The Brief: Before Carmen Electra became Dennis Rodman’s ex and before she starred on Baywatch, she was The Scariest Female on the Planet. According to whom, you may ask? To none other than Prince. And to whom was she the scariest Female on the Planet? I guess you can answer that one with “many Prince [...]
Posted in Carmen Electra, FWV 
Tags: 12 Inch, 1992, David Shaw, MPLS, Paisley Park Records, Rap 
10 Comments »
The Brief: According to Jazzie B “We were never really a group. It was a bit of a production set up. It was reminiscent of Clivillés and Cole. We were sort of a derivative off that.” Almost exactly a year ago, I posted the 12″ of “Back to Life (However Do You Want Me)”, a [...]
Posted in FWV, Soul II Soul Tags: 12 Inch, 1989, Greg Royal, Nellee Hooper, R&B, Virgin Records 7 Comments »
The Brief: The Top 20 charting album ‘World Clique’ by Deee-Lite was released in 1990 and spawned 3 Billboard Hot Dance/Disco number ones. “Power Of Love” was the second single released from the album following the Top 5 smash “Groove Is In The Heart”. The group were a fusion of house, techno, rap and funk with [...]
The Brief: Our week of Dan Hartman draws to a close with the second of his two contributions to the Fletch soundtrack. The song was written by Dan and his long time collaborator Charlie Midnight. Dan and Charlie began working together in 1983 and continued their relationship up until Dan’s death in 1994. Charlie is [...]
The Brief: As we continue with Dan Hartman week, we are still in the mid-80′s which seemed to be the most successful period of Hartman’s career. Today’s single appeared on the soundtrack for the movie Fletch which starred Chevy Chase. The soundtrack featured several well-known artists in additon to Hartman such as Stephanie Mills, The [...]
Posted in Dan Hartman, FWV Tags: 12 Inch, 1985, Chris Lord-Alge, MCA Records, Morales and Munzibai, Pop, UK Pressing 4 Comments »
The Brief: “We Are The Young” was Hartman’s follow up to his first pop Top 10 single. On the heels of the success of “I Can Dream About You”, this next single also went Top 40 and became the second highest charting pop single of his career. All three of Dan’s singles from the ‘I [...]
The Brief: Guest Blogger: Ric “The song that taught me how to count” That was what George Michael said about “Instant Replay” when he listed it as one of his all-time Top 10. The man behind that disco classic, Dan Hartman, is indeed an influential figure during the disco era. After his 1979 disco anthem, [...]
Posted in Dan Hartman, FWV Tags: 12 Inch, 1984, Jellybean Benitez, MCA Records, Pop, Promo 10 Comments »
The Brief: You can’t help but love an artist whose first album was titled “Who Is Dan Hartman and Why Is Everyone Saying Wonderful Things About Him?” That release was actually a promotional item that featured songs from Johnny Winter and the Edgar Winter Group where Dan started his professional music career. In 1972 the [...]
Posted in Dan Hartman, FWV Tags: 12 Inch, 1979, Blue Sky Records, Disco, John Luongo, Promo 9 Comments »
The Brief: “Honey For The Bees” closes out our little Patti-thon this week. This track came from the ‘Gettin Away With Murder’ LP of 1985 which featured multiple producers such as Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Monte Moir, Russ Titelman and the producer of this track Tommy LiPuma. LiPuma has worked with numerous artists over [...]
Posted in FWV, Patti Austin Tags: 12 Inch, 1985, Judy Weinstein, Larry Levan, Qwest Records, R&B 11 Comments »
The Brief: At the age of 4 years old, you are dared by the legendary Dinah Washington to go out on the stage at the world famous Apollo Theater and sing. What would Patti Austin do? Well, she would just stroll right out there and wow the crowd with her voice and then proceed to [...]
The Brief: In previous blog posts that featured the music of Patti Austin, we took a look at work she did with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis’ Flyte Tyme Productions in 1985. Today and the rest of this week we are going to sample some of her singles created with different producers. First up today is “It’s [...]
Posted in FWV, Patti Austin Tags: 12 Inch, 1984, Jellybean Benitez, Promo, Qwest Records, R&B 6 Comments »
The Brief: Guest Blogger: Britney Wendy & Lisa had a long history working with Prince, serving as contributors and members of his backing band, The Revolution. After the disbandment of The Revolution, Wendy and Lisa struck out on their own, recording three albums between 1987 and 1990. “Strung Out” is the first single from their [...]
Posted in FWV, Wendy and Lisa Tags: 12 Inch, 1990, Carmen Rizzo, MPLS, Pop, Promo, R&B, Virgin Records 8 Comments »
The Brief: In 1986, Chaka Khan released the LP ‘Destiny’ as the follow up to her 1984 multi-platinum smash ‘I Feel For You’. Today’s 12″ was the third single released from that album. “Earth To Mickey” features quite a few recognizable names in the credits: Sandra St. Victor on backing vocals, Reggie Griffin on various instruments [...]
The Brief: Kid Rock is currently on tour in support of his latest LP, ‘Rebel Soul’. He is a favorite artist of the Fun-Wife so, she has dragged me to Birmingham, AL tonight to see him in concert at the BJCC Arena. Now, personally, I like some of his music but, I can take him [...]
The Brief: In June of 1986, the movie Running Scared hit big screens across the US to moderate success, taking in over $38 million during its run. The movie boasted a soundtrack featuring numerous artists favored by Fun With Vinyl including Klymaxx, Ready For The World, New Edition and Patti LaBelle. The most successful single [...]
Posted in FWV, Michael McDonald Tags: 12 Inch, 1986, Bruce Swedien, Louil Silas Jr, MCA Records, Pop 14 Comments »
The Brief: Last year Donna Summer lost a battle with lung cancer and left this world behind on May 17, 2012. As a son who lost a mother to this despicable disease, I was saddened by her death and for her family’s loss. Donna and my mother were the same age at the time of [...]
The Brief: Well, of course, we couldn’t tackle “Two Of Hearts” without touching on her follow up Top 40 hit “We Connect”. We rejoin the former Dance Theater of Orange County dancer, Disneyland entertainer, Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus showgirl and on-air radio sound-alike/impersonator. That’s quite a resume for just the first 20 [...]
The Brief: OK, so, I kind of stared at the screen for a bit thinking about what there was to write about Stacey Q that hasn’t already been regurgitated over and over online. And, I probably have not come up with anything original but, I’m going to forge ahead anyway. Stacey’s first foray into the [...]
The Brief: It’s Friday! And, I’m feeling lazy today, going to give you the biography of Connie from AllMusic.com: Best known for her 1986 club smash “Funky Little Beat,” Latina singer Connie was among the first artists to come out of Latin freestyle — a style of dance-pop that incorporates Latin elements. The South Florida [...]
The Brief: I don’t know who to write about more on this release, the artist it is credited to or the song writers and producers of the song. I’ll try to intertwine them all. Tom Browne was born in Queens in 1954. He was a regular player in the New York jazz scene in the [...]
The Brief: Guest Blogger: RockSteady This is the promotional 12″ for the first single from da Krash, released 1988 alongside Ta Mara and the Seen’s ‘Blueberry Gossip’ and writer/ producer Jesse Johnson’s own ‘Every Shade of Love’. da Krash’s sound was an extension of Johnson’s ‘Shockadelica’ album as it bore the same heavy rock funk [...]
Posted in da Krash, FWV Tags: 12 Inch, 1986, Capitol Records, Gail “Sky” King, MPLS, Promo, R&B No Comments »
The Brief: 52nd Street were a British band formed in Manchester in late 1980, they gigged around Manchester while recording demo tapes in local studios looking for their big break. The band enjoyed sporadic success in the UK and the US over the years while undergoing numerous lineup changes. Their most well-known and best selling [...]
Posted in 52nd Street, FWV Tags: 12 Inch, 1986, MCA Records, Morales and Munzibai, Nick Martinelli, Promo, R&B 17 Comments »
The Brief: This record turned out to be a huge disappointment for me. Not necessarily because of the songs, I absolutely love both tracks on this record. My disappointment was the result of the mis-printed label on the A-Side. This 12″ promo was pressed in France and lists “Alligator Woman” with a running time of [...]
The Brief: The only release from ‘Larger Than Life’ that I don’t have on 12″ is “Everything”. None of the releases I’ve ever seen of “Everything” have much in the way of remixes or extended tracks so, I just never picked one up. This was the third of four single releases from the album ‘Larger [...]
The Brief: The 12″ release of “Friends” features an Extended Version and an Instrumental that were remixed by Hank Shocklee, Eric Sadler and Paul Shabazz of The Bomb Squad, a hip hop production team, most famously known for their work with the rap group Public Enemy. The A Side: Friends (Extended Version) 8:05 The B [...]
The Brief: Just a little over two years after the release of her solo debut, Jody Watley returned with the album ‘Larger Than Life’ which was released March 27, 1989. The first single chosen to promote the album was “Real Love” which spent two weeks at #1 on the CashBox Top 100 in 1989 but [...]
The Brief: The 12″ release of “Don’t You Want Me” features remixes by Francois Kevorkian and Michael Hutchinson. Jody co-wrote this track with Franne Golde and D.P. Bryant. Franne’s songs have appeared on records worldwide including The Pussycat Dolls – “Stickwitu”, Randy Travis – “A Man Ain’t Made of Stone”, Selena – “Dreaming of You” [...]
Posted in FWV, Jody Watley Tags: 12 Inch, 1987, Francois Kevorkian, MCA Records, Michael Hutchinson, R&B 14 Comments »
The Brief: OK, to close out the week, here’s an S.O.S. Band song that I got numerous requests for, “The Finest”. It’s kind of neat to look at the chart data and see how R&B radio and the dance clubs got on this song early and helped push it into the pop charts. Not quite [...]
Posted in Alexander O'Neal, Cherrelle, FWV, The SOS Band Tags: 12 Inch, 1986, Flyte Tyme Productions, R&B, Tabu Records 18 Comments »
The Brief: I posted the promo 12″ of this duet between Alexander and Cherrelle back in November of 2011. This is the commercial release with the extended version that was also included on the ‘All Mixed Up’ remixes album. I still have other Alexander O’Neal 12 inchers to ready for posting here but, this one [...]
Posted in Alexander O'Neal, Cherrelle, FWV Tags: 12 Inch, 1987, Flyte Tyme Productions, R&B, Tabu Records 6 Comments »
The Brief: I think the theme of the rest of this week will be, “hey, why didn’t you post…?” Back in April of 2011 I posted a string of Club Nouveau records with the exception of this one. It has since been added to the collection and now the Club Nouveau ‘Life, Love And Pain’ [...]
Posted in Club Nouveau, FWV Tags: 12 Inch, 1986, Morales and Munzibai, R&B, Tommy Boy Records 7 Comments »
The Brief: Yesterday sort of marked the end of a period in the existence of Fun With Vinyl. It wasn’t very noticeable but, starting today you will see a slight change in the files that you download from here. I suppose a short back story is required. In early 2010 I began digitizing my record collection. Over [...]
Posted in FWV, Thelma Houston Tags: 12 Inch, 1984, Flyte Tyme Productions, MCA Records, R&B, Steve Hodge 15 Comments »
The A Side: Stroke (LP Version) 4:30 The B Side: Stroke (Edit) 4:06 The Brief: “Stroke” is the last of three singles from the debut album by ‘Mazarati’. The song was written, arranged and produced by Brown Mark. No chart success at all for this single release. Side A is the LP Version and Side [...]
The A Side: People Are Still Having Sex (Mo’ Sleezy Mix) 6:51 People Are Still Having Sex (Ralphi’s Orgasmic Mix) 7:34 People Are Still Having Sex (Acappella) 1:02 The B Side: People Are Still Having Sex (Mark’s Missionary Mix) 7:10 People Are Still Having Sex (Crunch-O-Mix) 5:53 People Are Still Having Sex (LP Mix) 5:15 [...]
Posted in FWV, LaTour Tags: 12 Inch, 1991, Earache Control Z, Mark Picchiotti, Maurice Joshua, Pop, Ralphi Rosario, Smash Records 9 Comments »
The A Side: Naughty Girls (Need Love Too) (Special Extended Mix) 5:52 Naughty Girls (Need Love Too) (Full Force Naughty House Mix) 6:34 Naughty Girls (Need Love Too) (Single Edit) 4:20 The B Side: I Surrender (To The Spirit Of The Night) (Extended Remix) 6:35 I Surrender (To The Spirit Of The Night) (Single Edit) [...]
Posted in FWV, Samantha Fox Tags: 12 Inch, 1987, Full Force, Jerry Peal, Jive Records, Pop, Tony Maserati 27 Comments »
The A Side: (Baby Tell Me) Can You Dance (Club Mix) 6:58 (Baby Tell Me) Can You Dance (Instrumental) 5:44 The B Side: (Baby Tell Me) Can You Dance (Radio Mix) 5:44 (Baby Tell Me) Can You Dance (The Shep Pettibone Mix) 6:53 The Brief: Shanice Wilson or just Shanice, is a Pittsburgh, PA born [...]
Posted in FWV, Shanice Wilson Tags: 12 Inch, 1987, A&M Records, Bryan Loren, Promo, R&B, Shep Pettibone 6 Comments »
The A Side: Celebrate Youth (Dance Mix) 5:20 The B Side: Celebrate Youth (Dub Mix) 6:20 The Brief: Richard Lewis Springthorpe was born in South Wentworthville, a western suburb of Sydney, Australia in 1949. As Rick Springfield he began beating around with various bands in Australia and moved to the US in 1972. His debut [...]
Posted in FWV, Rick Springfield Tags: 12 Inch, 1985, Jay Burnett, Latin Rascals, Mark Kamins, Pop, Promo, RCA Records, Rock 4 Comments »
The A Side: Close To You (Phil Bodger Main Body Mix) 5:28 Close To You (Leo Grant Bad Ass Mix) 6:00 Close To You (Leo Grant Acapella & Drum Mix) 5:56 The B Side: Close To You (Phil Bodger Radio Mix) 3:59 Close To You (Phil Chill’s Rap Sensation Featuring Darren Deere) 6:08 Close To [...]
Posted in FWV, Maxi Priest Tags: 12 Inch, 1990, Charisma Records, Leo Grant, Phil Bodger, R&B 18 Comments »
7″: A I Need A Prince (Radio Edit) 3:58 B I Need A Prince (Radio Edit) 3:58 Label: Epic Records Catalog#: 34-06582 Format: Vinyl, 7″, 45 RPM Country: US Released: 1986 12″: A I Need A Prince (Extended Radio Mix) 5:15 I Need A Prince (Radio Edit) 4:11 B I Need A Prince (Club Mix) [...]
The A Side: Milkshake (Vocal) 4:22 Milkshake (Instrumental) 3:40 The B Side: Overlapping Waist (Vocal) 4:00 Overlapping Waist (Instrumental) 4:00 The Brief: Bobby Jimmy is now the nationally syndicated radio host of the Russ Parr Morning Show heard weekdays by more than 3.2 million listeners in 45 US cities and he also hosts a weekend [...]
Posted in Bobby Jimmy and the Critters, FWV Tags: 12 Inch, 1987, Macola Records Co., R&B, Rap 8 Comments »
The A Side: We Want Prince (Long Version) 6:08 The B Side: We Want Prince (Vocal) 3:05 We Want Prince (Instrumental) 3:10 The Brief: This record is one of those “tribute” songs that takes song titles and works them into the lyrics of the song. Quite cheesy, actually. Sexual Harassment released “I Need A Freak” in [...]
The A Side: Hard Day (The Shep Pettibone Mix) 8:31 Hard Day (Radio Edit) 4:11 The B Side: Hard Day (The Shep Pettibone Mix) 8:31 Hard Day (Radio Edit) 4:11 The Brief: This promotional 12” of “Hard Day”, a track from George Michael’s 1987 album ‘Faith’, is a bit misleading based on the info on [...]
Posted in FWV, George Michael Tags: 12 Inch, 1987, Columbia Records, Latin Rascals, Pop, Promo, Shep Pettibone 26 Comments »
The A Side: Eternity (Shep Pettibone Mix) 6:24 Eternity (Single Version) 3:50 The B Side: Eternity (Dub) 6:16 Shockwave 5:43 The Brief: The commercial 12” release of Sheena Easton’s “Eternity” features a mix, single version and dub by Shep Pettibone. There is also a non-album cut titled “Shockwave” written by Easton, Narada Michael Walden and [...]
Posted in FWV, Sheena Easton Tags: 12 Inch, 1987, b-side, EMI America Records, MPLS, Pop, Shep Pettibone 4 Comments »