Peruvian Funk

Available 10/19/10

In April of 2010, Secret Stash Records traveled to Lima, Peru in search of music to bring back to the U.S. and share with the world.  While down there, we asked everyone we talked to about Peruvian funk music.  No one had any idea what we were talking about.  They didn’t even know what funk was. The few people who thought they knew what it was had no recollection of any Peruvian Funk ever existing.  Convinced that some form of funk had to exist in Lima during the 70s, and determined to find it, we continued to inquire everywhere we went.  After much searching, we finally stumbled over some by total accident.

A local man was helping us sort through stacks of records in a run-down garage when he handed me a pile of what he called rock records.  Most of the stuff was psych and pop from the 60s and 70s.  But, as it turned out, a few were straight up funk.  Apparently, they had funk in Peru during the 70s, Peruvians just didn’t know that’s what it was called.

Peruvian Funk brings together the funkiest cuts we found that day in Lima on one compilation. The mix of Latin jazz, soul, and hard funk found in these recordings makes for one of the most fun records we’ve ever had the pleasure of releasing.  We hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

TRACK LIST (sequence subject to change)

SIDE A

01 Reflexions (Nil’s Jazz Ensemble)

02 The Looser (Black Sugar)

03 Here Come the Hiltons (Bossa 70)

04 African Bump (Enrique Lynch)

05 Hard Work (Nil’s Jazz Ensemble)

SIDE B

01 Too Late (Black Sugar)

02 Think (Bossa 70)

03 Hazlo Como Quiras (Enrique Lynch)

04 Walkin’ (Black Sugar)

05 Si Voce Pensa (Bossa 70)

06 Funky Ditty (Black Sugar) *previously unreleased

Porno Groove, Volume 2

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Last summer we released our first record, Porno Groove: The Sound of 70s Adult Films. One year later we are still going strong. To celebrate we’ve teamed up once again with Fantasy Productions to bring you Porno Groove Volume 2. Like its predecessor, all of the music on PG2 was recorded by The Upstroke, Fantasy’s in-house band throughout the 70s. This highly collectable picture disc is only available as part of a one-time pressing of 1,000 units. Each one is hand numbered and includes a download card. -There will be a standard black vinyl pressing of this record in the future-

FANTASY PRODUCTIONS

Fantasy (not to be confused with the infamous Fantasy Records) was one of the top producers of adult entertainment throughout the 1970s and early 1980s. When Sal Rosen, the company’s founder and CEO passed away in 1985, much of its intellectual property was tied up in legal battles. Eventually, Rosen’s oldest son, Mort secured control of his father’s work. To date Mort Rosen has not reissued any of the Fantasy catalog. In the fall of 2008, he discovered a massive collection of original soundtrack master tapes for the company’s biggest films. Both Porno Groove releases are derived from this finding.

TRACK LIST
SIDE A
01. “Balls In The Hole” from Corner Pocket
02. “Pimp Hand” from Working Girls
03. “Shaken Not Stirred” from Straight Flush
04. “Main Theme” from Sneaky Pete
05. “Warmer Up Here” from Taxi Cab Tail
06. “Confessional” from Nun Like You
SIDE B
01. “Initiation” from Sorority Sister
02. “Ripe Melons” from The Farmer’s Daughter
03. “Spread ‘Em” from Ride Me Like A Wave
04. “Main Theme” from Disco Rollers
05. “Fix Your Faucet” from Laying Pipe
06. “Extra Credit” from Bang Theory
07. “Test Your Grip” from Fair Game

Gospel Funk

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In 1959, a woman by the name of Carmen Murphy attended a Good Friday mass in her home town of Detroit as she did every year. Ms. Murphy, the proprietor of the city’s first salon for black women, known as House of Beauty, found herself particularly moved by the musical performances that evening. In fact, she was so inspired that she decided to convert the basement of her salon into a rehearsal space for local gospel acts. Later that year, she funded the recording of local gospel star Rev. James Cleveland, and House of Beauty Records was born. Over the years House of Beauty was owned and operated by a number of different parent companies. It was during it’s time at Scepter Records in New York (’64-’76) that the label grew both commercially and creatively. It slowly transformed from a rigidly traditional label, mostly featuring a capella quartets and choirs, to a company with eclectic tastes and broader musical horizons. Throughout the 70s the label became more accepting of secular influence on its music and slowly but surely, some of the recordings became straight up funky.

In the fall of 2008 Secret Stash began working with a local business man who acquired the House of Beauty catalog some years back. Our mission was to sort through his mountain of master tapes containing over 3,000 tracks in search of rare funky and soulful gems for vinyl reissue. After hundreds of hours we settled on a short list of material to press up on wax. However, shortly after an agreement was reached for the first small batch of releases, the local  business man was raided by the FBI and charged with felonies for his involvement in a ponzi scheme. The catalog has since gone into receivership (for the second time in its existence) and no more licenses have been executed. It saddens us to say that the future of this amazing collection of music is unclear at this time. Gospel Funk may sound like an oxymoron to some, however, in the late 60s and throughout the 70s, many Gospel artists began moving their sound in a funkier direction. When you think about it, it’s really not that hard to imagine. Most of us know that soul music is deeply rooted in gospel. Sam Cooke, Aretha Franklin, Al Green, and even James Brown all hail from the world of gospel music. Is it really unimaginable that the gospel community would latch onto the progression of soul music that took place in the secular market? This collection of Gospel Funk is raw, gritty, and packed full of breaks. The compositions are tastefully simple, the production is organic, and the music is undeniably funky.

TRACK LIST
SIDE A
01. Christian Voice-“Joyful Sound/Amazing Grace”
02. The Victory Travelers-“Power Lord”
03. Rev. Milton Brunson- “Play It By Ear”
04. Southland Singers- “Trouble All Around Me”
05. The Swan Silvertones-“If You Think Your God Is Dead, Try Mine”
06. Southland Singers-“Serve The Lord”
SIDE B
01. The New Testament-“New Testament”
02. The Messiahs of Glory-“Can’t Find No Other Love”
03. Connie Pitts-“Working People”
04. In Memory of Stella Burke-“Already Been In The Water”
05. The New Testament-“New Testament Reprise (instrumental)”

Soviet Funk, Volume 2

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A brief word about Pavel Sysoyev’s SOVIET FUNK

This material was all recorded by Pavel Sysoyev in Abakan, the capital city of Khakassia between 1971 and 1976.  Sysoyev was an employee of the USSR State Committee for Television and Radio Broadcast (state controlled media).  He ran a recording studio intended to create content solely for the government media entity.  However, Sysoyev frequently brought in his friends and ran late night recording sessions when no one else was around.  Today Pavel Sysoyev resides in Saint Paul, MN, just minutes from the Secret Stash headquarters.  The label was introduced to him through a network of local producers.  Within a matter of weeks we were in business together.

Soviet Funk Volume 2

After Secret Stash Records struck a deal with Pavel Sysoyev to mine his catalog of recorded music we quickly realized that the most difficult part was going to be narrowing down his massive collection into a few user friendly volumes of LP releases.  With so much incredible music to work with, this would be no easy task.  Volume 1 ultimately served as a nice introduction to Mr. Sysoyev’s catalog.  For the most part it was extremely “user-friendly” and accessible (the only exception possibly being the Chizhova/Baykov tunes, which took a pretty big step “outside the box”).  While it was what we considered to be an amazing record, it only scratched the surface of the musicality and creativity found in his collection.  However, Volume II takes a closer look at the more jazz infused side of Pavel’s signature Soviet Funk sound.  It includes more complex compositions and a much more aggressive playing style.  However, it still maintains that groovy fun spirit captured so well in Volume 1.

SIDE ONE

01. Pomogite/prozhektërstvo

02. Pomogite/ubijcy v belyx xalatax

03. Pavel Sysoyev/Do nOvyh vstrEch

SIDE TWO

01. Victor Chizhova & Borris Baykov/Tula

02. Izakson, Artamonov & Larin/Rpex

03. Izakson, Artamonov & Larin/Ne magU zhIt’ bes tebyA

04. Pavel Sysoyev/zabludils’a

05. Yuri Spirin/Angel Moy

Soviet Funk, Volume 1

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Soviet Funk, Volume 1

During the 1960s and 1970s funk music spread throughout the planet.  The funny thing is most Americans didn’t even realize this until the 90s or later.  Over the past couple decades, slowly but surely more and more rare funk gems have been unearthed from all corners of globe; Africa, China, Latin America, and now Russia.

This collection of SOVIET FUNK was all recorded by Pavel Sysoyev in Abakan, the capital city of Khakassia between 1971 and 1976.  Sysoyev was an employee of the USSR State Committee for Television and Radio Broadcast (state controlled media).  He ran a recording studio intended to create content solely for the government media entity.  However, Sysoyev frequently brought in his friends and would run late night recording sessions when no one else was around.

In spite of the loosened restrictions on art and music during the 70s, most Soviet citizens had very limited access to essential American funk records.   Sysoyev acquired a small collection of U.S. R&B and Jazz albums in ‘68 from a friend, but that was about it for him and his friends.  Yet somehow, this small group of classically trained musicians was able to forge a funky sound of their own.  Rooted much deeper in the jazz quartet tradition than the R&B styling of James Brown and The Meters, they tapped into a way of playing jazz with a relentless groove that we endearingly refer to as funk.

Secret Stash Records was contacted by Sysoyev himself in mid 2009.  In a matter of weeks a deal was reached granting the label rights to release these funky rarities.  Hundreds of hours have been spent digging through stacks of dusty old master tapes to find the best of the best.  Soviet Funk Vol I is just a small sampling of the vast catalog of recordings produced by Pavel Sysoyev and his friends, and is just a little glimpse of things to come (more volumes).  Listen closely and from time to time you will find elements of Russian classical music in the precision execution of oddly metered unison parts, complex poly-rhythms, and the use of time signatures other than 4/4 (so commonly found in most American funk).

SIDE ONE

01. pavel sysoyev: gostiny dvor

02. pavel sysoyev: zapovednik

03. pomogite: avantyurist

04. pomogite: snokhachestvo

05. pomogite: izvinite

SIDE TWO

01. victor chizhova & boris baykov: agentura

02. victor chizhova & boris baykov: chernosotenec

03. da/n’et: vyrodok

04. da/n’et: demagogiya

05. pavel sysoyev & victor chizhova: kak vas zovut

Mad Dog’s Hustle (OMPS)

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Mad Dog’s Hustle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

In mid 2009 Secret Stash released a collection of Porno soundtrack material from the Fantasy Productions vault.  After digging deeper they discovered hours of incredible unreleased music.  The first thing to stand out was this soundtrack to a 1974 blaxploitation film entitled “Mad Dog’s Hustle.”  The film was only shown for less than 3 weeks in 6 theaters nationwide before disappearing into a baron wasteland of low-budget, poorly marketed cinema.  Within a year Fantasy forfeited the rights to the film in a legal dispute with members of the cast and crew.

Fortunately, the funky soundtrack recorded by The Upstroke (the same band responsible for all of the Porno Groove material) has been salvaged.  While staying true to the genre, the overall feel of the album is freer than most with lots of extended jams and improvisation.  It features a mix of vocal and instrumental tracks.  Also included are short musical cues and long narrations atop deep-funk grooves.  This vinyl only release will be available for the first time ever only on white vinyl (“the man” even turned vinyl records white).

SIDE ONE

1. Make It Hustle
2. Baby, Baby, Baby
3. Party In Harlem
4. Puppy Love
5. Comin’ To Getcha
6. Harlem Summer
7. Lennox Ave. Rastas
8. On The Prowl

SIDE TWO

1. Lataesha’s Cue
2. Revenge
3. East Side Strut
4. Grover’s Cue
5. Always And Forever
6. The Rumble
7. African Child
8. Pushed Too Far

A Reggae Interpretation of Kind of Blue

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A Reggae Interpretation of Kind of Blue

In the spring of 1981 a group of reggae studio musicians from Jamaica gathered in New York City under the direction of Jeremy Taylor, a music professor at NYU at that time.  The result was this Reggae Interpretation of Kind of Blue.  Though he was primarily regarded as a world-class Jazz musician and educator, Taylor had taken several trips to Jamaica to study reggae music with some of the best performers in the world.  In his 1979 book, “A Space Between” Taylor wrote, “My first trip to Jamaica (May 1977) was the most eye-opening musical experience of my life.  I met so many incredible players who had been brushed off by the snobby musical establishment at institutions such as the ones I was affiliated with.  They showed more musicality, taste, and rhythmic comprehension than some of the most revered musicians in the states.  I knew that I had to find a way to showcase their unparalleled talent in a different medium in order for some of my colleagues to fully understand and learn from it.”  This statement served as the basic concept behind this album.  Taylor took the most loved, well-known modern jazz album of all time and put it in the hands of reggae musicians.  It was in this context that he felt his contemporaries would be able to fully understand what it was he saw in these players.

Unfortunately, weeks after directing the sessions Taylor passed away in his Paris hotel room while on a speaking tour of Europe.  A final mix of the album was never made and it was never released.  Collectors have long spoken of this album and in the late 80s lo-fi cassette tapes of rough mixes circulated.  No official release was ever issued until now.

In early 2009, Secret Stash Records began working with the Taylor estate to finally release this album.  After creating final mixes, dub versions of all the songs were also made by Secret Stash producers.  Now for the first time ever, this highly sought-after album is available.  This vinyl-only release is a must have for any record collector.

SIDE ONE

01.  So What

02.  Freddie Freeloader

03.  Blue In Green

04.  All Blues

05.  Flamenco Sketches

SIDE TWO

01.  So What (Dub Version)

02.  Freddie Freeloader (Dub Version)

03.  Blue In Green (Dub Version)

04.  All Blues (Dub Version)

05.  Flamenco Sketches (Dub Version)

Porno Groove: The Sound Of 70′s Adult Films

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Porno Groove: The Sound of 70′s Adult Films

Secret Stash Records and Fantasy Productions have teamed up to bring you the definitive Porno Groove collection.  Fantasy (not to be confused with the infamous Fantasy Records) was one of the top producers of adult entertainment throughout the 1970s and early 1980s.  When Sal Rosen, the company’s founder and CEO passed away in 1985, much of its intellectual property was tied up in legal battles.  Eventually, Rosen’s oldest son, Mort secured control of his father’s work.  To date Mort Rosen has not reissued any of the Fantasy catalog.  In an effort to preserve the value of the content, he has made a conscious effort to remove all of their products from the market place to “starve the market.”  He even shut down Fantasyproductions.com recently while a new branding and web presence strategy are being devised.

In the fall of 2008, he discovered a massive collection of original soundtrack master tapes for the company’s biggest films.  Along with popular themes and timeless classics, he also discovered 30 reels of never before released music.  Porno Groove: The Sound of 70s Adult Films is a collection of music from Fantasy’s incredibly deep soundtrack library.  This release will be the first piece of Fantasy product commercially released in almost two decades.  Rosen hopes to use this as a way to reintroduce the company to the world while he plans his next move and signs major talent once again.

SIDE ONE

1. Greatful Head (from “Jayne’s Woodstock Adventure”)
2. In My El Camino (from “The Beaver Hunter”)
3. Gus On The Bus (from “The Traveling Salesman”)
4. Sweet Juices (from “Honeydew”)
5. Special Delivery (from “Lonely Mrs. Johnson”)

SIDE TWO

1. Dr. Mann’s Prescription (from “Insatiable”)
2. Do You Dance? (from “Right of Passage”)
3. O (from “The Story of Y”)
4. Carma’s Theme (from “Studio 69”)
5. Malibu High (from “Ride Me Like A Wave”)
6. Two Is Better Than One (from “Rosemary Cloney”)