Wax Poetics » Re:Discovered

G. Kerr Orchestra (All Platinum) 1970

Alex Suskind — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 04:00:05 +0000

An early member of the Motown stable, George Kerr was a talented songwriter who produced memorable hits for the Whatnauts, the O’Jays, and the Moments, among others. Here, the New York native pens an unlikely instrumental rock number, comprised of generous slabs of distorted guitar, Iron Butterfly organ, and reckless drumming.

Count Basie (Brunswick) 1968

Andre Torres — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 04:00:42 +0000

Written by a teenaged Booker T. and the MG’s six years earlier, Count Basie reinterprets this Southern standard with the help of his expansive orchestra. With Basie on the piano, breathy saxophones double the song’s murky bass line for a jazzy take on a blues classic.

Gene Pitney (Musicor) 1968

Andre Torres — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 04:00:57 +0000

Although charting frequently through the early and mid-’60s, this slice of blue-eyed soul would be the Connecticut native’s last sizable hit on U.S. soil. Pitney’s unabashed guitar (and possibly his piano playing and drumming) is complimented with pep-rally trumpets and cascading strings. Pitney passed away in 2006 at the age of 66.

10 CC (London) 1974

Andre Torres — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 04:00:53 +0000

Although famously sampled by J Dilla on the song “Workinonit” from his instrumental masterpiece Donuts, “The Worst Band in the World” was a moderate hit for this experimental group of English rockers back in the early ’70s. The single would later appear on their second album, Sheet Music.

Rufus R. Jones and His Freight Train Funk Band (Choice Cut) 1976

Andre Torres — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 04:00:37 +0000

Best known by wrestling fans as “the Freight Train,” Rufus R. Jones had a penchant for soul music, as illustrated by this funky side on the Charlotte, North Carolina-based Choice Cut Records. After retiring in 1987, he settled in Kansas City, Missouri, eventually opening the Ringside Bar and Restaurant.

Jerry Weaver (SOB) 1970s

Andre Torres — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:29 +0000

Although the deep Southern sound was being defined in the ’70s by the musical forces of Muscle Shoals, Alabama, a sophisticated scene was budding a hundred miles north in the industrial metropolis of Birmingham. Although this breezy side by Jerry Weaver is not included, The Birmingham Sound: The Soul of Neal Hemphill captures this industrious producer in decade-enduring hit mode.

Art of Noise (ZTT) 1984

Andre Torres — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:18 +0000

When Art of Noise released this down-tempo melange of computer sounds, synth strokes, and orchestral musings, fans from all avenues of music praised the song’s lush minimalism. “Moments in Love” has long since become a quiet-storm staple for late-night rotation on FM dials worldwide.

Big Mello (Rap-A-Lot) 1994

Andre Torres — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 04:00:30 +0000

At this point in Big Mello’s career, he had already released a Houston rap classic, Bone Hard Zaggin. In 2002, due to a fatal car accident, Mello’s life was cut short at the young age of thirty-three. This 12-inch features a remix by DJ Screw, who would go on to revolutionize the Southern sound by pitching records down to a sluggish, ruggish pace.

Tony MF Rock (Skywalker) 1989

Andre Torres — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 04:00:23 +0000

Much less theatrical and hyper-sexual than any offering by his label mates, the 2 Live Crew, Tony MF Rock’s Let Me Take You To the Rock House is an early candy-coated Southern rap gem. The freaky hi-hats and booming bass lines featured herein make this recording an essential example of the Miami sound.

Anthony Braxton (Arista) 1977

Andre Torres — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 04:00:11 +0000

Having dug through about five boxes of easy listening records at a Chelsea street sale, I came across this 1977 document of not-so-easy-listening by the great American avant-garde sax and clarinetist, Anthony Braxton. Part of what makes this recording so special is that it displays a moment in the free style, and in Braxton’s career, where the playing is more apparently influenced by bubbling, sparkling electronic sounds indicative of the era.