Professor Eddy

This week I host a slow disco pool party with a small, final tribute to the Queen of Soul. As I told you last week, Aretha Franklin started to struggle with her career in the 1970s, when she did not seem to have a clear direction anymore. Her voice even seemed to sound a little timid on some records. Her self-confidence came back in the 1980s when some good producers knew how to use her voice best. I particularly like her 1982 album ‘Jump to it’, a collaboration with legendary singer Luther Vandross and multi-talented bass player Marcus Miller, who would later work with jazz icon Miles Davis. The opening track is the best hommage to Aretha I could think of. Enjoy this 60 minutes of pleasure from my pool party cassette! Thanks to Walter Sobcek for the inspiration. Tracklist: Aretha Franklin – It’s Just Your Love (1982) Michael Jackson – Can’t Help It (1979) Michael McDonald – I Keep Forgettin’ [Late Nite Tuff Guy “Not In Love Anymore” Edit] (2013) The Isley Brothers – Priz...

C-Heads Magazine Let’s close the curtains, shut down the sun and tune in to AOR late summer night radio!  When her career seemed to go downhill in the 1970s, it did not necessarily mean that Aretha Franklin did not make any good records anymore. I specifically like the album You from 1976, which contains It Only Happens (When I Look At You) . She then was and she will always be the one and only Queen of Soul. I also selected a track from the new album Down To The Strip by Ash Reynolds: “Put on your gladdest of drags and hit the main thoroughfare; for his debut album Reynolds is taking us to town and he's doing it with serious sonic style. Down To The Strip is a hazy, dusky balmy LA Miami night circa 1985.” ( Juno ) Tracklist: Aretha Franklin – It Only Happens (When I Look At You) (1975) Rupert Holmes – Him (1979) Jimmy Messina – Love Is Here (1979) Gino Vannelli – Feel Like Flying (1978) Lee Ritenour Feat. Eric Tagg – Sunset Drivers (1984) Work Drugs – On The...

Joan Smalls (Patrick Demarchelier/Vogue) Enjoy your Tropicana Flight and your visit at Club Tropicana! The first hour symbolizes a smooth flight (“lounge pop”) and the second part is inspired by the 1984 Wham! video (“club pop”). To be honest, I have a little fear of flying myself, just like former Dutch soccer player Dennis Bergkamp and singer Gary Brooker (Procul Harum). But to overcome the fear, I have selected quite a few happy and joyful songs about taking planes and making trips to paradise resorts, like Club Tropicana: “Pack your bags, And leave tonight. Don't take your time, Gotta move your feet, don't you miss the flight! Cool, cool, cool, cool” About 7 years ago L.A. based duo Poolside made waves with their daytime disco version of Neil Young's Harvest Moon as well as original tunes. In 2012 they released their sunshine drenched debut album Pacific Standard Time on their own Day & Night label, followed by Heat last year. I chose to play Take Me Home...

C-Heads Magazine This disco beach party is an alternate version of a mix I recently did for Boogie Bunker Radio .  One of the main tracks is If I Can’t Have You from Yvonne Elliman. She played Maria Magdalene in the film version of Jesus Christ Superstar , for which she won a Golden Globe award. She also appeared in the American production of the musical on Broadway, where she met her later husband Bill Oakes, the president of RSO Records. He introduced her to Eric Clapton, who asked her to sing backup vocals on I Shot the Sheriff . Label companions Barry and Robin Gibb wrote Love Me for her, which became a worldwide hit and paved the way for her greatest chart success, If I Can’t Have You from the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. By the end of the 1970s, however, she became unhappy with her image as a disco diva and quite suddenly she went off the radar. While mixing First Choice's Dr Love, Tom Moulton suffered from a heart attack, but he waited more than four hours to go t...