12"

Rajan James, the Jamaican-born English-raised musician’s ‘Impossible Dreams’ is an inspirational sax-laced single that walks a fine line between North American boogie and British synth-pop influences of the 1980’s, yet manages to sound distinctly her own. Left Ear have salvaged both the unreleased full-length versions, including the instrumental for a 12” single.In the early 80’s Rajan headed to the States for a 5-week holiday, which turned into a 3 year hiatus. It was here that she was initially looking for inspiration from gospel singers, a natural progression from the choirs she had been singing in back home, even performing solo alongside her drum machine. It was in the States the she saw what she describes as the “future” of music, particularly “dance” music. Rajan returned to England with an open mind and an enriched cultural appreciation for a diverse range of sounds. It’s at this stage that she recorded ‘Impossible Dreams’ and released it on Steve Ayers’ ‘One Giant Leap’ compilation. Unfortunately, due to the release being an album of demos the track was cut short to make way for songs from other artists. Furthermore, it was never picked up for a single release and faded into obscurity. Rajan did release a single the following year called ‘Time’, unfortunately the label went into receivership and the release failed to make ground. After this, Rajan explains that “life got in the way and music had to take a back seat”. Thirty-seven years after the fact and Rajan’s ‘Impossible Dreams’ sounds just as relevant today, with an eternal message of optimism and hope.“Remember don’t give up on Your dreams it's never too late. If you fall get up and try again” Blessings R T James

The next official reissue oozes the feelgood factor, a reggae disco cover of ‘Ain’t Nobody’ by Jamaican artist Yvonne Archer. For the first time since the original release in 1980 the full length original 12” mix gets the reissue treatment along with the Lovers Rock leaning ‘Checking Out The Way I Feel’.On the flip Jura Soundsystem provide 2 edits, a main edit that pulls back on the electric guitar from the original and a Dub adding subtle delays and sparse use of the Vocal to let the groove work its magic. This is the first of two 12”s licensed from producer John Rubie that will appear on Isle Of Jura in 2020.

A truly special reissue of a fantastic and incredibly rare Afro-disco 12” from 1978, Tumblack - 'Caraiba / Invocation'. Originally released on the seminal French disco label Barclay, you'd be hard pressed to even find an original copy in the UK, let alone for a reasonable price, so it's high time an officially licensed, remastered reissue came around.Taking the A side of this EP Stefano Ritteri provides a “Spaziale Version” of 'Caraiba' that seamlessly blends elements of African, Afrobeat, Funk and Disco styles, with segments that continually morph and evolve into new tracks. Irresistibly funky and percussive drumming patterns and melodies hypnotise the listener, with only the occasional outbreak of African chanting breaking up the grooves.The B-side contains the original version of “Invocation” that is effectively one long drum track broken down into 7 segments that never drop a beat alongside the original version of 'Caraiba' in all it's glory.As EP's go, this really does take the listener on a journey to Africa, via 1978 New York, and is a true one of a kind. And for all those sample-spotters out there, there's no end of complex drum patterns and basslines to dive into.

The 1981 classic Index - 'Starlight', that commands prices of up to £85, gets a much deserved and long-awaited, remastered reissue.A melding of genres, that incorporated elements of funk, disco, soul and jazz, Brit Funk harnessed a raw energy bubbling up in the UK scene through the late ‘70s & ‘80s. Index 'Starlight' is a prime example of this spirit. Timeless in its makeup, glistening keys, full-frontal basslines and bold funk guitars give the foundation for those divine male and female vocals to sweep over.Take to the B side for 'The Break' version leaving the vocals at bay and letting the exquisitely arranged instrumentation work the dancers into a frenzy. Favoured by everyone from Four Tet and Motor City Drum Ensemble to Gilles Peterson and DaM-FunK for its extended grooves and uninterrupted breaks, it's a Brit Funk bomb if there ever was one.A must for any discerning digger out there, this deserves a place in every collection!

The Venetians were formed in late 1982 as a studio concept band after Rik Swinn (lead vocalist) arrived in Sydney with master tapes of tracks he recorded in England with engineer / producer Vic Coopersmith-Heaven (Cat Stevens, The Rolling Stones, The Vapours, The Jam). He read a newspaper advert placed by two musicians looking for a lead singer.Within weeks Swinn formed a touring band and enlisted David Skeet on guitar, bass guitar, synthesiser and vocals; and Peter Watson (ex-Scandal, Extractors) on guitar, bass guitar, synthesiser and vocals. Drummer Tim Powles (ex-Ward 13) joined next and keyboardist Matthew Hughes (ex-Gotham City) completed the line up of the Venetians. They released their first single, "Sound on Sound", in April 1983 - original copies of which go for upwards of £150 on Discogs.This 12" includes the original plus remixes by Andrew Weatherall & Zatua (Music from Memory).