Patrice Rushen - You Remind Me (The Classic Elektra Recordings 1978-1984) [Strut]

Format: 3x12".

Tracklist:

A1 MUSIC OF THE EARTH
A2 LET’S SING A SONG OF LOVE
A3 WHEN I FOUND YOU

B1 HAVEN’T YOU HEARD (12" VERSION)
B2 GIVIN’ IT UP IS GIVIN’ UP with DJ Rogers

C1 FORGET ME NOTS (12” version)
C2 LOOK UP! (Long version)
C3 WHERE THERE IS LOVE

D1 NEVER GONNA GIVE YOU UP (WON’T LET YOU BE) (Long version)
D2 NUMBER ONE (12” version)

E1 ALL WE NEED
E2 REMIND ME (LP version)
E3 SETTLE FOR MY LOVE

F1 FEELS SO REAL (WON’T LET GO) (12” version)
F2 TO EACH HIS OWN

Strut presents the first definitive retrospective of one of the iconic figures of 70s and 80s soul, jazz and disco: Patrice Rushen, covering her unparalleled six-year career with Elektra / Asylum, from 1978 to 1984.

Having released three albums on the jazz label Prestige, Patrice joined Elektra after demonstrating her prodigious talent from an early age, having broken onto the scene by winning a competition to perform at the Monterey Jazz Festival in 1972. By the time she recorded the music included in this collection, she was already a prolific and in-demand session musician and arranger on the West Coast, participating in over 80 recordings by other artists. She joined the Elektra / Asylum roster in 1978, when the label was launching a pop and jazz division alongside visionaries such as Donald Byrd and Grover Washington, Jr. “The idea was to create music suitable for commercial radio and R&B,” Patrice explains. “We were all essentially making sophisticated dance music.”

Backed by some of Los Angeles’ most prominent musicians, such as saxophonist Gerald Albright, drummer “Ndugu” Chancler and bassist Freddie Washington, and with an open mind thanks to her background in classical music, jazz and soundtrack composition, Patrice’s musical proposal differed in its complexity from many soul artists of the time. “Musicians in Los Angeles were not as tied to tradition,” she comments. “None of us were accustomed to limitation and the record label let us go our own way.”

Early tracks like Music Of The Earth and Let’s Sing A Song Of Love were among her first forays as a lead vocalist, before she released her 1979 album Pizzazz, which included the unmistakable disco sound of Haven’t You Heard and one of her best ballads, Settle For My Love. “Ballads make you feel more vulnerable as an artist because they are often personal, but I think listeners identify with that sincerity,” she reflects. By then, Patrice’s records were meticulously arranged and produced, reflecting her growth as a songwriter, producer, arranger and performer. The dance anthem Never Gonna Give You Up and the 1980 album Posh paved the way for her masterpiece, Straight From The Heart, released two years later.

Lacking support from her record label, Patrice and her production team personally financed the promotional campaign for her first single, Forget Me Nots. The song reached number 23 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the album was Grammy-nominated, while the track became a timeless classic and one of the most popular samples in sampling history, inspiring Will Smith’s theme for Men In Black and George Michael’s Fastlove.

Her final album with Elektra, Now, kept the bar high with minimalist, synth-led tracks like Feel So Real and To Each His Own, closing a golden era in her career that continues to be revered by soul and disco fans worldwide.

Remind Me brings together for the first time on one album all of Patrice Rushen’s charting singles, 12” extended versions and most sampled tracks. The release is available in 3LP and 1CD formats, both fully remastered by The Carvery from the original tapes. It also includes an exclusive interview with Patrice Rushen and unreleased photographs.