World Clique by Dee-Lite

World Clique, the 1990 debut from Deee-Lite, came out on Elektra and sounds like a dance club that swallowed a crate of old funk records whole. The group produced it themselves, with Towa Tei in the lineup, and they brought in heavy company: Bootsy Collins, Q-Tip, Fred Wesley and Maceo Parker all turn up.

"Groove Is in the Heart" was the lead single and the big breakout, a top-five hit in the US and the UK and a number one on the American club chart. It's house music with a funk rubber band snapping through it, bright, bouncy and a little psychedelic. "Power of Love/Build That Bridge" also went to the top of the US dance chart, "Good Beat" made the top ten there too, and "E.S.P." even samples Bela Lugosi from the 1934 film The Black Cat.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.