Death Mix Live

Album Review

Thanks to Paul Winley, one of rap's earliest label entrepreneurs, countless DJs over the years have been influenced by one of the more seminal mix records ever released. Winley put it out, originally in 1983, on his eponymous label. The audio quality is primitive beyond belief — the scratching sounds close to static — but it shows Bambaataa and DJ Jazzy Jay in all their early glory, mixing beats by everyone from Grandmaster Flash to Yellow Magic Orchestra, periodically grabbing the mic to lead the crowd, and displaying just how they shepherded the sound of electro into old-school. If the audio-quality caveats aren't enough — and it's so bad that Bambaataa reportedly left Winley's label for releasing it — then add to it the fact that this is definitely a mix for the dancers. The beats are looped for minutes at a time on most tracks, and every A-side gets its B-side with an instrumental version. Its historical importance is priceless, but otherwise old-school fans might want to skip it. The original 20-minute "Death Mix Live" has appeared several times on LP and CD, sometimes with related tracks from Cosmic Force and Soul Sonic Force.