Thoughts on contemporary culture
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It saddened me to learn that Ron Banks, leader of seventies soul group the Dramatics, died March 4. His distinctive falsetto made songs like “Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get” and “Hey You! Get Off My Mountain” classics in my book.
Per the Electronic Urban Report, his memorial services are scheduled for the following time:
Viewing: [...]
For me, the best release of 2010 has been Two, the sophomore album from Silhouette Brown, the writing/production team of Dego, Kaidi Tatham, and Bembe Segue. All three have substantial credentials in the independent music scene, with Dego being a co-founder of the legendary electronic act 4 Hero.
On their first album, vocals were [...]
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Disco fans should be running to the store to purchase the The M&M Mixes
compilation just released on BBE Records.
Morales teamed with Sergio Munzibai to form one of the preeminent remix teams of the 1980s. The M&M Mixes presents alternate versions of disco classics that Morales made for his personal enjoyment. These [...]
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As part of the many outreach efforts for the victims of the Haitian earthquake, many of the music industry’s most popular performers recorded a charity single on February 1.
Over 100 artists united across genre lines – country (Keith Urban), rap (Lil Wayne, Kanye West), pop (Celine Dion, Tony Bennett), jazz (Harry Connick, [...]
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Carl Bean is a treasure and inspiration. As the founder of Unity Fellowship Church, he has created a platform for black LGBTs to fulfill their spiritual needs in an affirming environment. Originally centered in Bean’s home in 1982, Unity Fellowship churches now exist in fifteen cities.
Prior to his ministry, Bean recorded one of [...]
The subject of the newest American Masters series is Sam Cooke, a singer whose legacy should be studied by anyone with an interest in African-American history and culture.
His career paralleled the development of black music as a critical and commercial force. Starting out with the Soul Stirrers, Cooke was a gospel superstar when [...]
Some people will do anything for money. Think of drug addicts, politicians, business executives, and people who go on Fear Factor.
We can add Beyonce Knowles to the ranks of people whose lust for cash knows no limits.
It’s barely a week into 2010, and she’s caused our first celebrity mini-scandal thanks to her [...]
Sly Stone is an artist you should already be familiar with. As the leader of Sly and the Family Stone, he fused rock, soul, and pop to capture the public imagination and was a prime example of black music’s increasing sophistication.
His commercial peak was between 1968 and 1973, when he recorded classics [...]
People looking for new music with some old school flavor need to check out the Sunburst Band. The group is led by Joey Negro, one of the world’s most knowledgeable disco collectors, and he infuses Sunburst with plenty of disco and 70s/80s soul sensibilities.
From their latest album, Moving With The Shakers, here [...]
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The Platinum Pied Pipers (or PPP, as they prefer to be called) are a Detroit-based duo consisting of writers/producers/musicians Waajeed and Saadiq. They came to prominence with a collaboration with Dwele called “Ridin’ High” in 2003 before releasing their debut album in 2005. Abundance is their sophomore album and one of the year’s best [...]
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