Unsung…or just Overshadowed?
I suppose anyone who knows me will define me as an “old
soul”. I tend to gravitate to the oldies
but goodies when it comes to music and for good reason. As a lover of music, there must be an initial
connection with the lyrics, the artist and the music. When all three are combined, the outcome is
pure satisfaction and sometimes therapeutic.
Over the last few years, I’ve been most engaged in learning
more about my favorite artists. For the
students of music, we have books to read, Internet research and YouTube to help
document the paths of music pioneers. TV
One, a cable TV channel has ignited the flame to learning more about
artist’s that have blazed the trails in R&B and Hip-Hop. The idea that someone actually felt compelled
enough to re-introduce artists to the next generation in a documentary format
is quite genius to say the least. The
program is simply title Unsung and
will definitely generate dialogue and debate amongst friends and family about
those artists featured in the hour-long episode.
Here’s a list of some of the artists that have been featured
over the last few seasons:
·
Teena Marie – (Rick James protégé)
·
David Ruffin – (ex-lead singer of The
Temptations)
·
The O’Jays – (spearheaded The Sound of
Philadelphia)
·
The Fat Boys – (raps first overweight artists
that mad plenty of money being overweight)
·
Sly & The Family Stone (R&B’s soul, funk
and rock influenced phenomena)
The upcoming season (January 23, 2013) is sure to be a
success by leading off with Eddie
Kendricks, the co-founder of the world’s most famous group, The
Temptations. Most people when they think
of The Temptations, may think of David Ruffin, the husky soul voice that sang
lead on “My Girl”, however Eddie has plenty lead songs during their successful
run of hits, but he’s overshadowed by the tune we can’t forget, “My Girl”.
Although I know a lot about Eddie and The Temptations as a group, I’m
eager to hear the stories that will be shared for his episode. Typically the documentary is inspiring and
may even make you shed a tear, but most of all it’s a great learning tool for
new fans, old fans and anyone that loves old school music.
Signed…
Unsung
References:
Hey Adam,
ReplyDeleteI love this show and I enjoyed reading your post as well. Some of my favorite episodes included stories on Phyllis Hyman, Otis Redding, and Minnie Riperton. I do believe that some of the artists featured are overshadowed by different reasons, but mainly by one connecting thread. The connecting thread is lack of information. Unsung is the platform that gives viewers the African-American music history lesson some people never received or it serves as a refresher course.
Since you mentioned 'The Temptations,' I would love to know what happened with Dennis Edwards. He became the lead singer after David Ruffin in 1968 and recorded one of my favorite songs, "Don't Look Any Further."
Great post!!