The term "Black Jesus" is not to be used loosely. Yet, talk to a majority of men and women who lived through the Civil Rights Movement and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is about as close as the title comes. The brother had his personal demons, but what he preached and what he sacrificed is something I doubt we'll ever see in the world again. Over 40 years after losing his life on the Lorraine Motel's balcony, his influence and words still remain pertinent and a blueprint to surviving in America. Different [...]
Welcome to the latest installment in the Musical Pairings "history of pop music" series. This time the focus is on the music that claimed to represent "the Sound of Young America": Motown. A record label so unique and successful that it became synonymous with one of the most successful styles/genres of music in modern history. Of course, Motown Records continues to exist to this day, and still releases amazing music. But not everything released by Motown Records fits into the commonly accepted notions of what is considered Motown as a style/genre. Instead, the "Motown Sound" refers [...]
People who know me, know that I am fond of making mixtapes, playlists, etc. If I have been friends with you in the past 12 years or thereabouts - there is a good chance that I've made you a mixtape at some point. And now that I'm starting to get to know our readers, I decided it was time to make a mixtape for Musical Pairings. We'll call it Volume 1. For the first mixtape, I've decided to cast a wide net. I think I can confidently say that I cover a [...]
Captain America needs the abdominizer So, Nazz jr and I spent Saturday wandering the great and never-ending jungle of the NY Comic Con . Located in the cavernous Javits Center, 70,000 freaks and geeks attended. Rorshach and Poison Ivy Let's start off with the awesome... The first 18 minutes of Watchmen was previewed (plus an add'l scene form the middle of the movie). Holy shnikes! It [...]
Shorty Long: Here Comes The Judge [ purchase ] The American government consists of three branches: The legislative branch (which writes the laws), the executive branch (which enforces the laws), and the judicial branch (which don’t take no stuff from nobody, no kind of way). I love this song.
Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels : Devil With The Blue Dress On/Good Golly Miss Molly [ purchase ] Shorty Long : Devil With The Blue Dress On [ purchase ] Before Bruce Springsteen, Bob Seger and John Mellencamp, there was Mitch Ryder. Known for his blistering stage shows, seventeen year-old Ryder's first band got their break playing Detroit's soul music club, The Village. His next band was Billy Lee & The Rivieras, which led him [...]
“The soul is born old but grows young. That is the comedy of life. And the body is born young and grows old. That is life's tragedy" That's right peoples...on this very day, Souled On is exactly 3 years and 2 days old. That may not seem like a very long span of time, but in blogger years, my ass is downright elderly...maybe even dead. I have every intention of aging gracefully, but just in case, feel free to periodically donate some of these . Hey...if Bootsy Collins could turn wearing [...]
Here in Motown our mayor is in a bit of hot water for allegedly doing some bad things . The mayor claims that he will be fully vindicated and that the process is flawed. Here's a report about the whole mess . The jury will have to sort it out. Until then, here's some scandal-appropriate music: The Prissteens - Scandal, Controversy & Romance (mp3) ( buy album ). This one says it all! The Vipers - Cheated And Lied (mp3) ( [...]
The Smoking Section
Turntable Kitchen
Bleedin Out
Star Maker Machine
Souled On (Music, Art, Politics, and Life)
Setting The Woods On Fire
Nueva canción de Arctic Monkeys: Do I Wanna Know
Blondie returning with a new album and a show at the Keswick in October
