Tag Archives: R&B

Feb4

Erma Franklin Sings “Piece Of My Heart”

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Erma Franklin Piece Of My HearyListen to this track by Duchess of Soul and sisterly presence to the Queen (but definitely her own woman), Erma Franklin. It’s “Piece of My Heart”, a 1967 single that would be more famously associated with Janis Joplin by the next year.

The song is by big time R&B writers and producers Jerry Ragovoy and Bert Berns and put out on Shout Records as a vehicle for Erma Franklin. The song would later become something of a late-20th Century standard with versions by Dusty Springfield to Sammy Hagar (?!), Faith Hill, to Joss Stone.

But, Erma Franklin recorded it first, setting the stage for the song’s long life in various annals of the pop charts.Not only would this tune  be an R&B hit. It would help to shape the way songs were sung in general, in soul music, and in rock music, too.

So, what distinguishes Erma’s version? Read the rest of this entry →

Jan14

Alabama Shakes Perform “Hold On”

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Listen to this track by Alabama rock ‘n’ soul, and so much more quartet Alabama Shakes. It’s “Hold On” a storming track as taken from their word-of-mouth meteoric 2012 debut Boys & Girls. The song is a single from that record, pulling in a myriad of influences from eras past.

Particularly evident is a strain of classic soul music that sounds like it came from Otis Redding’s pen is interwoven into the lines and the general feel on this song, and on others. But, the spirit of early ’70s British blues rock and hard rock, with traces of Led Zeppelin, the Faces, and the Stones, isn’t undetectable either.

Alabama Shakes

Photo: Pieter M. van Hattem / Contour by Getty Images

There’s something ineffable that roots the young band firmly into the now as well. In tapping into traditions of the past as they do, they somehow escape the cliches completely.  To rise above bar band blues, and to become a part of a grand continuum of disparate and complementary styles instead is a tremendously difficult feat.

It’s not been easy for many bands working out an identity in these kinds of musical milieus without the term ‘retro’ being mentioned. Carving a unique path through a musical landscape marked by many broad and asphalted sonic highways is a rare accomplishment. But, I think Alabama Shakes have done it.

But, how? Read the rest of this entry →

May17

Mayer Hawthorne Sings “Maybe So, Maybe No”

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Here’s a clip by new-school by way of old-school soul singer, and sometime hip-hop DJ in another life, Mayer Hawthorne. It’s  ”Maybe So, Maybe No”, a single from his debut 2009 record A Strange Arrangement, put out on indie label Stone’s Throw records.

Mayer Hawthorne

The head of that label, one Peanut Butter Wolf, signed Hawthorne after hearing two songs from Hawthorne’s selection of demos, both songs sounding like tracks from the classic soul period immortalized between 1964 to 1974. This era is a common hunting ground for hip hop DJs looking for obscure samples to use in their work.

His efforts were fueled by his genuine love of music from this classic period, and aided by his Detroit-born parents who bought him 45 RPM soul records as gifts from the time he was a kid growing up in nearby Ann Arbor. This amassed library of soul singles enabled a love for the sound of vinyl records in general. As a result, his career as a DJ was ignited.

But, how did this guy also become a straight up soul singer, and one of this calibre, as well as a hip hop DJ? Well, this is where thinking of musical evolution in a linear way can trip you up. Here’s what I mean. Read the rest of this entry →

Feb16

Etta James Sings “Tell Mama”

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Listen to this song by much-missed R&B stylist, and elementally gifted vocalist Etta James. It’s “Tell Mama”, a broiling example of full-on soul-power, charged with the fire of the blues, as taken from the album of the same name, Tell Mama, from 1968.

The record and song was something of a comeback for James, who first broke out in 1960 after  some minor dents in the R&B charts previously. She had become sidelined by the middle of the decade by a series of personal problems, including a growing heroin habit. Her addiction to drugs would continue to be a personal millstone around her neck for many years.

Yet, the sheer power of her voice, and the uniqueness of the same, would remain undiminished. And this tune is my favourite of her songs, which is really saying something given the quality of her output.

The comeback itself was successful, with this song being top 10 on the  R&B charts, and with the album being her first for almost half a decade to hit the Billboard 200. This tune would become something of a signiture hit, along with “At Last”, her version of Willie Dixon’s “I Just Want To Make Love To You”, and another cut off of the same LP – “I’d Rather Go Blind”.

Read the rest of this entry →

Nov10

Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint Play “Freedom For The Stallion”

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Allen Toussaint on tour with Elvis Costello in 2007, with Steve Nieve on organ in the background (photo: Bruno Bollaert)

Listen to this track by singer-songwriter and musical collaboration stylist Elvis Costello, and go-to New Orleans piano-man and songwriter Allen Toussaint. It’s “Freedom For the Stallion”, a gospel-tinged song  re-interpreted here as a key track on their 2006 Joe Henry-produced collaborative album River In Reverse.

This album brought together the two artists, plus Elvis’ backing band The Imposters, guitarist Anthony “A.B” Brown,  and the Crescent City Horns. The song is an older tune by Toussaint, recorded by acts that include Lee Dorsey, The Hues Corporation, and Three Dog Night. Even Bob Dylan had a shot at it.

This widespread coverage of the song may be because it’s such a succinct lament of the state of the world, a true protest song, with a genuine message that is all-too relevant as much today (if not more so) as it was when it was written.

The arrangement here ramps up the gospel feel on it, and Costello’s voice is plaintive and very connected to the material, a pleading  prayer for justice in a world where the greedy and the heartless profit, while others suffer the effects. .

In 2006, the song was in a very specific context, although no less grave than it is today. Read the rest of this entry →

Sep29

The Persuaders Sing “Thin Line Between Love and Hate”

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Listen to this track by million-selling New York soul vocalists the Persuaders. It’s their signature single and their biggest hit to date from 1971, “Thin Line Between Love and Hate”. Here is a classic tale of neglect, seeming acceptance, pent up anger, and one of the best lyrical payoffs in the history of soul music.

Pop music is full of stories of how love can go wrong, and how lovers can become callous, taking each other for granted. Many more are about the scorned woman, the one waiting at home while their men are out “doin’ the camel walk”.

But, with this song, the emotional landscapes are not quite that easily defined. We have the man who is out on the town at all hours, and his seemingly patient and selfless other half waiting at home for him, even at 5 O’clock in the morning, ready to fix him something to eat, unfazed by his absence up until then.

Who could predict how the story would end up from here? And, what else does this song reveal?

Read the rest of this entry →

Sep19

Sam & Dave Perform “You Don’t Know What You Mean To Me”

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Sam & Dave You Don't Know What You Mean To MeListen to this track by two-in-one soulmen and Stax/Atlantic “double dynamite” recording giants Sam & Dave (Sam Moore, and Dave Prater, that is). It’s “You Don’t Know What You Mean To Me”, as co-written by Eddie Floyd (who is name-checked in this version) and Stax house band Booker T & The MGs guitarist Steve Cropper. The song appears on the duo’s 1968 album I Thank You, their first, and last, LP on the Atlantic label.

After being signed to Atlantic in 1964,  it was decided that to keep their gritty, Southern soul sound, they would do well to work with Jim Stewart, founder of Stax records based in Memphis, a label that Atlantic served as a distributor. They would also  work with writing team of Isaac Hayes and David Porter, who penned most of their hits even after they were once again released on Atlantic.

This song, “You Don’t Know What You Mean To Me”, would be among the last top twenty hits Sam & Dave would enjoy on the last album of their career together that enjoyed top forty chart placement before their first split by the early ’70s. What would cause the well to run dry, after such a fantastic run of singles, including this one, known to be a favourite of the duo themselves?

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Sep8

The Small Faces Perform “You Need Loving”

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Listen to this track by ’60s mod champions and British R&B purveyors The Small Faces. It’s “You Need Loving”, a belter of an R&B tune recorded in 1966, and featured on their self-titled debut record The Small Faces . The song was originally written a few years earlier for Muddy Waters to sing by Chess Records bassist, producer, and songwriting giant Willie Dixon, who christened it “You Need Love“.

This version by the Small Faces had a tremendous influence on the upcoming hard rock scene by the end of the decade. It might actually sound very familiar to you as it inspired yet another song by a group of British R&B enthusiasts, who made that song into something of a signature number of their own – “Whole Lotta Love” by Led Zeppelin.

The blues is a mysterious form, as we’ve seen. Like a lot of vibrant folk music, individual songs aren’t so much owned as they are passed along, and changed through performance and interpretation over the years and decades. But, as we’ve also seen, the modern publishing industry isn’t so mysterious when it comes to the issue of borrowing and adapting without leave. So, how did things unfold with this tune?

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Aug18

Beck Performs ‘Debra’

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Beck performs "Debra" accoustically (photo: Richard Crowley)

Listen to this track by L.A-based R&B-fixated pop cut-up artist Beck. It’s “Debra”, a Princely track taken from his 1999 funkified, Young Americans-esque Midnite Vultures, a follow-up to the more sombre Mutations album.  The song was a stuck in at the end of the record that explored a number of R&B textures through an indie-rock filter in Beck’s attempt to tear down the walls between the rock world and the world of R&B as it stood at the time.

Known for being something of a slacker poster boy when he debuted in the early ’90s, by the end of the decade, Beck had done some serious work in undercutting that original incarnation by cutting follow-up records that seemingly had no connection between each one. If Odelay was a study in cut-and-paste quasi hip hop, then Mutations turned in a more acoustically based acid folk-rock direction. That record was only to be followed by this one, Midnite Vultures, full of samples and squiggly casios, yet also now punctuated with R&B horns and falsetto vocals.

But, what was Beck trying to pull with this song, “Debra”. Was he really serious?

Read the rest of this entry →