James Brown

When I was on break at work yesterday, a guy I work with was playing some music via the speakerphone on his iPhone -- first some James Brown, then The Beatles, etc. A girl near me looked up and gave him a strange look and said "Hm weird, I didn't expect you to listen to music like this." Now, personally if someone said that to me, I'm not sure how I'd take it. Does that mean the guy looks like he aligns with a certain genre, or is it personality based? Is it a "Hey, yo... MORE

James Brown back when he was young and fresh. His band is tight beyond belief. The highlight for me is seeing how he and tenorman Maceo Parker work together towards the end. When they recorded the studio track, you can hear James call for Maceo but then they fade. Now we can see what we were missing.
Mother Popcorn (Live Music Scene 1969)
Uploaded by eXsistenZ1968

I was listening to the radio the other day when there was a call in for folks to talk about who Barack should pick for a running mate. In the middle of the back and forth, the host (Brian Lehrer- a fave of mine), held the calls, and said something like this: "Before we get involved with the horse race and policy discussions, can we just slow down, take a step back, and realize what an historic moment this is?, Did we ever think we would see this day?" I think most folk... MORE

I'm writing some other shite right now but I thought I'd hit and run with what I got pumpin' out of my speakers for inspiration: James Brown's In the Jungle Groove LP ...this is one of the god father's phattest sets in my opinion. Fave cuts: "It's a New Day", "Funky Drummer [Bonus Beat Reprise]" (which holds, probably the most over-sampled drum loop in Hip Hop) "Soul Power [Mono Version]", " Talking Loud and Saying Noththing" and the butter-rific "Get Up, Get Into It, Get ... MORE

Bootsy Collins wants to keep the music and memory of James Brown alive and well. He recently stated, "I don't want people to forget what he's done. To me, he's like the Martin Luther King Jr. of music." Therefore, he's spent much of this year organizing a series of annual James Brown tribute concerts and the first one will take place Saturday, December 22nd. December 25th marks the one-year anniversary of Brown's death. Proceeds from the event will contribute to the re... MORE

The paperwork is ridiculously easy to fill out. I meet the requirements as laid out in the Constitution. So, Why not? Actually I was going to try to get on the write in ballot for New York, New Jersey, and of course Pennsylvania. My thinking is, what better way to understand the process than to go though it myself. I could campaign on MOG. Just think, you guys can say you know a Pres. candidate and it will look good next to my letter of ordination.

Belonging from James Brown’s estate will be auctioned off to pay for existing tax bills. Brown, who passed away in December of 2006, left his estate to his six children. Since his death another woman, Tomi Rae Hynie, a former back-up singer of Brown’s has come forward and declared herself his fourth wife. She believes half the estate is hers and has filed a suit. The thirty-six year old also claims that Brown is the father to her son. The Brown family has been order... MORE

1. Carl Douglas, "Kung Fu Fighting." I don't know how many of you watch the video links, but you don't want to miss this one, which is actually even weirder than the song itself. 2. Al Green, "Take Me to the River." You need to wash in the water after that Carl Douglas video. 3. Phoebe Snow, "Poetry Man." Get ready, because shuffle play has coughed up a trio of brilliant women singers. Snow's career took a backseat to family life for several decades, but she's more than ... MORE

It's been a bit longer than it should've been but I'm back with another Christmas track. This time, it's an interesting tune from James Brown. It's called "Soulful Christmas" and it's a typically wonderful James Brown track. As opposed to being a traditional Christmas song, this track is really just James Brown thanking his fans for his success. He may have been the hardest working man in show business, but don't let it be said that he didn't appreciate his fans. "... MORE

The holidays are here, and I have yet to step foot in an established retail store, brave a "door buster" sale, or even think of buying people the perfect gifts that would suit them. You see, I'm one of those impossible people to buy presents for, and on top of that, I'm a bit of a doomed perfectionist. Ad to that the fact that I live on a limited budget. So every year I always set myself up for failure around the holidays with this dilemma: If I can't afford the gift I w... MORE

I wanted to write something right off the top of my head the minute I heard about James Brown, maybe a guide to his music, or a personal story about how his music affected me, but I couldn’t. I needed a little time to let it sink in. My first thoughts, though, were about a book written by Greil Marcus, called Dead Elvis. Dead Elvis goes beyond the usual depictions of Elvis as a product of his environment and the mirror by which the country saw itself . The book is about... MORE

For the past couple years I search through my music and other sources and put together some Christmas songs for my closest friends. I try to search out music they have not been subjected to every christmas of their conscious lives so I have to do a bit of digging around on emusic and asking other people what they have. Unfortunately my four year old twins are having their first christmas in which they understand more about santa, gifts, frosty, rudolph, and all the oth... MORE