Thump presents Paul Johnson at Output Thursday, here’s a quick primer from TURRBOTAX’s Space Jam

paul johnson chicago thump input anthony naples free magic star eyes output

So Thump is doing nights a FREE night at Output which is pretty cool I guess? Honestly you had me at Star Eyes (of Trouble & Bass) and Free Magic (of Discovery). But the headliner, Paul Johnson is a legend of Chicago house, or so says his bio. But then again according to Star Eyes’s bio she’s a 22 year old West Coast junglist, lol. Honestly I only knew Paul’s name from having just seen it… on Thump (the plot thickens!) in Max Pearl’s excellent roundup of Dance Mania’s most sexually explicit ghetto house records.

So, I asked my local Chicago House authority, Space Jam of Turrbotax, if this guy was legit. And she said “I’d rather listen to Paul Johnson than Mozart”, and proceeded to hit me with a couple of her favorite PJ tunes.

So much soul in this tune. You can really hear the influence he had on Daft Punk here – this was the first tune of their 1997 BBC essential mix.

That “Feel My Motherfuckin Bass IN Your Face” vocal has recently come back into vogue, but now you know who sampled it first.

I love the way he chops the vocals in this one. 1994! Same year Todd Edwards first record came out – can’t help but wonder if a young Edwards heard this (Maybe being played by a young Todd Terry? Ok now I’m just writing house music fanfiction).

Anyway, it all goes down tonight at Output. You can get advance tickets for $15, or you can RSVP here for free admission (not the fb event).

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