Things kick off with the Opium mix of "Talking With Myself", which dates back to 1988 and the track’s first outing as a single. Ostensibly it’s a dub mix, with TB-303 burbling, a few exotic samples, and the mandatory delays. The Pinopella mix of "Heading for the Night" wasn’t released until 2021, when lead singer Billie Ray Martin dusted down the thirty-year-old master tapes and issued six different remixes the record company had refused to put out when they were made. These old Frankie Knuckles remixes have a rough, lo-fi quality and sound as if his tape machine was having a mild wobble, complete with a slightly unsettling pitch drift.
"Diamond Dove" has always been a favourite of mine, and the shelved 7-inch version included here is tougher and more stripped back. I like its drive, but I do miss some of the poppier touches from the album version. The Larry Heard remix of "Tell Me When The Fever Ended", closing out side one, has a tremendous bassline and the electric piano sits beautifully. However, ever since I first heard this mix back in 1990, the snare has always struck me as a bit too prominent, like it’s wandered in from a different tune and decided to make itself comfortable.
Side two carries one of my favourite Electribe 101 remixes, the Corporate Def Mix of the single "You’re Walking". David Morales lets sly TR-909 hi-hats tick away under Billie’s soulful vocal, while the incessant bassline propels everything along with the single-minded determination of someone late for the last train. Next up is another shelved 7-inch version of an album track, "Lipstick on My Lover". Chopping two minutes off it doesn’t really do it any favours and, as a deep house track with minimal concessions to pop, it was never likely to get radio play anyway. Still, its inclusion is a nice nod for completists (and the rest of us who like owning alternate versions we’ll insist are essential).
Proceedings wrap up with the strangely titled Lambada version of "Talking With Myself". An edited version of this track appeared on the band’s debut album (as “Talking 2”), so I’m not entirely sure why it’s included here, beyond the gentle thrill of repetition for collectors and record labels alike.
As a GZ Media coloured vinyl pressing, this record comes with plenty of extra crackle courtesy of dust and debris, and cleaning only improves matters slightly. There’s deep bass, but the overall sound isn’t the best. As with many pressings from the Czech Republic, the inner sleeve is about four microns thick, so the vinyl cuts through it like a hot knife through butter. I like this record, but it’s probably only for the initiated (or the stubborn, which is much the same thing). 3.5/5
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