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The Hottest:
We were
just here, weren't we? Actually the July Top 45 Countdown and corresponding Beach Buzz publish occurred on the 11th, so it
has been less than a month. Hottest is the word for the weather in Beach music country, that is for sure but....us beach peeps
are goin' hoppin', as the opening song for American Bandstand said, we got Justin
Timberlake on the Beach charts with Can't Stop
The Feelin' from the Trolls Soundtrack! and another one, Sugar Honey Iced Tea by Charlie Wilson is requested in the clubs and
on the radio everywhere I go. The former Gap Band lead singer has had six solo albums and eleven Grammy nominations to his
credit........The hottest tune right now? In my opinion, the up and comer is Why You Wanna Do That? by Lomax, BUT, I am somewhat biased, since he mentions ol' Soul Dog in the song, LOL.........don't
worry, I will not need a new hat size!.
More songs are popping right now though
- both old and new. Dance Tonight,
2015's CBMA of Song of the Year, returned to the Smokin' Top 45 #1 slot in July - just will NOT go away, lol. Two key Saturday
morning radio Countdowns are Ted Bell's Top 20 on 94.9 FM the Surf in North Myrtle Beach and Eric Bowman's The Wave Top 30
on WDZD 99.1 FM in Monroe, NC. Ted has One
More Try For Love by The Entertainers at #1 and Eric has Gary Lowder & Smokin' Hot's Little Bit Of Love in the top spot. The Cashbox Weekly Beach Top 40
(see more on Cashbox below) has Terri Gore's current remake of Real Emotion in the #1 slot.
Looks like I failed to
mention last month that the new KHP compilation Where
It All Began ...And Continues has an Andre Lee track on it. He is a Southern Soul artist that has been a Beach music
favorite for quite a while, which was further enhanced by his 2013 appearance at the November CBMA Awards. His big hits in
the genre to date have been One Night Stand
in 2010/2011 and Back In The Day Cafe,
which transcended 2013 and 2014. Andre makes 'em last and this latest, Right Kind Of Woman, has that potential. It is actually on his most recent album, The Truth, which we reviewed in our Southern Soul Corner column in
October of 2015. That review is available at this link http://www.beachmusic45.com/id1054.html4last
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The Cashbox Magazine Beach Music Top 40 has gone rogue again!! LOL, not really, just
daring to explore some different music, which is a good thing. There is a fairly heavy dose of what would be considered Blues
tunes residing there right now. Salt Sugar
And Fat by Bad News Barnes & The Brethren of Blues Band jumps off pretty strong! The same can be said for You Smell Like Cookies from Andy Santana and The West Coast Playboys
- several of the club DJs are picking up on this one! Then there is Fine Seasoned Woman by Toronzo Cannon - lots of soulful horn riffs on this one and several others on his
The Chicago Way album. We have heard
from Pacific Northwesterner Kenny 'Blues Boss' Wayne in the past in Beach music - the current single ringing the bell is his
Look Out! There's A Train Coming. The
aforementioned tracks are all relatively new - the Chart then reaches back to 2006 for Pennsylvania Blues/Soul master Billy
Price's Soul Sailin'. Another previously unknown blast from the past, 2000 to be exact, I Can't Leave You Alone, is from the inaugural album of D.C. Bellamy,
who spent many years backing up the likes of Gene Chandler, Betty Everett and Brook Benton. He also happened to be Curtis
Mayfield's half brother! All of the above are excellent tunes, to be sure, check
them out!
The guys at WSGE 91.7 FM at Gaston College in Dallas,
NC are keeping Beach music alive and well in that part of the country! From Friday afternoon to Sunday night, the radio air
is filled with Beach and Shag excitement. The station was the winner of the Carolina
Beach Music Award for Best FM Radio Station in 2011 and in 2015. There are multiple DJs and a variety of shows - the lineup
looks pretty much like this:
Friday 6 PM to 10 PM - Friday
Night Beach Revival - Kyle Beam
Friday 10 PM to Midnight - Dem Shaggin' Blues - Ron and Phil
Midnight to Saturday 6 AM - AutoDJ Beach & Shag
Saturday 6 AM to 9 AM - Beach Beat - Lamar Walker
Saturday 9 AM to 1 PM - Carolina Beach Party - Johnny B and Tiny
Saturday 1 PM to 4 PM - Beach and Boogie - Frank Price
Saturday 4 PM to 7 PM - Afternoon Shag Party - Phil Kistler
Sunday 1 PM to 4 PM - Mr. T's Party Deck - Curtis Treece
Sunday 4 PM to 8 PM - Headliners in Review - Ron Ramsey
Check out all the
entertainment features this station has to offer at http://www.wsge.org/
What do you know about a group called the Funtastics? Well, I have to admit I
didn't know alot until I asked. The basis of this group goes back a ways. Craig Stripling was performing in a Top 40 band
in Myrtle Beach at the Magic Attic in the mid-'80's - he heard Beach music while
there and was hooked. He formed the Funtastics as a Beach/R&B band, a six piece outfit complete with horns which played
from New Jersey to Florida for years, spreading the word about the genre.
The current version of the Funtastics, based in North Augusta, SC, is two very
talented musicians. They are Craig Stripling and John Wilson, not to be confused with Johnny Wilson or John L. Wilson, both
in the Big Time Band. Proof positive that a duo can produce a great sound, their brand of entertainment is all live music,
no accompanying pre-recorded tracks. They are dedicated to being a factor for a long time on the Beach music scene. Eighteen
year old Zane Stripling is their opening and intermission act so to speak, he does a "Vegas Rat Pack Tribute" with a Shag
beat and a Tribute to Frankie Valli!
The Funtastics are currently managed and promoted by Judie Walters,(www.judiespatioparty.com ) with
a new album out entitled Life At The ODP.
The humdinger of a charting hit has been the H.
Lee Shuffle, which is a tribute to H. Lee Brown, who has kept the OD Pavilion rolling for so many years. With all
original tunes, the very skilled Craig was the songwriter, engineer and producer of the album with three additional hot tracks
being: The ODP(It’s Where I Want To Be), I Just Want To Dance With You, and I Repeat, Let’s Go To The Beach. This latest CD can be purchased online
at www.Funtasticsband.com, the OD
Pavilion, or your favorite Beach Music outlet. You may like them on Face Book
at The Funtastics Duo.
Sun
Jam 2016 - Pictures Courtesy of Alex Webb
Sun Jam - the recent pictures above are from this event that happens every year
in July in Chapel Hill, NC. This year was great, the musicians came together and gave us a full evening of entertainment just
like previous years. One sideliner this year, however, was six inches of rain in an hour and a half that just about washed
the hotel away where the event was being held - but the band played on! I refer you to the following link where you can read
(or re-read lol) last year’s comprehensive narrative of this mighty event! http://www.beachmusic45.com/id1048.html
It has been almost 30 years since a British born record collector and DJ started
a movement that, little did he know, would have a lasting impact on Beach music. Ian Levine, who had spun records on the Northern
Soul scene in England at the famous Blackpool Mecca, and later was part of a venture that opened the Wigan Casino, another
all night Soul dance club. He also spent much of the '70's and early '80's writing music and recruiting artists to record,
resulting in several startup record labels. With a huge interest and collection of Motown, he was able to launch in 1987 what
later became Motorcity Records - first convincing Kim Weston to record with him. Many former Motown artists followed suit
such as Mary Wells, The Velvelettes, Marv Johnson, Edwin Starr, Martha Reeves, Bobby Taylor, former members of The Supremes
as well as singer/songwriters such as Johnny Bristol and Ivy Jo Hunter.
As momentum for the venture grew,
there was even a huge U.S. rally in April of 1989, with over sixty artists gathering in front of Hitsville USA in Detroit
to participate. The artist roster grew to over one hundred acts by the early '90's. New tunes were crafted as well as some
jacked up remakes of originals. Major record outlets in the U.S., however, were somewhat reluctant to distribute a synthesized
brand (with less live musicians) of recorded product. Levine plowed forward, continuing the marketing efforts in the U.S.
and U.K. for over 10 years before financial troubles, including disgruntled artists who had not been paid what was promised,
pretty much halted the movement.
How, you ask, does this relate to our little world of Beach music down here in the
Southeast corner of the USA? Well, within the close to a thousand songs that came out of the Motorcity label on various compilation
releases, several became Beach music staples and are still played on the radio and in clubs today. Ripete Records even licensed
some of the tracks, re-releasing them on the two volume Shag Spectacular compilations in the mid to late '90's. What were the songs that we still recognize? Here are some of the major ones:
Back By Popular Demand - Supremes/Originals
Release This Love - Edwin Starr
Down
For The Third Time - P.J.
Looking Through The Eyes Of A Fool - Johnny Bristol
Nothing Can Stop Me
- Marv Johnson
Love Running Through My Fingers - Ivy Joe Hunter
It's A Shame - G.C. Cameron
Merry Go Round - Pat Lewis
Gonna Win You
Back - Contours
Please Mr. Postman - Originals
You're My Lucky Number - Ronnie McNeir
Don't Wait Around - Elgins
Memories
And Souvenirs - Freda Payne
Changing It Up - Billy Griffin
Turn This Heart Around
- Lovetones
Artists, DJs, Club owners etc. send me your latest news for potential inclusion in Beach Buzz at nealfur@aol.com.
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