Etta in recent years

To be successful in one form or another in music is rare, but to be recognized as a singer par excellence in the arenas of Gospel, Jazz, Blues, R&B, Rock and Soul is incredibly special, to do it over the course of a nearly sixty year career is defined as Etta James.

Here at GFM we hoped that at the end of January our month long tribute to Ms. James in a much different way, but we realize that we have no control over the plan, we can only hope for the best for the family and friends at the most difficult time and wish all of them peace and comfort.

Many will mark this sad occasion with their favorite songs from Etta’s career: we’ve dedicated the month of January to Etta as our Artist of the Month for that very reason and we will also have some very special musical tributes coming up this week.

Today, I wanted to reflect on something that I just realized in trying to put all that Etta James represents into perspective and that is what a true American Icon Etta James is. You know many have tried over the years to market this experiment known as America as: Baseball, Hot Dogs, Apple Pie and yeah you know the rest… but the real America? The real America is the Blues, Soul, Gospel, Jazz, Rock, the struggle, being an underdog and overcoming adversity, it’s not always pretty but you learn to sing and play through the pain to make something lasting, a legacy.

Etta James was no ordinary “singer”, Etta James was/is a force of nature. My wish and I can say with confidence that I know the rest of the GFM Team will join me in this, is that we can place the legacy of Etta James squarely where it needs to be: In the upper echelon of American Musical Treasures. More than a song Etta James was/is a movement. Her story is similar to and should serve as an inspiration for many of us, it takes a lot of hard work to be successful and even harder work to remain successful.

I know there is a microphone and a follow spotlight waiting for you on the other side, with a band like no other to back you up. Rest In Peace…

I remember it like it was yesterday. Public Enemy was appearing on Saturday Night Live to support their newly released “The Enemy Strikes Back”. Before the group did their 1st number Chuck D standing front and center as always with his right fist raised stated “Let’s have a moment of silence for Miles Davis”! That was Sept. 28,1991. Within a split second I realized that one of the world’s greatest musicians to ever walk this earth was gone. This was pre-internet, pre-twitter, pre-Pac and all the other music artists related deaths. The closet thing I can think of that relates to that moment was Marvin Gaye’s passing. But this was Miles Davis……MILES DAVIS. The Miles Davis who changed music 4-5 times. The Miles Davis who was one of the most respected musicians ever- regardless of genre. The Miles Davis..who was cool enough to hang out with Bird and Diz and years later hang out Prince and Michael. Miles Davis the Definition of cool. Certain parts of society consider “classical” music to be the music of class and culture. I’ve yet to see any classical musician have the universal appeal that could span musical generations like Miles Davis did. Miles Davis was/is classic cool!

Miles Davis had an appeal that far exceeded racial and cultural boundaries. That type of appeal for a “jazz” artist is rare and unheard of even by today’s standards. Walk in any jazz club and before the night is over you’ll hear a Miles Davis tune. Look in any “Top albums of all time” poll Miles Davis will have at least one or two. Because technology wasn’t what it is now the world was slow in their tributes. Over the last 20yrs that has changed. Since then critics and musicians have argued which era of Miles was most relevant. All of them were. His art, which has been critically acclaimed is now being showcased. Documentaries and vaulted concert footage have been released. Books on the electric years have been written. Don Cheadle,I pray, has the cameras rolling on that Miles bio pic. But I can’t forget the most relevant tribute…the music. Columbia Records has come correct and given us classic re-issues, box sets and vaulted material. Hey Warner Bros. …..your turn!

So on this day instead of mourning I will celebrate the music and the legacy. Gonna have everything in rotation from “Round Midnight” to “On the Corner” to “Amandla”. Might eve nhit the local record store to get “The Complete Jack Johnson” box set. So whether you like the Miles 1st quintet yrs, the 2nd quintet yrs, the Miles electric funk 70’s or the later yrs. It doesn’t matter. Celebrate the man and his music. Now if you all will excuse me…..a friend just called asking for some background music for a dinner he’s planning. He wondered if I had any recommendations. Yeah… “Ever heard Miles Davis’ “Kind of Blue?” ? Can’t go wrong with that and the mascotto “!

On the 30th anniversary of his passing his these words, Bob’s words… more than ever we need a reset we need fearless musicians who have something to say.

Brought to you by the good folks at Saturn Never Sleeps, this is one tribute worthy of your time and hard drive space. By now you’ve heard about the situation with the legendary DJ Kool Herc and it’s a fitting tribute for all that he’s given music, culture and hip hop. You can download the mix here and donations are still being accepted on his official website.

This compilation features tracks from DaM-Funk, Damon Bennett, Dego, King Britt Presents Sylk 130, Ursula Rucker, Lushlife, ZIN, Hezekiah, Jneiro Jerel & Indigo, Soul Litchfield, Illvibe Collective feat. Ethel Cee, Rucyl, Shigeto, Galapagoose, Ras_G, Chuck Treece, Suzi Analogue, Stef Eye, and Peter Kirn.

“J.Dilla: Still Shining” from B.Kyle on Vimeo.

On the anniversary of his born day we want to send out much love and respect to the entire Yancey Family and all of the fans of this incredible musician whose influence is felt and heard daily.

Created in 2006, this remembrance piece is created as a tribute to the memory and legacy of James “J.Dilla” Yancey. This is a piece designed for his fans and supporters who knew of his accomplishments before February 2006 and those that have grown to appreciate his genius. Here, we gain a greater insight and understanding about our musical icon.

J.Dilla is Still Shining.

(2:55) – Work Ethic Starts In The Basement
(7:35) – What To Listen For in A Dilla Beat
(9:10) – J.Dilla’s Range As A Producer. The King of Reinvention
(12:16) – Going Beyond His Influences
(14:39) – The Dilla Approach To Production
(20:21) – Jay The Producer vs Jay The MC
(26:08) – The Personal Side of J.Dilla
(29:04) – A Soldier Unstoppable!
(32:05) – Venturing Out. (as explained by Phat Kat)
(33:59) – Heading Home… Job Well Done.
(34:48) – We Salute You.

As we all still struggle with the passing of Teena Marie, several tributes have surfaced, but few as compelling as this one. The lovely Sy Smith has teamed with frequent collaborator/super producer Mark de Clive-Lowe for a ‘completely re-imagined’ version of “Lovergirl” as only they can do. I think Teena would be proud. Check out Sy’s personal tribute and rare insight into the creative process of this fitting production:

Mark e-mailed me this track as I was in the studio recording a tune with Rahsaan Patterson. The date was 12/29, just 3 days after Teena Marie passed away. I went back and forth between listening to this track on my headphones and listening to Rahsaan as he laid vocals. Obviously this wasn’t gonna be something I could multi-task, so I dedicated myself to listening to Rahsaan! But once Rah and I finished our recording, Grant Nicholas (my engineer) and I got a quick edit and rough mix of the tune done and Grant took a break for something he calls “food”. :-)

Now I was able to dedicate myself to this (kinda rare) downtempo track from Mark. I was immediately drawn to the sentimental mood of the guitar line, it sounded like the track itself was recalling some fond memory. Rah and I had just had a long conversation about the loss of Teena Marie and how bad she was, how relevant she remained, how her phrasing and songwriting was so top-notch… We recalled the phrasing of “Lovergirl”, esp the vamp “Coffee, tea, or me…” bit. So when I heard Mark’s track, and Rah was already gone, and I was all alone in the studio with the lights barely on, I began singing that phrase from “Lovergirl”. I couldn’t believe how perfectly it seemed to settle into the track. I knew right away that this is what I’d record – a humble tribute to one of my favorite recording artists ever, Lady T.

I looked up the lyrics and just started making mental notes as to how I would structure of the song. I really liked the idea of starting with “When the push comes to shove” because that phrase was one of my favorites in the original. I always loved when Teena would just “speak” lines, ya know? So I had the basic structure completed, in my head. I was ready to rock. When Grant returned, I barely let him eat his food before I was like “pull up this track, I wanna record something else!” (Sorry Grant. I know I can be a workaholic. Please forgive me. I promise to take more breaks in the future.) Grant passed me some french fries because I guess I, too, need to eat. He pulled up the track and we began recording.

It took about an hour to lay the vocals. Another hour to get a nice rough mix going. Grant and I really liked the mood of this new “Lovergirl”. Lady T’s lyrics and phrasing lent themselves so well to this backdrop, and it all felt like falling into a bed of velvet rose petals. I was beyond sleepy and spent. So I asked Grant if he’d put some horns down at some point (Grant is a multi-talented engineer and musician on keys/trumpet!). We discussed where the horns would go, and I didn’t need to say much because Grant and I come from very similar musical schools of thought. When I woke up the next morning, Grant sent me and Mark this… Mark dug it… And so it goes…

Thank you Teena Marie for your many contributions to the world of music. Your performances, your writing, your musicianship and your voice will remain, and rightfully so, eternally in the world of classic music. Soul, rhythm & blues, and beyond. You are forever a Starchild. This is for you Lady T. You said, “I just want to rock your world”. And that you did.

credits
released 01 January 2011
Produced by Mark de Clive-Lowe
Vocal Arrangement/Production by Sy Smith
All Vocals – Sy Smith
Trumpet – Grant Nicholas
Horn Arrangement – Grant Nicholas
All other instruments – Mark de Clive-Lowe

R.I.P. Lady T

Great new podcast from EJ Flavors that pays tribute to the life and art of Teena Marie. The podcast can be downloaded here.

Checkout the tracklist after the jump.
Teena: Uptempo
1 – Square Biz (It Must Be Magic )
2 – It Must Be Magic (It Must Be Magic )
3 – I’m a Sucker for Your Love with Rick James (Wild and Peaceful)
4 – I Need Your Lovin’ (Irons In The Fire)
5 – 365 (It Must Be Magic )
6 – Behind The Groove (Lady T)
7 – Don’t Look Back (Wild and Peaceful)
8 – Chains (Irons In The Fire)
9 – Ballad Of Cradle Rob & Me, The (It Must Be Magic )
10 – Revolution (It Must Be Magic )
11 – Work It (Naked To The World)
12 – Lovergirl (Starchild)
13 – Surrealistic Pillow (Naked To The World)

Teena: Downtempo, Volume 1
14 – Portuguese Love (It Must Be Magic )
15 – Fire and Desire W/Rick James (Street Songs)
16 – Casanova Brown (Robbery)
17 – If I Were A Bell (Ivory)
18 – Wishing On A Star (New York Undercover: A Night At Natalie’s)
19 – Happy w/ Rick James (Throwin’ Down)
20 – Too Many Colors (Lady T)
21 – Irons In The Fire (Irons In The Fire)
22 – Young Love (Irons In The Fire)
23 – Aladdin’s Lamp (Lady T)
24 – I’m Gonna Have My Cake (And Eat It Too) (Wild and Peaceful)
25 – Yes Indeed! (It Must Be Magic )
26 – Opus III (Does Anybody Care) (It Must Be Magic )
27 – Ooo Wee w/Kurupt (Sapphire)
28 – Baby I Love You (Congo Square)
29 – Baby I’m Your Fiend (La Dona)

Teena: Downtempo, Volume II
30 – Out on a Limb (Starchild)
31 – Dear Lover (Robbery)
32 – Ooo La La La (Extended Mix) (Naked To The World)
33 – Deja Vu (We’ve Been Here Before) (It Must Be Magic )
34 – Naked To The World (Naked To The World)
35 – Sunny Skies (Emerald City)
36 – Stop The World (Robbery)
37 – Can It Be Love (Lady T)
38 – Now That I Have You (Lady T)
39 – Where’s California (It Must Be Magic )
40 – You Blow Me Away (Sapphire)
41 – Parking Music (Passion Play)
42 – A.P.B. (Sapphire)
43 – Can’t Last A Day w/ Faith Evans (Congo Square)

From BVBuzz.com

Gospel music legend Bishop Walter Hawkins has died at age 61.

The Grammy Award winning contemporary gospel singer succumbed on Sunday after a battle with pancreatic cancer.

During his 30-plus-year career in gospel, which consisted of at least 14 albums since 1975, Hawkins created an extensive catalog of music both as a solo artist and with his family ensemble.

Gone Up Yonder: Gospel Great Walter Hawkins Dead.

Permalink

Life is a song worth singing and boy did Teddy Pendergrass ever sing! It is with great sadness that we report the news of Teddy’s passing yesterday at the age of 59.

As the lead singer for Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes and later as a solo act Teddy Pendergrass came to embody all of the sophistication and raw emotion that was endemic to classic TSOP sound of the 70′s and early 80′s. He will truly be missed.

Update The funeral arrangements for Teddy Pendergrass have been announced. You can read about them here.

Here’s another great Teddy Pendergrass Tribute Mix from DJ Wonder. This mix does contain some explicit language.

DJ Jaycee has done a wonderful “Afternoon Delight”(V-103 Atlanta) mix dedicated to the memory of Teddy Pendergrass. You can download it for free here.

Part of the Teddy Pendergrass legacy is his incredible discography that has been sampled such notable artists as Mobb Deep, D’Angelo, 9th Wonder and most recently the Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes classic “I Miss You” provided the soundscape for Big Boi’s “Shine Blockas”.

Image Source: Morwenna Lasko & Jay Pun

Before we get into the actual post I wanted to provide some background information and context about Johnny Gilmore for readers who may not be familiar with him. Here’s a link to a news article concerning his tragic passing last week.

Also you can find out more information about Johnny on his newly setup website www.johnnygilmore.com and information about donating to the family and benefit concerts on the Johnny Gilmore Memorial Page on Facebook. There was an incredible memorial concert held last evening which I had every intention on attending, my automobile had other plans. But in talking to some of the organizers and a few of the attendees I understand that it was a success and an honor benefitting such a great musician and person.

When a tragedy like this occurs it often alerts us to the precarious nature of life that is often the lot of the professional touring musician. Tragedies like these should serve as a clarion call to all of us: musicians and lover’s of music that as a society we can and should concern ourselves with the role of the “true artist” in our society and more specifically the totality of their well-being.

Now a few words about an incredible musician. Thanks to the Grown Folks family for allowing me this space to speak.

Last Friday morning I awoke to receive some very sad news about the passing of Johnny Gilmore: Drummer and Human Being extraordinaire. Drummer extraordinaire because I, like many others consider Johnny among the greatest to ever sit behind a set of drums. Human Being extraordinaire because of the joy and love that he brought to family, friends and honestly anyone he came into contact with.

I knew of Johnny for a while before I actually met him. It was one of those things where you hear of someone’s musical reputation only to have it confirmed a million times over once you actually meet them. One of the first times I actually met Johnny was while I was in high school and he had heard about a band that myself and a few classmates had put together. This was the late 1980′s and in Charlottesville, VA like many other hamlets along the Route 29 corridor south of D.C. Go-Go music was king. We had heard about Johnny practicing Go-Go over on West St. (we heard casette tapes as well) and about Johnny sometimes playing that Go-Go beat on a tune down at Miller’s. So it really made a big impression on me that this guy who I heard all these fantastic things about as a musician, took time out of his schedule to come hear a little band that my friends and I put together for our school’s talent show.

Johnny was very encouraging and of course spot on with his critique of the performance and I never forgot that. At that time in my life I had no idea how that act of kindness would influence my career choices just a few short years later

Over the next year or so while I was still in high school I would see Johnny from time to time in passing and I even had the opportunity to sit in with him and some of my friends on a jazz gig here and there. Again, he was always encouraging even though in my estimation I wasn’t necessarily playing jazz, it was more like the idea of jazz. Speaking of which, as far as I know there really is not a style of music that I know of that Johnny Gilmore could not play and I mean play well. In the course of a night I have seen him go from Tony Williams to Bernard Purdie to Carly Barrett. Actually, what I meant to say is that I’ve seen him do that within the course of a song. His ability to have a command of so many diverse styles of music spoke not only to his openess as a musician but it is also reflected in the numbers of lives he touched from every strata of society.

During the mid-90′s I had the opportunity to play with Johnny on a pretty frequent basis in numerous musical lineups around Charlottesville and even on a few memorable road trips. It was also at this time that I became involved with the Music Resource Center in Charlottesville. For those of you not acquainted with The Music Resource Center it is an afterschool and in the summer music program where students between 7^th and 12^th grades can learn how to write, record, and produce music as well as rehearse. Johnny was not only an early musician supporter of the center but he also had several nieces and nephews who were longtime members of the center. It was a joy for me to have such a gifted musician in the space and I was taken back in time as I watched him mentor one of his nephew’s bands as he did mine only a half decade or so prior.

It was at this time that I got to know Johnny on a much more personal level and it always brought a smile to my face when I heard his nieces and nephews talk about “Uncle Johnny” and his world-famous fishcakes. I was also amazed to find out at this time that we had travelled in similar circles in our musical development and he shared a story that I often go back to where he was playing a church gig as a twelve year old and the organist asked him if he was “afraid to play.” I always found this story hilarious on many levels because for one when I met Johnny and heard him play that would be the furthest thing from mine or anyone’s mind and two I knew the organist he was talking about and I had been in a similar position.

But the main reason that I continue to go back to that story is that when we were having that discussion it all finally made sense to me. I now understood, at least on a very basic level why he was always so kind and encouraging to aspiring musicians. He was here to define for many of us what “paying it forward” really meant. That phrase was not something Johnny Gilmore gave lip service to he lived it. I could not be any more serious when I say that he is a hero of mine. Here’s a guy who was from my hometown who played all over the world and he started out wearing that orange and black marching band uniform just like I and many others did.

I have nothing but fond memories of playing on gigs with Gilmore. I tell people to this day he is the only drummer that I know who could keep exact time while eating an entree. I’m very serious when I say that. Just the joy he brought to the music and his musicianship was infectious. I learned very quickly that if I didn’t bring some semblance of an A game to the gig I would get left in the dust very quickly.

Johnny’s knowledge of music was encyclopedic. Some may know that I’m a huge Stevie Wonder fan but when Johnny Gilmore would talk about Stevie’s music I would simply sit and listen. Everyone who has spent anytime with Johnny has a Johnny story. My favorite story is actually not a gig story but one that Johnny told me about when he was in school in Boston at the Berklee College of Music. It seems that a certain Ms. Lalah Hathaway(I’m a huge fan of hers as well) was a student at the same time. Johnny used to tell me that he would flash that famous smile and put an extra helping on the tray while he was doing work-study when Ms. Hathaway would come through his line. Classic!

Johnny, I, like so many others whose lives you’ve touched are really going to miss you. I don’t think that I’ve ever heard a better description of what Johnny Gilmore could do with a set of drums than what Jamal Millner [virtuoso guitarist and frequent Gilmore collaborator and most improtantly friend] told me on a gig once: “ He can do trigonometry with the time and rhythm on the drums”. Johnny I know that your life will and should serve as an example for the importance of music and musicians in all our lives. Whatever community you live in wherever you are in the world please support these musicians! Musicians like Johnny Gilmore are a gift to all of us. A gift like Johnny cannot be packaged. It can’t be scaled you have to go and experience it for yourself and that gift should be acknowledged always. When we used to get together to do some “all star” shows there were always a couple of guys on the stage that I always made a point to acknowledge as “legends”. I could not have been more sincere then when I said it and could not be anymore sincere than now when I say “Ladies and gentlemen let’s give the drummer some! The one and only Johnny Gilmore!” Rest in peace brother!

Permalink