Get Down With the Philly Jump

New Jersey’s Instant Funk’s 1976 debut is a seriously funky outing, blending the emergent Philadelphia disco aesthetic with grinding layers of percussion for an earthy version of the elegant Philly sound. The band had provided backing for a host of soul and R’n’B stars including Curtis Mayfield and The O’Jays and when given their own album, they put their live-honed licks to work, producing an extremely tight, organic disco/funk album. The horns are almost big-band-jazzy, there’s plenty of wah wah guitar and funky clavinets, with material ranging from high-paced disco to laidback soul steppers.