One of the great(est?) fonk-ay house collxns around
Rawdon M Waller | MO (USA); orig. Sydney, AUS | 11/08/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The artists on this album (DJs and vocalists and instrumentalists) are all sterling. I particularly love hearing Loleata Holloway's mature, deeper voice (when comapred with her vocals one finds on Larry Levan mixes).
This album is a must for anyone who likes
Funk
'Chill-out'
'Nu-Jazz'
Electro
This album typifies how House should be made."
Forward Thinking Mix
bordersj2 | Boston | 10/27/2008
(4 out of 5 stars)
""Groove Sanctuary" is a 2002 compilation on Fuego Records, a small label in London. It was mixed up by Raw Deal, and features loads of soulful house cuts. Note the label and time though, as 2001-2002, Fuego had released another compilation, titled "Pure Braziliance", which was mixed by none other than Faze Action. At this time, nu-jazz, jazz-house and soul were forming a wonderful marriage, and you had some terrific new electronic and house acts emerging on the scene. While "Pure Braziliance" had far more fan-fare and appeal at the time, thanks to the emergence of nu-bossa and nu-brazil house tracks, this one sort of flew under the radar.
And what a shame, because it was a great companion piece. Starting out with a remix to Hajime Yoshizawa's "Endless Bow", remixed by German Maestro's "Fauna Flash", the song features the Sleepwalker/KJM pianist/keyboardists sweet skills, and there's a nice soulful voice adding lyrics as well. That's followed up nicely with Bah Samba's "Black Blood", a track popular for the latin tribute to the nightlife. It was a sweet club track back in around 2000-2001. "Cool Affair" by Black & Brown's a track in the perfect jazz-house mold, with neat guitar and a fresh beat. The mix is done up by Eric Kupper, who's a good producer in his own right & would later do the Kupper/Campbell project. This track has Brazilian touches throughout. A crazy, drenching soulful track follows that with "What Goes Around Comes Around", remixed by MMM. It was nice to hear Loleatta Holloway. What soul & funk! A few other notable tracks were Raw Deal's very impressive remix to "Life Rhythms" which had a silky vibe and terrific flute work, Mondo Grosso's "MG4BB"; a song that seemed to mix-mash the jazz scene, and Nicola Conte with Gianluca Petrella with their "New Standards" track, a hall-mark for the both of them.
Although this album's a bit older, it's still quite good. The acts are class and most of them are still going on strong in 2008, let alone in 2000-2001. The mix is nice and it's a good album to put in on a Friday evening before heading out. While "Pure Braziliance" gives you far more of a latin twinged house adventure (and rightfully so!), this one's funkier and more jazz centric in the approach to compiling good house tunes. If you do have this and dig it, check out Pure Braziliance, Bargrooves: Espace Prive, Brazilution 5, Destination Rio and maybe a few of the early St. Germaine Des Pres Cafe series."