Welcome all to 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly – an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 playlists.
𝙇𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙄𝙨 𝙅𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙏𝙤𝙤 𝙋𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙤𝙪𝙨! – 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙉𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙚𝙡 𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙙𝙮 𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙟𝙚𝙘𝙩
Charles finds his soul…
Every ten years a decade passes. Every decade brings change. Some decades more than others. Good change, bad change and arguable change, but change nevertheless. While there are many different kinds of change, I will not focus on forced change, such as war, for war is not worth talking about. I prefer the lighter side of life. So… In the last century, which decade has brought the most change? Again, excluding those where war has been the changing factor. I can only really talk about the Western World here, as that is all I am really familiar with. Which has been the most changing decade? Some might say the noughties (00s) due to the rise of the internet. It certainly did change the world; there’s no doubt in that. Some would say the 60s because, THE SIXTIES!! I mean, just EVERYTHING changed, right? Well I can’t argue that it was a revolutionary decade. But more so for the young. The older ones were still living part two of the 50s. How about the 80s, then? With its big hair and technological advancements? Well it certainly wasn’t like anything before. And then there’s the 20s. These 20s, rather than those 20s. The 2020s. The now. BIG change. The problem is, it feels like all this current change is negative change. Which, like war, is not worth talking about. For me, the answer is…….. The 70s. The change didn’t feel as forced or rebellious as the 60s. The change didn’t affect just the young. And seemingly pretty much every aspect changed, almost by the year.
It wasn’t a technological revolution. It was a cultural revolution. Very much a natural human change. It was a time when everyone was involved. Everyone from children to oldies. It was the start of a mingling of societies. Rich with poor (to an extent), posh with working class (and also not), black with white (although I gather it depends on where we’re talking about). EVERYONE changed their fashion. I have never known this in any decade. Even any era. While a teenager might have opted for mandatory denim bell bottoms, a middle-aged financial advisor would be rocking flares or at the very least, boot-cut trousers. Hair was longer for everyone. Men were adopting a more feminine look, with tailoring and platform boots, with some stars going extreme: Elton John and David Bowie, for example. Elvis went glitzy glam. Liberace poured on more Swarovski than he could physically lift. Black people were finally allowed to grow the ‘fro. Black people were finally accepted. But not just accepted. They were finally allowed to be an influence on white people. And don’t even get me on to sideburns. Every man from 18 to 85 had sideburns! Can you think of another decade that brought such universal cultural change?? Okay, the damned internet. But that’s technology. And even that took a while for people to fully adopt and migrate. In the 70s it was all so instant! Possibly because most of it didn’t involve an entire rethink of life. New wardrobe and luscious flowing hair. Quite easy, no? What is interesting to me, is that except for the punk era (also in the 70s), there was no kickback to any of it. Everyone changed, and everyone was fine with it.
But then there’s music. Oh, dear sweet music. The 70s saw the birth of heavy rock/metal, funk, disco, prog, punk and “the singer-songwriter”. It also saw the rebirth of soul. Nu-soul, is probably what it would be called these days (because we’re annoying like that). While rock/metal, prog and punk were predominantly almost entirely white music, funk and soul were almost entirely black. Disco and singer-songwriter were shared, bridging the gap. Just such an incredible decade of constant change and innovation, almost all of which was NOT from technological advancements. The exception being towards the end of the 70s, where we had the birth of electronic music, pioneered by producers such as Giorgio Moroder. It was a very human decade. Although I love just SO much music from the 70s – my love started with Queen and (secretly) ABBA – there are two genres that really DO something to me. One is very white. One is very black. Prog is the white. Soul/funk is the black. And they could not be more different. One is the technical. The other is the feel. You all know I love The Beatles. But possibly my second favourite band is Yes. I cannot explain what it is about them, but they give me what I crave as an artist and producer. As to soul and funk, my scope is far wider. I suppose it all started for me with Stevie Wonder. I was obsessed in my early 20s. Not these 20s, not those 20s, but MY 20s. I’m older now. Soon after, I discovered Parliament and Funkadelic. Latterly it was The Commodores. I never went for Sly and the Family Stone though – far too sludgy for me. But things really changed for me when I realised that James Brown was NOT the funkiest in town. The funkiest was Tower of Power. And it was HERE that I realised what funk was all about. I never realised quite how funky, funk could be.
As things got a little more disco, I discovered Donna Summer, and then……. Chic. Chic these days is perhaps more known as the band originally behind world-famous guitarist/producer, Nile Rodgers. I’m sure you’ve all heard of him. So absurdly famous. Chic were known for the very best of funk and disco. They still are. I wouldn’t be surprised though if many of you have never heard of Chic. But you will DEFINITELY have heard the songs: Good Times, Le Freak, I Want Your Love, Everybody Dance, and of course the mighty Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah). Boogie was the name of the game. The tightest funky disco that simply doesn’t allow you to stay still. Why do I particularly focus on Chic here? Because Nathaniel Hardy Jr. was not a member of any other band. That’s right, folks; my pick of the week is a former member of Chic!!! The Nathaniel Hardy Project is basically none other than Nathaniel S. Hardy Jr. And with his brand new single, “Love Is Just Too Precious!” (LIJTP hereon), he wanted to bring back the ultimate vibe of the wonderfully vibrant decade that is the 1970s. And by Jove, he’s done it. But don’t be fooled: there’s a big twist at the beginning and the end…
Nathaniel wrote this song a long time ago. Over 30 years ago – 1992 to be precise. God, how can 1992 be over 30 years ago?? Ah well, let’s truck on. Nathaniel is evidently a very faithful, honest, good guy. I say this because it is simply not possible to write a song like this if one were otherwise inclined. LIJTP is all about not screwing up a perfectly good marriage, and how love is just everything in life. The whole purpose of life, in fact. Through each and every year, decade and even era, one thing remains the same. It remains unchanging. Love. I suppose what Nathaniel means is that if you’re lucky enough to find “the one”, let it be just the one. No juggling allowed. And quite right too! Jiggling and giggling are allowed, but let’s keep that private, hm? Ahem. Can you imagine having written a song over 30 years ago that you’re really fond of, yet still hasn’t even been recorded, let alone released…? Unfathomable to me. Yet this is how Nathaniel rolls. He wanted to get it out in the open. To spread the word of love, and to make people do a little jivin’. A bop, if you will. He wanted the sound and feel of Chic, especially in the strings. Ya know: THAT sound. After having expressed these wishes to a producer he knew but had never worked with, the concept was wholly understood. In working together, they were able to get just the right vibe and feel, and yet still manage to add something a little more modern to the mix. LIJTP is half sung and half rapped. This is my personal favourite use of rap: rapped verses and sung choruses. This way one still gets a hummable hook from the singing while retaining the upfront effect of the main rapped content. The rarity here though is in Nathaniel’s ability to both rap and sing. Most singers can’t rap. Most rappers can’t sing. For example, while I can sing, when I rap I sound like Ed Sheeran. Which is not what I would ever choose to sound like. A ginger frog. Nathaniel’s rap has an urgency, while his singing has a gorgeously natural tone to it, that can frankly only be achieved by the black voice box. It is exactly what I love about black soul. I love the velvet smooth, I love the raw howl.
The music clearly had to match this. The 70s-style instruments are faithful to the era. The drums are gritty yet natural. The bass is slapped with precision. The guitars are picked tightly with jaunt. The Rhodes is bringing it all together with bright warmth. The strings are living the disco dance-floor. And finally, the horns are bitey and saturated like they mean it. But it’s not quite “finally”. For I mentioned the beginning and end being something different. You see, while it was a fabulous idea to have the general vibe be all Chic-like, this is 2024. We’re not in the 70s anymore. This track has more than pure 70s. LIJTP is impure 70s. Modernity strikes again! Synths welcome the song with quite a dark opening. I think it’s actually a Moog synth, so although the intro sounds modern, it’s still possibly the same instrument that Linda McCartney was playing in Wings. But it’s the end section that brings the cool. It ain’t all synth though. There are real instruments like strings and trumpet, but they’re played in a more modern style. In words, this might all seem a bit weird, and like it wouldn’t work at all. But that’s why we have ears. Spoiler alert: it works. The vocals are chopped up a bit and played with – the producer evidently having a bit of fun here. It never ceases to amaze me what can be done with the human voice. The voice is already the most versatile instrument ever not invented. But when you stick technology in the mix, the possibilities are endless! LIJTP ends up being a perfect combo of voice, music and words.
With a song like this, I wouldn’t consider Nathaniel a former member of Chic. To me he’s an official member. Mr. Rodgers, get on it.
Love Is Just Too Precious! It’s all here in black and white.
Listen to 𝙇𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙄𝙨 𝙅𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙏𝙤𝙤 𝙋𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙤𝙪𝙨! on the 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿 Spotify playlist HERE!
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