Cymande – The Message from the Janus Records 45

Good midweek to the FleaMarket Funk family. I hoped you all enjoyed the Soulful tribute I gave to my father, I mean if it wasn’t for the man, well, there would be no FMF. Thanks Pop. I just want to give a shout out to Deano at Mood Mosaic, who’s been a big supporter of this blog. Also, whoever made me a featured blog of the day on WordPress the other day, I love you. At any rate, it’s my birthday on Friday, and I’m spending it spinning some records in Brooklyn. I’ll be in the DJ lineup at The Lucky Cat , opening up for The Budos Band on June 22nd. There will be some great DJs involved, Nick Cope (of Hot, Funky, and Sweaty Fame) and Honey Dripper, (the Daptone Records DJ). Props to Sport Casual for putting me on the roster. The doors are at 10, and there is tell of some great drinks, good pizza, and of course a lot of good music. This time around, I’m gonna get selfish and talk about a record that I really enjoy, so please bear with me if you know it. In fact, I’m sure most of you know it, their catalog was reissued in the 90’s, and a whole new audience was exposed to them. They have been covered by the likes of Greyboy and by various funk bands who still carry on the tradition of their sound. The band is Cymande with “The Message” on Janus Records. I first was exposed to this record in the 90’s by my fine DJing partner of 10 years DJ Un-G . He turned me on to their first record (which I got for 25 cents, and consequently turned down a MINTY copy for $5, I’m still kicking myself for it), and from that day on, I was a fan. I believe it was “Bra” that caught my ear, but there is a lot more than that rediscovered funk gem unearthed oh so many moons ago in the early stages of my DJing.

Janus Records, a subsidiary of the Chess record label, put out a lot of different artists. They released sides by Demon Fuzz, Minnie Ripperton, Al Stewart, soundtracks like “The Devil In miss Jones”, and novelty records as such as “The Streak” by Ray Stevens. For me, most of the artists on the label, sans Demon Fuzz, did not have a sound like Cymande. As a matter of fact, not many did at the time. The year this 45 was released, 1972, you had a lot of good music going on: Rock, Jazz, Soul, Psychedelic, Reggae and Funk. Cymande fused all of these sounds. They called it Nyah-Rock, a mixture of Funk, Soul, Reggae, Rhythm & Blues, and African rhythms. The band itself hailed from such places as Guyana, St. Vincent, and Jamaica, which can easily explain the core roots and influences of the band’s sound. They did form and record it in the UK, however. The sounds coming from those previously mentioned regions are all about the drum. From ancient times up until now, the basis of the music has alway been and will continue to be all about the drum. This basic drum beat was a major contribution to their unique sound, which the remaining members (of the 9 original) did not reap the benefits of until some 20 odd years later. This sound echoes throughout “The Message”, from the opening beat until the end. What falls in between is what only can be described as genius for the time. A Hippie/ Rasta mentality that was evident in their music. The message, IMHO is about where this music can take you: “Together/ Before We Go/ Forever/ Like It Was Before/ Remember You’ve Been Told/ Together We Can Go.” Whether it’s to a higher astral plane (yeah I just quoted “Deamweaver” by Gary Wright) or state of that Cymande’s music gets your mind in, and for 1972, it could have been in many places. The infectious bass groove coupled with the Reggae horns, the drums (which have been sampled many times, and always include some African percussion), and an almost Ethiopiques style horn solo make this record a keeper. It’s one of my favorite tunes. It flows naturally, and whoever rediscovered this band and got them back into the public ear, deserves a medal. This is what music is all about people. The fusion of culture, rhythms, and the diverse sounds from all over coming together via the West Indies and recording this heavy sounding fusion (because that’s really what it is, a fusion of different genres of music) side. They have three Lps in total, plus a couple of reissue CDs , such as Renegades of Funk, which is a retrospective of the three records. I’ve heard Cymande referred to as the “the most under rated overly sampled band” before, and I can agree. Thank God for that, not only did they finally start to get paid after all these years, but their music reached places they never did back in the early 70’s. So there’s my selfish early birthday pick for myself. It’s a tune that defines what I’m all about here at FMF, open ears, open styles, and nothing but good music. If you’re in or around Williamsburg Brooklyn on Friday night, the show is only $5, and it will be a helluva a good time. You can also see me spinning Rock, Funk, Punk, Soul and Classic Hip Hop at the Paul Green School of Rock Festival on Sunday June 24th. Keep Diggin’!

**For those interested a bit more on the band, Funk Brother Numero Uno at Funky 16 Corners did a review on “Bra” in January of this past year.