VA - Black Gold, Samples, Breaks & Rare Grooves From The Chess Records Archives [2016] (2 x CDs)

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VA - Black Gold, Samples, Breaks & Rare Grooves From The Chess Records Archives [2016] (2 x CDs)

Black Gold is a rhythm-forward compilation released by Spectrum Music, a subsidiary of Universal Music Catalogue (UMC). Unlike typical Chess retrospectives that focus on blues and early rock, this set digs into the deep funk, soul, and jazz-inflected grooves that defined the label’s late ’60s and early ’70s output, material that later became foundational for hip-hop sampling and beat culture.

Drawn from Chess and its offshoots, Cadet, Checker, and Argo the compilation features artists like Dorothy Ashby, Rotary Connection, Muddy Waters, and The Soulful Strings, alongside lesser-known acts such as Laura Lee, The Dells, and Phil Upchurch. Many tracks here were originally B-sides, instrumentals, or album cuts that flew under the radar but carried drum breaks, basslines, and textures ripe for sampling. Their rediscovery by producers like J Dilla, Pete Rock, and Madlib helped reframe Chess as a groove-rich archive beyond its marquee blues names.

With clean mastering and minimal overlap, Black Gold serves as both a listening experience and a research tool, documenting the rhythmic DNA of Chess Records in its most sample-worthy form. (B)

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Track lists

CD1

01 Ramsey Lewis - Les Fleur 4:39

02 Marlena Shaw - California Soul 2:58

03 Rotary Connection - Memory Band 3:16

04 Alvin Cash - The Getaway 2:44

05 Muddy Waters - Mannish Boy 3:48

06 The Dells - Funky Breeze / Ghetto Scene 0:45

07 Phil Upchurch - Black Gold 4:38

08 Etta James - Out on The Street Again 4:20

09 Brother Jack McDuff - Theme From Electric Surfboard 5:00

10 Bo Diddley - Bad Moon Rising 2:44

11 Ray Bryant - Up Above The Rock (Single Version) 3:02

12 Sugar Pie DeSanto - Go Go Power 2:57

13 Gene Chandler - In My Body's House 2:42

14 Archie Whitewater - Cross Country 3:20

15 Terry Callier - You Don't Care 5:28

16 John Klemmer - Free Soul 5:18

17 Jimmy Ponder - While My Guitar Gently Weeps 3:45

18 American Gypsy - Inside Out 5:54

19 Dorothy Ashby - The Moving Finger 5:40

20 Ramsey Lewis - Julia 4:24

CD2

01 Rotary Connection; Minnie Riperton - I Am The Black Gold of The Sun 5:41

02 Brother Jack McDuff - Jelly Jam 4:01

03 Etta James; Sugar Pie DeSanto - In The Basement, Pt. 1 (UK Mix) 2:23

04 Andre Williams - Humpin' Bumpin' & Thumping 2:38

05 Eddie Fisher Quintet - Shoo-Be-Doo-Be-Doo-Be-Do-Da-Day 3:37

06 Marlena Shaw - Liberation Conversation 2:02

07 Monk Higgins - The Look of Love 2:47

08 Ramsey Lewis - Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey 3:15

09 Dorothy Ashby - The Windmills of Your Mind 3:20

10 Dells - Fonky Thang, Diamon’ Rang 1:03

11 Pigmeat Markham - Who Got The Number 2:12

12 Odell Brown & The Organ-izers - Think About It 3:16

13 Wayne Cochran - Little Bitty Pretty One 2:21

14 Jo Ann Garrett - Walk on By 5:51

15 Soulful Strings - Chocolate Candy 4:08

16 Bo Diddley - Hit Or Miss 3:43

17 Ray Bryant - Andalusan Nights 4:45

18 Reuben Wilson - Got to Get Your Own (7" Short Edit) 3:22

19 Vibrations - Shake it Up 3:10

20 Shirley Scott - Hanky's Panky (Single Version) 4:46

21 Archie Whitewater - Hulk 1:58

22 Phil Upchurch - Spinning Wheel 3:23

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Music weaves itself into the fabric of our emotions, dances through the corridors of memory, and whispers to the soul of who we are. Sharing these stories deepens the connection, turning the experience into something timeless and profound.

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