KATE NASH, YOU DEVIL

I'm sitting in the student commons area of my school here in the South Loop listening to Kate Nash's Mouthwash over the speakers. The cloying fey pluckish willful inanity of this song makes me yearn for the self importance of Grunge's ennui. Nash sings lyrics like "although you try to infringe you cannot confine" and "even if you try and hold me back there's nothing that you can gain." before moving to the chorus "And I use mouthwash/ Sometimes I floss/ I got a family/ And I drink lots of tea." It's as though she's apologizing for having nearly presented an emotional condition. Maybe she's trying to 'ground' us by the removal of any subjective content? I'm comfortable with burdensome emotionalism, we all are, but buoyant pop so self aware it can't even give us that!? Just sing about a fucking boy.

A tireless machine needs fuel and this is the kind of song the new world order has condoned. It is equally at home in a commercial, place of commerce, or on your miniature music playing device. Perhaps the smaller the player the tinier and more inconsequential the song and its themes.

DERRICK MORGAN

Derrick Morgan - Moon Hop
Derrick & Patsy Todd - Housewives' Choice
Derrick Morgan - Forward March
Derrick Morgan - Tougher Than Tough (Rudi In Court) Often considered the first single to typify the Rocksteady sound.
Derrick Morgan - Seven Letters Likewise with this song in the transition from Rocksteady to Reggae.

All songs found on Derrick Morgan - Moon Hop: Best of the Early Years 1960-69

THE BANDIT LABEL

The first song I posted by The Majestic Arrows was released on the amazing compilation Eccentric Soul: The Bandit Label. It was put together by the Chicago based Numero Group. They're one of the few reissue labels to act with musicologist rigor while turning up straight scorching soul rarities. They arduously searched to uncover the music and history of Arrow Brown and his Bandit label. The story is full of lurid accounts of his harem of "daughters", business mishap, and the incredible music they produced. All of this is chronicled in an article originally published in the Reader. You can read the full text on the Numero Group's website here

The Arrows - We Have Love
Altyrone Deno Brown - Sweet Pea

ON TOPIC

THE COVER, THE ANSWER, THE ELASTICITY OF SONG

Slim Smith - Ain't Too Proud To Beg
The Temptations - Ain't too Proud To Beg

Irma Thomas - Ruler Of My Heart
Otis Redding - Pain in My Heart
Originally written by New Orleans R&B maven Allen Toussaint under the alias Naomi Neville. Otis Redding reinterpreted the song, changing the arrangement and lyrics and credited it as a Redding original. Toussaint sued Stax & Redding and as out of court settlement the credit was changed.
Helene Smith - Pain In My Heart

The battle of the sexes response song.
Jean Knight - Mr Big Stuff
John Holt - Sister Big Stuff

Sean Kingston - Beautiful Girls
Jojo - Beautiful Girls

Aretha Franklin - Respect
Aretha--Afrofemcentric? My wack art education says yes.
Norma Fraser - Respect
Otis Redding - Respect


Elton John - Don't Go Breaking My Heart
Ol' Dirty & Macy Gray - Don't Go Breaking My Heart
I'm surprised no one saw the dollar signs in a Marvin Gaye/Tammi Terrell styled full length.

JOHN FAHEY - FOR MARTIN LUTHER KING

John Fahey - March! For Martin Luther King

DEEP GROOVE SHAMED

I only recently learned that "deep groove" is a literal description of the groove appearing in the label of early vinyl (visible on this off the chain Handel platter). I always figured it was some record dweeb synonym for deep soul or hard bop or some how qualitative. Like "This is some heavy, deep groove shit." I guess it works on a few levels.

AFRICA DANCES

Here are some tracks from the amazing compilation of African music compiled and released by John Storm Roberts on his Original Music label. I first heard many of these songs on Mississippi Records' "Love is Love" compilation which is culled largely from Africa Dances. Both are beautiful collections and nice all over surveys.


S.E. Rogers (sierra leone) - Toomus Meremereh Nor Good


'Smodern (South Africa) - Miss Smodern


Peter Tsotsi, Nashil Pichen & The Equator Sound Band (Kenya)- Pole Musa


Five Nyasa Farmworkers (Malawi)- Atshakongwe Wamwe


Alemayno Eshirtay Group (Ethiopia)-Love Is Love

There is also a wonderful interview with John Storm Roberts on Pacifica radio
here.