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I've recorded a new mini-album's worth of solo songs, and decided to put two of the tracks to wax! Pre-order a multi-colored vinyl, limited-to-100 copy of the 45 RPM single here! "She Came This Way" b/w "McQueen (Slight Return)"
New orleans singer Danny White released 14 singles in the '60's, and one of which (the lovely 1963 ballad "Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye") was a pretty sizable regional hit.
After the success of that record, Danny recorded for several other labels but never had another hit to speak of. This side from '66 is a BURNER and is equally as good as the original Lee Rogers version of this track (and adds a decidedly New Orleans flavor as well).
By the late '60's Danny White's recordings and performances were trickling out, and he managed The Meters early on.
Before
anyone starts freaking out and worrying that I've veered too far off
the path with this post, let me reassure you that (while I dig plenty of
80's music) I am not gonna make a habit of posting anything else from
the 80's. It just so happens that this record is so unspeakably scarce
(and great) that all of us who have loved Ferris Bueller's Day Off
(hell, I've based my life upon the principles set forth in that movie)
for so many years truly DESERVE to have this song on their ipod.
When
I worked at a record store ('91-'96) one of the most common requests
was for the FBDO soundtrack to which I would have to reply, SORRY, there
never was one; this was almost certainly followed by a question of the
likes of "well where can I get that song that plays while they drive
away in the Ferrari"? which was followed by "sorry, NOWHERE."
Turns
out, John Hughes had a run of promo singles cut of "Beat City" that
were distributed in incredibly limited numbers. After years of
searching, I've only seen two, and both have surfaced recently
(including the one that now resides in the Northern California 45
Sanctuary (aka my home). The other one (the first to surface) the seller
wants a kings ransom for (which I almost paid until this copy popped
up).
The big question is: why didn't the Flowerpot Men
release this officially? They had 3 or 4 other releases???? And, for the
record, these Flower Pot Men have nothing to do with the hippie dippy
late 60's Flower Pot Men ('Let's Go To San Francisco').
So,
just in time for spring, I present to you the perfect song for top down
transportation. Not all that odd that I feature it on this blog
afterall; that guitar line is straight out of 1966.
Originally recorded in an equally killer version by The Vibrations, this jam was also perfect for the sassy, brassy and lovely vocals of The Pointer Sisters. The arrangement is quite similar to the original (dig those bongos), with the added funky factor of some very Funkadelic-like Moog synthesizer.
The Pointer Sisters morphed thru
soul, funk, disco, electro and pop throughout their career and had many
hits along the way. Sisters Bonnie, June, Ruth & Anita hail from
Oakland, CA and their heavenly harmonies are spread across so many great
records thru the years that it's downright ridiculous. I even dig the
hell out of their '80's hit "Neutron Dance"!
Every time I hear the intro to this great record, it reminds me of the flamboyant Little Richard interview in the 1973 Jimi Hendrix film where he claims that Jimi was ALREADY a star when he met him and was a member of Richard's band. As the luscious guitar intro proves, even though Jimi was playing in the Curtis Mayfield style at the time of this recording, he was a musician of grace, taste, finesse and a giant TALENT.
Allegedly Jimi's time with Richard was cut short due to the amount of attention Jimi was receiving on the bandstand which infuriated the star of the show, but fortunately he stuck around long enough to cut this one and only single.
For nearly five years (late '57 until 1962) Little Richard had left the sinners life of secular music, and became a preacher. It wasn't until an offer to tour England in '62 came on the table (thanks to Don Arden, villain of yesterday's post)that Richard made a return to his signature secular sounds.
This record shows off beautifully how well Richard can SING. Everyone knows that he can peel the paint off of the wall with the shouts, but damn does he put in a stellar vocal performance here.
from 1965...
LITTLE RICHARD - I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'VE GOT BUT IT'S GOT ME
From the northernmost tip of England (Newcastle), Skip Bifferty was founded from the remains of (yet another) band called The Chosen Few in 1966. The group was picked up for management by the notorious thug Don Arden, who was also managing The Small Faces at the time. Arden's business tactics of violence and aggression were well known, and it's no surprise that the group broke up in early '68 due to managerial conflicts. Luckily, none of the band members had limbs broken by Arden or his goon squad! The same members reformed as Heavy Jelly later in the year, and took on a more "progressive" sound.
But as for this record (their debut), it's one of THE most perfect sides of 1967 style psychedelic beat music. I first heard it on the amazing and essential Bomp records compilation Electric Sugarcube Flashback all those years ago; it's still the top collection of UK psych-beat in my book (thank you once again, Greg Shaw).
Eddie "Guitar" Burns left Mississippi at age 20 in 1948 and headed north to Detroit. While his recorded output was nowhere near as prolific as that of his contemporary (and sometimes collaborator) John Lee Hooker, he cut some excellent sides throughout the years, including this slammin' r&b number showcasing his wicked guitar work and vocals.
Eddie passed away last December (2012) and performed all the way up until 2008.
The first few seconds spell out immediately that this record is classic Detroit soul- with a confident snare drum roll, lush harmony vocals and gritty baritone sax, the groove is perfectly established by the time the gorgeous lead vocal from Lorraine Chandler, ho makes her debut here. Lorraine went on to record two other singles under her own name, but she became more prolific as a songwriter and producer of several records by the likes of Eddie Parker, Willie Kendrick, The Metros and Freddie Butler.
This record became a hit in Detroit and Chicago, and was reissued with national distribution power by RCA Victor, who also signed her on for the writing and production work. Unfortunately, while RCA released dozens of amazing soul records in the '60's, they never really had it together enough to make any of them hits.
Ode Records believed in this record strongly, as they issued it twice with two different catalog numbers (once in '67 then again in '69). It *is* an amazing track, but the dark, melancholy sound is not obvious hit material. Darlene Love turns in a typically amazing performance here (but would we expect anything less?)
The history of this group is incredibly complex, and I prefer not to get
too wordy on my posts so I'll leave it at this. While the Blossoms had a
number of personnel changes since their 50's inception, the Blossoms
who are most well known (appeared on the Shindig TV show) included
Gloria Jones (who was out of the group by the time of this release) and (lead singer) Darlene Love (who also recorded with Phil
Spector not only under her own name but as a backing singer and also a
lead on cuts by The Crystals (who were actually the Blossoms under
another name).
As soon as the drum break hits, it would be easy to believe that this record comes from New Orleans, but that's not the case...
Turns out Betty Adams real name is Jewel Meriwether, and she cut two secular records in the early '70's with her brother Roy on piano in Cincinnati, OH (of which this is the first). Not many funky records feature the piano this prominently, and this slamming record drives home the point that I wish there were more!
No matter how many times I've heard this record, its undeniable spook factor still scares the heck out of me- something about the performance here sounds like something a tad bit too personal; something we're not SUPPOSED to hear, as if listening in on an audio diary.
Born Mary Cross in Memphis and given the stage name Wendy Rene by none
other than Otis Redding, "Wendy" was also supposed to be on the tour in
which Otis tragically died. Wendy had just had a baby and (thankfully)
decided to stay home.
Unfortunately she only released a handful
of singles. The backing (by Booker T & The MG's) also features some
of my favorite playing by those amazing cats. I love how the organ takes
such prominent lead in the mix, a common theme heard on most of her sides.
