Special Touch – I Want You (Dance Mix)
From Special Touch – I Want You
Released on TSR, 1990, UK

We’ve already shared our love for what has been called « UK street soul » – a form of lush and bouncy R’n’B born on the streets of London – in one of our very first posts, when we mentioned the seminal (at least for us) band Soul Connection, produced by legendary British producer, Nemesis (Shades of Black, Andromeda, etc.).

We’re coming back to this genre with another « seminal » UK Street Soul » act, Special Touch, mainly famous for the mind blowing « Garden Of Life » featured on the groundbreaking compilation Computer Incarnations For World Peace by Jazzanova and Gerd Janson (released in 2007…). I Want You is one of the most soulful songs from Special Touch, with its shiny rhythmical elements, its Californian organ and its synthetic trumpet. Writing something like « this is the kind of song which brings, hum…, « sunshine » or « sensuality » to the dancefloor » would be highly euphemestic as the tune is more than bursting with it – and was released with no other design than to bring maximum heat to wherever it was played.

Paradoxically what makes this song – and more generally, Special Touch‘s songs – stands out from many productions from the same era (late 1980’s – early 1990’s) labeled as « UK Street Soul » songs is the very high level of soulfulness – not to say genuine happiness – contained in this song, compared to many contemporary productions which have a much « dryer » sound.

If we’re going for a popular metaphor amongst R’n’B heads, let’s just say that I Want You really is a shiny and a VERY VERY juicy fruit…

P.S. : The artwork is taken from Special Touch‘s album and not from the I Want You 12″… Because it’s amazing and much cooler than the generic label.