[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]

Richie Havens - “Going Back to My Roots”

After conducting a little research, what is most surprising about this classic 80s club track is the fact that Richie Havens is better known as a folk musician. In fact, he opened Woodstock

One of the noticeable, and perhaps embarassing, trends of the late 70s and early 80s was the influx of rock musicians crossing over to the disco realm. The popularity of the genre seemed ubiquitous and neverending, and so it came as no surprise that many musicians attempted to transform at least one of their songs into something that would translate to the dancefloor.

What makes “Going Back to My Roots” (from Havens’ 1980 LP Connections) so fun and classic is the instrumentation and Havens’ voice. That repetitive piano chord that serves as the foundation of the song is fundamental to many contemporary house and post-punk musicians’ aesthetic. Immediately, tracks by LCD Soundsystem and The Juan MacLean, especially, have roots instead of just an overarching idea of “re-appropriation.” And Havens’ voice, surprisingly lush and warm, makes the track powerful and uplifting.

britticisms posted this on Sep 30 2009 and it has 33 notes Tagged: #richie havens

Notes

  1. suddenly reblogged this from tuneage
  2. collectinghappiness reblogged this from tuneage
  3. kingdrake1 reblogged this from britticisms and added:
    I’m more into the original version by Lamont Dozier — check it out here.
  4. fiveohfive reblogged this from tuneage
  5. tristn reblogged this from tuneage
  6. jillchien reblogged this from delayprocrastinate
  7. mello-beth reblogged this from delayprocrastinate
  8. austo reblogged this from britticisms and added:
    Luv it britticisms:
  9. sanchezventura reblogged this from britticisms and added:
    This is a great song. Thanks Brittany!
  10. britticisms reblogged this from tuneage and added:
    My latest post for Tuneage is on...Havens’ 1980 track
  11. ncvlzd reblogged this from tuneage
  12. delayprocrastinate reblogged this from tuneage
  13. tuneage posted this