Press "Enter" to skip to content

Posts published in “Music”

MUSIC: “Cool Yule” – GBN’s Jazzy Christmas Playlist (LISTEN)

MUSIC: “Cool Yule” – GBN’s Jazzy Christmas Playlist (LISTEN)

By goodblacknews on December 24, 2020

by Lori Lakin Hutcherson (@lakinhutcherson)

Whether you are among those celebrating the Christmas holiday with loved ones (via Zoom or in the same room) or doing it solo, you may want some mellow-yet-festive holiday music playing as you spend the day.

Earlier this month, Good Black News offered the comprehensive, 465-song Ultimate Soul of the Season Christmas Soundtrack on Spotify as well as Silver Bells: An Afroclectic Christmastime Playlist for 2020. Today, on Christmas Eve we offer Cool Yule: A Jazzy Christmas Collection.

From Take 6 to Duke Ellington to Geri Allen to Oscar Peterson, this playlist includes vocal and instrumental jazz renditions of traditional and modern Christmas and end-of-year classics for all to enjoy.

[spotifyplaybutton play=”spotify:playlist:2rCXw95SjIgNZllitaQ8Fb”]

Ella Fitzgerald, Nancy Wilson, Sarah Vaughan, Lena Horne, Betty Carter, Dianne Reeves, Etta James, Dinah Washington, Esperanza Spalding and Billie Holiday are among the female jazz vocalists represented on “Cool Yule,” with Billy Eckstine, Nat King Cole, Leslie Odom, Jr. and Louis Armstrong lending their deeper pipes to the playlist.

Also represented are jazz titans Miles Davis, John Coltrane, the Count Basie Orchestra, Benny Carter, Kenny Burrell, Wynton Marsalis, Roy Hargrove, the McCoy Tyner Trio, Jimmy Smith, the Elvin Jones Quintet and the Ramsey Lewis Trio.

Wishing you all the best tomorrow and in the coming new year. Enjoy!

Rapper and Activist Meek Mill Donates Gifts and Money to Families in Philadelphia Impacted by Criminal Justice System

Rapper and Activist Meek Mill Donates Gifts and Money to Families in Philadelphia Impacted by Criminal Justice System

By goodblacknews on December 24, 2020

[Photo: Meek Mill via facebook.com]

Yesterday hip hop artist and activist Meek Mill along with his Dream Chasers record label delivered toys, clothes, and new Xbox consoles to 35 families in Philadelphia impacted by the criminal justice system.

In partnership with the REFORM Alliance, Puma, GoPuff, and DocuVault, the rapper helped arrange the deliveries, and saw the families receive everything from MacBook Air laptops or iPads, to baby clothes and Xbox Series X consoles.

To quote from complex.com:

“It’s been a tough year for all of us, but through all the ups and downs, I’ll always do my part to support and give back to the Philly community that raised me,” said Meek. “I remember not having much growing up, so it’s important to use my platform to give back, especially to the families trying to provide for their kids while also dealing with the criminal justice system.” Among the recipients was Anthony Morse, who fosters five kids as well as raising his own children.

Conducted with social distancing protocols, Meek personally FaceTimed some of the families to hear their stories as the deliveres were conducted. He also announced that he has donated $30,000 to the Philadelphia chapter of volunteer organization Twelve Days of Christmas, which aims to help families make it through the holiday season. His contribution will go towards 30 families across North Philadelphia, include those who went to his old school, James G. Blaine Elementary School.

Robert Rihmeek Williams aka Meek Mill was born and raised in Philadelphia and was executive producer and subject of the 2019 Free Meek documentary on Prime Video detailing his own personal battles with the criminal justice system.

To read more: https://theurbandaily.com/3609086/meek-mill-gifted-toys-clothes-electronics-to-philly-families-hurt-by-the-criminal-justice-system/

MUSIC MONDAY: “Stand With Each Other” – Great Jazz Releases from 2020 (LISTEN)

MUSIC MONDAY: “Stand With Each Other” – Great Jazz Releases from 2020 (LISTEN)

By goodblacknews on December 21, 2020

by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Twitter: @marlonw IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest)

Jazz has been around for 100 years and while many think it’s music from a bygone era, it is still very much alive.

During this year where so much has stopped and languished, fine music has flourished. Here is a collection of jazz recordings released in 2020.

[spotifyplaybutton play=”spotify:playlist:3vqERsvhDmUHNFZn6J5QIG”]

There’s an unleashed record by the legendary Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers, new music by the masterful Jimmy Heath, a collection of remixed and covers by Blue Note Records, and several young artists opening cans musical whoop-ass.

The playlist features women and men from around the world pushing the music in new ways, such as Nubya Garcia, Ambrose Akinmusire and Jyoti. They are creating musical hybrids with funk, rock, hip-hop, and afro-pop.

Many artists are using their music for activism and social change. Don’t let the smooth taste fool you, after a century, jazz is still moving forward and blazing new trails.

Have a safe and wonderful holiday week. Back next week with my favorites of 2020. And again be safe, sane, and kind.

Marlon West (photo courtesy Marlon West)
MUSIC MONDAY: An Afroclectic Holiday Playlist for 2020 (LISTEN)

MUSIC MONDAY: An Afroclectic Holiday Playlist for 2020 (LISTEN)

By goodblacknews on December 14, 2020

by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Twitter: @marlonw IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest)

Happy Holidays, in this fifth day of Chanukah. I’ll keep it brief this time. Other contributors are also offering Christmastime collections.

Though as is my style, this one is pretty free-wheeling. This collection has Soul, Reggae, Gospel, Ska, and Jazz Christmas tracks. (I included a few Christmas songs by the late Charley Pride too.)

[spotifyplaybutton play=”spotify:playlist:09mJ2j43zg3TB9ULmoJpxF”]

There are Yuletide classics from legendary artists like Donny Hathaway and Marvin Gaye, to recent cuts by Lil Nas X, Daveed Diggs and Sharon Jones.

I have again included tracks about food, cold weather, and songs like Love’s “Alone Again Or” that is particularly apt for Christmas 2020.

I hope these collections have been as sustaining for you to listen to as they have been for me to make them. Please enjoy this Afroclectic playlist selected for this holiday season.

There are a couple of funky Chanukah tracks include, not only because they are great, but this year in particular the Festival of Lights that celebrates a small victory in the midst of battle, has a lesson and meaning for us all.

Whatever lights you have in your window this year, it is a stalwart signal of joy and tenacity in these toughest of times.

As always stay safe, sane, and kind.

Marlon West (photo courtesy Marlon West)
#DionneTurns80: Happy 80th, Dionne Warwick! “Dionne Through The Decades” Playlist and Tribute (LISTEN)

#DionneTurns80: Happy 80th, Dionne Warwick! “Dionne Through The Decades” Playlist and Tribute (LISTEN)

By goodblacknews on December 12, 2020

[Photo: Dionne Warwick via commons.wikipedia.org]

by Lori Lakin Hutcherson (@lakinhutcherson)

One of my most indelible musical memories as a child is riding in the back of my mom’s silver Cadillac Seville, listening her harmonize with a singular, sophisticated voice asking and answering the compelling question: “What do you get when you fall in love? A guy with a pen to burst your bubble – that’s what you get for all your trouble.”

When Mom (and Dionne) sang these words with biting, philosophical wit and charm I’d learn in my teens was more succinctly known as irony, I was instantly intrigued and couldn’t wait to hear them again and again. Especially on that “get enough germs to catch pneumonia” line. That was the best.

When Ms. Warwick and Ms. Lakin told me to take a “Message to Michael” to “Walk on By” or would ask me “Do You Know The Way to San Jose?” — I was riveted by the evocative, worldly wisdom washing over me.

Nobody on the radio sang like this. Told stories like this. Skillfully navigated between grit and grandiosity, poise and pressure, emoted the expansive sound of je ne sais quois like this. I have been a Dionne Warwick fan ever since.

[spotifyplaybutton play=”spotify:playlist:6NLmSJmZoDlaN27wkFfsoF”]

What I didn’t know then but learned later is most songs sung by that mesmerizing voice were singles from the 1960s and early ’70s written by legendary songwriters Burt Bacharach and Hal David, two men who grasped the women’s perspective on the pain and futility of many a romance.

MUSIC MONDAY: “One Nation Under a Groove” – Celebrating the Sounds George Clinton (LISTEN)

MUSIC MONDAY: “One Nation Under a Groove” – Celebrating the Sounds George Clinton (LISTEN)

By goodblacknews on December 7, 2020
by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Twitter: @marlonw IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest)

George Clinton, along with James Brown and Sly Stone, is one of the foremost innovators of funk music. And the originator of P-Funk, “uncut funk, the bomb!”

The Parliament-Funkadelic collective he lead championed an influential and eclectic form of funk music drawing on science fiction, outlandish fashion, psychedelia, and surreal humor. This work, Clinton’s solo career, and artists he’s championed have impacted, been sampled, and covered by funk, rock, and hip-hop artists.

[spotifyplaybutton play=”spotify:playlist:2yGmtPLCmANIVOTdw7B7LL”/]

George Clinton officially retired from touring in 2019 and has shown up on recordings in 2020. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997, with 15 other members of Parliament-Funkadelic. In 2019, he and Parliament-Funkadelic were given Grammy Lifetime Achievement Awards.

Starting in the 1960s as a staff songwriter for Motown, Clinton eventually developed a sound once called “The Temptations on acid.” Just listen to Funkadelic’s “I”ll Bet You” and that comparison will be clear.

George Clinton has produced a diverse discography, with over 40 R&B hit singles (including three number ones) and three platinum albums.

Here are Clinton’s best songs and those of many of his protégés. I’ve also included covers of his tunes, tracks that sample his work, and tracks he has produced for other artists. Please enjoy.

Next week I’ll offer my Afroclectic Christmas collection. Until then, stay safe, sane and kind.

Marlon West (photo courtesy Marlon West)
MUSIC MONDAY: “Across 110th Street” – Celebrating the Sounds of Bobby Womack (LISTEN)

MUSIC MONDAY: “Across 110th Street” – Celebrating the Sounds of Bobby Womack (LISTEN)

By goodblacknews on November 30, 2020

by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Twitter: @marlonw IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest)

Happy Monday, you all. Hope you had a good and safe Thanksgiving. Time will tell though.

While most of these offerings are genre and theme-based, I do like to feature a favorite, and often underrated, artist from time to time. This week, it’s Bobby Womack.

[spotifyplaybutton play=”spotify:playlist:4XR72fdlZHr9V0uql6hHSe”/]

While never a household name, Womack had a long and impactful career. He, like so many in his generation, started in a family gospel group with his brothers.

Womack became the protégé of gospel and R&B/pop star Sam Cooke, a session musician, a successful solo artist with decades of hits, a writer of his own and others’ songs, and along with Mos Def, and surviving members of The Clash, was a core member of Gorillaz.

Quincy Jones arguably stands alone in having a longer and more wide-ranging career. 10-year-old Bobby started touring with his brothers on the midwest gospel circuit as The Womack Brothers.

MUSIC MONDAY: “Be Thankful For What You’ve Got” – Thanksgiving Playlist for 2020 (LISTEN)

MUSIC MONDAY: “Be Thankful For What You’ve Got” – Thanksgiving Playlist for 2020 (LISTEN)

By goodblacknews on November 23, 2020

Happy Thanksgiving, you all!

This is certainly a trying and unique one. Most of us aren’t doing what we traditionally do. And many of us are missing people at the table in 2020.

As is my wont, here’s a Monday playlist to take you into this year’s day of thanks. This collection ranges from songs about food, to family, to longing, to of course giving thanks, and back again.

[spotifyplaybutton play=”spotify:playlist:5nER8tHfQmTbLOLL5JUHAJ”/]

Soul, Hip-Hop, Jazz, Gospel, Reggae, and more are included in this playlist to celebrate this most special and taxing of Thanksgivings.

While this has been the worst year on record for many of us, it has not been without its bright spots and reasons to be thankful.

One such personal reason for the thanks of the request to contribute weekly playlists from my friend Lori Lakin Hutcherson. She is a sista that I have not seen in person in nearly decades, but has become a wonderful social media friend and the gig of making these collections for GOOD BLACK NEWS and been the brightest of Covid era silver linings.

I don’t know if these are enjoyed by dozens or thousands but it has been an honor and delight to compile them on the weekly.

Whether you are safely gathering or going it alone on Thursday, here’s hours of music to sustain and nourish your ears and soul.

Stay safe sane, and kind you all. “See” ya next week.

by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Twitter: @marlonw IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest)

Marlon West (photo courtesy Marlon West)
MUSIC MONDAY: “Nothing Comes Easy” – A Celebration of Dub Reggae (LISTEN)

MUSIC MONDAY: “Nothing Comes Easy” – A Celebration of Dub Reggae (LISTEN)

By goodblacknews on November 16, 2020

by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Twitter: @marlonw IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest)

Dub has become its own genre of electronic music. Though it grew out of reggae in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Dub reggae started as a “version” of an existing song. The cuts were achieved by significantly manipulating and reshaping the recordings, often through the removal of some or all of the vocals, with the emphasis on the drums and bass. They were usually pressed on the B-sides of 45 RPM records.

The dub version is often made for a DJ to “toast” over. That tradition continues to this day across many music genres.

[spotifyplaybutton play=”spotify:playlist:4boJM1E6ytVpdhSv5SMxs3″/]

Dub was pioneered by recording engineers and producers like Osbourne “King Tubby” Ruddock, Lee “Scratch” Perry, Errol Thompson, and others in the late 1960s. Augustus Pablo is credited as one of the pioneers and creators of the genre, and for bringing the melodica to dub.

The “Roland Space Echo” was widely used by dub producers in the 1970s to produce echoes and delay effects. These artists, especially King Tubby, Scientist, Lee Perry, and many that would follow, look upon the mixing console as an instrument itself.

This collection brings together early pioneers, and tracks by current artists. Enjoy! And as always, stay safe, sane, and kind.

(A note to the Spotify adherent: This collection will benefit from going to your “Advanced Preferences”, and setting your crossfade to its maximum of 12 seconds. Lean into that Dub-stylee.)

Marlon West (photo courtesy Marlon West)
Happy 60th Birthday, Karen Clark-Sheard!

Happy 60th Birthday, Karen Clark-Sheard!

By goodblacknews on November 15, 2020

by Jeff Meier (FB: Jeff.Meier.90)

Today, Good Black News celebrates the milestone 60th birthday of gospel music icon Karen Clark-Sheard, famous as the youngest member of the legendary Clark Sisters, as well as for her dynamic solo recordings.

Amidst the craziness of the coronavirus pandemic, lockdowns and quarantines, 2020 has nevertheless been a milestone year for Karen and her sisters, as they issued the acclaimed The Return in March, their first group release in over a decade.

Following the album drop was the April broadcast of The Clark Sisters: First Ladies of Gospel, a Lifetime movie about their lives that was seen by millions of people across numerous airings in its first few weeks, becoming Lifetime’s highest original rated movie in 4 years – and one of the top cable telecasts of the year across all cable channels.

We wrote about the movie and the history of The Clark Sisters, at that time: (https://goodblacknews.org/2020/04/11/bringing-the-sunshine-gbn-offers-clark-sisters-playlist-to-celebrate-lifetime-biopic-airing-tonight-listen/).

After 25 years recording with her sisters (since she was just an early teenager) as the group’s dedicated soprano, a break in the sisters’ group activities allowed Karen to release her debut solo album, appropriately titled Finally Karen in 1998.

She stepped out solo in a big way – on a major label (Island Records), with multiple producers and a guest appearance from Faith Evans.  The results – a gospel bestseller that was nominated for a Grammy and won a Lady of Soul Award.

The album also included a duet with her daughter, Kierra ‘Kiki’ Sheard, ultimately kicking off the successful recording career for yet another generation of the Clark gospel dynasty (The Clark Sisters themselves are the daughters of gospel choir pioneer Dr. Mattie Moss Clark.)

Not long after the release and promotion of her first album, Clark-Sheard was hit with a major health crisis, when complications from a minor operation put her in a coma for multiple weeks.