What can you say about Frankie Knuckles? The word legend is bandied about an awful lot these days but this man really was even more than that. An innovator and a creator. He really is, for us DJs and producers, writers, the reason anyone can release records that are called house. Up there with the likes of Atkins, May and Saunderson for techno, he really did set the template, taking the disco he clung onto in the 70s and slowly morphing it into a subtly different sound, because he knew what worked on the dancefloor. Culturally, his place in music is hugely significant, as he stayed true to the music that was being burned in piles in the 70s, and was at the forefront of the underground when it still truly meant that. A niche sound, and movement that slowly took this country over in the late 80s and 90s, and now is a global industry, even if its one that is far from the purer movement he helped to start. Personally, hes one of the main reasons I got into electronic music. I went to Sheffield university in 1993 being barely aware of it bar the odd track on TOTP or in magazines, but I saw him and Marshall Jefferson at the Music Factory in Sheffield around October that year and it pretty much transformed my musical life in one night. Slowly I started going clubbing a lot more and buying the music, the magazines, and ultimately, in the late 90s, to buy the records and start to DJ myself. 15 years later I still do, and Ive been writnig about it ever since. Many of my best friends Ive met through clubs, festivals and music, and the impact of that first proper night is the point at which is all began. Ive seen him many times over the years - the last night at Turnmills when he played with Danny Rampling was particularly special - and it was wonderful to see him still playing with such love for the music all these years later, when so many have fallen by the wayside. The Hercules and Love Affair remix showed he still had the production skills, even if his work rate had slowed in later years. It seems surreal that hes actually not around any more. He seemed to be - illness and medical issues notwithstanding - perennial. Always smiling, happy to chat to people, a properly good guy. Hell leave an immense legacy and stature in music, one that I hope isnt dimmed by the years. The fact he got a street named after him in a country where electronic music - at least in terms of its history - is still only heralded by a real minority, was a lovely touch. A true great, and a devastating loss to music. RIP, Frankie.
Posted on: Tue, 01 Apr 2014 16:12:29 +0000
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