Mud

Artist: Mud

LP: 7" single

Song: "Dyna-Mite"

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So it turns out that that having my 7" copy of Bow Wow Wow's "The Man Mountain" get lost in the mail somewhere between England and Northgate was a blessing in disguise! When I finally determined I could wait no longer, I went back online to Discogs to order another copy—one that was even better than the first one! I found one, but of course the seller had to inform me that it was the same price to ship six 45s from The Netherlands as it was to ship one. I ended up ordering seven, including five Prince singles with picture sleeves I didn't already have, and this cool 1973 Mud thing that I ordered based solely on the neat photo of the band sitting around there on the cover. My records arrived today!

I'd never heard of Mud before, but I'm really stuck on them! You can read all about the band here, and someone even threw together one of those colorful bar graphs that shows all the lineup changes over the years. From what I can tell, Mud was a hot commodity in England, but I wonder if they ever got any airplay here in the USA.

Facundo Rivero and His Quartet

Artist: Facundo Rivero and His Quartet

LP: Cha-Cha-Cha: The New Exciting Dance Rhythm From Cuba — double 7" EP

Song: "Negra Mi Cha-Cha-Cha"

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Here's a blast of cha-cha-cha from the middle of the 1950s, when it was a fresh new set of steps that challenged the mambo as the Latin dance of preference in American ballrooms across the land. There's not much to read about Facundo Rivero on the Internet (although I did unearth a handsome lad by that name who's got a Twitter account), but the musical Cuban Facundo Rivero was evidently a famous pianist and bandleader, born in Santa Clara, Cuba in 1910. According to this short Spanish language biography, Rivero played music in Cuba for a number of years, then went to Mexico in 1950, worked in a variety of countries, then landed in New York City for a while after 1959. He then alternated between New York and Miami, ultimately retiring to the warm climate of the Florida city. I find no mention of Facundo's death, so I can only assume he's still lazing around in the Miami sunshine and will be celebrating his 109th birthday at some point this year. 

Rivero is just one of the talented Cuban musicians springing the latest Latin dance craze on unsuspecting Americans in this double 7" EP that contains eight tracks simply bursting with cha-cha. Noro Morales, Ernesto Duarte, Tito Rodriguez and Al Castellanos are among some of the others. The ad on the back of the cover informs us that "EPs are the answer to 'The Music you want when you want it.'" I couldn't agree more. EPs are like the Spotify of 1955!

[ Facundo Rivero ]

Dexys Midnight Runners

Artist: Dexys Midnight Runners

LP: 7" single

Song: "The Celtic Soul Brothers"

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As I've mentioned before, I think it's a shame that Americans—North, Central, and South alike—have only ever heard of one song by this talented group of soulful barnyard ragamuffin Brits. As far as I can tell, aside from "Come On Eileen," which shot to the top of the charts all over the world, only one other Dexys Midnight Runners song was commercially released as a single in the USA. "The Celtic Soul Brothers," which Mercury Records tossed to the masses hot on the heels of "Come On Eileen," failed to repeat the former single's success, peaking only at #86 on the Billboard Hot 100. But I think it's a splendid ditty. How many other singles in 1983 featured a rollicking violin solo stuck somewhere in the middle?

[ Dexys Midnight Runners ]

Clarence Fountain

Artist: Clarence Fountain

LP: Soul, Spirit and Song
Song: "Oh! Happy Day"

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Song: "Sending Up My Timber"

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I figured some good old fashioned gospel music would make a nice tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr. on this special day. What I didn't realize until doing a little research just now is that Clarence Fountain was one of the original founding members of The Blind Boys of Alabama, the famous gospel group that actually performed at benefits for Rev. King during the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. 

This 1974 LP is one that Fountain released during his ten-year hiatus from The Blind Boys, when he decided to try his hand at a solo career. His solo work sounds pretty terrific to me (that voice! And he makes particularly nice use of the electric organ as accompaniment), but in the late 1970s Clarence went back to perform with the group he'd founded. When Fountain passed away last June at the age of 88, he left Jimmy Carter as the only remaining founding member of The Blind Boys of Alabama; Jimmy still performs with the group today. Happy Martin Luther, King Jr. Day!

[ Clarence Fountain: November 28, 1929 — June 3, 2018 ]

The Moments

Artist: The Moments

LP: Look At Me
Song: "Girls (French version)"

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Song: "Look At Me (French version)"

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Last night I went sifting through my soul and R&B records to find something quiet and romantic to bring my enjoyable evening to a delicate close. This 1975 LP by The Moments that I put on the console was already hitting the spot, and then they started singing in French!

I had not realized until now that The Moments were the same fellows who later turned into Ray, Goodman, and Brown. Stang Records evidently wouldn't let the trio keep the name when The Moments decided to leave the label in 1979. (Update: Oh. I guess I did know this 10 years ago. My memory just ain't what it used to be.) Mais peu importe comment vous les applez, ils sont simplement magnifiques! 

[ Harry Ray: December 15, 1946 — October 1, 1992 ]

[ Al Goodman: March 30, 1943 — July 26, 2010 ]

[ Billy Brown: b. June 30, 1946 ]

Rose Maddox

Artist: Rose Maddox

LP: Rose Maddox Sings Bluegrass 
Song: "Footprints In the Snow"

[ listen ]

This nifty little bluegrass ditty has been stuck in my head all week! It may be one of the only love songs ever recorded in which romance blossoms as the result of a wintry mountain rescue mission.

[ Rose Maddox: August 15, 1925 — April 15, 1998 ]

Bonnie Guitar [1923-2019]

Artist: Bonnie Guitar

LP: Moonlight and Shadows

Song: "Moonlight and Shadows"

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As I mentioned in my Carol Channing post a few days ago, country music pioneer Bonnie Guitar also died this week. After starting life in Seattle in the 1920s and living in the Puget Sound area for her first few decades, Bonnie left Washington in the 1950s to work as a session musician and record a few albums in Los Angeles. Her first LP was the lovely "Moonlight and Shadows," released in 1957. She scored a crossover hit single called "Dark Moon" that same year; the song went to #14 on the country charts, while peaking at #6 on the Billboard pop charts. Bonnie then returned to Seattle and started her own record label called Dolton Records, on which she launched the careers of The Fleetwoods and The Ventures. 

Bonnie eventually settled in Soap Lake, WA, where I once had a good diner breakfast after camping overnight just north of town on an Eastern Washington State Rodeo Tour with my good friend Theresa. It was in Soap Lake that Bonnie died the other day, at the age of 95. I bet we've eaten at the same diner! I'm kicking myself for not having gone to see Bonnie perform in Soap Lake or at one of the local county fairs. It would have been divine to have seen her with my friend Ryan, who's also a fan. 

One of my favorite things that I've just learned about Bonnie Guitar is that in 1969 she married a man by the name of Mario DePiano. (Made for each other!) You can read all about Bonnie's career on Wikipedia here, and here you'll find her obituary in The New York Times. 

Bonnie Guitar on YouTube:

[ "Dark Moon" - 1957 ]
[ "Dark Moon" - 2013 ]

Bonnie Guitar

[ March 25, 1923 — January 12, 2019 ]

We will miss you, Bonnie.

Carol Channing [1921-2019]

Artist: Carol Channing

LP: Carol Channing

Song: "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend"

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Today was quite a day. First my friend Ryan informed me that Carol Burnett had died. I was heartbroken. I'd grown up watching her show on weekend evenings at my Grandma Bea's house. When I asked my coworkers if they'd heard that she'd died, they said they had heard that Carol Channing had died, not Carol Burnett. I looked it up online and they were right. I was relieved. Not that I wanted Carol Channing dead, but she was 97 after all, whereas Carol Burnett is still a sprightly 85. 

Then this afternoon I decided to try calling Marsha, my friend and former piano teacher. She hadn't been well lately and I'd meant to reach out to her over the past weekend to let her know I was thinking of her and to see how she was feeling. When she answered and I told her it was Alex, she simply stated "Alex," as if she didn't remember who I was. I told her I was thinking of her and wanted to give her a call to say hello. "Alex" she said again. And then, "This is Gloria. You didn't get my email." Marsha had passed away the night before, just after she'd gone to sleep. I was heartbroken again. I've lost a friend.

[ Marsha Wright ]

I left work early and went to see WIDOWS to get my mind on something cheerier (theft, betrayal, and murder to be precise). Then this evening my friend Ryan texted again to say that Bonnie Guitar had died! (I quickly checked online to make sure she didn't mean Bonnie Tyler.) So now I'm headed to bed, but with three fewer wonderful Washingtonian women in the world than there were just a few days before. 

That's right—Carol Channing was born right here in Seattle back in 1921. Her father was working as city editor for the Seattle Star. He took a job in San Francisco and the family moved to California when Carol was only two weeks old. But yeah, Carol Channing is originally from somewhere right up the street from me. 

Now I've got to get to bed, so I'll leave you with Ms. Channing's Wikipedia page here, and here is her obituary in the New York Times. As I type this I hope Carol, Marsha, and Bonnie are standing together at some pearly gates or whatever, waiting for security clearance and talking about music and the beautiful state of Washington they've all left behind.

Carol Channing

[ January 31, 1921 — January 15, 2019 ]

We will miss you, Carol.