Category Archives: Rock
BREAKWATER-SPLASHDOWN.
BREAKWATER-SPLASHDOWN. Imagine being one of the hottest unsigned bands in Philadelphia during the seventies and not even trying to get a deal with Gamble and Huff’s Philadelphia International Records. Not even knocking on Gamble and Huff’s door might seem strange or even, somewhat remiss. After all, Gamble and Huff were at the helm of …
WAH WAH WATSON-ELEMENTARY.
WAH WAH WATSON-ELEMENTARY. Whenever I listen to music, one thing I always do is look at which musicians play on an album. One man whose played on more sessions than the average musician has had gigs, is the one and only Wah Wah Watson, virtuoso guitarist and a man who weaves that unmistakable wah wah …
TEENA MARIE-NAKED TO THE WORLD.
TEENA MARIE-NAKED TO THE WORLD. Having left Motown after a bitter and prolonged legal dispute, Teena Marie signed for Epic Records, releasing five albums. She’d enjoyed commercial success at Motown, releasing three albums that were certified gold between 1979 and 1981. These were Lady T in 1979, 1980s Irons In the Fire and 1981s It …
TEMMA TEJE-MIDGET LAMPS IN THE DARK.
TEMMA TEJE-MIDGET LAMPS IN THE DARK. Although TEMMA-Teje is just twenty-one, he’s packed a lot into his nascent musical career, so far. Starting at just aged thirteen, he was writing songs for his band. By sixteen, his band were playing twice a week at various venues. He was guitarist and vocalist. Then his career progressed …
PAUL BUCHANAN-MID AIR.
PAUL BUCHANAN-MID AIR. Although The Blue Nile only released four albums between forming in 1981 and they released their final album High in 2004, they’ve attained legendary status among their fans. Sadly, their albums never sold in the quantities their talent deserved. Very little is known about the three members of The Blue Nile, Paul …
TEENA MARIE-EMERALD CITY.
TEENA MARIE-EMERALD CITY. Having released four albums for Motown between 1979 and 1981, three of which had been certified gold, Lady T, Teena Marie had signed for Epic after a prolonged and bitter contract dispute that cost her over one-million dollars in legal fees. Her first album for Epic had been 1983s Robbery, which reached …
THE ISLEY BROTHERS-GO FOR YOUR GUNS.
THE ISLEY BROTHERS-GO FOR YOUR GUNS. Some time ago, I wrote about The Isley Brothers 1976’ album platinum certified album Harvest For the World, which was released during the hottest period of The Isley Brothers’ career. This hugely successful run of albums started with the release of 1973s 3 + 3 which was also certified …
THE POINTER SISTERS-SERIOUS SLAMMIN.’
THE POINTER SISTERS-SERIOUS SLAMMIN.’ When The Pointer Sisters released their fourteenth album Serious Slammin,’ it was their ninth and final album to be produced by Richard Perry and their final album for RCA. Serious Slammin’ marked a change in their sound, with Richard Perry giving The Pointer Sisters a harder electronic, funky sound. This meant …
BLACULA-MUSIC FROM THE ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK-GENE PAGE.
BLACULA-MUSIC FROM THE ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK-GENE PAGE. Forty years ago, in 1972, it was a classic year for Blaxploitation films and soundtracks. Starting with Super Fly, with a seminal Blaxploitation soundtrack provided by Curtis Mayfield, Across 110th Street was the next big Blaxploitation film, with none other than Bobby Womack providing the soundtrack to the movie. …
TEENA MARIE-STARCHILD.
TEENA MARIE-STARCHILD. In 1983, Teena Marie released her fifth album Robbery, which was the first album for her new record label Epic. Robbery hadn’t matched the commercial success of her three previous albums for Motown, only reaching number 119 in the US Billboard 200 and number thirteen in the US R&B Charts. Undeterred, Teena Marie …
TEENA MARIE-ROBBERY.
TEENA MARIE-ROBBERY. After releasing here fourth and final album for Motown It Must Be Magic in 1981, Teena Marie signed for Epic Records in 1982, where she’d release five albums. Her time at Motown was the most successful period of her career, resulting in a gold album for her final Motown album, It Must Be …
NONA HENDRYX-NONA.
NONA HENDRYX-NONA. After recently reviewing the ZE Records Story 1979-2009, which featured Bustin’ Out by Material featuring Nona Hendryx, one of the highlights of the compilation, I decided that I’d review Nona’s 1983 album Nona, released on RCA. This was Nona’s second album since leaving Labelle, an all-girl group which featured Patti La Belle, Sarah …
THE POINTER SISTERS-ENERGY.
THE POINTER SISTERS-ENERGY. All too often, when a group lose one of their members, this can prove fatal, resulting in their career being over. Often, if somehow the group survive, then their music is never the same again. Obviously, there are exceptions to this rule, with The O’Jays, Rolling Stones and Temptations all having successful …
LINDA LEWIS-SAY NO MORE.
LINDA LEWIS-SAY NO MORE. When Linda Lewis released her debut album Say No More for Reprise in 1971, many people were wowed by Linda’s ability to seamlessly combine musical genres. Whether folk or funk, or rock and soul, Linda was equally comfortable and accomplished. Using her five octave vocal range, something few singers are blessed …
THE ISLEY BROTHERS-HARVEST FOR THE WORLD.
THE ISLEY BROTHERS-HARVEST FOR THE WORLD. What people forget about when they talk about The Isley Brothers career is both the longevity of their career and how successful a career they had. In a career that saw them release their first album Shout in 1959 and their last album Baby Makin’ Music in 2006, they …
SHUGGIE OTIS-FREEDOM FLIGHT.
SHUGGIE OTIS-FREEDOM FLIGHT. What’s the best way to describe Shuggie Otis? Prodigious, musical virtuoso and vastly underrated is a good start. Certainly Shuggie was something of a child prodigy, first playing the guitar aged two, and playing with his father Johnny’s band from the age of twelve. As if that wasn’t impressive enough, Shuggie released …
DR JOHN-IN A SENTIMENTAL MOOD.
DR JOHN-IN A SENTIMENTAL MOOD. Anyone who collects records or CDs will tell you that one of the biggest buzzes for a collector is either finding an obscure or rare album in the most unlikeliest of places. For me this has included, many years ago finding mint editions of rare soul albums in a dark …
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 …
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 …
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