In the heart of Detroit’s vibrant music scene, Joseph ‘Amp’ Fiddler stood as a connecting thread that weaves through genres and generations. As a multifaceted artist – musician, instrumentalist, and producer – Amp Fiddler has left an enduring legacy. He collaborated with iconic acts such as Funkadelic and nurtured future talents such as J Dilla. His home studio Camp Amp became a hub of inspiration, with Amp Fiddler himself assuming the role of the teacher. My own journey into his world began in the early 2000s. It started with the first record on Moodymann’s Mahogani Music label, which was followed by unforgettable live performances at Electric Souls and in Sheffield. The journey continued on vinyl with the captivating Waltz Of A Ghetto Fly album and the series of collaborations that showcased the breadth of his skills over the years.
Amp Fiddler’s records inspired his audiences. In the early 1990s, he was signed to Elektra with his brother as Mr. Fiddler. However, in the 2000s he made an impact as a solo artist. He arrived on Mahogani Music as Amp Dog Knight, before signing a deal with Genuine (PIAS) as Amp Fiddler and then releasing records for the likes of Strut, Midnight Riot and Sessions Sounds. He was the first artist on Moodymann’s Mahogani Music in May 2002. I’m Doin’ Fine is a classic with its pained yet determined vocals, heartening synths and game-show type digital beats. The full vocal version is backed by a Dub and a fantastic uptempo Reprise. At the time, I was really happy with the Soulful direction Kenny was embarking on with his new Mahogani Music imprint. These soul infused tunes felt deeper and I felt more of an emotional connection to these than some of the KDJ records.
Amp was a fantastic live performer, who gave his all on stage. The first time I saw him live was at the Unabombers curated Electric Souls party in November 2003. At the time, I had only heard the record on Mahogani Music and didn’t really know what to expect from a full live performance. The live show was a soulful dream. The band and backing singers impressed and Amp showed his vocal strength. When they switched from one of Amp’s songs to a cover of Jill Scott’s He Loves Me in the style of the uptempo Chris Lum and Jay J bootleg, it was a proper spine tingling moment. This Electric Souls party was also special for some other reasons. Carl Craig canceled which disappointed me and my friends, but his replacement was no second-rate DJ. It was in fact Theo Parrish and it was the first time I and most of my friends heard him play on his own (we had seen him alongside Moodymann, Rick Wilhite and Marcellus Pittmann at the 3 Chairs gig earlier that year). I can remember Theo dropping the Danny Krivit edit of Bob Marley’s Could You Be Loved to dancefloor acclaim.
The Sheffield gig on February 14 2004 was even more inspiring. Through a journalistic hook up, I had arranged to interview Amp Fiddler, who was touring Europe to promote his Waltz Of A Ghetto Fly album. This meant I got to attend the soundcheck. It was very special to hear the band of legendary Detroit musicians run through some of the songs in an almost deserted Fez club. It was even more special to hear the singers ask Amp for advice on pitch and hear all of them sing acapella as part of the soundcheck. This will stay with me for the rest of my life. The interview was meant to happen after the sound check, but it didn’t. Instead, I asked to return before the show. It was worth the wait, as Amp Fiddler was a wonderful interviewee. He was patient, knowledgeable and understanding. We did half of the interview before the gig and half after it as we ran out of time. Looking back, this shows Amp’s character. Few artists would treat journalists so well, especially when I wasn’t writing for a major publication.
Here is my review of the gig…
Amp Fiddler Live at Scuba, The Fez Club, Sheffield. Sat 14th February 2004
A much traveled session musician, Detroit ghetto soul maestro Amp Fiddler has been around long enough to understand the importance of sincerity in music. On record, his compositions cleanse you in a spirit-nourishing bath of luxurious golden-soul, invoking memories of his city’s celebrated musical past. Live, the untamed emotion coupled with a highly animated performance, the sound is intensified one hundred-fold. Alongside a supremely talented collective of musicians and vocalists, the music is not merely heard, it is felt deep within.
Scott Moncrieff had the formidable task of warming up the crowd, but he managed admirably. He kept the tempo down but raised the anticipation with a selection of honey-kissed soulful smoothies and volatile Hipped Hopping bangers.
As the temperature soared, the numerous bodies squashed tightly into the compact Fez Club swayed collectively to a hypnotic hour and a half’s live performance. The energetic mind-blowing set flew through album cuts such as ultimatum giving “I Believe In You” and the statement making “Love & War”, as well as visiting Amp collaborations like the uplifting “I’m Doing Fine”, especially applicable to those single and in need of a confidence boost on this day of the year. The length of the encore, energetic dancing and smiles adorning the faces of the musicians showed this night had been a pleasure for those on stage, as well as the audience. Their obvious love for spreading the music was metaphorically typified by the Valentine’s Day roses the group gave out at the end of their inspirational show. An enormously talented artist and a wonderfully kind-hearted fellow, the day for Mr. Fiddler to shine is finally here!
You can read my interview with Amp Fiddler here. You can read Expletive Undeleted’s excellent interview here, which includes a lot of background on Amp Fiddler.
The live performances were of course backed by incredible records. The first one on Genuine was Basementality. This included the moody J.A.N. revision of Superficial, with its persistent beats, tear-stained vocals and funked-up keys. There was also the Love And War EP, which features the Deeper than Deep and painfully relevant Love And War. This track was co-produced by J.A.N. aka Moodymann.
This is how I described the Waltz Of A Ghetto Fly album in 2004:
Brought up on the unadulterated soul-dripping emotion of his city’s colourful musical past and given a diet of three square meals of funk a day, it’s not surprising Amp was a session musician for the best of them before stepping up to take the limelight for himself. Heading the city’s soul renaissance, Amp is one of the most versatile and talented singers and multi-instrumentalists to emerge from Detroit, ever. I Believe In You demands some commitment or at least some meaningful communication, as sitting back percussion and crazily morphed Nord keys wait expectantly for an answer. Superficial, his first solo effort that got him noticed in a big way, laments the problems of pure physical attraction alongside distracting keys and a funny bass. This Is How shows how the truth can build bridges and triumph, while keys pacify and a bass wobbles melancholically. Timeless.
U Bring Me Vibes was an impressive collaboration between Amp and Justin Una aka Only Child, which was released on Grand Central in 2003. This track mixes Detroit sweetness with Manc basement Soul in a way that captured the Electric Chair vibe perfectly. This track was much closer to the actual atmosphere of Luke and Justin’s fabled Electric Chair party than any of their productions as The Elektrons (except maybe the first single – Get Up). A notable outing from Amp Fiddler as a solo artist was 2005’s Over You. This was released as Amp Dog Kinght on Mahogani Music. Over You is an insane soulful groover that has an almost motion sickness vibe. It was not particularly well received back then and it is pretty cheap today. Nonetheless, it does impress. After that, the Hope/Dope 10″ in 2006 brought the real deep Detroit vibe we knew Amp was capable of.
Amp has been busy over the years as a producer and multi-instrumentalist, making LPs with the likes of Sly & Robbie, Yam Who and Will Session. He has worked with an insane breadth of artists and producers, such as Seal, Maxwell, Davina, The Detroit Experiment, George Clinton, Omar S, Theo Parrish and Moodymann. His house was open to musicians and he taught many over the years. A few remixes by Amp have popped up over the years, such as a jazzual remix of Patchworks’ Sugar in 2004 and a deep remix of Courtney Jackson’s Everybody (who had been a singer on his Waltz Of The Ghetto Fly tour). In 2021, Amp Fiddler dropped Energy and it had that time-old Amp flavour. As I described in my review, “One of Detroit’s strongest contemporary soulful voices, Energy finds Amp in familiar territory. He bewitches listeners with his voice and the musical backing fits snugly.”. Also in 2021, came Dames Brown’s excellent What Would You Do?, which was co-produced by Amp Fiddler and Andrés. This record is a modern classic. About this, I said “Those beats are typical Dez Andrés. The Funkysoulhouseyhop goodness makes this a boundary crossing winner. What Would You Do should appeal to a broad range of listeners and dancefloors.” Amp Fiddler had been instrumental in bringing Dames Brown to the music public, as he previously did with so many other Detroit musicians and producers. It is fitting that Theo Parrish’s Sound Signature imprint reissued Amp’s first record in 2022 on 7” before he passed away. The groovy funkout of Sundown’s Spaced Outta Place is a special Amp related tune from 1981!
RIP Amp Fiddler. You live on in your compositions and in the music of all those you have inspired and supported along the way.
You can donate to the funeral Go Fund Me here.
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