Satisfying as it was,
E Soul Cultura was also tantalizing in its nanoscopic unmixed sampling of the varied collection possessed by
Luke Una, a North of England DJ legend -- Sheffield, Manchester, the world -- nearing 40 years behind the decks. It wasn't presented upon release in 2022 as the first in a series, so the arrival of a second volume barely a year later was a pleasant surprise, a positive development for lovers of eclectic compilations -- an increasingly uncommon format in the age of streaming playlists. As with the first volume, tracks date as far back as the early '70s with representation from almost every subsequent decade, and there's no intent on
Luke's part to "show off," since tracks worth pocket change alternate with those that fetch triple-digit sums, and material more recently reissued is almost as common as genuine obscurities. Each track on
Luke Una Presents E Soul Cultura, Vol. 2 is in some way fascinating, and most of them are far beyond mere deep-digging curiosities. The best of the less-rare selections is
Real Thing's "Children of the Ghetto." Excerpted from a medley off the Liverpool soul group's 1977 album, it's a gorgeously sorrowful/hopeful ballad
Luke identified as "up there with anything the Americans have done." (
Earth, Wind & Fire's
Philip Bailey might agree -- he covered it on
Chinese Wall.) Another B-side comes from
Yargo. The stuttering drums at the start of their "Marimba" sound like a lead-in to a cover of
A Certain Ratio's "Knife Slits Water," but the track casts a spell headier than that of their fellow Mancunians. It's undoubtable that no other set will compile recordings by both a moonlighting member of
Electric Light Orchestra (
Michael de Albuquerque's delightfully bent "We May Be Cattle But We've All Got Names") and private-pressed soul singers (the audacious
Avis, who covers
Minnie Riperton's "Baby, This Love I Have" with surprising finesse). Swiss prog rockers
Pyranha seem equally inspired by
Neil Young and
Michal Urbaniak, and why not? Other tunes come from Guadeloupe, Japan, Brazil, and New York with styles as disparate as their geographic locations. For those unfamiliar with
Luke, it might take a listen to a few of the DJ's sets to understand where the man is coming from, but the variety and sequencing of the tracks do make a kind of sense. Not much exposure will leave the impression that
Luke clearly doesn't have the shrugging "there are two kinds of music" philosophy, given that he's wildly descriptive about his selections in explaining what makes them special. He's so enthusiastic and persuasive that a listener might question their ears when a selection doesn't resonate. ~ Andy Kellman
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