ODDS ‘N’ BODS
BRANDI WELLS ‘What Goes Around Comes Around’ / ‘Watch Out’ are already on PRT-distributed UK 12in promo back-to-back (Brandi incidentally was in Slick of ‘Space Bass’ fame) . . . ‘D’ Train ‘You’re The One For Me’, a dramatic chart riser this week (note it’s the instrumental that’s the hot side), will be out here late next month, but amazingly the Jones Girls’ big-selling import album is unscheduled . . . Richard ‘Dimples’ Fields’ ultra soulful ‘She’s Got Papers On Me’ will be edited for 7in only issue as flip to ‘I’ve Got To Learn To Say No’ on January 8th — surely a full 12in could have been a smash? — while the same date sees a 3-track 12in from Earth Wind & Fire of ‘I’ve Had Enough’ / ‘Sparkle’ / ‘Let’s Groove (Remix)’ . . . Mirage ‘As From Now’ is on 121-125bpm white label 12in at any rate . . . Kraftwerk ‘The Model’ / ‘Computer Love’ (EMI 12in) has been relaunched with a new picture sleeve, which should please Leicester’s HMV Shop at least! . . . Aneka ‘Japanese Boy’ is on remixed US Handshake 12in, Laurie Anderson ‘O Superman’ in the States is on both 33 1/3 rpm 7in and 45 rpm 12in, while Herbie Hancock ‘Magic Number’ has been remixed for US 12in promo . . . US Warner Bros has started a slightly rock orientated Video Club subscription rental scheme for American discos to hire at 60 dollars for 8 months their specially compiled promo-only various artists video tapes, which do include black acts, with 5 second gaps between numbers so the video can run as a complete 30 minute programme or be individually cued . . . Rush Release in fact next month start their own similar video promotion service, which will be kept to a maximum of 100 subscribers . . . CBS entertained a gaggle of DJs last Tuesday lunchtime to launch the ‘Second Suite’ and ‘Ace Of Clubs’ albums, Bournemouth’s Steve Glover and Wigan’s Greg Wilson both arriving late after learning the hard way that it had been snowing in the South-East! . . . Second Image at Mayfair Gullivers last Wednesday were much improved if only really exciting on a rap number and in a call-and-answer audience participation part which ended with the tongue twisting bit from ‘The Lone Ranger’, their encore then culminating as a jam with Heatwave’s Keith Wilder, Imagination’s Errol Kennedy, Carl Douglas, and the cool and soulful Lloyd Charmers . . . Gullivers’ two special parties with dirt cheap drink on recent Mondays were such a success that now every Monday the drinks are 50p . . . Liverpool’s first all-dayer for two years at the Warehouse recently saw Mike Davidson, Frank Cookson, Gary St Clair and Gary Allan spinning solid funk for 12 solid hours to a good attendance with — and this is the story, really — no trouble at all . . . Steve Dennis, undaunted by criticism of the Edgbaston Faces DJ Convention, is planning another for next year with the promise, “And now . . . Something Completely Different” . . . Paul Anthony has moved to Wolverhampton’s new de-luxe Eve’s in Showell Road, where with two lighting engineers he handles the large rooms two dancefloors, while Dave Tee jocks the small room . . . Chris Stewart & Roger Allen hint that Londoners could broaden their soul radio ‘Horizon’ by tuning to 94.4 FM on Sunday evenings after 7pm . . . Roger Squire’s London shop is busy advertising legal CB rigs on Capital Radio . . . Sheffield DJ Jim Kershaw will be presenting his own ‘History Of Reggae’ over six weeks on Radio Hallam in the new year, the first show in the series concentrating on the calypso and mento era with lots of rare oldies . . . Blackburn’s Martin Platts, whose real ambition is eventually to beat the Trans-America running record of 46 days 13 hours, clarifies that on his John O’Groats to Lands End run his accompanying four roadshow DJs will not be there to run as well, but to raise funds while he’s running . . . Nigel Porter of Leicester has a theory that his home town’s discos lack imagination and variety because of the strong live music scene at such major venues as the university, polytechnic, and DeMontfort Hall, as well as at many small clubs and pubs, while Leicester DJs tend to toe a safe management line without establishing any character of their own — it also takes ages for records to catch on there, and old Motown singles still outsell many of today’s lesser hits! . . . James Brown contrary to reports of his age during his recent visit here, was in fact born in May 1928 . . . Anthony Godden (Earls Court) points out the similarity of Kim Wilde’s ‘Cambodia’ to Peter Jacques Band ‘Welcome Back’ . . . Alan Donald (Rothesay) says the Pretenders ‘I Go To Sleep’, Springfield / Warwick sound notwithstanding, was on Cher’s first solo album — admittedly right in the era it still reeks of . . . Alan incidentally has an AMI Continental jukebox for sale, and will put up anyone trekking out to buy it (call 0700-3696 / 4673) . . . Alan Coulthard (Marble Arch Dial 9) will pay full price for two second-hand Technics SL-1500 turntables (the digital vari-speed readout model), call him on 01-485 8744 (room E67) — he also says two copies of Alton Edwards synched two beats apart gives a dynamite effect . . . Gladys Knight’s ‘Reach High’ is sensational out of Mike & Brenda Sutton . . . Sally Marsh (Burgess Hill) sez forget Froggy (she’s actually less polite than that), the best mixer in Britain is Steve West at Basingstoke Martines! . . . John Grant really did retire permanently from jocking in the North-West — he’s now, honestly, the harbour master at Newhaven! . . . Lee Taylor, languishing at Scheveningen’s Kurhaus Club in Holland, sends love to Michelle . . . Weeks & Co. ‘Rock Your World’, belatedly hitting the chart (it’s the one with Beggar & Co rip-off chants), actually works out at 116(intro)-118-116-118-117(break)-118-117-118bpm . . . Blue Rondo A La Turk, still strong in the clubs, had an amazingly short Top 75 life . . . PRT distributed product like Grandmaster Flash can’t be reviewed as I don’t have it . . . Sandy Martin (Swindon Brunel Rooms) is now, oh gawd, learning the bagpipes specially for New Year’s Eve! . . . Liz Bailey (Leicester) was the first to send a Christmas card — to her and all the other subsequent kind senders, very many thanks indeed . . . Davy King (Ballymena Raglan), who presumably knows, says Santa must be Irish because with all the doors and windows about he still comes down the chimney! . . . KEEP KOOL!
ALTON EDWARDS looks set to give Kool & The Gang’s ‘Get Down On It’ a big fight at the top of the disco chart in the coming weeks with his ‘I Just Wanna (Spend Some Time With You)‘. One thing that is consistently said of the Zimbabwe-born soulster is that wherever he does a PA, his record then becomes one of the top requests . . . which may explain why it’s already the number one seller in London.
UK NEWIES
KOOL & THE GANG: ‘Get Down On It’ (De-Lite DEX 5).
Nicely timed to be a Christmas chart topper, this terrific heavily thudding infectious 110-111bpm 12in funk bumper is also in certain circles sung as “Suck My Helmet” (“oh all right then”) and accompanied by a downwards pointing gesture during the title line chorus! A consistently huge request in hip clubs for ages, it’s now flipped by the atmospheric moody slow original studio version of ‘Summer Madness’.
K.I.D.: ‘You Don’t Like My Music’ (Excaliber EXCL 515).
Appalling re-edited 118bpm vocal version of ‘Hupendi Muziki Wangu?!’ replaces the original instrumental’s magic with awful zingy Liquid Gold-type over obvious Wally appeal — however, the 3-track 12in is flipped by the great weirdly introed percussively building madly catchy jauntily bounding 119bpm instrumental original (terrific out of Bohannon), and the mundane chanting 119bpm ‘It’s Hot (Take It To The Top)‘.
J WALTER NEGRO & THE LOOSE JOINTZ: ‘Shoot The Pump’ (Zoo York 12WIP 6765).
All about the dangers of letting off fire hydrants to gush cooling water into New York’s sizzling summer streets, this second cousin to Kid Creole is a great slightly salsa-style semi-rapped 121bpm 12in rattling and thudding jiggler with lotsa dialogue and effects all wrapped up in a gimmicky pictorial sleeve. Right, that’s the import review from three months ago which had such underwhelming effect until this got sent out for free to rave reaction. Bah! Continue reading “December 19, 1981: Kool & The Gang, K.I.D, J. Walter Negro, Lamont Dozier, Kryptic Krew”
