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Showing posts from 2022

Fresh West Coast Breeze: Best Of Today’s AOR & Yacht Rock

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C-Heads Magazine You all know that I love that late seventies/early eighties smooth West Coast sound. Today’s music scene still counts quite a few modern day yacht rock and AOR acts. I selected some of the best 2022 songs to close the year. Enjoy! Next week I will upload a new episode of the disco years . Tracklist: Prep – The Kid Say She She – Wrap Myself Up In Your Love Heir – One Way Out Kids Return – Lost In Los Angeles Meeka Kates – Laredo SuperGOODThings – Hottie & The Yachty Charles Watson ‎Feat. Pearl Charles – Figure Skater Bad Colours – Maybe I Should Move To L.A. James Wyatt Crosby – Is There A Reason Dawn Patrol – Nostalgia Thundercat – Fly Like An Eagle Lo Van Gorp – The Right Time Al Costelloe – California State Cows – Streets Of Stockholm Work Drugs – Slow Fade Mitch Davis – Bear The Cold Mamas Gun – Good Love Emma Noble & Nick Corbin ‎– Back On Track Leonard Luka – Elly Joel Sarakula – Sun Goes Down Paul Bender – Summer Fool

Sunshine Radio Late December Christmas Special

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Pexels To be honest, I have never been a holiday person, just like Kadhja Bonet: "I started making a playlist of all my favourite holiday songs and deep cuts to at least feel like I had some control over the celebration, and then I felt it was a shame to not appreciate good songs just because I can't get behind the commercialism of Christmas." (Bandcamp) Jeremy Spencer was an early member of Fleetwood Mac. He replaced guitarist Peter Green for a 1971 world tour, but after he had gone to a book store, he never returned… Five days later, police traced him to the headquarters of a Christian sect called the Children of God, which Spencer had apparently joined after being approached on the street. A few years later he began to record again and made Flee , one of the best yacht rock albums of the 1970s. Fanny (Be Tender With My Love) by the Bee Gees was originally on Main Course that came out in 1975. It was the third single release (after Jive Talkin' and Nights On Bro

Smooth Sailing: Sophisti-Pop, Slow Disco & New Romanticism

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Pexels All aboard, we are on our way to eighties land! One of the artists on board, or should I say one of the passengers on the night train, is Steve Strange, singer and co-founder of electro band Visage. He was one of the key figures of the New Romantics/Blitz movement in the early eighties, together with Spandau Ballet, Duran Duran, Culture Club and Ultravox. They were young musicians who not only wanted to make good music, but who wanted to look good as well. They brought some light in those dark days of economic crises and right-wing governments. Strange died of a heart attack in Egypt on the 12th of February 2015, after years of struggling with his health and a heroin addiction. “Flaunt the Imperfection is the one album where China Crisis got the balance right.” (Allmusic) Tracklist: Jeannine Otis & Heikki Sarmanto – Magic Song (1980) China Crisis – King In A Catholic Style (Wake Up) (1985) Pressyes – Merissa (2022) Butter Bath – Kurrajong Hotel (2022) ABC – Ocean Blue (

Sunshine Radio: The Sound Of The Seventies (Best Of KX Classics Series)

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Pexels We all need some sunshine in these dark days of winter, don’t we? That’s why I put together this mix from the parts that I made for the Sunshine 70s series that was created by Smooth Operator Martijn Soetens a couple of years ago. The show was broadcasted on KX Classics, a channel founded by Dutch radio-DJ and TV-presenter Rob Stenders. This tribute to Sunshine 70s is the first part of a new series, called Sunshine Radio . The next episode will be something completely different 😊 Frontman of Raydio, Ray Parker Jr. composed many great songs, but early in his career he wrote You Make Me Feel Like Dancing for Leo Sayer. Unfortunately producer Freddie Perren did not give him the credits, because Ray Parker Jr. had given him a tape without his name on it. Until this day he did not receive a penny for the song that went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1976. When the glam rock years had come to an end for British band Mud, the four members started to search for new directions. The

1977 The Year When Disco Was At Its Best

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Martijn Soetens The opening of Studio 54, the start of electronic dance music ( I Feel Love by Donna Summer) and the huge sales figures of the soundtrack to the movie Saturday Night Fever gave disco the boost it needed to become the most popular genre in 1977. C.J. & Co. were a so-called proto disco group from Detroit. The act was created by producer Mike Theodore and Motown guitarist Dennis Coffey, who played on many classics like Cloud Nine by The Temptations and War by Edwin Starr. Coffey also worked with Del Shannon and wrote the soundtrack to the movie Black Belt Jones . Enjoy this new part of the series the disco years ! Tracklist: Peter Brown & Betty Wright – Dance With Me [Album Version] The Mike Theodore Orchestra – The Bull Donna Summer – I Love You Brooklyn Dreams – Music, Harmony And Rhythm Archie Bell & The Drells – Old People Rokotto – Boogie On Up Caress – I Can't Let You Walk Away C.J. & Co . – Get A Groove In Order To Move Bill Brandon –

Sunset Drivers: Smooth Jazz, Sophisti-Pop & Yacht Rock

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Tolga Aslantürk Driving away from home Thirty miles or more And we'll go moving away from home Without a care in the world (Driving Away From Home / It's Immaterial) Steely Dan’s core members Donald Fagen and Walter Becker played on Rosie Vela's 1986 first and only album Zazu. It was produced by Gary Katz who had previously worked with Steely Dan. Though the album was critically acclaimed and had some success in Europe, it stayed under the radar in the United States. Following Zazu , Vela did not release any further material, but has since become a backing vocalist for other musicians, including Electric Light Orchestra on their 2001 album Zoom . Bryan Ferry's song about gossiping, Kiss And Tell, peaked at number 41 on the UK Singles Chart and at number 31 on the US Billboard 100 in early 1988. It was one of the tracks to the soundtrack of the movie Bright Lights, Big City , which featured Michael J. Fox ( Back To The Future ) as the main character. In the song'

Eddy’s 80s Grooves Part 46 Positive Disco Energy

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Ali Pazani MTV refused to play black music when it started back in 1981, because the executives thought that disco was over. This cloudcast proves that they were wrong and that some very good disco was made after the glory days of the 1970s. A shame that it took several years before the music station started to play major R&B artitsts like Michael Jackson and Donna Summer. British band ABC reinvented themselves multiple times in the 1980s. After making consecutively a bombastic pop, a rock and an electro pop album and prior to their move into house, Alphabet City saw the light of day in the late summer of 1987. Soon after this soul pop album was brought out, the two remaining members, Martin Fry and Mark White, released the single The Night You Murdered Love. The Whole Story featuring Contessa Lady V was on the B-side of the 12”. The song was a minor chart success in the UK, but went top ten in a number of European countries, including the Netherlands. Enjoy the positive disco en

Professor Eddy’s Top 20 November 1980

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Carlos Santisteban Every Friday afternoon I used to make a personal hit list when I was a kid in the late 70s/early 80s. The top 20 of week 46 1980 I have listed here from 20 to 1. This is the first time this hit list is heard. At the time, I never thought that my personal chart would ever find an audience, so this is definitely a dream come true with a 42-year delay! 😊 Driver’s Seat by Sniff ‘n’ The Tears was first released in 1978 and reached number 15 on the American Billboard Hot 100 a year later. In the Netherlands it took another year to become a moderate chart success. The single proved to be a real slow burner, because it eventually went to number one in 1991, after being used in a car radio commercial. Fun fact is that the lyrics aren’t about driving. The song is about taking the driver’s seat, which means being in control, after a relationship, according to singer Paul Roberts. The first line is often misheard. The words are not “a little driving on a Saturday Night”, but “

Smooth Sailing In A Quiet Storm

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  Unsplash This time I tried to create a contemporary variant of oldschool "quiet storm". According to pop magazine Rolling Stone, quiet storm (named after Smokey Robinson's classic song) is "a blend of pop, jazz fusion, and R&B ballads—all elegant and easy-flowing, like a flute of Veuve Clicquot champagne.” For fans of Lianne La Havas, Frida Touray’s name and voice will be familiar, having worked with her since 2015: “The deeply personal debut EP from Swedish & London-based singer-songwriter Frida Touray shows herself at her most vulnerable, capturing the essence of who she is and how she sees the world.” (Bandcamp) Enjoy this new part of Smooth Sailing ! Next up is a Mixcloud Exclusive , followed by part 46 of Eddy's Eighties Grooves for all listeners. Tracklist:  Frida Touray – Mending (2022) Rahill – Aht Uh Mi Hed (2022) Say She She – Pink Roses (2022) Dinah Eastwood – I Ran (So Far Away) [Liongold Remix] (2022) Edmund Paquin & Lofty &

Mellow Mellow FM Presents Groovy Times

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Unsplash This episode of Mellow Mellow FM is inspired by late seventies/early eighties West Coast radio and the current North West Coast show, each Saturday on Radio PVS, hosted by Matt Bird. He plays the best yacht rock, yacht rock adjacent, sunset soul, daytime disco and West Coast smoothness. Enjoy! Next up is a soulful part of Smooth Sailing with quite a few brand new tracks! Tracklist: 213 – Oh Me, Oh My (1981) SuperGOODThings – Hottie & The Yachty (2022) Psychic Mirrors – Dominatrix Morelle Ell (2021) Iain Matthews – Help To Guide Me (I Need Your Help) (1977) Steve Turner ‎– Harbor Place (1983) Con Funk Shun – All Up To You (1980) Art Garfunkel – In A Little While I’ll Be On My Way (1979) Sarah Dash – City Boy (1981) Photoglo – Don’t Be Afraid To Love Somebody (1980) Alan Price – Groovy Times (1980) Maxus – Nobody’s Business (1981) Electric Light Orchestra – Sweet Talkin' Woman (1977) Ambrosia – How Much I Feel (1978) Jimmie Spheeris – Beautiful News (1973

Mellow Mellow FM: Soft Spot For The Seventies

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Unsplash One of the most original acts of the mid-seventies was the band Sailor from Georg Kajanus. His concept of combining songs about sailors in the Jacques Brel tradition with an optimistic sing-along feel, made them unique in the pop genre. It resulted in a string of hits, like Traffic Jam , Sailor and A Glass Of Champagne . The band slowly disappeared from view and eventually split by the end of the decade. However, they re-formed several times, most notably in 1991 when they had a hit with La Cumbia . Blame It On The Soft Spot is from their 1974 debut album that was named after themselves. According to singer Paul Shuttleworth of Kursaal Flyers BBC Radio 1 refused to play Radio Romance because of its lyrics. He told Mojo magazine in March 2009 that this lack of airplay from the UK's then only national radio station was the reason why this follow-up to their hit single Little Does She Know went nowhere.   Enjoy this exclusive episode of Mellow Mellow FM ! Tracklist: K

Funky Chillout Airplane Session

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Unsplash Fasten your seatbelts, sit back, relax and enjoy this funky chillout airplane session! Midnight Plane To Houston , a song about Hollywood actress Farrah Fawcett, was the original title of the soul classic Midnight Train To Georgia . When Cissy Houston (mother of Whitney) wanted to record it, songwriter Jim Weatherly was asked if she could sing about a midnight train to Georgia. Her audience did not take planes to Houston. Weatherly did not mind, and certainly not after Gladys Knight's cover version, which went to number one a year later. Gladys Knight & The Pips had already scored a number 2 hit with Neither One Of Us , also a Jim Weatherly song. Tracklist: Bossasonic – Amazing Flight / Club Tropicana (2008) Sunset Boulevard Project – Fly Like An Eagle (2019) Bad Colours – Maybe I Should Move To L.A. (2022) California Flight Project – California Flight (1979) Kim Carnes – Bon Voyage (1985) Peter Allen – Fly Away (1980) Mascara (Feat. Luther Vandross) – See You I

Smooth Sailing In 1982

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Phoebe Cates 1982 was not only the last year of disco, it was the final year of yacht rock as well. Bands like Steely Dan and the Doobie Brothers created a smooth radio rock sound around the mid-seventies, but in 1982 frontmen Donald Fagen and Michael McDonald had left their bands and made one last pivotal solo album. Other key figures of yacht rock were the members of Toto who could be heard on many records at the time. In 1982 they reached their next level when they played extensively on Michael Jackson’s Thriller . That same year Toto made a milestone of their own, when they released Toto IV (with Africa on board). Both albums became commercial and creative highlights of a genre that seemed to have reached its end around that time. Some of the yacht rock artists kept on going, like Michael McDonald who was commercially successful with Sweet Freedom in 1986. It turned out to be his last Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. In the second half of the decade heavier genres, like metal

Le Temps Est Bon– Sultry Seventies Songs From France

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Unsplash The typical sultry sound of French pop dominated the Dutch charts in the 1970s. The gasping female vocals and masculine male voices made many of those hits seem like they came from soundtracks for soft porn movies. Isabelle Pierre even sang about the joy of being in a relationship with two men. When the decade came to a close and new musical genres popped up, like new wave and punk, the French disappeared from view. In the 1990s elements of that seventies style returned when Air released Moon Safari . And even contemporary artists like Emma Peters ( Le Temps Se Passe ) refer to the golden days of French pop music. The track by Paul Martin is from the new compilation French Rare Groove – Rare Funky Songs From France : “Freaky French tracks from a variety of sources – served up here in a set that does a great job of going past the obvious choices from the Serge Gainsbourg side of the spectrum!” (Dusty Groove) In 1979, Ottawan was founded by producers Daniel Vangarde and Jean Kl

Mellow Mellow FM California Sunset

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Unsplash Say She She are named after the Chic quote “C’est chi-chi” . This female trio is a multi- dimensional, multicultural, multi-instrumental, collaborative melting pot. “Think Donna Summer meets The Rotary Connection with a sprinkling of Asha Puthli backed by members of the Meters.” (Bandcamp) Their debut album is out this Friday. In 1974, American Gypsy who were based in the Netherlands, debuted with their song Angel Eyes. The single with Sly Stone inspired vocals and a glam beat reached top 10 in the Netherlands. As was standard marketing procedure at the time, their record company Philips rushed the band into the studio to release a supporting LP, which was called Angel Eyes as well. Picking up on the band's success, legendary company Chess thought it was a good idea to become their US distributor. No one knows why, but for the American market Chess chose for an alternative, psychedelic cover and a different title. This led to a commercial failure and blocked their Americ

Funky Chillout Sofa Session: Yacht Rock Interpretations

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Unsplash Many yacht rock artists sang about boats and used them as their cover art. The genre was some kind of soulful variant of mid-seventies West Coast pop/rock. It was made popular by bands like The Doobie Brothers, Steely Dan and Hall & Oates who were inspired by R&B artists. Because of the soulfulness of yacht rock, quite a few black artists covered these West Coast pop songs and they did it in an even more soulful way. Most recently Thundercat made a wonderful version of Steve Miller’s Fly Like An Eagle . Greg Caz wrote about this subject in the liner notes of Too Slow To Disco Yacht Soul : "Rock and Pop artists found covering Blues and R&B songs to be a reliable source both of great material and of artistic credibility. Meanwhile, Soul and R&B artists would routinely cover current Pop-Rock songs as a way of expending their audiences and crossover potential…" Enjoy this new funky chillout sofa session ! Next up is a new show on Mellow Mellow FM . Trackl

Smooth Sailing Breeze In & Breeze Out

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C-Heads Magazine Eddie Chacon used to be one half of legendary soul duo Charles & Eddie. According to Chacon, one of them was carrying a vinyl copy of the Marvin Gaye album Trouble Man , when they first met on the New York City Subway in 1990. The duo released their debut album Duophonic on Capitol Records two years later. It included the hit singles Would I Lie To You? , N.Y.C . and House Is Not A House Is Not A Home . It was remarkable that they had hits with classic soul music in a time when house and hip hop ruled the charts. They split amicably a few years later. Eddie Chacon only recently returned to the music business and signed a contract to Stones Throw Records. Holy Hell is a great comeback single and sounds a little bit like Got To Give It Up by Marvin Gaye. Hopefully he will not be sued by the heirs of the soul singer… Before Alan O'Day reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with his composition Undercover Angel in 1977, he wrote hits for other artists. First there

Mellow Mellow FM Summer’s End Radio

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C-Heads Magazine Enjoy one last episode of summertime radio on Mellow Mellow FM ! Just thinking of what once was… Thanks to Martijn Soetens for sending me some great authentic airchecks. According to an early promoter of the Beach Boys, Fun, Fun, Fun (on this cloudcast sung by The Carpenters) was inspired by the daughter of a radio station’s owner, who had borrowed her father's 1963 Thunderbird. Instead of going to the University library, as she promised, she went to a drive-in theatre. Mike Love and Brian Wilson of the band happened to hear the story when they visited the radio station. Eventually Fun Fun Fun became more or less the ultimate summer song. It even seemed to have inspired German electro pioneers Kraftwerk who sang “Fahr’n, Fahr’n, Fahr’n auf die Autobahn” on their American hit Autobahn , but band member Wolfgang Flür has denied that, according to Allmusic: "No! Someone else told me that they thought the way we speak in German, 'Fahren,' which means d

Boogie Grooves From The Crates

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Martijn Soetens When disco became a dirty word, because of its huge commercial impact after Saturday Night Fever in 1977, a more electronic, soulful equivalent rose to popularity in the early 1980s, now known as boogie. It was no longer music for the masses, but dance music for a club audience. I dug some of those tracks to show you what I mean. Enjoy this new part of Grooves From The Crates ! Next time I'm going to say goodbye to summer on Mellow Mellow FM . Tracklist: Manhattan Rhythm Feat. The Smithcox Organization – Sweet Lady (1983) Gene Chandler – Does She Have A Friend? (1980) Beau Williams – If You're Ready (1982) The Gene Dunlap Band – There’s Talk (1983) Sunrize – I Need You More Than Words Can Say (1982) The Jones Girls – Children Of The Night (1980) Josie James – Call Me (1985) Heatwave – Find It In Your Heart (1982) Gene Van Buren ‎– What's Your Pleasure (1982) Herbie Hancock – Can’t Hide Your Love (1982) Pieces Of A Dream – Fo Fi Fo (1983) El DeBarg

Cruise On Into The Sunset In Late Summer 1985

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Unsplash I tried to reproduce that typical mid-eighties electro sound with some songs from that period, but with some newer tracks as well that have that same electronic vibe. Contemporary singers Iversen and Roxi Drive even refer to 1985 in their lyrics. It was the twilight year when disco and new wave started to shine weaker, but were still there and new genres, like house and hip hop, came to surface. All sounds of the eighties seemed to have come together around that year. “So grab your keys to your Testarossa and head to the club, maybe pick up that special someone for a drink or cruise on into the sunset” (Into The Night With Calypso Drip FM / Gryff) Next up is a new episode of Grooves From The Crates ! Tracklist: Gryff – You’re Listening To Calypso Drip FM (2020) Roxi Drive – 1985 (2020) Oattes Van Schaik – Miracles (1985) Gryff – Into The Night With Calypso Drip FM (2020) Gladys Knight & The Pips – Ain't No Greater Love (1983) Jay Diggs Feat. Zyodara – Both Ways (2

Mellow Mellow FM Retro Summertime Radio

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Enjoy the feeling of old school summertime radio ! From left to right in the picture are Olivia Newton-John, Helen Reddy, Minnie Riperton and Linda Ronstadt. Sadly enough only Linda Ronstadt is still alive. Recently Olivia Newton-John passed away. Her career took off in the early 1970s with some major soft pop hits in the US. Her record sales dropped by the end of the decade, but she suddenly became a mega-star when she appeared as Sandy in Grease . Afterwards, just like in the movie, her image changed from an innocent girl to a woman all dressed in leather on the cover of her album Totally Hot , which contained A Little More Love . She kept this more provocative image until the release of her biggest hit Physical in 1981. In the second half of the decade she could not compete with new teen stars like Debbie Gibson and Tiffany and her days as a superstar were over. The tracks by Stephen Encinas and The Dukes are from the compilation album Too Slow To Disco 4 that came out last week.

Sunshine Days: Jazz Funk & Latin Grooves

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  C-Heads Magazine The long-awaited return of The Smooth Operators ! 😊 Martijn Soetens and I have tried to catch the vibe of a warm summer’s day, just before a heavy thunderstorm breaks loose… Enjoy! Leon Huff is known as one half of legendary songwriters duo Gamble & Huff, but he’s a brilliant organist as well. You can hear him play on Do It Anyway You Wanna by People’s Choice, for instance. The song was a mess at first and was on the shelves for quite some time, according to the king of disco mixes, Tom Moulton. After he had laid his hands on it, the track became what it is today, a disco classic. Uno Esta by American R&B flautist Bobbi Humphrey is from her 5th studio album Fancy Dancer . It was recorded in 1975, produced by the wonderful Mizell Brothers and released on the legendary Blue Note label. The Allmusic review by Thom Jurek awarded the album 4 stars, stating: "There isn't anything approaching a middling moment here -- this is all killer, no filler. Jazz

Post Disco Days Of Coloured Vinyl & Mixed Tapes

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After the implosion of disco in 1979, some subgenres came to the surface, like (electronic) boogie and Hi-NRG. The latter was mainly inspired by the electronic beats of Donna Summer’s I Feel Love . Big names of the genre were American producers Patrick Cowley (Sylvester) and Bobby Orlando (Divine, The Flirts). In the early 1980s the Italian DIY electro, known as italo disco, became popular in the American and European clubs. Later on in the decade the hit factory of Stock, Aitken & Waterman took Hi-NRG to the highest commercial level, starting with Dead Or Alive's You Spin Me Round (Like a Record) in 1984. The peak was followed by a very rapid decline as house music and Eurodance overtook the club scene by the end of the decade. Hi-NRG ended with Donna Summer’s album Another Place, Another Time in 1989, 10 years after she initiated the genre, but her I Feel Love still remains influential until this day, just think of Beyoncé’s Summer Renaissance from her latest album. Enjoy

Eddy’s 80s Grooves Part 45 Until The Morning Comes

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We’re grooving until the morning comes, enjoy! While imported disco records dominated playlists during the 1980s in Indonesia, a local music scene had developed in parallel, with artists like Grace Simon, Chaseiro and Rafika Duri (on this cloudcast). They used modern equipment, like synthesizers and drum machines and were influenced by western pop genres, like disco and yacht rock as well as Japanese city pop. Songs from this very interesting Indonesian pop scene (1979-1991) are available on the compilation Tanamur City , out on Cultures Of Soul. Next week The Smooth Operators will return! 😊   Picture: Unsplash Tracklist: Ray Parker Jr. & Raydio – Until The Morning Comes (1980) Bridge – From Darkness To The Light (1981) Brenda Russell – Hello People (1983) Level 42 – Love Meeting Love (1980) Dee Dee Sharp – I Love You Anyway (1980) Rafika Duri – Catatan Kisah (1983) Billy Griffin – Be With Me (1983) Cherrelle – I Didn’t Mean To Turn You On (1984) Alan Gorrie – Up (1985) B

Soft Breezes From Catalina Island

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Catalina Island (California) Catalina Island is a rocky island off the coast of Southern California. It inspired some musicians, like The Blue Jean Committee and I tried to pick up the same mood on this cloudcast. Although there are only a few soul artists on it, I believe that the overall vibe is quite soulful. So I hope you will enjoy these soft breezes from Catalina Island! Al Costelloe’s new song California deals with saying goodbye to a problematic relationship and the places that were meaningful to it. According to C-Heads Magazine , a song that is melancholic and sweet at the same time, nostalgic and utterly charming. As I told you last week, Light In The Attic recently released an album of lost demos from label boss Earl McGrath, recorded in the 1970s. Michael McCarty, the stepson of the notorious B-movie director Ed Wood, is represented by Christopher , a fine piece of soft rock. The track by Gary Benson is from the brand new compilation Bubblerock Is Here To Stay Volume Two,

Funky Chillout Evening Session

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  Kai Dahms If there's one song that sounds like a warm summer breeze, then it's Avant De Nous Dire Adieu by American model, singer, and actor Jeane Manson  After being photographed for Playboy magazine in 1974, she moved to France and appeared in several movies. In the summer of 1976 Avant De Nous Dire Adieu reached #12 in the Dutch Top 40. The song is featured on this cloudcast. Earl McGrath had the honour to discover Daryl Hall and John Oates in the early 1970s. According to Light In The Attic on Bandcamp, McGrath was the ultimate jet setter, an art collector and comic bon vivant who incidentally stumbled in the record business. In 1970 Atlantic founder Ahmet Ertegun gave him his own label, Clean Records. After his death in 2016, some of the demos he had recorded were literally found in a closet. Mark Rodney’s California, which is on this cloudcast, was one of them. Enjoy this funky chillout soundtrack to sundown!  Tracklist: Thundercat – Fly Like An Eagle (2022) Tonist

Smooth Sailing In 80s Style

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Unsplash Enjoy this Smooth Sailing part in 80s style with some sophisti-pop, retro wave and jazz-funk! For years I’ve been a huge fan of the New Retro Wave label. It releases new tracks that are heavily inspired by the 1980s. On this cloudcast I chose to play a couple of songs from the label that sounds so fresh as if the 1980s were still there. In the 1970s singer/songwriter and part-time actor Peter Godwin was one half of Metro, the other half was Duncan Browne, known for his hit single The Wild Places . In 1977 they made a very interesting self-titled album, some kind of missing link between glam rock and new wave. After their split Peter Godwin came up with a few superb electro pop songs, together with producer Georg Kajanus (Sailor). Baby’s In The Mountains is from his only full-length album Correspondence, which is available for download and on streaming services only recently. I was smart enough to buy the vinyl album back in the day 😉 Tracklist: All The Damn Vampires Feat.

AOR Radio Exclusive: Cruising The Boulevard In A Fancy Open Car

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C-Heads Magazine “Cruising the boulevard in a fancy open car” , as Wendy Waldman sings in Long Hot Summer Nights , that’s the mood of this cloudcast. Feeling the excitement about things to come, experiencing the joy of life, when you drive around with the radio on. According to Bandcamp, Earl McGrath was the ultimate jet setter, an art collector and comic bon vivant who stumbled into the record business between legendary parties in New York and LA. After his death in 2016, some of the demos he had recorded in the seventies were literally found in a closet. Light In The Attic recently put them together on an album for the first time: Earl’s Closet: The Lost Archive of Earl McGrath, 1970​-​1980 . The opening track of this cloudcast, Mark Rodney’s California is one of the tracks. "He's a maniac. He just moved in next door. He'll kill your cat and nail it to the door." (original lyrics for what would later become Maniac , the song for the movie Flashdance ). Enjoy this