Daptone Records takes its longstanding kinship with Finland's
Timmion label to the next level with
Bad Education, Vol. 1.
Daptone distributes the label stateside and assists in extending its creative reach. In turn, the folks at
Timmion provide advocacy and support for the New York label's artists when they tour Europe.
This ten-song set was curated and compiled by the American label's staff. A host of American artists are in the mix, beginning with
Carlton Jumel Smith, whose "This Is What Love looks Like" is also the opening track from his killer debut album,
1634 Lexington Avenue. Backed by
Timmion's virtuoso house band
Cold Diamond & Mink, it's a mad, deep, uptown soul jam. It's followed by Texas-born, California-raised balladeer
Jonny Benavidez's emotionally charged episode in falsetto glory, "Tell Me That You Love Me." It is so powerfully soulful it doesn't matter that
Benavidez slips slightly off-key a couple of times. Its rawness emerges from a commitment to spontaneity and focus; it's a defining performance for both artist and label. Three tracks feature backing from the
Soul Investigators. When
Timmion set up shop with its own studio in 2009, these aces served as its house band and still exist, albeit in an evolved form. "Paint Me in a Corner" by ex-pat American singer
Nicole Willis appeared on their 2015 full-length collaboration
Happiness in Every Style. Trombonist/flutist
Ernie Hawkins teams with the
Soul Investigators on "Scorpio Walk," a panoramic slice of funky, psychedelic, break-laden soul-jazz that evokes the early-'70s Blaxploitation soundtrack scene. It feels like
Isaac Hayes'
Shaft score welded to
J.J. Johnson's for
Across 110th Street, played by a combo of the
Bar-Kays and the
Funk Brothers. The sultry, gospel-tinged soul on
Wanda Felicia's stirring "Until You're Mine" stands apart from her abundant work in house music and nu-jazz; it features a killer horn chart from
Cold Diamond & Mink. The tight snare and kick drum breaks that introduce Bolivian singer
Bobby Oroza's "This Love, Pt. 1 -- originally issued by
Timmion's
Stylart imprint -- slowly, sensually glide into luscious uptown soul as guitars and a Hammond B-3 hover above the beat to frame his haunting vocal.
Bardo Martinez (lead singer of
Chicano Batman) and the
Soul Investigators deliver a dose of heady, finger-popping Afro-Latin soul on "Bad Education," another set standout. Helsinki native
Emilia Sisco has been wowing audiences for close to a decade on Finland's jazz and blues scenes. Here, her debut single, "Don't Believe You Like That," registers the same emotional heft and soulful depth as
Esther Phillips'
Kudu dates from the mid-'70s;
Sisco delivers lyrics with elasticity and authority atop
Cold Diamond & Mink. They coax her elegantly wrought vocal to the fore and set it free. For previously uninitiated soul music fans,
Bad Education, Vol. 1 is a fantastic introduction to the depth and breadth of the
Timmion sound. Even collectors, who more than likely already own these singles individually, will enjoy this 34-minute comp as a gem-laden, sometimes sublime, playlist. ~ Thom Jurek
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