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Strut
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STRUT234 S 1
30 Sep 20
International
30 Sep 20
International
Nubiyan Twist feat Cherise
Played by: Juno Recommends Broken Beat Nu Jazz
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STRUT 225S 2
21 Sep 20
Broken Beat/Nu Jazz
21 Sep 20
Broken Beat/Nu Jazz
Various
Review: Founded out of Washington DC in the 1970s and running through until the early-'90s, Black Fire was a go-to label for all things spiritual in jazz, funk and soul; grounded in African rhythms, dialogue, funk and go-go. Inspiring a generation alongside like Strata-East and Tribe, Black Fire Records is responsible for delivering us the highest order of Oneness Of Juju material, while working with and introducing the likes of saxophonist Byard Lancaster, Ghanaian percussionist Okyerema Asante, Southern Energy Ensemble, and music drama troupe Theatre West. Also included in Strut's retrospective is the Experience Unlimited's soul and gospel number "People", the frenetic, hot summer jazz of Lon Moshe & Southern Freedom Arkestra and some alternative disco rhythms of "Look At The People!" by Wayne Davis. Our Pick: "African Rhythms (live In Washington DC, 1975)".
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STRUT 238D
14 Aug 20
Soul
14 Aug 20
Soul
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STRUT 153DS3
12 Aug 20
Jazz
12 Aug 20
Jazz
Played by: Flash Atkins
Review: Idris Ackamoor and The Pyramids unveil their new album Shaman! with a tribute to jazz pianist Cecil Taylor! Originally formed in the '70s as part of Cecil Taylor's Black Music Ensemble, the group has disbanded and reformed over the last decades, with 2020's Shaman! incarnating a fresh Pyramids ensemble; find Ackamoor on sax, original member Dr. Margaux Simmons on flute, Bobby Cobb on guitar, Sandra Poindexter on violin, Ruben Ramos on bass, Gioele Pagliaccia on drums, and Jack Yglesias on percussion! A most accomplished long player, Shaman! completes a triptych of albums for Strut that dates back to 2016's We All Be Africans, with Idris Ackamoor and The Pyramids transitioning from the political and social commentaries of 2018's acclaimed 'An Angel Fell' into more introspective themes. With some striking artwork from Japanese artist Tokio Aoyama, Shaman! has been described by the group itself as personal statement on love and loss, mortality, the afterlife, family and salvation - our tips include anything over 10 minutes.
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STRUT 214D
07 Aug 20
Jazz
07 Aug 20
Jazz
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STRUT 238S 2
30 Jul 20
Soul
30 Jul 20
Soul
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STRUT 214S3X
22 Jul 20
Jazz
22 Jul 20
Jazz
Review: A reissue of a deep spiritual jazz masterpiece, Strut Records brings back into the frame a timeless relic from the not-so distant past. JuJu, a six piece space age, soul-jazz and freeform fusion group outta 1970s San Francisco was spearheaded by the longstanding leadership of Plunky J. Branch and the ensemble's deep African spirit. Chapter Two: Nia, originally released in '74, sees Strut descend on what aficionados would consider the band's most definitive album (alongside A Message From Mozambique) with New Yorkian minimalism colliding with ragtime in "The End Of The Butterfly King (Poem: Things Comin' Along)". Filled with powerful poetry and spoken word in the title track (and aforementioned) to explosive, wandering numbers like "Black Unity", timeless music never sounded so fresh.
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STRUT 245D
17 Jul 20
Jazz
17 Jul 20
Jazz
Review: Formed in 1970 and fronted by J Plunky Branch, Oneness Of Juju have gone through numerous personnel and name changes over the decades but are still peddling their Afrocentric take on funk and jazz to this day (currently as Plunky & The Oneness). This collection from Strut, though, focuses on their golden years in the 70s - and it's heavy stuff! While one or two tracks would fit nicely into straight-up funk sets, adding a little world flava, others explore model jazz, spoken word, Nyabhingi drumming and other more esoteric musical pastures. Imagine yourself surrounded by righteous dashiki-wearing dudes at a Panthers meeting in 70s Harlem and you'll get the general vibe...
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STRUT 233D
17 Jul 20
Funk
17 Jul 20
Funk
Review: Still reeling from the Linkwood & Foat self-titled collaborative LP released on Athens Of The North earlier this year, Greg Foat, a versatile mainstay in the UK jazz scene, brings in bandmates Moses Boyd, Art Themen, Clark Tracey and Phil Achille to create Symphonie Pacifique. Ebbing and flowing between ambient soul and liquid jazz in the live and improvised "After The Storm", there's lounge time flamenco in "Pointe Venus" to pastoral acid in "Man Vs Machine". Amid cinematic scores and library music you'll find heavy piano chords in the album's hit "Yonaguni" alongside dedications to the late Duncan Lamont ("Lament For Lamont") and 20th century French painters (Henry Valensi) in the cover art. Magnifique!
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STRUT 212D
03 Jul 20
Jazz
03 Jul 20
Jazz
Review: Idris Ackamoor and The Pyramids are releasing a new album entitled 'Shaman!' via Strut. Ackamoor and The Pyramids formed during the early 1970s as part of Cecil Taylor's Black Music Ensemble, releasing three albums before they disbanded. The album unfolds over four acts with personal musical statements about love and loss, mortality, the afterlife, family and salvation. "When Will I See You Again" is the first single taken from the album and it is one seriously soulful and funky groove that is a great taste of what's to come.
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STRUT 214S2XX
25 Jun 20
International
25 Jun 20
International
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STRUT 153DS 1
19 Jun 20
Jazz
19 Jun 20
Jazz
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STRUT 214S 1
20 May 20
International
20 May 20
International
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STRUT 212S 3
18 May 20
Balearic/Downtempo
18 May 20
Balearic/Downtempo
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STRUT 212S 2
28 Apr 20
International
28 Apr 20
International
Played by: Craig Charles Funk And Soul
Review: These days you'll find her topping the bill at the world's leading jazz festivals, but back in the late 70s and early 80s Patrice Rushen was just another aspiring young disco/boogie chanteuse. It was 1982 album 'Straight From The Heart' that spawned 'Forget Me Nots' and propelled her to international stardom, but it's the album before that, 1980's 'Posh', that Strut is reissuing here. Stylistically very similar to its more illustrious successor, it's the perfect chance to get better acquainted with a supremely talented female artist who, despite some considerable successes, never quite attained the household name status that she surely deserved.
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STRUT 220D
03 Apr 20
Disco/Nu-Disco
03 Apr 20
Disco/Nu-Disco
Played by: Sam Redmore
Review: With the years Strut has spent cataloging modern times music with the countless amount of compilations and reissues, curated or otherwise, the label now dips into something from the current day, and nevermore have we needed the positivity of sun-drenched polyrhythms! Add bright and vibrant future electronic percussion intertwined with traditional afro-folk, chant and spoken word, ONIPA's debut LP breathes new life and brings a carnival atmosphere to the revival we're all looking forward to this spring.
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STRUT 217D
20 Mar 20
International
20 Mar 20
International
Various
Review: Disques Debs is the longest-running and most prolific label to have come out of the Francophone Caribbean. Based in Guadeloupe and helmed by producer and musician Henri Debs, the label ran from the late 1950s to the early 2000s and released over 200 LPs and 300 45s, playing a pivotal role in bringing the creole music of Guadeloupe and Martinique to a wider international audience. Formidable compilers Strut, with the help of Hugo Mendez (Sofrito) and Emile Omar (Roseaux) bring together a second Disques Debs compilation this time chronicling the label's '70s era during a time when the likes of Super Combo, Typical Combo and Les Vikings commanded the label's then-catalogue by breaking through the Caribbean diaspora into Europe and in doing so bringing a new vision of Caribbean music to the world.
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STRUT 189D
14 Feb 20
International
14 Feb 20
International
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STRUT 217S 2
31 Jan 20
International
31 Jan 20
International
Played by: Sam Redmore
Review: Galaxy were leading lights of the Nigerian funk and Afrobeat scene in the late 70s, delivering nine albums in the years 1976-1983, no fewer than four of which were, somewhat confusingly, simply titled 'Galaxy'. What we have here is a single-track reissue of the closing cut from their 1977 long player of that name, which starts out as a languid, horn-led Afro-jazz jam, then gets progressively more frenetic as it builds into a fast and furious dancefloor workout that'll put even the most dedicated b-boys and jazz dancers to the test.
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STRUT 189S 2
17 Jan 20
International
17 Jan 20
International
Review: Legendary compilers Strut continue their celebration of Ghana's indigenous highlife by
converging the voice and modern African sounds of Pat Thomas and the Kwaishibu Area Band with the alt-contemporary-isms of Detroit Swindle's house and disco. The pair reinforce the skipping, lighter and feel good rhythms of KAB's original instrumentation of "Yamona" and pitch the timeless and iconic voice of Pat Thomas central to the mix, resulting in a peak time number of mass appeal.
converging the voice and modern African sounds of Pat Thomas and the Kwaishibu Area Band with the alt-contemporary-isms of Detroit Swindle's house and disco. The pair reinforce the skipping, lighter and feel good rhythms of KAB's original instrumentation of "Yamona" and pitch the timeless and iconic voice of Pat Thomas central to the mix, resulting in a peak time number of mass appeal.
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STRUT 219S
13 Dec 19
International
13 Dec 19
International
Review: UK hip-hop/soul/Afro fusionists Nubiyan Twist return with their first new material since their 'Jungle Run' album earlier this year. 'Portraits' features Cerise on vocal duties and is a luxuriant, melancholy and jazz-tinged neo-soul cut that should please fans of the likes of Amy Winehouse or Quantic Soul Orchestra. Ruby Wood then takes over mic duties for 'If Only', a livelier affair with intricate beats that veers into the nebulous zone where R&B, soulful house and broken beat collide - expect the latter to be big with the likes of Gilles Peterson, Mr Scruff and Snowboy, thanks not least to a haunting performance from Ms Wood.
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STRUT 225S
05 Dec 19
Broken Beat/Nu Jazz
05 Dec 19
Broken Beat/Nu Jazz
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STRUT 189S1
04 Dec 19
International
04 Dec 19
International
Review: Onipa are a London-based four-piece outfit centred around the duo of K.O.G and Tom Excell (of Nubian Twist). Both are of Ghanaian extraction and the music of west Africa is their stock-in-trade, with a string of EPs released via Bandcamp. This latest outing on Strut is made up of two tracks: 'Onipa' is a midpaced affair that lollops along while a chanted, African-language female vocal and some plangent six-string work play out on top - think a 'Yeke Yeke' or 'Sweet Lullaby', but at today's lower tempos - while the accompanying 'Makoma' is one for the highlife purists.
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STRUT 217S
29 Nov 19
International
29 Nov 19
International
Review: Only the greatest labels do we have to thank for releasing the music of Tribe, a four piece outta Detroit made up of Doug Hammond, Marcus Belgrave, Phil Ranelin and Wendell Harrison. Their music over the years has found its way to Carl Craig's Planet E, Soul Jazz's Universal Sound label, and now, no one more fitting in compilation curation other than Strut. The UK label have, from a 15 year period, lifted 10 tracks from the acclaimed independent jazz collective and the original session recordings a full remaster (courtesy of Technology Works). With three numbers clocking in at over 10 minutes of live free jazz, it's "Freddie's Groove" that'll have you going back for more. Hometown heroes back to the big smoke.
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STRUT 210D
08 Nov 19
Jazz
08 Nov 19
Jazz
Review: Known in world music circles as "the Golden Voice of Africa", Pat Thomas is a Ghanaian highlife veteran who released his first long-player way back in 1974. Now based in Canada, he recently celebrated his 73rd birthday but shows no sign of slowing down, as this new album for Strut demonstrates. It's a bit late in the day to be expecting any radical new tricks, but fans of highlife and African music generally will find plenty to enjoy, with occasional hints of reggae, funk and jazz to help maintain the listener's interest and some truly splendid horn-playing.
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STRUT 201D
04 Oct 19
International
04 Oct 19
International
Played by: Juno Recommends Broken Beat Nu Jazz
Review: Album number nine here from Canada's Souljazz Orchestra, and it's something of a surprise in that, this time out, soul and jazz influences take a definite back seat. Sure, opener 'Charlie Foxtrot' brings all the parping sax and off-kilter keys you could ask for, but we move into Afrobeat territory with the next track 'Police The Police' and from there on out it's Afro and reggae influences that dominate. 'General Strike' recalls The Clash, 'Slumlord' is an Afro-tinged reggae jam and 'War Games' comes on like a ska-punk band who've been drafted in to play a Mexican wedding, while 'Well Runs Dry' closes the album on a more downtempo, melancholy note.
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STRUT 208D
13 Sep 19
Broken Beat/Nu Jazz
13 Sep 19
Broken Beat/Nu Jazz
Various
Review: Though located just off the African coast, the population of Madagascar are descended from African and southeast Asian (and more specifically Malaysian) roots in equal measure. Being an island with such an ethnically distinct population naturally led to the emergence of distinct local musical styles such as salegy and soukous, and this compilation explores what happened when those styles collided with western funk, soul and pop in the 70s and 80s. Hammond organs, 6/8 rhythms, vocal chants and high, cascading guitar lines ? la West African highlife are the dominant themes - world music lovers, dive in to find out more!
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STRUT 207D
06 Sep 19
International
06 Sep 19
International
Played by: Craig Charles Funk And Soul, Don Dayglow, Flash Atkins, Juno Recommends Disco, Paper Street Soul, Shawn Lee, Tom Finlay (Groove Armada)
Review: Most active from the mid-70s to the mid-80s, Patrice Rushen's discography has spanned jazz, R&B, jazz-funk, soul and pop, but it's the jazz-funk/disco fusions she delivered for Elektra Recordings in the late 70s/early 80s that remain her best-loved work. Here, 15 tracks from that period are gathered together, with favourites like the evergreen 'Forget Me Nots' and 'Haven't You Heard' (reworked in the late 90s by Daddy's Favourite) snuggling up alongside less over-played but equally high-quality cuts like the jazz-funk piano groove that is 'Number One' and the ultra-smooth boogie of 'Feels So Real'. Smoochers like 'Where There Is Love' perhaps sound a little less relevant in 2019, but this is still a very classy collection indeed.
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STRUT 205D
19 Jul 19
Disco/Nu-Disco
19 Jul 19
Disco/Nu-Disco
Various
Review: The Strut disco detectives have been hard at work again to bring you another collection of unearthed musical gems from the African continent. Released as part of the label's 20th anniversary celebrations, this is the fourth album in the 'Nigeria 70' series and the first in eight years, meaning that fans of the sound will a) have a good idea of what to expect by now, and b) be eagerly anticipating a re-up of fresh tunes. Highlights include Felixson Ngasia & The Survivals' reggae- and jazz-influenced 'Black Precious Colour' and Etubom Rex Williams's suitably wigged-out 'Psychedelic Shoes'.
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STRUT 197D
29 Mar 19
International
29 Mar 19
International
Played by: Juno Recommends Broken Beat Nu Jazz
Review: Finally... The long-awaited sophomore from freeform 10 piece collective Nubiyan Twist has landed and y'all better have your seatbelts serviced because this is going to take you places. The bruk-meets-jazz-meets-techno-meets-soul title track is a perfect example of the energy and fluidity at play once again as we're exposed to high levels of fusion throughout the journey; the dreamy hip hop sass of "Brother", the psychedelic feels of "Addis To London", the middle eastern twangs and mysticism and cosmic grime of "They Talk"... Every track a different destination but all within the same trip, this will keep you twisting for a long time to come.
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STRUT 198D
15 Feb 19
Broken Beat/Nu Jazz
15 Feb 19
Broken Beat/Nu Jazz
Played by: Flash Atkins
Review: 1986's Sewele is from the early career of Nigerian juju star Shina Peters, which Strut now present as an exclusive reissue. Peters had said that this album represented a time of transition in his music career, when he branched out as a solo artist after stints with Ebenezer Obey, Prince Adekunle and Segun Adewale. It was an important time: it's here that he found his own voice and to play juju in a more progressive direction. Three years later, he honed that sound into 'AfroJuju'. The title track translates to 'shower of blessings' and as Peters stated himself 'it's like a prayer for my fans throughout Nigeria and the diaspora.' The album audio has been restored by See Why Audio and remastered by The Carvery.
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STRUT 202D
25 Jan 19
International
25 Jan 19
International
Played by: Juno Recommends Funk
Review: With a new album on the way before the end of the year on Strut, their new home, Nubiyan Twist unleash two tracks to whet the appetite. 'Tell It To Me Slowly', featuring the almost crooner-style vox of Nick Richardson, is a near-broken soul-jazz workout that's likely to find favour with the likes of Gilles Peterson and Snowboy, while the Nubiya Brandon-sung 'Sugar Cane' takes us into laidback, late-night jazz pastures. Both cuts may be a little polite-sounding for mainstream club tastes, but the specialist spots - and the jazz-dancers - will lap them up.
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STRUT 198S
16 Nov 18
Funk
16 Nov 18
Funk
Review: It's third time around for this classic album, which Strut first reissued back in 2002. The band known at different times as Juju, Oneness Of Juju, Plunky & The Oneness Of Juju and eventually just Plunky & Oneness have been an institution on the funk, soul and jazz scene from the early 70s right through till the current decade, but this their debut long-player from 1975 arguably captures their distinctive blend of funk, jazz and Afro influences at its rawest and most hard-hitting. This release also now includes the slightly different single version of the title track, plus bonus cut "Afrobeat".
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STRUT 188D
21 Sep 18
International
21 Sep 18
International
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STRUT 187S
23 May 18
International
23 May 18
International
Review: Strut and Art Yard's access to the very best music seems to be a bottomless pit of wonder, and there is no much better way to assert your dominance as a label than releasing killer material from the legendary Sun Ra. Like the last previously unreleased record, Of Abstract Dreams is a session most likely recorded at WXPN FM studios in Philadelphia, back in 1975. The opening "Island In The Sun" carries a majestic paino over triumphant percussion bumps, and "New Dawn" offers a steady, constant groove with that inimitable piano style stretching and twisting wildly around the hi-hats. "Unmask The Batman" is more of a classic bop piece, complete with a tough bottom end, and "I'll Wait For You" is the most experimental of the three, where Ra's singing comes out for the Sun Gods above. Highly recommended!
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STRUT 166D
16 Mar 18
Jazz
16 Mar 18
Jazz
Review: Legend Fela Kuti's youngest son, Seun Kuti, is increasingly making a name for himself, and for his own sound. While he is the son of a man who is often considered the Godfather of afrobeat, and possibly one of the greatest musicians who ever lived, Seun is here to do his own thing, with his own methods. Him and the Egypt 80 band have been jamming for several years now, and their new LP together, Black Times, feels like a point of maturity for all parties involved. Out through the invariably excellent Strut stable, this album is a rocking, energetic injection of funky Afro beats and driving jazz rhythms. If there is one thing Seun has taken from his father is the old man's lust for revolution, which is loud and clear across this entire LP. In fact, it shines a light on the current state of Nigeria, a country which, on paper, seems to have changed very little since his father's passing, and which is still searching for its messiah. Seun, it's your turn...
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STRUT 163D
02 Mar 18
International
02 Mar 18
International
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STRUT 164S1
21 Feb 18
Jazz
21 Feb 18
Jazz
