06/20:  Song of the Day.  Maceo Parker–Shake Everything You’ve Got

I had a really good friend in college that from time to time would drop an album in my lap that he really thought I needed to hear.  Turns out he was right every single time.  As I scan through my music collection I sometimes come across one or two of those albums and remember hearing them for the very first time.  The list of albums isn’t long, but they definitely have provided some essential listening:  The Mother Hips self-titled album, Merl Saunders and Friends Fire Up, The Greyboy Allstars Live, and a gem of a funk/soul record from former James Brown horn man Maceo Parker called Life on Planet Groove are just a few of the albums that my buddy introduced me to back in the 90’s.

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Released in 1992 on Verve Records, Life on Planet Groove is a classic featuring Parker on alto sax, Fred Wesley on trombone, Pee Wee Ellis on tenor sax, Rodney Jones on guitar, Larry Goldings on organ, and Kenwood Dennard on drums with guest appearances by Candy Dulfer, Kym Mazelle, and Vincent Henry.  The performances, recorded live in Germany in March of 1992, are unbelievable, in particular the versions of “Pass the Peas”, “Soul Power”, and “Shake Everything You’ve Got”.  While the performance of  ”Shake…” included below doesn’t quite reach the same heights as the version on Planet Groove, it’s still a great song to get your ocean in motion as we head into the weekend.  Enjoy!

Shake Everything You’ve Got by Maceo Parker

[Many thanks to my good buddy Pojo for the years of great music!]

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