Remember three years ago when Zero to 180 featured its first ‘Musical Roll Call‘ vis-à-vis Little Royal and his regal rail line, whose crew consisted solely of the finest and funkiest soul luminaries of the early 1970s including, incredibly, The … Continue reading
Years ago I remember being spellbound by a Mojo feature article that interviewed several of the musicians in The Famous Flames who had toured Vietnam with James Brown in 1968 and played for a large number of very grateful soldiers … Continue reading
Is Cincinnati aware the degree to which Manzel‘s two 45s “Space Funk” (from 1977) & “Midnight Theme” (1979) have become revered dance tracks around the globe? Note the trippy backwards drumming intro that immediately draws in the listener on “Space … Continue reading
Impressive musicianship and stellar vocals make for another slice of Cincinnati funk on Counterpart Records that is able to command serious scratch (currently $90 on Ebay) on the vinyl market: “Hang Up Your Hang-Ups” Umoja 197? As with 400 Years … Continue reading
I am delighted that a 45 released on Shad O’Shea’s Counterpart label – “Get Down People” by 400 Years of What – sold on Ebay for a cool $295. However, if it weren’t for Buckeye Beat’s comprehensive listing of 45s … Continue reading
Selected topical categories in alphabetical order: 8-Track Only http://www.zeroto180.org/?cat=552 African Pop http://www.zeroto180.org/?cat=762 Animation in Popular Music http://www.zeroto180.org/?cat=1464 Art Rock http://www.zeroto180.org/?cat=666 B-Side as Anti-A-Side http://www.zeroto180.org/?cat=308 Bagpipes in Popular Music http://www.zeroto180.org/?cat=1623 Bakersfield Sound http://www.zeroto180.org/?cat=117 Baltimore in Song http://www.zeroto180.org/?cat=1004 Bass-centric Recordings http://www.zeroto180.org/?cat=1410 Bats … Continue reading
As with Waylon Jennings‘ deeply-felt “Abilene” or Ruby Wright’s surprisingly bass-centric “Adios Aloha,” one cannot but feel alarmed by the depth of bottom in the opening synth notes of this charmingly analog production – recorded at Cincinnati’s Counterpart Studios, with … Continue reading
I am eternally grateful that a hometown musical troupe – The Raisins – just happened to be one of the greatest rock bands of the 1980s. Amusing to recall in retrospect my adolescent disbelief when a friend once informed me … Continue reading
Randy McNutt gives a first-hand account of Cincinnati’s local recording scene in the liner notes to his CD compilation Souled Out: Queen City Soul-Rockers of the 1970s: “[Lonnie] Mack’s 1963 hit “Memphis” and “Wham!” [on Cincinnati’s Fraternity label] had started … Continue reading
Thanks to Darren Blase and Shake It Records for assembling an 18-track collection of recordings by singer, songwriter & producer, Kenny Smith, that span a total of eleven labels: Fraternity, Chess, President, RCA, Flo-Roe, Goldspot, Clearhill, Counterpart, General American, Kogan … Continue reading