Various

It’s been almost three years for the sequel of the Bay Area Funk original to make its ways to record shelves, which seems like a long time for compilations of this nature — especially with the explosion of funk obscurities cropping up over the past few years. With things taking a minute and the Luv N’Haight posse behind the wheel you basically have the satisfaction of knowing these cats were taking their sweet time to scour dusty basements for nothing but the finest in underground Bay Area funk. The second instalment of this California showcase is almost as great as the very impressive first and includes yet another banging cut from Little Denise with the slick "Hip Breakin’,” once again proving she was one of the funkiest 12-year olds ever. Two of the greatest standouts come from instrumental numbers with the summer vibes of Project Soul’s "Ebony” that captures that live essence with claps and cheers guiding it along so positively. Then there’s the incredible salsa-driven "Si Se Puede” by the Ray Comacho Band that shows how the Bay Area’s take on funk and soul was influenced from all sorts of genres at the time (and surely still is), such as Mike Selesia’s psychedelic "Brute Strength,” which apparently was the result of some LSD-laced Tootsie Rolls. Though not quite the same energy and overall impact as the first edition, you simply can’t deny the rich sounds of the funk scene going on in San Francisco and surrounding areas at the time. Plus you get to hear how DJ Shadow turned a Soft Touch jam into an electronic mishmash.