Comments (4)

By Larry, July 24, 2011 1:20 pm

London Fog(g) and the Continentals

Listen/Download – London Fogg – Easy Mover

Greetings all.

I hope everyone had themselves a groovy weekend and haven’t succumbed to the ungodly heat and humidity.

I thought we had it bad here in Jersey, but it seems our friends in the Midwest are sizzling, so as your physician I recommend that you stay in the air conditioning, pour yourself something cold and restrict yourself to the heat generated by high quality soul and funk in your headphones.

With that in mind, I bring you something cool.

A little while back I indulged my organ 45 jones by finally picking up a copy of London Fogg’s ‘Trippin’ 45. As solid a Hammond junkie as exists, I’d certainly known of the record for years, but had neither scored a copy in the field, nor found one elsewhere at a reasonable price. This time out it appeared on a friend’s set sale list, so I grabbed it.

When it fell through the mail slot I gave ‘Trippin’ a spin, and was happy to see that it was a funky and organ-tastic as I recalled.

Then – as is my wont – I flipped it over and gave the flip a spin, assuming (via the title ‘Easy Mover’) that what I was going to get was a mellow(er) instrumental.

When the needle hit the wax and the grooves started to give up their bounty I was both surprise and pleased to hear not an instrumental but a slow, funky female vocal feature. It was so surprising in fact that I set upon the interwebs to seek out information on the band.

As it turns out, this particular 45 was issued twice, first on the Dayton, Ohio (the band’s hometown) Gold Stars label, and then picked up for national distribution on Imperial. The assemblage –as listed on the label of the first pressing – was London Fog (one “G”, the band) and the Continentals (the singers).

These groups came together during high school in Dayton (unusual in that they were a racially integrated band), and recorded their single in 1969.

The Continentals were Quinn Moorman, Bozie Black, Loretta Reid (lead vocal on ‘Easy Mover’) and John Mortimer. The London Fog were Gary Kaiser (organ), Bud Kraft and Ed Toll (gtr), Vince DiSalvo (dr), Dan Connaughton (bass), Tony Giambrone and Gary Moon (tenor sax), Robert Pennington (trombone) and Mike Riley (alto sax).

‘Easy Mover’ was a regional hit, supposedly selling quite briskly. The song was actually written by Brenda Lee Jones, “Jean” of “Dean and Jean” who recorded a number of 45s from the late 50s through the mid-60s.

I hope you dig the tune and I’ll be back on Wednesday.

Peace

Larry

Also, make sure that you check out the POAC link below (click on the logo). It’s a fantastic organization that provides services to our local autism community, with education and recreational events, and any contribution you could make would be greatly appreciated.

If you want one of the new Funky16Corners stickers (free, of course) click here for info.

Check out the Funky16Corners Store at Cafe Press

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (3)

By Larry, July 21, 2011 7:58 am

Idris lays into the traps…

Listen/Download – Idris Muhammad – Express Yourself

Greetings all.

I hope all is well on your end of the interwebs.

This being a truncated week – having allowed for a little marination with the Jerry Ragovoy tribute – I figured I’d close out the week with something funky.

First, it behooves me to step to the side and remind you all that Friday night at 9PM is Funky16Corners Radio Show time on Viva Radio, wherein I fall by with my big box of records and some words and fill the airwaves with soulful goodness. All of the shows are then MP3-ified and posted in the F16C Radio Show archive at the blog (here, in fact) where you can pull down the ones and zeros at your leisure.

I should also mention that this past Monday’s festivities at Botanica, wherein yours truly, joined by M-Fasis and DJ Hambone laid down several hours of tasty funk and soul to a very groovy crowd. Hopefully I can get some of the recorded sets posted in the next few weeks.  Thanks also to Dan behind the bar for the ginger beer.

That said, I came upon today’s selection fairly recently.

I’ll go ahead and assume that most of you have at least a passing acquaintance with the name Idris Muhammad.

What I’ll also say is, that I don’t think many folks know that Mr. Muhammad was born with the much less exotic name of Leo Morris, and was a New Orleans homeboy of folks like the mighty Neville Brothers. Morris/Muhammad came from a family of drummers, and as a teenager played alongside Art Neville’s Hawketts, Joe Jones and Fats Domino among others.

He relocated to New York in the early 60s and established himself as a jazz drummer, joining the band of Lou Donaldson, and spending the second half of the 60s and the early 70s recording soul jazz behind leaders like Donaldson, Grant Green, Leon Spencer and Lonnie Smith. Like guitarist Melvin Sparks (who plays on today’s selection) Muhammad seemed to specialize in backing organ sessions.

Now, when I got this 45, I blanked on the fact that the flip side was a cover of James Brown’s ‘Super Bad’, which was a very nice surprise indeed and it kicks, and I’ll make sure to whip it on you sometime soon.

That said, the tune I’m posting today is Muhammad’s cover of Charles Wright and the Watts 103rd St Rhythm Band’s ‘Express Yourself’.

After I digimatize this particular 45 and transferred the files to the old iPod, I gave both sides repeated listens, focusing (natch) on Muhammad’s drums, which snap like a mofo, but what really grabbed me, and it ought to grab you too, is the fact that his playing on ‘Express Yourself’ positively screeeeeaaammmms NEW ORLEANS!

Yesiree Bob, unfold your ears and take a listen to the drums breakdown around the one minute and thirty nine second mark and the funk gets all loose and second line-y. Get your head inside of those drums and tell me if you don’t hear a little bit of James Black, an almost exact contemporary of Muhammad’s who also came up out of New Orleans to make his mark as a jazz drummer (but is best known for the funk).

Muhammad lays down about 20 seconds of absolute magic, dancing back and forth between his kick drum and his snare in a laid back tidal wave of syncopation that is utterly mind blowing.

While I was writing this I just keep running the marker back and playing the breakdown in a loop and it just got deeper every time.

I should also note that the band is very groovy, with some nice electric piano action from Harold Mabern.

It is a tasty number indeed, and ought to hold you fine people over the weekend until I return on Monday.

Peace

Larry

Also, make sure that you check out the POAC link below (click on the logo). It’s a fantastic organization that provides services to our local autism community, with education and recreational events, and any contribution you could make would be greatly appreciated.

If you want one of the new Funky16Corners stickers (free, of course) click here for info.

Check out the Funky16Corners Store at Cafe Press

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (6)

By Larry, July 14, 2011 11:07 am

Johnny ‘Hammond’ Smith

Alphonso ‘Fonce’ Mizell and Larry Mizell

Listen/Download – Johnny Hammond Smith – Shifting Gears (45 Edit)

Listen/Download – Johnny Hammond Smith – Los Conquistadores Chocolates (45 Edit)

Greetings all.

The end of another week is upon us, and while I am as always up to my substantial ass in alligators, they are all (for a change) well trained and waiting to be fed.

I will be taking to the airwaves of the interwebs once again this Friday night at 9PM for this week’s edition of the Funky16Corners Radio Show on Viva Radio. This time out I have a very groovy, very summery set prepared, so if I was you I’d be muddling the mint and the lime for and icing up the mojitos since this will provide a better than suitable soundtrack for the sipping of hot weather beverages.

As always, if you have something better to do when the show airs, but still think that stuffing some groovy music into your ears will be beneficial, you can always stop by the blog over the weekend and pick the show up in MP3 form.

That said, if you’re in New York City on Monday night, 7/18 I will be manning the decks at Spindletop @ Botanica and will be joined by my friends M-Fasis and Joe Cristando for the spinning of the funky vinyl. I assure you that the sounds will be, in a word, oustand-a-licious (it’s made up, but it’s still a word), so you should fall by, see Dan at the bar about a cocktail and settle in for a night of good music.

As promised I will be using the end of week post to pay tribute to the passing of the great Alphonso ‘Fonce’ Mizell.

If you don’t know the name, Fonce Mizell, over the course of a career that lasted more than forty years left his mark on countless fantastic records.

He came up in Englewood, NJ alongside his brother Larry and their classmate Freddie Perren, all of whom eventually headed down to Howard University in Washington, DC (where they would cross paths with both Donny Hathway (student) and Donald Byrd (teacher).

Following graduation, Larry Mizell would detour for a time into a non-musical career as an engineer, and Fonce Mizell and Freddie Perren would head west to Los Angeles. They would both eventually be signed to Motown as staff writers, where they would eventually become (with Berry Gordy and Deke Richards) part of the songwriting and production team known as ‘The Corporation’.

The Corporation made their biggest mark working with the Jackson Five, writing and producing the group’s biggest early hits like ‘ABC’, ‘The Love You Save’ and ‘I Want You Back’.

After The Corporation went their separate ways in 1972, Larry and Fonce Mizell reunited, forming Sky High Productions, working in the studio with artists like Donald Byrd, Gary Bartz, Bobbie Humphrey, the Blackbyrds and today’s featured artist Johnny Hammond Smith.

The tracks featured today are the 45 edits of two tracks from Hammond’s 1975 ‘Gears’ LP (his second with the Mizells) , produced and almost completely written by Larry and Fonce Mizell. The album featured Sky High stalwarts like Harvey Mason (drums) and Chuck Rainey (bass) and both the Mizell brothers on backing vocals.

The oft-sampled ‘Shifting Gears’ is a funky electric piano showcase for Smith with fantastic contributions from Michael White on electric violin. The tune is a wonderful example of the Mizell brothers ability to craft a mixture of jazz fusion and funk with modern, dance floor-friendly production.

‘Los Conquistadores Chocolates’ is really the standout here, and a quick listen reveals why it was an early favorite at David Mancuso’s Loft parties and the disco scene in general. Opening with synthesized piano, drums, guitar, the tune bursts out into waves of stylish, synthesized strings. It never loses the propulsive power that so endeared it to the dancers, yet the Mizells and Smith manage to weave together a complex mixture of Smith’s Hammond organ, piano (electric and acoustic), vibes, guitar, drums and percussion that never gets crowded and is always pleasing and intriguing to the ear. The 45 edit omits the trippy opening interlude from the album, as well as the last minute and a half of the tune (you can hear the whole thing over at YouTube).

Though the Mizells did much to move fusion forward in the first half of the 70s, they moved on to have their biggest success producing Taste of Honey (who’s ‘Boogie Oogie Oogie’ was the Mizell brothers biggest hit) and LTD.

The brothers retired in the early 80s.

Fonce Mizell was 68.

I hope you dig the tunes, and I’ll see you all on Monday.

Peace

Larry

Also, make sure that you check out the POAC link below (click on the logo). It’s a fantastic organization that provides services to our local autism community, with education and recreational events, and any contribution you could make would be greatly appreciated.

If you want one of the new Funky16Corners stickers (free, of course) click here for info.

Check out the Funky16Corners Store at Cafe Press

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (0)

By Larry, July 3, 2011 2:59 pm

Touch

Listen/Download – Touch – Love Hangover (Breaking Down)

Greetings all.

I hope all is groovy in whatever burgh you call home.

The first tune I’ll bring you this week is something very interesting that I happened upon during a recent, unscheduled dig.

A friend had dropped me a line that a local record store had gotten in an interesting collection, but regularly scheduled family stuff precluded a trip over there, so I figured I’d try to get over later in the week.

Then, the following day I had to do some Dad stuff, which just happened to end in the late morning, so I bundled up Thing 2 (the little guy) and took a drive North so that I might paw through the records in the hour before lunch.

Good thing too, because while the collection might not have been spectacular (the really heavy stuff was out of my price range or areas of interest) but I did score a grip of excellent jazz funk for about half the going rate, and a couple of cool looking things that were not familiar, but interesting (and cheap) enough that I figured I’d grab them.

The tune I bring you today was on one of them.

I’d never heard of the group Touch (no relation to ‘The Touch’), but since it was a mid-70s LP on Brunswick that I’d never heard of it definitely piqued my interest.

What really grabbed me though was the presence of a tune on the album entitled ‘Love Hangover (Breaking Down)’. I couldn’t remember who had written the Diana Ross tune, but it had a Jobete publishing credit so I figured it had to be related.

And (you probably figured this out already) it was.

The tune in question was in fact (as described in the title) the breakdown from Diana Ross’s ‘Love Hangover’, i.e. a reworking of the fast instrumental part at the end of her record.

Now, I love the Diana Ross record, but I have to admit that if the song were truncated to remove the first half, I wouldn’t miss it all that much.

That is exactly what Touch did, and their version (which you will hear as soon as you pull down the ones and zeros) is quite good, a little funkier and with a slightly rougher edge than the original.

While I haven’t been able to find out much about the band, the record was produced by disco movers and shakers Tony Valor and Tom Moulton, the first a prolific producer and the second one of the original remix masters.

A little research reveals that Valor had a habit of recycling material, with some of the backing tracks on this album also appearing on a ‘Do the Hustle’ LP, and the only other credits I can find for the members of Touch are on other Tony Valor productions. My best guess is that they were likely his main studio band and either got the chance to make their own album, or were just repackaged as a group out of convenience.

Either way, this track is especially cool, and there are a number of cool tracks on the album that would serve as a great example of a sort of higher level of disco, with thoughtful songwriting and quality playing.

I hope you dig the track, and I’ll be back on Wednesday.

Peace

Larry

Also, make sure that you check out the POAC link below (click on the logo). It’s a fantastic organization that provides services to our local autism community, with education and recreational events, and any contribution you could make would be greatly appreciated.

If you want one of the new Funky16Corners stickers (free, of course) click here for info.

Check out the Funky16Corners Store at Cafe Press

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (6)

By Larry, June 26, 2011 4:01 pm

In black and white, like the keys, dig?

Dee Felice Trio – There Was a Time (King)
Don Randi – Taxman (Reprise)
New London Rhythm and Blues Band – Soul Man (Vocalion)
Ramsey Lewis – African Boogaloo Twist (Cadet)
Roy Meriwether Trio – What’s the Buzz (Notes of Gold)
Overton Berry Trio – Guacamolean Shuffle (Jaro)
Gene Harris – Green River (Blue Note)
Johnny Watson – Hold On I’m Coming (Okeh)
Mr Jim and the Rhythm Machine – Mrs Robinson (Date)
Junior Mance – Thank You Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin (Atlantic)
Cha Cha Hogan – Grit Gitter (Soulville)
The Stokes – Crystal Ball (Alon)
Allen Toussaint – HandsChristianAnderson (Bell)
The Music Company – The Word (Mirwood)
Mary Lou Williams – The Credo (Mary)
Backyard Heavies – Expo 83 (Scepter)
Ray Bryant – Up Above the Rock (Cadet)

Listen/Download – F16C Radio v.94 – The Living Piano – 86MB/256K Mixed MP3

Listen/Download – F16C Radio v.94 – The Living Piano – 63MB ZIP File

Head on over to the Funky16Corners Radio Podcast Archive to Check This One Out

Greetings all.

As mentioned previously, this is a Funky16Corners vacation week, but I love you mugs so much that I couldn’t very well decamp without leaving something to keep your ears busy while I was away.

The mix I bring you this week is something that had been percolating in my fevered brain for a long time, and was finally spurred on to fruition by the recent passing of Mr. Ray Bryant.

Though we have covered the piano before (see Funky16Corners Radio v.81) it was recordings of the electric variety thereof.

Having been brought up in a house with a master of the acoustic piano (that would be my Pop), I have always wanted to assemble my fave funky and soulful acoustic piano tracks, and so you have it (the mix, that is…).

Most of the numbers in this mix will be familiar to longtime followers of the Funky16Corners blog, whether via appearances in previous mixes, or having appeared by themselves at some point.

There are a number of previously unheard/unposted numbers as well, so dig those too.

Though the electric piano is the version of the instrument generally associated with funk and soul (mainly due to the electrification of music in general during the era in question) there were a number of recording artists – many of them rooted in jazz – who took the old-style acoustic piano, a massive conglomeration of wood, wires and ivory, and managed to wring a little funk out of it.

Though I love electric piano, there’s something special about the way a real piano resonates, especially when it’s played by someone that really knows the instrument.

Some of the recordings in question go back to the earliest days of my crate digging and blogging, including the Mary Lou Williams and Cha Cha Hogan 45s, where others are fairly recent acquisitions.

There are a couple of unusual tracks in the mix, in particular Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson’s one-off piano instrumental 45 for the Okeh label.

You also get a couple of tracks featuring Allen Toussaint, first with his early group the Stokes (dig ‘Soda Pop’s not so subtle variation on ‘Fortune Teller’) and a rare solo 45 (Hands Christian Anderson).

Mr Jim of ‘Mr Jim and the Rhythm Machine’ (with the swinging version of ‘Mrs Robinson’) is Philly area composer/arranger/keyboardist Jimmy Wisner who recorded a couple of 45s under this name for the Date and Wizdom label.

There are also a couple of anonymous pianists working it out here, including whoever tickled the ivories for the New London Rhythm and Blues Band (likely a UK studio musician) and the pianist for the Music Company, an LA studio group that recorded an album of Beatle covers for the Mirwood label in 1966.

Of the known jazz heavies in the mix, you get to choose from the likes of Mary Lou Williams, Don Randi, Gene Harris, Ramsey Lewis, Roy Meriwether, and Overton Berry, and the man we eulogized just this past week, Ray Bryant.

Having given it a number of spins, I can attest to the fact that it’s a lot of fun to listen to and I hope you dig it.

See you next week.

Peace

Larry

Also, make sure that you check out the POAC link below (click on the logo), in regard to the April 2nd walk.

If you want one of the new Funky16Corners stickers (free, of course) click here for info.

Check out the Funky16Corners Store at Cafe Press

PS Head over to Iron Leg for some very tasty UK Folk Rock.

Comments (3)

By Larry, June 23, 2011 11:31 am

Too much popcorn…

Listen/Download – The Rivingtons – Pop Your Corn Pt1

Listen/Download – The Rivingtons – Pop Your Corn Pt2

Greetings all.

I’m going to try to make this short and sweet (like I always say, and almost never do…)

I’m trying to get this week finished up and next week’s stuff all prepped and swinging, since the Funky16Corners fam is going to try to slip some vacay into the shed-jool and my days of dragging my laptop with me on the road resulted in a lot of web surfing when I should oughtta be having real fun, so I won’t be doing that.

I am planning on a mix to keep your ears happy while I’m off the grid, so stay tuned for that.

The Funky16Corners Radio Show will be dropping this (and next, and the one after that, and so on) Friday night at 9PM at Viva Radio. It’ll be quite groovy, so strap yourselves in with a cold beverage and the snack food of your choice and let your ears fill up with the best in funk, soul, jazz and rare groove. It will of course be archived and ready for download over the weekend, right-cheer at the old blog.

The tune I bring you today is another one of those cool, late career revivifications wherein an artist best known for their work in an earlier era gets back on the horse and drops something of a more contemporary (at least at the time) nature that allows those of us who follow such things to reconsider their place in the musical landscape.

The group in question is the Rivingtons, and the tune is ‘Pop Your Corn Pts 1&2’.

The Rivingtons, who’s members had been recording in other groups since the very early 50s, released their first and best remembered record, ‘Papa Oom Mow Mow’ in 1962. It was a minor hit, and followed the next year by another one called ‘The Bird Is the Word’, which, when stolen and stitched together by a group of Minnesotans called the Trashmen the year after that, became a much bigger hit by the name of ‘Surfin’ Bird’, after which the members of the Rivingtons hired a lawyer and took the Trashmen to court, where they successfully sued for redress of griveances.

That said, though the Rivingtons recorded fairly steadily through the 60s for labels like Liberty, Reprise, Vee Jay and Columbia, they weren’t meeting with much success.

The record I bring you today was the last thing they recorded in the 1960s, and sees them glomming onto the Popcorn wave on 1969.

There are countless dance crazes through the 60s that inspired a lot of records (i.e. the Popeye, the Twist etc) but few of them took off like the Popcorn. Not only were there a grip of Popcorn 45s in 1969, but for a while James Brown turned the dance into something of a cottage industry (see Funky16Corners Radio v.14 Butter Your Popcorn).

The Rivingtons of ‘Papa Oom Mow Mow’ are not entirely absent on ‘Pop Your Corn’ (dig the bass vocals) but the buttery flavor is much funkier than they were known for, with some tight, snappy, break-y drums, a guitar riff lifted directly from the JB ‘Popcorn’ and some wailing soul vocals.

Make sure you listen to both parts of this one, since the drums get a little bit heavier in Pt2.

It’s cool one and I hope you dig it.

See you on Monday.

Peace

Larry

Also, make sure that you check out the POAC link below (click on the logo). It’s a fantastic organization that provides services to our local autism community, with education and recreational events, and any contribution you could make would be greatly appreciated.

If you want one of the new Funky16Corners stickers (free, of course) click here for info.

Check out the Funky16Corners Store at Cafe Press

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (9)

By Larry, June 21, 2011 12:29 pm

Ray Bryant

Listen/Download – Ray Bryant – Up Above the Rock

Listen/Download – Ray Bryant – Quizas Quizas Quizas

Listen/Download – Ray Bryant – Soundray

Listen/Download – Ray Bryant – Stick With It

Greetings all.

I hope the middle of the week finds you all well.

As promised, I’m going to take a little time to pay tribute to the soulful genius of one of my favorite pianists, the mighty Ray Bryant.

Bryant, who passed on June 2nd was one of the mainstays of soul jazz piano in the 50s, 60s and 70s.

As has been mentioned in this space several times, I have strong feelings about the term ‘soul jazz’, in that so little of the music labeled as such really fits the bill in any meaningful way.

There are veritable mountains of wax with jazzers wading into more popular waters, especially in the 60s, but a jazzbo with a pop cover does not soul jazz make (especially since the style came into being organically).

The truth is, that where many – often purely in the interest of keeping their heads above water (and away from a day job) – jazz musicians took to a more “accessible” style in the 60s, many of them had no real aptitude for it, making for much of the bland and uninspired sounds that so many crate diggers are referring to when they badmouth the style.

The real heart of the sound – as is the case in vocal soul music – can be traced to gospel, wherein jazz and soul intersect on a giant (and wholly imaginary) venn diagram.

As the 50s became the 60s, many jazz musicians (with a concentration on organists, guitarists and saxophonists) while still stretching out on post-bop and modal jazz, began to experiment with gospel and R&B at the same time that those styles were evolving into what would become soul music.

By the early 60s, countless organ (and piano, guitar, sax, vibes and all of the possible combinations and permutations possible) combos were coming out of inner city clubs and into recording studios for labels like Prestige, Blue Note, Argo, Riverside and countless smaller independents and compressing the aforementioned mixtures into 45 sized, jukebox friendly slices.

As the popularity (and sales figures) of straight jazz began to decline, jazz musicians concentrated more on soul and pop jazz, hoping to cross over enough to put a little bread in their pockets. While many of these musicians were merely attempting to cash in, some of them found that they had a natural affinity (whether via age or inclination) for these sounds and found ways to innovate and make them swing.

One of the finest of these was Mr. Ray Bryant.

Bryant came up in Philadelphia (his brother Tommy was a bassist) and played alongside many of the giants of the bebop and hard bop eras.

He started recording under his own name in the 50s, and even found some pop success with his 1960 hit ‘Madison Time’.

The tracks featured today all come from Bryant’s tenure with the Cadet label between 1966 and 1969. He recorded seven albums for Cadet in those years, all a mix of original material, jazz standards and pop and soul cover material. He recorded in small and large group settings, often with the production assistance of none other than Richard Evans.

I’ve included tracks from his two final albums for the label in the 60s (he would return for one more in 1974), ‘Up Above the Rock’ (1968) and ‘Sound Ray’ (1969).

The title track of ‘Up Above the Rock’ is a shade over three minutes of pure brilliance, with a stunning Grady Tate breakbeat that makes it the most sought after (and expensive) of his albums. The mix you’re hearing today is from the album. The 45 mix is a little bit hotter, with the drums and the handclaps higher in the mix (check it out on Youtube).

The group is the trio of Bryant on piano, Ron Carter on bass and Tate on drums, augmented by Snookie Young on fluegelhorn and Dobbie Hiques on trumpet. The track sounds light years ahead of its time. No matter how many times I hear it, I expect someone to start rapping as soon as the piano comes in. If you listen to the way Kool G Rap and DJ Polo flipped it (barely) for ‘On the Run’, it’s not too far removed from the original. It’s about as funky as acoustic piano records get, and a great showcase for Bryant’s heavy, straightforward sound. It’s one of those records that I have to listen to multiple times in a sitting.

The other track from ‘Up Above the Rock’ is Bryant’s cover of Osvaldo Farres’ ‘Quizas Quizas Quizas’. The recording here is taken from my 45 and while still somewhat funky, has a much looser, more swinging feel to it. It was also sampled (with a little more subtlety) by Queen Latifah on ‘I Can’t Understand’.

The two remaining tracks are both from the 1969 ‘Sound Ray’ album. A trio session, recorded with Jimmy Rowser on bass and Harold White on drums, ‘Sound Ray’ is another funky session, produced again by Richard Evans. The album sees Bryant stretching out a little more, but still keeping things locked in the groove.

The title track is a hard charging tour de force (I love the opening duet with the bass and drums) with some wonderful keyboard work by Bryant.

‘Stick With It’ is a much more subdued affair, that sounds like a rebuilt version of Horace Silver’s ‘Song For My Father’ (which, oddly enough was also covered on the album).

Ray Bryant would go on to record for Atlantic, Pablo and EmArcy (among many others) through the 70s, 80s and 90s with his last album being a live, solo set recorded at Rutgers University in 2004.

He was a giant, and will be missed.

See you on Friday.

Peace

Larry

Also, make sure that you check out the POAC link below (click on the logo). It’s a fantastic organization that provides services to our local autism community, with education and recr events, and any contribution you could make would be greatly appreciated.

If you want one of the new Funky16Corners stickers (free, of course) click here for info.

Check out the Funky16Corners Store at Cafe Press

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (4)

By Larry, June 16, 2011 10:19 am

Mr Don Covay

Listen/Download – Don Covay – Money (That’s What I Want)

Greetings all.

I was going to do a post about the late Ray Bryant today, but I’m postponing it until next week (It’ll be worth the wait).

I know that it’s all just a part of the vast randomness of the universe, but it always seems to me that these soul, funk and jazz cats fall in rapid succession, as if they were all sitting waiting for the bus to the great beyond and got on at the same time.

The really sad thing is that what we are ultimately dealing with is the natural movement of the classic generation of soul and funk performers (precious few of the earlier generation of jazz and R&B performers are still with us) into their later years.

That said, we’ll just keep on keeping on, paying tribute to the known and the unknown so that the sounds they made are not forgotten.

I should also remind you that the Funky16Corners Radio Show returns to the airwaves of the interwebs this Friday night at 9PM on Viva Radio. It’s the perfect soundtrack for your summer, with all kinds of groovy funk, soul, jazz and rare groove with which to enjoy the icy cocktail of your choosing.

The tune I bring you today is some solid, ass-kicking funk from an artist whose songs are (sadly) better known than he is.

I first heard Don Covay’s version of ‘Money’ a few years back while spinning alongside M-Fasis and DJ Bluewater at the late, lamented Master Groove in NYC. As soon as the needle hit the record my ears perked up and started vibrating and I was all ‘What the hell is that?” followed immediately with “Where Can I Get Me One?”

It was a long time before I finally found a copy, and as is often the case, because I was patient the gods of vinyl brought me my very own copy for the cost of one crumpled, green dollar.

Now if the only thing Don Covay ever did in his life and career was to write and record ‘Sookie Sookie’ – one of the ur documents of funk and soul, a record so mighty as to be imprinted in the DNA of any human to ever dirty their fingers pawing through vinyl or stomp upon a soulful dance floor – he’d deserve eternal fame, but he’s also the dude that laid down ‘Mercy Mercy’, ‘See Saw’ and ‘Chain of Fools’ sang with the Soul Clan and much much more.

This record, the one right here, this is the shit.

The opening alone, in which Don appears to have a snootful of rocket sauce and manages to momentarily out-James Brown the Godfather, is a mindbender, but then he and his band set themselves on fire and it’s almost a full minute before you realize that this funky tornado is in fact a cover of the old Barrett Strong chestnut.

Like the young George Foreman, this record is heavy, yet also fast and dangerous and ought to have a place in the traveling record box of anyone who brings the funk to the people.

Dig it you must.

See you on Monday.

Peace

Larry

Also, make sure that you check out the POAC link below (click on the logo). It’s a fantastic organization that provides services to our local autism community, with education and recr events, and any contribution you could make would be greatly appreciated.

If you want one of the new Funky16Corners stickers (free, of course) click here for info.

Check out the Funky16Corners Store at Cafe Press

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (4)

By Larry, June 5, 2011 4:59 pm

Apologies to the soulies, heh heh…

Greetings all, and welcome to the 2011, Funky16Corners Soul Club/Grogan Casino Allnighter..

This is – as it has been since 2006 – time for yours truly to once again open up the yearly Funky16Corners Pledge Drive, in which we ask that if you dig what goes on hereabouts, with the blog(s), radio show, mixes etc, that you click on the donation link and drop a little something in the basket.

Click Here To Donate

Your donations help to pay for the server space where the blog, all of the graphics and well over 100 mixes (a number that is expanding all the time) reside, as well as upkeep on the equipment used to run the whole non-profit (is there a better phrase to describe an operation that runs at a perpetual loss?) shebang.

As always, I’m aware that times are tough, and getting tougher all the time, so if you can’t swing it, that’s cool too. However, every little bit helps, so even a couple of bucks will help things along.

The readers of Funky16Corners have always been very cool over the seven year history of the blog (as well as the years preceding that at the web zine), generous with their knowledge and vocal in their appreciation and once again I’d like to thank you all.

Funky16Corners has always been an ad-free space (and that includes needless plugs for crap that none of you (or me) is going to listen to) and will always remain that way.

Now, I can’t very well come to you with hand outstretched unless I have something to offer you for your trouble. With that in mind, I bring you the second annual Allnighter, in which I gather together some of my favorite DJs and ask them to contribute mixes.

This year we have a stellar line-up, including my man Tarik Thornton (Hot Pants Crew MPLS), Tony C, DJ Prime Mundo (Asbury Park 45 Sessions), DJ Bluewater (Master Groove, Asbury Park 45 Sessions), and my mighty brother in blogging Vincent the Soul Chef (Fufu Stew), as well as two new mixes by yours truly.

Each of these cats is very, very serious about digging and spinning vinyl heat and when you get the chance to sink your ears into the mixes they’ve contributed you will (as I was when I first heard them) be very happy.

There’s a very nice stylistic breadth to this year’s Allnighter, with deep soul, Northern Soul, rock steady, funk and disco with a connoisseur’s mix of rarities and classics.

This year I’m also posting something cool over at Iron Leg, with a few hours of garage and freakbeat recorded live a few weeks back (by me, natch)  at Spindletop @ Botanica in NYC, so if those are sounds you dig too, make sure to pull down those ones and zeros as well.

That said, click the Paypal link, and then scroll down the page slowly, soaking up all the mixes as you go.

Click Here To Donate

Peace

Larry

___________________________________________________________________

Funky16Corners 2011 Allnighter!

Funky16Corners – I’m Satisfied
San Remo Golden Strings – I’m Satisfied (Ric Tic)
Jr Walker and the All Stars – Come see About Me (Soul)
Parliaments – Look at What I Almost Missed (Revilot)
O’Jays – I Dig Your Act (Bell)
Lee Williams and the Cymbals – Everything About You That I Love (Carnival)
Al Kent – You Got To Pay The Price (Ric Tic)
Major Lance – Gotta Get Away (Okeh)
Shorty Long – Sing What You Wanna (Soul)
Bunny Sigler – Sunny Sunday (Cameo/Parkway)
Jackie Lee – Bring It Home (Keyman)
Gene Chandler and Barbara Acklin – From the Teacher to the Preacher (Brunswick)
Chuck Jackson – Good Things Come to Those Who Wait (Wand)
Precisions – Why Girl (Drew)
John Willams and the Tick Tocks – Do Me Like You Do Me (Sansu)
Eddie Floyd – Big Bird (Stax)
Vibrations – Pick Me (Okeh)
Buena Vistas – Hot Shot (Swan)
Performers – I Can’t Stop You (Mirwood)
Dreams – They Call me Jesse James (DC Sound)
Len Barry – I Struck It Rich (Decca)
Ambassadors – I’m So Proud Of My Baby (Atlantic)

Listen/Download – Funky16Corners – I’m Satisfied / 96MB Mixed MP3

NOTE: I’ve been digging a lot of mid-tempo Northern Soul lately, and this is a mix of my faves. – LG

__________________________________________________________________

DJ Bluewater – That Steady Beat

Ken Parker – Change Is Gonna Come
Delroy Wilson – I’m The One Who Loves You
Rocky & The Heptones – Falling In Love
Carlton & His Shoes – Happy Land
Alton Ellis & The Flames – Cry Tough
Lloyd & Glen – Jezebel –
Phyllis Dillon – Don’t Stay Away
Cecille Campbell – Breaking Up
The Soul Vendors – Frozen Soul
The Soul Vendors – To Sir With Love
Prince Buster & The All Stars – The Punishment
The Maytals – Watermelon Man
Derrick Morgan – First Taste Of Love
The Untouchables – Tighten Up
The Jailbreakers – Chatty Chatty
Delano Stewart – That’s Life
Norma Fraser – The First Cut Is The Deepest
King Rocky – The King Is Back
The Ethiopians – He’s Not A Rebel
The Uniques – Watch This Sound

Listen/Download – DJ Bluewater – That Steady Beat / 120MB Mixed MP3

NOTE: DJ Bluewater has gotten deep into the rock steady sound in the last few years

and this mix is filled with goodness! – LG

___________________________________________________________________

DJ Tarik Thornton – Louisiana Sun

Willie Tee – Dedication To You ( Atlantic)
The Festivals – You Got The Makings of A Lover (Smash)
The Impressions – Man Oh Man ( ABC- Paramount)
Dennis Lee & Notables – Sunday Afternoon ( Jenmark)
Bernard Drake – I’ve Been Untrue ( La Louisianne)
Ollie & The Nightingales- I Got A Sure Thing (Stax)
Jo Armstead – There’s Not Too many More (Giant)
The Passions – I Can See My Way Through (Tower)
The Moovers – One Little Dance (Brent)
The ElectroStats – Setting the Mood ( Three Oaks)
The Supreme – Stoned Love (Tamla)

Clifton White – Are You Ready (Anla)
Dell Mack – You Can’t Judge a Book by Its Cover ( Gold Band)
Eddie Giles – Soul Feeling Pt. 1- ( Murco )
Debanaires – Feel Alright – (WBS)
O.D Williams – Moving Out Of Your Life – (Bare- Bar)
New Birth – I Can Understand it (RCA)
Johnny Williams – Breaking Point – (Twinight)
Johnny Otis Show – Watts Breakaway (Epic)
Gus (The Groove) Lewis – Let The Groove Move You – (Tou- Sea)
Lee Dorsey – Funky Four Corners (Amy)
Big Daddy Rucker – Just Do Your Thing – (GME)
Reggie Sadler – Raggedy Bag – (Aquarius)
Bonus Track : Jackie Harris & The Exciters – Get Funky, Sweat A Little Bit (Black&Proud)

Listen/Download – DJ Tarik Thornton – Louisiana Sun / 85MB Mixed MP3

A Note from Tarik:

So when Larry asked me to do this mix indeed I was honored! Larry and the Soul Chef are the guys who are responsible for inspiring me to get back to digging after taking a 10 year hiatus. I’ve been on a life rollercoaster over the last few years and this has become one of my most profound ways of expressing myself. Honestly, It took me a while to figure out a concept for this one. Always trying to be diverse I created a nice blend of Sweet Soul and Funk this time around. Both are actually sets I did live at KFAI in Minneapolis last week. After listening to them I decided to take the time to tighten them up, then added a bit more soul . The outcome, a sweet selection of songs dedicated to all the people that have taken the time to check out my work over the last year, but also in particular a very special young lady. The “B “side a tight groove of some killer funk selections that will keep you moving. Enjoy ! You can find some of my other mixes at www.mixcloud.com/8KC

___________________________________________________________________

DJ Prime Mundo – Kentucky Fried Prime

curtis mayfield – tripping out (rso)
one g plus three – summertime (paramount)
billy guy – if you want to get ahead, shake a leg (verve)
the soul patrol – saigon strut (shamley)
don downing – thread and needle (roadshow)
gary toms empire – drive my car (pickwick)
bo kirkland & ruth davis – we got the recipe (claridge)
stan ivory – check it out (tese)
le roy – easy livin’ (dream machine)
chick willis – stoop down baby (la val)
billy strange – jaws (gnp crescendo)
the masqueraders – brotherhood (bell)
hummingbird – trouble maker (a&m)
ernie andrews – something (phil l.a. of soul)

Listen/Download – DJ Prime Mundo – Kentucky Fried Prime / 61MB Mixed MP3

Note: One of the OG Asbury Park 45 Sessions DJs, Prime Mundo has extremely deep crates and extremely good taste. He’s one of my favorite DJs, and this mix should tell you why. – LG

____________________________________________________________________

Vincent the Soul Chef – Back to the Corner

I Just Want To Celebrate-Rare Earth (Rare Earth)
Ride Sally Ride-Dennis Coffey and the Detroit Guitar Band (Sussex)
Runaway People-Dyke & The Blazers (Original Sound)
You Met Your Match-Stevie Wonder (Tamla)
Your Love Is Indescribably Delicious-Willis Wooten (Virtue)
Mister Magic-Grover Washington Jr. (Kudu)
Heaven Is There To Guide Us-The Glass House (Invictus)
I Got You Babe-Etta James (Chess)
Vista Vista-Lee Dorsey (Amy)
Funky Boo Ga Loo-Jerry O (Shout)
Do Your Thing-Watts 103rd St. Rhythm Band (Warner)
Good Times-Kool & The Gang (De Lite)
Take Me To the River-Fessor Funk (Roxbury)
Let Me Lay My Funk On You-Poison (Roulette)
Keep on Dancin’ (Vocal)-Alvin Cash (Toddlin’ Town)
The Whatchamacalit-The Burning Emotions (Bang)
Country John-Allen Toussaint (Reprise)
Paint Me-Ohio Players (Westbound)
I Turned You On-Isley Brothers (T Neck)
Soul Sister- Allen Toussaint (Reprise)
Baby I Love You-Aretha Franklin (Atlantic)
Nobody’s Fault But Mine-Otis Redding (Atco)
Cook Out-King Curtis & The Kingpins (Atco)
The Court Room-Clarence Carter (Atlantic)
Funky Drummer Pt. 2-James Brown (King)
Make It Funky Pt. 4-James Brown (Polydor)
Hey Ruby Shut Your Mouth-Ruby & The Party Gang (Law Ton)

Listen/Download – Vincent the Soul Chef – Back to the Corner / 104MB Mixed MP3

NOTE: Vincent the Soul Chef is not only a top-notch DJ, but he’s a serious digger with diverse tastes that are reflected in his mixes. After I heard this I headed out to look for a few of the cuts right away… – LG

___________________________________________________________________

Tony C – Dance the Jerk!

Doc Bagby-Mr Hippy-Tifton
Merced Blue Notes-Rufus-Accent
Horace Bailey-Cool Monkey-Delene
Larry Williams-Strange-Sue
Barry’Barefoot’ Beefus-Barefoot Beefus-Loma
Tommy & The Charms-I know what you want-Hollywood
Nathaniel Kelly-Do the jerk-Jubilee
Jay Dee Bryant-Get it-Enjoy
The Pacers-You’ll never know-Razorback
The Magics-Lets Boogaloo-R.F.A
Lou Johnson-Rock me baby-Cotillion
Eddie Simpson-Stone Soul Sister-Back Beat
Vickie Anderson-I love you-Smash
Alder Ray Mathis-Take me baby-Jetstar
Jackie Thompson-Got to right the wrongs-Columbia
Lonette-Stop-M.S
Boogie Kings-Do em’ all-Pic
Charles Hodges-Charles Shingaling-Alto
Little Flint-Pain-Beast
Sammy Lee-It hurts me-Rampart
Jay Jordan-If it wasn’t for love-Verve
The Fantastic Four-Pinpoint it down-Soul
Lovemasters-Pushin and pull-Jacklyn
Timmie Williams-Competition-Bell
Big Maybelle-I can’t wait any longer-Rojac
Trudy Johnson-You’re no good-Capitol

Listen/Download – Tony C – Dance the Jerk! / 62MB Mixed MP3

NOTE: Tony C has done guest mixes for Funky16Corners in the past, and he is always turning me on to new stuff. Great taste and deep crates, once again a dynamic combination.  – LG

___________________________________________________________________

Funky16Corners – Honey Trippin’
BT Express – Express (Scepter)
Louie Ramirez – Do It Any Way You Wanna (Cotique)
Cymande – Anthracite (Janus)
Virtue Orchestra – High Horse IV (Virtue)
Mystic Moods – Honey Trippin’ (Soundbird)
KC and the Sunshine Band – Let It Go (TK)
Instant Funk – Philly Jump (TSOP)
Jay Berliner – Getting the Message (Mainstream)
Love Child’s Afro Cuban Blues Band – Love and Death in G and A (Roulette)
Gene Faith – Lowdown Melody (Virtue)
Doc Severinson – Soul Makossa (RCA)
Soul Searchers – Boogie Up the Nation Pt2 (Polydor)
Philly Sound – Waitin’ For the Rain (Phil LA of Soul)
Mongo Santamaria – What You Don’t Know (Vaya)
Philadelphia Society – 100 South of Broad Street (American)
Larry Page Orchestra – Erotic Soul (London)
Roy Ayers Ubiquity – Virgo Red (Polydor)
Barrett Strong – Stand Up and Cheer For the Preacher (INST) (Epic)

Listen/Download – Funky16Corners – Honey Trippin’ / 110MB Mixed MP3

NOTE: This is one of those mixes that had its start in a single cut, and took form slowly as I stockpiled complementary cuts. I like it a lot, and I hope you dig it too. – LG

____________________________________________________________________

Click Here To Donate

Also, make sure that you check out the POAC link below (click on the logo). It’s a fantastic organization that provides services to our local autism community, with education and recr events, and any contribution you could make would be greatly appreciated.

If you want one of the new Funky16Corners stickers (free, of course) click here for info.

Check out the Funky16Corners Store at Cafe Press

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (5)

By Larry, June 2, 2011 10:00 am

Listen/Download – Melting Pot – Kool and the Gang

Greetings all.

I got a shitstackof stuff on the agenda today, so I’m going to make this as short and sweet as possible.

First, a word from our sponsor, i.e. me, in the way of a reminder about the Funky16Corners Radio Show which hits the air this and every Friday night at 9PM on Viva Radio. It is always a very groovy scene and if you dig the best in funk, soul, jazz and rare groove – all on vinyl – you should fall by.

Also, the 2011 Funky16Corners Pledge Drive begins this coming Monday 6/6, with a grip of outstanding new mixes from some of my (and your) favorite selectors. There’s gonna be funk, soul (Northern and othern), disco, rock steady and much more for you to pull down the ones and zeros while you toss a couple of buck into the till to help pay for the yearly upkeep of this massive undertaking.

That said, let’s get the weekend started with some hard charging funk.

Today’s selection is right, tight and outta sight, with the wocka-wocka guitar, the organ and naturally the crazy horn section going buckwild.

The band in question is one of the many funky rock groups that seemed to be popping up everywhere like mushrooms in the late 60s and early 70s, in this case going by the name Melting Pot.

I don’t know for sure where they hailed from, but since they were part of Phil Walden’s stable, my first guess would be somewhere in Georgia or the surrounding area.

They recorded at least one LP and a pair of 45s for the short-lived Ampex label in 1970 and 1971, and today’s selection is especially interesting because of its provenance.

If you hadn’t already figured it out (perhaps having had the initial diggers reaction to this 45, i.e. ‘I did not know Kool and the Gang covered ‘Melting Pot’…) , the song ‘Kool and the Gang’ is in fact a cover of the song of the same name by the band of the same name, that of course also being the funkiest of all New jersey bands, the mighty Kool and the Gang.

The original recording of ‘Kool and the Gang’ was a minor hit during the summer of 1969, which is probably where Melting Pot picked it up. Melting Pot lay the cover down at about twice the speed of the original.

I haven’t heard any of their vocal tracks, but descriptions I’ve read seem to indicate that Melting Pot were operating in a Blood Sweat and Tears-y vein.

That said, this is most definitely a burner, the perfect accompaniment for the blazing hot weather we’re dealing with all of a sudden.

I hope you dig it, and I’ll see you all on Monday.

Peace

Larry

Also, make sure that you check out the POAC link below (click on the logo). It’s a fantastic organization that provides services to our local autism community, with education and recr events, and any contribution you could make would be greatly appreciated.

If you want one of the new Funky16Corners stickers (free, of course) click here for info.

Check out the Funky16Corners Store at Cafe Press

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (3)

By Larry, May 17, 2011 11:40 am

Mr John Alexander Veliotes

Listen/Download – Shuggie Otis – Ice Cold Daydream

Greetings all.

I’m sitting here, looking out the windows of the Funky16Corners Blogcasting Nerve Center and Record Vault, looking at yet another grey, wet spring day and finding some small consolation in the fact that at least it’s not also freezing out.

So far the spring has been a huge letdown, with any sunshine or warmth generally coinciding with other responsibilities that preclude outdoor recreation. I know it will probably resolve itself and I’ll be bitching about the heat before long, but it’s just a drag.

Blaarrrghhh….

There…now that I have that out of my system, I should mention that next Monday, 5/23 I’ll be taking my 45 box back up to Spindletop @ Botanica to join my man Perry Lane for some of the most excellent sounds you’ve come to expect from that night. I have some interesting things in mind, so if you’re in the neighborhood drop by and grab yourself a barstool and something cold to drink so that you might soak up the vinyl goodness.

It’s also looking like the acquisition of some crucial equipment is in the offing, that should make the Funky16Corners Mobile Sound System (for all your soulful and funky needs) complete, so if you have a shindig coming up for which the addition of the best in funk, soul, jazz and rare groove would serve as the complement to the proceedings, drop me a line.

That said, the tune I bring you today is something upbeat and very groovy from the mighty Shuggie Otis.

Shuggie is a very interesting cat indeed. Son of Johnny, talented guitarist, songwriter and performer, Shuggie Otis was performing and recording at his father’s side from his very early teens, playing guitar on funky jams like ‘Watts Breakaway’ and ‘Country Girl’ (as well as stuff like Preston Love’s ‘Cool-Aid’) before heading into the studio and recording two of the great lost classics of the 70s, ‘Freedom Flight’ in 1971 and ‘Inspiration Information’ in 1974 (in actuality his third and fourth solo albums, his earlier stuff being mainly blues).

Though these records didn’t make much of dent in the public consciousness at the time,  the Brothers Johnson’s faithful cover of Shuggie’s ‘Strawberry Letter 23’ hit big on both the R&B and Pop charts in 1977, putting a little cash in Shuggie’s wallet.

Shuggie was all but forgotten when, in 2001 David Byrne’s Luaka Bop label reissued ‘Inspiration Information’ (with several tracks from ‘Freedom Flight’, including today’s selection), restoring him in the public consciousness, at least to the point where he became a respected cult figure.

At the time the hype machine was going full blast, with various and sundry alt-world figures hailing Shuggie as the great lost genius, and his music as some kind of ‘whole new thing’ that the world had missed the first time around.

While these albums are very cool, and evidence of a serious talent, the sounds on them are not without precedent. The early 70s was full of genre splicing/crossing artists (especially Sly Stone), mixing the same basic ingredients in different ways.

This isn’t to take anything away from Shuggie’s talent, or the quality of these two albums especially, which are both very cool, but rather an indicator that if they are new to you, they should be ingested with the hype pushed to the side.

‘Ice Cold Daydream’ was the flipside of Shuggie’s original version of ‘Strawberry Letter 23’ in 1971, and it’s a great example of the stew he was cooking, mixing funk, soul and rock sounds.

The tune rolls over a stop/start rhythm with a percolating Hammond organ running underneath, jumping repeatedly to an uptempo section with some groovy fuzz guitar. You can hear bits of Sly, Jimi Hendrix and Curtis Mayfield, but never so much that Shuggie’s vision is obscured.

Currently, of the two albums in question, only ‘Freedom Flight’ is available on iTunes, though you can get ‘Inspiration Information’ (which is out of print) fairly cheaply. Both ‘Freedom Flight’ and ‘Inspiration Information’ have also been reissued on vinyl as well.

I hope you dig the tune, and I’ll be back on Friday.

Peace

Larry

Also, make sure that you check out the POAC link below (click on the logo). It’s a fantastic organization that provides services to our local autism community, with education and recr events, and any contribution you could make would be greatly appreciated.

If you want one of the new Funky16Corners stickers (free, of course) click here for info.

Check out the Funky16Corners Store at Cafe Press

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (1)

By Larry, May 15, 2011 4:39 pm

Sam Butera

Listen/Download – Sam Butera – Love Bandit

Greetings all.

I hope that your world is just as groovy as can be.

I’m coming off a very busy, yet oddly relaxing weekend.

The fam and I managed to hit up a great barbecue where we hung with some very old, end very excellent friends, and I was working on the new annex to the Funky16Corners Blogcasting Nerve Center and Record Vault family of fine interwebs products.

What am I speaking of you ask???

Well, since I’ve been having so much fun doing the weekly Funky16Corners Radio Show over at Viva Radio, and then archiving the shows here at the blog, I got the itch to expand upon the theme.

Initially the thought was to do something like a second, shorter edition of the Funky16Corners Radio Show, to be posted here.

That still may happen, but ultimately I took a different tack, and worked up a show based on the goings on at the other blog in the Funky16Corners family, that being Iron Leg.

Iron Leg – if you haven’t been there – is where I rap about music from the same general time period that I cover here (60s/70s), but the concentration is not on funk and soul, but rather pop and rock, covering garage punk, psychedelia, sunshine pop and the like.

I know that many of the folks that fall by Funky16Corners will not necessarily find those sounds to their liking, but I also know that a lot of you are like me, i.e. musically omnivorous – where all good music is worth hearing – and will dig at least some of what I post at Iron Leg.

That said, the Iron Leg Radio Show will be posted once a month (for now), and since it is not bound by the same time constraints as the Funky16Corners show, will generally in and around 90 minutes (though this inaugural episode runs over two hours).

If this sounds like a bag you might find yourself in, motor on over to Iron Leg to check out the playlist, and if that tickles your fancy, pull down the ones and zeros and give it a listen.

I think you’ll dig it.

Now, here at Funky16Corners, I figured I’d open things up this week with something interesting, so adjust your reading glasses and your earholes and get yourself some Sam Butera.

I’ve covered the late, great Mr. Butera here a number of times, mainly in his capacity as the bandleader for the equally late, also great Louis Prima.

Though Prima and Butera are mainly known for a very swinging variety of jump jazz (the very root of rock and roll), as the years wore on, and stylistic relevance outpaced their old sound, Prima and the Witnesses – the backing band usually billed as ‘Sam Butera and …’ – recorded some funky stuff, usually for Prima’s custom label.

Though billed as ‘Love Bandit’, what you’re actually hearing here is a funky reworking of Johnny Guitar Watson’s R&B classic ‘Gangster of Love’ (though the Cadets also recorded the song in 1956 with the ‘Love Bandit’ title).

Interestingly, though Butera and the Cadets before him used the same basic set of lyrics as Watson, neither one uses his tune.

Butera’s version takes the song at a funky, sock soul pace and Sam plays up the humorous aspect of the lyrics with a band that I assume has to be the Witnesses and some female backing singers.

The arranger Maxwell Davis and the producer Bill Lazerus both spent a lot of years working at Modern Records on records by folks like Lowell Fulsom and BB King.

I have no hard data on when this was released, but I have seen a discography for the Coliseum label – which features some jazz artists like Count Basie and others that look like studio orchestras covering pop hits – with material that would seem to place this in the range of 1966 or 1967. This is only an educated guess, so if any of you good folks know for sure, and I’m wrong, please let me know.

Anyhoo, I hope you dig it, and I’ll be back on Wednesday with something cool.

Peace

Larry

Also, make sure that you check out the POAC link below (click on the logo). It’s a fantastic organization that provides services to our local autism community, with education and recr events, and any contribution you could make would be greatly appreciated.

If you want one of the new Funky16Corners stickers (free, of course) click here for info.

Check out the Funky16Corners Store at Cafe Press

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.