The Magnificent Seven
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The Magnificent Dance
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Released in 1981

This edition of 12″ Gems features one of the most addictive bass lines to ever grace the dancefloor. The Clash isn’t the first band to come to mind when you’re up in the club, but “The Magnificent Dance” appeals to pretty much anyone who gets up to get down. (For the record, “Rock The Casbah” works brilliantly too.)

The Clash were consistently pushing the boundaries of music. Though mostly defined as a “punk” bank, they also incorporated reggae, political fury, and — as demonstrated on this 12″ — rap into their sound. “The Magnificent Seven” was recorded in 1980, and may have been the first rap record made by whitey (with the possible exception of Blondie’s “Rapture,” which came out at roughly the same time).

Though Mick Jones was the true rap fanatic in The Clash, it was Joe Strummer who busted out the rhymes used in “The Magnificent Seven.” Legend has it that Joe freestyled all the lyrics after checking out local rap outfits across New York City. Joe was a notorious lefty, and his worldview nudged rap towards protest music: “What do we have for entertainment? Cops kickin gypsies on the pavement.”

But what’s really special about this 12″ is the B-side instrumental remix, “The Magnificent Dance.” Equally beloved by adventurous rockers, hip hop heads, and house music junkies, it continues to be sampled, looped, and worn out by DJ’s around the world.

The Clash were savvy enough to recognize the dancefloor potential of their recording and targeted this remix to DJs, successfully:

WBLS was blasting all over [New York] city and we just hooked onto some of that vibe and made our own version of it. We made an instrumental mix of “The Magnificent Seven” and WBLS played it to death. You couldn’t go anywhere in New York that summer without hearing that. And that was us! Weirdo punk-rock white guys!

— Mick Jones, from the documentary Westway to the World

Oh, and about that bass line: it wasn’t played by a member of The Clash. That honor goes to the heretofore unknown (at least to me) Norman Watt-Roy. Watt-Roy came up with the classic rhythm spontaneously while dropping in on The Clash during the Sandanista! sessions at New York City’s Electric Lady studios. If you want to know how funky Norman truly is, take a gander at his teeth.

I Want You Back (Z-Trip Remix)
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Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough (Original Demo)
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I Can’t Help It (Tangoterje Remix)
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Rock With You (House Remix)
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They Don’t Care About Us (DJ Lt. Dan Remix)
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Don’t get me wrong. I had only a grain-of-sand sized belief that Michael Jackson would ever be relevant to my life again, at least from a musical perspective. Certainly, the tabloid drama that was his life continues to enthrall, but it never overshadowed the breathtaking catalog of recordings that he drove into creation.

It’s only been a week since he died, but I already feel everything has been said about the impact Jackson had on the culture. But when I hear “ABC” or “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’” or “Off The Wall” or dozens of other classics, I can’t help but think back to my DJ days and the countless times Jackson saved my ass by energizing the dancefloor. The soul sickness that caused his life to devolve into an overdose of painkillers will soon be a distant memory.

The tracks I selected are not meant to be Michael Jackson’s greatest hits. But given that most people already have the entirety of Off The Wall and Thriller on their iPods, I thought I would share some outtakes and remixes of his work.

First up is a remix of “I Want You Back” that was on the Motown Remixed comp from a few years back. Normally, I’m not much of a Z-Trip fan, but he deftly tweaks the construction of this track, adding a new drumbeat but leaving the underlying groove intact. This version really highlights the interplay between 10-year old Jackson’s passionate vocals and his brothers’ smooth background harmonies.

A demo of “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough” that appeared on an Off The Wall reissue provides a glimpse into Jackson’s recording process. Musically, the song lacks the lavish disco strings and brass overdubs, and Jackson was clearly still figuring out the lyrics. But you can hear this version and know it’s a hit song.

“I Can’t Help It” was written for Jackson by Stevie Wonder. This mellow remix by Tangoterje was pointed out to me by my Berlin-based friend, Pepe (thanks amigo, see you in a couple of weeks). Unlike Z-Trip (who had access to the original master recording), Tangoterje is working off the completed recording, yet he figures out a way to turn this lush mid-tempo ballad into a soulful, percussive booty-shaker.

The white-label remix of “Rock With You” is one of those dirty house records that I happened upon in my crate-digging days. Every once in awhile, I’d have a gig where I worked with a house DJ. This was always a bit stressful for me since I had a pretty limited selection of house records. This track satisfied the jaw-grinding set while staying true to my funk/R&B/hip hop roots.

The final track is also the strangest, and the only one I enjoy more than its original. “They Don’t Care About Us” is not one of Michael’s best songs, and the ill-worded “Sue me, Jew me… Kick me, Kike me” lyric is amongst Jackson’s stupidest moves. But this chopped and screwed mashup hits on so many levels. This remix style is often associated with downers (specifically, codeine-laden cough syrup), which is resonant given the cause of Michael Jackson’s death. And though his vocal style became increasingly staccato as his career progressed, slowing it down and marrying it with that addictive Dead Prez “Hip Hop” beat is just plain tough. Finally, laying on a quote from attorney Mark Gregaros in response to Jackson’s child molestation charges adds an ominous justification for the song’s bitter lyrics.

Hope you’re finally at peace, MJ.

Wishing On A Star
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Do Your Dance
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Album: In Full Bloom (1977)

About six months ago, the music world lost Norman Whitfield. Whitfield was one of the driving forces behind the Motown label, writing and producing a jaw-dropping litany of hits including “I Heard It Through The Grapevine,” “Papa Was A Rolling Stone,” “Smiling Faces Sometimes,” and “War (What Is It Good For).” After leaving Motown in the early 70s, Whitfield stole some of the label’s underused assets and started his own eponymous shingle.

Whitfield Records biggest success was the 1976 soundtrack album for Car Wash, with the title track, “I Can’t Get Next To You,” and “I’m Going Down” representing on the singles charts. Their follow-up record, In Full Bloom didn’t include a hit as infectious as “Car Wash,” but still produced a few memorable tracks.

Your high school girlfriend (or you) loved “Wishing On A Star”; if you’re a modern, liberated dude, you may have a soft spot for it too.

While Whitfield is primary thought of as a songwriter, “Do Your Dance” showcases his formidable production skills. It starts out as a high-energy disco/funk track, but as the track morphs in its final minutes, it feels like the birth of house music.

Whitfield fell onto tough financial times towards the end of his life, and was indicted for tax evasion in 2005. Why do so many musicians from the 50s and 60s have trouble finding an honest accountant?

Gwen McCrae
All This Love That I’m Giving
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Album: Melody Of Life (1979)

Cassius
Feeling For You
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Album: 1999 (1999)

This time out on Musical Cousins, two tracks that will make you shake your booty. Spaced 20 years apart, Gwen McCrae’s disco-funk classic, “All This Love I’m Giving,” inspired the arch French duo Cassius to produce “Feeling For You,” a bouncy electro-house track from their underappreciated 1999 album. Two very different approaches to dance music, but don’t make me choose.

Gwen McCrae is one of those 70s soul divas who never quite penetrated the mainstream in the same manner as her contemporaries (e.g. Donna Summer, Diana Ross). Emerging from the shadow of her (allegedly) abusive ex-husband, George McCrae (responsible for the mid-70s hit “Rock Your Baby”), Gwen released a few mildly successful records before getting rediscovered in the UK and enterprising hip hop producers. She’s still at it, but has shifted her talents to gospel music.

Cassius started their career remixing tracks from French house progenitors Daft Punk and Air. 1999 was their debut album, and burned up the dance charts all over the planet. For the single “Feeling For You,” Cassius took a phrase from “All This Love That I’m Giving,” sped it up and looped it, and dropped layers of synthesizers and beats behind it. Sounds simple, but there’s a mathematical precision to how Cassius constructs their tracks, maximizing their danceability quotient.