Description
Invisible City Editions reissues a selection of classic street soul tunes from the legendary duo Soul Connection (Toyin Agbetu and Earl Myers). A mix of well-loved tracks from Soul Connection's 1988 "Rough & Ready" and 1990 "Raw Street Soul", remastered from the original master reels. This one has been a long time in the making and we are really excited to finally put it out!
You’d be hard-pressed to find a more central figure to the story of ’80s UK Street Soul than Toyin Agbetu. A former computer programming prodigy turned musician/artist/producer, Agbetu was one of the principals in the development of a sound that merged the playful romance of soul music with the DIY ethos and raw, drum machine-driven beats of hip-hop and other burgeoning underground movements of the time. With his London-based independent record label, Unyque Artists, and a studio HQ-ed out of his Hackney bedroom, Toyin would embark on a remarkably prolific run as a producer and artist under a myriad of aliases and pseudonyms on associated spin-off labels.
One such project was Soul Connection – a collaboration with friend and fellow indie label head Earl Myers that, despite its low-key bordering on phantom profile, yielded two albums, Rough and Ready (1988) and Raw Street Soul (1990) released on UA affiliate Intrigue Records. Though both LPs were well received upon initial release, the years since have only increased their stature amongst fans of elusive grooves. As evidenced by the six beloved tracks collected on Invisible City Editions’ Street Soul EP, Soul Connection’s addictively simple hooks, punchy mid-tempo rhythms, and forays into breakbeat and house remain as easy to appreciate as ever.
Includes 8-page booklet with an interview from Jeff “Chairman” Mao.
