Jazz-funk pianist and songwriter Don Blackman passed from Cancer yesterday in his native New York. Blackman is mostly known for “Holding You, Loving You,” “Heart’s Desire” and “Since You Been Away So Long” from his 1982 Arista solo album. He started his career as a teenager playing with jazz saxophonist Charles McPherson before briefly working [...]
Alan Gorrie, Malcolm “Molly” Duncan, Onnie McIntyre, Michael Rosen, Roger Ball and Robbie McIntosh were the original line-up of Scottish musicians to form The Average White Band in 1972. Show Your Hand was their 1973 debut album on the MCA label and it failed to make an impact. They left MCA and signed with Atlantic [...]
Frankie Smith was a songwriter for Gamble & Huff’s Philadelaphia International Records until the company went out of business. He recorded “Double Dutch Bus” while working for WMOT which was another Philadelphia record company. The song became a huge commercial boon for Smith and a future influencer on hip-hop. Smith’s usage of slang that incorporated [...]
Nelson George’s “Finding The Funk” is narrated by Questlove of The Roots and will be shown at SXSW this year. George Clinton, Sly Stone and Nona Hendryx are some of the artists interviewed about the origins of funk.
Meshell Ndegeocello covers Funkadelic’s “Cosmic Slop” for her friend Greg Tate.
1.Lupe Fiasco’s show at the RockOn concert in D.C. last weekend was stopped because of his anti-Obama song “Word I Never Said.” How come Fiasco wasn’t as critical of the last president before Obama for the same reasons? 2. Isn’t it brilliant how Beyonce created a media controversy for herself by not singing live at [...]
Jayne Cortez, the poet, activist and independent publisher passed in New York City today. Cortez’s picturesque poems challenged imperialism, sexism, racism and homophobia with the with rhythms and moxie of jazz. In the ’60s she was involved in the Civil Rights Movement via SNCC and organized writing workshops in her native California. She established Bola [...]
24-7 Spyz is a funk/metal band from the South Bronx, New York that formed with the original lineup of Jimi Hazel, Rick Skatore, Kindu Phibes and P. Fluid in 1986. They released their Harder Than You debut in 1988 and received notice for their cover of Kool and The Gang’s “Jungle Boogie.” “Don’t Break My [...]
