Linda Clifford speaks!

[Jeff H]

"Pessimistic," Marky? I don't know--maybe just cranky. Old men get that way, you know.



OK, maybe I should have been more specific: I think few Top 40 songs from the last 10-15 years will stand the test of time.



But even your question about our favorite CDs from the '90s through today is a tough one for me. Except for the obvious answers--Cher, Donna Summer (ANOTHER greatest hits/live CD, girl?!), etc.--well, I'll have to go check my collection. Nothing comes to mind.



You know, I used to make fun of people who were musically stuck in the '50s or '60s, but maybe I've become stuck in the late '70s. Good thing I found this site!

[markydefad]

Jeff,



I realize I sorta changed the topic...I suppose you meant DANCE MUSIC CD's and there I DO agree with you that not much stood out as a total CD...M People & Black Box were consistently excellent, but most of the rest were just singles acts. The last Cher cd was good and nothing else comes to mind..oh, maybe the last 2 Madonna CD's had a high quality quotient, I think.



And, by the way, I think you know I understand "cranky"; it's my lifestyle ( a choice?, I'm not sure about that...)

[PhyllisHyman]

Marky

You so piss me off (I love you and respect you realy )but if I'm gonna start...

For a start you hate sampling yet you don't have a problem with Disco? So much disco relies on cover versions, or nicking lines and melodies from old Motown tunes. There are only 8 notes and the combinations are finite but the interpretation is limitless. And if the people who originaly made Disco were doing the same thing now they so would be sampling. It's a technology thing..it's there so use it. Oh, and by the way I was listening to a cd of old gospel songs today from the thirties and there's a track called "Up above my head I hear music in the air" ..sound familiar?

[PhyllisHyman]

...and don't even start me on disco albums. It's only harping back to a different time that make disco albums sound good. Plus ca change....

[markydefad]

Oh phyl,



Well, I'm sorry to piss you off--but, what I hate is not covers of old tunes updated to modern times (in fact, I usually like that--a good song is a good song), but rappers taking a rhythm track from a old disco or pop song and talking over it. What hooks the listener into the song is the sample. The rap is forgettable, mostly unintelligabe--but listeners of today are hooked on the lifted hook. I find that practice despicable--a way to create music without any knowledge of how to "create" music.



And there are exceptions to my bias--Angie Stone's new record that I love. But in that case, there is a new melody and new lyrics with a memorable chorus, not just the "Backstabbers" rhythm track.



Maybe, as Jeff said, we're getting old and cranky, but I hate untalented folks having hit records and making tons of cash by stealing the best parts of old records by talking over the catchy rhythms of the Whispers, Sister Sledge, or whomever. Real composers and musicians created those catchy hooks and untalented non-musicians steal them to create new product for a criminally taste-deficient audience.



Let's see, Puff Diddly ripped off tunes by Led Zeppelin, The Police, Diana Ross, and Christopher Cross to "create" new product and a career for himself. I'd like to see him put in one of those writer's cublcles in the Brill Building where Carole King, Gerry Goffin, Burt Bacharach, etc. spent hours with a just piano creating music, not rifling through his record collection for riffs to steal. I wonder what the samplers would write if they only had a piano or guitar to compose with--instead of theft machines?



Of course, over the years, composers have dipped into what previous composers have created to fashion, some consciously--sometimes unconsciously (George Harrison's alleged lift of "He's So Fine" to create "My Sweet Lord") new songs. But George did create a new song...he didn't just remove the Chiffons vocals and talk over the rhythm track. Times have changed. Tastes have changed. Not for the better, I fear.

[markydefad]

Now, back to my mission...A DIVA SUMMIT...folks seem to think Donna Summer wouldn't want to perform with Gloria Gaynor & Linda Clifford, because she is admittedly the biggest star of the bunch. Well, I say, then invite another DIVA to join the summit: Thelma Houston, Claudja Barry, Loleatta Holloway are probably not TOO busy these days. Now, the Oprah hour I planned is probably not gonna happen cause the magnitude of star wattage has dimmed, but maybe Oprah would give the girls a 20 minute segment.



As for the song, I was listening to one of my tapes this weekend and I heard a song that has been much discussed on this board. It was a hit in the clubs, but didn't cross over to the pop or even the r&b charts to much effect--"24 Hours A Day"--3 great verses--one for each diva. The song begs for a remake. High energy, catchy...instantly likeable.



If not that one, what about Kiki Dee's "I've Got The Music In Me" or did Erin Hamilton already cover that one? She's got a new record titled that, but I'm not sure if it's the Kiki Dee tune. It's a great old tune that Thelma, for one, already did a cover of on an early eighties LP.



Ok, I'll shut up now. Until next time.

[Outsider]

I don't see why Donna Summer wouldn't want to perform with Linda Clifford and Gloria Gaynor. She might love the idea and be very eager to participate. With Donna's presence, the whole project would get a lot more attention because she's still well-known. As for the song to be used, it should definitely be a new one, and it doesn't have to be written by someone like Diane Warren or Babyface or any other big-name songwriter. Since Donna wrote (or at least co-wrote) most of her hits, maybe she should write or co-write the new song as well. That's my thought on this anyways.