ONENESS OF JUJU AFRICAN RHYTHMS 1970-1982
We are very happy to announce that Strut kick off a brand new deal with the seminal independent black jazz and soul label Black Fire Records with ‘African Rhythms 1970-1982’,
a comprehensive 2CD / 3LP compilation of Oneness Of Juju, led by Plunky J. Branch.

3LP
A1 Oneness Of Juju - African Rhythms (Album Version) 7.19
A2 Oneness Of Juju - Follow Me 5.02
A3 Oneness Of Juju – Nooky 4.37
B1 Oneness Of Juju – River Luv Rite 8.06
B2 Roach Om – No Name #3 / Love Is… / My Nigger & Me 4.29
B3 Juju – Nairobi / Chants 6.32
C1 Oneness Of Juju – Chants / Don’T Give Up 6.58
C2 Oneness Of Juju – Be About The Future 5.14
C3 Juju & The Space Rangers – Got To Be Right On It (Original 45 Version) 5.21
D1 Oneness Of Juju – Space Jungle Funk 9.39
D2 Oneness Of Juju – West Wind (Previously Unreleased) 7.40
E1 Juju & The Space Rangers – Plastic (Original 45 Version) 6.10
E2 Plunky & Oneness Of Juju – Every Way But Loose (Original Version) 6.41
E3 Okyerema Asante Feat. Plunky – Sabi (Black Fire Mix) 6.23
F1 Okyerema Asante Feat. Plunky – Asante Sana 6.35
F2 Oneness Of Juju – Bootsie’S Lament (Unreleased Version) 11.09

3LP IN SINGLE SLEEVE WITH 4PP 12”-SIZED BOOKLET
Strut kick off a brand new deal with the seminal independent black jazz and soul label Black Fire in May with ‘African Rhythms 1970-1982’, a comprehensive 2CD / 3LP compilation of Oneness Of Juju, led by Plunky J. Branch. Tracing their career from the band’s earliest work in 1970 with South African exiled jazzman Ndikho Xaba in San Francisco, the compilation covers the band’s journey to New York’s loft jazz scene, forming Juju and releasing two landmark albums of hard-hitting percussive jazz on Strata-East. “I saw myself as a cultural warrior,” explains Plunky. “We studied about Africa and tried to infuse our music with an African spirit.” Moving back to his hometown of Richmond, Virginia during the mid-‘70s, Plunky drew in a superb new group of musicians and vocalists and created the band’s new incarnation, Oneness Of Juju, retaining the African influence but fusing his sound with funk and R’n’B on the classic ‘African Rhythms’ album. “We realised that, if we put a backbeat to the Afro-Cuban rhythms, people in Richmond and Washington D.C. could be drawn into it; it didn’t change anything about our message.” The change would lead to a series of enduring soul-jazz classics on Jimmy Gray’s Black Fire label, including ‘River Luv Rite’, ‘Plastic’ and ‘Don’t Give Up’ and their biggest crossover international hit, ‘Every Way But Loose’ in 1982, later famously remixed by Larry Levan. The band received renewed interest in their music during the mid-‘80s as Washington D.C.’s go-go innovators cited the band as a major influence and rare groove DJs revived their albums for London dancefloors. ‘African Rhythms 1970-1982’ reprises a compilation released on Strut in 2001 and is newly remastered by Frank Merritt at The Carvery. Both formats feature a 12” sized 4pp booklet featuring rare photos and a comprehensive interview with Plunky Branch within liner notes by Chris Menist.

KEY POINTS:
• First album in Black Fire catalogue reissue programme by Strut in coming years
• Definitive compilation of influential band’s career, spanning 1970-1982. Reissue of Strut compilation from 2001
• Includes full band biography and interview with bandleader Plunky Branch by Chris Menist + rare photos
• Fully remastered by The Carvery. Vinyl pressed at DADC.

FOR FANS OF:
Roy Ayers, Pharoah Sanders, Sun Ra, Weldon Irvine, New Rotary Connection, Okyerema Asante, Norman Connors, Lonnie Liston Smith, Brian Jackson, Gil Scott Heron, Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids, Maze, Gary Bartz

WEB LINKS
www.strut-records.com