Z for Zafra

A little background helps for this post. H&L Records is a soul and disco outpost that broke off from Avco records in the late 60s. They founded their label on Philly soul balladeers the Stlyistics, who threw down some major jams like "Betcha by Golly, Wow," "Break up to Make Up," and "You Are Everything." Those guys made an indelible mark on the Philly sound for the 70s. check the youtube

Other notable H&L jams include Van McCoy's little number called "the Hustle," Sandy Mercer's You Are My Love, and the Softones' "Call it Love." Needless to say, you guys have most likely seen the memorable orange label in your crate-digging over the years.

Z for Zafra is a one-off for the H&L label. The record is soul-disco gold, and the cuts "Now That I've Found You" and "IF You Never Wanted My Love" seem to have been the most popular songs from the album, fitting snugly into the label's more soul grounded sound. Not to bash the songs, they are great as they stretch down the middle between disco like "Dancin' Round the Clock" and funk like "This Cat's on Fire." Personally, I really love the disco funk of "This Cat's on Fire," the ultra-hook laden, late-night, Marvin Gaye-meets-the-Archies "Tell Me Baby" and the sexually charged jazz fusion of "Sweet Juice."

Something about the genre bending nature of this find really jumped out at me. Z for Zafra pulls from all reaches of the pop spectrum the way only disco has room for; the album is charged with Philly soul vocal harmonies, disco hooks, funky bass lines, dreamy synthesizer boogie, fuzzy guitar solos, and a blues/dub/reggae influence adding the strophic accent to the catchy composition of some of the choruses. This LP has definitely been on a high rotation in my apartment the past month, and I'm definitely spinning this every chance I get to DJ this summer.

Click below for download.
Z for Zafra (self-titled), 1978, H&L Records
side A
1. This Cat's On Fire
2. Tell Me Baby
3. Sweet Juice
4. Skateboard Shuffle
side B
5. I Can See That
6. Now That I've Found You
7. It's in the Music
8. If You never Wanted My Love
9. Dancin' Round the Clock