VA - Remixes JID020

Since its 2017 inception, Jazz Is Dead has remained true to its mission of honoring the legacies of their musical heroes through cross generational collaborations. With Jazz Is Dead Series 2, co-founders Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad, have delivered an unimpeachable collection of fresh and captivating recordings inspired by jazz’s past, present, and future. The series features new albums from legends Lonnie Liston Smith,Jean Carne, Tony Allen, Henry Franklin,Phil Ranelin,Wendell Harrison, Garrett Saracho, and the modern contemporary Los Angeles based collective Katalyst.

For Remixes JID020, the label has tapped a few of their favorite contemporary artists and producers to offer their own take on the music of Series 2. The album features a variety of dynamic personalities with remixes from London based artists Shabaka Hutchins and Theon Cross, New York tastemaker Melanie Charles, LA based producer Bei Ru, Brazil’s Dj Nyack, Detroit based producer Tall Black Guy, Bay Area producer Mophono and the LA based house duo LO & Diisko.

The album begins with Mophono’s reinvention of the late Tony Allen’s “Don’t Believe the Dancers” immediately placing listeners in a trance with percussive sounds that further animate Allen’s traditional Afrobeat patterns; paying homage to the era of music Allen created alongside Fela Kuti’s Africa 70. The track comes to a close with Mophono’s sampling of Allen’s voice, a call to drummers all around the world to continue to build and expand on the art of drumming.

On the remix of Jean Carne’s “Black Rainbows” featuring vocals by Loren Oden, Melanie Charles plays on the fantasy-like feelings of the original recording, delivering a refreshing ode to Blackness. The lyrics fall into an evocative mantra as Charles sings along with Carne and Oden painting visions of Black beauty.

Henry Franklin is a longstanding contributor to the genre as one of jazz’s most influential heartbeats. The song “African Sun” incorporates distinctly West African rhythms alongside jazz modalities, a meeting of two cultures ripped apart but in continuous conversation with each other. Through this reimagining, Shabaka Hutchins continues this cross-cultural conversation, achieving a strong musical meditation that mimics the rise and fall of the sun.

Overall, JID020 earns its place in the Jazz Is Dead catalog as it further celebrates the spirit of collaboration amongst artists young and old. What unites these the DJs, producers, and musicians with the Jazz Is Dead ethos is their unbent dedication to remaining true to their own vibe and sound all the while preserving the energy and feeling of the original recordings. 

Tracklist:
1. Don't Believe The Dancers (Mophono Remix)
2. Phoenix (Theon Cross Remix)
3. Reflections (Bei Ru Remix)
4. Love Brings Happiness (Tall Black Guy and Kaidi Tatham Remix)
5. Black Rainbow (Melanie Charles Remix)
6. African Sun (Shabaka Hutchings Remix)
7. Altitude (L.O. & Diisco Remix)
8. Running With The Tribe (DJ Nyack Remix)

Tony Allen and Adrian Younge - Tony Allen JID018

With each subsequent release, Jazz Is Dead continues to exalt the legacies of iconic musicians who have shaped the fabric of Jazz across generations, genres, and continents. For their latest installment, the label connected with the late great Tony Allen, best known for his foundational work as the drummer for Fela Kuti's Africa 70, and later Egypt 80. Over the course of Allen's recording career, he defined the Afrobeat sound, meshing Funk & Jazz influences with Nigerian Highlife to create a cross-cultural dialogue that has gone global. It was no small honor to welcome Mr. Allen for a very special recording session at Linear Labs Studio, and we could not be more thrilled to share these crucial and downright funky cuts with you.

On album opener "Ebun", guitars and horns build off of Allen's instantly recognizable drum patterns, stretching and warping time signatures as they cross paths. It instantly recalls the seminal Africa 70 recordings which Allen was a driving force on. Psychedelic keyboards and percussion clash on "Steady Tremble", a heavy stomper tailor-made for dancefloors in every corner of the world. Just as funky is the kinetic and expressive "Oladipo". Built between a tense call and response between the horns, the track is filled with drama, and Allen steadily keeps each element in balance. As soon as the flute struts in alongside fiery horns and guitar on "Don't Believe the Dancers", the groove plunges further, propelled by an acerbic saxophone solo that animates Allen's percussion. "Makoko" is a moody, mid-tempo jam that evokes classic Fela Kuti recordings such as "Open & Close" and "Gentleman", slowly constructing an elaborate orchestra of polyrhythm, all keeping step with Allen's rhythm. "Lagos" points towards the spiritual and literal home of Allen and Afrobeat, the capital of Nigeria, and homes in on a yearning keyboard.

Similar to on his excellent Art Blakey tribute record, Tony Allen is a revelatory jazz drummer, as heard on "No Beginning", a mid-tempo tune that sits at the nexus of Spiritual Jazz and Afrobeat, which perfectly transitions into album closer, the aptly titled "No End", a poignant number that combines all of the passion and precision of the previous tracks, and let's Allen guide listeners yet again as only he so effortlessly could.

Despite the finite time that Allen had on this planet, as do all of us, his contributions to music are timeless and untouchable, and will continue to inform and inspire generations to come. Jazz Is Dead is honored to have played a part in the legacy of Tony Allen and invites you to discover the unparalleled genius that shifted the entire world's conception of time, a magician who alchemized the past with the future and influenced countless listeners, currently and to come. 

Tracklist:
1. Ebun
2. Steady Tremble
3. Oladipo
4. Don’t Believe The Dancers
5. Makoko
6. Lagos
7. No Beginning
8. No End

*Bonus (Tony Allen illadvised.)

Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad featuring Phil Ranelin and Wendell Harrison - Phil Ranelin and Wendell Harrison JID016

To be an independent artist means to not only be free to share your most ambitious artistic impulses, but to retain ownership of them, working tirelessly to market and produce a body of work that stands apart from corporate decision-making and interference. For Phil Ranelin and Wendell Harrison, it was this guiding principle that led them to found the Detroit-based Jazz label Tribe Records in the early 1970s. Focusing on self-reliance and communal support, Tribe provided a platform for local jazz artists such as Ranelin and Harrison to record and release albums, and had community members taking full control of the promotion and distribution. The label and its magazine set an important early precedent for community-driven arts organizations, and still stands as a testament to their potential and efficacy. Today, the legacy of Tribe lives on in labels like Jazz Is Dead, making these recordings at Linear Lab Studios in Highland Park all the more significant. In their latest dispatch, Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad craft a poignant batch of new material that celebrates the lasting impact of Tribe, and the perpetual greatness of Phil Ranelin and Wendell Harrison.

Emerging from misty trumpets and tremoring keys is album opener "Genesis", which takes its time introducing each element before breaking out into a fiery funk. On "Open Eye" kaleidoscopic percussion takes over, leading into a cool, Samba-inflicted guitar that flutters in between a formidable saxophone solo, courtesy of Harrison. From the moment the cymbals and bass take off on "Running With Tribe", the exhilaration remains high, before tempering into a slithering strut, the string section lingering in the background, both glistening and nervous.

Coming in at the album's mid-point, "Fire In Detroit" blossoms from a gentle swing into a kinetic push and pull, showcasing the broad range of Younge and Muhammad's arrangements. Like its celestial namesake, "Ursa Major" illuminates and leads listeners through a sonic roadmap of the album's repertoire, contrasting softer meditative moments with jagged, fuzzed-out guitars and urgent drums. Entering with bass and quickly building into a trenchant groove, "Metropolitan Blues" features an exceptional trombone solo by Ranelin that feels as fresh as the maestro's work on classic albums like "The Time Is Now". Building around a call-and-response between the horns, keys, and percussion, album closer "Black Census" is a supercharged funk burner that peppers in woodwinds alongside hi-hats for an eclectic blend. You can hear the sheer joy of the musicians throughout the recording, so it more than makes sense to hear Harrison laugh at the end of the take.

As each Jazz Is Dead record focuses on bringing a different legend from the past to the forefront and highlighting their deep contributions to Jazz and popular music, the label's most recent collaboration with Ranelin and Harrison is more than that: it is a symbolic passing of a generational torch, celebrating both groups' continued dedication to remaining independent, and continuing to produce compelling and unique Jazz music. 

Tracklist:
1. Genesis
2. Open Eye
3. Running With The Tribe
4. Fire In Detroit
5. Ursa Major
6. Metropolitan Blues
7. Black Census