tracks:

Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell:

Ain’t No Mountain

Just call my name I’ll be there in a hurry…

Legends of Soul #11 & #12
Duet #1

Legends of Soul #7

James Brown > Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag, Part 1

So, finally, this is it, the motherlode, the very start of the Minister of The New New Super Heavy Funk. Sped up, cut down, gittar’d up, it’s the one you know. Superbad!

Check out the rest of the PGABNB Marathon here:

Aug 3 Lester Bowie

Aug 4 Quincy Jones

Aug 5 Otis Redding

Aug 6 James Brown (#1)

Aug 7 James Brown (#2)

Legends of Soul #5
Covers #6

Otis Redding > Papa’s Got A Brand New Bag

Number 3 in our PGABRB August marathon. As big a star as Otis was he wasn’t shy about showing his love even for his competition. He covered Sam Cooke, The Tempts, the Stones and many more during his short career. And really, how could he avoid JB?

Legends of Soul #3

Aretha Franklin > Rock Steady

There’s not much more to be said, is there?

(Don’t bust me for the 60s photograph with the 70s track please.)

fredseibert:

Legends of the Blues #1

Mississippi Fred McDowell
& Honest Tom Pomposello
> Bulldog Blues

This track is great and unique. No one’s ever done anything like it (no, not even Moby). An blistering electro blues with a 70 year old blues singer, mixed almost 30 years after his death by his loyal and dedicated student. It’s the whole, original blues, just like it was sung, no sampling, no changes. Get the full story here.

Cover Photograph by iDream_in_Infrared’s

fredseibert:

tuneage:

Billie Holiday - “Lady Sings the Blues”

There’s so much to say about Billie Holiday. I wish I had met her, but not just because she’s one of the most revolutionary jazz singers we know; she’s so real in everything she sings about.

Holiday co-wrote this song, and the most redeeming quality to me is the empowering perspective on what it’s like for a woman to have the blues. There’s also a film about Billie Holiday, played by Diana Ross, titled Lady Sings the Blues.