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Chuck Brown DC Go Go Godfather Dies at 75

Wed, 16 May 2012 23:27:24 +0000

Conspicuously not present with his band at the Prince Georges County,MD Fair recently due to pneumonia rumors were already out there. Today, the Godfather of DC GoGo died at age 75 at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore.

Update on 5/17/2012: The Washington Post has two large write-ups on Chuck Brown today. Front and center on the Front page and also in the “Style” section. It’s “Chuck Brown” day in D.C. – D.A.

Washington Post: Front Page Style

Donald “Duck” Dunn

Tue, 15 May 2012 12:16:54 +0000

Most likely you have seen the Blues Brothers movies, probably the first one more than once, and if you have then you might recognize Donald “Duck” Dunn. A well known “Stax” Bass player known for performing on many of the 60s greatest Soul hits. Once one of the members of Booker T and the MG’s (Memphis Group) Dunn played on other artists records as well. Examples of which are the classic Sam and Dave hit “Soul Man.” Another would be Wilson Pickett’s “In the Midnight Hour” and the list goes on and on. Donald “Duck” Dunn was born in Memphis in 1941 and nicknamed “Duck ” by his father for the Disney character. He died May 13 in Tokyo at age 70 of undisclosed causes. – D.A.

It Was His Thing And We Got Our Groove On

Thu, 03 May 2012 12:11:39 +0000

I have always gotten a groove going listening to the guitar riff in “It’s Your Thing” by the Isley Brothers. It came from the same dude that also gave us the “Wah Wah” sound in the “Theme from Shaft.” Charles “Skip” Pitts who grew up in the same neighborhood as Bo Diddley in Washington and had the opportunity to learn a few things from the 50′s legend. During his career he played with Bo, Al Green, Wilson Pickett, Same and Dave, Rufus Thomas, The Temprees, Albert King and I would bet numerous others. Here is is wikipedia bio. Mr. Pitts passed on May 1st in Memphis at age 65. – D.A.

Dick Clark Dead at 82

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 20:49:45 +0000

Dick Clark, the legendary host of American Bandstand and the New years Eve Ball drop in NY has gone on to meet his maker.

The Duck once worked for his former boss at the now defunct WKKO in Cocoa, Florida. Dick worked for Howard Maschmeier at WFIL way way back then and Howard retired to Florida and owned WKKO.

Not much more to say. A video for you to see on his passing.

The Two Bobby Bennetts – Both live in Suburban Maryland

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 12:27:25 +0000

Bobby Bennett #1; A member of James Brown and the Famous Flames. After years of it, he tires of the road and moves to Prince Georges County Maryland where he owned a cleaning business for many years but stepped out into the limelight every now and then. Most recently Bobby Bennett was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Bobby Bennett #2 sometimes referred to as “The Burner” was a popular disc jockey on WOL, a heritage Soul station back in the day, who went on to “create Soul Street” for XM radio according to his web site Bobby Bennett.org. Bobby also wrote a book “The Ultimate Soul Music Trivia Book” available on his web site. Bobby lives in Olney, Maryland located in Montgomery County outside Washington, D.C. – D.A.

The Howard Theatre Set to Re-open after $29M Restoration

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 12:20:15 +0000

The Howard Theatre…a famous historic Theatre located in a part of Washington known as “Black Broadway” in the days of segregated Washington. Anybody that was anybody in African American Entertainment performed at the Howard. At the Theatres Grand re-opening, Al Jarreau, Wanda Sykes, and Smokey Robinson are scheduled to perform.

Although the neighborhood has changed over the last ten years, now less than 50% African American, there is still alot of history in the U Street corridor. Here is an article from the Washington Post that will give you a feel for what it was like back in the day.- D.A.

Interesting Lives Lived; Louisiana Red, Joe Thompson, Elda Chadwell, Jim London

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 14:21:34 +0000

You may be asking who these people are or were. I’ll start in the order as listed in the subject line:

Note: Some issues today with adding Links. If you search for more information using Google, Yahoo, Ask, etc., the topic should come right up and in some cases you will have multiple choices of articles and video.

Louisiana Red: A bluesman whose real name was Iverson Minter. Mr. Minter was known as Louisiana Red as he had come from Louisiana and had a strong love for Louisiana red pepper sauce. One of the last remaining bluesman from an era gone by. He had a couple of regional blues hits, “Red’s Dream,” and “I’m Too Poor To Die.” Iverson Minter died in Germany where he had settled in the 1980s on February 25th. More at www.louisiana-red.com

Joe Thompson: Famous for keeping African American String bands alive. These bands pre-dated the civil war and the blues. He was one of the last of a generation of black musicians who performed at square dances before World War II. He was 93.

Edna Milton Chadwell: Talkin’ ’bout “Ho’s.” This woman was a real life “Ho” and a famous one at that. If you recall the movie, “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas,” the movie was based on her life as a prostitute and later Madam at the Chicken Ranch in LaGrange, Texas. Ms. Chadwell said the only thing true about the movie was that there was a whorehouse. She was 84.

Jim London: A personal notation for a real broadcasting pro. I had the pleasure of working with Jim for several years at WMZQ, Washington, D.C. He was a class act. More on his death due to a heart attack on February 28, 2012 at www.dcrtv.com.

All The Best – D.A.

So Sad – Whitney Houston

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 16:57:04 +0000

At this point, most people have already heard of the death of Whitney Houston on the eve of the Grammy Awards. She had been scheduled to attend a party just a couple of hours later hosted by Clive Davis, Founder of Arista Records, her mentor and the one that signed her to the label when she was 19. Her first album was “Whitney” and spawned hits like “You Give Good Love” and others. Those of us in the radio and music industry knew about her a year or two earlier through background vocals such as on the Teddy Pendergrass hit single “Hold Me.” The duet is actually on her first album “Whitney.” Yesterday, I briefly noted on my Facebook feed that Whitney Houston had died. I had actually learned that through a fellow patron at the Burke Cigar who had seen it on Twitter. At that point I had not seen it anywhere else, not on Fox News, Not on CNN, or even Yahoo. On my way home News 99.1 (WNEW) briefly mentioned it but had no details.

Whitney was from a family of famous singers, Cissy Houston, Thelma Houston, Dionne Warwick to name a few. Somehow, I feel like I am leaving someone out. She will be missed – D.A.

Jamal Muhammed WPFW Jazz Historian/DJ passes

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 13:39:40 +0000

Jamal Muhammed. You may not know who he is or some of the artists he played on WPFW-FM in Washington, D.C. but you knew the artists that those artists influenced and they are likely many. Jamal Muhammed is known as a walking encyclopedia on Jazz History and will be missed by many in the community who loved him.

Don Cornelius Rolls Out!

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 16:11:42 +0000

On this first day of Black History Month, we hear from CNN that Don Cornelius has died from a gunshot would at age 75. It is believed to be a suicide. Don had mentioned to a judge in a divorce proceeding in 2009 that he was suffering from health issues so this may be the reason if it was in fact a suicide as indicated by both TMZ.com and CNN. Don Cornelius was a legend in the music business. I remember watching Soul Train as a kid on Saturday afternoons. – D.A.