A Guy Called Gerald - Blueprint

UK 2001 CDR; Beechwood/Blueprint: BLUECD02 [Promo only CDR for CD2 in a clear plastic sleeve]
UK 2001 2xCD; Beechwood/Blueprint: BLUECD02

CD1 - Gerald Mix:

3:12 Slave - Just A Touch Of Love
4:24 Funkadelic - (Not Just) Knee Deep
2:59 Marvin Gaye - Don't Mess With Mr T
2:41 James Brown - Sex Machine Part I And Part II
3:02 Cymande - Bra
3:21 Cymande - The Message
4:58 Bootsy Rubber Band - What's A Telephone Bill?
2:50 Sylvia Striplin - You Can't Turn Me Away
3:09 Minnie Ripperton - Loving You
4:00 Phoebe Snow - Two-Fisted Love
3:59 Hot Chocolate - Amazing Skin Song
2:55 Mtume - Juicy Fruit
5:30 Barry White - You're So Good
4:00 Fatback Band - Nija Walk (Street Walk)
3:07 Fatback Band - Going To See My Baby
4:35 The Whispers - Try And Make It Better
3:09 Kool And The Gang - Nt
 
CD 2 - Unmixed:

 3:31 War - Me & Baby Brother
 5:05 James Brown - Talkin' Loud & Saying Nothin'
15:20 Funkadelic - (Not Just) Knee Deep
 4:05 Phoebe Snow - Two-Fisted Love
 6:29 Slave - Just A Touch Of Love
 5:29 Sylvia Striplin - You Can't Turn Me Away
 6:24 Kool And The Gang - Nt
 3:05 Marvin Gaye - Don't Mess With Mr T
 5:55 Mtume - Juicy Fruit
 6:05 Barry White - You're So Good
 4:00 Fatback Band - Nija Walk (Street Walk)
 3:23 Minnie Ripperton - Loving You
 4:16 Cymande - The Message

Released:

26th March 2001.

Credits:

Mixed by Gerald Simpson.

Press Release:

BLUEPRINT PRESENTS: A GUY CALLED GERALD
Release date: 26 March 2001
Label: Blueprint
Cat No: BLUECD02

Welcome to the second instalment of Blueprint - the series that joins the dots between the influences of dance music's most visionary artists, painting a musical masterpiece in the process. Volume one saw Les Rythmes Digitales dig into the '80s to help define his musical vision, but now Blueprint Presents: A Guy Called Gerald.

How many artists can claim to have had a revolutionary effect on the direction of electronic music, at not one, or two, but many times over the course of their career? Gerald Simpson can.

A Guy Called Gerald first exploded onto the the dance music scene in 1989 with the release of 'Voodoo Ray'. With it's haunting female vocal and hypnotic groove, this record caught the imagination of the rapidly expanding UK scene and made Gerald a reluctant star. "I was looking for a simple dance vibe, just a basic track and then everyone went mad for it!" says a typically self-depreciating Gerald. "I didn't push that record. It did what it did. By the time it went in the charts, I was hiding."

Shortly after this a record named 'Pacific State' by 808 State followed 'Voodoo Ray' towards instant classic status. It surprised few people when it later emerged that A Guy Called Gerald had played a major role in creating the track while working with 808 State in their previous incarnation, The Hit Squad.

After suffering at the hands of a major label who knew little and cared less about the emerging global dance scene, Gerald went back underground. Working from his own studio, he continued to supply the clubs with the cutting edge sounds that made him a legend. Gradually these sounds changed as the influence of breakbeat crept into techno and A Guy Called Gerald released what is perhaps the first drum'n'bass track, `28 Gun Bad Boy' on his own Manchester based Juice Box Records.

Then followed 'Finley's Rainbow' (the track that first introduced Finley Quaye to the world) and the acclaimed, genre defying album 'Black Secret Technology'. Demands for remixes and DJ gigs flooded in, and Gerald became known globally as one of the UK's most innovative dance exports.

Then Gerald moved to New York, a place which has always. held a great attraction for him, and began work on the album `Essence'. Released on Studio K7 in 2000, the album featured vocalists including Lady Miss Kier and Louise Rhodes from Lamb, and was received with widespread acclaim on both sides of the Atlantic.

So why has an artist such as A Guy Called Gerald chosen this moment in time to put his name to a compilation album? Part of the answer must lie in the fact that Blueprint allows its compilers an artistic freedom which few of today's dancefloor and chart driven compilations can match. The brief is quite simply 'show us your influences'.

To demonstrate the tracks which have inspired his classic recording output, Gerald has reached right back into the 1970s, to the music of his youth. Innovative British funkers Cymande rub shoulders with German electronic pioneers Kraftwerk, while the bass tones of Barry White sit next to the delicate vocal stylings of Minnie Ripperton. This is music with soul, passion and depth - perhaps unsurprising when one considers how these qualities are stamped all over Gerald's own recordings.

Sit back and listen to the music contained on these two CDs, and let A Guy Called Gerald guide you through his selection in the sleevenotes. Grab hold of a moment of inspiration and who knows - you could be making your very own 'Voodoo Ray' before you know it!

Tracklisting:

1 .Slave - Just A Touch Of Love
2. Funkadelic - Knee Deep
3. Stevie Wonder - All Day Sucker
4. Marvin Gaye - Don't Mess With Mr T
5. James Brown - Sex Machine
6. Kraftwerk - Trans-Europe X press
7. Cymande - The Message
8. Soul Train Gang - Garbage Can
9. Cymande - Bra
10. Ralph McDonald - Jam On The Groove
11. Herman Kelly and Life - Dance To The Drummer Beat
12. The Isley Bros - Don't Give lt Away
13. The Staple Singers - After Sex
14. Prince - Crazy You
15. Bootsy Rubber Band - What's A Telephone Bill
16. Eddie Kendricks - Intimate friends
17. Sylvia Striplin - You Can't Turn Me Away
18. Minnie Riperton - Lovin' You
19. Yellow Magic Orchestra - Computer Game

• This advance CD contains a selection of tracks from the finished double CD package.
• At the time of writing not all tracks have been cleared for inclusion on the album.

Comments:

The first CD is very subtly mixed together by Gerald (don't expect a drum'n'bass/house mix here!), with the second CD containing the full track versions of most of the tracks.