- Yes, that's right the legendary Cut Chemist and DJ Shadow CD that has been much bootlegged, much sought after and requires much $$$ if you bought it from ebay (apparently around $200 US).
OK OK OK so it is pretty old (released sometime in 99), however, not many have had the chance to hear an awesome CD. I was recently able to get my hands on one of the few new copies that actually made it to Oz. Now where's that $50 gone?
The 2 songs/tracks or whatever you want to call them they came up with on this CD were recorded from a rehearsal for their "45 sessions" tour they were doing at the time. So apart from the few 12's being used, such as the Number Song and Organ Donor, most of the snippets we hear during the album are taken from rare 7" records. Cut Chemist and DJ Shadow also show off a rare 7-eleven 7" record (more on that later).
Anyway, let's break it down....
The first track, aptly entitled "Uno", appropriately starts off to introduce the album. Underneath the Karate/Kung Fu "Thunderkick" samples, the theme to Space Odyssey 2001 plays , then segue-ing into some Jimi Hendrix inspired psychedelic rock track, before kicking into the mix (yes, that's right, they certainly know how to make an intro!). For all the old skool breaks fans, some tracks are instantly recognizable during the mix -
Harry and the Champs - Mohawk
Rufus Thomas - Itch & Scratch
Afrique - House Of The Rising Funk
you'd probably know more than if you were one of those diehard elite breaks fan! A lot of the titles used are actually displayed inside the CD cover :)
The second track, "Dos", has a bit more of a Cut Chemist feel to it especially once the song which was sampled to make Jurassic 5's Jayou hits your ears, and it sounds great! Then once you think Cut's overrun the set, in comes DJ Shadow's Number Song - I've always got a bit of a soft spot for that track with it's hard guitar and cheeky Sesame Street sounding number samples, yet I still feel it's not as great as it could be. The original version of Organ Donor and the track it samples is the icing on the cake for the second track.
Oh that 7-eleven 7"? It's called Dance The Slurp and you can see Cut Chemist and DJ Shadow holding it up on the CD cover. A pretty funky track with some guy telling everyone to "slurp with the beat" while they "rock the slurpee break". And rock they do! A cheeky sample of someone slurping on a slurpee on top of a drum break is complemented by deft scratching courtesy of Cut Chemist and Shadow... pure class no arse!
All in all, this CD represents live turntablism, with each track being recorded live and there was no stopping during recording, according to some reseach done on our ever so porn friendly internet. I still need to find a site which contains the complete tracklisting for this CD.
If you can get your hands on one in a store, make sure you get it. If not original, any bootlegs will still do you ears some justice. Hopefully I can get my hands on a copy of the ever-so-rare Product Placement CD which contains about 144 tracks all mashed up into a 50 minute mix!
Tracklist0 Unknown Artist Thunder Kick Radio Spot
1 Jules Shattner Group, The 2001: A Soul Odyssey
2 Fried Chicken Funky DJ
3 Mohawks, The The Champ
4 Reuben Bell Superjock
5 Albert King Cold Feet
6 Ultimate Force I'm Not Playing
7 Eddie Bo & Inez Cheatham Lover And A Friend
8 Mack Rice* Three People In Love
9 Nu People, The I'd Be Nowhere Today
10 Nu-Sound Express, Ltd. Ain't It Good Enough
11 Mystic Moods, The* Cosmic Sea
12 American Gypsy Inside Out
13 Odetta Hit Or Miss
14 Mar-Keys, The Grab This Thing (Part 2)
15 Rusty Bryant Fire-Eater
16 Simtec & Wylie Bootleggin' (Part 2)
17 Wilbur Bascomb & The Zodiac Just A Groove In "G"
18 Eddie Bo And The Soul Finders We're Doin' It (Thang) (Part 2)
19 Rufus Thomas Sophisticated Sissy
20 Showmen Inc, The The Tramp (From Funky Broadway) (Part 1)
21 Original Soul Senders Soul Brothers Testify (Part 2)
22 Rufus Thomas Itch & Scratch (Part I & II)
23 Alvin Cash & The Registers Keep On Dancing (Instrumental)
24 Lou Courtney Hey Joyce
25 Unknown Artist Bummer Radio Spot
26 Singing Principal, The Woman's Lib
27 Salt (3) Hung Up
28 Soul Lifters, The Hot, Funky & Sweaty
29 Frankie Seay & The Soul Riders Soul Food
30 Interpretations Jason Pew Mosso (Part 1)
31 Thunder & Lightning Bumpin' Bus Stop
32 Sugar Billy Gardener* I Got Some
33 Pleasure Web Music Man (Part I & II)
34 Gary Byrd Soul Travellin' (The G.B.E.) (Part I)
35 Unknown Artist "W" Radio Spot
36 Marlena Shaw California Soul
37 Vibrettes, The Humpty Dump (Part 1)
38 Eddie Bo From This Day On
39 7-Eleven Dance The Slurp
40 Kraftwerk Numbers
41 Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five Flash It To The Beat
42 Pearly Queen Quit Jivin'
43 Tony Alvon & The Belairs Sexy Coffee Pot
44 Chuck Mangione Hill Where The Lord Hides
45 Funka Fize No Words
46 Schoolly D Gucci Time
47 Jurassic 5 Unified Rebelution
48 Third Guitar Baby Don't Cry
49 Don Pierce This Funky Thing
50 Funka Fize Because You're Funky
51 Troubleneck Brothers, The Back To The Hip Hop
52 Stu Gardner Devil In A Man
53 Samson & Delilah There's A DJ In Your Town
54 Giorgio* Tears
55 Bill & Tim PM Or Later