Mixed by Bradford James & E-Man

Photo by Joe’s Nyc

New in the Radio Archive
SESSION 1484: VOICE OF VOICE 05.09.13 – Ali Coleman

Session of the Day
SESSION 15: Halcyon 12.07.07 – Anthony Parasole

Mixed by Ali Coleman

01. Ramsey Lewis – Sun Goddess
02. Ten City – Deep Kiss
03. Ten City – She’s All That And More
04. Donner Summer – Spring Affair (Afternoon OCD Edit)
05. R Kelly – test
06. Vibrations of the Motherland (Seed Recordings)
07. George Llanes – Foxy Lady
08. Ali Coleman – Nirah & Eliah’s Song
09. ZuluMafia feat. Zethu – echo Our Dream (Ta-Ice Dubstrumental)
10. Barbara Tucker – Beautiful People (The Underground Network Mix)
11. The Supremes – Introductions Live
12. Machine – Marisa
13. Dynasty – I Don’t Wanna Be A Freak
14. Gwen Guthrie – Seventh Heaven
15. Labelle – What Can I do For You
16. Powerline – Double Journey
17. Ten City – Midnight
18. Ten City – You’ll Never Know Lonely
19. Mena Keys – Forever And A Day
20. Jamiroquai – Space Clav

Photo from  Streetsy

New in the Radio Archive
SESSION 1483: GLOBALSESSION 05.03.13 ITALY – Luka Bernaskone

Session of the Day
SESSION 1331: FUNKY SLICE 06.03.12 – Matt Brownell

New in the Video
REAL SCENES NEW YORK 2013

New in the Interviews
A1 RECORD SHOP NEWYORK CITY – Jay Delon

Mixed by Luka Bernaskone

By Words: Ethan Holben Photo: Francesca Tamse (XLR8R)

In advance of this Saturday’s Record Store Day happenings around the globe, XLR8R has put together a week-long series of features devoted to taking a closer look at some of our favorite record-selling outlets from around the world. Check out the entire series here.

In 1996, New York City’s East Village (which was then simply called the Lower East Side) was a much different place than it is today. What’s now one of the most desirable neighborhoods in the Big Apple, an area stuffed with high-rise condos, exorbitantly priced cocktail lounges, and an inordinate number of sports bars, was then a neighborhood on the edge. Marijuana was being sold out of bodegas, heroin addicts occupied the benches and bathrooms of Tompkins Square Park, and cab drivers would sometimes refuse to even take people there. This was the East Village where bookstore owner and flea-market vendor Isaac Kosman opened a new kind of record store, which he named A-1.

Some 17 years later, hundreds of record stores have both opened and closed in America, but A-1 is still standing—and thriving. “It’s Darwinism,” says store elder Jay Delon, who humbly refers to himself as the “senior guy,” despite clearly leading the staff. “We try to adapt, and not be purists, and stay curious about what people are into.” A-1 keeps things simple, which is surely part of the reason it’s become one of the best-curated record stores in the US. Originally envisioned as both a store for collectors and an alternative to the overpriced classical- and rock-oriented stores in New York’s West Village, A-1 quickly became one of the top destinations in the United States, or perhaps even the world, for jazz, soul, and rare grooves. Producers like Gangstarr’s DJ Premier, Pete Rock, The Alchemist, and Masters at Work were early regulars, buying stacks of obscure records for sampling and use in their own productions, which DJs were in turn buying and playing as soon they were released. Over time, A-1 continued to evolve, expanding its racks to include hip-hop, rock, disco, boogie, house, and techno. With each addition, A-1′s importance to NY’s music scene only grew, a notion that legendary rare-groove DJ Amir (a.k.a. Amir Abdullah, of Kon & Amir, and owner of the reissue label 180 Proof), lays out in more detail. “Hip-Hop owes a lot to A-1 Records,” he says. “Everyone from Lord Finesse to Midi Mafia shopped there and made some of their classic tunes from records they bought there.”
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Photo by Joe’s Nyc

New in the Radio Archive
SESSION 1482: GLOBALSESSION 05.03.13 ITALY – Federico Bianchi
SESSION 1481: GLOBALSESSION 04.30.13 ITALY – Luka Bernaskone

Session of the Day
SESSION 1388: RECORDEX 08.26.12 – Donald Lassiter

New in the Video
REAL SCENES NEW YORK 2013