James Hamilton's Disco Page

ODDS ‘N’ BODS

SUPREME RECORDS sadly now get greedy with an 104bpm ‘HRH Mix No. 3‘ of Princess, which brings in the ‘Billie Jean’ bass virtually from the beginning but without the Alternative Version‘s shock impact (again it’s confusingly labelled) . . . Jeff Young’s 103½bpm Candlelight Mix of Peter Royer is indeed now out, incorporating Dexter Wansel’s piano . . . Brass Construction’s US 12in ‘Give And Take’ continues to climb as the choice of DJs who buy their records, now they’ve heard the disappointing LP and different UK 12in (although doubtless the mailing list effect will have begun to bite by next week’s chart) . . . Rene & Angela’s video on ‘6.20 Soul Train’ really helped their single’s sales on Saturday, as did Luther Vandross’s ditto a week earlier: this Friday’s acts are Jaki Graham, Odyssey, ‘D’ Train, Warren Mills, Tavares, Ike & Tina Turner . . . Al Jarreau’s Wembley-recorded ‘In London’ concert is new out in the States on Warner Home Video . . . Jean Carn is with Norman Connors’ band next Wednesday (11) at London’s Festival Hall — at least I suppose she is, all the posters spell her “Carne”! . . . Bobby Womack will be at Hammersmith Odeon for five solid nights, October 9-13 . . . Womack and Womack have left Elektra to start a label of their own, called Sar II in homage to Linda Womack’s father Sam Cooke’s own label Sar, on which the Womack brothers recorded as the Valentinos such as their 1964 classic ‘It’s All Over Now’ . . . Tramaine turns out to be Edwin Hawkins’ sister, and sang with his Singers . . . Select Records, UTFO and Full Force, amongst others, are fighting a rearguard action by attempting to sue all the makers of answer versions to ‘Roxanne Roxanne’, citing unfair business competition, copyright infringement and trademark misuse — additional complaints apply to the misleadingly packaged cover version album ‘The Complete Story Of Roxanne‘ on Compleat . . . Phil Canty (Kidderminster) is keen for DJs to co-ordinate a Disco-Aid scheme tied in with Live-Aid: the only way I see something like that having any more impact than the present essentially small scale type of charity disco gigs (from which of course even the smallest contribution counts) is if, say, the majority of clubs across the country could be persuaded on one particular night to synchronise for a special nationally publicised event from which absolutely all proceeds would go to Live-Aid — this just might re-tempt the public into digging deep again, but are club owners big hearted enough? . . . Mark Wimmers & Ben Evans have revived their ‘The Spice Of Life’ ancient and modern Black American music night every Friday, this time at Manchester’s Cloud Nine, starting this week . . . Colin Hudd revives 1982 at Dartford Flicks this Friday (6) . . . Saturday (7) finds Baz Fe Jazz & Andy McConnell with the Tommy Chase Quartet live at a late night Jazz/Salsa Fish Fry, in Bermondsey at 99 Rotherhithe Street (now that sounds like a warehouse party what is a warehouse party!) — Baz is also at Nottingham Rock City’s alldayer with Womack & Womack live on Sunday (8) . . . Chris Hill returns on Monday (9) to Walker’s Club Café in Newcastle Upon Tyne (where Phil Mitchell and Adrian Allen may have been wacky, but more to the point they’re weekly — chart contributors, that is!) . . . Dom McLeman, an ex-mobile jock now in banking, is currently sweltering in Vanuatu amidst (I think?) the Melanesian Islands, where it’s so hot that vinyl records warp and the only music available is Asian bootlegged tapes of old material: however, Tony Bromwich at Newcastle’s Hitsville USA sells him all the “hot” new stuff by remote control, storing the vinyl until Dom’s return and instead personally cassetting his purchases for airmail delivery! . . . South Eastern Disco Assn members meet at 8pm this Sunday (8) in Canterbury’s Coach & Horses . . . Radio Thamesmead’s breakfast show presenter Jamie Wisdom (interviewing Streetwave/StreetSounds boss Morgan Khan next Wednesday 7-9am on the pioneering closed circuit legal community station) lost his pub residency and is after another East London/Thames Estuary gig on 0322-72208 . . . Solar and Horizon may come and go, but West London’s JBC 96.95FM carries on regardless, and is very listenable anyway (if you’re within its very local range) . . . Steve Collins, come back soon! . . . Paul Major, his residency sold from under him, is after another good Midlands dance gig on 0455-291624 . . . Kidderminster’s syndicated local newspaper disco columnist Brian Davies does Tues/Wed/Sat at Stourport’s brand new Plato’s, where this month’s Tuesday star PAs are Dante & Sonique (10), Miquel Brown (17), Kelly Marie (24) . . . Andy Caddy, writing a fortnightly Soul Press column in his local Barnet newspaper, sent me a cassette of his mixes that are amongst the best I’ve ever heard — now all he needs is a gig with two varispeed decks! . . . Nick Ratcliffe (Portsmouth Ritzy/Guildford Cinderellas Rockerfellas) reflects this Madonna mad era with a ‘Medonna Medley’ (sic) which neatly and smoothly blends all her most danceable hits, with doubled-up and edited effects instead of digital delay . . . John ‘Razorblade’ Rushford & Julian ‘Slipmat’ Guffogg (Ashford, Kent) recommend Dutch radio KRO 675KHz on Sundays 11am for an hour long ‘And The Beat Goes On‘ continuous mix of upfront material — their own home-produced mixing efforts are good if over busy when remixing/editing one record, less neat when seguing/blending between records, but as actual remixers they’ve already interested some record companies . . . Tricky Dicky Scanes starts selling Gary London’s rare boots and Disconets from next Thursday at Record Cellar in Newport Court (behind Leicester Square tube) . . . King Enri has a wicked nomination for Slimmer Of The Year — suffice to hint his initials are R.H. . . . Boys Town Gang creator Bill Motley died of AIDS two weeks ago . . . Norman Scott refused a fortune for copies every time he packs the floor with a cassette he made in 1983 at Harringey Bolts when macho George Michael rapped and sang over the dub side of Rockers Revenge ‘Walking On Sunshine’ . . . Plymouth Sound radio DJ Brian Day has opened the gay Friday Cruisers at Plymouth Studio 84, jocked by Glyn Warren . . . Adrian Parkin is now full time Mon-Sat at Huddersfield’s Hi-NRG Gemini Club . . . I promised not to reveal which well known record producer/DJ huffily said “Record company presidents don’t go around hitting their producers”! . . . Record Shack released it last Christmas but now, since it’s been a Continental summer smash, Epic have picked up the 112¾bpm Video Kids ‘Woodpeckers From Space‘ (TA 6504) . . . Atlantic for some reason (unsold stock?) have re-serviced the bright smacking 115¾bpm Stacy Lattisaw & Johnny Gill ‘Block Party‘ (B9719T) . . . Danish DJ Kenneth Baker, touring Europe for inspiration, reports radio in Austria plays lots of soul but also Madonna once or twice an hour, while the Jocelyn-ish Amii Stewart & Mike Francis ‘Together‘ is worth looking out for . . . Dave Clark (Barking Chains) feels fed up that in Lanzarote all the DJs even in bars use SL 1200 decks, and massive Dynacord mixers — at least he didn’t hear Opus! . . . Anthony Bernards’ letter last week winding up Damon Rochefort (now there’s two of a kind!) reveals that the notorious Chris Ellis is still alive and well, and living in Lancashire — how nostalgic . . . Loose Ends, along with Total Contrast and Peter Royer, failed to turn up at the Edinburgh Soul Club for a PA last month, without warning or apology from responsible pluggers Hot Licks (who got them as far as Newcastle I know — so did ET’s battery fail?) . . . Danny D & Collusion’s great but oddly ignored (except by radio) ‘Party People‘ appears fated to be another One That Got Away in 1985 — why? . . . Breakers queuing up below the Disco 85 (NB: not the next 20 places) include No Way Jose (Espanol), Charlie Singleton 12in, Luther Vandross, Weather Girls, Prince ‘Raspberry Beret’, Doug E. Fresh, Sylvia Bennett, Class Action, Billy Griffin ‘Systematic’, Pressure Point, Shirley Lites, Stevie Wonder, John Ingram, Rockie Robbins, Juicy, Nile Rodgers ‘Stay Out Of The Light’, Roberta Gilliam, PP Arnold, Red Hot Chilli Peppers ‘Hollywood (Africa)’, Rosie Gaines . . . Music Week didn’t receive my column in time for the current issue as it took three days by first class mail from North Wales: at least it arrived eventually, which is more than many of the records sent me do — as I’ve suggested before, to be sure please bike ’em (to my home address) . . . I was staying in a house party which included a crowd of kids, and it was the under-10s who kept spinning around on their backs to the music! . . . Darren Fogel keeps dropping cryptic hints that suggest he’s to be seen in ‘East Enders’ (not that I’ve ever watched it) . . . Rob Harknett (Harlow) only needed three records to satisfy the returned holidaymakers last week, Baltimora ‘Tarzan Boy’, Black Lace ‘Megamix’, Madonna ‘Into The Groove’, played in rotation — yup, IT’S GOTTA BE MADONNA!

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HAZELL DEAN has taken advantage of the original’s unavailability by covering ‘They Say It’s Gonna Rain’ for her debut Parlophone release (12R 6107), not fully available for four weeks but promo-ed in a chugging 0-115bpm Europop flavoured Indian Summer Mix (the opening chants suggesting “Injun”, rather than the weather). It was in fact the lyrics’ topicality during this dreadful summer that prompted Hi-NRG club DJs belatedly to activate the by then already deleted Kerry Delius version. I’d have hoped the weather might be better by Hazell’s release date, so maybe she ought to rush it instead!

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HOT VINYL

CAMEO: ‘Single Life’ (Club JABX 21)
My and seemingly everyone else’s fave of the moment, this superb subtly made very powerful sparse 110½bpm nagging pusher is filled with bits to hook you, especially the Ennio Morricone spaghetti western twiddles, “single guys clap your hands” and “eyes right” instructions, and the devilish way “life” is teasingly left until the next beat after you’ve already anticipated it. Brilliant!

LUKK Featuring FELICIA COLLINS: ‘On The One’ (Important Records TANT 6)
I can’t bear it (and you’ll see why) but initial calculations suggest this languidly rolling dead catchy lurching jiggler, like Five Star singing to a Jocelyn/Jenny-ish backing, has been slowed here by about one beat per minute — which without going right through it again means it now must be roughly (deep breath!) 103-103¾-105¾-103¼-106¼-103¾-102¼-103-104¾-105-104¼bpm (inst flip). You won’t be aware of this, and the thing is a hit!

CONQUEST: ‘Optimistic’ (US Epic 49-05255)
Amir Bayyan-produced excellent chaps chanted and muttered Johnny Guitar Watson-type buoyantly jittering infectious 97bpm jogger with a braying trumpet solo and bags of rhythm ‘n’ bluesy sass that’ll have you poppin’ and boppin’ by the time it’s through (dub flip). What a blast! Continue reading “September 7, 1985: Cameo, Lukk featuring Felicia Collins, Conquest, Kleeer, Roberta Gilliam”

ODDS ‘N’ BODS

THE FAMILY have confounded sceptics despite their Prince connection by exploding with the hottest album in ages — as mentioned last week it’s real music — and also riding purple coat tails to as yet less widespread dancefloor raving is Andre Cymone, not to be missed . . . No Way Jose’s Espanol version is finally on 12in A-side, flipped by the Knockout Mix . . . Atlantic have reissued the old 115¾bpm Margie Joseph ‘Midnight Lover‘ (B9713T) presumably because it’s so like ‘Holiday’ . . . Sister Sledge ‘Dancing On The Jagged Edge’, reviewed off LP, on 12in turns out to be 113-0bpm . . . ‘Hot Pursuit!‘ is the enthusiastic jittery lurching 116bpm Skipworth & Turner newie, out in about two weeks . . . John Morales has remixed Michael Lovesmith ‘Ain’t Nothin’ Like It‘ as follow up . . . The Weather Girls have had a sombre dull 97½bpm remix (it is indeed David Sanborn’s sax) . . . DJs charting Five Star’s “Cutback Mix” presumably mean the ‘Dance Mix by Hard Rock’ — or has there been yet another remix that I missed? . . . Peter Royer’s sales have been hanging back in anticipation of the re-edit incorporating Dexter Wansel, which should be due now . . . Rene & Angela ‘I’ll Be Good’ irritatingly has shown up on import as a proper remix (inst flip), whereas the UK released version successfully beat Stevie Wonder as record of the week on Guy Hornsby’s 2.30-4.30pm Radio London soul show last Thursday, picked by myself with Walthamstow mates John McDowell (hello to his sister!) and Steve Parker, who both knew a lot and sure had taste . . . I also guested last Monday in Newcastle Upon Tyne, somewhat shattered and sleepless, on Ian Hughes’ weekly 6.20-8pm Metro Radio soul show, where I reminisced about the city’s Club A Go Go 20 years ago! . . . Chris Hill has adapted his Boogaloo Joe Jones-backed ‘Caister Rap’ as a radio commercial for his regular Newcastle gigs at Bill & Malcolm Walker’s eponymous Walker’s Club Café, the coolest spot in town which only plays soul music, both upstairs and down in its day-long brasserie (Chris is back on Monday Sept 9): last week he took a while to warm up although once past the silly session he really cooked for the rest of the night, which possibly thanks to its St Trinians theme turned some parts of the club into one long water fight with the girls the worst culprits — and Fred Dove proved quite handy with a hockey stick too! . . . I was pleased to meet wacky chart contributors Phil Mitchell from Walker’s, and Adrian Allen from South Shields Chelsea Cat, with whom I had a long chat . . . Chris Hill (who incidentally soon strikes out for pastures new, leaving Sheffield Green Hilly’s to the local Sussex Young Farmers!) does a hot mix from Sly & Robbie ‘Make ‘Em Move’ into Manu Dibango ‘Soul Makossa’ . . . Newcastle’s Hitsville USA in Old Eldon Square, run by Tony Bromwich & Joan Wright, as already noted is the local disco stockist (with all the new imports but selling more Hi-NRG), but it was at The Record Box second hand shop (Waterloo Street, and also Percy Street) that I picked up stacks of useful old 7in oddities for party sessions, well worth checking with an open mind . . . Frank Anderson of Camden Town while visiting Dublin stumbled across the Beat Records shop in Abbey Mall, Middle Abbey Street, stuffed with mint condition 12in classics . . . Tony Cochrane (0382-644003/22348) has organised a Scottish Club PA circuit for visiting artists, all expenses paid and chauffeur transport around 12 venues to cover the country in four days, plus radio and TV where possible . . . Friday’s ‘6-20 Soul Train’ has Total Contrast, Rene & Angela, Womack & Womack, The SOS Band, Nona Hendryx, Temptations — meanwhile, almost distraught, Liverpool’s Sonny King appeals for the series to be extended beyond October as he reckons it’s at last getting the music through to people who’d never normally hear it . . . Island’s go go movie ‘Good To Go’ is probably not opening in the USA until November now — DETT/TTED boss Max Kidd, quite accurately impersonated in the film (some of it shot in his actual office), in real life Washington DC appears not to have the hold over the local go go musicians he used to . . . Tony Blackburn, boring? (tee hee!) . . . Tony was actually a bit late in claiming an exclusive on the Lisa Lisa album, about ten days, the reason other radio stations weren’t playing it already possibly being that it isn’t all that good! . . . Dayton, O’Jays, Jennifer Holliday, Windjammer and Azymuth were other import LPs last week, best mainly for slowies, while Phil Fearon & Galaxy’s new album, arrived on UK-priced Dutch import well ahead of its scheduled release here! . . . Colonel Abrams topped US 12in Sales, Tears For Fears ‘Shout’ topped Club Play (and entered the Black chart there) . . . Megatone releases are evidently being widely boycotted in the States because one of the label’s owners failed to pay royalties promised to the AIDS Research Fund from a charity Patrick Cowley Megamedley, which explains why Modern Rocketry is only doing well in Britain where this news wasn’t widely known . . . Dusty Springfield’s current comeback hit was co-penned by Donna Summer . . . I’d just like to point out for some gay DJs’ benefit that our Hi-NRG chart is compiled from the charts we are sent, and first class postage is currently 17p . . . Breakers bubbling under the Disco 85 include The Three Degrees, Kabbala, Merchant, Sugarloaf ‘Kiss’, The SOS Band, Shakatak, Carl Carlton, No Way Jose (Espanol), Prime Time, and a Kool & The Gang medleying ‘Dance Into The Future (Cool Mix)’ bootleg . . . Thursday (29) the Marlboro Roadshow puffs into Derby’s Knotted Snake, hopefully complete with McLaren racing car — other similar promotions or PAs would be welcomed there by Paul Needham on 0533-374469 (days) . . . Friday (30) Kensington’s Roof Gardens find Eon Irving funking designer Charlie Allen’s sneak preview of his spring ’86 fashions modelled by the like of Loose Ends, DC Lee, Andy Polaris and Nick Heyward (ticket info from Jackie at Tony Hall’s office on 01-437 1958) . . . Chris Dinnis souls Cullompton Blazers Studio Saturday (31) . . . Birmingham Maximillian’s cosy alldayer Sunday (11) has Frenchie T, Trevor M, Paul Dixon, Richie Rich and jazzy Chris Reid . . . Sunday’s PLASA equipment exhibition appears to be at Hammersmith’s Novotel in London, but I can’t help thinking we’d have been sent details had they actually wanted DJs and other mere mortals to turn up . . . Clinton Cambridge does Edgware High Street’s Bald Eagle wine bar with new soul Fri/old soul Tues/rocky pop Wed . . . Ray Davies (Milton Keynes) reckons Indian weddings are the key to a fortune: he did one for 900 guests, they supplied the Indian music, paid him £110 for three hours, and he got another £78 in tips — apparently it’s the custom to reward entertainers who play music they like . . . Lonnie Liston Smith’s old ‘Expansions’ seems to have reached the new generation, who request it incessantly according to both Big H and Chris Hill . . . Walls Ice Cream are test marketing in Yorkshire a yummy new choc bar with malt, toffee and chocolate flavour filling, called Romero — ice cream freaks, like me, look out for it! . . . “What you gon’ play now, Bobby?” “Ah don’ know, but what’s ever I play, IT’S GOTTA BE MADONNA!”

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HOT VINYL

ROYALLE DELITE: ‘(I’ll Be A) Freak For You’ (Streetwave MKHAN 51)
Nearly a year old, the Brooklyn girls purposefully wriggling here 108½bpm hauntingly moronic nagger never charted in a big way yet has hung on in certain of London’s low dives as an underground monster, now finally to hit the nation flipped by a new clever Derek Boland-cut, scratched ‘n phased 108½-108bpm Good Groove Mix (edit too).

BOBBY WOMACK: ‘So Many Rivers’ LP (US MCA Records MCA-5617)
Hottest release of the week and because of an early deadline I haven’t time to review it properly! Rest assured that if you’re into Bobby you’ll simply love it, although as a dance set its not strictly essential unless you and your crowd love soul.

BROOKLYN BRONX & QUEENS (B.B.&Q.) ‘Minutes Away’ (Cooltempo COOLX 112)
Their album’s attractive crawling Curtis Hairston crooned 0-75½/37¾bpm ballad has been extended, and flipped for real power by a punchily jolting 112bpm remix of the chunkily chugging ‘Main Attraction‘ — which indeed it probably will be, so far as discos are concerned. Good value.

THE THREE DEGREES: ‘The Heaven I Need’ (Supreme Records SUPET 102. via PRT)
From the same team as Princess and like her selling in some lucky shops on single-sided white label ahead of release on September 16, the girls return is a brightly snicking and ticking 110bpm choppy unison harmony pusher that at last gives them a modern, smash bound, credible sound again. Continue reading “August 31, 1985: Royalle Delite, Bobby Womack, Brooklyn Bronx & Queens (BB&Q), Three Degrees, P.P. Arnold”

ODDS ‘N’ BODS

DESIREE HESLOP, whose singing father records as James Lloyd while she’s better known as Princess, has a timely exciting 103¾bpm Alternative Version of ‘Say I’m Your No. 1’ which adds a ‘Billie Jean’ bass line (after an eye-cued band in the vinyl), with semi-instrumental No. 2 Mix of the original as confusingly labelled flip . . . Dave Pearce has launched a black music talent search for non-professional acts on his Thursday 10pm soul show: send tapes (tunes must be original) within four weeks to him at Radio London, 35A Marylebone High Street, London W1A 4LG — judges will include Paul Hardcastle and David Grant . . . I myself am on Radio London as Guy Hornsby’s guest reviewer at 3.30pm this Thursday (22) . . . Damon Rochefort last Saturday on his 5-7.30pm Horizon spot exclusively previewed Barbara Pennington’s September LP — an advantage of doing promotion for Record Shack . . . EMI plugger Ian Dewhirst then followed him on air previewing The Team’s rambling revival of ‘Rock Creek Park’ (evidently by coincidence one of three imminent competing versions), due as their next B-side — they’re in danger of becoming a black Showaddywaddy . . . Horizon apparently close down in a fortnight, to aid their application for community licence . . . 102.4FM should find Radio Haddock in the Bournemouth area this weekend . . . Solar last weekend started test transmissions on 102.5FM in Manchester, which city might finally become a significant market for soul records (they mainly sell in one non-chart return shop at the moment) should Mike Shaft succeed in his application for his proposed black music Sunset Radio to be the “community of interest” station — to further clarify my criticism of the job soul jocks are currently doing there, Capitol Records report that ‘Twilight’ only sold two copies in Manchester’s chart return shops the week it actually hit nationally! . . . Maze finally appeared on ‘Top Of The Pops’, but of course playing ‘Too Many Games’, and the record immediately dropped in the chart (although not as far as it would have done without the plug, and they have sold more albums than usual) — if only Radio One could have been convinced that ‘Twilight’, which all along has been the side selling most copies, is as popular an instrumental as ‘Axel F’ . . . Jonathan King’s own presence is badly needed on ‘No Limits’ to make the featured music stand out . . . Friday’s ‘6.20 Soul Train’ includes Lisa Lisa, Freddie Jackson, Nona Hendryx, Martha & The Vendellas (note it’s not at 4.30, although Jeffrey Daniel last week told us to tune in “when the big hand is on the six and the little hand is on the four” — stupid boy!) . . . I never knew Princess Di sang with Phil Fearon — or was that Dee Galdes? . . . Island’s go go movie ‘Good To Go’ due to be opening about now in America, won’t be shown here until January — presumably to leave time for a nostalgic go-go revival, and for yet more journalists to visit Washington DC? . . . 1976’s ‘Dreamglrls’-inspiring film ‘Sparkle’ (with Curtis Mayfield score, Aretha Franklin title song, Irene Cara debut, Lonette McKee soul) has appeared in the States on Warner Home Video, so could it come out here? . . . Jaki Graham ‘Heaven Knows’ is flipped by a more instrumental After Hours Mix and the doodling 105bpm ‘Who’s Making Up Your Mind’ . . . Solar’s Jerry Green suspected something was wrong when trying to mix Lukk, and sure enough, my mistake, it actually surreptitiously slides around through 104-104½-106½-104¼-107¼-104½-103¼(break start)-104(break end)-105½-106-105¼bpm, most unexpectedly in this mechanised age! . . . Jeffer Seif ‘All Out Groove‘ on a yellow labelled but otherwise unidentified import 12 inch is in fact an instrumental version of ‘Into The Groove’ of which the Madonna original has been given a far harder remix incorporating bits from Chaka Khan’s ‘I Feel For You’ on the current ruinously expensive circa £34 Hot Tracks set . . . Disco Mix Club’s August mixes are Les Adams’ already renowned Maze megamix (surely now adjusted brilliantly to include — not enough of — ‘Twilight’?) and useful Arrow-based soca sequence, Alan Coulthard’s slightly patchy current dance mix, Steve Gladder’s frisky disco oldies medley, and Sanny X’s typically (over-) tampered treatment of Jimmy Bo Horne’s ancient ‘Dance Across The Floor’ . . . Les Adams has also done a usefully neat Black Lace megamix as the flip to their new 12in, if you can bear it! . . . Five Star’s most recent remixers (I hope!), Hardrock turn out to be Max and Dave of the sadly now shattered Mastermind Roadshow, who are also recording or Elite — it seems Mastermind had become too much of a one man show (Herbie retains the name) . . . Brian Mason (Cricklewood Ashtons) wonders why although everything new is remixed regardless, such reissues as Sharon Brown, Conway And Temple, Class Action are still in their dated original form when they really do warrant remixing (yes, but that costs more than just using up old stock!) . . . Adrian Dunbar (Poole Wharf) adds that once remixes were usually improvements of established dance tracks whereas now they’re of things most people don’t yet know well enough anyway: his own all time fave remixes were of Sharon Redd ‘Beat The Street’, Barbara Roy ‘If You Want Me’, Carol Jiani ‘Hit ‘N’ Run Lover (Canadian Matra), Lisa ‘Rocket To Your Heart’ (Disconet), Sister Sledge ‘Lost In Music (1984)’ . . . Fourth & Broadway seem to hove been hoist with their own petard: Eugene Wilde’s UK remix of ‘Chey Chey Kule’ evidently didn’t sell well enough to justify creatively marketing it with alternative mixes and/or couplings, whereas the reason it didn’t sell (apart from not being very good) was possibly that most people wore anticipating its reappearance with his original US LP version as flip . . . 400 Blows’ treatment of ‘Movin’ has been slavishly covered, seemingly slower, by The Funky Carburetors on US Profile . . . The System’s LP is now out here (Boiling Point POLD 5182) . . . Alexander O’Neal is a far hotter property than CBS’s sales force seem to realise, hence his late entry into the national chart . . . America’s Top 40 radio programmers, an unimaginative timid breed, are beginning to recognise that their playlists are full of “dance” material, mostly of British origin or inspiration, currently a good third of Billboard’s Hot 100 being British — by coincidence the same proportion which in the Sixties used permanently to be black (last week though only 22 hits were by black artists, with fewer than half those being considered as “soul” here) . . . Prince ‘Raspberry Beret’ topped US 12in Sales . . . Breakers bubbling under our Disco 85 include Detroit Spinners, Weather Girls, Starpoint LP, Whitney Houston ‘Thinking About You’, Atlantic Starr ‘One Love’, The SOS Band, Howard Johnson US remix, Bobby Womack 7 inch, Sharon Brown, Andre Cymone, Aleem ‘Confusion’, Screamin’ Tony Baxter . . . Detroit Spinners incidentally are now signed to Mirage in the States, although Atlantic retains them everywhere else, and Bootsy Collins is on Arista . . . Mark Clark of Wokingham’s Mark One Records shop, after talking to me about his local well heeled suburban white kids who buy hip hop (featured in the current Music Week), sent me a great Roxanne with UTFO T-shirt bearing the legend Mixmaster No Shit — like it, like it! . . . Shaun Askey reckons Ruby Red Records in his hometown Wolverhampton is the West Midland’s best DJ shop (I hope you get a discount for that!), and Shaun Sullivan at Bloxwich Flix is brill (no relation is he?) . . . Thames Valley DJ Assn’s Bournemouth meeting on September 1 has been cancelled so as not to clash with the PLASA equipment exhibition (details of which are not to hand, although I thought it was for dealers only) . . . Edinburgh’s Fire Island starts a Thursday soul night on September 19, for which Bill Grainger is after suitable PAs on 0506-54305 . . . Swansea’s jocks predictably didn’t enjoy the local paper’s report about James Lewis, Jeff Thomas & The Bean’s upfront Wednesdays at Harry’s Dance Bar being an alternative to the boringly repeated top 40 records that are all you’ll hear elsewhere in the area . . . Colin Hudd (Dartford Flicks) cracks he’d happily pay five quid for a good quality loud volume pressing instead of WEA’s current promo copy of the old Melba Moore ‘Standing Right Here‘ that Fred Dove has serviced to mailing list DJs (flipped by The Trammps ‘Hold Back The Night’, if you can hear it), plus Colin’s surprised nobody else is getting great reaction to 9.9 ‘(Owch!) Hot Blood Pressure‘ (RCA LP) . . . Essex Radio’s Tony Monson (not wanting to give anyone the wrong impression with this!) suspects he was probably the first person ever to play Madonna on radio here, when her debut single ‘Everybody’ first came in on import — before anyone knew what was to follow — although he can’t remember if it was on Capital or Horizon that this momentous occasion occurred . . . MUSIC FOR MUSIC’S SAKE!

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HOT VINYL

SISTER SLEDGE: ‘Dancing On The Jagged Edge’ (Atlantic A9520T)
A welcome if not necessarily vintage 111¼-0bpm return to their classic lurching staccato style with catchy pop disco appeal (dub mix and pleasant 89½-0bpm ‘You Need Me‘ flip.

RENE & ANGELA: ‘I’ll Be Good’ (Club JABX 18)
Even more potent than their last one, this soulfully het up rumbling purposeful 108¼bpm slippery snicking pusher sounds like Yarbrough & Peoples produced by Jam & Lewis, and is guaranteed to melt your stylus (thunder introed attractive 73bpm ‘You Don’t Have To Cry‘ flip). Hot!

THE FAMILY: ‘High Fashion’ (LP ‘The Family’ Warner Bros/Paisley Park 925322-1)
Imagine Prince back in soulful funky mood to get an idea of this adventurous four guy/one gal group, who mutter and chant in their guvnor’s style but to bubbling jiggly chugging grooves on this (0-)114¼-114¾-113¾-113¼-112¾-112¼bpm lightly flowing lurcher, which bridges straight into the raunchier 112½-111¼-113¼-112-114bpm ‘Mutiny‘, the here intro-less chunkily rolling duetted 104½bpm ‘The Screams Of Passion‘ being also on 12in, while their ever important jazzy sax comes into its own on the choppily half-stepping 108¼-107¾-107¼-105¾-109-110-0bpm ‘Susannah’s Pajamas‘ and even more angrily free form 114¾-114½-114-113-111-112-0-112bpm ‘Yes‘ instrumentals. Thankfully the slushy slowies are all on one side, the rest is real music. Continue reading “August 24, 1985: Sister Sledge, Rene & Angela, The Family, Tony McKenzie, Donald Banks”

ODDS ‘N’ BODS

HOWARD JOHNSON ‘Stand Up’ in its US 12in form (US A&M SP-12137) irritatingly is a brilliant 111½bpm remix with dialogue impersonating such as Michael Jackson, Prince, James Brown, Mr T, Humphrey Bogart – wait now for its inevitable UK release! . . . Five Star have (yawn, double yawn!) yet another remix of ‘Let Me Be The One’, the Dance Mix by Hardrock incorporating bits of ‘All Fall Down’, now with the Philadelphia Remix on 12in (incidentally John Morales on his visit remixed their album’s ‘RSVP’ and ‘System Addict’) . . . Michael Brauer’s much more solid 0-111bpm US Remix of Total Contrast really brings out the Luther Vandross similarity . . . DJs as predicted are now complaining that Madonna ‘Into The Groove’ has no break and are demanding a remix to make it easier to mix (one case where a remix would be legitimate) . . . King Enri sums up the sentiments of many fellow jocks: “Thank god they’re all bored with ‘Frankie’, but now it’s gonna be Madonna for another three months!” . . . Virgin have repressed 1982’s 113bpm Sharon Brown ‘I Specialize In Love’ (VS 49412), and Jive are offloading 1983’s 122bpm Class Action ‘Weekend’ (JIVET 35) . . . MCA’s 10in EP of four famous tunes from ‘The Glenn Miller Story’ (MCAV 985) could be useful for mobile jocks — though note they’re not the originals, but soundtrack remakes by the Universal International Studio Orchestra (in primitive stereo) . . . ‘Just Be Good To Me’ has evidently been added to the S.O.S. Band’s flip, and No Way Jose’s Spanish version has been available as the B-side of their picture disc — isn’t modern marketing marvellous? . . . George Howard ‘Dancing In The Sun’ has been remixed for US 12in, rather late by our standards . . . Brass Construction ‘Give And Take‘ will be a single here, but not the first one, as as Capitol feel the imminent album’s more typical club tracks will swamp it in the short term . . . Full Force have had an oddly little heralded answer version on US Columbia for several weeks now, ‘Girl If You Take Me Home‘, beefier than the original . . . Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam, Force MD’s, Kurtis Blow, UTFO, The Real Roxanne, Rockmaster Scott & The Dynamic Three, and — somewhat incongruous in such company despite the rap element of their last hit — Rene & Angela are all currently touring the Eastern half of the USA as the ‘Jam-A-Tron Street Fest’ . . . Atlantic, as mentioned last week, picked up in the States from its original Easy Street label the Paul Simpson Connection’s recent ‘Treat Her Sweeter‘ — but somehow someone obviously neglected to tell them it’s already been a minor UK hit on 10 Records, as WEA disco plugger Fred Dove has been sent several boxes of US promos to service his mailing list here! . . . Soul On Sound’s monthly London Hippodrome night last Wednesday found such as Glasgow DJ Alan David and bronzed groovettes Barbie Dunne & Fiona Waterman watching PAs by Sonique, Dante (the kid can sing), Peter Royer, Total Contrast (aggressively chucking T-shirts), Miquel Brown, 7th Heaven, One Touch, Stylistics, No Way Jose, and Oliver Cheatham who wiped the floor (almost literally, doing press-ups in a white suit!), while Canning Town Bentleys jock Derek Bolland scratched ‘n’ synched a solid groove whenever he got the chance (he mixes Harleqiun Four’s through Aleem ‘Get Loose’) . . . Oliver Cheatham tells me ‘Mama Said‘ wasn’t consciously modelled on the Shirelles’ oldie, but admits his chorus hook is indeed awfully like theirs! . . . Adrian Allen sat in with Radio Tees’ Saturday 6-10pm soul presenter Mike Prior on a telephone interview with Bobby Womack (broadcast last weekend), in which Bobby revealed he’s working on the next Rolling Stones LP (Ronnie Wood & Keith Richards were with him at the time), his five year contract with MCA is for four albums and a fifth ‘Best Of’ set, he’ll be recording again with Altrinna Grayson while Shirley Brown will be joining him on tour (the latter is interviewed on Tees this Saturday), and the tour should be here late Oct/early Nov — oh, and Tees had his album for a UK exclusive even ahead of Robbie Vincent (now paying for jumping the gun on Bobby’s first MCA single?) . . . Gary Neal (Bristol) seems to be another provincial DJ who thinks he’s read things that I haven’t written: where have I ever dismissed DJs outside the London area as “pop jocks” — go on, show me! — and why do you suppose I always mention all the soul gigs around the country that the DJs concerned can be bothered to tell me about? The fact remains that London is a soul city, due largely to its black (and incidentally other types of immigrant) population, the cause of the current remarkable upsurge in soul sales there being radio, both pirate (who prompted them) and legal local stations, soul saturating the airwaves to such an extent that the whole population can’t fail to hear it — which is why I write to such an extent that the whole population can’t fail to hear it — which is why I write so much about radio as now that rather than disco play, is what makes soul hits . . . LWR last Wednesday reopened their wavelength by switching on their transmitter, which before broadcasts began unintentionally relayed nearby Solar’s signal, whereupon within a few hours both Solar and Horizon had their own transmitters busted (however all three were back by the weekend) . . . Capital’s gospel jock Al Matthews played a big part in Sunday night’s TV movie ‘Rough Cut’, while Saturday morning’s ‘Apache Drums’ was the chief cause of all my childhood nightmares (amazingly I’d remembered every detail since 1951, not that it keeps me awake at nights now!) . . . Friday’s ‘6.20 Soul Train’ has Phil Fearon, Stylistics, Sister Sledge, Chaka Khan, Al Green, Gary’s Gang . . . Fatback ‘Is This The Future?‘ is getting so much play again it could be worth someone finally issuing it here on 12in . . . Harleqiun Four’s may sound rotten on radio but believe me it’s something else loud on the floor! . . . I’ll be trekking up to Newcastle Upon Tyne’s Walkers Club Café with Chris Hill this Monday (19), see you there? . . . Margate’s brand new Rumours, opened by Invicta Radio jocks this Wed/Thur, features funky Paul French (not the Gillingham one) on Friday after finishing his regular Ramsgate Kents 8-11pm slot . . . Saturday (17) Andy Heryet has a ‘Caligula’ Roman orgy at Worthing Carioca, and Yeovil Electric Studio already has a Somerset Soul Weekend reunion night . . . Tuesday (20) George Clinton paaartays with Wicked Pulse at London Busbys — mmm, do the dog! . . . John DeSade rather regally has an “official” birthday party at Gillingham’s The Avenue next Thursday (22), when in fact he isn’t 28 (and counting!) until next May . . . Dave Thomas & Greg Parrott are boosting hot funk newies every Wednesday at Telford Cascades to a good turnout . . . Pete Haigh & Richard Searling soul (ancient and modern) Blackpool Bananas Fridays . . . Solar’s Dave Collins and JFM’s Paul Dodd soul Staines Jacksons Saturdays, when maniac mixer Chad Jackson has graduated to the over-18s late night slot at Bolton’s Dance Factory . . . Gary Hickson points out it was his home that was redecorated and not Blackburn’s Peppermint Place, although that’s due in a few months! . . . Ron Tom, Fuzzy D and sometimes Tim Westwood funk ‘n’ reggae Forest Gate Upper Cut Stadium’s Sunday 6.30-10.30pm LWR rollerskating sessions . . . Paul Clark’s current Brighton soul gigs are with Tim Jeffrey at The Escape Sat, and with Andy Henderson at Toppers Sun, Brighton Belle Mon . . . Neil Fincham soon moves in Edinburgh to the old Styx in George Street, re-opening as Capers . . . Unknown Mixer I.Mc, looking for NW funk gigs, wants to hear again from the guy who spoke to his sister on 0254-667743 . . . Paul Lawrence Jones’ imminent debut single ‘She’s Not A Sleaze‘ also features his producing/songwriting colleagues Lillo Thomas & Freddie Jackson . . . The Family comprises Jellybean Johnson, ‘Saint’ Paul Peterson and Jerome Benton from defunct The Time with Eric Leeds (ex-JB’s) and Susannah Melvoin (sister of Prince & The Revolution’s Wendy) . . . Eon Irving (Chelsea Mainsqueeze) infos that his mate Peter Royer was photoed standing behind Loose Ends on the front cover of their current album . . . Mayfair’s late nite eaterie Rockafella’s is about to re-open twice the size after expanding actually into Samanthas next door! . . . Andy Phippen of Rayners Lane’s Record & Disco Centre found DJ Takis at Rhodes’ Hi-Way disco club working out his BPMs by synching a West Germany-made Willner Taktell electronic metronome with the record’s beat: not a new idea, and I have doubts about its absolute accuracy (although all records timed similarly should match), this particular metronome works from 43 to 208 beats per minute . . . I think that, after nearly seven years of weekly BPM-ing experience, my own figures are likely to be more accurate than others you may find listed elsewhere . . . MUSIC FOR MUSIC’S SAKE!

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HOT VINYL

ATLANTIC STARR: ‘One Love (Remix)’ (A&M AMY 273)
Not quite another ‘Silver Shadow‘ although their LP’s next hottest cut, this jolting (0-)108¼bpm jiggly tripper has been remixed already and builds nagging tension, with almost inevitably their old classic 79bpm ‘Touch A Four Leaf Clover‘ as flip.

COLLAGE: ‘Romeo Where’s Juliet?’ (LP ‘Shine The Light’ US Constellation MCA-5564)
This great beefily lurching 107¼bpm rolling driving groove by Larry White’s seven man band has been bubbling under our chart on 107bpm 12in (US MCA-23558, the same length mix but with good longer dub too), finally to rocket in on LP with the excellent semi-falsetto solid 89½bpm ‘Winners And Losers‘, attractive Shalamar-ish 111¼bpm ‘Step Right Up‘, buoyantly “fresh” 0-120bpm ‘In The Mix‘, rockily chugging 113¼bpm ‘Kickin’ It‘, soulfully doodling 74bpm ‘Here And Now’, Ollie & Jerry-ish 118bpm ‘Let’s Rock And Roll’, slushy EWF-ish 0-74bpm title track all adding up to a strong set.

JAKI GRAHAM: ‘Heaven Knows’ (EMI 12JAKI 5)
Out next Monday, her soulfully wrought slow swaying rhythmically hesitant 90-0bpm much admired oldie has been spaciously remixed by Derek Bramble so all the instruments are precisely placed amidst the overall echo (which for disco use possibly should be tightened up). Continue reading “August 17, 1985: Atlantic Starr, Collage, Jaki Graham, The System, Mark IV”

ODDS ‘N’ BODS

LATEST REMIXES include Lisa Lisa in a (0-)117bpm Shep Pettibone mix with typically drawn out intro and a more densely hip hop 116bpm Full Force remixed flip, Barbara Pennington (already the third version!) in a much altered acappella introed 105½bpm John Morales remix with a smoothly chugging Jocelyn Brown beat, Phil Fearon in a musically unnecessary percussively rippling now 113½bpm John Morales remix flipped by the previously withdrawn partly Spanish 125½bpm Manana Mix of ‘You Don’t Need A Reason’, Melba Moore in two supposedly promo only 105½bpm ‘Caribbean Queen’-ish and sparse dub remixes, while Total Contrast is indeed due in a superior “US Remix” (sold with the original as a bonus twofer) and Peter Royer is being re-edited to bring Dexter Wansel’s piano into the A-side too . . . Grover Washington Jr’s appearance is on the more instrumental 114½bpm Long Hot Soulful Summer Mix and (only briefly) the good sparse wriggly 114¼bpm Philadelphia Remix of Five Star . . . Loose Ends ‘Golden Years’ is now flipped by the brand new frantic 138½bpm ‘Turn The Lights Down’, of dubious dance appeal, while their current US hit ‘Choose Me’ has just been remixed there — they’ve also produced Julie Roberts’ next solo single . . . The Cool Notes have signed a major deal with Arista in the States . . . Larry Blackmon while in London has also been working on LW5, remixing a Paul Hardcastle production — now there’s a turnaround! — Paul himself less surprisingly having topped the UK Chart Performance Survey for the last quarter, April-June . . . Streetwave took my tip and have picked up Royalle Delite, only about a year after it came out . . . LPs now on UK release include Cheryl Lynn (CBS 26497), 9.9 (RCA PL89685), Carl Anderson (Epic EPC 26591) here adding ‘Buttercup’ . . . PRT have issued a Chess Mini Masters series of 7in EPs, by (listed in order of probable usefulness) Ramsey Lewis, Chuck Berry, Fontella Bass, Bo Diddley, ‘The Blues’ (Williamson/Wolf/Walter/Waters), Billy Stewart, Clarence Frogman Henry, Etta James, ‘Soul Sisters’ (Joy Lovejoy etc), Dells . . . Midas Media are starting a DJ mailing list at 25 Rose Street, Long Acre, London WC2 (01-836 4853) . . . Animal Nightlife’s first album has a special late night launching party this Friday (9) at Kings Cross Scala Cinema with hip flicks showing, Jay Strongman & Julian Palmer jocking, the band mingling . . . Newcastle Upon Tyne’s Metro Radio has finally started a soul show hosted by Ian Hughes Mondays 6.20-8pm, produced by the Walkers Club Café team Phil ‘What’s Cookin’?’ Mitchell & Bill Walker, with Chris Hill already a special guest during its first fortnight . . . Steve Allen has added an extra black music show on Hereward Radio Thursdays 6.20-10pm, featuring reggae, rap, afro, soca and more, as well as the soul ‘n funk heard also on his Saturday 6-9pm slot . . . Steve Walsh (back from the States and enthusing, like so many before him, about the fast stuff heard on radio there) is now sitting in for Steve Collins on Capital Radio Sundays 1-5am — which must cut into his gig income! . . . RECORD MIRROR contributor Damon Rochefort, whose mouthings and music are a must on Horizon Saturday teatime, should note the Cool Notes promise their follow-up will be much harder! . . . Solar last Thursday night played back the whole of Radio London’s recording of the New York Jazz Explosion Hammersmith concert — not only naughty, but plain silly considering their quest for legality . . . Home Secretary Leon Brittan in another radio experiment has also decided to allow for one year whenever appropriate up to 10 hours a week of split frequency broadcasting by ILR stations Leicester Sound, Marcher Sound, Piccadilly, Capital, Viking & Wiltshire Radio, so they can put out separate programmes simultaneously on VHF and MW, the additional service to include classical concerts, sport, specialist music and ethnic programming (BBC Radios Nottingham & Leicester will be similarly broadcasting specifically Asian programmes) — at least the Government is trying . . . ‘Ghost Catchers’ last Friday on BBC2, music historians should note, included Ella Mae Morse singing about “a solid rhythm I can rock” — in 1944 . . . Berry Gordy’s ‘The Last Dragon’ seems about to have a sequel filmed next month, but minus Vanity . . . British viewers may not necessarily know them but such black actors as Tommy Wright & Debbie Morgan from US TV’s ‘All My Children’ soap, Maurice Hines, Larry Fishburne & Wynonna Smith from ‘The Cotton Club’ flick, and Savion Glover from ‘The Tap Dance Kid’ show all appear in Cameo’s ‘Attack Me With Your Love’ video . . . Jeff Young’s listeners-voted Soul Poll on his Saturday lunchtime Radio London show last week certainly reflected the previous night’s ‘6.20 Soul Train’, which had been one of the strongest and tightest to date: this Friday’s beach party edition has Lisa Lisa, Five Star, Shannon, Billy Ocean, No Way Jose, Commodores, Bloodstone) . . . Eugene Wilde sensibly didn’t use the UK remix of ‘Chey Chey Kule’ when wailing it up on TV — and who were those foxes behind him?! . . . Jeffrey Daniel, despite earlier speculation, is with this current series until the end . . . Mike Allen is running a competition on Capital Radio to find a hip hop poster for his electro shows, the best design winning a trip for two to visit KISS-fm in New York — check his weekend last evening progs for full details . . . New York’s once urban contemporary radio station WKTU (“Disco 92”) has switched to playing Album Orientated Rock and the new name WXRK (however WBLS remains true to its roots) . . . Tony Prince, Ceri Berry and I have ended up the only members of the Disco Mix Club’s trip to the New Music Seminar next month, the outing seemingly being too expensive for other DJs . . . Aretha Franklin topped US Black 45s and Club Play, while Madonna’s ‘Angel’/’Into The Groove’ coupling returned (displacing ’19’) atop 12in Sales . . . Five Star ‘All Fall Down’ has hit the lower end of the US Black chart . . . Atlantic in the States belatedly picked up the Paul Simpson Connection, and ‘It’s That East Street Beat’ by the re-spelt Chocolette . . . Evelyn Thomas has a terrific Instant Funk-‘Got My Mind Made Up’-inspired ‘Cold Shoulder’ in the can, although a remake of the Supremes ‘Reflections‘ has been set for single instead . . . Kerry Delius’s song gets it right as Tricky Dicky dodges the rain with a stall in the alleyway outside his Record Cellar shop (around the corner from Leicester Square station), selling not only Hi-NRG but also loads of 99p soul LPs from an incognito DJ’s collection — his Disconet, Hot Tracks and boots will be on sale next month . . . Top 3 Hi-NRG monsters in small gay clubs without the Heaven effect are Maria Vidal, Modem Rocketry, Lime . . . Jonathan King (or is he Jo King?) last week dedicated Miquel Brown’s old ‘So Many Men So Little Time’ to Rock Hudson . . . Cliff Richard’s next single in September, ‘She’s So Beautiful‘, will be prod/penned and totally played by Stevie Wonder — could this be the seventh number one single he blesses? — taken from a concept album and future stage show called ‘Time’, masterminded by ‘Mr Ready Steady Go’ Dave Clark and involving such other stars as Dionne Warwick, Ashford & Simpson, Julian Lennon . . . Capitol’s next mistake could be not to release Brass Construction’s ‘Give And Take‘ as their single here — shaping up as another ‘Solid’, it sounds especially good on radio, with wide appeal as suspected . . . Maze ‘Twilight’ is this generation’s ‘Beat The Street’, to judge from all the jocks using it in mixes . . . Princess is now in danger of premature death from over exposure — about the only place you won’t hear it is in elevators, so far! . . . Average White Band’s ‘If I Ever Lose This Heaven‘ seems to be getting more radio play than Billy Griffin now . . . Madonna, Simply Red, Sister Sledge, Pointer Sisters and now No Way Jose have all been slipping into normally soulful playlists — what’s causing this reverse crossover? . . . ‘You’re So Vain’ could be the theme song for all the DJs who immediately assumed my comment about Trans-X applied to them — honestly, so many jocks claim to be behind its success that I wasn’t singling out any one! . . . ‘Holiday’ was originally laid down for the group Pure Energy before being heard and bought by Jellybean so that he could add Madonna’s vocal to the original track . . . Sylvia Bennett has more than a vocal similarity with the RAH Band, she’s no brunette . . . Oliver Cheatham plays Yeovil Electric Studio Thursday (8) with Graham T & Chris Dinnis, the latter souling Torquay Monroes every Friday . . . Rick Robinson (call him “Dad”), souling Beckenham Harriet’s Sat/Sun, takes time out to join Kev Hill and Claudia at Harlow Whispers next Saturday (17), with coaches organised for his newsletter-receiving Soul Patrol on 01-771 1761 . . . Gilberto Gil ‘Toda Menina Baiana‘ is causing a storm at last the second (or third?) time around for Steve Glover at steaming Bournemouth’s Zig Zag . . . Disco 85 breakers include Spliff Riff, Percy Larkins LP, Mary Jane Girls, Collage, Shirley Brown, Mercy Mercy, Nat Augustin B-side, Chaka Khan, Sly & Robbie 12in, Dante, Sugarfoot LP, Bobby Womack 7in — the chart’s currently got a queue! . . . I wonder how long it’ll be before people start saying Luther V looks like Danny D, rather than the other way around? . . . MUSIC FOR MUSIC’S SAKE!

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JOHN MORALES, currently the hyperactive half of the famous M&M Mix partnership, makes such a good living from remixing records that at first he may seem an unlikely ally in my campaign to halt remix mania. However, he has this foreboding that a big change is coming — brought upon themselves by the record companies, whose present course if unchecked will kill the goose that lays the golden eggs.

“All these re-remixes are jeopardising my future livelihood, especially when record companies don’t care what they sound like so long as they’ve got something different to sell again. I want to be hired because I do good work and people trust me, but now I’m being hired just because I’ve got a bit of a name. If they see my name splattered over all these remixes people will say I’m only doing it for the money and don’t care any more. I’ve turned down more work than I’ve done but even so on this trip to London I’ve remixed 11 records in just two weeks. When I do a remix I deliver the remixed A-side, a 7in edit, and a different dub version for the B-side — all of which would be on the same 12in in the States, but in Britain the B-side dubs are being held back for use as another later A-side or at least part of the follow-up. This is not what I intended. It gives the wrong impression to the public who will think it’s me who’s exploiting them because my name is on more releases than it should be.”

John agrees that if the companies don’t already they’ll soon realise that all the different mixes are costing them more (in goodwill as well as money) than any short lived marketing advantage is worth. He reckons shops no longer want to order 500 copies of a record in case they’re left on the shelf when a remix arrives, so instead they order fewer copies of the successive remixes that the companies will soon be in the position of having to put out just to sell records at all. (In practice the best serviced chart-return shops have bargaining power and can swap unsold mixes, but that adds up to an even bigger waste and loss even if a doubtful status quo is maintained in the chart.)

We both say, the rot has got to stop! On a lighter note, before returning to join Sergio Munzibai in New York remixing DeBarge’s ‘You Wear It Well’, John confided that the only remixer he rates in Britain is Paul Hardcastle. He’s had his name splattered about in even larger letters than M&M!

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HOT VINYL

HOWARD JOHNSON: ‘Stand Up’ (A&M AMY 266)
Rock solid rather than inspired, this wailing forceful 111½bpm thumper is all beat and feel (flipped by the classic old 0-113bpm ‘So Fine’ and 102½bpm ‘Keepin’ Love New’), whereas on his LP ‘The Vision’ (A&M AMA 4982) the Jam & Lewis-prod/penned outstanding 0-108¾bpm ‘Knees‘ really refreshes jaded ears with its adventurous loose combination of English accented chat-up lines, female whispers and climax moans, pent up stereo multi-tracked gurgling and yodelling, all wriggling and weaving through a lopsided beat that’ll truly make it the ‘Encore’ of ’85. Flyte Tyme also supply the sharply jolting 109bpm ‘Older Girl‘, but disappointingly routine are other teams’ 118bpm ‘So Tuff‘, 118½bpm ‘Show Me How‘, 113bpm ‘Outta My Head‘, 0-60½bpm ‘All We Have Is Love’, 131bpm ‘You’ve Got A Lot To Learn’.

LUKK Featuring FELICIA COLLINS: ‘On The One’ (US Easy Street EZS-7518)
One of those natural monsters that sound right in the pocket on first hearing, a languidly rolling 104¼bpm jiggler like Five Star singing to a Jocelyn/Jenny-ish backing, nagging as hell (inst/edit flip).

HARLEQIUN FOUR’S: ‘Set It Off’ (US Jus Born Prod JB 003)
That’s the spelling! Strafe’s original was weird enough last year and this cover, although clarified, is equally odd — a constant cymbal shushed 111½bpm mesmeric pulsing rhythm eventually reaches some subduedly mixed chicks chattering and hissing, then finally trumpet and piano (dub flip), the basis for a million mixes (Gullivers Graham Gold synchs with ‘Single Life’) which looks like being massive after breaking first in Manchester. I have to mention that as they’re point scorers up there! Continue reading “August 10, 1985: John Morales on remixes, Howard Johnson, Lukk featuring Felicia Collins, Harleqiun Four’s, Colonel Abrams, Universal Robot Band”

ODDS ‘N’ BODS

SHOWSTOPPER PROMOTIONS’ Knebworth jazz ‘n soul picnic has — shame! shame! — been postponed for the summer at least due to an accumulation of problems to do with its staging (refunds from point of purchase), but Pieces Of A Dream will be at Hammersmith Odeon as some consolation on Saturday August 17 instead . . . Grover Washington Jr now appears on the more instrumental new 114½bpm Philadephia Remix coupling of Five Star’s ‘Let Me Be The One’ , other less essential remixes (yawn!) including a rather thin (0-)106½bpm Maze ‘Twilight‘ (now with instrumental remixes of ‘Too Many Games’ and ‘Back In Stride’) when all they need to do is make it the A-side to have a smash, a very bassy 0-101½bpm Jaki Graham which even EMI admit has already blown two speaker systems, an unheard Pointer Sisters, and Alan Coulthard’s even more Hi-NRG 125bpm Pink Cadillac Mix (on pink vinyl) of Aretha Franklin, while waiting in the wings are Melba Moore and Peter Royer . . . I repeat that this remix situation has gone beyond being a joke, and earnestly implore you not to buy anything until you’ve waited to see what other mixes, whether better or worse, become available — it’s the only way to make record companies see sense and stop this stupid practice (maybe I shouldn’t review, or even put in the chart, anything until it’s been out for six weeks?) . . . Pete Tong rightly points out that the American system is fairest, where just one 12in can contain the LP Version, Club Mix, Radio Edit or Instrumental, Acappella and any other combination (the only justifiable remixes are where original LP versions or existing mixes really do need altering to sound better on the floor) . . . ‘Street Sounds 13‘ is hot hot hot with current hits by Steve Arrington, Atlantic Starr, Change, Cool Notes, BB&Q Band, One Way, Colonel Abrams, Skool Boyz, plus Cheryl Lynn ‘It’s Gonna Be Right’, Billy Griffin ‘Electrified’, Rodney Franklin ‘Fiesta’ (the cassette version also having Julius Brown ‘Sho Nuff’ and Intruders ‘It’s Alright’) — watch singles sales plummet! . . . Big Tom Holland lost his voice last Friday at Dartford Flicks awards night, where (the absent) Chris Hill’s wife Carol in Tina Turner wig and backless black lace was rivalled by (the very much present) Colin Hudd’s wife Carol in a backless white tight ruffly sort of Spanish parachute — yum-yum to both! . . . Larry Blackmon, also there, plans to stay in London through the autumn producing amongst others Black Britain for 10 Records and his own next Cameo album, along with a tour in October . . . Michael Lovesmith, signed by Berry Gordy Jr very much as a “test pilot” to experiment with new nuances and directions, originally wrote his old ‘Baby I Will‘ (rather than the more obviously soundalike ‘Break The Ice‘) for Marvin Gaye, and in candid conversation with Jeff Young on Radio London observed that in recent years at Motown “the new acts weren’t as committed (as the big veteran acts the label had lost) and the stamina had to be reintroduced into the Motown family”: it’s for you to judge the stamina of his own contributions over the last seven years . . . Adrian Allen (South Shields Chelsea Cat) citing the respective appearances of the Conway Brothers and Denise LaSalle on both ‘6.20 Soul Train’ and ‘Top Of The Pops‘, wonders whether the latter show now only accepts black acts as long as they wear “whitey” clothes? . . . Friday’s ‘6.20 Soul Train’ has Eugene Wilde, Princess, Sly & Robbie, Mai Tai, O’Jays, Stylistics . . . Solar intend applying for the South London community of interest VHF station’s licence, and with a view to sharing the frequency Tony Monson invites other possible applicants to contact him on 06-22350 (0689 22350 from outside London) . . . Otis Monson incidentally has been inundated with gigs now he’s on Essex Radio . . . Department of Trade & Industry Radio Investigation Service staff is being cut from 340 to 240, its reduced resources switching attention from the public’s problems with radio and TV reception to the more urgent elimination of “pollution to the radio spectrum” by unlicensed operators — in other words, pirate busting, so be warned . . . Tony Blackburn’s secretary Rosanne in her white-labelled recording debut may have a somewhat unfair advantage at Radio London but is now also being played on Capital Radio by Steve Collins . . . Tony should note instead of ‘Hill Street Blues’ it was BBC2’s fascinating ‘Blues Night’ that had me hooked last Saturday — especially that Bessie Smith “concept video” from the 1930s! . . . Chris Hill heads up to Newcastle-upon-Tyne to join Phil Mitchell at the soulfully steaming Walkers every second Monday, this week (5) being next . . . Friday (2) Steve Allen, Nick Graham & Andy Abbott start funking Wellingborough’s Tithe Barn weekly . . . Saturday (3) Robbie Vincent joins Chris Hill with Miquel Brown & David Grant at Sheffield Green Hilly’s in Sussex . . . Sunday (4) Leicester Super Bowl’s first all-dayer has coaches from Birmingham organised by Frenchie Quailey at Summit Records on 021-643 4494 . . . Dave Stuart souls Beckenham’s The Beckenham on Mondays with freebies . . . Pate Haigh joins Mark Grice souling Nelson Lacy’s every Tuesday, when the Wicked Pulse at London’s Cusbys with its various eclectic DJs and live percussionists has settled into a Street Funk format . . . Stevie Dee funking most nights at Gillingham King Charles Hotel in its Regency nightclub, takes over its Kings venue for Northern Soul on Thursday’s (over-18) . . . Shaun Williams & Mambo have settled on Sunday as soul night at Edgbaston Faces . . . Dan Air & Robert Day take their Flim Flam night onto the Thames from Greenwich Pier 1-5.30am next Saturday (10) — £5 ticket info on 01-320 0965/650 3978 . . . Gary Hickson at Blackburn’s redecorated Peppermint Palace is after the DC LaRue album containing ‘Cathedrals’ on 0253-66701 . . . Hardy Mattu of Starstruck Entertainments has opened the Disco & DJ Mix Store in Glasgow at 1175 Argyle Street (041-339 2461), and hopes to attract enough DJ customers to interest record pluggers . . . Le GoGo Promotions (01-771 1761), having successfully placed earlier applicants, are after yet more DJs with and without their own gear . . . Dante may have blown their credibility before they begin by warming up for Shirley Bassey at billionaire Adnan Khashoggi’s showbiz party in Marbella last week! . . . Disco 85 breakers include Precinct ‘Don’t Go’ (Calibre), Odyssey ‘(Joy) I Know It’ (Mirror), Miami Sound Machine ‘Conga’ (Epic), Sylvia Bennett ‘You’re My Fantasy’ (US The New York Music Company), Brass Construction ‘Give And Take’ (US Capitol), Barney Rachabane ‘Blow Barney Blow’ (Jive Afrika), Nat Augustin ‘All My Love’/’Summer Is Here Again’ (Debut), Aretha Franklin ‘Freeway Of Love (Rock Mix)’ (Arista), Collage ‘Romeo Where’s Juliet? (US MCA), Harleqiun Four’s ‘Set It Off’ (US Jus Born), and the superior old Valentine Brothers ‘Money’s Too Tight (To Mention)’ . . . Odyssey disappointingly don’t appear too popular in various radio stations’ listener polls — and I don’t understand why 9.9 isn’t bigger . . . Loose Ends can cover David Bowie if they like but the result seems to be suffering from sounding so muffled and dull (in the sense, un-bright) . . . Mark Barker (Brighton Secrets) alerts soul jocks to the ‘Rain Forest’ plus sax-like ‘Space Walk‘ hidden amidst the Hi-NRG on Modern Rocketry’s LP . . . Ian Levine (London Heaven) complains that Kelly Marie without even any intro let alone a break is impossible to mix . . . Mayfair’s late night eaterie Rockafella’s have been playing an impressive cassette mixed by Barry B at LWR, the only London soul station not recently (I daren’t say currently) on air: LWR’s Eddy James meanwhile (at London Old Kent Road’s Green Man Saturday’s) mixes Hi Tension ‘You Make Me Happy’ with Whodini ‘Friends’, Eon Irving (Chelsea Mainsqueeze) synchs Maze ‘Twilight’ with James Brown ‘Sex Machine’, Neil Fincham (Dunbar) revives Fatback ‘Is This The Future?’ mixed with Rene & Angela ‘I’ll Be Good’ . . . Billy Paul has moved label across country to Total Experience . . . Erskine Thompson now has not only Danny Daniels plugging for him at Hot Licks but also Big Al Mayfield . . . Forget about the remixes and the packaging, make it MUSIC FOR MUSIC’S SAKE!

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HOT VINYL

PETER ROYER: ‘Love Is In Season’ (Club JABX 17)
Sounding not unlike Phil Fearon, the ex-model and dancer for Loose Ends has been produced by that very group (with Jane Eugene and Julie Roberts on rather tentative backing vocals, plus — a big plus — Dexter Wansel’s tinkly piano on the instrumental dub flip) in a lovely just slightly reggaefied 103½bpm revival of the smoochy swayer, which already has a large lead over the now rapidly reissued DETROIT SPINNERS: ‘Love Is In Season’ (Atlantic A9648T) their gorgeous 101½bpm original having been huge on LP last spring but lost when released as a single months later, although now its 102½-105½bpm ‘Could It Be I’m Falling In Love’ flip will obviously be useful too. A shame there has to be a battle when both versions deserve to win.

NO ROOM and no time for full reviews and BPM’s this week, but I hope you’ll find the detailed report about Community Radio of adequate interest to compensate. However, if it’s any guide, the imports I bought last week were: Continue reading “August 3, 1985: “This remix situation has gone beyond being a joke””

ODDS ‘N’ BODS

CAPITOL RECORDS radio pluggers strangely refuse to recognise that ‘Twilight’ is the monster track that’s selling Maze, even if there is a video of ‘Too Many Games’ . . . Princess may have a problem, despite being massive in those few shops selected for white labels, because many influential if petty provincial soul radio DJs are so disgruntled about not being serviced with it that they refuse to play it even if they do get it for free eventually (now that’s a really effective promotion campaign!) . . . Total Contrast’s finished pressing is labelled as the ‘Bandito Mix’, and the dub flip ‘Mirage Style’, but (so far) they’re the same as on the reviewed promo pressing — although of course there are almost bound to be more mixes to come (it beats me why people are still gullible enough to buy British singles within their first month of release, when inevitably there will be a range of remixes and special offers to choose between later) . . . Les Adams’ five track Megamix now flips Steve Arrington’s 12in, while Atlantic Starr’s bassier 106½bpm remix hasn’t been greeted as necessarily an improvement . . . Barbara Pennington on commercial release at last is shorter even though the sleeves still give the original timing . . . Freddie Jackson’s US follow up is ‘You Are My Lady (LP Version)‘/’I Wanna Say I Love You (Special Theme Version)‘, Kool & The Gang’s US remix of ‘Cherish’ being flipped by a medleying ‘Fresh/Misled (Special Mix)‘ . . . Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam with Full Force ‘I Wonder If I Take You Home‘ is being reissued after a sneaky six week deletion to help back orders build up (shades of Pigbag?) . . . Capital Radio’s afternoon man about town John Sachs settles down with his own Lisa Lisa after their wedding this Saturday (presumably he’ll still be with Mike Allen & Brian Mason at Cricklewood Ashtons Thursday) . . . Tony Blackburn’s secretary Rosanne, not surprisingly considering her close involvement with the Radio London Soul Night Out, has made her own recording debut on a squeaky little 102½bpm New London jogger, ‘This Is The Night‘, up for offers . . . The Intruders have remade a more electronically based 0-117¾bpm version of ‘Who Do You Love‘, due next week . . . Cheryl Lynn’s LP has her own soulful densely weaving 89½bpm ‘Fade To Black‘, subduedly ‘Encore’-ish 100½bpm ‘Loafin‘, jerkily rolling 99½bpm ‘Tug ‘O’ War‘, Motown-ish 0-120½bpm ‘Slipped Me A Mickey’, to complete last week’s review . . . Colin Curtis and I seemed to agree, amongst the many DJs encountered in Manchester at the Sandpiper Inn reception for Total Contrast last week, but Mike Shaft was determined to believe what he hadn’t read! . . . No Way Jose should be a hit in Scotland at least thanks to the plugs on Radio Forth (three plays within five hours of intermittent listening last Thursday!), the station playing a surprising amount of black music for such a supposedly pop orientated area . . . Rick James took over atop US Club Play as Paul Hardcastle moved over finally to top 12in Sales, and Rene & Angela topped black 45s — which Paul’s Silent Underdog ‘Papa’s Got A Brand New Pigbag’ has entered too . . . Friday’s ‘6.20 Soul Train’ has Barbara Pennington, Total Contrast, Michael Lovesmith, Loose Ends, Maze, Barry White, Michael Jackson (on video, girls) . . . Pete Tong’s soul show now follows the Network Chart on Invicta Radio 103.8FM Sundays 7-9pm, his old Saturday 6-9pm slot being filled by The Dude doing ‘The Budweiser Show’ for Brian Rix . . . Friday (26) Steve Sparling PAs at Streatham Chaplins, Saturday (27) Intrigue at Maidstone Sunset . . . Pete Haigh guests Saturday (27) at Burnley Bankhall Miners Club and Sunday (28) with Colin Curtis & Richard Searling at Manchester’s Ritz 10th Anniversary alldayer (2-11pm) . . . Wednesday (31) Greg Parrott starts a soul night in the Shimmers Room at Telford Cascades, while Andy Heryet attempts a weekly ladies-free funk night at Worthing Carioca . . . John Mayoh has moved to Bolton’s funkier Clouseaus . . . Trans X has been a permanent feature in many pop jocks charts for years, so no one DJ can claim credit for its success as a remix now . . . STAY WARM!

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HOT VINYL

DANTE: ‘So Long’ (Cooltempo COOLX 112)
Light Of The World’s Bluey Maunick finally launches his Stevie Barrington-fronted new group with a purposeful pleasant enough if not over inspired steady 85bpm Britfunk jogger, hammering home the title (untidy 101½-104½-104-105½-104½-105½bpm ‘Lovin’ Eyes‘ flip).

HI TENSION: ‘You Make Me Happy (Shop Girl Remix)’ (Streetwave MKHAX 30)
Always an underground biggie with black dancers, like ‘I Found Lovin’ and ‘Magic Touch’, this newly remixed more spacious soulful wriggly purposeful 99½bpm tapper may now have wider appeal in the wake of ‘Hanging On A String’ and other similar crossover hits (98½bpm original and 98¾bpm instrumental flip). It’ll certainly ram the floors in London!

MERCY MERCY: ‘What Are We Gonna Do About It?’ (Ensign 12ENY 522)
Bass tripped plaintively sung rolling 0-105½bpm jiggly tugger with mesmeric long breaks building nicely (dub flip), slightly like a hot tempo Phil Fearon. Continue reading “July 27, 1985: Dante, Hi Tension, Mercy Mercy, Melba Moore, Videeo”

ODDS ‘N’ BODS

HI TENSION’s hot tempo ‘You Make Me Happy’ is indeed being reissued in a new ‘Shop Girl Remix‘ by Streetwave, who’ve picked up the marvellous Mink, and are starting a 12in Dance Classics oldies series including Brass Construction ‘Movin’, McFadden & Whitehead . . . A&M’s initial pressings of the Atlantic Starr remix were so hot they all came out warped! . . . Home Secretary Leon Brittan has finally announced, in vague terms, that a range of 20 experimental community radio stations will soon be offered to applicants, for subsequent evaluation in a Green Paper next summer — however, don’t assume that these are intended as a direct replacement of pirate services . . . BBC Radio One’s bid to get the Gallup chart compilation brought forward so that its first broadcast could be on Sunday, rivalling ILR’s Network Chart, seems for the present to have met resistance from record retailers . . . Five Star’s LP is now out here (Tent PL 70735), the sets by B. B. & Q Band (Cooltempo CHR 1509) and Cameo (Club JABH 11) also being due, while ‘Buttercup’ has evidently been added to Carl Anderson’s current ‘Protocol’ album for UK release . . . Atlantic appear maybe to have cut some of the clumsy breaks out of their ‘Touch Of Class’ UK 12in re-edit, but it still isn’t the superior US original . . . Fourth & Broadway belatedly picked up Colors ‘L.O.S.’, and The World Famous Mad Lads seem set for Champion here . . . ‘Disco Breaks #9‘ (KLS KL 8504) is a European import “only for DJs” which, part of a series, megamixes a variety of current hits in exciting style . . . The Reddings’ funky 107½bpm ‘In My Pants‘ has been remixed as the now commercial flip to their 106bpm Prince-like ‘Parasite‘ (Boiling Point POSPX 738), just when everyone was waiting for ‘Talk’s All Over Town‘, other remixes including The Cool Notes’ percussively thickened (0-)115¾bpm London Mix (which they’ve been in no rush to put out after all), Simon Harris’s irritating stuttery beat repeating 117½bpm Full Monty Mix of the Conway Brothers, and O’Chi Brown’s semi-instrumental 0-118¼bpm Friends Mix . . . Les Adams’ faster 0-108bpm Loyalty Mix of Cacique ‘Devoted To You’ (Diamond Duel DISCX 1) makes them sound like The Cool Notes and may be different but to my mind doesn’t help . . . No Way Jose’s far better promo “Espanol” version of ‘Tequila’ is 188½bpm, and seems of course to be due commercially at some stage . . . Loose Ends ‘Hanging On A String’ topped US Black 45s, a significant step for UK soul, while Tony Blackburn turned New York’s WBLS onto Jaki Graham in a big way . . . Paul Hardcastle appears to have one more remix left to do — of T.Rex! . . . Melle Mel has scrapped any pretence of a Furious Five accompanying group and is now solo . . . Brother Louis Johnson’s solo set which recently surfaced here on US Capitol (with only one OK cut, ‘A Touch Of Class‘) evidently shouldn’t have been released even in the States, so how importers got it is a mystery! . . . US video company Telegenics — at 150 Nassau Street, Suite 1338, New York, NY 10038 (0101-212-227 5966) — is releasing the first in a series of ‘Images Per Minute’ half hour programmes all edited to a consistent soundtrack beat (this particular ‘IPM’ at 115BPM), for use by clubs in synchronisation with their own similarly tempoed records (rather a good idea?) . . . Scandinavia’s disco magazine ‘DJ and Trade News’ nicks all my BPM’s for a listing that quite obviously includes nothing new of their own — one way to fill space cheaply . . . ‘I M’ the unknown mixer, in other words Ian McIntyre (0254-667743 evenings), wants the chance to show what he can do spinning soul in a North-West residency . . . Hank Ballard & The Midnighters (who originated ‘The Twist’, and whose crown James Brown captured as top black act in the early 60’s) spearhead Charly Records revival of material from the Cincinnati King label with an extended 130½bpm ‘Let’s Go, Let’s Go, Let’s Go‘ chanter from 1960 as A-side of a 3-track 12in (CYZ 113), flipped by Bill Deggett’s 105-104-103-0bpm ‘Honky Tonk Pt.2‘ and Little Willie John’s original 130-134bpm ‘Fever‘, both from ’56, the latter possibly another ‘My Baby Just Cares For Me’, these three acts also have well packaged albums on Charly, as do Little Esther (the only one without any hits), saxist Earl Bostic (including ‘Flamingo‘), and Wynonie Harris (including ‘Bloodshot Eyes‘, which by coincidence I played off 45 at my last gig, a stormer great before ‘Reet Petite’!) . . . Sam Cooke ‘Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963’ (RCA PL85181) is a previously unissued live LP for vintage fans which finds him sounding more like a raw ’60s soul singer than a suave balladeer . . . ‘Ready Steady Go!’ last week with the Isley Brothers, Martha & The Vandellas, Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston, was hotter than ‘6.20 Soul Train’ — which this Friday has 9.9, Light Of The World, Phyllis Nelson, Stylistics, Little Anthony & The Imperials, Cameo . . . I think I’ve sussed why so much current American black music is so bad — obviously, just like ‘6.20 Soul Train’ here, TV producers and radio programmers demand fast material to brighten up their shows, as real soul would never do . . . King Enri (Sidcup Danielles/Sydenham Breeze-Inn) makes the point that, despite his playlist being funk, Sister Sledge’s ‘Frankie’ is number one because it’s the most requested floorfiller with girls . . . Dave Dee (not that one), unemployed in Essex so a second hand/discount bin chain store shopper, says there are many import bargains to be found if you’re prepared to wait, and to look . . . Cardiff Ritzy jocks Peter C Helyer & Marcus Paul have just launched the local addition to Radio Top Shop’s in-store network . . . London’s gay Heaven closes for a £500,000 refit the first few days of next week, reopening at the weekend with the Weather Girls Saturday (27) — however they play Bournemouth Bolts at The Academy this Sunday (21), and 400 Blows PA at Harlow Whispers Saturday (20) . . . Sunday (21) Steve Allen, Jonathon, Simon Smith & Trevor Mac soul Peterborough Rinaldo’s 6pm all-eveninger . . . Tuesday (23) sees the first Wicked Pulse esoteric funk night at London Charing X Rd’s Busbys with Ian Dewhirst, Dave Hucker, Jonathon More, Jay Strongman, Steve Ramsey, Eddie Richards . . . Freddie ‘M’ funks London’s Cavendish Square Phoenix Wednesday’s (with Steve Walsh when he isn’t at Disneyland), Peckham Kisses Friday’s with Gordon Mac, Crystal Palace Buttercups at Heroes Club Sundays (free) with Solotronic (GBS) . . . Andy Vaughan now mixes Tues as well as with Spider Fri/Sat at Old Kent Road’s Dun Cow . . . Adrian Parkin Hi-NRGises Huddersfield’s all new Gemini Club Mon/Tues/Wed . . . Ian Dewhirst last week was arrested right in his office at EMI by uniformed coppers, kept in a cell and driven by Black Maria all the way to Leeds, for non-payment of an £80 traffic fine — just because they’d mislaid his change of address! . . . Steve Walsh sat in for holidaying Greg Edwards last weekend on Capital Radio — where maybe he wiped the earlier smiles off a few faces? . . . Denise LaSalle is a whole lotta woman, maybe a warning to Tina Turner not to eat too many ham hocks? . . . Tina incidentally was ill advised to don a white wig for her ‘Mad Max’ role — it doesn’t make her look any younger! . . . Willie Hutch’s lyric about “the girl with T and A” surely doesn’t mean birds and donkeys, does it? . . . STAY COOL!

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HOT VINYL

TOTAL CONTRAST: ‘Takes A Little Time’ (London LONX 71)
Dellroy Murray & Robin Achampong of ‘Sunshine’ near-fame, forsake their own label and let Steve Harvey produce a jittery driving 111bpm Britfunk jiggler of sneaky simplicity if no great depth (chunkier 110¾bpm dub flip).

DANNY D & COLLUSION: ‘Party People’ (Elite DAZZ 42)
Terrific fresh simple jaunty buoyantly rolling and jiggling mellow chanted 101¼bpm party groove with everything understated, and all the more infectious for it — most un-British! — the picky guitar being brought out on the instrumental flip’s 101bpm ‘Jazzy People’ and 90½bpm ‘Vee’.

PHIL FEARON & GALAXY featuring Dee Galdes: ‘This Kind Of Love’ (Ensign 12ENY 521)
Lovely floating 111½bpm smooth shuffly soul revival of Special Delivery’s 1978 oldie with the Galaxy girls almost more prominent than Phil (98½bpm ‘Sharing Love’ flip). Continue reading “July 20, 1985: Total Contrast, Danny D & Collusion, Phil Fearon & Galaxy, Odyssey, Steve Sparling”

ODDS ‘N’ BODS

THIS WEEK’S inevitable remixes include a far superior subdued 0-112½bpm LW5, beefy beat started 113¼bpm Mark Fisher, more spacious muscular 116bpm T.C. Curtis, dense mournful 92¾bpm Take Three, dull vocal (0-)107bpm Sahara, instrumental flipped nasty Dead Or Alive rhythm emphasised 122½bpm 400 Blows, disjointed less hard 0-117bpm Harold Faltermeyer, plus — so far unreceived — Atlantic Starr, and Conway Brothers (although nothing could improve on their excellent 7in edit), the latter remixed by Froggy’s partner Simon Harris originally for his regular slot on Capital during John Sachs’ show . . . ‘The Artists Volume Two‘ (Streetsounds ARTIS 2) is a humdinger double album compilation, one side each of all the hits that fit by Luther Vandross, Teddy Pendergrass, Change, Atlantic Starr! . . . Capitol in the States signed the O’Jays and Patrice Rushen, while Brass Construction’s album next month has a killer called ‘Zig Zag‘ . . . Michael’s sister Janet Jackson is being produced by Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis at A&M, which is where Arnold’s son Lindsay Wesker currently hangs his hat . . . Phil Fearon & Galaxy, with the girls prominently featured, have covered 1978’s Special Delivery ‘This Kind Of Love‘ in a lovely long 111½bpm smooth shuffly treatment that hopefully won’t float over pop fans heads . . . Portuguese-sung and summery — though not soca! — that 104½-107½bpm Gilberto Gil ‘Toda Menina Baiana‘ (WEA U9451T) has been reissued for the good weather . . . Solar’s slimline CJ Carlos, one of several building a buzz on Aleem’s recent though now rare ‘Get Loose‘, says burning up the floor in East London is the old Jellybean ‘Was Dog A Doughnut‘ (EMI America LP), at 0-98bpm suddenly like a slower ‘Axel F’! . . . Colin Hudd’s previously secret oldie now spreading from Dartford Flicks is the Ken Gold produced timely very Chic-ish ‘Darlin‘ by Delegation . . . LWR were busted again as soon as my ink was dry last week, but thankfully all London’s soul pirates were back by the weekend, Solar with a new untraceable link (although what makes them think their DJs’ cars are untraceable I don’t know!) . . . JBC 96.95FM incidentally kept going mainly in the evenings, and some of their shows are very good indeed . . . Light Of The World’s anthemic ‘London Town ’85‘ has obviously been hurt by the lack of pirate plugs . . . Essex’s airwaves change yet again with ACR switching to pop while some of its soul presenters plan a “hard” station of their own . . . Robbie Vincent sits in for holidaying Jeff Young on BBC Radio London the next two Saturday lunchtimes, his own original slot! . . . Chris Ryder (3 Horsley Drive, New Addington, Croydon CR0 0QW) has the franchise from Croydon-Cable UK to run a “radio station” into the 40,000 subscriber homes from next month and urgently needs widely knowledgeable good presenters, not Radio One style — send demo/CV . . . John Dineley (0252-872817), mixing Hi-NRG Thur/Fri/Sat at Surrey’s only gay club Camberley Krugers, is after more mixing gigs the other nights in vari-speed equipped gay venues . . . Disco Mix Club International Mixing DJ champion Roger Johnson (St Albans 0727-39582) actually wants to sell the Trent II console he won so he can get a GLI 9000 mixer instead (tee hee!) . . . DMC’s July mixes are Alan Coulthard’s good Hall & Oates medley and Curtis Hairston minimix, Sanny X’s clever if incongruous restructuring of Rick Dees ‘Disco Duck’ and startling vintage rock ‘n’ roll mix (which would have been better using original versions, if not pressings), and Les Adams’ excellent jocks choice supposedly All-American mix for July the 4th — except of the acts used only Sharon Redd & Poussez for sure, Baby O & Candido possibly, hold American passports, others being French Frantique, Spanish Antonia Rodriguez, Brazilian Sergio Mendes, Birmingham-born Canadian Carol Jiani! (Les actually at short notice had to put this selection together, brilliantly, for a slot that was intended for my own All-American choices, except he shied away from mixing Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel and the Pointer Sisters, who are the type of Americans most readily identified by my punters in 1985!) . . . Paul Anthony (Shrewsbury Park Lane) reports that jocks in Northern Italy are into “slow spins” keeping everything between 100-105bpm, like if you can believe it ZZ Top ‘Legs’ mixed into Divine ‘So You Think You’re A Man’ at 33 1/3bpm (don’t go giving Sanny X ideas!) . . . Steve Sale (Wigan Pier) even without vari-speed evidently synchs the entire length of Harold Faftermeyer ‘Axel F’ through Dead Or Alive ‘In Too Deep’ . . . London Records’ regional reception for new signings Total Contrast at Manchester’s Sandpiper Inn in Fallowfield on Monday (15) may well he graced by myself, so Mike Shaft look out! (invites from Mike Sefton or Kev Edwards) . . . Paul Hardcastle ’19’ took over atop US Club Play . . . Friday’s ‘6.20 Soul Train’ has Steve Arrington, Conway Brothers, Denise LaSalle, Archie Bell & The Drells, Esther Phillips . . . Gary Byrd could be spreading his wings on Friday evenings soon! . . . Sister Sledge’s two appearances on ‘Soul Train’ seem, as far as our chart returns are concerned, to have made ‘Frankie’ into a soul record — I don’t think (mind you, to put it in perspective, back in the ’60s I bought all the girlie group records on which it’s modelled just as avidly as the deep soul stuff) . . . Alex Gerry, my old ’60s soul co-jock at Le Beat Route, where are you currently? . . . Soul On Sound’s latest monthly Hippodrome night amidst a staggering round dozen PAs included dance trio Torso reviving the classic ’30s acrobatic splits ‘n flips style of such as the Step Brothers, complete with tailcoats (very ‘Cotton Club’ and a joy to see) . . . Danny Stewart (47 Apsley Road, Gt Yarmouth NR30 2HG) is after Linda Jones ‘My Heart Needs A Break‘ (US Loma 7in), while Kevin Hawkins (0375-678558) is after Johnny Guitar Watson ‘A Real Mother For Ya‘, and coincidentally has Claudia PAing this Thursday (11) at Basildon Fat Sam’s . . . PAs also include Precinct Thursday and Cool Notes Saturday (13) at Harlow Whispers, then Precinct Saturday and Cool Notes Thursday (18) at Maidstone Sunset, and 400 Blows Friday (12) at Beckenham Lautrec’s . . . Bolton Dance Factory has Island/Fourth & Broadway promotion nights this Fri/ Sat, WEA ditto next . . . Saturday (13) sees Pete Tong at Leysdown Stage 3, and Phil England driving Matt bats at Cullompton Blazers . . . Solar’s CJ Carlos & Paul Buick are downstairs, Graham Gold in residence upstairs, at Mayfair Gullivers every Wednesday now . . . Pete Sedgebeer, if last week’s went well, should be funking Thursdays at Golden Green’s free Bell pub (in Three Elm Lane off the Tonbridge/East Peckham A26) . . . Paul Oakenfold & Trevor Fung funk Streatham Chaplins Fridays, Tony de Vit does Kidderminster’s Weavers wine bar Tues/Thur with outdoor barbeque when fine, Andy Heryet confesses Worthing Carioca Saturday party nights are his busiest there . . . Wednesday (17) sees the long awaited start of an upfront, no dress restriction, solid soul ‘n’ funk night at Swansea’s Harry’s Dance Bar with James Lewis, The Bean & Jeff Thomas, a brave oasis amidst a pop desert so do support it — I missed Jeff, but met The Bean (and Plastic Sam supping ice cream by the marina) under the kind guidance of James during my latest visit to The Mumbles last week . . . 400 Blows gave me one of their T-shirts, size XXXL — however did they know that’s the only kind your double whopper can wear? . . . STAY COOL!

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COMMUNITY RADIO

HOME SECRETARY Leon Brittan last Wednesday announced that so far in 1985 there have been 110 raids on 44 different pirate radio stations, and that he is determined to “stamp out the anarchy of the airwaves”. However, he has yet to reveal any decision about the type of community radio that many anticipate will be a legal replacement for the pirates. This will be more likely if the Government opts for “special interest” radio, broadcasting over a wider area than strictly local “community radio” would cover. By coincidence the day before Brittan spoke, Angela Rumbold MP chaired a press conference at the House Of Commons on behalf of such licence-seeking sometime pirates as Radio Jackie, Solar-FM. two specialist rock stations and various ethnic Asian, Arabic and Greek stations, attended by several Conservative MPs (but significantly no Socialists) who each talked encouragingly although with warnings. Tim Brinton, Conservative Backbench Media Committee chairman, foresaw “some move in experimental community radio within the next few months”, but thought that the generally desirable deregulation of radio would pose too many problems to allow widespread changes for a long time. John Gorst counselled patience, saying “this is an area that Parliament for many years has taken a great interest in”, but a national pride in the standard of our broadcasting would dictate that even the smallest stations at the base of the broadcasting pyramid would have to meet scrupulous standards under centralised control. Ivor Stanbrook, declaring “deregulation is in the air”, although “the road is going to be pretty long and pretty hard”, added that licence applicants should be “self disciplined — take what’s offered and don’t complain about regulations imposed upon you”. At some stage someone made the vary pertinent remark that nobody at the meeting had a God given right to broadcast: quite possibly this was the last speaker, who shook all present with the revelation of his identity, Roger Gale, MP for Thanet and the only Member to have been a pirate DJ himself, on board the old Radios Caroline North and South! As well as raising the question of theft by the pirates of copyright in their non-payment of royalties (unfortunately no mention was made of previous pirate offers to pay being turned down because they were unlicensed to broadcast in the first place), and the future imposition of needletime which would prevent any legal station existing on records alone. Gale summed up the current uncertainty of the situation which still limits one to speculation, “Don’t confuse community radio with specialist interest radio, the Government could opt for one or the other first. What will you do if you don’t get a licence? If you’re not successful, don’t then go away and set up another pirate station as nobody will respect you for it.”

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HOT VINYL

FIVE STAR: ‘Luxury Of Life’ LP (US RCA NFL1-8052)
Oddly out on import first, the Essex Family Pearson’s debut set of youthful “New London” black pop as well as their most recent three A-sides (but not flips) has the Nick Martinelli-prod/Loose Ends-arr 119¼bpm ‘RSVP’ and 142bpm ‘Now I’m In Control‘, Steve Harvey-produced 117¾bpm ‘Winning‘, 118bpm ‘Hide And Seek’, sub-Evita-ish 0-34½bpm ‘Say Goodbye’, The Limit-produced 119½bpm ‘Love Take Over’, and Billy Livsey-produced 126bpm ‘System Addict’. Nothing startling for sophisticated ears, although on its UK release I can foresee a spate of Five Star Mania. Believe me, these kids is hot!

AURRA: ‘Happy Feeling’ (10 Records TEN 54-12)
Starleana & Curt are exploding right out of the box with this bass whomped Slave-ish purposeful chunky 108¾bpm strider which has melody as well as beat, and a bumpily jerking 118½bpm ‘Hooked On You‘ flip (despite the sleeve listing the A-side’s inst). Hot to trot!

MAZE featuring FRANKIE BEVERLY: ‘Twilight’ (Capitol 12CL 363)
This mind messingly catchy simple percolating little 0-107½bpm instrumental still dominates its 3-track 12in coupled pleasant if unexceptional 110½bpm slightly remixed ‘Too Many Games‘ and the more relevant totally remixed lean spacious 113¼bpm ‘Back In Stride‘, and could be a monstrous national hit (which let’s face it Maze need) if only Capitol would plug it properly. Continue reading “July 13, 1985: Five Star, Aurra, Maze, “D” Train, Precinct”

ODDS ‘N’ BODS

PAUL HARDCASTLE’s saga isn’t over yet — now ’19’ has appeared on import in a German Version (German Chrysalis 601 827), (0-)117½bpm, with newscaster Werner Veigel replacing the American commentary! . . . Radio London’s last Soul Night Out of the season this Thursday, July the 4th, in case a misprint confused you, finds Steve Walsh & Graham Gold with all the PA stars at Hammersmith Palais while in a simultaneous two-way broadcast link Tony Blackburn & Dave Pearce will be in New York City on urban contemporary station WBLS with Ricky Ricardo & Mary Thomas, whose regular shows with the Limeys as guests will be relayed in London between 10pm-1am exactly as they are being heard in New York, commercials and all, each side of the Hammersmith link! . . . LWR came back in force, London’s other pirates being off air due to bad weather and windy DJs (who don’t want to get nicked in a studio bust) — the reduction in soul time has certainly resulted in lower record sales, while anti-terrorism measures appear to be holding up imports at the airport for Customs checks . . . Ken Livingstone’s Greater London Council has conducted a survey that shows many residents are in favour of community radio and special interest services: during Mike Gray’s follow-up phone-in on Radio London a caller who was easily spotted as being Marc Damon made the much agreed with point that rather than just community stations catering to specialist music tastes there ought to be national services for such as soul, rock and country & western . . . Mike Shaft had better convince me that Manchester has as much daily soul radio as London, and that black records dominate sales there (which according to Gallup figures they most certainly don’t), or else take back what he said about me on Piccadilly Radio — in a sales research based column for Music Week, I never implied that soul doesn’t have a level of popularity there, just that in London currently it is staggeringly successful with the majority of singles selling better than average being black (you can’t argue with the figures, Mike!) . . . Exeter’s DevonAir, doubtless inspired by Essex Radio, have introduced a Summer Soul playlist to run seven days a week through the summer alongside their normal high-rotation ‘A’ list of pop hits . . . Canadian Club’s Disco Doubles dancing champions are Paul Baker & Lena Dattlani from Richmond, London, who win a holiday in Canada along with spending money and other items, no doubt connected with the heavily promoted brand of rye whisky . . . South Eastern Disco Assn members now meet the first Sunday of the month (ie: July 7) at 8pm in Canterbury’s Coach & Horses pub, so as not to clash with Thames Valley DJ Assn meetings which SEDA members hope to attend in future . . . Brian Mason (Cricklewood Ashtons) interestingly suggests the need for a “temps” agency to supply good temporary stand-in DJs to cover at clubs while resident jocks have a holiday or are otherwise engaged —he emphasises they should be reliable DJs who wouldn’t merely try to muscle their way into the residency job . . . Tony Prince at the charity Silver Clef Award Luncheon donated £500 on behalf of the Disco Mix Club for Dave Dee to “whip” Tony Blackburn while singing his old Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Titch hit ‘Xanadu’! . . . I have a hunch ‘Ready Steady Go’ could create a Dusty Springfield revival . . . Katrina And The Waves ‘Walking On Sunshine’, as I suddenly realised doing a 21st birthday gig in Derbyshire last Saturday, is exactly the same as The Sweet ‘The Ballroom Blitz’, even down to the BPM — dyn-o-mite! . . . Friday’s ‘6.20 Soul Train’ has Jaki Graham, Arrow, Cool Notes, Animal Nightlife, Freddie Jackson, Luther Vandross, Sly & The Family Stone — it is getting better, those earlier rock names only being included to broaden its audience base, although unfortunately it appears to be in the hands of someone who (quite possibly rightly) believes fast music makes better TV . . . 400 Blows, to judge from our Disco chart, are maybe more credible when heard not seen, while Phil Fearon has possibly learnt to his cost that the all important London market really does prefer slower soul . . . The Cool Notes ‘In Your Car’ came a lowly 3rd in Tony Blackburn’s listeners voted Record Of The Week this week . . . Five Star’s father Buster Pearson evidently thinks his kids don’t need PAs now . . . September, now they’ve settled their name, turn out to be Juliette Jaimes with her brothers Mark & Paul and two chums, from Waltham Abbey . . . Jive’s 14 years old African kid Warren Mills has been produced by Wayne Brathwaite on an excellent ‘Don’t Tell Me About Your Boyfriend‘ which’ll wow the young “New London” soul crowd, great lyrics for the girls, but unfortunately other lesser releases are planned ahead of it . . . Hi Tension ‘You Make Me Happy‘ is still a hot tempo in Liverpool for Simon Edwards at Maxwells & The Dove (could it, post-Loose Ends, do better now if reissued?) . . . Graham Gold (Mayfair Gullivers), forsaking piracy for legality and the hope of a proper job in radio, tips off pop jocks that Skipworth & Turner and the Pointer Sisters ‘Automatic’ synch like a dream . . . Arrow ‘Long Time’ to be totally accurate should be 124¾-124½-124¼bpm! . . . Simply Red ‘Money’s Too Tight’ has crossed to soul venues especially in its initially scarce 112½bpm Cutback Mix, which leaves out the original confusing intro . . . Freddie Jackson ‘Rock Me Tonight’ is now #1 Black LP as well as Black 45 in the USA, where similarly Madonna ‘Angel’/’Into The Groove’ now tops Club Play and 12in Sales — incidentally, ‘Into The Groove’ here will be flipped by neither ‘Angel’ nor the promoed ‘Holiday’, the latter oldie oddly being a separate unconnected picture disc on sale at the same time! . . . Kool & The Gang’s ‘Joanna’ was the most performed song in the States last year out of all those administered by royalty collection agency BMI . . . James Mtume has produced the Comsat Angels, just to flex his muscles, although as you will be relieved to hear he himself is not going rock! . . . JoAnna Gardner has been officially flipped, to make ‘Pick Up The Pieces’ A-side . . . Bohannon has delved back to revamp this time ‘Foot Stompin’ Music Part II‘ (US Phase II) . . . Stars On 45, sound-alikes no more, actually feature Sam & Dave for a medley of their own old Stax classics . . . Midlands soul singer Ruby Turner seems likely to be recording in Memphis produced and penned for by such as Willie Mitchell, Homer Banks & Chuck Brooks, Jones & Weatherspoon, and Allen Jones of the Bar-Kays . . . Friday (5) Richard Searling & Pete Haigh start weekly “Modern”/Northern/Motown Soul at Blackpool Bananas, fire-eating Darryl Hayden and turbanned Tony Patti do under-18s at Greenford Town Hall, Adrian Allen has (half-price if dressed right) Sports & Shorts at South Shields Chelsea Cat, Dave Rawlings hosts the annual Miss Martines final at Basingstoke Martines . . . Dave Clark (stage name Dave Toney) crosses the road from Barking Chains on Fridays to funk Cowpers American bar & restaurant (free, but arrive by 10.30pm) . . . John Dean goofed and in fact it’s this Sunday (7) that mixers Froggy & Flip join him at Hastings Images . . . John Marlow has started a Bolts gay night Sundays at Plymouth’s The Academy (for whose owner coincidentally I’m doing a ’60s Party this weekend in Dorset!) . . . Aretha Franklin ‘Freeway Of Love’, breaking in gay venues, on US pressings as well as our two mixes has an extended Latin Rascals remix which doubtless will be creatively marketed here too at a later stage . . . Ian Levine points out it was John Morales’ mix of Barbara Pennington that was just too damn long! . . . Pete Haigh (0253-824156) is now after Harlequin 4’s recent cover version of Strafe’s ‘Set It Off’ . . . London plugger Mike Sefton needs a press agent to prevent future photo captions calling him “who knows?”! . . . Danny Daniels just funks Mayfair Legends Tuesdays as he’s busy with Erskine Thompson as a Hot Licks plugger now . . . Ralph Tee & Damon Rochefort are moving on down the road — or is that The Street? . . . I’ve been toying with descriptive alternatives to the word Disco and came up with Body Music (Black Orientated Dance-y Music!) . . . One Way’s 7in has here been retitled and overdubbed so that it’s now ‘Let’s Talk About Shh’, with “shh” substituted for every mention of “sex”, which only makes it sound more lewd than ever! . . . C’mon, do it right, we’ve got all night, clear the decks and LET’S TALK ABOUT SEX!

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HOT VINYL

 

MICHAEL LOVESMITH: ‘Break The Ice’ (Motown ZT 40274)
Now likely really to take off, here this good Marvin Gaye flavoured jittery slow 100½bpm hot tempo tugger with classy sax is flipped not only by the bright shallow 115bpm ‘Lucky In Love‘ but also his old 118¼bpm ‘Baby I Will‘ (in Change ‘Searching’ style), while on his LP ‘Rhymes Of Passion’ (US Motown 6145ML) this possibly even better bass bumped lightly fluid 116½bpm ‘Ain’t Nothin’ Like It‘ with fascinating keyboards behind real soul singing, and brash Stevie Wonder-ish 120bpm chunky jiggler ‘I’m Good At It‘ are getting reaction.

 

LUTHER VANDROSS: ‘It’s Over Now (Dance Remix)’ (Epic TA 6414)
Although less blatant than Chaka Khan, this soulfully teased lurching smacker has been freakified with fancy effects and “get out” growls into a drastic 110(intro)-113(start)-114-114½-114¼-113¾(break)-114¼-0bpm remix (straightforward inst flip).

 

9.9: ‘All Of Me For All Of You’ (RCA PT 49952)
This Richard Dimples Fields-produced good looking girlie trio (why indeed isn’t their photo on the badly designed UK sleeve?) exploded overnight on import with their wailing excellent simple 115¼-115¾-116¼bpm disco wriggler, flipped by a far harder dub (here called a remix) and the traditionally bluesy 92bpm ‘Little Bitty Woman‘. A monster! Continue reading “July 6th, 1985: Michael Lovesmith, Luther Vandross, 9.9, Shannon, Five Star”