Spring is here, filled with love amongst the chaos. This Quadruple Taurus season of 2021 begged to be blessed by our earthliest singers of soul. I’m pollinating your ears this particular episode with some of the finest soul, pop, jazz and gospel singers known to you and probably a few unknown too. Sit back for…
Tag: Jimmy Ruffin
Under The Covers: 33 Outsourced Covers From The Golden Age of Motown
Berry Gordy was slightly notorious for being adverse to seeking outside material for hit songs for his singers. Very rare during the Motown classic hit era were any of the major hits for artists from the pens of someone that wasn’t attached to the Motown Family. I can only think of two off the top…
Guys Gone Uptown: 32 Sophisticated Soul Tunes from Stylish Gents
I definitely spend more time in terms of creating mixes that explore the vast contributions that women, particularly Black women, have made to popular music. Every once in a while tho, I feel a bit guilty for ignoring the legacy of the legions of handsome men that worked tirelessly in the studio and stage crafting…
Movin’ On Blues: Gentrification and Relocation Inspired Jams From Your Relocated DJ
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…
Man Crushes and Masturbatory Materials: 36 + Faces of Sixties Soul
I do realize when I pull together these mixes that aren’t themed around Astrology, CIS-gendered vintage men kinda get the short end of the stick. It comes from my place that in the terms of music history, women in general don’t get anywhere near the equal coverage in their monumental role in shaping our pop…
Delicious Together: The Delectable Art of the Duet 1952-1973
The other component of Libra season, beyond balance and justice, is relationships and partnerships. Who are your others? Seems a perfect time to round up a bounty of the beauty of the duet. The call & response between two players on Vinyl goes further back that Vinyl itself of course, as singing is basically the…
Sugar Town Sno-Ball: The Northern Exposure Set
Coming fresh off the high that is my oft-favorite DJing trip to the Pacific Northwest, I couldn’t wait to clip together some of the great songs that I played for such a swinging audience. Given I have a somewhat foggy memory of what I played that night, I’m going through the order of which I…
Jimmy Ruffin “On The Avenue” (1965, Unreleased. From Cellarful of Motown, Volume #1, 2002)
Jimmy Ruffin “On The Avenue” (1965, Unreleased. From Cellarful of Motown, Volume #1, 2002) Today we celebrate the Senior Brother Ruffin on what would have been his 78th Birthday. Like his brother David, he found his way by serendipity to be a part of the Motown machine (kind of like how Joe Stubbs followed brother…
DJ Larsupreme 