Funky Nation - The Detroit Instrumentals

 

Recorded during the summer of 1971, Funky Nation: The Detroit Instrumentals is the result of some downtime that Marvin Gaye had after refusing to tour in support of his classic What's Going On album.

Released to coincide with the 50th version of What's Going On, it would appear that these studio jams, led by Gaye, were largely forgotten about. A few have cropped up on expanded editions through the years, but this is the first time they have been released as one.

Gaye is joined by Hamiton Bohannon on drums, the trio of Ray Parker Jr. (only 17 at the time), Wah Wah Watson and Leroy Emmanuel on Guitars, as well as Michael Henderson on bass. Gaye played keyboards and percussion.

There isn't a great deal of information other than that the sessions were led by Gaye. You barely hear him, other than the first track Checking Out (Double Clutch) when he introduces the band and then on the beautifully loose Struttin' The Blues where Gaye is just grooving along making sounds with the jam.

Was he just enjoying cutting loose and hanging with musicians?

At times things are pretty rocking, Daybreak starts with a riff that wouldn't be out of place on a 1966 Kinks single. At other times, there is some funky soul instrumentals like Help The People, while the title track is stoned soul that appears to be going nowhere until 1 minute 15 when everything just comes together with ease. Chained is an instant favourite, listen to the bass groove, the drums and that little guitar riff.

This is an album well worth checking out, it's just super loose and cool, the band are, well they are just as  Marvin says these cats sure are funky.

If you're a fan of Gaye's then it is worth checking through his online catalogue as there is an incredible amount of bonus material backing up his albums. 

A couple to highlight from the 50th anniversary of What's Going On are the demo of Symphony with Gaye repeatedly singing what's going on and the stunning instrumental I Love The Ground You Walk On.

All Flowers In Time Bend Towards The Sun

Trust Me #15

It is quite rare to discover a truly mesmerising, beautiful, jaw dropping, stop you in your tracks song. A song so good that you listen to it again and again and marvel at the beauty, the soul, the soundscapes, the performance, the art ...

Over the weekend I discovered a magical song that immediately cast a hypnotic spell on me on first listen, causing me to go back to listen again and again.

The discovery of this rare gem came through Teddy Jamieson at The Herald via an article he wrote on 10 amazing Scottish voices. 

Jamieson includes the remarkable Liz Fraser from Cocteau Twins in his feature and urges readers to check All Flowers In Time Bend Towards The Sun , an unfinished & unreleased song by Fraser and her then partner Jeff Buckley.

I had no idea that Jeff Buckley and Liz Fraser were a couple. This is a quite extraordinary song and performance, with both artists taking flight, soaring majestically and with ease.

Opening with a fiercely strummed acoustic with bursts of (then joined by) electric, Fraser opens gently before her voice rises dramatically to let rip in the second line, oh I am fuse. She repeats this trick / skill before Buckley comes in all soothing and romantic for the first chorus.

Fraser's improvises over Buckley's acoustic, making some incredible intense noises that sound equally painful, passionate and spine tingling, before the two sing the chorus together.

Buckley takes the next verse, showcasing how his own voice can rise, play, swoop and soar. Fraser takes the final verse as Buckley hums the melody to the chorus, before singing it, then Fraser joins him.

All Flowers In Time Bend Towards The Sun is beautifully raw, capturing something delicate, passionate and deeply emotional.

Jamieson reports that Fraser didn't want the song to be released as it was unfinished, I am so glad that a bootleg version has made its way out there.

This is songwriting and performance at its purest best, a song I will return to again and again.

You can listen on Soundcloud, the lyrics and YouTube link are below.

My eyes are, a baptism

Oh I am fuse

And sing her, into my thoughts

Oh phantom elusive thing, oh

All flowers in time bend towards the sun

I know you say that there's no-one for you

But here is one

All flowers in time bend towards the sun

I know you say that there's no-one for you

But here is one, here is one, here is one

All flowers in time bend towards the sun

I know you say that there's no-one for you

But here is one

All flowers in time bend towards the sun

I know you say that there's no-one for you

But here is one

Keep it going in me, wicked traveller

Fading father from me

With your face in my window glow

Oh, where will you weep for me?

Sweet willow

It's OK to be angry

But not to hurt me

Your happiness

Yes, yes, yes

Darling, darling, darling

All flowers in time bend towards the sun

I know you say that there's no-one for you

But here is one

All flowers in time bend towards the sun

I know you say that there's no-one for you

But here is one

If you use Spotify you can find a playlist of all the songs from the Trust Me series of blogs by searching for Everything Flows Trust Me or clicking HERE 

You will need to use the Soundcloud and YouTube links for this particular gem.

Previous Trust Me blogs

1. Something On Your Mind by Karen Dalton

1A. Crimson and Clover by Tommy James and the Shondells

2. I Am, I Said  by Neil Diamond

3. Where's The Playground Susie?   by Glen Campbell

4. If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lighfoot

5. Gimme Some Truth by John Lennon

6. Gone With The Wind Is My Love by Rita and the Tiaras

7. In The Year 2525 by Zager and Evans

8. The Music Box by Ruth Copeland

9. The Ship Song by Nick Cave

10. Sometimes by James

11. I Walk The Earth by King Biscuit Time

12. Didn't Know What I Was In For by Better Oblivion Community Centre

13. When My Boy Walks Down The Street by The Magnetic Fields

14. The Man Don't Give A F**k by Super Furry Animals

Song #3 by Marvin Gaye

Let's Get It On by Marvin Gaye is one of a few select albums that I own on both vinyl and CD format. It is one of many classics made by a truly incredible artist. Gaye was in a particularly rich vein of form in the early 70's, beginning with the epic What's Goin' On released in 1971, leading into the sexually charged Let's Get It On, then the frank I Want You, before the incredible Here, My Dear an album recorded, in part, to pay for a divorce settlement with Anna Gordy, sister of Motown head honcho Berry.

Yesterday I was playing some music through my phone (on speakers) on Spotify in the kitchen and decided I wanted to revisit the album. I found that the online version was essentially a super deluxe edition with many unreleased songs, instrumentals, demos and alternate versions

The first bonus song is simply titled Song #3 - Instrumental. It is simply sublime, I must have listened to it over a dozen times since I first heard it. Credited as a co-write to Gaye and the conductor David Van De Pitte it has flowing strings, funk wah wah guitar, piano, cool grooves, a simple beat and horns that become more prominent as the song progresses. It's Gaye with the Funk Brothers and more.

The strings become more playful at times, including a beautiful 10-seconds at  2 minutes and 18 seconds in, it really is stunning. The pace and the horns pick up at 3 minutes 30 seconds and the closing 2-minutes is just breathtaking in terms of quality and beauty.

It sounds like it may have been recorded live, certainly going by the brilliant reaction from a few musicians at the end with one heard to say 'that is a bitch, that is a bitch'.

I'm still making my way through all the bonus tracks, but this one moved me so much that I felt I had to share it. Check it out below and you'll get the deluxe edition with all the bonus tracks on Spotify/YouTube etc. More info about the album HERE.

Normandy (On A Beach) by The Waterfront

The Waterfront, the band John Squire and Gary 'Mani' Mountfield were in before the Stone Roses, are receiving a vinyl release for Record Store Day.

The band never played any shows, but did come together in 1983 to cut two indie guitar gems that are closer in sound to post Sally Cinnamon Roses, rather than the early tracks accumulated on the early Roses Garage Flower compilation album (not released until 1996) including debut single So Young b/w Tell Me.

Normandy (On A Beach) b/w Where The Wind Blows will receive a limited edition 12-inch Record Store Day release with all proceeds going to The Christie in Manchester, the largest cancer centre in Europe.

The demos, long talked about among Roses fans, have been remastered and I for one will be trying to track down the 12-inch on 21st April.

The Waterfront consisted of John Squire (guitar), Mani (bass), Chris Goodwin (drums and later of Doves), Andy Couzens (guitar and laterly of early Stone Roses and The High) and David 'Kaiser' Karty on vocals.

Ian Brown was asked to join the band as a second vocalist; "John and I had an idea of having Ian and Kaiser at the front trying to do a counterpoint with one another. That's what we were trying to push, this question-and-answer thing with these two lads at the front singing sweet pop music." Andy Couzens told the bands biographer, Simon Pence.

Normandy (On A Beach) is definitely sweet guitar pop music with echoes of Orange Juice. Mani's bass grooves from the off and there are chiming guitars over a shuffling beat with vocals that could easily be mistaken for Ian Brown - that Manchester choir boy from a council estate kind that captivated so many hearts.

Where The Wind Blows is a little rougher round the edges, moving to the more brazen punkier side of The Roses that features on Garage Flower, the album they recorded with legendary Martin Hannett on production duties. The lovely guitar riff and bass breakdown after the early bizarre (whistling solo) are pure Roses.

The group seemed to just naturally fold almost as quickly as it came together. Mani tried to form a group with Brown and Clint Boon from the Inspiral Carpets but it never materialised.

Quite how Mani fell out of the picture as Squire and Brown formed the Roses without him isn't clear from any articles or books I have read on The Roses, but they got there in the end.

For me it sounds like the Roses almost took a step back from The Waterfront tracks to move forwards. There is no doubting the power and urgency of So Young and Tell Me, but much of the other Garage Flower era tracks leave no impression on me at all. The early version of This Is The One is raw yet still shines, Adored just doesn't contain the subtlety of the final version. There is no doubt that when the Roses classic line-up finally formed and they were matched with producer John Leckie, that is when things finally clicked into place. It was only in 1987, after the Garage Flower recordings and  fresh batch of Brown/Squire originals had been written that Mani joined the band and in Brown's own words "When Mani joined it almost changed overnight. It became a totally different groove...straightaway, everything just fell into place."

This Record Store Day release is sure to be much sought after by fellow fans of the Stone Roses.