Tag: Prince

April 26, 2016

Sheila E. – The Glamourous Life (8 Minute Version) (UK 12″ Promo)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1984

Originally posted August 11, 2011

“The Glamorous Life” is a song written by Prince in 1984 and first recorded by singer/percussionist Sheila E. The dance song has lyrics which reflect a cynicism for the decadence and materialism of the song’s protagonist, referred to in the third person, who “wants to lead a glamorous life”, although she is aware that “without love, it ain’t much”.

“The Glamorous Life” was originally intended to be recorded by the short-lived replacement act for Vanity 6, girl group Apollonia 6. Prince allegedly had several tracks lined up for the trio to record for their 1984 debut album (and by some accounts, their follow up album as well), but abandoned the idea when he learned that lead singer Apollonia Kotero had no desire to stay in the group beyond her contractual obligations as designed for her movie role in Purple Rain.

Prince decided to give the song to Sheila E. who was fresh off her duet on Prince’s “Erotic City”. “The Glamorous Life” would be recorded by Sheila E. and go on to launch her solo career.

“The Glamorous Life” was the title track and closing song on Sheila E.’s debut solo album, and reached number 7 on the U.S. pop charts, as well as number 1 on the U.S. dance charts, and earned a Grammy Award nomination. Internationally the song reached number 2 on the Dutch Top 40 and number 76 on the U.K. Singles Chart.

Sheila E.’s live performances of the song became memorable events, most notably for her percussion solo towards the end of the song. Depending on the occasion, she would either spin around several times while drumming without missing a beat during the rigorous solo, place one highly elevated foot on a snare while standing on the other leg mid-solo, or perform with glow-in-the-dark drumsticks. While the solo featured in the song helped to bolster Sheila E.’s fame, all subsequent versions of this song have no drum solo.

SIDE A:
The Glamorous Life (8 Minute Version) 9:02

SIDE B:
The Glamorous Life (Part II) 3:15

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

U.S. CHART HISTORY:

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1984	The Glamorous Life	U.S. Billboard Hot 100	#7
1984	The Glamorous Life	U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play	#1
1984	The Glamorous Life	U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles	#9

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Warner Music UK Ltd. ‎– SAM 196
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM
Country: UK
Released: 1984
Genre: Funk / Soul
Style: Funk

CREDITS:
Co-producer – Jamie Starr
Directed By – Starr * Company, The
Producer, Directed By – Sheila E.

Find the 12″ on DISCOGS

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

April 21, 2016

Prince 1958-2016

We are grieving once again the loss of a superstar. Prince, legendary music artist whose influence spanned 4 decades, has died at age 57.

The singer, songwriter, arranger and instrumentalist broke through in the late 1970s with the hits “Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad?” and “I Wanna Be Your Lover,” and soared over the following decade with such albums as “1999” and “Purple Rain.” The title song from “1999” includes one of the most widely quoted refrains of popular culture: “Tonight I’m gonna party like it’s 1999.”

He’s sold more than 100 million records and is on Rolling Stone’s list of 100 greatest artists.

Rest In Peace, Prince Rogers Nelson (June 7, 1958 – April 21, 2016)

March 7, 2016

Dale – Simon Simon (US 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1988

“Simon Simon” is the first solo single by American new wave artist and Missing Persons lead vocalist Dale Bozzio, released in 1988. “Simon Simon” became a US Top 40 dance hit and a crossover hit in Europe.

SIDE A:
Simon Simon (Extended Remix) 6:11Edited By – Junior Vasquez
Engineer [Mix] – Steve Peck
Producer [Additional], Mixed By – Shep Pettibone
Written-By – Robert Brookins

SIDE B:
The Perfect Stranger (LP Version) 3:54
Producer, Written-By – Attala Zane Giles

Simon Simon (Dub) 6:55
Edited By – Junior Vasquez
Engineer [Mix] – Steve Peck
Producer [Additional], Mixed By – Shep Pettibone
Written-By – Robert Brookins

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

U.S. CHART HISTORY:

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1988	Simon Simon	U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play	#33

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Paisley Park ‎– 9 20818-0, Paisley Park ‎– 0-20818
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Maxi-Single
Country: US
Released: 1988
Genre: Electronic
Style: Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Design [Design Concept] – Dale*
Photography By – Cynthia Moore (2)
Producer – Robert Brookins
Written-By – Dale*

NOTES:
From the LP “RIOT IN ENGLISH”

Find the 12″ on DISCOGS

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

February 19, 2016

Vanity 6 – Drive Me Wild (US 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1982

R.I.P. Denise Katrina Matthews (January 4, 1959 – February 15, 2016), better known as Vanity and sometimes credited as Denise Matthews-Smith or D.D. Winters, was a Canadian singer, songwriter, dancer, actress and model, who turned away from her acting and music career to concentrate on evangelism. Her career lasted from the early–1980s until the mid–1990s. She was the lead singer of the female trio Vanity 6 from 1981 until it disbanded in 1983. The group was well known for their 1982 R&B/funk hit “Nasty Girl”. Vanity’s music career also included two solo albums on the Motown Records label, Wild Animal and Skin on Skin.She also had a successful film career, starring in the movies The Last Dragon, 52 Pick-Up, and Action Jackson.

Due to her kidney problems which were caused by years of drug use while she worked as a performer, she had to undergo peritoneal dialysis five times a day (each session was 20 minutes long).She suffered from sclerosing encapsulating peritonitis, a rare complication of a peritoneal dialysis, and died in a Fremont, California, hospital on February 15, 2016, at the age of 57 from renal failure.

Thank you for your contribution to the music we love we will miss you Vanity.

“Drive Me Wild” was the third single released by American R&B/Funk female vocal trio Vanity 6.The group was assembled by American musician Prince in mid–1981 consisting of Vanity, Brenda Bennett and Susan Moonsey. Taken from the group’s only studio album Vanity 6. “Drive Me Wild” failed to chart.

SIDE A:
Drive Me Wild (Extended Version)7:04

SIDE B:
Bite The Beat (LP Version)3:15

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label:Warner Bros. Records ‎– 0-29748
Format:Vinyl, 12″, Maxi-Single, 45 RPM
Country: US
Released:1982
Genre:Electronic
Style:Electro, Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Producer – The Starr * Company, Vanity 6

NOTES:
From the Warner Bros. LP “VANITY 6”

Find the 12″ on DISCOGS

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)

Artwork scanned at 600dpi