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RHAPSODIES IN BLACK:
The Harlem Renaissance
(roughly1915-1937), like the Armenian holocaust or the bombing of
Dresden, is a rarely talked about yet monumental event in history.
Unlike the holocaust in Turkey or the immolation of Dresden however,
the Harlem Renaissance was cause for celebration. Started around
1915 after the death of Booker T. Washington, the Renaissance was
ushered in by black artists, writers and performers who, unlike
Washington, had not been born into slavery. The freedom of living
in a city community like Harlem, allowed blacks, for possibly the
first time in their history as Americans, to imagine and create
the natural bi-product of decades of suffering: art. While repressed,
covert art was made during their years of slavery, this was the
first time that their art could be unfurled in the bright light
of day. On top of that, it was so amazing that white people flocked
to Harlem to witness the spectacle. The Harlem Renaissance beget
the Beat Generation of New York, which beget the hippies of San
Francisco, which beget the yippees, out of which rose the yuppies.
It would seem that the roots of all our most revolutionary and noteworthy
movements are black, as coal, as earth, black as the night before
the first rays of dawn. Rhino Records four CD set, RHAPSODIES IN
BLACK, MUSIC AND WORDS FROM THE HARLEM RENAISSANCE attempts to sample
this slice of Americana that is usually only remembered for it's
sound bytes: Duke Elllington, the Cotton Club, Langston Hughes.
Fortunately for history and the savvy box set collector, Rhino has
managed to reach back into the archives of Sony, RCA, UMG and a
few choice collections to give a fuller, more vibrant look at a
where greatness existed for a short time, than any other collection
to date .
The music recordings,
while re-mastered as well as possible, are not the kind of stereo
driven music we are used to. Recording technology, like the rise
of this new black culture, was in its infancy and in the end we
are lucky to have what we do. Forgiving the technical quality, there
is a haunting quality to the recordings present in the collection
that makes you yearn for a dim place to listen. As Bert Williams
sings "Brother Low Down" or Ethel Waters accompanied by
her Jazz Masters belts out "There'll be Some Changes Made"
or "Stormy Weather" close your eyes and imagine what it
was like to hear something like that for the first time. A favorite
of mine on disc three (Preachin' & Prayin') was "My Handy Man"
by Victoria Spivey. There is a hopefulness to the music, even below
the blue note, that is not present in black music today which lifts
the heart even while the soul is feeling low.
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SUPREMES BOX SET
Every man, woman and child
in America and beyond can probably hum the chorus to "Where Did
Our Love Go", and there's a reason for that: it is a perfect pop
song. And it's not just a perfect pop song for the sixties, but
a perfect pop song forever. It captures the angst and longing of
love lost and pain embraced, but there is also a cool calculation
to the drama the song invokes that makes you feel like everything
is going to be just fine. It was also the first hit for a little
girl group on the Motown label. Diana Ross, Florence Ballard, Barbara
Martin (who left the group after the first single) and Mary Wilson
had been hanging out at the Motown studios singing background and
clapping their hands in unison for the likes of Smokey Robinson
and the Miracles waiting for their big break for some time. The
producers at Barry Gordy's Motown had been trying to find a single
that would fit the trio and in August of 1964 they hit gold as "Where
Did Our Love Go" displaced Dean Martin's "Everybody Loves Somebody."
It stayed on the charts in the number one position for two weeks,
proving that misery sells better than happiness. So began the saga
of one of the most popular, memorable, dynamic, well dressed musical
groups in the world, the Supremes.
This box set chronicles
the saga of the Supremes from their very first recorded demo as
The Primettes in 1960, to the very last show of "The Supremes" minus
Barbara Martin, Florence Ballard and Diana Ross. The box itself
is fabulous, pink velvet with a elegant burn-out swirl on the front
around an early picture of the group in typical diva pose with sequined
gowns and perfect 60's hair: not a care in the world from the looks
of it.
That's the only problem
with this set, it makes you realize how good the group was at their
height and as disc 1 progress to 2 and 3 and finally 4 you feel
like you are watching a flower wilt. Reading about the progression
of the band with its personality differences and the slow breakdown
of the Motown machine that kept them oiled and shinny, its easy
to understand why the Supremes shone so brightly for a relatively
short time. Diana Ross' desire to be queen, and Motown's desire
to be king kept either from being able to hold on to the royal positions
they did have. |
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