Originally released in 1980 on short-lived Oregon label ‘Match Box Recordings’, ‘Burnin’’ is the only album recorded by Portland jazz/funk band Carl Smith And The Natural Gas Company.

At the time of the release of this album, Carl Smith’s band had already been performing for almost two decades, starting out as the ‘Carl Smith Orchestra’ in 1959, fusing 40s and 50s big band styles with rock’n’roll, before gradually morphing into the more compact jazz / funk influenced outfit you can hear on Burnin’.

“Carl had this bright red delivery van he bought from the natural gas company. He got a hold of that thing and that’s how we went on the road. When we’d roll up to the gig they’d see this big van full of musicians and on the outside it said “Natural Gas Co.” Then out comes Carl Smith and it’s all over.” – Lee Bradford (trumpet, flugelhorn)

The orchestra that Carl Smith founded was a Portland institution for about 50 years all-told, becoming an essential training ground for young musicians on the come-up; even the later Grammy-award winning trumpeter Chris Botti passed through at the age of 17 and Jefferson Airplane’s Signe Anderson was a long-time collaborator. It was “hard to find many jazz players around here who haven’t played with the band” said Smith in a 1980 interview with The Oregonian. They performed at festivals, universities, nightclubs, dance studios and even military bases from Portland to Seattle and everywhere in between, opening for Dave Brubeck, Buddy Miles and Johnny Ray among many others.

The story of this album’s recording has gone down in infamy among the remaining band members and Carl Smith’s daughter Carlee (who performed lead vocals on ‘Love Won’t Let Me Go’), all of whom recall a fraught, rushed recording process, led by a producer who had no musical experience and was nothing more than a puppet for the somewhat shady label owners. This led to the album being cut too fast and accidentally pitched up a key, so if you want to hear it as the band intended, pull the pitch control down a little on your turntable.

“Turns out the whole thing was backed by a bunch of farmers from central Oregon who were looking to take a loss… So here we were playing out and selling records. As soon as we were about to hit one thousand copies sold, their plan was to stop promotion so it would die…but we didn’t know that.” – Peter Piazza (trombone, electric violin, euphonium)

Upon its release, the album received airplay on several radio stations across Oregon and Washington, the band were invited to play live on local TV channel KGW, and copies sold out quickly within the local area. Despite the bitter-sweet circumstances around the record, Burnin’ remains a fantastic document of this well-drilled and talented group of players, showcasing original funk, jazz and soul compositions mostly arranged by Larry Dunlap, who went on to become musical director for the Pointer Sisters and write for Cleo Laine during a long and fruitful career in music.

The original label’s intentional sabotage of Burnin’ has made it a rare and sought-after album for vinyl collectors the World over, so we are delighted to reissue it for the first time ever, complete with its original artwork, accompanied by liner notes providing a detailed oral history of the band, as told by several of its original members. 
credits

Carl Smith And The Natural Gas Company - You Take The Time

Mixed by NARUKI instagram.com/naruki_phylo

Corbin Canvas / Maarten / Isaac Aesili / Q Narongwate / Myd / No Regular Play / Coastal / sacha k. / Noah Slee / Ruede Hagelstein / Bamily / Crazy P / Flight Facilities / YellowStraps / Bearcubs

PHYLO MIX N°128

INSIDE INSIDE (Mi chi ko, Andrik)

RAWD - Amani (Slater VIP Club)

Entre altos e baixos, desconstruir-se para então se (re)construir - isso é EUPHORIA.

Devvian - Daydream

And we've finally reached the end of 2016! Ultimately it has proven to be a rather forgettable year overall, and it appears this is a universally shared sentiment. Yet again, Albert Ayler's theory that music is the healing force of the universe has been put to the test, and luckily, it's proven to be as accurate as ever! 

Breaking from tradition and my usual countdown of the top albums, tracks and EPs, I thought I'd mash them all together in one 90 minute mix, which I think you'll agree, makes for a much better listening experience.

Wishing everyone a Happy 2017!

Spacewalker

Badbadnotgood feat. Charlotte Day Wilson - In Your Eyes | Innovative Leisure
Solange - Cranes in the Sky | Columbia
Jordan Rakei - Midnight Mischief | Soul Has No Tempo
Frank Ocean - Pink + White | Boys Don't Cry
KING - The Right One | KING Creative
Byron the Aquarius - Cosmic $hit | Wild Oats
Anderson .Paak feat. The Game & Sonyae Elise - Room in Here | Steel Wood
Ivan Ave - The Circle | Jakarta
Tall Black Guy feat. Miles Bonny - This One is For the Ladies and Gents | First Word
Isaiah Rashad - Brenda | Top Dawg
Yussef Kamaal - Strings of Light | Brownswood
Skymark - Flying Fantasy | Modern Sun
Mndsgn - Cosmic Perspective | Stones Throw
Omar - I Want it To Be | Freestyle
Mac Miller feat. Anderson .Paak - Dang! | Warner Bros.
Tenderlonious - Song For My Father | 22a
Far Out Monster Disco Orchestra - Step Into My Life (M&M mix) | Far Out
Kaytranada - Track Uno | XL
Igor Jadranin - Boulevardd | Back to the World
Steven Julien - XL | Apron
Chaos in the CBD - Invisible Spectrum | Rhythm Section International

BALANCE - Best of 2016 (Hosted by Spacewalker)

Mixed by NARUKI instagram.com/naruki_phylo

Galcher Lustwerk / Yaeji / Nosaj Thing / GOVI / A$AP Mob / wev / Nick AM / Frits Wentink / Felipe Gordon / Mall Grab / Coastal

PHYLO

PHYLO MIX N°67

MIX BLOCK feat. Smasher

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2020/06/26 MIX BLOCK - Smasher

A selection of new jazz joints I've mostly found on Bandcamp recently - some digital-only, some not. Also something new from J. Rawl's Liquid Crystal Project! Enjoy.

Tracklist: Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Adrian Younge, Dougie Stu, Katalyst, Camarão Orkestra, HUMMUCIDE, Sunny Park, Liquid Crystal Project

October 28 2020

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Pullin from the Stacks - Episode 145

Butcher Brown - Love Rock
Black Nile - Second Serving
Str4ta - Aspects
Dezron Douglas & Brandee Younger - You Make Me Feel Brand New
Levitation Orchestra - Wave Potentially
Nick Walters & The Paradox Ensemble - The Underdog
Bokani Dyer - Ke Nako
Kaidi Tatham & Andrew Ashong - Eye Mo K
Jeff Bradshaw - Gratitude
Thana Alexa - Ona
Donald Byrd - Loving You
Patrice Rushen - Lets Sing A Song Of Love
Lonnie Liston Smith - Rainbows Of Love
George Duke - Reach Out
Caldera - Sky Islands
Bob James - Touchdown
Dave Valentin - Clove and Cinnamon
Judy Roberts - Never Was Love
Angie Bofill - Share Your Love
The Crusaders - Feel It
Roy Ayers - Turn Me Loose
Donald Byrd - Makin' It

FoldedSpace on Jazz FM w/ Tony Minvielle 6/12/2020

Mixed by NARUKI instagram.com/naruki_phylo

Four Tet / GOVI / Bella Boo / Diplo / Rhye / Photay / UNKLE / Liela Moss / Girls of the Internet / Wantigga / Jeigo / Wayward / Hooved / Shelter 12 / Benjamin Amaru / Fukō

PHYLO MIX N°109

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PHYLO is an independent creative label.
We are disseminating the interpretation of new images and moods born from contemporary mixed coulture through sound, visuals and products.

PHYLO MIX N°128

PHYLO

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