Aug 16, 2019

RhoDeo 1932 Grooves

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Today's Artist (born August 31, 1963 in Los Angeles, California), better known by his stage name Egyptian Lover, is an American musician, vocalist, producer and DJ, and was an important part of the L.A. dance music and rap scene in the early 1980s.. ...... N Joy

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Greg Broussard started out as a DJ in Los Angeles with Uncle Jamm's Army, DJing dances as large as the L.A. Sports Arena with 10,000 people. He began recording around Los Angeles in 1982 as a member of the Radio Crew, as well as Uncle Jamm's Army. As the Egyptian Lover he became one of the most innovative producers of the old-school/electro era.

He recorded a parade of singles during the mid-'80s that proved influential for decades. Influenced himself by Kraftwerk/hip-hop soundclashes like Afrika Bambaataa's "Planet Rock" and Man Parrish's "Hip-Hop Be Bop (Don't Stop)," as well as the extroverted black-lover soul of Prince and Zapp, Broussard began recording from his Los Angeles base in 1983. One year later, he emerged with the breakdancing anthem "Egypt, Egypt," released on the Freak Beat label. Similar to excellent tracks being produced all over America -- from Detroit (Cybotron) to New York (Mantronix) -- "Egypt, Egypt" and successors "What Is a DJ If He Can't Scratch," "And My Beat Goes Boom," and "Computer Love (Sweet Dreams)" spent much time in DJ crates during the '80s and '90s. Broussard also released several LPs from the mid-'80s through the '90s, highlighted by 1984's On the Nile (practically a greatest-hits compilation), 1986's One Track Mind, and 1994's Back from the Tomb. He returned in 2006 with Platinum Pyramids, continued to perform live -- including dates with M.I.A. -- produced a track for Rye Rye, and, in 2015, released the long-in-the-works 1984. The following year, Stones Throw compiled 1983-1988, a proper anthology of Broussard's early highlights. It included a couple re-edits from label boss Peanut Butter Wolf, who sampled "What Is a DJ If He Can't Scratch" during his early-'90s partnership with MC Charizma.

Most of the Egyptian Lover's successful recordings were 12" singles. He eventually released some of the earliest rap LPs, but they were less popular than his singles. On the strength of an alternate mix of his most popular single "Egypt, Egypt", 1984's On the Nile was moderately successful.

The Egyptian Lover also established his own record company, Egyptian Empire Records, which included artists such as Rodney O & Joe Cooley 2 Oclock & Te & Joezee.

His 2015 release, 1984, continues his tradition of using all analog equipment, including his famed Roland TR-808 (which he is widely known as "the king of"), along with much of the same gear used on his recordings of the 1980s. The name "1984" refers to his earlier albums. The album was recorded at Skip Saylor, Encore Studios, and at RUSK Studios, the same studio where On The Nile was recorded in 1984.

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The electro producer also known as Greg Broussard recalls the studio techniques and diverse influences that made his records club hits in the 80s, and explains why the sound will never die

He was inspired at first by early electro – Afrika Bambaataa’s Planet Rock, Twilight Kingdom by Electric 22 – and by the records that inspired those artists (Kraftwerk’s Numbers was a key track) as well as Prince’s lithe dawn-of-the-1980s synth-funk. He set about building his tracks in layers, starting with “drum machine, maybe a beat programmed. And I could play it really loud in the studio, until I could get something I really liked. Then I started adding the keys, the bassline, the strings. I would let the record play over and over again, sit in the studio and write the lyrics to the record while it was being played. Then go on to the microphone, do the vocals and the song was done.”

He learned how records work by spending time in clubs, which is why the vocals were the least laboured-over part of Egyptian Lover tracks. “I started out as a dancer,” he says, “and I used to go to the clubs to dance. Then I became a DJ, and I knew what records or what parts of the records to play. Everybody liked these certain parts, so I would extend the breakdowns, put more breakdowns over the breakdowns, then more breakdowns and beats, because that’s what I wanted to dance to. When I was watching the crowd dance to certain records, they’d love the beats, they didn’t need to have words. I put the words on there so people know the name of the song.”

The Egyptian Lover character was inspired by the imagery from Earth, Wind & Fire’s releases, and from Broussard’s trip to see the treasures of Tutankhamun’s tomb when they toured the US in the late 70s. “I saw the King Tut exhibit, with this young king with his own empire, and that’s why I called my label Egyptian Empire.”

And there was another singer who really fired Broussard up. “Dean Martin has inspired me more than anyone has ever known,” he says. “Dean Martin was that sexy, ‘I got women’ kind of guy. I was in love with that whole image, and that’s where a lot of the Egyptian Lover’s image came from. He had a song called Crying Time, and I took that and made I Cry (Night After Night). My dad had a collection of Dean Martin albums, and I could pick the very first one he made, one in the middle of his career and one at the end of his career, and every one of those albums sound the same. I said to myself, ‘If I ever became a singer’ – this was before rap – ‘I would do it exactly like that.’ Because now when you buy a Dean Martin album, you’re getting a Dean Martin album. So I’m not going to change my style.”

He’s still pursuing that style – he talks about the 12in singles he plans to release from last year’s album 1984, and his hope to write a film script based on his life story. Whatever comes next, he’s still dedicated to his sound, and sure he’ll always find his audience.

“When you feel that beat and hear that music,” he says, “it makes you want to dance, it makes you feel good and have a good time. To this very day, some people like this sound, some people looooove this sound, and they go way out in the field to hear it.”


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Before Ice-T, N.W.A., and the late Eazy-E made Los Angeles famous (or infamous) for gangsta rap in the late '80s, the city's rap community was best known for a high-tech, futuristic approach that owed a lot to Afrika Bambaataa's 1982 classic, "Planet Rock." In the early to mid-'80s, L.A.-based electro-hoppers like the Egyptian Lover, the World Class Wreckin' Cru (the group that Dr. Dre belonged to before N.W.A.), the Arabian Prince, and Uncle Jam's Army didn't get much respect from East Coast hip-hoppers, who insisted that their music wasn't gritty enough. But those artists did enjoy a cult following in Southern California. Besides, the Egyptian Lover never claimed to be a hardcore rapper; On the Nile, his debut album of 1984, doesn't pretend to be a Run-D.M.C., L.L. Cool J, or Fat Boys release any more than Grover Washington, Jr. claimed to be a jazz purist. The closest this LP comes to an East Coast hip-hop vibe is the single "What Is a DJ If He Can't Scratch"; all of the other tracks offer a synthesizer-driven blend of rap, dance music, and electro-funk. Though "Planet Rock" is a strong influence on this release, it is hardly the Egyptian Lover's only influence -- his sound also owes a debt to Germany's seminal Kraftwerk (whose innovations greatly influenced "Planet Rock"), Prince, Man Parrish, and Giorgio Moroder, as well as Middle Eastern and North African music. The Egyptian Lover never had great rapping skills, but he was definitely an original and imaginative producer/writer -- and his risk-taking spirit serves him well on definitive, high-tech tunes like "Egypt Egypt," "My House (On the Nile)," and "Girls." On the Nile isn't the only Egyptian Lover LP that is worth owning, but most fans insist that it is his most essential and consistent album -- and they're absolutely right.



 The Egyptian Lover - On The Nile  (flac   216mb)

01 My House (On the Nile) 04:21
02 What Is a D. J. If He Can't Scratch 03:17
03 Girls 07:05
04 Computer Love (Sweet Dreams) 03:14
05 Egypt, Egypt 05:19
06 I Cry (Night After Night) 05:04
07 Unreal 05:32
08 And My Heart Goes Boom 04:12

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When the Egyptian Lover's second album, One Track Mind, came out in 1986, gangsta rap had yet to become huge. Ice-T's Rhyme Pays and N.W.A's N.W.A. & the Posse -- two landmarks in West Coast gangsta rap -- didn't come out until 1987, and East Coast hip-hoppers still associated Southern California with the electro-hop style that the Egyptian Lover is best known for. Anyone who expects to find hardcore rap on One Track Mind is bound to be disappointed; this LP isn't for rap purists. But those who appreciated his first album, On the Nile, will find this to be a respectable, if imperfect, sophomore effort. Egyptian's influences remain the same; the quirky rapper/producer still combines his appreciation of Afrika Bambaataa's "Planet Rock," Prince, Man Parrish, and Kraftwerk with elements of North African music and Egyptian imagery. It's a strange mixture -- Egyptian inhabits a place in which rap, Prince's Minneapolis sound, European synth pop, and North African music come together. But it's a mixture that works well on infectious electro-hop jams like "Livin' on the Nile," the single "Freak-A-Holic," and "A Stranger Place (The Alezby Inn)," which bears a bit of a resemblance to Prince's "Erotic City." As the title One Track Mind indicates, the Egyptian Lover shares Prince's love of all things erotic. But this LP is never X-rated; the lyrics are suggestive rather than explicit, which is why some of the tunes on One Track Mind had urban radio potential. Egyptian, however, was never a superstar, although he did enjoy an enthusiastic cult following. While One Track Mind isn't as essential as On the Nile, it's a likable release that fans of the electro-hop sound will enjoy.



The Egyptian Lover - One Track Mind  (flac   242mb)

01 One Track Mind 5:31
02 You're So Fine 2:41
03 The Dark Side Of Egypt 4:18
04 Livin' On The Nile 1:10
05 Freak-A-Holic 4:33
06 The Lover 5:31
07 A Strange Place (The Alezby Inn) 5:51
08 Los Angeles 3:35
09 Kinky Nation (Kingdom Kum) 3:17


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It's ironic that many East Coast hip-hoppers of the 1980s had such a low opinion of the Egyptian Lover and other Los Angeles residents who specialized in the electro-hop style -- ironic because Egyptian and his colleagues were heavily influenced by Afrika Bambaataa's "Planet Rock," which is considered one of 1982's definitive New York hip-hop singles. Of course, Egyptian was never the hardcore hip-hopper that Bambaataa is; his forte is a club-friendly mixture of rap, dance music, and synth funk. When Filthy came out in 1988, electro-hop was starting to decline in popularity in Southern California -- thanks to the success of Ice-T, N.W.A, and Eazy-E, Los Angeles rappers were becoming known for gangsta rap instead of electro-hop. But Egyptian carried on, avoiding hardcore rap and sticking to material that had a lot of dance and urban appeal. Parts of Filthy find him singing instead of rapping, including the addictive synth funk single "D.S.L.'s"; the Cameo-minded "Overdose"; and the eerie, Europop-influenced "Whisper in Your Ear." Meanwhile, Egyptian sticks to rapping on futuristic, "Planet Rock"-influenced electro-hop items such as "Baddest Beats Around" and "I Want Cha." Egyptian isn't a great singer any more than he is a great rapper -- his strong points are producing and writing -- but he still manages to be effective. The most surprising thing on the LP is a cover of Booker T. & the M.G.'s' early-'60s instrumental "Green Onions," which gets an almost Doors-like makeover -- not the sort of thing one expected from Egyptian, but then, he always did have eclectic tastes. A fairly diverse effort, Filthy falls short of essential but will appeal to Egyptian's die-hard fans.



The Egyptian Lover - Filthy (flac   397mb)

01 D.S.L.'s
02 I Want Cha
03 Whisper In Your Ear
04 Overdose
05 Baddest Beats Around
06 I'm Thru With You
07 Planet E
08 Filthy
09 Green Onions

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This album was released in 1989 as a best of package. There is only 8 songs, but they sound great on this CD, on the other LP's of Egyptian Lover, the songs are shorter and they don't even finish. Here, they go all the way through till the living end. This is a classic album to throw on at parties. Ok, it's 80's classic. Favorite songs are "Egypt,Egypt" and "The Lover". Meanwhile awesome collection of The Egyptian Lover's music, also, the sound quality is top notch. Highly recommended if you're a fan of electric funk.



The Egyptian Lover - King Of Ecstasy (flac   430mb)

01 Sexy Style (Greatest Hits Dub Mix) 7:22
02 My House on the Nile (Greatest Hits Mix) 9:04
03 Freak-A-Holic (12" Dub Mix) 7:15
04 You're So Fine (Greatest Hits Edit) 6:48
05 Egypt, Egypt (12" Original Mix) 6:49
06 The Alezby Inn (Remodeled Vocal Version) 9:31
07 The Lover (12" Long Mix) 9:56
08 Girls (Dub Mix) 9:31

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