Tag: Jason Corsaro

December 7, 2023

Scritti Politti – Wood Beez (Pray Like Aretha Franklin) (UK 12″)

Burning The Ground Exclusive 1984

“Wood Beez (Pray Like Aretha Franklin)” is the seventh single released by British pop band Scritti Politti, issued in the UK on 24 February 1984 by Virgin Records. It later appeared on the band’s second studio album Cupid & Psyche 85 (released in June 1985) and was produced by Arif Mardin. The song’s subtitle is a reference to “I Say a Little Prayer”, Aretha Franklin’s biggest UK hit; Mardin had also produced Franklin.

The single was Scritti Politti’s breakthrough hit on the UK Singles Chart, where it peaked at No. 10 in a 16-week chart run. It was also a Top 30 hit in Australia and New Zealand. In the United States it reached No. 4 on the Billboard Dance Chart.

Two music videos were shot for the song. The first, shot in 1984, was directed by John Scarlett-Davis, who also directed the videos for “Absolute” and “The Word Girl” and features the dancing of Michael Clark. A second music video was released for the US in 1986, directed by Jean-Baptiste Mondino and featuring model Veronica Webb (who also appeared in the video for “Perfect Way”). Both versions were featured on a video compilation simply titled “Scritti Politti”, released on VHS, Betamax and LaserDisc by Virgin Music Video in 1986. The 1984 version is simply titled “Wood Beez”, while the 1986 version is titled “Wood Beez – USA”.

SIDE A:
Wood Beez (Pray Like Aretha Franklin) 4:48

SIDE B:
Wood Beez (Version) 5:57

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

U.S. CHART HISTORY:

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1984	Wood Beez	U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music Club’/Play	#4

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Virgin – VS 657-12
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM, Single
Country: UK
Released: Feb 20, 1984
Genre: Electronic
Style: Electro, Synth-pop

CREDITS:

Arranged By – David Gamson, Green*
Backing Vocals – B.J. Nelson, Fonzi Thornton, Tawatha Agee*
Drums – Steve Ferrone
Guitar – Paul Jackson Jnr.*
Management – Bill Gerber, Lookout Management, Partisan Management Ltd., Robert Warr
Mixed By – Jason Corsaro
Producer, Edited By – Arif Mardin
Synthesizer – David Frank, David Gamson, Robbie Buchanan
Synthesizer [Fairlight Assistance] – Ned EBN*
Vocals, Written-By – Green*

NOTES:
Artwork:
1984
273cm x 273cm
Honeycomb, copper, cotton, acrylic, photo, beeswax, wood.

Recorded + Mixed at: Power Station + Atlantic Studios, New York.

Manufactured in the UK.

Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

THE GEAR:
Turntable: Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon 2M Black PnP MkII
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro Spin Acrylic Mat
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Jec Tube Box DS2
Tubes: Genalex Gold Lion 12AX7 ECC83/B759 Gold Pins Vacuum Tube – Matched Pair
DAC: Alpha Design Labs GT40a USB DAC
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (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

**24bit FLAC Only Available For Seven Days!

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by making a donation using PayPal. Thank you for your help.

November 9, 2022

Duran Duran – The Reflex (Dance Mix) (UK 12″)

Burning The Ground Exclusive 1984

NEW 2022 Transfer!
NEW Meticulous Audio Restoration!

Originally posted August 14, 2012

++ Of note the original transfer in 2012 was the USA 12″ of “The Reflex” which was pressed at 33 ⅓ RPM it also did not include the live b-side track. For this NEW 2022 Transfer, I decided to use the UK 12″ which is pressed at 45 RPM for better sound fidelity along with the addition of “Make Me Smile (Come Up And See Me)” recorded live on the b-side.

“The Reflex” is the eleventh single by the English new wave band Duran Duran, released in 1984. The song was heavily remixed for single release and was the third and last to be taken from their third studio album Seven and the Ragged Tiger (1983). The single became the band’s first to reach the top of the US singles chart and their second to top the UK singles chart.

“The Reflex” became the band’s most successful single, topping the UK chart on 5 May 1984. It was their second UK No. 1, after 1983’s “Is There Something I Should Know?”, and would prove to be their last. The single entered the charts in America on 21 April 1984 at no. 46, became Duran Duran’s first of two singles to hit no. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 (for 2 weeks) on 23 June 1984 , and was a huge hit internationally. (Their only other single to hit no. 1 in the US was the title song to the 1985 James Bond film “A View to a Kill”.) It was also the first of two songs that kept “Dancing in the Dark” by Bruce Springsteen out of the top spot (the other one being Prince’s “When Doves Cry”). The band wanted it to be the lead single from Seven and the Ragged Tiger (1983), but their label did not like the warbling singing during the “why don’t you use it” segments, thinking this would hinder its success as a stand-alone single track.

The remixes for both the 7″ and 12″ singles were created by Nile Rodgers, of Chic fame. It was his first work with the band, and he would later go on to produce “The Wild Boys” single as well as the album Notorious (1986) and several tracks on Astronaut (2004).

Producer Ian Little recalled the sound Nick Rhodes came up with on his Roland Jupiter-8 keyboard: “…whenever I hear that steel-drum part it always brings a smile to my face because it’s so out of tune. Steel drums always are, but it was exactly right in terms of rhythm and tone. So a wood-block sound was mixed in to make it even more percussive and, successfully, it did the job.”

The live B-side “Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)” is a cover version of a Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel song, recorded 16 November 1982 at Hammersmith Odeon in London, with lead Rebel Steve Harley joining the band onstage.

SIDE A:
The Reflex (Dance Mix) 6:34
Mixed By – Jason Corsaro, Nile Rodgers
Written-By – Duran Duran

SIDE B:
The Reflex (Dance Mix Edited) 4:22
Mixed By –Jason Corsaro, Nile Rodgers
Written-By – Duran Duran

Make Me Smile (Come Up And See Me) 4:55
Mixed By – Ian Little
Written-By –Steve Harley

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

U.S. CHARTS HISTORY

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1984	The Reflex	U.S. Billboard Hot 100	#1
1984	The Reflex	U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play	#15

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: EMI – 12DURAN 2, EMI – 12 DURAN 2
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM, Single
Country: UK
Released: Apr 28, 1984
Genre: Rock, Pop
Style: New Wave, Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Lacquer Cut By – Arun*
Producer – Alex Sadkin (tracks: A, B1), Duran Duran (tracks: A, B1), Ian Little (tracks: A, B1)

NOTES:
Track B2 recorded live in November 1982 at Hammersmith Odeon.
Manufactured In The UK By EMI Records Limited.

From the LP “Seven And The Ragged Tiger”

Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

THE GEAR:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon (DC)
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon 2M Black
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Jec Tube Box DS2
DAC: Alpha Design Labs GT40a USB DAC
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

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

**24bit FLAC Only Available For Seven Days!

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by making a donation using PayPal. Thank you for your help.

August 3, 2021

John Taylor – I Do What I Do (Theme For 9 ½ Weeks) (US 12″)

Burning The Ground Exclusive 1986

NEW 2021 Transfer!
NEW Meticulous Restoration!

Originally posted December 20, 2011

“I Do What I Do (Theme For 9½ Weeks)” was a single performed by Duran Duran bassist John Taylor released in February 1986, the song was his first solo singing performance during a hiatus in Duran Duran’s career and also features Michael Brecker performing saxophone. It was the main single released from the 9½ Weeks Original Soundtrack.

“I Do What I Do” was co-written by Jonathan Elias, Michael Des Barres and John Taylor, after Des Barres was approached about writing a song for the movie’s soundtrack. It was originally intended to be sung by Lisa Dalbello, but she bowed out at the last minute and John decided he could do the song instead.

The video features John Taylor in a tuxedo, singing the words while watching a private screening of the movie 9½ Weeks. It was directed by Taylor himself.

“I Do What I Do” reached #23 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #42 on the UK Singles Chart.

It was also nominated in the 1986 Golden Raspberry Awards for “Worst Original Song”, but lost to “Love or Money” by Prince.

SIDE A:
I Do What I Do (Theme For 9 ½ Weeks) (The Final Cut) 8:02
Remix – Jason Corsaro, John Taylor, Jonathan Elias

SIDE B:
I Do What I Do (Theme For 9 ½ Weeks) (Film Mix) 4:20
Mixed By – Jason Corsaro, John Taylor, Jonathan Elias
Vocals – Lisa Dalbello (Uncredited)

I Do What I Do (Theme For 9 ½ Weeks) (The Single Mix) 3:44
Mixed By – Jason Corsaro, John Taylor, Jonathan Elias

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

CHARTS:

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1986	I Do What I Do (Theme For 9 ½ Weeks)	U.S. Billboard Hot 100	#23

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Capitol Records ‎– V-15223
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM
Country: US
Released: 1986
Genre: Electronic
Style: Pop Rock

CREDITS:
Design [Cover] – Frank Olinsky
Engineer – Bruce Darby, Larry Alexander, Michael Montes
Percussion [Electronic] – Jimmy Bralower
Photography – Rebecca Blake
Producer – Jason Corsaro, John Taylor, Jonathan Elias
Saxophone – Michael Brecker
Written By – John Taylor, Jonathan Elias, Michael DesBarres

NOTES:
From the Motion Picture “9 ½ Weeks”

Find the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

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

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by making a donation using PayPal. Thank you for your help.

January 22, 2021

Steve Winwood – Back In The High Life Again (UK 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1986

“Back in the High Life Again” is a 1986 song written by Steve Winwood and Will Jennings and performed by Winwood. The song was included on his album Back in the High Life and included backing vocals by James Taylor and a prominent mandolin played by Winwood. “Back in the High Life Again” was Winwood’s second number-one single on the Adult Contemporary chart, where it stayed for three weeks. It also reached number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100. “Back in the High Life Again” was nominated for the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 1988.

SIDE A:
Back In The High Life Again (Edit) 4:26
Engineer – Jason Corsaro
Engineer, Mixed By – Tom Lord Alge*
Producer – Russ Titelman, Steve Winwood

SIDE B:
Night Train (Instrumental) (Edit) 4:16
Producer – Steve Winwood

Help Me Angel 5:04
Producer – Steve Winwood

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

U.S. CHART HISTORY:

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1986	Back In The High Life Again	U.S. Billboard Hot 100	#13
1986	Back In The High Life Again	U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks	#19
1986	Back In The High Life Again	U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary	#1

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Island Records ‎– 12 IS 303
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM
Country: UK
Released: 1986
Genre: Electronic, Rock
Style: Pop Rock

CREDITS:
Lacquer Cut By – GD*

NOTES:
“Back In The High Life Again” Edited from the Steve Winwood album “Back in the High Life”.
“Night Train (Instrumental)” Edited from the Steve Winwood album “Arc of a Diver”.
“Help Me Angel” taken from the Steve Winwood album “Taking Back The Night”.

Find the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL RESTORATION BY:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

THE GEAR:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon (DC)
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon 2M Bronze
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Jec Tube Box DS2
DAC: Alpha Design Labs GT40a USB DAC
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

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

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by making a donation using PayPal. Thank you for your help.