Dance Beat - 2821 - Gay Lesbian Bi Trans News

As someone who wasn't entirely delighted by the first Verve Remixed disc, the thought of a second installment, Verve Remixed 2 (Verve) was a less than thrilling prospect. The whole concept had me wondering whether acid jazz could be linked to acid reflux disease. I'm pleased to say that because a majority of the tracks are instrumentals which lend themselves to being fiddled with in this fashion, the burning sensation subsided almost immediately. The Funky Lowlives' subtle remix of Dizzy Gillespie's 'Manteca,' set the tone for the respectful treatment of the remaining instrumental tracks such as Matthew Herbert's remix of Ramsey Lewis' 'Do What You Wanna,' Cal Tjader's 'Soul Sauce' remixed by Fila Brazillia, Willie Bobo's 'Fried Neckbones and Some Home Fries' remixed by Dan The Automator and the Metro Area Birthday dub of Hugh Masakela's 'Mama.' Regarding the remixes of the jazz vocal tracks, Felix Da Housecat's Heavenly House mix of Nina Simone's 'Sinnerman' approaches nirvana, the Koop remix of Astrud Gilberto's 'Here Comes That Rainy Day' is like a sun shower, and Gotan Project's disco/tango remix of 'Whatever Lola Wants' by Sarah Vaughan may not be what the divine Sarah 'aimed for', but it hits the mark nevertheless.

If ever there was a defining moment in Deborah Cox's relatively short (her first album was released less than ten years ago) career, it would have to be the Hex Hector remix of 'Nobody's Supposed To Be Here.' With that remix, Hex Hector transformed the soul belter into one of the biggest dance-club divas of her time. Sure, the original ballad version is a drag queen's lip-synch drama dream come true. But the dance remix version is a dance floor anthem of the highest order. Hex Hector dominates the remixes on the continually mixed remix disc, the cleverly titled Deborah Cox Remixed (J), which features his talented touch on some of Cox's biggest dance hits including 'Mr. Lonely,' 'Absolutely Not,' 'It's Over Now,' 'Things Just Ain't The Same,' and the aforementioned 'Nobody's Supposed To Be Here.' Other remixers have also had success with Cox as you can hear on both David Morales and Junior Vasquez's remixes of 'Who Do U Love,' Morales Club Mix of 'It Could've Been You,' the Leading Club Role Mix of 'Play Your Part,' and the Hani Anthem Vocal Mix of 'I Never Knew.' (J)

While you're at it, also check out Beth Orton's remix disc The Other Side of Daybreak (Astralwerks/Heavenly).

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