The Dramatics: “Greatest Slow Jams” (2014) CD Review

The new compilation from The Dramatics, Greatest Slow Jams, is an interesting collection of mellow tracks. Obviously it’s not a greatest hits album, for it doesn’t include the band’s biggest hit, “Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get.” But there are some great tunes included here. And as the title promises, these are slow jams, mellow make-out tunes. This is a great album to listen to while curled up with your lover. All but one of these tracks were originally released between 1972 and 1977 (with the majority from 1972 and 1973). The one exception is “Tomorrow,” which was released in 1985, and not on available CD until now.

The Dramatics feature several distinct voices, with each taking the lead at different times. I love the way their several voices interact, particularly on a song like “Toast To The Fool.”

“Just Shopping (Not Buying Anything)”

This collection eases us in with “Just Shopping (Not Buying Anything),” a tune that feels like morning at its start. It feels to me like waking up with a lover when you’re too relaxed to say anything other than “Ooh, baby,” a line that opens the song, a line that is repeated many times before the actual lyrics start. And then later we’re treated to lines like, “You’re looking so good to me, all I can do is tremble.” This song was written by Michael Henderson, and was originally included on Drama V (1975).

“In The Rain”

“In The Rain” opens with rain sound effects. I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again: I hate rain sound effects. Fortunately they stop before the song really begins (though they then return halfway through the song). Other than that, it’s a really good tune from Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get (1972), with smooth vocals. Here is a taste of the lyrics: “I want to go outside in the rain/Because I think I’m gonna cry/And I don’t want you to see my cry.” This song reached #1 on the R&B chart, and #5 on the pop chart. It was written by Tony Hester.

“I Can’t Get Over You”

“I Can’t Get Over You” begins with a spoken word section, one side of a telephone conversation, in which he tells the woman, “You see, I know you’ve been going through some changes/But I’ve been going through some changes myself.” It’s told from the perspective of a man who has tried to get a woman out of his mind, out of his heart, but failed. “I can’t get over you/I’ve tried and I’ve tried.” This one features an impassioned lead vocal performance. This song was originally included on Joy Ride.

“I Dedicate My Life To You”

“I Dedicate My Life To You” is one of my favorites. It’s an unabashed love song that is sweet and sexy. Sure, some of the lyrics might seem a bit cheesy, like “You’re more precious than the breath of spring/And you’re my hopes and all of my dreams/For you I laugh and for you I cry.” But that is quite all right, because they’re still effective. And the song has a nice, slow groove. It was written by Robert Holmes and Roger Hatcher, and was originally included on Dramatically Yours.

“And I Panicked”

In "And I Panicked," he’s in trouble. He calls a woman three times in the morning, and when she doesn’t answer, he goes to her place. Romantic, or just sad? It’s up to you. But the way these guys sing it, you’ll probably think of this song as romantic. I love the anguish and passion in his voice when he admits, “And I cried and I…” He can’t finish the line and simply cries out, nearly howling in pain. It's a great touch.

“Tomorrow” CD Debut

This compilation marks the CD debut of “Tomorrow,” a track released by L.J. Reynolds on vinyl in 1985. The music certainly has 1980s cheesy pop touches, but the vocal performance is excellent and heartfelt. “You'd better give your love today/For tomorrow very well might be too late." And then at the end he sings, "Your tomorrow could very well begin today.”

This collection concludes with "Hey You, Get Off My Mountain," a song originally included on A Dramatic Experience (1973). The song’s second line is “Hey you, get off my cloud” (which must be a nod to the Rolling Stones song).

CD Track List

1. Just Shopping (Not Buying Anything)
2. In The Rain
3. Toast To The Fool
4. I Can’t Get Over You
5. I Was The Life Of The Party
6. I Dedicate My Life To You
7. Thank You For Your Love
8. And I Panicked
9. Fall In Love, Lady Love
10. I Made Myself Lonely
11. Tomorrow
12. Hey You, Get Off My Mountain

Greatest Slow Jams is scheduled to be released April 29, 2014 through Stax and Concord Music Group.

Okapi Sun at The Silverlake Lounge, 4-25-14 Concert Review

Okapi Sun performing "Judy Baby"

The women of Okapi Sun have said that the intention and aim of their music is to get people dancing, to make people move. And certainly it does that. But there is more going on here than just that. Okapi Sun creates songs that stay with you and that you can enjoy even when hanging out at home. And this band mixes actual instruments with pre-recorded stuff. In addition to keys and guitar, both women play drums – one with a floor tom, the other with a kick and tom. And that helps keep things a bit more grounded, a bit more real. And real drums are always better at getting people dancing anyway.

Friday night Okapi Sun performed at The Silverlake Lounge. They took the stage at 11:15 p.m. They were wearing matching furry vests, so I loved them immediately. (The floor tom and kick drum were also covered with some kind of furry material.) They started with their backs to the audience and wearing masks. They then turned to face the audience, playing their set’s introduction, “We Are Okapi Sun” (because we’re from another planet, it was explained to me after the show). They then removed the masks and launched into “Sidewalk.”

They have a CD coming out this Tuesday, titled Techno Prisoners, and the set was mostly material from that album. After “Sidewalk,” they went into “Johnny Kiss,” a song that was also included on the EP, and one of my personal favorites. They kept stage banter to a minimum, and kept the beats going. “Strange Love” ends with a really nice percussion section, which was another highlight for me. 

This band has a sense of humor, most prominent in the spoken word intro to “Judy Baby,” another really good tune. Probably my favorite song of the night was “Wasteland.” During their final song, “Tribe To The City,” they moved into the audience, something of a feat considering they weren’t using cordless microphones, and danced with the crowd while singing. It was a good, fun set, with lots of energy and positive vibes, and I'm excited to hear the album.

Set List

1. We Are Okapi Sun
2. Sidewalk
3. Johnny Kiss
4. Center Of The Earth
5. Strange Love
6. Turn The Lights Off
7. Push Push In The Bush
8. Desert Dreams
9. Judy Baby
10. Wasteland
11. Techno
12. Tribe To The City

Okapi Sun's next show is April 26th in San Francisco.

Okapi Sun performing "We Are Okapi Sun"

"Sidewalk"

"Johnny Kiss"

"Center Of The Earth"

"Desert Dreams"

Patrolled By Radar at Three Clubs, 4-24-14 Concert Review

Patrolled By Radar performing "Fast Life Slow Death"

Patrolled By Radar had their CD release show at Three Clubs in Hollywood Thursday night, celebrating the release of their excellent new album, Cool Your Jets. For those who got their early, the album played over the speakers before the first band. And it was well received. Patrons actually applauded after each track, something I’ve never seen done before.

The American Professionals, a good band from San Francisco, then opened the night. (I may post some photos from their set in a separate blog entry later.) Jay Souza, the lead singer of Patrolled By Radar, introduced them.

Patrolled By Radar took the stage a little before 10:30 p.m, and opened with “Fast Life Slow Death,” a song from an earlier release, Be Happy. The sound is good at this venue, and it’s easy to hear and understand all the lyrics, something that is important to me. They did a couple more from Be Happy – “New Fight Song” and “Widow Next Door” – before getting into the new material.

The first song of the night from Cool Your Jets was “Lost Cause,” which is essentially the CD’s title track. Jay Souza introduced it by saying, “This is a hit in New Jersey right now.” It's a really good song, and though I haven't heard it too many times, I found myself singing along. After all, "Anybody can sing/Sing hallelujah." They followed that with a very cool rendition of The Bee Gees’ “To Love Somebody,” turning it into a good jam before the end. And then they played a couple of others from the new album – “Died With Money” and “Rally.” “Rally” is one of my favorite Patrolled By Radar songs, and I’m always happy to hear it.

They played a new song, “This Is Not The Blues” (Jay said that’s the working title). I was definitely into it. There’s a really cool moment on organ that leads into a short instrumental section. They then went into a great, high-energy rendition of “Thirty Days.” I’ve heard a lot of bands cover that song over the years, but I think the two best versions I’ve ever heard are by The Evangenitals and Patrolled By Radar.

Before going into “El Norte,” another track from Cool Your Jets, Jay said: “I feel silly saying this. I feel silly in general.” He then mentioned getting close to 1,000 “Likes” on Facebook, and urged folks to click that button. The band then wrapped up the set with a cover of Randy Newman’s “Ghosts,” which is the closing track on Cool Your Jets.

Set List

1. Fast Life Slow Death
2. New Fight Song
3. Widow Next Door
4. Lost Cause
5. To Love Somebody
6. Died With Money
7. Rally
8. This Is Not The Blues
9. Thirty Days
10. El Norte
11. Ghosts 

There was no encore, though the crowd clearly wanted one.

"Widow Next Door"

"Lost Cause"

"Lost Cause"

Patrolled By Radar performing "Rally"

"Ghosts"

 

David Ruffin: “David Ruffin/Me ‘N Rock ‘N Roll Are Here To Stay” (2014) CD Review

While David Ruffin is most well-known for his work with The Temptations, he also had a good career as a solo artist. Two of his albums – David Rufffin and Me ‘N Rock ‘N Roll Are Here To Stay – from 1973 and 1974 respectively, have now been released on a single CD, with new liner notes by Gene Sculatti.

Bobby Miller wrote the majority of tracks for the first of these two records, and produced that album as well. Some of the tracks have the feel of David Ruffin’s earlier work, and some have a definite 1970s feel, such as “I Miss You (Part 1),” which, by the way, features another Temptation, Eddie Kendricks. The second album was produced by Norman Whitfield.

“The Rovin’ Kind”

David Ruffin kicks off with “The Rovin’ Kind,” which opens with the sound effect of a motorcycle driving off. That sound effect is pointless, but the song itself is quite good. It has a light, fun, breezy vibe. This one is driven by the music as much as by David Ruffin’s vocals. It was written by Bobby Miller.

“Common Man,” also written by Bobby Miller, has a slower groove, and the focus is back on David’s vocals.

“I’m Just A Mortal Man”

Things start to pick up for me with “I’m Just A Mortal Man,” with its good rhythm and really nice vocal performance by David. Sometimes he sounds so smooth on this track, but also delivers those great screams of his. “And I thought just how helpless I really am/My hair is turning grey/I’ve got a new wrinkle every day/Guess I’m just a mortal man/Let me tell you all about it.”

“Blood Donors Needed (Give All You Can)”

Things get a bit funky with “Blood Donors Needed (Give All You Can).” This has such a good feel and a wonderful groove, along with serious lyrics about violence in the streets. “A shotgun blast was heard from the ghetto/Guess what/Just took the life of a boy of sixteen.” This is one of my favorite tracks, and features some cool work on guitar during an excellent instrumental section, as well as some impassioned vocals from David Ruffin.

Approximately five minutes in, there is a little break that’s not needed. The song fades out, and a child’s music box is heard briefly. The song then returns to the jam, which then soon fades out. “Blood Donors Needed (Give All You Can)” was released as a single.

“Go On With Your Bad Self” has a lot of energy, with a good groove, and some nice touches on horns. This song was included as the flip side to the “Blood Donors Needed” single.

“A Day In The Life, Of A Working Man”

The first album ends with “A Day In The Life, Of A Working Man,” which was co-written by David Ruffin (along with Bobby Miller). The unnecessary comma in the song’s title makes me think of The Beatles song, as it separates that part from the rest of the title, though this song sounds nothing like “A Day In The Life.”

“I Saw You When You Met Her”

The second album opens with an oddity. “I Saw You When You Met Her” begins with electronic sounds and then sound effects of wind and rain. I always hate rain sound effects in songs. It gets a little more interesting as it approaches the two-minute mark, though the rain and wind sound effects persist even after David’s vocals begin, which is seriously annoying. David’s great, powerful delivery of lines like “Let the four winds blow” isn’t enough to make me like this track.

“Smiling Faces Sometimes”

“Smiling Faces Sometimes” begins with a spoken word introduction about why he chose to record this song: “This song tells it just like it is. The message is simply that it’s just about an impossible task to figure out which of your friends’ smile is a mask. Dig it.” He delivers a good, slow, thoughtful rendition. It was written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong, and was a hit for Undisputed Truth in 1971. Interestingly, it was also recorded by The Temptations and included on their 1971 record, Sky’s The Limit.

“Me ‘N Rock ‘N Roll Are Here To Stay”

The title of this record, Me ‘N Rock ‘N Roll Are Here To Stay, contains grammatical errors. If “‘N” is intended to mean “And,” there needs to be an apostrophe after the “n” as well as before it. This is a common mistake, but it always puts me off. That being said, the title track has a great energy, and bursts open with full force. This one got me dancing.

“Superstar (Remember How You Got Where You Are)”

David Ruffin covers The Temptations’ “Superstar (Remember How You Got Where You Are),” an interesting choice (though technically “Smiling Faces Sometimes” was also a Temptations cover). This has the sounds of being a live track, but it feels more like the audience noise is a sound effect, and it’s distracting. He does say, “Thank you, ladies and gentlemen” at one point near the end, so who knows?

Rare Earth’s “I Just Want To Celebrate”

The album ends with a cover of Rare Earth’s “I Just Want To Celebrate.” Again, there is the sound of an audience, and again it seems fake, not like an actual live track. It’s incredibly irritating. Even if it were a live track, you’d want the audience noise taken down in the mix. The audience sound seems more prominent than David's vocals, and it's constant, not like it's reacting to anything that's happening musically. And the audience noise is the last thing you hear on the album, after the song fades out.

CD Track List

1. The Rovin’ Kind
2. Common Man
3. I’m Just A Mortal Man
4. (If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don’t Want To Be Right
5. There Will Always Be Another Song To Sing
6. I Miss You (Part 1)
7. Blood Donors Needed (Give All You Can)
8. A Little More Trust
9. Go On With Your Bad Self
10. A Day In The Life, Of A Working Man
11. I Saw You When You Met Her
12. Take Me Clear From Here
13. Smiling Faces Sometimes
14. Me ‘N Rock ‘N Roll Are Here To Stay
15. Superstar (Remember How You Got Where You Are)
16. No Matter Where
17. City Stars
18. I Just Want To Celebrate

David Ruffin/Me ‘N Rock ‘N Roll Are Here To Stay was released on March 4, 2014 through Real Gone Music. Released on that same date was My Whole World Ended/Feelin' Good (David Ruffin's first two solo albums on a single CD).

David Ruffin: “My Whole World Ended/Feelin’ Good” (2014) CD Review

I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who didn’t like The Temptations. I’ve met people who told me they don’t like The Beatles (something I can’t understand), but never The Temptations. David Ruffin provided lead vocals on many of that band’s biggest hits and most loved tunes, such as “My Girl,” “Ain’t Too Proud To Beg” and “I Wish It Would Rain.” But by mid-1968, he was out of the band and soon pursuing a solo career. (He would later rejoin The Temptations, and then leave them again.) His first two solo albums, My Whole World Ended and Feelin’ Good (both originally released in 1969), have now been released on a single CD.

There is so much heartache in these songs, so many troubles, and David Ruffin has the perfect voice to express them. The opening line of “I’ve Got To Find Myself A Brand New Baby” is “The love I thought would never die came to a certain end.” And that is typical of the lyrics found on these tracks. Yet, this is far from a depressing CD. It’s like David Ruffin suffers so we don’t have to. These two albums actually have a lot of positive vibes (check out "I Could Never Be President"). And in a song like “My Love Is Growing Stronger,” things actually seem to going well. “Each time I hold you close, it seems to make me strong.”

“My Whole World Ended (The Moment You Left Me)”

The CD kicks off with the title track of the first album, “My Whole World Ended,” which was released first as a single. The song was a hit, reaching #31 on the pop chart, and #1 on the R&B chart. It’s an excellent tune, with a good groove and a powerful, soulful vocal performance by David Ruffin. He sings, “Tell me, baby/Where did I go wrong, honey/Whatever changed your mind, baby/I’ve asked myself these questions over a million times/Baby, baby, oh baby.” That “Baby, baby, oh baby” alone is enough to grab you. The heartache is there in every line, every syllable, though the song is not a downer. You can dance to his pain.

His vocals have even a rougher quality on “Pieces Of A Man.” And though this is another song about a man torn apart, it too has a good energy. Listening to these tracks, you get to thinking if anyone can internalize pain and then exorcise it by singing it out, then David Ruffin can do it. Again he asks, “What did I do wrong, baby?”

“I’ve Lost Everything I’ve Ever Loved”

“I’ve Lost Everything I’ve Ever Loved” tells a story of woe, opening with these lines: “I was raised an only child/My folks died when I was four/They were trapped in a fire/Way up on the fourteenth floor.” So he was raised by his grandmother, but then she died too. And the troubles continued. Now he has a love, and is worried about losing her too over the course of the song. “I’ve Lost Everything I’ve Ever Loved” was written by John Bristol and Thomas Kemp.

“The Double Cross”

In “The Double Cross,” it’s a friend who does him wrong. “About the sweet, sweet love I lost/And the way I got double-crossed/By a guy who was my friend/I see him now and then/But I pretend I’m doing fine/When I’m about to lose my mind.” David Ruffin does some surprising things in his vocal approach to this one. It’s like sometimes it gets to be too much and he just can’t take it and so has to shout out his pain. It’s a seriously good song.

“Message From Maria”

“Message From Maria” is one of my favorites.  I love the way David’s lead vocals play over the backing vocals on the chorus, giving this song a wonderful feel. This one tells of receiving a suicide letter from his girl. “By the time you get this letter I may be gone/That’s what she said.” He sees where her tears hit the paper and realizes, “I’ll never see my Maria again.” There’s a great section toward the end where the bass line is more prominent.

David has lost his girl again in “World Of Darkness.” This is another favorite of mine. There are some excellent backing vocals giving it sort of a gospel feel, and an odd little instrumental hook that occurs occasionally throughout the song.

“Loving You (Is Hurting Me)”

The second album, Feelin’ Good, opens with “Loving You (Is Hurting Me).” In this one, love itself is hurting him, as he can’t stop loving a woman even after she’s gone.  “My heart says, You can’t live without her/But my mind says that’s not true.” Ah yes, sometimes love can be painful, and it’s difficult to align your heart with your mind.

“I’m So Glad I Fell For You”

My favorite song on this CD is “I’m So Glad I Fell For You.” It’s gorgeous, and features an excellent vocal performance by David Ruffin, full of emotion. “Yesterday my life was filled with sadness/I had little hope of ever, ever finding gladness.” This is a slower tune, with beautiful backing vocals supporting David. The heartbreak seems behind him – “I found sunshine, yes I did” – and the song expresses heartfelt thanks to the woman who turned things around for him. This is such a great tune. It was written by Arthur Posey and Glenna Session.

David Ruffin does a really good cover of “Feeling Alright,” which was written by Dave Mason and made popular by Joe Cocker. David seems to be having quite a bit of fun with this one.

CD Track List

1. My Whole World Ended (The Moment You Left Me)
2. Pieces Of A Man
3. Somebody Stole My Dream
4. I’ve Lost Everything I’ve Ever Loved
5. Everlasting Love
6. I’ve Got To Find Myself A Brand New Baby
7. The Double Cross
8. Message From Maria
9. World Of Darkness
10. We’ll Have A Good Thing Going On
11. My Love Is Growing Stronger
12. Flower Child
13. Loving You (Is Hurting Me)
14. Put A Little Love In Your Heart
15. I’m So Glad I Fell For You
16. Feeling Alright
17. I Could Never Be President
18. I Pray Everyday You Won’t Regret Leaving Me
19. What You Gave Me
20. One More Hurt
21. I Let Love Slip Away
22. I Don’t Know Why I Love You
23. The Forgotten Man
24. The Letter

My Whole World Ended/Feelin’ Good was released on March 4, 2014 through Real Gone Music.

Record Store Day, 2014

I've decided that poverty actually kind of sucks. It might have been okay when I was in my twenties. But it's fucking awful when I'm in my forties on Record Store Day and can't buy The Pogues live double LP. But I did get the Grateful Dead live double LP, and that was the most important thing today. I need to replace my turntable, but at least I have this record for when I do. The album features a good portion of a concert from 1979, Brent Mydland's third show with the band.

Freakbeat Records opens at 11 a.m. Parking can be tricky in that area because a lot of it is two-hour parking, and I knew I'd be there longer. But I found a space on Moorpark, not too far from the store. I got in line around 8:15 a.m., and was farther back than usual. The guy who got in line behind me had a young daughter who was getting antsy within moments of arriving. Then she started playing a video game. If you know me at all, you know that the sound of a video game is something certain to throw me into a desperate, murderous rage. So I said, "Sweetie, can you put that on silent mode?" And her father was nice enough to silence the game. But that led to her saying repeatedly, "Can't hear." How was this girl going to last two and a half hours? Well, she didn't. Once I told the guy that the store didn't open until 11, he took his daughter and left.

The rest of the time flew by. The guy who took the father's spot behind me in line was a Grateful Dead fan who had seen something like eighty shows, including shows in 1974 when the band had the Wall of Sound. So the conversation was good. And other than that, it was pretty quiet. So I was actually able to read a book.

I had planned on just buying the Grateful Dead record and the Ronnie Spector & The E Street Band 7-inch. But as I got closer, I started thinking seriously about getting The Pogues. And about Bruce Springsteen. And about the David Hess picture disc. As you walk in to the store, you have to hand over your wish list. So I put all five items on it, and decided to see what fate would deliver me. As it turned out, they had everything except the Ronnie Spector record. I was surprised they still had copies of the David Hess picture disc. I had read it was limited to 950 copies worldwide. Each is numbered, and it turns out there 1,500. But still, that's a small number. So I ended up buying that and not The Pogues.

But yes, I am already wishing I had bought The Pogues too. And the hell with my bills. Next year I will have money. Next year.

By the way, as far as goodies included with my purchase, this year there was just one record and one compilation CD. The rest were various postcards and stickers, advertising upcoming releases. For some reason they included a Justin Bieber sticker. It says "Believe" across it. Oh boy. I've never heard anything by Justin Bieber, but I am guessing the only person who might be interested in this sticker was the little girl with the video game.