So… uh… it’s been raining in PDX. Like, a lot.

When it rains like this I like to play my saxophone. Just real chill like in the alley back behind my crib. All… wwwwhhhaaaaannnnnggggggggkkkkkkkkk… and such. You know. Hush now. Listen…

Artist: Terry Callier [+] [+]
Album: What Color Is Love
Production: Charles Stepney
Year: 1973
Label: Cadet / Verve

Amazon has the CD & MP3s. Shhh… let’s not ruin this.

He hides his horns in many different forms but stays loose-ifer…

Looks at this handsome… devil! (*bam!* /hi-fives). Where to start? Let’s see… First, we have a quick cameo from Isaac Hayes as a… perplexed?… doomed soul forced to confront the reality of hellfire. Then we bust into a fairly stomping beat accompanied by timeless words of warning. “He plays tricks!” On closer listen, there’s something enticing about these warnings… something hinting at maybe this whole “going to hell” thing could be fun! It sure sounds like a party. Aaaand besides, didn’t Run DMC teach us that sometimes bad really means good? I mean, I take good notes so I’m pretty confident on this one. Anyway, as things wind down, don’t be surprised if you’ve developed a li’l jones.

The Devil is dope. Praise Satan!

Artist: The Dramatics
Album: A Dramatic Experience
Year: 1973
Label: Volt

Amazon has a the CD & MP3.

Oh please oh please oh please… just gimme just one more chance!

Live from Rahway Correctional in lovely New Jersey… The Escorts!

The Escorts were the brainchild of producer George Kerr. I’m short on time so I’m just gonna quote the group’s official bio from over here:

Originally, I didn’t feel like going but once I was in the prison and I heard all these musicians, I liked what I saw. I remember turning to my wife and telling her I thought it would be great to record the group. She thought I was out of my mind and that I was never going to get it done. I started talking to the prison warden and explained that I was a professional record producer and he had the same reaction.

and…

After the album came out, we got all these letters from people who wanted to see them. I went back to the Superintendent of Prisons and asked if we could do a show…” With much negotiation and with thirty policemen on duty to ensure security, The Escorts performed at Newark Symphony Hall, shackled on the way to and from the venue but clad in tuxedos and dress shoes for the show, which was a sell-out and major success.

The original lineup featured on this album: Reggie Haynes, Lawrence Franklin, Robert Arrington, William Dugger, Stephen Carter, Frank Heard, and Marion Murphy.

Artist: The Escorts [Myspace]
Album: All We Need is Another Chance
Year: 1973
Label: Alithia Records

Here’s one I’ve been meaning to post for a while now. These internets tell me Ellington Jordan (AKA Fugi) was a songwriter based in Detroit during the late 60’s. Fresh out of the clink, he scored a big ol’ hit with Etta James on the “I’d Rather Go Blind” cut. Sometime later, he was introduced to the band Black Merda (+) by Temptations singer Eddie Kendricks. They got together and laid down an album’s worth of mind-blowing blackrock which was promptly shelved by their label (anyone else notice a pattern? It’s like the new “platinum”). Blah, blah, blah… ancient history… irrelevant context… etc.

None of that shit really matters. All you need to know is that these stone-cold brothers cut some of the grittiest funk/rock/fuzz known. Take a listen. Tell me I’m wrong.

Artist: Fugi
Album: Mary, Don’t You Take Me On No Bad Trip
Year: 1968
Label: Chess / Cadet