Hello Y'all,
This week I'll be manning the turntables while the fine folks at Maxwell's Party Party Party in celebration of the birth of twins Beth Ann and Danielle. Since one party deserves another I figured I would pull records for a close friend's wedding at the same time. Picking the Party hits proved to be quite fun and many of this weeks tracks will hopefully inspire some asses to make for the dance floor at the wedding as well as the Birthday. The idea for The Mixed Tape Sessions was to always try and turn someone onto to something new. Sometimes it's not about educating the crowd as much as it is about just having fun. This week you are allowed to sit back and relax but only between songs.
Primitive Sound System Mixed Tape Sessions and the continuing food stylings of el Diablo Every Tuesday! (9PM - 2AM)
Maxwell's
1039 Washington Street
Hoboken New Jersey
(201) 653-1703
I feel like dancing, dancing...WOO!
45s:
Monguito Santamaria - "Hey Sister" (Fania cat. 481)
Opening with a familiar Beatles-esque intro and hand claps Monquito and his crew charge head on with this Boo-Ga-Loo ass kicker. Horns come blaring and off we go. Monquito proves to be one hell of a fine Soul singer regardless of genre. The track is layered so heavily with horns, piano, vocals, percussion and bass that even the slightest misstep would send this track careening off its course. Monquito keeps everything in order with repeated phrases and handclaps and we make it to the end uninjured but a bit more sweaty and out of breath.
Hal Blaine - "Drums A Go-Go" (Dunhill cat. D-4049)
Hal Blaine must be the single most recorded drummer in history. He and his Wrecking Crew have backed more hits than any other combo. Blaine recorded about 5 LPs under his own name and most can be categorized as beefed up batches of Car/Surf-toons and full force Go-Go and Lounge tunes. "Drums A Go Go" is of course caged, white, thigh high boots and the beat the beat the beat. Hand claps and hoots dance around this Kinks inspired romp. Blaine's drums are the lead but organ and guitar must get honorable mention. The track bounces and shakes its way through with everyone in the club joining in and falling about the place.
Toussaint McCall - "Shimmy" (Ronn Records (a Division of Jewel) cat. RONN 3)
OK, this is one of the ultimate grooovy tracks. The A Side was a bit of a hit but unfortunately I am not even the slightest bit interested and for the most part unable to even drop the needle on "Nothing Takes the Place of You." It's a beautifully sung ballad but half way through I keep thinking of the slapping, trash can drums and screaming organ just a flip away. I know something that takes the place of you...SHIMMY that's what. "Shimmy" is so infectious and moving that I want it blaring out of my radio everyday when I wake up. The track is audio caffeine. The organ on Shimmy can only be described as a horn announcing "GET OUT MY WAY!" The drums skitter and slam and it almost seems as if the drummer is simultaneously holding the kit together while also beating it apart. The song has several breaks in which the drummer and organ could get creative yet they take the time to recoup a bit from the onslaught they have created.
The Mar-keys - "Grab This Thing, Part 1" (Stax cat. S-181)
Stax can almost do no wrong in my eyes. Whether it be an instrumental backing track or a stylish vocal cut they always had the dance floor n mind. "Grab This Thing" is no exception. Steady and tight from start to finish the band bobs a long with confidence. A screaming horn cuts the track in half and other instruments follow suit as they break from center. Everyone falls back in line after one more "Ah, yeah" vocal in the break and we leave the way we came in... strutting.
Harvey Scales & The Seven Sounds - "Get Down 1970" (Chess cat. 2093)
You can never get enough of a good thing. Harvey Scales takes his classic dance floor number at a slightly quicker pace but he never forgets that it's asses he is entertaining and not heads. Like Monguito's "Hey Sister" this track is not for the weak at heart. One wrong move and you can be thrown from the dance floor like a drunken version of ring-around-the-rosy. "Get, get down, Baby!"
Bobby Freeman - "S-W-I-M" (Autumn cat. Record No. 5)
This, for the lack of a better word, re-make of "C'mon Swim" is an incredible bridge between to worlds I love, Soul and Garage Rock. Like the above "Get Down 1970", this version has a bit more propulsion behind its stroke. There are some incredible Garage organ moments as well as some triple time drumming that is tiring just to listen to. You might as well join in or you are likely to be pulled into the undercurrent. I swear I saw a wake left behind by the needle as this was spinning.
Arthur Alexander - "Need A Shot of Rhythm and Blues" (Dot cat. 45-16309 (Mw-16390)
Arthur Alexander was a usual topic at the counter in the early days of Finyl Vinyl. If a Garage Band or some English Invasion band, namely the Stones, covered a tune the original was coveted regardless of the quality of the remake. Arthur Alexander was a true original and seems to still be one of the most overlooked influences, if not an actual cornerstone, in the creation of Rock-N-Roll. In this incident, the Beatles couldn't hold a candle to the Master. "Need A Shot of Rhythm and Blues" demands you to get up and dance in any way you possible can. This is one you can easily pop drunkenly across the floor to as well as glide in rhythmic perfection with its shoulder and finger popping ease. If you need to define what "cool" is to someone, jut play them this tune.
The Capitols - "We Got A Thing That's In The Groove" (Karen Records cat. 1526 (K-10880))
Congas pound out an intro to one of my favorite tunes since I was a kid. How is it that the Capitols always sound so current in some way? I can't explain that statement but it is a sound that is always there when I listen to them. This is music that is happy, their sense of humor comes through with every spin but it is never clownish or dopey. The congas pound throughout the track and the track never eases for even one second, not even during the breaks. Boo-Ga-Loo, Funk, Soul, R&B, Rock, call it what you will but whatever you do call it often and get ready to move to the groove.
The Barbarians - "What The New Breed Say" (Laurie Records Inc. cat. LR 3321)
HEY, HEY, HEY! Think for your self! Or just jump around like you have lost your mind. The Barbarians are laying down their philosophy while you bounce from one foot to the other and shake wildly in agreement. Let's face it, we dig what the Barbarians are laying down and we aren't going to sit idly and let it pass us by.
The Children Of Darkeness - "Sugar Shack A Go-Go" (royce cat. #5140)
Quite a name for these Frat Rocking Troglodytes. I don't believe the The Children Of Darkness are going for a Horror Movie moniker here as much as they are letting us know that they excel at what they do best after dark. Apparently what they do best is drink, kick their instruments across the stage until they fall down and above all rock the floor. Taken at triple time you are lucky if you can breath at the end of this. Where's my puffer?
The Strangeloves - "Cara-Lin" (Bang Records cat. W-10017)
This could be one of the loudest records I own. The Strangeloves play really really big ass drums and percussion and can sing in Harmony really really loud. I wish I could hire these guys for a party but I have a feeling they can't pound them out like this anymore. The song opens with a big beat break that practically becomes the chorus of this hyper-energetic vocal and guitar duel. A two and a half minute party if there ever was.
...and there is tons more where these came from. I gotta hit the hay. I grabbed a full box more than I usual do so I guess I am going until they kill the power.
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