Gladys Knight & The Pips – Bourgie’, Bourgie’ (Dave Lee fka Joey Negro Super Bourgeoisie Remix)

Available now from - Though I recall hearing this Gladys single on the radio once of twice the first version of “Bourgie Bourgie” I fell in love with was the original Ashford & Simpson instrumental. I had it on a cassette tape I made for myself I used to play a lot in my car in the 80s. I can particularly recall one time I got in the car after a big row with a girlfriend and as I turned the ignition key the opening chords played and acted liked a de-stresser, instantly switching my mood. It’s a beautiful progression, one of the best ever. I added more of those opening chords (which don’t feature as much in the Gladys version as they do in either the original or John Davies’s cover) at the end with replayed guitar and bass. Unusual that the vocal version only has the one verse. Obviously Ashford and Simpson were capable of writing another one but decided not to. I wasn’t sure what to do to with the Gladys version but the new arrangement slowly took shape over the course of a couple of years. Getting a good intro is an important step, as if its not starting off right then hard to be sure of the middle and end. At one point I thought it was pretty much done then I’d keep getting extra ideas, making additional changes that gave the mix more dynamics. It’s sometimes when playing it out and or in the car you that you hear with more clarity than after hours in the studio. It’s an interesting aspect of making (or mixing) music, you can still get new bursts of inspiration years after starting something off.