AZULI PRESENTS : JOHN DIGWEED-CHOICE A COLLECTION OF CLASSICS

Released 21 March (On Azuli Records. Distributed via Stomp Australia wide)
Continuing the 'Choice' theme and following on from highly respected albums by Frankie Knuckles, Francois K, Danny Tenaglia, Derrick Carter, Louie Vega, Jeff Mills, John Digweed now jumps on board with Azuli Records, to let us see his inspirations, influences and all time loves from his extensive record collection. To grasp the future you need to understand the past.



The concept is a simple one, but the results are so filled with textures, stories, moods and memories that it immediately becomes much more about character than concepts, much more about documenting a development than capturing a part of time. As you would expect from some of the worlds finest DJs these compilations are filled with classics and rarities, huge anthems and wild obscurities all presented with the Midas touch that made their owner famous. It is almost like a musical interview that is conducted with some of the best hindsight in the business.

For many fans of John Digweed this collection will look back through time, past the point where their current understanding of him reaches, beyond the touch of fame and the spark of celebrity. It stretches back to a more innocent musical time, long before he achieved most of his international recognition and global success. It goes back prior to the days when he began to be defined as much by his success as by his unique talents. This mix is much more a 'collection of favourites' than it is any attempt at a history of those times, though in many ways it functions as both. It covers much territory and tells several stories at once: the story of each individual track, a story of those times, the story of the mix and the story of a DJ. From his very early days in Hastings, England as the son of a butcher to the far reaches of the known world John Digweed has slowly and carefully mapped out a trajectory for his life that would bring him ever closer to the thing he truly loved: Music.

From his very early days in Hastings, England as the son of a butcher to the far reaches of the known world John Digweed has slowly and carefully mapped out a trajectory for his life that would bring him ever closer and closer to the thing he truly loved: music. At the age of 12 he was introduced to Martin Wong, a much older friend who also worked in his father's butcher shop. In the evenings Martin was a dancer at Saturdays, the best nightclub in Hastings. The sound system at Saturdays was designed by Keith Hardy, who had been influenced by Richard Long (The Paradise Garage). Martin brought in mix tapes (by local DJ Terry Johns), heavy on funk and soul and then eventually showed Digweed how to mix two records, sometimes even with a cassette tape of sound effects over top of the mix. He listened regularly to the early 80's Kiss FM mixes from New York and Tony Prince's DMC show on Radio Luxembourg. After getting no support in his dreams to become a dj from The Careers Office at school, he quit. His father put pressure on him to get a trade so he signed up for electronics. Not feeling that this was right for him either he quietly walked out during his first day of college, never looking back.

He got a day job delivering electronic goods, which gave him the opportunity to meet employees of the clubs in Hastings. Longing to spin at Saturdays he slowly worked his way up through the club ranks, using innovative methods to create chances and opportunities. Barry Page was the resident dj at Saturdays and Digweed was his disciple. In time Digweed developed his own style of playing dub mixes. It was this distinct playing style that helped get him his first opportunity to play at Saturdays. He played well enough to be given a regular spot in the line-up. Though he still worked a day job preparing the bar at The Crypt he would take a short break in the afternoons and then DJ all night. At least he was finally on the payroll of a clu Tags

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