The Amen Break is the much-sampled drum loop that spawned a thousand tunes and kick-started drum & bass. Here’s the song that started it.

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Dyke & The Blazers are best known for the original – and best – version of Funky Broadway, which went on to be a hit for Wilson Pickett. This tune from 1969 is even funkier. (more…)

Some of the best pop songs do everything they need to do in less than three minutes. Like this funky little treat.
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This is another long jam for a summer’s day, fusing an R&B groove with the flightier embellishments of jazz. (more…)

The Meters defined the sound of New Orleans funk on this instrumental back in 1969. It’s still winning new friends in movies today. (more…)

As the Sixties drew to a close music began to evolve. Out went cheery pop songs with clapalong beats and in came psychedelic weirdness. Perhaps it was something in the water – probably LSD.
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Elvis Presley meets Massive Attack in an inspired mash-up that spans 25 years and 4,000 miles to merge Memphis and Bristol. (more…)

Marlena Shaw’s spellbinding live version of Woman Of The Ghetto from 1974 transforms a tribute to African-American women into a civil rights anthem.

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I‘ve never been a big Led Zeppelin fan – nor even a medium-sized one – but I know their work, and I have a soft spot for their softer spots. Such as this folky little number from their second album. (more…)

I’ve always regarded jazz-funk as the devil’s music, something for which I primrily blame George Benson’s scat singing along to his guitar. And Level 42, obviously. (more…)