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Boy George

Essential Mix

Essential Mix Tracks
1. Girl from Ipanema - Boogie Macs
2. I Warned You Baby - Aldo Vanucci
3. See Through
4. Call It Fate - Richie Dan
5. Let Me Be Your Fantasy - Baby D vs. Trick Or Treat
6. Born Funky - Kinky Roland
7. Watcha Gonna Do - Shauna Solomon
8. Take My Hand - Tutto Matto vs. Different Gear
9. Everybody Jump - Vzions
10. Future Sound of Retro - Lee Combs
11. Some Say She's Retro - Dark Globe
12. Drop & Hope - The Armadillos
13. Spreading The Light - The Colein
14. Filthy Mind - Amanda Ghost
15. Volume 1 - Bassdubs
16. Thrust 2 - Oscar Goldman
17. Second Coming - Wavehead
Boy George - Essential Mix
Essential Mix Review
With a cheeky flair for symbolism that's entirely in character, Boy George kicked off his inaugural U.S. DJ tour on Valentine's Day, headlining at clubs around the country to promote his latest persona as showcased in his new record, Essential Mix. He's long since come back from his druggy, dark post-Culture Club days with a Peter Pan-like rebound, dropping one needle for another. It's a return to roots in a way: the dance music club scene is practically amniotic for Boy George, the milieu where he cut his teeth. So there's less of a leap than might be assumed to find the sister following in the formidable footsteps of Fatboy Slim and Paul Oakenfold (who contributed an earlier volume to London/Sire's essential mix series). And--exactly as you'd expect--Boy George indulges his decidedly idiosyncratic taste for beats with a totally unpredictable, unorthodox mad science. He's not afraid to risk jolting the crowd with some unexpected speed bumps in his flow, moving from ragga or diva house to full-on techno throb and ghosting out a voice here and there to pinch the energy's pitch. He brings on several artists from More Protein projects, including Kinky Roland (who contributes an irresistible retro-disco highlight, "Born Funky"). The Boy's mix is like moving from one club theme room into another, whether it's rave anthem ("Let Me Be Your Fantasy") or ethereal trance chilling ("Spreading the Light," with the Boy as "The Colein"). The resurrected Culture Club itself makes an appearance as "Cultural Diversion" in "See Thru" (also featuring the BG's vocals and his personal favorite, the "sexy" two-step). Boy George has said he thinks of his mix as the kind of music you might listen to while getting ready to leave for the party--but once you have it on, you're already there. --Tom May
Essential Mix Review
17 tracks mixed by the man himself. Included is a funky reworking of 'Girl From Ipanema' and 'Let Me Be Your Fantasy'. Boy George even sings on a few of the tracks. Over 60 minutesof essential dance music. Standard jewel case. 2001 release.


Users's Reviews
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must have been the stuff i was taking that made me buy this
2
the first time i dropped, boy george was on his american tour promoting this cd. (i saw him at his los angeles show at Giant). i dug that nite so much that i went to the record store the first day it came out and got this album at an outrageous price. i get home and start listening to it, and its not cool at all! (it must have been the stuff i was taking!) the first ten tracks are goofy and chessy sounding and its not till the later half of the album that it gets into some ok club music. a lot of people here said that they liked this album, so i guess i'm not into the same stuff; im more into the progressive trance stuff of pete tong, judge jules, and mark tabberner. some of the stuff on here is ok, so tahts why i gave it two stars. the stuff on this album is too much like 80s dance music rather than the new stuff that is coming out, even the stuff on the latter half of the album that i think is (merely)ok. i wish i had not bought this album.
Posted by Anonymous, on 2001-04-18
A Sonically Scenic Ride Through Space and Time
4
Is it no wonder that Versace has used Boy George's talent as a DJ to spin his own musical mix for many of their most recent fashion shows in Milan. In his current iteration as DJ, Boy George takes his listeners on on a musical journey creating a lush landscape in the dance genre that transcends both the ubiqutous pounding of today's techno-pop and time itself. Opening this volume of the Essential Mix series with a newly rendered mix of "Girl From Ipanema," (a classic example of early Bosa Nova Jazz,) the Boy travels from the cocktail tinged sound of the 1960's straight into the beat driven 21st century, stopping to sample the 70's and 90's along the way. He is even found briefly revisiting the 1980's with a new cut by Culture Club, aka Cultural Diversion. It was, in fact, this updated version of the Boy's former persona of pop crooner that left me feeling somewhat forelorn--as it recalled to mind the immense talent this soulful balladeer has when it comes to phrasing a song, leaving me wanting to hear more of his lilting voice. Fortunately, it resurfaces on a later track with The Colein. Nevertheless, while it would be a joy to hear the Boy reinvent himself as a 21st century Dance Torch Diva, as BoyDJ--the trip he takes us on delivers us to new and exciting places.
Posted by Anonymous, on 2001-04-24
The Boy grows on you...
4
At first listen, I thought this CD was admittedly a bit strange. Pop next to garage next to house next to trance? Not what an American audience would expect from the former lead singer of Culture Club. But then I noticed: every time I listened to it, I liked it a little more. Now I can't get enough of it, and everyone I have ever played it for agrees with me. The Boy has got a sense of Where the Funk is At. The track selection is consistently danceable and playful, but is so refreshingly original that it doesn't overstep the much hated and never venerated Cheeseland Boundary. Sure, the mixing is simple, but it's tight, and the CD purposefully progresses over time from lighter to darker moods, unlike so many pointless club compilation CDs. And if you complain about it the mixing here, you're missing the point. This disc is accessible, and it's fun. Isn't that what dance music is all about?
Posted by Anonymous, on 2001-05-22