Wednesday, October 05, 2011

Mellow Moods Parts I and II...♪♫♪


Part I



Part II



::..Mellow Moods Tracklist I..::

0.Richard Elliot-Deep Touch
1.Jill Scott-He Loves Me
2.Richard Elliot-Moomba
3.Walter Beasley-Babygirl
4.Walter Beasley-Visions
5.Boney James-Heaven
6.Richard Elliot-This CouldBe Real
7.Chaka Khan-Something Deep
8.George Benson-The Ghetto
9.Brian Culbertson-Get It On
10.Maysa-Aria de
11.Maysa-Simple Life
12.Miles Davis-Blue & Green
13.Cassandra Wilson-Blue In Green
14.Jon Lucien-Lady Love
15.Gabriela Anders-Forever

::..Mellow Moods Tracklist II..::

1.Fourplay-Higher Ground
2.Boney James-All Night Long
3.Walter Beasley-Babygirl
4.Barry White-Midnight And You
5.Chante Moore-Better Than Making Love
6.Pharez Whitted-A Different Kind Of Love Song
7.Simply Red-I'll Keep Holding On
8.Sade-Slave Song
9.Maxwell-Know These Things
10.Isaac Hayes-One Woman
11.Laurne Wood-Fallen
12.Me'Shell Ndege'Ocello-Who Is He
13.Boney James-Are You Ready
14.Gabriela Anders-Forever
15.Smokey Robinson-Cruisin
16.Tyrese feat Heavy D-Criminal Mind
17.Four Tops-It's The Way Nature Planned It
18.Kirk Whalum-Real Love

Tuesday, October 04, 2011

The Spa

Serenity and Calm are essential in this fast-paced world.
Come in and relax, meditate to the soothing sights and sounds of nature.
Be rejuvenated, refreshed..mentally massaged.~Edie*Press both buttons*

~The Spa-Vol 1~

~The Spa-Vol 2~

Friday, September 30, 2011

The Chess Story..♪♫♪

Leonard and Phil Chess, two Polish born immigrants, founded Chess Records, the pre-eminent Blues label of the 50s and 60s in the late forties. Eventually they created a monopoly of Chicago music recording, doing sessions and releasing recordings by every major blues performer from John Lee Hooker, Elmore James, "King of the Slide Guitar", to Bo Diddley through Jimmy Reed, Chuck Berry and everyone in between.
chessmacamba.jpg (123238 bytes)
Brothers Phil and Leonard Chess owned the upscale Macamba night club on Chicago's Southside. Chess Records was known as "Home of the Electric Blues". The Chess brothers bought into fledgling Aristocrat Records, a label that had been formed a short time before by Evelyn Aron and her husband.
aristocrat.jpg (14309 bytes) chessaron.jpg (8080 bytes)  
Charles and Evelyn Aron
By the time they got involved with Aristocrat, Leonard and Phil were already aware of what sort of music might sell in the Black community, that of a young Delta-born-and-bred slide guitarist:Muddy Waters. Waters had previously recorded for Columbia, but none of his work was released. When he recorded "Gypsy Woman" and "Little Anna Mae" for Aristocrat, the Chess brothers found in him the means to distinguish their little company from the hundreds of other independent R&B labels springing up across the country.

chessphil.jpg (44948 bytes)
Phil Chess
chessleonard.jpg (111261 bytes)
Leonard Chess

At the beginning, Leonard and Phil focused their recording and publishing ventures primarily in the area of popular jazz, but soon expanded into blues, receiving their first Billboard recognition in 1947. By 1949 Aristocratic Records which became Chess Records in 1950, was a fixture in the world of music and its recordings and the songs published by Arc Music remain the most impressive collection of blues music in the world. From their experiences in the nightclub business on the South Side of Chicago, the Chess brothers understood the popular preferences of their predominantly African-American audiences, but also saw the marketability of blues music to a broader audience.
In the beginning Chess Records was ran as a two man business, with Phil overseeing the nightclub and the offices of Aristocrat/Chess and Arc, while Leonard alternately scouted talent, produced the sessions, and hand delivered fresh
recordings to radio stations in the Chicago area.

chess.dixon.jpg (9828 bytes)
Willie Dixon

Slide guitarist Robert Nighthawk's pre-war popularity made him a nice acquisition, and the 1948 session that produced his My Sweet Lovin' Woman was doubly important because it introduced bassist Willie Dixon, an artist whose talent as a producer/songwriter/ session player during the 1950s and 1960s vastly contributed to the label's long-term success.

chesswaters.jpg (107266 bytes)
McKinley Morganfield aka Muddy Waters
In 1950, the Chess brothers launched Chess Records with Gene Ammons'My Foolish Heart followed by Waters'Rollin' Stone. Guitarist Jimmy Rogers made his Chess debut August of 1950, with That's All Right and Luedella. Little Walter, who revolutionized the role of the harmonica in Chicago blues executed astonishing flights of amplified fancy. Walter's legacy is punctuated by his slew of hits during the '50s: Mean Old World, Off The Wall,You're So Fine, and the 1955 Dixon-penned R&B chart-topper, My Babe.

chesshowlin.jpg (111051 bytes)
Chester Burnett aka Howlin' Wolf
Despite his success with local talent, Leonard Chess, aided by Sam Phillips, began to look outside Chicago for talent. Phillips supervised Memphis pianist Roscoe Gordon's smash Booted(1952) and shipped Chess masters by Rufus Thomas, Dr. Isaiah Ross, Joe Hill Louis, and Bobby Bland, but his top contribution to the label's legacy was Chester Arthur Burnett, a.k.a. Howlin' Wolf. With Ike Turner playing the piano, both sides of Wolf's first Phillips-produced Chess 78, How Many More Years and Moanin' At Midnight, proved major sellers in 1951. By 1953, Wolf had left Memphis for Chicago, recording more hits including Who Will Be Next and Smokestack Lightnin'.

chessboyd.jpg (5185 bytes)
Eddie Boyd
chessmabon.jpg (117609 bytes)
Willie Mabon
chessmemphis.jpg (130715 bytes)
Memphis Slim

A host of other blues legends recorded for Chess during the early and mid-1950s. Memphis Slim, Eddie Boyd and Willie Mabon, assuredly did. Boyd's 1953 Eddie Boyd Part 1"24 Hours" and Eddie Boyd Part 2"Third Degree" both sold very well, as did Mabon's
I Don't Know 1952) and I'm Mad (1953), both number one R&B smashes.

chesshooker.jpg (71839 bytes)
John Lee Hooker

John Lee Hooker first recorded for Chess in 1950. Joe Williams made the charts that same year with "Every Day I Have The Blues." Big Bill Broonzy and Washboard Sam recorded material in '53 that straddled the fence between pre-war Chicago blues and the brasher new style. Memphis Minnie likewise attempted to resuscitate her career with a 1952 Checker single, Me And My Chauffeur (1941). On the jazzier side of the tracks, saxmen Leo Parker, Tab Smith, Lynn Hope, and Eddie Johnson kept things swinging. By the early-1950s, Water's group added pianist Otis Spann. Though he was now a star in his own right, Little Walter still recorded behind his ex-boss on Waters' immortal "I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man" and "I'm Ready."

Sonnyboy.jpg (11512 bytes)
Rice Miller a/k/a Sonny Boy Williamson II
In 1955 new talent was added to the Chess stable. Sonny Boy Williamson, a blues legend across the Mississippi Delta, thanks to his King Biscuit Time King Biscuit Time radio broadcasts, joined Checker, a Chess subsidiary label. For his first recording Don't Start Me Talkin' Chess paired him with most of Water's band. Bo Diddley was signed in 1955 too. His first two-sided smash for Checker, the self-titled "Bo Diddley" and "I'm A Man".

chuck.jpg (3474 bytes)
Chuck Berry

No one at Chess had the impact on the future of popular music than Chuck Berry did. Berry accepted Water's advice regarding the advantages of working with Leonard Chess, signing with the label in May of 1955, starting with his first unforgettable hit, Maybellene. There were also vocal groups at Chess. Harvey Fuqua's "The Moonglows" from Louisville had a 1954 hit with Sincerely, and The Flamingos, a Chicago quintet fronted by Nate Nelson, scored big for Checker in
1956 with their dreamy I'll Be Home and A Kiss From Your Lips.
chess.diddley.jpg (11589 bytes)
Bo Diddley

As Berry, Bo, and the vocal groups sold platters by the crates, some of the blues greats that had epitomized at Chess during its early years of operation began to recede into the background. But mainstays Muddy, Sonny Boy, and Wolf hung tough. Wolf did some of his best work during the early 60s when Dixon wrote "Back Door Man," "The Red Rooster," and "Hidden Charms" for him (the latter manically energized by Hubert Sumlin's elastic guitar work). Hubert Sumlin & Sunnyland Slim-Come On Home Baby

chessbuddy.jpg (433844 bytes)
Buddy Guy
In 1960, Dixon recruited younger Chicago blues talent, signing guitarists Buddy Guy
("First Time I Met The Blues" and "Broken Hearted Blues")Broken-Hearted Blues/I Got A Strange Feeling
and Otis Rush (1960's "So Many Roads, So Many Trains")
chessetta.jpg (87827 bytes)
Etta James

Etta James also made her Chess debut in 1960, scoring no less than four hits for the imprint that year alone. Etta's magnificent work for Argo (and later Cadet and Chess) over the next 16 years uncovered depths of passion and pain barely hinted at on her previous waxings. She waxed the torch ballads "At Last" and "Trust In Me" (both major hits in 1961) surrounded by sumptuous strings, rocked the house with a gospel-rooted "Something's Got A Hold On Me" the next year, and set Muscle Shoals ablaze in '67 with her strutting "Tell Mama," sounding equally confident in all
three diverse settings. It Hurts So Much

fbyoung.gif (10978 bytes)
Fontella Bass

In addition to James, Chess had many female artists during the mid-1960s such as Jan Bradley ("Mama Didn't Lie"), Sugar Pie De Santo ("Slip-In Mules"), ("I Had A Talk With My Man"), Fontella Bass ("Rescue Me"), Jackie Ross ("Selfish One"), Jo Ann Garrett ("Stay By My Side"), Laura Lee ("Dirty Man"), and the Gems, whose precocious membership included Minnie Riperton. I'll Be There Even Irma Thomas joined Chess in 1967, recording with Muscle Shoals. Koko Taylor scored the last Chicago blues hit for Checker in 1966 with her growling "Wang Dang Doodle." As rhythm and blues merged with gospel influences to form the basis of soul, Chess was right on top of the trend. Little Milton Campbell had hits with "We're Gonna Make It," "Who's Cheating Who?" and "Grits Ain't Groceries."

dells.jpg (8246 bytes)
The Dells

Along with Little Milton, were the Dells, ("There Is" and "Stay In My Corner") The Radiants ("Voice Your Choice"), Billy Stewart ("Summertime," "Sitting In The Park"), Bobby Moore & The Rhythm Aces ("Searching For My Love"), Tony Clarke, James Phelps, and Bobby McClure. Tommy Tucker's "Hi-Heel Sneakers," a huge '64 hit on Checker, traveled bluesier terrain, while the Ramsey Lewis Trio, with Eldee Young on bass and Red Holt on drums, turned out to be a crossover sensation when their grooving instrumental remakes of "The In Crowd" and "Hang On Sloopy" which vaulted up the R&B and pop charts in 1965. Nor was the Chess combine deficient in humor - albums by veteran comics Moms Mabley and Pigmeat "Here Comes The Judge" Markham made sure of that. Chuck Berry remained at Chess into 1966, seemingly rejuvenated after serving a prison term (his 1964 hits included "No Particular Place To Go" and "You Never Can Tell"). After unwisely switching to Mercury Records for a few lean years, he returned home to Chess and scored his biggest pop hit of all in 1972 with "My Ding-A-Ling." Bo Diddley recorded a slew of Checker LP's throughout the decade, his trademark beat never faltering.

chess2120.jpg (52846 bytes)
2120 South Michigan Avenue

So inspired by the magnificent output of Chess were the Rolling Stones that they immortalized the label's famous address, 2120 S. Michigan Avenue, in song on one of their early LP's. During this time, Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf tried their best to cope with 60s trends. Muddy Water's "Twist" was admittedly nothing to write home about, but his '63 Folk Singer LP was a heartening return to his Delta roots, and 1969's "Fathers and Sons" set united Muddy with adoring disciples Mike Bloomfield and Paul Butterfield. Though at the tail end of the decade producer Marshall Chess submerged Waters and Wolf in a quagmire of psychedelia, each legend emerged with his vaunted reputation intact. In 1969, Leonard Chess died, stilling the heart and soul of Chess Records. Earlier that year, he and Phil had sold the company to GRT where producers Ralph Bass and Gene Barge tried their best to hold things together. Sadly, though, the momentum that Chess had long enjoyed quickly began to erode. In 1975, GRT closed down the logo, selling it to All Platinum Records of Englewood, New Jersey. Finally, in 1985, MCA acquired the rights to the massive Chess catalog. At the start of 1987, MCA Vice President of Catalog Development & Special Markets A&R, Andy McKaie, began to mount an ambitious long-term reissue campaign of the invaluable Chess masters - an ongoing program that raged full steam ahead all year long in 1997 with the 50th anniversary celebration. "The impact of Chess was far wider and greater than any of the others, ranging from the impact of the Chicago blues sound, the Chuck Berry/Bo Diddley school of rock & roll, and the vocal group sounds," he continued. "The range of that impact was so great that it's still being felt today.
Leonard Chess was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Zulu..♪♫♪

(Photo By Clemence Bee Keling)



Henry Cele was quite the specimen.


His love brushes me
as winnowing treetops
fanned upon the
African sky's backdrop.




He is rich soil,
rugged--brown,
and all encompassing..

He is Zulu.


Watering me
with expression
feeding the passion
of my roots
...causing them to emerge.

He is Zulu.


Daily I bask
in the sunlight
of his heat
his sizzling
masculine energy.


I grow in the sensuality
of his essence
while flourishing
in his love.

Yes, he is Zulu.

...and I, am his Queen.
©Edie Antoinette 2009


My favorite scene. And Nandi...ahhhh, tight!

I ♥ DooWop


The Platters


This is classic Doo-Wop at it's best.

Lee Williams & The Cymbals
This Harlem vocal group was discovered Hollywood style. The guys were singing in the backyard of a brownstone on 127th Street where they lived when Joe Evans, the owner of Carnival Records, heard them practicing as he walked by. Carnival, a tiny operation in Newark, NJ, had three employees, with Evans being one of them. At the time of the discovery Evans was in Harlem on a promotional mission for his label. Excited by what he heard, he persuaded the landlady to let him in so he could see the warblers. Evans conducted an audition for the singers and the guys gave it their all. Liking their blend and the powerhouse lead of Lee Williams, Evans signed them on the spot. When he got back to Newark he made up a tape of songs for the group to learn. Ronnie McCoy, who had a group called the Topics, wrote one of the songs, "I Love You More."
(I have this and will post it with the above playlist)..~e He had been sending Evans songs and bugging him to record his group. McCoy wanted the song for his group but Evans thought it would be better served to have his new discoveries record it. As a consolation Carnival released "She's So Fine"/"I Don't Have to Cry" on the Topics.

"I Love You More" sold substantially in many cities including Baltimore, Washington, Cleveland, Philadelphia, and Chicago. It was so popular in Chicago the group did a stint at the city's Regal Theater. The record barely missed entering Billboard's R&B Top 40, stalling at number 41 in 1967. It would be the group's biggest record ever. Carnival followed with "Peeping Through the Window," another McCoy composition, which didn't do as well but was their second most popular waxing. Four more singles followed: "Shing a Ling USA," "Please Say It Isn't So," "I Need You Baby," and "Til You Come Back to Me." All were good records but they only attracted local and spot interest. The group left Carnival though they were the label's second most popular act (next to the Manhattans) and recorded for some even smaller labels. One was Black Circle Records in Pittsburgh, PA, where they had a few releases that stiffed due to the same problem that afflicted Carnival Records -- lack of promotion. ~ Andrew Hamilton, All Music Guide

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Just One More Day





If I could have just one more day with you
I would comb your lovely gray hair
and rub the front of your aged legs
the way I did when I was small
and absorb your every move
I would 'inhale' your smile.
ƸӜƷ
If I could have just one more day
I would watch you while you cooked,
I would pay attention to each wise word
and hug you with my arms, as well
as my glance.
ƸӜƷ
If I could have just one more day
I would ask all kinds of things,
like what it was like when you were
young, and what Mommie and Daddy
were like as a little boy and little girl...
and I would be in rapt
attention, in love with each shared
recollection.
ƸӜƷ
If I could have just one more day,
I would tell you how dear you are,
how much I cherish you,
and I would thank you for being
...mine.
ƸӜƷ
I would sing you a song
filled with notes of gratitude,
a melody of deep respect
laced with honor and affection.
ƸӜƷ
Yes, for just one more day with you
I long.
For one more day I yearn.
To be with you, my precious Grannies..
ƸӜƷ
...just one more day.

© Edie Antoinette 2010

Monday, September 19, 2011

K2K2 FM 88.9...♪♫♪

Featured Track: "Borderline"
Darryl Hall ...♪♫♪ From the Album:
Soul Alone


Simply put..the BEST Music Streamin..
Live from the transmitters of Edie2k2, 24/7 365+

Channels