Soul Strutter: 05/04/23

Thursday, 4 May 2023

Ed Sheeran Wins 'Let's Get It On' Lawsuit

It seems common sense has prevailed and a jury has ruled that Ed Sheeran did not infringe copyright that the family of Ed Townsend (who co-wrote "Let's Get It On" with Marvin Gaye) initially accused him of. That case was dismissed without prejudice in 2017,

However, in 2018 Structured Assets Sales, who own a third of the copyright, sued Sheeran for $100m claiming that the song used the rhythm, chord progression and other elements of "Let's Get It On" for his 2014 triple platinum selling #1 hit song "Thinking Out Loud".

It was his second #1 hit and the first song to spend a full year on the UK Top 40 and went triple platinum, perhaps the reasoning for the 'false' copyright claim? Sheeran was awarded first Grammy for the song.

Full story at BBC News.

Steve Aggasild [2023-05-03] - SoulAndJazzFlavas (The Quiet Storm) [SOTAR]

Steve Aggasild's midweek show for State Of The Art Radio (SOTAR) broadcast on Wed. 3rd May 2023 between 20:00-22:00 GMT.

This week's show is dedicated to 'The Quiet Storm'.

Steve now does a show Fri 21:00-23:00 (GMT) on Soul Music Radio and two shows a week on SOTAR Sun 20:00-22:00 (GMT) and Wed 20:00-22:00 (GMT). If you have yet to listen then please do take a listen as he is one of the best UK soul radio presenters around with a 40 year pedigree.

Catch up with other SoulAndJazzFlavas podcasts at Mixcloud or from 27 Jun 2022 onwards Podbean

Playlist:

Artist	Title [Album]	Year
Rahsaan Patterson	Sent From Heaven [Heroes & Gods]	2019
Raquel Rodriguez & Stan Taylor	Ooo Baby Baby [Sunday's Best EP]	2023
Montell Jordan feat. Kristin Jordan	I'm All In [Masterpiece]	2019
Lalah Hathaway	You Were Meant For Me [Where It All Begins]	2011
Brian Courtney Wilson	Just Love [Just Love]	2009
Quentin Moore feat. Maya Azucena	I Can't Ever Stop Loving You [Black Privilege]	2017
Avant feat. KeKe Wyatt	You & I [Face The Music]	2013
Johnny Gill	Soul Of A Woman [Game Changer]	2019
Lena Byrd Miles	This Is the Day	2019
Neamen Lyles feat. Crystal Stark	This Love Is Yours [Moment Of Truth]	2019
Samuel Williams feat. Ruth Williams	Happier Days	2018
Big Bub	Zoom [Timeless]	1997
Prominent	Step Into My World [42 Grams]	2005
Jamm	I Promise [I Promise]	1991
Quincy Jones feat. Kirk Whalum	Sax In The Garden [From Q With Love]	1999
Quincy Jones feat. Barry White, Al B. Sure!, El DeBarge, James Ingram, Siedah Garrett	The Secret Garden [Back On The Block]	1989
Queen Latifah	Hard Times [The Dana Owens Album]	2004
Leela James	Complicated [See Me]	2021
Leena Conquest feat. Roy Ayers	The Breeze [Cafe de Soul Vol 1]	2002
Lenny White feat. James 'Crab' Robinson & Vaneese Thomas	You Bring Out The Best In Me [Attitude]	1983
Starpoint feat. Renee Diggs	I Got The Love [It's So Delicious]	1983
Norman Connors feat. Glenn Jones & The Jones Girls	Melancholy Fire [Take It To The Limit]	1980
Peabo Bryson	All My Love [All My Love]	1989
Dee Lucas feat. Selina Albright	Love Is Enough [No Boundaries]	2023
Will Downing	Till We Meet Again	2023

MT Jones [2023] - I'd Be Lying [Self Released]

We featured Liverpool's MT Jones with his third single "In My Arms" in Feb and took the opportunity of posting live videos for his first two singles "I Won't Ever Say Goodbye" (19 Nov '22) and "Feeling Lonely" (29 Dec '22).

He now has a fourth called "I'd Be Lying". No release date has been given but possibly out tomorrow or next Friday.

Like his previous singles it's a 60s/70s style retro soul in the vein of Kelly Finnigan and Durand Jones & The Indications and their like. As it kicks off it is reminiscent of Robert Parker "I Caught You In A Lie".

He has featured on BBC Introducing on 1Xtra and last night (3 May '23) played London's Pizza Express, Holburn.

Click on image below for link to where you can buy from.

Click icons below for further information or to connect with the artist.

Details

Rating:	8.6
Explicit:	N
Genre/Style:	Retro Soul / Blue-Eyed
Format:	Single / Promo
Media:	Digital
Label:	Self Released
Cat No:	None
Date:	05/05/2023
Key/BPM:	3B/109
Price:	£1

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame - Soul Inductees 2023

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Inductees for 2023 have just been announced. It is the 38th year of inductions.

From the world of soul music the inductees include:

Chaka Khan (Musical Excellence Award)

Don Cornelius (Soul Train) (Ahmet Ertegun Award)

Performer Category

The Spinners

Missy Elliott

Other inductees include George Michael, Kate Bush and Sherly Crow.

You may wonder, like we did, why it takes so long for artists to be inducted. It transpires, that to be nominated, an artist must have made their first commercial recording at least 25 years prior to nomination.

The categories are defined as follow:

Performers: artists who have created music whose originality, impact, and influence has changed the course of rock & roll.

Musical Influence Award: artists whose music and performance style have directly influenced, inspired, and evolved rock & roll and music impacting youth culture.

Musical Excellence Award: given to artists, musicians, songwriters and producers whose originality and influence creating music have had a dramatic impact on music.

Ahmet Ertegun Award: non-performing industry professionals who have had a major influence on the creative development and growth of rock & roll and music that has impacted youth culture.

Gregory Porter [2023] - On My Way To Harlem / 1960 What? (Jazz & Cole Edits) [Expansion Records #GP7-1-2013]

Expansion Records has just released digital (and vinyl) copies of their 2013 release of Jazz & Cole Edits of two tracks from Gregory Porter's first two albums.

The A side "On My Way To Harlem" from his second album "Be Good" (2012) flipped with, for us, perhaps one of his best recordings "1960 What?" taken from his 2011 debut album "Water".

Videos for the originals also included below.

Available now via Expansion's Bandcamp store.

Click on image below for link to where you can buy from.

Click icons below for further information or to connect with the artist.

Details

Rating:	8.6
Explicit:	N
Genre/Style:	Soul Jazz
Format:	Single / Reissue
Media:	Digital / 7" Vinyl
Label:	Expansion Records
Cat No:	GP7-1-2013
Date:	04/05/2023
Key/BPM:	N/A
Price:	£2 / £12.50

R.I.P. - Linda Lewis (27 Sep 1950 - 3 May 2023)

We have just learned the sad news of the passing of Linda Lewis (born Linda Ann Fredericks) yesterday aged 72. The news was announced by her sister Dee on social media.

Linda was born in West Ham, London, and went to stage school before becoming a singer with a ska band The Q Set in 1964. She released her first solo album 'Say No More...' in 1971 (a bit of a soul/folk album). Prior to that she appeared at the very first Glastonbury Festival in 1970.

Her first solo single was a cover of Mary Love's Northern Soul favourite "You Turned My Bitter Into Sweet" on Polydor in 1967. The label changed her name to Lewis apparently after Barbara Lewis whose "Baby I'm Yours" she covered (and charted with) in 1976. The single is now quite a rarity with only one for sale on Discogs with the seller asking just over £1k for.

In 1967 she formed White Rabbit with reggae artist Junior Marvin later replacing Marsha Hunt in The Ferris Wheel.

She first hit the UK Pop chart in 1973 with "Rock A Doodle Do" reaching #15 which she surpassed in 1975 with a cover of Betty Everett's hit "The Shoop Shoop Song (It's In His Kiss)" (although recorded first earlier in 1963 by Merry Clayton) which peaked at #5 on the chart in 1975.

With her sisters Shirley and Dee, The Lewis Sisters were one of the most in-demand backing groups in the UK. Linda's five octave vocal range was utilised by artist such as David Bowie, Rod Stewart, Cat Stevens (who she dated on and off), Rick Wakeman, Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, Joan Armtrading, Jamiroquai, Oasis and many others.

Lewis has left us with a dozen or more studio albums as well as a few live albums. Her breakthrough came with her third album, perhaps aptly, titled "Not A Little Girl Anymore" (Arista 1975) which spawned her biggest hit along with a previous single from Bell included on it "(Remember The Days Of) The Old Schoolyard". Luther Vandross (who we mentioned yesterday as he sang backing vocals on the Delores Hall album) also features on BGVs on "It's In His Kiss" and "Rock And Roller Coaster" on her first Arista album. The album was recorded in New York and at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London and was produced by Tony Silvester (Main Ingredient) and Bert DeCoteaux with Funk Brother Bob Babbitt on bass.

Her last recording was "Earthling" with The Paracosmos on 3 Mar 2023.

PJ Morton [2023] - The Sweetest Thing [Video]

Last Friday (28 Apr '23) PJ Morton dropped a live studio video of a performance of his new version of "The Sweetest Thing" originally recorded by Refugee Camp All-Stars featuring Lauryn Hill. in 1997 which also featured on the "Love Jones" soundtrack.

Whether or not it will be his next single or a new album track remains to be see, but we hope so as it's a sur fire winner.

Also included in the original version.

Click icons below for further information or to connect with the artist.

Details

Rating:	8.8
Explicit:	N
Genre/Style:	New Soul / Cover Version
Format:	Video
Media:	Digital
Label:	Self Released
Cat No:	None
Date:	28/04/2023
Key/BPM:	N/A
Price:	£N/A

Donna Summer [2023] - HBO Documentary ‘Love To Love You, Donna Summer’

Set to premiere on 20 May is an HBO Documentary ‘Love To Love You, Donna Summer’. It takes an in-depth look at the iconic "Queen of Disco".

Summer was born LaDonna Adrian Gaines in 1948 and died of cancer in May 2012. The documentary, directed by Oscar and Emmy-winning filmmaker Roger Ross Williams and Summer's daughter Brooklyn Sudan, follows her beginnings in Germany, to the dance floors of clubs in New York. It's a deeply personal portrait of Summer.

She began as a member of a New York blues rock band Crow in 1967 before moving to Munich in 1968 to join the German adaptation of the musical 'Hair'. It was there she met Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte and the rest, as they say, is history. Summer returned to the US in 1976.

Under her maiden name Donna Gaines she released three singles between 1968 and 1971. The first single consisted of two songs from 'Hair' and the 1971 single, "Sally Go Round The Roses", was a cover of The Jaynettes (1963) and released only in the UK and now sells for almost £500.

Prior to her break-through single "Love To Love You Baby" in 1975, she released three singles in Germany with Moroder and Bellotte.

She married Austrian actor Helmut Sommer in 1973 from whom she acquired her stage name when the label misspelt Sommer as Summer, and later, in 1980, married Bruce Sudano who she had had two daughters with, Brooklyn and Amanda Grace.

Coco O. [2023] - Many Ways [Self Released]

Two years after her debut solo album, "It's A Process", Copenhagen's Coco O. (Cecilie Karshøj) releases her first solo single since then, "Many Ways", which follows a single "Seconds" with August Rosenbaum (who co-wrote the new single with her) in Sep '22.

If you are not familiar with her work included below is a live performance of five tracks ("Unlock", "Arms", "Something Real", "Worry" and Ions) from her album. Unfortunately, our favourite, "Love Won't Win" is not included.

Coco O. formed a duo Quadron with Robin Hannibal in 2009 who released two albums. The name is derived from a Danish word meaning quarter race as they are both have biracial parents with Coco's father being Tanzanian descent.

She moved to L.A. for a few yeas and has worked with Jay-Z and Pharrell Williams.

Click on image below for link to where you can buy from.

Click icons below for further information or to connect with the artist.

Details

Rating:	8.3
Explicit:	N
Genre/Style:	Neo Soul
Format:	Single
Media:	Digital
Label:	Self Released
Cat No:	None
Date:	21/04/2023
Key/BPM:	7A/88
Price:	£1