CULT CLASSIC: LOLEATTA HOLLOWAY-CRY TO ME.
Cult Classic: Loleatta Holloway-Cry To Me.
Before being transformed into a disco diva by arranger, guitarist and producer Norman Harris at Salsoul imprint Gold Mind Records, Loleatta Holloway released two albums of Southern Soul for Michael Thevis’ Aware Records. This includes her sophomore album Cry To Me, which was released in 1975.
Loleatta Holloway was born in the Windy City of Chicago, on November the ‘5th’ 1946, and just like Minnie Ripperton and Aretha Franklin her talent was noticeable from an early age. Growing up, music was always part of Loleatta Holloway’s life.
Her first involvement with music was when she joined her mother’s gospel group. Her time with The Holloway Community Gospel Singers was akin to a musical apprenticeship.
That was also the case for another young singer that Loleatta Holloway met whilst singing with her mother’s gospel group. This was a young Aretha Franklin who later, would influence Loleatta Holloway’s vocal style and phrasing.
In 1967, Loleatta Holloway was asked by Albertina Walker to join The Caravans, the gospel group she founded in the fifties. She agreed, and later, that year, The Famous Caravans as they were now billed, released their critically acclaimed album Help Is On The Way. Loleatta Holloway’s recording career was underway.
For the next four years, she was a member of The Caravans and on their 1969 album Think About It takes charge of the lead vocal on two tracks. However, by 1971 Loleatta Holloway was ready to embark on a new chapter in her career.
She acted in the musical revue Don’t Bother Me, I Can’t Cope and formed and toured with her own company Loleatta Holloway and Her Review. By then, she had also met future husband and manager Floyd Smith, who arranged for Loleatta Holloway to record her first secular tracks.
This was a cover of a Gene Chandler song Rainbow 71, which was released on the Apache label in 1971. Later, they leased to Galaxy who were able to distribute the single nationwide. However, the song failed to chart and Loleatta Holloway returned to the studio.
Her next single was Bring It On Up, originally the b-side to Sentimental Reasons. It was around this time that Michael Thevis became aware of Loleatta Holloway, and he signed for his new Atlanta based Aware label.
Now that he had signed Loleatta Holloway, Michael Thevis wasted no time recording her first single for his new label. This was Mother Of Shame, which was released in May 1973, and reached number sixty-three in the US R&B Charts. Although it was only a minor hit, Loleatta Holloway entered the studio with producer Floyd Smith to record her debut secular album.
Loleatta.
This was Loleatta, which was recorded at the Sound Pit Studios, in Atlanta, Georgia. The album was produced by Floyd Smith who penned Part Time Lover, Full Time Fool and cowrote Only A Fool with William Johnson. Accompanying Loleatta Holloway as she recorded the ten tracks were The “Homegrown” Rhythm Section. Once the album was completed, it was released later in 1973.
By July 1973, DJs were playing Our Love which was on the B-Side of Mother Of Shame. It eventually reached forty-three in the US R&B charts and game Loleatta Holloway her second hit single.
Buoyed by the success of Our Love, Part Time Lover, Full Time Fool was released as a single. Despite being one of the strongest song on the album and an obvious choice for a single it failed to chart. This was a disappointment for Loleatta Holloway and Floyd Smith who wrote and produced the song.
There was further disappointment when Loleatta was released later in 1973 and failed to chart. That was despite the album receiving positive reviews from the critics that reviewed it.
The album featured a series of vocal masterclasses from Loleatta Holloway who sounded as if she had lived the lyrics. She breathed life, meaning and emotion into the songs on Loleatta and was like actress in a play on the tales of love and love gone wrong. Sadly, very few people heard Loleatta when it was released in 1973 and she hoped that the followup fared better.
Cry To Me.
In the spring of 1974, Loleatta Holloway returned to the studio to record her next single.The song that had been chosen was a Sam Dees’ composition Help Me My Lord. It found Loleatta Holloway strutting her way through the track delivering a vocal powerhouse as she combines Southern Soul and gospel.
Then Loleatta Holloway delivers a defiant vocal that is a mixture of anger and frustration on Frederick Knight’s The World Don’t Owe You Nothin’. It features a funky, soulful arrangement that is the perfect backdrop to this mini soap opera. However, despite being the stronger of the two tracks it was destined for the B-Side.
This decision came back to haunt Aware Records when Help Me My Lord was released as a single and failed to chart. Despite this, Loleatta Holloway returned to the studio to record the rest of her sophomore album Cry To Me.
Another eight tracks were chosen for the album including Sam Dees’ I Know Where You’re Coming From and The Show Must Go On. They were join ed by David Camon’s Cry To Me; Curtis Mayfield’s Just Be True To Me; Johnny Jacobs and Ronnie Walker’s Something About The Way I Feel; A. Jerline Williams and William Johnson’s I Can’t Help Myself and Jo Armstead’s Casanova. The other track was the Loleatta Holloway composition I’ll Be Gone. These tracks were recorded at the Sound Pit Studios, in Atlanta, Georgia.
Just like Loleatta, Cry To Me was produced by Floyd Smith. Accompanying Loleatta Holloway at the Sound Pit were The “Homegrown” Rhythm Section. Just like her debut album they played an important part in the album’s sound.
This includes on the album opener Cry To Me where a piano plays slowly, guitars chime and combine with the rhythm section as Loleatta Holloway delivers a soliloquy. She’s heartbroken and sings about how her relationship is breaking up against an arrangement that is a mixture of power and drama. Strings sweep in while the rhythm section add drama and backing vocalists accompany a powerful, soul-baring vocal. It’s almost impossible not to to get caught up in the emotion and sadness of what’s one of the album’s highlights.
The Show Must Go On was written by Sam Dees who originally recorded this ballad. Loleatta Holloway delivers a hurt-filled soliloquy against Floyd Smith’s arrangement. By the time the vocal enters, the rhythm section, sweeping strings horns, gospel-tinged backing vocalists, vibes and even applause accompany a defiant, dramatic soul-baring vocal.
I Know Where You’re Coming From is a song about a relationship breakup with a twist in the tale. Loleatta Holloway delivers a soliloquy as a guitar chimes and a bass cuts through the arrangement. Meanwhile, soaring backing vocals join Loleatta Holloway as she reassures her friend: “I Know Where You’re Coming From” before singing: “why don’t you take my hand and be my man” on this timeless slice of sassy Southern Soul.
There’s a sense of drama to the ballad Just Be True To Me. It features an arrangement where strings sweep and horns rasp as the rhythm section provide the heartbeat. Meanwhile, Loleatta Holloway delivers a heartfelt and impassioned vocal that becomes needy and hopeful when she sings: “Just Be True To Me” on this beautiful ballad.
The tempo rises slightly on Something About The Way I Feel as the rhythm section, horns and vibes set the scene for an impassioned vocal. Loleatta Holloway reflects about the past and what she’s been through with her partner. She’s accompanied by backing vocalists that prove to be the perfect foil as the song swings and she gives thanks for the love she’s found, what she has and “the way I feel.” It’s a beautiful paean where the future disco diva paints pictures with the lyrics.
I’ll Be Gone is another ballad and the only song on the album written by Loleatta Holloway. She warns on this tale of love gone wrong that: “I can’t let you keep on hurting me for I’ll Be Gone.” Her vocal is bristling with emotion and hurt as the rhythm section add a degree of drama and are joined by a crystalline guitar, vibes plus sweeping and pizzicato strings. They provide the perfect backdrop as Loleatta Holloway delivers an ultimatum to her cheating, no good man.
Dramatic describes the introduction to I Can’t Help Myself before it sets the scene for Loleatta Holloway’s vocal. There’s a degree of confusion in her voice as she’s fallen for the wrong guy. “I never thought I could fall in love with a guy like you, although I know you could never be true, I find myself wanting to live with ‘cos I love you, I can’t help myself.” Meanwhile, backing vocals soar above the arrangement and coo, as drums pound, a guitar chimes, strings sweep and horns rasp. It’s one of the best arrangements on the album and the perfect accompaniment for the vocal.
Stabs of horns, backing vocalists and the rhythm section combine to create a dramatic backdrop before Loleatta Holloway unleashes a powerful, emotive vocal on Casanova. She tells her parter “Casanova your playing days are over.” Meanwhile, the backing vocalists sing “it’s over, it’s over baby” as strings sweep and swirl and the drama builds during this four minute soap open. It’s one of the eight tracks recorded at the Sound Pit and is without doubt one of the highlight Cry To Me.
With the rest of the album completed, Cry To Me was scheduled for release later in 1975. Loleatta Holloway must have been hoping that it would fare better than her debut album.
Things were looking good when Cry To Me was released as a single in January 1975 and reached sixty-eight in the US Billboard 100 and ten in the US R&B charts.
In June 1975, I Know I Where You’re Coming From was released as a single and stalled at sixty-nine in the US R&B charts. It was a case of one step forward and two steps back for Loleatta Holloway.
She released her sophomore album Cry To Me later in 1975 and although it was well received by critics but like her debut failed to trouble the charts. The problem was this future Southern Soul classic hadn’t been promoted properly. However, this time there was a reason for the lack of promotion.
All wasn’t well at Aware and the label was teetering on the brink. Despite this, Casanova was released as a single but failed to find the audience it deserved. Not long after this, Aware and the rest of Michael Thevis’ empire folded.
All the artists signed to GRC, Aware and Hotlanta Records were left high and dry. They were left without a label and some of the artists were also owed royalties, which in some cases, was a significant sum of money. These artists had no idea what the future held for them.
In the case of Loleatta Holloway she was signed to Salsoul imprint Gold Mind Records by Norman Harris. This was the start of a new chapter Loleatta Holloway who was transformed into a disco diva at her new label.
This was very different to the two albums of Southern Soul Loleatta Holloway had recorded at Aware. Sadly, neither Loleatta nor Cry To Me was a commercial success when they were released. It was only much later that the two albums started to find a wider audience.
Cry To Me is the best of the two albums and is almost flawless. Ironically, the weakest track on the album is the lead single Help Me My Lord. The rest of the songs on the album are tailor made for Loleatta Holloway and play to her strengths. She delivers vocals that veer between dramatic, emotive, heartfelt, impassioned and soul-baring to defiant, hopeful and sassy as she struts her way through the lyrics about love and love gone wrong. Other times, the vocals are needy and hopeful as Loleatta Holloway brings the lyrics to life. Especially when accompanied by Floyd Smith’s timeless arrangements. They add to the drama and theatre of the songs on Cry To Me and are play their part in the sound and success of the album.
Sadly, Aware was the wrong label for Loleatta Holloway and the two albums weren’t promoted properly. Especially Cry To Me which was released just before Michael Thevis’ house of cards collapsed. This was a great shame and meant that very few people got to hear Cry To Me. For Loleatta Holloway it was a case of what might have been?
Forty-five years later, and Loleatta Holloway’s music is more popular than ever. Although she’s better known as a disco diva the two albums she recorded for Aware are belatedly receiving the recognition they deserves and this includes Loleatta Holloway’s Southern Soul classic Cry To Me.
Cult Classic: Loleatta Holloway-Cry To Me.
CULT CALSSIC: TIM MAIA-RACIONAL VOLUME 2.
Cult Classic: Tim Maia-Racional Volume 2.
By 1975, Tim Maia was a changed man and had turned his back on the rock ’n’ roll lifestyle that he had embraced and enjoyed since releasing his eponymous debut album in 1970. Back then, the charismatic Brazilian singer realised that he was only here for a visit and decided to live life to the fullest. He drank, took drugs and partied as he enjoyed the newfound wealth his musical career had brought him.
Despite that wealth and a lifestyle that many of his fans must have envied, Tim Maia wasn’t happy. The problem was the royalty rate that he had been paid by Polydor for his first four album. That was why he decided to found his own publishing company Seroma. This just happened to coincide with him signing to RCA Victor.
This was a new start for Tim Maia, and he began work on his next album which was going to be a double album. He wrote and recorded the instrumental parts and all that was left was for him to write the lyrics.
Seeking inspiration for the lyrics, Tim Maia decided to visit one of his former songwriting partners Tibério Gaspar. That was where he found the book that would change his life, but sadly, not for the better. The book was Universo em Desencanto (Universe in Disenchantment) which revolved around the cult of Rational Culture. It transformed Tim Maia’s life and inspired what was to be his fifth album Racional Volumes 1 and 2, which was also the most controversial of his career. It was the latest extraordinary chapter in his life.
Tim Maia, was born in Rio De Janeiro on September the ‘28th’ 1942 and was the eighteenth of nineteen children. Aged just six, he earned a living delivering homemade food which his mother cooked. This he hoped would be the nearest he ever got to an ordinary job. After that, Tim Maia decided to devote himself to music which offered him an escape from the grinding poverty that was around him.
It turned out that Tim Maia was a prodigiously talented child who wrote his first song as an eight year old. By the time he was fourteen, he had learnt to play the drums and formed his first group Os Tijucanos do Ritmo. They were only together for a year, but during that period, Tim Maia took guitar lessons and was soon a proficient guitarist. This would stand him in good stead in the future.
In 1957, Tim Maia joined the vocal harmony group The Sputniks who made a television appearance on Carlos Eduardo Imperial’s Clube do Rock. However, the group was a short-lived, and Tim Maia embarked upon a solo career. This lasted until 1959 when the seventeen year old decided to emigrate.
Tim Maia decided to head to America, which he believed he was the land of opportunity and arrived in New York with just twelve dollars in his pocket. On his arrival, he who was unable to speak English, but somehow managed to bluff his way through customs telling the officials that he was a student called Jimmy. Incredibly, the customs officer believed him and he made his way to Tarrytown, New York, where he lived with extended family and started making plans for the future. By then, Tim Maia had decided he would never return to Brazil.
During his time in New York, Tim Maia held down a variety of casual jobs and it has been alleged that he even augmented his meagre earnings by committing petty crimes. However, Tim Maia also learnt to speak and sing in English which lead to him forming a vocal group, The Ideals.
During his time with The Ideals, they decided to record a demo which included New Love which featured lyrics by Tim Maia. When they entered the studio, percussionist Milton Banana made a guest appearance. Sadly, nothing came of the demo although Tim Maia later resurrected New Love for his album Tim Maia 1973. Before that, things went awry for Tim Maia and he was eventually deported.
Confusion surrounds why and when Tim Maia was deported from America, and there’s two possible explanations. The first, and more rock ’n’ roll version is that Tim Maia was arrested on possession of cannabis in 1963, and deported shortly thereafter. That seems unlikely given how punitive penalties for possession of even a small quantity of cannabis were in the sixties. Indeed, it’s highly unlikely that Tim Maia would’ve been deported without having to serve a jail sentence first. This lends credence to the allegation that Tim Maia was caught in a stolen car in Daytona, Florida, and after serving six months in prison he was deported back to Brazil in 1964.
Now back home in Brazil, Tim Maia’s life seemed to be going nowhere fast. He was fired from several jobs and was also arrested several times. It was no surprise when he decided to move to São Paulo, where he hoped that he could get his career back on track.
Having moved to São Paulo, Tim Maia, hoped he would be reunited with Roberto Carlos who had been a member of The Sputniks. Ironically, it was Roberto Carlos who Tim Maia had insulted before he left The Sputniks. Despite leaving several messages, Roberto Carlos never returned Tim Maia’s calls and he had no option but to try to make his own way in the São Paulo music scene.
Tim Maia’s persistence paid off, and soon, he had featured on Wilson Simonal’s radio show, and then appeared alongside Os Mutantes on local television. Despite making inroads into the São Paulo music scene, Tim Maia was still determined to contact Roberto Carlos and sent him a homemade demo. Eventually, Tim Maia’s persistence paid off.
When Roberto Carlos heard the demo, he recommended Tim Maia to CBS who offered him a recording deal for a single, and an appearance on the Jovem Guarda television program. However, when Tim Maia’s released his debut single Meu País in 1968, it failed to find an audience.
Tim Maia tried a new approach with his sophomore single and recorded These Are the Songs, in English. It was released later in 1968, but again, commercial success eluded Tim Maia. Things weren’t looking good for the twenty-six year old singer.
Fortunately, Tim Maia’s luck changed when he wrote These Are the Songs for Roberto Carlos which gave his old friend a hit single. At last, things were looking up for Tim Maia.
Things continued to improve when Elis Regina became captivated by Tim Maia’s composition These Are the Songs. This led to Elis Regina asking Tim Maia to duet with her on the song. Tim Maia agreed and they recorded the song in English and Portuguese and the song featured on Elis Regina’s 1970 album Em Pieno Veroa. Recording with such a famous Brazilian singer gave Tim Maia’s career a huge boost, and soon, he was offered a recording contract by Polydor.
Having signed to Polydor in 1970, and somewhat belatedly recorded his debut album Tim Maia 1970. Although it showcased a talented, versatile and charismatic singer, who married soul and funk with samba and Baião. This groundbreaking album spent twenty-four weeks in the upper reaches of the Brazilian charts and launched Tim Maia’s career.
The following year, Tim Maia returned with his sophomore album Tim Maia 1971, where elements of soul and funk were combined with samba and Baião There were even hints of jazz, psychedelia and rock during what was an ambitious and innovative album of genre-melting music. It was released to critical acclaim and like his debut was a commercial success.
Tim Maia 1971 also featured two hits singles Não Quero Dinheiro (Só Quero Amar) and Preciso Aprender a Ser Só. Having released just two albums Tim Maia’s star was in the ascendancy, and it looked as if he was well on his way to becoming one of the biggest stars of Brazilian music.
After the success of his sophomore album, Tim Maia headed to London to celebrate after years of struggling to make a breakthrough. For the first time in his career he was making a good living out of music, and he was determined to celebrate and enjoy the fruits of his label. However, it was during this trip to London, that he first discovered his love of the rock ’n’ roll lifestyle.
Realising that he was only here for a visit, Tim Maia embraced the rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle and almost defiantly, lived each day as if it was his last. He hungrily devoured copious amounts of drugs and alcohol which became part of Tim Maia’s daily diet. Fortunately, his new-found lifestyle didn’t seem to affect his ability to make music. That was until he discovered a new drug that would prove to be his undoing.
In London, Tim Maia discovered LSD and became an advocate of its supposed mind opening qualities. He took 200 tabs of LSD home to Brazil and gave it to his friends and people at his record label. Little did he know, but this was akin pressing the self destruct button.
Over the next two years, he released two further albums, Tim Maia 1972 and Tim Maia 1973. Both were released critical acclaim and were a commercial success in Brazil. It seemed that the charismatic singer who had been christened the father of Brazilian soul music could do no wrong.
The only problem was that after the success of Tim Maia 1973, Tim Maia became unhappy at the royalty rate he was receiving from his publisher. This led to him founding his own publishing company Seroma, which coincided with Tim Maia signing to RCA Victor.
Racional Volumes 1 and 2.
RCA Victor had offered Tim Maia the opportunity to record a double album for his fifth album and he was excited by this opportunity. He, agreed to sign to RCA Victor and soon, began work on his fifth album.
Somehow, Tim Maia was still seemed able to function normally on his daily diet of drink and drugs. He and his band headed to house in a quiet part of Rio de Janeiro and spent their days smoking marijuana and experimenting with hallucinogenics as they worked on new songs. By the end of July, they already had worked out several dozen songs and instrumental grooves followed . They stayed true to Tim Maia’s samba-soul formula.All that was left was for Tim to write the lyrics to the double album.
Seeking inspiration for the lyrics, Tim Maia decided to visit one of his former songwriting partners Tibério Gaspar. That was where Tim main found the book that would change his life, but sadly, not for the better. The book was Universo em Desencanto (Universe in Disenchantment), which revolved around the cult of Rational Culture who didn’t believe in eating red meat or using drugs. Given Tim Maia’s voracious appetite for drink and drugs, he seemed an unlikely candidate to join the cult. However, sadly, he did. It’s also alleged that he coerced the rest of band to join the cult and live by its strict precepts.
Straight away, the cult’s beliefs affected Tim Maia and his music. Ever since he joined the cult of Rational Energy, he was clean-shaved, dressed in white and no longer drank, ate red meat, smoked or took drugs. He also became fixated on UFOs and wherever he went he held a mysterious book in his hand. Tim Maia was a changed man and even his music changed.
The lyrics for his fifth album, and RCA Victor debut, were supposedly about his newly acquired knowledge that came courtesy of Universo em Desencanto. With the ‘lyrics’ complete, Tim Maia’s vocals were overdubbed onto what became Racional Volumes 1 and 2. With the album completed, Tim took it to RCA Victor who promptly rejected the album.
RCA Victor’s reason for rejecting the album was that it wasn’t of a commercial standard. To make matters worse, the lyrics made absolutely no sense. There was only one small crumb of comfort and that was that Tim Maia’s voice was improving. That hardly mattered for RCA Victor who said that they weren’t going to release the album. For RCA Victor, Racional Volumes 1 and 2 was a huge disappointment.
That was until Tim Maia offered to buy the master tapes from RCA Victor so that he could release the album independently. RCA Victor accepted his offer which allowed them to recoup some of their money. Having bought the master tapes, Tim Maia set about releasing Racional Volume 1 in 1975.
When critics and record buyers heard the lyrics on Racional Volume 1 they struggled to understand them. They were very different to the lyrics on his four previous albums. It was hard to believe it was the same artist. Tim Maia was a changed man since joining the cult and was as if he had been brainwashed and was transformed into an excitable evangelist as he shouts: “Read the book, the only book!” throughout the album. That was apart from Rational Culture which was an epic genre-melting jam that closed the album on a high. It was a reminder of what Tim Maia was capable of.
Elsewhere it was a different story as Tim Maia combines his own inimitable brand of gospel music that’s full of sci-fi imagery with elements of blues, soul, pre-disco funk and psychedelic rock. The influence of Motown can be heard and the album heads in the direction of on Imunização Racional. The arrangements were tight and up to Tim Maia’s usual standards as he delivered impassioned and powerful vocals. However, the problem was that Tim Maia was using his fifth album Racional Volume 1 to spread the word about the cult’s so-called philosophy.
This extended to the album cover which detailed the cult’s core beliefs. It was very different from Tim Maia’s previous albums. However, he released Racional Volume 1 on his own label Seroma.
There was a problem though. Most record shops were sure about stocking such a controversial album. However, Tim Maia managed to convince a few shops to stock copies of Racional Volume 1. Despite that, the album wasn’t a commercial success when it was released in 1975. The only track to receive any radio play was Imunização Racional (Que Beleza). Even then, it was only a minimal amount and Racional Volume 1 was the least successful album of Tim Maia’s career. Still he as determined to release Racional Volume 2.
Racional Volume 2.
Following the release of Racional Volume 1 many of Tim Maia’s fans thought he was no longer the artist he once was. The album was very different to his first four albums and they thought he had lost his way musically. However, the problem was his membership of the cult was affecting his judgment and also his music.
It was as if he had been brainwashed and Tim Maia was willing to publicise the cult’s so-called philosophy via his music. He wasn’t the first to do this, but very few artists had decided to dedicate two consecutive albums to a cult’s philosophy. Tim Maia was the first do this.
In 1976, he was preparing to release the rest of the music that he had originally recorded for RCA Victor as Racional Volume 2. Just like his previous album, the lyrics were inspired by the cult’s philosophy which Tim Maia had embraced fully by 1976. He was almost unrecognisable and very different to the musical bon viveur he once was. Now he was preparing to self-release Racional Volume 2 via his own Seroma label.
He went through all the same problems as he had with Racional Volume 1 and struggled to get shops to stock his new album. Given the commercial failure of Racional Volume 1, most shops were reluctant to stock the followup. For Tim Maia this was another disappointment. Despite this, he went ahead with the release of Racional Volume 2.
When Racional Volume 2 was released in 1976 lightning struck twice when the album failed to impress the critics. Worse was to come when the album sunk without trace. Very few copies of Racional Volume 2 were sold and it was another commercial failure for Tim Maia.
Meanwhile, his fans thought that he had lost his way musically after the release of his sixth album Racional Volume 2. It was his second album that wasn’t a commercial success. There was a reason for this.
Tim Maia’s fans didn’t want to buy another album that featured lyrics about the cult’s philosophy. They preferred his usual albums lyrics which ranged from romantic to party oriented while other songs had a feelgood sound. That wasn’t the case on Racional Volume 2.
Just like his previous album, the problem with the songs were the lyrics where Tim Maia parroted the cult’s philosophy. Despite that, he delivers heartfelt vocals while others are a mixture of power, passion and emotion. He may have been singing about a cult’s philosophy but Tim Maia was still a talented vocalist and was improving with every album he released. His voice was clear and powerful and he seemed to be maturing as a vocalist.
Meanwhile, the arrangements marked a return to form from Tim Maia. He combined shuffling South American rhythms with soul and funk where horns play an important part in the arrangements. Sometimes, sweeping orchestrated arrangement take the songs in the direction of MPB. Other times, elements of blues, early-seventies funk and psychedelic rock can be heard on Racional Volume 2. It features some stunning arrangements that are tight and provide the perfect backdrop for Tim Maia’s vocal. Sadly, very few people heard Tim Maia’s sixth album. Maybe this was the wakeup call he needed?
In 1976, Tim Maia quit the cult after the release of Racional Volume 2. By then, he had fallen out with its leader and felt as if he had been duped. So much so, that he wanted the master tapes to Racional Volumes 1 and 2 destroyed. The two albums were part of his past, and now Tim Maia was ready and wanted to move forward.
Nowadays, Racional Volumes 1 and 2 are both regarded as cult classics, whereas in 1976 they tarnished Tim Maia’s reputation. Joining the cult was one of the worst decisions he made in what had already been an eventful life. For the two years he was part of the cult it was as if Tim Maia had been brainwashed and his music was regarded as a way to publicise the cult. He was being used and eventually saw through this ruse in 1976.
By then, Tim Maia had spent money buying back the tapes for Racional Volumes 1 and 2 from RCA Victor and had released the two albums on his own Seroma label. It had been an expensive episode for Tim Maia and wasn’t a happy time in his life.
Tim Maia’s music changed after the release of Racional Volumes 1 and 2 and he entered what was the most prolific period of his career. Sadly, he struggled to reach the heights of his first four albums and Tim Maia was never the same man or musician after his dalliance with the cult of rational behaviour.
Despite this, Racional Volumes 1 and 2 are still regarded as cult classics and must have albums for anyone interested in Tim Maia’s music. However, Racional Volumes 2 is strongest of the two albums and is a reminder of the father of Brazilian soul music during what was one the strangest periods in what was an eventful, roller coaster of a life.
Having said that , Tim Maia enjoyed every minute of a life lived in the fast lane. It was as if his mantra was to live life to the full. That was just as well because Tim Maia passed away on March the ‘15th’ 1998, aged just fifty-five.
Since his death, Tim Maia’s music has been a well-kept secret outside of his native Brazil and even many Brazilians still aren’t aware of his music. However, older record buyers still talk about the maverick singer-songwriter in hushed tones and remember the flawed genius that was Tim Maia and a singer who could’ve and should’ve been a huge star outside of his native Brazil. Sadly, something held him back and stopped Tim Maia from enjoying the widespread commercial success and critical acclaim that his music so richly deserved.
Was it Tim Maia’s love of the rock ’n’ life style which he embraced and enjoyed with a voracious appetite? Maybe Tim Maia’s dalliance with the cult of rational behaviour had lasting effects and somehow stopped this hugely talented singer, songwriter, musician and producer from scaling the heights that he should’ve? However, he left behind a rich musical legacy including several classic albums and his cult classic Racional Volume 2.
Cult Classic: Tim Maia-Racional Volume 2.
KEITH MANSFIELD-CONTEMPO.
Keith Mansfield-Contempo.
Label: Be With Records.
Format: LP.
Nowadays, Keith Mansfield is regarded as one the doyens of library music, and original copies of his 1976 album Contempo are now highly collectable. That’s the case with many other KPM Records’ releases.
Everyone from sample-hungry hip hop producers and crate-digging DJs to film producers collect library music. They remember hearing library music in cartoons, documentaries and quizzes as they growing up in the seventies and eighties. So will many other people who listen to a KPM Records’ releases including Contempo which was released nearly two hundred years after the company was formed.
The Rise and Rise Of KPM.
Robert Keith founded a comp[any in 1780, to make of musical instruments, and fifty years later, in 1830, entered into a partnership with William Prowse, a music publisher. The newly formed partnership was named Keith Prowse Music (KPM), and over the next hundred years, the company grew and expanded into other areas,
By the early twentieth century, Keith Prowse Music was selling sheet music and concert tickets, but it was the invention of the gramophone that proved to be a game-changer.
Demand for sheet music and concert tickets grew, and in 1955, Keith Prowse Music was decided to diversify, into one of the most profitable areas of music, music publishing.
One of the reasons behind the decision to diversify into music publishing, was to feed the demand for soundtracks for radio, television and film. Previously, music libraries supplied classical music, which was what was required. By the mid-fifties, and the birth of television, the world and music were changing, and changing fast.
Four years later, in 1959, Associated Rediffusion bought another music publisher Peter Maurice and merged it with Keith Prowse Music. The newly merged company became Keith Prowse Maurice, which became known as KPM Music.
The newly named KPM Music was a much bigger player in the world music publishing. However, in the mid-sixties, a new name took the helm at KPM Music, and transformed the company into one of the biggest names in library music.
When Robin Phillips joined KPM Music in the mid-sixties, he proved to be an astute and visionary businessman. Two decisions Robin Phillips made demonstrate why. His first decision was that KPM Music should switch from the old 78 records to the LP, which made sense, as LPs were what people were buying. They were less prone to breakage, which meant less returns and more profit. LPs could contain more music, and could be released in limited editions of 1,000. The other decision he made was to hire the best young British composers and arrangers.
Among the composers Robin Phillips hired were Keith Mansfield and Johnny Pearson, whose talent and potential as composers he recognised. Robin Phillips managed to hired them before they’ had established a reputation, although they were known within music publishing circles.
Later, Robin Phillips managed to hire some of jazz musicians of the calibre of John Cameron, Syd Clark, Alan Hawkshaw and Alan Parker. Their remit was to provide him with new music, which was referred to as production music. Many of their remits was to write music which matched themes or moods, which initially, wasn’t isn’t easy, but soon, the composers were able to do so. Almost seamlessly, the composers created themes for many well known television shows and films.
For the composers and musicians involved in writing and recording library music, they were part of what was one of the most lucrative areas of music. When EMI realised that KPM Music had one of the best and most profitable music libraries and decided to buy the company. Executives at EMI had spotted the profitability of library music and the consistency, quality and depth of KPM Music’s back catalogue. However, not everyone within the music industry approved of library music.
Other songwriters looked down on writers of library music, and the British Musician’s Union wasn’t fan of library music. They banned their members from working on recording sessions of library music. Somewhat shortsightedly, the Musician’s Union thought that eventually, there would come a time when there was no need for any further recordings. Their fear was that the sheer quantity of back-catalogue would mean no new recordings would be made, and their members would be without work. Fortunately, KPM Records thought of a way to subvert the ban.
KPM Records would fly out composers, arrangers and musicians to Holland and Belgium, where local musicians would join them for recording sessions. This meant that often, the same musicians would play on tracks that were penned by several composers. For the musicians involved, this proved lucrative and some were reluctant to turn their back on session work for companies like KPM Records.
Still the Musician’s Union’s draconian ban continued, and it wasn’t until the late seventies that they lifted their ban on new recordings of library music. By then, the Musician’s Union realised that they were fighting a losing battle and had no option but to concede defeat.
Meanwhile, the music that was being recorded in Europe and once the ban was lifted in Britain, found its way onto albums of library music released by KPM Music. Again, KPM Music were innovators, and released limited editions of library music. Sometimes, only 1,000 albums were released, and they were sent out to film studios, television and radio stations and advertising agencies. However, by then, interest in library music had grown.
Although the albums of library music were never meant to be commercially available, a coterie of musical connoisseurs had discovered KPM Music’s albums of library music and were determined to add each release to their collection. They weren’t alone.
Later, DJs and sample hungry hip hop and house producers discovered the world of library music. This was a boon for many of these producers who were musically illiterate, and could neither read music nor play an instrument. with lots of practise the musically challenged “producers” were eventually able to sample albums of library music for their latest “production” and very occasionally, this resulted in a hit single for the musical pirates. However, most of the credit should’ve gone to those who made the music that had been sampled.
This included Keith Mansfield who recorded some of the best library music was ever recorded in the UK. Especially the music they recorded for KPM which has ‘inspired’ several generations of musicians. One of the albums of library music that Keith Mansfield recorded for KPM was Contempo, which is part of the legendary KPM 1000 series.
Contempto features Keith Mansfield at his best on a cohesive and truly timeless album of library music. The music is funky, soulful, string-drenched and sometimes jazz-tinged and rocky.
Side One.
Side one of Contempo is uber funky from the get-go. The Fix is mid-tempo track with a tough cinematic sound where funk and rock combines with jazzy horns. They play their part on a track that wouldn’t sound out of place on a seventies cop show. What’s Cooking reveals a dramatic, funky and sometimes has a lighthearted sound as it threatens to explode into life. The drama continues on the driving, funky and aggressive sounding Cut To Music.
Man Alive is another mid-tempo funky track that sometimes heads in the direction of fusion. Sometimes it has aggressive sound and other times breezes along. Closing side one is the funk rock of Funky Footage a toe tapping track that sample hungry producers will appreciate and be inspired by.
Side Two.
String-drenched describes Breezin’ which sounds as it’s been inspired by mid-seventies disco and jazz-funk. Strings sweep and swirl and play a leading role before they’re joined by horns and keyboards. Together they coming to create a beautiful carefully crafted track that’s slick and dancefloor friendly. On Good Vibrations sweeping strings join forces with horns, pounding drums, a funky guitar and sci-fi synths.
They combine to create a mid-tempo track with a romantic sound that’s been influenced by the West Coast Sound and Blaxploitation strut.
Then Sun Goddess reveals a funky, exotic and sensual sound. Love Deluxe then teases the listener before it gradually reveals a quite beautiful dreamy sounding track where synths augment the keyboards and sultry horns.
Closing Contempo is Snake Hips a rocky track where funky horns are deployed and augment the rhythm section on this mid-tempo slouch.
It’s all change on side two of Contempo with Keith Mansfield dropping the tempo. The music on this library record classic from 1976 veers between laidback, languid, dreamy and romantic. It’s time to lie back and light a Dunhill and pour a glass of Bells as the music becomes post-coital.
Keith Mansfield is one of the greatest purveyors of library music and Contempo which was released by KPM is a genre classic. The two sides show different side to his music. Side one features crime funk while the tempo drops on the second side and the music is much more eclectic. He’s been inspired by Blaxploitation, disco, jazz-funk, fusion and the West Coast Sound. Strings, horns and Fender Rhodes are deployed by one of the doyens of library music on Contempo.
Nowadays, original copies of Contempo are rarities and very few copies come up for sale. When they do, the prices are beyond the budget of most collectors of library music.
Luckily, Be With Record recently reissued Keith Mansfield’s library music classic Contempo. It’s just the latest reissue from the KPM 1000 series and is a reminder of the golden age of library music when artists like Keith Mansfield regularly released albums like Contempo.
Keith Mansfield-Contempo.
JOANNA LAW-RHYTHM OF YEARS
Joanna Law-Rhythm Of Years.
Label: Tangential Music.
Format: Digital Album.
London-based singer-songwriter Joanna Law’s career began when she and her brother Simon formed City Heat. The nascent group released its debut single The Raid in 1987, and this was followed by City Heat in 1988.
The same year, Joanna Law’s vocal featured on The Funky Ginger’s house single Slaughterhouse. By then, she was already well on her way to becoming a familiar face on London’s urban music scene.
In 1989 City Heat returned with two new singles London Child in March with Rock Me (In The Cradle Of Jazz) following later that year. By then, their star was in the ascendancy.
As the nineties dawned, Joanna Law decided to embark upon a solo career. She released Love Is Not Enough as a single in 1990, and it was also licensed by the American label Easy Street Records. It featured the Free Spirit Mix which is one of the twenty-one tracks on Joanna Law’s new digital album Rhythm Of Years which has just between released by Hastings-based boutique label Tangential Music. There’s also the Extended Mix and the Ibiza Dreaming Mix of Love Is Not Enough. It’s the single that launched Joanna Law’s solo career.
Later in 1990 Joanna Law released an urban cover of The First Time (Ever I Saw Your Face) which was written by English folk singer-songwriter Ewan MacColl. It was originally released on City Beat Records and was later licensed by Easy Street Records.
The single was produced by Simon Law and featured uber funky keyboard licks from Acid Jazz Hammond organist James Taylor. Despite being given an urban makeover there’s still a haunting sound to this classic song. There’s three versions of the song on the album. This includes the Bumpy Mix that featured on the single as well the Radio Edit and Extended Version. Little did Joanna Law realise that she had just released what many regard as a career-defining single.
In 1991, Pressure Drop released You’re Mine which featured Joanna Law and was remixed by Leftfield. It’s five minutes of progressive house which features a beautiful soul-baring vocal. Joanna Law also collaborated with Pressure Drop on the languid, dreamy and jazzy sounding After The Storm and Dreams which heads in the direction of trip hop.
By 1992, Joanna Law and her brother Simon had founded their own record label and publishing company. Law Music released a cover of Van Morrison’s Warm Love which was produced by The Funky Ginger a.k.a. Simon Law. There’s three versions of the track on Rhythm Of Years. This includes the summery sounding Breakdown Mix, the Extended Version and the Radio Edit with its soulful vocal.
Law Music also released the Celebrate Love EP in 1992. Two of the tracks it featured were Celebrate Love and the funky and soulful sounding Peace and Satisfaction which has an early nineties urban sound. It’s jazz-tinged, funky and soulful and features a heartfelt and emotive vocal from Joanna Law. It’s a welcome addition to Rhythm Of Years.
In 1992, Joanna Law also contributed Night Rain to London Underground (A Compilation Of Independent Club/Dance Music. It was mixed and produced by the Blood Brothers
By 2001, Joanna Law was signed to Recreation and released Song For Theo as a single. This Extended Version features on the album and so does the Radio Edit. On the B-Side was an urban cover of Van Morrison’s Warm Love.
Among the other tracks on Rhythm Of Years is the Dr Aziz Mix of Softly which features an assured vocal from Joanna Law. Quite different is Calling All Angels which is understated and ruminative. Then Joanna Law delivers an impassioned and soulful vocal on Let Me Love You. Skin On Skin which features a soulful and sensual vocal that’s accompanied by a carefully crafted arrangement. It’s one of the highlights of the album.
When Joanna Law embarked upon a musical career it looked as if she was going to enjoy a string of hit singles. Sadly, that wasn’t to be and success has been sporadic during a a career that has spanned four decades.
Recently, Joanna Law hasn’t released much in the way of new music. She’s been out of the public eye but still dreamt of releasing an album. This was something that she had never done. However, she wasn’t giving up on her dream.
Eventually Joanna Law’s dream came true when she signed to Hastings-based Tangential Music. They released Rhythm Of Years on the ‘8th’ of March 2021 and this twenty-two track retrospective is a reminder of Joanna Law whose enjoyed a long and varied career.
Joanna Law-Rhythm Of Years.
TRANSATLANTIC-THE ABSOLUTE UNIVERSE: FOREVERMORE (EXTENDED VERSION).
Transatlantic-The Absolute Universe: Forevermore (Extended Universe).
Label: Inside Out.
Format: 2CD Set.
When multinational progressive rock supergroup Transatlantic was originally founded in 1999, it was a side project to their full-time bands. The four members were based in three countries and belonged to hugely successful bands.
In 1999, Nashville-born Neil Morse was the vocalist in LA-based progressive rock band Spock’s Beard, while Mike Portnoy from Long Beach, New York, was the drummer in Dream Theater. Joining him in the rhythm section was Middlesbrough-born bassist Pete Trewavas who had been a member of Marillion since 1982.
Completing the lineup of Transatlantic was Swedish guitarist Roine Stolt who was a member of Kaipa between 1974 and 1979. By then, they were one of Sweden’s most successful progressive rock bands. Five years later, in 1984, Roine Stolt founded a new band The Flower Kings and by the time joined Transatlantic in 1999 they had just completed their fourth album Flower Power.
SMTP:e.
The newly formed Transatlantic met in New York to record their debut album at Millbrook Studios during June and July of 1999. It was written and produced by the four members of the group and once the recording was completed they decided its title would be SMTP:e. This was a reference to the first initial of each member of the group’s surname and referenced the timecode used in recording studios. SMTP:e was scheduled for release in the spring of 2000.
The progressive rock supergroup released their debut album SMTP:e on the ‘31st’ of March 2000. It was released to plaudits and praise with some critics going as far as to say the album included some of the best progressive rock ever recorded. This was high praise indeed. Despite this, the album only charted in Germany where it reached sixty-six in the album charts.
Less than a year after releasing their debut album SMTP:e, Transatlantic released their Live In America on the ‘12th’ of March 2001. This was the first of two albums the group released that year.
Bridge Across Forever.
Transatlantic had spent January of 2001 at Dark Horse Studios, Nashville, recorded their much-anticipated sophomore album Bridge Across Forever. Just like their debut album it was written and produced by the four members of the group.
This time around, the group made a concerted effort to ensure that each member of the group contributed equally to the album. One criticism of was that SMTP:e was that the album was dominated by the vocal style of Neal Morse. That wasn’t the case on Bridge Across Forever which once it was completed, was scheduled for autumn 2001.
When Bridge Across Forever was released on the ‘8th’ of October 2001 it was well received by critics. Despite being another ambitious and innovative album of progressive rock it wasn’t a hugely successful album. It stalled at fifty-six in the German and ninety-eight in the French album charts. However, Transatlantic were a popular live draw.
When they toured Europe during November 2001 the group were joined by Daniel Gildenlöw of Swedish progressive rock band Pain Of Salvation. He played keyboards, guitars, percussion and added vocals when Transatlantic played live and was the unofficial fifth member of the group during what was a successful tour that lifted the group’s profile.
In October 2002, Neal Morse left Spock’s Beard saying that: “God wants me to do something else.“ He turned his back on progressive rock and turned his attention to christian music.
Mike Portnoy announced that: This spells the end of Transatlantic as I wouldn’t possibly consider continuing it without him.”
On November the ‘4th’ 2003, Transatlantic released Live In Europe which was a reminder of the group’s last tour. It looked like it was the end of an era.
Despite that, Neal Morse and Mike Portnoy continued to collaborate in the studio and onstage. When Neil Morse played live a Transatlantic song still featured in his setlist. Maybe it wasn’t the end of the road for the progressive rock supergroup?
Neal Morse, Mike Portnoy and Ronnie Stolt were reunited on August the ‘23rd’ 2008 at the Three Rivers Prog Fest in Pittsburgh for and played We All Need Some Light and Stranger in Your Soul. Those that were in the audience wondered if the four members of Transatlantic would reunite anytime soon?
The Whirlwind.
On April the ’16th’ 2009, it was announced that Transatlantic had reunited and begun work on a third studio album. It was written and recorded during April 2009 with the release scheduled for autumn of that year.
When the album was released in October 2009, it consisted of a single seventy-seven minute track The Whirlwind in twelve parts. Just like Transatlantic’s two previous albums it was an ambitious and groundbreaking release that was well received by critics. This augured well for the release of The Whirlwind.
On its release The Whirlwind reached forty-five in Germany, forty in the Holland and fifty-nine in the Swedish album charts. Despite the critical acclaim and the quality of their music, Transatlantic’s albums weren’t selling in vast quantities. However, they embarked upon a tour of North America and Europe in April and May 2010 in support of The Whirlwind.
Transatlantic were still a popular live band and on October the ’26th’ 2010, they released Whirld Tour 2010: Live in London. It was recording of a concert that took place at the Shepherd’s Bush Empire, London, on May the ’21st’ 2010. Transatlantic were back after a nine year hiatus.
Nearly a year to the day after Transatlantic released their third live album, they returned with their fourth. This was More Never Is Enough: Live In Manchester and Tilburg 2010 which was released on October the ’25th’ 2011. It featured the comeback kings Transatlantic during their successful 2010 European tour.
Kaleidoscope.
Two years tased before Transatlantic started recorded their fourth studio album Kaleidoscope in 2013. It was written, arranged and produced by the band and scheduled for release at the start of 2014.
On January the ’27’ 2014 Transatlantic released Kaleidoscope to widespread critical acclaim. It was an album that was a mixture of traditional progressive rock and neo-progressive rock. This struck a chord with record buyers and the album charted in eight countries. Kaleidoscope reached number eight in Germany, six in the Netherlands, thirteen in Switzerland, twenty-two in Finland, fifty-two in Austria, fifty-five in Sweden, seventy-seven in France and 134 in Japan. At last, Transatlantic’s music was reaching the wider audience that it so richly deserved.
Sadly, when Transatlantic toured Kaleidoscope Daniel Gildenlöw was missing. He was unwell and was replaced by Ted Leonard the vocalist and guitarist for Thought Chamber and Spock’s Beard. The new recruit took to the stage when Transatlantic recorded their fifth live album. However, before that the group won a prestigious award.
On September the ’11th’ 2014, Kaleidoscope won Album of the Year at the third annual Progressive Music Awards. 2014 was proving to be one of the most important years in the group’s history.
Just a month later, on October the ‘27th’ 2014, Transatlantic released their fifth live album KaLIVEoscope. It documented what was a landmark album for the multination progressive rockers whose star was in the ascendancy.
Transatlantic-The Absolute Universe: Forevermore.
Most bands would’ve been keen to build on the success of Kaleidoscope and KaLIVEoscope. However, five years passed before the four members of Transatlantic returned to the studio to begin work on their much-anticipated fifth album Transatlantic-The Absolute Universe: Forevermore.
This time, the members of Transatlantic headed to Sweden in September 2019 to begin tracking. Mike Portnoy remembers: “Over a period of 10-14 days, we mapped out the songs. Then we all went back to our home studios and did the recording. That’s the way we always do it. At one point, though, it was suggested that instead of doing what was by that time going to be a double album, we should just be content to do a single CD.”
Roine Stolt recalls: “What happened was that everything kept expanding and expanding. Therefore we decided it made sense to make it a double album. It was Pete and Neal who then came out and said they felt this would be too long, and we should reduce it to one…But we were already recording, and it didn’t seem feasible to cut it back. There were so many pieces that each of us loved in what we were planning and didn’t want to lose. That’s when we ended up in discussions over the best way forward.”
Transatlantic decided to release to versions of the album. Mike Portnoy explains: “We’ve got two versions of this album. There is a two CD presentation, which is 90 minutes long, and a single one – that’s 60 minutes. However, the single CD is NOT merely an edited version of the double CD. They each contain alternate versions and even in some cases, new recordings. We wrote fresh lyrics and have different people singing on the single CD version tracks as compared to those on the double CD. Some of the song titles have also been changed, while others might remain the same, but compositionally what you’ll hear has been altered. You must appreciate that what we have done is unique. We revamped the songs to make the two versions different.”
Bassist Pete Trewavas adds: “We did write some new music for the single CD, what’s more, there are also differences in the instruments used on some of the tracks across the two records.”
Mike Portnoy explains that:“This album also marks a return to the concept album for Transatlantic. Well, the idea of Transatlantic deciding to do a concept record this time around won’t shock anyone, right? What we have is essentially one giant composition, split into chapters. The storyline is about the struggles facing everyone in society today.”
However, Roine Stolt says: “We didn’t start out with the idea of this being conceptual. The way things work with us is that we have a load of ideas, and these are developed spontaneously when we meet up. Everything happens in the moment.”
What Transatlantic’s fans will want to know is how The Absolute Universe: Forevermore compares to previous albums? They’ve been hailed as ambitious and innovative. However, Neal Morse said: “I always try not to compare albums as much as possible. It’s very difficult when you’re trying to be creative, because your natural instinct is to constantly compare. But in order to create you have to kind of step away from that. Having said that, I would say this would have more in common with The Whirlwind album than others that we’ve created.”
Meanwhile, Pete Trewavas said: ‘The Absolute Universe’ is a momentous project.I think it is right up there with the very finest albums we’ve done. As the others have said, it compares very well to ‘The Whirlwind’, which I believe represents Transatlantic at our best. As on that album, we took our time to write and arrange everything, and that shines through. I am very excited for people to hear it.”
Just over seven years after the release of Kaleidoscope Transatlantic made a welcome return with their critically acclaimed fifth studio album, The Absolute Universe. It reached number three in German and Switzerland, four in the Netherlands, twenty-nine in Finland, thirty-two in Sweden, fifty-six in the UK and eighty-three in the UK. This meant that The Absolute Universe was Transatlantic’s most successful album.
It’s a powerful and poignant concept album full of social comment about the world’s struggles during 2020. Transatlantic combine their trademark progressive rock sound with elements of AOR and classic rock on what’s an almost flawless album. The Absolute Universe features a band at the peak of their powers on what turned out to be Transatlantic’s Magnus Opus. Ironically, it’s a very different album to the one Transatlantic intended to make.
Originally the album was meant to be a followup to Kaleidoscope and Neal Morse had written lyrics in March 2019. However, the lyrics were rejected and it was a case of back to the drawing board.
The second set of lyrics were written by Neal Morse during December 2019 and January 2020. They were inspired by his twenties and by The Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged and The Virtue of Selfishness by Russian-American author Ayn Rand, which he called “kind of the mother of Libertarianism” Later he said that when he wrote the lyrics about: “how I went down this road of selfishness basically, and then how the Lord brought me out of it and how much better it is to not be in that place.” Still the lyrics for the album weren’t complete.
In June and July 2020, a third set of lyrics were written. They were inspired by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in the America and especially Nashville where Neal Morse was born and brought up.
When Roine Stolt heard the lyrics written by bassist and vocalist Pete Trewavas he said that he felt that they managed to anticipate the COVID-19 pandemic: “The idea behind The Absolute Universe started out as a broad and encompassing look at the human condition. Someone moving though their life, trying to find out who they are, where they fit in etc. This worked well as a concept to hang all the music we had on. It also allowed us to move through all the different subject matter we had lyrically…You find a lot out about people in adverse conditions. Who your friends are for example, how people cope under duress and dealing with stress. All these things get reflected on in different ways on both versions of the album.”
However, Roine Stolt felt that Neal Morse’s lyrics on The Breath of Life version tended to focus more on the consequences of the COVID-19 restrictions on people’s lives.
For anyone whose still to discover Transatlantic’s fifth studio album, The Absolute Universe: Forevermore (Extended Universe) is the best of three versions. It’s a two CD set that features eighteen tracks and finds Transatlantic combining social comment and slick progressive rock with AOR and classic rock on what turned out to be a career-defining Magnus Opus.
Transatlantic-The Absolute Universe: Forevermore (Extended Universe).
DONALD BYRD-BYRD IN FLIGHT.
Donald Byrd-Byrd In Flight.
Label: Blue Note Records.
Format: LP.
When Donald Byrd signed to Blue Note Records in 1958, he was twenty-five and had already recorded five solo albums and had collaborated on albums with Art Farmer, Phil Woods and Gigi Gryce.
The Detroit-born trumpeter was also in demand as a sideman and had already worked with some of the giants of jazz. This included Art Blakey, Hank Mobley, Horace Silver, Jackie McLean, jimmy Smith, John Coltrane and Kenny Burrell. Already Donald Byrd was regarded as one of jazz’s rising stars.
That was why Alfred Lion signed him to Blue Note Records. By then, Donald Byrd had already played on a number of sessions by artists signed to Blue Note Records and the label co-owner was able to witness the prodigiously talented trumpeter at close quarters. It didn’t take long before he decided to add him to the label’s impressive roster of artists.
Off To The Races.
On December ‘21st’ 1958, Donald Byrd journeyed to van Gelder Studio to record his Blue Note Records’ debut, Off To The Races. He led a sextet on an album of hard bop that was well received by critics when it was released in March 1959.
Byrd In Hand.
Just two months later, on the ‘31st’ of May 1959 Donald Byrd returned to Van Gelder Studio and his latest sextet recorded Byrd In Hand. Five of the six compositions were new including three penned by the twenty-six year old bandleader and trumpeter.
He was joined in the front line by tenor saxophonist Charlie Rouse and Pepper Adams on baritone saxophone on what was a hard blowing album of hard bop. The talented sextet’s playing was alway creative and with their solos spirited and inventive and a fine example of hard bop.
When Byrd In Hand was released later in 1959 to plaudits and praise. The album was regarded as one of the finest of Donald Byrd’s four year recording career. He had come a long way since making his debut with Art Blakey’s Jazz Messenger 1954 whilst studying for a master’s degree at Manhattan School of Music.
At The Half Note Cafe.
On November the ‘11th’ 1960, Donald Byrd headed to the Half Note in Manhattan, where he was about to record a live album. He was joined by drummer Lex Humphries, bassist Laymon Jackson, pianist Duke Pearson and baritone saxophonist Pepper Adams. This was a new band, but very few people would realise this.
That night, the quintet were at the peak of their powers and firing on all cylinders during a spellbinding thirteen track set. Not only was the quintet swinging hard, but they benefited from a lyricism and impeccable sense of timing that few groups possessed. Led by twenty-seven year old Donald Byrd the quintet’s playing was practiced and slick. It was lucky that the tapes were running that night and the performance was captured for posterity.
When Blue Note Records released at The Half Note Cafe in 1960, it was as two single LPs. The albums were released to critical acclaim and hailed as Donald Byrd’s finest release for Blue Note Records. His next album Byrd In Flight had a lot to live up to.
Byrd In Flight.
For Byrd In Flight, which was Donald Byrd’s fourth album for Blue Note Records he penned Ghana and Lex. Duke Pearson who nowadays is regarded as one of the architects of the Blue Note Records’ hard bop sound wrote Gate City, Bo and My Girl Shirl. The only cover on the album was Rogers and Hart’s Little Girl Blue. It was one of six albums
Just like previous albums Donald Byrd recorded for Blue Note Records, Byrd In Flight was recorded at Van Gelder Studio. The engineer was Rudy Van Gelder and Alfred Lion took charge of the production. However, this wasn’t a one day session and the six tracks were recorded on three days between January and July 1960.
The sextet featured a rhythm section of drummer Lex Humphries, bassists Doug Watkins and Reggie Workman plus pianist Duke Pearson. They were joined by a front line of trumpeter Donald Byrd, alto saxophonist Jackie McLean and tenor saxophonist Hank Mobley. This multitalented and versatile band spent four days recording Byrd In Flight.
Gate City was recorded on January the ’17th’ 1960. Then Ghana and Lex were recorded on the ‘25th’ January 1960. Little Girl Blue, Bo and My Girl Shirl were recorded six months later on July the ‘10th’ 1960.
With the recording of Byrd In Flight completed, the album was scheduled for release by Blue Note Records in December 196o. When critics heard Donald Byrd’s latest album of hard bop they remarked that he was maturing as a trumpeter and bandleader while his music continued to evolve.
The journey that is Byrd In Flight opens with the celebratory sounding Ghana which conjures up images on a new nation determined to remain master of its own destiny. Donald Byrd’s flowing trumpet solo has an airy sound and is complimented by pianist Duke Pearson and Hank Mobley on tenor saxophone. His playing combines a degree of optimism with the celebratory sound that’s a feature of this opening track that was penned by bandleader Donald Byrd.
The standard Little Boy Blue is a fine example of ballideering from the twenty-eight year old trumpeter. His playing is thoughtful, considered but is also expansive, confident and strident. Meanwhile, Duke Pearson’s captures the romantic sound of this oft-covered ballad which was written by Rogers and Hammerstein.
The bluesy sounding Gate City finds Duke Pearson combining with Donald Byrd whose opening solo is unfussy but effective as he effortlessly chooses the right notes. Then Hank Mobley takes a less is more approach to his solo while later it sounds as if pianist Duke Pearson really has the blues as he lives the music he’s playing.
Lex is a driving example of hard bop where there’s Donald Byrd plays with speed, power, passion and accuracy as he unleashes darting runs. In doing so, he displays an enviable agility. Meanwhile, Hank Mobley unleashes a breathtaking solo that careers along at breathtaking speed, while Duke Pearson playing is considered, sometimes economical yet uplifting as he joins forces with the rest of the rhythm section to ensure the track swings.
Bo is another bluesy sounding track where Jackie McLean’s playing is emotive and he compliments Donald Byrd. When his solo comes round he almost makes his trumpet talk while Duke Pearson’s playing graceful, ruminative and rootsy on this bluesy track.
Closing Byrd In Flight is the driving hard bop of My Girl Shine. It’s as Donald Byrd is determined to close the album on a high. He and Jackie McLean play with speed, power, ferocity although there’s always an expressiveness and emotiveness. Not to be outdone Duke Pearson joins the fun and more than plays his part in the sound and success of what’s one of the highlights of the album.
Just two years after signing to Blue Note Records Donald Byrd released Byrd In Flight in December 1960. By then, the trumpeter and bandleader had just turned twenty-eight and had been a professional musician since 1954.
Byrd In Flight was his fourth album for Blue Note Records and the ninth since his career began in 1955. It’s also the finest of the seven studio albums that Donald Byrd had released. That’s no surprise as he had matured as a musician and his music had developed over the past six years. On Byrd In Flight he switched between hard bop, Afro-Cuban, blues and balladry with the help of a tight, talented and versatile all-star band. They played their part in the sound and success of Byrd In Flight which was recently reissued by Blue Note Records as part of their Tone Poet Series. This lovingly curated reissue is the perfect way to discover one Byrd In Flight which is without doubt one trumpeter and bandleader Donald Byrd’s greatest hard bop albums.
Donald Byrd-Byrd In Flight.
LEE MORGAN-THE RAJAH.
Lee Morgan-The Rajah.
Label: Blue Note Records.
Format LP.
In 1964, twenty-six year old hard bop trumpeter Lee Morgan’s career was transformed when he enjoyed a crossover hit with The Sidewinder. Instantly recognisable and incredibly catchy, it became a jazz standard and nowadays, is regarded as Lee Morgan’s best known composition.
Buoyed by the success of the single, Blue Note Records released The Sidewinder album in July 1964. It became the label’s biggest selling album and reached number twenty-five in the US Billboard 200. In doing so, it transformed the career of the prodigiously talented Lee Morgan.
It should’ve been a time for celebration for the trumpeter who had just celebrated his twenty-sixth birthday, and had broken sales records at Blue Note Records. However, Lee Morgan wasn’t happy when He had discovered that Chrysler was using The Sidewinder as background music on a commercial that was being shown during the Word Series. There was a problem though.
The car giant hadn’t asked his permission, and it was only after he threatened to sue the company that they agreed not to show the advert again. It was a moral victory for Lee Morgan.
Little did he know that he had just enjoyed the biggest single and the most successful album of his career. Buoyed by the success of The Sidewinder, Lee Morgan and many other artists were encouraged to try to replicate the track’s boogaloo sound. They were essentially trying find a formula for a hit single, and took this further firstly with Lee Morgan’s future albums.
Blue Note Records wanted Lee Morgan to follow a similar formula for future albums. They decided that his future albums would open with a lengthy, funky blues and he would follow this with a number of hard bop compositions. This was dubbed as: “the Sidewinder lineage.”
This included the Andrew Hill composition The Rumproller which lent its name a new album that Lee Morgan released in mid-January 1966. Later that year, the tittle-track was released as a single. However, neither the single nor album were the commercial success that Blue Note Records had hoped.
Despite this, Lee Morgan continued to make the journey to Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, where he continued to record new albums. This included The Gigolo June the ‘25th’ and July the ‘1st 1965. The recording of Cornbread followed on September the ’18th’ 1965 and Infinity on November the 16, 1965. This brought to an end another busy year for Lee Morgan.
He recorded Delightfulee on April the ‘8th’ and May the ’27’ 1966. Five months later, he recorded Charisma on September the ‘29th’ 1966. Then just two months later, Lee Morgan recorded The Rajah on November the ’29th’ 1966. It’s just been reissued by Blue Note Records as part of their Tone Poet Series, and was the last album Lee Morgan recorded in 1966.
For The Rajah, Lee Morgan only contributed one track, The Rajah. The rest of the tracks on the album were cover versions. This included Cal Massey’s A Pilgrim’s Funny Farm; Walter Davis Jr’s Davisamba and Duke Pearson’s Is That So?; They were joined by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley’s Once In A Lifetime and Gilbert Bécaud’s What Now, My Love? These five tracks were recorded by a quintet led by Lee Morgan.
Recording of The Rajah took place at the Van Gelder Studio on November the ‘29th’ 1966. The session was produced by Alfred Lion and Rudy Van Gelder took charge of engineering duties. He recorded a band that featured a rhythm section of drummer Billy Higgins, bassist Paul Chambers and pianist Cedar Walton. They were joined by a front line that included tenor saxophonist Hank Mobley and trumpeter Lee Morgan. It took just a day to record the five tracks that became The Rajah.
Once the album was completed, normally albums would be released within a year. However, sometimes, for no apparent reason Blue Note Records would postpone the release of an album. This was the case with The Rajah which was shelved and never released during his lifetime.
Sadly, Lee Morgan’s carer was cut tragically short on February the ‘19th’ 1972. That night, he was booked to play two sets at Slug’s Saloon jazz club in New York’s East Village. Between the two sets there was an altercation between Lee Morgan’s common law wife Helen Moore and the legendary hard bop trumpeter. Initially, Lady Luck was smiling on him as it wasn’t a fatal shot. However, that night, it was snowing heavily and the driving conditions were treacherous and the ambulance took so long to arrive that one of jazz’s great trumpeters bled to death. Lee Morgan was just thirty-eight.
Lee Morgan was a prodigiously talented trumpeter whose star shines the brightest on his career-defining album and hard bop classic The Sidewinder, which is a reminder of one the greatest trumpeters in the history of jazz. However, it’s just part of the rich legacy that Lee Morgan left behind.
In 1984, twelve years after Lee Morgan’s death, Blue Note Records’ discographer, writer and record producer Michael Cuscuna discovered the master tapes for The Rajah. The long-lost session was rediscovered in the Blue Note Records’ vaults and was released for the first time a year later in 1985.
Opening The Rajah is A Pilgrim’s Funny Farm which features a masterclass from Lee Morgan. There’s a clarity to his playing which veers between powerful, loud, expressive, emotive and rhythmic. He’s a versatile, inventive and innovative trumpeter whose playing compels and captivates. Especially when augmented by musicians of the standard of Hank Mobley and Cedar Walton this example of hard bop which sets the bar high for the rest of the album.
Very different is the Eastern funk of The Rajah where Lee Morgan’s trumpet soars above the rhythm section. It’s joined by Hank Mobley’s tenor saxophone and the pair bring out the best in each other. Then they trade the choruses while Cedar Walton’s fingers dance across the piano keyboard. In doin so, the three men play a starring role in the sound and success of the track.
During Is That So? Lee Morgan’s questioning, probing and ruminative trumpet is answered by Hank Mobley’s tenor saxophone. It proves the perfect foil before they both drop out and Cedar Walton’s bittersweet piano takes centrestage. Straight away, the mood changes until the horns return. Later, Cedar Walton makes a welcome return and is accompanied by Paul Chambers who plucks at his bass before the band are reunited and play as one during what’s one of the poppier tracks on the album wit is also one of its highlights.
Light and airy describes Davisamba which bursts into life with the rhythm section and piano adding a Latin backdrop before the horns enter. The track proves to be the perfect vehicle for Lee Morgan’s trumpet and Hank Mobley’s tenor saxophone. However, again, Cedar Walton plays in important role and is playing is assured and confident. Later, he joins forces with the horns and together they combine to create a truly memorable example of Latin jazz.
It’s all change on the ballad What Now My Love? Lee Morgan’s rasping piano takes centrestage while flourishes from Cedar Walton’s piano fill in the spaces. Hank Mobley drizzles his sultry tenor saxophone across the arrangement, before the arrangement is stripped bare and just the understated rhythm section and piano remain. Cedar Walton enjoys his moment in the sun before Lee Morgan unleashes a soul-baring solo on this .beautiful wistful ballad.
Closing The Rajah is Once In A Lifetime. It as a dramatic driving introduction as the piano and rhythm section lock into a groove. Soon, the horns enter and this irresistible, upbeat and joyous track unfolds. It sounds as if it has been inspired by Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers and is one of the oft-overlooked hidden gems from Lee Morgan’s impressive back-catalogue.
It’s sad that The Rajah wasn’t released during Lee Morgan’s lifetime. This was one of a number of albums he recorded that were shelved and belatedly released in the eighties. He wasn’t alone.
Many artists made the journey to Van Gelder Studio to record albums with producer and Blue Note Records’ co-owner Alfred Lion. Not every album was released and often albums were postponed and projects were shelved. It was only much later when the master tapes for these The long-lost sessions were rediscovered in the Blue Note Records’ vaults.
That was the case with The Rajah, Lee Morgan’s long-forgotten hard bop session from 1966. He was backed by a crack band on an album that was only rediscovered in the Blue Note Records’ vaults in 1984. The following year, 1985, The Rajah was belatedly released. Now thirty-six years later and Blue Note Records have reissued The Rajah as part of their Tone Poet series and this means that Lee Morgan’s hard bop cult classic can be heard on vinyl by a new audience who will be able to discover one of the greatest trumpeters of his generation at the the peak of his considerable powers.
Lee Morgan-The Rajah.
CULT CLASSIC: LUIZ CARLOS VINHAS-O SOM PSICODELICO DE L.C.V
Cult Classic: Luiz Carlos Vinhas-O Som Psicodélico De L.C.V.
Within his native Brazil, Luiz Carlos Vinhas is remembered and regarded as one of the greatest pianists of the Bossa Nova movement. He was one of the genre’s founding fathers and was a founder member of Bossa Três in 1961. They became one of the most important groups of the Bossa Nova era and released eight albums between 1963 and 1966.
By 1968, Luiz Carlos Vinhas had embarked upon a solo career and released O Som Psicodélico De L.C.V.. This genre-melting cult classic has been released by the Mad About label and shows another side to Luiz Carlos Vinhas’ music.
Luiz Carlos Vinhas was born in Rio de Janeiro on May the ‘19th’ 1940. Growing up, he learnt to play the piano and by the time he was a teenager, he had already decided that he wanted to make a career out of music.
His career began when he was seventeen year old.The following year, 1958, a new musical genre was born in the South Zone of Rio de Janeiro, Bossa Nova. By then, Luiz Carlos Vinhas was already working as a session musician and was determined to be at the forefront of this new and exciting urban musical movement.
By 1961, Bossa Nova’s popularity had grown and Luiz Carlos Vinhas had been part of the new musical movement since the beginning. However, he wanted to be more than a session musicians and cofounded Bossa Três with drummer Edison Machado and double bassist Tião Neto. This was the first ever instrumental Bossa Nova group, and they would go on to write their names into Brazilian musical history.
In the early days, Bossa Três played mostly Luiz Carlos Vinhas’ compositions. He was the nascent group’s songwriter-in-chief when they played in the nightclubs of Beco das Garrafas, in Copacabana, where they accompanied dancers Joe Benett , Lennie Dale and Martha Botelho. However, it wasn’t long before Bossa Três got the chance to travel further afield.
With the dancers, they traveled to America after being invited to appear on the Ed Sullivan Show. By then, it was one of the most popular American television shows and they were about to play in front of a huge audience. This launched their career and the group decided to stay in America.
During the next few years, Bossa Três played in New York’s jazz clubs and recorded three albums. This included their finest American album Bossa Três 3. It was also the final album he group released in America.
Although Luiz Carlos Vinhas enjoyed his time in America, he missed Brazil and decided to head home in 1963. However, the other two members of the group stayed in America.
On his return home, Luiz Carlos Vinhas started looking for new band members. Eventually, he recruited drummer Ronie Mesquita and bassist Octavio Bailly Júnior for the new lineup of Bossa Três.
1964 was an important year for twenty-four year old Luiz Carlos Vinhas. He had signed to the Forma label and released his debut solo album Novas Estruturas. Nowadays, it’s regarded as a Bossa Nova classic and one of Luiz Carlos Vinhas’ finest releases.
The same year, 1964, he was a member of Meirelles E Os Copa 5 when they released their debut album O Som. This future classic was followed up by O Nôvo Som in 1965. It was one of the busiest years of Luiz Carlos Vinhas’ career.
By 1965, the new lineup of Bossa Três were dividing their time between playing live and recording new albums. They released three albums during 1965 and a further two during 1966. This includes Os Reis Do Rítmo in 1966 which is regarded as Bossa Três Mk II’s finest album and is anther Bossa Nova classic.
Later in 1966, Luiz Carlos Vinhas formed The Gemini 5 who soon, began work on their debut album. This was Gemini 5 which was released in Mexico in 1967 when the group toured the country. It was the latest chapter in the Luiz Carlos Vinhas story.
In 1968, Luiz Carlos Vinhas had signed to CBS and began work on his long-awaited sophomore album. By then, four years had passed since the release of his debut album Novas Estruturas. However, he was about to record a very different album and one that reflected the music of 1968.
By then, the psychedelic era was well underway and Luiz Carlos Vinhas had been influenced by this new genre of music. It would influence O Som Psicodélico De L.C.V.. However, the starting point for the album was his first musical love Bossa Nova. To this, Luiz Carlos Vinhas added elements of Afro-Brazilian, tropicalia, easy listening, jazz, pop and rock. This was all part of his plan to record an ambitious album befitting the new musical era.
For the album that eventually became O Som Psicodélico De L.C.V. he wrote Tanganica and cowrote Yê-Melê and Zizê Baiô with Chico Feitosa who features on the album. Luiz Carlos Vinhas also covered some familiar tracks including Horace Silver’s Song For My Father. It was joined by Chatanooga Choo-Choo and Can’t Take My Eyes Off You which were part of two suites on the album. In total, ten tracks were recorded by Luiz Carlos Vinhas for O Som Psicodélico De L.C.V. which was scheduled for release later in 1968.
Record buyers discovered an album that was quintessentially Brazilian. Luiz Carlos Vinhas combined Bossa Nova with elements of tropicalia and Afro-Brazilian with jazz, psychedelia, pop and rock. Sampling was used on O Som Psicodélico De L.C.V. which featured bursts of birdsong, animal sounds, vocal riffing and onomatopoeia. It was an ambitious and innovative album that sometimes, seemed ahead of its time.
O Som Psicodélico De L.C.V. was the perfect showcase for Luiz Carlos Vinhas’ skills. It featured the deft touch that had served him so well since he made his professional debut in 1957. During the album his playing was delicate and intricate as he takes the listener on a captivating journey.
Side One.
Joao Donato’s classic Amazonas opens the album and Luiz Carlos Vinhas forever the showman reinvents this familiar track. His fingers glide and sometimes dance across the keyboard his playing smooth and inventive as he joins forces with the horns, percussion and rhythm section to ensure that this uplifting and joyous slice of musical sunshine swings. It’s a similar case on Song For My Father where Luiz Carlos Vinhas pays homage to jazz legend Horace Silver.
Among the highlights of the album are Luiz Carlos Vinhas’ own compositions. This includes Tanganica where birdsong and animal sounds are combined with the guitar and horns. They combine with the vocals and play a leading role in sound and success of this soulful track. Then Yê-Melê is a homage to the water goddess Yoruba where blazing horns, percussion and piano drive the arrangement along. Later, drums pound, cymbals crash and a female vocalist adds umbandista chants which add a contrast to the urgency of this genre-melting track. Zizê Baiô then sashays along as braying horns punctuate this fusion of Bossa Nova, psychedelia and lo-fi sounds.
The tempo drops on Un Jour Christine as Luiz Carlos Vinhas is transformed into a balladeer. The arrangement is understated with a late-night jazz sound that occasionally becomes lysergic and features lo-fi sounds on what’s one of the most beautiful songs on the album.
Side Two.
Opening the second side is the first of three short suite. It opens with remakes of the jazz standards Chatanooga Choo-Choo and Don’t Be That Way and then closes with Wilson Simonal’s Tributo A Martin Luther King. Then Luiz Carlos Vinhas and his band work their way through Pourquoi, Arrasta A Sandália, Morena, Boca De Ouro and Rosa Morena. For nearly eight minutes the band and vocalists transport the listener to Rio De Janeiro as Bossa Nova, soulful vocals and high kicking horns combine. The third suite opens with celebratory sound of Birthday Morning before giving way to the easy listening classic Can’t Take My Eyes Off You which is given a makeover as Bossa Nova, soul and jazz combine seamlessly. It’s one of the highlights of side two.
Closing O Som Psicodélico De L.C.V. is O Dialogo which features Chico Feitosa on a track that includes elements of spoken word, vocal riffing and onomatopoeia. It’s without doubt one of the most innovative tracks on the album and shows that Luiz Carlos Vinhas was way ahead of his time.
When Luiz Carlos Vinhas released O Som Psicodélico De L.C.V. in 1968, this groundbreaking genre-melting album was nowhere near as successful as his debut Novas Estruturas. It may have been that the music was too adventurous and avant-garde for fans of Bossa Três and his debut album? For Luiz Carlos Vinhas this must have been hugely disappointing.
It was only much later that O Som Psicodélico De L.C.V. started to find an audience when it was rediscovered by collectors and crate-digging DJs. Belatedly, Luiz Carlos Vinhas’ oft-overlooked and vastly underrated sophomore album O Som Psicodélico De L.C.V. started to find an audience and fifty-three years after its release is receiving the plaudits and praise it so richly deserves.
Cult Classic: Luiz Carlos Vinhas-O Som Psicodélico De L.C.V.
CULT CLASSIC: BRAINCHILD-HEALING OF THE LUNATIC OWL.
Cult Classic: Brainchild-Healing Of The Lunatic Owl.
Progressive brass rock pioneers Brainchild were formed in Somerset in the late-sixties, and by the 1970 the septet had signed to A&M. This was perfect timing as the brass rock boom began in 1969 and continued until 1972. By then, Chicago, Blood, Sweat and Tears and The Electric Flag were amongst the highest profile brass rock bands stateside. However, it wasn’t just an American phenomenon.
In Britain, a number of brass rock bands were making waves. However, Brainchild were different to the rest as they combined progressive rock and brass rock. It was impressive sight and sound as the septet took the stage and like well oiled machine worked their way through their set. As they did, the audience realised that here was a band that was a cut above the competition.
Not many bands could seamlessly switch between time signatures and combine disparate musical genres like Brainchild. They took as a starting point progressive brass rock and incorporated elements of fusion, funk, psychedelia, pop, rock and blues. Their music was quite different to the majority of the bands playing live in 1970 and it was no wonder they had been signed by A&M and were en route to the studio to record their debut album Healing Of The Lunatic Owl.
Brainchild’s detonation was Wessex Sound Studios in West London, where they were about to record their debut album with producer Lennie Wright who had been a member of The Web.
Three of the members of the group had written the eight tracks they were about to record. Bill Edwards contributions were Autobiography and Two Bad Days, while Brian Wilshaw had penned Healing Of The Lunatic Owl, Hide From The Dawn and To “B”. Harvey Coles had also written three tracks, She’s Learning, A Time A Place and Sadness Of A Moment. These eight tracks were about to be recorded by Brainchild and would be their debut album Healing Of The Lunatic Owl.
The band’s lineup for the session included drummer Dave Muller, bassist and vocalist Harvey Coles, vocalist Bill Edwards who switched between electric and acoustic guitar plus organist and pianist Chris Jennings. Adding the brass rock sound were trumpeter Lloyd Williams, saxophonist and flautist Brian Wilshaw and trombonists Ian Goss and Pat Strachan. With Lennie Wright taking charge of production and Robin Thompson engineering the session Brainchild recorded their debut album.
With Healing Of The Lunatic Owl completed, A&M scheduled the release of Brainchild’s debut album for later in 1970. By then, the popularity of both progressive rock and brass rock were growing. Marketing executives at A&M must have thought that this was the perfect time to release an album of progressive rock brass rock. Sadly, that wasn’t the case when Healing Of The Lunatic Owl was released the album sunk without trace. It must have been hugely disappointing for a group as talented and versatile as Brainchild. Sadly, record buyers weren’t ready for their unique take on progressive brass rock. Maybe the album was ahead of its time?
Brainchild had incorporated elements of fusion, funk, psychedelia, blues, rock, poppy hooks and theatre into progressive brass rock during Healing Of The Lunatic Owl. Lead vocalist Bill Edwards is responsible for the poppy hooks and the slight theatrical sound. There’s a lounge influence on the title-track where Brainchild combine jazz, rock and seem to have been inspired by Chicago and Blood, Sweat and Tears. It’s one of the highlights of the album. So is the nine minute epic A Time A Place which is Brainchild’s finest moment.
Sometimes, the album heads in the direction of psych-prog and even Krautrock which was in its infancy in 1970. Later in the album dissonant horns on To B take the album in the direction of free jazz. However, the structure of the songs are unmistakably progressive rock and seamlessly Brainchild spring a surprise with unexpected changes in time signature. Add to that the psychedelic influence and Healing Of The Lunatic Owl was an album with the past, the present and the future.
Playing an important role is Harvey Coles’ elastic and probing bass which takes the album in the direction of progressive funk. The progressive funkateer forms a potent partnership with drummer Dave Muller in the rhythm section. Given their versatility they’re one of Brainchild’s secret weapons.
Then there’s the horn section that take progressive rock in a new direction. Brainchild may not have been the first progressive rock to add a horn section but how many combined a trumpet, two trombones and a saxophone? They take the this impressive sounding album to the next level.
Despite the undeniable quality of Healing Of The Lunatic Owl it is one of the many albums released in the early seventies that failed to find the audience it deserved. It was an ambitious and innovative album where Brainchild took progressive brass rock in a new direction. They were musical pioneers who rather than follow in the footsteps of others, decided to forge a new sound. Sadly, Healing Of The Lunatic Owl was ahead of its time and passed the record buying public by in 1970.
This was hugely disappointing for Brainchild who split-up not long after releasing their debut album. Sadly, by then the dream was over for Brainchild. Healing Of The Lunatic Owl was Brainchild’s one shot at the title and for this groundbreaking group and sadly, it was a case of what might have been?
Cult Classic: Brainchild-Healing Of The Lunatic Owl.
CULT CLASSIC: EL POLEN-CHOLO (MUSICA ORIGINAL DE LE BANDA DE SONIDO).
Cult Classic: El Polen-Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido).
When El Polen was formed by brothers Juan Luis and Raul Pereira in 1969, little did anyone realise that their new band would become one of the most important and influential in the history of Peruvian music. That was until El Polen released their genre-melting debut album Cholo in 1972 where they fuse Andean music, folk and psychedelia. This new genre-melting was ambitious and groundbreaking and would influence a new generation of bands in the future. By then, El Polen had come a long way in just three short years.
The El Polen story began three years earlier in 1969 when brothers Juan Luis and Raul Pereira decided to form a new band. They had decided that their new band would head in a new direction and make music that was different to their previous band. By then, the Pereira brothers realised that Peruvian music was about to change.
By 1969, the first wave of new Peruvian bands were combing beat music and surf sounds, which they played at Matinales, where concerts that took place on a Sunday morning. These concerts were always popular, and so were the bands that took to the stage. However, the music was starting to sound tired and like yesterday’s sound. What Peruvian music needed was a revolution.
Juan Luis Pereira was part of the burgeoning hippy movement and realised this, he and his brother Raul formed El Polen, and set about reinventing music in the new Peru. It was a very different country since 1968, and it was an exciting time for the Pereira brothers as they started their new band.
Peru was transformed in 1968, when a nationalist government was established by Juan Velasco Alvarado. This brought to an end the oligarchic state, which had previously ruled Peru. Suddenly, many people started to migrate from the country to the city, seeking a new life in the new Peru.
This coincided with new Andean singers and bands playing concerts in a coliseum located on the outskirts of a city. Many within the audience were those who had migrated from the country to the city, and they enjoyed the concerts that they attended.
Meanwhile, their was an upsurge of interest in Andean music, and sales of new recordings increased. The Andean sound which had first been recorded and promoted by Jose Maria Arguedas by the late-forties was growing in popularity. Soon, new bands were being formed and Andean sound became more popular than ever and the Peruvian musical industry expanded. However, Juan Luis and Raul Pereira had their own plans for Peruvian music.
As the sixties, gave way to the seventies, Juan Luis and Raul Pereira realised that the fusion of beat music and surf sounds many bands had been playing was yesterday’s sound and no longer as popular as it had once been. It was time for Peruvian music to change. The Pereira decided to fuse the sound of today with some of the music that they had heard growing up.
This included classical music, Peruvian waltzes and huaynos which had influenced and moulded the Pereira brothers in their formative years. So did Andean folklore music which would become part of El Polen’s sound. They were about to combine Andean music, folk psychedelia and rock, and this new genre-melting was groundbreaking. Nobody had ever tried this before and the members of El Polen were about to become musical pioneers.
By then, the members of El Polen had been on a journey which would help them improve as musicians and spiritually. El Polen had traveled to Cusco, where they learned more about Andean instruments and musical traditions. This was they saw as part of their continuing musical education, and having gathered new knowledge, El Polen began the next part of this two-part journey.
It took El Polen to Santa Eulalia high in the mountains above Lima, where they examined their burgeoning spirituality. After this, the members of El Polen were ready to change Peruvian music forevermore.
By then, the hippy movement had exploded in popularity as Peruvian music fans embraced psychedelia and sought altered states of consciousness. With the new hippy generation enjoying and embracing the new, alternative lifestyle and psychedelic music El Polen had a captive audience.
The members of El Polen had much in common with the people who they hoped would embrace their music. They had lived in a community, and shared many of the same values and beliefs. El Polen also hoped that the new hippy generation would embrace their music.
When El Polen took to the stage, they sought to eliminate the boundaries between rock and huayno. To do this, they deployed acoustic guitars, a cello, mandolin, percussion and quenas, as they combined Andean music, folk rock and psychedelia. This proved popular, and soon, El Polen was at the forefront of a new musical movement that was blossoming in Peru.
Given their popularity, it was only a matter of time before El Polen came to the attention of one of the Peruvian record companies. Virrey won the signature of El Polen who soon, began work on their debut album.
Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido).
For their debut album, El Polen was asked to write the soundtrack to the film Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido), which was based on the life of the famous Peruvian Soccer Player Hugo Sotil.
For Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido), El Polen wrote six new tracks, and covered Cholito Pantalion Bianco which was written by singer and songwriter Luis Abanto Morales. These seven tracks were recorded by the six members of El Polen.
As recording of Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido) began, El Polen’s lineup featured guitarist Juan Luis Pereira and his brother Raul who played guitar and took charge of the vocals. They were joined by cellist Juan Sebastián Montesinos, violinist Fernando Silva, percussionist Ernesto Pinto and Carlos Martínez who played mandolin. As Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido) took shape the six members of El Polen had no idea that they were about to make musical history.
Prior to the release of Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido) critics had their say on El Polen’s debut album. While El Polen’s debut album was well received and hailed as an ambitious and exciting release, it was only later that critics realised the importance of Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido).
It was a game-changer of an album, and Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido) proved not just to be innovative, but also influential. El Polen paved the way for other bands to fuse Andean music and rock and would influence several generations of bands and musicians.
Nowadays, Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido) is regarded as a landmark album in the history of Peruvian music. That is no surprise as El Polen was the first band to fuse traditional Andean music with folk and psychedelia and rock. They were also the first group to combine traditional Andean instruments with Western instruments.
This they do effectively from the opening bars of the near twelve-minute epic La Flora (tema De Cholo). It showcases El Polen’s considerable musical skills as they seamlessly combine disparate musical genres on what’s a tantalising taste of a truly talented group. So too does upbeat and joyous Cholito Pantalion Bianco.
Quite different is the dramatic, cinematic and emotive Paisajes De Quenas which features traditional Peruvian instruments. They combine with the swirling strings as the cello and violin combine during the evocative and irresistible Valicha.
Sitting Dreaming is genre-melting lysergic track that has obviously been influenced by Western psychedelia. There’s even a nod to The Beatles midway through the track, which is one of the highlights of Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido). Tondero is another carefully crafted, genre-melting track where elements of classical music, folk, psychedelia and rock combine as Raúl Pereira delivers soul-baring vocal. Closing El Polen’s debut album is Secuencias De Organillo Y Poliphon, which is a short track where plink plonk sounds are part of track that is both cinematic and psychedelic and close the album on a high.
Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido) was a groundbreaking album that featured genre-melting music from musical pioneers El Polen. They had spent the best part of three years honing their sound and were more than ready to record an album.
Led by the Pereira brothers they recorded what was a landmark album where they fuse traditional Andean music with classical music, folk, psychedelia and rock. This had never been done before, and the members of El Polen were pioneers who were breaking new ground.
Soon, many bands would follow in their footsteps, during the next few years. However, nowadays, El Polen and their debut album Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido) is regarded as a turning point for Peruvian music. They had changed music forevermore and revolutionised Peruvian music in the process.
Sadly, El Polen only released one more album during the seventies, Fuera De La Ciudad in 1973, which was another innovative, landmark album. Just two years later, El Polen split-up in 1975, and that was the last that was heard of the band for twenty-one years.
In 1996, El Polen made a comeback, and three years later, self-released their third album Signos E Instrumentos. Sadly, not long after releasing their first album in twenty-six years El Polen split-up once again.
Fifteen years later, in 2014, there was an El Polen reunion, as they rolled back the years. Sadly, that was the last that was heard from one of the most important groups in the history of modern Peruvian music.
El Polen certainly made their mark on Peruvian music during the six-year period between 1969 and 1975. This began when they released their genre-melting landmark debut album Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido) in 1972, and followed this up with another classic album Fuera De La Ciudad which are El Polen’s finest releases.
Cult Classic: El Polen-Cholo (Música Original De La Banda De Sonido).
GENE RUSSELL-TALK TO MY LADY.
Gene Russell-Talk To My Lady.
Label: Real Gone Music.
Format: CD.
Release Date: ‘5th’ March 2021.
As 1973 dawned, LA-based Black Jazz Records had already released nine albums since 1971. Its first release was Gene Russell’s critically acclaimed sophomore album New Direction. However, another two years passed before the LA-born pianist returned with the followup.
Gene Russell spent the spent the rest of 1971 and all of 1972 running the label as well recording and producing albums for the artists who had signed to Black Jazz Records. This left little time for him to write and record a new solo album. He had to sacrifice his solo career for the good of the label he cofounded in 1969.
Pianist Gene Russell and percussionist Dick Schory cofounded Black Jazz Records in Oakland, California, in 1969, and the nascent label’s raison d’être was “to promote the talents of young African American jazz musicians and singers.” This, however, was only part of their vision for their new label.
The cofounders were determined that Black Jazz Records would released an alternative to what they saw as the old school jazz that was popular at the time. They wanted to release an alternative to traditional jazz, and this included albums that featured political and spiritual influenced music. However, spiritual jazz was just part of the Black Jazz Records’ story. The label released twenty albums that included everything from free jazz and funk to soul-jazz between 1971 and 1975.
After Gene Russell’s New Direction became Black Jazz Records first release in 1971, the nascent label released Walter Bishop Jr’s Coral Keys, Doug Carn’s Infant Eye, Rudolph Johnson’s Spring Rain, Calvin Keys’ Shawn-Neeq and Chester Thompson’s Powerhouse. It was the final release of 1971. By then, word had spread about Black Jazz Records and its musical philosophy
The cofounders were determined that as wide an audience as possible hear the albums that the label was releasing. Gene Russell decided that one way to do this was to organise a promotional tour.
In September 1971, Gene Russell and his Ray Lawrence who was his marketing consultant toured America giving interviews to newspaper journalists and featured on radio and newspaper where they showcased Black Jazz Records and its artists. This resulted in valuable publicity for the label.
By then, other labels looked on enviously at the new label and artists were keen to sign to Black Jazz Records. This was no surprise.
Cofounder Dick Schory had founded Chicago-based Ovation Records which was a successful country and western label. It was providing funding for Black Jazz Records and distributing its releases. This gave the label a much needed helping hand and meant it had an edge on its competitors.
Having released six albums during 1971, the first album that Black Jazz Records released during 1972 was Henry Franklin’s cult classic The Skipper. This was followed by Doug Carn’s second album for the label Spirit Of The New Land, which was the most successful album the label released during 1972. The final release of the year was The Awakening’s Hear, Sense and Feel.
While 1972 wasn’t as a busy as the previous year, the three albums that Black Jazz Records released were well received by critics and cultural commentators. The releases were also starting to find a wider audience. This was another reason why artists were keen to sign to the label.
However, it wasn’t a new signing that released Black Jazz Records’ tenth release. Instead, it was cofounder Gene Russell who returned with his second album for the label, Talk To My Lady.
Despite his busy schedule, Gene Russell had written Talk To My Lady, Get Down and Blues Suite. The other five tracks were cover versions. This included a cover of the Billy Paul classic Me and Mrs Jones which Cary Gilbert wrote with Gamble and Huff. It was joined by Donald Meyer, Elise Bretton and Sherman Edwards’ For Heaven’s Sake; Stevie Wonders’ You Are The Sunshine Of My Life; Rodgers and Hammerstein’s My Favorite Things plus Carl Sigman and Tadd Dameron’s If You Could See Me Now. These eight tracks became Talk To My Lady which was Gene Russell’s much-anticipated followup to New Direction.
Recording of Talk To My Lady took place at Hollywood Spectrum Studios, Los Angeles, with Gene Russell producing the album and playing Fender Rhodes and a Steinway piano. He was joined in the rhythm section by drummer Leon “Ndugu” Chancler, bassist Henry Franklin and guitarist Calvin Keys. Eddie Gee played tambourine and Charles Weaver congas on an album that was a mixture of new material and familiar songs.
Talk To My Lady was released to critical acclaim in 1973. Critics were won over by an album that featured elements of blues, funk, fusion, hard bop, jazz, jazz-funk and soul-jazz. Accompanied by a tight, talented and versatile band, Gene Russell switches between and fuses disparate musical genres.
That’s apparent on the album opener and title-track Song For My Lady where elements of funk, fusion and hard bop are combined by Gene Russell and his band. Leon “Ndugu” Chancler’s drumming is complex but subtle and soon, the track swings. By then, he’s been joined by bassist Henry Franklin and the pair form a potent partnership in the rhythm section. Meanwhile, Gene Russell plays a starring role as his fly across the keyboard of Fender Rhodes which later takes on a slinky sound. He seems to have been inspired by Herbie Hancock as he adds a fusion influence to this genre-melting title-track that sets the bar high for the rest of the album.
Covering a classic like Me and Mrs Jones is never easy as the definitive version has already been recorded. Instead, it’s a case of reinventing the song and taking it in a new direction. It opens with Calvin Keys’ guitar combining with Henry Franklin’s bass. He goes on to play a starring role and combines with drummer Leon “Ndugu” Chancler’s who like Calvin Keys doesn’t overplay. It’s a case of less is more. Meanwhile, Gene Russell’s Fender Rhodes takes centrestage and combines power, emotion and degree of drama on this beautiful, impassioned cover of a Philly Soul classic which gets a jazzy makeover.
For Heaven’s Sake was originally recorded in 1948, and a decade later was made famous by Billie Holliday. This cover is slow and understated with drums played by brushes accompanying Henry Franklin’s bass. He plays slowly and choosing each note with care while Gene Russell plays Fender Rhodes. His playing is expressive, emotive and heartfelt on a truly beautiful cover of an oft-covered track.
Earlier in 1973, Stevie Wonder had a hit single with You Are The Sunshine Of My Life. Gene Russell’s cover starts off as a shuffle but become an upbeat and joyous track that has a cinematic sound. It sounds as if it belongs on the soundtrack to seventies film.
It’s all change on Blues Suite which is a ballad where Gene Russell switches to the Steinway piano. Behind him, the rhythm section provide an understated accompaniment. Drummer Leon “Ndugu” Chancler plays with brushes while Henry Franklin resists the temptation to overplay. This allows him to enjoy a musical masterclass from Gene Russell who jabs and stabs the keyboard playing with power and passion on this bluesy ballad.
Very different is the cover of My Favorite Things which was the title of John Coltrane’s seventh album, and the first where he played soprano saxophone. It’s as if Gene Russell wants to pay homage to one of the most innovative musicians in the history of jazz. This cover bursts into life and quickly reveals an avant-garde sound. A space bass accompanies a shimmering Fender Rhodes which heads in the direction of fusion as drums power the arrangement along. What follows is groundbreaking avant-garde cover of a Rogers and Hammerstein’s much-covered track.
If You Could See Me Now closes Talk To My Lady and is narrated by Gene Russell. The piano-led arrangement accompanies his needy, hurt-filled soliloquy. It’s a mixture of a music and theatre and shows another side to bandleader, pianist and label owner Gene Russell.
Talk To My Lady was the much-anticipated and critically acclaimed followup to New Direction which was the first release on Black Jazz Records. Two years laters, Gene Russell made a welcome return. He was backed by a crack band of musicians when they recorded an album where new songs sat side-by-side with cover versions of classics and familiar songs. Some of these songs were reinterpreted and were taken in a new direction. To do that, Gene Russell and his band switch between and combine elements of avant-garde, blues funk, fusion, hard bop, jazz, jazz-funk and soul-jazz on an album that he also produced.
The result was Talk To My Lady, which is one of the greatest and most eclectic albums of Gene Russell’s long career and a reminder of a pioneering musician who in 1973 was at the peak of his powers.
Gene Russell-Talk To My Lady.
HENRY FRANKLIN-THE SKIPPER.
Henry Franklin-The Skipper.
Label: Real Gone Music.
Format: CD.
Release Date: ‘5th’ March 2021.
When pianist Gene Russell and percussionist Dick Schory founded Black Jazz Records in Oakland, California, in 1969, the nascent label’s raison d’être was “to promote the talents of young African American jazz musicians and singers.” This was only part of their vision for their new label.
They were determined that Black Jazz Records would released an alternative to what they saw as the old school jazz that was popular at the time. They wanted to release an alternative to traditional jazz, and this included albums that featured political and spiritual influenced music. However, spiritual jazz was just part of the Black Jazz Records’ story and the label between 1971 and 1975 it released twenty albums that included everything from free jazz and funk to soul-jazz.
Black Jazz Records’ first release was Gene Russell’s sophomore album New Direction which was released in 1971. This was just the start of a prolific year for the label.
Black Jazz Records second release of 1971 was Walter Bishop Jr’s Coral Keys with Doug Carn’s Infant Eye, Rudolph Johnson’s Spring Rain and Calvin Keys’ Shawn-Neeq following later that year. The final release of 1971 was Chester Thompson’s Powerhouse.
By then, other labels looked on enviously at the new label and artists were keen to sign to Black Jazz Records.
Cofounder Dick Schory had founded Chicago-based Ovation Records which was a successful country and western label. It was providing funding for Black Jazz Records and distributing its releases. This gave the label a much needed helping hand and meant it had an edge on its competitors.
The cofounders were determined that as wide an audience as possible hear the albums that the label was releasing so Gene Russell organised a promotional tour. In September 1971, Gene Russell and his Ray Lawrence who was his marketing consultant toured America giving interviews to newspaper journalists and featured on radio and newspaper where they showcased Black Jazz Records and its artists. This resulted in valuable publicity for the label.
As 1972 dawned, Black Jazz Records prepared to release Henry Franklin’s The Skipper. It was the label’s first release of the year and the seventh in a year. Black Jazz Records had a come a long way in a short space of time. And so had Henry Franklin.
Jazz double bassist Henry Franklin was born in Los Angeles, on the ‘1st’ of October 1940. His father was jazz trumpeter and bandleader Sammy Franklin, and It was no surprise when he decided to make a career out of music.
Just like his father, Henry Franklin was a prodigiously talented musician and when he was still attending Manual Arts High School he was already a member of Roy Ayers Latin Jazz Quintet. Around this time, he also worked Harold Lamb and Hampton Hawkes. During his teenage years, Henry Franklin also played alongside free jazz pioneers Don Cherry and Ornette Coleman. This was good experience for the young, aspiring bassist.
In 1963, Henry Franklin made his recording when he accompanied Lou Rawls in a group put together by Curtis Amy. This was the first of many recording sessions that featured the LA-born bassist.
Next stop for Henry Franklin was New York, where he spent a year working with Willie Bobo. That was how he met Archie Shepp’s pianist Lamont Johnson who he went on to work with.
By 1967, Henry Franklin was part of Hugh Masekela’s band when he recorded his number one single Grazing In The Grass. This resulted in Hugh Masekela appearing at the Monterey International Pop Festival in June 1967. Henry Franklin was part of his band and featured on three albums released between 1967 and 1969.
The first was Hugh Masekela Is Alive and Well At The Whisky in 1967; 1968s The Promise Of A Future and Masekela in 1969. By then, Henry Franklin had moved on and was part of The Three Sounds.
The group was founded in 1956 and by 1969 the lineup had evolved and included Henry Franklin who played on the soul-jazz album Soul Symphony. When the album was released by Blue Note Records later in 1969 it was well received by critics. However, Soul Symphony turned out to be the group’s swansong and Henry Franklin moved on.
In 1970, he played on John Carter and Bobby Bradford’s cult classic elf Determination Music which was released by the Flying Dutchman label. It was two more years before Henry Franklin returned to the recording studio to record his debut album The Skipper.
Having signed to Black Jazz Records, Henry Franklin began work on his long-awaited debut album The Skipper. He wrote Outbreak, Plastic Creek Stomp, Beauty and The Electric Tub and Little Miss Laurie. They were joined by Al Hall Jr’s Theme For JoJo and Bill Henderson’s The Skipper which lent its name to Henry Franklin’s debut album.
When The Skipper was recorded, the rhythm section featured drummer Mike Carvin, Henry Franklin on electric and double bass and guitarist Kenny Climax. They were joined by Bill Henderson on Fender Rhodes, percussionists Fred Lido and Tip Jones plus a front line of tenor saxophonist Charles Owens and Oscar Brashear on trumpet and flugelhorn. Just like previous Black Jazz Records recording sessions Gene Russell was recordist and producer of The Skipper.
When The Skipper was released in early 1972 it was Black Jazz Records seventh release and first of the year. Critics were won over by Henry Franklin’s much anticipated debut album which was a mixture of funk, fusion, jazz and jazz-funk. Seamlessly the talented and versatile band switched between and combined disparate genres on The Skipper.
Opening The Skipper is Outbreak which has a classic bop sound and is propelled along at breakneck speed by Henry Franklin’s bass which locks into a groove with drummer Mike Carvin. His hissing hi-hats also a play an important part before Charles Owens unleashes a sweeping, swirling, soaring saxophone solo that plays a starring role.
Then it’s all change and Plastic Creek Stomp heads in the direction marked funk. Just like the previous track, Mike Carvin’s drums and the Henry Franklin’s bass lock down the groove and soon the track is swinging. The band move through the gears and soon this tight, talented and versatile band are in full flight. It’s an impressive sound and shows another side to the band.
Percussion opens Theme For JoJo before Henry Franklin plucks his bass and is joined by a shimmering Fender Rhodes and wistful horns. Still, the arrangement is understated and drifts along as Mike Carvin the ride cymbal soars high above an arrangement. Later, it’s joined by the ruminative horns combine with the glistening Fender Rhodes and bass as this beautiful track reaches a crescendo.
Initially the tempo is slow as Beauty and The Electric Tub unfolds but gradually it rises as Henry Franklin and his band combine fusion and bop. They play with freedom and an inventiveness during a twelve minute epic that has a filmic and theatrical sound.
Very different is Little Miss Laurie has a much smoother, laidback sound. The rhythm section provide the heartbeat as the arrangement glides along with the horns and Fender Rhodes playing starring roles on this beautiful ballad.
The title-track closes The Skipper and is another track with a cinematic sound. It sounds like the theme to a seventies television show as the horns play a leading role. Especially the saxophone which is played with power and passion before the trumpet replies. Meanwhile, the unmistakable sound of shimmering Fender Rhodes meanders along augmenting the horns on a truly memorable track that’s one of the highlights of Henry Franklin’s much-anticipated debut album.
By the time Henry Franklin released The Skipper he was thirty-one and had been a professional musician since he was a teenager. He had worked with some of the biggest names in music, but never recorded an album. The Skipper was his debut and was well worth the wait.
Henry Franklin put together and led a tight, talented and versatile band who seamlessly switched between and combined funk, fusion, hard bop, jazz and jazz-funk. Playing an important part in the album was Gene Russell who produced The Skipper. When it came to mixing the album he wanted a wide sounding mix. He succeeded and the result was one of the best sounding albums that Black Jazz Records had released.
Despite the superior sound quality, The Skipper wasn’t a hugely successful album. It sold steadily but wasn’t one of Black Jazz Records’ success stories.
It was only much later that the twenty albums that Black Jazz Records released between 1971 and 1975 started to find a wider audience amongst DJs and discerning record collectors. By then, many of the album had been sampled by hip hop artists which was how many record collectors discovered Black Jazz Records. However, by then, many of the albums released by the label were rarities that were beyond the budget of many record collectors.
Last year, Real Gone Music started reissuing the twenty albums that Black Jazz Records’ released. This includes The Skipper which will be reissued on the ‘5th’ of March 2021 and was the much-anticipated debut album from LA born bandleader and bassist Henry Franklin which is a timeless and cult classic that is one of the most accessible albums that Black Jazz Records’ released.
Henry Franklin-The Skipper.
HERBIE HANCOCK-MY POINT OF VIEW.
Herbie Hancock-My Point Of View.
Label: Blue Note Records.
Format: LP.
By the time Herbie Hancock signed to Blue Note Records, the Chicago-born pianist was just twenty-two, and had already worked with Donald Byrd and Coleman Hawkins.
On May the ‘28th’ 1962, he recorded his debut solo album Takin’ Off which featured the jazz standard Watermelon Man. The album was released to widespread critical acclaim later in 1962. This was the start of productive period that saw Herbie Hancock release seven studio albums for Blue Note Records between 1962 and 1969.
This includes his sophomore album My Point Of View, which featured was the first recording by his classic hard bop small group. This landmark album has just been reissued by Blue Note Records on 180 gram vinyl as part of their Tone Poet Series. It’s a reminder of one of the greatest jazz pianists of his generation as he embarks upon a long and illustrious career.
Herbert Jeffrey Hancock was born in Chicago on April the ’12th’ 1940. His father Wayman Edward Hancock was a government meat inspector and his mother Winnie worked as a secretary. They named their son after the singer and actor Herb Jeffries. This was fitting as the new addition to their family turned out to be prodigiously talented musician.
Growing up, Herbie Hancock like many other jazz pianists studied classical music. His talent was soon spotted and teachers realised that he was a child prodigy.
Aged just eleven, Herbie Hancock played the first movement of Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 26 in D Major at a young people’s concert on February the ‘5th’ 1952 with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra which was led by assistant conductor George Schick. The young pianist was one of the stars of concert.
As a teenager, Herbie Hancock attended Hyde Park High School on the South Side of Chicago. Despite eventually making a career as a jazz pianist, he never had a jazz teacher during his teenage years. However, he spent time developing his ear and a sense of harmony. One of his musical influences were The Hi-Lo’s a vocal quartet who sometimes supported Frank Sinatra.
After graduating from Hyde Park High School, Herbie Hancock enrolled at Grinnell College and graduated in 1960 with degrees in electrical engineering and music.
In 1960, Herbie Hancock heard Chicago-born jazz pianist Chris Anderson play and was so impressed that he asked him to accept him as a student. He agreed and was a huge influence on the young pianist who later, called him his “harmonic guru.”
After graduating from Grinnell College, Herbie Hancock returned to the Windy City and began working with Donald Byrd and Coleman Hawkins. During this time, he enrolled in courses at the Roosevelt University, in Chicago.
During 1960, Donald Byrd was studying at the Manhattan School of Music and he suggested that Herbie Hancock studied composition with Vittorio Giannini. This he did briefly, but by then, Herbie Hancock’s star was in the ascendancy and he was invited to play on sessions Oliver Nelson and Phil Woods.
Just two years later, in 1962, Herbie Hancock signed to one of jazz’s premier labels, Blue Note Records. This would be his home for the next seven years.
Takin’ Off.
Having signed to Blue Note Records, Herbie Hancock began work on his debut album, Takin’ Off. He wrote six new compositions including Watermelon Man which were recorded at on May the ‘28th’ 1962, at Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey and produced by Alfred Lion.
Joining pianist Herbie Hancock in the rhythm section were drummer Billy Higgins and double bassist Butch Warren. The front line featured trumpeter Freddie Hubbard and tenor saxophonist. It was an all-star band that was accompanied Herbie Hancock on an album that was produced by Alfred Lion and engineered by Rudy Van Gelder.
Later in 1962, Takin’ Off was released to widespread critical acclaim. It was an album of cerebral music that was light, tight, bluesy, funky, imaginative and sometimes ruminative. Always the music was memorable on this album of hard bop and soul-jazz. The standout track was Watermelon Man with Three Bags Full, Empty Pockets and Alone and I receiving honourable mentions. Takin’ Off had launched Herbie Hancock’s career which was well underway, and has since been hailed as one of the most accomplished debut albums in the history of jazz.
My Point Of View.
Buoyed by the critical response to his debut album Takin’ Off, Herbie Hancock began work on his much-anticipated sophomore album My Point Of View. He wrote five new compositions Blind Man, Blind Man, A Tribute To Someone, King Cobra, The Pleasure Is Mine and the album closer And What If I Don’t. These tracks were recorded by Herbie Hancock’s classic hard bop small group.
The rhythm section included seventeen year old drummer Tony Williams, bassist Chuck Israels, guitarist Grant Green who played on two tracks and pianist and bandleader Herbie Hancock. They were joined by a front line of trumpeter Donald Byrd, tenor saxophonist Hank Mobley and trombonist Graham Moncur III. This new band made the journey to Van Gelder Studio, on March the ’19th’ 1963, where they were joined by producer Alfred Lion and engineer Rudy Van Gelder .
My Point Of View was released in the autumn of 1963, to plaudits and praise. Herbie Hancock wasn’t content to stand still and began to push the boundaries of hard bop on his sophomore album. Especially on A Tribute To Someone which is a nine minute epic that sometimes can be challenging a listen but is ultimately rewarding. Very different is the beautiful ballad The Pleasure Is Mine which is one of the album’s highlights.
Then King Cobra heads in the direction of modal jazz. It has a silty edgy sound and there’s similarities to one of Herbie Hancock’s most famous compositions, Maiden Voyage. The seeds to that jazz classic were sown here.
Bookending My Point Of View are the two tracks with a much more pronounced soul-jazz sound. This came courtesy of guitarist Grant Green who plays a starring role on the both tracks. The album opener Blind Man, Blind Man was a track that Herbie Hancock later said reminded him of a blind man who stood on the corner playing his guitar in the neighbourhood of Chicago he grew-up in. It’s also a track that owes a debt of gratitude to one of his classic tracks,Watermelon And What If I Don’t bookends the album and has a laidback, bluesy groove that’s the perfect way to close Herbie Hancock’s sophomore album My Point Of View.
Nowadays, Takin’ Off is regarded as one of the finest debut albums by a jazz artist. Herbie Hancock had set the bar high. However, the twenty-three year old pianist returned with a stunning sophomore album My Point Of View. The album’s foundation is hard bop but there’s also soul-jazz and modal jazz as well as elements of blues and funk. Herbie Hancock was determined to reinvent hard bop and take it in a new direction. He was a musical pioneer who was determined never to stand still musically.
Not long after Herbie Hancock recorded My Point Of View, he was invited to join what became Miles Davis’ Second Great Quintet which also featured drummer Tony Williams. Herbie Hancock had come a long way in a short space of time.
He had only released his debut album Takin’ Off in the autumn of 1962, with My Point Of View following a year later in 1963 which nowadays is regarded as a jazz classic. This was just the start of a period when Herbie Hancock could do no wrong with
This was something he continued to do throughout his time at Blue Note Records releasing Inventions and Dimensions in early 1964 with Empyrean Isles following in November 1964; Maiden Voyage in March 1965 and Speak Like A Child in the summer of 1968. Bringing the Blue Note Records Years to a close in 1969 was one of Herbie Hancock’s most ambitious and innovative albums, The Prisoner, which was produced by Duke Pearson and dedicated to the memory of the late Dr Martin Luther King. The seven studio albums that Herbie Hancock released on Blue Note Records are among his finest albums and are the perfect introduction to one of the greatest jazz pianists of his generation.
Herbie Hancock-My Point Of View.
J JAZZ: DEEP MODERN JAZZ FROM JAZZ VOLUME 3.
J Jazz: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan Volume 3.
Label: BBE Music.
Format: 2CD.
Nowadays, the most important period in the development of J-Jazz is the between late-sixties through to the early eighties. That’s regarded as a crucial period in the development of modern jazz in Japan. During that period, many Japanese composers and musicians and bands released ambitious and innovative music that astounded those who heard it. This included Yasuhiro Kohno Trio and One, Kohsuke Mine, Hideo Shiraki, Tatsuya Nakamura, Shigeharu Mukai, Seiichi Nakamura, Ryusei Quartet and Koichi Matsukaze Trio who feature on J Jazz: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan Volume 3 which was recently released by BBE Music. When critics, cultural commentator and record buyers heard this music they were making they were amazed just how far Japanese jazz had come in such a short space of time.
It was only twenty or thirty years earlier that Japanese music fans were banned from listening to jazz during the World War II. However, after Japan’s defeat and unconditional surrender in August 1945, the wartime ban on jazz was lifted.
Jazz fans were now able to hear jazz on the radio, and watch the allied forces bands play jazz in concert halls across Japan. Some of the bands featured some of the top American jazz musicians who were serving their country. Sometimes, these musicians spent time collaborating with local jazz musicians who were keen to learn from some of the names they had only heard on the radio. However, in 1952 when the allied forces left Japan, and returned home musicians like Frank Foster, Harold Lamb and Oliver Nelson had formed firm friendships with local jazzers. By then, they had played an important part in the cultural rebirth of Japan.
Left to their own devices, a new era began for Japanese musicians who were determined to make up for lost time. Musically there had been no winners after six years of war. While jazz had been banned in Japan during the war, many British and American jazz musicians had been called up and were serving their country. Many jazz musicians had spent the war in army bands where they were usually out of harm’s way. Now they had returned home, and like their Japanese counterparts were making up for lost time.
By the mid-fifties, a jazz scene had developed in Japan, during what was later referred to as the “funky period.” However, much of the jazz music being made in Japan had been influenced by American jazz and particularly the West Coast cool jazz and East Coast hard bop. Many Japanese musicians were collecting albums on Blue Note and Prestige which heavily influenced them. It would only be later that some would find their own voice.
Meanwhile, many of the top American jazz musicians no longer serving in the US Army, and had returned home. Some joined new or existing bands while some musicians put together new bands. Initially, they returned to their local circuit where they tried to pickup where they had left off. This changed a few years later.
In the late-fifties and early sixties, many of these musicians who had played in Japan during World War II were keen to return to a country where so many loved and appreciated jazz music. They made the long journey to Japan where they were reunited with some old friends.
During this period, Miles Davis, Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers and Horace Silver all made the long journey to Japan where they received a warm and enthusiastic welcome. Whether any of these legendary musicians were aware at the time, they were playing a part in the cultural rebirth of Japan. Soon, many Japanese jazz musicians weren’t just content to copy Miles Davis, Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers and Horace Silver sonically, but were determined copy them stylistically. Before long, Japanese jazz musicians were soon sporting the same preppy Ivy League clothes as their American counterparts.
Despite many people enjoying the visits of American jazz musicians, the Japanese authorities heard that some musicians had been arrested on drugs offences. They tightened the law as they didn’t want musicians with drug convictions visiting the new Japan and corrupting their youth. However, with the laws tightened, much fewer American jazz musicians visited Japan. Those that visited, played in packed concert halls and continue to influence Japanese jazzers.
Not all Japanese jazz musicians were inspired by their American counterparts by the mid-sixties as homegrown musicians were making their presence felt. Especially pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi and saxophonist and flautist Sadao Watanabe who were among the leading lights of the vibrant Japanese jazz scene.
Toshiko Akiyoshi had been invited to study at the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston in 1955. However, it took a year of wrangling, diplomacy and arm twisting before Toshiko Akiyoshi was able to enrol at Berklee College of Music in Boston in 1956. By then, Toshiko Akiyoshi was already making a name for herself outside of her native Japan and would enjoy a long and successful career.
Five years later, Sadao Watanabe released his eponymous debut album on King Records. The following year, 1962, Sadao Watanabe followed in Toshiko Akiyoshi’s footsteps and enrolled at Berklee College of Music in Boston. He too was on the cusp of a successful career.
Back home in Japan, many other Japanese jazz musicians were content to draw inspiration from their American counterparts, but decided to forge a new style of modern jazz befitting the new modern Japan. Leading this movement in the late-sixties was Sadao Watanabe whose music was progressive, experimental, exciting and ambitious and reflected the musical influences and genres he had absorbed. Soon, Sadao Watanabe was influencing some of the musicians who were at the forefront of a jazz revolution.
Some of Japan’s top up-and-coming jazz musicians joined Sadao Watanabe’s band, where they learned from one of the country’s top jazzers. For these musicians this was akin to a musical apprenticeship, before they headed off to play their part in the jazz revolution that took place between the late-sixties and early eighties. It’s documented on J Jazz: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan Volume 3.
Disc One.
Opening J Jazz: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan Volume 3 is Yasuhiro Kohno Trio and One’s Song Of Island. It’s the title track to his third album which was released in March 1986. This is a live album which was recorded on August the ‘28th’ and ‘29th’ 1985 at Live House Again and features a guest appearance from vibes virtuoso Masahiro Kanno. Along with the bandleader and pianist Yasuhiro Kohno Trio he plays a starring role on the title-track which is one of the highlights of this hidden gem of a J Jazz album.
Morning Tide is taken for Kohsuke Mine’s debut album First, which was released on Philips in 1970. The alto saxophonist and bandleader was part of a new generation of modern jazz musicians. Here, he moves towards a fusion of post modal bop and free jazz on this rich-sounding, dense and groundbreaking track.
In 1963, legendary J Jazz drummer Hideo Shiraki released the album Plays Bossa Nova on King Records. It featured the sun-kissed and funky Groovy Samba which was one of the highlights of the album.
In April 1978, Hiroshi Murakami and Dancing Sphinx recorded the album Dancing Sphinx which was released later that year. It featured the funky sounding Phoebus which also incorporates elements of jazz-funk and fusion. It’s one of the highlights of this oft-overlooked and J Jazz rarity.
Closing disc one is Tatsuya Nakamura’s 1/4 Samba II which It’s taken from the album Locus which was released in 1984. By then, the thirty-nine year jazz drummer was leading a fusion band who were heavily inspired by Miles Davis. However, Tatsuya Nakamura a versatile drummer who could switch seamlessly and combine musical genres. Here he combines fusion, funk and samba on this eleven minute genre-melting Magnus Opus which is one of the highlights of J Jazz: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan Volume 3.
Side Two.
Jazz trombonist Shigeharu Mukai opens disc two with Cumulonimbus, which is taken from his album Spacing Out, which was released on the Better Days label in 1978. It’s a breathtaking performance whether the band are playing as one or during the solos. The band plays with speed, fluidity and inventiveness as they combine samba with fusion and jazz-funk on a track that’s sure to become a favourite amongst DJs and jazz dancers.
In 1977, the Masaru Imada Trio released their album Planets. This little-known album was a private press that was released on the Planets label. Copies of this obscure album are rarities which change hands for large sums of money. The highlight of the album is the title-track Planets, which is a beautiful lyrical track that floats and waltzes along revolving it hidden secrets.
There’s two three bonus tracks on the CD version of J Jazz: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan Volume 3. The second is Wolf’s Theme by soprano and tenor saxophonist Seiichi Nakamura. It’s the title-track from his 1978 album which was released on Union Records in 1978 and is a samba that heads in the direction of fusion and jazz-funk as this all-star band showcase their considerable skills.
The other bonus track on the CD version is Kirisame from the Ryusei Quartet’s one and only album Dah Nah. It was an acoustic album that released by Union Records in 1979 and was the last in a series of sixteen albums the label released. Kirisame is a quite beautiful, laidback track with a Bossa groove.
Closing J Jazz: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan Volume 3 is Acoustic Chicken by the Koichi Matsukaze Trio which features jazz drummer Ryojiro Furusawa. It’s taken from the group’s debut album At The Room 427 which was released on ALM Records in 1976. This ambitious and innovative live track lasts just over twenty minutes and finds bandleader and saxophonist Koichi Matsukaze playing a starring role. He switches between tenor and soprano saxophone and plays with power, passion and aggression. Especially when he improvises and his saxophone brays, shrieks, squeals and soars during this impressive epic that closes the compilation on a high.
Tony Higgins and Mike Peden dig deep into their impressive record collections and select a captivating and eclectic selection of sixteen tracks on J Jazz: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan Volume 3. It’s a welcome reminder of the golden age of J Jazz, and will appeal to anyone interested in Japanese jazz.
Veterans of many a previous J Jazz compilation or album will enjoy the latest instalment in this occasional series. So will newcomers to Japanese jazz. In fact, anyone with even a passing interest in J Jazz should be looking to add J Jazz: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan Volume 3 to their collections. It features ambitious, exciting and innovative J Jazz where some of its finest exponents pushed musical boundaries to its limits, and sometimes, way beyond.
Sadly, much of the music on J Jazz: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan Volume 3 never found the audience it deserved, and it’s only relatively recently, in the internet age when a new audience discovered the delights of J Jazz from the genre’s golden age.
J Jazz: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan Volume 3.
CLASSIC ALBUM: THE OHIO PLAYERS-PAIN.
Classic Album: The Ohio Players-Pain.
It wasn’t until The Ohio Players signed with Westbound, and released their sophomore album Pain in 1972, that commercial success came the way of a group that was founded in 1959. Originally, they were known as The Ohio Untouchables, and had a chequered history.
Initially, The Ohio Untouchables lineup featured drummer Cornelius Johnson, bassist Marshall “Rock” Jones, guitarist and vocalist Robert Ward, guitarist and saxophonist Clarence “Satch” Satchel plus trombonist and trumpeter Ralph “Pee Wee” Middlebrooks. In the early days, the Drayton-based quintet was best known as The Falcons’ backing band. This allowed the group to hone their sound before heading out on their own.
When The Ohio Untouchables started playing live, it soon became apparent that Robert Ward was an unreliable bandleader. He would suddenly walk off the stage during concerts forcing the band to stop playing. Eventually, the band decided to keep playing when their leader left the stage. However, things came to a head in 1964 when Robert Ward and bassist Marshall “Rock” Jones got into fight onstage. This resulted in the group splitting up for the first time.
Robert Ward decoded to draft in new musicians, while the rest of The Ohio Untouchables headed home to Drayton. That was where they discovered guitarist Leroy “Sugarfoot” Bonner who became the band’s lead singer. The other new recruit was drummer Gregory Webster. This wasn’t the end of the changes.
The group decided to change direction musically and starting playing R&B. This allowed them to play to new Leroy “Sugarfoot” Bonner’s strengths, and meant they weren’t competing with Robert Ward’s group. With that, the new group began playing live.
In 1965, the group decided changed its name to The Ohio Players. The reason for this was because of how the group perceived themselves as musicians and “ladies men.”
The newly named group added two more singers to its lineup. Bobby Lee Fears and Dutch Robinson joined The Ohio Players who were ready to record their debut single.
By then, they were managed by Johnny Brantley a manager and producer. He recorded The Ohio Players’ debut single This Thing Called Love which was released on Ray Charles’ Tangerine Records in 1967. However, the single failed to find an audience and The Ohio Players moved on.
Johnny Brantley arranged for the group to become the house band at New York-based Compass Records. They played on various recordings and backed Helena Ferguson on her top thirty single Where Is The Party?
The Ohio Players also released two singles on Compass Records during 1967. This included Trespassin’ and It’s A Crying Shame. Despite neither single making any impression on the charts, an expanded lineup began recording the group’s debut album.
By then, vocalist Helena Ferguson Kilpatrick had joined the group. She was part of the expanded lineup who began recording what later became Observations In Time. It was nearly completed when their manager decided to license the album to Capitol Records. This seemed a strange decision.
It turned out that Compass Records wasn’t in the best financial health. That was why the incomplete version of Observations In Time was licensed to Capitol Records. However, the decision backfired when Observations In Time was released in 1968 and although it was a hit in Ohio, it failed to make any impression on the national charts. This was a huge disappointment for The Ohio Players.
So was the commercial failure of the single Here Today and Gone Tomorrow in the UK in 1970. Executives at Capitol Records thought that the single would sell well in the UK. However, this wasn’t the case and was another disappointment for the band.
Just two years after the release of their debut album The Ohio Players split-up in 1970. It looked like the end of the road for the band.
It wasn’t, and the group reformed with a new lineup. This included drummer Gregory Webster, bassist Marshall “Rock” Jones, guitarist and guitarist and saxophonist Clarence “Satch” Satchel. They were joined by trombonist and trumpeter Ralph “Pee Wee” Middlebrooks, trumpeter Bruce Napier, trombonist Marvin Pierce, keyboardist Walter “Junie” Morrison plus vocalists Leroy “Sugarfoot” Bonner and Charles Dale Allen. The new line-up was the start of a new and exciting chapter for The Ohio Players.
Especially when a local label Top Hit sent the group to Sound Recorders in Nashville, to record a new eight-track album. By then, The Ohio Players had discovered that Walter “Junie” Morrison was the group’s secret weapon. Not only was he a talented, inventive and progressive keyboardist who also played guitar and drums. He was part of the group that recorded an album’s worth of funky and sometimes jazz-tinged cover versions. However, when the label listened to the tracks the highlight of the session was Pain, a funky instrumental.
By then, The Ohio Players had come to the attention of Armen Boladian who had founded Westbound Records in 1968. He had signed Funkadelic who were well on their way to becoming one of the most innovative and successful funk bands of the seventies. They were joined in 1971 by The Ohio Players.
Having signed to Westbound Records, Pain (Part 1) was rerecorded and released in 1971, and reached sixty-four in the US Billboard 100 and thirty-five in the US R&B charts. Across the border in Canada, the single reached ninety-one giving The Ohio Players a minor hit single. This was just a start for Armen Boladian’s latest signing.
Buoyed by the success of Pain, Armen Boladian was keen that The Ohio Players release an album soon. They could’ve released the material recorded in Nashville as their sophomore album, but Armen Boladian decided to send the group into the studio to record a new album.
When they entered the studio The Ohio Players were joined by two new recruits. This included vocalist and saxophonist James Johnson and Dale Allen who was going to share the lead vocal. However, his time with the group was cut short after he had a heated argument with Clarence Satchell in the studio during the third day of the recording session. That was the end of his time with The Ohio Players.
They had written the six tracks that became Pain and coproduced the album with Herb James and Billy Pittman. Once the album was completed, it was scheduled for release in early 1972.
When Pain was released in February 1972, it still featured some of sound that appeared on their debut album Observations in Time. However, the album was funky and had a tough, slick, polished sound that was soulful and sometimes, jazz-tinged. Walter “Junie” Morrison’s keyboards played an important part in the album
Pain opened with the funky, jazz-infused instrumental Pain, and showcases The Ohio Players’ new sound. It’s followed by the soulful ball Never Had A Dream which later heads in the direction of jazz. Players Balling (Players Doin’ Their Own Thing) has a looser, funkier and vampish sound as the group jam and experiment. The result is a very different tracks to what’s preceded it.
I Wanna Hear From You is a funky, soulful and psychedelic sounding track where Dale Allen and Sugar take charge of lead vocal. The Reds is a progressive genre-melting track where elements of blues, funk, jazz and rock are combined by The Ohio Players. They close the album with Singing In The Morning which features Granny on a track that has a looser, space sound and finds the band combining a jazz, funk and soul. It brought to an end The Ohio Players’ Westbound Records’ debut, Pain.
It was also an album of firsts. Pain was the first Ohio Players’ album to feature the group’s romantic, sensual sound and featured songs that were devoted to their love of women. It was also the first album to feature what many regarded as a suggestive photo on the album cover. The Ohio Players knowing that: “sex sells” used a Joel Brodsky photo of a woman in leather underwear dominating a prostrate man. This was a controversial photo and similar to the one on the cover of Funkadelic’s album Free Your Mind.
The other first was the inclusion of Walter “Junie” Morrison’s character Granny on Pain. She featured on all their Westbound Records’ albums and he revisited the character on his solo albums. That was in the future.
Before that, The Ohio Players released Pain in February 1972, and it reached 177 in the US Billboard 200 and twenty-one in the US R&B charts. This was enough for Pain to be certified gold and was the start of the most successful period of the band’s career.
They released eight albums between 1972 and 1976 that sold in excess of six million copies. The Ohio Players were one of the most successful funk band in the world.
This began with Pain where The Ohio Players music was ambitious, innovative and progressive on Pain, where they combined funk, soul and jazz with elements of blues and psychedelia to create a timeless and heady musical brew.
Classic Album: The Ohio Players-Pain.
CULT CLASSIC: BOILLAT THERACE QUINTET-BOILLAT THERACE QUINTET.
Cult Classic: Boillat Thérace Quintet-Boillat Thérace Quintet.
By 1974, the Swiss jazz scene was thriving, and the Montreux Jazz Festival which had been launched in 1967, was in its eight year. The organisers had surpassed themselves with what was an all-star lineup
Between the ‘2nd’ and ‘7th’ July 1974, the great and good of jazz arrived at what was now one of Europe’s premiere jazz festivals. Legends of jazz including Cecil Taylor, Art Ensemble Of Chicago, Billy Cobham, Sonny Rollins, Mahavishnu Orchestra and The Gil Evans Orchestra were due to arrive and entertain Swiss jazz fans. They also inspired the local jazz musicians.
That had been the case since the early days of the Montreux Jazz Festival, and suddenly, new bands being formed and creating ambitious, inventive and innovative music. This was the case in towns and cities across Switzerland.
Another jazz hotspot was the region that surrounds Lake Geneva. It was home to jazz activist and one of Switzerland’s top pianists Jean-François Boillat, and Raymond Thérace. He was known for his versatility and ability to play a variety of wind instruments including the flute and tenor saxophone. This talented duo decided to form a their own band and the Boillat Thérace Quintet was born.
They recorded two albums between 1974 and 1975. Their debut album was Boillat Thérace Quintet which was recorded between the ‘17th’ and ‘19th’ January 1974. By then, the lineup featured drummer Eric Wespi, bassist Frédéric Pecoud and percussionist Rogelio Garcia. They were joined by Jean-François Boillat on piano and Fender Rhodes, while Raymond Thérace switched between flute and tenor saxophone during the sessions.
Boillat Thérace Quintet recorded six tracks that made it onto the album. This included 1224, Rahsaan Rahsaan and Cenovis which were written by Jean-François Boillat and Raymond Thérace. They were joined by covers of Roland Kirk’s Sweet Fire, Keith Jarrett’s In Your Quiet Place and Freddie Hubbard’s Straight Life. However, three other cover versions were recorded but never made it onto the album. This included Herbie Hancock’s Dolphin Dance, Wayne Shorter’s Adam’s Apple and Claude Engel’s ‘5th’ Of July, Dulong Street. They’re part of what’s an incredibly rare European jazz album.
With the album complete, there was no sign of a indie or major label signing the Boillat Thérace Quintet.They decided like a lot of artists and bands in the early to mid seventies to self-release their album. Boillat Thérace Quintet was scheduled to be released by PMP Pierre Maire Productions later in 1974.
While self-releasing their album gave the Quintet control over every aspect of the release, and potentially was more profitable, it wasn’t without a number of pitfalls. The band’s money was at risk and they were paying for everything directly. This included recording and manufacturing the album. Often by the time they paid for this there was very little money left.
Very few artists and bands had the marketing budget and expertise that a record company had. They also had a contract with a distributor who could get the album into record shops. Bands self-releasing an album couldn’t, and often, resorted to taking boxes of albums around local record shops in the hope that they would take some on sale or return.The other option was to sell their album after concerts. It was hard work, but bands were able to release an album and for many, this was something that they had dreamt of.
Later in 1974, Boillat Thérace Quintet was released in Switzerland by PMP Pierre Maire Productions. Just like many other private presses, only a small number of copies Boillat Thérace Quintet were pressed. Despite the quality of music on this album of soul-jazz and modal jazz it was a low-profile release that slipped under the musical radar. Very few people outside of the local jazz scene were aware of the release of Boillat Thérace Quintet. It was another private press that failed to find the audience it deserved.
Opening the album is 1224, which is dedicated to Geneva’s public transport line Tram 12. It finds the Boillat Thérace Quintet grabbing the listener’s attention from ye get-go. What follows is a memorable and sometimes funky, dramatic and cinematic slice of soul-jazz that takes the listen on a musical journey.
The tempo drops on the cover of Roland Kirk’s Sweet Fire. It’s beautiful, dreamy and sensual cover and shows another side to the Boillat Thérace Quintet.
They change things around on Rahsaan Rahsaan where the rhythm section propel the arrangement along, and Jean-François Boillat’s piano and Raymond Thérace flute plays leading rolls. Drum fills punctuate the arrangement to a track that sounds as if it belongs on the soundtrack to a French or Swiss film.
For those unfamiliar with Cenovis it’s the Swiss equivalent of Marmite. Here, Jean-François Boillat switches to Fender Rhodes and combines with the rest of the rhythm section and percussionist Rogelio Garcia to provide the perfect backdrop for Raymond Thérace’s tenor saxophone. He gives one of his finest performances playing with speed, control and accuracy as his sultry saxophone breezes across the arrangement playing its part in the feelgood summery sounding track where jazz, funk, fusion and Latin are combined seamlessly by the Quintet.
Very different but quite beautiful is the wistful piano lead ballad In Your Quiet Place. It encourages reflection and is one of the album’s highlights.
Boillat Thérace Quintet close their eponymous debut album on a high with Straight Life. Funky fusion and soul-jazz are combined on a track where Raymond Thérace unleashes a peerless performance on tenor saxophone. He’s combines power and speed but is always in control. Meanwhile, Jean-François Boillat fingers dance across the keyboard to his Fender Rhodes on this irresistible track that would still fill a dancefloor. It’s akin to a call to dance and resistance is impossible.
Although there’s only six tracks on Boillat Thérace Quintet they’re all of the highest quality. There’s everything from funk and fusion to Latin, modal jazz and soul-jazz and sometimes, several genres are fused within the space of a track. This the Boillat Thérace Quintet do effortlessly and seamlessly.
While each member of the band are obviously talented and versatile musicians, cofounders pianist Jean-François Boillat and tenor saxophonist and flautist Raymond Thérace play starring roles. They’re playing is flawless and veers between beautiful, dreamy melancholy, sensual, understated and wistful on the ballads. Other times, the music is cinematic, dancefloor friendly or fiery, funky, sultry and irresistible. Not once will the listener be tempted to reach for their remote control.
Not even on the bonus tracks, which on many albums can be hit or miss affairs. That isn’t the case here and they’re welcome additions and offer further insight into Boillat Thérace Quintet who only released two albums during their career. This includes their eponymous debut album which nowadays, is a much-prized rarity among collectors of European jazz that changes hands for around €250. However, the reissue of Boillat Thérace Quintet means that a jazz fans old and new, will be belatedly be able to discover the delights of this long-lost hidden gem of an album that is one of the jewels in the crown of Swiss jazz.
Cult Classic: Boillat Thérace Quintet-Boillat Thérace Quintet.
CULT CLASSIC: SUN RA-CELESTIAL LOVE.
Cult Classic: Sun Ra-Celestial Love.
Nowadays, maybe music journalists are guilty of using the words innovator and musical pioneer all too freely, but that is the perfect description of the inimitable Sun Ra. He’s quite rightly regarded as one of the true pioneers of free jazz and a truly innovative and influential musician who pushed musical boundaries to their limit, and sometimes, way beyond.
Sun Ra was also a prolific artists who released around 125 albums during a career that spanned six decades. This includes Celestial Love, which was the final studio album to be released by El Saturn Records. These albums are all part of Sun Ra’s fascinating life story.
Before dawning the moniker Sun Ra, Herman Poole Blount was born on the ‘22nd’ of May 1914, in Birmingham, Alabama, but very little is known about his early life. So much so, that for many years, nobody knew what age he was. However, at an early age Herman immersed himself in music.
He learnt to play the piano at an early age and soon, was a talented pianist. By the age of eleven, Herman was to able read and write music. However, it wasn’t just playing music that Herman enjoyed. When the leading musicians of the day swung through Birmingham, Herman want to see them play and saw everyone from Duke Ellington to Fats Waller live. Seeing the great and good of music play live only made Herman all the more determined to one day become a professional musician.
By his mid teens, Herman was a high school student, but even by then, music was his first love. His music teacher John T. “Fess” Whatley realised this, and helped Herman Poole Blount’s nascent musical career.
John T. “Fess” Whatley was a strict disciplinarian, and this rubbed off on Herman who would layer acquire a reputation as a relentless taskmaster when he formed his Arkestra. The future Sun Ra was determined that the musicians in his Arkestra to reach his high and exacting standards and fulfil the potential that he saw in them. At rehearsals, musicians were pushed to their limits, but this paid off when they took to the stage. Led by Sun Ra, the Arkestra in full flow were peerless. However, that was way in the future. Before that, Herman’s career began to take shape.
In his spare time, Herman was playing semi-professionally in various jazz and R&B groups, and other times, he worked as a solo artist. Before long, Herman was a popular draw. This was helped by his ability to memorise popular songs and play them on demand. Strangely, away from music, the young Herman was very different.
He’s remembered as studious, kindly and something of a loner and a deeply religious young man despite not being a member of a particular church. One organisation that Herman joined was the Black Masonic Lodge which allowed him access to one of the largest collection of books in Birmingham. For a studious young man like Herman this allowed him to broaden his knowledge of various subjects. However, still music was Herman Poole Blount,’s first love.
In 1934, twenty-year-old Herman was asked to join a band that was led by Ethel Harper. She was no stranger to Herman Poole Blount, and just a few years earlier, had been his high school biology teacher. Just a few years later, and he was accepting Ethel Harper’s invitation to join her band.
Before he could head out on tour with Ethel Harper’s band, Herman joined the local Musicians’s Union. After that, he embarked on a tour of the Southeast and Mid-West and this was the start of Herman’s life as a professional musician. However, when Ethel Harper left her band to join The Ginger Snaps, Herman took over the band.
With Ethel Harper gone, the band was renamed The Sonny Blount Orchestra, and it headed out on the road and toured for several months. Sadly, The Sonny Blount Orchestra wasn’t making money, and eventually, the band split up. However, other musicians and music lovers were impressed by The Sonny Blount Orchestra.
This resulted in Herman always being in demand as a session musician. He was highly regarded within the Birmingham musical community, so much so, that he was awarded a music scholarship to Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University in 1937. Sadly, he dropped out after a year when his life changed forever.
In 1937, Herman experienced what was a life-changing experience, and it was a story that he told many times throughout his life. He describes a bright light appearing around him and his body changing. “I could see through myself. And I went up … I wasn’t in human form … I landed on a planet that I identified as Saturn. They teleported me. I was down on a stage with them. They wanted to talk with me. They had one little antenna on each ear. A little antenna over each eye. They talked to me. They told me to stop attending college because there was going to be great trouble in schools … the world was going into complete chaos … I would speak through music, and the world would listen. That’s what they told me.” For a deeply religious young man, this was disturbing and exciting. It certainly inspired the young Herman Poole Blount.
After his: “trip to Saturn,” Herman Poole Blount decided to devote all his time and energy to music. So much so, that he hardly found time to sleep. Day in, day out, Herman spent his time practising and composing new songs in his first floor home which he had transformed into a musical workshop. That was where also where he rehearsed with the musicians in his band. Away from music, Herman took to discussing religious matters. However, mostly, though, music dominated his life.
It was no surprise to when Herman announced that he had decided to form a new band. However, his new band was essentially a new lineup of The Sonny Blount Orchestra. It showcased the new Herman Poole Blount, who was a dedicated bandleader, and like his mentor John T. “Fess” Whatley, a strict disciplinarian. Herman was determined his band would be the best in Birmingham. This proved to be the case as seamlessly, The Sonny Blount Orchestra were able to change direction, as they played an eclectic selection of music. Before long, The Sonny Blount Orchestra were one of most in-demand bands in Birmingham, and things were looking good for Herman. Then in 1942, The Sonny Blount Orchestra were no more when Herman was drafted.
On receiving his draft papers, Herman declared himself a conscientious objector. He cited not just religious objections to war and killing, but that he had to financially support his great-aunt Ida. Herman even cited the chronic hernia that had blighted his life as a reason he shouldn’t be drafted. Despite his objections the draft board rejected his appeal, and things got worse for Herman.
His family was embarrassed by his refusal to fight and some turned their back on him. Eventually, Herman was offered the opportunity to do Civilian Public Service but failed to appear at the camp in Pennsylvania on the December ‘8th’ 1942.
This resulted in Herman being arrested, and when he was brought before the court, Herman Poole Blount debated points of law and the meaning of excerpts from the Bible. When this didn’t convince the judge Herman Poole Blount said he would use a military weapon to kill the first high-ranking military officer possible. This resulted in Herman being jailed and led to one of the most disturbing periods in his life.
Herman’s experience in military prison were so terrifying and disturbing that he felt he no option but to write to the US Marshals Service in January 1943. By then, Herman felt he was on the verge of a nervous breakdown. He was suffering from stress and feeling suicidal. There was also the constant fear that he would be attacked by others within the military prison. Fortunately, the US Marshals Service looked favourably on his letter.
By February 1943, Herman was allowed out during the day to work in the forests around Pennsylvania, and at nights, he was able to play the piano. A month later, Herman was reclassified and released from military prison which brought to an end what had been a harrowing period of his life.
Having left prison, Herman formed a new band that played around the Birmingham area for the next two years. Then in 1945, when his Aunt Ida died, Herman left Birmingham, and headed to the Windy City of Chicago.
Phase One-Chicago.
Now based in Chicago, Herman quickly found work within the city’s vibrant music scene. This included working with Wynonie Harris and playing on his two 1946 singles, Dig This Boogie and My Baby’s Barrelhouse. After that, Herman Poole Blount worked with Lil Green in some of Chicago’s strip clubs. Then in August 1946, Herman Poole Blount started working with Fletcher Henderson but by then, the bandleader’s fortunes were fading.
By then, Fletcher Henderson’s band was full of mediocre musicians, and to make matters worse, the bandleader was often missed gigs. This couldn’t be helped as Fletcher Henderson, was still recovering after a car accident. What Fletcher Henderson needed was someone to transform his band’s failing fortunes and this was where Herman came in. His role was arranger and pianist, but realising the band needed to change direction, he decided to infuse Fletcher Henderson’s trademark sound with bebop. However, the band were resistant to change and in 1948, Herman left Fletcher Henderson’s employ.
Following his departure from Fletcher Henderson’s band, Herman formed a trio with saxophonist Coleman Hawkins and violinist Stuff Smith. Alas, the trio was somewhat short-lived and didn’t release any recordings.
Not long after this, Herman made his final appearance as a sideman on violinist’s Billy Bang’s Tribute to Stuff Smith. After this, Herman Poole Blount became Sun Ra.
By then, Chicago was changing, and was home to a number of African-American political activists. Soon, a number of fringe movements sprung up who were seeking political and religious change. When Herman became involved he was already immersing himself in history, especially, Egyptology. He was also fascinated with Chicago’s many ancient Egyptian-styled buildings and monuments. This resulted in Herman Poole Blount discovering George GM James’ book The Stolen Legacy which turned out to be a life-changing experience.
In The Stolen Legacy, George GM James argues that classical Greek philosophy actually has its roots in Ancient Egypt. This resulted in Herman concluding that the history and accomplishments of Africans had been deliberately denied and suppressed by various European cultures. It was as if Herman’s eyes had been opened and was just the start of a number of changes in his life.
As 1952 dawned, Herman had formed a new band, The Space Trio. It featured saxophonist Pat Patrick and Tommy Hunter. At the time, they were two of the most talented musicians Herman knew. This allowed him to write even more complicated and complex compositions. However, in October 1952 the author of these tracks was no longer Herman Poole Blount was Sun Ra had just been born.
Just like Malcolm X and Muhammad Ali, adopting the name Sun Ra was perceived by some as Herman choosing to dispense with his slave name. This was a kind of spiritual rebirth for Sun Ra, and was certainly was a musical rebirth.
After Pat Patrick got married, and moved to Florida, this left The Space Trio with a vacancy for a saxophonist. Tenor saxophonist, John Gilmore was hired and filled the void. He would become an important part of Sun Ra’s band in the future.
So would the next new recruit alto saxophonist Marshall Allen. They were then joined by saxophonist James Spaulding, trombonist Julian Priester and briefly, tenor saxophonist Von Freeman. Another newcomer was Alton Abraham, who would become Sun Ra’s manager. He made up for Sun Ra’s shortcomings when it came to business matters.
While he was a hugely talented bandleader, who demanded the highest standards, Sun Ra, like many other musicians, was no businessman. With Alton Abraham onboard, Sun Ra could concentrate on music while his new manager took care of business. This included setting up El Saturn Records, an independent record label, which would release many of Sun Ra’s records. However, El Saturn Records didn’t released Sun Ra and His Arkestra’s debut album, Jazz By Sun Ra.
Instead, Jazz By Sun Ra was released in 1956, on the short-lived Transition Records. However, Sun Ra and His Arkestra’s sophomore album Super Sonic Jazz was released in March 1956, on El Saturn Records. Sound Of Joy was released on Delmark in November 1956. However, it was El Saturn Records that would release the majority of Sun Ra and His Arkestra’s albums.
In 1961, Sun Ra deeded to leave Chicago and move to New York where he would begin a new chapter in his career. Much had happened to Sun Ra since he first arrived in Chicago 1945 as the World War II drew to a close. Back then, he was still called Herman Poole Blount and was trying to forge a career as a musician. By the time he left Chicago he was a pioneer of free jazz
Phase Two-New York.
Sun Ra and His Arkestra journeyed to New York in the autumn of 1961, where they lived communally. This allowed Sun Ra to call rehearsals at short notice, and during the rehearsals, he was a relentless taskmaster who was seeking perfection. However, this paid off and Sun Ra and His Arkestra recorded a string of groundbreaking albums. This included Secrets of the Sun in 1962 which was the most accessible recording from their solar period. However, Sun Ra and his music continued to evolve in the Big Apple
The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra Volume 1 was released by Sun Ra and his Solar Arkestra in 1965. Sun Ra had dispensed was the idea of harmony and melody, and also decided there should be no continuous beat. Instead, the music revolved around improvisation and incorporated programmatic effects. This was the case The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra Volume 2 which was released later in 1965.
As Sun Ra and His Arkestra came to the end of their time in New York, their music was often described as “avant-garde jazz” or “free jazz.” However, Sun Ra started to reject the free jazz label that was attached to his music. He pointed out that his music had been influenced by different types of ethnic music and he often used percussion, synths and in one case strings.
A case in point was Strange Strings which was released in 1967 and found Sun Ra and His Arkestra playing an array of stringed instruments while he adds vast quantities of reverb. Strange Strings was just the latest innovative album Sun Ra released during his New York period, which came to an end in 1968. By then, the cost of living was proving prohibitive and Sun Ra decided to move his band again.
Phase Three-Philadelphia.
Sun Ra wasn’t moving his Arkestra far, just to Philadelphia where it was much cheaper to live. Again, Sun Ra and His Arkestra lived communally in Philadelphia which was their “third period.”
During this period, Sun Ra’s music became much more conventional and often incorporated swing standards when they played live. However, still Sun Ra’s concerts featured performances where his sets were eclectic and the music full of energy as they veered between standards and always at least, one lengthy, semi-improvised percussive jam.
In the studio, Sun Ra and His Arkestra continued to innovate, releasing albums of the quality of 1970s My Brother The Wind Volume 1, The Night Of The Purple Moon and 1972s Astro Place. However, Sun Ra in 1973 released two classic albums like Space Is The Place and Discipline 27-II. Sun Ra was at the peak of his powers and seemed to have been reinvigorated creatively after moving to Philly.
The Next Phase.
Buoyed by the critical acclaim and commercial success of Space Is The Place and Discipline 27-II had enjoyed during 1973, Sun Ra knew that 1974 was going to be yet another busy year. He was used to this, as Sun Ra and His Arkestra had been working non stop since 1972. They embarked upon lengthy tours and recorded several albums in Chicago, California and Philly. It was more of the same in 1974, with Sun Ra and His Arkestra embarking upon yet another lengthy and gruelling tour of America. Still, Sun Ra found time to prepare a couple of live albums for his label El Saturn Records including 1975s Pathways To Unknown Worlds; 1976s What’s New and Live At Montreux, and 1977s Somewhere Over The Rainbow and Taking A Chance On Chances and Some Blues But Not The Kind That’s Blue. However, in 1978 Sun Ra and His Arkestra began work on another new album, The Other Side Of The Sun which was released in 1979 but was an oft-overlooked and vastly underrated album.
As the seventies gave way to the eighties, Sun Ra continued to record new albums including Celestial Love in 1982.
Celestial Love.
When Sun Ra began work on Celestial Love he was sixty-eight and had been a professional musician since he was twenty. With forty-eight years of experience behind him he was a vastly experienced and highly respected bandleader, composer and musician who in 1957, had cofounded his own label El Saturn Records.
For the previous twenty-five years the label had released many albums by Sun Ra and the Arkestra. Sun Ra planned to release Celestial Love on El Saturn Records. That was all in the future as the album still had to be recorded.
For Celestial Love, Sun Ra decided to record a total of nine tracks. This included five of his own compositions: Celestial Love, Interstellarism, Blue Intensity, Nameless One No. 2 and Nameless One No. 3. They were joined by four cover version of familiar songs including Sometimes I’m Happy and Smile. The other two tracks were cowritten by Duke Ellington. During his long and illustrious career he had penned Sophisticated Lady with Irving Mills and Mitchell Parish, and Drop Me Off In Harlem with Nick Kenny. The inclusion of these tracks should’ve hinted to onlookers that the Celestial Love sessions had the potential to produce one of Sun Ra’s most.
Recording of Celestial Love took place in the familiar surroundings of Variety Recording Studio which had been owned and run by Warren Allen Smith and Fred Vargas since 1961. It had been Sun Ra’s studio of choice in New York since the sixties and he had recorded some of his best and most innovative albums in Variety Recording Studio. He liked the familiar surroundings and was joined by many familiar faces.
Joining Sun Ra who played piano, organ and synths and produced the Celestial Love sessions was his Arkestra. It included a rhythm section of drummer Samarai Celestial aka Eric Walker and bassists Hayes Burnett and John Ore. They were augmented by percussionist Atakatune aka Stanley Morgan and James Jacson who played infinity drum and bassoon. The horn section included alto saxophonist and flautist Marshall Allen; baritone saxophonists and flautist Danny Ray Thompson; tenor saxophonist John Gilmore; trombonist Tyrone Hill; trumpeter Walter Miller and Vincent Chancey on French horn. June Tyson the Queen of Afrofuturism added vocals on Sometimes I’m Happy and Smile during the sessions in 1982.
After the Celestial Love sessions, only eight of the nine tracks recorded made their way onto the album. The cover of Drop Me Off In Harlem was omitted from the original album.
It wasn’t until 1984 that Celestial Love was released on vinyl by El Saturn Records and was the last Sun Ra studio album to be released by the label. Although the label continued to release live albums by Sun Ra, Celestial Love marked the end of an era for El Saturn Records.
Meanwhile, in Europe much of Celestial Love featured on the full-length Nuclear War record which was issued in by the post punk label Y Records. That was ironic given how different the apocalyptic sounding Nuclear War single was to the music on Celestial Love.
When Celestial Love was released in 1984 it was one of Sun Ra’s most accessible albums, and whether by design or accident, was the perfect introduction to his music. For newcomers to Sun Ra, and those who struggled with his music, Celestial Love was the perfect primer to one of the pioneers of jazz.
On Celestial Love, Sun Ra and his Arkestra combines jazz and swing standards with his own compositions. This includes the album opener Celestial Love, where Sun Ra plays an organ which sounds as if it belongs in a church and is at the heart of the arrangement. It combines with drums and wistful, braying horns as Sun Ra and the Arkestra fuse elements of blues, gospel, jazz, soul-jazz and swing during a quite beautiful track that’s a roller coaster of emotions. June Tyson’s croons her way through Sometimes I’m Happy and plays a starring role in this joyous, swinging track.
When Sun Ra recorded Interstellarism in 1959, John Gilmore and Marshall Allen played on the recording. Twenty-five years later when Celestial Love was released they feature on this slow, swaying and sometimes spacious remake. The tempo increases on Blue Intensitywhere Sun Ra’s organ and saxophone play leading role as the track swings and then some. Then as Sophisticated Lady unfolds its slow and bluesy before the tempo gradually increases and Sun Ra and the Arkestra unleash the first of his homages to one of his heroes.
There’s two version of Nameless One on Celestial Love. The first is Nameless One No Two which starts off briskly, with the blazing horns playing a leading role as a walking bass propels the arrangement along as Sun Ra plays keyboards. They’re part of another swinging arrangement. It’s a similar case on Nameless One No Three where rasping, braying and sultry horns play a leading role and Sun Ra plays synths. Together, they play their part in a truly memorable and swinging track.
Very different is the cover of Smile, which sounds as if it were recorded during a different era. Sun Ra and the Arkestra show their versatility while June Tyson’s vocal is tender and hopeful. Closing the reissue of Celestial Love is a joyous, upbeat cover of Duke Ellington’s Drop Me Off In Harlem.
Celestial Love is one of Sun Ra’s most accessible of the 125 albums the great bandleader, composer and musician released during what was a long and illustrious career. It finds Sun Ea combining jazz’s past and present with sometimes the music of the future as he and the Arkestra innovate and combine free jazz, avant-garde, blues, soul-jazz and swing. In doing so, Sun Ra creates Celestial Joy, which is an uplifting and joyous genre-melting album bristling with optimism and positivity.
Cult Classic: Sun Ra-Celestial Love.
HELLO HEARTBREAKER-UPTOWN SOUL FROM SCEPTER, MUSICOR AND WAND.
Hello Heartbreaker-Uptown Soul From Scepter, Musicor and Wand.
Label: Playback Records.
Format: CD.
During the sixties, Scepter, Musicor and Wand played an important part in New York’s vibrant soul scene. These three record labels were among the finest purveyors of uptown soul and their releases were favourites of the Big Apple’s DJs and dancers. They were guaranteed to fill the dancefloor, and that’s still the case nearly fifty years later.
At soul nights across the world, DJs sill play single released on the Scepter, Musicor and Wand labels. This includes the twenty-eight tracks on Hello Heartbreaker-Uptown Soul From Scepter, Musicor and Wand which was recently released by the Australian label Playback Records.
Among the twenty-eight artists and groups on this compilation of lavishly produced big city soul are Jack Montgomery, Dean Parrish, Marie Knight, Bobby Hebb, The Shirelles, Big Maybelle, The Inspirations, Maxine Brown, Roscoe Robinson, Chuck Jackson, Judy Clay and Kenny Ballard and The Fabulous Soul Brothers. These are just some of the artists and bands who contribute dancefloor fillers and beautiful ballads that range from old favourites and hits to hidden gems and rarities.
Ironically for a compilation of New York soul Jack Montgomery’s Dearly Beloved was recorded in Detroit but released as a on Scepter in July 1966. Sadly, the single failed to chart when it was released. However, it later became a favourite on the UK Northern Soul scene where it’s still a favourite of DJs and dancers. No wonder as it oozes quality and is the perfect way to open Hello Heartbreaker-Uptown Soul From Scepter, Musicor and Wand.
Dean Parrish recorded Bricks Broken Bottles and Sticks which was arranged by Bert Keyes and produced by Stan Kahan and Bill Stanley. It was released in June 1965 but failed to find an audience. That’s despite being a hook-laden dancer that even today will fill a dancefloor.
Marie Knight started off as a gospel singer but in 1956 crossed over and started singing secular music. Her first top forty hit came in 1966 when she covered Cry Me A River which was released on Musicor. It’s one of her finest releases and features a soulful vocal powerhouse that’s accompanied by gospel-tinged backing vocals.
After enjoying a hit with Sunny, Nashville native Bobby Hebb released another of own compositions I Love Mary on Scepter in 1966. Although it didn’t replicate the commercial success of Sunny, it features a tender, heartfelt vocal and an understated arrangement that features lush strings.
By 1965, Big Maybelle was signed to Scepter and entered the studio to record an album. Instead of recording the tracks from scratch, she added her vocal to backing tracks that had been used by other artists. The album became The Soul Of Big Maybelle and was released later in 1965. One of the highlights was an impassioned and soulful cover of the classic Only You.
Although The Inspirations were from New Jersey they were based in Philly when they released Kiss And Make Up on Wand in April 1965. Hidden away on the B-Side is the hidden gem Love Can Be So Wonderful 8 Maxine Brown – I Don’t Need Anything which was penned by John Stiles and Bobby “Electronic” Eli.
In February 1967, Roscoe Robinson released What You’re Doin’ To Me on Wand. On the B-Side was A Thousand Rivers which was anther of his own compositions. It epitomises everything that’s good about uptown soul from the Big Apple.
Nowadays, Ronnie Milsap is best known as a successful country singer. However, during the sixties he recorded a string of soul sides. This included a cover of Never Had It So Good which was written by Ashford and Simpson with Joshie Armstead. The single was arranged by Ed Martin and produced by Stan Green and became Ronnie Milsap’s debut single for Scepter when it was released in October 1965. Sadly, this beautiful ballad which features a soul-baring, lovelorn vocal failed to trouble the charts.
Between 1961 and 1967 Chuck Jackson was signed to Wand, and in March 1965 released a cover of Carol King and Gerry Goffin’s I Need You. It’s another beautiful ballad with a needy and emotive vocal that’s accompanied by lush strings and soaring harmonies.
J.J. Barnes recorded the ballad Hey Child I Love You with postman turned producer Fred Brown in Detroit. However, the single was released by New York-based Scepter Records in 1964. Many people will recognise the song from the 2017 film Detroit which was set during the riots that took place during 1967.
Tommy Hunt is one of a small number of artists who recorded for both Musicor and Scepter. However, The Biggest Man was the very first single that was released in January 1967 on Dynamo, which was a new imprint of Musicor. The single reached the top thirty in the US R&B and features an impassioned vocal powerhouse from the Pittsburg-born soul man.
Judy Clay originally recorded the ballad Turn Back The Time for Scepter. It features a vocal that’s a mixture of power and emotion as she breaths life and meaning into the lyrics. Sadly, the song was never released until it belatedly made its debut on Big City Soul which was released by Kent Soul in 1986. Twenty-five years it returns for a well deserved encore.
Closing Hello Heartbreaker-Uptown Soul From Scepter, Musicor and Wand is Kenny Ballard and The Fabulous Soul Brothers’ There Will Never Be Another You. It’s a wistful but beautiful ballad that was released as a single on Dynamo in 1969 and is the perfect way to close the compilation.
For anyone interested in New York soul or soul music in general, Hello Heartbreaker-Uptown Soul From Scepter, Musicor and Wand. It features twenty-eight tracks and there’s contributions from some of the stars of soul as well as what will be new names for some people. They’re responsible for this compilation of dancefloor fillers and beautiful ballads that features hits, hidden gems and oft-overlooked rarities that were recorded during the sixties and are a reminder of the Big Apple’s uptown soul era. It’s celebrated on Hello Heartbreaker-Uptown Soul From Scepter, Musicor and Wand which was released by the Australian label Playback Records, and just like the previous releases is another lovingly curated compilation of soul.
Hello Heartbreaker-Uptown Soul From Scepter, Musicor and Wand.
WORDS…A BEE GEES SONGBOOK.
Words…A Bee Gees Songbook.
Label: Playback Records.
Format: CD.
During a career that began in 1958 and lasted until 2009 the Bee Gees sold over 120 million records and are one of the biggest selling groups in the history of modern music. “Britain’s first family of harmony” won five Grammy Awards for the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack in 1978 and 1979 and in 1997 were inducted into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. By then, the Bee Gees were enjoying a glittering career.
When they released their thirteenth studio album Main Course which was released in 1975 it was certified gold in America and double platinum in Canada. Little did the Robin, Barry and Maurice Gibb realise that this was the start of the most successful period of their career. Right through until the Bee Gees released their twenty-second and final studio album This Is Where I Came In, which was released in April 2001 every album was certified gold or platinum.
The secret to their success was their inimitable three-part harmonies and the hook-laden songs the Gibb brothers wrote. As songwriters they were master craftsmen who had the Midas touch.
That’s why so many artists and bands around the world have covered the Bee Gees songs over the last six decades. This includes the twenty-seven on Words…A Bee Gees Songbook which was released by the Australian label Playback Records. This lovingly compiled compilation features contributions from familiar faces and new names including Mike Furber, The Richard Wright Group, Noeleen Batley, The Cyrkle, The Marmalade, Cilla Black, Lulu, Jose Feliciano, Nina Simone, Swamp Dogg, Martin Carthy, The Seekers and The Searchers. They cover some of the Gibb brothers’ best known song while others dig deeper into their songbook for the oft-overlooked hidden gems.
Opening Words…A Bee Gees Songbook is Mike Furber’s cover of Where Are You. It’s the title-track from the 1967 EP by Sydney-based musician and vocalist Mike Furber and The Bowery Boys who were his regular backing band. The EP was released on the Kommotion label but wasn’t a commercial success. That’s despite the uptempo, soulful sounding title-track which sometimes sounds as if it’s been influenced by The Hollies. Sadly, the EP was the last release from Mike Furber and The Bowery Boys and nowadays is regarded as one of their finest songs.
In 1966, the Sydney-based The Richard Wright Group recorded a rocking cover of Neither Rich Nor Poor which they released as their single on HMV. It gave the group a local hit single in May 1966 and was the first of three singles they released.
Noeleen Batley came to prominence during the early sixties and was part of the early Australian pop scene. Initially she was a teen idol but Little Miss Sweetheart graduated to the cabaret circuit. By 1965, she was signed to the Festival label and in October of that year released a cover of Watching The Hours Go By. It was written by Barry Gibb and was recorded in 3/4 time. The result was one of Noeleen Batley’s finest recordings which is a welcome addition to the compilation.
Initially, The Cyrkle were purveyors of bubble gum pop which brought a degree of success their way. However, when the hits dried up they decided to cover Turn Of The Century which was released on Columbia in November 1967. Rather than try to reinvent the song, the group stayed true to the Bee Gees original. Sadly, the single failed to find an audience and nowadays is a regarded as a hidden gem
Soft Pillow only ever released a couple of singles including their cover of Gilbert Green which was released on the Park label in the group’s native Belgium in January 1969. It’s a fusion of pop-rock and psychedelia where a piano, lush strings and horns play a leading role on this hidden gem that sadly, is all too often overlooked by compilers. It’s another welcome addition to Words…A Bee Gees Songbook.
The Cole Brothers from Margate, New Jersey, released a cover of I Can’t See Nobody on the Jamie label in 1967. It was arranged by Richard Rome and produced by Kit Stewart who stay true to the original on this catchy cover.
By 1967, Jackie Lomax had signed to CBS and was working with producer Robert Stigwood. They recorded Genuine Imitation Life which was released as a single. On the B-Side was One Minute Woman which features a heartfelt, impassioned and soulful vocal from the Liverpool-born singer who sadly never enjoyed the commercial success his considerable talent deserved.
Scottish pop-rock group The Marmalade covered Butterfly which was released as their final single by CBS in October 1969. It was arranged by Keith Mansfield a future giant of library music, who is responsible for the sweeping strings and horns which punctuate what’s a stunning arrangement. Mike Smith takes charge of the production on this melodic and memorable cover which sadly, was the one that got away for The Marmalade.
Although Jose Feliciano was known for his easy listening sound, he wasn’t averse to bowling a curveball and reinventing tracks. This included his cover of Marley Purt Drive which he released as a single on RCA in 1969. It was arranged and produced by Rick Jarard. His arrangement combines elements of country rock with gospel-tinged and soulful harmonies as Jose Feliciano unleashes a impassioned and emotive vocal.
Nina Simone released a dramatic reading cover of To Love Somebody as a single on RCA Victor in 1968 and gave her a hit single in Britain. In 1969, the Gibb brothers composition lent its name to her new album. The title-track was one of the highlights of the album and features The High Priestess of Soul at the peak of her powers.
Charismatic describes Swamp Dogg who covered Got To Get A Message To You on his 1971 album Rat On. It features a soulful and impassioned rendition this Bee Gees song.
In 1998, Martin Carthy covered New York Mine Disaster for his album Signs Of Life which was released on Topic Records. This acoustic cover features a wistful vocal that’s full of emotion as the veteran folk singer takes the song in a new direction.
When The Seekers recorded the Bee Gees summer of love anthem Massachusetts they decided to stayed true to the original. The song made its debut on The Ultimate Compilation which was released by EMI in 2003. It returns for a well-deserved encore on Words…A Bee Gees Songbook.
Closing the compilation is The Searchers’ cover of Spicks and Specks. It was released as single on RCA in 1973. By then, the group’s glory years were in the past and they were trying to kickstart their career. They decided to head in the direction of glam pop on this stomping and rousing anthem which shows another side to The Searchers and closes Words…A Bee Gees Songbook with another hidden gem that thankfully has been unearthed.
For anyone with even a passing interest in the Bee Gees’ music this lovingly compiled collection of covers of twenty-seven of their songs is worth adding to their collection. Words…A Bee Gees Songbook is a mixture of tracks from familiar faces and what will be new names to many people. They cover classic tracks, hidden gems and deep cuts on Words…A Bee Gees Songbook which was released by Australian label Playback Records and is a compilation that oozes quality.
Words…A Bee Gees Songbook.
STEVE MOORE-ANALOG ACTIVITY.
Steve Moore-Analog Activity.
Label: Be With Records.
Format: LP.
Prolific is the perfect word to describe New York-based multi-instrumentalist, producer, remixer and film composer Steve Moore. He’s best known as one half of Zombi the duo that he formed with Anthony Paterra. However, that is just part of the Steve Moore story.
He’s also part of Brooklyn-based progressive rock group Titan, and has previously worked with an eclectic selection of artists including Ghost, Goblin, Lair Of The Minotaur, Maserati, Microwaves, Municipal Waste, Panthers, Red Sparowes and Sally Shapiro. These are just a few of the bands Steve Moore has worked with and he’s equally at home working on psychedelia, progressive rock, punk, post rock or even crossover thrash. Versatility seems to be his middle name.
Steve Moore has also enjoyed a successful career as a remixer and has remixed Lower Dens, The Melvins, Voivod and Washed Out. Then there’s his solo career.
This includes the music he’s released using various monikers including Gianni Rossi and his dance-pop alter-ego Lovelock. Steve Moore has also written the scores to a number of films, most of which are low budget horror films like The Guest and Cub. Then there’s the ten solo albums he’s released between 2007 and 2020.
Recently, ten albums became eleven when Analog Activity was released by Be With Records. It’s an album where the bassist and synth maestro joins forces with KPM on a carefully crafted album of modern library music.
The story behind Analog Activity began when Steve Moore had some downtime between the recording of the scores to The Guest and Cub. He decided to use the free time to record some new music. Soon, whenever he some free time he headed to his collection of synths and began working on new music. This continued for three years. During that period, Steve Moore never thought about what he would do with the music or even if he would release it. He was happy making new music.
Then he was invited by Jon Tye to play on his Ocean Moon project for KPM. That was when Steve Moore realised that the legendary library label was the perfect home for music he had been recording.
When he let executives at KPM hear the music that he had been recording they agreed. Now all Steve Moore had to do was finish the album.
Steve Moore finishing production at his studio in Albany, New York, late 2019 in Albany, All he that was left was to sequence the album which became Analog Sensitivity.
On the ‘8th’ of July 2020 KPM added Analog Sensitivity to their vast and illustrious library. This was the second album of library music that Steve Moore had recorded for KPM. The first was Crystal Harmonies. It was followed by Analog Sensitivity.
Side One.
Side one of Analog Sensitivity opens with Eldberg which is a dark, moody and cinematic soundscape where there’s a sense foreboding despite the shimmering synth arpeggios. At The Edge Of Perception has a wistful sound before referencing Kraftwerk and adding futuristic and sci-fi sounds and before the track takes on an uneasy and unsettling sound.
Rose Of Charon has a slow, spacey cinematic sound that conjures up images of the Apollo space mission. Time Freeze is a slow cinematic synthscape that glides along its mesmeric and dreamy sound gradually revealing its secrets.
Seesaw synths open Analog Sensitivity is also mesmeric, sometimes haunting, wistful and beautiful. It’s music to ease the weary soul and which will make the world a better place.
Very different is Behind The Waterfall which has a dark filmic sound that paints pictures of a bleak, barren landscape in a world where something terrible has gone wrong.
Side Two.
Mirror Fountain has a similar sound to Behind The Waterfall and reveals a haunting atmospheric and eerie sound. Bubbling synths combine with drones, wispy pads and an effects-laden ambient guitar on Syzgy. It’s quite different from previous tracks but is tinged with drama and has a cinematic sound. So does Pentagram Of Venus which is understated, spacey and has a haunting, windswept sound.
Of Dust Thou Art plods along and a dark, disturbing and eerie soundscape takes shape. Straight away, Message From The Beast has an unsettling sound that sounds as if it belongs on the score to a horror movie. Bursts of sci-fi sounds are fired across the dark, hypnotic and sometimes elegiac soundscape. Closing side two is the Urge Surfing which is best described as broody, moody and atmospheric.
Although the golden age of library music was between the late-sixties and mid-eighties there’s still artists recording and releasing albums of modern library music. This includes Steve Moore who recorded Analog Activity during downtime in between recording film scores. he had no idea what to do with the music he was recording and it’s an accidental album of library music. It was only while recording the Ocean Moon album Crystal Harmonies for KPM that he found a home for the album he had been working on.
In the summer of 2020, Analog Activity became part of KPM’s vast, illustrious and legendary music library. Recently, Be With Records released Steve Moore’s first album of library music Analog Activity on vinyl. It’s one of the finest albums of modern library music released during the last few years and hopefully Steve Moore will go on to record more music for KPM in the future.
Steve Moore-Analog Activity.
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