Aux pies nus Cesaria walked away.

Cesaria Evora was one of a kind. She made popular all around the world a music and a place - Cabo Verde - that, if it was not for her, could still be ignored by the most.
Her voice was velvet, her songs were always in an unstable balance between sadness and joy, between Africa and Europe. Between.
And she was that kind of woman that without being a beauty could capture eyes and ears and stand on a stage keeping the audience in her hands, in her soft modulations and breaths.
She was a queen on bare foots. Aux pies nus she always went on the stage and like that, discreet, she went away. Have a nice trip, queen Evora. This is a little tribute.

The original:


The remix:
ROTW # 07 - Cesaria Evora - Petit Pays - (2002 - 20syl RMX) by 20syl

The interview:
Sarah Linhares interview with Cesaria Evora by Sarah Linhares

Lennon, better than ever.

Everybody's been honoring John Lennon in the anniversary of his death (8 december 1980). I'm a little late in this celebration and I must confess that I didn't have particularly deep feelings about this tribute. I'm not a fan of Beatles and if I had to choose I'd go for George Harrison, without a doubt.
But, I can't deny that Lennon represents a mile stone of music of all times, but I am still critical about his idolization. So, here I am trying to find new ways to keep Lennon's name alive without being obvious or boring.
I found some good reasons for this post looking in SoundCloud...

Imagine-a-jump-john-lennon-vs.-van-halen by jackstanleywp
Imagine that? Really? I don't know if van Halen would be pleased to hear this one, but I surely am.

John Lennon vs. Jay Z - Sweet And Sour (B.Chen Mashup) by B.Chen
A little less unprobable, but still surprising. This mashup actually works. And maybe the two of them would be pleased this time.

WORKING CLASS HERO (my tribute to John Lennon) by MariSela MuSik
I am always cautious when it comes to Lennon covers. Most of the time they're way too mellifluous and I can't go over the first minute. Not this time. This one is absolutely beautiful. MariSela is on my fav list from now on.

Fold - Happy Chocolate (feat. John Lennon & Nina Simone) by fold
This is more a beautiful speech than a song. But I like the way it sounds and I think that pairing Lennon and Nina Simone is a very good idea. The base line is also very cool.

One sting, two sting, many bite!

When I was a little more than a child I had two (alright, maybe three) great loves: one was Prince. I loved him unconditionally, whatever he was doing. The other one was Sting. He was in the second place just because he was a little too blond and a little too british to be my first. But like many first love-s they didn't stop. Here I am, still in love with them (now I'm more focused on the music though). So, here are some different ways to make Police/Sting classics still perfectly alive. I was just a little surprise that with so many cool tracks they produced there are just few of them used for mashing and remixing. Roxanne's on the top... come on guys!

An unexpected version of this song. I really hadn't consider an englishman with umbrella and dubstep beats. Warning: It's contagious.
Sting - Englishman In New York (Free bootleg) by kator

Now two versions of the superclassic Roxanne. We heard it all, and still can't forget the tango version of Moulin Rouge. But still there's plenty of space to work on. My 3yrs old daughter was dancing and jumping to these two, so it should work for everybody.
LeeDM101 - Roxanne's Tainted Fly (The Police / Soft Cell / Miley Cyrus (?!)) by LeeDM101

Put On The RedLight ( Police vs Coldplay ) Dj Lobsterdust by Mixes and Mashups #2

Finally, one of the most played and danced bass lines ever ever. Walking on the moon. This is maybe a little too ambient to my taste, but I think it wasn't bad to chill out a bit.
The Police - Walking on The Moon (sageone remix feat Hannah Fogel) by sageone

Who moves like Jagger?

This is one of those tunes that gets in your mind easily and never gets out, even if you hate it. Let's say it, this track of Maroon 5 will never be a classic. But surely is one of the songs that everyone this summer sang once in the shower. And it seems that almost everyone in SoundCloud community fell into it.
These are my favs:

Maroon 5 feat. Christina Aguilera - Moves Like Jagger [Davide Lama Re-Edit] by Davide Lama
Davide Lama (Naples, Italy), takes out of this track the acid and funky flavour and makes it sound quite irresistible. Surely better than the original. Bravo Davide!

Maroon 5 - Moves Like Jagger ft. Christina Aguilera (ЯETRO Bootleg) by ЯETRO
Different vibe, more relax and chill, by a russian DJ in Idaho. Cool track.

Maroon 5 feat. Christina Aguilera - Moves Like Jagger (Merk Hard remix) by MerkOfficial
Staying in Italy, Milan, same track totally different story. This is kinda "boom boom" rendition, but with cool rhythms changes and breaks. Has its own charm and seems to like a lot.

Maroon 5 Ft. Christina Aguilera - Moves Like Jagger (Ashworth IV Remix) by AshworthIV
And this is the NYC style taking over. Electric and a little acid. Good beats, makes you move and that's all that counts.

The Soul & the Fela

What do you think could happen if you mix the afrobeat of Fela Kuti with the soulness of De La Soul?
This happens:



This album is a joy for the ears. Is the demonstration that mashing up is not just a copy&paste job. Is about imagination and creating something new from something that has its own life. It's kind of magic.
Amerigo is very good in mashing things. And this album is free. Totally a download must. And you don't want to miss the previous albums.

Miles around

With this post I open a new section dedicated to revisiting the classics of music history. I thought it could be interesting because sometimes we tend to think that some figures are kind of untouchable, but actually they're not. On the contrary I think that the best music is the music that you can keep using, modifying and modeling and still remains great. I also thought that one of the best example in music history of this concept of music "plastic" was Miles Davis.

 The rendition:

The remix:

The mashup:
Miles Davis remixes by ethanhein

Time to Re-Otis

If Jay-Z and Kanye West make a tribute to Otis Redding is kind of inevitable there'll be a big fall out. A lot of musicians, artists, djs and so on are rethinking one of the biggest ones and that's good for us. Because there's nothing wrong in revisiting, remixing, re-editing music like Redding's. That music will just never die. Not easy to make it better, just different. And different's good enough.

Hard to Handle - Otis Redding (Hawk Edits re-edit) by Jackmaster Hawk
The real thing. Re-edited, and done pretty well!

Otis feat. Otis Redding by watchthethrone
Amd this is the Jay/West idea. Absolutely not a bad idea.

Otis Redding - (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction (scratchandsniff re-rub) by scratchandsniff
Is there anybody who doesn't know this one? No way. Another good re-edited version.

Dj Czech Vs Otis "Hard to Handle" by Dj Czech
This tune comes from unsuspicious times... maybe JayZ or Kanye heard it?

Jill's back in da house!

Jill Scott is one of the best female voices of our generation. She sounds so soulful, and funky, not only great voice, but excellent writer. She kind of disappeared for a while. But she's back and she's totally at her best! Check out two of her tracks directly on her Soundcloud page and, if you have always liked her, take a journey on some different versions of her hits.

Jill Scott "Golden" (Grant Nelson Remix) by Grant Nelson

JIll Scott - He Loves Me (Qalvrs Lost Love Remix) 320kbps (FINAL Unmastered) by qalvr

Jill Scott & Anthony Hamilton - So in Love (Sounds of Soul Rework) by SOS Remix

Jill Scott – Honey Molasses (bydesign edit) by bydesign

How to roll with Adele

I like Adele's voice. But I must admit that I can't listen to more than two tracks without getting bored. Then I found that Rolling in the deep is one of the most mixed&mashed songs of the year and that surfing through the different versions was absolutely fun. I chose five of the best tunes but if you don't get tired you could spend an entire night rolling in different levels of deep.

Adele vs Swamburger - Rolling in the Sun Vibes (Jimi Needles Light Night Cocktail) by Jimi Needles
This is the coolest version I found and - judging by the number of the comments - I'm not the only one. The funky bass line is just irresistible and perfectly mashed with the melodic line. Great work!

ADELE Vs JAMIROQUAI - WHEN YOU GONNA LEARN TO ROLL (110 BPM @daftbeatles MASHUP) by DAFT BEATLES
Funky and acid version. Perfectly mashed, precise bpms and tuning, astonishing melted. I don't exactly understand the logic of 1:50 sounds but it's ok, just personal taste.

Adele vs. Mashup Allstars - Rolling in the Deep (Platten-Karton's Moombahton Edit) by Platten-Karton
This one was totally unlikely. I mean, if somebody told me I would've said noo way. But... here it is. And in its original, unconventional way, it works!

Madonna vs. Adele - Holiday In The Deep (Stelmix 4' Mashup ROUGH EDIT) by MixmstrStel
I think that Adele is definetely an 80's singer. So what's wrong in mashin her up with Madonna? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

Adele vs Will Smith (WKF Mashup) by WKF Productions
Bonus track: I couldn't resist. No comments, just step on your feet and pump the volume up! Black suit, please.

Bye Amy.

I come late. But here I am, extremely sad. I hope her soul keeps singing somewhere around here. Bye Amy.

Great tribute, with beautiful versions of Amy's hits.

Amy, Amy, Amy! by Doc Tv on Mixcloud

Stronger Than Me (Flatline Remix) - Amy Winehouse RIP by Flatline London
Dubstep version of the most popular songs she sang. Moving and kind of melancholic.

"Back To Frank" Funky DL samples Amy Winehouse [click "buy this set" to download for FREE!!] by funkydl
This is a hip hop version of the whole Frank album. It's been made in unsuspicious times and I think it sounds extremely good. If you want to download, it's free.

Amy Winehouse - Stronger Than Me (Daims Moombahsoul Edit) by DAIMS&CHRISUPREME
Another version of Stronger than me, totally different. Good vibe, cool beat, I would just kill that ah-uh thing... anyway, I like it.

Sliding The Doors

Fourty years have passed but the legend stays. Was Jim Morrison the only secret for The Doors success? Maybe. But their music is still around and apparently here to stay fourty more.
I don't want to be kind of blasphem but I have to admit that I totally prefer some of the new versions on the original ones. When it comes to Seventy's music I stick to Hendrix & co. Morrison? ok, but...

The Doors - Riders on the Storm (Alex Justino & Renato Borges remix) by Alex Justino
Riders on the storm is the most mixed&mashed Doors song. It kinda fit everywhere and anyway. This house version is hot!

Mashup-Germany - Ante up to the other side by MashupGermany
Let's take away some drama around the whole Doors thing! This mashup is irresistible, fresh and funny altogether.

Jim Morrison and Chali 2na - We are stoned by Dr.Goon
For Morrison fans, this is a beautiful tribute with a cool base. Dance and listen.

Riders On the Storm-THE Doors remix by Rowman by ROWMAN
Another extremely cool version of The Storm. Nice sounds, perfect bpms.

Black love me two times (El Bosso Bootleg) - The Doors vs Goose & The Bloody Beetroots by El Bosso DJ
Bonus track! Rock and electronics for this wild remix. I couldn't leave it out of this post ;)

Prince and his court.

I've always loved Prince. I was in my early teens when I started listening to him and I never stopped. He's a genius of our times. Capable of changing, adapting, exploring without losing his identity. You can say it's a Prince tune just after the first three notes. This can happen only with the big ones.
And here are some fresh versions of my favourite songs.

Prince - If I was your girlfriend (Leo's Detroit remix) by leonidas
Leonidas is terrific in this tune! He preserved the original sexy vibe and gave it an irresistible dance feeling. Too cool.

Alex Clare - When Doves Cry by Alex Clare
Making a Prince cover is not an easy thing. But this is really really good. There's not emulation intent here, just a great voice and a beat that makes you move even if you don't want to. Bravo Alex!

PRINCE VS DJ HOOKS VS OLD SCHOOL(DJ HOOKS OLD SCHOOL MASH UP) by DJ HOOKS

Two mashups of the same tune. Kiss, one of the most popular, most played, most covered. Mashed up like that is twice the pleasure.

MTV Mash 2009 - Sexy Kiss Machine (James Brown vs Prince) by Rock_Mashups

Eventually I couldn't help to include here one of my favourite songs in one of my favourite versions. If you don't know it yet, you gonna love it.

Gaga Pride, day after.

Not that I like Lady Gaga, just to be clear. But, come on, it's almost impossible not to notice her! So, I live in Rome, and yesterday the city was invaded by people, gay or not, and part of them were surely there to see Gaga on stage. I did.
I still don't like her. So today I thought that maybe I could find some different way to sound Gaga and make her better. Did I succeed? Still don't know.

Lady Gaga - LoveGame Tune In Crew Remix by TuneInCrew
Original remix made one year ago, but I find it's far more beautiful than the original song. Love the sticks ;)

Lady Gaga - Bad Romance (Hedorah RMX) by Hedorah
I like dubstep, and when I tried to listen to the Gaga version of this song I didn't go over the first 15 secs. This one... another story.

You know i'm no gaga (ft. amy winehouse & lady gaga) by DJ RED i (r&b mash-ups)
Gaga and Winehouse, could you believe it? Well, misteriously it works.

Madonna vs. Lady GaGa - Express Yourself This Way by Undercurrent_Bootleg
This is kinda obvious... Two pop queens, fashion stars, sex icons, all mashed-up. This shot was easy, but somehow enjoyable.

Jamaica rules: SeanPaul & Rihanna

Maybe it's this summertime sky, maybe the colour of the beach I see out of my windows. I feel like I need caribbean sounds, and I remembered Sean Paul and how much I danced on Shake that thing. Remember that? Now Rihanna comes out with the new Man Down thing...
And that's what djs out there think about them:

Dreadsquad & Sean Paul - Temperature Screw Dem (Da Vibz Remaker Mashup) Free Download Link by Dreadsquad
Syncopated mashup for bikini parties! Listen with a mojito or piña colada in your hands and sunscreen on your skin.

More Rude Boy (Stelmix vs. RedOne Jimmy Joker 3' Mashup ROUGH EDIT) by MixmstrStel
Rude Boy as you didn't hear it. And Usher... if you missed that touch.

Beyonce ft Sean Paul Vs Missy Elliott - Supa Dupa Baby Boy (Robin Skouteris) by Mixes and Mashups #10
I love the way Skouteris works with tracks. He always manage to take out of popular tunes something totally new and irresistible. Try to stay still while listening...

Rihanna vs Laura Branigan - Pon De Replay (Rock_80's Dance Mix\Mashup) Dj's Elbarto & Liam B. by Mixes and Mashups #2
Everytime I see Rihanna I can't help to think about the 80's. And after I heard this...

So Fine Ft Sean Paul (Engine-EarZ Experiment Remix) by Engine-EarZ Experiment
This is a "bonus track". I always pick 4 choices, but could I leave this one behind?

With New York in mind

Maybe 'cause I don't see NY since... a lot. Maybe 'cause I really love this song and I listened to it so many times but never got tired of it. I wanted to find out what can possibly become an almost perfect tune when it's mix&mashed. And, I love it even more now!

I'd like to open this post with a magic remix I found on SoundCloud, but even if there's no embed code, I don't want you miss it anyway. Please click on it, it's exagerated:
EMPIRE STATE OF MIND- KARSH KALE FEELIN LIKE A CHAMPION MIX 1.0


Empire State Of Mind (The Big Apple Mix) (2009) by MashMike
A number of tunes dedicated to the BigApple are in this mix. Really nice.

Empire State of Mind - DuBL-G Inertia Mix by DJ DuBL G
Can you imagine Alicia Keys and Massive Attack on the same scene? Now we can.

Kasha - London State of Mind - Empire State of Mind Remix by VividImagery
Did you think that the Royal mics could cope with the NY thing? No way, there's so much London to sing and rap about. And sounds bloody good.

Happy Birthday Mr.Dylan!

Some people just don't grow old. Think about Jagger, Sting... Dylan! Today mr Dylan turns 70, which is quite impressive because I always think of him as the man under a big hair-bush with an harmonica and a guitar, and not exactly as grandpa.
So I thought that celebrating such a personality is almost mandatory, and I decided to make it my way, diggin'out something that reminds of Dylan, but it's not Dylan.
Ok, I think you understand...

Capítulo 11: Covers para Dylan by Oloop on Mixcloud

This Mixtape is a mad collection of Dylan's covers. There's something for every taste. From the classic of the classics Hendrix version of All along the Watchtower to the delirious My Back Pages by Ramones. An hour and a half of Dylan-not-Dylan.

When I thought of remixing Dylan I just shook my head: impossible. Wrong:

Bob Dylan - Masters of War (scntfc remix) by scientificamerican
This is a very good remix of an extremely beautiful tune. It really works!

Bear McCreary - All Along the Watchtower {INRVISN RMX} by {INRVISN}
And this is a remix of a remix... If you saw Battlestar Galactica you must remember the psychedelic version of All along the Watchtower of the last episode. That one was a Bear McCreary creation. Simply great. This one is possibly better.

What Portishead could possibly be

I was in a trip-hop mood today so I thought about Portishead and how much I loved their first albums. I think I listened to them thousand times and never got tired. And when music is so good is also somewhat fertile, and can give birth to something that you couldn't imagine and still surprise you. These mashups I found, they're simply amazing.

Adele / Portishead / B.O.B./ John Legend - Deep & Sour (Robin Skouteris Mix) by Robin Skouteris
This is a masterwork of mashups. There are something like 6 tracks mixed up, all someway recognizable and all perfectly blended.

Massive Attack vs Portishead - Teardrop on Roads (Mashed by Jaya Prime) by Jaya Prime
Two sacred monsters of music mashed up so well that seem to be born together.

Portishead - Over (Dubstep Refix) Dub & Run 016 by habstrakt
How could anybody resist to a dubstep remake of the tune Over? It's even more trip-hop than the original...

Celebrating Mr. Marley

A special post to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the death of the king of reggae and the ambassador of the Rastafarian philosophy Bob Marley.
While the star system is releasing tribute albums, preparing big events and doin' his star system job, the independent music world is not far behind. Best said, is far ahead. I chose some works dedicated to this great figure, not caring about the anniversary, but just about the music.

The mixtape #3
Bob Marley & sons together in one compilation of 29 tracks, more than an hour of classics.

Bob Marley Masterpiece by Retro Reggae on Mixcloud

The albums


This actually is a tribute album , with no big names but very very cool and original versions of the most popular Marley tunes from an independent label based in Chicago.



This album is entirely made of mashups between Marley, Hendrix and Notorious BIG. Think it's crazy? Maybe it is, but sounds damn good!

The remix&mashups

So many tracks I found... but I made a choice and these are simply impossible to miss.

Bob Marley - Exodus (HavocNdeeD RemiX) by HavocNdeeDsounD

Bob Marley - Sun is shining (Red House remix) by Red House

Nas vs Bob Marley - One Love (DJ Wax On Remix) by djwaxon

Covers and mashups: Sadeism

The smooth and incredibly graceful voice of Sade has been almost a symbol of 80-90's. Now she's back, right now in tour in Europe.
Obviously she's also a massive presence in covers and mashups, and mixtapes all around the music net. These are just a little, personal selection.

Sade - Smooth Operator - Leon DeeJay Aegean Sunset Mix by leonidas deejay

Jezebel (2010 REMIX) produced by EZ by EZ AKA MRMREMPIRE

Red Light District - No Ordinary Love (Sade cover) by fdaallday

Celebs like the Net: Ludacris

If you're familiar with myspace maybe you know the operation "Hijack", started by Black Eyed Peas and followed by a bunch of music and screen celebrities.
This time I'd like to spotlight Ludacris page, with a lot of stuff: tracks, videos, links, pictures...

Couldn't help to complete this with a supa-funk Ludacris mashup.

Ludacris & Big Pun Feat Chicago-Street Player-Relative Funk Remix by Relative Funk SoundSystem