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Showing posts from January, 2015

AOR On The Radio: Soulful Years

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Pedestrians in Georgetown,(Star Collection, DC Public)  I'm very proud and happy to be number 7 in the Mixcloud Top 25 of Best Crate Diggers 2014 . So for this new cloudcast I dug as deep in the crates as I could! ;-) Back in the day dj's used to play a typical sound on the radio. That's what this mix is basically about: to recreate that sophisticated sound of FM radio in the 1970s. One of the key figures in pop music is Mike Hurst. Before becoming a producer in the 1960s he was one of the Springfields (together with Dusty and Tom). He discovered Marc Bolan and Cat Stevens and was having hits with Manfred Mann, The Move, Spencer Davis Group, Colin Blunstone (who named himself Neil McArthur), Chris Farlowe and P.P. Arnold. In the 1970s he signed the band Showaddywaddy and subsequently produced 17 top 40 hits in a row with the band. In this decade he also produced and worked with artists like Cilla Black, Mud, Merton Parkas, The Four Tops and Hello. In 1978 he took o

Groovy, Sexy & Soulful Part 44 Deep Down Edition

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Angel Grant "In 1966, singer Al Wilson signed with manager Marc Gordon, who quickly scored his client an a cappella audition for Johnny Rivers -- the "Secret Agent Man" singer not only signed Wilson to his Soul City imprint, but also agreed to produce the sessions that yielded the 1968 R&B smash "The Snake." The minor hit "Do What You Gotta Do" appeared that same year, but Wilson then largely disappeared from sight until 1973, when he issued the platinum-selling Weighing In -- the album's success was spurred by the shimmering "Show and Tell," a Johnny Mathis castoff that sold well over a million copies. 1974's "The La La Peace Song" proved another major hit, and two years later, "I've Got a Feeling We'll Be Seeing Each Other Again" cracked the R&B Top Three. With 1979's "Count the Days" Wilson scored his final chart hit" (Quote: Allmusic.com ) Enjoy the deep down edition of

Eddy's (Late) 80s Grooves Part 13

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Karen Alexander Around 1987 there was a musical no man’s land. Disco, soul, funk and new wave faded out and house and hip hop were ready to take over. In this vacuum swingbeat popped up too with exponents like Alexander O'Neal, Full Force (on my previous cloudcast) and Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam. Swingbeat (or new jack swing) was a fusion genre spearheaded by Teddy Riley and Bernard Belle that became popular from the late-1980s into the early 1990s. Its influence, along with hip-hop, seeped into pop culture and was the definitive sound of the inventive New York club scene. It used R&B style vocals sung over hip hop and dance-pop style influenced instrumentation.  Enjoy part 13 of Eddy's 80s Grooves ! Tracklist: S.O.S. Band – I'm Still Missing Your Love (1989) Narada Michael Walden – Divine Emotions (1988) When In Rome – The Promise [The Ollie North Mix] (1987) Sparks – So Important (1988) Inner City – Good Life (1988) Oscar Perry – You've Got My Nose Op

Hello... It's Me (3rd Call)

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Professor Eddy is your ‘ switch board operator '… This cloudcast is a disco-soul-funk extravaganza, based on telephone calls. Booty calls, calls (and cries) for freedom, prank calls, calls for help, you hear all kinds of calls. So enjoy my long distance conversation! Ramsey & Company were the group Mainor Ramsey had pieced together. Their only release being the super charged sexy disco hit ‘Love Call’ backed with super blaxploitation fodder ‘Leg Grease’, was released on Mainor’s own label, Ramco. This limited 7” single was sold exclusively at the groups live shows and never saw its way into proper distribution. Oddly this limited release eventually found its way onto the dancefloors of the UK’s northern soul/modern soul scene, and became a super smash, ripping up floors whenever played. The sheer quality of this tune mixed with the utter rarity has made this record nearly impossible to find and quite valuable on the collector’s market. Picture: Elvis Presley, the King of Ro

Groovy, Sexy & Soulful Part 43 Fantasy Edition

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Astrud Gilberto Enjoy the fantasy edition of ‘ Groovy, sexy and soulful ’! Ballerina (Prima Donna)' was written and produced by British songwriter/musician/producer Mike Batt and sung by Steve Harley. The latter became famous by penning classics, such as 'Make me smile' (1975) and 'Sebastian' (1973). Mike Batt is now known for his work with Katie Melua. Although the single's sleeve lists Harley's name alone, the vinyl itself credits the song to Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel. I like the aggressive tone of the lyrics: the guy is totally fed up with his 'ballerina'... The song peaked at #51 in the UK for a total of six weeks, after originally debuting at #91 in early August 1983. At the time Steve Harley told Scottish television that he had taken a break for a few years, because he didn't want to be known for putting out a string of flops. The irony is that he actually brought out a number of flops by the end of the 1970s and during the 19