VA
Verve Remixed 3

The Verve Remix series has carved out a niche in the electronic music scene, providing many current producers with the almost limitless sample and song library of the seminal jazz record label. On the third installment, a whole new cast of artists take on the challenge of crafting songs that do justice to the original artists while including the personality and sound of the remixers. So, let’s see the lineup. Original artists on this 3rd installment include several of the divas of jazz, including Billie Holiday, Nina Simone, Sarah Vaughan, and Astrud Gilberto. The remixers are a diverse cast, ranging from the indie/electro Postal Service, to the breakbeats of Adam Freeland, to the eclectic techno of Detroit’s Carl Craig.

As with most compilations, some of the tracks hit and some miss. One of the high points of the album come on RJD2’s seductive jazzy hip-hop remix of Astrud Gilberto’s “The Gentle Rain”. Lyrics Born’s remix of Jimmy Smith’s “Stay Loose” is a rawkus uptempo breakbeat jam, complete with funky horns and screamin keyboards. Carl Craig twists Hugh Masekala’s “The Boy’s Doin It”into a mellow yet jazzy minimal Detroit techno jem. There were a few misses on Verve Remixed 3. The Postal Service’s remix of Nina Simone, and the cringe-worthy Max Sedgley remix of the track ‘Peter Gunn’ are unfortunate low points, on an otherwise solid edition of the Verve Remixed series. -- Ben Frans