Random 10 for Jan. 4, 2008
1. Lucky Soul, “Get Outta Town!” This starts out with the riff from “Cherry Cherry” and then comes on like a dance-craze sensation from 1962. Lucky Soul is just the latest exponent of my beloved genre known as Northern soul, the British answer to classic American R&B that the original mods came to worship and then the neo-mods revived in the early ’80s. Ye olde Style Council/Orange Juice/Tracie fans, your prayers are answered. And, for whatever reason, this is neo-soul day on the Random 10.
2. The Autumn Defense, “City Bells.”
3. Sonic Youth, “Incinerate.”
4. The Bigger Lovers, “Emmanuelle.”
5. Joy Denalane feat. Lupe Fiasco, “Change.” There isn’t a great known history of German soul music — not to disparage my heritage, but whenever I hear the phrase “German soul,” I think of Frank Farian selling America a bill of goods in 1989 when two guys with elaborate weaves lip-synched and danced “the running man” while non-photogenic session musicians toiled in the background. Based on the old school soul riffage of “Change,” featuring the ultra-talented Mr. Fiasco, Denalane, who is of German and South African lineage, is much more of a real deal. Common also used her on his remix of “Go” before Denalane released her first English language disc, Born and Raised, in 2006. Another great way to mark time until Lauryn Hill gets her head on straight.
6. The High Violets, “Cool Green.”
7. My Latest Novel, “Sister Sneaker Sister Soul.”
8. Jay-Z feat. Bilal, “Fallin’.”
9. The Budos Band, “Chicago Falcon.” This Brooklyn big band is all about ’70s-style soul instrumentals — cop funk, “blaxploitation,” what have you. If you love Roy Ayers’ soundtrack to “Coffy,” you must own Budos Band II.
10. Dean and Britta, “You Turn My Head Around.”
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The lead singer in Lucky Soul is mighty transfixing. If 1980s-era Michelle Pfeiffer and 1960s-era Angie Dickinson had a love child, she’d be it.
This IS the Maxim blog, isn’t it ?