Fresh 4
The Lost Tapes
Think of the "Bristol Sound" and the same three or four bands tend to spring to mind however, the first widely heard example of the pioneering new sound from the West Country came with a 1989 attack on the Top Ten from South Bristol in the shape of established collective Fresh 4. Co produced by fellow Bristol pioneers Smith and Mighty, "Wishing on A Star" was the first exposure many people outside of Bristol got to the unique fusion of heavy bass lines, Hip Hop beats, soulful vocals and new takes on classic songs. Although "Wishing on a Star" cracked the Top Ten, the two follow up singles were less successful and due to disagreements with their label, a planned album never materialised and the group members went their separate ways. In the following decade Suv, Krust and Flynn would all go on to find greater success as pioneers and mainstays of Bristol's hugely successful Drum and Bass scene, writing new chapters that overshadowed their earlier success. Who can say what might have happened if a Fresh 4 album had been released on a major label at the start of the 1990s. We can't give you that lost album, but we have tracked down some long forgotten demo tapes and twenty five years later, assembled them into an album. It's not THE Fresh 4 LP, but it is filling in a gap in their story and the story of Bristol music. Side A sees some early authentic British Hip Hop with that unique Bristol twist, whilst side B aims for a then contemporary dance sound. A reminder, that Fresh 4 have more to their claim of a place in Bristol's musical history than those three singles.