Friday, January 13, 2012

"Groovy January" : THE WEEKEND MIX




I've been listening to nothing but Terry Reid for the last 3 days, thanks to Steve over at Power Pop and his inadvertant, weeklong tribute to the great vocalist. I suggest you take a walk over there when you are through here. Naturally, all this Terry Reid (re)discovery has led me to a mix of...what?  Some groovy rhythm and blues. (Yeah, I don't get it either, but I'm feeling it nonetheless.)

It's not exclusively R&B, but as I always say, I just love how it all sounds together.

I especially love:

The drum fills in The Funk Brothers' instrumental track that are suddenly in your face without those pesky Four Tops singing over them

Wilco's wonderful opening drone from "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot" getting a soulful reinvention courtesy of fellow Chicagoans JC Brooks and the Uptown Sound

Detroit's Johnnie Burke and his killer, lost soul classic. (They don't make'em like this anymore and no, I have no idea who Jonnie Burke is.)

Also from the "they don't make'em like this anymore" school, Swamp Dogg's "Choking To Death (From The Ties That Bind)

It's all good, or at least I think so.

Feel groovy, baby!


TRACK LIST

Something Inside Me- Ray Charles
I Am Trying To Break Your Heart- JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound
Honky Tonk- Levon & The Hawks
The Ironic Twist- Jimmie Vaughan
Takes A Lot Of Loving- Rosco Gordon
Mine Exclusively- Big Star
Raech Out (I'll Be There)- The Funk Brothers
Choking To Death (From The Ties That Bind)- Swamp Dogg
Matchbox- Ike Turner
Love On A Lease Plan- Johnnie Burke
All Your Goodies Are Gone- The Parliaments
Trick Bag- Earl King
3-F Blues (Find 'Em, Fool 'Em and Forget 'Em)- George Jackson
These Eyes- Jr. Walker & The All-Stars
Mojo Hanna- Tami Lynn

Get Your ZIP On

11 comments:

allen vella said...

ooowww! That hurts so good and I haven't yet listened! Super Groovy wax pix...yes

Big Jim Slade said...

Wow - I'm going to like this one - thanks! Ray Charles, Earl King + All Your Goodies Are Gone? Alright!

The recent David Bowie post got me to do one of my own. I hope you don't mind a little blog-whoring... the first 2 posts are about reggae, so I didn't mention anything here, but with a Bowie post, it's more appropriate:
http://beatsoundings.com/

I plan on posting weekly or so - wish me luck and I hope you like it! (And, Sal, thanks for some of the advice/info you gave me. This is my first public announcement of the thing. FYI, I won't be using my nom de comments on that site. Maybe after this comment I'll use a more relevant name here, too.)

Sal Nunziato said...

Good Luck Big Jim. Don't mind the blog-whoring at all. You are officially bookmarked.

Jeff Matthews said...

The Wilco cover is brilliant. So often cover versions are just for a lark, to show off a groups influences, or whatever - Wilco themselves do this all the time, live if not on record, and I always find their choices "valid", fun and totally enjoyable. I don't know too many bands that have actually covered Wilco songs (do you, Sal?), but this one is really inspired, a complete transformation.

Robin said...

Thanks for making my Fri morning at work more fun. Ray, Jimmie, Levon and Mr. Jackson, The Parliaments, I may not be able to work. ;)

Oh Terry Reid... it is very easy to fall into a Reid jag and listen to nothing but him for a while. (for what it's worth though I still think Robert was the right vocalist/frontman for LZ).

I do read Power Pop and enjoy it very much and had not heard "Bang, Bang" cover before.

Getting my groove on, happy weekend.

Sal Nunziato said...

@ Jeff

Off the top of my head, no. Can't think of Wilco covered. But, about 10 years ago, maybe more, I did see Lynn Drury, a wonderful singer-songwriter in a New Orleans club, pull out "Pick Up The Change." It wasn't some radical rearrangement, but it was great to hear, nonetheless.

Anonymous said...

Smokin'! What a great mix--one of your best ever. Love every track, but that Big Star cut... I think Elvis owes half of This Year's Model and a quarter of Get Happy to that one.

Bruce H.

Sal Nunziato said...

@Bruce. I think that Big Star cut is one of the few covers that is better than the original.

steve simels said...

Ooh -- this stuff looks great, especially Swamp Dogg, who is my main man so don't bug me.
:-)

misospecial said...

@steve: ooo, a "stranger than paradise" quote—thanks for that! and bon chance, big jim!

Ken D said...

I busy long weekend so I just got to this mix (Tues am).
Wonderful stuff!
(Should I be embarassed that I'd never heard of Swamp Dogg before? Thanks for the intro. More from him please.)