My 75 cent find of the week : Noel Pointer

[remicks]

******


From the local Goodwill Store

The 1979 Noel Pointer album FEEL IT

I think some better packaging would've been the first place to better represent what was to be found inside this LP ... its more disco than one would ever suspect .....



besides the title cut FEEL IT

the other cut is :
FOR YOU ( A DISCO CONCERTO)

eight minutes of an evenly paced almost calming disco tune ....file in the "beautiful disco" category ...orchestral ...plenty of ongoing bongoing .... horn blasts ....piano ... bass guitar ... and strings ? .....well the string section on this album counts close to thirty members ...

I can't help thinking this song would have been (& perhaps was? ) a great song to be heard on the down side of peak time at the TROC ....

Have I mentioned yet that the vocals here are by THE JONES GIRLS ?
Or that Patrice Rushen plays the Fender Rhodes ?
And that the orchestra is arranged and conducted by Paul Riser ...of Motown arranging fame ( PAPA WAS A ROLLING STONE , TEARS OF A CLOWN , I HEARD IT TTG, AIN'T NO MOUNTAIN HIGH ENOUGH )


the down side at times: Noel Pointer's featured 5 string electric violin is sort of ear piercingly shrill .... not sure its the best solo instrument for a disco song ...although maybe others will argue that this gives the song a certain distinction .

Also too bad they brought in the talents of The Jones Girls and all they could come up with for them to vocalize during the song's second half is the forgettable line :

I've been, waiting just for you
I've been, waiting just for YOUUUUUU



nonetheless this is a fine piece of work .. a thoughtful composition ... another one lost in the disco glut of 1979 ....a 12" remix of this and : ..... :icon_cool::icon_cool::icon_cool:



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[needlefingers]

I never heard of him until your post.

And then I went over to ebay, and this was the next item on sale.

Noel Pointer 12" Single Living For City Blue Note Disco - (eBay item 190161801463 end time Oct-17-07 14:25:28 PDT)


What are the "disco gods" telling me?

[Videoskooter]

Never heard of him either until':

BIO

[SandraDee]

I first heard of Noel Pointer in the early 90s when he was part of the 'acid jazz' scene that spawned the likes of Jamiroquai & Brand New Heavies; I had a feeling that Noel's career had been revived by this UK scene.

[neonlights]

Man, I want this album now! I remember coming across this at the used record shop a few months back. The song titles intrigued me, but unfortunately this record shop doesn't have preview stations and as well, the album was a bit too expensive for the condition it was in, so I passed..

Anyway, on account of your review, Remicks, I'm gonna have hunt down a copy..

[remicks]

Man, I want this album now! I remember coming across this at the used record shop a few months back. The song titles intrigued me, but unfortunately this record shop doesn't have preview stations and as well, the album was a bit too expensive for the condition it was in, so I passed..

Anyway, on account of your review, Remicks, I'm gonna have hunt down a copy..

Glad to have sparked some interest for you Neon. :icon_biggrin:

I would say don't pay too much for it however ( although 75 cents is not likely gonna happen) ....because as good as it is ... it's frustrating to think how it could've been in the hands of a good remixer . Through no fault of their own , the talented Jones Girls do nothing but get in the way on FOR YOU (A DISCO CONCERTO) ....with their inane cooing of the one phrase "I've been waiting just for you". Their vocal skills were unfortunately way underused on the overall project even though they sing on most of the cuts. Patrice Rushen's playing really kicks in toward the latter part of DISCO CONCERTO .


So yes , get it ....as you come upon it conveniently .....:icon_cool:


*****

[qdearl]

I have several Noel Pointer LP's, very underated but very talented, just like Bobbi Humphrey. Mostly jazz Fusion, mid tempo, groove music, there's a couple of good tunes by him (not home to access them, so I can't give you any names right now...) but he initially worked with Dave Grusin(that right there should give you some idea of the quality of the compositions:icon_smile:) Don't forget what Grusin did for Tom Browne.
In addition to Patrice and The Jones girls, other guest collaborators include Patti Austin, Gwen Guthrie, Ralph McDonald, Earl Klugh, Lee Ritenour and Eric Gale.
Most of his LP's you'll find in the bargain bins (like I said very underated...)
That's where I found them:icon_cool:

Ok, I have 1 song on the ipod here....."All the Reason Why" - smokin' mid tempo duet - sounds like something from Switch or the Dazz Band, or Starpoint.

[discodjinn]

In addition to the tracks mentioned, I also like the album opener, "Captain Jarvis." Would fit very well on Dmitri's latest disc *Cocktail Disco.* I think Pointer's disco-influenced stuff is better for background or early-morning settings than dance-floor burners. I also really like his '77 lp *Hold On.* The title track and his cover of Stevie Wonder's "Superwoman" fit this mold really well. Plus, I like the backing by members of Stuff (Gadd, Gale)-- gives it a soulful, R&B base.

Anyone who likes this would probably also love Richard Tee's two albums ('79 and '80)-- more disco-jazz, more accessible, this time from a great keyboardist.

[SandraDee]

Anyone who likes this would probably also love Richard Tee's two albums ('79 and '80)-- more disco-jazz, more accessible, this time from a great keyboardist.

That's weird that you should mention that, I was recently thinking about getting Richard Tee's '79 LP when I was in a 2nd hand record shop in San Francisco. I've already got 'First Love' on a jazz-funk compilation LP; is the rest of the LP similar djinn?

[discodjinn]

If "First Love" was interesting you to go to the album, then I think you'll find some of the other tracks stronger. The title cut is a bit funkier and more disco. One of the tracks sounds like Grover Washington would in a couple of years with his *Winelinght* lp. Only one of the cuts has Tee singing, unlike the follow-up album, where he's vocalizing on most tracks. Overall, the sound on *Strokin'* is much like the Stuff albums but with a decidedly disco tinge throughout.

[discodjinn]

Another way to put it-- the music sounds to me like "Bourgie Bourgie" era Ashford & Simpson. Similar style of stabbing piano chords, soaring strings, and percussion. And this wouldn't be a coincidence, since Tee and other members of Stuff played on A&S albums *Come As You Are* and *So So Satisfied.*

[SandraDee]

Thanks djinn.

[remicks]

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A DISCO CONCERTO
stunning

In addition to the tracks mentioned, I also like the album opener, "Captain Jarvis." Would fit very well on Dmitri's latest disc *Cocktail Disco.* I think Pointer's disco-influenced stuff is better for background or early-morning settings than dance-floor burners.

Yes it's nice too. Thank You:

CAPTAIN JARVIS




A "lost" Jones Girls recording:

FEEL IT

******

DEE:
That's weird that you should mention that, I was recently thinking about getting Richard Tee's '79 LP when I was in a 2nd hand record shop in San Francisco. I've already got 'First Love' on a jazz-funk compilation LP; is the rest of the LP similar djinn?

discodjinn
Another way to put it-- the music sounds to me like "Bourgie Bourgie" era Ashford & Simpson. Similar style of stabbing piano chords, soaring strings, and percussion. And this wouldn't be a coincidence, since Tee and other members of Stuff played on A&S albums *Come As You Are* and *So So Satisfied.*

yes I hear that too. very very nice ........


FIRST LOVE Richard Tee


everybody wants to be ............



*****

[discokicks]

Top quality stuff! Thanks for the introduction to these jazzy disco craftsmen.

The amount of thought, music composing and notation going into all of these unknown/discarded seven and eight minute disco masterpieces still boggles my mind...not to mention all of that collaborative musicianship effort. They're like our own secretive gems still to be admired and cherished today...our pot of gold.