I post a weekly diary of historical notes, arts & science items, foreign news (often receiving little notice in the US) and whimsical pieces from the outside world that I often feature in "Cheers & Jeers".
OK, you've been warned - here is this week's tomfoolery material that I posted.
CHEERS to Bill and Michael in PWM, our Wyoming-based friend Irish Patti and ...... well, each of you at Cheers and Jeers. Have a fabulous weekend .... and week ahead.
ART NOTES — an exhibition entitled Monet to Matisse: French Moderns 1850–1950 will be at the Wichita, Kansas Art Museum through May 20th.
In Wichita, Kansas to MayATTENTION, QUIZ READERS - posted a few months ago in this space was this year's quiz from King William's College (a prep school located on the UK's Isle of Man) - with said quiz known as its General Knowledge Paper officially.
At one time, students at the school were required to take it home during the winter recess and be prepared to research the answers at home - today, the quiz is optional. It consists of 18 groups of 10 questions - the first section on events 100 years ago, and the last on events of the past year (in this case, 2017).
Each group's correct answers has a common theme (though perhaps not immediately recognizable) that helps if you can answer at least one of that group's questions - which will give you hope of answering some others. It is among the most difficult general knowledge quizzes on earth (quite British literature-laden, as you might well imagine) in part to being very cryptic, and each year the Guardian newspaper has printed both the quiz (and a few weeks later, the answers) since 1951.
At this link is the 2017-18 year's quiz if you would like a chance to take it.
Either way, the answers are available at this link - and yours truly maintained his prior year total …. a sizzling 2 correct.
THURSDAY's CHILD is named Jean Luc Piccat the Cat— a Seattle kitteh who takes to winter trails with his family as an Adventure Cat.
Jean Luc Piccat the CatOLD MUSICAL NOTES MADE NEW, Part 1 — forty-eight years after his death, there is a new album release by Jimi Hendrix— assembled by the South African-born emigrant to England who was able to capture his sound on recordings (including these previously unreleased tracks). The descendants of Hendrix only want Eddie Kramer to handle his work - the trust level is that high.
OLD MUSICAL NOTES MADE NEW, Part 2 — this coming July will see an opera by Gaetano Donizetti having its world premiere in London almost 180 years after it was written — the result of eight years of research by a musicologist in Southampton, England … who had to travel to Paris, other parts of Europe (and even the US) to assemble the jigsaw puzzle.
FRIDAY's CHILD is named Achilles the Cat— who lives at the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia — who will serve a the official prognosticator of this summer’s World Cup to be held in Russia.
Achilles the Hermitage CatHAIL and FAREWELL to the sixty-six year-old print edition of one of Britain’s longest-lasting music newspapers, the New Musical Express— that will continue on-line — which outlasted its rival Melody Maker (that I read) by eighteen years.
BRAIN TEASER - try this Quiz of the Week's News from the BBC.
FATHER—SON? — the recently-deceased Russ Solomon— the founder of Tower Records — and the co-founder of Fleetwood Mac, drummer Mick Fleetwood.
Russ Solomon (1925-2018) Mick Fleetwood (born 1947)...... and finally, for a song of the week ...........................… someone whose music wasn’t really mine … but whose sound I couldn’t ignore was Rick James— who led a life of both triumph (as well as sordidness and criminality) that fully earned his VH-1 “Behind the Music” episode. Although known as a flamboyant on-stage performer, he had further success as a songwriter and producer and more than one writer credits him with extending the life of Motown when it was floundering in the late 70’s. He coined the phrase “punk funk” to describe his music — it certainly contained those genres plus soul, generic R&B as well as an unmistakable tinge of rock-n-roll — as will be seen in the re-telling of his story.
Born as James Johnson in Buffalo, New York in 1947, he impulsively enlisted in the Navy at age 15 (lying about his age). After being called-up to active duty in August, 1964 he went AWOL to Ontario where he joined (what proved to be) one of rock & roll’s greatest little-known stories.
First, he was set-upon by some drunk locals before being rescued by Garth Hudson and Levon Helm (two future members of The Band). They brought him to a bar and — after jumping on-stage to sing with the band then playing there — offered him a spot in their band; he was that impressive. A local resident advised him to change his name, which he did to Ricky James Matthews (and years later he shortened to Rick James, after meeting his idol Stevie Wonder who suggested it).
The band later changed its name to the Mynah Birds— a soul folk-rock band whose line-up changed frequent, and I cannot find an online time-line showing all of the personnel changes — that lasted from 1964-1967. Suffice it to say, during its lifetime the band had (as some of its members) bassist Nick St. Nicholas and organist Goldy McJohn (later to join Steppenwolf), future solo guitarist Bruce Cockburn, and also future Buffalo Springfield members Bruce Palmer and … Neil Young(!) They did some recordings for both Columbia and Motown, few of which were released until decades later. One reason: the band fired its manager, who told authorities of the AWOL sailor (who then spent jail time in the Navy brig) which led Motown to shelve the disk out of nervousness. (The Mynah Birds would make for a good profile, if I could find adequate source material).
After his release, Rick James spent time in California and in 1968 met-up with fellow bassist Greg Reeves. James introduced Reeves to his old friend Neil Young … but it was Reeves who was hired for the just-forming Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. In 1969, Rick James met someone who wanted to invest in his band, noted hairstylist Jay Sebring… who invited Rick to a party held by his friends one August night — but begged-off due to a horrible hangover. Good thing … because Jay Sebring was among those randomly murdered that night by the Manson Family.
In the early 70’s, he was best described as a journeyman bassist. Returning to his hometown of Buffalo, he founded the Stone City Band, which enabled him to get that big break: being signed to Motown. His 1978 debut album Come Get It had two hits, the more edgy “You and I” and the more melodic Mary Jane— a very apropos combination. After other less-known recordings, his magnum opus was 1981’s album Street Songs — with hits such as Give It to Me, Baby and his best-known tune Super Freak… which also spawned a hit for someone else at the end of the decade.
In 1981, he produced works by his protegée Teena Marie, known as the Ivory Queen of Soul (and godmother to actress-comic Maya Rudolph) and also an all-female quartet he formed, the Mary Jane Girls— a dance/soul/funk band that had several hits in the 1980’s before splitting to join other groups.
In 1982 he produced the Temptations’ single Standing On the Top, and Rick James released from 1982-83 his own albums with R&B hit singles Cold Blooded and “Glow”. In 1985 he wrote/produced a hit single for an unexpected singer: Eddie Murphy’s Party All the Time (which reached #2 on the pop charts) and Rick James had a running battle with MTV over his contention that black music acts were being excluded. He also developed a large drug habit: with one result that he stuffed a cocktail napkin sketch of him drawn by Salvador Dali into his shorts .. but then going for swim in them (after smoking a joint).
Rick James’ last charted singlet was 1988’s “Loosey’s Rap” — tellingly, his punk-funk style started to lose appeal in the late 80’s in favor of more hard-edged rap — but not before recording a more classic soul tune, The Drifters’ 1960 hit This Magic Moment (which Jay & the Americans covered years later) that showed he still was in touch with his musical roots.
As previously noted: in 1990, the basic riff to Super Freak was sampled by MC Hammer for his #8 hit single U Can’t Touch This— which James’ lawyers authorized without his knowledge — and he had to sue to get a partial writer’s credit. Good thing he did: as it garnered him a share of the 1990 Best Rhythm & Blues Song (his one Grammy award).
The 1990’s proved to be his undoing: with increased substance abuse problems (often teaming up with Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler in rehab), criminal activity (kidnapping a woman while on crack cocaine, with a three year sentence at Folsom Prison), and when returning to the stage in 1997 he suffered a stroke which essentially ended his live shows, sidelining him for the next few years.
The year of 2002 began a new lease-on-life: a career retrospective boxed set was released, he famously appeared on Dave Chapelle’s Show in 2003 and was working on a new album … when Rick James died in 2004 from heart failure at age 56. He is buried in his hometown of Buffalo, New York.
Besides his body of work, there is a 2014 biography (based upon an autobiography that Rick James was working on prior to his death) filled with amazing stories … which figures, considering the source.
Back in the mid-1980’s, one of my co-workers was telling us what he was getting his wife for her birthday: “The flowers, the Harvey’s (Bristol Cream), the Perry Como records … and then if she really wants to get-down, I got some Rick James”.
Hearing those two performers back-to-back ….. hmmm ……..
Rick James (w/Mynah Birds) …... and Rick in his heydayWhile my favorite uptempo song of his that he wrote (and produced) was In My House for the Mary Jane Girls …. his most elegant performance is one he recorded with the nonpareil Smokey Robinson on Rick’s 1983 album Cold Blooded. Ebony Eyes is a song title also used by the Everly Brothers and Bob Welch, but this is one that Rick James himself wrote (and largely sang the chorus, with Smokey the lead). If all you know is Super Freak … you need to know this side of Rick James.
Lips soft and tender, ready to speak Her voice says, "I love you" And it's making me weak Little girl, may I just say I love you (Smokey): Tell 'em how you feel, Rick
Love is the brown-skin girl in my eyes Think it's time that I told you, don't you realize You´re such a queen, woman; you're such a prize And I want you to know that .. you know what, girl? I love you and I bet you didn't know that, girl I need you right now, baby And I bet you didn't know that … Ebony Eyes
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