Coldcut's Jon More Shares His Influences
Jon More, One half of Coldcut and Ninja Tune co-founder recently spoke to The Ransom Note about influences from their time and formative years.
FELA KUTI AND THE AFRICA '70 - ROFOROFO FIGHT
It was 1973 I was 16 years old & already spending far to much money on records. I would go shopping in Oxford at Sunshine Records in Little Clarendon Street - One of the best record shops in the area. I walked in one day & Fela Kuti & The Africa 70 album - Roforofo Fight was playing. That was it I was sold - When the brass kicks in its goosebumps time…. I still love this record & my rather battered vinyl copy gets a run out on regular occasions…. I played this at a club in London’s Carnaby Street in the mid eighties… The manager came storming over to the Dj Booth ripped the needle from the record & chucked me out…. I knew then that this revolutionary music will always win….. Matt & I would play the whole 15 minute version on Solid Steel blasting it out at top volume in the studio…. I managed to see Fela play live in various incarnations - always a stunning experience - An imperfect man who created perfectly imperfect music We miss you Fela
DAS KABINETT DES DOKTOR CALIGARI 1920 HD
I was very lucky going to Art College in the mid 70’s - The corporate thinking introduced by the Thatcher Government had yet to kick in, we had a very broad education which including being introduced to this amazing German expressionist film. Some say it was the first horror movie… certainly a long way from the Hammer House Of Horror playing at the local fleapit…. Its best to watch this in a damp ridden attic after your grant has been spent & your dissertation is a week late… Worth checking Bill Nelsons early 80’s re imagining of the soundtrack as well.
CIVIL LIBERTIES ORGREAVE 1984 MINERS STRIKE
My introduction to “the powers that be”…. This & the CND demonstrations was an introduction to the right wing Tory political mentality that is now the everyday norm… I supported the Miners buying The Enemy Within – Support The Miners 12inch. Going to see first hand the police brutality on the picket line…. Collecting Leeds postcards & support the miners badges. This TV programme in its gentile telling of the erosion of civil liberties is so British…. A shout from history to wake up & fight for your freedom……
RAMONES - JUDY IS A PUNK
I heard the Ramones for the first time when buying records at Rough Trade…. What can you say about this - Classic Pop music distilled into perfect vignettes of sound. I was a member of Friars Club in Aylesbury a legendary venue that hosted so many incredible bands. I will never forget the mayhem that greeted the Ramones as they took the stage… Being a bit of a fan I hung around after the gig to get the band to sign a fanzine that I had… Still have a rather faded A4 sheet with all the bands signatures…. Not sure if it was the New York otherness or the moody leather jackets or just the pure energy of their music that got me….
THE CELLULOID RECORDS STORY (PART 1 OF 2)
An eclectic label that was my introduction to cross genre experimentation… I bought as many records as I could find on the Label. Truly a case of joining the dots & tracing the connections… Bill Laswell, Futura 2000, The Clash, The Last Poets.. So many crazy tunes its impossible to pick a favourite - If I was forced - then its Fab Five Freddy Change The Beat - Ending up one of the most sampled/scratched records - Ah this stuff is really fresh… a short vocoder vocal at the very end of the beside version… Matt & I used this on our remix of Eric B & Rakim Paid In Full…
DOUBLE DEE AND STEINSKI LESSON.1
Matt & I bonded over this record… Super hard to find in the Uk it was a template for our first record Say Kids… Douglas DiFranco & Steve Stein created this mix for a competition that Tommy Boy records was holding… Blowing away all the competition the editing & inventive playful use of breaks & spoken word is a masterclass in musical collage… created before the days of digital sampling a proper handcrafted gem with out which maybe Coldcut might not be Coldcut.
ATARI 1040 ST - ATARI ST VS MACINTOSH COMPUTERS - ATARI ST TV COMMERCIAL - ATARI COMPUTERS
Press M - For Music….this little box was truly the bomb - press the button marked start… Both Music & Graphics were possible - or running a nuclear power plant - maybe just chill & play Pac Man… Matt made some incredible graphics on this machine… We made some of our early tunes using an Atari 1040 & C lab creator… Easy to use, unlike the mac this had midi & a useful amount of memory…
FUNK
Funk you either got it or you aint going to get it… The basis of sampling, hip hop & turntablism Here is a playlist of some real scorchers old & new… I remember discovering James Brown & working back from there to find the illicit groove - perfect for warehouse parties & the foundation of the Rare groove scene in the 80’s…. When spinning 45’s in a dirty sweat dripping club its where I want to be….
