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Barrence Whitfield and The Savages are not for everyone. Whitfield is an R&B screamer who fronted an all white band from Boston that played a wild mix of 50s rock and soul. It helps if you're a fan of singers like Little Richard and Wilson Pickett, but even then you may find Whitfield too much to handle. Originally issued in 1984 as a thirteen song LP that clocked in at under a half hour - then re-released in 2010 with ten additional tracks - this eponymous debut was a sensation in New England's largest city but failed to gain traction anywhere else in America.  Believe it or not, Whitfield was born with the name Barry White, but his music bares no resemblance to the late, R&B star - not even close. Unlike that romatic balladeer, Whitfield's vocals never smolder. He's constantly on fire and sings with wild abandon. Guitarist Peter Greenberg and sax player Steve LaGrega also provided explosive performances. The original group was ...

One of the few positive things to come out of the Coronavirus pandemic is some good music even though I'm sure we'd all be willing to give up a few excellent tunes to eradicate that bad boy from the face of the Earth. One of the artists who drew inspiration from the dismal lockdown was The Rolling Stones. They released "Living In A Ghost Town" on streaming services and as an mp3 download back in April 2020. It's also available as a ten-inch, one-sided single on vinyl and as a single track CD on Amazon . I recently purchased the song from iTunes. The track is the first new, original Stones' music since "Gloom and Doom" and "One More Shot" became available in 2012, and it's the only new work they've released of any kind since their very fine album of blues covers, Blue & Lonesome , in 2016. "Living In A Ghost Town" is notable for being the group...

Until now, the only encounters I've had with The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band   have been their only charting hit single, "Mr. Bojangles" - #9 on the Hot 100 in 1970 - and their world class, collaborative, triple LP,   Will The Circle Be Unbroken , in 1972. I also saw them live at Temple University's long defunct music fair - probably back in the late 1970s - but I don't remember anything about the concert.  It's typical of PBS to televise most of their excellent, special programming during pledge drives and the band's September 2022 concert at Nashville's famous and acoustically perfect Ryman Auditorium - formerly the home of The Grand Ole Opry - is no exception. Having recently watched this show I learned that NGDB - together since 1966 - deserved far more attention than I've ever given them. The day after watching the sextet's concert on TV I visited a used book and magazine sto...

They finally came and took Jerry Samuels away - for real this time. Samuels - whose death was reported today - was known as the one-hit wonder, Napoleon XIV, who became almost famous for recording and releasing the 45 RPM record " They’re Coming to Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa!" It became a #3 hit for Warner Brothers Records in the summer of 1966 and it's perhaps the most bizarre novelty hit to ever climb near the top of the Billboard Hot 100. This spoken word single was made using only percussion instruments with a siren added for effect and was partially recorded by employing the same studio technique that the late David Seville used to alter the voices of The Chipmunks. At first the listener believes Samuels is "singing" about a woman who left him, but soon we realize it's about his runaway dog. " I  cooked your food ,  I cleaned your house, and this is how you pay me back for all my kind, unselfish, loving deeds. Hah! Well yo...

Before digging into the music of the oddly named The 143 you should know where the band got their name. According to  Cyber Definitions ,"143" is a slang term for "I love you," and it's often used as shorthand when texting. The name is derived from the number of letters in each word of that common little phrase: 1 = I, 4 = love, 3 = you. The 143 is a throwback band that proves 1960s pop-rock isn't dead and is still lovingly cultivated by N. A. Smolenski and his bandmates. The new group - from Brooklyn, NYC - is led by Smolenski who stars on guitar, bass, keys and background vocals. He sang lead vocals on two tracks. He also contributed percussion and artwork to their just released debut album, Life in the Time of Robots & Aliens . The leader also wrote twelve of the thirteen songs alone and co-wrote another with bandmate Cory Newell. The psychedelic album cover looks like it could have been inspired by Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band ,...