Maceo Parker - Roots & Grooves 

Maceo Parker (mah-see-oh) is like the Don of funk.
Forget George Clinton, the green haired freak.He wouldn’t be nuthin’ with no Maceo.  My man Maceo has played with James Brown, Bootsy Collins, Parliment, De La Soul, Janes Addiction , Red Hot Chilli Peppers , Brian Ferry and Prince. No doubt. ( Not the band, you understand….oh forget it.)

‘Roots and Grooves’ is a two CD (remember them?) release. The first is a tribute to Ray Charles. Running 8 tracks long , this live recording covers a lot of ground, showcasing the Jazz Funk style that Ray pioneered. Opener ‘Hallelujah I love her so’ sets the scene perfectly, complete with dazzling keys and shout outs.

Maceo closes the tribute with an amazing version of ‘What’d I say’, Ray’s first #1 single. the signature refrain is still very much evident, inciting even Christopher Walkin to shake his booty. (sample hunter cred.) Disc 2 is populated with parkers own compositions, famous for being “2% Jazz, 98% funk”. And if he’s lyin’ he’s flyin’.

Maceo plays 250 gigs a year, each show lasting in excess of 2 and a half hours. And the best bit? He’s playing in at The Basement in Sydney on March 16 and 17. So this St. Patrick’s day, why not do less of this, and more of this.

THINK: Hot damn! Good Gawd! (and so on)
WATCH: Shake everything you got
READ: maceo dot com
BUY: Roots & Grooves at amazon

NIN Ghosts I - IV

Nine Inch Nails presents ‘Ghosts I - IV’, a brand new 36 track instrumental collection available right now. Almost two hours of new music composed and recorded over an intense ten week period last fall, Ghosts I - IV sprawls Nine Inch Nails across a variety of new terrain.

Trent Reznor explains, “I’ve been considering and wanting to make this kind of record for years, but by its very nature it wouldn’t have made sense until this point. This collection of music is the result of working from a very visual perspective - dressing imagined locations and scenarios with sound and texture; a soundtrack for daydreams. I’m very pleased with the result and the ability to present it directly to you without interference. I hope you enjoy the first four volumes of Ghosts.”

And the best bit is it’s free. You can download it from their webpage or from a torrent server, safe in the knowledge that Trent put it there himself. It’s a shame that inrainbows stole some of yearzero’s thunder, even overshadowing the follow up free remix page that followed. It’s inevitable that people will think Trent is pulling a Radiohead, but even a modicum of research will prove otherwise. ( And that’s how he likes it)