Author Archive: dereksmusicblog
BOOKER T. AND THE MGs-McLEMORE AVENUE.
BOOKER T. AND THE MGs-McLEMORE AVENUE. Back in 1993, I was truly fortunate to see Booker T. and The MGs live. They were accompanying Neil Young on his European Tour. For someone who loves the music of Booker T. and The MGs, Stax and Neil Young, this was a concert I wasn’t going to miss. …
THE JACKSONS-THE JACKSONS.
THE JACKSONS-THE JACKSONS. After the release if their 1975 album Moving Violation, it was all change for The Jacksons. They’d left Motown, the record company they’d called home for seven years, since the release of their first album Diana Ross Presents the Jackson 5 in 1969. That was the first of ten studio albums for …
ISAAC HAYES AND DIONNE WARWICK-A MAN AND A WOMAN.
ISAAC HAYES AND DIONNE WARWICK-A MAN AND A WOMAN. By 1977, much had changed for Isaac Hayes. Stax where he’d enjoyed the most successful period of his career, had been declared bankrupt. He’d then signed to ABC and while his first two albums 1973s Joy and 1975s Chocolate Chip had sold well, his next three …
SNOWBOY PRESENTS NEW VINTAGE VOLUME 1.
SNOWBOY PRESENTS NEW VINTAGE VOLUME 1. When those little shiny discs drop through the door, it’s a bit like Forest Gump’s box of chocolates, “you never know what you’re gonna get.” With Snowboy’s new compilation Snowboy Presents New Vintage Volume 1, this is the ultimate box of chocolates, with every one a sumptuous soft center, …
THE DYNAMIC SUPERIORS-GIVE AND TAKE.
THE DYNAMIC SUPERIORS-GIVE AND TAKE. Much had changed since The Dynamic Superiors had released their debut album Pure Pleasure in 1975. Ashford and Simpson, who’d wrote and produced their first two albums Pleasure and The Dynamic Superiors, had been replaced for their third album You Name It. Replacing them were various songwriters and producers, that …
JAMES BROWN-GRAVITY.
JAMES BROWN-GRAVITY. When James Brown released the single Living In America in December 1985, it had been nine years since he’d last had a hit single. The last time one of James Brown’s singles charted in the US Billboard 100, was 1976, when Body Heat reached number eighty-eight. Since then, although James Brown was still …
DISCO DISCHARGE-MIDNIGHT SHIFT.
DISCO DISCHARGE-MIDNIGHT SHIFT. Harmless Records say farewell to their Disco Discharge series with Disco Discharge-Midnight Shift, their fourth and final compilation of 2012. It’ll be 2013 before compiler Mr. Pinks makes his next appearance. This is the sixteenth compilation since the series started back in 2009. Since then, Mr. Pinks has treated us to everything …
ASHFORD AND SIMPSON-SOLID.
ASHFORD AND SIMPSON-SOLID. Previously, I’ve written about two of Ashford and Simpson’s album 1982s Street Opera and 1983s High Rise. While both were commercially successful, the album that followed High Rise, would surpass both these albums and prove to be one of their most successful albums. This was 1984s Solid, which reached number twenty-nine in …
GINA CAREY-LOVE LETTERS TWO.
GINA CAREY-LOVE LETTERS TWO. Just three months after releasing her sixth solo album Love Letters, Gina Carey returns with another album Love Letters Two. This is a combination of old and new songs. There are four songs apiece from Gina’s two previous albums, 2011s Melodic and 2012s Love Letters. The three new songs, You, Being …
THE DUALERS-PRINCE BUSTER SHAKEDOWN.
THE DUALERS-PRINCE BUSTER SHAKEDOWN. One of the things I love about music, is it’s ability to transport you back in time, a bit like Dr. Who’s Tardis. This is what happened when I first played The Dualers third album Prince Buster Shakedown. Suddenly, I was transported back over thirty years to the late seventies, and …
DEE DEE WARWICK-FOOLISH FOOL.
DEE DEE WARWICK-FOOLISH FOOL. Although Dee Dee Warwick’s career started in 1963 when she recorded You’re No Good for Jubilee Records, produced by Leiber and Stoller, it wasn’t until she signed for Mercury Records and began working with producer Ed Townsend that her career took-off. Before that, Dee Dee had recorded for a variety of …
THE DYNAMIC SUPERIORS-YOU NAME IT.
THE DYNAMIC SUPERIORS-YOU NAME IT. Although The Dynamic Superiors were formed in 1963, it wasn’t until 1975 that they signed to Motown Records. It was for Motown, that The Dynamic Superiors released four of their five albums. For their first two 1975 albums The Dynamic Superiors and Rare Pleasure, Ashford and Simpson produced these albums. …
ODYSSEY-HANG TOGETHER.
ODYSSEY-HANG TOGETHER. Not only was Odyssey’s 1977 eponymous debut album Odyssey, the group’s most successful album, it featured their biggest hit single, Native New Yorker. This was a song that would forever become synonymous with Odyssey, reaching number twelve in the US Billboard 100 and number six in the US R&B Charts. Spurred on by …
CISSY HOUSTON-PRESENTING CISSY HOUSTON.
CISSY HOUSTON-PRESENTING CISSY HOUSTON. During Cissy Houston’s long musical career, she’s worked with some of the biggest artists in music, singing backing vocals on some of the biggest most successful albums. This includes Aretha Franklin’s Lady Soul, Van Morrison’s Moondance, Donny Hathaway’s Donny Hathaway and David Bowie’s Young Americans. That’s not forgetting albums by Roberta …
ENCHANTMENT-ENCHANTMENT.
ENCHANTMENT-ENCHANTMENT. After being formed in 1966 at Detroit’s Pershing High School, Enchantment signed their recording contract in 1969. This came about when the group won a local talent contest sponsored by the local Detroit radio station WCHB. However, it would be another eight years before the group would release their debut album Enchantment, which will …
BILLY PAUL-GOING EAST.
BILLY PAUL-GOING EAST. After releasing Feelin’ Good At the Cadillac Club on Gamble Records in 1968 and Ebony Woman on Neptune in 1970, Billy Paul signed to a newly formed label in Philadelphia, founded by two songwriters, musicians and producers. The label was Philadelphia International Records and the two founders were Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff. …
AUNTIE AUBREY’S EXCURSIONS BEYOND THE CALL OF DUTY PART 2-THE ORB REMIX PROJECT.
AUNTIE AUBREY’S EXCURSIONS BEYOND THE CALL OF DUTY PART 2-THE ORB REMIX PROJECT. Sometimes, unless you dig deep, trawling the internet to discover what albums are about to be released, albums can pass you by. The reason for this is quite simple, purely because they’re released without fanfare, or much in the way of promotion. …
dereksmusicblog
