DJ Spooky - In Fine Style: 50,000 Volts of Trojan Records
Thursday, May 11, 2006
In Stores June 27th
Arguably DJ culture’s most intellectual turntablist, DJ Spooky links his personal roots together with his inimitable taste in music by hand selecting 34 of his favorite tracks from the Trojan Records archives and compiling them into one collection, In Fine Style: 50,000 Volts of Trojan Records (in stores June 27th). A heady experiment where he plucks important and influential songs from the venerable Jamaican record label’s rich vaults, DJ Spooky sets out not only to create a new mood for the club scene but to take clubgoers through the vital history of Trojan and its direct impact on DJ and club culture to this day. “This mix is a combination of the old, the new, and the in between,” he explains. “That's kind of the point: DJ culture in the 21st century is as much about the soundsystem as the playlist. I wanted to make a mix that reflected that: old and new.”
The only DJ on the scene with degrees in philosophy and French literature, DJ Spooky (aka Paul Miller aka That Subliminal Kid) is as bent on creating groundbreaking sounds as he is at delving beneath the messages and implications of the beats that he pulls from. For him, the opportunity to work on In Fine Style was a perfect fit. “When Trojan Records asked me to do a ‘selections’ from their archive, one of the first things that went through my mind was how do you mix music that changed the world?”
A writer, musician, multi-media artist and critical figure in mainstreaming the DJ-as-artist concept, DJ Spooky was eager to sift through the thousands of songs that Trojan Records has released over the past four decades and carefully select the ones that best told the story and revealed the connection between the two unlikely eras and cultures. “I want you to feel history when you listen to this mix and think about how sampling, making new music from old, came from the idea of versioning. Think about the soundsystem battles of Duke Reid, Sir Coxsone and Prince Buster as a forerunner to MC and DJ battles in hip-hop. Think about Kool Herc's bass enhanced soundsystem as a stepping stone for Afrika Bambaata’s "Planet Rock." Just think about how strange the world would be if we didn't have this music of the islands. It just makes you remember that this whole planet is just an island too.”
The album is a personal journey for Spooky as well, having spent many summers in Jamaica visiting family and friends while growing up. In Fine Style is his way of introducing the vintage reggae sounds he grew up on to the DJ, club and art worlds he spins in today, and includes recordings by legends Lee Perry, John Holt, Desmond Dekker, Sly & Robbie, Peter Tosh and Barrington Levy.
DJ Spooky has released numerous albums, books, and worked on film scores including the the Cannes and Sundance Award winning film Slam and remixing the Metallica single "For Whom the Bell Tolls". His weighty theories on music and its impact on the world have made him a sought-after speaker on the college lecture circuit as well as at industry events. For further information on DJ Spooky, please log on to www.djspooky.com.
###
DJ Spooky / In Fine Style: 50,000 Volts of Trojan Records
Tracklisting
CD 1
1. Sweet Like Candy - Winston Williams
2. Nice Nice - The Kingstonians
3. 007 Shanty Town - Desmond Dekker
4. Funky, Funky Reggae - DaveBarker
5. Shades Of Hudson - Dennis Alcapone
6. Summertime - B.B. Seaton
7. Disco Devil - Lee Perry
8. Jah Jah Man - Sly and Robbie
9. Lama Lava - Augustus Pablo
10. Come Together - The Israelites
11. Old Fashion Way - Ken Booth
12. Rain - Bruce Ruffin
13. Your Ace From Outer Space - U-Roy
14. The Rooster - Tommy McCook & His Band
15. The Trial Of Pama Dice - Lloyd/Dice/Mum
16. Ba Ba Boom - The Jamaicans
17. Fever - Susan Cadogan
18. Morning Sun - Al Barry & The Cimarons
CD2:
1. DJ's Choice - Winston Williams
2. Screaming Target - Big Youth
3. The Great Musical Battle - Derrick Morgan
4. The Russians Are Coming (Take Five) -Val Bennett
5. Popcorn - The Upsetters
6. Brother Noah - The Shadows
7. Reform Institute - Isaac's All Stars
8. Bridgeport Dub - The BlackbeardAll Stars
9. King Tubby's Explosion Dub - King Tubby
10. Dynamic Fashion Way - U-Roy
11. A Yah We Deh - Barrington Levy
12. HereComes the Judge - Peter Tosh
13. Flat Foot Hustling - Dillinger
14. Hot Sauce (Aka The Agro Man Is Back) -DaveBarker
15. Rudy A Message ToYou - Dandy Livingstone
16. Rough Rider (Live) - The Special Beat
