MOE KOFFMAN Back To Bach 1979 256+ VBR LAME mp3 Vinyl rip & scans from Anthem ANR-1-1023
Canned Daddy
Nursury Rhyme Dancer
This is widely acknowledged as the worst set from the entire Moe Koffman catalogue and that truly says something, don't it? Frankly, it encapsulates everything wrong with discofied jazz and much of music in general at the end of the 70s (or is that the start of the 80s?): monotonous metronome disco beats, cheezy and unchallenging solos, horrendous concept albums, salubrious string sections, schmaltzy balladry, slick assembly-line production sapping the soul out of every note and even bad cover art to boot.
Obviously Moe had exhausted his ideas and made an ill-advised return to not only the nearly dried-out well of Western Classical Music but, as the the title so non-cleverly states, back to Bach's well-worn and immediately-identifiable ditties. Bad call there, buddy. On the bright side, beat builders may find a funky brick or two to work with here - however "brick" is definitely the operative word overall since this here album sinks like one in almost every aspect. In the immortal words of Brenda Lee: I'm sorry. So sorry. Sorry my completist tendencies compel me to cough up this chunk of Can Con crap into your lap. But hey, this means Moe's mostly done here at SI (check his discography post here) and we can hold our head high for keepin' it real and reppin' our hinterland 'hood...
Moe Koffman - Flute & Piccolo Doug Riley - Keyboards & Toy Drum Bob Mann - Guitar Tom Szczesniak - Bass Bob McLaren - Drums & Percussion Brian Leonard - Drums & Percussion
1 Canned Daddy 2 The Wooden Soldier 3 Singing Voices 4 Bad N Eerie 5 Back to Bach 6 Bach's Lunch 7 Air D'Or (Melody of Gold) 8 Irish Tea Party 9 See Us Home 10 Nursery Rhyme Dancer
VARIOUS ARTISTS Soul Superbowl 1986 256+ VBR LAME mp3 Vinyl rip & scans from Kent 060
Claudia Green - Skate A While Baby
Lifestyle - Katrina
What better day for a Superbowl than Sunday? Calling in the special teams from Kent's bench, this comp is a bit of a twist on the normal Northern Soul sounds you're used to from the Ace imprint. While the first half keeps the faith, this time one side is devoted to 70s soul sounds and leans heavily on disco, even including some boogie from the tail end of the decade. Bein' a 70s baby, I might be a bit biased but my bet's on that decade to win. I blame it on the boogie!
1 Clyde McPhatter - Please Give Me One More Chancevid 2 The Trends - Thanks For A Little Lovin'vid 3 Buster Jones - Baby Boy 4 The Hesitations - She Won't Come Back 5 Claudia Green - Skate A While Baby 6 Arthur Alexander - Keep Her Guessin'vid 7 The Commands - Hey It's Lovevid 8 Romance Watson - Where Does That Leave Me?vid 9 Lifestyle - Katrina 10 Little Anthony - Love's The Only Way To Survive 11 Anacostia - What Kind Of Love 12 Al Hudson - Spread Lovevid 13 Lenny Williams - Look Up With Your Mindvid 14 Carl Carlton - You Can't Stop A Man In Lovevid 15 Alicia Myers - I Fooled You This Timevid
Tackle two decades of soul with SoundologicalHERE or HERE.
256+ VBR LAME mp3 Vinyl rip & scans from Fantasy F-9253
This is the third solo effort by venerable blues/jazz/funk session man Arthur Adams. Having seen his first, second and fourth floating around I thought I'd fill another blank for the booty-bumpin' blogosphere.
Although the line-up doesn't jump out out at you like it did on his previous effort, Home Brew, don't front. Most of these cats were assembled from Blue Thumb/Fantasy stalwarts and the roster includes a good portion of Side Effect/L.A. Boppers. Produced by the Crusaders' Wayne Henderson, with whom Arthur maintained a close working relationship for many years, it's definitely a product of its time and place. Although it features some fancy fretwork and catchy compositions, it's very much a pop-oriented outing with a bit less of the raw blues or fiery funk that earned Adams his rep as a smokin' session man in the 60s and early 70s.
Official Site Bio Arthur Adams was born in a small town in Medon, Tennessee; twelve miles from Jackson, Tennessee. Jackson is eighty-four miles north of Memphis, Tennessee. Arthur attended Tennessee State University for one year, then, joined Jimmy Beck's Band in the early sixties. He traveled throughout the south and moved to Los Angeles, California in the late sixties where he began his recording and writing career. His first album "It's Private Tonight" is on Blue Thumb records. "Home Brew" and "Midnight Serenade" are both on Fantasy records. "Back on Track" is on Blind Pig records, and "Soul of the Blues" is on PMRC records.
Arthur has played and recorded with B.B. King, wrote the song "Mean and Evil" and "Something Up My Sleeve" for B.B. King. He also wrote the song "Love and Peace" for Quincy Jones' grammy award-winning Walking In Space album, "Somebody Is Gonna Miss Me" for Sam Cooke on the Twistin the 'Nite Away album, "Truck Load of Loving" for Albert King, played guitar on the Nick of Time album for Bonnie Raitt, Jimmy Smith's album Root Down, Jerry Garcia'sGarcia, the Crusaders' Street Life (as well as Pass The Plate, Hollywood and almost all of their 70s output), Johnnie Guitar Watson, Dr. John and many more (including Charles Kynard'sWoga, Gene Ammons'Free Again, David Axelrod'sMarchin', Bobby Bryant'sSwahili Strut, Phil Upchurch'sDarkness, Darkness, Letta Mbulu'sLetta, Cal Tjader'sDemasiado Caliente and Lowell Fulsom's seminal Trampto name but a few).
Arthur appears in the movie "Town & Country", starring Warren Beatty and Goldie Hawn where played and sang the song "I Can't Stand the Rain".Arthur's freight train guitar and soul-steeped vocals, combined with his prolific predilection for writing great material (often in conjunction with award-winning composer Will Jennings), are all brilliantly showcased on his Blind Pig debut Back On Track, his first album in two decades. The set features two sparkling duets ("Got You Next To Me" and "The Long Haul") pairing Adams with his principal stylistic influence, the great B.B. King, and his regal presence is quite an honor for his long time friend Arthur.
AMG Bio by Bill Dahl As house bandleader at B.B. King's Los Angeles blues club, Arthur Adams cranks out searing blues for the well-heeled tourists who trod the length of Universal Studios' glitzy City Walk. But the great majority of his transient clientele can't begin to imagine the depth and variety of the guitarist's career.The shaven-headed Tennessee native began playing guitar in the mid-'50s, taking early inspiration from the man whose name adorns the club that later employed him (Howard Carroll, axeman for gospel's Dixie Hummingbirds, also was a principal influence). He studied music at Tennessee State University, playing briefly with the school's resident jazz and blues aggregation.
Touring as a member of singer Gene Allison's band, Adams found himself stranded in Dallas, where he dazzled the locals with his fancy fretwork. Relocating to L.A. in 1964, he began to do session work for jazz great Quincy Jones, and cut singles for the Bihari Brothers' Kent label and Hugh Masekela's Motown-distributed Chisa imprint. His late-'60s R&B sides for the latter were co-produced by Stewart Levine and featured support from most of the Crusaders. Adams' 1970 debut LP for Blue Thumb, It's Private Tonight, was co-produced by Bonnie Raitt and Tommy Lipuma.
Adams continued to record solo albums through the late '70s, but by the '80s he retreated from the forefront, only ocasionally moonlighting as a session guitarist for various groups. In 1992, he wrote two songs for B.B. King's There Is Always One More Time album and 1999 saw Adams' first solo release in 20 years with Back on Track, which featured King as a guest guitarist. In 2004, Adams continued rebuilding momentum with the release Soul of the Blues.
1 When I'm Away From You 2 Beale Street 3 Midnight Serenade 4 I'm In Like With You 5 Reggae Disco 6 Love And Peace 7 Shake A Loose 8 Right On Time 9 Music Feels Good To Me
All Kapuncle Up (Instrumental) JAY MITCHELL Another Time And Place 197?
82.7 MB 256+ VBR LAME mp3 Vinyl rip & scans from Elite ERS 1027
If you're a regular reader of this blog you're probably at least somewhat familiar with the Floridian-inspired sounds of the funky Bahamas like T-Connection, The Beginning Of The Endand maybe even Frank Penn's GBI stable thanks to last year's blazing Numero Group compilation Cult Cargo: Grand Bahama Goombay. On the latter, Mitchell was the centrepiece with his output making up 1/4 of the collection.
This Bahamanian behemoth of booty-shakin' beats and beautiful ballads is likely one of the best entertainers you've never heard of despite his huge following in the Caribbean and his stints with James Brown's band, Otis Redding, Aretha Franklin and the Jackson clan. He was actually signed to ol' Joe, lived with the family for a while and released at least one 12" on the Jackson vanity label (Look Before You Leave).
Who knows just how well-known he would have been on a world-wide scale if he hadn't succumbed to homesickness a couple times and headed back to the Bahamas at those crucial crossroads in his career. He continues to pack 'em in five nights a week and his stature in the country is such that his was the voice tapped to sing at Anna Nicole Smith'sNassau funeral along with one of her favourite country music singers, Joe Nichols.
For a full rundown on this amazing performer (and Reiki master to boot!), check out his bio at the Musicians & Entertainers of Bahama website, head over to Mackey Media (run by T-Connection guitarist Dave Mackey) for a 15-minute radio interview with the man himself or click on the link below to read the full version of the article excerpted.
Excerpts from Musical Entertainer, Jay Mitchell by Glenn C. Nairn originally published at What's On Bahamas in 2003.
One of his next career highlights came in 1967 when he visited one of New Providence‘s top nightclubs, The Cat and Fiddle, Nassau Street. There he impressed well-known businessman "Father Allen" (Olden Smith). Says he: "He (Father Allen) had a concert with Chuck Jackson and several other stateside artists…The Cat and Fiddle was jammed. But they (the performers) weren’t moving the people. I jumped on stage, grabbed the mike out of Chuck Jackson’s hand and started bugging. Everybody went crazy!
"Father Allen came and said, ‘Hey, young man, who are you?’ I said,’‘Jay Mitchell.’ He said, ‘I brought these people from all the way in the USA and they can’t move the people. And you jump up on the stage and drive those people crazy – I’m going to make you a star!"Indeed, Father Allen endeavoured to assist the young entertainer with his career by becoming his promoter and mentor.
Within that period, the young entertainer bowled over Aretha Franklin, "the Queen of Soul," when he did""I’m Black and I’m Proud" at a concert she headlined at the Queen Elizabeth Sports Centre.He accepted an invitation from her to perform at the Philharmonic in New York. At the Philharmonic, he met a number of other renown entertainers, including Sweet Inspiration, The Temptations, and The Four Tops. Although he enjoyed working with Franklin, he became homesick, as he missed his family.
Also, he wanted to return home because he felt his growth as an artist was in jeopardy; he feared he would sound like an impersonator of the artists whose songs he performed. "I was going to end up sounding like (a cross) between Arthur Conley, Ottis Redding, and James Brown – right between them, and I wasn’t going to be able to develop a style of my own. I always felt within me that I could use what is in me to bring out what I’ve learned from outside. So I wanted to join these (experiences) together and create my own."Now when you hear my mouth, you know it’s me…See, I didn’t have that identity. I sounded so much like James Brown, and I did the Joe Tex show with the microphone and stuff. I was not pleased with myself – although everybody else was."
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About a year-and-a-half later he was back in Freeport, where he worked at a number of top local night spots, including Joker’s Wild, Rum Runners, The Sultan’s Tent, and his own nightclub, New Dimension...After a performance at The Sultan’s Tent, he was lauded by an associate of Michael Jackson’s father, Joe Jackson, an entertainment promoter. The associate, says Mitchell, was there with a group for some sort of celebrations.
He recalls that the associate told him he was certain Jackson would sign him on his label, as he was better than all seventeen of the persons whom Jackson was about to take on. Not taking the compliment seriously, Mitchell virtually ignored him. However, around that time, a Philadelphia promoter whom he had engaged submitted his recordings to Jackson who immediately signed him on.
Traveling to Los Angeles, he began a three-year stint under Jackson’s promotion, at which time he resided in the Jacksons’ home. Jackson and his family, including Michael, Jermaine, and their other siblings, treated him as if he were a part of the family. Reflecting on his memorable moments with the Jacksons, he recalls that Jackson once provided him with the opportunity to work with James Brown’s band, while Brown was incarcerated....And performed he did, stunning Bobby Bird the band’s director and others, especially because of his imitation of Brown’s famous dance.
Despite his success under Jackson’s direction, including the production of a CD "Jay Mitchell" produced by Jackson’s recording company (he has a number of other CDs, of which "Another Place and Time" and" "My Prayer" are perhaps the most popular), he again found himself wanting to leave the States. This time he wanted to leave because of intense media pressure; the media dogged him to ascertain the veracity of Latoya Jackson’s accusations against members of the Jackson clan.
Jay Mitchell +3 ca. mid-70s
Front L to R: Dennis Peterson, Joey Williams, Mark "Scab" Back L to R: Simeon Rolle, Jay Mitchell, Steven Rolle
A brilliant funky Bahamas record by the same Jay Mitchell who did “Spirits of Fire – Goom Rock” “Deep Heat” and “Your Mama Your Daddy Again.” Features the 7-minute, ultra-punchy “Yellow Bird (Disco)” and “The World Keeps Turning Round.” Stupendous, funky & hard to find.
Tracks 1, 3 Jay Mitchell - Vocals, Synth, Strings, Backing Vocals Mott - Guitar, Synth, Strings Charles Bethel - Bass Patrick Russell - Drums Aurdley Russell - Guitar Peter Francis - Piano Andrew Brennen - Tenor Sax Jarvas - Trumpet Portia - Backing Vocals
Tracks 2,4,6 Jay Mitchell - Vocals, Piano, Synth, Backing Vocals Dennis Peterson - Bass Joey Williams - Guitar Steve Rose - Drums Andrew Brennen - Horns Simon Rolle - Horns
Tracks 5,7,8 Jay Mitchell - Vocals, Piano, Synth, Horn Effect, Backing Vocals Mott - Guitar, Synth, Horn Effect Campbell (Savage) - Bass Brian Russell - Drums
1 Yellow Bird (Disco) 2 The World Keep Turning Round 3 Another Time And Place 4 All Kapuncle Up (Instrumental) 5 Strangers To The Night Dew 6 Am Sorry You Have To Go 7 I Thank God 8 Bush Medicine
Discography Can anyone out in the blogosphere help fill in these blanks? Any assistance with dates or other info on these sessions would be highly appreciated. If you've ripped any of these, we'd be grateful if you could share!
1972 Souvenir Of Freeport Bahamas (Bahamas Ministry of Tourism) incl. Tighter & Tighter and Mustang Sally
1974Your Mama Your Daddy Again(GBI) incl. Goombay Bump
1975Impartiality (GBI) incl. Funky Fever
197? Another Place And Time (Elite)
197? Spirits of Fire - Goom Rock (Freeport Sounds)
197? Deep Heat (JM)
198? Junka City (Junka Records)
1984 Junka Heat (Junka Records)
? 1990 Jay Mitchell (Gold Castle)
1999 Jay Is For Junkanoo (Mackey Media)
19?? Soft Touch (JM)
19?? Higher Ground (JM)
19?? Bahamian Roots (JM)
Don't count on easily finding a copy of this ultra-rare record in another time and place, Soundological recommends you grab it HERE and NOW.
Williams is probably best-known for his long stint with pianist Cedar Walton, but he's also played with many other famous jazz artists, including drummer Beaver Harris, flugelhornist Chuck Mangione, and singer Vanessa Rubin. Williams studied with Ron Carter while in his 20s. He worked with Harris in New York City and Mangione in Rochester, NY around 1969, and backed pop singer Roberta Flack in the early '70s. During the 70's Williams played with alto saxophonists Ornette Coleman and Charles McPherson, pianists Billy Taylor, Kenny Barron, and Duke Jordan, drummer Elvin Jones, and tenor saxophonists Archie Shepp and George Adams, among others. He played in the bands of alto saxophonist Art Pepper and trombonist Slide Hampton in the '80s, and also worked with trumpeter Woody Shaw. He began playing with Walton around 1983; thereafter he was a member of Walton's various bands, often forming a rhythm section with Billy Higgins before the drummer's death in 2001. Williams played on Vanessa Rubin's 2001 release, Girl Talk, and on Manhattan Transfer vocalist Janis Siegel's 2002 album, I Wish You Love. Walton also played on both albums.
All Songs Written By Dave Williams Arranged and Conducted by - W. Michael Lewis Concertmaster - Bill Henderson
1 Soul Is Free 2 Out Of The Sheets-Into The Streets 3 Let's Go Visit The World Today 4 Change Of Pace 5 Come On Down, Boogie People 6 Party Lady 7 Keep Dancin' Wit Me 8 Glad I Found You
Set your soul free and get some free soul from SoundologicalHERE or HERE.
73.8 MB 256+ VBR LAME mp3 Vinyl rip & scans from United Artists UA-LA629-G
Well faithful readers, thanks for your patience. I had originally planned to post this Wednesday before last upon returning from work but it was hard to get up the gumption to do so and things just kinda snowballed from there. How? Well, let me sum it up in a quick list: witnessed a suicide in the subway, worried about friends in Mumbai (I worked there for a while in 2004 and still have connections), a monitor that crashed, two new rush contracts from a client in retail and my lovely wife's birthday.
So by way of contrition, here's Mark Radice's The Whole World Ain't Nothin' But A Party, a nice little obscurity by a successful yet under-the-radar songwriter. Check out he link below to his website for a who's who of pop stars that have covered his songs from Streisand and Cheap Trick to The Muppets and Deodato. On this effort, his 2nd solo shot, he's backed by a budding Brass Construction who lay down the groove on the bulk of the tracks under the tutelage of disco don and soon-to-B.T. Express producer Jeff Lane. If you're a fan of B.C., B.T. or Randy Muller's musical sensibilities, then this one's a no-brainer!
Mark Radice - Vocals Brass Construction - Music (except 5 & 6) Gary Rivenson - Bass (5 & 6) Joe Goldberger - Drums (5 & 6) Jim Kenyon - Guitar (5 & 6) Jeff Lane - Backing Vocals (1 & 2) Di La Rae - Backing Vocals (3 & 4) String Arrangements - Andrew Smith, Randy Muller 1 The Whole Wide World Ain't Nothin' But A Party 2 Here I Go Fallin' In Love Again 3 If You Can't Beat 'Em, Join 'Em 4 Monkey See Monkey Do 5 The Answer Is You 6 Exception To The Rule
Get this party re-started with SoundologicalHERE or HERE.
Found a still-sealed copy of this a few weeks ago at local record shop for only $7. Now, I'd never heard the two Cotillion albums Lou made at the tail-end of the 70s (Different Scene and this one) but I hadn't heard much in the way of favourable reviews for them, either. However, I was pretty sure that since it was Sweet Poppa Lou accompanied on horns by longtime jazz vets Ernie Royal and Seldon Powell, there had to be enough going for it to make it worth some change back from a sawbuck. It should come as no surprise that it was a safe bet but had the price been on the other side of a dixie I don't know if I'd feel quite the same.
There are some sweet moments here despite the routine arrangements, sterile production and cut-rate roster, close to half of whom count this album as either their only credit or one of less than a handful. Except for drummer Jimmie Young most of the rhythm section were nobodies and both horn and string sections were split down the middle as far as seasoned session vet vs. unknowns is concerned. On the plus side, it's obvious a lot of these guys were going for broke and giving it their best shot, especially William Phipps on the rhodes (check out the sweet washes and nimble solos he sprinkles throughout) and A.C. Drummer on the guitar (this man loves the phased wah-wah sound for better or worse).
A couple cookers, a few ballads and a bit of funk make it worth the minimal fee but don't expect any revelations from Lou, who maintains his standard of techical excellence even though he tends to get buried in the busy arrangements or lost in the mix. Not essential by any means but it will have appeal for the more forgiving fans of LD and those of Jazz-Disco-Funk fusion in general.
1 Too Much to Explain 2 Love for Sale 3 Piece of Your World 4 Passion Fruit 5 Comin' Thru the Back Door 6 Ebb Tide 7 Maker's Dream 8 Walkin' Sally
For more info on the man, be sure to click on his name in the line up above and visit his comprehensive website for a detailed bio and thorough notes on all the sessions he's played. While you're poking around you can make color a way of your life courtesy of SoundologicalHERE or HERE.
The Complete 1952 Lou Donaldson Blue Note Sessions at migue11e (APE) Quartet/Quintet/Sextet (1952-1954) atAvaxHome (FLAC) A Man With A Horn(Unissued material from Blue Note 1961+1963) c/o Blaxploitation Jive (mp3) Ha' Mercy (culled from Argo/Cadet catalogue 1961-1965)c/o My Jazz Worldpt1/pt2 Signifyin': The Best of Lou Donaldson at flageolette Blue Break Beatsat flageolette (mp3) + migue11e (APE)
Just tryin' to put back into the music blogosphere by fillin' in any blanks I can with out-of-print vinyl as well as the occasional mix, remix, re-edit, art or rant. But mostly vinyl. Mostly.
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