We must be around Easter Time 1987, I with the Help of my Father had just Brought a Van from an Auction, I had to go back next day to pick it up!
In them days they had to do Checks and the money had to go through etc etc, So the next day I took Nathan with me , to go & get the Van, I cant Remember how we got there, but I can Remember getting the Keys and Starting it up for the First Time, it did not start at First!
Anyway the Auction Place was a Few Miles away and we came back on the Inner-Ring Road in Norwich, cant really remember the Journey back, but what I can remember is, we got about 2 Minutes from Home, and the Van Just stopped!
We had just about Reached the Heartsease Roundabout in the City, and we had ran out of Petrol, we had to Push the Van up on the Kerb and then went to Buy a Jerry Can & then get some Petrol, Luckily there was a Garage very near by!
All of this took a little While, so when we Finally got Home that Day, Susan had been Worrying where we were had been for about 3 Hours!
What an Eventful day that had been!
We spent the rest of Easter getting the Van Cleaned and ready for the start of my New Business!
What I was going to do was, carry on Making Pies, Cornish Pasties Sausage Rolls etc and go to Fetes Shows etc to Sell them, I also was going to Buy (for the Van) Groceries, Sweets and Toiletries to Sell around the Estates of Norwich.
I was going to do whatever I could to make it Work, so I was looking in to what Areas I could Sell around, including where we were now Living!
Some Music now, as You will be aware if you Read this blog Regular, My favorite Band of All-Time is Slave.
Back in 1980 they Released their 5th Album "Stone Jam" it also turned out to be Their Highest ever Placed Album on the US R&B Chart, Reaching Number 5, and attaining Gold Status, what a Great Album Cover that was!
The 3rd Single to be Released from the Album, did not come out until 1981, it is also one of my Favorite all-Time Slave Tracks, "Feel My Love"
The Song was written by the Band and Produced by Jimmy Douglass and Steve Washington, and it was on the Cotillion Record Label.
The Track Featured Steve Arrington and Starlena Young on Vocals and the Late Great Mark Adams on Bass, look out for the Trade Mark Bass Intro.
In this Series of Posts, I will writing about a Particular Classic Soul/Funk Album from the 60's 70's and 80's
The one's that stand out in my Mind, as The Best Soul/Funk/Jazz/R&B Albums ever Released. All of them, I purchased on Vinyl many Years ago and also now have them on CD or Digital Download today.
You may have a Differing view (as we all do) on these Choices, but these are my Favorites!
What a Fantastic Album this was, Probably "Slave's" Best!
All Track's were Uptempo, apart from One (Track 7) and that was Probably the Weakest Track on the Album!
Which was The Best Track, I would probably say "Wait For Me" but they are all Great, but as I Love the "Bass" with the Late "Mark Adams" being my Favorite Bass Player, I also Liked "Smokin"
The Album had 3 Singles Released: Tracks 1, 5 and 2, with "Snap Shot" gaining the Highest Chart Placing!
One thing I always remember about this Particular Album, My Parents went to USA on Holiday in '81 and they Brought it back for me!
The only Trouble was, on the Journey back from Holiday, the Suitcase must have Been "Really Hot" on the Aeroplane, Because the First Track on the Album was "Warped" so that Meant Track 1 on Both Sides "Was Unplayable" Snap Shot and Wait For Me!
Luckily these were The Single Releases, so I got them that Way.
What a Fantastic Album and to think its now 31 Year's Old!
In this Series of Posts, I will writing about a Particular Classic Soul/Funk Album from the 60's 70's and 80's
The one's that stand out in my Mind, as The Best Soul/Funk/Jazz/R&B Albums ever Released. All of them, I would have purchased as Vinyl many Years ago and also I have many of them on CD today.
You may have a Differing view (as we all do) on these Choices, but these are my Favorites!
# NUMBER TWO
STEVE ARRINGTON'S HALL OF FAME * POSITIVE POWER
This is probably my Favorite Funk Album of all time, it was Released in 1984 on the Atlantic Record Label. It was Co-Produced by Slave Producer, Jimmy Douglassand Steve Arrington. Check out the Personnel involved in the making of the Album, most of them had somewhere in the Past been connected with Slave!
I saw Steve Arrington in Concert around 1985, but none of this Album's Music or the Previous Album "One" was included in the Concert (which was a pity!), it was all from the "Dancing In The Key Of Life" Album. This was when he first Discovered God!
Back to "Positive Power" what a Great Album that was and still is! I would probably think apart from certain Al GreenTracks, this is my Most Ever Listened to Album, there was not one dud Track on the Album.
First off "15 Rounds" Great Bass contained in this Track, Buddy Hankerson, who also was in Young & Co, next up is "Money On It" a Great start to this Track, how many times in different Tracks does Steve Arrington say "Sugar Momma" not to Worry, I'm not Complaining!
Next Track "Sugar Momma" see what I said! A Great Ballad this is, I think Steve Arrington's Voice is suited to both the slower Soul Songs and Funk Tracks!
Finishing off Side one is "What do you want From Me" once again a Great Bass, its my Favorite Sound in Soul/Funk Music!
Side Two starts with "Young & Ready" Great Keyboards in this Track! The second Track "Mellow as a Cello" what a Great Title for the Track! its got a Great Intro, which fools you into believing a Ballad is coming, then straight into a Thumping track!
Then up next, my Favorite Track "Hump to the Bump" this has to be one of my Favorite All Time Tracks, my Favorite section is the 30 Secs Keyboard Solo, from around 2.30 mins of the Track, I presume that is Steve Arrington, do you know any different!
The Final Track and Album Title "Positive Power" is a Great way to finish off, Great Bass again!
As I said, this is a Great Funk Album and one of the Best! Checkout and Listen to all Tracks, Below!
Album Tracks: A1 15 Rounds 5:30 Written-By - Steve Arrington
A2 Money On It 4:33 Written-By - Charles Carter , Steve Arrington
A3 Sugar Momma Baby 5:16 Written-By - Charles Carter , Steve Arrington
A4 What Do You Want From Me 5:17 Written-By - Buddy Hankerson , Roger Parker (2) , Sam Carter , Steve Arrington
B1 Young And Ready 5:28 Written-By - Steve Arrington
B2 Mellow As A Cello 5:30 Written-By - Charles Carter , Gary Jackson , Steve Arrington
B3 Hump To The Bump 6:39 Written-By - Buddy Hankerson , Charles Carter , Steve Arrington
B4 Positive Power 5:25 Written-By - Steve Arrington
Album Personnel:
Producer - Jimmy Douglass , Steve Arrington Co-producer - Charles Carter Bass, Guitar, Backing Vocals - Buddy Hankerson Drums - Roger Parker (2) Guitar, Keyboards - Arthur "Butch" Rhames* Keyboards - Paul Chaplin Keyboards, Backing Vocals - Charles Carter , Sam Carter Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Guitar, Bass, Keyboards - Steve Arrington Percussion, Backing Vocals - Gary Jackson
Unusually for an Al Green Album, there are several different Writer's, for the 11 Track's including the following :
Al Green : Wrote on all Track's Questlove : Wrote on all Track's apart from Tr 11 James Poyser : Wrote on all Track's apart from Tr 11 Chalmers"Spanky"Alford : Wrote on all Tr's apart from Tr 6 &11 Adam Blackstone : Wrote on all Track's apart from Tr 6 & 11 Anthony Hamilton : Wrote on Track's 1,3, & 9 Corrine Bailey Rae : Wrote on Track's 6 & 8
Incidentally Chalmers "Spanky" Alford who also played Guitar and Wrote on "Lay it Down" died on 24/03/08 aged 52, just prior the Album Release!
Also one of the Engineers on "Lay It Down" was Jimmy Douglass, a regular on Slave's Album's a few years back, he was one of the Writers,Vocalist, Producers, Engineers, mixers, arrangers etc etc!
'Lay It Down' also received 4 Grammy Nominations, including Best R&B Album, Best R&B Performance By a Duo Or Group With Vocals for 'Stay With Me (By The Sea)' featuring John Legend, and Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance for 'You've Got The Love I Need' featuring Anthony Hamilton. 'Lay It Down' was also nominated for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical for the engineering work of Jimmy Douglass, Russell 'The Dragon' Elevado and Jon Smeltz.
To hear Al Green and others featured on "Lay It Down" talking about their involvement in the making of the Album, visit here, you will have to download i-tunes to view!
By the time of the 1982 "Visions of the Lite" Album was released (on Cotillion) Steve Arringtonhad left the Band, but there were 3 new Members, Ronny Cochran, Delbert C Taylor & Marvin Wheatley!
The best track on the Album was "Do you like it Girl", it was Produced (as was the Album) by the 3 Original Slave members, Floyd Miller, Danny Webster & Mark Adams!
The next Album "Bad Enuff" came out in 1983, again on Cotillion, and again more changes to the Line-up! By this time Danny Webster was singing Lead Vocals and he was joined by a couple of other Lead Vocalists by the names of Wayne Foote & Eugene Jackson.
As I said in previous post, Slave's Music from the 4th Album was about to become mellower, with Steve Arrington performing more Lead Vocals as time went by!
By 1980 Slave released the Stone Jam Album, a better Album than "Just a Touch", it contained some Great Classic Tracks including Sizzlin' Hot, Watching You, and my Favorite Feel My Love!
Produced again by Jimmy Douglass, and probably Better than the previous album!
It contained some Great Tracks, including Snap Shot, Party Lites, Spice of life, Steal your Heart, and two funkier Tracks Funken Town and Smokin and one of Slave's Greatest Ever Tracks " Wait For Me"
I always remember getting this Vinyl from the USA, when my Parents went there on Holiday, unfornately with the Heat in the Aeroplane luggage hold, the Vinyl Melted, so I could never play the first Tracks on side 1 & 2, Snap Shot and Wait For Me!
By 1978, SLAVE had released another 2 Albums, The Hardness of the World and The Concept, in my opinion neither were as Good as the First Album (Slave), the Best Tracks from both Albums, in my opinion were "Party Song" (Slide 2) and "Baby Sinister" from Hardness, and "Stellar Fungk" and "Thank You Lord" from Concept!
Check out both Albums at the end of this Post, press the small Album Cover to go to Deezer and hear the Full Tracks!
Slave's second Album was released very quickly after the original Album, I read somewhere years ago, it was a rush job! as the original Album had been a Success!
Have a listen to the Track "Volcano Rupture" on the Hardness Album, you would think you were listening to a Rock Band!
As for The Concept Album it featured some noteable new members including Steve Arrington
(writer, on first 3 tracks and backing Vocals), and Starleana Young (Backing Vocals) who went on to form Aurra/Deja with Curt Jones.
Slaves first 3 Albums had a different Sound to them, as I mentioned in a earlier post, this Sound was about to change with Steve Arrington taking over as one of the Lead Singers on their up and coming fourth Album "Just a Touch of Love" Produced by their new Producer Jimmy Douglass.
They would lose that Rock edge to their Sound for a more Commercial one for their future Albums.
I have found many a story concerning Slave on the Web, here's a couple of the better one's!
