95bFM: The Swap Meet

To close out NZ Music Month, The Swap Meet went deep into the local crate for a full show of Aotearoa sounds - new, old, and a few things nobody's heard yet. We had exclusive pre-release listens from some killer upcoming records: The Lahaar, Nathan Haines & The Illusions, The Circling Sun, and a stunning ensemble session featuring Paul Dyne, Julien Dyne, Joe Kaptein, Isaac Aesilli, Lucien Johnson, Ruby Walsh, John Bell, Finn Scholes, and Harrison Choi - music that's due out soon and well worth the wait. Alongside those, the record bag was full of finds from a year of digging through dusty bins - everything from Kevin Field and Clear Path Ensemble to Gold Matter, Leonard Charles, Emcee Lucia, and a few real oddities that don't fit any neat category. Dujon Cullingford took over for a 30-minute mix focused on the yacht rock and AOR side of Aotearoa's 70s and 80s with Malcolm McCallum, Kim Hart, Rock Candy, Merv Owen and friends, all getting their moment.  The rest of the show kept moving through jazz, beats, soul: SPDRTWNBBY live at 95bFM, Alan Broadbent, Louisa Williamson, Wave Infinity Junction live, and closing things out with the Commodores' Cebu: RIP Ronald LaPread.

Campbell's session always comes a week early in May, but it's always worth testing your knowledge and taste to the East Coast's finest. Hour one one digs deep in that smooth soul and boogie pocket, with London flavour running through it, such as Incognito's Latin Project rework of Can't Get Out of My Head alongside Elisabeth Troy and The Cool Notes, that whole mid-80s to early-90s Brit-funk and lovers rock axis. Gwen McCrae's rough mix from '93 is a lovely find, and Dana Andrews reaching back to '76 keeps keeps it classic. Citispeak and David Ganpot both land in that '83 sweet spot where funk was getting slicker and the dancefloor was leaning into what would become boogie. A hip-hop pivot kicks off hour two with The Pete Rock & CL Smooth, before the set opens up into the Latin and African section with Paquito D'Rivera, Ahmed Fakroun's Libyan soul, Sonny Fortune, and a run of late-70s Afro-Latin and hustle 45s that you know are the result of many hours of digging in grubby basements. The final stretch is all connected dots. Two Switch cuts back to back, the Detroit funk royalty, into the deeper soul selections with Ten City, George Duke, and Linx's You're Lying, a blueprint in UK soul. From there Fruit, Sonlight, and Jeroboam keep that warm slightly obscure spiritual funk energy going, and the Tim Gant Project MDZ mix from '98 is a nice nod to how that sound got reprocessed through the late-90s underground. Mr Ngata bringing it home!

This week we had Avondale local SPDRTWNBBY come through the studio for a kōrero - she talks about growing up and coming up in spider town, plays us some of the tracks that shaped her sound, and debuted a brand new song live on air. If you haven't caught her live yet, she's playing Ka Mua Ka Muri Live on 30 May at the Central City Library - free entry, alongside Phoebe Rings, Mokomokai, SPELL, and Cameron Beattie.  We're also celebrating birthdays for Taj Mahal, Amp Fiddler, George Johnson of the Brothers Johnson, and Jaguar Wright - all born on 17 May - and tipping our hat to some big album anniversaries: 50 years Ramsey Lewis's Salongo, and 40 years of RUN-DMC's Raising Hell and Peter Gabriel's So. Big week for the tunes!

​Kirk's back for another solo expedition. This week celebrating 50 years since the release of 'Roy Ayers' - Everybody Loves The Sunshine' album, 45 years for 'Grace Jones' - Nightclubbing' album, marking 13 years since 'Daft Punk's - Random Access Memories' album, 6 years for 'Ebi Soda's - Ugh' album, 1 year since 'Chaos In the CBD's - A Deeper Life' album and a couple of 1986 album's turning 40 this year, 'Bob James' - Obsession' & 'The Gap Band's - 8'.  ​Celebrating these guys birthday's this week: Bryon Loren on the 5th, Philip Bailey (turning 75!) on the 8th, Tania Maria on the 9th, Sly Dunbar & Carleen Anderson on the 10th, Greg Phillinganes (turning 70!) on the 12th, Stevie Wonder on the 13th, Raphael Saadiq (turning 60!) on the 14th so played a song or 2 from each of them.  Plus a New Zealand music month treat with a couple of exclusives from the maestro Nathan Haines' upcoming album. Also It was Mothers Day so played a few jams for the mum's too. Turn it up & enjoy.....

Sunday the 3rd of May was James Brown's birthday - the Godfather would've turned 93 - but rather than trot out the usual JB bangers, we went completely sideways with global covers, reinterpretations and JB-adjacent joints from every corner of the globe: Brazilian jazz-funk, Afrobeat, big band, boogaloo, library music, orchestral easy listening, and everything in between. Enoch Light's lush big band arrangement of "Hot Pants," Dick Hyman's barrelhouse take on "Give It Up or Turnit Loose," ESG's stark post-punk reimagining of "There Was a Time," Albert King cutting "Cold Sweat" from a Delta blues angle, joined by Combo Xingu, Larry Willis, NZ's Quincy Conserve, and the Boogaloo Combo. Kirk held it down through the boogie and soul section with some serious heat, and from there we moved into a deep run of soul, jazz-funk, smooth boogie, and contemporary beats - from Azymuth's cosmic Brazilian groove and Bob James to George Benson, Shakatak, Shalamar, and and exclusive spin of some forthcoming heat from one of NZ music's MVPs: Nathan Haines. The back end got more current with Los Retros, Ego Ella May, Corto Alto, and Shy One's "Nort Wess" choppy electro and grime-inflected mid-range synths released on South London's Touching Bass late last year. We rounded things out with Orgone's deep funk stomp "Hambone" and Alex Nut and Steve Spacek's "Bright." A big spread for a big birthday - happy 93rd, JB!

The Swap Meet is a market-stall sprawl of finds from across the spectrum of black music, where the logic is curatorial rather than chronological. Pass go at the Chicago soul continuum: Jerry Butler's Gamble & Huff productions sitting near Terry Callier's folk-tinged melancholy and Jill Scott's 21st century soul interpretation - alongside the Philly institution of MFSB's "Love Is the Message," one of those eternal records. Rufus and Chaka comes from their mid-70s peak on ABC, Campbell revisits Jhelisa's "Friendly Pressure" part of the '94 Acid Jazz scene (on Dorado) before switching to Brothers Johnson's jazz-funk alongside Spyro Gyra and The Crusaders. Further afield Gilberto Gil's "Maracatu Atômico" and the Aposento Alto gospel cut sit in the same programme as Tapper Zukie's Kingston pressure, Area Code 615's Nashville session-player funk, and a clutch of contemporary releases demonstrate that the search ain't over; sampling Chuck Bynum, The Mighty Tiny & The Many Few, and Glenn Meinecke. The modern soul pocket is well covered: Odyssey, Two Tons of Fun, Steve Parks, the Dianne Reeves track from her pre-Blue Note years.  That's the blurb - now it's time to listen.

RIP Asha Bhosle, HB Bernie Worrell!

RIP Asha Bhosle, HB Bernie Worrell!

Kirk's back for another fix. This week celebrating 50 years since the release of Norman Connors 'You Are My Starship' album, also 40 years since the release of The S.O.S Band's 'Sands Of Time' & Chris Rea's 'On The Beach' albums, plus birthday shout outs to Brenda Russell for the 8th, Jazmine Sullivan & Steve Gadd for the 9th, Louis Johnson & Peabo Bryson for the 13th.  All that & loads more.   

Kirk's back for another fix. This week celebrating 50 years since the release of Norman Connors 'You Are My Starship' album, also 40 years since the release of The S.O.S Band's 'Sands Of Time' & Chris Rea's 'On The Beach' albums, plus birthday shout outs to Brenda Russell for the 8th, Jazmine Sullivan & Steve Gadd for the 9th, Louis Johnson & Peabo Bryson for the 13th.  All that & loads more.   

Last night's show was three hours for James Gadson, one of THE seminal drummers of soul, funk and disco, who left us this week. If you don't know the name, you almost certainly know the unmistakable 16 note accents, deep pocket playing that underpins some of the most beloved soul, funk and R&B records ever made. From the raw funk of Dyke & the Blazers and Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd St Band, through the sophistication of Phyllis Hyman and Patrice Rushen, to Bill Withers' timeless catalogue and D'Angelo proving Gadson's genius translated across generations - every track on last night's show had one thing in common, and that was the man wielding the sticks. Three hours is barely enough time to scratch the surface of what James Gadson contributed to recorded music. A session drummer at the heart of the Los Angeles soul scene, he played on an extraordinary breadth of records, often uncredited, always indispensable. We went deep to tip our hat to a true giant. Rest easy sir.

Last night's show was three hours for James Gadson, one of THE seminal drummers of soul, funk and disco, who left us this week. If you don't know the name, you almost certainly know the unmistakable 16 note accents, deep pocket playing that underpins some of the most beloved soul, funk and R&B records ever made. From the raw funk of Dyke & the Blazers and Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd St Band, through the sophistication of Phyllis Hyman and Patrice Rushen, to Bill Withers' timeless catalogue and D'Angelo proving Gadson's genius translated across generations - every track on last night's show had one thing in common, and that was the man wielding the sticks. Three hours is barely enough time to scratch the surface of what James Gadson contributed to recorded music. A session drummer at the heart of the Los Angeles soul scene, he played on an extraordinary breadth of records, often uncredited, always indispensable. We went deep to tip our hat to a true giant. Rest easy sir.

Last night's show was three hours for James Gadson, one of THE seminal drummers of soul, funk and disco, who left us this week. If you don't know the name, you almost certainly know the unmistakable 16 note accents, deep pocket playing that underpins some of the most beloved soul, funk and R&B records ever made. From the raw funk of Dyke & the Blazers and Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd St Band, through the sophistication of Phyllis Hyman and Patrice Rushen, to Bill Withers' timeless catalogue and D'Angelo proving Gadson's genius translated across generations - every track on last night's show had one thing in common, and that was the man wielding the sticks. Three hours is barely enough time to scratch the surface of what James Gadson contributed to recorded music. A session drummer at the heart of the Los Angeles soul scene, he played on an extraordinary breadth of records, often uncredited, always indispensable. We went deep to tip our hat to a true giant. Rest easy sir.

It's the Tairāwhiti takeover at the Meet today with b-boy Matty B and aural archiologist Cassawarrior joining host Campbell Ngata for essential selects to keep the b airways stocked with all the funky treats you have come to depend on for your Sunday afternoon listening pleasure.

It's the Tairāwhiti takeover at the Meet today with b-boy Matty B and aural archiologist Cassawarrior joining host Campbell Ngata for essential selects to keep the b airways stocked with all the funky treats you have come to depend on for your Sunday afternoon listening pleasure.

Oogun in the area!  This edition of Swap Meet on 95bFM sees Oogun of Drunk Elephant Sound take the controls again. We have to kick off with Seun Kuti & Egypt 80 (as he's just announched a show 30 May at the Auckland Town Hall), celebrate 40 years of Anita Baker's Rapture LP. From there the show journeys through Hammond organ jazz courtesy of Jimmy Smith & Wes Montgomery, the irresistible samba groove of birthday boy Jorge Ben, Zanzibari taarab rhythms from Rashid Makame, and the hypnotic desert blues of DJ Bamanan. Rail Band and Orchestra OK Jazz bring the golden age of Malian and Congolese rumba into the mix, while Ebo Taylor and the Souljazz Orchestra represent the broader Pan-African sweep that runs through the whole set. Oogun also brings original productions - "Version for Version" and "Deep Architecture" teaming with OSC alias  sitting alongside dub selections from Mungo's Hifi, Matty G and Jaffa Sound that give the show its NuZillund reggae tip. We spin Gang Starr to salute Preem's birthday, Ethiopian jazz textures arrive via Zena's "Kazanchis" (Brownswood) and AHC's "Push Me Pull You," and the cosmic soul of Nona Hendryx and Azimuth round things out. Press the button.

Oogun in the area!  This edition of Swap Meet on 95bFM sees Oogun of Drunk Elephant Sound take the controls again. We have to kick off with Seun Kuti & Egypt 80 (as he's just announched a show 30 May at the Auckland Town Hall), celebrate 40 years of Anita Baker's Rapture LP. From there the show journeys through Hammond organ jazz courtesy of Jimmy Smith & Wes Montgomery, the irresistible samba groove of birthday boy Jorge Ben, Zanzibari taarab rhythms from Rashid Makame, and the hypnotic desert blues of DJ Bamanan. Rail Band and Orchestra OK Jazz bring the golden age of Malian and Congolese rumba into the mix, while Ebo Taylor and the Souljazz Orchestra represent the broader Pan-African sweep that runs through the whole set. Oogun also brings original productions - "Version for Version" and "Deep Architecture" teaming with OSC alias  sitting alongside dub selections from Mungo's Hifi, Matty G and Jaffa Sound that give the show its NuZillund reggae tip. We spin Gang Starr to salute Preem's birthday, Ethiopian jazz textures arrive via Zena's "Kazanchis" (Brownswood) and AHC's "Push Me Pull You," and the cosmic soul of Nona Hendryx and Azimuth round things out. Press the button.

This week the Swap Meet opened with recent gear from Benny Sings, Larry June, Moonchild, Mike, DoomCannon, Jenevieve among others. We tipped the hat to Bob Power, the legendary engineer who passed this week, so we marked the occasion with ATCQ and Roots tunes that set the bar. If you don't know what Bob Power did for hip-hop and soul read the internet until you do. From there things got loose in the best way: rare soul, boogie, Gary Clail/On-U, Millie Jackson talking about her fireplace, afrobeat cuts, hip-house, and a stretch of late-night Philly and Detroit flavours via Vikter Duplaix and Wajeed. Laura Nyro supplied the dollar bin jam from her Golden Jubilee minted record "Smile", Gladys Knight, and Kurt Elling with the WDR Big Band sending everyone home feeling like they'd been somewhere worth going. Good show. Glad you're listening back - big up yourself.

This week the Swap Meet opened with recent gear from Benny Sings, Larry June, Moonchild, Mike, DoomCannon, Jenevieve among others. We tipped the hat to Bob Power, the legendary engineer who passed this week, so we marked the occasion with ATCQ and Roots tunes that set the bar. If you don't know what Bob Power did for hip-hop and soul read the internet until you do. From there things got loose in the best way: rare soul, boogie, Gary Clail/On-U, Millie Jackson talking about her fireplace, afrobeat cuts, hip-house, and a stretch of late-night Philly and Detroit flavours via Vikter Duplaix and Wajeed. Laura Nyro supplied the dollar bin jam from her Golden Jubilee minted record "Smile", Gladys Knight, and Kurt Elling with the WDR Big Band sending everyone home feeling like they'd been somewhere worth going. Good show. Glad you're listening back - big up yourself.

Sunday the first of March: J & K are back on deck for The Swap Meet. Turns out it was a good day to be born - Oliver Sain, Willie Mitchell, Norman Connors and Harry Belafonte all blew out candles on this date, so naturally we pay our respects. We also took a moment to celebrate some fifty-year anniversaries: Dr Tree's landmark New Zealand fusion record, the Ohio Players' Contradiction, and Kool & The Gang's Love & Understanding all turning half a century old still killing. And we said farewell to Willie Colón, the South Bronx trombone legend who helped build salsa into what it is, gone this week at 75. Fresh music from Mark de Clive-Lowe, Andrea Lombardini, Tommaso Cappelato and Larry June inside the jam too, alongside the usual gear for the weekly rummage. Press the button.

This week on the show Mr Campbell Ngata takes to the booth with dusty fingers and a crick in his neck after a serious dig through the Real Groovy sale bins. Expect a prime stack of low-cost, high-quality heat - soul, gospel, fusion, disco rap, boogie and jazz, all served up on crackly wax.

RIP Ebo Taylor! We have Isaac Tucker Drummer and DJ pops by to spin us some inspirations, and some tunes from his band Spektrum, including unreleased material. Expect Brazilian, Trini, Disco killers and much more.

Kirk's back again with another mixed bag. This time celebrating the birthdays of Al Johnson, Anderson .Paak, J Dilla, Geraldine Hunt, Major Harris, Leon Haywood & Lenny Williams. 40 year anniversaries of album releases from Nu Shooz, Princess, Gwen Guthrie, Lenny Williams & Toney Lee. All that & loads more. Turn it up & enjoy.   

This week in the stack we celebrate birthdays of Joe Sample and Rick James. RIP Sly Dunbar. It's forty years since Janet Jackson's Control dropped, so that's in the mix too... Otherwise it's the usual - papering over the cracks between Brazilian boogie, Turkish psych, bit of Latin, jazz-funk, soul, whatever else made sense at the time. Three hours from the crates as usual.

Tairāwhiti in your area, bringing you what you need at the Swap Meet today! Helmed by Campbell Ngata who always brings the rare, raw and ridiculously funky, and accompanied by Cassawarrior who this week shifts his focus to the Ethiopian crates - expect the vibes to be lumpy and mesmerising, and the vocals to be otherworldly, and you left wanting more. Press the button!

Sorry for the bCast delay! This week's show was helmed by Jubt with special guest OoGuN of Drunk Elephant Sound in tow. Tunes ranged from spiritual jazz, central african electrified thumb piano, West African highlife, Syrian dance floor bangers, and heavy UK dub pressure to boot. You know what it is: from gospel, jazz fusion, or cooking it up with of Nigerian and Ghanaian music from the golden age, not to mention OoGuN's own goodies to join the mernagerie of Italian library bits, a Latin twist, something for the Deadheads, and a UK digi rarity that settles all arguments about who's the baddest. Press the button whynot?!

​Kirk's back for his last show of the year. Celebrating a few birthdays this time by playing songs from: Grover Washington, Jr. (12th Dec), Modaji (17th Dec), Angie Stone (18th Dec), Lenny White (19th Dec), Yvonne Gage (20th Dec), Betty Wright (21st Dec), Gwen McCrae (21st Dec), Esther Phillips (23rd Dec), Eugene Record (23rd Dec), Merry Clayton (25th Dec).  Also sadly marking the passing this year of: Gwen McCrae (Died 21st Feb), Angie Stone (Died 1st March), Malcolm-Jamal Warner (Died 20th July) & most recently Carl Carlton (Died 14th Dec) so played 3 favourites from him.  Starting slower, ending faster. Spanning from 1970's, 1980's, 1990's, 2000's, 2010's, 2020's right up until 2025. Turn it up & enjoy!   

Tonight we spin some 2025 favourites alongside a couple to mark the passing of legendary guitarists Phil Upcharch and Steve Cropper. We are joined in the studio by Dusty Crates.

Welcome to our latest dig with K&J are back with another three hours of global funk, soul, and rhythm that spans four decades and about as many continents. This week's selections run from Karriem Riggins' jazz-inflected collaboration with GENA and Liv.e on "Circlesz" to the sunbaked Braziliana of Vania Bastos and Chico De Abreu, with detours through Tokyo city pop courtesy of Kaoru Akimoto's "Wagamama na high heels" and some proper Nigerian funk from Mannix Okonkwo. Whether it's the yachty sophistication of Hamish Stuart's "Midnight Rush" or the raw energy of Goat's "Ouroboros," every track here earned its spot through one criterion: prone to induce ear-worm infestations. Press play on this bcast for the full experience: from which pressing of Ramsey Lewis you need to hunt down to the scene that birthed Jimmy Salcedo's Colombian psychedelia. Forty tracks that prove the best funk has no borders, and a universal visa!

It's your funkle Campbell back again with silly season selections to soothe the sore head after too many [insert cheapest beverage work can get away with paying you] at the work Xmas party. Soul, jazz, tropical and disco nuggets to help you forget!

This week on the show, our guest Jonathan Bywater turns up with a crate that demonstrates he'll follow musical inspiration wherever it happens to be hiding, genres be damned. One moment he's floating through The Midnight Express Show Band's "Tri-Fire" boogie demo or the globe-trotting boom-bap of Chillin' Villains, the next he's swerving into Cash Money Millionaires like it's still 2000 and everyone's wearing unbelievably large denim. Then he returns to the roots: Vernon Garrett preaching, U.S. Warren doing tough-love blues, even Kahil El'Zabar's deep-water ritualism sits comfortably next to Cooper-Moore and Hamid Drake's shimmering “Five Angels by the Stream.” Then we're heavy loungin' with Enoch Light's "Shaft" and some private press business courtesy of the Randon Bros, before jettin' south to break out the claves and acordion for Conjunto Miramar's Columbian Cumbia heater "Carruseles", Nuyorican swinger Ricardo Ray and other latin treats. Enjoy

RIP to the great Jack @DeJohnetteMusic - we spin a couple for him including Miles electric, solo gears and sideman material. A decent swath of new material (@Antibalas, @Peyton, Salimata, Natalie Slade, @svenwundermusic, Droogie Otis @YourOldDroog @madlib, and vintage faves in the mix today. Slip slop and slap it on.

This week's showcomes to you courtesy of 1/3rd of tuneful triumverate Campbell, broadcasting from his Tairāwhiti bolt hole on the East Coast. Cambo delivers three hours of soul, funk, jazz, and assorted grooves, drawing on his well-stocked collection to put together a mix that spans decades and styles. Campbell covers plenty of ground across the episode, moving between jazz-funk, soul ballads, disco, and international sounds from Brazil, Africa, and beyond. Dig this!

This week on The Swap Meet, we're joined by Leon D, probably the busiest DJ in town. His selections were the perfect soundtrack to a warm Auckland evening — from Theo Parrish's rework of Jill Scott's “Slowly Surely” to the Stepney classic “I Am the Black Gold of the Sun”, Barry White, Metro Area and ESG, tracing a line through dusty disco, boogie and proto-house. Earlier, a quiet salute to D'Angelo: deep cuts like “Really Love” (Questlove leak), RH Factor's “I'll Stay”, and Don-E's “So Cold”. Leon closes with Moodymann, Recloose, and his own “Your Love” — love and lost groove intact.

Kirk's back at it again & playing some of his scores from 'The Other Crate' record fair. This week a few birthday tributes including Pharoah Sanders, Curtis Hairston, Rod Temperton & Cherrelle. Also some 40 year old records from Tania Maria, The B. B. & Q. Band, The RAH Band. Turn it up & enjoy.