Erika Kamimura is the 2011 S-Girls Cup Champion

Erika Kamimura, RENA

So SHOOT BOXING had the S-Girls Cup show today at SHIBUYA-AX. To the surprise of no one, teen kickboxing champ Erika Kamimura won the tournament. SHOOT BOXING definitely favours kickboxers over MMA fighters it's basically kickboxing with throws. A lot of female MMA fighters have used SHOOT BOXING to improve their striking but there's no ground work allowed. So I expected Erika and Ham Seo Hee to make the final as they are the two best kickboxers in the tournament. In the first round, Kamimura won over Kanako Oka by TKO at 31 seconds of round two. She hammered her with punches and the ref stopped it. A bit of an upset as Miyo Yoshida won over WINDY Tomomi by majority decision. Then another upset as J-Girls kickboxer MINA won over VV Mei by majority decision. It looks like Mei won round one and Mina came back in the other two rounds. And then Ham Seo Hee won over Emi Fujino also by majority decision. So that means a judge scored all three fights as 30-30 draws. Huh? So they have this stupid rule in SHOOT BOXING that the fight is stopped after two knockdowns in a round. So in her semi final, Erika Kamimura beat Miyo Yoshida at 1:50 of round one after two knockdowns. That girl doesn't need that kind of help. Then Ham Seo Hee won over MINA by majority decision in a very close match. That's right. One of the judges scored it a draw. In the final, Ham Seo Hee gave Kamimura a run for her money. But in the end, Kamimura won by unanimous decision. I would like to see these two in a kickboxing match. After threatening to retire a couple of months ago, RENA returned triumphantly with a win over Thai kickboxer Zaza Sor Aree by TKO at 2:09 of round two. RENA dominated her. So why wasn't RENA in the tournament? SHOOT BOXING owner Takeshi Caesar used the old pro wrestling trick of keeping rivals away from each other and save the match for a big payday. That will happen at the Nov. 23 RISE show at Tokyo City Hall when RENA faces Erika Kamimura. That's a money match. In other matches, HIROKO dominated Megumi Yabushita. The match was stopped after two rounds when Yabushita blew out her knee. And what about RENA's sister MIO? Yoko Yamada was disqualified at 52 seconds of round one. She threw MIO to the mat and refused to break. There's no ground work in SHOOT BOXING and Yoko wouldn't stop pounding her on the ground. It almost seems like RENA was playing a gag on her sister. Well, that's SHOOT BOXING for you.

It's official! Rin Nakai vs Danielle West set for Sept. 4 PANCRASE show

Rin Nakai, Danielle West

As I reported exclusively yesterday, Rin Nakai is returning to the cage on the Sept. 4 PANCRASE show at Differ Ariake. Unlike most Japanese MMA fights, this will be in a cage. Today PANCRASE announced that her opponent will be British fighter Danielle West. The fight is contracted for Open Weight with an upper limit of 70kg and it's scheduled for three five minute rounds. I don't see the weight as a big issue for Rin. She usually fights at 135 but because the VALKYRIE tournament was Open Weight, she put on weight to fight Super Benkei who normally fights at 145. Then she took the weight off to fight Mizuho Sato in the tournament final who normally fights at 135. It didn't seem to matter. Danielle normally fights at 145. At 5'6", she has a big height advantage. Rin is 5'1" but Super Benkei is a lot taller than her too. She doesn't seem to care about any of that. Danielle trains at PANCRASE London. Her record is 3-2 and her last fight was a TKO loss to Elina Nilsson on the May 7 Zone FC show in Gothenberg, Sweden. Danielle was supposed to fight Esui on the Mar. 11 JEWELS show. But as we all know, that show was cancelled by the earthquake. Despite her youth, Rin has a big experience advantage over Danielle and probably a power edge too. Plus Rin was a amateur judo champ as a teen. I predict that Rin will do backflips after the match.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Butterflys

Artist:The Butterflys
Song:Good Night Baby
Album:Do-Wah-Diddy: Words and Music by Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry





As a songwriter and producer, Ellie Greenwich is one of the all time greats of pop music. Along with her husband Jeff Barry, she wrote literally thousands of songs. And many of them were number one hits. But Ellie started out as a singer and she always wanted to have her own recording career. The Butterflys appears to be one of those attempts. Good Night Baby was their only chart hit in 1964. So Jerry Lieber & Mike Stoller started Red Bird Records in 1963. The label became a playpen for Brill Building songwriters like Ellie and Jeff to do their own thing. One of the groups on Red Bird was The Jelly Beans. They had a top ten hit in 1964 with I Wanna Love Him So Bad. There were four girls and a guy in that group. And of course the duo are producing plenty of other hits. So I guess while working in the studio, Ellie again got the itch to record herself. So though The Butterflys were strictly a studio group, it appears that Ellie Greenwich was the lead singer of Good Night Baby. It appears that Mary Thomas of The Crystals may have been involved in The Butterflys along with a couple of The Jelly Beans. They only released a handful of songs and Good Night Baby was the only song that charted. Ellie Greenwich went back to writing and producing. She would record as a solo artist later on in her career. This comp from Ace Records is a good overview of the careers of Ellie Greenwich & Jeff Barry. Here's a video for Good Night Baby by The Butterflys.

JEWELS Featherweight tournament starts on Sept. 11

Sugi Rock

As much as I dislike SHOOT BOXING, at least they know how to hype a show. Today JEWELS announced the first round of their Featherweight tournament that will begin on the Sept. 11 Shin-kiba 1st Ring show and conclude on the Dec. 17 Shinjuku FACE show. For some reason, they chose to issue a press release instead of holding a press conference. You have to get these girls in front of the public if you want fans to care about them. This tournament should be a big deal but they're not treating it that way. The favourite for this tournament should be Naho "Sugi Rock" Sugiyama. If you haven't seen her, check her out on Youtube. She's very slick on the ground. Her opponent is the veteran Ayumi "Edge" Saito. Sugi Rock trains at the A3 branch of WK. Her record is 4-0 and her last win was over Misaki Takimoto on the May 14 JEWELS show. She also has a non-title win over former VALKYRIE champ Yasuko Tamada. Edge trains with Yuka Tsuji at Angura. Her record is 8-5 and her last fight was a loss to Lisa Ward on the Feb. 14, 2008 Smackgirl show. Obviously ring rust could be an issue. She's not as good as Sugi Rock anyway. In the second match, Misaki Takimoto will face MIYOKO. Takimoto is a trainer at Zendokai Yokohama. Her record is 13-12-4 and her last fight was a loss to Sugi Rock on the May 14 JEWELS show. She is a karate expert but is vulnerable on the ground. MIYOKO trains at Grabaka. Her record is 3-3 and her last fight was a win over Yuka Okumura on the July 9 JEWELS show. In the third match, Yasuko Tamada will face Kikuyo Ishikawa. Tamada trains at AACC. She is the former VALKYRIE champ. Her record is 12-5-3 and her last fight was a non-title loss to Sugi Rock on the Nov. 28 VALKYRIE show. Ishikawa trains at the Champion Reversal Gym in Yokohama. She was last year's 48kg Rough Stone Champ. Her record is 5-2 and her last fight was a win over SACHI on the July 9 JEWELS show. The fourth match is Yukiko Seki vs SACHI. Seki trains at FIGHT CHIX. Her record is 9-20 and her last fight was a win over sakura on the July 23 PANCRASE show. She has won four of her last five fights. But if you look at her opposition, she didn't beat anyone who is very good. And that loss was to Ishikawa. SACHI trains at Zendokai in Toyohashi. Her record is 8-5-1 and her last fight was a loss to Ishikawa on the July 9 JEWELS show. She also lost to Seki in 2007. The bottom line is Sugi Rock should be the favourite. In a 54kg match Rina Tomita will face anna. Tomita trains at AACC and is coming back from health problems. Her record is 3-5 and her last fight was a win over Jeannette Hinz on the Dec. 11 MMA Berlin show. anna trains at FIGHT CHIX. Her record is 1-7 and her last fight was a loss to Sadae Manhoef on the May 14 JEWELS show. They also added a kickboxing match but no main event yet.

SHOOT BOXING public weigh ins

RENA and MIO

SHOOT BOXING held public weigh ins today for tomorrow's show at SHIBUYA-AX. Everyone made weight except RENA's sister. I'll get to her in a minute. Teen kickboxing champ Erika Kamimura said that even though she is the smallest girl in this tournament, she will still win. We shall see. Also, SHOOT BOXING finally announced that Megumi Yabushita will officially replace Dahlia Albarrs as HIROKO's opponent. I assume there were visa issues. I don't know why this wasn't announced yesterday. Yabushita's partner in crime Yoko Takahashi was Tweeting about this a couple of days ago. Meanwhlie, RENA was very excited about her sister MIO's pro debut. I don't know how she will do. Yoko Yamada is not a pushover. You'll notice MIO wore the damn sailor suit and even has the same hairstyle as her sister. It looks better on RENA.

Rin Nakai on Sept. 4 PANCRASE show

Rin Nakai announced on her blog that she will appear on the Sept. 4 PANCRASE show at Differ Ariake. PANCRASE confirmed this on Twitter. Her opponent is to be announced. Of course Rin is the VALKYRIE Open Weight Champion. She trains at Shooto Shikoku. Her record is 10-0 and she is considered one of the top fighters in Japan. She is very quick on the ground and also has punching power. When she won the VALKYRIE belt over Mizuho Sato, the fight was stopped when she broke Sato's orbital socket. She is also known for her post match backflips. Rin was a competitive gymnast as a child. I think Rin chose to be on this show because she prefers to fight in a cage and most other shows are in a ring. I expect PANCRASE to hold a press conference to announce her opponent. I hope it's somebody decent. Rin lives in the remote island of Shikoku and sometimes it can be hard to bring her to Tokyo. In another women's match announced for this show, Naoko Omuro will face Kayo Nagayasu in a match contracted for 45.4kg. Omuro trains at WK. Her record is 11-8-3 and her last fight was a unanimous decision loss to Yasuko Tamada on the June 19, 2010 VALKYRIE show. She won over Nagayasu on a Nov. 2003 Smackgirl show. Nagayasu trains at Paraestra Hiroshima. Her record is 7-6-2 and her last fight was a win over Happy Fukuko on the Apr. 4, 2010 VALKYRIE show. It will be great to see Rin Nakai back in the cage.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Smash Mouth

Artist:Smash Mouth
Song:All Star
Album:All Star Smash Hits





Back in 1999, you couldn't escape this song. It was everywhere. All Star was one of two top five hits for the group Smash Mouth but I think All Star is their most memorable song. I guess it's a sports anthem now. The group was formed in San Jose, CA in 1994. Lead singer Steve Harwell had been in a rap group called F.O.S. with drummer Kevin Coleman. Coleman knew guitarist Greg Camp and bassist Paul DeLisle from the Southern California ska punk scene. They harassed Camp until he agreed to work with him. He was Smash Mouth's main songwriter. So they started to get a lot of local buzz and signed with Interscope Records. Their 1997 debut CD Fush Yu Mang reached #19 on the Billboard Hot 200 and was certified 2XPlatinum. The single Walkin' on the Sun reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. Smash Mouth second CD Astro Lounge went in a more mainstream pop direction. That turned out to be a smart move as it reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 200 and was certified 3XPlatinum. All Star reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also appeared in the film Mystery Men and then in the hit film Shrek along with Smash Mouth's cover of The Monkees I'm A Believer. That was on their 2001 CD Smash Mouth but it probably did more for the Shrek soundtrack. Kevin Coleman left Smash Mouth due to back problems and was replaced by Michael Urbano. Smash Mouth started to fade after 2001. You can get all their hits on this comp. Steve Harwell appeared on the MTV show The Surreal Life. Smash Mouth recorded the CD Old Habits which they claimed would return to their ska roots. But it appears that Interscope didn't like it and shelved it. They left Interscope and released the album as Summer Girl on their own label in 2006. Greg Camp left Smash Mouth in 2008 and recorded a solo CD and is in The Maids Of Honor. Mike Krompass was already touring with Smash Mouth so he replaced Camp. Urbano left and was replaced by Randy Cooke. Smash Mouth still tours and are supposed to be working on a new CD. Here's the video for All Star by Smash Mouth featuring the cast of the film Mystery Men.

RENA's sister to debut on Aug. 19 SHOOT BOXING show

MIO

SHOOT BOXING announced today that RENA's 16 year old sister MIO will make her SHOOT BOXING debut on the Aug. 19 S-Girls Cup show at SHIBUYA-AX. The match is contracted for 48kg and her opponent is the veteran Yoko Yamada. MIO trains with her sister at the Oikawa Gym in Osaka. SHOOT BOXING claims that MIO has held several amateur titles. She says it is her dream to follow in her sister's footsteps. You gotta love the sailor suit in the pic. Yoko Yamada has been around the Japanese combat sports business for a decade doing all kinds of things. She started out wanting to be a pro wrestler but all the joshi companies told her at the time that she was way too tiny. She made her MMA debut in 2003 and compiled a 6-1 record. But she hasn't fought since a win over MIYOKO on the Dec. 2009 JEWELS show. Several years ago she won the WAF World Arm Wrestling Championship and proceeded to publish a sexy photobook afterwards. She returned to pro wrestling a few years ago with Ibuki but quit after a few months. She also does modelling and ring girl work. I don't know if she has ever done SHOOT BOXING. This is the first time Yoko's name has come up in a couple of years so I don't know what she has been doing. She still trains at PUREBRED. There is also a rumour that HIROKO's Dutch opponent is being replaced by Megumi Yabushita. SHOOT BOXING hasn't announced this. It's possible they are having visa problems with the Dutch girl and Yabushita is standing by if the problem can't be solved in the next couple of days.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Buena Vista Social Club

Artist:Buena Vista Social Club
Song:Chan Chan
Album:Buena Vista Social Club





The unlikely events that led to the discovery of Cuban music is one of the greatest success stories in the history of the music business. Remember the music of the Buena Vista Social Club is not mainstream music but the album has sold five million copies. So there really was a Buena Vista Social Club in Havana. Musicians would hang out there and jam in the 40s. Of course in 1996 when the time came to locate it, no one knew where it was. Many of the musicians who played in Cuban dance bands of the 40s became unemployed in 1959 with the revolution. They played on weekends but all had day jobs. So Ry Cooder heard about these forgotten musicians and was invited by World Circuit Records owner Nick Gold to go to Havana and record an album with these musicians. The musical director was Afro Cuban All Stars leader Juan de Marcos Gonzalez. He brought in bassist Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez, guitarist Eliades Ochoa, Pianist Ruben Gonzalez, and singers Compay Segundo, Ibrahim Ferrer and Omara Potruondo. Ry Cooder's son Joachim played drums. Chan Chan is considered the signature song from the album and was written by 89 year old Compay Segundo. The album was recorded in six days and subsequently Cooder brought Wim Wenders down to Cuba to shoot a documentary. Then the group went on tour. The album sold five million copies and won a Grammy. Several of the musicians recorded solo albums and the film was also a big hit. Cuban music became a cottage industry for World Circuit. Though Ruben Gonzalez, Ibrahim Ferrer, Compay Segundo and Orlando Lopez have all died, Buena Vista Social Club continues to tour today. Here's a video for Chan Chan by Buena Vista Social Club used to promote the recent release of a Carnegie Hall concert CD.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Mel Carter

Artist:Mel Carter
Song:Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me
Album:The Ultimate Rock & Roll Collection: The 60s





Mel Carter started out in gospel and R & B but had his biggest success in 1965 with the top ten pop hit Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me. When music dried up, Carter turned to acting. He was born Apr. 22, 1943 in Cincinnati and grew up singing in church. He moved to Los Angeles in the late 50s and appeared in several TV shows including several episodes of the hit show The Rifleman. Carter was discovered by Quincy Jones and though he recorded for Mercury, it doesn't look like the songs were ever released. So Sam Cooke signed him to his Derby label and When A Boy Falls In Love was a minor hit in 1962. Carter signed with Imperial Records and Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100. It topped the Adult Contemporary chart. Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me was first recorded by pop singer Karen Chandler in 1952 and reached #7 on the singles chart. Gloria Estefan had a hit in England with her 1994 cover. But most folks will remember Carter's version and you can get it on this Collectables various artists comp. Of course the problem was Carter became known as a pop singer so when he wanted to record soul, it wasn't accepted. He had a couple more minor hits and recorded four albums for Imperial. But he was dropped in 1969 and turned to acting mostly on TV doing guest shots on shows like Quincy M.E. and Magnum P.I. He got a Grammy nomination for a 1985 gospel album and he still performs today. Here's Mel Carter performing Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me on Shindig 1965.

Kelly Kelly retains WWE Divas Championship at SummerSlam

So here's the match video of Kelly Kelly successfully defending her WWE Divas Championship over Beth Phoenixon last night's SummerSlam. That alone has many fans up in arms. How could Kelly Kelly possibly beat Beth Phoenix? Is wrestling real? Obviously Beth has better wrestling skills than Kelly and could mop the floor with her. Did you know that since Melina was fired that Kelly has the longest tenure of any of the Divas? So obviously the office likes her. She's a nice girl and she gets a great pop when she comes to the ring. They don't care if the crowd is silent during the match. It's enough that she's a generic hot girl and her wrestling is secondary. I thought she looked thinner than usual. Maybe it was the outfit. The match was OK. Beth is a great wrestler and can carry anyone. They gave Kelly more offense than I expected early in the match. But Beth took over with her power and was about to finish Kelly with the Glam Slam when Kelly turned it into a Victory Roll for the win. So fans are upset about that. Not me. It extends the feud and sets up Kelly for a major beating on tonight's episode of RAW. I look forward to that. Enjoy the video!

HIROKO added to Aug. 19 SHOOT BOXING show

HIROKO

SHOOT BOXING announced today they have added a match to their Aug. 19 SHIBYA-AX show. It is contracted for Open Weight with JEWELS MMA fighter HIROKO facing Dutch boxer Dahlia Albarrs. I'm not sure about the spelling. Apparently she's a boxer from The Netherlands. Of course HIROKO's MMA record is 12-1 and she fights in the 145lb weight class. It can be tough to find opponents for her in Japan. She's expressed interest in coming to the US but she just came back from a facial injury she suffered in training at the end of last year. HIROKO was on last year's S-Girls Cup show. But they couldn't find an opponent and she wound up beating Aussie kickboxer Sandy Fumer in an MMA match. So at least she gets to try SHOOT BOXING this year.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Police

Artist:The Police
Song:Message In A Bottle
Album:Every Breath You Take: The Classics





The Police were one of the biggest groups of the New Wave era in the early 80s. The 1979 single Message In A Bottle was their first number one hit in England and set the stage for their success in the early 80s. I think it was their breakthrough hit. The group began with drummer Stewart Copeland. As the son of a CIA officer, he lived all over the world but grew up mostly in Egypt and Lebanon. He went to college in England and the US and moved back to England in 1974 and joined the progressive rock group Curved Air. He decided to form a band in 1977 with Gordon "Sting" Sumner and guitarist Henry Padovani. Sumner got the Sting nickname when he showed up to a gig wearing a sweater that made him look like a bee. The Police released the single Fall Out in 1977 and went out on tour as a support act. Meanwhile, Mike Howlett of Gong formed a band with Sting and former Eric Burdon and The Animals guitarist Andy Summers. When the drummer Howlett wanted was unavailable, Sting brought in Copeland. The group was called Strontium 90. They recorded some demos and played one show in France. But the group split with Howlett and The Police started working as a quartet in London. Padovani left and the trio we all know was born. Copeland's older brother Miles Copeland III heard the song Roxanne, became their manager and got them a record deal with A & M Records in 1978. Of course he would go on to form IRS Records. Their debut album Outlandos d'Amour did well but their second album Regatta de Blanc did even better. And when it became a big success, it boosted sales of the first album. Message In A Bottle was their first #1 hit in England and it did well everywhere else too. Of course The Police would soon become much bigger including their only US number one hit Every Breath You Take in 1983. But Message In A Bottle laid the foundation for that success and you can get all their hits on this comp. The Police took a hiatus in 1984 and then split up for good in 1986. Sting was already having solo success and he was bickering with Copeland anyway. The Police did a reunion tour in 2007. Here's the video for Message In A Bottle by The Police.

THE POLICE-MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE by pierrot77

Ray uses the Sky Twister Press in Aug. 14 REINA show

Ray hits the Sky Twister Press

At today's REINA show at Friends Hall, There were a couple of matches in the CMLL-REINA International Junior Championship tournament featuring a couple of visiting American wrestlers. Of course REINA is also using Mexican wrestlers from CMLL and a couple of what I would call luchadoras in training, younger wrestlers who don't work for CMLL. The big news in this show is that masked wrestler Ray pulled out, of all things, the Sky Twister Press in her tournament win over US wrestler Luscious Latasha. Of course most joshi fans recall that Chapparita ASARI frequently used the Sky Twister Press in the 90s. Of course she always missed it. ASARI was known as a crash and burn jobber. Ray is a spot monkey and is the only joshi wrestler to ever use the Shooting Star Press. And as you can see by the pics, the Sky Twister is even more complicated and difficult to control than the Shooting Star. She's good at that stuff. In the other tournament match US wrestler Mia Yim won over Saya (formerly Senri Kuroki) with several kicks ending with a running kick. In the main event, top CMLL heel La Comandante teamed with Mima Shimoda to win over Kyoko Kimura and Aki Kambayashi. They destroyed Kambayashi and La Comandante finished her with a diving body press. Afterwards, REINA boss Yumiko Hotta announced she is returning from knee surgery on the next show. She greeted her old pal Shimoda and then La Comandante got involved and all hell broke loose. I guess you can tell where this is going.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The New Colony Six

Artist:The New Colony Six
Song:Things I'd Like To Say
Album:Dick Bartley Presents Classic Oldies 1965-1969





The New Colony Six started out in the mid-60s as a British Invasion influenced garage band. Personnel changes and a major label deal led to a softening of their sound and the 1969 top twenty hit Things I'd Like To Say. They were from Chicago. The original members were Ray Graffia on vocals, Chick James on drums, Pat McBride on harmonica, Craig Kemp on organ, Wally Kemp on bass and Gerry Van Kollenburg on guitar. They recorded two albums on the small Sentar label and had success locally in Chicago. Like Paul Revere & The Raiders, they wore Colonial costumes on stage. They started out as a fairly standard garage band. Craig Kemp was replaced by Ronnie Rice and Wally Kemp was replaced by Les Kummel. There were other changes but those two guys took over the songwriting and went towards a more mainstream pop sound. They got a record deal with Mercury and Things I'd Like To Say reached #16 on the Billboard Hot 100. Fans of the original band were not pleased with this version of The New Colony Six. It's like there were two different bands. The New Colony Six recorded two albums for Mercury and then faded and split up in 1974. You can get Things I'd Like To Say on this various artists comp from DJ Dick Bartley on Eric Records. Original singer Ray Graffia leads a version of The New Colony Six today concentrating mostly on their earlier songs. Ronnie Rice was the lead singer on Things I'd Like To Say and no doubt performs it in his shows. Here's The New Colony Six performing Things I'd Like To Say on The Mike Douglas Show 1969.

Ronda Rousey wastes no time in her Strikeforce debut

Here's the match video for Ronda Rousey vs Sarah D'Alelio from last night's Strikeforce show n Las Vegas. As I expected, Ronda wasted no time hooking the armbar for the win in 25 seconds. Unfortunately, referee Steve Mazzagatti had a brain fart and screwed up the finish. The fighters were told before the fight that any scream during a submission would be interpreted as as a verbal tap and the match would be stopped. The reason for that is some fighters won't tap until the arm breaks. We don't want any broken arms. Safety first, please. Ronda's transition into the armbar was one of the slickest moves I've seen this side of Megumi Fujii. When she applied the armbar, Sarah screamed. It was audible in the arena and Sarah said afterwards that she did scream. And remember she doesn't have to say "tap". She just has to scream in pain. Mazzagatti should have stopped the match right there. Ronda told him Sarah screamed and his reaction was "Oh geez, I forgot" and then he stopped the match. It's not the first time he has looked like an idiot. And you can tell by his body language afterwards that he knew he messed up. Unfortunately, it takes away from Ronda's accomplishment. And the bottom line is that Sarah wasn't getting out of that armbar so it would have been over a few seconds later anyway. Ronda said afterwards that her next fight will be in November. The fight will be at 145lbs. Ronda says she will not drop to 135. She doesn't think she can cut to 135 safely. And she's ripped already. The problem Strikeforce has is 145 has a small pool of fighters. And I haven't seen anyone other than Cris Cyborg who might be able to handle Ronda's quickness. Strikeforce has Julia Budd and Germaine de Randamie under contract. And of course there's Gina Carano but remember Scott Coker said he plans to have Gina drop to 135. Amanda Nunes has a 135lb fight against Alexis Davis on Sept. 10. Others in the 145lb weight class include Shana Olsen, Yoko Takahashi, Romy Ruyssen and HIROKO. And don't forget Olympic alumni Sara McMann and Randi Miller. But the fighter that I like is Cris Cyborg's Chute Boxe teammate Jennifer Maia. Jennifer started out with a 3-0 record as a boxer and then switched to MMA and has a 4-0-1 record. In Brazil she is called the new Cris Cyborg. She could be a very interesting test for Ronda. Enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Anna Nalick

Artist:Anna Nalick
Song:Breathe (2AM)
Album:Wreck Of The Day: Expanded Edition





Singer songwriter Anna Nalick was a college student who came out of nowhere to score a Gold record in 2005 with Wreck Of The Day and a hit single with Breathe. Then she seemed to fall off the face of the earth. She is currently on the comeback trail. She was born Mar. 30, 1984 in Glendora, CA. Her grandparents were Broadway performers so she was exposed to all kinds of music. But she has acknowledged Tori Amos as a major influence. She was attending college in 2004 and gave a demo to one of her professors. It landed in the hands of former Blind Melon members Christopher Thorn and Brad Smith who were just starting a production company. Anna was a big Blind Melon fan. They brought in producer Eric Rosse. He is best known for producing Tori Amos and seems to specialize in producing female singer songwriters. Anna signed with Columbia Records and her debut CD Wreck Of The Day was released in 2005. The album reached #20 on the Billboard Hot 200 and was certified Gold. The single Breathe only reached #45 on the Billboard Hot 100. But the video was in heavy rotation on Vh1 and the song appeared in an episode of the TV series Gray's Anatomy and the 2006 film A Lot Like Love starring Ashton Kutcher. I'm sure Gray's Anatomy drove a lot of album sales. The expanded edition of Wreck Of The Day is available as a budget CD. So she's on her way to a long career, right? Wrong. Anna was recording her second album to be called Broken Doll. The single Shine was released in 2008. But then Columbia shelved the album and dropped her. Obviously she butted heads with label management. Apparently Anna was able to get the masters back from Columbia and has released the CD Broken Doll & Odds and Ends last week on her own label. She is working on a new CD wth Taylor Swift's producer Nathan Chapman and plans to release it later this year. So at least Anna Nalick is out there again. I think it's doubtful that she can return to the heights of Wreck Of The Day. But I also think she is a talent worth checking out. Here's the video for Breathe (2AM) by Anna Nalick. This video doesn't seem to be on Youtube.

Anna Nalick - Breathe (2 AM) by ddi94

Serena Deeb vs Kana set for SMASH Divas Championship tournament final

Kana wins over Syuri

Yesterday SMASH had the Divas Championship semi finals on their Korakuen Hall show. A couple of other news items were announced during the show. First, it was announced that Makoto will officially leave Ice Ribbon and join SMASH full time. Ice Ribbon owner Sakura Emi was there just so fans know that she approved of the move. TAJIRI has been pushing her to allow this. It's just another sign that Ice Ribbon is more training ground than a legit joshi fed. Emi seems satisfied with that. Also, Ayumi Kurihara announced that she will make her SMASH debut on the Sept. 10 show alongside the tournament final. An opponent is TBA but I would expect her to challenge the winner of the tournament final. She also declared herself the number one idol wrestler, a title she was given by a couple of men's magazines. Of course she was booed by Syuri fans so maybe Syuri will be her opponent. Some of her dopey fans got annoyed with me when I said she is more dancer than wrestler. God forbid I should criticize anyone for anything. She's been around the business long enough that she needs to improve and she hasn't. And her character is pathetic. The bottom line is she had the opportunity to be the ace of SMASH and that won't happen now or probably ever unless she improves her ring work. Too many of her moves are dance moves, not wrestling moves. So she had her semi final match against Kana. Kana has tormented her lately about her lack of improvement and her whining and crying. The match went as expected and Kana won with her chicken wing sleeper that she has been using. Earlier, Serena won over Makoto with the spear. So after her win, Kana confronted Serena. It should be a pretty good match. Kana hasn't had much luck in her matches against Serena which indicates that she will probably win this belt. Here's hoping she wins with a very evil finish that turns her into a major league heel. And then she brings the belt to SHIMMER in October and maybe a title defense. How would you like that?

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Chalk Circle

Artist:Chalk Circle
Song:April Fool
Album:20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: The Best Of Chalk Circle





Not to be confused with the early 80s punk band from Washington, DC also called Chalk Circle, this Chalk Circle had some success in their native Canada in the late 80s. April Fool was their biggest hit in 1987. But their music was never released outside Canada. This is more common than you might think because Canadian radio stations are regulated to play 30% Canadian content. Sometimes music is played that they normally wouldn't play. When you listen to Chalk Circle, you might think they're British. The influence is obvious. But they are actually from Newcastle, ON which is east of Toronto. Lead singer and guitarist Chris Tait and bassist Brad Hopkins had a band called The Casualties in 1982. After 1984 personnel changes, they were called The Reactors and then New Edition. Obviously they couldn't use that name so they got Chalk Circle from the Bertolt Brecht play The Caucasian Chalk Circle. The other band members were Ted Winklarz on keyboards and Derrick Murphy on drums. They started playing in Toronto, recorded a demo and won the 1985 CASBY for Most Promising Non Recorded Group. The CASBYs were awards presented by local alternative music radio station CFNY. They signed with Duke Street Records in 1986. This was a small label and they only released Canadian music in Canada. Bands had to sign their own deals elsewhere. Duke Street closed in 1994. April Fool was from Chalk Circle's 1986 EP The Great Lake produced by former Blue Peter leader Chris Wardman. The song reached #21 on the Canadian Singles chart. Chalk Circle recorded two more albums and were reasonably successful in Canada. But it wasn't enough and Chris Tait left and they split up in 1990. You can get all their hits on this Universal Canada comp. Tait formed the short lived group Big Faith and currently writes jingles. Though Chalk Circle was only known in Canada, I think 80s Brit-pop fans might enjoy their music. Here's the video for April Fool by Chalk Circle.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Gene

Artist:Gene
Song:Sleeps Well Tonight
Album:As Good As It Gets: The Best Of Gene





Despite constant comparisons to The Smiths, Gene had some success mostly in England. They never had a top ten single but the 1995 album Olympian was a top ten album in England. Fans of Brit-pop should check them out. Bassist John Mason and drummer Matt James were members of the group Spin. They released a couple of singles in 1990. A 1991 car accident left Mason in a coma for 11 days and the group's lead singer quit the band. After briefly quitting music to become a writer, Mason and James started working together again and recruited Kevin Miles to play bass. Mason moved to guitar. So now they need a singer. Mason met Welshman Martin Rossiter in a club and invited him to try out. They were going to use the name Spin but decided to change it to Gene. They released a 1994 single on a label owned by a couple of New Musical Express writers. The resulting press and positive response to live shows got them a contract with Polydor Records. Sleep Well Tonight was the first single from their 1995 debut CD Olympian. It reached #36 on the British Singles chart but the album reached #8 on the British Album chart. Gene toured the US and Olympian wasd released on A & M Records but they didn't make any impact. They went back to England and added keyboard player Julian Wilson. Their next couple of albums did well. But then they took a break in 1998. When they returned, the 1999 album Revelations was not received well and resulted in Polydor dropping Gene. They continued to tour and released the 2001 album Libertine on their own Sub Rosa label. They were doing OK but the group felt they were in a rut and split up in 2004. You can get all their hits on this comp. Martin Rossiter is a member of Call Me Jolene. Gene is worth checking out. Here's the video for Sleep Well Tonight by Gene. This video is not on Youtube.

Gene - Sleep Well Tonight

Jorge | Myspace Video

RENA's opponent named for Aug. 19 SHOOT BOXING show

RENA, Zaza Sor Aree

Today SHOOT BOXING announced RENA's opponent for the Aug. 19 show at SHIBUYA-AX. So why didn't they announce this at Monday's press conference? Obviously they wanted to concentrate on the tournament. And RENA wasn't at the press conference. She lives in Osaka. There is still no explanation why she isn't in the tournament. Her opponent is 16 year old WPMF Women's Flyweight Champ Zaza Sor Aree. SHOOT BOXING fans should be familiar with Zaza as she was in the 2010 S-Girls Cup tournament and lost her first round match to Kate Martinez. She also lost to Ai Takahashi on the Feb. 19, 2011 SHOOT BOXING show. Her father was also a fighter and she trains at his gym in Bangkok. Her ring name is based on his ring name. Her Muay Thai record is 33-5 and apparently she sings too. So she's young and cute and maybe she can fight a little bit. What more do you want? Never mind.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Buggles

Artist:Buggles
Song:Video Killed The Radio Star
Album:Pure 80's





Video Killed The Radio Star was the first video played when MTV started in 1981. It's a very appropriate choice because the song is about the death of radio in England. The song became the first hit spawned by MTV though it only reached #40 on the Billboard Hot 100. The guys behind the song were British studio musicians. Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes met when they were part of the touring band for British pop singer Tina Charles in 1977. Horn met Bruce Woolley when he was house bassist at the Hammersmith Odeon. Horn wanted to be a record producer but he was having problems finding decent songs and bands. So the three formed Buggles. The original name of the group was The Bugs and they changed it to Buggles as a goof on The Beatles. Though Video Killed The Radio Star is credited to all three, Horn says he wrote the words and Woolley wrote the music. Buggles signed with Island Records. But Woolley left and recorded Video Killed The Radio Star with his new group Camera Club. It was unsuccessful and that group was short lived. The Buggles version of Video Killed The Radio Star was released in England in 1979 and topped the British charts. You can get the song on this Universal various artists comp. Then they had to record an album. The Age Of Plastic was released in 1980. By the time MTV played Video Killed The Radio Star in 1981, all three guys went on to other things. Horn and Downes replaced Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman in Yes and Woolley tried to keep Camera Club together. Horn and Downes reunited to record a second Buggles album. When Yes didn't work out, Downes founded Asia with John Wetton and still leads them today. Horn and Woolley have both had long careers as producers. Horn's first hit album was The Lexicon Of Love by ABC in 1982 and he has had plenty of other hits. Woolley first had success producing Frankie Goes To Hollywood and Grace Jones. They are still producers today. Here's the video for Video Killed The Radio Star by Buggles.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-8th Day

Artist:8th Day
Song:She's Not Just Another Woman
Album:Soul Train 1971





Here's a great song from the Holland Dozier Holland post Motown label Invictus Records. It was a top 20 hit in 1971. It's a very peculiar story. 8th Day was a studio concoction and not a real group. You all remember 100 Proof (Aged In Soul) and their hit Somebody's Been Sleeping In My Bed. The lead singer of the group was Steve Mancha (real name-Clyde Wilson). So the song is charging up the charts and would reach #8 on the Billboard Hot 100. She's Not Just Another Woman was a track on the 100 Proof album. When Invictus saw that DJs liked the song and started playing it, they didn't want to disrupt the momentum of Somebody's Sleeping In My Bed. So She's Not Just Another Woman was released under the group name 8th Day. It reached #11 on the Billboard Hot 100. But there was no group. So they put together a group of studio musician to record an 8th Day album. The follow up single You've Got To Crawl reached #29 on the Billboard Hot 100. 8th Day faded after that. The lead singer was Invictus solo artist Melvin Davis. Others included Ron Bykowski of Funkadelic and future jazz musician Lyman Woodard. You can get She's Not Just Another Woman on this Soul Train budget various artists comp from Rhino. It's certainly a very strange story but it's a great song and sometimes hits come from odd places. Here's a video for She's Not Just Another Woman by 8th Day.

Winter is the new TNA Knockouts Champion

So last night TNA had two Knockouts matches on the Hardcore Justice PPV. Was that a good thing? The problem was neither match was PPV quality. Both were suitable for the average episode of Impact. Winter won the TNA Knockouts Championship from Mickie James. For one thing, these two don't seem to have any chemistry. Winter is a trained wrestler. But you wouldn't know it watching this match. I believe TNA is telling her to dumb down her wrestling to sell the Winter character. The match goes south with Angelina Love's interference. And ref Earl Hebner messed up a couple of times and it seemed to affect the girls' timing. Winter channels The Great Muta to win the match. The stupid overbooking killed this match. Late last week, TNA added Tara & Miss Tessmacher defending the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Championship against the phony Mexicans Sarita & Rosita. So most fans probably didn't know this match was on the show. Tara & Miss Tessmacher start with a terrible promo where Tara refers to Miss Tessmacher by her real name. I'm sure most fans don't even remember how the Miss Tessmacher character started in TNA. She went away for a few months so I don't know why they don't use her real name Brooke Adams. They obviously like her because she's hot but she's a very inexperienced wrestler. Like the other match, it was not PPV quality and was better suited for an episode of Impact. Rosita is one of the worst female wrestlers I have ever seen. I know some liked her as Davina Fly in indy feds but she has shown me nothing in TNA. I think she's too small and I don't think she can wrestle. Or TNA doesn't want her to be good. The match was nothing special. Several fans have asked me if either Gail Kim or Melina are coming to TNA now that they have left the WWE. I could see TNA being interested in Melina. I've never liked her. She's a mediocre wrestler and is known to be a backstage nuisance. First, Gail Kim was not released. She quit and PW Insider reported today that the WWE is trying to get her to return. She was very unhappy so it's doubtful that she will return to the WWE. I think TNA will have to pay to get her to return. She's getting married to Food Network chef Robert Irvine so unless the money is right, I could see her retiring. She doesn't need to kill herself for nothing. Who needs the aggravation? BTW, Gail met Irvine on a WWE themed episode of Dinner Impossible. It must have been love at first sight because she was making goo goo eyes at him. Enjoy the videos!
TNA Hardcore Justice 2011-Mickie James vs Winter... by fly2galaxy
Tara (Victoria) & Miss Tessmacher vs... by Jokerwilds

Ai Takahashi out of SHOOT BOXING 2011 S-Girls Cup

Ai Takahashi

SHOOT BOXING held a press conference today at the J-POP Cafe to announce the complete lineup and brackets for the 2011 S-Girls Cup. Unfortunately, the lead story is not a good one. You may recall that a first round match announced for the tournament was SHOOT BOXING Women's Champ Ai Takahashi against teen kickboxing champ Erika Kamimura. It was billed as a super fight. Sadly, that fight has been cancelled. Ai Takahashi suffered a broken orbital bone in her left eye during training. SHOOT BOXING owner Takeshi Caesar said he hopes Takahashi will return in November but she's out of this show. It was also announced that two time S-Girls Cup champ RENA will be on the show but not in the tournament. Her opponent will be announced later. A reason for this was not given. Very odd. They decided to set the first round matchups by random draw and announce the other fighters who will participate. The first match will have veteran MMA fighter Emi Fujino vs Korean fighter Ham Seo Hee. Fujino has been doing a lot of kickboxing for J-Girls lately and was a recent TKO victim of Erika Kamimura. Ham has probably got a shot to win the whole thing as she is a great kickboxer. The second match will have former VALKYRIE champ VV Mei vs MINA who is a J-Girls kickboxer. The third match will have veteran fighter WINDY Tomomi vs Miyo Yoshida. WINDY is another great kickboxer and could win this tournament. Yoshida's MMA record is 1-2. And the fourth match will have teen kickboxing champ Erika Kamimura vs Kanako Oka who is a J-Girls kickboxer. In the semis, the winner of VV Mei vs MINA will face the winner of Ham vs Fujino. And the winner of WINDY vs Yoshida will face the winner of Kamimura vs Oka. Then the final. It's all happening Aug. 19 at SHIBUYA-AX.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Laura Branigan

Artist:Laura Branigan
Song:Gloria
Album:The Best Of Branigan





Laura Branigan had a monster worldwide hit with her adaptation of the Italian hit Gloria. She had several more hits in the 80s. She retired from music in the 90s but returned to touring until her 2004 death. She was born July 3, 1957 in Brewster, NY. She attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City and then toured as a backup singer for Leonard Cohen for most of the 70s. She signed with Atlantic Records in 1979 but she changed management and the resulting lawsuit delayed her recording career for a couple of years. She did record an album but it was shelved after a couple of singles flopped. Her debut album Branigan was released in 1982 and Gloria reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was a huge worldwide hit. It also appeared in the 1983 hit film Flashdance. I think it's fair to say that it's Laura Branigan's signature song. Gloria was written and originally recorded by Italian singer songwriter Umberto Tozzi. He recorded it as a love song. German producer Jack White (real name-Horst Nussbaum) suggested the song to Laura. He hired Canadian songwriter Trevor Veitch to write English lyrics that had nothing to do with the original song. Veitch was the guy behind Toni Basil's Mickey. White and co-producer Greg Mathieson attempted to record Gloria mid-tempo but found it worked better as a dance track. Jack White produced several of Laura's hits including her other big hit Self Control. He also produced David Hasselhoff among others. Laura Branigan had several 80s hits which you can get on this budget comp. She faded when she switched producers in 1987 and never could recreate the magic of Gloria. Laura quit the music business in 1994 when her lawyer husband Larry Kruteck was diagnosed with cancer. After his 1996 death, Laura returned to touring. She was a big draw in Europe. She died of a brain aneurysm on Aug. 26, 2004 at age 47. Here's the video for Gloria by Laura Branigan.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Originals

Artist:The Originals
Song:Baby, I'm For Real
Album:The Very Best Of The Originals





The Originals were hanging around Motown without much success until Marvin Gaye wrote and produced the 1969 top twenty hits Baby. I'm For Real and The Bells. But Originals group leader Freddie Gorman had a long history going back to the early days of Motown. In 1957, he and pal Brian Holland led The Fideletones. They recorded a single for Aladdin and split up in 1959. Gorman went back to his job as a mailman. He met Berry Gordy and reunited with Holland to write the Marvelettes hit Please Mr. Postman. Unfortunately Gorman was squeezed out when Holland brought in his brother Eddie Holland and Lamont Dozier. In 1964, Gorman wrote The Reflections hit (Just Like) Romeo and Juliet for Golden World Records. But Gorman returned to Motown when Gordy bought Golden World in 1965. He joined The Originals which was supposed to be led by former Contours lead singer Joe Stubbs. He was the brother of Four Tops lead singer Levi Stubbs. He left The Originals to go solo. The rest of The Originals C.P. Spencer, Hank Dixon and Walter Gaines were members of The Voice Masters and had been backup singers since the early days of Motown. So The Originals recorded and continued to sing backup but couldn't get a hit until Marvin Gaye took an interest in them. He was trying to prove to Gordy that he could produce his own music so he wrote Baby, I'm For Real with his wife Anna (Berry Gordy's sister) and it topped the R & B Singles chart and reached #14 on the Billboard Hot 100. The Bells was a top twenty pop hit as well. C'P. Spencer left and was replaced by Ty Hunter when The Originals moved to Los Angeles with Motown in 1972. They didn't have any success after that. Even working with Lamont Dozier didn't help. The Originals left Motown in 1978 and split up in 1981 when Ty Hunter died. You can get all their hits on this budget comp. C.P. Spencer died in 2004 and Freddie Gorman died in 2006. But Hank Dixon tours the oldies circuit with a version of The Originals with his daughter Terrie Dixon, Freddie Gorman's son Dillon Gorman and Gene Chandler's son DeFrantz Forrest. Here are The Originals performing Baby' I'm For Real on the TV show Upbeat! 1969.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Bell & James

Artist:Bell & James
Song:Livin' It Up (Friday Night)
Album:Disco Nights





Here's a great song that was a top 20 pop hit and a top ten R & B hit for the duo Bell & James. They never had another big hit but have been writing songs and playing sessions for years. They come by that honestly. Drummer Leroy Bell is the nephew of legendary Philly Soul producer Thom Bell. He and guitarist Casey James were in the band Special Blend. When the group split up, they started working together and signed a songwriting deal with Mighty Three Music which was owned by Thom Bell, Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. Several of their songs were recorded by others including Elton John's top ten hit Mama Can't Buy Me Love. They signed with A & M Records and Livin' It Up reached #15 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1978. They only recorded two albums and then they went back to session work. Their recordings aren't available but you can get Livin' It Up on this various artists comp. This CD was originally released by K-Tel in 2006. I don't normally recommend K-Tel comps because they sometimes don't use original versions of the songs. But Collectors Choice acquired this title in 2009 for their Micro Werks label and changed the contents of the CD. The cover on Amazon is the old K-Tel cover. The new cover has no mention of K-Tel and now has original versions of the songs. Leroy Bell has recorded several solo albums but Bell & James have recorded with Elton John, The O'Jays and Chuck Mangione among others. Here's a video for Livin' It Up (Friday Night) by Bell & James.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Gene Kelly

Artist:Gene Kelly
Song:Singin' In The Rain
Album:Singin' In The Rain: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack





Who was the better dancer, Fred Astaire or Gene Kelly? Of course they were different. Astaire was a tap dancer and Kelly was a ballet dancer. Both were huge stars and Singin' In The Rain may be Kelly's most beloved performance. He was born Aug. 23, 1912 in Pittsburgh and Kelly started teaching dance while attending college at his own dance studio. In 1938, he went to New York to establish himself as a choreographer. After a couple of hit shows including Pal Joey, Kelly signed with David O. Selznick and went to Hollywood in 1941. Ultimately his contract was sold to MGM. His 1942 film debut For Me And My Gal did well enough that producer Arthur Freed used him in other films. MGM loaned Kelly to Columbia for the 1944 film Cover Girl co-starring Rita Hayworth. Freed saw enough to start letting Kelly do his own choreography. His dance routine with the cartoon mouse Jerry in the 1945 film Anchors Aweigh won Kelly a Best Actor Oscar nomination. He also got to work with Fred Astaire in Ziegfield Follies before going into the service. When he returned, he floundered a bit until Freed let him direct On The Town in 1948. It was a huge hit and Kelly and co-director Stanley Donen did several more films together including Singin' In The Rain. Because the film was about the early days of talkies in Hollywood, it allowed Freed to use the MGM song catalog. Betty Comden and Adolph Green wrote the script with that in mind. Singin' In The Rain was written in the 20s by Freed and Nacio Herb Brown. It first appeared in The Hollywood Revue of 1929, the kind of standard hodgepodge musical that MGM produced for most of the 30s. Singin' In The Rain was performed by Cliff Edwards AKA Ukelele Ike AKA Jiminy Cricket along with The Brox Sisters. Jimmy Durante performed the song in the 1932 film Speak Easily and Judy Garland performed it in the 1940 film Little Nellie Kelly. One of the myths of Kelly's performance of Singin' In The Rain is that he filmed it in one take. The scene was filmed over three days. The soundtrack is available from Rhino as a budget release and there is also a 2CD deluxe edition. After Kelly's success with Singin' In The Rain and An American In Paris, he declined in the 50s. Musicals were losing steam anyway. Gene Kelly continued to do all kinds of film and TV until his death on Feb. 2, 1996 at age 83. He was one of the greatest musical performers in  Hollywood history and an innovative choreographer. Here's Gene Kelly performing Singin' In The Rain in the 1951 film Singin' In The Rain.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Cole Porter

Artist:Cole Porter
Song:You're The Top
Album:It's De Lovely: The Authentic Cole Porter Collection





There will always be constant debate over whether Cole Porter or Irving Berlin was the greater songwriter. Both had a lot of success in the 30s. You're The Top is one of his most popular songs. And he is performing it on this recording. He was born June 9, 1891 in Peru, IN. His maternal grandfather J.O. Cole was the richest man in Indiana. He wanted Porter to become a lawyer and sent him to the best schools. When Porter went into music, his mom kept it from Grandpa. He went to France during WWI and settled in Paris and married rich divorcee Linda Lee Thomas. It was a marriage of convenience as she knew he was gay. Porter continued to write while living off her money. He didn't have much success until he wrote the show Paris in 1928. The songs included Let's Misbehave and Let's Do It. Eventually Hollywood came calling and Porter was hired to write for movie musicals. You're The Top is from the 1934 Broadway musical Anything Goes, considered by many to be Porter's greatest work. Porter liked to make lists in his songs and You're The Top is a good example of that. Plenty of familiar references. Paul Whiteman had a top five hit with You're The Top. This recording by Porter was a demo. When the 2004 Porter biopic De-Lovely was produced, they used this recording on the soundtrack with a new orchestral arrangement by Vince Giordano. RCA released this CD in conjunction with the film. Porter himself sings You're The Top and Anything Goes and the rest of the CD has Porter songs performed by various artists. A 1937 accident made Porter an invalid and he had limited success in the 40s but roared back in the 50s with Kiss Me Kate. His success continued until failing health led to his death on Oct. 15, 1964 at age 73. Obviously many Cole Porter songs are performed today and his influence is immeasurable. Here's a video for You're The Top by Cole Porter.

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Nanae Takahashi wins World Of STARDOM Championship

I have two match videos today. First is the World Of STARDOM Championship tournament semi final with Yoko Bito vs Mika Nagano and then the final with Nanae Takahashi vs Yoko Bito. Mika Nagano is attempting to do MMA and a full schedule with STARDOM. Megumi Yabushita is the only joshi wrestler to ever do that and she still does it today. The pro wrestling schedule makes it very hard to do both and Nagano has admitted that it's hard. STARDOM does give her time off when she has a fight coming up. One might think that Nagano's amateur wrestling experience might give her an edge but her pro wrestling inexperience is obvious in this match. Bito is so green that she needs someone to carry her and Nagano can't do that. Both girls are in Fuuka style costumes. The match itself is bad. Bito only seems capable of kicks and Nagano isn't much better. There's no flow. It just shows that you can't put two greenhorns in the ring and expect the match to be good. And the ending was botched when Nagano got her shoulder up. Maybe she was unhappy doing the job. I expected the final to be better because Takahashi has carried greenhorns for years. She tried but Bito doesn't have enough training to look good. Her punches are weak. She did a very sloppy German suplex. They even had her do a modified piledriver. It's not a move she should be doing. I thought Takahashi let her have way too much offense and the quality of the match reinforces what I said last week. Mercedes Martinez in the final would have delivered a much better match with Takahashi. It's very poor booking. Enjoy the videos!

Zuffa releases Marloes Coenen in Golden Glory purge

Golden Glory trainer Martijn DeJong announced this morning on his Twitter that Marloes Coenen, Valentyn Overeem and Jon Olav Einemo were released by Zuffa. This is obviously related to last week's release of Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem and is designed to send a message to Golden Glory and M-1 Global about how Zuffa wants to do business. Both companies are promoters mostly in Europe but M-1 has done shows in the US. Both companies want to be paid by Zuffa and then pay the fighters. I assume this is for tax reasons but I'm not an accountant and I don't play one on TV. Zuffa wants to pay the fighters directly. BTW, this is the reason they never signed Fedor Emilianenko and why Fedor and other M-1 fighters will be gone from Zuffa. And I fully expect Golden Glory's Sergei Kharitanov to be released if he loses to Josh Barnett on Sept. 10. Marloes Coenen still has value so normally she should be kept around. But considering the relationship between Zuffa and Golden Glory is not friendly, her release is not surprising to me. Keep in mind that Cris Cyborg is signing a new deal. Chute Boxe may have handled the negotiations but the contract is with Cris. So keep the histrionics to a minimum. This is not about women's MMA. This is Zuffa telling certain people how they want to do business. This is not an issue with fighters in the North America, Asia or Brazil. This is only an issue in Europe.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Shep & The Limelites

Artist:Shep & The Limelites
Song:Daddy's Home
Album:The Best Of The Heartbeats including Shep & The Limelites





Daddy's Home was a top five hit for Shep & The Limelites in 1961. Some of you are no doubt familiar with Jermaine Jackson's 1973 cover but this is the original. So you might wonder why the featured CD is by The Heartbeats. They had a hit in 1956 with A Thousand Miles Away. James "Shep" Sheppard was the lead singer and songwriter for both groups. The songs are so similar that Sheppard was successfully sued by the publisher of A Thousand Miles Away. The Heartbeats split up in 1959 after Sheppard passed out during a show in Philadelphia. So he opened a restaurant and sang on the side. He met a couple of his old doo wop buddies and they formed Shane Sheppard & The Limelites and then Shep & The Limelites. Those two buddies were Clarence Bassett of The Five Sharps and Charles Baskerville of The Videos. Bassett had also been in The Videos. Sheppard returned to The Heartbeats label Hull Records and owner Bea Caslin signed them up. Daddy's Home reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1961. Some of their other songs charted but the group faded and split up in 1966. Then the publishing company of A Thousand Miles Away successfully sued Hull Records as they thought Daddy's Home was too similar to A Thousand Miles Away and Hull closed. You can get hits by The Heartbeats and Shep & The Limelites on this Rhino comp. Sheppard planned to reform Shep & The Limelites when he was found shot to death in his car on the Long Island Expressway on Jan. 24, 1970. Baskerville died in 1995. Bassett toured the oldies circuit with a reformed Limelites until his 2005 death. Here's The Limelites performing Daddy's Home on a PBS doo wop special.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Robbie Dupree

Artist:Robbie Dupree
Song:Steal Away
Album:The Best Of Blue Eyed Soul





The 1980 top ten hit Steal Away was the biggest hit for singer songwriter Robbie Dupree. A couple of his other songs charted but most will only remember Steal Away. It's an example of Blue Eyed Soul and is frequently compared to Michael McDonald's Doobie Brothers hit What A Fool Believes. He was born Robert Dupuis Dec. 23, 1946 in Brooklyn, NY and started out singing in street corner doo wop groups. He played in New York clubs in the early 70s with Chic's Nile Rodgers. He moved to Woodstock for a few years to work on his songwriting and then moved to Los Angeles in 1978 to land a record contract. He got together with bassist Rick Chudacoff and drummer Peter Bunetta and the three wrote and produced Steal Away on Elektra Records. Chudacoff and Bunetta had a long association with producer Lester Abrams and had been a part of the mid 70s Blue Eyed Soul group Crackin'. They released four albums. And Abrams arranged What A Fool Believes. So obviously a lot of these guys worked together in the LA studio scene. Chudacoff and Bunetta went on to produce all kinds of acts in the 80s including Matthew Wilder, Smokey Robinson and The Temptations. They still work with Dupree today. Steal Away reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1980. And though he is perceived as a one hit wonder, the single Hot Rod Hearts reached #15 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1981. You can get Steal Away on this Time Life various artists budget comp. Robbie Dupree has recorded occasionally without much success and has also produced music for others. He has worked a lot with keyboard player David Sancious in recent years. Sancious was an early member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band but is better known as a session musician. Sancious, Chudacoff and Bunetta all appear on Dupree's 2010 CD Time and Tide. Here's Robbie Dupree performing Steal Away on The Midnight Special 1980. This video is not on Youtube.

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Yuzuki Aikawa vs Yoshiko

Today's selection on Big Bad Blog Video Theater is Yuzuki Aikawa vs Yoshiko for the Wonder Of STARDOM Championship at last Sunday's Korakuen Hall. show. So if you're talking about wrestling, Nanae Takahashi is obviously the ace of STARDOM as she should be. But Aikawa is a different kind of ace. the 28 year old bikini model is supposed to be the new Fuuka. She's supposed to be a merchandise revenue generator. Like Fuuka, the wrestling is secondary. My problem with Fuuka was though she had the technical wrestling skills, she didn't care enough to be good. And she quit because she didn't like wrestling anyway. She wanted to be a model. That didn't work out very well. The hope is that Aikawa will learn to love wrestling but obviously it's not a prerequisite in STARDOM. The one thing Fuuka could do was kick and that's what they're concentrating on with Aikawa. It must be the easiest thing to learn. Yoshiko is playing a miserable heel who is jealous of Aikawa. The match itself was OK. It was what one would expect from greenhorns. It had rough patches but the crowd reacts to Aikawa like she is a star. The funniest thing is how Yoshiko punishes Aikawa's boobs and she overreacts to that. She acts like she's dying or something. Most joshi wrestlers don't have those boobs and none of them were bikini models. Yoshiko dominates the first part of the match and then Aikawa comes back and uses mostly kicks to win. The axe kick is her finisher. Obviously Takahashi taught her the Shining Wizard and I thought she did that OK. They're both very green and you can see how limited they are in the ring. But it wasn't horrible. We'll see how they progress. Afterwards, Aikawa posed with the trophy and the belt. That's what she's really good at. Enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Jimmy Buffett

Artist:Jimmy Buffett
Song:Margaritaville
Album:Songs You Know By Heart: Jimmy Buffett's Greatest Hit(s)





Margaritaville was Jimmy Buffett's biggest chart hit and is his signature song. After a failed attempt to break into the country music market, Buffett hit upon a mix of humour and and the breezy lifestyle of Key West to launch a multi faceted business. The music is just one part of the Parrothead lifestyle. He was born Dec. 25, 1946 in Pascagoula, MS and grew up in Mobile, AL. After graduating from the University Of Southern Mississippi with a bachelor's degree in history, he moved to Nashville to work for Billboard in 1969. But he had performed through college and wanted to get into music. He signed with Andy Williams' Barnaby label and the 1970 album Down To Earth was too folk for the country market. It didn't sell. Barnaby refused to release Buffett's second album and dropped him. Jerry Jeff Walker took Buffett to Key West and Buffett liked it so much that he moved there. Buffett signed with ABC/Dunhill and created this fun loving persona. A lot of the songs were supposed to be funny. It didn't really catch on until the more serious Come Monday reached #30 on the Billboard Hot 100. But with the 1977 album Changes in Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes and the single Margaritaville, Buffett launched the persona that still endures today. Margaritaville reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 an the album was certified Platinum. The Parrothead cult was born. Buffett continued to record for MCA after they bought ABC until 1999. But in the 80s, he became a monster live act mostly based on his earlier hits. You can get them all on this budget comp. He continues to record on his own Mailboat label and continues to be a strong live draw. He also owns two restaurant chains and has his own beer Landshark through Anheuser Busch. Jimmy Buffett is quite the cottage industry. Here's Jimmy Buffett performing Margaritaville late 70s.