Tag: US

Luba – The Best Is Yet To Come (Extended Dance Mix) (US 12″) (1986)

Burning The Ground Exclusive

Yesterday we were chasing a gopher around the golf course.

Today, we are moving on to 9½ Weeks.

Nobody can accuse this series of lacking variety.

For our next Ladies Of The 80s: Soundtrack Edition selection, we turn to Canadian singer and songwriter Luba and “The Best Is Yet To Come,” from the 1986 film 9½ Weeks.

Directed by Adrian Lyne and starring Kim Basinger and Mickey Rourke, 9½ Weeks certainly was not Caddyshack II. The film became one of the most talked-about movies of the decade, following the intense relationship between New York art gallery employee Elizabeth and mysterious Wall Street broker John.

And like so many memorable films from the 1980s, it came with a terrific soundtrack.

John Taylor opened the album with “I Do What I Do… (Theme For 9½ Weeks),” followed by Luba’s “The Best Is Yet To Come.” The soundtrack also featured Bryan Ferry’s “Slave To Love,” Dalbello’s “Black On Black,” Corey Hart’s “Eurasian Eyes,” Joe Cocker’s unforgettable “You Can Leave Your Hat On,” Devo, Eurythmics, and Stewart Copeland.

Luba actually appears twice.

The album closes with “Let It Go,” a song that originally appeared on her 1984 album Secrets And Sins. “The Best Is Yet To Come,” however, was not taken from one of Luba’s regular studio albums. It was recorded for the soundtrack and later appeared on her 1987 compilation Over 60 Minutes With Luba.

That makes this one especially interesting for soundtrack collectors.

“The Best Is Yet To Come” was written by Terry Britten and Graham Lyle and produced by Narada Michael Walden.

That is already quite a pedigree.

Walden surrounds Luba’s powerful voice with the kind of glossy, dramatic production that seemed made for the middle of the 1980s. Big drums, keyboards, atmosphere, and a vocal that keeps building as the song moves forward.

And then François Kevorkian gets hold of it.

Now we are really talking.

The US 12-inch takes the track onto the dance floor with an Extended Dance Mix and Dub Version remixed by François Kevorkian, one of the most important names in club music. The record also includes “Let It Go,” giving us both of Luba’s contributions to the 9½ Weeks soundtrack on one 12-inch.

The Extended Dance Mix gives the production room to breathe. Kevorkian stretches out the rhythm, lets the percussion and keyboards take a larger role, and builds an arrangement that feels much more spacious than the soundtrack version.

Then comes the Dub.

And you know I love a good dub.

This is where the record gets stripped down and opened up, allowing the production itself to become the star. Vocals move in and out, instrumental pieces suddenly jump forward, and all those little details hiding underneath the original mix finally get their turn.

It is exactly the kind of remixing that made the 12-inch format so much fun.

There was also an official music video made for “The Best Is Yet To Come,” another reminder that Capitol was giving the song a genuine push beyond its soundtrack appearance.

Despite that promotion and an international single release, “The Best Is Yet To Come” does not appear to have reached any of the major national singles charts.

That is a little surprising.

Here we have a major motion-picture soundtrack, production by Narada Michael Walden, remixes by François Kevorkian, an official music video, and a singer who was already a major star in Canada.

And somehow, the single slipped through the chart cracks.

Luba became one of Canada’s most successful female vocalists of the decade and won the Juno Award for Female Vocalist of the Year three years in a row.

Yet in the United States, she remained something of a discovery.

That makes “The Best Is Yet To Come” perfect for this series.

Here we have a great female vocalist, a major motion-picture soundtrack, production by Narada Michael Walden, remixes by François Kevorkian, and a US 12-inch that brings both of Luba’s soundtrack contributions together.

And still, the record is easy to overlook.

Not anymore.

From golf courses and gophers to Mickey Rourke and Kim Basinger, Week Four continues to take us to some interesting places.

But that is the fun of soundtrack collecting.

You never know where the next record is going to take you.

And judging by this one…

The Best Is Yet To Come.

SIDE A:
The Best Is Yet To Come (Extended Dance Mix) 6:37

SIDE B:
The Best Is Yet To Come (Dub Vs.) 5:53
Let It Go 3:41

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Capitol Records – V-15231
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, SRC Pressing
Country: US
Released: 1986
Genre: Electronic, Pop
Style: Synth-pop

CREDITS:

NOTES:
This is a Specialty Records Corporation (SRC) pressing as indicated by E A S T embossed on side A label.

(from the LP “9 1/2 Weeks” Original Motion Picture Soundtrack SV-12470)

Housed inside a company die-cut sleeve

Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
for BURNING THE GROUND


THE GEAR:
Turntable: Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon Concorde Music Black
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Ject Tube Box DS2
Phono Tubes: Genalex Gold Lion 12AX7 ECC83/B759 Gold Pins Vacuum Tube – Matched Pair
Audio Interface: MOTU M4
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro Spin Acrylic Mat
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Cleaning Solution: Turgikleen Record Cleaning Solution
Scanner: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 25 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

PLEASE READ

There are two 24-Bit links; if one does not work, try the other

**24-bit FLAC Only Available For SIX Days!

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by donating using PayPal.

I appreciate your help.

 

Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam With Full Force – Go For Yours (US 12″) (1988)

Burning The Ground Exclusive

For today’s Ladies Of The 80s: Soundtrack Edition, I’m going to gopher it.

Yes, I went there.

This one was originally scheduled for last Friday, but I decided to put Ladies Of The 80s on hold for the day to remember William Orbit. Today we are picking up right where we left off, and after a more reflective Friday, I think we could use a little Lisa Lisa, Full Force, and one very persistent gopher.

Our next selection is Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam with Full Force and “Go For Yours,” recorded for the soundtrack to the 1988 comedy Caddyshack II.

By 1988, Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam were hardly strangers to the charts. With Full Force behind them, they had already given us “I Wonder If I Take You Home,” “Can You Feel The Beat,” “All Cried Out,” and the back-to-back number-one pop hits “Head To Toe” and “Lost In Emotion.”

Their combination of freestyle, R&B, pop, and hip-hop had become one of the defining sounds of mid-1980s New York.

Then came Caddyshack II.

Released in July 1988, the sequel attempted to follow the enormously popular 1980 original. Chevy Chase returned as Ty Webb, while Jackie Mason, Dan Aykroyd, Robert Stack, Dyan Cannon, Randy Quaid, and Jonathan Silverman joined the cast.

The movie did not exactly receive a hero’s welcome.

In fact, Caddyshack II developed a reputation as one of those sequels most people would rather forget.

Fortunately, we are here for the music.

And once again, the soundtrack was much better than the movie.

The album included Kenny Loggins’ “Nobody’s Fool,” Patty Smyth’s “I Run Right Back,” the Pointer Sisters’ “Power Of Persuasion,” Earth, Wind & Fire’s “Turn On (The Beat Box),” Cheap Trick, Eric Martin, Full Force, and Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam.

“Go For Yours” was written and produced by Full Force, who had been central to Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam’s sound from the beginning.

The result is unmistakably late-1980s Full Force.

The drums hit hard. The keyboards bounce around the rhythm. Lisa’s vocal moves between attitude and playfulness, while Full Force surrounds her with vocal interjections and enough energy to keep everything moving.

The message is simple.

Stop waiting.

Go after what you want.

Go for yours.

It is a fun, confident record that fits Lisa Lisa perfectly, but it arrived at an awkward point in her release history. The massive success of Spanish Fly was winding down, and “Everything Will B-Fine” had already been released earlier in 1988.

“Go For Yours” existed outside a regular Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam studio album and was tied instead to a movie that quickly disappeared from theaters.

That probably did not help.

The single was released only in the United States and reached number 19 on Billboard’s Hot Black Singles chart in 1988. It did not cross over to the Billboard Hot 100.

As far as I have been able to determine, there was also no official music video made to promote the single.

By 1988, that was a real disadvantage. MTV, BET, and other video outlets had become an important part of pushing a record beyond its established audience. A colorful Lisa Lisa video tied to Caddyshack II might have helped the song reach a much larger audience.

We will never know.

For collectors, however, the US 12-inch is where things become especially fun.

Full Force clearly decided that if they were going to make a record for Caddyshack II, they might as well commit to the golf theme. That brings us to the wonderfully titled “Gopher Yers (F.F. Hole In One Mix).”

Yes.

“Gopher Yers.”

You have to admire the commitment to the joke.

The mix stretches the song out and gives Full Force more room to play with the rhythm, vocals, and production. Instead of simply making the track longer, they lean into its playful personality and turn it into something even more suited to the dance floor.

The 12-inch also gives us an Instrumental, which lets the busy Full Force production stand on its own. Without Lisa’s lead vocal, you can really hear how much rhythmic detail is packed underneath.

There is also “I Promise You,” taken from the 1987 Spanish Fly album, making this a particularly generous 12-inch for Lisa Lisa collectors.

“Go For Yours” is not one of the Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam singles that immediately comes to mind when people remember the group.

That is exactly why it belongs here.

Ladies Of The 80s: Soundtrack Edition has been as much about rediscovery as it has been about the major hits. Sometimes the most interesting soundtrack records are the ones that slipped between albums, received limited promotion, and quietly disappeared while everyone was looking somewhere else.

The movie may not have scored a hole in one.

But Lisa Lisa, Cult Jam, and Full Force certainly gave it their best shot.

So grab your clubs.

Watch out for the gopher.

And Go For Yours.

SIDE A:
Go For Yours 4:37
Mixed By – Full Force, Tony Maserati

Gopher Yers (F.F. Hole In One Mix) 5:45
Mixed By – Full Force, Nick Delre

SIDE B:
I Promise You 4:41
Remix – Full Force, Tony Maserati

Go For Yours (Instrumental) 4:36
Mixed By – Full Force, Tony Maserati

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

Chart (1988) Peak Position
US Billboard Hot Black Singles 19

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Columbia – 44 07867
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Single
Country: US
Released: 1988
Genre: Electronic, Hip Hop, Funk / Soul
Style: Freestyle, RnB/Swing

CREDITS:

NOTES:
From the Warner Bros. Original Motion Picture Soundtrack “Caddyshack II”

Management for Full Force Productions
Printed in U.S.A.
Made in U.S.A.

Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
for BURNING THE GROUND

THE GEAR:
Turntable: Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon Concorde Music Black
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Ject Tube Box DS2
Phono Tubes: Genalex Gold Lion 12AX7 ECC83/B759 Gold Pins Vacuum Tube – Matched Pair
Audio Interface: MOTU M4
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro Spin Acrylic Mat
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Cleaning Solution: Turgikleen Record Cleaning Solution
Scanner: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 25 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

PLEASE READ

There are two 24-Bit links; if one does not work, try the other

**24-bit FLAC Only Available For SIX Days!

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by donating using PayPal.

I appreciate your help.

 

Pretty Poison – Catch Me (I’m Falling) (US 12″) (1987)

Burning The Ground Exclusive

NEW 2026 Transfer
NEW Meticulous Audio Restoration

For today’s Ladies Of The 80s: Soundtrack Edition, we are heading back to 1987 for a record that seemed to be everywhere once it caught fire.

Pretty Poison’s “Catch Me (I’m Falling)” was featured in the comedy Hiding Out and became one of the biggest dance-pop crossover hits of the late 1980s.

This is also another new 2026 transfer.

I originally posted this single way back in January 2014. More than twelve years later, I returned to the vinyl and recorded it again from scratch using my current equipment and restoration process.

This is not a remaster of the files posted in 2014. It is a completely new transfer.

Pretty Poison formed in Philadelphia in the early 1980s, with Jade Starling on lead vocals and Whey Cooler as one of the group’s principal musicians and songwriters. Their early material leaned toward new wave before they moved into the electronic dance sound that would bring them national attention.

They had already found some club success with “Nighttime,” which reached number 14 on Billboard’s Dance chart in 1984.

But “Catch Me (I’m Falling)” changed everything.

Written by Jade Starling and Whey Cooler and produced by Kae Williams Jr. and Kurt Shore, the song became a regional hit around Philadelphia, selling roughly 20,000 copies through the independent Svengali label. Its success caught the attention of Virgin Records, which gave the record a much larger platform.

Its appearance in the 1987 comedy Hiding Out helped push it even further.

Directed by Bob Giraldi, Hiding Out stars Jon Cryer as Andrew Morenski, a twenty-nine-year-old Boston stockbroker hiding from organized crime who disguises himself as a high-school student named Maxwell Hauser.

Yes, you read that correctly.

Jon Cryer is a twenty-nine-year-old stockbroker pretending to be a teenager.

Only in the ’80s.

The soundtrack was actually quite strong, with Boy George, Public Image Ltd., Hue & Cry, Scarlett & Black, and Roy Orbison with k.d. lang joining Pretty Poison. “Catch Me (I’m Falling)” appears during a roller-rink sequence, which is about as perfectly 1987 as anything could be.

The song itself is pure late-’80s dance-pop and freestyle.

Electronic drums hit hard, synthesizers sparkle, and a thick bassline drives everything forward. Over it all is Jade Starling, delivering a playful, urgent vocal that sounds as though falling in love is happening at full speed.

The chorus is ridiculously infectious. Once “Catch me, I’m falling” gets into your head, good luck getting it back out.

The timing was perfect. Freestyle was moving from the clubs into mainstream pop, and Pretty Poison fit naturally into that world while still sounding like themselves.

The club audience got there first.

“Catch Me (I’m Falling)” reached number one on Billboard’s Dance Club chart in September 1987. Pop radio soon followed, sending the single all the way to number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 by December.

For a group that had recently been selling records independently around Philadelphia, reaching the national Top 10 was quite a leap.

The single had less impact in the UK, peaking at number 85 in early 1988. It later appeared on Pretty Poison’s 1988 debut album, also titled Catch Me I’m Falling.

For 12-inch collectors, however, the single is where the real fun begins.

The 12″ Mix runs approximately 6:10, while the Dub Mix runs about 5:05. Both received additional production and remixing by New York DJ Bruce Forest, with Frank Heller engineering. The Dance Mix and Radio Mix retain the original production by Kae Williams Jr. and Kurt Shore.

Bruce Forest’s 12″ Mix gives the record more room without losing what made it work. The intro stretches out, the rhythm moves forward, and the electronic details have time to breathe before Jade takes over.

The Dub Mix pushes further into the production, breaking the track apart and spotlighting the percussion, keyboards, vocal fragments, and effects.

It is easy to hear why DJs embraced this record.

Even surrounded by all that production, Jade remains the center of attention. Her voice has enough personality to cut through every drum hit and synthesizer.

That may be one reason the record has aged so well.

It is completely, unapologetically 1987.

The drums are huge.

The synthesizers are bright.

The hair was probably even bigger.

Perfect.

Pretty Poison would score another Hot 100 hit with a new version of “Nighttime,” which reached number 36, but “Catch Me (I’m Falling)” remained the song that defined them for the widest audience.

For this new 2026 transfer, I went back to the vinyl and started over. My goal was to preserve the punch of the percussion, the depth of the bass, the layers of synthesizers, and Jade’s soaring vocal while bringing out as much detail as possible.

Pretty Poison may have started with a regional Philadelphia dance record, but “Catch Me (I’m Falling)” refused to stay regional.

The clubs caught it.

Virgin caught it.

Hiding Out caught it.

Then Top 40 radio caught it.

Now, more than twelve years after I first posted it on Burning The Ground, I’m catching it one more time.

Are you ready?

Here it comes.

CLUB REMIX SIDE:
Catch Me (I’m Falling) (12″ Mix) 6:13
Engineer – Frank Heller
Producer [Additional], Remix – Bruce Forest

Catch Me (I’m Falling) (Dub Mix) 5:18
Engineer – Frank Heller
Producer [Additional], Remix – Bruce Forest

RADIO MIX SIDE:
Catch Me (I’m Falling) (Dance Mix) 5:54
Engineer – Mr. Mitch

Catch Me (I’m Falling) (Radio Mix) 4:23
Engineer – Mr. Mitch

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

Chart (1987–1988) Peak Position
US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play 1
US Billboard Hot 100 8
New Zealand Singles Chart 26
UK Singles Chart 85

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Virgin ‎– 96752-0, Virgin ‎– 0-96752
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM
Country: US
Released: 1987
Genre: Electronic, Pop
Style: Synth-pop, Freestyle, Dance-pop

CREDITS:

NOTES:
Recorded at Kajem/Victory Studios, Gladwyne, PA
Remixed at Sound Track Studios, NYC / Electric Lady Studios, NYC

Manufactured & distributed by WEA through arrangement with Atlantic Records

Taken from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack of the DEG film “Hiding Out.”

Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
for BURNING THE GROUND

THE GEAR:
Turntable: Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon Concorde Music Black
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Ject Tube Box DS2
Phono Tubes: Genalex Gold Lion 12AX7 ECC83/B759 Gold Pins Vacuum Tube – Matched Pair
Audio Interface: MOTU M4
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro Spin Acrylic Mat
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Cleaning Solution: Turgikleen Record Cleaning Solution
Scanner: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 25 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

PLEASE READ

There are two 24-Bit links; if one does not work, try the other

**24-bit FLAC Only Available For SIX Days!

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by donating using PayPal.

I appreciate your help.

 

Patti Austin – It’s Gonna Be Special (US 12″ Promo) (1984)

Burning The Ground Exclusive

Apparently, one visit to the Two Of A Kind soundtrack was not enough.

After featuring Olivia Newton-John’s double A-side release of “Livin’ In Desperate Times” and “Twist Of Fate,” Ladies Of The 80s: Soundtrack Edition returns to the same movie for another overlooked gem.

This time, the spotlight belongs to Patti Austin and “It’s Gonna Be Special.”

The song first appeared on the soundtrack to the 1983 fantasy comedy Two Of A Kind, starring Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta. It was later released as the first single from Patti Austin’s self-titled 1984 album, where it also opened side one.

The movie may not have repeated the success of Grease, but its soundtrack brought together an impressive group of artists. Along with Olivia and Patti, the album featured Journey, Chicago, Boz Scaggs, Steve Kipner, David Foster, and the Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta duet “Take A Chance.”

As we have already discovered, the music from Two Of A Kind enjoyed a much longer life than the film itself.

“It’s Gonna Be Special” was written by Clif Magness and Glen Ballard and produced by Quincy Jones. Patti supplied both the lead and backing vocals, while the musicians included Magness on guitar, John Van Tongeren on keyboards and synthesizer, Paulinho da Costa on percussion, and a horn section arranged by Jerry Hey.

That is quite a collection of talent for one song.

Glen Ballard was still years away from becoming one of the most successful songwriters and producers of the 1990s. Clif Magness would also build an impressive career as a songwriter, musician, and producer. Here, they created a song filled with the excitement of believing that something wonderful is about to happen.

The title says it all.

“It’s Gonna Be Special” is bright, energetic, and filled with optimism. The rhythm combines polished early-1980s pop, R&B, and dance music. Synthesizers give the production a modern edge, while Jerry Hey’s horn arrangement adds warmth and punch.

Then there is Patti Austin.

Her voice gives the song its personality. She begins with confidence and continues building as the arrangement grows around her. By the time she reaches the chorus, she sounds completely certain that something special is on the way.

Patti had the technical skill to sing almost anything, but she never allowed that skill to overpower the emotion of a song. She could sound smooth and controlled, then suddenly lift a phrase with tremendous force. On “It’s Gonna Be Special,” she sounds joyful, playful, and determined all at once.

The song also fits the unusual story of Two Of A Kind better than it may first appear.

The film follows two ordinary people brought together through romance, angels, divine intervention, and the possible destruction of humanity. Against that background, Patti’s promise that something special is about to happen almost sounds like a message from the angels themselves.

Perhaps saving the world begins with a good dance record.

The single reached number 82 on the Billboard Hot 100. It performed much better with Patti’s core audience, climbing to number 15 on Billboard’s R&B chart and number 5 on the Dance chart.

The song does not appear to have received an official promotional music video. That lack of visual support may have limited its exposure at a time when music videos were becoming increasingly important to pop success. It is impossible to know whether a video would have pushed the record higher on the Hot 100, but it certainly could not have hurt.

In the United States, “It’s Gonna Be Special” was released commercially as a 7-inch single. The extended version, however, appeared only on a promotional 12-inch sent to radio stations and club DJs.

The promo contains the 6:30 “Dance Remix” and the shorter 4:14 “Single Edit.” The Dance Remix was created by John “Jellybean” Benitez.

Jellybean understood how to extend a song without losing what made the original work. His mix gives the rhythm section more room, brings the percussion forward, and adds instrumental passages designed for the dance floor.

The longer introduction allows the groove to establish itself before Patti takes control. Once her vocal arrives, the arrangement continues opening around her. The synthesizers, percussion, horns, and backing vocals receive more space, but the song never loses its strong pop structure.

This is still “It’s Gonna Be Special.”

There is simply more of it to enjoy.

The Dance Remix also places the song firmly within the club sound of 1984. The production is polished, but it has plenty of movement. It connects traditional R&B musicianship with the electronic pulse that was becoming central to dance music.

The Single Edit takes the opposite approach.

At 4:14, it presents the song in a tighter form suited to radio. The energy remains, but the arrangement moves more quickly from one section to the next. Having both versions together makes the promotional 12-inch especially useful for collectors.

You get the concise radio presentation and the full club experience on one record.

Because the 12-inch was promotional-only in the United States, it could easily have been missed by listeners who bought the soundtrack or Patti’s album. There was no widely available commercial 12-inch sitting beside the regular single in record stores.

You had to know a DJ, search the used-record bins, or get lucky.

That limited availability makes it an ideal selection for this series. “It’s Gonna Be Special” is not completely unknown, but Jellybean’s Dance Remix never received the attention given to many of his more famous mixes.

It deserves another chance.

Patti Austin had already built an extraordinary career by the time this single appeared. She began recording as a child and became one of the most respected studio vocalists of the 1970s. Her solo work moved through jazz, soul, pop, R&B, and dance music, while her recordings with Quincy Jones introduced her voice to an even larger audience.

Her number-one duet with James Ingram, “Baby, Come To Me,” had become a major hit shortly before this release. “It’s Gonna Be Special” showed that she could follow a romantic ballad with a bright electronic dance track without sounding out of place.

That versatility is one reason Patti belongs in Ladies Of The 80s.

She did not depend on shocking image changes or elaborate characters. Her reinvention happened through the music. She could move from a sophisticated ballad to jazz, funk, pop, or club music because her voice gave her the freedom to go almost anywhere.

For this post, I am featuring the rare US promotional 12-inch containing John “Jellybean” Benitez’s Dance Remix and the Single Edit.

The Dance Remix lets the groove stretch out.

The Single Edit gets directly to the point.

Two Of A Kind may have been an unusual movie, but its soundtrack continues to reveal treasures.

With Quincy Jones behind the controls, Jellybean Benitez handling the remix, and Patti Austin at the microphone, this one was always going to be special.

SIDE A:
It’s Gonna Be Special (Dance Remix) 6:30
Remix – John “Jellybean” Benitez

SIDE B:
It’s Gonna Be Special (Single Edit) 4:14

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

Chart (1984) Peak Position
US Billboard Dance/Disco 5
US Billboard Hot Black Singles 15
US Billboard Hot 100 82

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Qwest Records – PRO-A-2076
Format: Vinyl, 12″, Promo, 33 ⅓ RPM
Country: US
Released: 1984
Genre: Electronic, Funk / Soul, Pop
Style: Soul

CREDITS:

NOTES:
From the motion picture “TWO OF A KIND”
From the album “PATTI AUSTIN” (1-23974)

Promotional Copy Not For Sale

Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
for BURNING THE GROUND

THE GEAR:
Turntable: Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon Concorde Music Black
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Ject Tube Box DS2
Phono Tubes: Genalex Gold Lion 12AX7 ECC83/B759 Gold Pins Vacuum Tube – Matched Pair
Audio Interface: MOTU M4
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro Spin Acrylic Mat
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Cleaning Solution: Turgikleen Record Cleaning Solution
Scanner: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 25 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

PLEASE READ

There are two 24-Bit links; if one does not work, try the other

**24-bit FLAC Only Available For SIX Days!

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by donating using PayPal.

I appreciate your help.