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Monday, March 31, 2008

Martin Luther King Jr. Classic Soul Dream Concert

Friday, April 4, 2008 is the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

In 1973, a 2nd annual Benefit Concert for the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Social Change was held at the Omni arena in Atlanta, Georgia.

RCA Records was a big sponsor of the event.  Many of their artists performed.

I’ve produced a special 5 minute 50 second video flashback of this classic soul concert for all to enjoy.

Here’s the rundown of the original double album.

Keep The Dream Alive

Side 1


  • Introduction: Mrs. Coretta Scott King
  • “Precious Lord” - Linda Hopkins
  • "It’s My Belief” - Linda Hopkins
  • “No One’s Gonna Be a Fool Forever” - Friends of Distinction
  • Medley: “Love Or Let Me Be Lonely,” “Going In Circles,” “Time Waits for No One,” “Grazing In The Grass” - Friends of Distinction

Side 2


  • “Hey Leroy” - The Jimmy Castor Bunch
  • “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” - The Jimmy Castor Bunch
  • “Betcha By Golly Wow” - The Jimmy Castor Bunch
  • “Troglodyte (Cave Man)” - The Jimmy Castor Bunch
  • Geraldine struts her stuff (Flip Wilson)

Side 3


  • “Make It With You” - Main Ingredient
  • “Work To Do” - Main Ingredient
  • Medley: “You’ve Been My Inspiration,” “Spinning Around (I Must Be Falling In Love),” “I’m So Proud,” “Everybody Plays the Fool” - Main Ingredient
  • Comments: Mrs. Coretta Scott King

Side 4


  • “Ain’t No Sunshine” - Jose Feliciano
  • “We’ve Only Just Begun” - Jose Feliciano
  • “Oye Como Va” - Jose Feliciano
  • Comments: Flip Wilson
  • Funny Talk: Flip Wilson
  • “Don’t Knock My Love” pts. 1 & 2 - Wilson Pickett
  • “Don’t Let The Green Grass Fool You” - Wilson Pickett

Keep the Dream Alive was a great concert featuring strong performances.  The Atlanta community supported the effort with a large turnout.

Watch the video, then listen to my interview with Jimmy Castor and Gerry Thomas from 1977.

In honor of Dr. King’s legacy, this will be the only article posted in the Classic Soul R&B Music Jam this week.

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Posted by King on 03/31 at 12:02 AM
Audio • Concerts • Flashback • News • Video • (0) Comments • Permalink

Monday, March 24, 2008

Heatwave Hits & Video Memories

Brothers Johnnie and Keith Wilder were the core of Heatwave, the “Always And Forever” crew, who put together a team of gifted international musicians to deliver some jammin’ grooves.

Johnnie and Keith, Dayton, Ohio natives, fine-tuned their classic soul funk in Germany, following a tour of Army duty in the U.S. military.

Positive club exposure in London captured for Heatwave their first record deal.

1976’s Too Hot To Handle album, Heatwave’s first release, included both “Always And Forever,” and the dance classic “Boogie Nights."

You can find a collection of Heatwave videos on their official web site.

Tragically, Johnnie Wilder Jr. passed away at age 56, closing a long chapter of success for the original group.

Check out the Johnnie Wilder Jr. video remembrance, as well as the following videos below.  Warning: you won’t be able to stop or control the clips once they start, but the content in the official Heatwave video archive is worth it...


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Posted by King on 03/24 at 12:02 AM
Biography • Video • Website • (0) Comments • Permalink

Monday, February 18, 2008

Dyke & The Blazers Classic Soul Funk

When you think about the creators of funk, James Brown always comes to mind.

Dyke & The Blazers are another legendary late 1960’s funk ensemble, often compared to the Godfather of Soul.

Wilson Pickett covered Dyke’s “Funky Broadway,” resulting in an even bigger hit for the wicked one.

Watch the 3 minute 4 second story of Dyke & The Blazers, produced by PowerhouseRadio.com.

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Posted by King on 02/18 at 12:02 AM
Biography • Flashback • Video • (0) Comments • Permalink

Monday, February 04, 2008

Erykah Badu's Classic Soul Shape Shifter

Dallas, Texas, native Erykah Badu’s latest video, “Honey,” contains a buffet of several vintage classic soul album covers and more, but that’s not all...

Watch the entire video to see Erykah morph into some of your R&B favorites.

Be on the lookout for:

  • De La Soul - 3 Feet High and Rising
  • Diana Ross - Blue
  • Earth Wind & Fire - Head to the Sky
  • Eric B. & Rakim - Paid in Full
  • Funkadelic - Maggot Brain
  • Grace Jones - Nightclubbing
  • LaBelle - Chameleon
  • Minnie Riperton - Perfect Angel
  • Nas - Illmatic
  • Ohio Players - Honey
  • Olivia Newton-John - Physical
  • Rufus - Rufus featuring Chaka Khan
  • The Beatles - Let It Be

Her new album, New Amerykah: Part One (4th World War) hits stores Tuesday, February 26th, 2008.

Unpredictable Erykah has a lot going on, so check her out!

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Posted by King on 02/04 at 12:02 AM
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Thursday, January 24, 2008

Luther Vandross, Janet Jackson, Justin Timberlake, & Diana Ross on January 24th

Here are some memorable moments credited to January 24th:

2004 – Janet Jackson & Justin Timberlake perform the “wardrobe malfunction” halftime act at Superbowl 38 in Jacksonville, Florida.

1987 – Luther Vandross has the number 1 R&B song, “Stop To Love.”

1982 – Diana Ross sings the national anthem at Superbowl 16 in Pontiac, Michigan.

1970 – The Chairmen of the Board have their first and biggest hit, “Give Me Just a Little More Time” (#8 R&B, #3 pop).

Celebrate January 24th with Luther Vandross at Royal Albert Hall, London, from September, 1994...

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Posted by King on 01/24 at 12:02 AM
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Monday, January 14, 2008

Diana Ross Rocks Atlantic City

It was time.  I’ve never seen Diana Ross in concert live, so in celebration of another birthday, it was off to The Borgata in Atlantic City to catch Ms. Ross dish out some delicious diva magic to her casino city acolytes on Sunday evening, January 13th, 2008.

In an electrifying red gown, one of four different costume changes during the evening, the Boss opened the show with what else, “I’m Coming Out."

Next, it was sing-a-long time with 3 Supremes numbers:

  1. “My World Is Empty Without You Babe”
  2. “Baby Love”
  3. “Stop In The Name of Love”

Diana mixed the old and new quite well.  The sold out crowd thoroughly enjoyed the vintage Supremes songs.

Ms. Ross sounded terrific.  She seemed well rested with energy to spare.

Following the Supremes medley, Diana eased into “Touch Me In The Morning,” “Love Hangover,” “The Boss,” and “It’s My House,” rekindling the cachet of her solo hit catalogue.

Supremes chestnut “Love Child” grabbed the crowd next, before Ms. Ross sang the passionate ballad, “What About Love,” a new track from her 2007 album, I Love You.  This was one of the few tracks most people in the audience were not familiar with.

Diana then picked up the tempo with another crowd pleaser from I Love You, “More Today Than Yesterday."

She really shook the rafters next with “Upside Down” and a sparkling version of “Ease on Down The Road” from The Wiz.

What’s a Diana Ross concert without some Lady Sings The Blues?

Ms. Ross then performed 2 back-to-back blues ballads from her Lady Day connection.

With her fans shouting for more, Diana stepped into “Why Do Fools Fall in Love,” followed by “The Theme From Mahogany,” and “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough."

Her band was a small combo of electric guitar, electric bass, drums, percussion, keyboards, and a male and female background singer.  The songs sounded fine with these instruments, giving the older material a very contemporary feel.

The surprise of the night was the one encore after “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” a charged version of Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive.” Towards the end of this song, a former mystery Supreme hit the stage to sing a short duet of the song with Diana.

Although the audience begged for a second encore, it was not to be.  I was waiting for “Reach Out and Touch Somebody’s Hand,” but not tonight!

A younger friend who accompanied me said she enjoyed the show much better than Mary J. Blige who we both saw at the same arena last July.

I’m happy I’ve finally seen Diana Ross live.  It was worth the wait! Her performance was excellent.

Catch Diana Ross Tuesday, March 11, 2008, 8pm at Bank Atlantic Center Sinatra Theater, Sunrise, Florida.

Watch Diana Ross talk about the song “More Today Than Yesterday".

Diana Ross Borgata concert photo credits: PowerhouseRadio.com.

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Posted by King on 01/14 at 12:02 AM
Concerts • News • Review • Video • (2) Comments • Permalink

Thursday, November 08, 2007

Darlene Love Shines on It's Christmas of Course 2007

Darlene Love, the famous voice of The Crystals, has released her first Christmas Album.

It’s Christmas Of Course features a welcome blend of contemporary holiday songs from the 1970’s and 1980’s.

Darlene digs right into a variety neo-classics, showing her versatility as a singer.

You won’t find Irving Berlin or Felix Mendelssohn inspired Christmas music on this upbeat release.  Darlene Love is a child of the rock and soul era.  She punches out these multi-genre holiday anthems with allegiance to the rhythmic pop beat.

"We had a rule on this album: no oldies. We wanted to leave the ‘50s and ‘60s behind,” according to Shawn Amos, Vice President of A&R for Shout! Factory, (the record label releasing Love’s It’s Christmas Of Course).

Darlene is an example of how talent and luck can keep one in the game for the long haul.

She’s had her share of hits with The Crystals under the guidance of Phil Spector.  She’s paid her dues singing background vocals for Sam Cooke, Elvis Presley, The Mamas and Papas, Dionne Warwick, The Beach Boys, and Cher.

What I like the most about It’s Christmas Of Course is how Darlene Love sings such a wide range of material with authority, refinement, and subtlety.

But then, she’s worked with the best.

I like all of the tracks on It’s Christmas Of Course, however, 4 of my favorites are:

  • “Who Took The Merry Out of Christmas”
  • “Please Come Home For Christmas”
  • “What Christmas Means To Me”
  • “Thanks For Christmas”

Here are all of the tracks with a notation about the original artists:

  1. “Christmas All Over Again” (Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers)
  2. “Who Took The Merry Out of Christmas” (The Staple Singers)
  3. “Christmas Wish” (NRBQ)
  4. “Santa Claus Go Straight To The Ghetto” (James Brown)
  5. “Please Come Home For Christmas” (Charles Brown)
  6. “2000 Miles” (The Pretenders)
  7. “Christmas Is The Time To Say ‘I Love You’” (Billy Squier)
  8. “What Christmas Means To Me” (Stevie Wonder)
  9. “Christmas Must Be Tonight” (The Band)
  10. “Thanks For Christmas” (XTC)
  11. “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” (John & Yoko & The Plastic Ono Band w/the Harlem Community Choir)
  12. “Night Of Peace” (Original Song)

Cissy Houston, the famous mother of Whitney, is a guest vocalist on “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)."

The first track, “Christmas All Over Again,” features a nice retro arrangement bringing to mind some classic Spectoresque girl group gusto.  You know it’s Darlene Love when you hear this one.

Darlene gets gritty on “Who Took The Merry Out of Christmas,” and “Santa Claus Go Straight To The Ghetto.” She’s got a lot of soul in her powerful voice.

Whatever your musical taste, these 12 songs offer a fresh and enjoyable take on a cross-section of neo-classic holiday favorites.

Even though this is Darlene’s first solo Christmas album, she recorded “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” for Phil Spector’s Christmas album in 1963.

Love has performed the song for the past 20 years on David Letterman’s Late Show television broadcast.  Dave says that the performance is his favorite thing about Christmas.

What else has Darlene been doing in recent years? Just Lighting up Broadway with her performances in… 1) “Grease,” 2) the Tony-Award nominated “Leader of the Pack,” and 3) her current 2-year run as Motormouth Maybelle in the Tony-Award winning “Hairspray."

Darlene Love will appear at the Lincoln Center in New York City on December 17, 2007 for her annual Christmas Concert performance.

She’ll also appear on The David Letterman Show for the 22nd consecutive year on December 24, 2007.

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Posted by King on 11/08 at 12:02 AM
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Thursday, October 11, 2007

Chaka Khan Funks Up Her New Release

Chaka Khan dedicates her new CD, Funk This, to her grandma, and to her recording industry mentors Arif Mardin and Ahmet Ertegun.

She digs deep into her soul to project some sonic emotion through an adventurous collection of songs, all produced by the crafty song-hook magicians Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis.

Chaka pulls you in and commands your attention with her magnetic voice, but the subtleties of her mastery of different genres reveals the cadence of a song styling surgeon who knows what she is doing.

When called for, her trademark powerful pipes still pump up the vocal volume.

Overall, Funk This takes risks with material that you might not expect on a Chaka Khan record.

Most of the songs are uptempo, and they don’t all fit into the classic definition of “funk."

The track that will sell the album, (or downloads), is “Disrespectful,” a soul shoutin’ hootenanny with the mesmerizing Mary J. Blige as Chaka’s duet partner.  This is the best cut on the collection.

Guitarist Tony Maiden of Rufus & Chaka Khan fame contributes to a couple of tracks, including the opening cut “Back In The Day,” and a medley: “Pack’d My Bags/You Got The Love."

Do we really need a rehash of “You Got The Love?” It seems to appear out of nowhere as “Pack’d My Bags” fades.  The synthesizer arrangement on this version of “You Got The Love” lacks the horn overlay of the original, but it is true in tone to the way the song was sung the first time around, and Chaka punches it out.

"Back In The Day” has that ‘Rufus rhythm’ old school fans should enjoy.  Track 2, “Foolish Fool,” reminds me more of Macy Gray than Chaka Khan, despite the voice differences.  In “Foolish Fool,” guitars dominate and drive the track with Chaka in control.

"Castles Made Of Sand,” from the Jimi Hendrix songbook, parallels the original song.  Chaka does not jump into uncharted “funk” on this one.  You are listening to a mostly mellow mid-tempo rock classic.

I never really liked Prince’s “Sign of the Times” because it’s much too depressing.  Chaka Khan’s version builds on Prince’s arrangement but just can’t rescue me from the morose.

Michael McDonald stops by for a remake of the Carly Simon classic, “You Belong To Me.” To my ear, this new duet with Chaka sounds overproduced.

More successful is “Ladies Man,” a Joni Mitchell song which lends itself to Chaka’s careful reading of the lyric while fusing elements of jazz into the pulse of the song.

"Super Life,” an uptempo anthem about carrying the flag forward in the memory of those who have lost their lives (through genocide) is a great cut that features Chaka Khan radiating the energy of “I Feel For You."

Funk This is a misleading title for this CD.  Yes, it’s a departure from the jazz of her 2004 Classikahn, but Funk This is much more of an expansion into a broader array of music.

There are several hits here.  Chaka expands her scope yet again.  Ms. Khan has also co-written 7 of the 13 songs.

Producers Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis show some restraint and don’t get in the way.  What they do is guide the project with creative resourcefulness, showcasing the unique manifestations of this daring diva: Chaka Khan.

  1. “Back In The Day”
  2. “Foolish Fool”
  3. “One For All Time”
  4. “Angel”
  5. “Will You Love Me?”
  6. “Castles Made Of Sand”
  7. “Disrespectful” featuring Mary J. Blige
  8. “Sign ‘O’ The Times”
  9. “Pack’d My Bags/You Got The Love” featuring Tony Maiden
  10. “Ladies’ Man”
  11. “You Belong To Me” featuring Michael McDonald
  12. “Hail To The Wrong”
  13. “Super Life”

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Here’s a bonus Chaka Khan treat from the past...



Posted by King on 10/11 at 12:02 AM
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Monday, March 19, 2007

Phil Spector Faces the Music

What do several pioneering hit songs from the Crystals, Ronettes, Darlene Love, Righteous Brothers, and Ike & Tina Turner have in common?

If you guessed the mark of Phil Spector, the musical mastermind behind the famous “wall of sound” production technique, you would be right.

From “River Deep Mountain High” by Ike & Tina, to “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’” by the Righteous Brothers, Spector created a live, dramatic, layered, sonic studio sound in an era way before multi-track dubbing that was innovative and unique.

Others have copied the “wall of sound” concept, including Phil Collins in the late 1980’s.

Spector is currently receiving attention as a defendant in his criminal trial in Los Angeles.

Here is Phil Spector as “Bad Santa,” with “back to mono” buttons and all, from the cover of the vinyl version of his spectacular classic, Phil Spector’s Christmas Album.  My copy of the album is a reissue on Apple Records from 1972.

Don’t look for this disguise in court.

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Posted by King on 03/19 at 01:02 AM
Christmas • News • Video • (0) Comments • Permalink