Artist: Various
Album Title: Verve Remixed 3
Label: Verve
Bones:
Summary: 3 round of jazz label reworkings
Reviewed By: Chad Bosworth

For the uninitiated, the Verve Remixed series dives into the vaults of classic Verve Jazz recordings and allows an established DJ to rework it into something modern. This struck a chord with both Jazz elitists, and the masses at large that were discovering the genre dubbed "Acid Jazz".

The first release drew instant appeal, as it dared to mess with the sanctity of Verve pillars such as "Feelin' Good", "Summertime", and "Is you is, or is you 'aint my baby?" - all mixed by contemporary gurus like Rae & Christian, Thievery Corporation, and MJ Cole, to name a few. The second relied less on the instantly recognisable tunes and more on the current names in the Acid Jazz universe, such as Mr Scruff, Jaffa, Koop, and Gotan Project. Again, there were enough great Jazz tunes and the interpreters knew what to do with them.

Third time round, and things are starting to stretch. The big names are still here - Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, Dinah Washington, Sarah Vaughan etc. However some of the DJ's are looking a little less suited to the task, and without the first pick at the Verve vaults, the job is all the more difficult.

I'm not saying that the album is junk - there are still a few gems in here, and those who really want to like it probably will. The problem lies in that there are more loops and repetitive vocal samples than the last two, giving the all-over impression of Verve Remixed 3 a bit of a "session mix" feel. Check out the Brazilian Girls Remix of "Just One Of Those Things" or RJD2's work on "The Gentle Rain" if you want examples.

Those looking for a reason to enjoy this album may want to go straight to Bent's mix of "Speak Low" by Billie Holiday, or to Sarah Vaughan's "Fever" by Adam Freeland: Both great showcases of what Verve Remixed is all about. If (and probably when) a "Best Of Verve Remixed" is released, there would no doubt be a selection of tracks from this release, and rightly so. However I wouldn't nominate the entire CD for Album of 2005.