- LP
- Recommended
Sylvester
Private Recordings | August 1970
Dark Entries - Cat No: DE-315
- updated:2026-03-21
〈Dark Entries〉からリリースされた偉大なディスコ・アイコンSylvesterの初期録音。冒頭のピアノだけをバックにファルセット・ヴォイス、冒頭のビリー・ホリディーの「God Bless The Child」のカバーから素晴らしい数珠の音源。ストックしました。(サイトウ)
Track List
This essential release documents the earliest known recordings from one of disco’s greatest talents.
While Sylvester is best known for his chart-topping collaborations with producer Patrick Cowley, such as “You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real),” this release reveals his passion for the sounds of the 30s and 40s. In 1970 a 22-year-old Sylvester had moved to San Francisco and found himself involved with the Cockettes, the infamous psychedelic performance art troupe. Among this milieu was Peter Mintun, a pianist and record collector living in a commune devoted to retro culture. According to Mintun, “We were like hippies who lived in the twenties. We lived in a house that didn’t have anything modern in it. Nothing in it was made after World War II.” Mintun and Sylvester bonded over their love of Black singers of yore and were allotted a slot during Cockettes performances reviving the music of the Prohibition Era. One afternoon, Sylvester and Mintun recorded a number of their shared favorites using a high-end microphone a friend had acquired. Private Recordings features 9 songs from this session, including standards like “Stormy Weather,” “Happy Days Are Here Again,” and “God Bless the Child.” Sylvester’s unmistakable falsetto brings depth and a dash of camp to these familiar tunes. The recordings are casual and intimate, even capturing banter between Sylvester and Mintun; their brief rendition of “When My Dreamboat Comes Home” has the duo working out a melody in real time. In addition to their sonic explorations of decades past, Sylvester and Mintun also staged photographic shoots in vintage couture. Private Recordings comes with a 16-page booklet on firm cardstock featuring images from these never-before-seen shoots as well as liner notes from Mintun detailing his friendship with Sylvester and their experiences recording. All this is housed in a metallic silver sleeve designed by Eloise Leigh featuring a 1920’s Art Deco aesthetic. The record will be released on September 6th which would have been Sylvester’s 76th birthday, and all proceeds from Private Recordings will go to the two charities that Sylvester left his royalties after his death: Project Open Hand and PRC (formerly AIDS Emergency Fund).
While Sylvester is best known for his chart-topping collaborations with producer Patrick Cowley, such as “You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real),” this release reveals his passion for the sounds of the 30s and 40s. In 1970 a 22-year-old Sylvester had moved to San Francisco and found himself involved with the Cockettes, the infamous psychedelic performance art troupe. Among this milieu was Peter Mintun, a pianist and record collector living in a commune devoted to retro culture. According to Mintun, “We were like hippies who lived in the twenties. We lived in a house that didn’t have anything modern in it. Nothing in it was made after World War II.” Mintun and Sylvester bonded over their love of Black singers of yore and were allotted a slot during Cockettes performances reviving the music of the Prohibition Era. One afternoon, Sylvester and Mintun recorded a number of their shared favorites using a high-end microphone a friend had acquired. Private Recordings features 9 songs from this session, including standards like “Stormy Weather,” “Happy Days Are Here Again,” and “God Bless the Child.” Sylvester’s unmistakable falsetto brings depth and a dash of camp to these familiar tunes. The recordings are casual and intimate, even capturing banter between Sylvester and Mintun; their brief rendition of “When My Dreamboat Comes Home” has the duo working out a melody in real time. In addition to their sonic explorations of decades past, Sylvester and Mintun also staged photographic shoots in vintage couture. Private Recordings comes with a 16-page booklet on firm cardstock featuring images from these never-before-seen shoots as well as liner notes from Mintun detailing his friendship with Sylvester and their experiences recording. All this is housed in a metallic silver sleeve designed by Eloise Leigh featuring a 1920’s Art Deco aesthetic. The record will be released on September 6th which would have been Sylvester’s 76th birthday, and all proceeds from Private Recordings will go to the two charities that Sylvester left his royalties after his death: Project Open Hand and PRC (formerly AIDS Emergency Fund).
『ディスコの最も偉大な才能の1人である彼の、知られている最も初期の録音を記録した重要なリリースである。 シルヴェスターは、「You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)」のようなプロデューサー、パトリック・カウリーとのチャート上位のコラボレーションでよく知られているが、このリリースは、30年代と40年代のサウンドに対する彼の情熱を明らかにしている。1970年、22歳だったシルヴェスターはサンフランシスコに移り住み、悪名高いサイケデリック・パフォーマンス・アート集団、ロケット団と関わっていた。この仲間には、レトロ文化に傾倒したコミューンに住むピアニストでレコード・コレクターのピーター・ミントゥンもいた。ミントゥンによれば、「私たちは20年代に生きたヒッピーみたいなものだった。近代的なものは何もない家に住んでいた。第二次世界大戦後に作られたものは何もなかった」。ミンタンとシルヴェスターは、往年の黒人シンガーへの愛で結ばれ、禁酒法時代の音楽を復活させるロケット団の公演に出演することになった。ある日の午後、シルヴェスターとミンタンは、友人が手に入れた高級マイクを使い、二人が共有するお気に入りの数々を録音した。Private Recordings』には、このセッションから "Stormy Weather"、"Happy Days Are Here Again"、"God Bless the Child "といったスタンダード曲を含む9曲が収録されている。シルヴェスターの紛れもないファルセットは、これらのおなじみの曲に深みとキャンプ感をもたらしている。録音はカジュアルで親密なもので、シルヴェスターとミントンの会話も収められている。「When My Dreamboat Comes Home」の短い演奏では、デュオはリアルタイムでメロディーを練り上げている。数十年前のサウンドの探求に加え、シルヴェスターとミンタンはヴィンテージ・クチュールでの写真撮影も行った。プライベート・レコーディングス』には、これらの未公開撮影の画像と、シルヴェスターとの友情とレコーディングの経験を詳述したミントンのライナーノーツが掲載された、しっかりとしたカードストックの16ページのブックレットが付いている。これらはすべて、1920年代のアール・デコの美的感覚を取り入れたエロイーズ・リーのデザインによるメタリック・シルバーのスリーブに収められている。このレコードは、シルヴェスターの76回目の誕生日である9月6日にリリースされ、Private Recordingsからの収益はすべて、シルヴェスターが死後に印税を遺した2つの慈善団体に寄付される：プロジェクト・オープン・ハンドとPRC（旧エイズ緊急基金）である。 (インフォメーションより)』