One of the notable alumni of Rotary Connection was Minnie Riperton, a singer with incredible vocal range who gave us the song "Loving You" after she went on to a solo career. Rotary Connection was a psychedelic soul vocal group that specialized in highly stylized cover versions of songs by other artists and elaborately produced soundscapes.
The album that stands out for me the most is Aladdin, consisting of original songs themed after the album title. Like so many other great vinyl that I bought in the 1970s, I found this album in the cut-out bin and bought it for a song. I ended up with a collection of great songs and got hours of listening pleasure from this dreamy album.
My song pick from Aladdin is "Magical World"--a beautiful song. The accompanying video is like a dream. The album is like a dream. I must be dreaming. Please don't wake me up.
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I remember Minnie Riperton but not rotary Connection.
ReplyDeleteYou're right...I did enjoy this song. I've never heard of Minnie Riperton or the group, but her voice is really interesting in a good way!
ReplyDeleteBOIDMAN ~
ReplyDeleteI agree, that video was just like a dream and it accompanied the song just right. Good, unusual choice! (I didn't know that Minnie Riperton was part of a group prior to her solo career.)
I'm sure your choice for tomorrow's "S" won't be what I would have chosen. For one thing, I couldn't find a YouTube video of it, unfortunately.
But my "S" would be for Jim "S"tafford. Known primarily for his goofy sense of humor and comedic novelty song, Stafford was in fact a genius.
On his album 'Not Just Another Pretty Foot' (which I would buy in a New York heartbeat if someone would just release it on CD) there is a song titled 'NONE OF US ARE HERE'. It's one of the "dreamiest-nightmarish" songs I've ever heard.
The music and melody of the song perfectly match the eerie dream-like nature of the lyrics, which follow:
I woke up in a mansion where I'd never been before, wrapped in satin sheets, lying on a marble floor. I asked a man on a unicorn who appeared from beneath the bed if he knew what was going on, and this is what he said:
Someone, somewhere went to sleep and dreamed us both alive. Dreams get pushed around a lot, and I doubt if we'll survive. We won't get to wake up; dreams were born to disappear, And I'm sure that neither one of us is here.
I pulled myself together and I tied myself up tight. And I walked around and around the room, 'til I came to the middle of the night. And there in the middle sat a calico cat on the sheets from the verse before. And this is what she told me as she bolted for the door:
Someone, somewhere went to sleep and dreamed us both alive. Dreams get pushed around a lot, and I doubt if we'll survive. We won't get to wake up; dreams were born to disappear, And I'm sure that neither one of us is here.
I snuggled in my satin sheets and flew straight for the hall. When I saw the cat had bolted the door, I lifted up the wall. And just outside the mansion gates all the answers I'd been seeking Took the form of a terrible storm and chased me back to my sleeping.
Don't you see?:
Someone, somewhere went to sleep and dreamed us all alive. Dreams get pushed around a lot, and I doubt if we'll survive. We won't get to wake up; dreams are born to disappear, And I'm pretty sure that none of us are here.
It's a great song which I have on cassette but would LOVE to acquire on CD someday.
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
I certainly remember Minnie Riperton, but I've never heard of the Rotary Connection. Love the song.
ReplyDeleteAnd today... I'm mourning the loss of Levon Helm.
I enjoyed listening, thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteYvonne.
Faraway eyes -- At least Minnie had some hits on her own.
ReplyDeleteTracy -- They were both probably before your time. Minnie had gained a reputation for her vocal abilities and began to take off after she went solo. Sadly she died from cancer at a very early age in 1979.
StMc -- My choice for S is I think very dream appropriate.
Bish -- Rotary Connection never got the success they should have had. Levon Helm made a great contribution to modern music.
Yvonne -- Thanks for stopping in.
Lee
Just popping in to say Hi Arlee and see how you are coming along on the challenge. Hope you have a wonderful weekend :)
ReplyDeleteVery interesting clip. Were some of those scenes from Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia?
ReplyDeletePaula -- I'm not sure where the clips are from. I was wondering myself. They are rather interesting. Some look as though they might have been taken from some futuristic movie. I liked the irony of the mash-up of the song and the images.
ReplyDeleteLee