Yep, Garage has evolved since it went overseas during the early 1990s. It started in New York City in 1976 by DJ Larry Levan, when he played Soulful Disco and Funk (not the cheesey Disco tunes like "YMCA" by the Village People or "I will survive" by Gloria Gainer, I mean Roy Ayers, D-Train, Ohio Players, Heatwave, Tina Marie, SalSoul, and the Sound of Philidelphia and many other forgoten goodies). In 1977, he opened the Paradise Garage club (this is how the music got it name) where he played the music. During the early 1980s, Disco started to die out, but Levan and House music pioneer (and creator) Frankie Knuckles created ways to transform Soulful Disco into Soulful House and R&B by using House beats.
Later, this became the new sound of US Garage became popular in New York, New Jersey area and hit the national Pop Charts during the late 1980s and the early 1990s with Garage divas like CeCe Peniston, Crystal Waters, Robin S, and Tina Moore (now forgoten by most people) and DJs like Tony Humphries, Todd Terry, Masters at Work, and Todd Edwards (who is now popular in England). Larry Levan became famous for his style and DJed internationally after the Paradise Garage closed in 1987. His last tour was in Japan, before he died in 1992 (some say he died of a heart attack, others rumor cocaine overdose).
Europeans who listened to House music during the late 1980s were familiar with US Garage music but the British really took interest in the music and started a Garage scene in 1993, but they speeded the US Garage beats per minutes from 122-125 to 128-130. Soon, break beats were used and there was a Jungle (Drum and Ba** mixed with Dancehall Reggae) and Hip-Hop influence in the music. This became known as UK Garage (or "Speed Garage", a term most people hate).
The MCs weren´t as popular as the DJ then. Somee of the early UK Garage MCs were MC GQ, MC Creed, Sharkey P, Skibbidee and Neuterino (before they joined the infamous So Solid Crew) but they were not as big as the DJs like MJ Cole, Karl "Tuff Enuff" Brown and Matt "Jam" Lamont (Tuff Jam), Rip Groove 99, Dem 2, DJ Luca, Baffled, Scott Garcia, M Dubs, Master stepz, DJ Face, and many others.Even Drum and Ba** DJs like DJ Zinc (who used to be in So Solid) and Goldie did a few Garage tracks.
The UK Garage scene was underground until 1997 (the same year Princess Di died) when the media started to recognize the music when 2 step beats were made. Then, Garage remixed were made on R&B tracks and many MCs and R&B artist like Ms Dynamite (formerly of So Solid) and Craig David became Garage artists. Garage crews like So Solid, Pay as U Go (forerunner of Dizzee Rascal´s Roll Deep Crew), Nasty Crew, Heartless Crew (who are only 3 DJs)
started to rise out of the streets of London with the Futuristic Grime sounding beats. So Solid was good but they´re known for their Pop like violent status a la 50 Cent, 2Pac (This is what separates Garage from British Hip-Hop, some Garage is Pop music, just like Kwaito is to South African Hip-Hop)!
8-) :-] ;-) :-P
