Category: Garage Soul

The Countdown Five – Shaka Shaka Na Na

By , January 15, 2017 11:37 am

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The Countdown Five

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Listen/Download – Countdown Five – Shaka Shaka Na Na MP3

Greetings all.

The beginning of the week is here and I have something groovy for you.

Those of you that have followed the Funky16Corners blog for while, checked out my mixes, or heard me spin 45s in person, know that I have a taste for what might otherwise be termed ‘garage or bubblegum soul’ i.e. white rock bands laying down soulful party starters.

I started out collecting garage punk 45s way back in the day and most of those bands incorporated soul and R&B material into their playlists, covered those songs on record, and often came up with their own bangers.

Among my faves are tunes like ‘Shake’ by the Shadows of Knight, and ‘Sally Had a Party’ by Flavor (featured here a while back).

Not all that long ago my man Emery blew my mind with a tune that I had never heard by a group that I was already familiar with.

The band was Texas sixties punkers the Countdown Five, and the tune was ‘Shaka Shaka Na Na’.

The Countdown Five formed in Texas in the unlikely sounding Galveston suburb of Texas City, Texas.

They recorded a number of 45s during the 60s, including the oft-comped classic ‘Uncle Kirby’ (1967).

‘Shaka Shaka Na Na’ is a banger of the first order, sounding like a more soulful cousin of the Easybeats ‘Good Times’ (released the previous year), with fuzz guitar, organ (keyboardist Mack Hayes wrote the song) and a wailing sing-a-long chorus. It’s a great mix of fuzz, bubblegummy simplicity and soul, and a very groovy number indeed.

It was the band’s last 45, and though it wasn’t a hit, it got issued on no less than six countries!

The US issue is on the Buddah subsidiary Cobblestone, and isn’t too pricy or hard to find.

So grab yourself a copy, slip it into your playbox and dance!

See you on Wednesday

Keep the faith

Larry

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived! The stickers are 4″ x 3″ and printed on high quality, glossy stock. They are $2.00 each, with free shipping in the US ($2.00 per order shipping outside of the US). Click here to go to the ordering page.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Funky16Corners Pays Tribute to Billy Miller

By , January 3, 2017 11:56 am

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Original artwork by Tim Smith

Mighty Hannibal – Jerkin’ the Dog (Shurfine)
Andre Williams – Rib Tips (Avin)
Andre Williams – Cadillac Jack (Checker)
Bunker Hill – Hide and Go Seek (Intermission)
Jon Thomas – Hot Tip (Mercury)

Nathaniel Mayer and the Fabulous Twilights – Village of Love (Fortune)
Dr Ross – Cat Squirrel (Fortune)
Arthur Griswold – Pretty Mama Blues (Fortune)
Dave Hamilton and his Peppers – The Beatle Walk (Fortune)

Sparkletones – Black Slacks (ABC-Paramount)
Carl Holmes and the Commanders – Mashed Potatoees Pt1 (Atlantic)
Duals – Oozy Groove (Infinity)
Kipper and the Exciters – Drum Twist (Torch)
Marvelle and the Blue Mats – A Dance Called the Motion (Dynamic Sound)

Bobby Parker – Watch Your Step (V-Tone)
Rivingtons – Papa Ooo Mow Mow (Liberty)
Turtles – Buzz Saw (White Whale)
Eskew Reeder – Green Door (Minit)
Magnificent Malochi – Mama Your Daddy’s Come Home (Brunswick)

Listen/Download – Funky16Corners Pays Tribute to Billy Miller from the WFMU Rock and Soul Ichiban Stream 1/1/17 MP3

Greetings all.

What you see before you today is a downloadable version of a radio show I put together for the WFMU Rock and Soul Ichiban Stream, which ran this past Sunday, January 1, 2017.

The grand poobah of the WFMU/Ichiban, Debbie D asked me to participate in a five hour long birthday tribute to the great Billy Miller, who passed away this past November.

As explained in a post I wrote just after he died, Billy and his wife Miriam Linna were a huge influence on my own musical and pop cultural sensibilities starting in the early 80s via their mighty zine Kicks and later through their work with their label Norton Records.

Norton/Kicks were devoted to plumbing the depths of musical history and paying overdue tribute to some of the wildest, largely unsung artists ever to make records, in garage punk, rockabilly, R&B, soul, surf and beat.

When Debbie asked me to put together a portion of the birthday tribute, I wanted to assemble a collection that reflected the vibe that Billy and Miriam put out into the world and its effect on my own work at Funky16Corners and Iron Leg.

This hour-long set includes plenty of soul and R&B, but also some stuff you wouldn’t normally hear at Funky16Corners, including some rockabilly, and early rock instros.

I think it all fits together well, and I hope you dig it.

So pull down the ones and zeros, and I’ll see you all on Friday.

Keep the faith

Larry

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived! The stickers are 4″ x 3″ and printed on high quality, glossy stock. They are $2.00 each, with free shipping in the US ($2.00 per order shipping outside of the US). Click here to go to the ordering page.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

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