Artiste: Alan Hawkshaw
Album: Synthesizer And Percussion
Spotlight Track: Mile High Swinger
Label: Themes International Music
Catalog: TIM 1012
OK Brothers and Sisters, this joint is FULL ON SWINGIN!!!! Mile High Swinger is tough on the breaks and heavy on the ARP, my bo bei zhao sound. I can’t belive this was composed and produced in 1974, it just sounds so fresh!!! Pure Sophisticated Groove, dem sick! Alan is not your typical artist, simply cos he’s the undisputed king of library music.
Beat Diggers look out! Synthesizer And Percussion is filled with DOPE loops. There’s plenty of organ licks, and funky breaks. So if you’re looking for inspiration, this is a good LP to check out. It will make your drum n bass 100% more kinky. After all the album IS composed as library music.
A little about the man himself: Alan Hawkshaw is a legendary British composer and performer of music soundtracks for film and tv. You’ve probably heard a lot of his stuff on tv shows (like UK’s Channel 4 News) and won’t even know it’s him. I don’t blame you, cos I also dunno. Also, this fella has bagged a few awards for his work. Respect!
Collectors’ note: Alan fronted the band, The Mohawks in the 60’s. They released a one-off LP of incredibly groovy and funky library music tracks. Eric B & Rakim, EPMD, KRS-One are a few of the artist who sampled this album.
So moral of the story, it’s not always about what you know, it’s about what you can discover that will shock you. Take Mile High Steamer for example, it’s totally under-rated, from one of the greatest unsung heroes of funk, but you can’t fake a groove. Big Up Alan!
Tangkap This!!!
-Kenny
