Duck, third from the left with Booker T. and the MG's.
Too many R.I.P. posts going on around here. I couldn't let this one go unmentioned even though it s a couple of days late. Donald "Duck" Dunn passed away on Sunday in Tokyo, he was 70 years old.
Duck is on so many of my favorite songs. As the bassist for the legendary Stax band he providing the backing rhythm on, "Try A Little Tenderness," "Green Onions," "Hold On I'm Coming," and countless other classics. As part of the backing band that formed the foundation of Stax he was basically on all of the hits that came out of the Memphis label in their heyday.
The song, "last Night" was his first hit. The song was recorded by his band the Mar-Keys when they were still in high school.
Here he is with Booker T. and the MG's performing, "Green Onions." This was one of the first instrumental tracks that I really liked. You don't need words when you have a groove like this.
Here he is backing Otis Redding on the Stax/Volt European tour in 1967.
Below he performs, "Hang em High" in 1991 at the Standard in New York.
Here is a great in depth post on the evolution of, "Try a Little Tenderness" from The Awl. Head on over there to read the whole thing. It was recently sampled for The Kanye and Jay-z song, "Otis." Well I don't agree with their assessment of the Jay-z incarnation, I kind of like it minus Kanye and the James Brown scream thing at the end. The Jay/Kanye version will actually be on the next hip hop mix which is tentatively scheduled for mid-August. Despite our differing opinions, the Awl's post is a well put together look at the history of one of my favorite songs. I actually didn't know it had so much history and the only other versions I knew of were Sam Cooke's and Aretha's. *Cues the more you know*
"As nice a story as it’d make, Otis Redding didn’t transform “Try A Little Tenderness” from campy relic to anthem in a single stroke. The process was more gradual, maybe more compromised. Bing Crosby took a go at “Tenderness” in 1933, and in the process injected some humanity into it. No less paternalistic, his interpretation stressed the duties of manhood, the weakness of women, and how love was about being strong by pretending to be vulnerable. Maybe that’s a little too much psychodrama to pull from a performance that, for all Crosby’s sly phrasing and attempts at straight talk, is still relatively light fare. But it was enough for “Tenderness” to catch on as a minor standard, an especially useful one to have in the songbook for black entertainers looking to cross over in the ’50s and early ’60s and perform at “classy joints.” Selling records to white kids was one thing; eons before anyone thought to let youth guide the industry, appealing to white adults was the real meal ticket." via
Bonuses: Apparently the hip hop world doesn't agree with the Awl either, because everyone is going over the, "Otis" beat. Links to the freestyles on Nahright can be found below.
Hey!! Wake up and flip the record!! This is a soul mix guurl this isn't slow jams for seniors. Wake yo ass up!!
Damn it's been a bit since I put together a soul mix. This shit used to be my bread and butter too. But lately, I have been all about getting my indie on, all consumed by ill fitting beanies, tight pants, and weekly trips to the Farmer's Markets. Thus leaving my original love to wither and die like a sunchoke on the vine...do sunchokes grow on vines?...no, no they do not. Shit...uhh, save the heirlooms!!...no? That won't get me enough cred?...damn it. *Hands over urban farmer card* Screw your vegan mexican food, I'm going to Taco Bell.
Enough of those hipster elitists, we're back in the soul saddle, so giddy up. Download it here. Or hit the jump for samples, the whole tracklist and non-judgmental consumption of in-organic, toxic orange, nacho cheese chalupas.
The art above is by Matte Stephens, his Etsy can be found by clicking the link in the caption. I am partial to his Manhattan print and the rest of his city themed prints. I am also partial to dancing in Tiny bubble rooms.
The newest soul mix is the perfect fodder for tiny bubble room dancing. At least towards the end. It starts out slow like most of my mixes seem to do. Then it delves into some slow, doo-wopish, falsetto type songs. They are almost more doo-wop/oldie than soul, but it's a fine line and they are good songs so they get the nod. After that it breaks on through to the other side with a handful of more upbeat tunes. Some of them are even newer songs that have been released within the last couple of years.
Song comparison time. Let's take a look at "You Send Me" which most people think of as Sam Cooke's song. It's pretty hard to argue against that. But I am able to argue against anything. Just last week in court I was fighting the fight against societal restrictions that most people think are "common sense." I laugh heartily in the face of common sense and demand the right to dance at any time, in any state of undress, and in anyone's living room.
I think I have some of the court transcript.
Defendant- "These my dear sir are the very principles that the constitution was biiirthed from.
Lawyer for the Prosecution- "Did you just say birthed from?"
D- "I did good sir, for as the people of this fine courtroom know, the constitution plopped out of lady liberty's womb and was caught in the great hands of a little chamber maid known as justice."
LFTP- "I think you mean mid-wife and please get back in the witness box."
D- "I apologize but I feel separated from my people, the people that make up this great country, like you madam, how are you this fine morrow."
LFTP- "Witness box, you, get back in it, don't kiss her hand and "this fine morrow makes no sense."
D- "We will agree to disagree on that matter but I think you will find it a hard fought battle to prove this is not a fine morrow sir."
LFTP- "My argument is not with the adjective "fine" but the use of "morrow." Look it doesn't matter, just answer the question. Where were you on the evening of June 10th 2006?
D- "Let me scan my mental Rolodex good sir this may take a moment. I haven't rebooted in awhile, if you know what I mean."
LFTP- "I have no idea what you mean please just answer the question."
D- "The 10th of June in the year of our lord two thousand and six."
LFTP- "Yes, that would be another way of saying it, stop grinning and looking so self satisfied and just answer the question."
D- "If I could I would like to perform a sonnet."
LFTP- "Does this sonnet answer the question of where you were on June 10th 2006?"
D- "No but it's quite good if I do say so myself. It was inspired by the water lilies of Niagara and the seasonal drift of their petals down the Snake River."
LFTP- "Geographically that's not possible. Let me answer the question for you, according to several witnesses, I am talking a whole school bus full of children, parents waiting to pick up their kids, the plaintiff, basically everyone says the same thing. They saw you enter the Crawford residence. Wearing nothing but cut off jean shorts and a hairnet..."
D- "I would like to call a witness."
LFTP- "Let me finish and you can't call witnesses right now anyway. Do you deny the fact that you entered the residence, proceeded to put an Ace of Base cd into their cd player and then continually spun the plaintiff around in her wheelchair, while shouting I love the night life?"
D- "I think the use of the word spun is objectionable, I prefer the word danced."
LFTP- "Ok did you "dance" with the plaintiff?"
D- "It's kind of hard to dance when your partner won't get on her feet. Am I wrong? Get your rhythm shoes on m'lady."
LFTP- "Please don't point at the plaintiff. She is a disabled 87 year old grandmother, who was relaxing in her home, before you barged in."
D- "We will agree to disagree, because what I saw was a special lady friend who wanted to get down with the get down. If you know what I mean, and I think you do Constable"
LFTP- "I think I can rest my case your honor."
D- "You do that good sir."
LFTP- "I was talking to the judge."
D- "Yeah so was I."
LFTP- "I don't think you were."
D- "You my angel of civil service are good, I really wasn't, you are making me blush. So you free later?"
LFTP- "No."
D- "Well I want to leave you with some words of inspiration because my love for you is undying and wrapped in fuchsia flowers of adoration."
LFTP- "Ummm.."
D- *Mouthes the words "Call me" as he is taken away by the baliff.*
Ok so maybe that didn't work out as I had hoped. Sorry for that, on to the music. First up the one that most people think of when you say "You send me." The OG up in here. This is a great example of some pure vocalizations by one of the best voices in history. It sounds clean, poppy, it's sweet. I mean sweet in that sappy kind of nostalgic going to the hop throw back vibe it gives. I think a lot of that has to do with the backing vocals. The random choruses that backed solo artists on songs like this always makes me think of a Dean Martin or Perry Como type era and genre. Sam's is more upbeat than a love ballad from them but the backing vocals have that feel. I am not sure how much I like that sound, I usually think it's too much, it leads any song towards fields of corniess, Especially when you have a voice that is as good as Sam's the backing vocals only serve as distractions. It works with this song and it works for the Deans and Perrys it's just an added layer that I don't think would be missed if it was not there. Case in point the second version of this song. Otis handles it by himself. The stand alone vocals have more emotion to them and it changes the feel of the song. Listen to the Sam one first.
Sam Cooke- You Send Me
In Sam's version I feel like the protagonist of the song has already gotten the subject of the song's affections. The You send me's are directed at someone in a relationship. It is just saying this is how you make me feel and I am happy that I am with you. The overall song is happy, vocals, arrangement, backing chorus. It is an uplifting affirmation of the love and feelings that the subject gives Sam. It's the fairytale, read the lyrics at face value, version. Now listen to Otis.
Otis Redding- You Send Me
Otis' version is heartbreaking to me. To me, his version is about the protagonist saying these are the feelings that you give me, but you are not attainable. Something like that. He loves her, wants to marry her, but the way that he sings the lyrics with a hint of sadness makes me think that he has not yet had his affections returned. This is what you do to me, I wish I did the same thing to you. This is what you do to me, I wish I could be in your life, instead of watching you from afar. The arrangement is stripped down, slowed a bit, the lack of the chorus vocals is noticeable because in the Sam version it provides a sugary backbone to the song. Here there is only Otis, emoting with such heartfelt delivery it is palpable through the speakers. Otis' voice is gruffer than Sam's the pretty pop stylization of Sam is countered by the gutteral bluesey tone of Otis. I think Otis pulls more out of the song but there is no way you can say Sam's version is bad. I notice that I am leaning more towards the sadder heartbroken version of songs. Even interpreting the songs in a negative way when maybe that is delving too deep.
But I think realistically you can support the argument that Otis' version is about yearning more than having attained. The way he approached the lyrics just doesn't sound happy to me. It stands in sharp contrast to Sam and it creates two versions that are equally excellent and manage to go down two divergent paths. Do I really have to choose? Since I am in a sad mood tonight, (anyone get that reference?) I am going to go with Otis. The reasons being the way that he transforms a song that I never thought could be re imagined. I never would have thought this song could be sad but Otis slapped the sadness on it with a quickness. Read the lyrics, how can that song be sad? Otis just said, "I'll make anything sad mufuckas, try me." I wonder how that studio session went.
"Heey Otis buddy got this happy little diddy for you to sing."
"Let me see it."
"Happy right? Such happy happy lyrics awwww love, it's such a wonderful thing."
"Ok, Let's do this." *begins to wail*
"I can't see through my tears Otis, you bastard, you magnificent bastard, how did you do that?" *crumples up into a shivering ball of tears*
I am pretty sure that's how it went. Just for flipping the script and doing it effectively he gets the nod.
Oh and when I was looking at the lyrics to "You send me" I saw at least two other versions. One was by Taylor Hicks and another was by Aretha Franklin. Kind of interested in hearing those, but can they even come close to fucking with these versions? Aretha could be thrown in the mix but Taylor Hicks? Ha, I scoff in your general direction. Someone listen to them and tell me how they are. Weigh in below.
