soulandfunkmusic.com

You are here: Home

Uncategorised

Levi Stubbs, the legendary lead singer of the Four Tops, and one of the greatest soul vocalists of all time, has died in Detroit after a long illness. Stubbs' death leaves only one remaining Tops founding member, Abdul "Duke" Fakir. As the distinctive lead of the Four Tops, Stubbs was best known for his deep, passionate vocal style that turned Holland-Dozier-Holland compositions like "Bernadette" and "Reach Out" and later, upon the group's move from Motown to ABC Records, on adult soul songs such as "Ain't No Woman (Like the One I Got)" and "Keeper of the Castle."

A heart attack and stroke permanently sidelined Stubbs a half decade ago, and he was wheelchair-bound as he took the stage for the group's 50th anniversary celebration in 2005. But Levi Stubbs will long be remembered as a staple of Motown's greatest years and as one of the most distinctive and revered vocalists of all time. He will be greatly missed.

Entertainer, Music Producer Ernesto Phillips Dies at 50

Thursday, April 1, 2004; Page B06

Ernesto McKenzie Phillips, 50, a Columbia resident who was a musician in pop rhythm-and-blues groups and then produced a series of local entertainers, including singers Toni Braxton and Kimberly Scott, died March 25 at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore after a stroke. He had hypertension.

Mr. Phillips, a native Washingtonian, was raised in Crownsville and graduated from Arundel High School in Gambrills. He was a self-taught guitarist, and during high school he attended the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore to study trumpet.

He was a graduate of Anne Arundel Community College and attended Howard University, where he intended to study medicine as his father -- a psychiatrist -- had. He decided instead to make music his career.

With his four brothers -- George, Lloyd, Orlando and Gregory -- Mr. Phillips formed Licyndiana, an R&B group named after his mother and his sisters. Ernesto Phillips sang and played guitar. He also wrote songs and did production work.

Singer Renee Diggs, who was Mr. Phillips's longtime companion, and musician-songwriter Kayode "Ky" Adeyemo later joined Licyndiana.

Mr. Phillips had greater success as leader, co-producer and primary songwriter of a successor pop R&B band called Starpoint, which included the same members except for Lloyd.

The band toured nationally, opening for such performers as Luther Vandross, and appeared on "Soul Train," "Solid Gold" and other television programs. Its album "Restless" (1986) sold more than 500,000 copies, according to news reports, and included the hit song "Object of My Desire."

At the 1990 Washington Area Music Awards, Starpoint was named best R&B/urban group. Mr. Phillips, on guitar, was named best instrumentalist.

The group disbanded about 1990 as members went in different directions professionally. Until his death, Mr. Phillips worked as a producer. He owned and operated Longevity Records and Pearl Studios, both in Columbia.

"I pledged that once we made it, I was going to prove there is a lot of talent in this area," he told The Washington Post in 1995.

His best-known find is Braxton, the Grammy Award-winning singer whom he met through a friend.

In recent months, he worked as a counselor for teenagers at Sheppard Pratt psychiatric clinic in Ellicott City.

Survivors include his mother, Ana Phillips, of Columbia; four brothers, George Phillips and Lloyd Phillips, both of Columbia, and Orlando Phillips and Gregory Phillips, both of Annapolis; and two sisters, Diane Laguerre of Elk Ridge, Md., and Lisa Phillips of Columbia.

Check the advertiser page of Soulbrother Records at soulandfunkmusic.com. Soulbrother.com just bought a collection of Vinyl LP’s. There are many titles that they haven’t seen for many years and all titles are one-offs. Here are some examples Rance Allen Group, Roy Ayers, Chain Reaction.

We are committed to privacy and support current industry initiatives to preserve individual privacy rights on the Internet. Protecting your privacy online is an evolving area and this website will constantly evolve to meet these demands.

Cookies

Some of our web pages utilize "cookies". A "cookie" is a small text file that may be used, for example, to collect information about website activity. Some cookies and other technologies may serve to recall Personal Information previously indicated by a web user. Most browsers allow you to control cookies, including whether or not to accept them and how to remove them.
Some cookies are necessary for the operation of our website, if you choose to block them some aspects of the site may not work for you. Non-necessary cookies are only set when you have given your explicit consent to their use. Such cookies included those set by our statistics package Google Analytics.

Glenn Goldsmith new single

80's Soul Star Glen Goldsmith is back with his new single 'Jammin in the Place' featuring Jordan Bailey. You probably know Goldsmith from his hits 'Dreamin' and ' I Won't Cry'. This new gem is based on 'Nights over Egypt' from the Jones Girls. Check this Single out because it's a must. See fragment on youtube

New Collection

Here are some really nice soul and funk albums that have just arrived from USA.

Records are great gifts to give or receive.

All these albums are in demand , in good conditions and are one-offs so please order early to avoid disappointment.

Records can be ordered on line, over the phone on 020 8875 1018 or collected from our shop in Putney SW15.

We have added soundclips and a few notes on each album to help you. Go to soulbrother.com

Mamas Gun will be releasing his new single ‘Only One (Featuring Beverley Knight)’ on January 9^th 2012.

The track is taken from Mama’s Gun latest album ‘The Life And Soul’ which was released in the summer of 2011. The video for the single which sees the band and Beverley Knight perform the track live at Kensaltown Studios in London.

Click here to see the Video of Only On on Youtube
Digital stream - http://soundcloud.com/mamas-gun/09-only-one

Mamas Gun will be playing the Jazz Café, London on January 20^th 2012.

www.mamasgun.co.uk
www.facebook.com/MamasGun
www.myspace.com/mamasgun

www.twitter.com/mamasgun_uk

(New York, NY) Gospel Superstar Kirk Franklin is featuring gospel's it girl and JDI Records artist Beverly Crawford on his upcoming new CD, to be released March 22nd on Gospocentric/Fo Yo Soul/Zomba. After a nearly 3 year hiatus from recording, Kirk Franklin returns this spring with the most highly anticipated gospel release of the year "Hello Fear".

The top selling gospel artist of all-time, with over 12 million records sold, Kirk Franklin is renown for his collaborations and his selection of Grammy winner Beverly Crawford speaks volumes about the resurgence of her career as one of the top female artists in gospel.

Fresh on the heels of her of electrifying performances at the BET Celebration of Gospel & the Stellar Awards, Beverly Crawford's smash hit single "It's About Time For A Miracle!" continues to burn up gospel radio! Likewise, everywhere you turn on TV, radio & on her 100-city tour, the red-hot Beverly Crawford continues to demonstrate why she is universally regarded as one of the top vocalists in the world!

The #1 Most Added Song at Radio (Billboard),"It's About Time For A Miracle!" is the follow-up to Beverly's #1 chart-topper "He's Done Enough", which dominated the Billboard Charts for over 70+ weeks & garnered 7 Stellar Award nods including CD of the Year, Artist of the Year, etc.

With a legion of ardent fans including Ochocinco, President Obama, Fantasia, Natalie Cole, etc, Beverly Crawford's new CD Live from Los Angeles - Vol. 2 is garnering rave reviews all over the country!

Robert Wilson, a member of R&B/funk group the Gap Band, died at the age of 53 on Sunday (Aug. 15). Wilson, known as the "Godfather of Bass Guitar," suffered a heart attack in his Palmdale, Ca. home.

Wilson formed the Gap Band with brothers Charlie and Ronnie in the early 1970s, and the Tulsa group expanded upon the funk sound of George Clinton and Earth, Wind & Fire. The band's hits include "You Dropped a Bomb On Me," "Party Train" and "Early in the Morning."

"My brother Robert was a bad boy on the bass," Charlie Wilson said of his brother in a statement. "We shared a bond as brothers, musicians and friends. I loved him and losing him is difficult for both Ronnie and I. The music world has lost a very talented man."

Wilson, who was scheduled to perform at Tulsa's Timeless Music Festival on Aug. 28, is survived by his wife Brenda and two daughters, Robin and Latina Wilson.
Source Billboard.com

Nick Ashford of the famous songwriter/producer duo Ashford and Simpson died in New York on August 22, 2011.

Nick Ashford Together with Valerie Simpson started their career in the mid-1960s, writing for artists such as The 5th Dimension, Aretha Franklin, and Ray Charles. Their work with Ray Charles brought them to the attention of Motown chief Berry Gordy. They joined Motown and started writing songs for Marvin Gaye. Later on they produces three albums for the Diana Ross and the Supremes. Gladys Knight and the pips song some Ashford & Simpson penned songs.

In 1974, Ashford & Simpson married and resumed their career as a duo with the Warner Bros. album, Gimme Something Real. This was followed by the hit singles, "Don't Cost You Nothin'" (1977), "It Seems To Hang On" (1978), "Is It Still Good to Ya" (1978), "Found a Cure" (1979), "Street Corner" (1982), and their biggest hit, "Solid", released in 1984.

Nick Ashford died of complications from throat cancer. He is survived by his wife and two daughters. Nick Ashford RIP