GOSPEL AND GRIT: THE SOUND OF FUNKY FERVOR

The Inspirational Gospel Singers: Same Thing It Took
From Good God! Born Again Funk (Numero, 2010)

R&B, while built largely on the back of gospel music, has a somewhat dichotomous relationship with gospel's roots, at least from the viewpoint from the latter. During rhythm & blues' birth, many gospel supporters boiled over the idea of R&B artists using hymns as a basis for their songs that had a raunchy undertone and with a rhythm that was thought to derive straight from the devil. Even one of gospel's largest stars, Sam Cooke, wondered if he could ever go back to gospel if his pop career didn't pan out.

So it's surprising, in a sense, then, that songs that lyrically praise the Lord have a musical backing that uses a rhythmic style that would seemingly contradict it from a gospel purist's standpoint. Part of it may be that over time, that feeling subsided, even if only a small bit. On Numero's latest offering - Good God! Born Again Funk - that follows up its first gospel/funk compilation, the merging of styles is further discovered and investigated.

The most startling example is that of Ada Richards' “I'm Drunk And Real High” in which the words in the hook she uses actually sound like a soul that has been tainted by the dark side. She shouts and holy rolls with the best of them in tone and attitude, but with a line like “I'm drunk, Lord Jesus, and I'm real high!” it's no wonder that it hasn't made its way into the local church choir's weekly rotation.

Many of these songs with their lyrical content disregarded, in fact, sound straight out of the R&B canon. “The Same Thing It Took” by The Inspirational Gospel Singers is actually a reworking of sorts of the Impressions song of the same name. Interestingly enough, though, it's more R&B in its musical backdrop than its secular counterpart. With its chunky bass and Jean McInnis' (who sounds like she could be a long lost Franklin family member) vocals, the song is a shining example of what these two genres can sound like when married properly - where fervor and funk both shine equally.

If Heaven has a juke joint, Born Again Funk showcases what Jesus would be listening to while taking a shot of holy water. Some say that most people miss Heaven by 18 inches - the distance from your head to your heart. These songs highlight what gets your soul shaking in a body part 18 inches below your heart: your rump.

ON THE AIRWAVES

Over the river and through the woods.. or over the airwaves and through your speakers/headphones, a colleague of mine, DJ Still Life, hosts a radio show on East Village Radio that plays a variety of current hits and remixes as well as old school, much of which focuses on global bass and electronic music. He has guests stop by occasionally. Last week Lamin from Dutty Artz stopped by for a few.

Check him out at East Village Radio on Thursday nights from 10 PM to 12 AM EST. If you can't schedule that into your hectic life, you can listen to archived shows. It's like DVR except they do all the recording for you, and you don't have to worry about the hard drive filling up!

TEDDY P AS REMEMBERED BY HIS SON

As great as it is to read about how people remember music artists for their art and its inspiration, it's easy to get lost in the mix that these people were family men and women, too.

I read this great piece by Teddy Pendergrass' son over at CNN today. Not one word was uttered about how music's role at their home. Instead he talks about a trip to Chuck E. Cheese and driving in his father's fast cars.

In reality, it's these simple things that truly matter.

SHAOLIN VS LIVERPOOL

Here's what you get when you cross the slums of Shaolin with the Liverpool lads. Makes for an interesting mix, if nothing else.

SO LONG TEDDY P

Harold Melvin And The Blue Notes: Bad Luck
From To Be True (Philadelphia International/Epic, 1975)

In another week's time, another soul legend has passed on. Last week Willie Mitchell, and now Teddy P. Each left their indelible marks on popular music. Teddy really hit his high point with his Ladies Only concerts that wouldn't have been made possible without that bedroom baritone delivered with such raw energy whether on a dance number or a slow song.

His professional training ground was with the popular Philly group Harold Melvin And The Blue Notes for which he used to play drums. Incidentally, when Gamble and Huff heard him sing, he was asked to do lead vocals during their most fruitful period in the early to mid-70s.

Around my house growing up, my mom was (and still is) a huge fan of disco. We listened to “Bad Luck” so many times that the cassette it was on is probably in shreds by now. It wasn't the group's only foray into disco as another album they released within the same year had the original version of “Don't Leave Me This Way” that is better known to most through the Thelma Houston version.

His solo career saw equal, if not greater, success with songs such as “Love TKO” and “Close The Door” - songs that could get anyone in the mood, even Sherman Klump from “The Nutty Professor.” The minister of love has left us, but not before making some beautiful sermons through music during the last 35 years.

SURPRISES CAN BE SO GOOD

Gaby Moreno: Amapola
From Still The Unknown (Unsigned/Independent, 2008)

I got an e-mail the other day about an indie singer/songwriter who had a soulful tone to her. Now typically this kind of talk is nothing more than a hasty, catchy headline to fill space. For some reason this time, I bit. I looked up her MySpace page to check out her music. There, I was greeted with the warm, beautiful sounds of the bilingual “Amapola” and was drawn in. My first thought was you could easily throw this in the middle of playing the sublime Norah Jones album “Come Away With Me” and not notice that it was a different singer.

That's not meant to imply that she sounds like a Norah clone, but merely to state that she presents herself with an intimacy that is somewhat rare for a newcomer, as unfamiliarity tends to keep us from exposing our innermost feelings. Typically new acts try to hash out a catchy tune with a hook that you find yourself humming while at the copy machine at work. She takes a different approach, though, by drawing you in with a sense of openness.

“Amapola” is a cover of a 1920s bolero that has been covered numerous times, but unlikely with these results. With its sweet melody and stripped acoustic sounds, Moreno's disarming vocals make you feel like the scene in the Christmas classic where the Grinch's heart grows three sizes. Although not quite with this amount of charm, there are other breezy gems that grace your ears on this debut album such as “La Vez Que No Me Pude Atrever.”

However, she also knows how to throw a little attitude into her music, too. “Wrong Side Of The Road” finds her throwing some blues guitar into the chorus and the fadeout. Inspired, in part, by blues artists such as B.B. King and Muddy Waters through some blues compilations she first heard while on a family vacation to the USA from her native Guatemala, she finds a way to blend those sounds into a friendly-sounding pop song.

Currently, she's on tour supporting Ani DiFranco on some east coast US dates along with a few Canadian stops. She's been heralded by NPR and KCRW, and while her career has yet to fully take off, she's certainly got the talent to be around for a long time. With a solid voice and the musical and songwriting chops to back it up, it surprised me that I hadn't yet heard of her. I only wish I got surprises like this more often.

BILL WITHERS: ON FILM

Still Bill Trailer from B-Side Entertainment on Vimeo.

Bill is such a great songwriter and singer. Tonight I found out, by chance, that a documentary had been made about this fine musician. Unfortunately, it just so happened that it was also a night in which it was screening in my town, but I couldn't attend. Finding out 30 minutes prior to the event wasn't enough time to make it.

I'm looking forward to catching it in the future, though. You can read more about it and pre-order it at the official site.

“POPPA” WILLIE MITCHELL, YOU'LL BE MISSED

It's so sad to see another legend of the soul scene pass away. We're watching a generation of great singers, writers, producers, arrangers, session members – of which Willie was most of these – being wiped away in front of our eyes, slowly but surely, while the grim reaper plays a life-and-death Duck-Duck-Goose, the next victim unsuspecting that s/he is next. All we can do is appreciate them while they're here. Mitchell, who had his own solo career, before taking the producer/arranger chair at Hi was a mastermind of music, soul in particular, of songs that have defined the genre and are worthy of a place in a time capsule of popular music.

Al Green: I'm A Ram
From Gets Next To You (Hi, 1971)

Only a couple nights ago I was listening to the Reverend Green's “Gets Next To You” album, perhaps my favorite full length of his. The pleading in “Are You Lonely For Me Baby” is an exercise in sexual tension being released. “I'm A Ram,” a sweatbox of soul, boils under the surface with its slowed tempo that pops with horn stabs throughout. Al was the force that helped to gain the Hi Sound popularity nationwide, but he wasn't the only one that Mitchell was working with...

Ann Peebles: If We Can't Trust Each Other
From I Can't Stand The Rain (Hi, 1974)

Ann Peebles (who may be most familiar to people by way of the sample of “I Can't Stand The Rain” in Missy Elliott's “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)” thanks in large part to one Mr. Tim Mosley), who had married Don Bryant – a songwriter for Hi, also worked closely with Mitchell. “If We Can't Trust Each Other” is a sweet bit of mid-70s soul punctuated by the Hi Sound, notably the crisp snare and its simple, yet effective, associated backbeat and affectionate horns. Her voice is markedly sweet, simply hitting the notes that need to be hit, without overly expressing anguish but still hitting on the emotions tapping into the core of the song. Very well performed and produced.

O.V. Wright: Let's Straighten It Out
From The Complete O.V. Wright On Hi Records, Vol. 1 (Hi, 1999)

O.V. Wright, on the other hand, has more of a longing in this song, capitulating to the anguish that Peebles wouldn't quite relent to. It almost sounds like it could be either the beginning or the end of the conversation that Peebles was singing about above. While at times resorting to a tickling of 16th-notes that suggest a nervousness, as in flicking a cigarette's ashes, provide a contrast to the driving chords that permeate the verses. More bluesy in nature, it has some nuances like the aforementioned piano work and some drum fills that segue into new sections of the song providing a palatable breaking up of sorts, not unlike where the characters in the song itself may be heading.

Willie Mitchell: Bootleg
From Ooh Baby You Turn Me On/Live At The Royal (Hi, 1968)

Lastly, a song as performed by Poppa Willie himself is “Bootleg” that is a different sound altogether from those above. With its party vibe that defines what a juke joint should sound like, it's enhanced by crowd noises heard in the background, which some have speculated were overdubbed, thus not making it a true live recording, but that provide another level of atmosphere. In much the same way that the soul classic “Shotgun” by Jr. Walker And The All Stars does, perhaps its soulful American cousin, “Bootleg” provides a glimpse into time when dancing and good music – and perhaps a drink in hand – trumped all else on a Saturday night.

Poppa Willie helped provide the soundtrack for many of those parties, and their associated afterparties in the bedroom or back of a car. Not a bad way to define your legacy. Thanks Poppa.

To read even more about this underappreciated legend, check out WaxPoetics issue 9.

HEY WAIT, WASN'T THAT... ???

Young MC: Got More Rhymes
From Stone Cold Rhymin' (Delicious Vinyl, 1989)

While out on New Year's Eve to go see “Up In The Air,” I caught a quick glance of none other than crate digger/DJ extraordinaire Cut Chemist (on the right in the picture above) handling DJ duties in a scene with Marvin Young aka Young MC. If you blinked you missed him (Cut Chemist).

While Young MC performed his frat party/wedding dance floor favorite “Bust A Move” in the film, I was always more fond of a couple of other songs from Stone Cold Rhymin', including the b-side to “Bust A Move” - “Got More Rhymes” featuring the Ben E. King flip. While the beat isn't a whole lot more than a loop of the super smooth, cool guy instrumental backing of the King classic, it plays well with the MC's confident bravado.

If it wasn't for the runaway success of “Bust A Move” and to a lesser extent its follow-up “Principal's Office,” the rest of the album might be more appreciated. While some of the production does sound quite dated (like the lead track with that awful “ooh, uh huh” female singing and synth), it still bumps and the lyrics and their delivery were at the top of the late 80s and early 90s hip hop. You won't mistake Young MC for Rakim or Big Daddy Kane, but he holds his own. Then again, we don't live in times where pop-rap from that period is considered much more than a novelty. If you give it a chance, though, it just may surprise you.