Lord Larehip

In the soul heyday, Detroiters loved all the soul out there not just the Detroit stuff. I remember when "Expressway to Your Heart" came out. That was like the anthem of Detroit. You heard it everywhere you went. And "Some Kind of Wonderful" by the Soul Brother 6 was hugely popular here which is why Grand Funk covered it but I believe SB6 was from New York or New Jersey. James Brown was a virtual god in Detroit and he was from Georgia. "Funky Broadway" was so popular in Detroit that there was a clothing store right in the middle of downtown called Funky Broadway. Wilson was a Detroit cat but that was on Stax Records if I remember correctly. I remember "Keep the Ball Rollin'" by Jay & the Techniques was very popular here but they were from Allentown, PA, I believe. "I'm Your Puppet" by James & Bobby Purify was very popular here. In fact, I think Marvin Gaye covered it (and the song was written by two white guys). "Slippin' Into Darkness" by War was another enormously popular song in Detroit.

And many Motown artists recorded with Gamble & Huff or recorded songs that were written by G&H's stable of songwriters. I think G&H were also responsible for Archie Bell & the Drells and "Tighten Up" was so popular in Detroit you'd have thought it was recorded here.

Yeah, we loved out soul here. I miss those old soul days. I remember sitting on a garbage can in an alley behind my aunt's house listening to a group of bruthas harmonizing a capella doing "Ooh, Baby, Baby" on the corner.

I guess those days are gone forever.

Here's one my mentor, Bob Dennis, mastered for Hotwax:


The Flaming Ember - Mind, Body, and Soul - 45 rpm - YouTube

Necromancer

Well, I can feel ya when you say the good old days are behind us. But your hand on hand experiences are a little more extravagant than mine I have to say. Its good to see someone quote on their own personal experiences and their own understanding of the genealogy of any particular genre and/or era of music history. Living the experiences at that particular time when a certain genre, artist, or band, gives one a much more better understanding because they lived during that time when it was popular.

The 70s was my personal "Golden Era" of music. I was always into The Brothers Johnson, Parliament/Funkadelic, The Isley Brothers, LTD, AWB, Rick James, Head East, Earth, Wind, & Fire, and so on if I gave it more thought.

You just don't hear music like that anymore, I mean...that music just made you feel good, it was uplifting music that resonated a good vibe...

Lord Larehip

Parliament and the Isleys were part of Detroit scene. The Isleys were at Motown for a bit and recorded "This Ol' Heart of Mine" here--another HDH number. Parliament was headed by George Clinton and recorded "I Wanna Testify" in Detroit. In fact, George recorded quite a lot at The Disc which houses the Recording Institute of Detroit which I attended. I saw him around the studio quite a lot. Bob Dennis runs the school.

That building used to be the old GM studio. It's not in Detroit proper, it's in Eastpointe (formerly East Detroit) on 9 Mile near Gratiot. GM studio put out Dennis Coffey's "Scorpio" (he was one of the Funk Bros and still lives around here and still records--real nice guy). GM also put out "It's So Nice to Be With You" by Gallery who were a Detroit-area band. They put out "Hlep for My Waiting" by the Dorians who were from Ontario but came to East Detroit to record it (Southeast Michigan has very close ties to Canada. In fact Detroit is the only border city in the US that is NORTH of Canada)

GM also had a sister label called Bump Shop Records because the GM studio was attached to a bump shop called Motor City Collision. Amazingly, even though the GM facility is long gone and the Disc/RID has been there for many years, that bump shop is still there and still operating. My old double bass instructor used to record at GM quite a lot. He's also recorded with a lot of Motown people like Martha Reeves and the late Larry Nozero (whose sax is all over Motown recordings like "What's Going On"). GM, by the way, has nothing to do with General Motors. It was a very small label that usually picked the artists that couldn't get signed to Motown or were dropped from the label.

But Ohio had a couple of dynamite soul acts--the Ohio Players and Bootsy (he was from Cincinnati, right?). I grew up part of my life in Cincinnati because my grandparents lived there. But I love the Ohio Players and Bootsy. Even today, if I'm playing out somewhere and I dash off the opening guitar chords to "Sweet Sticky Thing" the older black people in the audience will sigh nostalgically. And Bootsy hooked up with George Clinton after his gig with James Brown was over and he spent A LOT of time up here.

I have a buddy with a few tapes of live P-Funk shows that he transferred over to DVD. That was some crazy ****!

Necromancer

You mentioned This Ol' Heart Of Mine, I really liked Wild Cherry's version of that one a lot. And Sweet Sticky Thing is one of my favorite by The Ohio Players, Its sad "Shug" passed away just this last year I believe. Their album Honey brings back so many memories.

You know, have you ever considered writing a book concerning the Detroit R&B/Soul/Funk scene? Thats really quite amazing within itself having the opportunity just to be around some of the artist you have mentioned.

Of course I am a big admirer of James Jamerson and the Funk Brothers. What are some of your views concerning, when Berry Gordy moved Motown to California (if I'm correct?) Ive heard, or actually read it somewhere, that he left The Funk Brothers behind in Detroit. Is there any truth to that story? Or any inside information you can add to it?

Its really nice conversing with you Brother, you should think about writing a book with the knowledge you have, if you haven't already.

I will be sending you a PM.

Lord Larehip

There have been quite a number of books on the Detroit soul/rock/jazz scene. I really have nothing new to add to it. Detroit was an incredible musical Mecca for decades. Going from the Paradise Valley days to the Fortune Records days to Motown to the founding of metal and punk with the advent of the MC5 and the Stooges.

But it all fell apart after the riots of '67. Not right away but it began a gradual decline that nothing has been able to stop. As for Gordy moving Motown to LA, that happened around '71. I can't really blame him. The writing was on the wall and he knew it. Bob Dennis left Motown in part because he knew by '68 that Motown was pulling up stakes and he didn't want to go to LA. He still lives here in the Detroit area. Martha Reeves still lives here because I saw her at a record store last year. Barrett Strong still lives here and he wrote all those Temptation songs--"Just My Imagination" "Ball of Confusion" "Cloud 9" "Psychedelic Shack" etc. He was the cousin of Nolan Strong who was lead singer of Nolan Strong & the Diablos who recorded for Fortune Records--one of the greatest doo-wop groups EVER. John Lee Hooker recorded for Fortune as did Flaming Ember before they moved to Hot Wax. So did Skeeter Davis, the country singer, her very first records were on Fortune.

Yeah the Funk Bros got left behind but I don't think most of them wanted to go to LA. Dennis Coffey sure didn't. Some criticize Gordy's move but I think it was one of necessity. He'd have had to move sooner or later. Detroit is in SERIOUS decline today. It's so bad I don't know how they are going to get out of it. But some parts of it are actually very nice. But huge swaths are now deserted--like a nuclear bomb hit it or something. Eerie.

Lord Larehip

Nolan Strong & the Diablos from 1954. "The Wind" is considered to be the most beautiful doo-wop ever written:


Nolan Strong and The Diablos "The Wind" - 1954 Fortune Records - YouTube

Necromancer

I used to live in Cleveland, and its the same way with that particular northeastern city as well. Especially the inner city area, and the much more nicer and a lot safer suburb areas (20 to 30 miles out) are so expensive to live its ridiculous. You really hate to see the deterioration of a major city like that, once you have fallen in love with it.

Lord Larehip

There's so few cops in Detroit that unless you have a major emergency, no one will answer your call. So crime is pretty rampant. I went to a bar in Detroit not long to see Rodriguez--you know--Sugarman, the guy whose records were huge in South Africa and he never even knew it and they all thought he was dead but someone realized he was living in Detroit. Well, he still lives here, I can't see him moving anywhere else. But, anyway. I went to see Rodriguez perform and people are just sitting there smoking pot and the parking lot is jammed with people passing joints around. No cops, no worries and the bar owners say nothing because it wouldn't do any good and at least they have business. Pot is legal in Detroit anyway but only for personal in the home not in public places but people smoke it openly everywhere now because there are no cops. It's kind of cool because Detroit could become another San Francisco in the 60s--a counterculture area. I would think that would be the probable outcome because somebody has to move into all those deserted houses.

Necromancer

If you would, give this band a listen and give me your advise concerning the bass player, Sam Marshal?

They are a band out of Texas Ive recently been following. I really look for a major artist eventually hearing and picking this guy up. You almost have to hear and see him play live before you can fully appreciate and admire his talent. His dynamics and ability is impeccable. He has funk, speed with accuracy...Geez. I didn't pick the bass up for over a month after seeing him play.

They have a new album soon to be released.

Let me know what you think?

Lord Larehip

Yes, he's very good! What I call "workhorse bass"--the other instruments are riding on his back. That's how bass playing should be. I hate lazy bass playing. This fellow builds a bridge with his notes and the other instruments cross over on it. Good stuff. I've played with some superb bassists. One of my old instructors plays beautiful bossa nova on a 6-string bass--both guitar and bass lines at once. The harmonies are beautiful with crystal clear chords. He's a one-man band with that thing. I heard another guy playing awesome lead guitar licks with super fast runs full of hammer-ons and string bending and then realized with a shock that he was playing a 6-string bass way up the neck. Some guys have all the talent. Thanks for the clips!