DICKIE GOODMAN: Energy Crisis ’74 (Rainy Wednesday RW 206).
The latest pastiche from the man who brought you “Flying Saucer” in ’56 and “Super Fly Meets Shaft” in ’73 is this typical mixture of “radio interviewer” questions and pertinent answers snipped from actual Pop hits of the moment. Thus the President is heard to answer questions concerning the current energy crisis in the voices of Helen Reddy, Brownsville Station, Stevie Wonder (very clever that one: “How much gas will motorists be allowed?” – “Just enough for the city”), Wings, and John Lennon. Other participants are Steve Miller, Elton John, Todd Rundgren, Ringo Starr, Charlie Rich, and the Carpenters. As the President (Helen Reddy) keeps saying when asked for a statement, “Leave me alone, leave me alone”!
SPINNERS: Mighty Love, Parts 1 & 2 (Atlantic 45-3006).
As by now you should have come to expect, the Spinners (Detroit variety) are yet again arranged / conducted / produced / created and toilet trained by Thom Bell . . . who, to my mind, is losing his touch, or else just becoming too predictable by half in his approach. There is nothing in this yelpingly-sung matt drums-propelled cooing chugger to warrant its being spread over two sides of a single. It sounds as if Thom and the lead singer (the rest seem to have been replaced by girls again) have been listening hard to Al Green and then applying what they’ve learnt to a Philly framework.
BLACK HEAT: No Time To Burn (Atlantic 45-2987).
Best R&B record of the week, produced by Joel Dorn and arranged by the group themselves, this slow burner of a hunky-chunky funker is full of searing synthesizer phasing, a rattling and booming ambiguous rhythm pattern, chanting back-up singing and a keening hollered and strained lead vocal line intertwined amidst all the other choppy noises. If you hadn’t guessed from my tortuous verbiage, I kinda like it! Continue reading “February 16, 1974: Dickie Goodman, Spinners, Black Heat, Fred Wesley & The J.B.’s, Cooker”
GORDON SINCLAIR: The Americans (A Canadian’s Opinion) (Avco AV 4628).
After going into great detail a couple of weeks ago about this Canadian’s “go it alone” call to Americans, and especially about Byron MacGregor’s best selling of the three hit versions (the other is by Tex Ritter), I now have heard properly this, the actual original version by the aged veteran Canadian broadcaster, television performer and political commentator who wrote and read his editorializing words over his own influential Toronto radio station CFRB on June 5th last year . . . and I must say that I prefer it. Instead of the deadpan radio announcer’s delivery of MacGregor, Sinclair speaks as if he really means and believes what he is saying, making in the process his politically potent opinions and observations far more palatable. When he says “And I was there – I saw that”, he sounds for real, unlike MacGregor, who only sounds risibly like Wink Martindale. Unlike the MacGregor version’s backing of “America The Beautiful”, Sinclair is supported on his reading by “The Battle Hymn Of The Republic” (and, at 4:40, takes nearly a minute longer to say the same words). As I reported before, Phonogram have the rights to both versions but do not so far plan to release either here. Having changed my mind slightly about their commercial appeal here, I now side with Capital Radio’s Tim Rice (who played a snatch of this very record on his US Hot 100 show last Saturday afternoon – all thanks to the RRM!), and think that, if label politics allow it, a back-to-back single of both versions would be viable. Anyway, look out for MacGregor, who’s now recorded “The British” and “God Save The Queen”! Really!
TERRY JACKS: Seasons In The Sun (Bell 52-432).
Another Canadian, Susan’s brother Terry of Poppy Family fame, is also leapfrogging up the US Hot 100 with this slowly chugging Pop treatment of a Rod McKuen-translated Jacques Brel song . . . in fact Terry, who arranged and produced himself (clever lad!), is moving so fast that Rod’s own rush-released reading has already been pipped at the post.
DeFRANCO FAMILY Featuring TONY DeFRANCO: Abra-Ca-Dabra (20th Century TC 2070).
In its first year of reactivation the Russ Regan-run 20th Century (Fox) label has chalked up nine golds (mainly due to Barry White) and one platinum award, the latter for this new ‘teen heart-throb’s singing family’s first hit, “Heartbeat – It’s A Lovebeat”. Little Tony’s newie, full of freaky synthetic effects, squeaky singing and choppy rhythms, is moving steadily enough to end up gold too, at least. Remember, the Osmonds took a surprisingly long time to take off here, so be warned! Incidentally, while on the topic, I’d just like to say how impressed I am by young Ricky Wilde’s current B-side, “Cassette Blues”. He’s like a mini Mick Jagger! Continue reading “February 9, 1974: Gordon Sinclair, Terry Jacks, DeFranco Family, Rick Derringer, Sam Dees”
JIM STAFFORD: Spiders & Snakes (MGM K 14648).
Jim’s previous US hit, “Swamp Witch” – and especially the flipside ageing Rocker’s geriatric “Nifty ‘Fifties Blues” lament – made me suspect that he could be an amusingly original talent, and now my suspicions are confirmed. His new Top Ten smash is a cheekily silly ditty, exaggeratedly enunciated in a chocolatey Country voice to a clucking wah-wah guitar, about a naïve schoolboy’s communication breakdown with the little town flirt . . . y’see, his idea of fun is to slip creepy crawlies down the front of her dress, while she has something else in mind! However, again it’s the flip which really brings home his sense of bizarre humour: it’s a banjo blues, with the odd equally exaggerated vocal that climaxes in the best blues tradition with these emotional words – “Came home the other night, talkin’ to you alone, and you told me he was a nudist . . . who came in to use the ‘phone, ooohh!” Like I said, he’s original and he’s amusing!
TOM T. HALL: I Love (Mercury 73436).
Hottest Country hit of the moment, getting Charlie Rich-type Pop attention, is Tom T.’s self-penned sugary slowie in the “Little Green Apples” / “Honey” mould. He loves little baby ducks, old pick-up trucks, slow moving trains, and rain . . . oh yes, and he loves yew tew. Being vocally more in the Jim Reeves style than in the modern Rich / Twitty sound, he’s even likely to hit here too. Er, sorry, I mean – “tew”.
LAMONT DOZIER: Trying To Hold On To My Woman (ABC 11407).
Lamont is indeed the Dozier from between the two Hollands, now split completely from his old partners and their Invictus label. Considering his past creative successes, it’s maybe surprising to find that his first solo smash is co-penned and produced by McKinley Jackson and not by Lamont himself . . . although this may of course be because of contractual obligations to his past publishers. Anyway, he should worry, as this lazily-lurching emotionally-chorded heart-tugging pure Soul slowie is not only a perfect vehicle for his agonized wailing but also a huge hit, both R&B and Pop. Continue reading “February 2, 1974: Jim Stafford, Tom T. Hall, Lamont Dozier, Natural Four, Diana Ross”
BYRON MacGREGOR: Americans (Westbound W 222).
Occasionally, but with merciful infrequency, America’s “Silent Majority” latch onto some stirringly patriotic single which echoes or amplifies their own sentiments. In 1974, their growing belief in an isolationist policy for America has been fired and fuelled (with, I fear, regrettable results for us) by the editorializing words of a Canadian radio station owner, GORDON SINCLAIR (owner of Toronto’s CFRG-AM), a Canadian who thinks it’s time to speak up for the Americans’ unappreciated generosity to other nations. Looking back as far as the San Francisco earthquake and naming, amongst others, Britain as not having paid off even the interest on its remaining debts to the US, Sinclair has come up with examples such as these to present a biased tally on which he scores off America’s record of foreign aid and supposedly superior engineering technology against the World’s alleged ingratitude and – especially – its lack of reciprocal aid after America’s own natural and economic disasters.
First broadcast, then televised and now recorded, this outsider’s call for America to go it alone has been answered, not only by congratulatory letters from over ten thousand thankful Americans (John Wayne included), but also by at least two cover versions of Sinclair’s original rather sombre single (Avco 4628). The late TEX RITTER’s posthumously-released version (Capitol P 3814) is so far very much the also-ran in comparison with both Sinclair’s and the actual runaway best-selling version by BYRON MacGREGOR. Like Sinclair, MacGregor is also a Canadian broadcaster, being the news director of Windsor’s CKLW-AM/FM – and Windsor being just across the river (and border) from Detroit, is, like Toronto, within radio reach of many Americans. (Its position also helps to explain MacGregor’s perhaps unexpected appearance on the usually R&B-inclined but Detroit-based Westbound label).
Now, despite this big build-up, do not expect the actual record to be anything more than a curiosity: to begin with, it is a recitation, read in an irritatingly grating declamatory yet deadpan “radio” voice to an ever-grinding background of “America The Beautiful”. Some of the phraseology is indeed unintentionally amusing – “I was there, I saw it,” in particular, combines with the overall tone to be devastatingly reminiscent of Wink Martindale’s “Deck Of Cards” (which of course Tex Ritter also recorded) – but ultimately the naïve argument (basically sound though it may be) and its inflammatory style of presentation makes this a dangerously political record, of no musical interest and with no Pop appeal for this country.
Phonogram Records who handle both Westbound and Avco here and thus have the rights to both hit versions, are in a potentially embarrassing position yet to date have no immediate plans for the release of either. In fact, until and if Phonogram can scrape together enough precious polyvinyl to press the few thousand copies that they hope to be able to sell here of whichever becomes the biggest hit in America (a diplomatic way of saying MacGregor’s), the best way for curious South-Easterners to hear “Americans” is to tune in at two o’clock on Saturday afternoon to Tim Rice’s excellent US Hot 100 programme on Capital Radio – a programme to which all readers of this column should listen in any case. To quote the record, “Come on! Let’s hear it!”
HARRY CHAPIN: WOLD (Elektra EK 45874).
To stay with radio and broadcasters, this imaginatively-arranged and written slowie (the best yet from Chapin) is the bravely-smiling story of the aging “morning dee-jay at WOLD-D-D-d-d-d . . .”, who’s “feeling old at 45 going on 15” and having to wear a toupee and watch his voice, which drinking seems to age. As every single detail of the story appears to ring so true, it must have been written from close personal experience of disc-jockeys just like the one described . . . of which, in fact, there are a great many! Thoroughly recommended to all American and/or radio freax . . . and brave dee-jays!
American Singles
LOVE UNLIMITED ORCHESTRA: Love’s Theme; Sweet Moments (Pye 7N 25635).
Here it is, that gloriously glutinous sickly sweet instrumental smash from America which has been played non-stop in discos and on radio since before Xmas! Swirling squeaky strings, snickety cymbals and an undertow of wukka-wukka wah-wah make this a cloying joy to the ears.
Mention must be made in the same breath too of the similar vocal smash by the man responsible for both – BARRY WHITE: Never, Never Gonna Give Ya Up; Standing In The Shadows Of Love (Pye 7N 25633). Virtually the same me thing but with Isaac Hayes-style singing and heavy breathing, it is bound to join the “Theme” in our Charts and give Barry a double-headed success as in America. Oh, and the poor neglected girls from Love Unlimited even get a look in on the Four Tops flip! Continue reading “January 26, 1974: Byron MacGregor, Harry Chapin, Love Unlimited Orchestra, James Brown, Anne Murray”
MOMENTS: Sexy Mama (Stang ST 5052).
Now these are ma MEN, ma MAIN men! The super-sexy sweet-singing Moments are simply STOMPING up the Charts, both Pop and R&B, with this exquisite slow squeaky lover’s lullaby, which combines the recent amorous approach of the co-penning/producing Sylvia and the current sexuality of Marvin Gaye . . . ooohh, err, mmmm, YEAH! Music to grope by! Hey mama, let’s get it on . . .
EDDIE KENDRICKS: Boogie Down (Tamla T54243F),
WILSON PICKETT: Soft Soul Boogie Woogie (RCA ABPO-0174),
KOOL AND THE GANG: Jungle Boogie (De-Lite DEP 559).
After its modish misuse by white musicians, the term “Boogie” has now reverted to the actual musical style’s originators – except that the new black application of the term is just as inaccurate. Far from being steaming boogie-woogie or get-it-on blues, Eddie’s brand-new hit is merely another coolly sung dry pulsator in the “Keep On Truckin’” mould, while the Wicked Pickett’s newie belies its intriguing title by being no more than another (albeit bouncier than usual) of his “goodgod, yawll” dancers. Kool And The Gang use the term in the most spirited way on their latest (and greatest?) “Parrty” hit, which offsets a “get down, get down” chant with a gruffly gobbling caveman voice that’s been lifted straight from that early example of the genre, the Jimmy Castor Bunch’s “Troglodyte”.
JIM CROCE: Time In A Bottle (ABC 11405).
Famed American radio programming and chart tipster Kal Rudman predicted, before it was even issued as a single, that this album-culled acoustic guitar roundelay would be one of the all-time Christmas hits – and, blow me, if the genius wasn’t right slap bang on the nail with the record reaching number one (where it stays still) exactly on Christmas week! The wistfully worded and sung spiralling slow tinkler is not at all Christmassy, in fact, but it has helped to kindle a massive interest in the tragically killed (in an aeroplane crash) 30-year-old Croce, who is now posthumously enjoying a Buddy Holly scaled vogue, with three albums up near the top of the chart too. It is a great shame that so few people in Britain latched on to his previous excellent US number ones, the jolly “You Don’t Mess Around With Jim” and “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown”. Maybe there’s hope now?
MERLE HAGGARD: If We Make It Through December (Capitol 3746).
The big Christmas hit at number one in the Country Chart, Merle’s self-penned song of hope is a gaily lilting “pom, te-pom, te-pom” jogalong bouncer that’s full of nasally-sung Easy Listening appeal. What with its story of factory lay-offs and biting cold, it would have been a good release here last month (or, with a slight re-write, right now!).
BARBARA JEAN ENGLISH: You’re Gonna Need Somebody To Love (While You’re Looking For Someone To Love (Alithia AR 6053).
This may or may not be the Barbara English who I used to know over nine years ago – if she is, she’s as stunning to look at as she is to listen to on this soulfully bittersweet slowie, a painfully cynical play on words (note the difference in the title between “BODY” and “one”) which she co-penned with its producer, the great George Kerr of O’Jays fame. Bert Keyes did the tinkling, plunking, cooing, sawing and thumping slow arrangement, which makes just the right slightly dragging backing to the hurtingly self-aware yet tenderly-meant emotions of the beautifully sung and breathily spoken lyrics. Let me just say that this had all the girls in the office going out of their heads when I was playing it one lunch-break! “Emotion” is a word that it is easy to bandy about, yet it was never more applicable than in the case of this stunner. Yeah!
LOVE UNLIMITED ORCHESTRA: Love’s Theme; Sweet Moments (20th Century TC 2069).
Poor Love Unlimited! The gorgeous gals of “Walking In The Rain With The One I Love” fame have a new hit LP in America called “Under The Influence Of Love Unlimited”, but this hit single culled from it doesn’t contain even a squeak out of them on either of its instrumental sides! Not, actually, that that matters, as both sides are gloriously schlock, pretty-pretty melodies by that arch Hayesian copyist, Barry White, who has concocted an eminently listenable mixture of swirling strings, glutinous guitar, snikkety cymbals, wukka-wukking wah-wah, bumping bass and blatant beauty which is both cloyingly sweet and naggingly irresistible at one and the same time. Mmmm, I can’t get enough of this sweet love stuff!
American Singles
THE ISLEY BROTHERS: Highways Of My Life; Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight (Epic EPC 1980).
As a complete contrast to “That Lady,” the 3 + 3’s newie is a delicately pretty slowie which owes more than a nod of recognition in the direction of Stevie Wonder’s recent romantic style, both vocally and especially instrumentally. With so much hot product out at the moment, there’s no knowing how this will go, although it certainly deserves to do well. As little of the Brothers’ Buddah-distributed material came out here, their choice of James Taylor’s wee-small-hours slowie as flip may surprise some of you: in fact, they’ve been consistently scoring Stateside with similar reworkings of such as Carole King and even Bob Dylan (“Lay Lady Lay“). Low-key, and nice. SMOOCH PICK. Continue reading “December 15, 1973: Barbara Jean English, Love Unlimited Orchestra, The Isley Brothers, Sly & The Family Stone, Chuck Berry”
AL GREEN: Livin’ For You (Hi 2257).
A mixture of silky sweetness and braying brass characterizes the latest relaxing softly thumping slowie from America’s number one seller of singles. Penned by Al with just producer Willie Mitchell, it’s a lovely mushily enveloping sound, coated with sugary strings and cooing chix. Thought for the day: singles-wise sales-wise, Al Green is to America what Gary Glitter is to Britain . . . and that about sums up the two nations’ current differences of opinion.
ARETHA FRANKLIN: Until You Come Back To Me (That’s What I’m Gonna Do); If You Don’t Think (Atlantic 45-2995).
With an approach that is more appealingly Pop than usual, Aretha tackles this Stevie Wonder co-penned slinkily propelled lurching semi-slowie amidst a delightful setting of Arif Mardin-arranged ingenuity. “I’m gonna rap on your door, tap on your window pane” sings the chix-echoed Lady Soul to a rapping, tapping rhythm – and everything else conspires to plop, tootle or soar in delicious counterpoint. This one should have good chances in Britain. The dead slow flip finds Miss Franklin singing the blues back in church, with spine-tingling effect.
LOGGINS & MESSINA: My Music (Columbia 4-45952).
Kings of American radio format, Jim and Kenny here sound like Simon & Garfunkel impersonating Van Morrison singing “Little Bitty Pretty One”! For all that, there’s also a commendable amount of 1950s spirit in their performance, with a hint of the Everly Brothers impersonating the Kalin Twins singing “Baby Driver” . . . which brings us back to where we came in! There’s some fine brass work too, and indeed if I didn’t like the overall result you wouldn’t find it mentioned at all. Oh, and there’s even a sneaky snippet of ska! Continue reading “November 24, 1973: Al Green, Aretha Franklin, Loggins & Messina, The Dells, Executive Suite, Gamble & Huff interview”
THE FATBACK BAND: Njia (Nija) Walk (Street Walk) (Perception PS 540).
They give you enough choices, but this is generally referred to as “Street Walk”! Now that Kool & The Gang’s “Funky Stuff” is finally out here, the position it held as most-imported Street Funk single is taken by this leapingly alive rhythm-jumping follow-up to “Street Dance” . . . even though this has not done spectacularly well on America’s R&B Chart, where it certainly deserved to do better. Propelled by a watery wah-wah wukka-wukka-ing amidst an extremely tight, clearly defined buoyant bouncy bass with some Latin percussion and the odd burst of brass, it’s basically an instrumental with jive-talk interpolations and chanting. Interestingly there’s even a mention of Bertha Butt (you know, one of the Butt Sisters), whose name has strayed from the Jimmy Castor Bunch’s old “Troglodyte (Cave Man)”, an early example of the sort of sound which has been developed into Street Funk.
Surprisingly, “Street Walk” is NOT a “Parrty” record: for the epitome of “Parrty” you’re going to need the James Brown-penned/arranged/produced:
LYN COLLINS (THE FEMALE PREACHER): We Want To Parrty, Parrty, Parrty (People PE 630), which from its “Hey you, blow your whistle!” intro to its inane “Parrty, Parrty, Parrty” chant is about as apt a summary of the new genre’s clichés as you’re likely to find.
TONY ORLANDO and DAWN: Who’s In The Strawberry Patch With Sally (Bell 45424).
Despite a vintage-looking title like that, this new Rag-Rock bouncer from the “Dawn’s New Ragtime Follies” LP is yet another Levine & Brown-penned number. Like that last one, it’s slow starting; unlike all the others, it really is almost pure Vaudeville, even if not strictly Ragtime. It’s great fun and commendably authentic, and probably too specialist in appeal to be a big hit. Continue reading “November 17, 1973: The Fatback Band, Lyn Collins, Tony Orlando & Dawn, Mark/Almond, The Chi-Lites”
J. HINES & THE FELLOWS: Camelot Time (De Luxe 150).
Last week’s copy cut off kind of abruptly (‘cos I wrote too much!), just as I was about to refer to this as being influenced by the early 1966/7 sound of the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, the originators of Street-Funk. It is indeed a dance-step record, although it bears no relation to the “Parrty” (sic) craze that is currently prevalent. Produced by the delightfully-yclept Gingerbread Doughboy, this is a bass-heavy chinking guitar-led pounding instrumental that’s funky in a dated yet thoroughly satisfying sense. The newie by James Brown is for Party People, however –
JAMES BROWN: Stoned To The Bone (Part 1); Stoned To The Bone (Some More) (Polydor PD 14210).
Although we in Britain never even got to hear his great “Sexy Sexy Sexy”, America has this fine ‘n funky (if fairly typico) dancer as a follow-up while we have to wallow in “Woman”, which has yet to be released Stateside. Hey, how long before the streets of London are filled with roistering throngs inanely chanting “Parrty, Parrty, Parrty!”?
THE INTRUDERS: I Wanna Know Your Name; Hang On In There (Gamble ZS7 2508).
The mighty Intruders are back on the US Charts with 5:49 of sheer beauty! The sexy studs who started the thing called the Philly Sound with writers/producers Kenny Gamble & Leon Huff in the mid-60s have reverted to a super-slow romantic ballad style, complete with doodling piano-backed long monologue rap, on this lush ‘n lovely Norman Harris arrangement. It’s sorta like Billy Paul singing Harold Melvin & The Bluenotes, as in atmosphere it’s similar to the latters’ slowies but without their vocal astringency. The ‘Truders keep it all mellow, while flipside they churn and chunk it up a bit on a Bobby Martin-arranged gentle clopper. Continue reading “November 10, 1973: J. Hines & The Fellows, James Brown, The Intruders, The O’ Jays, Holland-Dozier”
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