Monthly Archives: July 2017

Trax feat. Miki Howard, D C LaRue, The Equals, Ten City

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Love under new management  – Miki Howard (Miki was the leading lady for Side Effect – “The Elektra Years” … ‘nothing like leading a blind horse to a pasture, it can smell the grass but just don’t know the way to it’ are a snippet of the lyrics)

Cathedrals  –  D C LaRue (David Charles’s French surname caused pronunciation problems in the U.S. hence ‘LaRue’ … early 12 inch and album title release on Pyramid Records that was swiftly deleted due to distribution issues)

Funky like a train  –  The Equals (Eddie Grant’s U.K. band ‘The Equals’ had early hits in the late Sixties … released backed in ’76 on 7 inch before being re-released on extended 12 inch some ten years later)

Superficial People  –  Ten City (This Chicago-an trio first came to prominence as ‘Ragtyme’ before a name change & an Atlantic Records recording contract … single remixes including Steve ‘Silk’ Hurley & Simon Law also know as ‘The Funky Ginger’)

Trax feat. Donny Hathaway, Patrice Rushen, Black Nasty, Constipated Monkeys

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We’re still friends  –  Donny Hathaway (Chicago born Donny was a singer, writer , producer, arranger who musically hooked up with fellow city brother Curtis Mayfield before signing to Atlantic Records – known for his trax with Roberta Flack)

Call on me  –  Patrice Rushen (Jazz keyboard player Patrice moved from the Jazz market where she recorded for Prestige Records unto Elektra Records where her trax became more R&B based – from the album “Pizazz”)

Getting funky round here  –  Black Nasty (Signed to the hallowed Stax Records sub-label Enterprise – Black Nasty were a combo who fused Soul, Funk & Rock whilst adding social consciousness in the mix … ignored when first released but was brought back into the public consciousness via Hip-hop samplers and Funk compilers)

Erectus  –  Constipated Monkeys (Pseudonym of Dj/Producers Jose’ Nunez & Harry ‘Choo Choo’ Romero – this track was released by Eric Morillo’s New Jersey based Subliminal Records … as part of a 3 track 12 inch)

Trax feat. Chaka Khan, Bionic Boogie, Kool & the Gang, Dj Sneak

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Don’t talk to strangers  –  Chaka Khan (Former Yvette Stevens of Chicago joined the band ‘Rufus’ before going solo … she became the featured vocalist on a variety of Jazz, Gospel, Soul artists and Soundtrax … from the “Down in the Delta” O.S.T album)

Big West  –  Bionic Boogie (Having made a few pennies from a hit he produced for Andrea True Connection on Buddha Records – producer Gregg Diamond put together an ensemble of New York’s studio musicians and called them ‘Bionic Boogie’)

All night long  –  Kool & the Gang (From the album “Open Sesame”, this was overshadowed  by the title trak on Delite Records … New Jersey boys headed by Ronald ‘Kool’ Bell, they started as a Jazz band before diving into the new genre Funk in the mid – late Sixties)

Cruize Kontrol  –  Dj Sneak (“Inspired” by ‘It’s the same old song’ originally recorded by  The Four Tops … Chicago based Sneak looped the trak around also giving it a harder edge – from the Platform E.P. Volume 2 on Canadian ’83 West Records)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_pOV-7LwH8