Seeing as that we're still in a post-meltdown phase, we're doing a bit of cleanup work from an Arthur Russel stint we had a few months back. Here's some of his disco work. Enjoy!
From Mikey "IQ" Jones at Other Music:
I'm ecstatic to be writing this one up, as I never thought I'd see these available again. The Sleeping Bag Sessions collects lesser-known tracks (often one-time collaborations) written, performed, mixed, and/or produced by Arthur Russell under assorted pseudonyms, all originally released on 12" singles between 1980-86 on the Sleeping Bag record label he ran for a period with Will Socolov. A great deal of these cuts are unknown even to many Arthur fanatics because his name was often nowhere to be found in the credits, so let's give a basic rundown of what you've got here. Bonzo Goes to Washington (here in two mixes) was a one-off collaboration with Talking Heads keyboardist/guitarist Jerry Harrison for which they cut up the voice of Ronald Reagan making an off-color joke about Russia -- "We begin bombing in 5 Minutes." They take his voice and throw it into a tight, staccato pop-lock electro groove tailor-made for breakdance routines. Felix was a second collab with original disco DJ pioneer Nicky Siano; after their monster track "Kiss Me Again" as Dinosaur, they reunited for two songs with a more low-key vibe. "Tiger Stripes" and "You Can't Hold Me Down" take the same template and offer variations on a theme, as drum machines and congas percolate under wonky synth lines, chicken-scratch guitars, and Martin Denny faux-jungle animal noises while a disco dame coos about her partner's tiger strips showing. It's pure fun and one of my favorite Arthur songs. One of the real highlights here are the two mixes of Clandestine's "Radio Rhythm (S-I-G-N-A-L-S-M-A-R-T)," a collab with Ned Sublette, guitarist/Cuban music scholar/author of Willie Nelson hit "Cowboys Are Frequently Secretly Fond of Each Other." For this one we get the pair in electro mode again, with heavy synth and drum machine action as Sublette essentially raps like a truckstop cowboy about shortwave and CB radios -- as insane as it sounds, in typical fashion, it ends up being one of the best cuts here. (The original 12" has long been a regular DJ staple of mine. Ned Sublette rules, and you all should check his scene out. Seriously.) Sounds of JHS 126 Brooklyn were, I assume, a group of BK school kids who recorded this one-off 12" and vanished. It's a shame, because Arthur's Killer Whale mix of "Chill Pill" is a tight, trippy hip-hop track that puts a different spin on Russell's scene and broadens his scope a bit more; hearing kids do early rap is almost a never-fail scenario for me and this has been a fave for a long time.
Next up are the two most well known cuts in some unheard mixes. Indian Ocean was Arthur on vocals and cello, trombonist Peter Zummo, and percussionist Mustafa Ahmed; their "Schoolbell/Tree House" is probably my all time Arthur jam, and this collection FINALLY includes Part Two, a wilder, shorter take on the tune with one of Arthur's goofiest, funniest lyrics (every time I hear him croon "I'm 100, and I'm still going to school/I'm 1,000, and I still am going to school" I can't help but smile). There's also an edit (never actually released on the 12") of the Walter Gibbons mix of the same cut. Okay, now for the real crown jewel in this collection. This one's for all of the super nerds in the audience -- the long rumored, mythic Walter Gibbons remix of Dinosaur L's "Go Bang." I nearly lost it when I saw this listed on the back sleeve, assumed it to be a typo of some sort, and had to jump right to it. I'd heard a third generation or worse bootleg of this mix years ago from an old disco DJ friend who was in the know, and damn -- it's Gibbons' mix all right. Thirteen minutes of frenzied, aggressive magic during which Walter chops and strips the hell out of one of Arthur's most beloved grooves, this "Go Bang" probably WAS too wild then, but it's here and it's golden. He gives it similar treatment to his mix of Bettye Lavette's "Doin' the Best That I Can" or something from his amazing Salsoul Disco Madness LP (another must-hear for Arthur disco fanatics -- do that homework!), deconstructing the tune through nearly all of its parts, and stitching them back together into a disjointed Frankenstein's monster, with more dub space in the mix and a harder, nearly industrial-sounding rhythm. Holy s**t. This thing is a treasure-trove, people. Many people slag some of these lighthearted cuts and claim they aren't as powerful as his other work, but honestly, at this point I think every fan's got a clear enough picture of his ever-shifting modus operandi, and should consider this one of the final foundation pieces to the puzzle that was Arthur. Straight up, you ain't a fan if you don't have this stuff. Totally Essential Arthur. 'Nuff said.
Technical Information:
Artist: Arthur Russell
Album: The Sleeping Bag Sessions
Year: 1980-1986
Audio Codec(s): FLAC
Encoding: Lossless
Rip: EAC split tracks + .cue
Avg. bitrate: 961 kb/s
Sample rate: 44100 Hz
Bits per sample: 16
Channels: 2
File size: 446 MB
Length: 1:05:02
Tracklisting:
01. Bonzo Goes To Washington- 5 Minutes (B-B-B Bombing Mix) (3:18)
02. Felix- Tiger Stripes (Extended Version) (6:53)
03. Felix- You Can't Hold Me Down (Extended Version) (5:40)
04. Clandestine feat. Ned Sublett- Radio Rhythm (S-I-G-N-A-L-S-M-A-R-T) (Extra Cheese Mix) (4:52)
05. Sounds Of JHS 126 Brooklyn- Chill Pill (Underwater Mix) (4:13)
06. Indian Ocean- School Bell/Tree House (Original 12" Version) (10:26)
07. Indian Ocean- Treehouse (Extended Bootleg Edit) (7:01)
08. Dinosaur L- Go Bang! (Walter Gibbons Mix) (12:26)
09. Bonzo Goes To Washington- 5 Minutes (R-R-R Radio Mix) (4:08)
10. Clandestine feat. Ned Sublette- Radio Rhythm (S-I-G-N-A-L-S-M-A-R-T) (Dub Mix) (Killer Whale) (6:05)
Sleeping Bag Sessions Megaupload Link