Apparently, if you do a Google search for my site right now, it says that I might have been hacked. However, EVERYTHING IS FINE. Apparently some dickweed was using my site to put up spam pages selling viagra, but the page has been removed and all traces of the hack have been scrubbed from my site, thanks to my hosting provider. None of this was ever a security threat to any of you, I just wanted to let you know in case you were searching for my site and came across the warning. I submitted a review to Google, and hopefully they’ll remove the warning once they realize my shit is clean. Of course, knowing Google’s track record with giving a shit about the small guy, I expect this to happen sometime around 2019.
Anyways, some new stuff up at Mostly-Retro. First, a review of a shit release by Mondo Tees, followed by a weird thing about finding undeveloped disposable cameras. And football.
I told you it was weird.
The Communards
Don’t Leave Me This Way (Mega Mix)
Don’t Leave Me This Way (The Gotham City Mix)
The Communards were Jimmy Sommeville’s second band, formed after he left The Bronski Beat in 1986. They, surprise, sounded a lot like The Bronski Beat, but it would be hard not to with Sommerville’s overpowering falsetto. This was the third single from their debut album, and for it they were joined by Sarah Jane Morris, a jazz singer whose voice is about two octaves lower than Sommerville’s. However, both their voices are booming as all hell, making a duet between them a pretty intense experience.
Making things more intense is the fact that both of these remixes are each 11 freaking minutes long. That’s insane. INSANE. Bu that’s nothing, they also released a remix that was a “what the fuck” inducing 22 minutes long.
Now, I’ve long gone on the record as saying that if a song is great then the best thing a remix can do is just make it even longer, I cite the 9-minute remix of George Clinton’s “Atomic Dog” as concrete evidence of this. But let’s not get crazy. Shit, even these 11-minute remixes try my patience a bit. But I’m not going to hate on any decent version of “Don’t Leave Me This Way” and Sommerville’s vocals carry both these versions just fine, even if they do drag on for just a smidge too long. The keyboard solo in Gotham City mix is pretty great too.
Jeanie Tracy
Don’t Leave Me This Way
Don’t Leave Me This Way (Mixed by Sylvester)
Hey, look it’s more “Don’t Leave Me This Way!” It’s almost like I planned this shit.
I found the original mix of this a while ago and have been loving it ever since, but my goal was always to find the Sylvester Mix, because, well, Sylvester is dope. I actually bought a 12″ single with that mix on it when I was in San Francisco, but it turned out the record was way too warped to play. Total buzzkill.
However, I somewhat serendipitously found a copy of the same single at my local record store just two weeks later, and it was in mint condition! There was much rejoicing.
There was so much rejoicing that I started to research Megatone, the label that released the single, and discovered that three 2CD collections of Megatone 12″ singles were released a few years back. So I just went ahead and bought all three of those. The version of the Sylvester mix that I’m sharing tonight is from one of those collections, it sounded better than my vinyl rip.
I mean, I’m moving to another freaking country in a few months, I need to…stock up on my….predominately gay-themed disco compilations.
Shut up. Don’t judge me.
Both of these versions are FUCKING AMAZING. By the way. Jeanie Tracy for President.