Green Velvet
Chemical engineer turned house producer: Curtis Jones made “Percolator” as Cajmere, “Flash” and “La La Land” as Green Velvet, and ran two Chicago labels.
- Chicago producer Curtis Alan Jones, born 26 April 1968; also records as Cajmere.
- Founded Cajual Records (1992) and Relief Records (1993).
- Hits include “Percolator” (1992), “Flash” (1995) and “La La Land” (2001).
Green Velvet is the house producer with a chemistry degree. Curtis Jones studied chemical engineering before he built two Chicago labels and two very different identities: Cajmere for jacking, vocal house, Green Velvet for the stranger, darker side of the music.
From engineering to Cajual
Jones was born in Chicago on 26 April 1968. He graduated in chemical engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign and attended the University of California, Berkeley, before moving back to Chicago in 1991. In 1992 he founded Cajual Records.
As Cajmere he released “Coffee Pot (It’s Time for the Percolator)” in 1992, a stripped, bouncing track that Rolling Stone later named among the 20 best Chicago house records. The same year “Brighter Days”, with the singer Dajae, reached No. 2 on Billboard’s dance club chart.
Relief Records and Green Velvet
In 1993 Jones added a second label, Relief Records. As Green Velvet he took “Flash” to No. 1 on Billboard’s Dance Club Songs chart in 1995. His debut album, Constant Chaos, followed in 1999, then Whatever in 2001.
Whatever produced “La La Land”, released on Relief and later filed under electroclash. It reached No. 29 in the UK, topped the UK dance chart and peaked at No. 12 on the US dance club chart. The original vinyl carried a remix by Geo Vogt, which is Jones himself under another name; later editions added mixes by Dave Clarke and others. Besides Cajmere and Geo Vogt, his aliases include Half Pint, Curan Stone and Gino Vittori.
Later albums and Get Real
Walk in Love came in 2005 and Unshakable in 2013, the year of “Bigger than Prince”. In 2015 he released Unity, an album with Carl Craig. A year earlier he had formed Get Real with Claude VonStroke; the duo’s debut single “Mind Yo Bizness” / “Snuffaluffagus” arrived in 2016 and “Jolean” in 2019. DJ Mag has called him “a stalwart figure” of house and techno.
In the mix
Green Velvet tracks are built from very little: a drum machine, a bassline and a deadpan voice. For the Chicago roots of that sound, go back to “Acid Tracks” by Phuture and the records of Marshall Jefferson.
FAQ
Is Green Velvet the same person as Cajmere?
Yes. Both are aliases of Chicago producer Curtis Jones, born in 1968. He released “Percolator” as Cajmere and “Flash” and “La La Land” as Green Velvet.
Which labels did Green Velvet found?
Cajual Records in 1992 and Relief Records in 1993.
Who is in Get Real with Green Velvet?
Claude VonStroke. The duo formed in 2014 and released its first single, “Mind Yo Bizness” / “Snuffaluffagus”, in 2016.
