VA - Chicago House Music - This Is How It Started (2015)

For Midnight Riot's latest trip into the compilation market, Yam Who has put together an expansive set designed to pay tribute to Ron Hardy, the Music Box, and the formative years of Chicago House. Interestingly, this is done by mixing vintage material - Mach's influential "On & On", Ron Hardy versions of Nightlife Unlimited's disco scorcher "Peaches & Prunes" and Ragtyme's early house gem "I Can't Stay Away" - with tribute style tracks from Chicago legends and contemporary artists (Gene Hunt, Robert Owens, Ooft, Leo Zero, Yam Who, Robot 84, 80s Child). It's a simple idea, brilliantly executed, with much of the material successfully joining the dots between Italo, proto-house, electrofunk and, of course, early Chicago house.