Tuesday, 16 February 2010

Some Velvet Morning ~ Lee Hazlewood and Nancy Sinatra

I first heard this record when I was about 18 at a club night I used to go to and occasionally DJ at that was run by Paul Tunkin who when on to run the extremely successful Blow Up club and record label.

The record was from Paul's Dad's collection and was used quite often as the walk out record. It captivated me from the very start and it took about 5 years of searching through junk shops and boot fairs until I bought it whilst on holiday at Truro flea market where the Hall For Cornwall now stands.

To me it sums up the whole sixties scene of arty types trying to be hippies but without taking all the drugs and not bothering to wash. Full of impenetrable lyrics about someone called Phaedra (I once met a woman called Phaedra at a gig in Colchester and she was named after this song), lush orchestration and two voices that matched perfectly; Nancy's pure sound and Lee Hazlewood's amazing deep and soulful voice.

If pushed it is a song that would come with me to the desert island. It is that good.



Nancy Sinatra et Lee Hazlewood - Some Velvet Morning
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Tuesday, 9 February 2010

B.U.G. Mafia/Cheloo

I have always had a secret love of hip-hop. It started way back with Rappers Delight by the Sugarhill Gang and was cemented with the marvellous Public Enemy. I am no expert in the genre but I do like to seek out hip-hop from places other than the English speaking world. I was pleased therefore to discover an online mate of mine from Romanian saying she was a hip-hop fan. Who better than to ask about some Romanian hip-hop. Cristina recommended these two artists. The first is B.U.G.(Bucharest Under Ground) Mafia from Bucharest who are championed as starting the Romanian gangster rap scene. This track is called Baieti Buni (translated as nice or good guys)and is rather splendid.




This track is by Cheloo (pronounced Kilo) is called Fericit (pronounced fereecheet) meaning happy. Cheloo is a massive star in Romania and has collaborated with several artists including B.U.G. Mafia and on this track Guess Who. It is another cracker.



Este foarte bun.