It is infrequent that an album is defined by its’ last track. Consequently, it is frequent that I deny my bias towards homeboy Dee Jays of my ilk, and yet here we are welcoming home one of the best. I used to hear “mis-ter veeeee” drops inside of radio club dance mixes on the major NYC radio stations back in the 1990s. Little did I know about him or his connection to the original “V”, Louie Vega! Victor Font is a disciple of Louie Vega, who helps to “Welcome Home” [Vega Records 02VEG05] his protégé. This CD contains grains of big hood city jamz, and y’all out there in the ‘burbs will feel it too.
Upon first listen I was slightly annoyed by the time I got to the eighth cut because of all of that “rough talk” in my ear’s background. Then I realized that here “V” has tried to touch all bases in a way that only a worldly native New Yorker can – with a classic spirit of inclusion via the music. A true late 1970s DJ philosophy that I, for one, can still embrace as it has proved that some of us were ahead of our time; I’m just sayin’ spontaneity isn’t dead yet!
“On Da Grind”, track two, is a version of a hot club dance track of this year. The next cut , “Da Bump” recalls the late seventies group Central Line stylistically with added “munchkin” voice by Mr V himself!; play number four and “Bring Your Rhythm” LL Cool J-style. Get jazzy on “It’s Broke” cut five, and on the next track, “Somethin(wit Jazz)”. I love the hilarious Red Foxx impression and lead-in to a jam that bounces Al Hudson and the Partners-style from back in the day. Then he goes worldly as we land in the Carribean with “Wind Ya Body (featuring Joe Barz and Leah Beabout – who sounds like Li’l Kim or suntin’) with this attempted ragga music with noticeable Latin flava.
Keyboards on track twelve are banging, and I feel it is this track which defines the album and brings the news of the day and our human condition because the lyrics address political issues. We need more of this in these times when we are getting less from our singers and their music videos. “Make Peace” is the most relevant song here. Akin to the protest music of the Vietnam and Black Civil Rights era of the 1960s and ‘70s, listen closely to the words as this is “save the children”-style music, and a house groove that we should happily mix into our club sets, and radio programmers should be bold enough to attract progressive sponsors by playing, as is much of this whole album.
Entertaining and amusing at times, even the choice of a loose leaf page with his 10 year old son’s printing on it for the cover art understates the musical presentation. Having said that, I’m not sure how much play this will get outside of or even in metro NYC, but I hope I’m wrong; bless Mr. V with three-and-a-half wagon stars.
