Arthur Russell - The Sleeping Bag Sessions

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5...according to our Business Lady on Thu 12 Mar, 2009.

Now this is what i call a record!! Block party 1984 style!! Arthur Russell is one of the most notable and respected cut and paste recording talents of the 80's and 'The Sleeping Bag Sessions' is a document of the work he produced for Sleeping bag records from 1981-85, a label he helped establish with Will Socolov. The record is full of early examples of recording artists being given the reel-to-reel cut-and-paste treatment. There's an infinite amount of music that this 10 track double L. P could be compared too due to the style being so influential on many artist of the time. The recording technique used is a development of the experimental tracks pioneered by the the likes of Ron Hardy and DJ Frankie Knuckles. The first track '5 minutes' by 'Bonzo Goes To Washington' kicks the album of with an afro-beat feel and reminds me of the Brian Eno/David Byrne album 'My life in bush of ghosts', even featuring an un-nerving sample of a Ronald Reagan presidential address of the imminent threat of cold war. Spooky stuff. I reckon David Byrne pretty much ripped this style when attempted to funkify the B-52's on 'Mesopotamia' and it's a style i'm still really fond of today. The rest of the 'The sleeping bag sessions' features all sorts rare, unheard cuts and experiments in tape manipulation and is an excellent historical document of early disco, funk and soul. It's all really amazing stuff if you are a fan of Ron Hardy, Chic, Talking Heads and Talking heads among many more. This will also be of interest those who enjoy a lot of early house music and are interested in some of the original inspirations. I could go on and on but i won't. This is the business! Check it out.

Whether it’s hip hop, it’s face pointed reverentially to the old school, or house stealing disco riffs by the truck load, people are increasingly intrigued by back-in-the-day. And common to both the aforementioned scenes and much more is one person, Arthur Russell, a man some regard as the best songwriter of the 20th century. In 1981 Arthur set up Sleeping Bag Records with Will Socolov, the first release being the Dinosaur L album ‘24-24 Music’ as Dinosaur L. Arthur continued to be involved in production and mixing duties for the label, but parted company with Socolov in 1985, leaving behind a great legacy many songs now regarded as classics. ‘The Sleeping Bag Sessions’ contains 10 of them…

Bonzo Goes To Washington — ‘5 Minutes’ (B-B-B Bombing Mix), Felix — ‘Tiger Stripes’ (Extended Version), Felix — ‘You Cant Hold Me Down’ (Extended Version), Clandestine ft Ned Sublette - ‘Radio Rhythm (S-I-G-N-A-L S-M-A-R-T)’ (Extra Cheese Mix), Sounds Of JHS 126 Brooklyn — ‘Chill Pill’ (Underwater Mix), Indian Ocean — ‘School Bell/Tree House’ (Original 12” Version), Indian Ocean — ‘Treehouse’ (Extended Bootleg Edit), Dinosaur L — ‘Go Bang!’ (Walter Gibbons Mix), Bonzo Goes To Washington — ‘5 Minutes’ (R-R-R Radio Mix), Clandestine ft Ned Sublette — ‘Radio Rhythm (S-I-G-N-A-L S-M-A-R-T)’ (Dub Mix) (Killer Whale).

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