I was the security guy! For a year at the “strand  a very special place”  1987/88 👏👏😁👊

Used to listen to his radio show "CLUBFOOT" on WPWT in Philly in the late 80s!!!

This is a selection that would have been typical of a night at The Paradise Garage in 1983 and includes tracks from 1979 onwards. With inspiration from tales and recordings of Larry Levan I have tried to weave narratives of sorts within the mix, with messages of love for fellow man and tales of love for music and of misadventure.

Why the Paradise Garage? Well, the Paradise Garage and DJ Larry Levan along with Chicago's Warehouse with DJ Frankie Knuckles (a childhood friend of Levan's) really were the historical bridge between the soul, disco, dub and reggae of the sixties and seventies, the electro and new wave of the eighties and the house music of the late eighties, which went on to spawn techno and, well, everything 'dance' really (apart from hip-hop... that's another history). In the words of DJ History: 

"The Garage was where, a decade or so after taking its first steps, black, spiritual underground disco reached its peak. It was quite simply the largest and most powerful expression of the original disco spirit. As disco became mainstream and often moronic, it was at the Garage that the underground sound and the scene’s strong sense of community were preserved. Outside, insurance men in brown suits were knocking their knees to Abba and The Bee Gees, dreaming of the coke-and-celebrity-fuelled nonsense of Studio 54. Inside the Garage, the original disco family were continuing and amplifying their tribal rituals. And at the centre was Levan himself, a DJ who enjoyed such a passionate relationship with the people on his dancefloor that they worshipped him more or less as a god."

The club itself was situated in a former carpark on King Street in New York, hence the name. It was very much based on David Mancuso's 'Loft' parties - there was no alcohol for sale, however the club provided food and drinks for free and often put on punch, and it was often laced with LSD. It was very underground. There was no advertising. The club was also not open to the general public. Entry was to members only, and some nights allowed guests. Membership was not easy to attain. Prospective members had to submit to an interview to determine their suitability. Initially the membership policy was 'gay only', however the policy was revised due to popular demand and Friday became the straight night and Saturday was the gay night. Some public holiday events were mixed. The dancers were very diverse in race - black, latino, asian and white. The club provided a refuge from racism and homophobia and a place to enjoy a sense of togetherness and refuge. Quoting DJ History "The manifesto was the music. Love Is The Message.

The Paradise Garage inspired an unparalleled reverence. It dominated gay New York’s dance vista for a full ten years, with only the Saint – which catered for a very different crowd – as a serious rival. For its members the Garage was a sanctuary from an increasingly cruel and voracious city, a role made poignantly necessary as AIDS cut through New York. Dance there and you were treated as an honoured guest, with a level of courtesy and respect that is virtually unheard of in clubs today. ‘You felt special,’ says Danny Tenaglia, one of many DJs inspired by early visits to the Garage. ‘You felt like you were an elite group, with people who were on the same level of understanding about music as you.’ In a drab district in south west Manhattan, it created a private world based on disco’s original ethos of loving equality. In stark contrast to the harsh city lights outside, the Garage offered freedom, compassion and brotherhood.

Dave Piccioni, owner of London’s Black Market records, then living and DJing in New York, was a regular at the Garage in the late eighties. ‘It was New York cut-throat money time,’ he remembers. ‘Everybody was sticking knives in each other’s backs. It was dog eat dog. Aggressive. Dealing, 60,000 people living on the street. It was a dog of a place to live in. And then you’d go to this little oasis, where people were really well-mannered and friendly to each other. You just felt completely comfortable. People of a like mind who shared something, and that was an open mind. America is a very narrow-minded place. The thing they had in common wasn’t just getting high, like it is here – it was much more than that. That was what was so great about it.’

The soundsystem was the best. The lighting was the best. The staff were the best. The patrons were the best. And the DJ was the best.

Larry Levan was sole resident DJ from the club's opening in 1976. His DJ performances, whilst very rarely technically perfect, were incredibly powerful - he wove themes through his sets, telling stories to the dancers. He manipulated their moods with lyrics, lighting and sound. He wasn't afraid to cleanse the dancefloor either - clearing it, so that he could start again and build a new emotional space. His music policy was especially loose - eclectic. You could hear classic disco and soul alongside acts like The Clash, The Police, Prince, Madonna, Pat Benatar etc. Levan experimented with the music, introducing the Caribbean dub aesthetic into disco, which he played alongside everything from reggae to electro, new wave, soul and much more. Anything went. He helped to introduce a post-disco sound that presaged the creation of house music by his Friend Frankie in Chicago. Eventually Levan's set lists embraced house alongside other genres. It was disco's revenge.

Sadly, with owner Michael Brody becoming increasingly unwell with AIDS, the club's lease was not renewed and the club closed on 26 September 1987, almost exactly 26 years ago.

Larry Levan never achieved another residency. He played guest spots around New York and toured Japan and the UK, including a month at the Ministry Of Sound in London where he helped to design the soundsystem (which was based on that at the 'Garage). Sadly, he died of a heart attack caused by caused by endocarditis only four days after returning from Japan with Francois K.

The Paradise Garage and Larry Levan created the blueprint for modern DJ's and modern clubs. The culture and music lives on.

Tracklist:

D-Train - You're The One For Me (Vocal Version)
David Joseph - You Can't Hide (Your Love From Me) (Vocal)
Yello - Bostich (Extended Dance Version)
Exodus - Together Forever (Dub)
Rockers Revenge - Walking On Sunshine '82
My Mine - Hypnotic Tango (Instrumental Version)
Class Action Featuring Chris Wiltshire - Week End (Vocal)
Love Club - Hot Summer Nights
Bohannon - Let's Start The Dance III (Long Version)
Was (Not Was) - Tell Me That I'm Dreaming (Souped-Up Version)
Candido - Jingo
Sharon Redd - Beat The Street (Vocal)
Klein & M.B.O. - Dirty Talk (USA Connection-Instrumental)
Loleatta Holloway - Love Sensation
Skyy - Call Me
Loose Joints - Is It All Over My Face (Female Vocal)
Visual‎– The Music Got Me
The Strikers - Inch By Inch (Special 12" Vocal-Disco Version)
D-Train - Keep On (Vocal)

Roots Before Branches 03 - The Paradise Garage 1983

A Tribute To Salsoul - Inspired By Jellybean Benitez - Mixed By Charlie Price

approx. 92minutes

M01  0:00
Shai - The Place Where You Belong (The Roxy Groove Dub)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oM8Q-GDpCc0

M02  5:35
Waterlillies - Tempted D'DEEP DUB
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRl5Oya85xs

M03  10:20
Dan Hartman - The Love In Your Eyes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dBDG9mn7MM

M04  14:40
Janet Jackson - Any Time, Any Place (D&D House Mix)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdjHmhPoCP4

M05  21:00
The Affair - Are You Ready (Soulshock-Dungeon Mix)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yU7TWXkgJG4

M06  29:20
Ralphi Rosario's Energy Factor - Sex With Him (Sex For The 1st Time Mix)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAASOS1JoIA&feature=youtu.be&autoplay=1

M07  35:00
JOE T VANNELLI feat. Csilla - Voices In Harmony (Frankie Feliciano Version 3)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfV0fAbQOxg

M08  39:50
Ralphi Rosario - A Tracky Hold
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGKzlk3Nsmc&feature=youtu.be&autoplay=1

M09  44:35
MOREL'S GROOVES PT.6
This Is My Party (Bitch Get Out) George Morel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ai-39kc64s&feature=youtu.be&autoplay=1

M10  52:10
The Millionaire Hippies - I've Got The Music, Hear Me (Fire Island Dub)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--R8glN5Dik

M11  58:50
Nicole - Runnin Away (Smoove House Mix)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6z77yRxtmY

M12  1:07:40
Judy Cheeks - Respect (The Ultimate Anthem Mix)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpyGl1dTRtI

M13  1:16:50
Basia - Drunk On Love (Roger's Ultimate Anthem Mix)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBa85BYdiNo

M14  1:27:25
Virtual Soul - Luvin' (Whole Lotta Luv)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iy3NxiPK4_c

FrankieKnuckles HOT97 All Night House Party 24.9.94

DOWNLOAD TODAY!
Final Cratebug take on this French Disco classic, "Disco Circus" by Martin Circus. This edit sat on a shelf incomplete since 2012. Complete now.

CRATEBUG EDITS

Download Here!

Disco Circus Pt.3 (Cratebug 2023 Edit) Martin Circus

Cratebug House music mix from July of 2021.

Dj David Macias' [Cratebug] Podcast

Cratebug (DJDM) July House Mix 2010

A live recording of David's set from early January at Room 26 in Rome.

LIVE : David Morales @ Room 26 (Rome - January 2016)

DJ Robbie Tronco live at the Strand in Philadelphia, circa 1988. Robbie spun at the Strand five days a week, in the late 80s. The Strand was an after-hours club located at 1215 Walnut Street in Philadelphia, PA, U.S.A.

Robbie was a trailblazer!  He influenced a lot of DJs in Philadelphia and the east coast of the United States. DJing since 1975, Robbie still spins live every week in the City of Brotherly Love.

DJ Robbie Tronco @ the Strand. (Side A)

JOING THE HEARTHROB GROUP PAGE: https://www.facebook.com/groups/377100045652405/377543188941424/

Little Louie Vega Live From Hearthrob On HOT 103fm  (1986)

Welcome to the Word Is Love Show and on the show it's a celebration of the Godfather of Dance music itself David Mancuso.

David invented the first "by invitation only" parties in New York City with the very first party "Love Saves The Day" in 1970 that went on to become The Loft. 

The show is the first part of 2 shows that celebrates the 50th anniversary of "Love Saves The Day".

Being thrown down is classic Disco, Funk, Rare Groove, Latin and Soul, plus a selection of Worldwide delights that David used to play.

Expect classic tracks by Earth Wind & Fire, Mr. Fingers, James Brown, Central Line and Eddy Grant. 

The mix was performed 'Shooting from The Hip', a style of cut mixing and blend mixing to give it that extra authenticity.

All tracks are selected and mixed by @thefunkassassin

The Loft awaits!

To receive all future shows and access older ones please also Follow on Soundcloud @thefunkassassin

For all past shows click here ==> soundcloud.com/thefunkassassin/sets/the-word-is-love-soul-funk

Thank you for listening.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/TheFunkAssassin/
Instagram: www.instagram.com/the_funk_assassin/

David Mancuso The Loft The Word Is Love Show 32 Funky Disco R&B Soul Funk House Groove Latin Dance

Flamingo Club Classic's was born in memorial to the good old club-times in the early 80's @ the Flamingo Club Zürich.
Thank's to Roger Giger (the real Flamingo-DJ) for his inspiration.
Tracklist :
1) Peter Brown - Overnight Sensation (RCA Records 1983)
2) Empress - Dyin’ To Be Dancin’ (Prelude Records 1981)
3) Gwen Guthrie - Ain’t Nothin’ But Goin’ On But The Rent (Polydor Records 1986)
4) Gayle Adams - I’m Warning You (Mainline Records 1984)
5) Twilight 22 - Misterious (Vanguard Records 1984)
6) World Premiere - Share The Night (Easy Street Records 1983)
7) T Ski Valley - Catch The Beat (Grand Groove Records 1982)
8) Fredrick „M.C. Count“ Linton - I’m Somebody Else’s Guy (Vinyl Dreams Records 1984)
9) Indeep - The Record Keeps Spinning (Becket Records 1983)
10) Steve Harvey - Tonight (London Recordings 1983)
11) Mel Brooks - It's Good To Be The King (WMOT Records 1982)
12) Jenny Burton - Bad Habits (Atlantic Records 1985)
13) Krystal Davis - So Smooth (Urban Rock Records 1985)
14) Mike Francis - Survivor (Concorde Records 1984)
15) Patrice Rushen - Feels So Real (Elektra Records 1984)
16) „Love Bug“ Starski - You’ve Got Believe (Fever Records 1983)
17) Will Powers - Adventures In Success (Island Records 1983)

Flamingo Club Classic's Volume 3

DAF House Classics (1988 - 1994)

Live recorded Philly DJs from the clubs of Philadelphia from 1985 to 1995.

DJ Robbie Tronco @ the Strand. (Side A)

Philly DJs 1985 to 1995

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Philly DJs 1985 to 1995

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