Help my dad do his radio show

[Spearmint Rhino]

My dad has recently started doing a Friday afternoon show on Radio Cardiff, a community radio station geared mainly towards black listeners.

He's mainly playing soul and blues from the 50s to the 70s, and he's got those eras sewn up without any help from me. However, he wants to spice it up with the occasional more contemporary tune (from the late 80s to the present), and by his own admission he's taken his eye off the ball in terms of black music from this period, so he's asked me to help.

I'm gonna burn him a few CD-Rs of suitable black music from the last 20 years, to listen to in the car.

Basically, what we're looking for is nu-soul that sounds like old soul, or hip hop and R&B which has an organic, soulful feel to it. And if it's based on a vintage Isaac Hayes/Herbie Hancock/Curtis Mayfield sample, to give him (and by extension, his listeners) something they can hook onto and relate to, all the better. Mainly, but not exclusively, with a laid-back feel.

Also, because it's a daytime slot, we can't have anything with swearing on it, or the N-word. (Or at least, we'd need a radio-friendly edit to be available).

Here are some of the ideas I've come up with so far:

Baby Fox - "Curly Locks"
Erykah Badu - don't know which song
Chungking - "Making Music"
Common - don't know which song
Estelle - don't know which song
Gabrielle - "Give Me A Little More Time"
The Go! Team - "Ladyflash"
Macy Gray - "I Try"
Lauryn Hill - "Doo Wop (That Thing)"
J Dilla - don't know which song
Alicia Keys - don't know which song, probably something off the second album
Bettye Lavette - don't know which song, probably something off her last two albums
Massive Attack - "Unfinished Sympathy"
N.E.R.D. - "Run To The Sun"
Shara Nelson - "One Goodbye In Ten"
Outkast - "Ms Jackson"
The Pharcyde - "Passin' Me By"
PM Dawn - "Paper Doll"
Public Enemy - "Give It Up"
Jill Scott - don't know which song, probably something off her first album
Angie Stone - don't know which song
Tricky - something off Maxinquaye
Unklejam - don't know which song
Kanye West - "All Comes Down"
Saul Williams - "List Of Demands"

Over to you. As well as giving me some brand new suggestions, by all means fill in a few of the "don't know which song" ones, and don't be shy of naming the bleeding obvious hit single...

[G-Man]

Help my dad do his radio show

Wot, no Blackstreet? If it was a late show, I'd propose "Tonite". Otherwise, maybe "Don't Leave Me". And TLC, maybe "Diggin' On You".

For Angie Stone definitely "No More Rain (In This Cloud)". It's got a lovely '70s vibe to it, and it is possibly the best soul song of the past 25 years.

Erykah Badu, I'd opt for "Tyrone". Or the one she did with the Roots. And Jill Scott, "A Long Walk".

For Alicia Keys I'd go for either (or both) of "You Don't Know My Name" or "If I Ain't Got You" from the second album. Though I really like "A Woman's Worth", which I think was on the debut.

I suppose John Legend would have to figure, as a modern soulster who channels old skool soul. Not that I am a big fan.

Others I'd consider:
D'Angelo - Untitled (How Does It Feel)
Groove Theory - Tell Me
Carl Thomas - I Wish
Aaliyah - At Your Best (You Are Loved)
Donnell Jones - Where I Wanna Be
Musiq Soulchild - Love
For Real - Like I Do (has a bit of a Motown vibe)
SWV - Weak (or the "Right Here" remix which sampled "Human Nature")
Eric Benét - Why You Follow Me
Conner Reeves - My Father's Son
Brownstone - If You Love Me
Tony Toni Toné - Lay Your Head On My Pillow
Soul For Real - Candy Rain
Ginuwine - Same Ole G
R Kelly - Ignition

[Etienne]

Help my dad do his radio show

This sounds awesome. What's the frequency?

If you're going for Bettye Lavette (and you should) the song has to be Let Me Down Easy, which is just gorgeous.

Second nomination of Blackstreet.

Gravediggaz - The Night The Earth Cried (may have some swearing, but I cna't think of any)

Definitely something by En Vogue, maybe Don't Let Go (Love)

[Etienne]

Help my dad do his radio show

Maybe some Terence Trent D'Arby as well.

[G-Man]

Help my dad do his radio show

For Common check the last three tracks on the 2005 album; one of them rocked a real '70s vibe.

[Spearmint Rhino]

Help my dad do his radio show

Fantastic stuff, chaps. I'll investigate a lot of those suggestions and pass them on.

Etienne - 98.7fm if you're in the Cardiff area, or www.radiocardiff.org if you aren't.

(I've just realised that they haven't updated the schedule or the DJ list to include my dad... I'll let him know about that.)

[jason voorhees]

Help my dad do his radio show

DJ Spinna - Alfonso's Thang (My only description is George Clinton coming down from an acid trip. Plays great on the radio, as I heard it on a bizarre Charleston, SC radio station - one of those experimental formats after they're in the process of changing one format for another, such as country western for classic rock - and this time it was neo-soul. The sun was coming up over I-95 after an ice storm, with the sun shining though the leaves and braches like crystals, and there were white Corvettes stuck in the trees from people sliding off the road from the previous night and no one finding them in the darkness. It's that type of song.)

Hall & Oates - I Can't Go For That

Diana Ross & Lionel Richie - Endless Love

Luther Vandross - You Got Me Going In Circles (the best song of the man who was responsible for creating more babies than anyone else in NYC.)

Le Princess Nubienne - Makeda (essential French track that actually got play in the US)

[jason voorhees]

Help my dad do his radio show

And of course, a Wu Tang set - playing the Wu song and the sample it was based on, is always a favorite of WKCR's Night Train.

Same for Issac's "Walk On By" with B.I.G's "Warning" (you'll need the edited version, but there is an edited version.)

And the Roots is what you're looking for with soulful organic hiphop.

[Guest]

Help my dad do his radio show

Maxwell - Ascension (Don't Ever Wonder)
D'Angelo - Me And Those Dreamin' Eyes Of Mine
Tony! Toni! Toné! - Thinking Of You
McAlmont & Butler - Bring It Back
Amy Winehouse - Tears Dry On Their Own

[Incandenza]

Help my dad do his radio show

Pretty much anything by Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings. The Dap-Kings are the band on a lot of Amy Winehouse's songs, and if there was any justice in the world, Sharon Jones would be as famous as her.

Sharon Jones - "100 Days, 100 Nights"

For another Daptone Records artist, the Budos Band would be really good if he wants some funky instrumentals.

Budos Band - "Volcano Song"

[Lucia Lanigan]

Help my dad do his radio show

Pete Rock and CL Smooth - They Reminisce Over You

For J Dilla I'd go for another Pharcyde track - Runnin' - cause his own stuff would be too cut-up and confusing for your audience, and his soulier hip hop stuff with Slum Village would have them asleep in their soup.

Without wanting to turn it into "Terminator Price Sr To The Edge Of Panic", JV's idea of playing Wu Tang's C.R.E.A.M. into The Charmels' As Long As I've Got You (or vice versa) sounds really good to me. You could also pair up De La Soul's Say No Go and Hall & Oates' I Can't Go For That, that Notorious B.I.G. track and Diana Ross's 'I'm Coming Out, or JVC Force's Strong Island and Freda Payne's Unhooked Generation as well. (I guess Isaac Hayes' Hyperbolicsyllabicsasquedelamistic and P.E.'s Black Steel In The Hour of Chaos might be too bracing a twofer though.)

There must be some good neo-reggae options too, like Dawn Penn's No No No.

Not my bag, but I guess those Jazzmatazz things Guru did would also fit the bill.

[jason voorhees]

Help my dad do his radio show

Obviously agree with Inca about Sharon Jones and Not Me about his suggestions. Sharon Jones was started by Desco Records, which is now Daptone Records (again, WKCR's thumbprint on modern retro music.)

On Soulseek there's also the Dusty Fingers collection (15 or 16 volumes so far) and a bunch of 80s stuff with the Funky Collector series.

[evilC]

Help my dad do his radio show

Not trying to be awkward (or nationalistic about it) but alot of the suggestions (though not all of them) seem to have an American flavour to them. Is that what is wanted, or do black British musics stand a chance of getting an equal billing? Not that I can think of that many suggestions, mind.

[Spearmint Rhino]

Help my dad do his radio show

evilC - nine of my original list are British, as are a couple of the other people's suggestions.

[evilC]

Help my dad do his radio show

Yeah, but - I dunno - so many of 'our' artists seem to be merely mimicking American styles, that's more what I'm saying. R'n'B-based stuff always feels that way to me. Massive Attack stand out as 'flying the flag' for British creativity in that list.

[adams house cat]

Help my dad do his radio show

Odyssey - 'If You're Looking For A Way Out'
Gregory Abbott - 'Shake You Down"
Alexander O'Neill - 'Criticize'
Terrance Trent D'Arby - 'Sign Your Name'
Billy Griffin - 'Hold Me Tighter In The Rain'
Keb Mo' - 'As Soon As I Get Paid'
Randy Crawford - 'That's How Heartaches Are Made'

[G-Man]

Help my dad do his radio show

SR, does your Dad need '80s soul advice as well? If so...no, fuck, I wouldn't know where to stop.

But on Alex O'Neal, surely the masterpiece is "If You Were Here Tonight".

There are also a couple of Bobby Womack tracks that might feature. "I Wish I Didn't Trust Him So Much", and "No Matter How High I Get", on which he guest vocalled for Wilton Felder. Both are from 1984/85.

From the late '80s, there are some good tracks on Mica Paris' debut album, and her labelmate Will Downing's "A Love Supreme" (based on Coltrane) is magnificent: Download link

One British soul track from the '80s I really love is Paul Johnson's "When Love Comes Calling", produced by Junior Giscombe. Some great falsetto on there. Download link (apparently this was downloaded almost 10,000 times, which could be more than the single sold).

And if anyone here owns an MP3 of Hot House's "Don't Come To Stay", please let me know.

[Spearmint Rhino]

Help my dad do his radio show

You see, the Alexander O'Neal/Luther Vandross stuff isn't quite right. In fact that's pretty much the opposite of what I'm looking for. "Criticise" (while a great record in its own glossy, white-suited, cocainey way) couldn't be less rootsy or organic or soulful if it tried.

I think it's best to leave the 80s alone, really.

[evilC]

Help my dad do his radio show

Spearmint Rhino wrote:

I think it's best to leave the 80s alone, really.

Things you never thought you'd hear the Rhino say. No.1 in an occasional series.

[David Agnew]

Help my dad do his radio show

Spearmint Rhino wrote:

I think it's best to leave the 80s alone, really.

Even Sly & Robbie stuff like Boops and Fire?

Another shout for Blackstreet. I'd also add Regulate by Warren G.

[Heliotrope]

Help my dad do his radio show

How about the new Gnarls Barkley song? The name of it escapes me because I've only heard it once, and I might be overly influenced by the video, which reminds me of watching Soul Train back in the '70s.

[Carcass]

Help my dad do his radio show

Craig Mack 'Flava In Your Ear'
Roots Manuva 'Clockwork'
Sly and Robbie 'Boops (Here To Go)'
Kenny Dope/Dopewax 'Get On Down'
The Heavy 'Colleen' or 'That Kind Of Man'
Herbalizer 'Gadget Rock'
Kenny Dope and Screetchy Dan 'Boomin' In Your Jeep'
Singer Blue 'If I Know Jah'
Labi Siffri 'I Got The . . .'
Est'elle 'Up Town Top Rankin'
Burial 'Archangel'
Neneh Cherry 'Buffalo Stance'
Malcolm McClaren - that skipping song that I can't remember the name of
Cinematic Orchestra featuring Fontella Bass - 'Evolution'

This is a bit random, sorry, I'll try and post some more later.

[Carcass]

Help my dad do his radio show

Some of these might be a bit too reggae based actually.

[Spearmint Rhino]

Help my dad do his radio show

Reggae-based is fine.

[G-Man]

Help my dad do his radio show

Malcolm McClaren - that skipping song that I can't remember the name of

You mean "Double Dutch"?