Referred to by many as the "Godfather of House", Frankie Knuckles played an integral part in creating and poplarizing a sound that is still going strong today!!
Originally born in the Bronx and brought up through the New
York disco scene, forming a great friendship with Larry Levan along the way,
Frankie headed over to Chicago to become the DJ at the Warehouse. Playing a mixture of music that included a
more percussive disco sound, with added loops from drum machines, the crowd came
to simply refer to it as “house music”.
Frankie then set up his own club called the Power Plant
before eventually moving back to New York and forming part of the hugely
influential and successful Def Mix team.
Producing numerous house classics over the years, there is not much this
DJ/producer has not done, seen or been a part of, when it comes to house music.
Only a week ago, back on the 1st April, the
sudden and sad news of Frankie Knuckles’ passing spread across the dance
community and the sheer volume of heartfelt messages of condolence have been nothing
short of whelming!
Although Frankie toured the world tirelessly spreading the
house sound, not all people that say they enjoy house music today have had a
chance to witness this master at work, so must rely on the internet to find out
about his history… Here are some of the
best bits that we have come across (mixes, interviews, videos, etc):
From Red Bull Music Academy, check out the excellent Frankie Knuckles - Journey to the Roots of House - click HERE for the 60 min radio show or view below for the lecture:
BBC Radio Essential Mix - Live from Pacha Ibiza in September 2000:
Interview with Beatport in 2012 - Link HERE!
The Def Mix website also provides some great reading and listening. Check it out HERE!
BBC Radio - 6 Mix, Franckie Knuckles meets Dave Pearce for 2 hours of essential listening:
RIP Frankie... You will be missed!!
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