Mixtape: Roger Riddle - Tomorrow's Funk Today

Tomorrow's Funk Today 

Futuristic sounding music from the past. You don't have to wait for the future to come to hear it. I am giving it to you live and direct right now.

I want you all to know that I don't like Doctor Who.

Anyway, this is fun stuff. Remixes of songs you love done in funky futuristic ways, and songs you may have never heard done in the same future funk style.

Anyway, I play some tunes I dig. I share them with you. I hope you like them. Blah blah blah. You aren't interested in what I have to say, you just want to listen to the music. So with out any more delay, hit play.

The track list is after the jump.

Tomorrow's Funk Today by Roger Riddle on Mixcloud

Daniel Crawford - Rock With You (Dance Remix) 
Petula Clark - I'M NOT IN LOVE (LUXXURY EDIT)
William De Vaughn - Be Thankful For What You Got (FKJ Remix)
Amp Fiddler - Hold On ( Daniel Crawford remix)
Jazzanova - Another New Day
The Sa-Ra Creative Partners - Death of a Star (Supernova)
Stevie Wonder - Superstition (OPOLOPO Remix)
D'Angelo - Spanish Joint (Miguel Macedo Soulful Mix)
Womack & Womack - Conscious Of My Conscience (MRN Remix)
Crusaders Feat. Randy Crawford - - Street Life (OPOLOPO Rebounce)
Plant Life - Stardancer
Funkadelic - Ain't That Funkin' Kinda Hard On You (Louie Vega Remix)
Jamiroquai - Little L
Jacob Collier - Don't You Worry Bout A Thing (Scott C's GOODS Touch Up)
John Arnold - 1,2,3,4 (feat Paul Randolph)

Mixtape: Adam Kvasnica - Groovy Soundtracks

Adam Kvasnica is dope. The guy knows his music, especially jazz.

Once I got heavy into posting on Mixcloud, I ran across him because he selects songs that I like to listen to. His ability to pick out songs with the same feel and lay them out in a way that flows so easily from one to the next is uncanny.

Kvasnica is a lawyer by trade and he lives in Piestany, Slovakia. His passion is music. He is one of those guys who loves to listen and share.

It is always worth your time to hit listen on one of his mixes. This "Groovy Soundtrack" mix is no exception. I've tried my hand at doing mixes that have that soundtrack feel and have not gotten anywhere near as good as this one.

So sit back and enjoy.

Groovy Soundtracks by Adam Kvasnica on Mixcloud

Mixtape: Roger Riddle - The Conversation Piece

I had laid out the tracks for this mix earlier in the week after listening to about two weeks worth of house music. However, I had too much other stuff to do to finish the mix without feeling guilty. Then in the course of my dealings, I suddenly found myself in three separate conversations about house music over the course of the week. The last one - with El-Prezidente of The Mighty Soul Night - was a pretty intense conversation about the state of house in Akron as compared to Cleveland and then Northeast Ohio, compared to Chicago, Detroit, and New York.

While the scene in Akron and Cleveland may not be as strong as it is in those other big cities, people in this area love house music. I felt even more at home here in Akron. I came home, turned on the turntables, and hit record. Here it is. I hope you enjoy!
(#ProTip: If you don't listen until the last song, you are playing yourself short. That last song is fire!)

Track list after the jump.

The Conversation Piece by Roger Riddle on Mixcloud

Zepherin Saint, Ann Nesby, G3 - Optimistic (Original)
Alejandro Paz - El House
The Maghreban - Wonder Woman
Shuya Okino - Give Your Love A Chance (Replayed By Root Soul - Dimitri From Paris Disco Edit)
DJ Cam, Pablo Valentino - Summer in Paris (feat. Anggun) (Pablo Valentino Remix)
Tracy Hamlin, Dj Spen, Thommy Davis - MacArthur Park (Dj Spen & Thommy Davis Perishable Peak Mix)
Todd Terje - Delorean Dynamite (Disco Mix)
David Anthony, Beverlei Brown - I Don't Know Why (Manoo Remix)
House Of Funk, Oliver Night, DJ Spinna - You Got To (DJ Spinna Vox Remix)
Adesse Versions - The Light
Louie Vega, Monique Bingham - Elevator (Going Up) (Louie Veg
Breakbot - You Should Know (feat. Ruckazoid) [Le Family Club Remix]
DJ Sneak - The Hot Shit
Gerideau, Joey Negro - Bring It Back To Love (Joey Negro Remastered Real Garage Remix)
Seven Davis Jr - One
Hapkido - Break The System (Original Mix)
Moodymann - 9 Nites 2 Nowhere
Julio Bashmore - Umuntu (feat. Okmalumkoolkat)

The Harlem Globetrotters and STOMP Make Sweet Music Together

When I was little, my mom would always take me to see the Harlem Globetrotters whenever they came to town. I am talking about the days of Curly Neal, Sweet Lou Dunbar, and Meadowlark Lemon.

It was an incredible spectacle. They did things with a basket ball that was just mesmerizing for me as a kid. The dribbling, the far out shots, the crazy passes, the pranks. It was almost too much for a kid like me to handle.

And then there was the music. The Globetrotters would run out on the floor and do their warm up to "Sweet Georgia Brown". I was in heaven. Here they were passing the ball back and forth in ways that would make your mouth just hang open, the whole while to the beat of this song with a crazy whistle to it.

That song was lodged in my head as a kid (still is). Whenever I heard it, I thought about the Harlem Globetrotters (still do). The marketer in me can't

help but acknowledge what an effective piece of branding that was. I remember going to see them one time, and my mom bought me a 7" record of the song from the souvenir stand. I played it constantly, the whole while trying to recreate the moves I had seen them doing. I could never get it right, but I had fun trying.

Now there is a whole new generation of Globetrotters, and a whole new generation of fans. And the magic is still there. I catch them on TV every now and then and they are still just as fun to watch as it was when I was just a kid.

And then I ran across this video of the Globetrobbers with the percussion performers from STOMP, it was such a spot on win. It falls right in line with what I think of musically when I think of the Harlem Globetrotters. And the video is a one shot take. Big bucket of win for whoever came up with this idea. Enjoy!

The Anti-Nazi Teen Gang that Beat Up Hitler Youth and Danced to Jazz

If you are a fan of music (and I assume you are if you somehow landed here at my blog), and particularly jazz, no doubt you have run across stories of a counterculture of jazz loving young people that formed in Nazi Germany.

Like young people all over the world, these German youth fell in love with the sounds that began in New Orleans, and they wanted to listen to it, play it, and dance to it. Rules be damn!

MessyNessy over at messynessychic.com shared a great post that tells their story - complete with incredible pictures.

If you have ever wondered why the people of Germany didn't stand up and fight back, these young badasses did. They broke all the rules, hanging out in the mixed company of boys and girls, listening to banded music, and even taking delight in beating up their mainstream counterparts, the Hitler Youth.

Here's an excerpt of MessyNessy's post:

"A band of adolescent music-lovers, swing dancers and snappy dressers– not exactly the type you’d expect to take on the Nazi Hitler Youth. But in pre-WWII Germany, the Nazi regimentation of society inadvertently gave rise to massive teenage street gangs who beat up the Hitler Youth, tagged anti-Nazi graffiti at train stations– and listened to jazz.
Aged 12 to 17, these non-conforming youths were usually referred to as Edelweiss Pirates by the Gestapo, an anti-authoritarian subculture of kids rebelling against the system– in this case, the Nazi regime.

When membership of the Hitler Youth became mandatory in 1936, thousands of youths, particularly from Cologne and of working class families, wanted no part in it. The strict paramilitary and gender segregated organisation didn’t exactly fit in with their teenage lifestyle of hanging out on street corners, listening to jazz and swing music and flirting with the opposite sex.
Jazz music was considered “degenerate music” by Nazi ideology, because it was often performed by black and Jewish musicians and promoted free love."

For the rest of the post, and more pictures and stories of these cool jazz loving kids, go to: http://www.messynessychic.com/2015/10/29/the-anti-nazi-teen-gang-that-beat-up-hitler-youth-and-danced-to-jazz/

Mixtape: Roger Riddle - Back Scratchy

I have a really itchy back. If you ever want me to do something for you, just scratch my back. I'll do whatever.

That has nothing to do with this mix other than the fact that my back was itchy as I was trying to come up with a name for the mix.

This is just a nice little collection of songs I have been listening to lately and a handful out of the past that I threw in for good measure.

Enjoy. Track list after the jump.

Back Scratchy by Roger Riddle on Mixcloud

Jamie Lidell - A Little Bit More (Luke Vibert Mix)
Discovery - Swing Tree
Phantogram - Fall In Love
Arcade Fire - Here Comes The Night Time
Electric Wire Hustle - Tom Boy
Beck - Que' Onda Guero
Eric B. & Rakim - Eric B. Is President
Jaylib - The Official (Instrumental)
Mos Def, Pharoahe Monche, & Nate Dog - Oh No
Lyrics Born - I Changed My Mind (Stereo MC's Rattlesnake Mix)
Modest Mouse - Float On
Nightmares On Wax - You Wish
Broken Social Scene - Major Label Debut (Fast)
The Strokes - Someday
Benny Sings - For Your Love
Common - I Am Music
Bjork - Human behaviour
Brian Eno & David Byrne - Strange Overtones
De La Soul - Let, Let Me In
LCD Soundsystem - Someone Great
Andrew Bird - Imitosis
TV On The Radio - Crying
Tegan and Sara - Alligator [Dave Sitek Remix]

Whiz Kid - He's Got The Beat (12" Single)

Whiz Kid - He's Got the Beat (12" Single)
Tommy Boy, 1985

I'm going to be honest with you. I have never played this. I don't know the song. 

However, I love this cover. It is the epitome of what I loved fashion-wise in the '80s. It is so old school!

The tracksuit - stylin'. That belt buckle - I loved mine when I was a kid, and would wear one today in a heartbeat. Stylin'. The fat laces with the design - stylin'. The gold chains - stylin'. The green, blue, and white color scheme - fresh to death. ON YOUR KID??!! Come on! Super Stylin'!

Read the rest of this entry at RogerRiddle.com: http://rogerriddle.com/2015/08/whiz-kid-hes-got-the-beat-12-single/

You can also read more of my ramblings about my record collection over at my Instagram account: @occupyyouripod

Lootpack - Weededed Remix (12" Single)

Lootpack -Lootpack-Weededed-Stones-Throw-Madlib Weededed Remix b/w Loopdigga
Feat. Rasco, Oh No, and Medaphoar
Record Label: Stones Throw, 2000

My introduction to Madlib came through Lootpack's "Weededed". I was instantly in love and it led me on an incredible wild ride trying to find all the music that I could that was connected in any sort of way. So began my love of Stones Throw.

This song is so much fun to play when I am DJing. The bassline does it for me. Madlib's production is showing the early signs of greatness that we will grow to love. Wildchild is straight spitting. Is it too soon to consider this one a hip hop classic?

Read the rest of this article at RogerRiddle.com: http://rogerriddle.com/2015/08/lootpack-weededed-12-single/

Read the Instagram entry at: @OccupyYourIpod

Mixtape: DJ Roger Riddle - My Past Is Calling

My Past Is Calling

This has been a time of reflection for me. An up coming milestone birthday. An upcoming move. A recent trip to my hometown after years of being away. Staying in the house I grew up in while on that visit.
These songs are at the very essence of my childhood. 

This is the music that helped to define my personal tastes in music. This is where I came to the fork in the road that was my parents music and the music of my generation. This is also the fork in the road where hip-hop and techno split. Where 80s pop bumps up against both briefly.

These are the songs of the skating rink in Detroit. They are the songs that I sat by the radio to record on my boombox. And because techno was born in Detroit, these are the songs that I struggled to stay up late and hear what the Electrifying Mojo was going to play on his radio show.


These are the songs that set me on the path to becoming a DJ and today, I give them their due. An offering.
Track listing after the jump.

My Past Is Calling by Roger Riddle on Mixcloud

1. Cosmic Rapp by James Pants
2. Sucker MCs by Run DMC
3. Too Much Posse by Public Enemy
4. Trans Europe Express by Kraftwerk
5. Beat Box by Art of Noise
6. Speech by Cyrus
7. Hip Hop Be Bop by Man Parrish
8. Situation (U.S. 12" Mix) by Yaz
9. Big Fun by Inner City
10. When We Used To Play by Blake Baxter
11. I Need A Freak by Sexual Harrassment
12. Play It Cool by Model 500
13. Al-Naafyish by Hashim
14. Do Me (Frank Wiedeman Orchestra Mix) by Tiefschwarz
15. Clear by Cybotron
16. No UFOs by Model 500
17. I'm Ready by Kano
18. Look Out Weekend by Debbie Deb
19. Strings of Life by Derrick May
20. Technicolor (Long Mix) by Model 500

Mixtape: DJ Roger Riddle - One Step Beyond

DJ Roger Riddle - One Step Beyond

I had been building up some electro-pop and indie-pop songs I really liked in hopes that I would be able to make a mixtape of them. Then one day I heard Jamie xx's "Loud Places" and I knew I had to get that into a mix as quickly as possible. I had to share that song. It was too good not to.

So "Loud Places" was the last song added to the list even though it is the first one in the mix. Sadly, I had to leave out Sylvan Esso's "H.S.K.T." I just couldn't make it work.

Otherwise, these songs are just fun. The track list is after the jump.

One Step Beyond by Roger Riddle on Mixcloud

1. Loud Places (feat Romy) by Jamie xx
2. Never Matter by Toro Y Moi
3. Rattlesnake by St Vincent
4. What Else Is There by Royksopp
5. Constant Surprises by Little Dragon
6. Alligator (Dave Sitek Remix) by Tegan and Sara
7. Big Girl, Skinny Girl (feat Tchak Diallo) by CX Kidtronik
8. Ragazzini by Luminodisco
9. Sexotheque by La Roux
10. Except Death by (!!! Chk Chik Chick)
11. In The Fast Lane by Jean-Luc Pnty
12. Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda by J*Davey
13. All I Ever Need by Caribou
14. Friends by Seven Davis Jr
15. Cry For You by Hot Chip
16. The Light (feat Denai Moore) by SBTRKT

Record Collecting: Hank Crawford - Wildflower

Hank Crawford - Wildflower
Kudu, 1973
Produced by Creed Taylor
Recorded by Rudy Van Gelder
Arranged and Conducted by Bob James
Features Bob Cranshaw, Idris Muhammad, Joe Beck, and Ralph MacDonald.

I learned early on in my record collecting to buy anything with Creed Taylor's signature on it. I was thinking today about the magnitude of the role Taylor played in music. I wonder if there is a book on him. I wish Gilles Peterson would do a show dedicated to his music.

This album is some straight up cool 70s shit. It makes you want to start saying stuff like, "What's happening, slick?" and "My man! Everything is copacetic." You gotta walk with some rhythm when music like this is playing.

It opens with an instrumental cover of "Corazon", my favorite Carole King song. (Continuing my habit of reviewing other albums inside of the reviews I am writing: Carole King's album, Fantasy, is incredible and often overlooked. It features Harvey Mason and Tom Scott.) The album keeps getting better from there. The B-side starts with a 9 minute + cover of Stevie Wonder's "You've Got It Bad Girl". Totally worth picking up if you run across it.