has purchased a copy already. It is selling out fast so don't delay if you want one of these 12"s in your collection. Have you copped yours yet....?



Get your copy HERE.

Boom Bap with Blaak

I recently interviewed record collector supreme BLAAK THA 9TH MAN from Philadelphia (you can read it HERE) and he will be dropping gems this Friday 15th December at FLUID nightclub at 613 South 4th street in Philly. The night is hosted by FAT NICE MC with LIL DAVE and CASE BLOOM on the wheels of steel, so if you're in Philly join them for a night of beats, breaks and party classics. But if you can't make it, fear not as BLAAK THA 9TH MAN is broadcasting live "Straight from the Ville" every month - check out show numero 38 right here. Everything's Kool!




Sunday 2 December 2012

Good Morning Vietnam

Calling all troopers and troopettes! For those who like their Hip Hop to be gritty and grimy, pre-orders have now started for the DRASAR MONUMENTAL / MF GRIMM vinyl project coming straight outta Vietnam Cali and aptly entitled "Good Morning Vietnam". Soon I will have some soundclips from the vinyl EP to share with you, but I've already had a sneak preview of this project and trust me when I say you're gonna need to don your camo, stack some sandbags, and reach for a full clip when this shit hits the fan! More details soon, or keep one eye firmly on the VENDETTA VINYL website.


Rock The Discotek vol 2

JORUN BOMBAY is back with volume 2 of his amazing ROCK THE DISCOTEK series. If you didn't catch volume 1 then I seriously advise you to grab both of these volumes before you miss them and weep. If you like old school tapes, live performances etc. but was always disappointed with the poor sound quality of these Nth generation copies that were passed around, then THIS is definitely for you. I'm gonna let JORUN tell it how it is......."



JORUN : "In a nutshell, this is a collection of authentic live recordings from various parties in New York from the early days of hip hop between 1978-1984 and that has been remixed & restored by Jorun Bombay and made into a continuous mix.

These old school live performances are originally from cassette and do not exsist on vinyl format to be mixed in by turntable so i've taken the clips from cassette and mixed the original vinyl breaks over the cassette clips to bring the sound quality up to a desirable level for all sound systems and more less "created" each new recording to be a presentable piece then compiled them all in an order much like a DJ mixtape from that time period in a cut & paste fashion.

Absolutely NO serato, NO Ableton and NO MP3's were used to make this release. All breaks & grooves are directly off of the OG vinyl sources by Jorun Bombay himself. To keep the sound and feel as close to a 1970's bedroom mixtape, i used a stage mic (shure 57) and an anologue space echo when introducing my mixes.
You can actually hear the needle burn and worn out groove hiss in the vinyl to keep it as warm sounding as possible. None of that was digitally restored.

For the most part, the mixes stay in the 1978-84 era but you may hear some influences that go slightly outside of that era (as high up as at least 1987 toward the end of the mix) and that is because the old school influences of the 70's were still being directly felt in 1987. It's still all very relevant.


Special appearances by Phill Most Chill, Funky 4 plus One, Cold Crush Bros, Busy Bee, DJ AJ, Afrika Bambaataa, Fab 5 Freddy, Eddie Cheeba, DJ Hollywood, Kurtis Blow, E-Z Mike, Disco Bee, Grandmaster Flash & Furious 4, Fearless Four MC's, Dr. Ice (of UTFO) Rayvon & Johnny Wah, Mastadon & The Turn it out Three m.c (Def Committee), Fantastic 5 MC's, Grandwizard Theodore, Whiz Kid, Treacherous 3 and other suprises. It's a history lesson that needs to be learned by those who don't already know where hip hop came from.

This is more than a "mix".. it's an audio museum / library for your ears. it's a history lesson teaching the future generations of how hip hop came from absolutely nothing and became absolutely everything & The paths it took to get here. If your kids listen to Hip Hop, let them know where it really came from.

Note : the "bonus" features & clips are not viewable or streamable but come with the download purchase of Jorun's Rock The Discotek Vol 2 as a "thank you" for supporting this release. To hear these clips, you have to pay for the download.
credits
"

released 01 December 2012
Produced, Mixed, Mastered and remixed By JORUN BOMBAY.

Bankrupt Europeans

Following on from their excellent "Fast Rap" EP which featured Philly legend PHILL MOST CHILL, BANKRUPT EUROPEANS are back with another 12" vinyl release and this time D.I.T.C. member ANDRE THE GIANT goes off on a BANKRUPT EUROPEANS banger - check it out.

Scratching to the Funk

Promo copy, release copy and radio promo copy of "Scratching to the Funk" by DOCTOR FUNKENNSTEIN and DJ CASH MONEY.

Danny Dan the Beat Mann

DANNY DAN THE BEAT MANN will be spinning a 45rpm set at MOBILE MONDAYS alongside U.S. BREAKS, OPERATOR EMZ, and with usual hosts MISS REBECCA AND SNEAKER JOE. If you're in NYC you better be there or be squiddare!