Summer Meme: Sing Along / Seven Songs
Tagged by: EJ Flavors
“List seven songs you are into right now. No matter what the genre,
whether they have words, or even if they’re not any good, but they must
be songs you’re really enjoying now, shaping your spring summer. Post
these instructions in your blog along with your seven songs. Then tag
seven other people to see what they’re listening to.”
So in no terribly particular order….
- Love thirst- Jean Grae
- Now and Then – Lalah Hathaway
- Journey In Satchinanda – Alice Coltrane
- Should I – Grenique
- Somersault (Dangermouse remix) – Zero 7 w / MF Doom
- She always in my hair – Prince (edited because I keep confusing it with Outkast’s song)
- Flashing Lights – Colin Munroe
List points out a couple of glaring facts. I need to dig into some more music(and I will), and I keep a lot of music in my head.
So now comes the tagging:
Dejanae
Funkdigital
Funkybrownchick
Gee Gee
Kayos
Ms. Sula
Pajnstl
There is also a super secret 8th tag, but obviously it’s a secret!
Technorati Tags: meme, music
The Flow Hop – Episode 6
Filed under: Podcasts, Soul/R&B, SoulSites, SoulTrackin'
Check out Little Brother, Torae and Skyzoo, J-Live, Camp Lo, Aarophat, Dutchmassive and more…
You Are The Star
Filed under: Podcasts, Soul/R&B, SoulSites, SoulTrackin'
Yam Who?: Star of the Story
Just lean back and enjoy this one. Get it here.
Eldridge Holmes Sells “The Book”
As I’ve said before, Eldridge Holmes was one of New Orleans’ great soul/R&B vocalists. Period. Had he gotten the opportunity to record as much as the smoother, more formal Johnny Adams did over as many years, he would be at least as well-known and spoken of in the same reverential tones. As it is, though, no real breaks came his way; and he dropped off the radar of all but a few die-hard collectors and fans. Had Allen Toussaint not believed in Holmes and given him opportunities to record occasionally during a ten year span starting in the early 1960s, I doubt we would have been left even the small legacy of tracks we are blessed with. It still amazes me that his singing and songwriting talents have been generally overlooked for about four decades now. When many of his recordings were compiled by the AIM label in 2006 and released on the CD, Eldridge Holmes Deep Southern Soul, I thought the situation might finally change; but that release has mysteriously dropped out of their catalogue, due probably to inadequately secured rights to some of those songs. Talk about snake-bit. But, copies of the CD are still available around the internet – and are highly recommended.
For an outstanding appreciation and overview of the recording career of Eldridge Homes, Larry Grogan’s still can’t be beat; so, jump immediately over to Funky 16 Corners for that essential background. I featured some of Holmes’ work here just about a year ago; and my internal clock just buzzed to tell me it’s again time to send more sincere props his way. . . and to get back to the HOTG funk focus. So, let’s listen in on two of his sides that may well be his first backed by the Meters, who by 1969 were not only Toussaint’s in-house production band but hot recording artists in their own right.
“The Book” (Leo Nocentelli)
Eldirdge Holmes, Deesu 300, 1969
(Tune in to HOTG Internet Radio)
“No Substitute” (Eldridge Holmes)
(Tune in to HOTG Internet Radio)
What first impressed me about this record is how outright funky both sides are, another example of Toussaint putting the Meters to good use, as he also did on Lee Dorsey and Betty Harris material of the period. Written by the band’s guitarist, Leo Nocentelli, “The Book” is virtually a one chord exercise with just a few other quick passing changes. It’s underlying energy and substance arise from the intricate, infectious rhythmic interplay of the instruments. Starting from its clever, ear-catching intro, this is pure state-of-the-art Toussaint production mastery: rich, interwoven horn charts, multiple keyboards (likely both Toussaint and Art Neville), Nocentelli’s chord chops and repeating figures, George Porter, Jr.’s amazingly complex bass running, and Zig Modeliste’s rather restrained beats on top with all the counter-action happening down below on his subversively busy, if not impatient, kick drum. Funk-sway at its finest. Holmes’ vocal endows the song with more weight than it actually merits, singing the essentially silly lyrics with such grit, soul and sincerity that he totally sells them. To hear Holmes tell it, that funny book seems almost biblical.
On the flip side, Holmes’ own composition, “No Substitute”, there’s less going on in the musical front. It’s kind of like a chorus in search of a song, really: a slow, repeating hang-time vamp over which Holmes soulfully testifies to his utter need for his irreplaceable baby. Again, funk and Holmes’ emotive voice save the day. Without them, this would be an totally inconsequential B-side. In terms of arrangement, it’s almost the opposite of “The Book”. The instrumentation is less complex; and it’s the rhythmic hesitation of the vamp interacting with Zig’s increasingly broken-field drumming that provide the booty-grabbing focus. The horns and a nice acoustic guitar offer some ornamental counterpoint as Holmes sings his pleading lyrics in a voice that commands attention, but, again, deserves more to work with. If only the song lived up to the goose-bump raising intro, where the singer comes in from out of nowhere hitting a high falsetto “ooooh” that is sublime.
Still, it’s great to hear Eldridge Holmes working with the Meters, mixing a voice of pure soul with their unique rhythmic abilities. Their pairing here in late 1969 marked a revamp of the Deesu label for Toussaint and his business partner, Marshall Sehorn, visually displayed by the distinctive coin-face on the 45s. But even with a new look and groove, Holmes’ single fared no better commercially than most of his earlier soul and pop work, only a few of which were even decent local sellers. His funkiest and most well-known workout with the Meters, though, was his highly coveted Atco single side, “Pop Popcorn Children”, which I featured last year and may have been cut at the same sessions for “The Book”, from the sound of it. That single also featured their intense, one-of-a-kind descent into the blues, “Cheatin’ Woman”, which was actually the first of Holmes’ tracks to be re-issued. The Atlantic blues compilation LP it was on, which I bought years ago for its two Percy Mayfield cuts, provided my first exposure to Eldridge Holmes and was the start of my ongoing fascination with him.
Holmes had two more Deesu releases, probably with the Meters backing, that went for different sounds, but did no better in the marketplace. His enjoyable cover of Tim Hardin’s “If I Were A Carpenter” (which Toussaint also tried with Lee Dorsey), was a smoother production, which strangely had “No Substitute” again as the B-side, either because Toussaint was strong on the song or short on material. On his final Deesu outing, “Lovely Woman”, Holmes moved back toward the pop mainstream where Toussaint had aimed him earlier in his career. It’s a breezy, addictively upbeat soul swinger that had hit written all over it, unfortunately they must have used invisible ink. The flip was a forgettable cover of “What’s Your Name” that leads me to believe that Holmes by that point was not getting proper attention from Toussaint, who was having much more success with Dorsey and the Meters, working on his own album projects, and beginning to get work as a major label producer for outside artists. Though Toussaint always held Holmes in high regard, this great singing talent completely fell through the cracks in the early 1970s, and, after two more hopelessly obscure singles for other small labels, was sadly heard from no more.
Prince Turns 50
Filed under: Podcasts, Soul/R&B, SoulSites, SoulTrackin'
I know he won’t be happy for this post and I’m risking lawsuits and years of litigation, but out of love and respect I have to honor Prince on his 50th birthday. I’ve been a prince fan for more than 2/3 of my life and in all those years he has never failed to deliver. Even at his worst he is still the funkiest S.O.B. in the room. If you’ve never seen him live… please do and sit as close as possible (you won’t be sitting). Summing up over 30 years of making music is no easy task especially with the sheer output of Prince so here are just a few of my personal favorites from different periods of the man’s music. Enjoy…and please don’t sue!
Bo Knows Diddley
Filed under: Podcasts, Soul/R&B, SoulSites, SoulTrackin'
Bo Diddley: Roadrunner
Bo Diddley: Crackin’ Up
Bo Diddley: Bring It To Jerome
Podcast Collaboration #3: Color Him Father…
NOTE: Below is the text of the invite letter I sent out yesterday to join in on our next podcast collaboration project…
Music Lovers/Podcasting Fam
TGrundy here. I’m reaching out to you once again to invite you to participate in another in our series of podcast collaboration projects.
So far we’ve brought you the Cupid’s Hunt podcast in celebration of Valentine’s Day and the Mother Love podcast to celebrate Mother’s Day. This time around, as a bookend to the Mother Love event, we’d like to turn our attention and talents to Father’s Day in a podcast event that’s being called:
“Color Him Father”
This special podcast will be produced and available for download on Father’s Day, Sunday, June 15, 2008.
If you’d like to participate, simply do the following:
1. Choose a song that captures how you feel about “fathers and/or fatherhood”
2. Record the following: An INTRO to your selection, giving the song title+artist+why you chose it
3. Send the intro+song as an MP3 file(s) via email to tgrundy[at]gmail.com – no later than Wednesday, June 11th!
That’s it . . . we’ll do the rest. The podcast will be posted on 6/15 at RhythmsInBlackSatin.com – we encourage you to post it on your podcast site as well.
If you have any questions, concerns, etc. please reach out to me at tgrundy[at]gmail.com or IM me on GMail or leave me a comment/message on my page at the Soul Commune music community or in the SoulSites Podiverse group also on Soul Commune.
We look forward to your participation in this podcast honoring these special men who have influenced and shaped our lives!
(NOTE: for those of you who know me, you know I’m “graphically challenged” when it comes to logs and stuff! help me out here {smile})
–TG
All That Jazz: In Celebration of Jazz Appreciation Month
I don’t talk about my love for jazz enough on this blog so I figure jazz appreciation month is the perfect time to do so. I have to admit that my knowledge is lacking. Mama Vivrant Thang was never really into jazz so it wasn’t played much around the house. She did love Kenny G though and [...]
The “Boys” Are Back In Town…
Remember the Four Brothers Beats blog? Well, the boys are back! BUT... not quite in the way you may have been expecting. It's, how shall we say, "the same, but different!"
Vendors, Authors and Artists– Sell Your Items in This Year’s Capital Hip Hop Soul Fest
Last year's Capital Hip Hop Soul Fest was a musical celebration while vendors sold their products to eager to buyers. Book authors, including Felicia Pride-- writer of The Message and activist author Devin Walker were among some of the top authors who sold their books. The 2009 Capital Hip Hop Soul Fest will be held this year on Sat., July 25 in Marvin Gaye Park in Washington DC. While the musical acts are still being selected, vendors are able to reserve their tables now to receive our Early Bird Discount. For more info, email us at CapitalHipHopSoulFest@gmail.com
Fusion: Where Music, Technology, and Artist Creativity Intersect
Hello readers and listeners. I trust all is well today. This post is a follow-up to the previous post about the subject of an upcoming podcast I hope to resurrect entitled Fusion. The concept of this podcast came to me via an off the cuff discussion I had a few years ago with a fellow podcaster/recording artist/graphic designer. Both of us, being musicians in our own right, began discussing our backgrounds and influences in making music, which invariably talking about how technology (past and present) played a role taking the music from inner to outer. I began to see the different paths ...
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Cupid’s Hunt: 2009
Translator
By N2H