Cameosis
It’s late, and there was a slight internet outage in the House of Ickmusic… that, and a killer season finale of ’24’. So not a lot of commentary. Cameo was the first band I went and saw multiple times. My friend Chris and I would make the trek up to the Riverside Theater in Milwaukee to catch them in concert (dropped off by our parents, no doubt)…two of the few white boys in attendance… this one is the title track of their 1982 album, ‘Alligator Woman’. This was a few years before ‘Word Up’ exposed Cameo to the mainstream. . . their quirky, funky stylings are on display here…
Cameo:
Alligator Woman(mp3)Mo’ Madhouse w/ Prince, Eric Leeds and Vanity
This tune starts with a young lady’s moans of erotic pleasure. Did I get your attention? Good.
It’s an outtake of a song called “Vibrator” featuring the desire of my teen years (and beyond) – Vanity. The vocals were, uh – laid down in the summer of 1983 at Prince’s Kiowa Trail Home Studio – his purple house in the early 80’s. Prince would take those vocals and insert them into “Orgasm” on the Come album in 1994.
So after Vanity suitably consecrates the beginning of “Seven,” the drums kick in and we’re off on a Princely funky jazz adventure. The song showcases Eric Leeds on sax, and Prince on pretty much everything else. I posted from this album before, and if you want to purchase the CD, it’ll cost you a few tanks of gas (for a used one).
Madhouse: Seven
Charlie Hunter’s 8 String Funk
Every time I listen to this live track, or any Charlie Hunter song in general, I’m amazed that all of the sounds are emanating from one guitar. Charlie is a Bay Area master of his custom-made 8-string guitar. He plays the role of both bass and guitar player. Nope, there isn’t a bassist in the band. What you hear is coming from one man. On this song, “Crossings”, Charlie and Adam Cruz (on drums) lay out 12 and a half minutes of rhythmic laid back guitar funk. How Charlie can negotiate those kinds of bass and guitar parts simultaneously is beyond me.
About his guitar:
custom-made Novax eight-string…..Designed by Ralph Novak, the instrument features special frets and separate signals for its guitar and bass portions. Picking bass notes with his right thumb while fretting them with his left index finger (while at the same time fingerpicking guitar chords and single notes with his right hand’s remaining four digits as he frets with his left hand’s other three fingers), Hunter achieves the real sound of two-for-one. – from All Music
Huh? I lost track of all the fingers! If you want to see what his guitars look like, check out the cool Gear Page on his site. Anyway, this and a whole lot of others tunes are available to you on his web site, CharlieHunter.com. There’s a ton in the Audio section.
Facts of the day:
- Charlie used to be a member of the Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy, Michael Franti’s group before Spearhead.
- Jay Lane of Primus used to be Charlie’s drummer.
So without further ado:
Charlie Hunter (and Adam Cuz in drums) – “Crossings” – recorded live in Detroit, MI, 20 Nov 1999.
Buy Charlie’s music on Amazon (plus a lot of unreleased downloads available for purchase on his site).Photo from https://www.charliehunter.com/photos.
Freaky and Clandestine: It’s Double Oh-Oh
I finally got my turntable and computer talking to eachother again, so I’m finally able to bring you some of my choice LP cuts! I bet you’re really excited.
One of the first albums I pulled out today was George Clinton‘s 2nd solo album, ‘Some of My Best Jokes Are Friends’, which came out in 1985 (during my Prince-inspired funk discovery days as a teenager). My favorite on the album is the opener, “Double Oh-Oh”, about a super sexy secret agent. If you’re anything like me, you’ll be jumping around chanting “UH! This is for my country…UH! This is for me!” by the end of the song. I’ll try to get more tracks from this album out. A couple of them are written and produced (and partly performed) by Thomas Dolby. A cool album, lots of drum machines and synths, but hey it was 1985, and being a Prince fanatic, this was right up my alley.
Buy: Some of My best Jokes are Friends
Official Web Site: georgeclinton.comWe’re Gettin’ Root Down
Since I just took off the Jimmy Smith track from last week, I feel obligated to include another JS gem. As I mentioned before, I didn’t find out about the greatness of Jimmy Smith until last year.
Little did I know, I was grooving to Jimmy’s organ when I didn’t even know it, on the Beastie Boys’ “Root Down”. If I had any sense, I would’ve tracked down the originator of that groove when I was listening to it in the mid 90’s. *slap across the face*
Well, it’s no surprise that the original absolutely destroys the Beasties’ take on it (and I do LOVE the Beasties’ version). But man, that beat (and the way it starts, cascading into that sick groove), that rhythm, the sweet low down Hammond… Sheesh.
Buy: Root Down
Photo credit: Hammondite, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
It’s a Madhouse In Here
It was fun being a Prince fanatic in the 80’s. You’d get a great new album every year, and interspersed in there would be his 12″ maxi-single releases. Most would have an extended version of the album track, as well a previously unreleased B-Side (they’ve all since been compiled on to the 3rd CD of his Greatest Hits release from the late 90’s). It was all so original and fresh: “Irresistible Bitch”, “She’s Always in My Hair”, “17 Days”, “Another Lonely Christmas”, to name a few
On top of his own releases, Prince was busy working on his side projects: The Family, Apollonia 6, Sheila E., and Madhouse. Madhouse was made up primarily of Prince and Eric Leeds (Prince’s sax player at the time), with some contribution from Levi Seacer (bass) and Sheila E. (drums). It was basically an outlet for Prince to lay down some of his more jazz and jazz-funk oriented stuff. The first Madhouse album was entitled ‘8’, and the songs were entitled 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8. He released ‘6’ as a maxi-single, which included ‘6 (End of the World Mix)’, which I have for you now…
1986, Paisley Park – {The album is out of print, but you can buy it on Amazon for, uhh, $110)
Jesse Johnson’s Just Wanting You
Jesse Johnson left The Time in 1984, right after their success due to their part in ‘Purple Rain’, and their 2 hit singles, “The Bird” and “Jungle Love”. Jesse did alright for himself, releasing a few albums over the years, including 1988’s ‘Every Shade of Love’, which includes this song, “I’m Just Wanting You”. It’s a laid back tune, with Jesse’s guitar at center stage.
Old School Saturday – Electric Lady
It’s time to take you back to 1985. I was a 15 yr old snot-nosed little kid and I loved the 80’s R&B / Soul of the time (thanks to Prince opening up my mind and expanding my love of music a year earlier), including this absolute classic by Con Funk Shun. Now, these brothers were around a looong time before I came across this tune. They got together in the late 60’s.
This track was produced by Larry Smith, who produced Run-DMC’s first two albums, and Whodini’s Escape (another one of my favorites of the time…”I’m a Ho”, anyone?). So dig if you will the picture, of Con Funk Shun busting out a little Electric Lady on yo ass….
By the way, I have to thank Tofu Hut for an honorable mention on their site. My traffic has picked up quite a bit as a result.
So come on folks, click the little Comments thing under the posts and let me know what you think. Does any of this music fill your soul, or make you beeline for the latest toilet? Anybody else remember Electric Lady? You thought it was Cameo too huh? Hehe. Me too…
Baby, What’s Your Phone Number?
Back in the early 80’s when Prince was building his Minneapolis empire, The Time emerged as his first and ultimately most formidable side/pet project. The Time actually morphed from the popular Minneapolis band Flyte Tyme, of which Prince and Morris Day were members. Most people are familiar with the Time from ‘Purple Rain’. Prior to the movie’s release, the Time released two albums: the self-titled debut, and 1982’s ‘What Time is It’?
The best track off the album, and their best ever, in my most esteemed opinion, is ‘777-9311’: 8 minutes of unadulterated synth and guitar-driven swaggering funk. Produced by ‘The Starr Company’, AKA Jamie Starr AKA Prince, the little purple guy puts his stamp down heavy on this tune.
