Pop Funk

The singularity of Dionne Warwick is defined by what the singer isn't as much as what she is. Although Warwick grew up singing in church, she is not a gospel singer. Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan are clear influences, but she is not a jazz singer. R&B is also part of her background, yet she is not really a soul singer, either, at least not in the sense that Aretha Franklin was. Sophisticated is a word often used to describe Warwick's musical approach and the music she sings, but she is not a singer of standards such as Lena Horne or Nancy Wilson. A pop singer of a sort with an aching yet detached alto voice, In all likelihood, Warwick could only have emerged out of the Brill Building environment of post-Elvis Presley, pre-Beatles pop in the early '60s. That's when she hooked up with Burt Bacharach and Hal David, songwriters and producers who tailored their unusually complicated songs for her distinctive instrument.

12th digital release finds The Vanished Dutchman in an inviting, dancing mood. You have to move to the adventurous groove as Funk, R&B and Latin and Pop are often mixed together. Still balanced out by the melodic to please the heart. Contrasting in happy (slapstick, humor (irony), energetic, exotic) and sad (dreamy, melancholic, epic). All conceived in an organic mix of colourful arrangements. Sing these songs in the shower (with or without a parachute)!

Rising like a Phoenix, which was the title of one of their previous albums, perhaps Mark Farner is sending a subliminal message with opening track "Good Times" that his "Bad Time" is over? The song "Testify," track three, sums up this very good album from Mark Farner, Don Brewer, and bassist Dennis Bellinger replacing the MIA Mel Schacher. It's a hooky rock tune with Farner's religious overtones. All these tracks are strong, from "Can't Be With You Tonight" to the glorious ending of "Wait for Me."

Rising like a Phoenix, which was the title of one of their previous albums, perhaps Mark Farner is sending a subliminal message with opening track "Good Times" that his "Bad Time" is over? The song "Testify," track three, sums up this very good album from Mark Farner, Don Brewer, and bassist Dennis Bellinger replacing the MIA Mel Schacher…

Following the highly acclaimed Volume I, dig further into the Wamono sound - the cream of the Japanese jazz, funk, soul, rare groove and disco music developed throughout the years since the end of the sixties in Japan!

Finally, a new full-length Candy Dulfer album called ‘We Never Stop, A party platter of stanky jams, silken R&B, jazz, and pop-funk, ‘We Never Stop’ features several guest appearances by Chic guitarist, producer, songwriter, and three-time GRAMMY Award-winner Nile Rodgers. Take a listen to the first single “Jammin’ Tonight (feat. Nile Rodgers),” a bold injection of party pop-funk with a slick jazz overlay that recalls Rodgers’ 1970s “Good Times” finery.