Have You Heard?

Mike Little is a member of the Electric City Shag Club in Anderson, South Carolina. He is also a member of the Association of Beach & Shag Club DJ’s and the National Association of Rhythm & Blues Deejays. He hosted for 3-1/2 years The Saturday Morning Beach Party on WANS, 1280 AM in Anderson, which was rated by Arbitron as the highest rated AM show listened to and number three overall for that time slot. In 2004, he was awarded the Rufus Oates Award by the National Association of Rhythm & Blues Dee Jays for his writing contributions. He now serves on the Board of Directors of the NARBDJ.

Have You Heard Archives:

September 2009

October 2009

You have heard Rockin’ Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu by Huey “Piano” Smith & The Clowns. It is one of his all-time classics. And you have heard Johnny Rivers’ version of the same song. It is a shag dance classic. But have you heard Rockin’ Pneumonia by Colorado bluesman Bobby Walker? It ranks equally to the others and may just have a slight edge. Alan Hilbert put me onto to this one. Thanks, Alan. Anyway, Walker’s version of the classic is top notch. We should be hearing this number in dance halls and clubs for months to come. The song comes from Bobby Walker’s new release, Git It, from Lynx Records. This should not be hard to find, or you can go to Bobby’s web site, BobbyWalkerMusic.com. A native of Detroit, Bobby has been playing a wide variety of music over the years. When his family moved to Colorado, Bobby graduated from high school and went on to earn his degree in music performance from Mesa State College in Grand Junction, Colorado. After beginning his career in percussion, the multi-instrumentalist took up guitar, keyboards and harmonica, forming Bobby Walker and The Roadsters. After spending thirteen years in the San Francisco bay area, he, once again, calls Colorado home, touring Aspen, Great Lake and many other places in the Midwest. Beach music and shag are known in the Midwest. Just recently, Bobby was playing a festival with Seth Walker, and they discussed what is happening in the music scene in our area of the country. Rockin’ Pneumonia by Bobby Walker on his album, Git It…get it!

Have you heard Darrell Nulisch’s Far Too Lonely. The song comes from his fifth release from Severn Records, Just For You. You need to try this song. It fits right in. Darrell Nulisch is no newcomer to the Beach Music scene. You know him from his previous works such as I Like Your Style. The Dallas, Texas native was a founding member of Anson Funderburgh’s Rockets, singing with the group in the eighties. After leaving The Rockets, he was looking for new musical challenges and teamed with Dallas guitarist Mike Morgan and his band, The Crawl. Darrell eventually hooked up with the ex-Roomful Of Blues six-string virtuoso Ronnie Earl and his band, The Broadcasters, with whom he spent the next three and one half years singing and touring with the band. It is Darrell’s voice you hear on one of Ronnie’s biggest hits, I Want To Shout About It, recorded and released in 1990. It was shortly thereafter that Darrell began his solo career, leaving Texas and relocating to Boston. He eventually began releasing albums on Severn Records, showcasing his passionate vocal and harmonica skills. Up until recently, Darrell has been touring with legendary Soul singer James Cotton and his touring band after Cotton asked him to join when he lost his voice. This gave him an opportunity to work with someone he has truly admired over the years.

You can almost be guaranteed that Echo Records recording artist will have at least one song on his album that will cater to Beach Music and Shag enthusiasts, and his latest release, It’s BYOB, is no exception. Come On Let’s Dance is the choice of songs from the 11-cut release. Look for ample play-time of this number in the coming months. While you are checking this song out, you might want to take a try with I’m Unleveled. This, too, has potential. The album also features duets with Ecko Recording artists, Ms. Jody and Mr. Sam. Donnie Ray Aldredge was born Independence Day in Texarkana, Texas into a musical family that taught him to believe that his talents were a gift from God. By the time he was fifteen, he was performing in his father’s band, The Aldredge Brothers Band. He learned to play the guitar, giving him the opportunity to not only sing with the group, but become an instrumentalist, as well. Donnie Ray understood the importance of versatility and went on to master lead and bass guitars, the keyboards and drums. He later branched out and began writing lyrics for recording studios. Today, he lives in Montgomery, Alabama with his family. Donnie Ray has spent his life as an entertainer, and, for him, there is no other choice.

Blues legend Dave Riley and producer/harmonica player Bob Corritore have, again, teamed together releasing their second album, Lucky To Be Living on the Blue Witch Records label. Two good cuts on this one, in fact, The Things You Do To Me is outstanding and gives great tribute to the Frank Frost classic. Good song! You will also want to check out Let’s Get Together. The duo does a pretty good job on this Al Green classic. The most interesting thing about this recording is that Henry Gray handles the piano work on the song, as he does with two other cuts on the album. Dave Riley has been around for a long, long time. Born in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, his parents moved to Chicago when he was a small child, leaving Dave and his four siblings in the care of his grandparents. Although Dave began playing the guitar at the age of nine, he really did not get serious with the instrument until he moved to Chicago in 1961, and, later, with his preacher father and the rest of the siblings, formed a family band, The Riley Singers. After high school, Dave was drafted for duty in Viet Nam. After his release, he married his current wife, Tanja, and had a son, Riley. Shortly thereafter, Dave left Soul music for Gospel. He bought a house and began working as a prison guard at Joliet State Penitentiary, a job he held for about 25 years. In 1998, his neck was broken, ending his career at the prison and leaving him unable to play the guitar for nine months. He now has regained most of his playing ability. Dave’s partner in music lately is Bob Curritore. A lifelong fan of the Blues, he began playing the harmonica after hearing Muddy Waters on the radio. He moved to Phoenix, Arizona in 1981, forming a band with Louisiana Red. Along with producing albums for artists, such as R.L. Burnsides, Bob worked as a pick-up harp player for touring artists such as Willie Dixon and Otis Rush. In addition, he has played in local Blues groups and hosted a weekly Blues radio program. With the backgrounds of these two talented musicians, we are lucky to be living to hear their work on Lucky To Be Living.

Have you ever heard of The Aces? I know that the name may be familiar to you, but you are probably thinking of The Four Aces from the 50’s and 60’s. The Aces hail from Santa Rosa, California and are well known in Europe. The group’s new release, No One Rides For Free, comes from Barcelona, Spain’s El Toro Records. In February of this year, The Aces made it to the International Blues Challenge finals, held in Memphis, Tennessee. They were voted one of the best ten Blues bands in the world, as selected by the IBC judges. This led to their CD release, No One Ride For Free. Check out the first cut on the album, You’re Gonna Lose. Sure it is hard-driving Blues, but this is what some dancers like. Formed in the year 2000, The Aces have attitude in their music and a different idea of how to play the Blues. The group writes their own material and does very few covers. The Aces are comprised of Mike “Junk Johnson” Gutsch on drums, Derek Irving on guitar and Sky O’Banion of harp and vocals.

As the house band leader at B.B. King’s Los Angeles Blues club, Arthur Adams cranks out searing Blues for the tourists visiting Universal Studio’s City Walk. The shaven-headed Tennessee native began playing the guitar at an early age in the fifties. After touring as a member of Gene’s Allison’s band (Reap What You Sow), he relocated to Los Angeles in 1964, doing session work for Quincy Jones. Over the years, Arthur recorded several solo albums until late seventies, including one co-produced by Bonnie Raitt and Tommy Lipuma. In 1992, he wrote two songs for B.B, King’s There Is Always One More Time. In 1999, Arthur released his first solo release in over twenty years. Today, he is back, giving us a brand new release, Stomp The Floor. The key song for our market on the album is So Sweet. The number is a little on the slower side, so pitch control should be used with this one liberally.