ODDS ‘N’ BODS
NOT ONLY all of Maze but four from Earth Wind & Fire spent last Saturday at Mayfair’s Gullivers, helping create the best vibe Graham Gold and myself have enjoyed for ages — In fact, Maze’s Frankie Beverly said he didn’t like discos and would only stay for half an hour, but was still in the club half an hour after we’d closed . . . Ray Shell & The Street Angels, live at Gully’s all the rest of last week, have improved enormously and are now well worth seeing . . . Showstoppers’ ninth Caister weekender this Fri/Sat/Sunday includes Chris Hill & Robbie Vincent’s “alternative” appalling talent contest, so prospective contestants should go prepared — and don’t forget an FM radio, towels, matches, bog paper and all the usual necessities (sadly I have to stay home so my new flat can be measured for carpets!) . . . Caister being early this Spring, to accommodate Showstoppers’ St Tropez trip in May (21-30), another rival weekender over the May Day holiday (Friday 30 April-Monday 3 May) could be an attraction too — run by Concorde Entertainments, it stars Shakatak, Morrissey Mullen, Steve Walsh, Mike Allen and many more, at Camber Sands Pontins camp near Rye . . . The Old Grey Whistle Test on Saturday 3rd April relays live a Rick James concert as it happens in Germany — so clubs with videos, be prepared (Rick himself will be in town the following week) . . . Marvin Gaye as long speculated has indeed signed with CBS . . . Brandi Wells will tour here in May, an excellent 114bpm Nick Martinelli remix of ‘What Goes Around Comes Around‘ with new muted trumpet being due in three weeks but on promo sooner . . . Alton Edwards, lost by Morgan Khan’s Streetwave label to Epic, has been handing out a few unfinished acetates of his upcoming ‘Strange Woman’, a sneaky not immediately exciting but subtly growing 108bpm slinker with strong catchy tune and more of that great bass synth . . . Sharon Brown has been snapped up by Mick Clark for Virgin release in a fortnight, when Fat Larry’s Band will be on 3-track 12in too, while Linda Taylor ‘You And Me Just Started’ is due on Groove Production next week with a percussive “New York disco” remix flip (incidentally, there’ll be one of those New York radio remixes of Sharon Brown for a select few) . . . Chas Jankel’s US disco chart-topping ‘Glad To Know You’ is due here now, but will it be the Disconet version? . . . Edgbaston Faces French has a plant filled garden decor in its redesigned Club Jardine, which presumably they named to be French for Garden, so why the superfluous “e”? . . . Discoscene ’82, the fifth successive annual Midlands exhibition for both club and mobile equipment, will be on Sunday 9th May at Solihull’s St John’s Hotel, noon to 7pm, details from Merlin Management’s Terry Lees on 021-707 1925 (including evenings) . . . Rush Release move imminently to 65 Bedford Hill, London SW12 . . . Medway Rain Forest Missionaries finally got their tribal fanzine ‘Woah Cry and Young Soul’dier’ out for Christmas in February, and it really is an impressive one with quite a few good in-joke belly laughs (there’s an even newer Caister edition promised too) . . . Frenchie (Blackpool) says that Universal Robot Band are in fact most of Logg, whose Dutch Rams Horn 12in remix of ‘Dancing Into The Stars‘ is massive in Bristol, according to Martin Starr (I’ve yet to encounter it) . . . Gary Oldis, packing ’em in Fri/Sat/Sundays at Aycliffe Bee Jays Country Club, revives Al Hudson ‘Spread Love‘ . . . Roger Dynamite did a live link up with Radio Luxembourg from Yarmouth Tiffany’s last Thursday . . . Liverpool McMillans Gary Allan (7 Gatley Drive, Maghull, Near Liverpool, L31 3DH / phone 051-526 5407) needs to buy a full set of the last three months’ Music Week . . . Peter Lewis obviously reads Billboard! . . . Watford Baileys Chris Britton (16 Portland House, Arnison Avenue, High Wycombe, Bucks) has 12in rarities and albums for sale (send SAE) . . . Brian ‘Bazzer’ Mason got that Watford New Penny gig, and will be swinging Saturdays around to a more soulful mix . . . King Enri (ta for the quid!) wants George Power and any jazz-funk-soul bands who’d like a gig at Catford’s Saxon Tavern to ring him office hours on 01-761 1109 . . . Alan Costa says Brighton Kings II now has live jazz bands every Thursday for members and their guests . . . Nick Ratcliffe finds fast instrumentals are what the funk fans like at Egham Olivers (Sat), Hasiemere Good Knight Country Club (Fri/Sun), Camberley Ragamuffins (Tues), and more futuristic Reading Rebecca’s (Thurs) — busy lad! . . . Kasso ‘Kasso‘ is Tricky Dicky’s big numero uno at all five of his London gay venues — Euston Tavern/Spats (Fri/Sat), Stratford Pigeons (Sat), Camberwell Union Tavern (Tues/Thurs), Tottenham Eltons (Wed) . . . Flash Gordon (Bristol Misty’s) can’t identify a reggae version of ‘Some Guys Have All The Luck’ listed as from the ‘Crucial Reggae’ LP on an Island promo LP from autumn ’80 — any ideas? . . . Craig Dawson (Edinburgh Road Runner mobiles), full of info about Holland, says Dutch radio Hilversum 3 and even TV feature a lot of disco and funk, TV devoting nearly a quarter of its airtime to music shows . . . Nina Simone is a Capital Climber this week — and Morrissey Mullen must be non-needletime now, to judge from the amount it’s been played on Capital recently! . . . Tommy ‘Hi-Heel Sneakers’ Tucker died in January from inhaling carbon tetrachloride fumes while re-varnishing his floors . . . Ernie Maresca’s 1962 ‘Shout Shout’, which for years I’ve been saying could be a rock ‘n’ roll revivalist group hit now, has finally been done (and performed on ‘OTT’) by Rocky Sharpe & The Replays . . . Eagle ain’t what it was . . . Xavier ‘Rock Me Sock Me’ needs a less bassy remix (incidentally, ‘Love Is On The One’ is way out ahead of ‘Sucker’, popularity-wise) . . . Hot Quisine is 122bpm . . . Irakere ‘Chekere Son‘ is my massive number one — chopped into at the baritone sax, it’s dynamite in all sorts of ways but try it out of Bros Johnson ‘Stomp’ bass break, then follow by chopping to ‘Fungi Mama’ . . . One Way ‘Give Me One More Chance’ / Hall & Oates / Gangsters ‘Strung Out On The Boogie’ vari-synch well, as do Patrice Rushen / Atlantic Starr / Maxine Singleton . . . I’ve now heard of at least eight people who’ve been threatened with violence by a certain wig wearer! . . . to quote Bobby Marchan’s 1965 ‘Get Down With It’: “If you can’t let your hair down — TAKE IT OFF!”
PHOENIX HORNS ESQUIRE, Earth Wind & Fire’s brass section, took time out between their London shows last week to lay down the blasts and honks on the awesome tracks Richard Jones has been producing for a Streetwave release by Patrick Boothe, white labels being optimistically expected this week of Patrick’s brassily loping 112½bpm ‘(I Just Wanna) Dance All Night With You‘ (which should mix nicely with George Benson’s ‘Give Me The Night’ and ‘Never Give Up On A Good Thing’ as it’s very similar), his slower ‘Never Knew Love Like This Before‘ being held back for follow-up release.
UK NEWIES
QUINCY JONES: ‘The Dude’ (A&M AMSX 8207).
Finally the Grammy-winning superb slinky Bob James-ish Rod Temperton co-penned James Ingram/vocoder/chix-sung subtle Stevie Wonder-synthesized 96bpm groove appears on 12in with Ingram’s US hit dead slow ‘Just Once’ and 45bpm ‘One Hundred Ways’ as 2-track flip.
WAS (NOT WAS): ‘Tell Me That I’m Dreaming’ (Ze 12WIP 6776).
Jauntily tongue in cheek infectious driving 118bpm 12in funk smacker with gals/guys interplaying chant lines interrupted by some comic cut-ups of Ronald Reagan saying “Can we who man the ship of state deny it is somewhat out of control”, the flip’s instrumental version chop seguing into a 124bpm smacking dub of ‘Out Come The Freaks’.
THE CAGE featuring NONA HENDRYX: ‘Do What Ya Wanna Do’ (Metropolis 12WIP 6769, via Island).
Rusty Egan’s synthetically smacking energy charged 127bpm T-Connection remake is wailed by the ex-LaBelle lady or to my mind even better in the “Hum A Luongo Dance Mix’ instrumental dub version, on 3-track 12in with the almost jazz-funky choppily jittering brass and guitar instrumental 128-123-127-129bpm ‘The Slammer‘. Continue reading “March 27, 1982: Quincy Jones, Was (Not Was), The Cage ft Nona Hendryx, Patrice Rushen, Fat Larry’s Band, Frankie Beverly interview”
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