MICHAEL JACKSON

Yesterday, June 25th, 2009, The King of Pop, Michael Jackson, passed away from cardiac arrest in Los Angeles. This news was like "a shot heard all around the world" because sources were not exactly sure if the pop singer was dead or still alive in a coma. Nevertheless, his legacy will live on, and I would write more, but everyone knows about Michael Jackson, he is the greatest entertainer who ever done it, and his iconic music has influence so many artist period! Rest In Peace MJ.

NOVEL: MOTOWN FROM THE BACKGROUND

One of Motown's best kept secrets ain't one anymore with the release of The Andante's biography entitled "Motown From the Background."

For those of you who don't know about The Andantes, be prepared for an amazing story that really makes you feel bad for this talented group of ladies who deserve more recognition and praise for their work. They were Motown's in-house backing group and lend their vocals to over 20,000 recordings.

The Andantes impressive vocal blend can be heard on some of the labels biggest hits from every act except Gladys Knight & the Pips. Any female backing vocals heard on hits from The Four Tops, Marvin Gaye, Mary Wells, or Kim Weston are definitely the Andantes. They even sang the background vocals for the labels girl groups. When The Marvelettes eventually became a trio, The Andantes were brought in secretively to smooth out the Marvelettes shakey background vocals. This was blatantly done for Martha & the Vandellas around 1966 when producers felt the group needed more voices to support Martha's strong voice on some records. Soon after, The Andantes appeared on every song with Martha, and the Vandellas were reduced to live performances only.

The Andantes were also utilized for The Supremes after Florence Ballard left the group. Diana Ross & The Supremes' 1968 Lp "Love Child" should have been entitled Diana Ross & The Andantes because they basically sang the background vocals on every track except for about one or two of the songs where "Baby Love" is revisited and Mary Wilson's unmistakable voice can be heard. Other than those few tracks, the real Supremes never performed on another Supremes recording until Diana left the group.

Listen to "Love Child," featuring background vocals from the Andantes, not the real Supremes: Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong



Now, listen to the Supremes live on television with a Mary performing "I Can't Take My Eyes Off You" before performing "Love Child."



Not to take anything away from the Andantes because they had a very great vocal blend, but It's always better to hear the real singers in a group, in the case of the girl groups. In the case of backing The Four Tops or soloist, their work is acceptable because they were just brought in to sing along with the Tops, not in place of them.

I never fully understood why Motown never pushed The Andantes to become their own group. They recorded for the label back in 1963, but lack of success reduced them to the studio. None of the members regret not having a career in the spotlight but just want recognition for their contributions. In conjunction with The Funk Brothers, the Andantes have appeared on more number ones and million sellers than any of Motown's Icons.

So next time you hear one of your favorite Motown records, listen closely and see if you can tell if the Andantes are on it. And now I leave you with Marvin Gaye's "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," where the Andantes' presence is strong key to the songs success.

PERFORMANCES: LABELLE & MINNIE RIPERTON LIVE ON SOUL TRAIN

Here is a live performance from LaBelle on Soul Train back in 1974 (Live performances on Soul Train are very uncommon). The funk/soul band is a product of 60's girl-group Patti Labelle & the Bluebelles. Back in 1967, Cindy Birdsong left the group to become a member of the Supremes as Florence Ballard's replacement, and the Bluebelles continued on as a trio throughout the 60's performing "girl-group" material. By the 70's, the group was reduced to performing on the oldies circuit and enlisted the help of British producer/manager Vicki Winham to help shape a new image and sound for the group. The result was a new vocal stlye, image, and name. "Lady Marmalade" is a prime example of this radical change. By the way, "Lady Marmalade" became a massive hit and shot to number 1 on both the pop and R&B charts i 1974.



Here is another live performance on Soul Train from the unparalled Soul chanteuse Minnie Riperton. She sings her number 1 hit "Lovin' You," which is one of the greatest, and most well-known songs around the world. Check it out and as always comment.

PERFORMANCE: THE BLUEBELLES

Here is a taped performance of Patti Labelle and the Blubelles at the Apollo in 1962, even though some reports claim this performance is from 1964, from a television special taped at the Brooklyn Fox Theatre featuring the top artists of the day like The Supremes and The Ronnettes (of "Be My Baby" fame).

The Bluebelles perform their classic rendition of the inspirational song "You'll Never Walk Alone," and Patti wows the crowd with her dramatic performance. She sings the song with a whole lot of Soul, while the instrumental has a country-pop flare. This record went to number 34 on the pop records in 1964, and its performance in the Black community had to be big for the group to appear on this special (There was no Billboard R&B chart from late 1963 until early 1965 because critics felt that American music was becoming racially bridged). Nevertheless, the group had a lot of success with this record, and Patti's vocal performance was undeniably incredible. That operatic note at the end was impressive, in addition to the Bluebelles superb and piercing harmonies (their blend was sonically perfect).

Check out this series of videos to get more information about Patti and her career with the Bluebelles and Labelle, in addition to her solo career, by watching her Intimate Portrait.

MOTOWN 50 WEBSITE

This year, Motown Records celebrates its fiftieth birthday as one of the most influential black institutions in the United States as far as music and business goes. For a long period of time, it was the most successful black-owned business in the world, and became the home of some of the most influential musicians of all time like Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson, Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, and the late Marvin Gaye just to name a few. The company was sold in the late 80's to MCA Records, then Polygram, and now its established as a main subsidiary of the Universal Music Group alongside Interscope Records and Island Def Jam.

There is so much more I could write, but i'll just keep it short.... Here's the link to the site: http://www.freep.com/section/special0302

MUST SEE TV: UNSUNG

So finally I got TV One in my apartment, and got to watch the some of the new installments of Unsung, which feature the stories of lesser-known Black musicians. The first season of this show featured specials on Donny Hathaway, The Clark Sisters, DeBarge, and Phylliss Hyman, and now its back for a second season and so far pieces about Minnie Riperton, Melba Moore, and, Shalamar have been shown (the latter two of which i just saw).

The Melba Moore episode was pretty good. She claims she got her start sing back-up for Aretha Franklin and Dionne Warwick (which I find hard to believe), and lived with Nick Ashford and Valerie Simpson in New York during the late 60's (wouldn't that famous song-writing duo have been in Detroit?). She got her big break starring in the popular musical "Hair", followed by a lead role in the Ossie Davis penned musical ,"Purlie," where she became the second African-American to win the Tony Award for Best Actress. On another note, she also prides the musical for bringing Blacks to Broadway. After all of this success and many more accomplishments, the entertainers life took a turn for the worse. She was basically used by her business partner/husband, and served time for defrauding the state because she needed welfare to get by. Her story really dove deep and also tried to explain why this talented singer did not experience the fame or musical acclaim of soul legends like a Dionne, Gladys, or Aretha.

Here is a performance of her singing "I Got Love":



I would write about Shalamar but their story just talked about accomplishments more so than any deep issues except for the group splitting which led to successful solo careers for Jody Watley and Howard Hewitt. One accomplishment to note is the fact that Shalamar was the second Black act to be played on MTV after Michael Jackson.

Here is a clip of the group in their early days:

NEW MUSIC: MARIAH CAREY

Mariah Carey's new single "Obsessed" just premiered a few hours ago, exclusively at Chicago's B96 radio station (why not a new york station?). So here is a radio rip of the new song that takes complete aim at Eminem. Apparently, on one of his new song's from his new lp, "the Relapse," he calls Mariah a cunt. So, it looks like this blatant assult was the final straw for Mariah to come back on wax.

The song was co-produce and co-written with the-Dream and Tricky Stewart, and does not disappoint (like "Touch My Body"). This record is hard-hitting, synthed mid-tempo R&B, and will definitely shoot to number one. The clarity of the record is not so good, but I can tell Mariah ditched her falsetto for the song's primary vocal part by utilizing her chest voice this time around. The song also has interesting melodic elements vocally in the background of the song in addition to taking on many of the Dream's vocal ab-libs.

It looks like "The Voice" is coming back hard with this new album, and has set a release date of August 25, 2009 for her 12th studio album, "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel." After the release of E=MC2, Mariah was technically no longer obligated to record for Island Def Jam. However, she opted to record a fourth album with label. This is interesting considering her friend Jay-Z paid Def Jam five million to buy out his recording contract. Could Carey have already renegotiated a contract with the label for tons of money already, or will she be leaving the label after the release of "Memoirs" to prove herself as a money maker to sign with a label like Live Nation.

NEW MUSIC: MARY J. BLIGE

So everyone was excited about Mary's new song "The One," which featured Drake but here is a new song that came out around the same time as "...One," entitled "Good Love," featuring T.I. This song is upbeat, laid back, and very reminiscent of some late 80's/early 90's feel good R&B. Take a listen for yourself, and as a side note: this is more of the direction i was expecting from Mary for the new album, maybe even more raw and vintage though.

SOUL PIONEER: DEE DEE WARWICK

Dee Dee Warwick is arguably one of the best soul singers there ever was, but not many people know about her. She comes from a highly gifted, musical family, and god definitely gave her an impressionable voice. She began singing in church, and eventually joined her family's legendary gospel group the Drinkard Singers featuring her older sister Dionne, and their aunt Emily (later known as Cissy Houston, mother of Whitney Houston). In 1958, Dee Dee joined the Goseplaires, a group created by Dionne and her friends Myrna Utley and Carol Slade, which would eventually include Cissy, Judy Clay, and Doris Troy (who had a self-penned the smash, "Just One Look" in 1963 - The Goseplaires performed background vocals on this record, and Dionne can distinctly be heard above the group). The group got their big break while performing during amateur night at the Apollo theater in New York. While backstage a man looking for background singers for a session offered anyone the gig, and Dionne gladly accepted the gig on behalf of the group. As a result, the group soon appeared on the records of R&B greats such as The Drifters, Solomon Burke, and Dinah Washington, and remained in demand throughout much of the late 50's and 60's.

By 1963, Dionne, Doris, and Judy had released solo records, so Dee Dee took the opportunity to embark on solo stardom by releasing her first record, entitled "You're No Good,' that same year. The record did not perform too well on the charts until other artists covered the gem, so Dee Dee continued performing background vocals, most prominently for her sister Dionne. She can prominently be heard along with her aunt Cissy on Dionne's classic album "Anyone Who Had a Heart." Those two, would perform most of Dionne's backing vocals throughout the 60's, and had such a unique blend and technique. In addition, it is said that Dee Dee performed background vocals for other artists such as Aretha Franklin and Elvis Presley since Cissy eventually took over the Gospelaires, changed the name to the Sweet Inspirations, and even scored a deal for them with Atlantic Records, but I believe Dee Dee officially left the group before all of Cissy's radical actions because she is not heard in the background of Aretha's classics nor other famous "Sweet Inspiration" background work.

While still performing on all of Dionne's albums throughout the 60's, Dee Dee recorded many records on her own. In 1965, she released the moderate R&B hits "I Want To Be With You," and, "We're Doing Fine," and managed to land a performance on American Bandstand. In 1966, she released the Philly crafted record "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me," which featured production by Philly soul visionaries Gamble & Huff. The record was also a moderate R&B hit. A cover version by UK session singer Madeline Bell was released a year later and performed better on the pop charts, but the most successful rendition of the song was released by the Supremes and the Temptations in 1968. Regardless of others success, Dee Dee's version is the most soulful and hard-hitting. In later years to come, Dee Dee's sound became more hard-hitting with the Grammy nominated track "Foolish Fool,"and rare gems such as "Thank God," and "That's Not Love." "... Fool" lost to Aretha Franklin's "Share Your Love With Me," at the 1969 ceremony, but it was impressive to see Dee Dee receive a nomination in light of standing in the shadow of her sister's trailblazing career. In 1970, Dee Dee received another Grammy nomination for her stab at 70's adult/southern-tinged, quiet storm with "She Didn't Know (She Kept On Talking). Once again, Dee Dee lost to Aretha Franklin. Throughout the rest of the 70's Dee Dee still recorded, but none of her records created much buzz. She took a hiatus from recording in 1975, toured singing background vocals for Dionne, and did not release a new album until 1984. Her new album did not see much success, and Dee Dee continued to tour with Dionne for different periods throughout the rest of her life. On October 18, 2008, Dee Dee passed away due to chronic health problems. That previous year, Dee Dee had recorded a duet with Dionne, on the gospel album,"Why We Sing," and completed one last tour singing backgrounds for her sister.



Although Dee Dee is no longer here, she should still be recognized for her contributions to music world. If you look at her voice in context with the rest of her famous family members, she has similar vocal abilities, the same vocal prowess, and same phrasings as her aunt Cissy except Dee Dee's voice is much deeper giving way for a very rich tone. She has a pretty huge range as well because she can sing tenor, alto, and mezzo soprano notes. In comparison to anyone else in the family who has released music, she has the most soulful voice, and arguably the most powerful, hard-hitting voice. Some critics have questioned why Dee Dee has always stood in the shadows of Dionne, and why Dionne was selected by Burt Bacharach to record solo material. Dionne and Dee Dee say its because Dionne was the only Gospelaire member who could read music, and Burt says it is because Dionne had the look, sophistication, and unique voice and delivery (which explains Dionne's music with Burt in the context of 60's music). I think it is a combination of those two reasons, and I honestly feel like no one paid attention to Dee Dee because her voice was not unique enough, even in terms of soul because she enunciated too perfectly, maybe too much in part to sound more sophisticated.

Anyways, peep Dee Dee performing on 60's television beginning at 3:05 on this clip:

BILLBOARD UPDATE: JUNE 20, 2009

- Keri Hilson tops the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop charts this week with her second single, "Knock You Down," featuring Kanye West and Ne-Yo.

- Drake's mixtape smash, "Best I Ever Had," comes in at number two on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop charts with the greatest gain in Airplay. I suspect this song will reach number two next week.

- Maxwell's new single "Pretty Wings," is becoming a smash charting at number eight in a matter of just a few weeks.

- On the album side of things, Ciara's "Fantasy Ride," continues to decline while Chrisette Michelle makes her way up to number two. And Electrick Red's debut fell from a disappointing number 20 to 38 on the R&B charts (not a surprise, but very unfair at the same time - if Dream gave Ciara their album, Ciara would have gone gold already, maybe even platinum).

CLASSIC ALBUM: ASK RUFUS

By 1977, the group Rufus was on top of the world with their unique offerings of funky Soul, featuring gifted vocalist Chaka Khan who had become known as the "Queen of Funk Soul," by this time. "Ask Rufus" is just one of the group' many masterpieces. The album has a somber tone musically and vocally, and at times lyrically. Most of the tracks have a laid-back feel, and Chaka's vocals sound very muted in a jazzy type of way on all of the songs except for the high-energy single "At Midnight (My Love Will Lift You Up), and the classic groove "Hollywood."

The overall reception of the album was positive back in 1977, and I'm personally surprised that Rufus would offer an album like this for a year like 77' when Disco was hot and R&B music was uptempo with high energy records that featured mostly dance songs. Perhaps, this was Chaka's doing since she was clearly high on all of these songs, or the group wanted to stand out and give a preview of what 80's music was going to be, considering their early 70's work would not catch on with the rest of the music industry until the late 70's. Not saying that their early work was not successful; in fact, their work has always been successful since 1973 when they hit the charts with their breakthrough single "You Got the Love." It's just that Rufus and Chaka Khan's music has always been ahead of its time, musically and vocally. So somehow, get a hold of this album and listen to it. It's pure genius.

Some of my favorite songs from this album include: "Close the Door," "Earth Song," "Evelasting Love," "Hollywood," and "Better Days," in which the latter was sampled by Mary J. Blige on her 2003 album "Love & Life," on the interlude "Finally Made It."

UPDATE: MARY J. BLIGE

Yesterday, I reported that Mary's new song was entitled "I'm the One," and previously "Nothin' On Me." In all actuality, the song is actually entitled "The One (Nothing On Me). In addition, the song now features up and coming rapper Drake. It definitely seems like Mary is on top of her game this time around, recruiting rappers next best thing, and going in a direction of 2080 instead of 1980 (which i did not mind). Here's the mastered track with Drake:

NEW MUSIC: JAY-Z

The other day, I mentioned that Jay-Z plans on releasing the "Blueprint 3" on September 11, and now a new song has surfaced, entitled "D.O.A (Death of the Autotune). The song features production from Kanye West and his protege No i.D. The song is hot and features only a beat that is fitting for Jay's "Blueprint" series (70's inspired). As the title implies, Jay's lyric attacks the usage of Autotune and serves as a message for rappers to step their game up, literally, with light attacks against the non-mixtape Weezy and T-Pain. I doubt there will be any beef, but Jay is really making a strong statement that needs to be heard. Autotune is not so bad when it is used the right way, but now its become annoying and I hope other rappers follow Jay's suit. It seems like Kanye is going to with his next album. It's mighty ironic that he's on a track dissing Autotune, considering his last album should have been named Autotune for as much as he used it.

All in all, this track is on point, and if its any inclination to how the rest of the album is going to play out, "Blueprint 3" should be good because "American Gangsta" represented Jay-Z at his best in terms of the original "Blueprint," and with No. i.D and Kanye on production, I can only hope Diddy is doing some production with his team to really give this album an edge.

INDUSTRY NEWS: MARY J. BLIGE RETURNS WITH NEW MUSIC

Mary J. Blige, the "Queen of Hip-Hop Soul" reinvents herself once again. Recently, Hot 97's DJ Funkmaster Flex just played a new Mary record entitled "I'm The One," and the song is definitely nothin' from Mary that I have heard before. The record is produced by Darkchild and has a real Harlem/New-York feel to it. The record is up-tempo, hard-hitting, and very danceable.

The record is definitely like a "Just Fine," except the track is slick and more so in the direction of 2080, not 1980 (for those who hate "Just Fine," it was definitely an ode to something Chaka Khan would have done back in her solo hey day). With the new song's updated sound comes newer motifs like the slight use of the the snare originating from Lil' Wayne's "A Milli," and auto-tune. Even though most artists use auto-tune because they cannot sing, Mary only uses auto tune here to add some melodic elements to the song during the hook. I definitely do not knock Mary for using auto-tune considering the nature of the song and the intent for her usage. This song is definitely a dance number, which makes her use of auto-tune acceptable, and to really balance out the beat, the vocals needed an extra "je ne sais quoi" that could only be delivered through auto-tune. There verses and a majority of the hook are not altered, so it can be said Mary really did not use it all.

As far as the artistic direction of this album goes, I am shocked that she came out with this type of record. I honestly thought Mary was gonna do a very soulful album with an old school vibe with some updated motifs where she'd dig even deeper for a vintage sound in comparison to her last album (Solange's T.O.N.Y. meets Maxwell's "Pretty Wings). However, if this track is any inclination to what this new album holds in store Mary is really coming with some new ish. According to Wikipedia, the new album is entitled "Technical Difficulty," with a different song listed as the lead single with production from Eric Hudson. But there is surely some uncertainty if this is true. But the new album is due out in the Fall of this year, supposedly November which leads me to believe that this song is just a teaser.

Here is a link to the song: http://www.zshare.net/audio/60978790713494cc/

* link and news feed courtesy of Toyas-World (www.toyas-world.net)

INDUSTRY NEWS: JAY-Z TO RELEASE "THE BLUEPRINT 3" ON SEPT. 11

According to Billboard Magazine, Jay-Z is slated to release "The Blueprint 3" on September 11, 2009. His long awaited LP, (to those that track Jay-Z's moves) will finally see a release through his newly formed imprint Roc Nation via Atlantic Records, after buying out his contract with Def Jam for five million dollars.

The fact that the album will be released through Atlantic Records is big surprise to industry insiders. It was thought that Jay was going to sign with mega concert promoter, Live Nation (hence the name Roc Nation), for as much as 150 million dollars. Then reports said that Jay-Z was going moving over to Sony's Epic records with Roc Nation. Nevertheless, the Atlantic deal is just for one album so perhaps Jay is just stalling until he finds the best deal suited for him.

NEW VIDEO: KANYE WEST

KANYE WEST "PARANOID" feat: RIHANNA Dir: NABIL from nabil elderkin on Vimeo.

Today, Kanye just released the video for his record "Paranoid," on his blog since the video leaked early and he wanted fans to have a clear copy before judging his work. The video is really unique, its very different. I like the comic/40's movie themed motif. Rihanna stars in the video which does not help the rumors of those two dating. Regardless, she does a good job in the video, and It will be interesting to see if she does a movie anytime soon.

Listening to "Paranoid," for the first time in months was a good thing because I forgot that I actually like the song. Aside from "Heartless," I didn't listen to any of the tracks from the album simply because I felt like the songs were not suited for him. However "Paranoid" is on point, and definitely feeds in the 80's feel that is showing up in R&B today because of producers like The-Dream and Keri Hilson.

THROWBACK : ALL THAT I GOT IS YOU

Here is a real Hip-Hop classic. With this one I was thinking that I would take it back to the 90's, instead of the 60's this time around. LOL. "All That Got Is You" by Ghostface Killah, and supporting vocals from Mary J. Blige is one of my favorite rap songs. The honesty in this track is so real on so many levels; it will make you cry if you've never heard it before. The lyric is a mini-biography, and Mary's vocal is like joy and pain. The beat samples the Jackson 5's classic record "Maybe Tomorrow," which is an unusual track from their discography, and unusual that that is featured production from someone outside of Motown, Philly producer Thom Bell. Back to Ghostface, this song is definitely his best and one of the best rap songs PERIOD. The song as an entire entity was just genius from each verse, the hook, the bridge, and the beat.

INDUSTRY NEWS: NEW WHITNEY ALBUM

Whitney is finally coming BACK after years of a speculated return. According to the J Records website, Whitney plans on releasing her first album since 2002's "Just Whitney." The new album is slated for a world-wide release on September 1, 2009. So it looks like a new single should appear on the airwaves soon.

This fall looks like a great time for the music industry with new projects from the likes of Whitney, Mariah, and Usher. Mariah Carey has not finalized a release date, but it would be epic if these two divas released their albums on the same day. That would definitely be the biggest music battle ever. All in all, I just hope Whitney's new music is classic, and that her voice is in good condition because the vocals from the Olympics will not cut it.

NEW MUSIC: MARIO

So, about two months ago, Mario released a new song called "Break Up," and I've just heard it so I'm considering it new music. It does not have a video yet either, so I guess its taking a while for it to catch on.

Nevertheless, the song features Gucci Mane, Sean Garrett, and production from Bangladesh (Ciara, Chris Brown). I must say this song is hot. The beat is sick. It's definitely a Bangladesh track on another level. The song is definitely formulated around a dance record, but its almost like Bangladesh slowed it down and removed some of its elements to give it a low-key sound. The song even has hints of that snare that is synonymous with Lil' Wayne's "A Milli," and Beyonce's "Diva." All in all, this record is hot, and its mind-boggling as to why the song has not picked up an audience (Perhaps, J Records is focused on promoting Jamie Foxx instead of Mario).

NEW MUSIC: TREY SONGZ & SAMMIE

A new song from Trey Songz featuring Sammie just surfaced on the internet. It features production from Young Yonni and Troy Taylor (never heard of them), and this record is fire! The song sort of sounds reminiscent of R. Kelly and Usher's "Same Girl," but this record here is much better. The 808's are piercingly, strong, the melody is delicate, and the vocals are impressive (especially the scatting at the end). The only thing about this song that I don't understand is the fact that Sammie is on the record. I cannot hear when he is singing so I feel like Trey should have just did the song on his own. Nonetheless, I feel like this song will become a big hit with good promotion, as it should because its real R&B that we need to be hearing right now (looks like the Ocean's 7 and contributions from Johnta Austin have really paid off for Trey; He's about to take over the game cause "I Need A Gir" was fire!).

Update: his new album is entitled "Ready," and its slated for release on August 4, 2009