Patti Labelle — like Diana Ross –first gained notice leading a ‘girl’ group.Diana Ross and the Supremes, Patti Labelle and the Bluebelles.
Both singers became stars and left their respective groups and became even more famous with long productive careers.
In fact, one of the Bluebelles became a “Supreme” — Cindy Birdsong.
But the comparisons end at the music. Diana Ross was a hit making songstress whose soft smoky voice appealed to a broader range of people than Labelle.
Labelle was a soul belter with an amazingly powerful voice, think Aretha Franklin, although higher and more piercing. This album is live and she works it out on songs like ‘I Sold my Heart to the Junkman’ and ‘Go On.’ The interesting thing on these older tracks is that Patti keeps her voice under rein. Later, with some big spots on television and concerts she would tend to let loose with her vocal acrobatics, scaling octaves like Mount Everest. A glass breaking voice that dominated and overshadowed anyone who might be on stage with her.
Perhaps her biggest recording was the multimillion seller ‘Lady Marmalade.’
This kid from Montgomery contacted me on Twitter and directed me to a video of a song.
It’s about his mother and single mothers everywhere. (‘Single Mamas’)
I am a 60-year-old white man who loves music but this style urban contemporary hip hop is not one I listen to much. Sounds like it has radio potential.
I know there’s a thousand mix tapes and CD’s being pushed at streetcorners and online from folks who think they got something. Maybe they do. I think Rich Boi Streeter feat. the Younginz’ has something. Spread this around if you like it.
As always check out my music blog at www.myvinylcountdown.com
I’ve added to the countdown several times in the last week or so, with posts on Pink Floyd, Elvis Presley, and Peter Paul and Mary.
I’m down 248 left to review from my 678 starting point — that means I’ve done 431 reviews — all posted here and available at your fingertips. Also there are probably about 100 other posts not specifically countdown related. Keep reading and thank you for all the kind words and support.
ALBUMS: Reunion (1978); In Concert (1964); 1700, (1967)
MVC Ratings: Reunion 3.0/$; In Concert, 3.5/$$; 1700 3.0/$
Peter, Paul and Mary (PP&M) are the Three Dog Night of folk music. And I don’t mean that in any disparaging way, to either party.
They both were accomplished performers and recorded great music that touched millions of people. They just weren’t trailblazers, they were interpretors. PP&M’s voices blended like milk in coffee. But they were doing other people songs. It was all to a good end. When they recorded Dylan’s ‘Blowin’ in the Wind’ they made people pay attention to an almost perfect song sung in harmonic synchronicity as opposed to Dylan’s version, which was heartfelt and great but urban sidewalk busker-like with Dylan blowing harp and finger picking his guitar. Some would say PPM were homogenized and they were.
In a similar but reverse way, Three Dog Night did small hits of folksy sounding songs and turned them into convincing rock and rollers: Think Laura Nyro’s ‘Eli’s Coming, Randy Newman’s ‘Mama Told Me Not to Come’ and Harry Nillson’s “One.’ (Actually the Nyro song rocks about as hard as Three Dog Night’s.)
Now there’s nothing wrong, as I’ve said, with covering other songs. Singer-songwriters, it seems to me are relatively new thing. Folks like Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby and Elvis didn’t write their songs. But they could deliver them in a charismatic or appealing way and had nice careers.
The singer-songwriter phase really kicked in with the Beatles and Dylan. During the British invasion led by the Beatles, many acts were just starting to write their own including the Beatles, Buddy Holly and the Rolling Stones.
I’ve got here three PP&M albums. The newest from 1978 is Reunion. The other two are old, with tape on the seams, albums played to death by mi esposa, Catherine, who grew up loving them, Carol King, Carly Simon, James Taylor and the Beach Boys. Oh, and Simon and Garfunkel.
All singer-songwriters. In fact that little group right there have written some of the best known songs in contemporary times. Meanwhile Peter Paul and Mary just made beautiful music. Beautiful like this:
I heard a report that 800 people in Italy with coronavirus died.
In one day.
I am speechless. But I won’t be columnist, I mean column-less. For right now as I gather my thoughts I’d like to recommend a couple of tunes for hunkering down.
It’s funny, it’s melodic, it’s off-center and it’s a joy to listen to. It’s called “Life is Long’ by Jared Mees out of Portland, Ore., where some of my favorite relatives live.
ALBUMS: Elvis: The Sun Sessions (1979); Elvis Golden Records (1958 RE); Girl Happy (1965); Elvis Pure Gold (1975); Moody Blue (1977); Elvis for Everyone (1965) Blue Hawaii ( 1961); Elvis Country (1971).
MVC Ratings (in order of above): Sun, 5.0/$$$$; Golden Records, 4.5/$$$$; Girl Happy 2.5/$$; Pure Gold, 3.0/$$$: Moody,3.0/$$$; Elvis for Everyone, 2.5/$$; Blue Hawaii 2.5/$$; Country, 2.5/$$.
People looking at my eight Elvis records may think that I’ve got a lot of money tied up in that. I mean Elvis, come on. Got to be worth lots.
Truth is most Elvis albums aren’t worth that much. Coupla reasons. They made a lot of them as, for a time, anything with Elvis’ name and picture flew off the shelves. Secondly they weren’t that good. Elvis made a lot of mediocre to bad movies. He made a lot of mediocre to bad songs that Elvis recorded for these movies.
If you look at my list of albums I have and the photo, the two albums on the far left are the most valuable. The rest you can find at a used record store in the $4-$8 range. Or in a thrift store for $2. The other two go for 5 or 10 times that. Of course there’s other Elvis music that is worth a lot. We sat next to a couple at the Alabama Record Collector’s Association a few weeks ago who had five Sun Label singles by Elvis. He turned down offers that were in the many thousands of dollars. They actually may be headed to a museum.
Elvis had his growth stunted with the movies. I’m sure he made a lot of money and helped Col. Parker make a lot but his best stuff was clearly in his early years, starting out in 1954 when he was a 19-year-old truck driver. up until the time he was drafted in the army. He served two years, came back still putting out hit after hit, but then chose a path that I believe stunted his growth as a musician. By his early 20’s he already had an everlasting discography with classics like Jailhouse Rock, Love Me Tender, That’s All Right, Mystery Train, Don’t Be Cruel and Hound Dog.
I remember when I was high school age we went to visit some cousins, relatively distant I believe and, the one my age they called Twinkle. We watched an Elvis movie marathon and I was drawn by Elvis even if he was cheesy. She seemed to have been interested as well over Elvis. (Or was it me?) I don’t know I was watching Elvis do the ‘Clam.’
He came back and did movie music, silly music like Do the Clam. He felt like an outsider on the whole British invasion with Beatles. He staged a comeback of sorts when in 1968, dressed in all black leather he went on live TV in a performance hailed as a return to form. But while he had some good songs in the later stages of his career, they were mostly Vegas production pieces written by other people (as was the case always with Elvis). In that era came out ‘In the Ghetto,’ ‘Kentucky Rain,’ ‘A Little too Much Conversation, and ‘Fever.’
In my eyes, despite the many things you can find wrong, Elvis was the King who brought R&B to a mass audience under the new name of Rock ‘n Roll. He was talented, charismatic, good looking and could sing and dance a little bt.
After about 30 years of not listening to this record, I put it on the other day and have been through it about three times. Before I listened to it I read a description of Pratt’s music as ‘experimental.’
I bought this for his song, the original version, of “Avenging Annie.” I had Roger Daltrey’s cover of the song from his album ‘One of the Boys.’ I still can’t tell which version is better. I lean toward’s Pratt with that falsetto going. But Daltrey’s is a little more straightforward with his lead singer pipes.
But, yes, unlike the Daltry album which was had a couple of mildly interesting songs and then filler. Pratt is indeed experimental, at least when compared to Daltrey.
Pratt tends to go for esoteric dreamy mood songs, that feature a wide dynamic range. Soft singing, loud singing, soft singing, loud singing.
The problem is most have odd structures that upon this renewed hearing sounds like no structure at all. He has a fragile voice. I think it comes down to who has the best Avenging Annie and I say Pratt by a hair (In fact, Pratt and Daltrey have very similar hair.) . I gave Pratt the same grade I gave Daltrey.
Well as I reported yesterday, the world is ending. But we made it through Friday the 13th.
I often talk about my fatal disease Lewy body dementia. Eventually after some conversation one of us will say ‘Hey we are all going to die.’ Death rate of those on earth is still 100 percent.
But me, I have a fatal disease and I don’t want to die ‘early’ from some damn virus. I want as many good minutes as I can get.
This COVID -19 virus is supposed to get widespread in Alabama, infectious disease expert Dr. Michael Saag. His op-ed piece which we published Friday paints a bleak picture., especially if we don’t act swiftly.
IMPORTANT BROKEN LINK FIX: There was a link to a New York Times graphic that Saag pointed out in his op-ed. The graphic a nice job in a simple way of how and why we need to stretch and slow the infection rate down. I checked the link this morning and it was broken but I found it here. I’m now going to go correct it in Saag’s op-ed.
Keep checking back here for more My Vinyl Countdown on the virus, the end of life as we know it or going stir crazy with no basketball. This is changing our lives in myriad ways.
TIP OF THE DAY: Don’t check your retirement funds. Not even worth adding that to the worry list.
Hope you all saw my Top 5 playlist for the apocalypse or armageddon or end times — what ever you want to call it . Click here to start dancing in these grim times.
Other bits and pieces (not from the Dave Clark Five. ):
–My good buddy Chris Brown from Georgia , a reconnected friend from childhood sent me $100 dollar to buy an old relatively obscure album we used to listen to and laugh at. In support of MyVinylCountdown. The album is 10cc’s ‘How Dare You,’ a before-its-time musical theater about love and relationships with pristine musicality. I mean, for real, when the song ‘Don’t Hang Up’ ends there’s a dial tone. Not kidding — that was cool. Of course the album now languishes in garbage dumps and bargain bends because nobody now even knows what a $%^&* dial tone is.
Best line from that song: ‘When the barman asked what’s you’re drinking, I said marriage on the rocks.’
Chris, my brother, I sent you also another 10cc album in addition to that one. It’s called Bloody Tourists and is a little more commercial. It has ‘Dreadlock Holiday’ and that last song about the guy getting so drunk he ruins his night. It has amusing special effects.
— Look for a MVC story over the weekend about the most expensive records you can buy and how vinyl is still ruling.
–One vinyl note, the numbers next to the artists’ names on blog post indicate how many I have left to do. So, for example, now with Process and the Doo Rags there is the number 265, which means I have that many left to review. Starting at 678, I have reviewed and posted 413 records: 265 to go as we count down. There’s some really good stuff coming up as I roll into the last quarter.
I can’t say I’d keep you as entertained as NBA basketball and March Madness but I’ll give it a try.
Leave you with an apocalyptic song from David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust, one of my fave all times. The album was purchased from me at the record convention by a good friend, Kevin. Here’s ‘Five Years.’
