Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Felice Herrig vs Alexa Grasso

Here's the match video of Felice Herrig vs Alexa Grasso from last night's UFC show in Houston. Alexa was unbeaten coming into this fight and she was heavily favoured. She has looked very good in all her fights. The only thing that has slowed her down has been injuries. She has star potential partially because she's Mexican and the UFC considers Mexico an emerging market. The problem with Felice is she is inconsistent. But I noticed that she is again working with former UFC and Bellator fighter Jeff Curran. She really seems to click with him. The problem with this fight is neither fighter is very effective. But Felice was slightly more effective and that's why she won the fight. Alexa simply didn't do enough. And if you saw her reaction after the decision was announced, she thought she won. And that means her corner told her that she was winning. That explains why Alexa showed no urgency in round three. I scored the fight 30-27 for Felice. And it's not like Felice was dominant. She eked out a win over an underperforming Alexa Grasso. I can't imagine why Alexa would fight that way. Hopefully she learned her lesson. Felice says she would like to fight either Michelle Waterson or Paige VanZant. Enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The O'Jays

Artist:The O'Jays
Song:Lovin' You
Album:The Box Set Series





Of course The O'Jays were one of the most popular R&B groups of the 70s. And though their last top ten pop hit was in 1978, they continued to score on the R&B charts in the 80s. Lovin' You topped the R&B chart in 1987. In their prime in the 70s. The O'Jays were Eddie Levert, Walter Williams and William Powell. Powell was diagnosed with cancer and he died in 1977. He was replaced by Sammy Strain of Little Anthony & The Imperials. Their final top ten pop hit was Use Ta Be My Girl in 1978. But The O'Jays continued to record with long time producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff at their label Philadelphia International. The label simply wasn't as successful in the 80s due to changing musical tastes. At some point in the 80s, Gamble and Huff moved Philadelphia International distribution from Columbia to Capitol/EMI. EMI wanted to show how much they wanted the label. So they spent more money on promotion. The 1987 album Let Me Touch You was The O'Jays most successful album since the 70s. The single Lovin' You topped the R&B Singles chart. It was at this point that Gamble and Huff closed Philadelphia International and The O'Jays signed directly with Capitol/EMI. The 1989 album Serious was the first O'Jays album since the 60s that wasn't produced by Gamble and Huff. Levert and Williams produced much of the album. The #1 R&B hit Have You Had Your Love Today? was produced by Eddie Levert's son Gerald Levert and partner Marc Gordon. And that's how things went until The O'Jays left EMI in 1993. This 2014 Sony Legacy budget 4CD box set is the only comp available that covers both Columbia and EMI recordings. Of course The O'Jays are still touring but their most recent CD was a Christmas album in 2010. They were inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005. Here's The O'Jays performing Lovin' You on The Late Show 1987.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Saint Tropez

Artist:Saint Tropez
Song:Femme Fatales
Album:The Best Of Saint Tropez: Fill My Life With Love




Saint Tropez may seem like Euro Disco especially since this 1982 song Femme Fatales is in French. And it also seems like a soundtrack to a murder mystery movie. But Saint Tropez is one of several disco groups produced in Los Angeles by Laurin Rinder and W. Michael Lewis. Rinder was already part of the Los Angeles studio scene in the 60s when he met Lewis at an audition. The two had a band for a while. Then they were hired by AVI Records co-owner Ed Cobb to record some disco remixes. Cobb was a member of The Four Preps and he became a producer after they split up. This led to a 1975 album released under the name El Coco. There was no group. The music was performed by Los Angeles studio musicians. But the music was successful enough especially in the dance market that they thought they could produce several anonymous disco acts. Among the group names were Le Pamplemousse and Saint Tropez. So they released two Saint Tropez albums on Butterfly Records owned by a friend AJ Cervantes. Saint Tropez scored two top ten dance hits. It sounded like Euro Disco so even fans of the music didn't know where it was produced. After two albums, Rinder and Lewis seemed to retire the Saint Tropez name. They continued to record El Coco and Le Pamplemousse. But then Cervantes started a new label Destiny Records and a new Saint Tropez album was recorded in 1982 called Hot and Nasty. Femme Fatales got some airplay in clubs. But it was probably too weird to be successful. This comp covers all the Saint Tropez recordings. Rinder and Lewis continued in the 80s and they are still around but not as active as they were in the 70s. Here's a video for Femme Fatales by Saint Tropez.

Gina Mazany in for injured Liz Carmouche at Feb. 19 UFC show

TSN reported this afternoon that Liz Carmouche is out of her match against Sara McMann on UFC Fight Night 105 Feb. 19 at the Scotiabank Center in Halifax. Gina Mazany has been brought in to replace her. Fans may recall that Gina appeared on the opening episode of TUF 18. She lost a qualifying match to Julianna Pena and didn't make the house. She then took three years off and returned with a win over Katie Halley on the May 18, 2016 Alaska Fighting Championship show in Anchorage. What's she doing in Alaska? Like Lauren Murphy, that's where she's from. She now trains at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas with her brother Dave Mazany who is the current EFC Lightweight Champion. Her record is 4-0 but that's since 2008. So she's had a couple of long periods of inactivity. She has also done pro wrestling working as a tag team with her brother.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Glenn Jones

Artist:Glenn Jones
Song:Here I Go Again
Album:Here I Go Again





Glenn Jones started out in gospel and he moved to secular music in the 80s. He had a good run on the R&B charts. Here I Go Again was his only number one R&B hit in 1992. He was born 1962 in Jacksonville, FL. Jones grew up singing in church and he was a member of the gospel group The Modulations. When jazz drummer Norman Connors made the move to R&B in the 70s, he was well known for giving singers their first break. He hired Jones to appear on the 1980 single Melancholy Fire. And when the song was a top 20 R&B hit, Jones went on tour with Connors. Then Jones signed with RCA in 1983. Show Me from his 1984 debut album Finesse reached #2 on the R&B Singles chart. That song was written and produced by La La who recorded a couple of albums but was mainly a songwriter producer. Jones recorded two albums for RCA and then moved to Jive. His 1987 single We've Only Just Begun reached #2 on the R&B Singles chart. It was produced by Timmy Allen of Atlantic Starr who was a Jive house producer. He recorded two albums for Jive and then moved to Atlantic. Here I Go Again was his first album for Atlantic in 1992. And it was also the first single. Jones topped the R&B Singles chart for the first time. Jones wrote and produced the song with Ray Watkins who had previously produced Meli'sa Morgan. Jones recorded two albums for Atlantic. The album Here I Go Again is available on CD. There was a comp but it is now out of print. It's tough to do a comp when a guy bounces around several labels. Since then Jones has recorded for smaller labels. His most recent album on Shanachie was released in 2006. He seems to still be active as a studio singer. Though Jones has a great voice, his hits probably weren't distinctive enough to be memorable. I think it's a result of recording for three labels in ten years and working with too many different producers. Here's the video for Here I Go Again by Glenn Jones.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Steve Holy

Artist:Steve Holy
Song:Brand New Girlfriend
Album:Best Of Steve Holy





Brand New Girlfriend was one of two number one country hits for Steve Holy in 2006. He still performs but he isn't recording right now. He was born Feb. 23, 1972 in Dallas the youngest of eight children. He entertained family and friends with his impersonation of Conway Twitty. After graduating high school, he toured with Johnny High's Country Music Revue. He was spotted by Wilbur Rimes who managed his daughter LeAnn Rimes. Rimes brought Holy to Nashville and got him a deal with Curb Records. Rimes produced Holy's 2000 debut CD Blue Moon. Good Morning Beautiful was the fourth single from the album. It topped the Country Singles chart and it was also a top 30 pop hit. Most of Holy's 2006 CD Brand New Girlfriend was produced by Lee Thomas Miller who is mainly a songwriter and occasional producer. The single Brand New Girlfriend topped the Country Singles chart. The song was written by veteran songwriters Jeffrey Steele and Shane Minor with radio promotion man Bart Allmand. Holy again worked with Miller on his 2011 CD Love Don't Run. It didn't perform as well as the other two albums. Waiting five years between releases usually means that folks forget about you. He left Curb and he moved back to Dallas. Curb released this budget comp in 2013. Holy hasn't recorded since then but he still performs. Holy says on his website he moved back to Dallas to spend more time with his daughters. It may be time for him to start his own label. Here's the video for Brand New Girlfriend by Steve Holy.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Paula Abdul

Artist:Paula Abdul
Song:Rush Rush
Album:Greatest Hits: Straight Up!





Paula Abdul was so popular from 1989-93 that I'm sure many fans don't realize she only recorded three albums and the last album was in 1995. Of course she's done plenty of other things to remain in the public eye. Rush Rush was the fifth of six consecutive number one hits. She was born June 19, 1962 in San Fernando, CA. Her mother was Canadian born concert pianist Lorraine Rykiss. Watching Gene Kelly in Singin' In The Rain inspired Paula to take dance lessons. After graduating high school, she joined the Los Angeles Lakers dance group The Laker Girls and she was head choreographer within a year. When some of The Jacksons saw her while attending a Laker game, she was hired to choreograph the video for Torture. Then she toured with them. Paula choreographed many music videos, most notably for Janet Jackson. She also worked in films and TV. So now she wants to be a singer though she doesn't have much of a singing voice. She signed with Virgin Records. The thinking is she could be coached to sing but her looks and dancing could carry her videos. Her debut album Forever Your Girl was released June 1988. It got off to a slow start. Straight Up! was the third single and it was Paula's first number one hit. The music video featuring Arsenio Hall was played constantly on MTV. This was followed by three more number one hits from Forever Your Girl. The album sold seven million copies. As we all know, it's always difficult to follow up when an debut album is that successful. For her 1991 album Spellbound, Paula worked mostly with Peter Lord of the R&B group The Family Stand. He was producing another Virgin act Aftershock and he heard Paula was looking for new songs. They clicked and Lord produced the whole album. Rush Rush was the first single and it topped the charts. The video was based on Rebel Without A Cause and it featured Keanu Reeves. The second single The Promise Of A New Day also topped the charts. Spellbound sold over three million copies. That was her final number one hit. Paula took time off to recover from bulimia. By the time she released the 1995 album Head Over Heels, she had been forgotten and the album didn't sell and there were no hit singles. This budget comp has all of her hits. She returned to choreography until she was named a judge for the TV show American Idol in 2002. She has appeared as a judge on several other shows. Most recently she was a judge on So You Think You Can Dance. Recently it was announced Paula would not be returning to the show as she is planning a concert tour. There has been talk that she has recorded an album but there are no details yet. It's doubtful she can return to the top of the charts after over a twenty year gap. Stranger things have happened. Here's the video for Rush Rush by Paula Abdul.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Gentle Giant

Artist:Gentle Giant
Song:Knots
Album:Three Friends/Octopus





Gentle Giant was a progressive rock group in the 70s. Their music was complex even for progressive rock. So though attempts to commercialize them were unsuccessful, they had a very strong cult following and they were also an excellent live band. The 1972 album Octopus is considered to be one of their best albums. Gentle Giant were from Portsmouth, England led by brothers Phil, Derek and Ray Shulman. Their father was a jazz trumpeter and he encouraged them to learn to play many instruments. They started out as an R&B group and by the mid-60s they were Simon Dupree and the Big Sound. They recorded for EMI and they scored a top ten hit in England with Kites in 1967. By this time EMI convinced them to record psychedelic music. But the Shulmans didn't like it and they recorded R&B as The Moles in 1968. Rumours surfaced that The Moles were actually The Beatles but it was then revealed that it was Simon Dupree and the Big Sound. The band disbanded and Gentle Giant was formed in 1970. The Shulmans brought in guitarist Gary Green and keyboard player Kerry Minnear and they kept drummer Martin Smith from the old band. Minnear turned out to be a key addition because he was a classically trained musician with a degree in composition from the Royal College of Music. He came with the musical sophistication that the Shulmans wanted. They signed with Vertigo Records and their second album Acquiring The Taste was the first to be critically acclaimed. And they began to be a live draw. Smith was replaced by Malcolm Mortimore. But he was injured in a motorcycle accident and John "Pugwash" Weathers replaced him. Gentle Giant signed a US record deal with Columbia. The albums Three Friends and Octopus were both concept albums. Octopus is short for "octo opus" because it was an eight part opus. Knots has a very intricate vocal arrangement. Today Octopus is considered to be Gentle Giant's best album. The British reissue label Beat Goes On has released Three Friends and Octopus on CD as a twofer. I think that works better for Gentle Giant than a greatest hits comp. They toured and then Phil Shulman left because he didn't like touring. Gentle Giant continued recording for Capitol and Chrysalis. Chrysalis unsuccessfully tried to commercialize Gentle Giant and the band hated the music. By 1979 they moved to Los Angeles to record their final album Civilian. They split up in 1980. Derek Shulman went into record company management first with PolyGram then as president of Roadrunner Records. He currently runs his own company. Ray Shulman became a producer for Echo & The Bunnymen among others. Phil Shulman became a teacher and owned a gift shop. Kerry Minnear runs Alucard Music and he manages Gentle Giant's recordings. The band has never completely reunited but there have been partial reunions. It's just hard to get all of them in one place at the same time. If you are a progressive rock fan and never checked Gentle Giant out, I suggest you do so. Here's Gentle Giant performing Knots 1974.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes

Artist:Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes f/Sharon Paige
Song:Hope We Can Be Together Soon
Album:The Ultimate Blue Notes



Of course most music fans should be familiar with the great Philly Soul sounds of Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes especially the songs featuring legendary soul singer Teddy Pendergrass. But by the mid-70s, Melvin knew that Pendergrass was going to go solo. So he went looking for a replacement. Hope We Can Be Together Soon features Sharon Paige. It topped the R&B charts. The song appears on the 1975 album To Be True. I don't have any bio info about Sharon so I can only assume that she was probably a backup singer at Philadelphia International. Pendergrass was demanding star billing and more money to stay with The Blue Notes. No doubt Melvin discussed the problem with producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff and they decided to try Sharon out on one song. Hope That We Can Be Together Soon topped the R&B Singles chart. Melvin is the main male singer on the record. Pendergrass does appear near the end of the record. On their next album Wake Up Everybody, the title song was a huge hit. But Sharon appeared on two songs on that album. Soon after Pendergrass left to go solo and he was replaced by David Ebo. Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes left Philadelphia International for ABC Records. Not long after MCA purchased ABC. At this point, Sharon became a regular member of the group until their final MCA album in 1980. Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes last recorded in 1984. But they continued to tour. And Sharon was a member of that touring group. It looks like she may have recorded solo once. But mainly she is known for this one hit song. Here's Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes featuring Sharon Paige performing Hope That We Can Ne Together Soon on Soul Train 1975 with guest host Richard Pryor.

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Asuka vs Billie Kay vs Peyton Royce vs Nikki Cross

Here's the match video of Asuka defending her NXT Women's Championship vs Billie Kay, Peyton Royce and Nikki Cross from last night's NXT Takeover in San Antonio. Readers of this blog will know that I don't like four way matches. But this match was about as good as you can get of this kind of match. The Aussies Billie and Peyton are doing a mean girls gimmick similar to LayCool. A couple of weeks ago they beat up Asuka in the parking lot. Asuka is really pissed and then Nikki gets involved. Nikki is part of Eric Young's Sanity. She's being portrayed as insane. Billie and Peyton know their opposition is dangerous so they need to isolate them. They succeed in doing this. After Nikki lays out Asuka with a neckbreaker to the floor, Billie and Peyton take Nikki to the announce table. As Nikki is about to dive onto them, they give her a suplex onto something and that's the last we see of Nikki. There was talk this morning that she might have been legit injured but I don't think that is true. So the Aussies go back to the ring to finish off Asuka. They almost do it but they waste way too much time. After two near falls, Asuka nails Peyton with a roundhouse kick, gets rid of Billie with a spinning head kick and another roundhouse kick finishes Peyton. Asuka is still your NXT Women's Champion. I thought the match was very entertaining and like I said, I don't usually like these kind of matches. And it also sets up programs with all three of Asuka's opponents. Also, Ember Moon called out Asuka on the pre-show. When asked about Ember afterwards in a backstage interview, Asuka said "She works here?". Asuka walks away smiling. Enjoy the video!
NXT TakeOver San Antonio: Asuka vs Billie Kay... by womenswrestlingvideos

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Valentina Shevchenko vs Julianna Pena

Here's the match video of Valentina Shevchenko vs Julianna Pena from last night's UFC show in Denver. This was the main event of the show and the winner gets a shot at UFC Bantamweight Champion Amanda Nunes. Sometimes on this blog, I talk about a fighter beating herself. This fight is a perfect example of that. Julianna was winning this fight and she made a really stupid mistake and that was it. She beat herself and she should be kicking herself all the way home to Chicago. I still think she's a better fighter than Valentina but one mental error cost her. Round one of this fight was pretty close but I scored it 10-9 for Julianna. I thought she did well in the clinch with knees. Valentina got a couple of takedowns but she did nothing with top position. Two of the three judges scored it the same. In round two, Julianna took Valentina down and started pounding on her. So Julianna was winning. With a minute left, she left her arm open and Valentina did what any fighter should do and that's take advantage of an opportunity. If that doesn't happen, Valentina is down two rounds and she's in a hole that would be difficult to crawl out of. Does this mean that Valentina is now a submission ace? No because she hadn't won by submission in over ten years back when she was fighting regionally in Russia. And in those days MMA was a sideline for her. It takes more than one win to change my perception of any fighter. But she deserves credit for being opportunistic. A lot of fighters would not have recognized what Julianna handed to her and the ending would have been much different. So now she gets a title shot. Of course Amanda beat her by unanimous decision last year. I could see Valentina winning if she survives round one. Meanwhile Amanda keeps yapping about fighting at Welterweight. Dana White has put the brakes on that. Of course many are happy that Julianna lost because she has a big mouth. She has all the physical tools. But I'm not surprised that a mental error led to a loss. It's the one thing she needs to work on. Time will tell. Enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-George Benson and Earl Klugh

Artist:George Benson and Earl Klugh
Song:Since You're Gone
Album:Collaboration





As a teenager, guitarist Earl Klugh appeared on a couple of George Benson albums. So when Klugh came to Warner Bros. in 1985, it's not surprising that they recorded an album together and headlined a tour. Klugh was 17 years old when he appeared on one song on Benson's 1972 album White Rabbit. He also played on Benson's 1973 album Body Talk. Klugh had previously appeared on Yusef Lateef's 1970 album Suite 16. He joined Benson's touring band in 1973 and this led to Klugh signing with Blue Note in 1976. From there, Klugh was very successful as a solo artist and also with pianist Bob James. Meanwhile, Benson came to Warner Bros. in 1976 and became a huge star with the album Breezin'. Klugh moved to Warner Bros. in 1985 so I'm sure they suggested to Benson that the two record together and tour. The 1987 album Collaboration was produced by Benson's long time producer Tommy LiPuma. The album was very successful as it topped the jazz charts and was certified Gold. And they went on a successful tour. The songs are mostly originals. Klugh wrote Since You're Gone. Apparently this was Benson's first all instrumental album in 11 years. Musicians are Greg Phillinganes on keyboards, James Newton Howard on synthesizer, Marcus Miller on bass, Harvey Mason Sr. on drums, Paulinho Da Costa on percussion and Paul Jackson Jr. on rhythm guitar. I'm sure Warners would have liked a second album from them. But with constant touring, it can be difficult to make things like that happen. Fans of both musicians should enjoy this album. Here's George Benson and Earl Klugh with Michael O'Neil on guitar, Barnaby Finch and Dave Garfield on keyboards, Stanley Banks on bass, Jeff "Tain" Watts on drums and Kate Markowitz on percussion performing Since You're Gone in Japan 1988.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Savage Garden

Artist:Savage Garden
Song:Truly Madly Deeply
Album:Truly Madly Completely: The Best Of Savage Garden




The Aussie duo Savage Garden only recorded two albums. But they scored two number one hits including Truly Madly Deeply. Savage Garden are from Brisbane, Australia. Daniel Jones plays guitar and keyboards. in 1993, he led the band Red Edge. He placed an ad in the newspaper looking for a new lead singer. Darren Hayes was attending university and had no experience. But he was the only one to respond to the ad. So he joined the band and the two started writing together. They split off and at first they called themselves Crush. But there was already a band with that name. So they called themselves Savage Garden from Anne Rice's The Vampire Chronicles. They sent out demos and signed with Roadshow Music which was a division of the film company Village Roadshow. They recorded with veteran producer Charles Fisher who had worked with Air Supply. When their first single I Want You was a hit in Australia, they signed an international deal with Columbia Records. I Want You was released in North America Feb. 1997 and it reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. Truly Madly Deeply did even better as it topped the charts. And the album Savage Garden was certified 7XPlatinum. So the album was a big success. Savage Garden recorded their 1999 album Affirmation in New York with Mariah Carey's producer Walter Afanasieff. It didn't do as well as the first album but it was certified 3XPlatinum. And the single I Knew I Loved You topped the Billboard Hot 100. But there was trouble in paradise. Hayes moved to New York and he wasn't planning to return to Australia. Jones stayed in Australia. That wasn't going to work. So they had split up already but they didn't acknowledge the split until late 2001. You can get all their hits on this budget comp. Hayes released his first solo CD Spin in 2002. He has had chart success mostly in Australia. He last recorded for Mercury Records Australia in 2011. Hayes lives in Los Angeles and he is trying to get into acting. It seems Jones didn't like fame. Jones owned his own record label for a while and then he quit the music business for real estate. He still lives in Australia. Here's the video for Truly Madly Deeply by Savage Garden.

Irene Aldana vs Katlyn Chookagian added to Apr. 8 UFC show

The UFC announced today that Irene Aldana vs Katlyn Chookagian has been added to UFC 210 at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, NY. As I have said before, I don't believe that Irene belongs in the UFC and she was brought in mainly to keep her teammate Alexa Grasso company. Irene lost to Leslie Smith in her UFC debut. I didn't see anything from Irene to make me change my mind. She's a striker with no power and she doesn't throw combinations. She needs to show me something in this fight. Katlyn won her UFC debut over Lauren Murphy but then she lost to Liz Carmouche. Liz sat on her for two rounds. She didn't look good in either fight. Part of her problem is she's normally a Flyweight and she is undersized at Bantamweight. So I don't know if she belongs in the UFC either. That's not a formula for a good fight.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Jermaine Stewart

Artist:Jermaine Stewart
Song:We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off
Album:Old School Volume 7





R&B singer Jermaine Stewart scored a top five pop hit with We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off in 1986. He had some other chart hits and he did very well in England. He was born Sept. 7, 1957 in Columbus, OH. His family moved to Chicago and that is where he went to high school. Stewart was a Soul Train dancer and he was friends with Jody Watley and Jeffrey Daniel. When Soul Train moved to Los Angeles, they all auditioned to be in Shalamar. They were the first act to sign with Soul Train's new record label Solar Records. Stewart was not selected to be in Shalamar but he did tour with them as a dancer. While on tour in England, Stewart met Culture Club bassist Mikey Craig who produced a demo for Stewart. That demo got Stewart a deal with Virgin Records in England and Arista in the US. Stewart recorded his 1984 album The Word Is Out in England with veteran British producer Peter Collins. The single The Word Is Out did very well on the dance chart. Stewart wrote all the songs on the album with Craig. For his 1986 album Frantic Romantic, Stewart was produced by Narada Michael Walden who was very hot at the time. He had just topped the charts with Whitney Houston's How Will I Know. We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off reached #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #2 on the British charts. The song was used on the TV series Miami Vice. Walden wrote the song with frequent collaborator Preston Glass. It would turn out to be Stewart's biggest hit. He recorded four albums for Arista. His music continued to do well in England. Then he left Arista for Reprise. He recorded an album in 1991 but it was never released. The British reissue label Cherry Red released Frantic Romantic on CD in 2010. But I think most fans will only want the one song and you can get it on this various artists budget comp. Stewart was recording a new album when he died of AIDS related liver cancer on Mar. 17, 1997 at age 39. His brother released those recordings on CD. We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off returned to the British charts in 2011 after it was used in a Cadbury commercial. Here's the video for We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off by Jermaine Stewart.
Jermaine Stewart- We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off (Released '86, Billboard #5) from Chris OBrien on Vimeo.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Raydio

Artist:Raydio
Song:You Can't Change That
Album:Greatest Hits





Raydio was the group led by Ray Parker Jr. before he had solo success with hits like Ghostbusters. Raydio scored three top ten hits including You Can't Change That in 1979. Parker was a session musician and sideman for Stevie Wonder, Rufus and Barry White before forming Raydio in 1977. The other members of Raydio were Arnell Carmichael, Jerry Knight and Vincent Bonham. Though it looks like the original plan was for these three guys to alternate lead vocals, it ended up that Parker and Carmichael did most of the singing. This no doubt annoyed the other two guys. Raydio signed with Arista and they released their debut album in 1978. Jack and Jill reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100. By the time the 1979 album Rock On was released, Knight and Bonham left. Knight signed with A&M and he released a solo album in 1980. He had success in the mid-80s as half of Ollie & Jerry with Ollie Brown. Carmichael remained and that's him trading lead vocals with Parker on You Can't Change That. It reached #9 on the Billboard Hot 100. For the 1980 album Two Places At The Same Time, the group name was changed to Ray Parker Jr. and Raydio. On this and the 1981 album A Woman Needs Love, other than Carmichael, Parker is using session musicians. The single A Woman Needs Love reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was at this point that Parker decided to end Raydio and become a solo artist. Carmichael remained as a backup singer. Parker remained on Arista so all of Raydio's hits are on Parker comps including Greatest Hits. There are three Ray Parker Jr. budget comps available. Here's the video for You Can't Change That by Raydio.

Pro wrestler Yoshiko to make MMA debut on Feb. 11 Road FC show

Road FC announced yesterday that pro wrestler Yoshiko will make her MMA debut on Road's Feb. 11 show at Chang Chun Gynasium in Seoul, Korea. Her opponent will be Chun Sun-Yoo. This will be at Open Weight. Most joshi puroresu fans are familiar with Yoshiko from her days in STARDOM and the infamous match where she seriously injured Act Yasukawa. Yasukawa was forced to retire and STARDOM fired Yoshiko and her trainer Nanae Takahashi. Of course as we all know Takahashi has started her own company SEAdLINNNG and not surprisingly, Yoshiko has returned to pro wrestling at SEAdLINNNG. I have never written about SEAdLINNNG or Yoshiko because I don't think she deserves to be a pro wrestler. Takahashi is equally responsible as Yoshiko's enabler. I am only writing about this because MMA fans asked me about Yoshiko. So why is she doing MMA? This looks to be Takahashi's idea. Takahashi has been dabbling in martial arts including the hybrid company SEI*ZA. So I am unsure if Yoshiko is just doing this to please her boss. I understand that Yoshiko is training at U-File. The big problem with Yoshiko as a fighter is the same problem she has as a wrestler. She's not an athlete. She's been a pro wrestler since 2001 and the only thing she's really good at is exhibiting heel behaviour. Her ring skills are mediocre at best. Also, she normally weighs 175lb. and I think she would have to lose some weight to get into good enough shape to last three rounds. As she looks now, I could see her running out of gas very quickly. She has a big size advantage over Chun. First, I love her nickname Zombie Girl. Her record is 0-1 and she lost to Ramona Pascual by first round TKO at the Nov. 19 IMPI FC show in China. This fight was at 135lb. I guess I could see Yoshiko sitting on her for three rounds. When told about Yoshiko beating of Yasukawa, Chun said that she hits back. Yoshiko has said nothing so I have no idea why she is trying MMA except possibly to please Takahashi. I don't see this match as being watchable.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Ram Jam

Artist:Ram Jam
Song:Black Betty
Album:The Very Best Of





Here's a 1977 one hit wonder that I'm sure you all remember. But who the hell was Ram Jam? Well, they only recorded two albums and Black Betty was a top 20 hit. It should have been much bigger. Ram Jam was from New York City. Guitarist Bill Bartlett was a member of The Lemon Pipers who had a big hit with Green Tambourine. When they split up, Bartlett formed the group Starstruck with other members of The Lemon Pipers. Starstruck released a cover of the Leadbelly classic Black Betty on their own label and it was a regional hit in the New York area. So you all remember the production team of Kasenetz-Katz who were behind a lot of 60s bubblegum hits. They heard Starstruck's Black Betty and they wanted to release it nationally. They thought it could be a big hit. Bartlett told them that Starstruck had disbanded. So they suggested he form a new band and they will release the record under the new name. So Bartlett formed Ram Jam with bassist Howie Blauvelt who was in The Hassles with Billy Joel, singer Myke Scavone who worked for Kasenetz-Katz and Pete Charles on drums. Ram Jam signed with Epic and Black Betty reached #18 on the Billboard Hot 100. It would have charted higher but the NAACP called for a boycott. The album Ram Jam didn't sell. Ram Jam recorded a second album Portrait of the Artist as a Young Ram. By then, Bartlett was replaced by Jimmy Santoro. That album didn't sell either and Ram Jam split up. Epic Germany released both albums on this budget CD. But you can also get Black Betty on plenty of various artists comps. The members of Ram Jam are still involved with music but nothing notable. They reformed to release the 1994 album Thank You Mam. Here's the video for Black Betty by Ram Jam.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Persuaders

Artist:The Persuaders
Song:Thin Line Between Love And Hate
Album:Thin Line Between Love And Hate





The Persuaders scored their biggest hit with Thin Line Between Love And Hate in 1971. They were formed in New York City in 1969 out of the ashes of other vocal groups. The lead singer was Douglas "Smokey" Scott. Other members were Willie Holland, James Barnes and Charles Stodghill. The Persuaders signed with Atco Records and were produced by Richard and Bobby Poindexter and Bobby's wife Jackie Members. They had previously worked with the O'Jays and Linda Jones in the 60s. They wrote and produced Thin Line Between Love And Hate. It topped the R&B Singles charts and it reached #15 on the Billboard Hot 100. It would turn out to be The Persuaders biggest hit. The single Love Gonna Pack Up (And Walk Out) was a top ten R&B hit. Both are on the budget reissue of the album Thin Line Between Love And Hate. Some fans may recall The Pretenders charted with their 1984 cover of Thin Line Between Love And Hate. The Persuaders were affected by personnel changes and though they didn't have much success, a couple of their songs were hits for others. They first recorded Some Guys Have All the Luck in 1973. Rod Stewart's 1984 cover was much bigger. They also recorded Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me in 1974 around the same time as Gladys Knight and the Pips. Gladys scored the hit version. The Persuaders faded by the late 70s. A couple of versions of the group still tour the oldies circuit. There are no original members in either group. Here's The Persuaders performing Thin Line Between Love And Hate on Soul Train 1971.

Sara McMann vs Liz Carmouche added to Feb. 19 UFC show

Today the UFC announced that Sara McMann vs Liz Carmouche has been added to UFC Fight Night 105 Feb. 19 at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, NS. This show will air on Fox Sports 1 in the US and TSN in Canada. Fans may recall that these two were supposed to face each other in Strikeforce in 2012. But Sara got hurt and then Zuffa closed Strikeforce and Liz got to fight Ronda Rousey for the inaugural UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship. Both fighters have had ups and downs in the UFC. But right now both are on two fight winning streaks. But I think Sara has beaten a higher level of competition. She got a big win on Dec. over Alexis Davis by second round rear naked choke. Sara's success depends on her level of aggression. Sometimes she's passive and that has cost her in the past. In her last fight, Liz beat Katlyn Chookagian by split decision. Neither fighter performed well. So I expect Sara to be the favourite. But both have given away fights in the past. I guess the big question is who wants it more.