“….I’ve been here before….”

You and me both, Teena. Damn shame you’re not still with us. Teena Marie meant the world to me as a kid; one of few women in the music business that was writing, producing and performing her own music—and kicking ass. She was her whole self in her music, always. (“I don’t want the fire without the flame…”) Lyrics to live by.

A young white woman signed to Motown back in the seventies who took the R&B charts by storm, but never “crossed over”. Plenty of appearances on Soul Train, but not on other television music outlets: Midnight Special, Saturday Night Live, Austin City Limits, Night Flight, Tom Snyder’s Late, Late Show….she made it to American Bandstand once (in 1984), and MTV played “Square Biz” or “Lovergirl” on really rare moments, but that was about it. She came on the scene ’round about the time apartheid-oriented radio was revved up and in gear; a toxic combination of “Disco Sucks” (and anti-punk/New Wave) backlash, radio deregulation and its niche formatting, and music industry fears of video and cassettes undercutting profits (translation: new artists weren’t exactly promoted aggressively, especially if they crossed genres). But she paid that no mind, and was a frequent flyer up the R&B charts with every new release.

Speaking of new releases, when Motown was reticent about releasing her newer material in 1982—but wouldn’t release her from contract—she sued and won. The “Brockert Initiative” (from Teena’s given name, Mary Christine Brockert; “Teena Marie” is the reversal of her first and middle names) made it illegal for record companies to keep an artist under contract without releasing new material from the artist. She continued making and producing music in the 80s, but through the 90′s, she dedicated most of her time to raising her daughter, Alia Rose; she paid the bills through touring. In 2004, she was back on the block with La Doña, whose intro played with a “godfather” theme (and her italian ancestry). That was quickly followed with Sapphire” in 2006, and 2009′s Congo Square.

Check out Ta Nehisi Coates’ “The Indomitable Blackness of Teena Marie” and Afrobella’s tribute. TV One has an informative documentary; towards the end there’s a duet with her daughter, Alia Rose (who sings just like her!).

I don’t know where to begin. I first heard her on Soul Train doing “I’m A Sucker For Your Love.” Soul Train was one of the few outlets to hear funk and soul music commercially where I lived; Saturday afternoon on WGN for Soul Train was a must! Beyond that, there were a couple of radio stations within listening distance that had R&B shows (a college radio station had a Saturday night show; there was another station with a Sunday evening show). There was the “soul skate” at the roller rink late Sunday afternoons. Eventually, there was a soul station created through cable access—but hell, I only got to listen to that when my parents weren’t home (only one cable outlet, and that was pretty much reserved for sports and news programs my father liked to watch. Music on the tv wasn’t on his agenda). So, I’d sit in my room on Sunday nights taping the R&B songs I liked, because if I didn’t do it then, I’d lose my chance. Teena Marie was part of the soundtrack of my growing up….the more sophisticated part, LOL! She put out “grown folks music” before they were calling it that! Before La Doña came out, I was working in the MetroEast area; a long drive for me but it beat the alternative of being unemployed….plus, the advantage of better radio stations made the drive not-so-bad. Anyway, I heard her do a live performance of “Deja Vu” on the Tom Joyner Morning Show that was just incredible. Made my day to start off the workday with that.

Crucial jams: “I’m A Sucker For Your Love,” “Deja Vu”, “Behind the Groove,” “Fire and Desire,” “I Need Your Lovin’,” “Young Love,” “It Must Be Magic,” “Portuguese Love,” “Shadow Boxing,” “Casanova Brown,” “Aladdin’s Lamp,” “Cupid Is a Real Straight Shooter,” “Lovergirl,” “Out On A Limb,” “Yes Indeed,” “Shangri La,” “Ooh La La La,” “If I Were A Bell.” You can hear some of these on Questlove’s Swift FM station. I think the whole album La Doña is great, but especially “A Rose By Any Other Name” (Gerald LeVert channels his inner Rick James for this), “Makavelli Never Lied,” “Hit Me Where I Live,” and “Black Rain”. “Ooh Wee,” “Make It Hot,” “APB,” and “Love is a Gangsta” from Sapphire, and “Milk ‘N Honey,” “Harlem Blues” and the title track to Congo Square are all good—while so many artists keep rehashing old material, she just kept getting better with age.

Lady Tee, you will be missed.

More cassette fun….

Had to use a fleet vehicle again today, and that meant diggin’ through the crate of tapes before going to work. Damn, am I glad I never got rid of these tapes! What was playing today?

“Buddy X” by Neneh Cherry. Written in….don’t think honor is quite the right word….well, it was written about Lenny Kravitz, whose extramarital exploits were famously conducted under the name “Buddy X” when he checked into hotels with groupies. Catch that “Romeo….Romeo?” at the end? His stage name used to be “Romeo Blue”.

“Somedays” by Neneh Cherry, also off the Homebrew album. This live version is longer and better than the album cut I was listening to today.

Ok, this wasn’t on any of the tapes I was listening to today, but it’s too good to pass up. Neneh Cherry’s version of “Trouble Man”, from the Marvin Gaye tribute album, “Inner City Blues”. I like her phrasing in this, and the bassline is killin’. Couldn’t resist.

“Call Me” by MeShell NdegeOcello.

“Until the Good Is Gone” by Little Steven & the Disciples of Soul. Gotta love a song that has the words “union hall” in it! I like the album Men Without Women, but damn! who mastered it?! Way too much treble—I think it was an attempt to sound more retro, like AM radio coming through tinny speakers in an old car. It doesn’t work on a real stereo. This live version has “Miami Steve” sounding natural—not nasal like the record. And damn, but that man has beautiful eyes.

“I Could Give You A Mirror” by Eurythmics. Annie Lennox could sing the want ads and make it sound good.

Ok, this wasn’t on any of my tapes either, but I missed hearing it. We used to warm up to this in JKD/Kali class. I miss that, too.

Remember mixtapes?

I had to take a little road trip today, and had to use a fleet vehicle that is (a) rather old, hence (b) doesn’t have a cd player. Fortunately for me, it did have a tape player. Yes kiddos, a cassette tape player. So, I grabbed a handful of old mixtapes I haven’t played in forever out of my closet, so I’d have something to listen to on the road. See, one thing about the midwest—-the radio sucks. SUCKS! I’m tellin’ ya! Sure, you can find a good college or community radio station every now and then, but the range isn’t very far. That’s where mixtapes come in.

When I was a teenager, I used to listen to a Champaign-Urbana station on Sunday nights to get my weekly R&B fix. That, and I’d trade tapes/records with other folks at school. We’re goin’ back….waaaayyyy back. Troglodyte era. And there were record stores. That’s what we called ‘em, record stores. It was always guys behind the counter. Serious music fiends. Knew their shit, too. Just like High Fidelity. I was the weirdo girl who into it just as much as they were (I never could get hired anywhere tho’, even though I knew my shit, too). There were college stations I listened to out of Champaign, Terre Haute….sometimes I could get a station out of Chicago when the atmosphere was just right and it was late at night. Always had eclectic taste. Punk, funk, rock, old-school soul, blues, it was all good to me. Still is.

Anyway, one of the tapes I picked up out of that bin in the closet—I looked at the date on the inside label (I used to date my tapes). April 24, 1984. Wow. None of that music has aged either…not in my ears, anyway. Still good. Wanna listen?

This is John Doe and the Sadies playing “The Have-Nots”. The version on my mixtape is by X. This version isn’t as good, frankly. Too much twang, no Billy Zoom on the guitar, and most of all no Exene Cervenka on vocals. The interplay between her and John’s voice is what made a lot of X’s songs. I used to jam the hell out of this in my bedroom, which was across the hall from the bathroom. When my dad finally figured out the lyrics, he’d sing along and bounce while he was shaving. Didn’t make me think the song was any less cool, though.

The incomparable Patti Smith.

Romeo Void – Never Say Never. I’ve got the extended version on my mixtape. I was a sucker for extended versions.

The Isley Brothers – Who’s That Lady.

Little Steven & the Disciples of Soul – Under the Gun (live version). Not the same live version I have on the tape, but it’ll do. Silvio can jam, huh?

It’s a 90-minute tape. When I showed my daughter the date on it, her eyes bugged. She can’t believe a relic like that is still around. She can’t believe that I used to be the remote control, either (hey kid! get up and change the channel, willya?). She really can’t believe in life before Internet. Me, I can’t believe the tape still plays after all these years. And if you’d'a told me that Steven Van Zandt was going to be Silvio Dante on The Sopranos, I’d'a laughed my ass off. But here we are.