If you’ve been following the Boogaloo Bag for the last few years then you’ll know all about the Funky Brunch: How it is most expertly hosted by DJ Pete Pop every Sunday; how Mr. Pop occasionally asks Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus to guest DJ with him or even take his place; and that Mama Roux is the very hip New Orleans-themed eatery located in the heart of beautiful downtown Newburgh, NY.
Mama Roux’s amazing Parmesan truffle fries
The food at Mama Roux is gooooood! On this day, The Boogaloo Omnibus and Boogaloo Bag photographer Miss Nancy were able to partake in the Parmesan truffle fries and the fried chicken. That was delicious.
Oh, yeah, and Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus played a bunch of records—nearly 120 of them! He got all kinds of compliments as well as almost $20 in tips! Here’s a list of all the records he played:
Mickey Baker et Les Midnighters–Shaking at Buttercups [from EP Mickey Baker] (RCA Victor; France)
A few months ago, our pal Dungaroos Kipawah arranged for Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus to swing at the beautiful Kingston, NY bar for which Mr. Kipawah bartends. The Boog named the event Funky Kingston. It took place on July 29. For this event he rounded up some of his favorite funk, hard soul and boogaloo records, and spiced it up with a few Afro-beats and Jamaican rhythms.
It all happened at The Salt Box, a fairly new but very groovy drinkery located in beautiful downtown Kingston—New York State’s first capitol city. One of the great things about the place is the historic building it resides in—it even has its own Wikipedia entry! The building was constructed during the 18th century with uncut stones. This makes it very difficult for audio wires to be strung through the walls for the disco system. Instead The Salt Box utilizes a wireless system that has a two-second delay from needle hitting a groove until it bursts out of the speakers. The Salt Box DJs need to be awake in order not to miss a transition mix. Luckily, Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus had been to the venue several times before in order to observe top local DJs Pete Pop, Peter Aaron and Sean McDevitt work the hustle, and so he was prepared.
The Funky Kingston experience took place on the upper floor of the building. The Boog had to lug his turntables and records up a narrow flight of pre-regulation stairs and set up in the corner. The room had some tables and chairs and some games for folks to fool with. The Bat Signal was employed in order to ensure a full-on Wang Dang Doodle event was taking place. Miss Nancy had several flavors of her homemade fudge and vegan brownies available for attendees with sweet teeth.
For this initial Funky Kingston, we are happy to report that plenty of folks came out to groove to the scene, including some old friends and some of our new Hudson Valley friends. It’s always a gas to see familiar smiling faces.
The Funky Kingston will take place on the fifth Saturday of the month, when there is one. There are two more this year, September 30 and December 30. For this Funky Kingston, Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus was the only DJ. Future Funky Kingstons may feature guest DJs brought in from New York City or parts unknown. Make your plans now to make the scene.
Here’s a list of all the records played by Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus at the very first Funky Kingston:
This is The GO Mechanism, an audio odyssey that tunes out all un-hip and un-clean finkdom! The GO is a program that is periodically produced by its host, Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus. It initiates on the fantabulous Luxuria Music radio stream as a Saturday Night Special before it resides on the mixclouds and here in the Boogaloo Bag. That’s G-O GO! G is for Groove. O is for O’Rooney. We have an exciting one in store for you. It will be loaded with fabulous Groove and dressed up in some fantastic O’Rooney.
In order to fully experience The GO Mechanism, it is strongly suggested that all readers listen to the show with it’s corresponding Boogaloo Bag entry in hand. Here is complete track listing of the songs heard on the show and even more information regarding some of these songs and artists, including links and graphics. In a few weeks after its initial air-date, this GO will be archived here and one may listen to it over and over.
Little Willie John was convicted of manslaughter in 1966 and he died in a Washington State prison in May 1968. The very next month, James Brown was in a recording studio where he cut six songs that became side one of this tribute to the great singer. (The other side consists of six organ instrumentals… “a few nice things.”) The album was released that December.
During his career, James Brown did not shy away from recording songs by the artists that influenced him. He cut songs by Roy Brown, Hank Ballard, The “5” Royales, Billy Ward & His Dominoes and Guitar Slim. So perhaps it should be no surprise that he dedicated one full side of an album to Little Willie John so soon after his untimely death.
The songs played in this edition of The Science Corner are: •“Talk to Me, Talk to Me” was a Number 5 R&B and Number 20 pop hit record and one of Little Willie John’s biggest hits. •”Home at Last” was a Number 6 R&B hit that was written by Rudy Toombs, the subject of the Science Corner in GO Mechanism Number 15. •”Heartbreak (It’s Hurting Me)” was a Number 11 R&B hit that squeaked into the pop Top Forty. This latter song was written by Jon Thomas, a keyboard player based in Cincinnati who played on several sessions for King Records (who issued both Little Willie John and James Brown records), including Little Willie John’s hit version of “Fever.”
Little Willie John
The other songs on JB’s tribute are “Suffering With the Blues,” which was likely written for Little Willie John; and two standards, “Cottage for Sale” and “Bill Bailey.” There’s little doubt that Little Willie John learned “Cottage” from the hit version by Billy Eckstine. “Bill Bailey” is a ditty that dates to 1902 and is favored by Dixieland musicians. Little Willie John’s version turns it into a jump blues; James Brown added his own touch of funky swing on this album.
Thinking About Little Willie John and a Few Nice Things is unlike any other James Brown album. At the time this was recorded and released, 1968, he was riding high with his new heavy funk; “I Can’t Stand Myself (When You Touch Me),” “I Got the Feelin’” and “Say It Loud (I’m Black and I’m Proud)” were all on the charts. This must have sounded like a throw-back to his fans—and the organ cuts may have sounded like throw-aways—thus it did not sell well. One can only imagine that this was a labor of love, a tribute to someone that the Godfather of Soul truly held in high esteem—as we all should. Little Willie John’s music will live forever.
For some reason Red Prysock has two entries in this edition of The GO Mechanism. Coincidentally, both of them have spoken introductions. The great saxophonist and his musicians were clearly having fun recording these tracks. Before striking out on his own, Prysock played with two “Tinys”: Tiny Grimes and Tiny Bradshaw. Prysock’s string of honking R&B instrumentals is matched only by Big Jay McNeely in their fabulousness, with “Hand Clappin’” being Red’s biggest seller.
In case the listener missed the GO Mechanism in-joke, we’ll explain it here: The show goes from Chuck Berry’s instrumental “Liverpool Drive” to “Mashed Potatoes” by a group from Liverpool called The Undertakers. Sandwiched between the two is a bit by Wild Man Fischer where he states, “You can get Herb Alpert and Jackie Lomax for forty cents.” The Undertaker’s lead singer was Jackie Lomax.
Alan Copeland checks into The GO with an early mixing of two different songs—something that the kids today call a “mash-up.” He directed his chorus to sing The Beatles’ “Norwegian Wood” to the tune of the theme to “Mission: Impossible.” Somehow it works—mostly because the “Mission: Impossible” theme is so hard to mess with. Copeland had been in the music biz for about 20 years before this. He had been a member of The Modernaires, a vocal group that goes back to its time with Glenn Miller & His Orchestra in the thirties. Copeland wrote a hit song for Jo Stafford and made vocal arrangements for various pop acts and for films. Although “Norwegian/Mission” didn’t make much noise on the pop charts—it bubbled under at Number 120—in 1968 Copeland received the Grammy for Best Contemporary Pop Performance, Chorus. A year later he tried to recreate that magic using Simon & Garfunkel’s “Scarborough Fair” with Mason Williams’ “Classical Gas.” It is not nearly as much fun.
The version of “Caravan” in this episode of The GO Mechanism is by Chuck Rio. Other than the fact that it is quite rockin’, we like this rendition because it adheres a little closer to the original version by the Duke Ellington spin-off group Barney Bigard & His Jazzopators; Rio’s version keeps the percussive horn arrangement that most versions omit. On the label of this record, the artist is noted as Chuck “Tequila” Rio. Indeed, Rio was a member of The Champs and wrote their hit “Tequila.” He sought to remind potential record buyers of this with several of his post-Champs recordings. [For more about “Caravan,” see The Science Corner in GO Mechanism Number Three]
Laurel Aitken had one of the longest careers of any Jamaican musician—from about 1958 to a few years into the next century. He recorded in just about every style of music that was ever created in Jamaica, including ska, rocksteady, reggae and dancehall. He even recorded some R&B tracks in the early sixties. The record played here, “Baba Kill Me a Goat,” is in the mento style. Mento predated ska in Jamaica and it is often confused with calypso music. The GO Mechanism producers will cop to the fact that they can’t really tell the two apart; however, suffice it to say, it is boss and thus presented for the listener’s enjoyment.
Charles Lloyd recorded “She’s a Woman” on March 8, 1965 at Columbia Studio A in New York City. The participants were Lloyd on tenor sax, Gabor Szabo on guitar, Ron Carter on bass and Tony Williams on drums. The track was only released as a single.
While tooling around in Tower Records’ under-stock in the fall of 1974, my friend Tom Gardner and I discovered a box of “Piss Factory” 45s that hadn’t made it to the sell bins yet. Needless to say, we bought a bunch of them and brought them home to our friends—we knew who Patti Smith was at the time—she had written some things in Creem Magazine, co-wrote some songs for The Blue Öyster Cult and was written about in Rock Scene Magazine. Plus, label credits listed our hero Lenny Kaye on guitar. How could it be bad?
In fact, it is one of the greatest records of all time. Subsequent recordings by The Patti Smith Group are all quite fabulous, of course, but this initial offering will always be held in high reverence with the GO Mechanism producers and the Boogaloo Bag writers. Nothing sounds like it, and nothing ever will.
Bo Diddley’s “Somebody Beat Me” is an odd one in his catalog. It was originally issued on the LP 500% More Man, and also twice on 45 in England. The song is about getting beaten up and robbed in Las Vegas. Could this be autobiographical? The subject matter is a long way from Bo Diddley’s braggadocio themes that we have come to know and love. Anyway, it’s got a cool groove.
Mose Allison was an early hero of the Boogaloo Bag writers and GO Mechanism producers. They attended a Mose appearance at the Lighthouse in Hermosa Beach, CA around 1973 where Mr. Allison’s signature was obtained on a napkin. “I’m Not Talking” was written by Mr. Allison and recorded for his 1964 The Word From Mose album. Two years later The Yardbirds covered the song and things haven’t been the same since.
Charlie Parker and Red Rodney dig Dizzy (as seen in the mirror behind them!).
Robert Roland Chudnick was a bebop trumpet player that worked as Red Rodney. “Red’s Mambo” is a Cubano-influenced jump number played at punk rock tempo by a bunch of guys from Philadelphia. Before this, Red Rodney played briefly with a group led by Charlie Parker. When the group toured the South, he was billed as “Albino Red” so they wouldn’t upset the locals who frowned upon mixed-race musical ensembles. Ignorant people are easily fooled.
The Greatest Record Of All Time that ends this edition of The GO Mechanism is “My One And Only Jimmy Boy” by The Girlfriends. The song was written, and most likely produced by David Gates (for Raven Wood Productions, Inc., whatever that is). The record sounds like a Phil Spector record played at 78 RPM; in our book it’s better than any Spector production. This same David Gates went on to produced two great singles by Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band. Gates also wrote and/or produced songs by such artists as The Murmaids, Merry Clayton, Duane Eddy and Dorothy Berry. Somewhere he lost the map and formed the pop group Bread, and that is where he found his success. It’s a shame how mediocrity always seems to be the big money-maker for some folks. At least he made this fantastic girl group record that we in the GO Mechanism studio consider one of the Greatest Records Of All Time!
The GO Mechanism is produced whenever we feel like it, and incorporates exclusive copyrighted Vitaphonic, Ultra-sonic and Quasi-tonal methods in order to bring out a higher standard of standardness. Legacy GO Mechanisms may be found on the mixclouds as well as here in the Boogaloo Bag.
The GO Mechanism originates on the Luxuria Music web-streaming hustle. The GO Mechanism producers heartily thank the Luxuria Music people for giving us the opportunity to play a few rekkids over their deluxe electronic audio delivery system. Please support Luxuria Music in any way you can. Go to the Luxuria Music web hustle to find out how.
Here’s a list of all the records played on GO Mechanism Number Seventeen:
Earl Bostic—Lester Leaps In (King) [ GO Mechanism Theme Song]
The Funky Brunch is a groovy Sunday affair hosted by Mr. Pop at the New Orleans-themed restaurant in Newburgh called Mama Roux. Man, the food is good at that joint and when Pete Pop gets his records going the marvelous music makes mastication much more magnificent. Sometimes The Boogaloo Omnibus helps him out and it still sorta swings. On June 25, Mr. Pop attended a family function, thus Phast Phreddie fed the funk to Mama’s fabulous patrons all day. It threatened to rain all day and the forecast probably kept some folks away. However, there were plenty of folks on hand to make the event fun and the humidity outside kept most of the patrons inside with the air conditioning. We got compliments on the music all day.
Here is a list of all 120 records played by Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus at the Funky Brunch:
Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus swings at the Funky Brunch!
For some unknown reason, Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus was not asked to guest DJ with Pete Pop at the Funky Brunch in May. Usually, when asked, the two boss record spinners take turns twirling their vinyl. Did not happen in May. However, in June, Mister Pop had two family obligations he had to attend to and it left The Phast One to swing the Funky Brunch by his lonesome! The first one took place on Sunday June 11.
To refresh the Boogaloo Bag readers’ memories, The Funky Brunch takes place every Sunday at Mama Roux, a very groovy New Orleans-themed restaurant located in the heart of beautiful, downtown Newburgh, NY. The place is elegant and serves the most delicious food on that side of the Hudson River. Every Sunday, from 11 in the morning until about 3 or 4 in the late afternoon, DJ Pete Pop sets a funky mood by playing recordings of Funk, Soul, Latin Boogaloo, Cumbia and all sorts of exotic rhythms. Sometimes, Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus hangs with him. Sometimes, like on June 11, Pete Pop calls in sick and the Phast Man swings alone. He will do it again on June 25.
The Boog was fresh off his gig at Rockaway Beach. He had pulled about 150 records to play at that event, but only spun about 30. So he added a few nice things to his box and was ready to go.
DJ Pete Pop checks out the jam that Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus is putting down!
The Boog and Boogaloo Bag photographer/baker Miss Nancy pulled into The Dog around 8pm or so and Pete Pop had the place jumping, having been at it for about an hour. Nancy set her home made fudge on display for all comers. Around 8:30, The Phast Man was up in the booth blasting some hot wax.
Smokestack Lightnin’ is Pete Pop’s occasional Wednesday night happening at the Dogwood. This was only the second or third time he’s done it—maybe fourth—and he is still gaining momentum with it. There were enough people in attendance to make it fun and most of them bopped around to the cool sounds Mister Pete was putting down.
DJ Pete Pop swings at Smokestack Lightnin’
The Dogwood on a Wednesday night is not the most exciting place in the world. However, with Pete Pop playing his hot 45s, the groove-a-tude was exponentially raised. Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus made an honest attempt to keep the ball rolling by playing these records:
A seagull flies over Caracas Arepa Bar during Shake It Up Sunday!
Every summer for about a dozen years, our friend DJ Rata—who now calls himself El Fernández—hosts a beach bash at the Caracas Arepa Bar at Rockaway Beach. It is called Shake It Up Sundays. Several times he has asked Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus to come and guest DJ with him. El Fernández asked the Phast Man to do so again for the event that was held on Sunday May 28.
Caracas Arepa Bar getting ready for Shake It Up Sunday!
A band is also lined up to play at these gigs, and on this Sunday we are pleased to say that the soulful instrumental stylings of the Freddy Deboe Band was a most excellent choice! A band that opens it’s set with the Junior Walker and the All Stars’ great song “Cleo’s Back” has got to be good. Mr. Deboe, who has played with Eli “Paperboy” Reed, James Hunter Six, The Jay Vons and Lee Fields, blows a swingin’ tenor saxophone while his most able accompaniment consists of a guitarist, an organ player (who doubled on keyboard bass) and drummer. The Boogaloo Bag writers heartily recommend the reader go see the act if it comes to your town.
Freddy Deboe Band swings at Shake It Up Sunday!
Also, The Boogaloo Bag writers were very pleased with the turnout of old friends. So nice to see so many familiar smiling faces, including and especially Debbie D from Georgia, whose Boss Radio 66 is a fantastic music interweb streaming hustle that is essential listening. Plus, she is scheduled to be the guest DJ for the July 30 Shake It Up Sunday. Also in attendance was Nogood Nick, who has often worked with The Phast Man in the past. His DJ work at the Dynagrooves was always memorable. He had to cut out early for his own radio show: Electric Lazy Susan which airs on Sundays on the WFMU Give the Drummer Some interweb streaming hustle.
The Boog and El FernándezEl Fernández and The Boog
Meanwhile, back in the DJ booth, El Fernández played some boss records, as is his forté. He had the place rockin’! El Fernández also DJs regularly at Union Pool, Ore Bar, Izzy Rose and other fine establishments, mostly in Brooklyn. We love the way that he mixes wild R&B records with mambo and ska records. Who does that? He’ll do Shake It Up Sunday once a month and the dates for this summer are June 25, July 30, August 27 and maybe September 10. You don’t want to miss out on this bitchen beach party action.
Here’s a list of all the records played by Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus at Shake It Up Sundays:
This is episode sixteen of The GO Mechanism—an audio odyssey designed to shatter your fragile egg-shell mind. It is hosted by Phast Phreddie who develops it in the secret laboratories of Boogaloo Omnibus Productionssomewhere in the Hudson Valley. The “G” stands for Groovy and it certainly is. The “O” stands for O’Rooney, a complex impulse that is incomprehensible to those possessing standard-issue precepts. If you have to ask, you will never know.
In order to achieve total comprehension of The GO Mechanism, the Boogaloo Bag reader is urged to seek out this episode’s corresponding audio presentation. After it airs on Luxuria Music as a Saturday Night Special program (this one on May 20), it will reside as a podcast on the Luxuria Music website for a few weeks before it is posted on the Mixclouds as well as below this posting. Look for the Saturday Night Special dated 5/21/2023
The GO Mechanism is produced whenever we feel like it, and incorporates exclusive copyrighted Vitaphonic, Ultra-sonic and Quasi-tonal methods in order to bring out a higher standard of standardness. Legacy GO Mechanisms may be found on the Mixclouds as well as here in The Boogaloo Bag.
An hour into The GO there will be a Science Corner. For this edition of The GO Mechanism, the producers have selected three karate records for the listener’s gratification.
Karate is a martial arts way of fighting that was developed in Japan. During the sixties and seventies, movies that featured karate fighting were popular in the U.S. and songs and even dances were developed in order to capitalize on its prominence. Dozens of songs were recorded at the time and we have presented three in The Science Corner: “Karate Boo Ga Loo” by Jerry-O, “Karate” by The Emperors and “It’s Karate Time” by Travis Wammack.
Jerry-O was Jerry Murray, who was a mover and shaker on the Chicago soul scene during the sixties; he was a songwriter, producer, owned record labels, presented shows and was a radio DJ. As part of the duo Tom and Jerry-O, he had a sizable R&B hit with “Boo-Ga-Loo” in 1965. A couple years later Jerry-O released “Karate Boo-Ga-Loo” on Boo-Ga-Loo Records before it was licensed to Shout Records. Other recordings were issued on White Whale and Bang. These are mostly party records, with Jerry-O and friends shouting dance names over funky backing tracks. Jerry-O Murray died in an automobile accident in the early seventies.
The Emperors were a vocal group from Harrisburg, PA. “Karate” was written by Tyrone Moss and Milton Brown, the drummer and organist, respectively, from the band that regularly backed The Emperors. The song was released in December 1966 and climbed to Number 16 on the Cashbox R&B chart early the next year. If the song sounds familiar to you, it is probably because Carlos Santana re-wrote the song as “Everybody’s Everything” and had a hit with it in 1971. Moss and Brown were properly credited and one would hope they were able to benefit from it. The Emperors would record an album and release two more singles. When the two follow-ups didn’t chart, the album was scrapped and not released until 2009. The Emperors would cut another single for Brunswick, “Karate Boogaloo”/“Mumble Shing A Ling,” but it failed to capture the magic of their first release and the group broke up soon after.
Travis Wammack is a guitarist who was born in Mississippi but made his mark in Memphis. He’s best known for a cool guitar workout instrumental called “Scratchy” from 1964. That song borrowed a bit from “Comin’ Home Baby” by Herbie Mann, which was written by Ben Tucker, Mann’s bassist at the time. “It’s Karate Time” is another cool guitar workout by Wammack. It is totally original, and, with the karate shouts, totally fun. Wammack cut a string of fabulous records during the sixties. Indeed, the flip side of this track is a haul-ass version of “Night Train” that may be heard in a future GO Mechanism. He was also a session player in Memphis and at the studio in Muscle Shoals. During the seventies and eighties he cut some southern country-rock albums. He is still alive and still performing.
GO Sixteen’s version of “Caravan”—a song heard in every GO Mechanism—is by Bill Haley and His Comets. It was recorded and released in Mexico. Haley had a string of hit records in the late fifties—the biggest being “(I Wanna) Rock Around the Clock,” which was Number One for eight weeks in 1955. By the end of the decade, his records stopped appearing on the Pop Charts. He moved to Mexico in 1961 in order to escape tax collectors and divorce lawyers. There, he learned Spanish, married a local woman and cut some records. The twist craze was starting up and Haley obliged the Mexican teens with a series of popular twist numbers, becoming Mexico’s King of the Twist. One of these recordings was “Caravana Twist”—“Caravan” with a twist beat. Since “Caravan” has a melody so sturdy you couldn’t hurt it if you beat it with a stick, it totally works—and, hey, you can twist to it. [ Further to Haley’s Mexican period, in January 1966, Haley and His Comets recorded an album-worth of tracks with Big Joe Turner, but only two EPs were issued, in Mexico only.]
In 2003, Norton Records initiated a Rolling Stones cover song series of 45s. The label asked some of its favorite acts to record a song by the popular British Invasion band and each track was issued on split singles. More than thirty of these records have been issued to date, and all of them are cool. The Dirtbombs version of “No Expectations” is one of these tracks—and for our money, the best one. The Detroit group took the song and sang it to the music of “Sympathy for the Devil,” with a surprise ending. The utter genius of the recording is astounding.
Rex Garvin & His Mighty Cravers
Although there are several examples of soul and funk records about the evils of heroin, the hallucinogenic drug L.S.D. is rarely sung about in R&B music. The GO Mechanism presents Rex Garvin & His Mighty Cravers with “Believe It or Not.” Although Garvin wrote “Over the Mountain, Across the Sea” for Johnnie and Joe, which was a Top Ten R&B and Pop hit in 1957, he never achieved much fame for his accomplishments, even though his music career lasted from about 1954 to 1971. He and His Mighty Cravers released a series of singles on several labels through those years, and only one album to show for it. His recordings range from interesting to fantastic—such as the track played in GO Mechanism Number Nine. Garvin may be the subject of a future Science Corner.
Marty Balin’s “I Specialize in Love” was released around 1962. It is one of two singles he recorded before joining the Jefferson Airplane a few years later. The song reminds us of the kind of material that Ricky Nelson was singing at the time.
“Lost on Xandu” is a version (sort of in the Jamaican sense of the word) of an instrumental first released on The Fleshtones album Brooklyn Sound Solution that featured Lenny Kaye on guitar. Lenny wrote the jam and a few years later wrote lyrics for the song and wanted to put it out as a single. The Fleshtones’ Peter Zaremba then jazzed it up on the flip side for this spaced-out version. Not on any LP!
“My Quiet Village” is sung by Darla Hood. Yes, Darla of Our Gang fame. Turns out she had a pretty good voice and she does a swell job on this exotica standard. Maybe she should have sung at the Little Rascals talent shows instead of Alfalfa!
With the release of “Flying Saucers Rock ’n’ Roll” on Sun Records, Billy Lee Riley became a legend among rockabilly aficionados. It is one of the greatest records of all time. He cut some other records for Sun, including another rockabilly classic “Red Hot,” then recorded for a series of labels—some of them he owned. Perhaps we’ll go into more of Riley’s career in a future Science Corner, as it is very interesting. For now, suffice it to say, there’s not a lot of information available for this one record he cut for Atlantic, “Happy Man.” The song has a catchy soul-pop vibe that should have been a big hit in 1968 when it was released. Somehow it failed to click and after a few more releases that mostly sank without a trace, Riley was out of music.
One of the Greatest Records Of All Time is always presented at the end of a GO Mechanism. For this GO, we continue the theme of The Science Corner with a karate record, this one by Chubby Checker. In September 1960, Mr. Checker’s cover of “The Twist,” first recorded by Hank Ballard & the Midnighters, became a Number One pop hit record. In January 1962, it became a Number One pop hit record again—probably the only recording to ever accomplish that feat. During the early sixties, Checker released dozens of dance records—some of them fabulous, some of them less so. By the middle of the decade he was cutting some good pop-oriented soul records that found some favor with British Northern Soul parties, such as “(At The) Discotheque,” “Everything’s Wrong,”“You Got the Power” and “You Just Don’t Know.” He also cut “Karate Monkey,” a fantastic record that will get you off your seat and dancing. Not only is it a karate record, but it is a monkey record, and one of the best! Without a doubt in anyone’s mind, Chubby Checker’s “Karate Monkey” is one of the Greatest Records Of All Time!
For some reason, three spoken word pieces presented in this GO Mechanism are by people that are actually acquainted with the GO producers: Danny Weizmann (a writer known to some as “Shredder”), Paul Body (drummer for the legendary Sheiks of Shake and The Love Supremes) and Pleasant Gehman (of The Screamin’ Sirens, Ringing Sisters and Disgraceland legend). During the early nineties, all three issued spoken word albums and we have extracted important tidbits from them for your edification. Danny speaks over a backing track by Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band while Paul and Pleasant both speak over clips from jams by Miles Davis. Another of Shredder’s proclamations open’s the show.
The art that decorates this GO Mechanism is by a fellow named Mike Tempo. We know him, too, but not that well. We first met him as the percussionist for the exotic rhythm and rock band The Bonedaddys, which features the talented saxophonist Jay Work. Or maybe we met him even before that when he was in The Burning Sensations. Mr. Tempo also bangs on things for the Mark Leggett Quartet, Greg Sutton & the Sunday Salvation Band and other acts in the Southern California area. His motto is, “Have bongos, will travel!” He posts his art on the Facedog from time to time and we finally asked him if we could borrow an image; thus it is above these notes and below in the digital poster. Dig his work here: https://miketempoart.com
Once this GO Mechanism initially airs on the Luxuria Musics—on the evening of May 20—it will be available as a podcast for a few weeks on their website. Look for the Saturday Night Special dated 5/21/2023. Soon after it will be posted on the Mixclouds and below here in The Boogaloo Bag. Luxuria Music is a hep cat daddy music dispersal organization that deserves support from swingin’ cats and kittens such as those who dig The Boogaloo Bag. Support them with some loot! Find out how here!
All of the tracks played in GO Mechanism Number Sixteen:
Earl Bostic—Lester Leaps In
Bud Powell—52nd Street Theme (Blue Note)
Charlie Parker—Chasin’ the Bird (Savoy)
Sonny Stitt—Fine and Dandy (Prestige)
Takeshi Terauchi and the Bunnys–Let’s Go Shake (Seven Seas; Japan)
Busters All Stars—Summertime (Prince Buster/Rock A Shacka; Japan)
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band—Old Fart at Play (instrumental) (from album Grow Fins; Revenant)
Bill Haley y su Cometas—Caravana Twist (Orfeon; Mexico)
MIles Davis—Great Expectations (severe edit) (from album Complete Bitches Brew Sessions; Columbia/Legacy)
The Party Brothers—Do the Ground Hog (Revue)
The Mighty Sparrow—Calypso Boogaloo (RA; West Indies)
Michael Olatunji—Soul Makossa Part 2 (Paramount)
Miles Davis—The Little Blue Frog (alternate version, edited) (from album The Complete Bitches Brew Sessions; Columbia/Legacy)
The Surfaris—Scratch (from LP Hit City 64; Dot)
Los Corraleros—Pajarillo Montañero (Discos Fuenes, Colombia)
DJ Pete Pop and Phast Pheddie the Boogaloo Omnibus swing at the Funky Brunch!
T.S. Elliot once wrote, “April is the cruelest month…” Here at the Boogaloo Bag we beg to differ. To us, April is the coolest month! For four April Sundays in a row, Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibuswas asked to DJ the Funky Brunch with (or once, without) DJ Pete Pop at the elegant Mama Roux in downtown Newburgh.
Daddy Long Legs in action!!!
The DJ Pete Pop action actually started on the Saturday the 22nd when he brought his Do the 45dance party to the Daddy Long Legs after-show event at The Colony in Woodstock. Daddy Long Legs is quite possibly the finest blues wailin’ band in the land. The group’s show at The Colony was amazing; it’s raucous act and showmanship had folks screamin’ and shoutin’ the entire time. Formerly a trio, the band has recently added a piano player and he added quite a bit of boss noise to Daddy Long Legs’ boss beat. The group has a brand new boss album out and The Boogaloo Bag writers insist that all its boss readers go out and purchase a copy right now! After the gig, DJ Pete Pop played some of his most exciting records and had folks dancing for about two hours before the joint closed up.
Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus cleans the dust off his disc with the tassel from his fez!!DJ Pete Pop swings at the Colony!
The next day was April 23rd, a Sunday—Funky Brunch day. Pete had some family commitments and was unable to DJ the whole event, so Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus was called in to pinch hit for him. The Phast One swung for the fences, as you can readily tell by checking out the list of records he played below…
Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus swings at the Funky Brunch!
If it is Sunday, it is time for a Funky Brunch at Mama Roux—Newburgh’s fabulous New Orleans-themed dinery. On April 16, the Funky Brunch’s gracious host DJ Pete Pop was unable to make the scene, so Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus was called in to dish with the discs. Boy, did he dish—more than one hundred 45s were turned. Not only that, but he did all the behind-the-scenes work usually performed by Pete Pop, like dragging the equipment into the joint and setting it all up. Then, at the end of the day, tearing it all down and packing it up. Probably about ten hours of the day was spent dealing with the hustle, including driving from Pleasant Valley to south of Newburgh to pick up the electronics, up to Newburgh to set everything up at Mama’s, then packing up and taking it back to it’s home, THEN, finally driving home.
But it was worth it. During the five hours of disc spinning 107 records were played. We were even given compliments by a fellow who said he was visiting from Austin, Texas. Quite a coincidence as Pete Pop was, that very moment, in Austin Texas!!!
Marty’s Brussels Sprouts dish!Marty the Mod, post Brussels sprouts dish!Marty the Mod’s scooter!
Here’s a list of every record played by Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus at the April 16 Funky Brunch:
Les McCann Ltd. with Stanley Turrentine & Blue Mitchell–Twist Cha-Cha (Pacific Jazz)
boogaloobag 