Celebrating Frankie Knuckles

In this program we celebrate Frankie Knuckles aka The Godfather of House music who left us for the big dance party in the sky beyond the velvet clouds.  House music was coined as a new genre that formulated with Frankie Knuckles legendary sets at the Warehouse in Chicago. The street where the club once resided was named Frankie Knuckles Way, through a motion brought to the state legislator by Senator Barack Obama. Basically, House music comes out of the post Disco era as sampling technology, automation, and programming with occasional live instrumentation and/or vocals. As House established itself in the global electronic dance world, a multitude of sub-genres emerged including techno, hard house, progressive house, deep house, tech house, acid house, hip house and many more including the latest rising from the underground EDM of Euro house.  

Jeannie Hopper, an active player of over 20 years with this community, brings this special mix to give a taste of the legacy of productions and remixes Frankie Knuckles created. The journey starts with Tribute featured on Frankie’s first full length album Welcome to the Real World where Frankie pays homage to his close dear friend Larry Levan who made history as the resident DJ of the Paradise Garage (big block party May 11th on King Street btwn Varick & Hudson, not to be missed, free) and you’ll hear What Am I Missing from the same album. Other original productions you will hear that are legendary Frankie Knuckles classics include Tears produced with Satoshi Tomeii featuring vocals by Robert Owens,  The Whistle Song produced with Eric Kupper and the seminal sounds from Traxx Chicago with the very dirty/sexy Baby Wants to Ride.  Also, you will hear several classic remixes including Chaka Khan’s Aint’ Nobody, Michael Jackson’s Rock With You, Chante Moore’s This Time, and Sounds of Blackness's The Pressure featuring the vocals of Ann Nesby. In addition, the latest releases under the moniker Directors Cut where Frankie Knuckles and Eric Kupper focus on the classic sound of soulful vocal big floor house giving Joe Smooth’s We Gotta Love featuring Paris Brightledge a incredibly uplifting positive ‘arms in the air, spirit fingers’ effect.  And a little homage to what most consider the House Music Anthem by Marshall Jefferson actually entitled Move Your Body on Traxx.

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