The ultimate vinyl vixen of style is 'The Duchess'. She makes me want to get up on stage in a lurex catsuit, mules and rip some good old rhythm and blues. What a lady!
The best dressed R'n' B duo around
Check out The Duchess in action as she shreds it in style on this Bo Diddley classic.
Looking at this guy, you'd never assume he made roaring rhythm and blues. True, he is now a biologist and left the music scene decades ago but Grainger Hunt graced us with these sweet sweet tunes and gee am I thankful for it!
A growling R&B swinger that has never made the biblical story sound so cool.
Chuck Berry/ Bo Diddley vibes here!
It's one of those songs where I think I could listen to it endlessly on repeat
Welcome to ‘Vinyl Vixens’ a new segment I'm starting that
covers some of my favourite female musicians. I'm kicking things off with one
of my absolute favourites the fabulous Bobbie Gentry.
This bouffant Southern beauty composes blue infused country
rock, drawing upon her Mississippi upbringing to create visually rich and
autobiographical lyrics. Composed with funky rhythms and breathy strings,
Gentry easily moves from country rock to whispering serenades.
Not only is her music ace, but her
style is magic! Flares, pantsuits, crop tops are always worn with a volumous
bouffant hairstyle, framing her wickedly doll like eyes. I've always thought
she should have more recognition, as there is so much more to her than ‘Ode to
Billy Joel’. There’s no denying it’s a great song, but Gentry produced many
more golden tunes.
She dropped out of the limelight in the late 70’s and has
not been heard from since, besides a rare phone call to Rich Hall of Fame
records. She would be someone fascinating to track down!
Here are my top 5 Bobbie Gentry songs
1. He Made A Woman Out Of Me
Those first notes are so damn sexy! Great lyrics and a smooth horn section make this song gold. I prefer it over the Bettye Lavette version, as the rhythm is smooth and delicious.
2. Big Boss Man
What a version! I love how the song starts and you think it's going to be some sappy stringed serenade, then next minute the harmonica rings out and the drums start and it becomes something bluesy and soulful.
3. Fancy
Trust me this song becomes catchy! I first heard it and thought it was alright, then next second it was probably the only song I listened to for a month straight. The lyrical imagery is just fantastic with killer lines like 'watching a roach crawling across the toe of my high heel shoes'.
4. Reunion
I can honestly say that I've spent a good amount of time figuring out the clap pattern to this song so I can join in. It's so campy and silly, but I love the rhythm and the conversational lyrics. I can't not sing along and do the all the character voices. It was also great when they had it in Fargo season 2.
5. Parchman Farm
I love Mose, but this version is so just so smooth and funky.
I recently got New Orleans Funk: The Original Sound of Funk 1960-75 on CD and have been listening to it non-stop since, so I thought this week I'd compile a playlist of some of my favourite funky soul rhythms to get down to. It's time to get groovy!
Besides the pop art screen prints, celebrity Polaroids and
bizarre art house films, Andy Warhol designed over 60 album covers for a range
of musicians in his time. I love nothing more than music meeting art and Warhol’s
covers are a nifty discovery.
I’ve selected a few of my favourites of his early covers for you to enjoy.
Kenny Burrell Volume 2 (1957), Kenny Burrell Piano Music of Mendelssohn and Liszt (1951) Vladimir Horowitz
Iconic covers by Warhol such as The Rolling Stone’s Sticky Fingers and The Velvet Underground and Nico may already be well known but Warhol actually began creating cover art for LP’s in his early design years producing his first cover when he was a mere 21 years of age.
Blue Lights (1958) Kenny Burrell The Congregation (1958) Johnny Green
Working freelance, Warhol produced covers for many prime record labels of the time such as RCA, Prestige and Blue Note. From bebop jazz to Tchaikovsky, Warhol applied his signature ink-blot style to a spectrum of musical genres.
Count Basie (1955) Count Basie Reading from The Glass Menagerie, The Yellow Book of Five Poems ( 1960) Tennesse Williams
You've got to love that portrait of Basie! Side eye and smoking cool.
This is John Wallowitch (1964) John Wallowitch Monk (1956) Thelonious Monk
I love the smooth profile of that sharp suit on 'This is John Wallowitch. Very Classy! For 'Monk', Warhol collaborated with a very special person, using his own mother's cursive handwriting for the cover. Julia Warhola actually did calligraphy on a number of Warhol pieces, even winning an award from the American Institute of Graphic art in 1958 for her lettering on 'The Story of Moondog' album cover.
Wattstax, the 1972 concert put together by Stax Records in Watts,
California was an event where politics and music collided into one groovy
festival. With the top funk and soul acts of the time performing, it was a concert
that you will have wished you were at. Luckily for us though, some folks
decided to film the event and put together an epic documentary on it a year
later.
And what a film it is! A complete audio, visual and cultural
feast!
With a line up of incredible performers such as The Staple
Singers, Rufus Thomas, Little Milton, Kim Weston, Carla Thomas, Luther Ingram
and more, it’s a pleasure to just enjoy the music and watch such talented
musicians take to the stage in their prime.
Carla Thomas and Freddy Robinson
The documentary is filled with great short interviews of people from
around Watts, discussing topics of race, love and letting your hair go. Richard
Pryor also appears throughout providing sly comic and social observations to the
film.
And the fashions! Oh my! There are some
groovy getups to be seen. So many amazing matching couples outfits,
unbelievably short miniskirts, chain vests, flares, and stylish fros. I don't
know what was better, seeing Rufus Thomas in a flamingo pink shorts suit and
matching cape or The Bar-Keys in white flares, fringe and fros.
I love it when Johnnie Taylor sings
'Jody's Got Your Girl' at the nightclub and all the men are dressed to the
nines in their platforms, long fur coats, fedoras, silks and jewels. They wear
brooches that were probably their grandma's but it somehow looks cool. Seeing
them rock up to the club in their flash cars with personalised license plates
('Flavor ' anyone?) also adds to the whole panache of the scene, in that you
know they don't just look stylish they live it.
Rufus Thomas works the crowd with humour
and style. I could watch that man dance all day long! He's definitely got the
groove.
It’s also great when you see Isaac Hayes. He walks onto the stage
like he's God, doing the whole James Brown cape scene, before bursting into
'Theme from Shaft' and making the crowd go wild.
The Bar-Keys
The documentary’s best quality besides the great music and style is the fact that it does not look back or try to unveil some significant kind of discovery.
It was merely an observation of the culture and music, in a certain place, at a
certain time. For the audience this then results in a purer reflection of the
period then what would happen if someone decided to make a documentary on
Wattstax now. There is no “I remember this”; it is simply as it was and that’s
what makes it great. It also makes it interesting as a viewer in the 21st
century to see how many of the problems that were prevalent then are still troubling
us now.
So if you haven't seen it, watch it now! and if you have seen it watch it again, cause this film shows that groovy music is timeless!
Oh man! What a song! I stumbled across it the other day and have been hooked since. Groovy lyrics and Hammond heavy rhythm. What a find!
When a song is this good I always want more and soon uncovered some other good tunes from Mr Vernon Harrell.
Slick Chick
Harrell was predominately a song writer, partnering with former member of The Cadillacs, J. R. Bailey on a number of great R & B hits for Chuck Woods and The Platters. As a singer, Harrell was Billy Guy's replacement in The Coasters for a period during the 1960's however he never recorded with the group and was later replaced. Pursing his own singer career, Harrell sporadically recorded his own work in-between writing for others, producing singles throughout the 60's and 70's. He also occasionally wrote and recorded under the name Keidar Syenon, covering Ray Charles and Van Morrison in 1972.
'If This Ain't Love" ( No Cows in Texas) (1966)
I dig this song! It's groovy beat is on point and I just love the chorus " If this ain't love, ain't no cows in Texas" . It's such a a bizarre idiom, but I love it!
Your Love (1966)
A bit campy but it's got that Northern Soul style going for it. It also has a nice little guitar solo in it that gives it some flair.
A Man Had Got To Cry Sometimes (1966)
This song has got a real Otis flavour to it. Really soulful and smooth.
What can I say? This man is the absolute coolest cat to
grace this earth. As smooth as his guitar playing, Mr Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson is
one of my absolute favourite artists ever. His early blues tunes knock my socks
of and get my hips swinging. Considering he’s known mostly for his gangster
lovin’ 70’s funk getup, it’s his early songs that really are his best work.
Cause as much as ‘Ain’t That a Bitch’ is a classic smooth funk song it’s not a
patch on any of his 50-60’s work. His flair and flamboyance towards the guitar was
out of this world for his time, and you can easily see that although he choose
his stage name after the film Johnny Guitar, he’s an artist that is unanimously
associated with his instrument.
I was first struck by his classic hit ‘Gangster of Love’(1957),and
it’s gritty, bad-ass confidence. I'm always a sucker for songs about outlaws
and gun-slingers so I had this song on repeat for a couple of months. It can be
a bit difficult uncovering his earlier stuff but when you do its gold.
I next got on to ‘The Blue Soul of Johnny Guitar Watson’ (
1963 Chess Records) which was really different from Gangster of Love, a lot more jazzy, piano based and crooner
sung. ‘When Did You Get To Heaven’ is definitely the stand out track, it’s slow
sultry pace is a real knock out and it’s 6 minute length dissolves into a
dreamy haze. Watson plays both piano and guitar on the album.
If you need some Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson in life (I think we
all do!) then these are the tunes for
you!I could have probably gone on for days about each song but this are a few of my favourites.
Broke and Lonely
Oh my! The start of this song is so damn good!
Great rhythm guitar and horn section.
One More Kiss
This is one hell of a song! Slow grindin’, smooth, sultry and jazzy
Three Hours Past Midnight
Mr Watson knows how to do sultry blues so well
and his guitar skill in this song is amazing.
Deana Baby
This is a song
I can’t listen to without twisting. It just doesn't seem physical possible to
listen and not groove to it. It’s also surprisingly similar to Edie Cochran’s ‘Jeanie,
Jeanie, Jeanie’.
She Moves Me
Not to be mistaken by the Muddy Waters song.
Watson knows how to move you with this groovy tune.
I Say I Love You
Great rhythm and it’s nice to hear Watson accompanied
by some female backup singers.
'Space Guitar’ and ‘The Late Freight Twist’ are also great
instrumentals of Watson's to check out.
