''The Brand New Heavies'' is the debut album by British acid jazz and

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

group

The Brand New Heavies The Brand New Heavies is an acid jazz and funk group formed in 1985 in Ealing in west London. Centered around songwriters/multi-instrumentalists Simon Bartholomew and Andrew Levy, the core members of the group since its founding, Brand New H ...

Original release (UK only)

After signing with Acid Jazz, the band released "People Get Ready" as a vinyl single backed with "Gimme One Of Those". Their next release, in 1990, was the single "Dream Come True" featuring Jay Williamson, then known as Jay Ella Ruth, on vocals. The same year, the band released their self-titled debut on

Acid Jazz Records Acid Jazz Records is a record label based in East London formed by Gilles Peterson and Eddie Piller in 1987. The label is the namesake of the acid-jazz subgenre of jazz music for which it is most famously known for producing. Background The la ...

in a largely instrumental version. An expanded edition of this version of the album was released through BGP Records in 2007, featuring tracks previously included on “Original Flava”.

Track listing

North American version

The 1991 US release of ''The Brand New Heavies'' on Delicious Vinyl Records reached #17 on the Billboard R&B Album charts. The release brought the band to prominence with the success of the singles "Never Stop" and "Dream Come True." The former of the two reached #3 on the US Billboard R&B singles chart. Much of their success was due in part to singer

N'Dea Davenport N'Dea Davenport (born September 22, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer and producer. She was the lead vocalist in the UK acid jazz band the Brand New Heavies and made pioneering contributions to the genre of acid jazz. Career Her ...

's charismatic vocal performance and stage presence. Davenport's version of "Stay This Way" was also released as a single and reached #19 on the Billboard R&B Singles chart.

Track listing

Re-release (International version)

In 1992 the album was released in Europe and re-released in the UK. This version of the album is a modified version of the US version, likewise with N'Dea Davenport on vocals. It opens with a new, long mix of "Dream Come True". The Heavies' own remixes of "Stay This Way" and "Ride In The Sky" replace the US versions. The David Morales remix of "Never Stop", taken from the US single, is also included. The remix was released as single also in Europe on Acid Jazz, during the transition the Heavies moved from Acid Jazz to FFRR. The first fully FFRR Heavies release was "Ultimate Trunk Funk - The EP", with the same Morales mix of "Never Stop" as the lead track. Though the instrumental "Shake Down" is left off, this version adds a cover of the 1978

Philly soul Philadelphia soul, sometimes called Philly soul, the Philadelphia sound, Phillysound, or The Sound of Philadelphia TSOP, is a genre of late 1960s–1970s soul music characterized by funk influences and lush instrumental arrangements, often featu ...

gem by

Jean Carne Jean Carn, also spelled Jean Carne (born Sarah Jean Perkins; March 15, 1947) is an American jazz and pop singer. In mid career, she added a final ''e'' to her name. Carn is a vocalist credited with a five octave vocal range. Biography Carn was ...

,Information taken from biography in the liner notes of Trunk Funk Classics 1991-2000, written by Andy Bailey. "Don't Let It Go To Your Head", also released as single in Europe. A new version of the Heavies' debut single "Got To Give" with new vocals by Davenport and Jan Kincaid closes the album. Though N'Dea was not originally a member of the group, by the time of this 1992 re-release she was shown on the cover of the album with the band and her own feature credit.

Track listing

Personnel

The Brand New Heavies *Simon Bartholomew – guitar, vocals *

(1991) – vocals *Lascelles Gordon (1991) – percussion, guitar *Jan Kincaid – drums, keyboards *Jay Ella Ruth (1990) – vocals *Andrew Levy – bass, keyboards, writer & producer *Jim Wellman (1991) – tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, keyboards

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brand New Heavies The Brand New Heavies albums 1990 debut albums Acid Jazz Records albums