Chaz Jankel - Sooner or Later
Recently Resident Advisor’s Todd L. Burns caught up with the former Blockhead/producer of irresistible ’80s synth-pop to find out why he’s back in the spotlight after a number of years in the pop music wilderness. Perhaps the most welcome reissue of last year was one that was never meant to be. In the mid-‘80s, Chaz Jankel had a number of dance smashes hit the charts. But, for some reason, his work was soon forgotten-none of the four albums released on A&M made it to CD. Enter Strut Records. In the middle of this decade, the label stepped in and started the long process of compiling a greatest hits from Jankel’s extensive back catalogue. When Strut went under, Tirk came in and finished the job.
The final result, My Occupation - The Music Of Chaz Jankel is a revelation of sorts. Jankel’s biggest works; ‘Ai No Corrida’, ‘Glad to Know You’ and ‘You’re My Occupation’ sound like the funk disco classics they’ve become. ‘Get Myself Together’, the new track Jankel penned for the compilation, slots easily next to his ‘80s material-as though it was simply a long lost B-side.
The weird thing about all this hype, is that Jankel is as surprised as anyone. Born in 1952, he hasn’t followed the disco re-edit scene and was oblivious to the emergence of cosmic disco. He’s an old-school singer-songwriter, a craftsman that works to excel across all genres.
He is currently being rediscovered by a whole new generation of fans which are being touched in a way that is surprising to Chaz Jankel himself!
Some of his earlier material didn’t do so well in the UK but Americans really picked up on it. ‘Glad to Know You’, for instance, was a massive hit with Larry Levan. He used to play it at the Paradise Garage.
Back in teh 60’s he noticed that Afro-American music was taking on a life of it’s own. His searches lead him to Sly and the Family Stone which really changed his life. If there was ever one band that were simply awe-inspiring, they were it. From there Chaz got into Eddie Kendricks, Mandrill and War. He discovered a lot of Brazilian music, people like Caetano Veloso and Gal Costa.
He has always have one ear on the radio, as well, listening a lot of times with his now 14 year-old son who plays him all the latest sounds. Lately he has been impressed by some aspects of Wiley, Benga and this guy T-Pain, who’s an American producer.
Recently he has decided to make a dance album, based upon the fact that there seems to be so much interest in the style of music he used to make. Read full interview at Resident Advisor….
