0 Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia

• Video
• by Kingsley H. Smith
• 09/09/2008

Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia, is the most ambitious CD collection to date chronicling the amazing classic soul journey of R&B music innovators Kenny Gamble & Leon Huff. 71 songs are featured on the new 4 disk set, due for release at physical and digital retail outlets on Tuesday, October 21, 2008, via a partnership between Legacy Recordings and Philadelphia International Records. How is this anthology different from The Sound of Philadelphia: Gamble & Huff's Greatest Hits or Conquer the World: The Lost Soul of Philadelphia International Records, both released earlier this year? 33% of the tracks on this new record were never released on Philadelphia International Records! However, either Gamble & Huff, or their creative musical collaborators, are responsible for prominently injecting the Philly sound into the production of these expatriate non-P-I-R tracks. CD 1 "Expressway (To Your Heart)" Soul Survivors "La-La Means I Love You" Delfonics "Cowboys To Girls" Intruders "Hey, Western Union Man" Jerry Butler "Ready Or Not Here I Come" Delfonics "Only The Strong Survive" Jerry Butler "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)" Delfonics "Brand New Me" Dusty Springfield "Don't Let The Green Grass Fool You" Wilson Pickett "You're The Reason Why" Ebonys "Drowning In The Sea of Love" Joe Simon "I'm Stone In Love With You" Stylistics "I Miss You" Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes "Back Stabbers" O'Jays "Sunshine" O'Jays "I'll Be Around" Spinners "Slow Motion (pt. 1)" Johnny Williams "Me & Mrs. Jones" Billy Paul "If You Don't Know Me By Now" Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes "Love Is Here" Futures CD 2 "Love Train" O'Jays "Break Up To Make Up" Stylistics "Family Affair" MFSB "It's Forever" Ebonys "Time To Get Down" O'Jays "There's No Me Without You" Manhattans "I'll Always Love My Mama" Intruders "The Love I Lost" Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes "I Wanna Know Your Name" Intruders "Dirty Ol' Man" Three Degrees "Put Your Hands Together" O'Jays "Thanks For Saving My Life" Billy Paul "Mighty Love" Spinners "Be Thankful For What You Got (Pt. 1)" William DeVaughn "For The Love Of Money" O'Jays "Where Do We Go From Here" Trammps "T.S.O.P. (The Sound of Philadelphia)" MFSB (featuring the Three Degrees) CD 3 "Then Came You" Spinners with Dionne Warwick "Love Is The Message" MFSB (featuring the Three Degrees) "When Will I See You Again" Three Degrees "Where Are All My Friends" Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes "Picture Us" Bunny Sigler "Bad Luck" Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes "Give The People What They Want" O'Jays "Billy's Back Home" Billy Paul "Hope That We Can Be Together Soon" Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes (featuring Sharon Paige) "Do It Any Way You Wanna" People's Choice "The Big Hurt" People's Choice "Let Me Make Love To You" O'Jays "Wake Up Everybody" Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes "I Love Music" O'Jays "Don't Leave Me This Way" Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes "Let's Groove" Archie Bell & The Drells "Livin' For The Weekend" O'Jays CD 4 "Kiss and Say Goodbye" Manhattans "I'm Not In Love" Dee Dee Sharp "You'll Never Find Another Love" Lou Rawls "The Rubberband Man" Spinners "Enjoy Yourself" Jacksons "Free Love" Jean Carn "I Don't Love You Anymore" Teddy Pendergrass "See You When I Get There" Lou Rawls "Use Ta Be My Girl" O'Jays "Close The Door" Teddy Pendergrass "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" McFadden & Whitehead "You Gonna Make Me Love Somebody Else" Jones Girls "Hurry Up This Way Again" Stylistics "Love T.K.O." Teddy Pendergrass "I Ain't Jivin', I'm Jammin'" Leon Huff "It's Gonna Take A Miracle" Deniece Williams "If Only You Knew" Patti LaBelle Deniece Williams, William DeVaughn, Joe Simon, The Trammps, Dusty Springfield, The Spinners, The Delfonics, The Stylistics, The Manhattans, Jerry Butler, and Wilson Pickett did not record for Philadelphia International Records. Including these performers does reveal how the Philly production sound touched a broad variety of individual styles. For instance, you'll see in the video below the album cover featuring the spirited vocalist who went straight from Memphis to Philadelphia to capture some Philly magic. Most of the tracks on Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia are full-length original album versions. Unlike Philadelphia Classics, the double LP set from 1977 (released on CD in 2002), which featured spectacular extended versions of "Don't Leave Me This Way, "Love Is The Message," and others, there are no super extended versions in this 4 CD release. Instead of the short versions of "Be Thankful for What You Got (pt. 1)" by William DeVaughn, and "Let's Groove" by Archie Bell & The Drells (only 3 minutes here), I would have included the longer original album versions. My favorite lost track in this collection is "I'm Not In Love," Dee Dee Sharp's sexy cover of the 1975 10CC hit. I used to play Dee Dee's version on the radio back in the day. Glad it is here, although on my pre-release copy of this box set, Dee Dee Sharp's name is missing from the performer list on the back CD jacket! If you treat yourself to this excellent collection, the CD bonuses include: A booklet with unpublished photos Philadelphia International Records Timeline Historical essays by Felix Hernandez, Lynell George, Gerald Early, Joe McEwen, and James Miller Conversations with Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff, and producer Thom Bell This is hot stuff! A one-hour television special, Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia will blast off on PBS in November, 2008 with repeats through 2009. Enjoy the 1 minute video tribute that I've produced and narrated in honor of Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia. Previous Post | Next Post

2 50 Years of Motown Video

• Video
• by Kingsley H. Smith
• 03/31/2008

Berry Gordy received an $800 loan on January 12, 1959, and used the proceeds to create "Hitsville, USA - The Sound of Young America," better known as Motown Records. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, we've pulled out all the stops to create an entertaining new video tribute from PowerhouseRadio.com: "50 Years of Motown." Right away, you'll see "the 5 Motown families" represented on the revolving wheels of steel. All of the images were pulled from my personal archive of recordings and Motown memorabilia. It's amazing the number of artists who have passed through Berry Gordy's empire. Turn on your computer's sound and enjoy the 3 mintue 21 second video production. Leave a comment and tell me who I've missed. Two suspects are quite obvious! Congratulations from PowerhouseRadio.com to the amazing artists who have shared their classic soul as part of "50 Years of Motown." Previous Post | Next Post

0 Dyke And The Blazers Classic Soul Funk

• Video
• by Kingsley H. Smith
• 02/18/2008

When you think about the creators of funk, James Brown always comes to mind. Dyke and The Blazers are another legendary late 1960's funk ensemble, often compared to the Godfather of Soul. Wilson Pickett covered Dyke's "Funky Broadway," resulting in an even bigger hit for the wicked one. Watch the 3 minute 9 second story of Dyke and The Blazers, produced by PowerhouseRadio.com. Previous Post | Next Post

0 Erykah Badu's Classic Soul Shape Shifter

• Video
• by Kingsley H. Smith
• 02/03/2008

Dallas, Texas, native Erykah Badu's latest video, "Honey," contains a buffet of several vintage classic soul album covers and more, but that's not all... Watch the entire video below to see Erykah morph into some of your R&B favorites. Be on the lookout for: De La Soul - 3 Feet High and Rising Diana Ross - Blue Earth Wind & Fire - Head to the Sky Eric B. & Rakim - Paid in Full Funkadelic - Maggot Brain Grace Jones - Nightclubbing LaBelle - Chameleon Minnie Riperton - Perfect Angel Nas - Illmatic Ohio Players - Honey Olivia Newton-John - Physical Rufus - Rufus featuring Chaka Khan The Beatles - Let It Be Her new album, New Amerykah: Part One (4th World War) hits stores Tuesday, February 26th, 2008. Unpredictable Erykah has a lot going on, so check her out! Previous Post | Next Post

2 Diana Ross Rocks Atlantic City

• Video
• by Kingsley H. Smith
• 01/16/2008

It was time. I've never seen Diana Ross in concert live, so in celebration of another birthday, it was off to The Borgata in Atlantic City to catch Ms. Ross dish out some delicious diva magic to her casino city acolytes on Sunday evening, January 13th, 2008. In an electrifying red gown, one of four different costume changes during the evening, the Boss opened the show with what else, "I'm Coming Out." Next, it was sing-a-long time with 3 Supremes numbers: "My World Is Empty Without You Babe" "Baby Love" "Stop In The Name of Love" Diana mixed the old and new quite well. The sold out crowd thoroughly enjoyed the vintage Supremes songs. Ms. Ross sounded terrific. She seemed well rested with energy to spare. Following the Supremes medley, Diana eased into "Touch Me In The Morning," "Love Hangover," "The Boss," and "It's My House," rekindling the cachet of her solo hit catalogue. Supremes chestnut "Love Child" grabbed the crowd next, before Ms. Ross sang the passionate ballad, "What About Love," a new track from her 2007 album, I Love You. This was one of the few tracks most people in the audience were not familiar with. Diana then picked up the tempo with another crowd pleaser from I Love You, "More Today Than Yesterday." (A bonus about this song at the end of this review!) She really shook the rafters next with "Upside Down" and a sparkling version of "Ease on Down The Road" from The Wiz. What's a Diana Ross concert without some Lady Sings The Blues? Ms. Ross then performed two back-to-back blues ballads from her Lady Day connection. With her fans shouting for more, Diana stepped into "Why Do Fools Fall in Love," followed by "The Theme From Mahogany," and "Ain't No Mountain High Enough." Her band was a small combo of electric guitar, electric bass, drums, percussion, keyboards, and a male and female background singer. The songs sounded fine with these instruments, giving the older material a very contemporary feel. The surprise of the night was the one encore after "Ain't No Mountain High Enough," a charged version of Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive." Towards the end of this song, a former mystery Supreme hit the stage to sing a short duet of the song with Diana. Although the audience begged for a second encore, it was not to be. I was waiting for "Reach Out and Touch Somebody's Hand," but not tonight! A younger friend who accompanied me said she enjoyed the show much better than Mary J. Blige who we both saw at the same arena last July. I'm happy I've finally seen Diana Ross live. It was worth the wait! Her performance was excellent. Catch Diana Ross Tuesday, March 11, 2008, 8pm at Bank Atlantic Center Sinatra Theater, Sunrise, Florida. Diana Ross Borgata concert photo credits: Kingsley H. Smith, PowerhouseRadio.com. Bonus! In the promotional one minute video below courtesy of EMI Records, watch Diana Ross talk about "More Today Than Yesterday," included in her 2007 album I Love You. Previous Post | Next Post