*** Danny Tenaglia

BACK TO MINE

(Ultra)

Those who investigate DJ Danny Tenaglia's new disc expecting the deep, hard, ecstatic house music that made his reputation will be surprised indeed by its avoidance of any sound identifiably his. Instead, Tenaglia pulls together a variety of songs -- some fairly well known, some really obscure -- that can only be his personal listening pleasures: old disco (Roy Ayers's "Running Away," Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66's "One Note Samba"/"Spanish Flea"), semi-successful divas (CeCe Peniston's "Keep On Walkin'," Oleta Adams's "Rhythm of Life"), Kraftwerk-influenced European electronica (Yello's "To the Sea" and Isolee's "Beau mon plage"), and a variety of dreamlike hoverings. Included therein are Crescendo's "Cairo," one of those Arabic Eurobeats that regale only the most intoxicated of late-night club kids, and Bang the Party's "Bang Bang You're Mine," which is funky and goofy in the wigged-out manner of Paris-styled house music. Plus Tenaglia's own "Loft in Paradise," a garage-like house jam whose title pretty well sums up the impression the entire session seeks to create.

-- Michael Freedberg