February 3, 2012 Playlist

Jimmy Castor 1940-1972   Don Cornelius 1936-2012
This week's show is dedicated to Jimmy Castor & Don Cornelius (R.I.P.)
 
"Phase Two" by The Jimmy Castor Bunch (1972)
CLASSIC ALBUM OF THE WEEK
The Jimmy Castor Bunch  "Phase Two"  1972 (USA)
Jimmy Castor passed away on January 17 at age 72.  He was a phenomenal talent who had a few novelty hits, but is mostly underappreciated (outside of the hiphop community, where his beats and breaks have been long admired).  Jimmy made his first record at age 16, then replaced his friend Frankie Lymon as the lead singer for The Teenagers in 1957, and also played saxophone on instrumental hits by Davy Cortez in the early 1960's.  But that was just the prologue!  He first cracked the Top 40 in 1966 with "Hey Leroy, Your Mama's Callin' You", on one level a novelty song based on a playground chant, but also one of the first "latin rock" hits featuring Jimmy playing his other main instrument, the timbales (he was of Puerto Rican descent).  In the 1970's, he stepped up his game even further when he put together his group The Jimmy Castor Bunch and released a series of eclectic progressive-soul/funk/disco albums, which included a number of major R&B hits (usually ridiculous dance songs like "The Bertha Butt Boogie" and "King Kong", but also unsung futuristic funk nuggets like "Potential" and "Space Age").  Phase Two was the second release by The Bunch, and very much follows the pattern set by its predecessor.
Here's Jimmy and his Bunch performing their biggest hit, the Top 10 novelty funk sensation "Troglodyte", and a medley of Jimmy's first hit from 1966 "Hey Leroy", and the sequel "Say Leroy (The Creature From The Black Lagoon Is Your Father)" which can be found on Phase Two.   The world of Soul music lost another giant this week:  Don Cornelius, the creator and host of the iconic TV show Soul Train, which probably did more to change the face of American Dance over the last 50 years than any other institution.  So here's a few more artists featured on the show this week performing on Soul Train:   The Isley Brothers, Kool & The Gang, Curtis Mayfield, and of course the GFOS: James Brown.  Plus lots of amazing dancing!
  
Artist Song Album Year (label) Country
The Jimmy Castor Bunch
Troglodyte (Cave Man)
 		It's Just Begun
1972
USA
James Brown
It's A New Day In The Jungle Groove (compilation)
rec. 1970, rel. 1986
USA
Curtis Mayfield
Kung Fu (single version)
 		The Very Best Of Curtis Mayfield
rec. 1974
USA
Sly & The Family Stone
Underdog
 		A Whole New Thing
1967
USA
Rotary Connection
Respect (Otis Redding/Aretha Franklin)
 		Songs
1969
USA
 
  
The Jimmy Castor Bunch Say Leroy (The Creature From The Black Lagoon Is Your Father)
 		Phase Two
CLASSIC ALBUM OF THE WEEK		1972USA
The Jimmy Castor Bunch When?
 		Phase Two
CLASSIC ALBUM OF THE WEEK		1972USA
The Jimmy Castor Bunch The Bertha Butt Boogie (Part 1)
 		Butt Of Course1975USA
Rufus Thomas Do The Funky Chicken
 		A-side 7" single
1970USA
Funkadelic Back In Our Minds
 		Maggot Brain1971USA
Funkadelic You Can't Miss What You Can't Measure
 		Cosmic Slop
1973USA
Dr. Octagon Technical Difficulties
 		Dr. Octagonecologyst
1996USA
 
  
Gonjasufi I've Given
 		A Sufi & A Killer
2010USA
Howlin' Wolf (with Clapton, Winwood, Wyman & Watts) Do The Do
 		The London Howlin' Wolf Sessions
1971USA/UK
Fela Kuti & Afrika 70 Everything Scatter
 		Everything Scatter
1975Nigeria
Bad Brains I & I Survive
 		I & I Survived (Dub)
2002USA
X-Ray Spex Germ Free Adolescents Germ Free Adolescents
1978UK
 
  
Shuggie Otis
Inspiration Information
 		Inspiration Information1974
USA
Digable Planets
For Corners
 		Blowout Comb
1994USA
Phil Upchurch & Tennyson Stephens
Black Gold (Rotary Connection)
 		Phil Upchurch/Tennyson Stephens1975
USA
MF Doom
Gas Drawls
 		Operation: Doomsday
1999
UK/USA
De La Soul (with Guru, Maceo Parker, Fred Wesley & Pee Wee Ellis)
Patti Dooke
 		Buhloone Mindstate1993
USA
The Isley Brothers
Take Me To The Next Phase (parts 1 & 2) (live)
 		Showdown1978
USA
Kool & The Gang
Universal Sound (live)
 		Love & Understanding
1976USA
Herbie Hancock (with Stevie Wonder)
Steppin' In It
 		Man-Child
1975
USA
 
 
Jimi Hendrix
Room Full Of Mirrors
 		Rainbow Bridge
rec. 1969, rel. 1971
USA
Funkadelic
What Is Soul?
 		Funkadelic
1970
USA
Prince & The Revolution
Paisley Park
 		Around The World In A Day
1985
USA
The Temptations
Masterpiece
 		Masterpiece1973USA
John Coltrane & Wilbur Hardin
Oomba
 		Dial Africa
rec. 1958, rel. 1977
USA

 
Hubert Laws Brandenburg Concerto #3, Second Movement (J. S. Bach)
 		The Rite Of Spring
1971USA
                 
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