www.clubshelter.com
Biography:
Timmy Regisford is simply put, one of the great legends
of dance music. The inception of his internationally acclaimed
Club Shelter parties in New York fifteen years ago helped
pioneer the soulful house music sound that has shaped the
face of house music all around the world. So where did it
all begin?
Introduced to the dance scene at an early
age and a regular at the Paradise Garage, Regisford was
already fast honing his skills as a DJ and soon gained notoriety
within the New York underground club scene of the late seventies.
In 1982 he was offered the Master Mix show on New York radio
giant WBLS where he challenged listeners, with a unique
and energetic style of mixing that remains his signature
sound.
1983 saw the release of the seminal ‘Music
Got Me’ by Visual on Prelude Records co-produced with
fellow
‘ Garage’ regular Boyd Jarvis and a precursor
of the “deep house sound” that was to flourish
almost ten years later. Meanwhile Regisford continued to
build his reputation playing regular parties throughout
New York at clubs including The Red Parrot, Tunnel, Palladium
and Area.
In 1991, Regisford opened his own venue
alongside partners Freddy Sanon and Merlin Bobb called Shelter
located at #6 Hubert Street in the desolate, meatpacking
district of downtown Manhattan. A custom built sound system
and acoustically treated room helped Regisford earn the
title of ‘The Maestro’ with his awe inspiring
weekly 12–18 hour sets.
Always conscious of the importance of live
music, Shelter has featured many memorable performances
through the years from such noteworthy artists as Grace
Jones, Ashford & Simpson, Femi Kuti, Sounds Of Blackness,
Chaka Khan, Mary J Blige, Liz Torres to name a few.
In 2001, after a decade at Hubert Street,
Shelter relocated to midtown Manhattan. Five years later,
Shelter relocated back downtown to Soho, close to it’s
original home. Regisford is currently developing his artist
Quentin Harris with releases on his labels Unrestricted
Access and Restricted Access.
In more general terms, Regisford’s
career is multi-faceted, combining production, remix and
A&R work along with DJing. His extensive remix discography
includes reworkings of classics by Diana Ross, Gerald Alston,
Stevie Wonder, Patti Labelle, New Addition, Bobby Womack,
Gladys Knight and The Pips and Mary J Blige to name a few.
As an A&R Executive at Motown, MCA and Atlantic, Regisford’s
aptitude for finding and developing new talent has brought
the likes of Blaze, Johnny Gill, Basic Black, Eric B &
Rakim, Guy, Miki Howard, Ten City and Curtis Hairston to
the forefront of the music scene. He has solidified label
agreements with NY’s Apollo Theatre and Motown’s
first UK label Funki Dred Records, headed by Soul II Soul’s
Jazzie B.