Choice: A Collection of Classics

• Artist: Jeff Mills
• Rating:
• Release Date: August 03, 2004
• Type: Mix-album
• Genre: Electronica

Review

Jeff Mills has rarely been one to look (way) back, so it's a shock to see him contribute to Azuli's Choice: A Collection of Classics series. Like Frankie Knuckles, Tony Humphries, François K, and several jocks before him, Mills takes the opportunity to put focus on some old personal favorites. This is, however, the most special volume in the series thus far. Hardly anyone -- excepting those who were with him before he reached infamy as the Wizard and as a founder of Underground Resistance -- has seen him in this particular light. Even the average longtime follower's earliest memory of the DJ tends to only date back to the lightning-fast mixes of hip-hop, electro, and house that were laid down on the air in the mid- to late '80s. Years prior to becoming known outside Detroit, Mills was part of the city's youth-oriented party subculture, in which European music and fashion was taken to heart as much as the latest Cameo single. This release is the closest you'll get to that very specific atmosphere; more than half of the tracks date from the early '80s or earlier, illustrating the broad range and unique sensibilities of the scene. The compilation is therefore not another run through predictable underground hits -- if there's any indication, Azuli wasn't able to hunt down several repertoire owners. Just about every selection is worth mentioning. Teddy Pendergrass' sweaty disco workout "The More I Want, the More I Get" and Telex's lustrous "Moskow Diskow" (one of the key precedents for A Number of Names' "Sharevari," a 1981 single made by young Detroit clubbers) are the most popular tracks. Less popular but just as notable are Chas Jankel's "Ai No Corrida" (hip enough to be performed by Quincy Jones, square enough to be interpreted by the Nylons), Change's "The End" (a charging, heavily synthesized Italo-disco instrumental that sounds nothing like their pop-oriented R&B hits "Paradise" and "The Glow of Love"), and Sinnamon's underheard "Thanks to You" (a sparkling post-disco club cut with defiant vocals reminiscent of Teena Marie). And it wouldn't be fair to mention some of the later tracks that are present, such as King Sun's "On the Club Tip" (a hip-house trip down memory lane for Wizard fans), Carl Craig's breathless remix of DJ Q's "We Are One," and Joey Beltram's set-closing "South Pacific" (a sharp, ethnic fusion-style turn away from his usual work). As with the other Choice compilations, the focus here is on the songs, not the skills of the DJ; Mills doesn't provide each track in whole, but they are often slightly blended into one another whenever it makes sense to do so. Mills also pens the must-read liner notes. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide

Tracks

CD 1

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Space Bass	Len Barry, Butch Ingram	Slick	(6:58)
The More I Get, The More I Want	John Whitehead, Gene McFadden, Victor Carstarphen	Teddy Pendergrass	(4:26)
Thanks to You	Darryl Payne, Keith Diamond, Eric Matthew	Sinnamon	(3:53)
Ai No Corrida	Chas Jankel, Kenny Young	Chas Jankel	(8:00)
Can't Fake the Feeling	D.K. Dyson, Geraldine Hunt	Geraldine Hunt	(3:20)
Show You My Love	Kathleen Dyson	Goldie Alexander	(6:15)
Esto Parese Amor [Club Mix]	Vincent Montana, Jr.	Goody Goody	(5:54)
Keep It in the Family	Deodato	Deodato	(5:32)
Dance to the Beat		Starflight Orchestra	(3:41)
Mas Eu Quer Ser		Gerardo Frisina	(4:41)
This Time Baby	Leroy Bell, Casey James	Jackie Moore	(6:42)
Give Me Back Your Love			(6:08)
I'll Do Anything for You	Bert Reid, Ronald Dean Miller	Denroy Morgan	(3:56)

CD 2

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Moskow Diskow	Telex	Telex	(4:11)
On the Club Tip			(5:01)
We Are One [Carl Craig Remix]	Paul Flynn	DJ Q	(6:56)
Sexuality	Blake Baxter	Blake Baxter	(5:59)
Audiable Illusion	Lee Perkis, Chris Hartley	Insync Vs. Mysteron	(6:22)
The End	Paolo Gianolio	Change	(5:44)
El Ritmo Barbaro	R. Persi, Elvio Moratto	Ramirez	(4:28)
Analogue Expressions	Stefan Robbers	Florence	(7:17)
Serial Operations	John O'Connell	Bandulu	(5:06)
Indulge	Neil Howard	Neil Howard	(9:22)
Meditive Fusion	Stacey Pullen	Silent Phase	(7:20)
South Pacific	Joey Beltram	Joey Beltram	(5:28)

Credits

Deodato (Producer), Mauro Malavasi (Producer), Mark Winkler (Producer), Denroy Morgan (Executive Producer), Eric Matthew (Producer), Lee Perkis (Producer), John O'Connell (Producer), Carl Craig (Producer), Stefan Robbers (Producer), Chas Jankel (Producer), Vincent Montana, Jr. (Arranger), Joey Beltram (Producer), Stacey Pullen (Producer), Tony Green (Producer), Carl Craig (Remixing), Neal Howard (Mixing), Joey Beltram (Mixing), Geraldine Hunt (Producer), Jacques Fred Petrus (Producer), Darryl Payne (Producer), Vincent Montana, Jr. (Producer), Neal Howard (Producer), Chris Hartley (Producer), Blake Baxter (Producer)