UPDATE 9/10/13: Just yesterday, we published the following review of Monk Montgomery's 1974 album Reality, produced, arranged, and co-written by a true legend of soul music and architect of The Sound of Philadelphia, Mr. Bobby Martin. Today, word has arrived that Martin, 83, has passed away following a brief illness. A masterful orchestrator of horns and strings with a background steeped in jazz, Martin created music that was sweet and sophisticated, romantic and wrenching. and always
Archives for September 10, 2013
Kritzerland Requests The Pleasure of Your Company For Classic Newman Score
Film legend Alfred Newman – that’s “Brother” to Lionel and Emil Newman, “Uncle Al” to Randy Newman, and “Dad” to Thomas and David Newman! – has long had a home at the Kritzerland label. 2013 alone has seen Kritzerland release Newman’s scores to Leave Her to Heaven (paired with his Take Care of My Little Girl) and How Green Was My Valley, and now, those titles are being followed up by another CD premiere release which is now available for pre-order. Director George Seaton’s The Pleasure of His
Funky Town Grooves Stirs Up Chocolate Milk Reissues
The rich New Orleans soul of Chocolate Milk will be revisited by Funkytowngrooves in the fall. First gaining prominence as a backing band for Allen Toussaint in the 1970s, Chocolate Milk would release eight albums for RCA in the '70s (all of which were produced or co-produced by Toussaint) and '80s. They're now perhaps best known for the title cut to debut LP Action Speaks Louder Than Words (1975), which featured a breakbeat popular in hip-hop, namely Eric B. & Rakim's "Move the Crowd" in
Ellie Goulding Burns Up U.K. Charts with "Halcyon" Reissue
British dance-pop singer Ellie Goulding enjoyed her biggest worldwide success to date with the release of sophomore album Halcyon in 2012. Late last month, a heavily-expanded edition of the album was released with the hopes of taking that success even further. The 27-year-old Goulding earned national acclaim in England when she won the Critic's Choice BRIT Award and topped the BBC's Sound Of... poll in 2010 - just the second artist to achieve both, two years after Adele did so in 2008. Her
Out of the Shadow(s): Morton's Story Features Shangri-Las, Vanilla Fudge, New York Dolls
A scrappy street fighter with a knack for teenage melodrama, George “Shadow” Morton lived with a “self-invented mythology,” in the words of Jerry Leiber. But his work with The Shangri-Las, Janis Ian, The New York Dolls and many more solidified Morton’s place as a real-life “leader of the pack.” Ace’s new anthology Sophisticated Boom Boom: The Shadow Morton Story (CDTOP 1369) brings the songwriter and producer out of the shadow and into the (spot)light. In a 1968 Time Magazine blurb:, Morton
Release Round-Up: Week of September 10
The Clash, Sound System / Hits Back / 5 Studio Album Box Set (Columbia/Sony Music/Legacy) Coming from the U.K., a new double-disc Clash compilation, a simple box of the band's classic albums in new mini-LP packaging (The Clash (U.K.), Give 'Em Enough Rope, London Calling, Sandinista! and Combat Rock) and a deluxe swag-filled set featuring those five albums, three discs of non-LP tracks and unreleased rarities and a DVD full of more rare treats. Hits Back (2CD): Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. Hits