Track Listing

1. Al Downing - I'll Be Holding on
2. Eddie Kendricks - Keep On Truckin
3. Grace Jones - La Vie En Rose
4. Isaac Hayes - Moonlight Loving
5. B.T. Express - Peace Pipe
6. Don Downing - Dream World
7. Camouflage - You’ve Got the Power
8. Patti Jo - Make Me Believe in You
9. South Shore Commission - Free Man
10. Clara Lewis - Needing You
11. Detroit Emeralds - Feel the Need in Me
12. Orlando Riva Sound - Moonboots
13. The Lovers - Lip Service
14. MFSB - Love Is The Message
15. Andrea True Connection - More More More
16. Udell - Won’t You

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #14890 in Music
• Released on: 2006-04-03
• Number of discs: 2

Customer Reviews

Brilliant
This compilation is essential to any dance music/funk/soul collection. Many of the remixes are previously unreleased, and all the tracks have been superbly remastered. If you've found this by accident, count yourself lucky: it's a great document of quality music. Tom Moulton really deserves the fully archived box set treatment; perhaps this set is a prelude to such a wondrous possibility?

class from start to finish
If you are thinking of buying this, you probably know what you are looking for. Just to confirm what you are hoping, this is excellent from start to finish.

The tracks are a good selection and it is good to hae the rare promo mixes, etc..

The only complaint: couldn't this have been a 4 disc set?! Roll on volume 2.

Also I was very happy to hear the very high qualty of the sound, especially as we are going back as far as 1973...

Quality compilation of a true musical innovator.
Tom Moulton has worked in the "Music business" for over forty years. As a producer he is universally acknowledged a being a major authority on the development of dance music, resulting in the 12" version, the remix and the breakdown that has become a staple of dance tracks .This double CD is an encapsulation of some of his perceived classic work, a colossal task without doubt as Moulton has over 4000 songs to his credit. Many of the versions included are flagged as "new" or "unreleased mixes" so how this qualifies them as classic is open to some rigorous debate .Still the quality on display is in no doubt, unless you are one of those idiots who think only rock music is eligible as "proper music" in which case its unlikely you will be reading this anyway.
What Moulton did was take records that he loved and working from the masters, which were usually three minute cuts for 45,s, drew out the percussive breaks, instrumental interludes and single intoxicating lines of melody to effectively create the blueprint for modern dance music. D.J, s delighted at the longer mixes which allowed more time between tracks picked up on Moutons work like wasps sense a picnic and soon the man was a major name on the disco scene. The fact disco crowds lapped them up helped too.
The excellent Soul Jazz Label have done their usual terrific job in compiling the tracks, though it's its hard to escape the conclusion that real aficionados of Moulton will already own the tracks here and most likely much more. But for someone like me who is exploring the origins of dance music this is a god send. As primer releases go, they don't come much better than this. Tracks like The Detroit Emeralds "Feel The Need In Me" and Andrea True Connections "More More More" will likely be familiar to even the most flirty dilettante of dance music but much of the other material will just as likely be completely fresh and what a delicious discovery most of them are. Particular favourites for me are Patti Jo "Make Me Believe In You" which has a break beat like a funky whale playing a tidal wave and is superbly sung. "South Shore Commission "Free Man" starts like a Gerry Anderson theme but is strident tempting paean to the life of a single man. Isaac Hayes is always more than welcome , and though the track here-"Moonlight Loving" - doesn't represent him at his rumble deep lugubrious best, it's still an entertaining listen. The Lover with "Lip Service" from 1982 shows how Moulton adapted to more contemporary sounds and styles. It's a little too slick and processed for my taste, but has a superb pop chorus. Disc two also has an under whelming instrumental -Orlando River Sound with "Moonboots" and a sterile Grace Jones number "La Vie En Rose", so the eminence is lot a little here. Still MFSB and "Love Is The Message " is over eleven minutes long, with a sax solo and some dodgy utopian implication and is still tremendous.
Full of sashaying strings, funky peals of wha wha, and hit hats that sizzle like tears dripping on hot fat this is a glorious testament to a genres golden age and more pertinently one mans love for music. And to think the bloke didn't even really like clubbing. With some of these on and the startling way dance music has subsequently evolved, mainly thanks to him, he doesn't know what he's missing.