Fatback Band - Spanish Hustle (Joaquin Joe Claussell Remixes) [House]

The Fatback Band were one of my early gateways to the world of funk and disco, and I have a vivid memory of hearing "Spanish Hustle" on a big system down in Brighton at one of the Jazz Rooms big holiday events. What a moment personally as well as for the up-for-it crowd. Couple that with the irresistible dance floor calls of "Wicky Wacky" and "Keep on Steppin'" from the album of the same name - one of my early funk LP purchases, and they were seriously influential in sending me down the slippery funk, soul, jazz and disco slope.

Joaquin ”Joe” Claussell is a Brooklyn-born house DJ and producer who grew up immersed in New York's disco, salsa, soul, funk and jazz scenes, and who uncompromisingly brings those influences to the house music table, both in his DJ sets and deeply musical productions. He also jointly set up the city's legendary Body & Soul parties and the equally iconic Spiritual Life Music label. If you've never heard him DJ, then put it on your list of things to do before you die.

Needless to say Claussell is an inspired choice of remixer for this ongoing Spring Revisited project, and "Spanish Hustle", with its 4/4 beat underpinning the percussion-heavy, Latin jazz-infused disco vibes, the perfect track from the catalogue for him to go to town on, and boy, did he deliver.

Like any experienced remixer, Claussell knows what elements to twist and tweak, but more importantly what to leave alone, and on his edit, he wisely lets most of the original continue to weave its dance floor magic, just swapping out the original's live kick drum and replacing it with a beefier programmed house beat more suited to today's big club sound systems.

On his Sacred Rhythm version, he calls in Brian Mitchel and Bennett Paster to rip it up on organ and synths, and also adds some dubbier percussive passages to extend the original's five-minute running time for some unforgettable, peak-time party action. Finally, on the Spanish Harlem Dub, he strips back the party vibes and goes deep, all the way deep, focussing on the sounds of the drums, percussion and bass, before inviting Mitchel and Paster back to the studio for some deep jazz keyboard lines. After six minutes of teasing, he eventually invites the original band members back, mercilessly looping some choice original parts into a firing finale. These remixes are going to run and run, and hopefully, drag a new generation of clubbers down the same classic Afrolatin wormhold I descended down all those years back.

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Playlist Companion

Find this cut in the End of Week Freak Playlist.