A Quick Nip Before the Show

"Sambuca" is a track from D's last album, Libra; but this is an all new Smoove Mix - that is to say, a remix by UK producer Smoove - for the vinyl single.  This isn't the first Smoove remix D's released on 7", following the "Labels" Smoove Mix in 2021.  The only other track they've done together is "Do It Now," the B-side to his "Lucky Number" single in 2022.  For whatever reason, he's become his exclusive 7" remix guy.

And like their last two collaborations, this one has a high energy, 70s vibe to it, almost like a foreign funk band recorded it live.  In my Libra review, I wrote that "'Sambuca' slows things down a little, but is still full of life, a light-hearted anthem for D's liqueur of choice."  It might've been a bit funny to say "slows things down," since it actually has a pretty high bpm; but it immediately followed "When It's Fast," and that whole side of the album was pretty hyper.  Anyway, this remix is basically the same speed, but this live party sound is quite distinct from the original, like a completely new song: a second ode to Sambuca, which just happens to have all the same lyrics.

The first two verses are about D preparing for a performance and stopping for two precious drinks first, "dashing through the town, clutching a wealth of wax and vinyl from many years gone by/ We arrive at the club about ten minutes shy/ Of the time to go on. What rhymes like 'bazooka?'/ You know what?  Just time for Sambuca!"  Finally, uh-oh, he's maybe a little too drunk to go on...  But sure enough, the show goes well, so to celebrate?  More Sambuca!  It ain't deep.  In 2Pac terms, "Sambuca" was an "I Get Around" moment, not a "Trapped;" and now Smoove's turned it into more of a full-blown "Doowhutchyalike."

The blaring horns are easily the first thing to grab your attention, but it's the groovy bassline that really locks you in.  To blow up the party element even further, Smoove adds a chorus of additional voices shouting out "SAMBUCA" on the hook.  More subtly, he also adds these little snippets of 90s R&B style vocalisms that sound really fresh.  The one drawback is just, in order to gain all of that, we have to lose Djar One's killer Premier-style scratch hooks from the original.  But that's alright; we still have the Libra version on the album, still perfectly viable.

So as you can see up top, this B-Line Records 7" comes in a sticker cover with a stamped label.  Oh, and the B-side is the instrumental; the vinyl is the only way to get that.  It's out now, and is apparently limited to just 100 copies, so if you're interested, act fast!  Because the only thing worse than FOMO is AMO (actually missing out).  I've been there plenty; it sucks.

After Before I Let Go

Okay, so the song I want to talk about on this particular 12" is a B-side; but there are other more legit releases.  This is Maze featuring Frankie Beverly's classic "Before I Let Go," specifically the rarer version featuring MCing by Woody Wood.  1980's "Before I Let Go" is already one of my favorite non-Hip-Hop songs, and it's the basis for the Hip-Hop classic "Do You Want To Rock" by The Funky Four Plus One (and the equally delightful but lesser known "When You're Standing On the Top" by The Super Three).  And of course that killer bassline has been sampled a million times, on such classics as K-Solo's "Your Moms In My Business" (which was kinda my gateway drug into the original record when I was a kid), Steady B's "Use Me" and Keith Murray's "The Rhyme."  Mary J Blige did a remake of this, Eric B did a rap remake of it on his widely ignored solo album and I actually just heard a Beyonce cover of "Before I Let Go" in a documentary about prison inmates a couple weeks ago.

I first heard the Woody Wood version on a mixtape and drove myself nuts in the early 90s trying to track it down.  Remember, that was pre-internet.  I bought a white label on Moo Records thinking I'd found it, but it turned out to be something else, which I'll get back to.  Anyway, I eventually picked up this 12" which has it.  It's a pretty random collection of funk/ dance songs from artists like KC and the Sunshine Band, and I'm kinda surprised they went with the Woody Wood version, as the original would've fit in better with everything else on this EP, but it is a pretty random release.  I'm not sure how legit it is; the label says it's from Japan.  I've since realized there's a more fitting 12" release of this track, paired with the other Maze rap remix, which is also from Japan, and is what I'd get now if I didn't already have this.

Anyway, the deal with this song is that it was made in 1989 for Maze's Greatest Hits album in 1989.  It features their biggest songs, as you'd expect, and also two new remixes, by The Bomb Squad themselves.  The other remix is interesting, but not nearly as compelling.  It's "Joy and Pain" (you know, the one Rob Base made his rap version of) with sped up dance drums, zippy synthesizer riffs and stuff... it sounds very Euro club.  The fun part is that they got Kurtis Blow to come on and add a new verse at the end; but the whole thing is kinda chintzy.

But it's surprising the Bomb Squad went so old school.  Yeah, 1989 is super old school now, kids, I get it.  But at that time, Kurtis Blow was already ancient history.  I guess the Squad wanted an old school vibe to blend with the sound of Maze's early hits.  And that's what makes their remix of "Before I Let Go" fly.

First of all, they barely change anything from the original.  Unlike "Joy and Pain," nobody's putting the 80s pop spin on it.  They just pretty much let Woody Wood get busy over the old record, disco DJ style.  Like, if you've ever heard the tapes of DJ Hollywood performing in the 70s, this sounds exactly like that.  And Woody Wood was more ancient history than Blow.

Woody basically had one record in 1979 called "Willie Rap."  It's a pretty blatant "Rapper's Delight" knock-off, but he has a cool voice, with a bit of a Jimmy Spicer-style delivery, and the track has a slightly different groove - I'd definitely recommend it for any fan of disco-era Hip-Hop.  Then, in 1985, he made a bit of a comeback as one half of the (212) N.Y.C. Crew, along with Greg Gi (pronounced Gee) for a 12" single called "We Likes It."  That's a fun one, too, with some fun back & forth and a Transformers sample.

...And this is the point where I realized I already made a video about this record nine years ago.  Ha ha  Derp.  😜  Well, I guess I'll go ahead and share this anyway.  I've got a couple new, little details in here at least.  And now you can follow that link for a sound clip.

So I'll leave out the bit about how DJ Hollywood battled Woody Wood for biting his style and rhymes, since I talked about it in that video.  I will say, as much as I enjoyed this remix of "Before I Let Go," I do wish Woody did more proper rap verses and less "get the bone out your back, boy"-type call-outs.  again, I know they're going for an authentic "this is how it would've played in a 1981 club" vibe, but I also preferred it when Hollywood did more proper rap verses in his performances.

And since I'm out here being foolish, let me circle back to that Moo records 12" I said I'd get back to (watching the video, I mentioned this one in there, too lol).  I've owned it forever, but I was curious about it and looked it up on discogs, and apparently it's an uncredited DJ Gail Sky King edit?  That's interesting.  It really isn't much different from the standard album version everybody has, except at the very beginning they loop the break a little in a funky kind of way.  After the first fifteen seconds or so, though, they're just playing the same version everybody knows.  But at least that gives it a little bonus kick.

And after that, they also include a live version, which is surprisingly great.  I guess I should quickly clarify that the Maze album "Before I Let Go" was originally released on - Live In New Orleans - was a live album.  But the actual version of "Before I Let Go" they included on there was a studio recording.  That's the main one everyone has, and this is a different, actually live version, from their 1986 Live In Los Angeles album.  And it's more interesting than just a standard live performance with a little stadium echo and crowd noise.  They really have a lot of fun twisting and playing with the song throughout, giving you something that keeps pretty much all the same classic elements but turns it into something distinct and exciting if you're a long-time fan. 

They also throw Eddy Grant's "Time Warp" on the B-side, but I never really bother with that.  Maybe if I was actually DJing at an old school club.  And they add end with the instrumental, which discogs doesn't list; but I own the record, so trust me, it's om there.

And what was even more surprising than seeing that King did the edit on the Moo 12" is seeing that there is a 2024 repress?!  Who is behind that?  And why?  It's not like Moo Records is a legit, long-running label that's keeping their catalog in print.  This is like a weird white label one-off.  There was a 2002 reissue, too, which makes slightly more sense.  But surely if anybody was after a vinyl repress of "Before I Let Go," even a bootleg, they'd want the Capitol Records one with the picture cover and "Golden Time of Day?"  I mean, if people want it, hey why not?  But it just seems weird to me.  Oh well.