Having been immersed in the 1990’s dance club scene I have a hard time with what people refer to as “deep house” today. I will attempt to explain my experience, confusion, and frustration.
I’ve had countless people ask me to “put on some deep house music” as an appropriate backdrop for socializing. In their minds it is just ambient, electronic music that is unobtrusive, mellow, and lacking lyrics. As a DJ that has played private parties their request felt similar to wedding receptions or cocktail hours before the party and/or dancing began. Usually a client would want jazz standards, swing, and the like, for this time of the event.
I found it so curious that my friends would associate deep house with this humdrum, spacey sound that was completely unmotivating for the “get up and dance” vibe. My experience with deep house music in New York City during the 1990’s through the early aughts was completely different. I was so perplexed and irked about this recurring situation that I had to do some research.
I found that Discogs, a music database for DJs and record collectors, explains the differing ideas of deep house clearly.
The term "deep house" has been used with (at least) two distinct meanings: Originally, the term was roughly synonymous with "soulful house". Deep house, in this sense, is house music influenced by jazz, soul, and gospel. Vocals (both male and female) are common, and lyrical themes include positivity, community, love, self-belief, and overcoming hardship. Overly synthetic sounds are downplayed, in favor of pianos, organs, horns, bass guitar, etc. Tracks sometimes follow more of a conventional verse-chorus-verse structure than other forms of house. In the 2010s, "deep house" has been applied to a newer style of house that tends toward the dreamy, laid-back, subdued, atmospheric, reflective, and minimalistic. (This sense of the term is roughly synonymous with "lo-fi house".)
This definition of deep house resonates with me so much I get teary eyed thinking about some of the best NYC events with this soulful and uplifting style of music. The crowds were such a beautifully diverse cross section of race, ethnicity, religion, and sexuality. The people were there to enjoy the music and dance, there were never any attitudes or pretentiousness. It truly was an idyllic time in dance music history and I’m always grateful for those experiences.
Deep house is very similar to “garage house” which is one of the earliest forms of house music. Discogs defines garage house as:
While classic (Chicago) house music has a very strong funk influence, Garage House music is heavily influenced by soul music. It's more vocally and melody-driven (as opposed to beat-driven), and may be noted as having a disco influence as well. This style derived directly from the emotive music style favored at the Paradise Garage club in New York, itself derived from disco, and was popular in the early 1990s, up to and including around 1994. In the European record shops, it was one the first styles available on the market, due to good distribution from New York labels such as Nervous Records and Strictly Rhythm.
As you can see classic/Chicago house, garage house, and deep house are very synergistic in sound and history. None of them are mellow, background, instrumental vibes.
If you would like to learn more about these dance styles, please refer to some basic links to get you started on your “history of house music” journey. Don’t be surprised if you dive down a rabbit hole. LOL.
History of House Music Links
Chicago House
Garage House
- The Paradise Garage
- DJ Larry Levan
- Nervous Records
- Strictly Rhythm