"if you want to sex me"

Escort - All Through The Night

Escort have been putting out great new disco 12"s for the past year or so. This latest track has a crazy video made up of Muppet Show clips. Get into it!

> Visit their site We Are Escort. You can hear their previous releases and links to purchase (hint, hint).

And for even more, check out this remix of a track off the new Tracy Thorn record.

Tracy Thorn - It's All True (Escort Extended Remix)

"I'm a woman in every sense of the word"

Today I feel like slowin it down Bal'more style.

Ultra Naté - It's My World
From her classic first album in '91. I remember when this came out. Mama was from Baltimore, and being a fellow Marylander, I was excited to hear such great music coming from my home state. Produced by Basement Boys, this track has a fierce downtempo pulse that dares you not to walk.

Oh, and I hear Ultra's new CD is hot.


Kathy Diamond - I Need You
This is recent production by another Baltimore native, Maurice Fulton. He was hired by the Basement Boys to work on Crystal Waters first album. You may also know him as half of Mu, a collaboration with his wife, and their hot club track "Paris Hilton" from a couple years ago.

Check out Kathy on MySpace

"I can't tell where you end and I begin"

Today, I'm featuring white boys.

Maroon 5 - If I Never See Your Face Again
I've been spinning tracks off this album since it came out and queens at the bar always ask "is this Maroon 5?!?!" Then they gag because they are enjoying it. Coz it's not cool to enjoy a band so mainstream or something. Whatever, get over yourself. Plus Adam Levine is like totally fuckable, right?




Calvin Harris - Merrymaking At My Place
Not as fuckable, but probably fun at a party, Calvin Harris is a mini-sensation in the UK. You may have heard his song "Acceptable in the 80s" earlier this year? Anyhoo, this is his new single, apparently. I think it's cute and kind of stupid. Disposable, if you will.

"I drop my chin so I can fit it all in"

Avenue D really made a name for themselves during the whole Electroclash mess in New York post 9/11. Since their their big club hit "Do I Look Like a Slut," Debbie D and Daphne D have put out a bunch of hot singles, including these two:

Avenue D + Cazwell - The Sex That I Need
Joined by queer white rapper Cazwell, this track has the FUNNIEST lyrics. To this day, whenever I hear the relatively common phrase "yes, I do," I crack up.

Avenue D - You Love This Ass
This came out on white label last time I was in London and the blitz kids were gagging at Ghetto.

ps. the photo above is from some art opening I went to where I ran into Debbie's ass.

"arrete! ... arrete arrete arrete!"

Bonjour, couchons! C'est Bastille Day tomorrow. So taking inspiration from Marie Antoinette, I'm going to do an all post-punk set tomorrow at the bar. Of course, I'll be throwing in a few "selections françois" as well. For instance...

Elli Medeiros - Toi Mon Toit
I got this record when I was 17 in Paris fucking France. Before her solo album, Elli was in a French punk band called Stinky Toys.

Les Rita Mitsouko - Marcia Baila
A little more well known on this side of the pond, Rita Mitsouko had quite a few hits including this bouncey single from 1985. Read more about LRM on Wikipedia.

"go on and shoot it"

There's a new comp on Soul Jazz called NEW YORK LATIN HUSTLE that explores the city's influence on Puerto Rican and Cuban musicians in the '70s. Here are two very different examples of what you'll find.

Ray Barreto - Abidjan
This is the sound of New York in the summer. Hot, percussive and full of movement.

J Walter Negro and the Loose Jointz - Shoot the Pump
My DJ partner Pete Money turned me on to this song. The liner notes says J Walter Negro was an alias for graffiti artist ALI and that they opened for Talking Heads, Kid Creole and Blondie. Which makes sense as it's got a very no-wave New York feel.

Visit Soul Jazz Records

"when I first came to manhattan..."

Patrick Juvet - I Love America
I've always been a big fan of Independence Day (the holiday, not the movie). But I am only a recent convert to the church of Patrick Juvet. This is the album version of his hit "I Love America" which - I'm warning you - is approximately 14 minutes long. Thankfully, it's a very soft 14 minutes.

Prince & The Revolution - America (12" Version)
Not so soft is this single from '85 by Prince. After the huge success of Purple Rain, the tiny showman made a strange album (and a bit of a mis-step) called Around The World in a Day.

It presaged the neo-psychedelic movement of the late 80s by a couple years, and included some big hits. This was not one of them. The 12" version is over 20 minutes long. It's starts with the album version, but after that initial 3 minute burst of speed-freak-funk, the Revolution truly kick into high gear and burn the groove into oblivion. It may take some patience to get through the entire recording, but give it a shot. At least once.

After all, it is the 4th of July.