NEW YORK SKA-JAZZ ENSEMBLE - "Low Blow" (1996)

 

I don't know what it is about twin horns, but just like a duet of voices in perfect harmony, the sound of twin horns is just music that I think is incomparable, and probably nobody does it better than the New York Ska-Jazz Ensemble.

This album titled "Low Blow" came out in 1996, and has some killer music on it.

I see they are still performing these days, so I hope they come to the west coast, because I'd sure like to see them perform 'live' some day!

Here's a really cool song that's a tribute to the Jug, aka the incredible tenor saxophonist Gene Ammons!

NEW YORK SKA-JAZZ ENSEMBLE - "Gene Ammons"

THE ROCKY FELLERS - "Killer Joe" (1963)

 

The Rocky Fellers were from the city of Manila in the Philippines. They were a family affair made up of the father, Doroteo "Moro" Maligmat and his four sons Eddie, Albert, Tony and Junior Maligmat.

Think of a Filipino Jackson Five that included the Dad Joe Jackson.

 

The song "Killer Joe" made it to number 14 on the charts, and was song about a dancer named Frank "Killer Joe" Piro who got the name from his uncanny ability to wear out all his dance partners.

Killer Joe Piro went on to be a dance instructor in New York, who taught many celebrities how to do dances like The Frug, The Watusi, and The Hully Gully.

In 1965, Smirnoff Vodka asked Killer Joe to come up with a new dance called The Mule for ads for their new drink The Smirnoff (Moscow) Mule. 

For years, I thought this was a girl group with a funny name, not a bunch of kids.

THE ROCKY FELLERS - "Killer Joe" 

ALAN HOLDSWORTH - "Secrets" (1989)

 

I never thought doing this blog would be like walking through a graveyard, but sometimes, that's how it feels. Take Alan Holdsworth for instance. I was a big fan of his back in the 80's, but with all the music in the world, I haven't kept up with a lot of artists, so it was disappointing when I started writing this to find out that Alan Holdsworth had passed away nine years ago.

You know, it just ain't fair!

This record called "Secrets" came out in 1989, and here's just a very short cut that shows just how unique Alan's playing was.

I'm not sure he ever got as much credit as he deserved! 

Cheers!! 

ALAN HOLDSWORTH - "City Nights" 

DAVE AND ANSEL COLLINS - "Double Barrel" (1971)

 

"Double Barrel" is right, a hot naked gal inside an aged rum barrel of a loaded pistol, I think I see what's going on here. It's only taken me 55 years to figure it out!!

Dave and Ansel Collins recorded this fantastic album in 1971, and here's just one example of  how damn good they were!

Soulful and sweet, it's hard to beat music like this, because you can't!

DAVE AND ANSEL COLLINS - "That Girl" 

THE GENTRYS - "Keep On Dancing" (1965)

 

The Gentrys were from Memphis, Tennessee, and they had this number four hit in 1965 titled "Keep On Dancing," Their lead singer, Jimmy Hart did not sing this song, but instead it was sung by the guitarist Larry Raspberry.

"Keep On Dancing" was the height of their career, but Jimmy Hart did go on to be a very prominent figure in WWF wrestling as the manager known as "The Mouth Of The South." 

One very interesting fact about "Keep On Dancing,," and I'm sure Jimmy Hart learned a lot from this, the song is really only a little over one minute long. There's a fade a little past the middle, and then a drum roll, and that one minute starts over.

What fantastic marketing, and 'Poetry in Motion" indeed.

THE GENTRYS - "Keep On Dancing" 

WHAT DO YOU MEAN "TROMBONES ARE AS COOL AS GUITARS!?

 

Rich here. From the time I was 8 or 9, I wanted to play guitar. At first, it was because I wanted to be like Gene Autry or Roy Rogers -- a guitar-playing singing cowboy. And then when I saw my uncle Wes on TV dressed in a cowboy outfit, playing his guitar and singing western songs, that made him cool in my book. 

 

And, of course, once the Beatles came along, my guitar-desire only deepened.

 

But if you had told me I should take up trombone, or that trombones could rival a guitar, I would have laughed in your face. I mean, which guys in the band get all the girls? Not one of the horn players! (Unless you're genuinely cool like Miles Davis.)

 

But then I stumbled on to the Maniacal 4 a few months ago, who turned one of my big "guilty pleasures" of the Seventies, "Carry On Wayward Son" by Kansas into a Trombone tour de force. 

 

No, the Maniacal Four aren't sex symbols by any means, but, man, they smoke!

MANIACAL 4 - "Carry On Wayward Son"

THE PSYCHEDELIC ALIENS - "Biofonyobi Wo Atale" (1970)

 

This funky Record by The Psychedelic Aliens was released in 1970. The band was from Ghana, and were active from 1969 to 1971. They also released two singles in 1971 as The Magic Aliens.

These guys were great, and they definitely deserved a larger audience!

It's even worth sitting through stupid YouTube commercials to be able to hear something as cool as

 THE PSYCHEDELIC ALIENS - "Biofonyobi Wo Atale" 

GREG GARING - "Alone" (1997)

 

Here's a concept for you, play a cool funky guitar groove, get Mike Watt, the bass player of The Minutemen to lay down some bottom, the phenomenal Andy Kravitz to play drums, and sing a sweet song over the top of it.

It works me, and it sure works for Greg Garing. 

His CD titled "Alone" came out in 1997, and this was the lead off song!

GREG GARING - "My Love Is Real" 

THREE SIDES OF DAVID BOWIE!!!

 

I'm a big fan, but some of David Bowie's early songs were not that great, and in 1967, he came out with this single. 

The music is good, but this song grates on me like nails on a chalkboard. You'd think after Alvin and the Chipmunks I'd be used to it, but no. 

DAVID BOWIE - "The Laughing Gnome" 

 

Ten years later, the polar opposite is a song from David's 1977 album titled "Low," which is a really beautiful instrumental.

I never get tired of this song!

We were lucky enough to see him 'live' and this was the opening song! 

DAVID BOWIE - "A New Career In A New Town" 

 

I was going to end it there, when I remembered this version of "Hallo Space Boy" David and the band performed on the "Later with Jules Holland" TV show in 1995.

This is one of the most gorgeous pieces of chaos I've ever heard in my life.

The drummer Zachary Alford is killing it, while Carlos Alomar shreds, Gail Ann Dorsey holds down the bottom for 5 1/2 minutes of controlled madness, and somehow David Bowie manages to sing on top of it all.

DAVID BOWIE - "Hallo Space Boy" 

LINTON KWESI JOHNSON - "Forces Of Victory" (1979)

 

As far as Dub Poetry is concerned, I just don't think it gets much better than Linton Kwesi Johnson. He's got a great voice that is powerful and soothing at the same time. He sounds like a person you can trust, and his message is always solid!

"Forces Of Victory" was his first record, and it came out in 1979, and still shines like a beacon in the dark of night. 

LINTON KWESI JOHNSON - "It Noh Funny"

THE DEVIANTS - "The People's Suite" (1969)

 

I bought this LP new when it came out in 1969. I mean, how's a normal guy supposed to resist a cute Twiggy looking nun licking a Popsicle?

And I have to admit, it did not disappoint, because this is one strange LP from start to finish, and I mean that in a good way! 

There are plenty of places to listen to this album in it's entirety for free, and this is good example of what you'll discover when you do.

Sheer joy and happiness! 

THE DEVIANTS - "The People's Suite" 

THE JAYNETTS - "Sally Go Round The Roses" (1963)

 

From Wikipedia: "The credited members of the Jaynetts who recorded "Sally Go 'Round the Roses" were Yvonne Bushnell, Ethel Davis (aka Vernell Hill), Ada Ray Kelly and Johnnie Louise Richardson, a fifth credited member Mary Sue Wells (aka Mary Sue Wellington/Mary Green Wilson) was recruited through a newspaper advertisement."

 

 This is a very haunting and ethereal song, and just like the girl on this French 45 sleeve, I don't think that there is anything to compare it to.

It's like a crazy beautiful dream, and yet it reached number two on the charts on my birthday in 1963.

THE JAYNETTS - "Sally Go Round The Roses" 

FALSETTO SONGS THAT MANAGED TO HIT THE CHARTS AFTER ROCK BECAME DOMINANT

 

In the years between 1959 and 1963, popular music for teenagers struggled to find its identity. Rock had died, it was said, after Elvis was inducted into the Army (1958) and Buddy Holly died (1959). In its place, sappy pop songs sung by Frankie Avalon, Bobby Vinton, and the like ruled "American Bandstand;" Instrumental surf music came along (and largely went); sassy Girl Groups, R&B, and Motown broke color barriers with White teens; and Doo Wop gained a toe-hold on the charts. 

 

And, interestingly, during that period of Rock's dormancy, male singers with high falsetto voices became a THING. Of course, once The Beatles and other British bands smashed through America's doors in 1963 and 1964, giving way to a rebirth of Rock, most of the artists and groups featuring falsetto singing pretty much died out -- with only The Four Seasons and The Beach Boys continuing to thrive in the post-British Invasion world of pop music.

 

But every once in awhile, there were exceptions -- times when a falsetto-voiced record became a hit song. 

 

Despite their square pre-Beatles appearance and reputation as a "sappy pop" duo, Dick & Dee Dee had a 1965 hit with the lively "Thou Shalt Not Steal," a record that broke free of the duo's "sappy pop" origins by embracing a tougher-sounding approach that embraced the influence of Rock's re-emergence.

DICK & DEE DEE - "Thou Shalt Not Steal" 

 

A year later, in 1966, Lou Christie, another former sappy pop singer had a couple major hit records. "Rhapsody in the Rain" was particularly striking because in addition to its great production values, it embraced a frank sexuality that would have been hard to find in the pre-Beatles era, certainly on Top Forty radio. (The song's topic is making love and "going too far" in the back seat of the singer's car during a thunderstorm.) The record is produced by former Four Seasons producer Charles Calello, who gives the record its aural drama by punctuating his "Wall of Sound" production with the sounds of thunder and rain and gritty guitar licks. All of it in service to Lou Christie's lustful vocals, highlighted by his falsetto in the irresistibly hooky refrain.

LOU CHRISTIE - "Rhapsody in the Rain" 

CAL TJADER - "Soul Sauce" (1965)

 

"Soul Sauce" was a huge hit for vibraphonist Cal Tjader in 1965, but it's been 61 years since then, so I'm guessing there are lots of people who have never heard it.

The original title was "Guachi Guaro" which you will hear them chanting start and finish.

Vibes, piano, and percussion make this instrumental the solution for the doldrums, and it's good for the soul too! 

As legitimate as it sounds "Guachi Guaro" is just a made up phrase that doesn't directly translate to anything, although it could have something to do with alcohol!

CAL TJADER - "Soul Sauce" 

 

 

 

BILL CONNORS - "Assembler" (1987)

 

Bill Connors is an amazing guitarist, and one of my favorites from the 70's and 80's.

Three chord rock is great no doubt, but when you need a break, you can't beat some good jazz fusion, and that's what Bill Connors is all about.

I'm not big on fusion dominated by synths and other keyboards, but when the guitarists take charge, that's when it gets really good, at least for me.

I think this tune will explain it better than I can. 

BILL CONNORS - "Crunchy" 

PEACEPIPE - "A Biker's Tune" (1969)

 

I didn't really know anything about John Uzonyi and Peacepipe until my pal, the fantabulous artist Gary Wray, told me to give them a listen. This is the kind of music that made people say "Wow!" a lot back in the day.

Recorded in maybe 1968 or 69 but not released until Rockadelic Records had the balls to do it in 1995, here's some super fuzztone guitar driven insanity.

Dick Dale and Leslie West jamming in Hendrix's basement, or that's at least what it sounds like to me!

TURN IT UP LOUD! 

PEACEPIPE - "A Biker's Tune"

THE GAMMA GOOCHEE HIMSELF - "(You Got) The Gamma Goochee" (1965)

 

 

"Tikki Tikki Tembo" -The book tells the story of a Chinese boy with a long name who falls into a well. It is an origin myth story about why Chinese names are so short today. 

It is also a Japanese story. 

In some stories the boy drowns, and in some stories he is barely saved because it took so long to get help because of his long name. 

 

"Long-Name-No-Can-Say" 

 A cross-cultural phenomena, here are just a few examples. 

 

"Teki-teki-no, teki-suri-ombo, so-take-nudo, Harima-no-betto, Cha-wan-chaus'no, Fushimi-no-Esuke"

 

"Het-toko het-toko hengo-no-kami, ik-kai niu-do waniudo, gaga-no fun-nai-zama, oodep-po kodep-po, sasara dep-po hibashi, ja-jan-janjan" 

 

"Tiki-tiki-tembo-no sa rembo-Hari bari broohski-Peri pen do-Hiki pon pom-Nichi no miano-Dom bori ko"

 

"Nicki Nicki Tembo No So Rembo Ooma Moochi Gamma Gamma Goochi" 

 

"Eddie Koochy Katcha Kama Tosa Neera Tosa Noka Sama Kama Wacky Brown" 

 

"Tiki Tiki Timbo No Sin Nimbo Hoi Boi Boski Poi Pon Do Hiki Pon Pon Niki No Mi Ah Dom Poi" 

 

"Ekitekini tekisuru onbō Sōrinbō sōtaka nyūdō Harimano bettō chawan chausuno hikigino Hyokosuke"

 

"Pacho-Nacho-Nico-Tico-Melo-Felo-Kiko-Rico" 

 

The list goes on and on, and in 1965, John Arthur Mangiagli wrote and recorded this song

which was also later covered by The Kingsmen!

THE GAMMA GOOCHEE HIMSELF - "(You Got) The Gamma Goochee" 

FRANK ZAPPA - "Hot Rats" (1969)

 

"Hot Rats" was Frank Zappa's second solo album after "Lumpy Gravy" and the musicians playing on it are so good, they should be considered a super group.

Written by Zappa, with vocals by the one and only Captain Beefheart, the song "Willie The Pimp" is a marvel of a tune.

The rest of the players were Don "Sugarcane" Harris on violin, Ian Underwood playing the tack piano, Max Bennett on bass, and John Guerin on drums.

These guys have played with everybody from Joni Mitchell and Frank Sinatra to Alice Cooper and Janet Jackson, and literally tons more.

In 1956 Sugarcane Harris was half of the duo Don & Dewey, and even though they didn't have any hits, the pair of songwriters were responsible for some very classic songs like "Farmer John" by The Premieres, "I'm Leaving It Up To You," by Dale and Grace, and "Big Boy Pete" by The Olympics.

Not as big a hit, but one of my favorite compositions of theirs is this maniacal upbeat rocker. 

DON & DEWEY - "Baby Gotta Party"

 

So here you go, driven by the violin of Sugarcane Harris and Zappa's guitar work, one of my all-time favorite songs.

 FRANK ZAPPA - "Willie The Pimp" 

THE SHALLARAS - "I Put Something In Your Drink" (2026)

 

The Shallaras are my new favorite band because they are super talented, and just fun to watch and listen to.

I was unfamiliar with this duo until my pal, the wild and krazy artist Gary Wray, sent me a link to this video that just knocked my socks off.

 

The Shallaras are Angela Cory: Voice and Saxophone....and

Mauro Pandolfino: Guitar, Bass lines and Drums played together at the same time without any overdubs.

You can find out more about them at their website, 

or just look them up on Bandcamp.

Check them out, I guarantee you will not be disappointed! 

THE SHALLARAS - "I Put Something In Your Drink" 

THE UBIQUITOUS SIXTIES SONG - "Hey Joe"

 

Rich here. I'm guessing any Baby Boomers reading this remember the iconic Sixties song, "Hey Joe." Almost every garage band worth its salt (including my own band) covered "Hey Joe," and dozens of recording artists released their own versions of the song, including some major groups like The Byrds, the Jimi Hendrix Experience, and Deep Purple. 

 

"Hey Joe" started out in the early '60s as a somewhat traditional acoustic  folk-blues "murder song" narrated from the viewpoint of a jilted lover who vows revenge. Within a year or so of its first recorded version, the song caught on with some of L.A.'s biggest bands of the time, not least because David Crosby introduced it to his band, The Byrds, who were the headlining band at the Whiskey A-Go-Go. The song's popularity with other bands and artists quickly spread beyond the confines of Southern California.

 

There's a lot of controversy about who actually wrote "Hey Joe." Dino Valenti (aka Chet Powers) of the band Quicksilver Messenger Service claimed he wrote it, as did cult folk artist Tim Rose, but it was first copyrighted by folksinger Billy Roberts, who was also the first artist known to record the song. However, singer/songwriter Niela Miller (who was Billy Roberts' former girlfriend) . . . claimed that Roberts 'stole' the melody and chord progression from her 1955 song "Baby, Please Don't Go to Town." According to Miller, all Billy did was write some new lyrics. 

 

Although the song's popularity seemed to die out in the Seventies, in the Sixties "Hey Joe" was one of the most ubiquitous songs of the era with many artists giving their own unique spins on its arrangement. Here are several distinctive ones:

 

The first recorded acoustic version by Billy Roberts from 1961-62

The definitive Southern California rock version by The Leaves (1966)

 

Jimi Hendrix's psychedelic version (1966)

The Soul version by Wilson Pickett (1969)

 

BONUS Tex-Mex version by Willy Deville (1992)

SCORPIO TUBE - "White Birches" (1970)

 

It's 1970 in L.A. and the name of the band is Scorpio Tube.

One single is all they have with this A side called "White Birches," and an even wilder B side titled "Yellow Listen." 

 

This tune was suggested by my pal Underground Artist, Gary Wray.

It never hurts to go check out some of his wild art while you're listening to the sounds of...

SCORPIO TUBE - "White Birches"