I actually think The Wall of Sound as created by Phil Spector is one of the most overrated music trends of the 1960's. Not only did it borrow heavily from trends already happening in the sophistication blend of 1960's "Rock & Roll" and popular music, it relied very heavily on the aesthetics of the musicians, arrangers … Continue reading Up Against The Wall Of Sound: 35 Imitations That Stroked Or Deflated Phil Spector’s Ego
Spring in the air, filled with love, there's magic everywhere. Okay, we're not all young and in love as Van McCoy wrote, but we all like to be amorous, and there's no season like the blossoms of Spring, and Venus in Taurus season to get us to want to make like the birds and bees … Continue reading Love-o-matic: Your Mid Century Auditory Personal Lubricant For Horizontal Dancing
They say Atlantic Records was The House That Ruth (Brown) Built. We never ever really give credit to the women who built an empire for Berry Gordy in the conjoined houses at 2648 West Grand Boulevard in Detroit. He Started with the business savvy of his sisters Anna, Gwen, Loucye and Esther. Early signings like Claudette … Continue reading Forgotten Pearls, Unpanned Gold: Even More Motown Lady Tunes
About 18 months ago, I ventured out of the avenues of my typical fawning over 1960's R&B and dropped the electronic needle on a bunch of 1970's shadow classics. The 1970's was also the first real era of the sequel blockbuster, so like any other producer, one looks at the returns of former successes and … Continue reading That Seventies Show – Vol. 2: A Superfly Sequel Of Lady Soul From The Decade Of Me
I've been told by fellow DJs on the soul scene, quite derisively sometimes, that the soul music that I spin is too *sweet.* Not Funky, nitty or gritty, I tend towards pretty melodies, and... frankly, string sections. Violins? Cellos? Upright Bass? Why?!?! As I try to lean back into live DJing in a new town, … Continue reading Strings And Things Pt.1: 36 Orchestral Soul Gems
Did what I had to do. This is the first thing I've written as DJ Larsupreme of Portland, Oregon. After 35 years of calling the Bay Area home (if you're keeping record, that's been my whole life) I packed up a Cadillac full of records, clothes and cameras to give life another go in a … Continue reading Movin’ On Blues: Gentrification and Relocation Inspired Jams From Your Relocated DJ
Most every big city had lights bright enough downtown to entice singers into small studios to produce music. Philadephia was no different, despite its close proximity to New York City. Especially in the flow of the great migration, Philadelphia was a trendsetter in the fields of R&B, Rock and Soul music. Giving an extra boost … Continue reading Philly Premiere – 33 Sister Love Gems from City Brother Love
When one takes into account how ridiculous the past year has been, it's hard to put into reference or frame of mind that the world has always been a bit bent out of shape. One of the preferred ways of coping is turning one's stress about strife to the songs and singers that keep us … Continue reading The Weight for ’68: 50 Tunes from The Tumultuous Year 50 previous
One of my favorite styles of mixes to create is to jump around throughout sub-genres and eras of female singers. Probably the majority balance of the things I've uploaded to Mixcloud are in this bag. Since 2015, I've jumped from the swinging soul of 1965, through the Mid 1970's and then back as far as … Continue reading Ingenue, You Too? 33 Femme Fatale Fineries From The Late 50’s
In general, the creators of popular music rarely get the credit that they deserve. Although we all have dozens of tunes that we (un)controllably hum in our heads due to the genius of composers forever having something memorable tunewise to offer, we oft deride such content as fluff. When you're one of the rare women … Continue reading Queen Bee of The Brill: Ellie Greenwich and 35 of her cha-cha-charms
