If you’re under a certain age, I don’t know, say 45, the name Sade (Shah-DAY) may be fairly well unknown to you. But in her heyday, essentially the Eighties/early Nineties. she was every bit as big as Adele is today. Her story…. Helen Folasade Adu … Continue reading Sade
The choreography that you saw in the Tempts and Supremes videos was, of course, no accident. Hitsville wasn’t there just to record songs. According to The Story of Motown, Berry Gordy set up a rigorous training program for his fledgling stars. “One floor was for choreography, … Continue reading Motown (final) – Can I Get a Witness?
“Into the ’60s, I was still not of a frame of mind that we were not only making music, we were making history. But I did recognize the impact because acts were going all over the world at that time. I recognized the bridges that … Continue reading Motown – Part 2 – Hitsville USA
NOTE: Given that I’ve been hearing from people outside the US that certain YouTube songs won’t play, from this post forward I’m going to both embed a YouTube version of a given song as well as provide a Spotify link. Not sure how well that … Continue reading Motown – Part 1 – The Boxer
Note: Blues great James Cotton passed away a few days ago. The Music Enthusiast is working on a post about this essential singer and harmonica player. Junior Walker (born Autry deWalt Mixon) was a Midwestern kid who picked up the saxophone in high school. He got … Continue reading Jr. Walker & The All Stars
Up next, tres songs, wherein I put together a few tunes much like a DJ. First up – The Godfathers. (Pictured above.) A British band that’s been around since the mid-Eighties. I will save myself some work or even actual research here and just quote … Continue reading Tres Songs – (Mini-set)
First post here: Sam Cooke wound up leaving Keen Records for the more lucrative environs of RCA. In 1960, Keen, looking to cash in, released his song “Wonderful World,” which became another big hit. (Interestingly, XTC‘s song “Mayor of Simpleton” was accused of, shall we say, … Continue reading Sam Cooke (final of 2 posts)
