Customer Reviews

Fabriclive.36

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I was only 1 year old when Larry Levan died, so I obviously have never been to the Paradise Garage, but from what I've heard, the sound would probably be something like this. Mixed by 2 members of DFA Records stalwarts LCD Soundsystem (lead singer James Murphy and faithful drummer Pat Mahoney), FABRICLIVE.36 is a fabulous mix of disco (a first for Fabric) that has me dancing all over the house. As evidenced by the quiet vinyl pops and crackles (what a lovely sound!) and the occasional pitch jog, this was mixed live in one take using 2 turntables, 4 hands, and a mixer. This mix has something to please, whether it be the psych-jazz of Peter Gordon, the uplifting soul of Donald Byrd, Chic's disco groove, Daniel Wang's hip house, Still Going's driving funk, Jimi Tenor's wacked-out Finnish techno-soul (easily the best track on the mix), Junior Bryon and JT's early electro, or Larry Levan's own production 'Life Is Something Special'.

'I Need You Tonight' was the only song that didn't 'jive' with me, although it fits well into the mix; and besides...nothing is perfect (although this comes very close!) Overall, however, for those fans of disco and proto-house, ex-Paradise Garage members, or those who just need a little soul (and who doesn't), this CD aims to please. Excellent work from James and Pat!

(P.S. For those fans of this kind of music, check out the 'Beats In Space' radio show/podcast on WNYU by DFA DJ Tim Sweeney. Guest DJ's every week, and plenty of disco, house, techno, electro, and the like.)

This is mostly disco, but far from the Donna Summer/Bee Gees/Saturday Night Fever, top 40 list songs of yore. It's primarily a mix full of 70's to early 80's disco and funk, with a few modern disco house tracks weaved in as well. A real eye opener to what diverse and danceable stuff may have been lost between all the hyped hits of the day. A few tracks are only so-so, but none bad enough to have to skip any tracks on here. A refreshing and fun disco entry in either the Fabric or Fabriclive series, as I believe it's the first. It's also the first since John Peel's Fabriclive.07 to feature nearly all retro tracks, as Fabric mixes tend to always feature current trends. Let's hope it's not the last.

If you're into the house/techno sound that typifies many of the Fabric releases and you're looking for an introduction to disco/garage, this is a decent introduction. Otherwise, I'd stay away from this one. For me, it's the weakest of the 15 or so Fabric/FabricLive releases I've heard.

It's obvious that Murphy and Mahoney have a true love for classic dance music, but their approach to this mix doesn't make sense for the style of music. Part of the fun with old disco/r&b (and like the commenter above, I'm not talking about Village People crap) is that the music is entirely organic. No samples, no drum machines, no computers, just people playing traditional instruments. As such, there's a lot of warmth and humanity in those old records. Unfortunately, that's lost on this mix. Rather than letting songs unfold, they grab a good bassline here and a good vocal there, and then sample and repeat it throughout the course of a song. Normally, I've got no problem with that approach, but it doesn't work here.

Norman Jay or Nicky Siano have put out mixes that build on the warmth that is inherent in these old disco/r&b/house records. As for newer records, the Lazy Dog or Body & Soul releases combine a strong house mindset with the organic humanity of the old '70s/'80s tracks. And of course, the Larry Levan compilations that occasionally come out are about as good as it gets for this kind of music.

Don't get me wrong, like every right-thinking person out there I love LCD Soundsystem, but listening to this makes me think that James Murphy is the Andrew Ridgley and the Golems of Eno, Can and Mark E Smith make up the George Michael. In my opinion, a mix album in 2007 consisting of little but disco offcuts is nothing short of lazy. Some of this rocks, but it takes an awful long time to cook up and the track selection is just bizzare. Donald Byrd in the 70s was an embarrassment to music and he should be castigated not celebrated - puting him on here is a bit like giving John Wayne Gacy his own children's TV show. Avoid unless you haven't heard of this 'disco' thingy and want to give it a try.