Special Request (Labello pt 2 - the samplige)

Ooh Macka Brown sampling the Pirates Anthem

4 Meg Soundboy with some nifty usage of "Can't turn me away" by Sylvia Striplin

Then there's Smokey Joe with a famous vocal lick

The "Special Request" vocal licks are sampled from Shut Up and Dance's "Rest In Peace" - but where did they get them from? 

Those reggae vocal licks recur, alongside JVC Force "Strong Island" riffs, on DJ Double G's UKG classic "Special Request" 

Ah (bit nuum nummy this) DJ Double G turns out to be DJ Gunshot as in No U Turn, making the same shift as No U Turn becoming Turn U On, but not sticking with the label

Real name Gordon Gummer, a veteran deejay on Don FM and Flex FM

A title-becomes-artist-name homage 

More Smokey Joe

Posse and crew

Two of my most cherished 'Mystery Tunes' - 'Do the Right Ting' identified a while ago by a knowledgeable reader, and 'Honey Love' I only just spotted myself

Artist name comes from a Queen Latifah album

But who is Princess of the Posse? Answer to come in a minute 

Now Labello Blanco did some fun things

Also the tune I insist on calling "Sexual Feeling Is Mutual" - as 'slow jam' lyrics go that is some clunky writing

And Labello put out some great things - mostly those involving Rogue Unit

Like this unofficial, only-released-on-a-Jungle-Massive-comp Steve Gurley rmx of  UK R&B micro-star Princess

And this gorgeous dreamy wistful remix

Labello Blanco - wouldyabelieve I only just twigged it's a play on "white label"!

Labello had a bunch of sub-labels including Urban Gorilla, who did this beauty

Did not realize that  Labello was the precursor label to UK Garage stalwart Public Demand (as in Artful Dodger, Steve Gurley, Sticky feat Ms Dynamite etc)

Some serious Nuumy Nuum stuff there, history fans!

There was a 2steppy sublabel called Absolute Corruption

Add that to this long list of Erik Satie "Trois Gymnopedies" rifling tunes

For a second there - in a feat of absolute nuumtinuity - I thought this might be a cover of Goldie's "Kemistry" / "You and Me" - but it seems more inspiration / homage

Labello / Public Demand / etc is-was a tightknit operation clustered around the Low family 

Key figure is Jimmy Low,  who set up Labello in 1990.

Also known as Macka Brown and MC Kann aka Bug Kann (as in Bug Kann & The Plastic Jam, Labello's most successful act with "Made In Two Minutes") (although Macka's "Go Down Baby" was a big tune too)

But there's also younger brother Dave Low and sister Patti Low

Patti is Princess of the Posse - at least it says that "all tracks created by" her, but "all tracks produced by the Plastic Jam"

Which is Grant Bowden, the key non-family member of the operation. 

An interesting distinction - what is the difference between "created" and "produced", in this sort of music? 

Nuum nuuumy alert -  Bowden became the UKG artist Gass,. Named after the UK garage club I  assume. 

Back to Princess of the Posse

The other two tracks on the Pun Project EP are solid ruffige with squeakified raggavox

One of  Grant Bowden's aliases is Payback, as in "Eastenders' and "Dope" 

Huge bass on this tune and nice clangy beat

Monster tectonic rumblizm on this 

I'm guessing Bowden's got the lion share of responsibility for the label's early classic "Made In Two Minutes"

1990 and this is almost ambient jungle ahead of schedule - the main lick is a dreamy, chilled version of the 'rave signal' melody-riff

But it also came out as Reel To Reel?

Now is this the same as the Original Bleep version or slightly different?

The famous incarnation of "Made In Two Minutes" is very UKrappy in the Criminal Minds / Genaside II / Rebel MC mode.  And presumably that's sister Patti cooing over the top. 

And there's raggamuffin bizness at the start (ALLCRU - mouth-mangled it sounds more like ARDKORE) and at points throughout....

Many remixes

Foul Play - a remix by them I missed

And many other versions, including second go's by Gachet and others

And keeping it nuum nuum nuumy here's a coupla UKG remixes from 97

Talking of the UKG era....

It says at Discogss that the younger scion of the Low clan  -  Dave Low - is "the DJ in Artful Dodger"

But this was achieved in an unusual way

In 2001, Hill and Devereux parted ways due to creative differences and the trademark, name and usage rights of Artful Dodger was purchased by Blessed Records.

Capitalising on the significant live demand for the group, the owner of Blessed Records DJ Dave Low accompanied by MC Alistair adopted the name, in essence creating a cover band. They continue to tour under the name Artful Dodger to this day, performing the music of Hill and Devereux frequently in their sets.

Hill and Devereux reunited in 2017 but were unable to release new music or perform under their own name so formed Original Dodger.

I wonder what the market value of the Artful Dodger brand was in 2001-ish?  

They had had a run of Top 10 singles - five of them - and two of those were #2 smashes. 

And they must have done a million remixes.

But as a performance outfit...  how much would someone pay them for that, as the UKG-goes-pop bubble bursts? 

As for Princess of the Posse, it says at Discogs that Patti Low is a

"session singer from Essex, England based in Marbella, Spain.

Now works as a vocal coach and songwriter and performs in an ABBA tribute act."

So both of them ended up in nostalgia acts.... 

A snippet on Labello at 18.30 in this doc