Nina Simone ‘Forbidden Fruit’
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Work Song” by Nina Simone Here’s one that was released the year I was born, yet it sounds as hip and current as, well, I am. OK, it is hipper and more current than I am, but it goes to show just how timeless Nina Simone’s recordings really were. Simone’s interpretive talents as a singer and piano player earned her the nickname, “The High Priestess Of Soul,” and put her right up there with greats like Anita O’Day, Odetta, Sarah Vaughan and Judy Henske, who all possess a similar earthy style. She was a terrific songwriter, comfortable mingling soul, gospel, folk and blues into a stew that was uniquely her...
Marvin Gaye ‘M.P.G.’
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Only A Lonely Man Would Know” by Marvin Gaye The Marvin Gaye albums What’s Going On, Let’s Get It On and Here, My Dear are considered to be his finest by fans and critics alike, and it would be hard to argue the contrary with what’s in the grooves. But it mystifies me that the critics fail to mention the album M.P.G. in the same breath as the others. M.P.G. came out in April of 1969, and was one of Marvin Gaye’s last records before he took the control of his career away from Motown, and began calling the shots himself. That said, M.P.G. (for Marvin Pentz Gaye, not miles...
Arthur Alexander ‘Soldier of Love’
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Soldier Of Love (Lay Down Your Arms)” by Arthur Alexander He’s the only artist to be covered by the holy trinity of Elvis Presley, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan. Others who rushed to his deep well of first-rate copyrights included The Hollies, Ry Cooder, Pearl Jam, Ike & Tina Turner, Marshall Crenshaw, George Jones, Otis Redding, The Bee Gees, Humble Pie, and Dusty Springfield, and that’s only a small sampling of those who have recorded his tunes. Yet, Arthur Alexander, the man who wrote such classics as “Anna (Go To Him),” “You Better Move On,” “Sally Sue Brown,” “Detroit City,” “A Shot Of Rhythm And Blues” and...
Odetta ‘Odetta Sings’
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Hit Or Miss” by Odetta Odetta! Voice of the Civil Rights Movement? Roots mama? Gospel great? Soul queen? Hip hop hottie? The answer, of course is yes! Actually, most people don’t remember who Odetta was. But if you are of a certain age (which is certainly older than I am) and was a fan of folk music, Odetta was your hero. She was an activist, actress and an influence on any folk singer worth his weight in salt…including Dylan, Baez, Belafonte, Ochs, Neil and numerous others. She was in the thick of things, right there at the March onWashingtonin 1963. Martin Luther King dubbed her “The queen of American...
The Golden Toadstools ‘Silly Savage’
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Silly Savage” by The Golden Toadstools “Chuck Berry, strawberry, cranberry and dingleberry, baby!” And so begins one of the most funked-up romps I’ve ever heard this side of the Godfather Of Soul himself! Next to nothing is known about The Golden Toadstools, who originally released this one-off record written by Merlin Jones and Wayne Branham back in 1966. After doing much research I couldn’t come up with any information about who Jones and Branham are, who the group was or where they were from. All I could find is information about the record label that released this one of a kind record, which duly follows. The record was released on...
Lou Rawls and the Les McCann Trio ‘Blues is a Woman’
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Blues Is A Woman” by Lou Rawls with The Les McCann Trio Most people remember Lou Rawls for his silky-smooth vocal delivery and his disco era hit “You’ll Never Find Another Love Like Mine,” but by the time he had that hit in 1976, Rawls had already been recording albums, and yes many hits, for 14 years. Chicagoborn Rawls got his start by replacing Sam Cooke in the Gospel group (and Vee-Jay recording artists), The Highway QC’s. After a stint in the Army, Rawls joined the Gospel group, Pilgrim Travelers. While on the road with Sam Cooke and The Travelers, Rawls was in a serious car accident that left him...
Andre Williams “Hoods and Shades”
Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#640) Andre Williams, Hoods and Shades (Bloodshot Records) The story of Zaphire “Andre” Williams, or as comedian Red Foxx famously nicknamed him, “Mr. Rhythm”, is harsh in its simplicity; yet at the same time it is a complex cautionary tale about how to navigate the streets and traverse the backrooms, back alleys, and juke joints where the blues is a way of life not just a musical genre, and where the means don’t always justify the end, but they certainly can pay the bills. Andre Williams was “The Man” from his early purple suit wearing days in the mid 1950’s and on into the 1960’s when he was a song slinging crooner...
JC Brooks and the Uptown Sound “Want More”
Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#560 in the Series) is JC Brooks and the Uptown Sound, Want More (Bloodshot Records)– NEW MUSIC REVIEW Not since The White Album has an album been more appropriately named than Want More, the groups second album, and first since signing with the eclectically cool record label Bloodshot Records, from the Chicago based neo-soul band JC Brooks and the Uptown Sound. Consider yourself warned, with the look of a slightly aged Sam Cooke along with his Otis Redding with an edge vocal style, JC Brooks and his band are poised to kidnap your ears, grab your feet, borrow your soul, and take you down a retro rabbit hole you haven’t travelled since James Brown,...
Was (Not Was) “What Up, Dog?”
——————————————————————————————- Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#506 in the Series) is Was (Not Was), What Up, Dog? Have you heard this one? I’m guessing many of you have not. Well, you may have heard one of the singles, “Walk the Dinosaur” or “Spy In the House of Love,” but like many great albums, the singles don’t tell the story. Was (Not Was) is the brainchild of Don Was and David Was. Two outstanding producers/musicians. Don Was has done many things you’ve heard. From the great Bonnie Raitt album, Nick of Time to The Rolling Stones. The majority of this album is a hard funk/ jazz sound, with a couple great ballads tossed in. The band’s sense of humor...
Bill Withers “Just As I Am”
Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#505 in the Series) is Bill Withers, Just As I Am By all rights the Bill Withers album Just As I Am should never have been made. It’s not that the talent was not here, it certainly was, it’s just that it is not often that when a record company needs to take promotional pictures for an album that they have to work around the artist’s break times during his 8-5 job at a Boeing plant making airplane toilets. In 1967 Bill Withers, fresh from a discharge from the Navy and bolstered by his fellow sailor’s encouragement and recognition of his talent, moved to the west coast to make some demo records...
