Ever since I was about 3 years old I had a deep love for music. I used to listen to everything that came on the radio, every thing that came on tv, and even songs that would come on when people would drive by. I cant tell you the story about how I got deep into music. My parents do not even remember, all I know is that its in my DNA. Speaking with my father today it is a trait that goes down from generation to generation. My dad said that his biological grandfather was a singer, and that it was a trait passed down to him. My father plays multiple instruments, and knows music very well.
My dad told me a story about playing in numerous bands for years and none of the bands ever took off because nobody had the same dedication and drive that he had. My dad wanted to do other things in his lifetime, but he was very devoted to music. From the time I was about 4 to the current stage of my life my father has provided me with a lot of stories regarding musicians and pop culture as it evolved. He told me when I was a teenager that I needed to change the way I listened and that I did. I changed the way that I listened to music, I quit listening to what was popular, and I began to listen to music that had a message to me.
I got my first guitar when I was about 8 and I really did not care much for it. My dad would play all kinds of songs on the radio like "Afternoon Delight", 96 Tears, and numerous Rick James songs. I was just never interested in playing like these guys. I knew they had a love for music that I did not have. I spent a lot of time with an older woman her name is Mrs. Baltimore. She and her husband used to get onto me about not playing instruments with my father. My father is a great man he always took time out to spend time with me, and tell me stories as a kid and I regret now not sitting back and listening to him. When I was 15 years old I joined a rap group, me and a couple white dudes from suburbia. I had a very conscious approach due to who I was interested in listening to at that time. I listened to The Roots, Lauryn Hill, Common, A Tribe Called Quest, Tupac Shakur the list goes on. That is when I changed my approach to music, and understood where my dad was coming from. I got a deeper appreciation of music through writing, and expressing my thoughts and that my world was dictated using a pen. It was the coolest thing, its funny because now I now know why I love music the way I love music and educating people on the history of music. All I have to say is be inspired music is everything you just have to learn how to play along
Julian
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Anita Baker- Rapture
My favorite female R&B singer is Chaka Khan, just because I used favorite does not mean that it correlates with best. Trust me I do not believe that Chaka was the greatest r&b singer, she was just an artist that was fun to listen to. I personally believe that Anita Baker is the greatest female singer in the genre.
I recently purchased an album that I never thought I would buy. I bought Anita Baker's "Rapture" album, which is a landmark R&B album. Rapture is one of the greatest love albums every produced and written. The songs on the album illustrate a person who looking for everlasting love, but knows that there are obstacles that can get in the way of your relationship. I guess the meaning of the album is learning how to love, and realizing the difference between love and lust.
Anita Baker was one of the greatest vocalist in music memory. She suffered a lot being that she was not an artist who performed theatrics, and corporations only backing artist who they could profit off of. Anita is an artist who loves to make music and only wants an audience who want to listen to her voice, and showcase her talent. You definately have to respect her due to the fact that she kept true to herself. There was no choreography or autotune, Anita had a voice and that was the only sound effect she needed. I could tell you "Rapture" is an album you can listen to without the instruments, which is kind of a test. Who really listens to music without beats and enjoys it? It is very rare, but "Rapture" solidifies Anita Baker's place in the history of music.
I recently purchased an album that I never thought I would buy. I bought Anita Baker's "Rapture" album, which is a landmark R&B album. Rapture is one of the greatest love albums every produced and written. The songs on the album illustrate a person who looking for everlasting love, but knows that there are obstacles that can get in the way of your relationship. I guess the meaning of the album is learning how to love, and realizing the difference between love and lust.
Anita Baker was one of the greatest vocalist in music memory. She suffered a lot being that she was not an artist who performed theatrics, and corporations only backing artist who they could profit off of. Anita is an artist who loves to make music and only wants an audience who want to listen to her voice, and showcase her talent. You definately have to respect her due to the fact that she kept true to herself. There was no choreography or autotune, Anita had a voice and that was the only sound effect she needed. I could tell you "Rapture" is an album you can listen to without the instruments, which is kind of a test. Who really listens to music without beats and enjoys it? It is very rare, but "Rapture" solidifies Anita Baker's place in the history of music.
Monday, January 21, 2013
Andy Gibb- Arrow Through The Heart
I learned a majority of my music history listening to my fathers stories, and watching VH1 documentaries. I also watched a television show on VH1 called "8 Track Flashback" which consisted of videos from the seventies, and had minidocumentaries of the artist. I believe it was like 3 or 4 videos, John Fugelsang was the host of the show, and it only consisted of old videos. One artist that I became interested in from the seventies was Andy Gibb. Andy was the youngest brother in the Gibb family (Bee Gees). He was the first artist to have his first three singles reach number one on the pop charts.
I will be very honest I do not like Bruno Mars, though I am interested in listening to his most recent album. I was so glad that Bruno Mars did not beat Andy Gibb's record despite the fact there are similiarities in both artist. The problem I have with Bruno Mars music is just that he sounds so weak, and desperate in the songs that he writes. Andy Gibb was somewhat the same, but it was more bearable to listen to. I felt that Andy Gibb's music had a lot of expression and meaning to it, while Bruno Mars music sounds like a desperate plea for attention. The first song I heard by Andy Gibb was "I Just Want To Be Your Everything" I first heard it I believe in winter of 1997 on VH1's show "Pop Up Video." The song was well put together, has a nice melody, I believe Joe Walsh from The Eagles played the guitar on it by the sound of it, you can sing and dance to it, and very addictive to listen to. To me as a kid who was a fan of hardcore rap music, this track was definately a guilty pleasure. It was a departure from the sex, drugs, and entertainment culture that mainstream nineties music promoted.
Andy Gibb's second single was "Love Is Thicker Than Water" a mid tempo track that had a very deep meaning to it. He gives a broad understanding of the four letter word LOVE, by using metaphors of what it can be, and how it affects a person that is in love. I will go into my own breakdown of the song through the chorus. The first part of the chorus is "love is higher than a mountain love is thicker than water" this means love brings you on a natural high, but at the same time the definition of love is broader than what it appears to our natural senses. The second part of the chorus is "you are this dreamers only dream heavens angel, devils daughter." This means that love can go one of two ways: you have someone in front of you love and they love you in return everything seems perfect, while it can also be deceptive and you have that person that does not love you, but uses love as a reason to hurt you and benefit them. Basically what Andy Gibb is saying is love can hurt you as much as it can benefit you, and you can lose your mind over the four letter word. Hands down one of the deepest tracks that was released to the mainstream.
My least favorite of the three number one singles was "Shadow Dancing" not because I dont like the song, but because it is a departure from Andy Gibb's sound, he sounded a lot like his brothers music, and I think Andy should have stepped away from his brothers and did his own thing. Andy always worked with his brothers, but he had his own sound that separated himself from the other brothers, also keep in mind Andy Gibb was not on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. I understand that the Bee Gees, were the most critical artist of this era, but whoever worked with the Bee Gees after the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack did not last long after, and their careers did not pan out anywhere! This is one reason Andy's career stalled after Shadow Dancing, because now he moved from a pop sound to a more disco sound, and the Bee Gees were victims of the "Kill Disco" era. This is where Andy Gibb's career peaked and then went on a quick decline. Believe it or not Shadow Dancing was his most popular single, but it was because disco was very popular at the time, and disco artist were seen as novelty acts.
Andy Gibb's career did not necessarily end after Shadow Dancing, because he did have songs that charted in the top 10, but they were not seen as huge hits compared to his first three singles. Andy was a victim of being very successful early in his career, and having to live up to expectations. I am sure a lot of people did not know this, but when Andy was being heralded as the next huge pop icon, he starred in the Sgt Pepper Lonely Hearts Club Band movie. As much as I love Andy Gibb, and the Bee Gees the fact that this movie was made was blasphemy!!!!! I hold The Beatles to high acclaim, but this was their greatest concept endeavor! I guess what happened was Andy got deep into drugs, he got married (you know its the beginning of the end), and his career continued to decline. While he was trying to make a comeback he died at the age of 30.
Andy Gibb's final recording was very haunting. He had a song called "Arrow Through The Heart" which was never released until 2010. It will be easy to look at Andy Gibb's life and say that drugs made him die very young, but if you put yourself in his shoes, and walk a mile or two you will never understand what he went through in his lifetime. His marriages ended abruptly, he never really saw his daughter, and he had trouble searching for happiness. I dont think it was drugs I think his heart was broken, which defines his arrow through the heart, and its an arrow through the heart of the music industry losing such a great, compassionate, and talented musician.
RIP Andy
I will be very honest I do not like Bruno Mars, though I am interested in listening to his most recent album. I was so glad that Bruno Mars did not beat Andy Gibb's record despite the fact there are similiarities in both artist. The problem I have with Bruno Mars music is just that he sounds so weak, and desperate in the songs that he writes. Andy Gibb was somewhat the same, but it was more bearable to listen to. I felt that Andy Gibb's music had a lot of expression and meaning to it, while Bruno Mars music sounds like a desperate plea for attention. The first song I heard by Andy Gibb was "I Just Want To Be Your Everything" I first heard it I believe in winter of 1997 on VH1's show "Pop Up Video." The song was well put together, has a nice melody, I believe Joe Walsh from The Eagles played the guitar on it by the sound of it, you can sing and dance to it, and very addictive to listen to. To me as a kid who was a fan of hardcore rap music, this track was definately a guilty pleasure. It was a departure from the sex, drugs, and entertainment culture that mainstream nineties music promoted.
Andy Gibb's second single was "Love Is Thicker Than Water" a mid tempo track that had a very deep meaning to it. He gives a broad understanding of the four letter word LOVE, by using metaphors of what it can be, and how it affects a person that is in love. I will go into my own breakdown of the song through the chorus. The first part of the chorus is "love is higher than a mountain love is thicker than water" this means love brings you on a natural high, but at the same time the definition of love is broader than what it appears to our natural senses. The second part of the chorus is "you are this dreamers only dream heavens angel, devils daughter." This means that love can go one of two ways: you have someone in front of you love and they love you in return everything seems perfect, while it can also be deceptive and you have that person that does not love you, but uses love as a reason to hurt you and benefit them. Basically what Andy Gibb is saying is love can hurt you as much as it can benefit you, and you can lose your mind over the four letter word. Hands down one of the deepest tracks that was released to the mainstream.
My least favorite of the three number one singles was "Shadow Dancing" not because I dont like the song, but because it is a departure from Andy Gibb's sound, he sounded a lot like his brothers music, and I think Andy should have stepped away from his brothers and did his own thing. Andy always worked with his brothers, but he had his own sound that separated himself from the other brothers, also keep in mind Andy Gibb was not on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. I understand that the Bee Gees, were the most critical artist of this era, but whoever worked with the Bee Gees after the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack did not last long after, and their careers did not pan out anywhere! This is one reason Andy's career stalled after Shadow Dancing, because now he moved from a pop sound to a more disco sound, and the Bee Gees were victims of the "Kill Disco" era. This is where Andy Gibb's career peaked and then went on a quick decline. Believe it or not Shadow Dancing was his most popular single, but it was because disco was very popular at the time, and disco artist were seen as novelty acts.
Andy Gibb's career did not necessarily end after Shadow Dancing, because he did have songs that charted in the top 10, but they were not seen as huge hits compared to his first three singles. Andy was a victim of being very successful early in his career, and having to live up to expectations. I am sure a lot of people did not know this, but when Andy was being heralded as the next huge pop icon, he starred in the Sgt Pepper Lonely Hearts Club Band movie. As much as I love Andy Gibb, and the Bee Gees the fact that this movie was made was blasphemy!!!!! I hold The Beatles to high acclaim, but this was their greatest concept endeavor! I guess what happened was Andy got deep into drugs, he got married (you know its the beginning of the end), and his career continued to decline. While he was trying to make a comeback he died at the age of 30.
Andy Gibb's final recording was very haunting. He had a song called "Arrow Through The Heart" which was never released until 2010. It will be easy to look at Andy Gibb's life and say that drugs made him die very young, but if you put yourself in his shoes, and walk a mile or two you will never understand what he went through in his lifetime. His marriages ended abruptly, he never really saw his daughter, and he had trouble searching for happiness. I dont think it was drugs I think his heart was broken, which defines his arrow through the heart, and its an arrow through the heart of the music industry losing such a great, compassionate, and talented musician.
RIP Andy
Friday, January 18, 2013
Degrading Women In Music
This morning I woke up, got dressed, and went to work just like every working person in the world. My window froze over and I buy a few CD's every week for my morning rides to work and for some reason I decided to buy this old Twista album "Adrenaline Rush." Many consider this album a classic, but I think the album is pure garbage, just the words that comes out of his mouth is pure gibberish. This is the main reason I cant listen to a lot of rap music, because of how much it degrades women.
I havent lived long in this world, I can tell you that I love my mother, grandmother, my aunts, my niece, my sister, I have female friends moreso than I have male friends, I loved women I dated, I cannot see myself disrespecting and degrading women the way that they have been degraded in music. Some can point the finger, then say its womens fault but the problem is society. There is a paradigm shift of the content in music that is released. Think about it Smokey Robinson, Bill Withers, Jackie Wilson, Levi Stubbs, Bobby Womack etc all made music respecting women, and how it was important to respect the woman that you love to keep her around and things of that nature. These days there are so many artist that just degrade women, and the sad part is that there are people in society who think its okay. The problem with music now is that love is no longer in music. Now the main factor in music is not love its sex appeal, what do teenagers who have no idea what love is have this phantomistic ideology that love is purely based on whoever they wake up with the next day.
After listening to this album I am a bit disgusted with myself for buying that album. Not because it was such a bad album, but because the women that Twista and the myriad of rappers who were on the album not one time said woman, nor did they have any respect for any woman. The women were referred to as bitches and hoes. Me personally I do not refer to women as bitches and hoes no matter how angry I may get. I know more than likely Twista did not have anything to rap about at the time and thinking about it closely a majority of Twista's songs are about sex. I am glad that I have the father that I have who taught me to be much better than that. The bitch that Twista is referring to is someones daughter, and that is as literal as it gets. I could never say the things that he says, and come back home to my mother and be proud of myself, nor is there pride getting rich and making money off degrading women. Love needs to be brought back to music someday, I hope it is.
I havent lived long in this world, I can tell you that I love my mother, grandmother, my aunts, my niece, my sister, I have female friends moreso than I have male friends, I loved women I dated, I cannot see myself disrespecting and degrading women the way that they have been degraded in music. Some can point the finger, then say its womens fault but the problem is society. There is a paradigm shift of the content in music that is released. Think about it Smokey Robinson, Bill Withers, Jackie Wilson, Levi Stubbs, Bobby Womack etc all made music respecting women, and how it was important to respect the woman that you love to keep her around and things of that nature. These days there are so many artist that just degrade women, and the sad part is that there are people in society who think its okay. The problem with music now is that love is no longer in music. Now the main factor in music is not love its sex appeal, what do teenagers who have no idea what love is have this phantomistic ideology that love is purely based on whoever they wake up with the next day.
After listening to this album I am a bit disgusted with myself for buying that album. Not because it was such a bad album, but because the women that Twista and the myriad of rappers who were on the album not one time said woman, nor did they have any respect for any woman. The women were referred to as bitches and hoes. Me personally I do not refer to women as bitches and hoes no matter how angry I may get. I know more than likely Twista did not have anything to rap about at the time and thinking about it closely a majority of Twista's songs are about sex. I am glad that I have the father that I have who taught me to be much better than that. The bitch that Twista is referring to is someones daughter, and that is as literal as it gets. I could never say the things that he says, and come back home to my mother and be proud of myself, nor is there pride getting rich and making money off degrading women. Love needs to be brought back to music someday, I hope it is.
Frank Ocean- Channel Orange
R&B music is going through a serious revival at the moment. There have been a lot of great albums that have been released this year in the R&B genre. One of the albums was "Channel Orange" by Frank Ocean. This is a landmark album for the genre simply due to the fact that Frank Ocean was able to break barriers as one of the first artist in this modern era of urban music to come out of the closet. This was a huge shocker to the music industry, there are many closeted artist and compared to the seventies the public is more accepting of the LGBT lifestyle than they were forty years ago.
Frank Ocean shows on this album that he is one of the most talented artist in this new generation of music. Listening to many of the tracks a listener can tell that Def Jam let him experiment a lot with the album. Channel Orange is very cohesive, one of the standout moments on the album for me was "Sweet Life." Ocean showed a unique storytelling ability in his lyrics, backed by instrumentation that complimented the setting of his storytelling, and it also was produced by the Neptunes. The Neptunes the production team of Chad Hugo and Pharrell Williams have been missing in the Hip Hop genre for the last couple of years. They had a very distinct sound throughout their heyday, but the problem with having a distinct sound in music is there is little to no room, to expand your sound. Another standout moment was a song called "Super Rich Kids" featuring Earl Sweatshirt a rapper in the Odd Future collective. The song has a very slow, solemn piano note throughout most of the song that Earl is rapping over, and Frank is singing over. The song has an odd sound, but very addictive. I was not the biggest fan of his single "Thinkin Bout You." I cannot give a specific reason why I dont like the song I just dont.
If you ask me about interludes in music, I can tell you its a love-hate relationship. The reason is simply due to the fact that there are a lot of interludes that are plain stupid, and the mainstream have killed interludes in hip hop music. The interludes between tracks on the Channel Orange album were actually fitting for the occassion. The feeling you get listening to Channel Orange is that your listening to a tv network, and the programming is all of the tracks on the album. If your an audio learner then this album is a biography of a man who has been through a lot and wants you to look at things through his eyes. I love this album and I think this is an album we will speaking of in the next few years, simply due to the fact that there are so many forgotten albums in this era in this genre. Whoever Frank Ocean decides to sleep with, or what he does with his life is none of my business, he makes great music. I can definately recommend this album to any fan of music.
Frank Ocean shows on this album that he is one of the most talented artist in this new generation of music. Listening to many of the tracks a listener can tell that Def Jam let him experiment a lot with the album. Channel Orange is very cohesive, one of the standout moments on the album for me was "Sweet Life." Ocean showed a unique storytelling ability in his lyrics, backed by instrumentation that complimented the setting of his storytelling, and it also was produced by the Neptunes. The Neptunes the production team of Chad Hugo and Pharrell Williams have been missing in the Hip Hop genre for the last couple of years. They had a very distinct sound throughout their heyday, but the problem with having a distinct sound in music is there is little to no room, to expand your sound. Another standout moment was a song called "Super Rich Kids" featuring Earl Sweatshirt a rapper in the Odd Future collective. The song has a very slow, solemn piano note throughout most of the song that Earl is rapping over, and Frank is singing over. The song has an odd sound, but very addictive. I was not the biggest fan of his single "Thinkin Bout You." I cannot give a specific reason why I dont like the song I just dont.
If you ask me about interludes in music, I can tell you its a love-hate relationship. The reason is simply due to the fact that there are a lot of interludes that are plain stupid, and the mainstream have killed interludes in hip hop music. The interludes between tracks on the Channel Orange album were actually fitting for the occassion. The feeling you get listening to Channel Orange is that your listening to a tv network, and the programming is all of the tracks on the album. If your an audio learner then this album is a biography of a man who has been through a lot and wants you to look at things through his eyes. I love this album and I think this is an album we will speaking of in the next few years, simply due to the fact that there are so many forgotten albums in this era in this genre. Whoever Frank Ocean decides to sleep with, or what he does with his life is none of my business, he makes great music. I can definately recommend this album to any fan of music.
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Have You Ever Been To Electric Ladyland?
The first rock album I ever bought was Jimi Hendrix "Electric Ladyland." I was about 16 years old, in high school, learning how to play the guitar and needed some inspiration behind learning how to play. I remember the first time I saw Jimi Hendrix on tv. I was about 6 years old, watching a documentary on PBS about Woodstock, and I sat in the dark under my Barney the Dinosour blanket watching this random documentary on Jimi Hendrix. I was able to notice he was not in love with music, he was in love with the guitar.
When I was younger and this crossed over to adulthood I always wore a Jimi Hendrix shirt. I thought I was the coolest person going to school, church, and walking around with my guitar because I felt that I was Jimi Hendrix. I actually for a period of time in my life idolized Hendrix, when Youtube first came out I was always watching him, and just admiring how he played the guitar. The funny part is I never heard a Jimi Hendrix song until I was about 16. I remember listening to random songs, the commercial of him playing the Star Spangled Banner at Woodstock, and just random clips of him playing.
The first time I listened to "Electric Ladyland" I was a bit let down, because I wasnt really listening to the music. Many years after buying the album, I must admit I am mesmerized by this album. The album presented a pendulum swing in an opposite direction in rock music. Many who were alive at the time that did not understand the "rock star" lifestyle saw rock as novelty music and "Electric Ladyland" changed the platform for many rock artist on the mainstream. Jimi Hendrix spoke with his guitar, there was no need for a rhythm guitar when he played. The album was the only album Hendrix had complete control from a creative standpoint. This album was supposed to be the beginning of a new era in rock music, but unfortunately it was the apex for Hendrix and it was the end. For the first time in music an instrument was more influential than the lyrics of an album. This is something no other musician has ever done in music since Electric Ladyland.
Years later I can now understand the premise of an album like "Electric Ladyland." Years later I see it as a concept album. The concept was to showcase Jimi Hendrix not only as a guitarist but as an artist, and that his artistry exceeded beyond playing the guitar. We know Jimi Hendrix as one of the greatest guitarist who has ever lived, but I do not think he wanted to be remembered as the greatest guitarist. Hendrix put more emphasis into lyrics, cohesion, and transistioning himself from "Jimi Hendrix Cool Guitarist" to "Jimi Hendrix Artist." The sad part is Jimi Hendrix will be better known as a guitarist, but after listening to "Electric Ladyland" I think he wants to be known as an artist, the album was supposed to be the beginning of something spectacular, but you know how the story goes it had to end.
When I was younger and this crossed over to adulthood I always wore a Jimi Hendrix shirt. I thought I was the coolest person going to school, church, and walking around with my guitar because I felt that I was Jimi Hendrix. I actually for a period of time in my life idolized Hendrix, when Youtube first came out I was always watching him, and just admiring how he played the guitar. The funny part is I never heard a Jimi Hendrix song until I was about 16. I remember listening to random songs, the commercial of him playing the Star Spangled Banner at Woodstock, and just random clips of him playing.
The first time I listened to "Electric Ladyland" I was a bit let down, because I wasnt really listening to the music. Many years after buying the album, I must admit I am mesmerized by this album. The album presented a pendulum swing in an opposite direction in rock music. Many who were alive at the time that did not understand the "rock star" lifestyle saw rock as novelty music and "Electric Ladyland" changed the platform for many rock artist on the mainstream. Jimi Hendrix spoke with his guitar, there was no need for a rhythm guitar when he played. The album was the only album Hendrix had complete control from a creative standpoint. This album was supposed to be the beginning of a new era in rock music, but unfortunately it was the apex for Hendrix and it was the end. For the first time in music an instrument was more influential than the lyrics of an album. This is something no other musician has ever done in music since Electric Ladyland.
Years later I can now understand the premise of an album like "Electric Ladyland." Years later I see it as a concept album. The concept was to showcase Jimi Hendrix not only as a guitarist but as an artist, and that his artistry exceeded beyond playing the guitar. We know Jimi Hendrix as one of the greatest guitarist who has ever lived, but I do not think he wanted to be remembered as the greatest guitarist. Hendrix put more emphasis into lyrics, cohesion, and transistioning himself from "Jimi Hendrix Cool Guitarist" to "Jimi Hendrix Artist." The sad part is Jimi Hendrix will be better known as a guitarist, but after listening to "Electric Ladyland" I think he wants to be known as an artist, the album was supposed to be the beginning of something spectacular, but you know how the story goes it had to end.
Leon Ware- Musical Massage
I am sure that many have never took the time to listen to Leon Ware's music or even look him up. Leon Ware is responsible for the world soul music changing in the seventies. The few that have heard of Leon are well aware that he was responsible for writing "I Wanna Be Where You Are", by the Jackson 5, conducting Marvin Gaye's "I Want You" album, and producing Maxwell's first album "Urban Hang Suite." Despite the fact that he is known as the "Father of Sensual Soul" the apex of his career is something many may have never listened to.
Musical Massage was released in September 1976, following the release of "I Want You." The album is legendary for featuring both Marvin Gaye and Minnie Riperton on tracks "Holiday" and "Comfort." Leon is not the best singer, but he made up for it with lyrics. The time the album was created, studios did not have special effects to modify a singers voice. Leon had a very distinct voice, he did not sing well, but his voice emphasized the mood he wanted to express.
Anybody that has common music sense can understand the reason that Berry Gordy did not want to release the album. Gordy did not see Ware as a flagship artist, compared to all of his other artist who were having successful careers. A majority of the singers who were successful under Motown were lead singers in other groups. Singers such as: Diana Ross, Gladys Knight, David Ruffin, Eddie Kendrick, Marvin Gaye, GC Cameron, and Lionel Richie. This is a practice that is still in music today. Leon Ware was not taken seriously due to the fact that he was known for writing music, and composing music. The main reason that Berry Gordy took "Musical Massage" away from Leon Ware is simply due to one reason. That reason is the success of Marvin Gaye's "Lets Get It On" album. Motown became well aware at this point that sex sells, they had to continue marketing eroticism with Marvin Gaye. Ed Townsend had conducted a very midtempo, simple sounding album with lyrics surrounding carnal affairs. Leon Ware had the perfect sound for Marvin to sing over. I Want You was easier to listen to because of the variation of sounds, more realistic lyrics, and both Leon and Marvin working together to break many barriers in the music industry.
Musical Massage was not an album you can market for a man who could not sing well, especially in a time that Motown's sound was changing. Smokey Robinson was changing r&b music with his album "A Quiet Storm." Soul music was in need of a huge change, and Motown was not willing to market a non flagship artist at this time even though they were in need of one. Musical Massage is the great r&b album nobody ever heard. The album was very cohesive, and has a very distinct form of musical direction. The dissappointing part is that many will never listen to this great piece of work.
There are so many songs that I can play repeatedly, until I listened to songs like: Phantom Lover, Turn Off The Light, Learning How To Love You and Musical Massage you can understand my deep frustration on the music industry's lack of appreciation for such a great artist, and great lyrics. Maybe its the fact that albums like "Musical Massage" is too deep for the average music afficianado. I dont know what it is, maybe its my deep affinity for music who understands artistry in its purest form, or I might be the only one who understands that music is deeper than having an infectious beat and something to dance to.
Musical Massage was released in September 1976, following the release of "I Want You." The album is legendary for featuring both Marvin Gaye and Minnie Riperton on tracks "Holiday" and "Comfort." Leon is not the best singer, but he made up for it with lyrics. The time the album was created, studios did not have special effects to modify a singers voice. Leon had a very distinct voice, he did not sing well, but his voice emphasized the mood he wanted to express.
Anybody that has common music sense can understand the reason that Berry Gordy did not want to release the album. Gordy did not see Ware as a flagship artist, compared to all of his other artist who were having successful careers. A majority of the singers who were successful under Motown were lead singers in other groups. Singers such as: Diana Ross, Gladys Knight, David Ruffin, Eddie Kendrick, Marvin Gaye, GC Cameron, and Lionel Richie. This is a practice that is still in music today. Leon Ware was not taken seriously due to the fact that he was known for writing music, and composing music. The main reason that Berry Gordy took "Musical Massage" away from Leon Ware is simply due to one reason. That reason is the success of Marvin Gaye's "Lets Get It On" album. Motown became well aware at this point that sex sells, they had to continue marketing eroticism with Marvin Gaye. Ed Townsend had conducted a very midtempo, simple sounding album with lyrics surrounding carnal affairs. Leon Ware had the perfect sound for Marvin to sing over. I Want You was easier to listen to because of the variation of sounds, more realistic lyrics, and both Leon and Marvin working together to break many barriers in the music industry.
Musical Massage was not an album you can market for a man who could not sing well, especially in a time that Motown's sound was changing. Smokey Robinson was changing r&b music with his album "A Quiet Storm." Soul music was in need of a huge change, and Motown was not willing to market a non flagship artist at this time even though they were in need of one. Musical Massage is the great r&b album nobody ever heard. The album was very cohesive, and has a very distinct form of musical direction. The dissappointing part is that many will never listen to this great piece of work.
There are so many songs that I can play repeatedly, until I listened to songs like: Phantom Lover, Turn Off The Light, Learning How To Love You and Musical Massage you can understand my deep frustration on the music industry's lack of appreciation for such a great artist, and great lyrics. Maybe its the fact that albums like "Musical Massage" is too deep for the average music afficianado. I dont know what it is, maybe its my deep affinity for music who understands artistry in its purest form, or I might be the only one who understands that music is deeper than having an infectious beat and something to dance to.
Why Marvin?
I get asked all the time, why is Marvin Gaye my favorite artist. This post will be a very deep explanation on why I am a huge Marvin Gaye fan. I listened to Marvin Gaye as a kid, I remember my father had his greatest hits album, and would tell me and my brothers stories about Marvin. To be honest with you as a 7 year old kid, who was extremely sensitive, and compassionate the story scared me half to death. I remember watching VH1 with my brothers and watching documentaries on Marvin, where the viewer only gets generic details on Marvin's life, music and his death. This is my deep illustration on Marvin Gaye and how his music changed my life.
When I was a senior in high school I got into a relationship with a girl, and similiar to that track by Bloodstone I was on a "Natural High." I was listening to a lot of r&b music because I wanted to know how those musicians felt and I came across a song that forever changed my life. That song was "Come Live With Me Angel." The song originally a song called "Comfort" by Leon Ware and Minnie Riperton (random fact). Being 18 years old at the time I did not listen to the song the same way that I listen to it now. I must admit the lyrics are raunchy... (connect the dots). I got deeper into his music after listening to a couple more tracks on the "I Want You" album and I was instantly hooked. As I gotten older I would listen to Marvin sporadically, but it wasnt until a crucial time in my life until I was able to fully understand Marvin Gaye.
In June 2008, I randomly bought Marvin Gaye's album "Here My Dear" in a Circuit City (remember those stores). This will sound absolutely sad, but I bought Lil Wayne's album Tha Carter III the same day I bought "Here My Dear." Quite honestly I saw an album on sale so I bought it, and I never opened it until I was 2010 nearly two years later. I can say that I was disgusted with myself for opening Lil Wayne before Marvin Gaye, but mentally I was not prepared to listen to "Here My Dear." I was riding in a car one night, and randomly I decided to play "Here My Dear" and I was going through a very rough time in my life. For the first time in my life I had an album that spoke to me. The album to me personified life, and showed that lust had its consequences. The album was a modern day Shakespearean novel, that emphasized a dark side of love existed, and there was a lot more to relationships than love, trust, sex, and that sometimes no matter how much you love someone it doesnt always work. I felt that Marvin Gaye was a true writer, he wrote about what he was really feeling, and explained why he felt a certain way.
Every Marvin Gaye album was an itenerary of his life, he represented someone who was human and had feelings just like every one else. People see "Let's Get It On" as a sex album, but there is a lot more to the album than sex. The album broke many barriers in music, of an artist being free to talk about whatever is on their mind. To be honest "I Want You" is a pure sex album, when you really think about it the songs on the album have twisted meanings. The songs are made for the listener to think, and quite honestly it wasnt even his album. I feel that in a way i'm similiar to Marvin. I am a man who sees the world a specific way, i'm not afraid to let anyone in my world, and I express myself on a consistent basis. Marvin was proud to be the man he was, but his own demons haunted him. That is my translation of his lifetime, but what we all state is a form of translation and it is seen through another person's eyes. Marvin translated how he felt in form of his lyrics, and if you listen closely you feel his pain. Marvin just wanted to find peace and happiness, but he never found solace in his life. I'm learning from what the man translated to me that I find solace someday.
When I was a senior in high school I got into a relationship with a girl, and similiar to that track by Bloodstone I was on a "Natural High." I was listening to a lot of r&b music because I wanted to know how those musicians felt and I came across a song that forever changed my life. That song was "Come Live With Me Angel." The song originally a song called "Comfort" by Leon Ware and Minnie Riperton (random fact). Being 18 years old at the time I did not listen to the song the same way that I listen to it now. I must admit the lyrics are raunchy... (connect the dots). I got deeper into his music after listening to a couple more tracks on the "I Want You" album and I was instantly hooked. As I gotten older I would listen to Marvin sporadically, but it wasnt until a crucial time in my life until I was able to fully understand Marvin Gaye.
In June 2008, I randomly bought Marvin Gaye's album "Here My Dear" in a Circuit City (remember those stores). This will sound absolutely sad, but I bought Lil Wayne's album Tha Carter III the same day I bought "Here My Dear." Quite honestly I saw an album on sale so I bought it, and I never opened it until I was 2010 nearly two years later. I can say that I was disgusted with myself for opening Lil Wayne before Marvin Gaye, but mentally I was not prepared to listen to "Here My Dear." I was riding in a car one night, and randomly I decided to play "Here My Dear" and I was going through a very rough time in my life. For the first time in my life I had an album that spoke to me. The album to me personified life, and showed that lust had its consequences. The album was a modern day Shakespearean novel, that emphasized a dark side of love existed, and there was a lot more to relationships than love, trust, sex, and that sometimes no matter how much you love someone it doesnt always work. I felt that Marvin Gaye was a true writer, he wrote about what he was really feeling, and explained why he felt a certain way.
Every Marvin Gaye album was an itenerary of his life, he represented someone who was human and had feelings just like every one else. People see "Let's Get It On" as a sex album, but there is a lot more to the album than sex. The album broke many barriers in music, of an artist being free to talk about whatever is on their mind. To be honest "I Want You" is a pure sex album, when you really think about it the songs on the album have twisted meanings. The songs are made for the listener to think, and quite honestly it wasnt even his album. I feel that in a way i'm similiar to Marvin. I am a man who sees the world a specific way, i'm not afraid to let anyone in my world, and I express myself on a consistent basis. Marvin was proud to be the man he was, but his own demons haunted him. That is my translation of his lifetime, but what we all state is a form of translation and it is seen through another person's eyes. Marvin translated how he felt in form of his lyrics, and if you listen closely you feel his pain. Marvin just wanted to find peace and happiness, but he never found solace in his life. I'm learning from what the man translated to me that I find solace someday.
Music Memories
I honestly do not think there is a need for an introduction to why I am creating this blog, so right off the bat I will talk about the first memories of music its entirety. I remember the day like it was yesterday. The lead up to my opening story will be my introduction to this blog.
I grew up around music my entire life, some of my earliest memories consist of listening to music, and singing the songs in the car with my mom, brothers, or other kids at the daycare we attended. I dont know how it started, but as a kid I was a huge Michael Jackson fan. My dad when I was a kid hated Michael Jackson. I remember being a kid, there would be a VH1 special that came on television all the time with The Jacksons, and he would go to his room and close the door. There would be times he would close the door and play his trumpet over the time frame of Michael Jackson special. I remember my mother worked only on weekends and my dad made sure that me and my brothers grew up on "good music."
We got our first stereo in 1995, which was a huge deal to us. I remember it took my father weeks to build the stereo (I think we still have part of the stereo today). Once the stereo was completed, my dad would make me and my brothers listen to an old r&b album every week. I honestly do not remember all of the albums he played, but a couple that stood out were Isaac Hayes "Chocolate Chip" and Marvin Gaye's Greatest Hits album. My father was able to sense that the tide was going through a generational change, he made sure that me and my brothers loved music the same way that he did. These days i'm similiar to my father in the nineties knowing that music from my time is now being sampled. It's odd and just like the song "How Bizarre"
I grew up around music my entire life, some of my earliest memories consist of listening to music, and singing the songs in the car with my mom, brothers, or other kids at the daycare we attended. I dont know how it started, but as a kid I was a huge Michael Jackson fan. My dad when I was a kid hated Michael Jackson. I remember being a kid, there would be a VH1 special that came on television all the time with The Jacksons, and he would go to his room and close the door. There would be times he would close the door and play his trumpet over the time frame of Michael Jackson special. I remember my mother worked only on weekends and my dad made sure that me and my brothers grew up on "good music."
We got our first stereo in 1995, which was a huge deal to us. I remember it took my father weeks to build the stereo (I think we still have part of the stereo today). Once the stereo was completed, my dad would make me and my brothers listen to an old r&b album every week. I honestly do not remember all of the albums he played, but a couple that stood out were Isaac Hayes "Chocolate Chip" and Marvin Gaye's Greatest Hits album. My father was able to sense that the tide was going through a generational change, he made sure that me and my brothers loved music the same way that he did. These days i'm similiar to my father in the nineties knowing that music from my time is now being sampled. It's odd and just like the song "How Bizarre"
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