Categories
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0 Can Record Store Day Save a Sinking Ship?
- Commentary
- by Kingsley H. Smith
- 04/15/2010
Album sales are down 6.1 percent in the first 3 month of 2010 compared to the same period in 2009, according to Nielsen SoundScan. They add that for the first time, iTunes and CD sales online have passed the traditional big box retailers. Amazon and their digital brethren now make up the largest distribution channel for music, and for good reason. Big boxers like Walmart, Target, and Best Buy have dropped the ball when challenged with stocking a satisfactory variety of the newest music being released. You'll always find the A-list performers in their racks, but you are hard pressed to find a deep selection of new music representing a variety of artists from different niche genres. Jazz, soul, and R&B are frequent victims of this trend. Bookstores including Encore and Barnes and Noble do a better job stocking tunes, but as with the big box stores, music sales no longer represent a growth area. The digital music download world is hurting too. Nielsen SoundScan says that downloads experienced their first year-to-year quarterly sales decline ever, falling about 1 percent between January 1 and April 4. In the same period in 2009, digital download sales were up 13 percent over 2008. CD's will eventually go the way of the horse and buggy, just as electric vehicles will slowly take market share from gas engine cars. Computers inevitably crash, and unless you back everything up, there's still a better element of permanency when investing in compact discs. The CD for many is still an important part of their music collection. Once upon a time, the best place in town to salivate over new releases and bountiful catalogs was the record store. I worked in an independent record store for 3 years part-time as a teenager. Today, only the bigger cities can still support the few independent record emporiums that are left. In Philadelphia, my favorite is Sound of Market Street, surviving in 2010 with an awesome collection of CD's (and vinyl discs). ----- 2022 Update: Sound of Market Street finally closed in 2014 after 30 years in business. ----- A worldwide event has been created to spotlight stores just like Sound of Market (JazSound). Saturday, April 17 will mark the 3rd annual Record Store Day. RecordStoreDay.com says that the original idea for this promotion was "conceived by Chris Brown, and was founded in 2007 by Eric Levin, Michael Kurtz, Carrie Colliton, Amy Dorfman, Don Van Cleave and Brian Poehner as a celebration of the unique culture surrounding over 700 independently owned record stores in the USA, and hundreds of similar stores internationally." The website further amplifies the concept explaining "this is the one day that all of the independently owned record stores come together with artists to celebrate the art of music." "Special vinyl and CD releases and various promotional products are made exclusively for the day and hundreds of artists in the United States and in various countries across the globe make special appearances and performances." Record Store Day is now celebrated on the 3rd Saturday every April. At RecordStoreDay.com, I did a random 'search by state' to see what was happening in Texas. Over 50 independent record stores came up in the Lone Star State, so there still is a heartbeat left in this disappearing institution that's now on life-support. Previous Post | Next Post
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- Games
- by Kingsley H. Smith
- 04/14/2010
Chic music was always a hit with Nile Rodgers on guitar, Bernard Edwards on bass, Tony Thompson on drums, and vocalists Norma Jean Wright and Alfa Anderson singing the lead. 2022 Update: This trivia quiz is among the 50 plus quizzes that l created for PowerhouseRadio.com. The original quiz allowed you to touch the correct answers and see your total score after the final question. Technology changes. Time marches on. The computer code for the original "Chic Music" quiz is no longer supported. I've recreated this trivia quiz as an image based text game using the original images. The "interactivity" is gone. That is, you can't just touch on the correct answer and see instant feedback for a right or wrong response. Anyway, you can still play along below, eyeballing the question, and taking a guess at the answers! ----- Est-ce que c'est chic? A) The Chic Album above is? Chic C'est Chic Believer Live in Concert Platinum Take It Off B) These Chic Albums above are (select two)? Risque' - Chic Chic - C'est Chic Chic Set - Le Freak Chic-ism - Risque' Real People - Chic Real People - Tonque In Chic C) The Chic Album above is? Risque' Merci Chic Live in Paris Dance Dance Dance Soup For One Piano Jive D) The Chic Album above is? Stylish Rhythm Chic Fashion Greatest Hits Vol. III The Very Best of Designer Chic Chic for Fun And the answers are: A) 6 - Take It Off B) 6 - Real People and Tonque In Chic C) 1 - Risque' D) 4 - The Very Best of Previous Post | Next Post
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0 The Delfonics Debut Harmonic Philly Soul
- Video
- by Kingsley H. Smith
- 04/09/2010
The Delfonics set the stage for the Stylistics, the O'Jays, and the eventual parade of other future smooth Philly-soul vocal groups. The sound of the Delfonics was not the funky sound of Motown, Stax, Memphis, or Chicago. Producer Thom Bell enhanced what the Delfonics created to eventually popularize this style of quiet storm R&B. Philadelphia's original Delfonics: Wilbert Hart, William Hart, and Randy Cain first recorded for the Cameo Parkway label. Thom Bell would grab them for his Philly Groove label, releasing "La La Means I Love You" in 1968. Major Harris, of "Love Won't Let Me Wait" fame would replace Randy Cain in 1971. As Marc Taylor describes in his book A Touch of Classic Soul: Soul Singers of the Early 1970's, there were 2 sets of Delfonics touring in the 1980s because of a legal fight over the name. There will be no confusion when you watch and listen to my 30 second slide show below featuring "the real" Delfonics. Previous Post | Next Post
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- Video
- by Kingsley H. Smith
- 04/07/2010
Back in 2002 on Powerhouse Radio, I started playing "Iwoya," an Angelique Kidjo duet with Dave Matthews from her album, Black Ivory Soul, released that year. Kidjo is a unique artist from West Africa, (Benin), mixing it up with a potpourri of eclectic world rhythms and soulful funky beats. She's just released her 9th album, OYO, singing in both traditional and English languages. James Brown's "Cold Sweat," and Curtis Mayfield's "Move on Up" (with John Legend & Bono) are a couple of the English language tracks. Don't worry about the language barrier, as this is universal music. Kidjo has unfortunately never received a lot of exposure in the USA. Perhaps this time around with a new album, things will change. Her current tour is catering to her European fan base, with these 2010 dates: April 11, Krefield, Germany - Kulturfabrik April 12, Berlin, Germany - Kesselhaus April 13, Hamburg, Germany - Fabrik April 15, Frankfurt, Germany - Botfabrik April 16, Cully, Switzerland - Cully Jazz Festival April 17, Paris, France - La Cigale April 20, Copenhagen, Denmark - Amager Bio April 21, Helsinki, Finland - Savoy Theatre April 22, Oslo, Norway - Cosmopolitan April 24, Stockholm, Sweden - G?tak?llaren Your browser does not support the audio element. Listen to Angelique, John Legend, and Bono sing "Move on Up" (59 seconds) from her new album, OYO. Watch Angelique Kidjo & Joss Stone perform "Gimme Shelter," a blast from the past. Previous Post | Next Post
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- Games
- by Kingsley H. Smith
- 04/02/2010
Even if you don't know who this blues brother is, you'll enjoy our newest "King Culture Music Photo Puzzle." 2022 update: This trivia quiz is among the 50 plus quizzes that l created for PowerhouseRadio.com. The original quiz allowed you to touch the correct answers and see your total score after the final question. Technology changes. Time marches on. The computer code for the original "King Culture" quiz is no longer supported. I've recreated this trivia quiz as an image based text game using the original images. The "interactivity" is gone. That is, you can't just touch on the correct answer and see instant feedback for a right or wrong response. Anyway, you can still play along below, eyeballing the question, and taking a guess at the answers! ----- A) Who is the King at the top of this page? King Floyd Jimmy King B.B. King Ben E. King Albert King King Harvest B) She recorded "Shame" at... 13 years old 25 years old 30 years old 21 years old 28 years old 17 years old C) Who am I? Earl King B.B. King Guitar King King Crimson Freddie King King Anthony D) Which King is this? King Lear Curtis King King Curtis King Sunny Ade King Floyd Scorpion King E) This guitar man is: Freddie King Austin King King Midas King Pleasure King Solomon Donny King F) My big hit song was: "Groovy" "Let's Groove" "Groove Me" "Old Skool Funk" "Old School Funk" "Boogie Shoes" And the answers are: A) 5 - Albert King B) 6 - 17 years old C) 2 - B.B. King D) 3 - King Curtis E) 1 - Freddie King F) 3 - "Groove Me" Previous Post | Next Post
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- Biography
- by Kingsley H. Smith
- 03/31/2010
The man known as "Mr. Excitement" began and ended his career as a member of a group. He sang with the Dominoes in 1951. In 1975, Jackie Wilson, the singer and the showman, performed the lead vocal for the Chi-Lites on "Don't Burn No Bridges." In the period between these 2 groups, the explosive solo career path of Jackie Wilson paved the way for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. As a 16 year old amateur Golden Gloves welterweight boxing champion in 1950, Sonny Wilson pretended to be 18 to qualify for the sport. Luckily for the music world, Sonny Wilson would abandon boxing to thankfully morph into Jackie Wilson and launch his singing career just one year later. By 1960, vocal sensation Jackie would break the one week attendance record at the Apollo Theater in New York City. He lived with a bullet in his stomach that could not be removed, the result of a 1961 encounter with a Juanita Jones, a female fan, who shot him in his New York City apartment. There would be more tragedy for Jackie, as he suffered a 1975 heart attack on stage in the Philadelphia area while singing his classic "Lonely Teardrops" at the Latin Casino dinner theater in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. With 47 songs on the R&B charts, and at least 54 in the top 100 pop singles chart, Jackie Wilson's 17-year-plus solo career is the stuff of legends. His voice sends chills up and down your spine. Just listen to "Baby Workout" if you have any doubts. Jackie Wilson died on January 21, 1984. His music lives on for new generations to enjoy. Previous Post | Next Post
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0 Erykah Badu Presents New Amerykah part 2 Return Of Return Of Ankh
- News
- by Kingsley H. Smith
- 03/25/2010
Dallas, Texas native Erykah Badu is scheduled to release New Amerykah, PT. 2: Return Of Ankh on Tuesday, March 30, 2010. This is her 9th album. Badu, a unique singer and songwriter, commands a very loyal fan following. With vocals that sometimes assault the senses, Erykah is not afraid to put fresh spins on R&B grooves. It's this capacity that makes her stand out from the rest of the formulaic female crowd. Previous Post | Next Post
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0 Smokey Robinson Writes the Mighty Classics
- Commentary
- by Kingsley H. Smith
- 03/23/2010
You know you're a great song writer when your catalog of melodies includes hundreds of compositions. At last count, Smokey Robinson had over 460 songs registered in the official online song databases as author (or co-author). Without Smokey, how would Motown have had all of those early hits? Let's not even mention the scores of artists who have covered his songs. "Ain't That Peculiar," Marvin Gaye and George Clinton. "My Girl," the Temptations and the Whispers. "Tears of A Clown," the Miracles and Shalamar. One of your all-time favorites might just be a Smokey Robinson song. When it comes to love and romance, the pen of 'Bill' William 'Smokey' Robinson is number one. Previous Post | Next Post
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0 Rose Royce Rides in Classic Soul Style
- Flashback
- by Kingsley H. Smith
- 03/18/2010
Producer Norman Whitfield was the wizard behind the mix with a nice run mentoring these four albums by Rose Royce released between 1976 - 1979. Car Wash - 1976, In Full Bloom II - 1977, Strikes Again III - 1978, and Rainbow Connection IV - 1979. Three of these albums were released on his own label Whitfield, distributed by Warner Brothers, (with the exception of Car Wash, on MCA). Before his Rose Royce days, Norman Whitfield wrote and produced many classics for Motown, including "Ball of Confusion," and "Just My Imagination" by the Temptations. Previous Post | Next Post
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0 Shelia E. and Natalie Cole Freeze Frames
- Flashback
- by Kingsley H. Smith
- 03/16/2010
Natalie Cole's "I Live For Your Love" is one of the many 7 inch 45 rpm vinyl picture sleeve singles released to promote her music back in the day. Some of her other picture sleeves include: "Dangerous" "Jump Start" "When I Fall In Love" "Miss You Like Crazy" Shelia E.'s "The Glamorous Life" and "The Belle of St. Mark" are her two most popular picture sleeves, along with: "A Love Bizarre" "Sister Fate" "Bedtime Story" "Holly Rock" "Hold Me" "Koo Koo" In 2010, some of these sleeves are more valuable than the records. You may find some hidden gems lying in a basement, garage, attic, flea market, second-hand shop, or at a used record store. Previous Post | Next Post