Bridging the Gap October 4, 2023

*Fort Knox Five: "Fire In My Belly feat. Ashley Slater" (Another Decade Of Funk 2023) Wash. DC based group Jon Horvath, Sid Barcelona, Steve Raskin & Rob Myers play funk, hip hop, reggae & electronic music.  Their name came from their studio being called 'Fort Knox.'

*Nappy Riddem: "Devil Needs A Bodyguard (Fort Knox Five Remix)" (Funk 'n Beats, Vol. 4 ) Wash. DC area conscious reggae band formed by lead singer Mustafa Akbar & Rex Riddem plays "Dancehall Funk"

*Cookin' On 3 Burners: "Garden Of Freedom feat. Simon Burke" (Lab Experiments, Vol. 2 2018) Aussie funk trio Jake Mason (Hammond organ), Dan West (guitar) & Ivan Khatchoyan (drums) began w/Lance Ferguson on guit./prod/songwr. & leader of The Bamboos.

*Frank Zappa: "Variations On The Carlos Santana Secret Chord Progression" (Shut Up 'N Play Yer Guitar 1982) Guitar innovator, rock iconoclast, composer and bandleader FZ's music ranged from R&B and doo wop to improvisational jazz fusion and modern orchestral music.

*Covet: "Merlin" (Catharsis 2023) Chinese Am. female guitarist, pianist, violin & vocalist Yvette Young leads this 'math rock' group. She is also an illustrator and artist.

*Charlie Hunter: "No Money, No Honey" (Everybody Has A Plan Until They Get Punched In The Mouth 2016) Am. guitarist, composer & bandleader plays custom 7 & 8 stringed guitars and simultaneously plays bass lines, chords and melodies.

*Chinese Man: "Racing With The Sun" (Racing With The Sun 2011) French trip hop band formed in 2004. Their name comes from the first track they produced together from a vocal sample repeating 'Chinese Man'

*Dengue Fever: "No Sudden Moves" (The Deepest Lake 2015) Am. band from LA combining Cambodian rock, 60s & 70s music with psychedelic rock & world music styles. Cambodian-American singer Chhom Nimol sings lead.

*El Michels Affair: "Zaharila feat. Piya Malik" (Yeti Season 2021) American cinematic soul group led by multi-inst./producer Leon Michels. Featuring Hindi vocalist Piya Malik.

*Ezra Collective: "Chris And Jane" (You Can't Steal My Joy 2019) British jazz quintet led by drummer Femi Koleoso with bassist TJ Koleoso they fuse elements of afrobeat, calypso, reggae, hip hop, soul and jazz.

*The Jazz Defenders: "Twilight" (King Phoenix 2022) UK group led by pianist and composer George Cooper. Their music is born out of a deep love for Blue Note Jazz which inspires their own unique music.

*Hattler: "Kraal Jam" (Warhol Holidays 2016) German jazz/rock bassist Helmut Hattler leads this group combining rock, jazz and world music styles. H Hattler was heavily influenced by Jimi Hendrix.

*John Scofield: "Tomorrow Land" (Uberjam 2002) Am. jazz guitarist/composer. Feat. Am. jazz keys & composer John Medeski of MM&W

HOUR 2

*De-Phazz: "Mayday Payday feat. Sandie Wollasch" (Reduced (Remixes) 2023) German downt. jazz ensemble led by soundpainter & producer Pit Baumgartner. SW: German singer formerly with Hattler.

*Don Tiki: "Close Your Eyes" (The Forbidden Sounds Of... 1997) Modern exotica band led by pianist and composer Kit Ebersbach. Vox by Hawaii chanteuse Teresa Bright.

*Makala Jazz Funk Band: "5 Sense" (Xake! 2015) Led by composer, DJ,bassist & composer Mikel Unzurrunzaga combine jazz, funk and world influences. Vox by Oihan Lopetegi.

*Mo' Horizons: "Huele Que Huele" (Single 2022) Electronic music producers Ralf Droessemeyer & Mark Foh Wetzler from Hannover, Germany combine with Peruvian musicians to produce this cumbia gem.

*Ondatropica: "La Naranja Madura" (Baile Bucanero 2017) Musical collaboration between Colombian musician Mario Galeano and UK's Quantic real name Will Holland.

*Latin Soul Syndicate: "Baila Mi Changuito" (Latin Soul Syndicate 2004) San Francisco based band formed in 2004 with producer, engineer & songwriter Mark Pistel, Happy Sanchez & Karl Perazzo. They play Latin, electronic and pop rock.

*Lemongrass: "July Sky feat. Jane Maximova" (Soulful 2020) German music project from DJ, producer Roland Voss mixes downt. electronic, jazz, soul, trip hop, world music and more. JM: Russian sing/songwr.

*Thievery Corporation: "La Force De Melodie feat. Lou Lou Ghelickhani" (Treasures From The Temple 2018) Am. electronic duo of Rob Garza & Eric Hilton came together on the ESL Label over their shared love of Antonio Carlos Jobim. LLG: Austin TX singer & keyboardist

*Zimpala: "Le Pays D'Alice" (Honeymoon 2006) Directed by DJ producer Frederic Beneix (DJ BNX) this collective features Noemie Brosset on vocals for their cinematic electro music.

*Johnny Otis Show: "Hey Boy! I Want You feat. Barbara Morrison" (Watts Funky 2001) Ioannis Alexandres Veliotes became Am. singer, musician, composer, bandleader & producer Johhny Otis. He saw society dictated that one had to be black or white. He decided he would be black. BM: Am. jazz/soul singer.

*Patti Drew: "Workin' On A Groovy Thing" (Workin' On A Groovy Thing 1968) Am. soul singer & songwriter who had modest chart success in the 60s began singing in church as a young woman.

*Gladys Knight & The Pips: "I Don't Want To Do Wrong" (Same 1980) Am. soul/R&B & funk group from Atlanta Georgia. The Pips came from a cousin's nickname as the group consisted of mostly siblings and cousins.

*Sugarman Three: "Pure Cane" (Pure Cane Sugar 2002) NYC retro-funk band formed by saxophonist Neal Sugarman.