We’re big fans of Green Velvet (aka Cajmere, aka Curtis Jones) here at 909originals – just the right blend of insanity and genius, if you ask us – and the Chicago native has been a mainstay of the house and techno scene for more than 25 years.
But his love of electronica dates back yet further, to his college years at the University of Illinois and UC-Berkeley – he had just departed the latter when his breakthrough single, It’s Time for the Percolator, hit the dance charts.
Velvet reportedly takes his inspiration from artists such as David Bowie, Kraftwerk, Gary Numan, and Nitzer Ebb, among others, and is also an avowed supporter of Italo Disco, that hybridised genre that emerged from the disco and new wave scenes in the early 80s.
So much so, that he’s put together an awesome Italo Disco playlist (65 tracks!) on Spotify, including classics such as Divine’s Native Love, Fun Fun’s Happy Station, Doctor’s Cat’s Feel The Drive, and smatterings of Giorgio Moroder, Yello, DAF, Alexander Robotnick and others.
“After Disco and before Chicago House there was Italo Disco,” as the man himself puts it. “Giorgio Moroder is the father of this sound. Enjoy these delicious 80s jams that most Chicago DJs used to play during that era…plus some surprises.”
It’s also the perfect tonic for that long drive to work on a cold January morning, trust us…
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