Naked Music | Label Profile

 

Few labels retain such affection from so many has Naked Music. The label that rocketed to global fame with Petal Pusher ‘Breakin’ It Down’ aka Miguel Migs was one of my favourites - from the sleeve artwork and it’s retro chic to the sounds it put out - a fusion of house, jazz and soul that I’d never encountered before. The records still sound great to this day and many of the producers and vocalists it introduced us to are still going today.

 

Naked Music was based in San Francisco and New York City (the places the founders lived). It started as a production company in New York, in 1992, when founders Dave Boonshoft and Jay Denes had underground success with releases on indies such as Francois Kevorkian’s Wave Music, and UK’s XL Recordings under their guise of Blue Six.

 

Dave Boonshoft, had been part of Def jam and now runs Aguilar Amplification (a bass amplifier manufacturer), Jay Denes and Dave form Blue Six and went on to produce a string of classics on their label.

 

Having had success the pair began the label to give them more creative freedom. Their mission: to release forward-thinking music that defies easy categorization. The first CDs were compilation releases, generally leaning heavily on their own artists recordings combined with various singles they’d bought from independent artists. I especially liked the Nude Dimensions CD’s and still play them today.

 

Around 2000 Naked Music entered into a joint venture with EMI/Virgin. Signed a few wonderful artists and made more records. Blue Six, Lisa Shaw, Aya, Miguel Migs, Gaelle amongst others. By 2004 the steady flow of releases dried up and the label went into darkness. 2014 saw a new album from Blue Six but nothing since.

 

When asked whether the label had the success they’d hoped for, Denes had this to say, “No, but doesn’t everyone want to be more successful! I thought we had a shot at being more mainstream when we were in the joint venture with Virgin many years ago, but it became evident that it was not to be pretty quickly. It bothered me a lot at the time- we were very earnest. Now I don’t give that kind of stuff a thought. I consider myself very lucky. I do what I want. No one has ever told me what to make. The biggest impediment to me getting stuff done is me!”

 

Over multiple 12” releases and albums, Naked Music kept a consistently high standard of songwriting with top-notch production.

 

More like this

Get featured on the UM house music blog

Click here to subscribe to UM deep house mixes

Naked Music | Label Profile

 

Few labels retain such affection from so many has Naked Music. The label that rocketed to global fame with Petal Pusher ‘Breakin’ It Down’ aka Miguel Migs was one of my favourites - from the sleeve artwork and it’s retro chic to the sounds it put out - a fusion of house, jazz and soul that I’d never encountered before. The records still sound great to this day and many of the producers and vocalists it introduced us to are still going today.

 

Naked Music was based in San Francisco and New York City (the places the founders lived). It started as a production company in New York, in 1992, when founders Dave Boonshoft and Jay Denes had underground success with releases on indies such as Francois Kevorkian’s Wave Music, and UK’s XL Recordings under their guise of Blue Six.

 

Dave Boonshoft, had been part of Def jam and now runs Aguilar Amplification (a bass amplifier manufacturer), Jay Denes and Dave form Blue Six and went on to produce a string of classics on their label.

 

Having had success the pair began the label to give them more creative freedom. Their mission: to release forward-thinking music that defies easy categorization. The first CDs were compilation releases, generally leaning heavily on their own artists recordings combined with various singles they’d bought from independent artists. I especially liked the Nude Dimensions CD’s and still play them today.

 

Around 2000 Naked Music entered into a joint venture with EMI/Virgin. Signed a few wonderful artists and made more records. Blue Six, Lisa Shaw, Aya, Miguel Migs, Gaelle amongst others. By 2004 the steady flow of releases dried up and the label went into darkness. 2014 saw a new album from Blue Six but nothing since.

 

When asked whether the label had the success they’d hoped for, Denes had this to say, “No, but doesn’t everyone want to be more successful! I thought we had a shot at being more mainstream when we were in the joint venture with Virgin many years ago, but it became evident that it was not to be pretty quickly. It bothered me a lot at the time- we were very earnest. Now I don’t give that kind of stuff a thought. I consider myself very lucky. I do what I want. No one has ever told me what to make. The biggest impediment to me getting stuff done is me!”

 

Over multiple 12” releases and albums, Naked Music kept a consistently high standard of songwriting with top-notch production.

 

Click here to subscribe to deep house mixes

Naked Music | Label Profile

 

Few labels retain such affection from so many has Naked Music. The label that rocketed to global fame with Petal Pusher ‘Breakin’ It Down’ aka Miguel Migs was one of my favourites - from the sleeve artwork and it’s retro chic to the sounds it put out - a fusion of house, jazz and soul that I’d never encountered before. The records still sound great to this day and many of the producers and vocalists it introduced us to are still going today.

 

Naked Music was based in San Francisco and New York City (the places the founders lived). It started as a production company in New York, in 1992, when founders Dave Boonshoft and Jay Denes had underground success with releases on indies such as Francois Kevorkian’s Wave Music, and UK’s XL Recordings under their guise of Blue Six.

 

Dave Boonshoft, had been part of Def jam and now runs Aguilar Amplification (a bass amplifier manufacturer), Jay Denes and Dave form Blue Six and went on to produce a string of classics on their label.

 

Having had success the pair began the label to give them more creative freedom. Their mission: to release forward-thinking music that defies easy categorization. The first CDs were compilation releases, generally leaning heavily on their own artists recordings combined with various singles they’d bought from independent artists. I especially liked the Nude Dimensions CD’s and still play them today.

 

Around 2000 Naked Music entered into a joint venture with EMI/Virgin. Signed a few wonderful artists and made more records. Blue Six, Lisa Shaw, Aya, Miguel Migs, Gaelle amongst others. By 2004 the steady flow of releases dried up and the label went into darkness. 2014 saw a new album from Blue Six but nothing since.

 

When asked whether the label had the success they’d hoped for, Denes had this to say, “No, but doesn’t everyone want to be more successful! I thought we had a shot at being more mainstream when we were in the joint venture with Virgin many years ago, but it became evident that it was not to be pretty quickly. It bothered me a lot at the time- we were very earnest. Now I don’t give that kind of stuff a thought. I consider myself very lucky. I do what I want. No one has ever told me what to make. The biggest impediment to me getting stuff done is me!”

 

Over multiple 12” releases and albums, Naked Music kept a consistently high standard of songwriting with top-notch production.