Chris Burns is easily one of my favorite house music DJs anywhere in the nation. A) he reps DC, B) he’s a musical encyclopedia and C) in knowing the history and development of house music like the back of his hand, pretty much anything and everything he produces is imbued with a sense of historic worth, from his work with Gavin Holland as the Party Bros to even, yes, his recent house remix of “Bed Intruder” always get a pause and listen from me because I always know that he’s got an ear for the present, and how to link it to the past to make the future even more sonically vibrant. On he eve of his debut EP with Baltimore’s Deep Sugar imprint, Burns spins with his hero, NYC house legend Timmy Regisford. Regisford, the EBLS DJ, label executive and devoted resident DJ of the infamous Shelter is a unique performer. His style is so unique and sound so deep that even though the Shelter closed a few years back, those who attended the venue still take road trips wherever he spins. In 2009 at DC’s bandbox sized locale the Trinidad and Tobago Association Regisford spun on a night where it felt like every single remaining living person who ever enjoyed the venue was in attendance. The room got so hot that the walls and floor were literally sweating as well, one of the most underrated and magical nights of recent DC house music history.
Needless to say, Burns wouldn’t exist without Regisford, and the fact that they’re spinning together tonight at U Street Music Hall is pretty amazing. I now turn this space over to Burns for a few words and links on his hero and mentor, the great Timmy Regisford.
Whenever I am asked how I got into house music, I never relent to mention my experiences going to Shelter in New York City, a handful of times at the 39th St. location and it final incarnation at 150 Varick Street. I was too young to be familiar with its original (and considered its best) location at Hubert Street. Its founder and resident maestro, Timmy Regisford, has a long history of being involved with both house and urban music in New York City as a producer and A+R man for many notable labels. However, it is his aggressive and risk-taking DJ style that has entranced a sizeable tribe of Shelter devotees for nearly 2 decades. Despite the drama that followed the closure of Shelter in 2008 and its subsequent renovation into Greenhouse at Varick Street, Timmy still retains an incredibly large legion of loyal devotees.
Timmy still holds reign as the king of New York City afterhours, continuing the tradition with Area Code on Sunday Mornings (6am – 2pm) at Greenhouse with his marathon sets. Although the physical layout and appearance of 150 Varick street has changed dramatically, the vibe and sound has stayed more or less intact from what I came to be familiar with through countless Sunday morning red-eye bus pilgrimages from DC. I have compiled a few pieces to demonstrate the style and impact that Mr. Regisford has had on house music.
This video was taken at 150 Varick location. Best video that I could find that demonstrates the vibe I experienced…
Timmy Regisford & Boyd Jarvis, live on WBLS 7/17/1983
Part A:http://dhpmixes.com/mixes/TimmyRegisfordandBoydJarvisLiveWBLS071783deephousepagea.mp3
Part B: http://dhpmixes.com/mixes/TimmyRegisfordandBoydJarvisLiveWBLS071783deephousepageb.mp3
This is my favorite DJ mix of all time and I am constantly mentioning and sharing it. When it gets into “classic” mode at Area Code or Shelter, it often was/is stuff like this. Boyd Jarvis was Timmy’s production partner and together they created countless 80s proto-house classics: Visual’s “Somehow Someway” & “The Music’s got me”, Billie “Nobody’s Business”, Chocolette “It’s that east street beat”, Colonel Abrams “Trapped”, “I’m not gonna let”, and many other tracks that mostly came out on the Supertronics label. Boyd is playing the synths live over the mixing and his improvisations on records like Lace’s “Can’t Play Around” are truly magical.
“Gimme Shelter” by Andy Thomas
http://www.djhistory.com/features/gimme-shelter
An excellent article written in 2007 and originally published in Straight No Chase zine. A great documentation of the club and its culture.
Timmy Regisford Tribute Mix
http://www.mezerik.com/output/Frazer/Frazer%20-%20Timmy%20Regisford%20Tribute%20Mix.rar
This is a good collection of many of the original productions, and most notably RnB remixes that came to define the Shelter sound in the 00s.
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