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My apologies for not posting this sooner. For those in the Austin area, you still have a bit of time to catch the premier of this historical movie, that's already raising eyebrows, about the TR-808 drum machine that revolutionized and changed music forever. Log on to the 808: The Movie official website for more information on additional showtimes and theaters that will host the viewing.
For this episode of Friday Flashback, we take you back to the classic sounds of one of my all-time favorite singing groups, The Spinners [also known as The Detroit Spinners]. After a stint with both Tri-Phi Records and Motown, The Spinners would later sign to Atlantic Records at the suggestion of Aretha Franklin. Having not scored Top 10 hits with the previous labels, The Spinners began working with Philadelphia based producer and songwriter Thom Bell. Under the helm of Bell, The Spinners charted five top 100 singles (two of them top tens) from their first post-Motown album, Spinners (1972). "I'll Be Around", their first top ten hit and first million-selling record, was actually the B-side of their first Atlantic single, "How Could I Let You Get Away". "Could It Be I'm Falling in Love", "One of a Kind (Love Affair)" and "Ghetto Child" made their reputation concrete as one of the well respected vocal groups of the 1970's, along with Bell as a producer and songwriter.
Bobby Smith
(April 10, 1936 – March 16, 2013)
Unfortunately, in the last few days, The Spinners lost their long time lead vocalist Bobby Smith, who fronted the majority of their music. On March 16th, he lost his battle with cancer while residing in Orlando, Florida. He will be laid to rest in his native Detroit, Michigan. I, personally am going to miss his smooth vocals. May he rest in peace!
Santigold takes us back to the future with her second video "The Keepers" off her Master of My Make-Believe album which came out this past April. Sounds like she got much inspiration for this tune a la "Little Red Corvette", by none other than his royal badness Prince. I personally would like to take the time to thank her for a moment of reflection to a time in my life that I really enjoyed.
Aaliyah Dana Haughton (January 16, 1979 – August 25, 2001)
Aaliyah, who many of us refer to her as "The Princess of R&B" and our angel, was born in Brooklyn, NYC on this day in 1979. She has been credited with redefining R&B and Hip-Hop with her silky, strong and mature vocals, along with a unique sound.
Her debut album, Age Ain't Nothing But A Number sold more than 3 million copies in the United States and was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Aaliyah worked with record producers Timbaland and Missy Elliott for her second album, One in a Million; it sold 3.7 million copies in the United States and over 8 million copies worldwide. In 2000, Aaliyah appeared in her first major film, Romeo Must Die. She contributed to the film's soundtrack, which spawned the single "Try Again". The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 solely on airplay, making Aaliyah the first artist in Billboard history to achieve this feat. "Try Again" earned Aaliyah a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female R&B Vocalist.
After completing Romeo Must Die, Aaliyah filmed her part in Queen of the Damned. She released her third and final album, Aaliyah, in July 2001. On August 25, 2001, Aaliyah and eight others were killed in an airplane crash in The Bahamas after filming the music video for the single "Rock the Boat".
We are at a point again where we bid farewell to one of our greats in music. Solomon Burke passed away from natural causes while on a flight to the Netherlands. He was due to perform there on Oct. 12th.
Known to many as the "King of Rock n Soul", Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter Solomon Burke started out as a preacher in his home town of Philadelphia, then moved on to hosting a gospel radio show. His musical influences stemmed from gospel and Little Richard.
In the 60's Burke signed with Atlantic Records when he started doing more secular music and recorded "Just Out Of Reach (Of My Two Open Arms)", a cover of a country tune which was his first hit. Burke never could quite break through into the mainstream as did Sam Cooke or Otis Redding, who covered Burke's "Down in the Valley" for 1965's Otis Blue. Burke's best known song is "Cry to Me", which was a hit twice: first in the 60's, and again in the 1980s when it was used in the film – and appeared on the soundtrack for – Dirty Dancing. In 1964, with Bert Berns and Jerry Wexler, he wrote and recorded "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love", his most prominent bid for an enduring soul standard.
