arDATE = new Array( "June 2005" ) arARTIST = new Array( "The Golden Palominos", "Various Artists", "Mark Hollis", "Somewhere In Europe", "Low", "Soundsmith", "Languis", "Werschel Garland", "Hermeto Paschoal", "Lefthand", "That Dog", "Liliput", "Bimbo Jet", "Morris Pejoe", "Martin Bottcher", "Five or Six", "Irving Ashby", "The Whispers", "Hugo Winterhalter", "Various Artists", "SPK", "thefatrooster", "hungryhippo1970", "Clubhouse", "Various Artists", "John Cage", "None disclosed", "King Pleasure" ) arTRACK = new Array( "The Ambitions Are", "Brooklyn Funk Essentials - The Revolution Was Postponed Because Of Rain", "Watershed", "Beauty and Blood", "Shame", "Send Out Lights", "Countryside", "Gift", "Gaio Da Roseira", "Accelerator", "To Keep Me/Lip Gloss", "You", "La Balanga", "Tired Of Crying Over You", "", "Polar Exposure", "Big Guitar", "Are You Sorry", "Land of Dreams", "Helen Humes - Drive Me Daddy", "Excerpt", "thefatrooster", "hungryhippo1970", "Architecture Of Noise", "Soloman Gamil", "Excerpt", "Excerpt from Side 2", "I'm In The Mood For Love" ) arTITLE = new Array( "Dead Inside", "Dorado", "Self-Titled", "Gestures", "Long Division", "History In Our Heads", "Unithematic", "Liberation von History", "A Musica Livre De Hermeto Paschoal", "On Discovering Fire", "Totally Crushed Out", "Self-Titled", "B-Side - Album Mix", "A-Side", "A-Side", "Side A", "A-Side", "B-Side", "The Best of Hugo Winterhalter", "Shades of Blues", "Leichenschrei", "thefatrooster", "hungryhippo1970", "", "Touch: Feature Mist", "Etudes Australes for Piano", "Sex is My Business", "Moody's Mood" ) arDESC = new Array( "The Golden Palominos were not a group per se, but rather the revolving-door project of drummer, programmer, and bandleader Anton Fier. Born June 20, 1956, in Cleveland, OH, Fier first made his mark as the drummer on the Feelies' seminal 1980 debut Crazy Rhythms. After leaving the group, he joined the punk-jazz unit the Lounge Lizards before returning home to Cleveland, where he was recruited by the legendary new wave band Pere Ubu for the album Song of the Bailing Man.

After exiting Ubu, Fier again relocated to downtown New York City, where he founded the first Golden Palominos lineup in 1981. In its primary live incarnation, the band was an avant-funk supergroup comprised of Fier and another drummer, David Moss, saxophonist John Zorn, guitarist Arto Lindsay, and a pair of bassists, Bill Laswell and Jamaaladeen Tacuma; on their self-titled 1983 debut, the Palominos were augmented by Fred Frith, Nicky Skopelitis and Mark Miller.

Over the next few years, Fier moved away from the first record's experimental noise into far more traditional pop territory; simultaneously, he largely jettisoned the first album's lineup in favor of an ever-changing collection of punk legends, post-punk superstars, up-and-comers, and N.Y.C.-scene vets. After enlisting ex-Raybeat Jody Harris to help him co-write much of the music, Fier recruited vocalists ranging from R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe and Cream's Jack Bruce to PIL's John Lydon and newcomer Syd Straw; rounded out by musicians like former dB Chris Stamey, guitar greats Richard Thompson, and Henry Kaiser, and P-Funk alumni Bernie Worrell and Mike Hampton, the revamped Golden Palominos reached an early peak with 1985's Visons of Excess, a diverse yet cogent collection highlighted by a cover of Moby Grape's 'Omaha' and the original 'Boy (Go).'

With 1986's Blast of Silence, the group flirted with elements of country and folk; while Stipe and Lydon were noticeably absent, many of the other players featured on Visions of Excess remained, along with new additions including guitarist T-Bone Burnett, Numbers Band singer Robert Kidney, artist/producer Don Dixon, singer/songwriter Peter Blegvad, Matthew Sweet and Flying Burrito Brothers alum Sneaky Pete Kleinow. On 1989's moody A Dead Horse, Fier again shifted gears, settling on a constant lineup of Laswell, Skopelitis, Kidney, and ex-Information Society vocalist Amanda Kramer along with a handful of guests, including former Rolling Stone Mick Taylor.

1991's Drunk With Passion returned to the all-star format; Stipe and Thompson again rejoined the fold, welcoming newcomers like Sugar's Bob Mould. This Is How It Feels, a sophisticated concept album inspired by the Graham Greene novel The End of the Road followed in 1993; along with core members like Laswell, Skopelitis, Worrell, and Kramer, the record spotlighted vocalists Lori Carson and Lydia Kavanaugh as well as bass great Bootsy Collins. 1994's Pure featured many of the same principal players, while 1996's Dead Inside, essentially from a trio comprised of Fier, ex-Psychedelic Furs guitarist Knox Chandler, and vocalist/lyricist Nicole Blackman, explored electronic and ambient soundscapes. Dead Inside would be the final album by the Golden Palominos with various compilations being the only additions to the discography.", "There are a few solid producers in the fold for Dorado's third compilation, but the majority of the names will be unfamiliar to even huge fans. The tracks are surprisingly effective nonetheless, with acts Outside, Brooklyn Funk Essentials and Jhelisa shining while lesser lights like Mesh of Mind, Slowly and Sound Advice doing a good job as well.

The featured track here was popular around Boston some years ago during a pride event that was drenched with eleven inches of rain.

The acid-jazz collective Brooklyn Funk Essentials was first conceived in 1993 by producer Arthur Baker and bassist/musical director Lati Kronlund; by the following year, the group was a staple of the New York City club scene, with early lineups also including singers Joi Cardwell, Sha-Key, and Papa Dee, poets Everton Sylvester and David Allen, DJ Jazzy Nice, keyboardist Yuka Honda, (soon to co-found Cibo Matto), trumpeter Bob Brachmann, trombonist Joshua Roseman, saxophonist Paul Shapiro, drummer Yancy Drew, and percussionist E.J. Rodriguez. Brooklyn Funk Essentials' debut album Cool and Steady and Easy followed in the summer of 1994, scoring an underground hit with its rendition of Pharoah Sanders' 'The Creator Has a Master Plan'; when Caldwell exited to mount a solo career, she was replaced by vocalist Stephanie McKay. In the Buzz Bag followed in 1998, and two years later, the group returned with Make 'Em Like It. ", "The frontman of the influential new wave-era band Talk Talk, singer/songwriter Mark Hollis finally mounted his long-awaited solo career during the late 1990s. The younger brother of Ed Hollis, a disc jockey and producer who went on to manage bands such as Eddie and the Hot Rods, Hollis originally planned to become a child psychologist but in 1975 left university to relocate to London, eventually forming a band called the Reaction. In 1977, the Reaction recorded a demo for Island Records; among the tracks was a Hollis original titled 'Talk Talk' which later surfaced on the Beggars Banquet punk compilation Streets. After just one single, 1978's 'I Can't Resist,' the Reaction disbanded, and through his brother, Hollis was first introduced to musicians Paul Webb, Lee Harris, and Simon Brenner, with whom he formed Talk Talk in 1981, soon signing to the EMI label.

With their 1982 debut The Party's Over, Talk Talk emerged as an archetype of new wave ideals, but with each successive record their sound grew more atmospheric and complex, moving further away from conventional pop structure. Records like 1986's The Colour of Spring and 1988's brilliant Spirit of Eden increasingly represented the vision of Hollis and producer Tim Friese-Green, who together steered away from the electronic pop of Talk Talk's early work towards a more organic, often acoustic sound textured by elements of jazz and ambient music. Despite lavish critical praise, relations with EMI disintegrated; personality conflicts within Talk Talk's ranks were growing as well, and after completing 1991's Laughing Stock, the group was essentially finished. Hollis then disappeared from sight for the next seven years; finally, in early 1998, he issued his self-titled solo debut, a beautiful continuation of the final Talk Talk records. A/V Installation, a collaboration with Phill Brown, was scheduled to follow. ", "Whatever else they may be, Somewhere In Europe aren't a 'clone' band. Formed from the ashes of a band called Basic Essentials in 1983, they have released four cassettes on their own These Silences label, each progressing through a moody, surreal succession of soundscapes, drawing on collage, post-industrial atmospherics and highly personal songforms to create some very individual music.

Take the ominous windy drone and scared squeakings of Butterfly in a Vice (from Liturgy of Anguish); or the church bells, tinny drum machine, hesitant glockenspiel and flamenco of Under the Sun (from Dark Days); or the gloomy guitar strumming and buried vocals of Never Go Back (from Know Your Enemy). Random selections that both illustrate their diversity of content and more cohesive styling: it wouldn't be unfair to suggest that Somewhere In Europe's recordings share a certain angst, a fondness for the minor key that inevitably creates a disquieting feeling. There is a definite musical kinship with Death In June (with whom they have collaborated), although Somewhere In Europe's use of collage and juxtaposition sets them well apart.", "Formed in Duluth, Minnesota in 1994, Low was perhaps the slowest of the so-called 'slowcore' bands -- delicate, austere, and hypnotic, the trio's music rarely rose above a whisper, divining its dramatic tension in the unsettling open spaces created by the absence of sound. Initially comprising the husband and wife team of guitarist/vocalist Alan Sparhawk and drummer/vocalist Mimi Parker along with bassist John Nichols, Low began as an experimental reaction to the predominance of grunge; Shimmy Disc producer Kramer soon invited the group to record at his Noise N.J. studios, and the resulting demos earned them a deal with the Vernon Yard label.

After re-entering the studio with Kramer, Low emerged with their 1994 debut I Could Live in Hope, a beautiful set spotlighting the trio's hauntingly minimal aesthetic -- even Parker's drum set consisted only of a snare and a hi-hat. Nichols exited the group prior to 1995's lovely Long Division, recorded with new bassist Zak Sally; a subsequent appearance on the Joy Division tribute A Means to an End was later expanded into the following year's Transmission EP, a five-track set also featuring a rendition of Supreme Dicks' 'Jack Smith.' With new producer Steve Fisk, Low returned later in 1996 with The Curtain Hits the Cast. The Songs for a Dead Pilot EP followed in 1997 and marked their debut for Kranky, where they released such critically-acclaimed albums as 1999's Secret Name and 2001's Things We Lost in the Fire. The late '90s also saw them issue Owl (Low Remixes) and the Christmas mini-album, which featured a cover of 'Little Drummer Boy' that became a minor hit when it was featured in the Gap's holiday season commercials in 2000 . The band's brilliant Things We Lost in the Fire arrived in 2001, with the darker, more subdued Trust coming the following year. Two years later, the B-sides/rare tracks collection A Lifetime of Temporary Relief appeared on Low's own Chairkickers Music imprint. For their seventh full-length album, 2005's The Great Destroyer, the group moved to Sub Pop.", "Second album from Soundsmith after the hugely successful Aquanaut album and two singles that were released on Wurlitzer Jukebox. Paul Gulati continues with his UK west country psych experimentation. A deliciously woven mix of sounds created by an avalanche of instruments, including a ton of guitars, keyboards, piano, and a lorry load of percussion. Soundsmith have the knack of being able to write some amazingly catchy, up-tempo, percussion-loaded songs. This latest release is no exception. ", "The duo known as Languis -- Marcos Chloca and Alejandro Cohen -- has been making music together since 1991, when they were both classmates in Buenos Aires, Argentina. In 1996, they sold their guitars and amps and moved to Los Angeles, where they occasionally perform with other artists who are associated with that city's somewhat experimental, underground lo-fi electronic movement, much of it centered around the Internet-based 'dublab' collective dublab.com. Musically, Languis' recordings may remind some listeners of Stereolab's less motorik/more downbeat recordings, or Teutonic post-ambient groups like To Rococo Rot and Tarwater. However, Languis doesn't really seem to align itself with any particular style or genre, falling somewhere in the 'chill-out' side of the post-rock electronic genre, just this side of laptop techno-noir. Languis utilizes both analog and digital synthesizers, as well as various organs, samplers, sequencer, signal processors, abstract electronic percussion, and guitars (mostly acoustic) -- even vocals, some heavily processed and vocoder-y, and others barely whispered into a telephone handset -- in a uniquely refreshing and organically futurist fashion.

The first proper Languis release, Simball Sounds, was recorded on a borrowed four-track recorder at the duo's home studio and released by L.A.-based Simball Sounds Recordings (hence the title) in August 1998. Their follow-up album, Last Frequency Presets, was released in the spring of 1999. A limited-edition 7-inch single, 'Soft Music,' issued in February 2000, contained three instrumentals that were closely related to sound collage material; full of atmospherics, loops, acoustic guitar, and static rhythms. In November 2000, Languis issued Unithematic, which explored a more melodic song-based side, utilizing more vocals, acoustic guitars, and pianos than previous releases. Languis' next release, the boldly experimental 'Parallel to the Atmospheric Sound of Silence,' a split 10-inch with Safety Scissors, was issued by the Plug Research label. This recording added various elements -- hiss, noise, peaks, distortion, static, clicks, and pops -- that sound somewhat audibly influenced by Stefan Betke's recordings as Pole, using a sound-processing device called the Waldorf 4 Pole-Filter. Blevin Blectum (of Blectum From Blechdom) also contributed vocals to this recording. In 2002, the hectic and lush Untied was released. In addition to their releases on the Simball imprint, Languis has also collaborated on projects and compilations with various other electronic labels, including Phthalo Records, Tigerbeat6, Ubiquity Records, and Zealrecords. ", "Jorg Follert's melodic, electronic-leaning work as Wechsel Garland combines the organic and the synthetic for productions that employ elements like organ, accordion, acoustic guitar, melodica, and Fender Rhodes. The Cologne-based producer, who released an album as Wunder on Karaoke Kalk in 1998, issued the first Wechsel Garland full-length on Morr Music two years later. The tracks for Wechsel Garland were initially intended to accompany a ballet production that Follert had been commissioned to compose music for. Follert returned to Karaoke Kalk for 2002's Liberation Von History, the second Wechsel Garland LP. Follert also does graphic work for LP sleeves and has worked for the German music television channel VIVA.", "A self-taught musician, Hermeto Pascoal ascended from his humble upcountry origins to an international acknowledgment still unfair to his musical stature. Developing his ears from an early age at his grandfather's blacksmith shop, Pascoal used to pick up pieces of iron and hit them, trying to create music (not to emulate the harmonics of his father's eight-bass button accordion, as has been spread). This led to an unusual approach to music, where the tones themselves give a stronger conducting motif than chord connection, scales, or modes. His understanding of music as a vital force, emanating organically from everything in Earth, is reminiscent of Kepler's music of the spheres and conducted to eccentric performances and recordings with pigs, kettles, and anything at hand. He has also developed the Sound of the Aura concept, in which music is developed out of people's speech, traffic noise, and out of every possible source of sound. That didn't impede him from conquering the admiration of world-class musicians such as Miles Davis, for whom he recorded as instrumentalist and composer. John McLaughlin, Duke Pearson, Gil Evans, Berlin Symphony, Copenhagen Symphony, and many others played and recorded his compositions. He also recorded with Ron Carter, Alphonso Johnson, Tom Jobim, Cal Tjader, and several others. As a sideman, he recorded with Brazilians Aquilo del Nisso, Luiz Avellar, Maria Bethânia, Fagner, Galo Preto, Eduardo Gudin, Joyce, Edu Lobo, Elis Regina (including a live concert recorded at the Montreux Jazz Fest), Walter Santos, Mauro Senise, Robertinho Silva, Sivuca, Marcio Montarroyos, Taiguara, Sebastião Tapajós, and Geraldo Vandré, to name a few. Down Beat's Howard Mandel, wrote about him 'as pan-global a leader as Sun Ra and as surefooted an individualist as Rahsaan Roland Kirk.'

His father used to animate parties with an eight-bass button accordion. Beginning to play at local parties at 11, in three months' time, Pascoal advanced so much that he took his father's place because he became ashamed to play together with him. In 1950, his family moved to the capital Recife PE, and he debuted at radio stations in that city and around. In 1958, he moved to Rio, working with the Regional de Pernambuco do Pandeiro, Fafá Lemos Group, and Orquestra do Copinha. In 1961, he moved to São Paulo, playing in several nightclubs there. Already playing brass and wood instruments, he formed the group Som Quatro with Papudinho (trumpet), Dilsom (drums), and Azeitona (contrabaixo). With Sivuca, he had an accordion trio called O Mundo em Chamas. In 1964, he began a fertile association with Brazilian percussionist Airto Moreira, joining his Sambrasa Trio (which also had Humberto Clayber on the double bass). His first recording was accompanying singer Walter Santos' LP Caminho in 1965, soon following the historical album No Fino da Bossa, Vol. 3, on which he backed Elis Regina on one track. The album was recorded in 1966 but was issued in 1994. Moreira was then in a band called Trio Novo which had guitarist Heraldo do Monte and bassist Teo de Barros; Pascoal joined them the next year and the group changed its name to Quarteto Novo. The first proponents of a Northeastern sound based on baião mixed with jazz improvisations, the group would be highly influential despite having recorded just one album, Quarteto Novo (Odeon, 1967). The album had Pascoal's first recorded composition, 'O Ovo.' In October of that year, the group accompanied Edu Lobo on 'Ponteio' (Lobo/Capinam), the winning composition at TV Record's III FMPB (III Brazilian Popular Music Festival). In 1968, Pascoal toured France. In 1970, he was invited by Miles Davis to record with him on the live album Live Evil. Davis also selected two of Pascoal's compositions for that album: 'A Igrejinha' and 'Nenhum Talvez.' In fact, he selected 11 songs of Pascoal's material, but Pascoal wanted to release his solo album and let go only those two. As Miles had a habit of taking credit for tunes written by his groups' members, both were erroneously published under his name. Pascoal credits that to producer's tactics, not to Miles'. Pascoal's first solo LP, Hermeto (Cobblestone), was recorded in 1971 in New York and was produced by Ron Carter and Flora Purim. In that same year he, and Carter recorded another LP, with Pascoal's 'O Gaio da Roseira,' awarded as one of the best of the year by English critics.

In 1973, he toured through the U.S. and Mexico, recording in Brazil A Música Livre de Hermeto. By the Association of Critics of São Paulo (APCA), he was awarded as Best Soloist and, in the next year, Best Arranger. He toured the U.S. again in 1974 and had his song 'Porco na Festa' awarded as Best Arrangement at the Globo Network's Festival Abertura. Recorded in 1976 with Sérgio Mendes and Brazil '77, he recording two more albums for Mendes in that period. His LP, Slaves Mass, released in 1977, also had Carter. In 1978, he recorded Zabumbê-Bum-Á. Since then, he has recorded 12 solo albums. His live performance at the 1979 Montreux Jazz Festival was recorded on a double LP and released through Warner: Hermeto Pascoal ao Vivo. In 1996, he was awarded with the Prêmio Sharp as Best Arranger for the Duo Fel CD Kids of Brazil. In the same year, he received the Prêmio Ary Barroso. His recordings as a sideman add to over 79 albums. In April 2000, Pascoal toured again through the U.S. and the Boston Globe, in a recent review of one of his American performances, commented: 'With equal parts virtuosity and eccentricity, Pascoal's sextet gave the rare example of a band that actually earned its standing ovation.' ", "From a 2001 review, from the website:

Just when you thought The Strokes, White Stripes and Andrew WK had the UK music scene on its knees, salvation is at hand. Lefthand, in fact.The second album from London six-piece Lefthand sees a shift from the early Krautrock leanings of their 1999 debut Minus Eight toward more vibrant ground. And the result is blinding.You want a formula for a great underground band? Establish the mood with a little Joy Division, explore the universe of Spacemen 3, seduce the muse of the Stone Roses, and whip it together in a maelstrom of Pixies-charged adrenalin.The first Lefthand record came out in 1997 on Rough Trade Marketing followed by a second EP on Earworm. The vinyl-only debut album was picked up on by the Sunday Times and Record Collector but the band remained London's best-kept secret. Until now.On Discovering Fire is an unexpected delight and one that is out of time in today's uninspired domestic music climate. Melodies ebb and flow through layered instrumental passages that invoke the spirit of My Bloody Valentine and long-lost Virgin innovators Bark Psychosis. From the razor-sharp hook and defiant 'No-one can hurt me, no-one can touch me' lyric of Broken Machine to the uplifting chiming guitar reverie of Magnetised, Lefthand have single-handedly (sorry) offered a riposte to the American challenge. So what do you do On Discovering Fire? Rejoice!", "The lineup of the Los Angeles-based indie-pop quartet That Dog represented the flowering of a second generation of musical luminaries: singer/guitarist Anna Waronker was the daughter of famed producer and Warner Bros. head Lenny Waronker, while bassist Rachel Haden and her violinist sister Petra were two of the triplet daughters born to jazz titan Charlie Haden. Friends since high school, the trio first began playing music together in Waronker's bedroom in the early '90s. Joined by drummer Tony Maxwell in 1992, that dog. issued their debut double seven-inch on the tiny Magnatone Records, quickly becoming a staple of the L.A. club circuit; a flurry of label interest followed, and the group signed with DGC in 1993. that dog.'s self-titled debut LP appeared in 1994; an energetic and quirky punk-pop effort highlighted by sunny harmonies and the intriguing use of violin and cello, the record became a college radio hit, and the light-hearted video for the lead single 'Old Timer' even garnered some MTV airplay. The follow-up, Totally Crushed Out!, was issued a year later; a concept album wittily exploring the teen angst of unrequited love (packaged to recall a Sweet Valley High romance novel), the record marked a significant maturity in Waronker's songwriting, evidenced by tracks like 'Ms. Wrong' and 'He's Kissing Christian.' A planned Waronker solo project was scheduled to follow, but instead her more pop-oriented material became the basis for the third that dog. record; co-produced by Brad Wood, the stellar Retreat From the Sun appeared in 1997. The band's breakup was announced that September.", "During the punk rock era of the late '70s, there were three bands comprised of women who made some of the best, most adventurous, exhilarating, and most critically derided music of the time. Two were the English bands the Slits and the Raincoats, and the third band, from Switzerland, was Liliput. Fans of all three bands will argue ad infinitum as to who was the better. But one thing is for certain: Liliput was an amazing band that recorded amazing music, and comparing what they accomplished to that of another band is a useless intellectual exercise. Besides, it detracts from valuable listening time.

Formed in Zurich in 1978 by guitarist Marlene Marder and bassist/vocalist Klaudia Schiff, they began with the name Kleenex until the threat of a lawsuit by corporate giant Kimberly-Clark (who had copyrighted the name Kleenex) forced them to become Liliput in 1980. Recording for the great English indie label Rough Trade, the then-Kleenex produced jumpy, aggressive, clamorous punk-noise that featured Marder's scratchy, semi-melodic guitar and Schiff's yelping vocals. Not punk rock in the fast, loud, economical sense, Liliput were forging a different kind of punk, one that was gleefully anarchic, avant-garde, unrestrained, and suffused with a giddy, almost palpable sense of joy. Listening to this music, one gets the sense that there was a near-rapturous enjoyment that went into these recordings. Their tenure at Rough Trade was short, as was their interest in exploring career options beyond Europe.

By 1982, when they released their first LP, they seemed perfectly happy remaining in Switzerland, running the band as part of numerous other artistic projects (painting, writing, etc.) they pursued. By the end of 1983, Liliput had disbanded, and the music they had recorded quickly achieved legendary, but mostly unheard, status. As for the band, they seemed destined to be relegated to the status of feminist-inspired punk rock footnote. All of this changed in 1993, when the Swiss label Off Course released a double-disc, 46-track compilation of the entire recorded output of Kleenex/Liliput. The result was one of the great reissues of the decade. Unfortunately, it went out of print shortly after its release, but Kill Rock Stars released it again in early 2001, making it more accessible than before. The exuberance and excitement of Liliput's breathtaking music can be enjoyed once again, and a band that was almost forgotten returns with some of the most artful, contemporary, truly alternative music to be recorded under the genre identifier of punk rock. Also, fans of riot grrrl rock take note: this was a tremendously influential band. Although they eschewed extreme confrontation, there is a compelling sense of self that imbues this music and lit the way for a new generation of female musicians. ", "Here is another one that let's me take a 1970's kitsch trip.

BIMBO JET created a unusual link between disco and Cuban/spanish cha cha. This is due to the immagination of Claude Morgan, a young producer in the 1970's. He met Laurent Rossi who immediatly saw the commercial possibilities of this song and recorded it with studio musicans...and a few hours later, 'La Balanga' was in the box. Released in June 1974, the title was played so much it was impossible not to hear it. More then 1,3 million units where sold in France alone. But the song broke out all over Europe and even charted in the USA. The songs popularity was due to it's dance - a concept that re-appers later with the Lambada.", "A name that shows up on trivia tests among blues scholars, Morris Pejoe was a performer with heavy traces of both the country and the city, as well as a bit of outer space. The quality of many of his recordings proves the old adage that it is sometimes not the most famous performers who produce the greatest music in a genre. While the Chicago blues style normally more than holds it own in terms of interesting influences, Pejoe was one of the few performers in Chicago who brought in a strong Louisiana cajun and zydeco influence decades before this became a typical part of a touring houserocking band's repertoire. This was because he actually was from Louisiana, where he was born Morris Pejas, beginning his music career on the violin. In the late 40's he moved to Beaumont, Texas, where he switched to guitar. Fellow Louisiana pianist Henry Gray remained his musical sidekick through these years, and in the early 50's the two relocated to Chicago together, rightfully seeing the big city as a much better opportunity for regular blues employment. Gray was one of two important blues pianists who mentored under Pejoe--the other was Otis Spann, who worked in the Louisiana man's band in the early 50's prior to beginning the pianist's seemingly endless tenure with the great Muddy Waters. Pejoe's recording career began within a year of hitting the Windy City. During 1952 and 1953 he cut sides for Checker, accompanied by Gray among others. The following year he recorded for United, this time really emphasizing a New Orleans rhythm and blues sound in a band again with Gray plus the unpleasant Stanley Grim on alto sax, an unknown tenor man and the superb rhythm section of Milton Rector on electric bass and Earl Phillips on drums. The Pejoe discography continued on practically every indepedent label that sprang up in Chicago, including Vee-Jay, Abco, Atomic H, and Kaytown. Reissues of much of this material, either as parts of compilations or the complete Delmark retrospective entitled Wrapped Up in My Baby, have been recieved with enthusiasm almost as raucous as the music itself. One of the most popular numbers, particularly in terms of radio airplay, is 'Let's Get High', and the status has not been won simply by having a provocative title. 'Cranked-up, distorted classic 'Let's Get High' by Morris Pejoe is worth the price alone,' was an appraisal from one blues critic when the song appeared on an anthology. The Delmark project digs into the famed basement recordings of producer Al Smith, and show Pejoe's style off to great advantage, featuring plenty of both the unmistakeable Louisiana beats as well as plenty of evidence that Pejoe was also paying attention to various Texas guitar blasters before he continued his migration north. During the '60's he often performed with his wife, the fine blues singer Mary Lane. The couple met in the late 50's in Waukegan, Illinois, where Pejoe's group frequently held forth. One of the couple's daughters, Lynne Lane became a blues singer, as did Pejoe's son Morris Pejoe Jr.. Papa Pejoe continued featuring horns in his units during this era, to the point where the group was even thought of as something of a big band.

Here is a gorgeous copy of this original 78, early in the Checker catalog.", "Martin Böttcher found his greatest success when he composed the music for the Karl May Western-movies in the 1960ies, ennobling ten of these films by his unique sound. The movies starred, among many others, American actor Lex Barker and British actor Stewart Granger. The audience was enthusiastic about the wistful tunes, the fanfare-like music accompanying attacks, and the cheerful hillbilly themes. Small wonder that these themes were in top positions in German hit-parades and selling thousands of copies of soundtrack-records. The Karl-May-movie-music can truly be called a landmark in German filmmusic-history. Only the success of these movies, with the successful music of Martin Böttcher, made possible the later so-called 'Spaghetti Western' with the music of Ennio Morricone.

With the film industry declining at the end of the 1960ies Martin Böttcher increasingly focused on working for German TV, which, at that time still being in its infancy, benefited from his talents as well in many series' and TV-shows.

In the 1970ies Martin Böttcher wrote a number of successful soundtracks, among them music for the TV-series SONDERDEZERNAT K 1 (in parts today being used in Hilcona noodle commercials) or for numerous episodes of DER ALTE and DERRICK, which are also known outside Germany. He again encountered the name of Karl May when he wrote the soundtrack for the 26-episode KARA BEN NEMSI EFFENDI series. The author of DER ILLEGALE (a T.V. film in several parts), Henry Kolarz, said, rightly: 'Even if I spoilt it - Böttcher's music is much too good for everything to go wrong.'

Throughout the years that followed, Martin Böttcher composed yet more evergreen themes for TV-series, such as ES MUSS NICHT IMMER KAVIAR SEIN (It doesn't always have to be caviar), SCHÖNE FERIEN (Beautiful holiday) or FORSTHAUS FALKENAU. In the nineties, among others, AIR ALBATROS took off, which proved something special to the composer, for he could pay a musical tribute to his passion for flying. And when Pierre Brice just recently mounted his horse again as Winnetou for the ZDF-station, he was, of course, accompanied by a soundtrack by Martin Böttcher.

Even the Americans became aware of his perfomance as an arranger and orchestra director. When they heard his rendering of world-famous themes such as 'Tara's Theme' or 'A Summerplace', Martin Böttcher was made an honorary member of the Max Steiner Society. Of that one he is especially proud of. ", "Not much info on this band. They were contemporaries of Felt and Marine Girls on the Cherry Red imprint, and at least one member of this band went on to Spring Heel Jack. This song in particular is one of a handful of songs that pretty much recreates the entire atmosphere of the early 1980's - dark, remote, and sleepless. It's one of the first songs I heard when I tuned into WZBC, and it is a song that remained on my playlist throughout my tenure on radio.", "One of the grand old men of jazz guitar, Ashby played in some groups that leaped over the pop music fence, but eventually saw his distinctive style overwhelmed by newer, fancier pickers. There was Django Reinhardt, whose speed and facility literally scared Ashby to death the first time he heard the French gypsy guitarist on the radio, followed by a wave of smarty-pants jazz guitarists such as Barney Kessel, who wound up gnabbing Ashby's seat in the famed Oscar Peterson trio. Most jazz listeners have enjoyed Ashby's work on early recordings by the Nat King Cole Trio, in which he played from 1947 through 1951, replacing Oscar Moore. It was in this context that he first came to prominence on the jazz scene, and it is often this collaboration that catches the ear of new listeners. The blues revivalist Taj Mahal, for example, will drop Ashby's name when listing important early infuences, sticking out among usual blues guitar suspects such as Blind Lemon Jefferson and Robert Johnson. 'Everybody else I heard was playing real tight chords when I started hearing guitar in the '40's,' Mahal said in an interview. 'The first person I really loved was Irving Ashby, who played with Nat King Cole. That guy was incredible. He had a certain sound.' Although it is the guitarist, and not the guitar, that makes the sound, part of the Ashby tone certainly came from his unique guitar, a Stromberg created by the brilliant luthier Elmer Stromberg. This was Ashby's guitar of choice in his days with the Lionel Hampton's band, even before he began performing with the Cole group. In the latter combo he was particularly known for playing an over-sized guitar known as 'the Yellow Cloud', and it was perhaps this axe that Ashby was paying tribute to in the 50's when a combo under his own name recorded the expansive single entitled 'Big Guitar'. Legends abound concerning the Ashby guitars, including the one in which Wes Montgomery borrowed one for an early Los Angeles recording session. While Ashby's rhythm guitar playing was almost completely overlooked in the context of Lionel Hampton's music, best described as all hell breaking loose with a swing beat, the Cole group was the perfect format for both his rhythm and soloing style, as well a group in which the leader's mesmerizing effect on an audience could hardly have hampered the sidemen's ability to communite. After leaving Cole, Ashby concentrated on the west coast, teaming up in the early '50s with Oscar Peterson's trio. This Canadian performer was at this point getting huge attention in tours organized by promoter Norman Granz. While Peterson was certainly influenced by Cole, a much greater influence was Art Tatum, and the type of byzantine harmonic invention fostered by Tatum and continued by Peterson and others was hardly the Ashby forte. He was replaced by Kessel, then Herb Ellis. In the mid and late 50's Ashby was more often found in the recording studios, playing with artists such as crooner Pat Boone and surf music maestro Sandy Nelson. By the 60's Ashby was also working outside the music field, but continued playing from time to time, sometimes brought back into the limelight by various guitarists whom he had strongly influenced, such as Howard Roberts. As far as jazz was concerned, he was strictly a mainstream swing man, forever in awe of one of his early bandleaders, Lester Young. 'I worship Lester Young' the guitarist was once quoted as saying, and when the interviewer responded that 'Worship is a pretty strong word,' Ashby said 'If there was a stronger word, I would use it.' As for Ashby ventures into more modern jazz, they barely exist, unless lending the guitar to Montgomery counts. The Ashby presence in the discography of modern jazz giant Charles Mingus is even a mistake, based on the mistaken assumption that a guitarist credited as Ashby De La Zooch on a tune of the same name was the famous Nat King Cole sideman. As it turns out, the name comes from a second World War English song about a seaside resort named 'Ashby De La Zooch', and the recording isn't even by Mingus. It is one of several early pieces in Mingus discographies, another of which is 'Love On A Greyhound Bus', that are only there because they happen to have master numbers that come directly in the same sequence as legitimate Mingus recordings.", "Some friends of mine who are partial to the End-era Flamingos will be thrilled to learn of this comparitively obscure song. Prior to his stint with the Flamingos and his fabulous producer career, in 1954, Terry Johnson(at age 16) recorded with a Baltimore group called THE WHISPERS, (not The Whispers of the 1960's), on Gotham Records in Philadelphia. He wrote, arranged and sang lead on 'Fool Heart' and co-wrote, arranged and sang lead on the song presented here, 'Are You Sorry', released in 1955.

He brought that sound and talent to The Flamingos in 1956 with his first arrangement of music and vocals on 'The Ladder of Love' and continued with writing and arranging, 'Lovers Never Say Goodbye', 'Mio Amore', 'At The Prom', 'Heavenly Angel', 'You, Me and the Sea' and others, and also with his unforgettably beautiful production and arrangement of 'I Only Have Eyes For You'. Terry arranged the music, vocals and sang tenor on all of the songs on the albums 'Flamingo Serenade', 'Requestfully Yours' and 'Flamingo Favorites'. Terry sang on the duets such as 'Lovers Never Say Goodbye', 'Love Walked In', 'Time Was' and 'But Not For Me'. He also sang the lead on some of their album cuts such as 'I'm In The Mood For Love', 'When I Fall In Love' and 'Beside You'.

After The Flamingos, Terry formed his own group called Terry Johnson & The Modern Flamingos. When Nate Nelson left The Flamingos, he joined forces with Terry. They recorded under the name THE STARGLOWS. They co-wrote and sang 'Let's Be Lovers' on the Atco Label, a subsidiary of Atlantic Records. Terry arranged the background vocals using his group.

Still working with his group, Terry went to Motown Records as an artist and producing partners with Smokey Robinson. As an artist, he recorded several records on the Gordy Label. He wrote, arranged, and produced songs for Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, The Supremes, The Four Tops, The Temptations, Martha Reeves & The Vandellas, Edwin Starr, The Spinners, Bobby Taylor & the Vancouvers, Jimmy Ruffin, Mickey Denton, Blinky and other Motown artists.

Terry is extremely grateful for the opportunities that he has had in recording with the other members of The Whispers, (Billy Thompson, James Johnson, Bill Mills) and The Flamingos, Jake & Zeke Carey (Founders), Paul Wilson, Tommy Hunt and Nate Nelson) and the above named artists at Motown. Working with such great artists is a major part of his success.

From The Whispers, to The Flamingos, to The Starglows, to Motown Records and up to today, his legacy, sound and the success of his music continues with his own group TERRY JOHNSON’S FLAMINGOS. Many of you have already seen him around the country on the PBS special called 'Rock and Roll At 50', and you will also see him on the latest PBS special.", "Educated at Mt St Mary's College and the New England Conservatory of Music, Winterhalter taught school for several years before joining a variety of swing bands as a multi-instrumentalist in the mid-1930s. By 1940, Winterhalter had proven himself a talented arranger and wrote for some of the top bands of the time: Count Basie, Raymond Scott, Claude Thornhill, and the Dorsey brothers. He then focused on backing singers, and arranged and conducted recordings for Dinah Shore, Billy Eckstine, and others.

Over the next 15 years, Winterhalter served as musical director for a series of labels. First MGM in 1948-49, then Columbia, and then, in 1950, RCA Victor. He matched vocalists with arrangers and oversaw assignments among RCA's house arrangers, composers, and conductors. He remained with RCA until 1963, when he switched to Kapp for several years. Winterhalter provided arrangements for many of RCA's singers, including Eddie Fisher, the Ames Brothers ('The Naughty Lady of Shady Lane'), Perry Como, and Eddy Arnold on the immortal 'Cattle Call.'

Winterhalter released instrumental albums under his own name from 1950 through his retirement in the late 1960s. As an arranger, Winterhalter is something of a kindred spirit with Marty Gold, clearly reflecting the philosophy that you can never have too much music. His arrangement of 'Anna' on '... Continental' throws in strings, electric guitar, high reeds, trumpet flourishes, even tambourines, all behind a driving drum beat. Like Percy Faith, Winterhalter often produced arrangements that belie the 'easy listening' label. He had a number of singles in the Top 40 between 1950 and 1956, including covers of 'The Third Man Theme' and 'Canadian Sunset.'

After leaving Kapp in the mid-1960s, Winterhalter worked on Broadway and in New York-based network television and recorded an occasional album for a variety of budget labels until his death. ", "Helen Humes was a versatile singer equally skilled on blues, swing standards and ballads. Her cheerful style was always a joy to hear. As a child she played piano and organ in church and made her first recordings (ten blues in 1927) when she was only 13 and 14. In the 1930s she worked with Stuff Smith and Al Sears, recording with Harry James in 1937-38. In 1938 Humes joined Count Basie's Orchestra for three years. Since Jimmy Rushing specialized in blues, Helen Humes mostly got stuck singing pop ballads but she did a fine job. After freelancing in New York (1941-43) and touring with Clarence Love (1943-44), Humes moved to Los Angeles. She began to record as a leader and had a hit in 'Be-ba-ba-le-ba'; her 1950 original 'Million Dollar Secret' is a classic. Humes sometimes performed with Jazz at the Philharmonic but was mostly a single in the 1950s. She recorded three superb albums for Contemporary during 1959-61 and had tours with Red Norvo. She moved to Australia in 1964, returning to the U.S. in 1967 to take care of her ailing mother. Humes was out of the music business for several years but made a full comeback in 1973 and stayed busy up until her death. Throughout her career Helen Humes recorded for such labels as Savoy, Aladdin, Mercury, Decca, Dootone, Contemporary, Classic Jazz, Black & Blue, Black Lion, Jazzology, Columbia and Muse", "Industrial Records Press Release 1980 - Subject: SPK

SPK was the name the group took from a group of mental patients in West Germany who, inspired by the Baader-Meinhof group set up their own terrorist cell with a 'SLOGUN' Kill Kill Kill For Inner Peace and Mental Health. Unfortunately this group blew themselves up whilst trying to make and hide bombs in their Mental Hospital. SPK was originally 4 people in Sydney, Australia. They released two singles on their own SPK label and pressed 200 copies of each. They sent copies to Industrial Records who liked them so much they offered to re-release their favourite two tracks again. By this time SPK had only two members left, one a certified schizophrenic, a patient in mental hospitals, the other a certified mental nurse who works in mental hospitals! Since this record was made the schizo-member has left the group. SPK is now one person who is alive and cynical in Paris....

from 'Document two: The second in the series to update on progress and projekts.'

We have begun working on the second album : Leichenschrei, due for release from the UK in April, 82. This will be the final produkt, as we originally intended. However, there will be a movement into video and film, beginning with L'Etat Haemophiliaque (Internal Bleeding) which is in progress and will have its first screening in Australia later this year. SPK will then specialise in soundtrack, a medium we have always had a strong sympathy with.

In response to the considerable interest shown in our projekt so far, we have decided to devote a Dokument to an explanation of some of the areas of research into sound and visuals which we have used. Subliminal content in lyriks and voice tapes occupies much of our attention. However it requires feedback from others in order to evaluate their effectiveness. That is why we always encourage correspondence, even though various members of the group prefer to remain anonymous (as far as possible). In addition, we try to provide some interesting information on experiments into mental phenomena, and to dispel some of the boring myths about infra/ultra-sonics.

We have often been asked the reason for apparently limiting ourselves to the mental sphere. The answer is that we feel the need to intensify interest in the SPECIFIC locus of consent to be repressed in the individual. We therefore claim to be 'politikal', but not in the accepted sense of the term.

In 1982 SPK will abandon its earlier practice of limited publik appearances, with scheduled live assaults in Japan, Europe and Amerika.

Watch out for a show in a town near you.

(I wouldn't let my guard down if I were you...)", "thefatrooster", "hungryhippo1970", "A brilliant packaging concept whose work can only be that of a trained industrial designer. First, the music is harsh, abrasive, noisey, engaging and full-spectrum - all the hallmarks of an experienced noise composer.

The record ships flat, like any other 7-inch single, and fits nicely in a polyurethane sleeve. But in order to play the record, it's jacket must be unfolded and bound up in a three-dimensional diamond shaped origami inspired obelisk - see the photo below. The cardboard shape is sharply sloped and allows most tonearms to play the record through to completion. My headshell, however, kind of nicks the edge over the last several grooves. This is a brilliant idea in packaging. ", "Since its first release in 1982, Touch has created sonic and visual productions that combine innovation with a level of care and attention that has made it the most enduring of any independent music company of its time.

The first period up to the digitisation of music in the mid-80’s saw the release of several cassette magazines, where sounds by luminaries such as New Order, Cabaret Voltaire and The Residents were paralleled by visual work and writing by Neville Brody, Jon Savage, Joseph Beuys and many others. As the industry went through its usual elaborate cycles of self-annihilation and rebirth, Touch adapted to incorporate new technologies with the old, underscoring the power and necessity of editing and presentation to bring the best out of each production.

Now working extensively with Fennesz, Chris Watson, Philip Jeck, Biosphere, Ryoji Ikeda, BJNilsen and many others, Touch celebrated its 20th year in 2001 with a UK CMN-backed tour, including sell-out dates in Brighton, Bristol, Glasgow, Newcastle, Salisbury and the QEH in London. The transitions from analogue to digital, from camera-ready artwork to broadband file-sharing and from 1/4” masters to website downloads are only the surface manifestations of the great changes that have taken place in recorded music over the last 20 years. Touch has been at the forefront of these changes, and will continue to be. ", "This story explains a lot to me about John Cage and his music:

My mother had a sense of society. She was the founder of the Lincoln Study Club, first in Detroit, then in Los Angeles. She became the Women's Club editor for the Los Angeles Times. She was never happy. When after Dad's death I said, 'Why don't you visit the family in Los Angeles? You'll have a good time,' she replied, 'Now, John, you know perfectly well I've never enjoyed having a good time.' When we would go for a Sunday drive, she'd always regret that we hadn't brought so-and-so with us. Sometimes she would leave the house and say she was never coming back. Dad was patient, and always calmed my alarm by saying, 'Don't worry, she'll be back in a little while.'

The first installment in yet another new category, a randomly selected work of John Cage seemed appropriate.", "This record caused quite a stir in 1961 when it was initially released by the FAX record compnay of Los Angeles. From Saunders v. Olesen , (D.C.S.D. Cal. C.D.) 163 F. Supp. 938, and United States v. Perkins , (CA 6) 286 F.2d. 150.

Applying the above-quoted principles to the instant case, consideration must be given to the only matter in evidence, Exhibit 'A' attached to the complaint, 'FAX RECORDS FALL CATALOG 1961.' In discussing this circular which, admittedly was deposited in the mails (stipulation of parties, supra) two items entitled, respectively, 'Stories For Sex-Minded Males FAXLP-1004,' and 'Sex Is My Business, FAXLP-1007' will be excluded since they were apparently considered by the court in the case of Door dba Fairfax Record Sales Co. and Fax Record Company v. Olesen , (D.C.S.D. Cal. C.D.) Civil No. 592-60 PH. The remainder of this circular, then, is divided into the following classifications of phonograph records:

'Brand new Personality Series Rollicking Wild Party Series Torrid Adam Stag Party Series Daring, bold Songs of Erotica'

The 'Personality Series' is described as the first three records of one Bert Henry, an alleged comic, which are described by the publishers as follows:

Introducing The Brand New Fax Personality Series

Fax again defies tradition to bring you the most outstanding adult party records ever produced. Most comics cannot 'go the limit' because their best gags and stories are a bit too bold for large night club audiences. They generally save their scorching gems of heavily-spiced ribaldry for their private club dates and 'smoker' specials. The new Fax Personality Series recordings are not taped during a performers' regular night club appearances. They are taped at private parties to bring you all intimacy and daring sex-citement you want in an adult party record.

More particularly these records list (in part) the following:

'The Virgin & The Parachute Jumper; The Big Blow; The Thumb Sucker; and the great Hollywood's Cork Soakers story; Going Down; Queers & Rears; Slippery Sarah; The Silver Screw; Pussy Katz; Open Fly; Stomach Rub; French Test;, etc.,

all of which are described as 'sex riot of ribald entertainment' and 'choice gems of sin, sex and seduction.'

The 'Wild Party Series' consists of four record albums of which the publishers have this to say:

WILD PARTY SERIES

Rollicking, frolicking tales of betrayed maidens, hard-drinking men, jaded whores and lusty adventurers that have titillated fun-loved adults for generations. Fax brings you these lusty folk songs and erotic ballads complete in their authentic, unexpurgated versions. Attacked by censors, damned by prudes, subjected to puritanical restriction, these bone-tickling ditties of sin, sex and seduction could not be suppressed because they are an important manifestation of our cultural heritage. In army barracks, ships at sea, club smokers, campus dorms, even in 'polite' society we now hear these lusty refrains.

WILD PARTY SONGS

These four records of the Fax WILD PARTY SERIES contain an uninhibited, unexpurgated blast of lusty ribaldry from every corner of the world and the high seas. These are the authentic ballads, sea shanties (sic) and barroom songs that have become famous. You may have heard some of them with other words that would have made the rough and ready men who sang these songs laugh at our puritanical timidness. Fax brings you these lusty ditties as they should be sung, in their original form. So laugh, drink and make merry and sing out loud and clear]

WILD SERVICE SONGS

These two records of the Fax WILD PARTY SERIES are a fantastic and rare treat for servicemen and civilians everywhere. Here are those scorching service songs complete in their authentic, unexpurgated versions, exactly as they were sung by our fighting men. They are a record of reckless daring, fear, pathos, carousing, drinking and womanizing; complete with graphic descriptions of whores, other services and the various hell holes of the world. These songs are as much a part of the service as uniforms and equipment; as vital a part of history as the report of any battle or campaign. Let's join our fighting men once more as we sing these lusty songs and ballads.

Some of these songs are listed as follows:

'Charlotte The Harlot; The Bastard King of England; Come Tie My Root; Bang Away Lulu; Harlot Of Jerusalem; Blinded By Turds; Blow The Man Down; Her Cuckoo's Nest; Winnipeg Whore; Her Promised Land; Miss V.D. of Guam; Our First Piece Of Tail; Merry Men Are We; Barnacle Bill; The Freaking Fusileers; Wine, Women & V.D.'

The next item in the catalog is 'Adam Stag Party Series' consisting of some five albums partially described as 'if you have never heard such tantalizing gems of sexcitement before, you're in for the treat of a lifetime.' A partial list of these songs is as follows:

'The Perfect Ass; On Top Of Some Oakie; Wild Goose; My First Piece; He Liked To Nibble On My Cupcakes; Big Banana; Case Of Rape; Steel Balls; Spanish Fly; Let's be familiar, you've had me before; Throes Of Fornication; Prostitute Of Ill Repute; Go Out And Hustle.'

Finally there are The Songs of Erotica of which this catalog says:

Their outspoken sexual allusions and bawdy words are completely unashamed, fantastically bold. They delight in the gratification of the senses, painting almost unbelievable pictures of sexual activities and erotic sport to tingle your spine and quicken your heartbeat. Suppressed by generations of censors, Fax now brings you, complete and unexpurgated, such classics as: 'Nine Inch Will Please A Lady', 'A Hole To Hide In', 'Lift My Dress', 'No Hair On It', 'Ruffle The Muff', 'Up-Tails All', 'Old Fumbler', and many others.

The catalog also contains an order form with quoted prices, addressed to Fax Record Company, 1018 North Fairfax Avenue, Los Angeles 46, California. ", "Along with Eddie Jefferson, King Pleasure was one of the early masters of vocalese -- a style in which lyrics are written and sung to the solos of jazz instrumentalists. Although Pleasure cited Jefferson as his main influence and said that Jefferson was embracing vocalese before him, Pleasure's sax-like phrasing and scat singing proved equally influential. The charismatic improviser (who recorded for Prestige, Aladdin, Jubilee, HiFi Jazz, and United Artists) is best known for his 1952 hit 'Moody's Mood for Love,' for which Jefferson wrote lyrics to tenor saxman James Moody's 1949 improvisation on the standard 'I'm in the Mood for Love.' Pleasure was also praised for his interpretations of classics like Lester Young's 'DB Blues,' Charlie Parker's 'Parker's Mood,' and Gene Ammons' 'Red Top' in the 1950s, and he had a direct or indirect influence on Jon Hendricks, Annie Ross, Bob Dorough, Mark Murphy, Al Jarreau, Lou Lanza, and even the Manhattan Transfer. But his recording career didn't last very long. Pleasure was still recording in the early '60s, but after that, he faded into great obscurity -- although the impact of his early work would remain long after his death on March 21, 1982 (only three days before what would have been his 60th birthday). In the late '90s, one could hear Pleasure's influence on such promising vocalists as Ian Shaw and Lou Lanza.

Here I present three versions of the song most famous by King Pleasure. The main version is the most popularized, in style as well as impact on the culture at large. This is the one we've heard in various TV commercials, and it is the most 'polished' of the three. Released in 1963. Of the other two, the Aladdin records version was released around 1956, while the Prestige version (kinda beat up, but pressed in red vinyl and quite a collectible record) was a minor hit in 1952." ) arLABEL = new Array( "Restless", "Planet Earth", "Polydor UK", "NER", "Vernon Yard", "Enraptured", "Simball", "Karaoke Kalk", "Verve", "Rayman", "DGC", "Kill Rock Stars", "Scepter", "Checker", "Unknown", "Cherry Red", "Imperial", "Gotham/Collectables", "RCA", "Al Fi", "Thermidor", "thefatrooster", "hungryhippo1970", "Staalplaat", "Touch", "Tomato", "FAX", "United Artists" ) arFORMAT = new Array( "CD", "CD", "CD", "CD", "CD", "CD", "CD", "CD", "CD", "CD", "CD", "CD", "12-inch 45", "78", "45", "12-inch", "45", "45", "LP", "LP", "LP", "thefatrooster", "hungryhippo1970", "7-inch single with attached foldout cardboard cover.", "Cassette", "LP", "LP", "LP" )