Taana Gardner
Intro
Taana Gardner recorded for West End some of the most beautiful disco gems from late 70's featuring terrific mixes by Larry Levan. Her Heartbeat sold over 100,000 copies in one week and has been one of the most sampled track through its landmark intro and incredible breakbeat -the staple of Larry Levan's sound- that became favorites of Hip Hop deejays and producers.
Profile
Female disco artist recorded on the New York West End label in the late 70's and early 80's. A lot of her material was written by Kenton Nix, who was a producer on 'Sound of NYC Records and West End records
A Profile
Taana grew up singing Mozart and Verdi because her grandma was an opera singer though she never went to church because her mother was hippy. On thanksgiving day 1978, a friend of hers calls and tells that the singer scheduled to record "work that body" was sick, so she went straight ahead to NYC and recorded the track.
Heartbeat is one of the most sampled track in the history and sold 100.000 copies in NYC after only 1 week. 20 years after, Taana Gardner is coming back with a new EP on West End Records produced by K. Nix and mixed by Nicky Siano. It is in Morales and Humphries' playlists (It's in Vidal's consideration a good track with an oldschool house/garage feeling). - Info from French magazine Remix
Here Comes The Hotstepper (1994) - Ini Kamoze
Contains the sampled bassline of "Heartbeat" by Taana Gardner.Selected Discography
- Wes 22116 West End Taana Gardner Work That Body 1979 12"
- Wes 22122 West End Taana Gardner When You Touch Me 1979 12"
- Larry Levan remix!
- Wes 22132 West End Taana Gardner Heartbeat 12"
- ??????? West End Taana Gardner No Frills 12"
- Wes 22130/Kenix (Bobby Young)/There's Never Been/1979
- WE 107 Taana Gardner Is Fabulous/(1979)/LP
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includes a special mix (7:16) of "work your body" by larry levan and kenton
nix, a mix by larry levan of "paradise express" (6:18), a song about the
paradise garage and a mix by Larry Levan of "when you touch me" (10:36) vserfaty@club-internet.fr (Vidal Serfaty)
Masters At Work presents West End Records
Track Listings Disc: 1 1. When You Touch Me [MAW Re-edit] (Taana Gardner) 2. Taana Gardner / Billy Nichols Loop (mix break) 3. Heartbeat (Taana Gardner) 4. Ride on the Rhythm [MAW Remix] (Mahogany ) 5. You Can’t Have Your Cake & Eat It Too (Brenda Taylor ) 6. Just In Time (Raw Silk) 7. Raw Silk / Michele Loop (mix break) 8. Keep On Dancin’ (Phase II) (Forrrce) 9. Time (Stone) 10. Let’s Go Dancin’ [MAW Remix] (Sparque) 11. Is it All Over my Face [MAW Remix] (Loose Joints) 12. Loose Joints / Karen Young Loop + Intro (mix break) 13. Hot Shot (Karen Young) Disc: 2 1. When You Touch Me [MAW Re-edit] (Taana Gardner) 2. Taana Gardner / Billy Nichols Loop (mix break) 3. Give Your Body Up to the Music [MAW RMX] (Billy Nichols) 4. Kind of Life (Kind of Love) [MAW Remix] (North End) 5. Work That Body (Taana Gardner)
In celebration of West End Record’s 25th Anniversary, the label is proud to announce the release of Masters at Work presents: West End Records (the 25th Anniversary Edition Mastermix). This spectacular package encompasses twenty-one West End Records classics hand-selected and presented in a continuous DJ-mix on a two-CD set (one downtempo, one uptempo) by the revered production team, Masters at Work ("Little Louie" Vega and Kenny "Dope" Gonzalez).
Not only are the tracks mixed together by MAW, but also eight of those twenty-one tracks will have been especially re-edited or re-mixed and re-E.Q.’d by the duo exclusively for this compilation! These special versions will be available in the mix on CD and as individual tracks only on the companion vinyl edition—and nowhere else, available at DJ/dance/vinyl shops worldwide.