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Madcliff recorded this, their only album in 1977. Singer, Songwriter, Drummer, Bassist and Keyboardist Chris Hills wrote all of the songs, two of them with Chico Waters with whom he had co written with on Herbie Mann's Embryo label in 1971.The album has a broad range of Soul, Funk and Disco tracks. It contains the original versions of two tracks that Chris would go on to record as a member of the Players Association later the same year. The early cuts of "I Like It" and "Goin' To The Disco" have a more raw approach than the better known and more polished versions. The killer cut is the funk bomb "You Can Make The Change".This track was made popular by Keb Darge at his legendary deep funk nights. "It Takes A Little More" was co written with Danny Weiss with whom Chris would work with as The Players Association and then as the group Feel in the early 80's. This album is one of the rarest that we have released in our classic albums series. Original Vinyl copies sell for around £200.

Strut presents a definitive collection of recordings from one of Tanzania’s most revered bands of the early 1970s, Sunburst. Covering their output from 1973 to 1976, this first retrospective features their singles for the Moto Moto and TFC labels, their sole album, ‘Ave Africa’ and an unreleased radio session recorded in Tanzania in 1973By the time Zairean guitarist Hembi Flory Kongo had formed the band in Dar Es Salaam in 1970 playing “copyright” cover versions, soul and funk had long influenced young musicians in Dar and ‘boogies’, weekly soul events, were commonplace at the city’s clubs. Despite the Tanzanian government banning soul (both music and dancing) through their conservative Ujamaa policy in 1969, Sunburst grew as a band and developed their own musical direction which they later called Kitoto Sound, reflecting the diverse backgrounds of the band members. Lyrical themes included black pride and colonial oppression – the band even played a gig for visiting civil rights heroine Angela Davis.After June 1973, Sunburst gained a national audience through a live session for the state-owned Radio Tanzania, a crucial means for domestic bands to air their work. A month later, they won a band competition in Dar Es Salaam and their popularity in Tanzania grew further. They began recording singles in Kenya, standing apart from the predominantly rumba, jazz or taarab styles sung in local languages at the time.In 1974, Sunburst met Zambian musician Rikki Ililonga from Zamrock group Musi- O-Tunya and he invited them to Zambia. Meeting their later manager, car company employee Peter Bagshawe, they embarked on an ill-fated tour with Kenyan funk band Matata before working on a first full album in 1976 in Lusaka with new band members. The LP came out at the height of the Zamrock scene led by bands like Witch and Ngozi Family but Sunburst offered a more intricate sound as musicians born in six different countries tapped into a multitude of styles, languages and stories. “Our songs support freedom struggles and encourage peasants and workers to work harder,” singer James Mpungo recounted. “Our songs also criticize our people for allowing themselves to be too westernized.” After a handful of further singles for Tanzanian state label TFC, including the popular ‘Banchikicha’, the band split, frustrated by living on “bare minimum earnings” from their music. The result of three years’ painstaking work after tracking down bandleader Hembi Kongo, bassist Bashir and the band’s ex-manager Peter Bagshawe, this overdue retrospective is curated by Thomas Gesthuizen (DJ Gioumanne) of Africanhiphop. com and Dave Tinning of Santuri East Africa. The package features a full band biography alongside rare photos, press cuttings and memorabilia.First ever release of band’s recordings outside of AfricaDefinitive collection: the band’s complete recorded output + exclusive unreleased radio sessionOne of the most important of Tanzania’s 1970s bands who developed their own Kitoto sound fusing soul and jazz with many traditional influences.Album and singles fully remastered for this reissue from original tapes where possible

The Fruit Band's fleeting existence was only recently revealed by the discovery of a few unsold copies of their sole 1978 single,Say It, which quickly became a cult showpiece for savvy DJs and collectors. Athens of the North has since reached out to Cypress Studios of Jacksonville, Florida and discovered a complete album of the group's stylish, dancefloor-smashing funk and deep disco on tape, unreleased for over 30 years. Vinyl is presented in a Handmade cardboard Tip-On Sleeve as would have been used at the time as only the best will do.

Blue vinyl 12"Whiskey Disco Small Batch series are custom made for Summer weather, water sports and festivals.Baltic Beaches EP pairs the mastercraft of Beard In Dust and Karol Alexander for three songs to soundtrack your summer time. Each smacks of sublime breaks and Balearic keys. Enjoy responsibly.

Yellow vinyl 10" It's Moscow disco! Russian selector extraordinaire Arsenii makes his RNT debut with a 3 tracker of obscure and infinitely groovy edits. From the Shaft-in-outer-space drama of "Son of the Son," to the proto-balearic lilt of "Jungle Melody" to the big band funk of "Fool Like A Child," Arsenii demonstrates his skill at digging through and slicing up his ample record collection. A pretty yellow 10" with a classic jazz library label design rounds this one out nicely!

Dutch disco dons Kraak & Smaak make their debut on Razor-N-Tape with a pair of boogie originals pressed to wax for the first time ever, featuring two remix gems from Ben Sun and Tiger & Woods! The soulful vibes run deep on Way Back Home, with Ben Sun and T&W taking us to Frankie and Shepp town, respectively, on their mixes. And with its synthy uptempo disco stomp, Seb's Party rounds out this wonderfully varied 4-tracker perfectly.

Whiskey Disco #48 glows in the welcome return of Tomas Malo as well as beach, pool and terrace season.Tomas Malo's skilled editing is underpinned by lush production and meticulous sample selection. South of the border flare meets French Touch filter in this package of three originals + Leftside Wobble's remix, sly and covertly sneaking a touch of classic acid to finish off the package.