Patti LaBelle

George Clinton in Birmingham, UK

George Clinton was back to Birmingham this April at the O2 Arena, Bristol Street, with a complete show that included members of his groups; Parliament and Funkadelic, plus some new vocalists and family members. George has now shaved off his colourful dreads removed his nappies and long beard in favor of the suit & tie look. I must say the band sounded fabulous and the two lead guitarists were very rock-ified as you would expect. More at Mickey's Blog 2-Soulution

Cllr. Yvonne Mosquito

Staggering new figures have revealed that the West Midlands Police accepted just one black person among 162 new recruits in its latest recruitment exercise. The shocking figures have prompted West Midlands Police & Crime Commissioner David Jamieson to ask questions of his own force in his quest to ensure that the police service reflects the public it serves. Both Jamieson and his deputy, Councilor Yvonne Mosquito, herself Britain’s only black female in a leading Police & Crime Commissioner role, are now calling on the force to up its game in its latest wave of recruitment. (Poppy Brady - The Voice)

Play list for Sunday 26-04-2014




Millie Jackson - I Need To Be By Myself
Lowell Pye - Never Leave Me Alone
Vincent Ingala - Just Imagine
Prince - Future Baby Mama
Stony Murphy - I'll Be Alright
Andy Compton/Celestine - Kiss From Above
Robin Thick - Lost Without U
Derrick Lucas - Realize
Joshie Jo Armstead - In The Right Place 
Valerie Carter - Try To Get To You
Jones Girls - Just Love The Man

Patti Labelle x3
1 It's Alright With Me 2 Love, Need & WantU
3 Love Is Just A Touch Away

Windjammer - Tossing & Turning
Glen Goldsmith - Dreaming
Sherrick Just Call
Papik/Jane Morris Let The Music Play
Eleanor Mill - Wouldn't You Like To See
Monique Thomas - Daughter Of Mine
Carl Anderson - Buttercup

Patti LaBelle's Biography:

Patricia Louise Holte-Edwards (born May 24, 1944), better known under the stage name Patti LaBelle, is an American singer, author, and actress who has spent over 50 years in the music industry. LaBelle spent 16 years as lead singer of Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles, who changed their name to Labelle in the early 1970s and released the iconic disco song "Lady Marmalade". Labelle are also noted for being the first African American group to play at the prestigious Metropolitan Opera House and the first African American vocal group to land the cover of Rolling Stone magazine. More at wiki

Melba Moore

In the news .. R&B veteran Johnny Kemp, best known for his classic hit "Just Got Paid," was found dead in Jamaican. He was 55. According to reports, Kemp's body was discovered floating in an ocean in Montego Bay on Thursday morning. It's currently unclear how his death occurred, but according to the authorities, Kemp was scheduled to be on a Caribbean cruise this week associated with the Tom Joyner Morning Show. Kemp was nominated in 1989 for a Grammy Award for "Just Got Paid" in a category that included Bobby Brown and Luther Vandross. The song was a No. 1 hit on the U.S. Billboard R&B chart. He's been on the road doing one-off shows. (thisisr&b)

Soul music's quiet storm classic singer Percy Sledge has died.  (b. Percy Tyrone Sledge, 25th November 1941, Leighton, Alabama, U.S.A. / d. 14th April 2015, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, U.S.A.
Percy Sledge, probably best remembered for his 1966 evergreen Soul hit, ‘When A Man Loves A Woman’, has died. Percy was 73, and had been suffering from liver cancer. ‘When A Man Loves A Woman’ became a Top 40 hit record. The hit overshadowed, somewhat unfairly, a fine career spanning the late Sixties and early Seventies. Born in Leighton, Alabama, his early career covered several roles (in farming and in health), before becoming a touring vocalist in the early Sixties.
. (soulwalking)

Police have confirmed this morning that 18 year old, Sherrif Mbye sadly died following an incident in Northfield yesterday evening, which left a second man, 19, critically ill in hospital.  Police were called to reports of an incident outside KFC on Bristol Road South at around 5pm on Friday 17th April. They found a 19 year old man with stab wounds was being tended to by customers in Biggz barbers. He remains in a critical condition in hospital this morning.  18 year old Sherriff Mbye, from Lee Bank, was reported to have arrived at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham in a white Audi, which had been seen leaving the Northfield scene. The Audi then sped off after leaving him at the hospital. He died two hours later from multiple stab wounds, despite the efforts of staff.  The Audi was later found abandoned in Ladywood.  An 18 year old local man has been arrested on suspicion of murder. A small number of other men, believed to have been involved in the incident, are being sought as part of a police investigation. (more)

Track listing for Sunday 19-04-2015




Deniese Williams - It's Gonna Take A Miracle
ET (Ed Towns) - Magic In The Air
(inst. Steel Pan)
Phil Perry - A Batter Man
Dangerfield Newbies - Heaven Sent You
Thelma Jones - Salty Tears
Jaheim - I've Changes
Aretha Franklin - Giving Him Something..
Aaliyah - Rock The Boat (Remix)
Maxwell - Pretty Wings
Luther Vandross - My Sensitivity

Melba Moore x3
1 Next to You 2 Livin' For Your Love
3 My Love

Change - Mutual Attraction
C& C Music Factory - Share The Beat Of Love
Rhonda Clark - State Of Attraction
RJ's Latest Arrival - Please Stay
Mary J Blige - Baggage
Zhane - Hey Mr. DJ
Rhythm 'n Jazz - Just In Case

Melba Moore's biography:

Born as Beatrice Melba Hill has an estimated net worth of $30 thousand. This lady is known in the entertainment industry as Melba Moore and is best known by being an actress, as well as American disco, R&B singer. She is likewise the daughter of saxophonist Teddy Hill and the R&B singer Bonnie Davis. Moore used to work as a music teacher before the world knew of her through her hits Love’s Coming at Ya’  and You Stepped into My Life. This lady gambled and tried out acting and entered the music industry. Moore is also a recipient of a Tony Award for Best Actress in the musical Purlie. This actress appeared in a number of blockbusters and produced critically acclaimed albums back in the 1970s. In the 80s, Moore continued to make great hits and even winning a streak at the Grammy Awards. The 1990s was yet another successful decade as she appeared in Ain’t Misbehavin’ and Les Miserables. The movie Fighting Temptations starring Cuba Gooding Jr. and Beyonce was yet another film that she appeared in.  2011 was the year when Moore got to release her first album in years and it being a minor hit, Love Is. Moore went to Newark Arts High School located in Newark, New Jersey.

Kleeer

In the news   .... Alicia Keys To Be Honored At 2015 Grammy’s On The Hill Awards. Keys is one talented woman and philanthropist, and this month, she’ll be recognized for all of her efforts.Serving as one of the founding members of the Academy’s new group, the GRAMMY Creators Alliance, the singer-songwriter is bing honored by the Recording Academy for her “artistry, philanthropy, and passion for creators rights.” Recording Academy President and CEO Neil Portnow states: “We know that sh will bring the same dedication to creators’ rights as she does to her music and global philanthropic efforts.”Alicia Keys along with an additional nine music makers such as Jennifer Hudson, Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, Dr. Luke, and Adam Levine, joined together to create the Alliance to help today’s leading artists, songwriters and studio professionals be a powerful voice in shaping music’s future. The goal of the Creators Alliance is to serve as a powerful, amplified voice to advance policies that put music-makers first. More at


Our good friend Bill Randle bumps into Jeffrey Daniel and teaches him some new steps, lol but seriously this week Jody Watley claims Shalamar name, creates new version of group. Well, you know that one of our favorite acts of the late 70s and early 80s was the trio Shalamar. Its most famous lineup consisted of two legendary singers, Jody Watley and Howard Hewett, and a just as legendary dancer, Jeffrey Daniel. Unfortunately, the beauty of their music was not always matched in their personal relationships, and since the mid-80s there have been several versions of Shalamar and sometimes nasty words said through the press.  More at Soultracks

Sundays Play List, 12-04-2015

Eleanor Mills

Smokey Robinson - I'll Try Something New
Amazonics - Redemption Song
Rone-Iff - Halle Halle
Teddy Pedergrass - Whole World's Talkin'
Charlie Wilson - Charlie, Last Name Wilson
Tony Momrelle - Everything's Alright
Gladys Knight - Soon
Eleanor Mills - Wouldn't You Like To See
Saun & Starr/Dapp Tones - Look Closer
Dean Martin - Volare
Calvin Richardson - Home In A Minute
Earth, Wind & Fire - On Your Face

 Kleeer x3 
1 Tonight 2 I Love To Dance
3 Intimate Connection

Shalamar - Second Time Around
Vivian Green - Get Right Back To My Baby
Sunny Hawkins - Love Me Too
Nicole Renee - Strawberry
Roy Ayers -  Love Will Bring Us Back Together
I Level - In The Sand
Kenny Thomas - Turn It Up
Zushii - Surprise, Surprise

Kleeer's biography:

Kleeer was an American New York-based funk, disco and post-disco band, which was formed in 1972 under the name The Jam Band, as a backup group to different disco bands and vocalists. After a switch to the name Pipeline in 1975, the group also decided to switch to making hard rock instead of disco. Record labels competed to sign them but, when they finally ended up at Columbia Records, their single "Gypsie Rider" did not fare well commercially.

In 1976 they got the opportunity to become The Universal Robot Band along with underground disco producers Patrick Adams and Greg Carmichael. This project was more successful than their former projects. They made the single "Barely Breaking Even" alongside singer Leroy Burgess, and they also recorded an album. The group toured as The Universal Robot Band until 1978. After 1978, the band decided to make all their music themselves under the new name of Kleeer. More @ wiki

Will Downing

Happy Easter to all the readers ... egg vs bun? did you know Birmingham company Cadbury has been making Easter Eggs since 1875, only pipped by two years by Fry's Chocolate who started in 1973. In Jamaica, eating bun and cheese is a highly anticipated custom by Jamaican nationals all over the world. The Jamaica Easter Buns are spiced and have raisins, and baked in a loaf tin. The buns are sliced and eaten with a slice of cheese. It is a common practice for employers to make gifts of bun and cheese or a single loaf of bun to staff members. According to the Jamaica Gleaner, "The basic Easter bun recipe requires wheat flour, brown sugar, molasses, baking powder or yeast and dried fruits."Easter egg traditions and the Easter Bunny activities are not widespread in Jamaica.

An Easter thought about the Pope .... When the Pope came to Birmingham (well Cofton) in 2012, he blessed Cardinal Newman who was thought to be buried on Rednal Hill at the Lickey Hills. In preparation for possible sainthood when they opened Newman's grave in 2008  they found he'd done a runner, lol So whether it's religion, chocolate or buns, pleas do have a lovely break and if you haven't already listened to Mr. Merry's Gospel tinged Easter show, you can find it underneath for about 30 days. Don't forget, any comments or request for future weeks please enter them at the foot of this page.


Playlist for Sunday 6-04-2015



Teena Maree - Daja Vu
Johnny Gill - There You Go
George Howard - Steppin' Out
R. Kelly - Just Like That
Kenny Lattimore - What Must I Do
Sounds Of Blackness - He Took Away..
Derrick Lucas - Realize
Shirley Jones - Because You Love Me
SLO - Anyway You Bless Me
Jahiem - Put That Woman First
Nina Provencal - Chance With Me

Willl Downing x3
1 'till You Come Back 2 Love Suggestions
3 This Song Is For You

Mary J Blige - Never Too Much
Fried - Sugar Water Days
Dante - 7 Days A Week
Atlantic Starr - When Love Calls
Omar/Angie Stone - Be Thankful
Sounds Of Blackness - I Believe
Gladys Knight - Soon
Rhythm 'n Jazz - Just In Case

Will Downing's biography:

Will Downing (born Wilfred Downing, November 29, 1963, Brooklyn, New York),  is an American singer, songwriter and producer. Downing is known in the contemporary jazz and R&B music genres for his rich baritone vocals, and his interpretations of R&B and pop classics that stretch back to the early 1980s. Downing is married to singer Audrey Wheeler, who has collaborated with various musicians as a back-up singer and was previously a member of the short lived R&B group Unlimited Touch. more at wiki