Tag: Larry Levan

Duran Duran – Skin Trade (US 12″)

Burning The Ground Exclusive 1987

“Skin Trade” is the second single from Duran Duran’s Notorious album and the band’s 15th single in total. It was released in January 1987, reached #22 on the UK Singles Chart, and #39 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The music for “Skin Trade” was written long before Simon LeBon finally finished the lyrics. The title for the song was derived from the Dylan Thomas book Adventures in the Skin Trade which John Taylor had on him during the recording of the album. It was shortened to “Skin Trade” and LeBon eventually wrote the melody and lyrics for the track while spending an evening in Taylor’s Upper West Side Manhattan apartment. The lyrics reflect on how everyone is selling themselves, and “there’s a little hooker in each of us”.

The single was quite a departure for the band. Simon LeBon sang in falsetto, Le Bon admits he was channeling The Rolling Stones lead singer Mick Jagger on their song “Emotional Rescue”. A horn section played a prominent role in the track, as played by The Borneo Horns. The band persevered with the single and many aspects of their future business took inspiration from “Skin Trade”. They called their publishing company Skin Trade Music Ltd. and the Notorious tour was called the “Strange Behaviour Tour” (a reference to that line of the song). Likewise, a 1987 remix EP and a 1999 double CD collection of remixes were also called Strange Behaviour.

Andy Taylor was no longer an official member of Duran Duran by that time, but he was credited as a session guitarist on this song, although apparently, he did not participate in the recordings. Meanwhile, the new guest musicians, Steve Ferrone and Warren Cuccurullo played the drums and lead guitars respectively. Nile Rodgers played some lines of the rhythm guitar.

In a retrospective review of the single, AllMusic journalist Donald A. Guarisco praised the song. He wrote: “The music lends contrast to the angry tone of the lyrics by creating a sultry, mellow melody that juxtaposes verses with a soft, hypnotic ebb and flow with an ever-ascending chorus that revs up the song’s inherent drama.”

The b-side to “Skin Trade” was the only original b-side released during the Notorious era. Entitled “We Need You”, it was written and recorded in 1986 while the band awaited the return of Andy Taylor for a recording session. It was the first recording to feature just the three remaining members of Duran Duran – Nick Rhodes, John Taylor, and Simon Le Bon.

Two further mixes of “Skin Trade” (S.O.S. Dub & Parisian Mix) were completed, but not released commercially during the “Skin Trade” release cycle. They appeared on a US 12″ promo and on a UK 12″ promo, backed with remixes of the next single “Meet El Presidente”. The “Parisian Mix” was also released on the promo-only Master Mixes EP.

SIDE A:
Skin Trade (Stretch Mix) 7:41
Mixed By – Daniel Abraham
Remix – Larry Levan

SIDE B:
Skin Trade (Album Version) 5:57
Mixed By – Daniel Abraham

We Need You 2:51

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

U.S. CHART HISTORY:

Year Single Chart Position
1987 Skin Trade U.S. Billboard Hot 100 #39

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Capitol Records – V-15274
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM, Single
Country: US
Released: 1987
Genre: Electronic, Pop
Style: Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Designed At – Manhattan Design
Engineer – Daniel Abraham
Producer – Duran Duran, Nile Rodgers (tracks: A, B1)
Written-By – Taylor, Rhodes, Le Bon*

NOTES:
Recorded in England.

…i love the smell of vinyl in the morning…

Find the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL 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

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


Password: burningtheground

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Dan Hartman – I Can Dream About You (Germany 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1984

“I Can Dream About You” is a song performed by American singer Dan Hartman for the soundtrack album of the film Streets of Fire. Released in 1984 as a single from the soundtrack, and included on Hartman’s album I Can Dream About You, it reached number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The song first appeared in Streets of Fire, where it was performed by the fictional group The Sorels. The real voice behind the version used in the film was Winston Ford, but Hartman’s version was the one used on the soundtrack album and released as a single. In a Songfacts interview with the film’s musical director, Kenny Vance, he recalled “The same guy that sings lead on that and “Countdown to Love,” a song that I wrote for the film, was a guy working at a Radio Shack (Winston Ford), and I think when you look at the film and The Sorels are singing it live in the movie, that was the version that was supposed to come out, and I recorded that version. But then when Dan Hartman heard it, I don’t know what happened next, but I know that he took that guy’s voice off and he put his own on, and he had a hit with it. Hollywood is a very slippery place.”

Originally, producer Jimmy Iovine had asked Hartman to write a song for a film he was working on. Hartman was told that the song was going to be sung by four black guys in a concert situation within the film, and Hartman ended up thinking about a demo he made of “I Can Dream About You.” Hartman then went through some legal maneuvering to get the benefit of his breakthrough. The use of the song in the film being performed by actors did not feature Hartman on vocals but a studio singer. After some contract negotiating, Hartman insisted he sing the song on the soundtrack, and that his version be released if a single were to be issued from the soundtrack album. Additionally, any music video had to feature his own voice using the song. These clauses helped Hartman become an “overnight sensation.” Both Hartman and Iovine worked on his 1984, same-titled solo album I Can Dream About You, following the song’s use in the film. The album would spawn two other Top 40 charting singles on the US Billboard Hot 100 – “We Are the Young” and “Second Nature”.

SIDE A:
I Can Dream About You (Jellybean Remix) 7:32
Engineer [Mix Engineer] – Michael Hutchinson
Remix – John “Jellybean” Benitez

SIDE B:
I Can Dream About You (Larry Levan Extended Remix) 5:57
Remix – Larry Levan

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

U.S. CHART HISTORY:

Year Single Chart Position
1984 I Can Dream About You U.S. Billboard Hot 100 #7
1984 I Can Dream About You U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary #8
1984 I Can Dream About You U.S. Billboard Hot Black Singles #60
1984 I Can Dream About You U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play #6

 

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: MCA Records ‎– 259 307-0
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM
Country: Germany
Released: 1984
Genre: Electronic
Style: Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Producer – Jimmy Iovine
Producer, Written-By – Dan Hartman

NOTES:
Music from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack “Streets Of Fire”

Find the 12″ on DISCOGS

VINYL RESTORATION BY:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

EQUIPMENT USED:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon (DC)
Cartridge: Ortofon 2M
Stylus: Ortofon 2M Bronze
Isolation: Auralex Acoustics ISO-Tone Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck 
Phono Pre-amp: Bellari VP130 Tube Phono Preamp
Tube: Tung-Sol 12AX7ECC803-S Gold Electron Tube
Soundcard: ESI Juli@
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

SOFTWARE USED:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling: iZotope RX Advanced 2, ocenaudio
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)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

Sylvester – Someone Like You (US 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1986

a-front

Today is World AIDS Day an opportunity for people worldwide to unite in the fight against HIV, show their support for people living with HIV and to commemorate people who have died. World AIDS Day was the first ever global health day, held for the first time in 1988. I thought it fitting to feature one of the many artists who were taken from us in the 1980’s by this horrible disease.

 

“Someone Like You” is a 1986 dance single by Sylvester. The song was written by Len Barry and McKinley Horton. It was produced by Ken Kessie and Morey Goldstein. The single was Sylvester’s second and last entry to reach number one on the dance charts, where it stayed for one week. “Someone like You”, also went to number nineteen on the soul chart, and was Sylvester’s highest chart entry, since 1978.

An activist who campaigned against the spread of HIV/AIDS, Sylvester died from complications arising from the virus in 1988, leaving all future royalties from his work to San Francisco-based HIV/AIDS charities.

The single sleeve was designed by artist Keith Harring who was an American artist and social activist whose work responded to the New York City street culture of the 1980s by expressing concepts of birth, death, sexuality, and war.

Haring’s work was often heavily political and his imagery has become a widely recognized visual language of the 20th century.

The theme of AIDS permeates Haring’s late work, most likely because it had a heavy influence on his personal life. Midway through Haring’s journals there is mention of the disease claiming his friends’ lives, and later passages show Haring worrying increasingly about his own HIV status.

Haring died on February 16, 1990 of AIDS-related complications.

WEST SIDE:
Someone Like You (Remix) 6:15
Mixed By – Ken Kessie, Marty Blecman

Someone Like You (Joseph Watt Remix) 5:40
Engineer – Joseph Watt
Remix – Joseph Watt

EAST SIDE:
Someone Like You (Larry Levan Remix) 6:01
Engineer – Robert Kaster
Mixed By – Larry Levan

Someone Like You (Larry Levan Dub Remix) 6:36
Engineer – Robert Kaster
Mixed By – Larry Levan

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

U.S. CHART HISTORY:

Year Single Chart Position
1986 Someone Like You U.S. Billboard Hot 100 #1
1986 Someone Like You U.S. Billboard Hot Black Singles #19

 

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Warner Bros. Records – 0-20548
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Maxi-Single
Country: US
Released: 1986
Genre: Electronic
Style: Disco

CREDITS:
Executive Producer – Marty Blecman, Sylvester
Illustration – Keith Haring
Producer – Ken Kessie, Morey Goldstein
Recorded By [Originally] – Ken Kessie
Written-By – Len Barry, McKinley Horton

NOTES:
Original version available on Sylvester’s album “MUTUAL ATTRACTION” on Warner Bros. Records.

Find the 12″ on DISCOGS

b-back

EQUIPMENT USED:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon (DC)
Cartridge: Ortofon 2M
Stylus: Ortofon OM Stylus 30
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck 
Phono Pre-amp: Bellari VP130 Tube Phono Preamp
Tube: Tung-Sol 12AX7ECC803-S Gold Electron Tube
Soundcard: ESI Juli@
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Brother MFC-6490CW Professional Series Scanner

SOFTWARE USED:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling: 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)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi