In episode #144 of The XS Noize Podcast, Mark Millar meets Andrew Levy and Simon Bartholomew from The Brand New Heavies to discuss ‘Never Stop… The Best Of’ – their new compilation and thirty-five years of the band.
The band will celebrate the release with three special concerts in London, Manchester and Birmingham, accompanied by strings from the London Concert Orchestra.
Pioneers of London’s burgeoning Acid Jazz scene of the early ’90s, The Brand New Heavies, took their love of sophisticated ’70s funk grooves, gave it a modern twist and enjoyed substantial global success and an ongoing influence to this day. The band was formed in 1985 by guitarist Simon Bartholomew, bassist /keyboardist Andrew Levy, and drummer/vocalist Jason Kincaid, powering through the ’90s with extraordinary vocalists and collaborators such as N’Dea Davenport, Siedah Garrett and Carleen Anderson.
In this interview, Andrew and Simon talk about the band’s early days, the new compilation, the live shows and lots more. Listen to episode #144 of The XS Noize Podcast with The Brand New Heavies – BELOW:
Previous XS Noize Podcast guests have been John Lydon, Matt Goss, Billy Nomates, Tom Meighan, Toyah Wilcox, Midge Ure, Travis, New Order, The Killers, Tito Jackson, Simple Minds, Divine Comedy, Shaun Ryder, Gary Numan, Sleaford Mods, Nik Kershaw.
Listen via YouTube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSS – Find The XS Noize Music Podcast’s complete Archive of episodes here.
Never Stop….The Best Of includes all their UK hit singles plus their US singles “Brother Sister”, “Mind Trips”, “You Can Do It”, and “Bonafied Funk”, taken from their groundbreaking 1992 album ‘Heavy Rhyme Experience Vol 1’, which set a blueprint for fusing hip hop to live RnB grooves as well as introducing the world to (then) rap newcomers including The Pharcyde and Gang Starr.
The CD version of Never Stop….The Best Of also includes an additional bonus disc of remixes from dance music titans such as Masters At Work, Dimitri From Paris and Roger Sanchez, as well as a percolating new remix of “Stay This Way” by Bob Sinclar.
This November, The Brand New Heavies will celebrate ‘Never Stop… The Best Of’ with three special concerts featuring strings from the London Concert Orchestra:
Thursday 9th November – London, Barbican Hall
Saturday 11th November – Birmingham, Symphony Hall
Thursday 16th November – Manchester, The Bridgewater Hall
Get Tickets here.
For both longtime listeners and new fans, Never Stop… The Best Of is an essential guide to one of UK music’s most enduring success stories, a band whose uplifting music has introduced generations to legitimately crafted soul music with a modern punch. Pre-order ‘Never Stop… The Best of’ here.
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