Category Archives: Funk
THE TEMPTATIONS-ALL DIRECTIONS.
THE TEMPTATIONS-ALL DIRECTIONS. When The Temptations were recording what became All Directions, the group were determined not two songs that eventually appeared on the album. One of these songs was Papa Was A Rolling Stone, and The Temptations were absolutely determined not to record the song. They felt that the song wouldn’t provide them with …
DONNY HATHAWAY-DONNY HATHAWAY
DONNY HATHAWAY-DONNY HATHAWAY After listening to Lala Hathaway’s album Where It All Begins, I thought that I’d revisit her father Donny Hathaway’s eponymous second album, Donny Hathaway. Previously, I’ve written about Donny’s stunning debut album Everything Is Everything, released in July 1970. On its release, the critically acclaimed Everything Is Everything reached number seventy-three in …
DJ ROGERS-ON THE ROAD AGAIN.
DJ ROGERS-ON THE ROAD AGAIN. Some time ago, I wrote about DJ Rogers debut album for RCA Records It’s Good To Be Alive, released in 1975, which gave him a hit album, reaching number thirty-six US R&B charts. Sadly, the story of DJ Rogers is one of an artist with a huge amount of talent, …
EDDIE HAZEL-GAMES, DAMES AND GUITAR THANGS.
EDDIE HAZEL-GAMES, DAMES AND GUITAR THANGS. A few years ago, in 2006, I was listening to an Atlantic Records box set What It Is! Funky Soul and Rare Grooves 1967-1977, when I came across an Eddie Hazel track California Dreamin.’ Wow, the Mama and Papas song never sounded like this I remember. I started trying …
CHIC-REAL PEOPLE.
CHIC-REAL PEOPLE. Last week, I was lucky enough to get a copy of Nile Rodgers new autobiography Le Freak: An Upside Down Story of Family, Disco and Destiny which was truly, a fascinating read. It dealt with not just his music career, but his early family life. Now I’ve many similar books over the years, …
ASHFORD AND SIMPSON-HIGH RISE.
ASHFORD AND SIMPSON-HIGH RISE. Recently I wrote a review of Ashford and Simpson’s 1982 concept album Street Opera, which dealt with the problems couples face in economically tough times. They dealt with the problem how does a couple keep their love alive when money’s tight. The idea behind the album was the problems an ordinary …
LEON HAYWOOD-COME AND GET YOURSELF SOME.
LEON HAYWOOD-COME AND GET YOURSELF SOME. Back in 2000 when I was listening to a BBE Records compilation Strange Games and Funky Things III, compiled by Kenny Dope, I first heard what’s probably Leon Haywood’s best known track, I Wanna Do Something Freaky To You. It’s one of these compelling and catchy tracks that once …
ERNIE HINES-ELECTRIFIED.
ERNIE HINES-ELECTRIFIED. Ernie Hines was one of three artists who arrived at the We Produce label, a subsidiary company of Stax. The label had been set up by Stax’s co-owner, and label chief Al Bell, to expand Stax, making them big enough to stand alone company, following the discovery of the problems with the seven …
WILLIE HUTCH-ODE TO MY LADY.
WILLIE HUTCH-ODE TO MY LADY. Although Willie Hutch’s career spanned five decades, during which time he released a number of successful, influential and innovative albums, there are two albums that many people remember him best for. These two albums are The Mack, released in 1974, and Foxy Brown released in 1975, which were both soundtracks …
ASHFORD AND SIMPSON-STREET OPERA.
ASHFORD AND SIMPSON-STREET OPERA. Back in 1963, when Nikolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson met, they probably never envisaged that their musical partnership would last six decades, and see them write songs for some of music’s biggest names and record four albums that were certified gold. Husband and wife duo Ashford and Simpson had met in …
MEL AND TIM-MEL AND TIM.
MEL AND TIM-MEL AND TIM. Every artist dreams about having a hugely successful hit single, selling so many copies that they get a gold disc to hang on their wall. This happened twice to cousins Mel Hardin and Tim McPherson. Recording as Mel and Tim, their demo tape had so impressed soul singer, Gene Chandler …
JOHN GARY WILLIAMS-JOHN GARY WILLIAMS.
JOHN GARY WILLIAMS-JOHN GARY WILLIAMS. Sometimes, an otherwise good album is released at just the wrong time, and as a result, the album fails to do as well commercially, as it should’ve done. This was the case with John Gary Williams self-titled debut album John Gary Williams. His album was released just as Stax was …
THE DRAMATICS-WHATCHA SEE IS WHATCHA GET.
THE DRAMATICS-WHATCHA SEE IS WHATCHA GET. Earlier in October 2011, six albums which were originally released on Stax, were released having been remastered by Joe Tarantino. Previously, I’ve reviewed Shirley Brown’s Woman To Woman and Johnnie Taylor’s Taylored In Silk, both of which were great albums, and have hugely benefited from being remastered. The remastering …
ROSIE GAINES-WELCOME TO MY WORLD.
ROSIE GAINES-WELCOME TO MY WORLD. Many people reading this article may be thinking that they recognize the name Rosie Gaines, but can’t quite place her. They’ll have heard of her, but can’t quite remember where. To save you wracking your brains any more, I’ll tell you where you might have heard of her. Rosie used …
CHIC-CHIC.
CHIC-CHIC. Back in 1977, when I was growing up, one of the many sounds that immediately, grabbed my attention, was Chic. Not for me the angry, desolate sound of punk, that to me was a depressing, ugly sound, the anathema of what music should sound like. Instead, I’d become accustomed to The Sound of Philadelphia, …
JAMES BROWN-THE PAYBACK.
JAMES BROWN-THE PAYBACK. During his career, The Godfather of Funk, James Brown produced many albums, hence the nickname “the hardest working man in show business,” but The Payback his 1973 album is one of the high points in his long and illustrious career. It’s no exaggeration to say, that nowadays, The Payback is perceived by …
RUFUS FEATURING CHAKA KHAN-RUFUSIZED.
RUFUS FEATURING CHAKA KHAN-RUFUSIZED. By 1974, Rufus had come a long way from their humble beginnings as a Chicago bar band. The previous year 1973, Rufus had released their eponymous debut album Rufus, which only reached number 175 in the US Billboard 200. It was hardly the most successful debut album in music history, but …
CURTIS MAYFIELD-CURTIS.
CURTIS MAYFIELD-CURTIS. By 1970, Curtis Mayfield had left The Impressions, and decided to become a solo artists. This wasn’t the only major change in his life at this time. The other change was his founding of Curtom Records, an independent record label. Curtom Records released albums by Leroy Hutson, The Impressions, Donny Hathaway and The …
DR JOHN-GRIS GRIS.
DR JOHN-GRIS GRIS. Imagine the scenario that I’m going to describe, because it really happened, and it demonstrates that even the most experienced people in the music industry get things wrong. In January 1968, Dr John had completed his debut album Gris Gris, but when Ahmet Erteghun at Atlantic Records heard the record, he disliked …
THE TEMPTATIONS-PSYCHEDELIC SHACK.
THE TEMPTATIONS-PSYCHEDELIC SHACK. When people think of The Temptations music, they think of singles like My Girl, People Get Ready and Ain’t To Proud To Beg, their early songs, released on the Motown label. This was among some of the greatest music Motown ever released, it truly was sweet soul music. However, there was much …
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