The web is going buck wylde for Erykah Badu’s recently leaked track “Jump Up in the Air Stay There”, featuring Lil Wayne and Bilal. The Independent online says this…

The song is a web-only bonus to the singer’s boldly titled new album, ‘New Amerykah Part II: Return of the Ankh’. If Badu can afford to throw out a song as strong as this as a mere bonus, the signs are good for the rest of the record. The singer has also made a video for the song which is playing at erykahbadu.com. It’s one to mess with your head. Billed as “a story by Erykah Badu”, it begins with archive footage – including snippets of Hitler, Jackie O, a giraffe, Bill O’Reilly and Barack Obama – followed by hand puppets. It then takes a turn for the psychedelic as the screen goes purple and a kaleidoscope emerges, using images of Badu’s head and hands pulsing in and out of each other. Shortly thereafter, four Lil Wayne heads appear in another kaleidoscope. It’s all quite dizzying, but a fine complement to a wonderfully strange song.

Check it here.

So us Mamas are back in our old stomping ground The Bulls Head in Moseley tomorrow night for Freestyle. Sam Redmore is the main man behind Freestyle which has a regular slot every Friday hosting many top local heroes and folks big in the DJ game such as Adam Regan and Bootsy plus many many more .

A musical feast of funk, soul, hip hop, house, disco, rock, latin and reggae, as well as everything in between.

We are looking forward to our slot on Friday and will be providing our discerning listeners with a whole manner of Afrocentric rhythms and soulful waxy bits. With only a nibble on the door at £3 after 10pm and a whole bunch of drinks promos we think it is well worth a frequent.

Friday 19th February 2010

Sister 45 & Bobbalin Hot (Mama Feel Good!)
Sam Redmore (Leftfoot)

Bull’s Head, Moseley
9-2am, free entry before 10pm, £3 thereafter

All the details can be found here. We look forward to seeing you then!

Okay, so the narrator’s voice is a bit monotone, but the info is nourishment, a bit like cod liver oil; tastes a bit whack but your joints love ya for it!

Here’s the tune:

I used to favor sporting an over sized can in the early days of my DJ career. I believe they were Sony MDR-piecesofcrap V7ooDJ. So called ‘Professional DJ headphones’ with a swivel mechanism earcup. This ‘swivel mechanism earcup’ meant that the bit that enabled your can to stay closed around your ’shell like’ would snap off and one would have to fashion a replacement using cable ties to keep them strapped on to your face. I am pleased to say that I am ‘over’ my penchant for over sized cans and cheap crap and now am on the look out for something far more stylish and audibly effective. So whilst on the hunt I came across this bunch of beauties… Some might be best plugged into your Sony Walkman whist the others more suitable for the DJ fraternity, to be used in a more industrial way.

These headphones (pictured above ) are called the TMA-1 Headphone, an iconic, striped to basics, headphone designed as a DJ tool and developed in collaboration with leading DJs, produced by Aiaiai. They are rumoured to be launched in early 2010 – so any time now, as soon as batman gives them back. Kibishi has the story here.

If your bag is to experiment with colour then Aiaiai Track headphones come in a lovely range of muted tones like peaches and cream with good reviews on sound quality. Peep here for more info. UK stockist here.

AIAIAI and Kilo Design have again created a headphone which gives an overall great experience for eyes and ears.

Or for the bolder amongst us or those young folks who like to coordinate their cap to their laces, to the tongues on their sneakers, to their T shirt, to the turn-up of their jeans… peep these from Urbanears – available in a plethora of colours peep here for the wow. And here for the buy.

The Urbanears Plattan headphones are all about style, which unfortunately doesn’t leave much room for great sound in this case. Beware of mushy bass, nasally mids, and an absence of clarity.

And finally these were released at the end of 09 and are already pretty slippery to get hold of…

adidas Originals expands its diverse product portfolio by launching premium DJ headphones in collaboration with Sennheiser. Renowned as THE staple equipment for recording and DJ-ing, Sennheiser’s HD 25-1-II has been at the forefront of monitoring headphones for more than 20 years.

The adidas Originals touch is evident in the iconic 3-Stripes and Trefoil logo as well as the ever recognizable blue adidas color scheme, while the Sennheiser build quality ensures perfect sound fidelity, from crystal clear highs through to crisp basses.

The adidas Originals HD 25-1-II headphones by Sennheiser will be available in select adidas Originals Stores across Western Europe from the beginning of December 2009 and online at shop.adidas.com from December 1st.

Quoted from highsnobiety.

Marlena Shaw started performing at the age of 10 but was discovered by Chess Records in 1966. She released her first two albums on their subsidiary Cadet Records. She moved to Blue Note Records in 1972, and was that label’s first female artist. She also recorded one of the Disco Era’s biggest hits – a remake of “Touch Me in the Morning” on Columbia Records. Marlena Shaw’s version of “California Soul” is arguably the best version of the record which was written by Nick Ashford and Valerie Simpson and made famous as the soundtrack to the advert for processed reconstituted, reshaped chicken served in a bucket.

Other  artists who have versions of “California Soul” are The Messengers, Marvin and Tammi, Brenda the Tabulations, The Gimmicks, Gerald Wilson, Fifth Dimension, Nick Ashford and The Undisputed Truth to name but a few.

Friday 19^th March

Leftfoot Presents

Marlena Shaw (Live)

DJ’s Sister 45 & Griffy

Hare & Hounds, 106 High St, Kings Heath Birmingham B14 7JZ

Another legendary artist stops off at the Hare & Hounds for an unforgettable evening of real soul, funk & jazz music.  Marlena Shaw has recorded music for labels like Blue Note, Cadet, Verve, Columbia & Concord Jazz.   With classic tracks such as “California Soul” & “Woman Of The Ghetto” being sampled by DJ Shadow, St Germain and Gang Starr, her influence on modern music is undeniable. DJ support comes from two of Birmingham’s most soulful ladies; Sister 45 & Griffy.

NB: Due to the small capacity of the room, there will be two shows (details below).

Please be aware which show you are buying tickets for (early bird tickets only available for Show 1) Both shows will have the same playlist and length.

Show 1: Doors open @ 8pm (Live show starts @ 8.30pm)

Show 2: Doors open @ 10.30pm (Live show starts @ 11pm)

£15 Advance / M.O.T.D

(Very limited £12 early bird tickets available for Show 1)

Advance tickets available from www.theticketsellers.co.uk /

0844 870 0000

Info: 0121 444 2081 / info@hareandhoundskingsheath.co.uk

www.hareandhoundskingsheath.co.uk

Some gorgeous mixes of a Latin Salsa variety from everybody’s favourite BBoy Timber – mui mui bien! Listen to my favourite mix here.

Sofrito is all about playing the best tropical and Afro sounds, the east London based international collective of producers/DJs and musicians have been running for over 3 years. I’ve been fortunate enough to go along to some wicked nights in the Dalston/Hackney area – their Halloween event was staged in a dusty warehouse with nuff skeleton DJs and ghoulish punters. They also run a record label, releasing some of the rarest Afro and Latin records.

Letting them speak for themselves:

“Sofrito events have featured guests including Manu Dibango, the Poets of Rhythm, the Souljazz Orchestra, Quantic, Nickodemus and Nappy G (Turntables on the Hudson), Tropical Treats Soundsystem, Natural Self, Combinacion Atlantica, Nick the Record, Prince Fatty Soundsystem, Nostalgia 77, Miles Cleret (Soudnway Records) and many more….Sofrito has brought together musicians and artists from Ghana, Nigeria, Cuba, Venezuela and Colombia to celebrate the heaviest sounds from across the Tropical Spectrum.”

I’d throughly recommend going to one of their nights, the vibe is always welcoming with lots of music lovers dancing to the wee hours! Badness mi tell ya! You can also check out their webspace here and get your paws on some lush vinyl too!

If you have the same problem as this lady then you might want to spend January’s pay check on one of these…

This cool Jazzbag comes in water-repellent black nylon with silver Jazzman logo on the front. The shoulder strap can be adjusted to suit your size, and there’s a also a pocket in the front to keep your 45s middles etc. The top, bottom and sides are all padded to keep ‘em safe! We managed to get 50 singles in the double-zipped bag for the pic, but you could probably easily fit another 10 or so more in if you wanted.

£16.99 from Jazzman peep here for more details.

This is an old poster that I remember putting up on the side of a dumpster with wall paper paste in the cold winter of 2006. Those were the days! Found at flikr from Graffpix.

I had a lovely email from Elaine Constantine the Director of a new film currently in production called ‘Northern Soul’. Please don’t get this one confused with the very poor film ‘Soul Boy’ which I have previously given a thumbs down to on here. Elaine has been working with Northern Soul veterans Butch and Ady Croasdell along with recruiting promising young dancers from the North West, the Midlands and the South of England to represent the true essence, energy and passion of the scene, which was a hugely influential and exciting time for youth culture and Soul music in Britain.

I truly hope that Elaine gets all the support she needs from the UK Film Council, we can’t wait for this film – not to mention the sound track! For more information check here. KTF!