ROY AYERS is an iconic figure. With a career spanning over four decades beginning as jazz vibraphonist, expanding into R&B/funk & disco he is now considered one of the prophets of soulful dance music. This is a man who has always been decades ahead of his time – proven by the fact that (after JAMES BROWN) he is the most sampled artist ever!
RAPSTER has released two volumes of ‘Virgin Ubiquity’, unreleased recordings from the ever prolific Ayers, and to complement these we now present the first ever Roy Ayers remix collection, “Virgin Ubiquity: Remixed”. The line-up of remixers is a virtual who's who of soulful dance music today and is testament the legendary status this man has! They include: Brazilian drum & bass superstars DJ MARKY & XRS, charttoppers BASEMENT JAXX, disco re-edit master SEAN P, r n' b saviours PLATINUM PIED PIPERS, afro-house producer OSUNLADE, the undefinable MATTHEW HERBERT and house heavyweights like KENNY DOPE, PEPE BRADDOCK & JOEY NEGRO and many more! Needless to say there is amazing variety amongst these loving re-interpretations.
Review:
It's great to see contemporary producers regurgitating great pieces of work from the past and giving them new life. Roy Ayers is a true legend and pioneer of a positive jazz-funk sound that has given so much love and ambition to many. Tracks like ‘Everybody Loves The Sunshine’ gave Ayers his universal feel and happy sunshine vibe to uplift all the beautiful souls. ‘Virgin Ubiquity Remixed’ certainly keeps this tradition and its gonna' be a definite class addition to your collection this summer. We are immediately hit with ‘Holiday’ by Kenny Dope that is a funky house track and a winner for those positive reflections. We're lucky enough to get two versions of 'I Am Your Mind Part II'', one from Mr V Sole and the other from Basement Jaxx. Both are excellent and show great musicianship and glorious feel good atmosphere.
In fact the whole album is just brilliant. It honestly reflects the best
of house music and uses Ayers' songs in a new and improved way. There's some
slower hip hop styles and a drum and bass fused track ‘Mystic Voyage’ that
breaks the album from being just house. There are some real classic modern day
artists like Matthew Herbert, Joey Negro and DJ Marky all paying homage to Ayers
and putting their take on the whole thing. The bass lines are seriously
infectious and the production is tight, intelligent and funky. It's all about
quality, feel good positive vibes and serious get down dancing grooves that will
take you to the happy domain of optimism. A great purchase.
Tareck Ghoneim