Former Prince Guitarist Needs Your Help

Before Purple Rain and The Revolution, the fancy suits and hairdos, a young Prince Rogers Nelson -  donning anything from gold spandex to a trench coat with leg warmers - could be seen on several music programs like Don Kirschner's Rock Concert and Midnight Special. On his left was a sometimes spiky-haired guitarist Dez Dickerson, whose attire was a mashup of New Wave/thrift store chic, playing his ax.  When you saw bassist Andre Cymone to his right, you knew the string solo would rival that of Ernie Isley and the late Jimi Hendrix.

In the song "1999",  Dickerson sang the most memorable line - "Life is just a party and parties weren't meant to last". Also, his guitar solo on Little Red Corvette (1983) was named in Guitar World's Top 100 that same year. That would be one of his last recordings with The Purple One. Yup, how time flies.

Shortly after, he was replaced by Wendy Melvoin, who would go on to write movie and TV scores with former keyboardist Lisa Coleman. While Dickerson made a brief musical appearance in Purple Rain, he's been mainly behind the music scenes for 40 years. At one point, he found his musical home in the Christian genre, where he was an A&R person for Starsong Communications. He also ran his own Christian rock label, Absolute Records.

Dez also wrote a book, a personal account of his time with Prince, which was published in 2003. Since his departure, he's remained active in the music scene and kept a low profile except for appearances at SXSW. When asked by journalists about his last conversation with Prince before his untimely passing, Dickerson wasn't about that life.

Today, he's suffering from a few ailments but has not yet publicly disclosed what or his reason for a Go Fund Me campaign. Reddit posters had some interesting takes on the subject, including money Dickerson rightfully deserved during Prince's peak musical period. Before his health took a turn, he also worked as a host for a Tennessee radio station.

Happy 80th Birthday to Sly Stone

Before Thundercat, Rick James, and even Prince...Sly Stone was that musical genius to bridge black, white, and women and men into a single funk odyssey. His songs explored racial unity and other social matters of the day to an unforgettable beat. In fact, Sly set the template for modern recording acts like The Internet and many others.

For those of you who watch those Ed Sullivan reruns in hopes of catching this iconic performance, YouTube comes through. If you're familiar with the episode that featured The Doors, censorship (as in "high" or "higher" in reference to drugs) may be the reason why this segment is so hard to come by. 

This performance on the Mike Douglas Show is also worth a watch.

For Die Hard Prince Fans Out There...

Been away longer than I planned but thought I'd return with good news.  My favorite mag, Wax Poetics, is currently taking orders for the posthumous tribute edition.  Issue 67, according to the email I received last night, will be free of ads with full color pages throughout, available as a hard or soft cover copy.

For those not familiar with Wax Poetics (WP) magazine, it's pretty much the Lexus of all periodicals that represent hip-hop, R&B, jazz, and all the subgenres.  Issue 50, which was originally released back in 2013, featured the music legend and featured extended interviews with those who were once close to him musically.  This also was for pre-sale and though re-released in May 2016, is the best-selling edition in the magazine's history.

As for the collector's value, most WP issues bring in a nice return, as most give intimate details and/or exclusive interviews with recording artists of past and present.  I was able to sell my David Bowie/ATCQ issue for almost three times what I paid for it.  Remember back in the day when you went over someone's house and they had the latest issues of Ebony or Jet spread across the coffee table?  If you've got little ones (or kids at heart) that like to scribble on things, you might want to keep these hidden at all costs.

My One and Only Hugh Masekela Sighting

Happy New Year folks, I'm restructuring here and realize I still owe you an old-school countdown. I didn't want my first post to be an obit but this is a true story I can't get out of my head. As you may know, jazz trumpeter and anti-Apartheid activist Hugh Masekela died at the age of 78. At this time, there is no direct cause but, like many musicians who have left us in recent, I'm happy for his contributions. 

However, I didn't realize some years ago how grateful I should've been to be in his presence or to celebrate what was a historic moment. 

Back in the early 90s, I was a big super-brat woman/baby who really didn't know if she was coming or going. One day, I woke up and decided that I was going to attend Job Corp in Downtown L.A. because it was free. 

It was not one of my best moments but on top of free job training, medical care and food (I didn't live there), I could go to events for free. Not long before dropping the program for good (I also worked a full-time job near LAX), I got an invite to see a newly-freed Nelson Mandela at the L.A.Coliseum. Didn't have to work that evening but me and about a half-dozen folks packed into some car and got pretty good seats. 

Once again, very fortunate to have not experienced the nosebleed section. Looking back, the concert was long. Very long. And back then, on top of drinking and partying, I ingested a lot of caffeine (and this was a couple of decades before energy drinks were a way of life) so I can remember being near tears because I had to coordinate how to get back home without risking my life. 

But in-between, I had a hoot explaining to my reformed gangbanger buddies why Paul Simon, Sting, and many others with pink toes were there to celebrate the South African hero. However, amusement turned into anxiety when Mr. Masekela went into a set that lasted more than an hour long. Sting and James Taylor's sets were less than 15 minutes and other notables (whom I don't remember) were restricted to maybe one song. 

Since then I have not seen so much love and unity for mankind displayed on a single stage. Gangsta rap was beginning to cross into the mainstream and the riots were less than two years away. My generation has few leaders, as many seem to care more about commerce instead of a solution to make things better.

The irony is that while gangsta rap is supposed to be about being a badass, I've yet to see any of its representatives take a real stand against a minor injustice...just abuse or battery against a woman. Anyway, I still have a thing about Soul Train reruns and ran across this rare episode with Mr. Masekela and fellow trumpeter Herb Alpert.
 

Wayback Wednesday Letter G

If you can ever get your hands on this album here, consider yourself one lucky sonofagun.

The reason why I say this is because this the album, alone, that would make her the Queen of Soul.  I never bought that "Empress" title and realize that another notable may not be in the best of health as I type.  That understood, I will never change my mind on how awesome this album is...the vocals, arrangements, everything.  So while there are many tracks to fall in love with (and I'm not a fan, btw), I'm going with the title track though I don't know where this performance took place.

My other choice is also not 100% personal.  Though I love Sly and the Family Stone, my knowledge of Larry Graham was limited until he opened for Prince back in 1997.  Let's just say I couldn't wait for the main attraction.  People ask me to this day if he sang his 1980 hit 'One in a Million' and I say no, it was like a Sly Stone concert with no Sly and a loud guitar.

However, there was this one song I couldn't get out of my head growing up.  Never knew who sang it and it was one of the few my mom hated (because she pretty much had a record store...we lived down the street from a VIP Records, btw).  So anyway, decades pass and one of the few times Soul Train was in reruns, I discovered some new ish (because hip-hop was dying, rock-rap wasn't far behind and neo-soul was starting to sound alike).  Anyway, I have a new respect for this man and hope they do an Unsung episode for his musical contributions.

Final Throwback Thurs. E-F (as in Funk)

Ever since file sharing, indie stations, and other mediums for new and undiscovered jams have become the norm, I realized there have got to be damn near 100 covers of "Light My Fire".  From the Doors to Stevie Wonder. My favorite is by the late Erma Franklin, sister to Aretha and a soul singer in her own right.  This gem was released in 1969 and you Gen-X's may remember this as a sample in the early 90s hit "Untouchables" by Above the Law.
I don't know about you but I'm ready for funk to come back. I know some of the newer artists can be funky or may take elements of funk and mix it with rap, rock, or smooth R&B. The closest I've heard to a nasty bassline is Thundercat but then again, his music is more of a gumbo thing that mixes in some of everything with a spacey vibe. Well, it was a hard choice but fortunately Mr. George Clinton had the forethought to create two groups (and collect two paychecks) so we can hear from Parliament later.

WayBack Wednesday Holiday Jam Letter E

I think EWF owns this one but I probably roll this into tomorrow.  Anyway, during one of my insomnia attacks, I discovered these Christmas songs in my music feed.  Not the worst and it sounds like one of the original lineups.  Can you believe people talk about Christmas just minutes after (and sometimes before) Halloween has ended?
 This other jam was not one of their bigger hits but whoever made this vid deserves major props. They dug up a serious montage of old and recent photos. I forgot there were a couple of women in the lineup
 at one time.
 

The Final Throwback - Letter D

There's too much good stuff from which to choose right here, so I decided to go with a compilation.  If you haven't seen their Unsung episode, I recommend it highly.  A portion of their humble beginnings was also featured in the highly-praised 2017 movie Detroit.  Here is an interview that aired before the passing of founder Ron Banks.

Secondly, this track by the incomparable David Ruffin is pretty damn funky.  Most people (Gen-X and younger) remember Mr. Ruffin from the Temptations biopic but I remember seeing him perform this song on a Soul Train rerun a few years ago.  It's pretty memorable.

Wayback Weds - Letter C

 Yeah, sorry so slow. Decided to go for a second degree and now I'm paying the price.  Still haven't decided the future but I thought I'd throw in some ol school jams while thinking this through.  As for the second video above, I wanted to get a live performance since few people remember what the Cornelius Brothers and Sister Rose looked like.  Though only the lead singer slightly resembles someone from the lineup, I can tell this performance is from the 1980s.  So if you know anything about this group, give me a shout out!

The Final Thursday Throw - Letter B

Yeah, decided to do it right and combine the two so it should cover up to the letter Z by 12/31.  Math isn't my thing but I'll work it out.  Anyway, here's a couple of names we ain't heard from in a minute.  This jam takes me back to grade school.

The Final WayBack Artists Letter A

I'm slowing this situation way down in the coming year. Kind of tired of posting obits and some blaxploitation flicks are so bad that I end up going to sleep midway.  Same applies to modern straight-to-DVD movies (though I had a couple of nice finds recently).  I wouldn't say I'm burnt out but distracted big time.  Plus I have other projects in need of completion.

So, what I'm doing in digging up the rare jams and I may stick in some audio from my personal collection.  Today and tomorrow, for the remainder of the year, I'm going down the alphabetical list.  Some songs you may remember in its original form and other probably sampled to pieces.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to this so stay tuned!

Schoolhouse Rock Writer and Singer Dies At 85

Jazz drummer and singer Grady Tate got his start with Quincy Jones band back in the 1960's.  He later recorded the somber ballad Suicide is Painless for the M*A*S*H* movie.

Shortly afterwards, Tate and the late Ray Charles would be the most recognizable voices behind the funky Saturday morning cartoons for Gen Xers.  Eventually, this would lead the popular jazzman to a second career in education.  Read more about Mr. Tate's life here.

Is Thug Life the New Blaxploitation?

Think about it.  Hot looking females not only strapped but make target every time.  A dope soundtrack. Everyone speaks in urban slang. Violence.  Maybe hard narcotics.  At the film's climax, someone either died or is badly hurt, either physically or emotionally.

Is this a bad thing or worse, unoriginal?  Not necessarily, as one of my favorites, Power, has at least three of the above named factors.  Additionally, the cable drama is more popular with viewers than Fox Network's Empire, especially in the last couple of years.  While I won't use this post to tear down Cookie and 'em, one thing I will state is the emotionally complex scenarios used in Power make it more meaty than most shows that use a similar formula of a brother who used slangin' to come up.

What about when we make TV shows, big-budget movie and now...stage plays where you have the elements but the story line is "simple"?  Maybe even predictable...can it still be as fun as watching Blacula or even New Jack City.  Well, a new play, THUGS and the Women Who Love Them, is getting mixed reactions at best.  Courtesy of Deadline Detroit.

Based on a 2004 fictional series by Wahida Clark, the play was adapted by producer Melvin Childs and has made short stops in major cities in the past few months.  Casting includes mostly C/D-List entertainers like Ray J, Lyfe Jennings, and reality show superstars (meaning they get continuous work to act a fool on TV).  The only notable on here is Jamal Woolard, who played the title role of Biggie Small in 2007's Notorious.

Some people see the original blaxploitation movement as a way to crawl before walking, as only a handful of actors were offered legitimate (nice, articulate character) roles before.  I once had a debate with a former co-worker about why these types of films should never exist.  While my sentiment was that people needed to get work (and I was only about 20 at the time), she came back much harder.  THIS IS HOW PEOPLE FROM OTHER CULTURES SEE US.

My head was spinning because at that time, no one knew who Rodney King was, L.A. had only one riot, and while Pill Bill Cosby was using his popular sitcom to gradually lecture the viewers about what was right about the world of upper-class blackness, I knew my place in the world.   That was a utopia in my mind where everyone got along and no one saw stereotypes - just good and bad people.

Who would think more than 25 years later that hip-hop (no matter how watered down these days) cannot be used in a different format to tell a story of the streets?  They may not get my money but I feel that people have a right to express themselves by telling their truth.  However, I will be happy when there are more Rainbow Johnsons on my TV screen than Cookie Lyon types.

Throwback Thursday...Something Different

Earth, Wind and Fire has been one of my favorites since I was little and I ran across this video a couple of years ago.  If you miss the old lineup, I think you'll like this short even though I Can't Let Go wasn't one of their huge hits. I also want to wish belated birthday wishes to my fellow Libra, former sax player and percussionist Andrew Woolfolk, who was with them into the early 1990s.

I know I've been slacking on this but beginning next week, I'm combining the two (Wayback Wednesday and Throwback Thursday) for the remainder of the year.  It will be an A-Z of old school music acts and I'm looking forward to putting this together.  Truth, its the least I can do since I've slowed down mentally and physically....but I will keep you updated!  CYA

Wayback Wed is Back

This song is not a personal favorite but the video is.  However, I have to point out a small snafu.  The theme is the celebration of Black beauty from a forgotten era but...the Pam Grier still is kind of an oxymoron.  One (in the red outfit) is a publicity shot from the blaxploitation era.  The second is from her small (but important) role in 1972's Hit Man.  I won't give up the spoiler but right here, Ms. Grier was truly foul as a bottom chick/porn actress.  Thank God for Bernie Casey and that lion!

Former Leader of Black Heat Dies

Their music has been sampled by Biggie, Mc Lyte and was once featured in an episode of Scandal. However, Black Heat was one of those rare entities in funk that was mostly overlooked by the history books. On September 16, leader King Raymond Green passed away from causes currently unknown. Courtesy of Soul Tracks. Though Black Heat would go on to have a strong following in DC's Go-Go music scene, Green would go on to have a successful career in music on his own terms. After the group broke up in the late 1970's, he would study Audio Engineering at Drexel University, where he received a bachelor's degree in 1981. Green was also a member of The Original Clovers and CEO of his own Powerhouse Productions. His songwriting and audio engineering skills were in great demand with recording legends like Carlos Santana,Harvey Fuqua,and the late Chuck Brown.

James Brown Documentary Comes to Netflix on 9/1

Check your local listings.  Not a sponsored post but if you saw 2015's Get On Up and want more, this is for you!

Where's Van Hunt?

I've found that most in my generation, regardless of race or background, who appreciate retro Black films feel the same about music that reflects an era gone by. Van Hunt was considered part of the early 2000s neo-soul movement with underrated hits like "Dust". Some music connoisseurs felt the title was stifling though some,like Erykah Badu and Jill Scott, managed to earn mainstream success to this day.

I still rock Mr Hunt's 2004 self-titled debut CD today. And it's on the strength of those tracks that I believe if Prince were to voluntarily pass the musical torch, Hunt could be a strong contender.

 This article describes some of the challenges the former Dionne Farris (now that's a name we haven't heard in a couple of minutes) protege. This year he released Popular, his first in more than a decade that was originally slated for 2008. Let me know what you think.
To listen on Spotify-https://open.spotify.com/album/6zyuCp6aqbAkBUuSTXuX7f
Other streaming music services - https://vanhunt.lnk.to/Popular

Morris Day Releases Prince Tribute Song

"Over that Rainbow" is a stark contrast to the uptempo jams Day is known for.  Today is the one year anniversary of Prince's passing and I haven't seen this much love for the man since his career began nearly 40 years ago.

Check out the I Love Old School Music blog to read the interview where Morris Day talks about the last time he saw Prince.

RIP Cuba Gooding Sr.

A truly underrated musician whose sound will live on for decades to come.  As lead singer of the Main Ingredient, his recognizable tenor made many Top 40 hits in the 1970's.  While nothing has been confirmed by officials, there's speculation that Gooding suffered a fatal overdose while behind the wheel.  Prayers to the Gooding family.