Innovator

Derrick May

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 28, 1997)
• Original Release Date: October 14, 1997
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Transmat Records
• ASIN: B000001HYW
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #296,961 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. "rest"

2. Strings Of The Strings Of Life

3. Another Chaos Beyond Chaos

4. Freestyle

5. Feel Surreal Begins

6. Beyond Kaos

7. Another "rest"

8. The Dance

9. A Little Spaced Out

10. Daymares

See all 14 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. To Be Or Not To Be

2. Icon (Montage Mix)

3. Montage

4. A Relic Mix

5. Kaotic Harmony

6. More Phantom

7. Salsa Life

8. Nude Photo

9. The Beginning

10. Another Relic From the Relic

See all 13 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Thanks to legendary singles like "Strings of Life" and "Nude Photo," Derrick May is universally regarded as the definitive techno producer; by hijacking the rhythmic sensibilities of house and adding the intelligence of European electronica and the spirit of Motown, he single-handedly defined and articulated the sound of Detroit. But despite (or perhaps because of) his status as a "legend," nary a bleep had emerged from his studio since 1990 before the release of Innovator, a collection of his past work. This double CD contains the aforementioned "Strings" and "Nude Photo" singles as well as other classics like "It Is What It Is," "Salsa Life," and "The Beginning," all of which have been available only in vinyl form on May's own Transmat label. Until he reemerges from a self-imposed musical hiatus, your course in the spirit of Detroit begins and ends here. --Matthew Corwine

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Utterly Essential!, October 20, 2000

By	Neil Simpson (CA USA) - See all my reviews

This is the techno equivalent of the gettysburg address ... it contains a number of tracks that came out in the late 80s that could be regarded as 'definitive classics' and were massive influences in the dance music genre.

Tracks like 'Strings of Life' and 'Nude Photo' came out in the late 80s and went on to have a massive impact on the early UK rave scene and on dance prodcuers from around the world. Acid House, Hardcore and Techno (and thus Drum&Bass, Trance and Big Beat offshoots) for example got a lot of early influences from May, who is regarded as one of the original pioneers of 'Techno' as it is known today.

Most of these tracks still contain more energy, passion and innovation than the mountains of drivel coming out of the dance scene today. Back when these were made it was not enough to put in a cheezy vocal + snare roll to get in the charts, you had to think a bit. There are some intermittent 'filler' pieces but as a whole this is outweighed by the quality.

If you are at all interested in dance music then you owe it to yourself to at least hear this album. At least when you read an article in a US magazine that says artist x invented techno in 1998 you'll know better.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Fillervator?, February 2, 2000

By	DAC Crowell (Rankin, IL United States) - See all my reviews

It's very true that Derrick May, along with "Belleville Three" cohorts Juan Atkins and Kevin Saunderson, was one of the people who both invented and defined techno. And it's true that his works have been of critical, crucial importance throughout the 80s and early 90s. But this release, while it contains a lot of important material, also contains a lot of filler, and as a result has a real unfocussed feel to it. Plus there are some rather glaring errors. Track titles are transposed in a few cases on disc 2, plus the first track of this disc has its audio totally hammered by being mastered out of phase, causing a really unpleasant sound on one of the more important tracks of the set. And how many mixes of 'Strings' do we really need, honestly? C'mon Derrick...enough of this, and put out a _real_ new release already!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Powerful compilation, August 3, 2001

By A Customer

I really enjoyed this double disc. May delivers a powerful dark sound with all of detroit's signiture noise. It's definitely worth what amazon is asking for it. I only gave it a four because the transitioning could use some work. If you are meaning to really get in touch with the sound of detroit, this disc is for you. But if you are looking for something poppy and trancy and girly, look elsewhere.