Category Archives: Jazz
TERRY CALLIER-FIRE ON ICE.
TERRY CALLIER-FIRE ON ICE. One of my favorite artists of all time is Terry Callier, who I’ve previously written about before. In these articles, I’ve featured What Color Is Love, the second of the three albums he recorded on Cadet, a subsidiary of the famous Chicago label Chess. This is one of my favorite of …
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 …
TERRY CALLIER-WHAT COLOR IS LOVE.
TERRY CALLIER-WHAT COLOR IS LOVE. Over the past thirty-five years, I must have bought and listened to, thousands of albums. Many of these albums are albums are great albums, but commercially, weren’t successful. Often it’s hard to understand why these albums weren’t successful, why they never sold in larger quantities and why the artist wasn’t …
SLY AND THE FAMILY STONE-THERE’S A RIOT GOIN’ ON.
SLY AND THE FAMILY STONE-THERE’S A RIOT GOIN’ ON. Often a band will change musical direction. There can be many reasons for this. Sometimes, it’s because they’re looking for commercial success, other times, they’re moving with changes in musical trends, it can even be to reflect changes in society. Another reason can be problems within …
SLY AND THE FAMILY STONE-FRESH.
SLY AND THE FAMILY STONE-FRESH. The band this article is about, were one of the most important bands in the late 1960s’. They were a multiracial and multi-gender band, whose music was a fusion of styles, including, soul, funk, rock and psychedelic music. Their music influenced groups across these genres. The story of this band …
TERRY CALLIER-TIMEPEACE.
TERRY CALLIER-TIMEPEACE. This article is about one of the most talented and charismatic artists I have ever been fortunate to see live. When you see him in concert, you’re immediately taken with his presence on stage. There is something about him that makes him stand out from other artists. He is a deeply religious man, …
JON LUCIEN-RASHIDA.
JON LUCIEN-RASHIDA. Today I thought I would write about an artist who many people will not be aware of, despite the artist receiving two Grammy nominations for the album this article is about. The artist is Jon Lucien, and the album is Rashida, his second album, released on RCA Records in 1973. Jon Lucien was …
GREAT ALBUM COVERS VOLUME 1: 15 OF THE BEST
GREAT ALBUM COVERS VOLUME 1: 15 OF THE BEST. Recently, whilst looking through a large number of old albums, I was struck by how many great album covers I came across. Funnily enough, not every great album cover I came across was to be found on an album that one would call a classic album. …