Mix of the week: Air’s 1998 promo mix Deck Safari

Back just before Air released their hugely popular Moon Safari album in 1998, Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoit Dunckel put together a promo mix that ended up on 4 CDs and broadcast as a mix on BBC Radio One’s Essential Mix in two parts.

The mix was eclectic featuring classic rock’n’roll like Bowie, Prince, Beatles and Velvet Underground; artists of the era like Beck, Beastie Boys, Money Mark, French artists of all stripes: Thomas Bangalter, Serge Gainsbourg, Michel Polnareff, Jacques Dutronc, Brigitte Bardot, Francis Lai and Air themselves, along with some psychedelia, balladry, electronic curios and funk and soul.

Stereogum introduced me to the promo mix way back and the track info is on Discogs in two parts but I’d only just heard the Essential Mix recently which is blended so here it is for your mix of the week.

The sound of Air? Well here’s what made the classic album ‘Moon Safari’ (1998) sound the way it did, this limited edition CD is part one of a mammoth 4 hour journey through the personal record collections of former architect Nicolas Godin and mathematician Jean-Benoit Dunckel. Artists include Pink Floyd, Horace Andy, Brigitte Gardot, Prince, Beastie Boys, Iggy Pop, Rolling Stones and more. * Please note the back cover states this is for ‘Promotional Use Only’. This was intended for select radio stations throughout Europe. Polystars. 2002.

As many of the songs as I could find are on this Spotify playlist too.

Mixcloud Part One

DISC I

1.01 David Bowie – Speed Of Life (1:32)
1.02 Beatles, The – The End (1:00)
1.03 Beck – Lloyd Price Express (3:05)
1.04 Rollerball – Executive Party Dance (1:45)
1.05 Dopplereffekt – Pornographic Movies (2:07)
1.06 M.A.S.H. – Suicide Is Painless (2:35)
1.07 Quincy Jones – Summer In The City (3:40)
1.08 Serge Gainsbourg – En Melody (2:58)
1.09 Soft Machine – The Soft Wead Factor (2:21)
1.10 Michel Polnareff – Computer Dream (3:51)
1.11 Minnie Riperton – Loving You (3:42)
1.12 John Lennon – How Do You Sleep (4:54)
1.13 Jean-Jacques Perrey – Flight Of The Bumblebee (2:08)
1.14 Beastie Boys – Car Thief (3:03)
1.15 Ween – Roses Are Free (4:37)
1.16 Cure, The – In Your House (2:54)
1.17 Sly Stone – In Time (5:45)
1.18 Frank Sinatra – Water To Drink (2:34)
1.19 Prince – Crazy You (1:52)
1.20 Kraftwerk – Statovarius (3:31)

DISC II

2.01 Small Faces – Ogden’s Nut Gone Flake (2:11)
2.02 Beck – Electric Music & The Summer People (3:38)
2.03 Air – Malfunction (1:07)
2.04 Velvet Underground, The – Ocean (3:57)
2.05 Money Mark – Pinto’s New Car (2:39)
2.06 Richard De Bordeaux – La Drogue (2:56)
2.07 Stanley Cowell – Travelling Man (4:12)
2.08 Supergrass – Lose It (2:36)
2.09 Funk Factory – Rien Ne Va Plus (5:15)
2.10 Brian Eno – On Some Faraway Beach (3:04)
2.11 Michel Polnareff – Polnareve (1:09)
2.12 Harry Nilsson – Everybody’s Talking (0:35)
2.13 Francis Lai – Generique FR3 (3:18)
2.14 Phoenix – City Lights (3:19)
2.15 Pharcyde, The – Passin’ Me By (remix) (4:55)
2.16 Chic – At Last I Am Free (6:15)
2.17 David Bowie – The Man Who Sold The World (3:57)
2.18 Beck – Deadweight (4:50)

Mixcloud Part Two

Disc II

1.01 Pink Floyd – More (2:44)
1.02 Jacques Dutronc – Le Temps Des Copains (3:52)
1.03 Horace Andy – Spying Glass (5:10)
1.04 Lou Reed – Lady Day (3:26)
1.05 The Rolling Stones – Fingerprint File (4:10)
1.06 AIR – Remember (David Whitaker Version) (2:21)
1.07 Parliament – I Just Got Back (4:35)
1.08 The Beatles – Tomorrow Never Knows (2:55)
1.09 Brigitte Bardot – Contact (2:40)
1.10 Dusty Springfield – The Look Of Love (5:49)
1.11 Etienne De Crécy – Prix Choc (2:56)
1.12 Iggy Pop – Dum Dum Boys (7:14)
1.13 Thomas Bangalter – Ventura (5:16)
1.14 Prince – Papa (2:38_
1.15 AIR – Summer Love (Demo Version) (4:09)

DISC 4

2.01 The Beatles – The Word 2:10
2.02 Funkadelic – No Head No Backstage Pass 2:36
2.03 AIR – You Make It Easy (Demo Version) 3:49
2.04 Dick Hyman – Give It Up Or Turn It Loose 3:32
2.05 Shirley Bassey – Light My Fire 3:33
2.06 Prince – The Ballad Of Dorothy Parker 5:04
2.07 Château Flight – Monorama 3:36
2.08 Serge Gainsbourg – Cannabis 2:29
2.09 Michael Jackson – Ben 2:53
2.10 The Beach Boys – Don’t Talk 3:24
2.11 Money Mark Trust – 2:39
2.12 Snoop Doggy Dogg – Gz And Hustles 4:14
2.13 Beastie Boys – Transitions 1:53
2.14 Prince – Bob George 4:47
2.15 Scratch Pet Land – Post It
2.16 Jimi Hendrix – Up From The Skies
2.17 Timmy Thomas – Why Can’t We Live Together
2.18 Kool & The Gang – Summer Madness