Jazzy M

It is no exaggeration to say that the Ministry of Sound's supreme resident Michael Connolly - aka Jazzy M - was responsible for the house phenomenon in the UK. Grooverider dubbed him "The Godfather of House" the same title bestowed on Farley "Jackmaster" Funk. Mark Moore managed to blag an invite to his 38th birthday bash at the Ministry at the beginning of January where he celebrated a colossal 21 years as a DJ with an eight-hour set.

"A lengthy set definitely gets the best out of me," he says beaming as we chat in the Japanese VIP bar. "The longer you the play, the more you give. I've been preparing this set all week, digging into my vaults [of 50,000 no less!] and pulled out a few gems. You can only do that if you know you have a huge amount of time in which to play what the crowd wants, play what you like to hear and a few gems they won't be expecting!" Like the full fifteen minute version of Donna Summer's I Feel Love,Todd Terry's Bango and Bizarre Inc. remixes, and the old disco stormer Jackie Moore's This Time Baby. Colouful is how Jazzy M charaterises his music style covering all different types of house music, "no matter what I play I tend to go for the classier bits from each independent from style or fashion. The only commercial tunes I play are not the cheesey ones but commercial in the sense that they are good records," he says with passion and commitment. "I have no boundaries and stick to what I know and the tempo that I like."

How does it compare playing in the Box or Main Bar? "I tend to slow it down a touch in the Box but in the Main Bar, where it's brighter, more colouful and more of a party atmosphere you tend to speed it up. It's a natural thing: I'm not one of these DJs who notes the bpm."

Years ago, he had a record shop called Vinyl Zone on King's Road in Fulham whose customers read like a who's who in club culture. They included CJ Mackintosh, Pete Tong, Carl Cox, Paul Oakenfold, David Morales, Danny Rampling, Judge Jules, Nicky Holloway, Orbital, Mr C and Roger Sanchez. No doubt his fodder is still the backbone of record boxes today. "It was like a family - every DJ that came through the door was either a colleague or a friend. I had to look after a lot of DJs who were already in the high leagues. You can't expect them to come in spending £400 without getting discount - that's why I went under! I was also my own biggest customer! I'm not a good businessman and just look after everyone." The same can be said of his emotion-fuelled sets.

Vinyl Zone led to Jazzy M presenting the first ever house music radio show called The Jackin House on LWR, which ran for a decade. Receiving fifty letters a week Jazzy knew he was onto something special, influencing thousands in being the first to spread the house gospel. Yet Jazzy M is rarely credited for his vision. Does he see himself as an unsung hero? "I don't even know if I like the term but in a way, yes. I've run the record shop, labels, production, signing up major record deals with bands like Orbital, working with people like the Style Council - all different things. Most of the big name DJs I've helped with house music too. But what I am sore about is not being on the radio. That is my forté and what I do best out of all that I do. I had the very first house show and I'm not on radio - how unfair! I'd like to get back on radio and reclaim my crown. It's about time they knew how to put a proper house show together on the radio. The music I played on LWR was a natural progression from what I was already playing - a colourful mixture of fast, latin jazz through to disco to Minneapolis. That's how I came up with the pirate radio name Jazzy M! House music, in its infancy, was very raw and exciting and the more stuff that I came in, the more I liked it." And the love affair has never ended.

September 1991 saw the opening of The Ministry of Sound which was based on the layout of the infamous Paradise Garage. Indeed the opening night saw Jazzy M spinning to the legendary Larry Levan: Jazzy has been resident ever since and must hold one of the longest residencies. Does he still get the same buzz from playing at the Minstry? "Yes!" he says emphatically. "There's no other place like the Ministry for me. Tonight I'm so excited, I'm like a kid! I've dug all these old records out - it's the biggest kick you can get!" But has it changed over the years? "Of course but it still has that Saturday night Ministry sound although the sound has progressed. The club has stuck to its guns and still brings back those big name DJs that have always played here giving us so much pleasure." As a mentor, he has also taken some DJs under his wing to help them make a name for themselves. Collaborations with Tim De Luxe (Rip Jazz) and Paul Jackson continue the leagcy. "Tim doesn't need looking after but is a talent to look out for." He will also be compiling and mixing a Rulin' compilation CD for the Ministry of Sound later on in the year.

21 years DJing in the 21st Century will also see Jazzy M launch a world tour supported by his mates Frankie Knuckles, David Morales, Tony Humphries, Pete Tong, Mr C, Carl Cox, CJ Mackintosh, Roger Sanchez and Paul Oakenfold. The 21st Century tour will kick off in Miami ("my second home where I have played at Groovejet, Liquids and Madonna's party") in March with dates in Ibiza before going glbal. Indeed Jazzy M is no stranger to travelling after having played in over forty countries. He has international gigs every month which provide him with more inspiration. In 1997, he toured with the Ministry in China - another first. "That was like going to a different planet rather than different country! The cultural differences were amazing - it's a sad and crazy country." February sees him travelling to Switzerland, Iceland and Hungary too.

After successfully launching his production prowess under the guise of Sao Paulo in 1998 with Be Yourself Be Free, Jazzy M uses many monikers including Bushbaby and Tribe Gone West. "You don't really want to sign you name to a label and, in any case, no-one would know who the hell it was if I used my real name." Indeed, Jazzy M is such a special name to Michael that he is gearing up to use it soon. Jazzy M Presents The Residents latest incarnation, Jazz In The Way You Know (Let's Go Together) has just been licensed to London Records with sample from Change's Let's Go Together. Credit where credit's due. Why wasn't it signed to his own label Le Plugg Rouge? "That was just an experiment - a press and distributor deal - rather than being funded by myself. The first two releases didn't do too well and therefore the third release, Bushbaby, I licensed to the Ministry's Ride label." But it's not dead and buried. Le Plugg Rouge will come back later this year as Red Plug with investment from Jazzy M.

Other studio projects include a new Jazzy M single, a new Rip Jazz, plus collaborations with 187 Lockdown's Julian Joner and Danny Harrison, John Gould and another Sao Paulo track which is waiting for some vocals. It's amazing how he finds the time for it all. He uses three studios at the moment but has just bought a huge house in Surrey which will house his won purpose-built studio. "It's a detached house where no-one will be able to bloody hear me!"

Remixes are also another golden string to Jazzy's prolific bow with a Chocolate Sensation to be released soon. No doubt it will only be a matter of time before Jazzy has a hit on his hands - he's been patient enough.

Its 1.00 a.m. and he dashes down to the Box like a man possessed, grinning. The six-deep queue stretches round the block as people clamber to get in and experience a piece of history. With 21 years under his belt, Jazzy M has finally come of age.