[ inside ]
(Not Yet) Banned in D.C.
b/ Bad Brains
• THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF LIVING COLOUR
1980
— Bad Brains (1982)
Bad Brains — After being banned from playing most of the clubs in and around Washington, DC, their hometown, the Bad Brains moved to New York City in 1981. In addition to their weekly gigs at CBGB’s, the band frequented Jerry Williams’ 171-A Studios in Alphabet City. Williams recorded, (on reel-to-reel) The Bad Brains @ 171-A in May of 1981. Liking the sound in Williams’ studio, the band returned, between August and October, and recorded twelve of the first album’s fifteen tunes. Three live songs were added, of those recorded by Williams at the live show in May:
“Jah Calling”
“I Luv I Jah”
completed the Bad Brains’ self-titled debut.
Bad Brains was released February 5, 1982 (cassette-only) on Reachout International Records (ROIR). The cover depicts the U.S. Capitol Building being struck by a bolt of lightning. The original art unfolded to include a photograph of the band, credits, lyrics, and liner notes written by then New York Rocker and Soho News critic Ira Kaplan, who would later front a band called Yo La Tengo.
The cassettes had red, yellow, or green shells, together representing Jamaica’s culture, and the band’s Rastafarian beliefs. Because the yellow shell was most common, and it came in a yellow package, many called the Brains’ first full-length recording, “The Yellow Tape.”
1972 — Funkadelic
FUNKADELIC — (1972)
Early Years — (1965-1968)
George Clinton — Doo Wop and Hair Care
Corey Glover (Living Colour) — MTV, WETSUITS, and HAIR
Psychedelic — (1968-1974)
Funkadelic — American funk rock band formed in Plainfield, New Jersey in 1968 and active until 1982. The band and its sister act Parliament, both led by George Clinton, pioneered the funk music culture of the 1970s. Initially formed as a backing band for Clinton’s vocal group the Parliaments, Funkadelic eventually pursued a heavier, more psychedelic rock-oriented sound. They released acclaimed albums such as Maggot Brain (1971) and One Nation Under a Groove (1978).
Bernie Worrell
Eddie Hazel
Bootsy Collins
James Brown
“The Payback“
Maceo Parker
Prince
Miles Davis —
East St. Louis
‘Round About Midnight
Birth of The Cool
Bitches Brew (1970)
Jack Johnson (1971)
Sly Stone — (1966-1983)
Larry Graham
Curtis Mayfield
Stevie Wonder
MOTOWN — (1959)
HIP HOP HAPPENS — (1980)
VH1 — (2004)
And You Don’t Stop: 30 Years Of Hip Hop — (2004)
VH1 Hip Hop Honors — (2005)
Herbie Hancock
Hancock left Blue Note in 1969, signing with Warner Bros. Records. In 1969, Hancock composed the soundtrack for Bill Cosby‘s animated prime-time television special Hey, Hey, Hey, It’s Fat Albert.
1973 — Hancock formed The Headhunters, keeping only Maupin from the sextet and adding bassist Paul Jackson, percussionist Bill Summers, and drummer Harvey Mason. The album Head Hunters (1973) was a hit, crossing over to pop audiences but criticized within his jazz audience.
“Watermelon Man“
Bernard Fowler —
Future Shock b/ Herbie Hancock (1983)
— Pianist Herbie Hancock‘s thirty-fifth album and a million-selling Platinum-certified disc. It was Hancock’s first release from his electro-funk era and an early example of instrumental hip hop. Much of the album was initially composed by the team of
Avant-Garde bassist and record producer Bill Laswell, and
keyboardist and producer Michael Beinhorn, and played on tour by their group Material (1982).
1985 —
We Are The World — (1985)
— A charity single originally recorded by the supergroup USA for Africa in 1985. It was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and produced by Quincy Jones and Michael Omartian for the album We Are the World. With sales in excess of 20 million copies, it is the eighth best-selling physical single of all time.
Live Aid — (1985)
— A benefit concert held on Saturday 13 July 1985, as well as a music-based fundraising initiative. The original event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for relief of the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. Billed as the “global jukebox”, the event was held simultaneously at Wembley Stadium in London, UK, attended by about 72,000 people and John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, US, attended by 89,484 people.
On the same day, concerts inspired by the initiative were held in other countries, such as the Soviet Union, Canada, Japan, Yugoslavia, Austria, Australia and West Germany. It was one of the largest satellite link-ups and television broadcasts of all time; an estimated audience of 1.9 billion, in 150 nations, watched the live broadcast, nearly 40 percent of the world population.
Farm Aid — (1985)
— Farm Aid began on September 22, 1985, in Champaign, Illinois, to raise money for family farmers in the United States. The concert was organized by Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp and Neil Young, with the intent to help American farmers in danger of losing their farms through mortgage debt. The first concert was at University of Illinois‘ Memorial Stadium in Champaign on September 22 before a crowd of 80,000 people. Performers included Bob Dylan, Billy Joel, B.B. King, Loretta Lynn, Roy Orbison, and Tom Petty, among others, and raised over $9 million for U.S. family farmers.
Artists United Against Apartheid — (1985)
— Founded by activist and performer Steven Van Zandt and record producer Arthur Baker to protest against apartheid in South Africa. The group (?) produced the song “Sun City” and the album Sun City that year, which is considered a notable anti-apartheid song.
1999 — PARTY LIKE IT IS
Black Jack Johnson
Mos Def (“Ghetto People”)
Just before the (9-11) Apocalypse, Mos Def asked Living Colour drummer, Will Calhoun, if he would assemble a band talented and experienced enough to support his fast rising star. Brooklyn was his home, but Mos was about to go global.
Black On Both Sides — (1999)
“Black On Both Sides“
Black Jack Johnson, named after boxing champion Jack Johnson, was Bad Brains guitarist, Dr. Know; Funkadelic keyboardist, Bernie Worrell; Living Colour bassist, Doug Wimbish; and Living Colour drummer, Will Calhoun, who also served as the project’s musical director.
The New Danger — (2005)
“The New Danger“
2000 — Mos Def
w/ Black Jack Johnson @ The Ritz (NYC)
— REVERB (HBO)
Mos wanted his band for the New Millennium to be Darker, Harder, Heavier, than any he had played with before. He was looking for virtuosos, more experienced and wise. Instrumental in their playing, writing, producing, and composing much of the African-Influenced Music, that both wrote and narrated African American History.
2015 — EPCOT
The Dresser — Worked w/Prince, Corey, Shoes, Jackets, etc.
Middle America Serenade (Woman in Scooter), Epcot, Animal Kingdom, Disney’s African Interns (Lobby Percussionists)
Sitting at Doug’s, listening to his phone conversation with Will. Discussing the band’s studio (promotional) photograph (Which Frame?) In their “Fashionable” Duds, Al Capone, Pinstripe Suits, Sharp-creased Fedoras , with shoulder-length dreads.
“Who Who Shot Ya?” b/ Living Colour (EP Mix Tape) 2016
The opening of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Shade
Made In The Area
Shade
— Living Colour’s sixth studio album/ disc/ or whatever digital file.
“F.O.X.” (Freedom of Expression)
“Program”
“Blak Out”
“Inner City Blues”
“Two Sides”
“Who Shot Ya?”
Back In Black
“Back In Black” b/ Living Colour (CollideOscope) 2003
A MONUMENTAL OCCASION — The opening of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. (2016) Who Shot Ya? EP (Mix Tape) Because of Shade’s delay.
Living Colour
TALKING LOUD, AND ALWAYS SAYING SOMETHING.
Shade To Black —
— dave.
Two Sides b/ Living Colour, featuring still photographs taken at the opening of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture.
• LIVING COLOUR (“Back In The U.S.A.”)
Freedom Sounds (Washington D.C.)
September 24, 2014 — President Barack Obama spoke to celebrate the long awaited opening of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. After, three bands (Public Enemy, The Roots, and Living Colour) took the “Freedom Sounds” stage, playing in the Washington Monument’s late afternoon shadow, and delivering an entertaining end to a most celebratory day.
Living Colour
@ The National Mall
— dave.
Walking off Constitution Avenue, and entering Washington D.C.’s (now-fenced) National Mall, one was met by a number of city, federal, and park police, all carrying military assault rifles, and delivering one last dose of sad reality before getting in to see the show.
September 24, 2014 — Living Colour and the other bands (Public Enemy and The Roots) were part of the new museum’s “Music” Exhibit, and had been invited to close the “Freedom Sounds” show. A day that had featured a large variety of art, cultural, and musical performances, including that by legendary (Return to Forever) bassist Stanley Clarke.
Living Colour
• VERNON REID (guitar)
• COREY GLOVER (vocals)
• WILL CALHOUN (drums)
• DOUG WIMBISH (bass guitar)
Imagine —
A Wonderful World of Living Colour …
— dave.
Living Colour family members, Michele & Mark, represent the spirit that has always led the (often-called “BLACK”) Rock N Roll band, on it’s more than eventful, 30-year musical journey. Anyone (who knows) will tell you, though, that far beyond “BLACK,” Living Colour is a band that includes all colors in its painting a picture, telling a story, and delivering an always pointed and brutally honest message … fighting for social harmony, equal opportunity, and racial justice for all. Always.
— dave.
Bad Brains — Also known as The Yellow Tape or Attitude: The ROIR Sessions, is the debut studio album recorded by American hardcore punk/reggae band BAD BRAINS. Recorded in 1981 and released on the cassette-only label ROIR (February 5, 1982), many fans refer to it as “The Yellow Tape” because of its yellow packaging, much in the way that the Beatles‘ self-titled record is often called “The White Album“ Though Bad Brains had recorded the 16 song Black Dots album in 1979 and the 5-song Omega Sessions EP in 1980, the ROIR cassette was the band’s first release of anything approaching a full-length album.
I Have A Dream
b/ Martin Luther King
The Funk Brothers (Motown)
— James P. Blair
August 28, 1963 — Two years after the first Freedom Ride, at the end of THE MARCH ON WASHINGTON FOR JOBS AND FREEDOM. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I HAVE A DREAM“ speech, and called for voting rights, overall economic justice, and to end racism in the United States.
• BACK TO THE BEGINNING ( PG 1.)
• “THE BRIDGE” (1960/1965)
• INSIDE (CONTENTS)
1981 — The Dead Kennedys‘ record label Alternative Tentacles opened an office in the United Kingdom to issue special editions of records by American punk bands for the UK market. The single version of “Pay to Cum” had appeared on the Alternative Tentacles compilation Let Them Eat Jellybeans! and with the ROIR sessions available, a few songs were selected for a 1982 UK release as a 12″ EP. The record’s sleeve featured the same lightning-strikes-the-Capitol art that appeared on the ROIR cassette, and the back cover had the inner J-card’s band photo, credits, lyrics, and Kaplan’s liner notes. The record also mimicked the tape’s Side 1/Side A aesthetic, differing in that one side was reggae and the other hardcore punk, unlike the cassette, which interspersed the two genres. Because Alternative Tentacles UK was a short-lived venture, the Bad Brains EP is rare, and for eight years was the only appearance of these songs on vinyl.
—30—
• PICTURES IN TIME (PHOTOGRAPHY HISTORY)
• TIME MAGAZINE (100 PHOTOGRAPHS)
— dave.
• YouTube #1 / ORIGINAL NOISE
• YouTube #2 / ORIGINAL NOISE