Anyone who has been a fan of House music over the last decade will no doubt be familiar with the soulful vocals of Marlena Shaw and her track “Woman Of The Ghetto“. Originally released in the late 60’s, the original track is a Northern Soul anthem, and it’s a popular sample source used in a number of other successful House records.
When we first heard rumours of Polish duo Catz ‘N Dogz doing a new version using the iconic “I want you to get together…” lyric, the instinctive reaction was to roll our eyes and expect yet another questionable rehash of an old idea…
Trying to check out the track with an open mind, it instantly grabbed my attention. The chunky percussion and raw groove, which combined with the piano stabs made one hell of a groove suddenly let my guard down with a realisation that this rework has a firm place on the dancefloor. That acid line which comes from nowhere to blow the roof off, is simply stunning!
An alternate version titled “Beat Remix” has a different energy altogether, stripping out some lead sounds it concentrates on the bouncing conga-style rhythm, making it a solid DJ tool to play around with.
The PETS Recordings label heads have engineered this into the definitive remix of Marlena Shaw’s classic for me, so hats off to Catz ‘N Dogz for delivering such a great take and showing how much of a class act they really are.
Buy the Digital release from Beatport
FULL RELEASE PREVIEW…
