Mix of the Day

We found this one on Mixcloud.   We have to say that we were impressed.   Enjoy!  http://www.mixcloud.com/machinedrum/footwerk-classixxx-da-ravenge/

Classic Juke Songs: How would you rate them?

What would be your Top Ten Juke songs of all time?  How about your Top Ten Ghetto tracks?

It is the opinion of this blog that one of the best ever examples of Juke would be the classic track "Bounce" by DJ Clent.  With so many people claiming to be The King of this and that it is hard to find true talent in this genre.  We tried to find a clean recording of the track but this homemade video was the best we could find for now.  We will be posting a Top Ten Juke tracks of all time soon and we would like your help with that list.  Please submit your nominations to PlanetJuke (at) gmail.com.  Results will be posted soon.

Juke on vinyl

Recently we received word that the label Ghettophiles was ending production.  Now for those of you that are new to the business there was a time when Ghetto House and Juke was actually on wax.  In its heyday Ghetto had a home on labels like Dance Mania Records, Freakmode Records and Universal Funk to name a few which led to other labels outside of US distribution.  Now you may say "in the modern world of digital sales it doesn't matter that the label is gone."  Well what the wax labels gave us was a filter.  They filtered what was released and by whom.  Nowadays it's just everything under the sun being put out by everyone you can think of.  The good stuff gets lost with the garbage.  It's kind of like how every swinging dick has a mixtape with all his shit on it.  The good and the bad with no filter.  That is what the labels did for us.  The filtered who and what came out.  So Rest in Peace to the label Ghettophiles.  That is one more stone on the tomb.

Juke Pioneer DJ Clent

If you have been in the Juke industry you should have heard of DJ Clent by now but if you haven't check out this video as he talks about how he got his start.

Juke in Japan prolog

Juke compilation   new from Japan.

Is this new or what?

Ambient Juke?  Yeah, I know but Juke has to go in some new directions in order to stay relevant.  You be the judge.    

Oh, really?

Recently an independent blog made a list of the top 25 albums (so far) of 2012.  Now I certainly understand how differences in music tastes and styles can lead to a list where your favorite artist or band can be excluded.  Personal tastes will make everyone come up with their own top 25.  With that in mind we will conduct our own top 25 Juke tracks of all time.  More to come...

Juke? What is Juke?

Over the course of this blog we will examine the form of music known as Juke.  Where does it come from?  Where is it going?  Who listens to Juke?

You older folks in the audience will say that the term "juke" is as old as your grandparents parents.  You will say "didn't they use that term in "The Color Purple?"  Well, sure they did.  The term is as from the early 1920's and has been used periodically throughout the musical history of North America.  Jukejoint.  Jukebox. Juking.  There is nothing new under the sun.

Typically, Juke is around 150 to 160 BPMs (Beats Per Minute) and most times it is used as the catalyst for what is known in Chicago as "footworkers" due to its staccato beat.   Footworking is a form of battle dancing that developed in urban areas.  At one point Footwork was a component of the battledancing that started in Chicago during the 90s.  There were other components such as "animating" and "popping" plus other creatively named aspects.  Eventually the footwork aspect became dominant.

We will examine the culture, music and cities that encompass Juke.