Welcome to another new edition of our bi-weekly record-diving sampling extravaganza!
Thank you all for joining @natehorn and I for another week of sampling goodness! Before we get into our artist and track in focus, and in case you aren’t already aware, there are some other Mission Briefs/Challenges currently taking place that you may also fancy spending some time on here:
The year is coming to an end, and as such the universe provided an unexpected large track to inspire the welcoming of a new year. “Give Me Something To Believe In,” is the fifth track on Thelma Houston’s album The Devil in Me, which was released October 18, 1977 on Tamla Records (T7-358R1).
Here are some brief highlights about Thelma Houston, and the album, from Wikipedia and Allmusic:
Thelma Houston (née Jackson; born May 7, 1946)[1][2] is an American singer. Beginning her recording career in the late 1960s, Houston scored a number-one hit record in 1977 with her recording of “Don’t Leave Me This Way”, which won the Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.[2]
Houston was born in Leland, Mississippi.[2] Her mother was a cotton picker.[2] She and her three sisters grew up primarily in Long Beach, California.[2] After marrying and having two children, she joined the Art Reynolds Singers gospel group and was subsequently signed as a recording artist with Dunhill Records.[2] Despite her surname, she is unrelated to Whitney Houston.[3]
In 1969, Houston released her debut album, entitled Sunshower, produced, arranged and composed by Jimmy Webb except for one track.[2] In 1971 she signed with Motown Records but her early recordings with them were largely unsuccessful.[2] Her most notable single during that period was “You’ve Been Doing Wrong for So Long” which peaked at No. 64 on the US Billboard R&B chart in 1974.[2] However Houston’s vocal prowess on that track secured her a nomination for a Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. In 1973 Motown Productions announced a projected biographical film of Dinah Washington which would star Houston; however the project was dropped due to difficulties in getting clearance from Washington’s relatives.[4] In April 1974, Houston joined the cast of The Marty Feldman Comedy Machine, playing various characters during the show’s skits. The show was canceled in August and for the next several years her work was limited to demo recordings and performing at small venues.
Houston took acting classes and received her first role in the 1975 made-for-television film Death Scream. In that same year Sheffield Lab released “I’ve Got the Music in Me” a direct-to-disc recording by Thelma Houston and Pressure Cooker that went on to become a benchmark vinyl recording for audiophiles. The following year she recorded songs for the soundtrack of the film The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings starring Billy Dee Williams and James Earl Jones.[2] In 1975 Houston appeared on the Golden Globe Award broadcast performing the nominated song “On & On” and also was featured in a tribute to Berry Gordy on that year’s American Music Award broadcast singing “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy”. That year Houston’s version of “Do You Know Where You’re Going To” was being set for single release when it was pulled and the song given to Diana Ross to serve as the theme song for the movie Mahogany.[5] In 1976 Houston sang backing vocals for Motown labelmate Jermaine Jackson on his album My Name Is Jermaine.[2]
The Devil in Me is the sixth album by Thelma Houston released in 1977.[1] While this album did not duplicate the commercial success of the Any Way You Like It album, it became a modest commercial success, peaking at No. 64 in the US album chart/No. 29 R&B. The lead single was the R&B and Club/Dance chart hit, “I’m Here Again”. “I Can’t Go On Living Without Your Love” was issued as a double-sided 12" single back-to-back with Diana Ross’ “Your Love Is So Good to Me”.[2]
The album was arranged by Kim Richmond, James Anthony Carmichael, Gordon C. Berg, Greg Wright, Michel Rubini and Michael Omartian. The cover photograph was by Tom Kelley.
The Devil in Me was released on CD in 2018 by Soulmusic Records, in a compilation that also includes Ready to Roll, Ride to the Rainbow and Reachin’ All Around.
- from www.wikipedia.com
"The Devil In Me, her 1977 album which kicks off this selection, may not have had anything as infectious as that song, but it is a more than respectable showing with a good amount to recommend. I particularly love some of the guitar playing on this one – little bits of fuzz and R&B twang, always tasteful and fitting in, but providing a nice rough edge which takes some tracks away from being merely MOR Soul. It doesn’t list the players on this one, but it seems like Wah Wah Watson may have been involved (he did play on the next LP), so a big pat on the back for him if it was.
As you might expect the LP is a mix of danceable items and slowies, Motown by the mid-70s weren’t quite at the cutting edge of Soul anymore and there is a tendency on show in the production to dress things up in snazzy arrangements and syrupy strings when they weren’t entirely necessary. Nevertheless Houston’s personality shines through on the symphonic Soul of the life-affirming, never-say-die It’s Just Me Feeling Good and the Jazzy vocal showcase Give Me Something To Believe In. Memories is pretty standard balladry, but it is followed by the smooth sexiness of I’ve Got The Devil In Me…
…I tend towards feeling that Houston got fed through the Motown machine without much thought for her as an individual artist. It was only when the label lost interest, she got a real chance to put her stamp on things and loosen up a bit. During her tenure with the company, it’s hard not to conclude they really dropped the ball, treating Houston more as a reliable, but second-string artist, kitting her out with slightly dated arrangements and songs. A shame, because as Ride Me To The Rainbow proved, she could easily cut it in the white heat of the late Disco period."
- Review by Ian Canty for www.louderthanwar.com
Here are two versions of the track available on YouTube, in case anyone experiences regional playback issues:
Here is a link to the FLAC version of the track and a version that has been converted to 16bit/44.1KHz wav, please delete it after using:
THELMA HOUSTON - GIVE ME SOMETHING TO BELIEVE IN (FLAC)
THELMA HOUSTON - GIVE ME SOMETHING TO BELIEVE IN (WAV)
links are active for one week from today (11/25/23)
Album Photos:
images from google search
THE BRIEF
YOU have been selected by the notorious Global Sound Syndicate for a top-secret operation. Not really, please, share with your friends, family, and even the outstanding workforce delivering packages this holiday season.
Mission:
-Sample any part(s) of the track we’ve nominated
-Spend no more than 1 week turning it into music
-Post your creations here for us all to enjoy
Deadline: Sunday, December 18, 2023
Submit your entry no later than 11:59 PM, Sunday, December 18, 2023, or be faced with a brief moment of self-loathing for not participating. Submissions entered on later dates are also welcome!
Compensation:
Hearts and compliments from the community
(not guaranteed)
You can use as much or as little of the sample track as you like, you just have to use it. No winners, no losers, just good times!
Every two weeks we will post a track from our record collections, ideally something you’ve not heard before. Jams, full tracks, noodles - share whatever you like!
I hope you all get to hear it!