"I can tell you how I feel about you night and day
How I feel about you
I'll love you more in the rain or shine
And making love in the rain is fine
A love so good and I call it mine
Love is blind"
Al B. Sure! is one of the very first soul singers that I can remember actually being my own age when he first broke through. In the late 80's I thought of Motown when I thought of soul and just about every R&B artist out there in my age group was headed in a real New Jack Swing kind of direction. Al B. Sure! kind of made me stop dead and really listen. His song "Night and Day" hit Billboard's top ten and it was one of those end of the night request countdown favorites. Perfect song to dedicate to your boyfriend or girlfriend before going to sleep.
I know Al B. Sure! was popular but I hadn't realized just how many awards he was nominated for. We're talking Grammy's, Billboard Awards, Soul Train Awards... In other words, he had the music industries respect as well as the fans love. Al B. Sure! is still rooted firmly in the music biz and so are his three grown sons.
Check out the video for "Night and Day" below. It's one of those songs that I always recognize 3 notes in!
"It's my own design It's my own remorse Help me to decide Help me make the most Of freedom and of pleasure Nothing ever lasts forever Everybody wants to rule the world" It takes a pretty amazing song to not only represent one generation but then resonate with several more to come. When you actually do lock down one of those classics they are rarely feel-good anthems as well. Tears For Fears kind of did the almost impossible in 1985 with "Everybody Wants to Rule The World". Whenever it is played it turns into an instant sing-a-long doesn't it? I mean, you know it and if your kids are teenagers they probably know it too (though they may not admit it). It puts you in an instant good mood but at the time that it was written, the undertones were pretty serious. The message remains just as much a rally cry, just towards different countries. When Tears For Fears released their Greatest Hits compilation late last year, Curt Smith explained the phenomenon that the song remains. “I think a lot of these songs, now that I’ve listened back to them, are kind of just as poignant as they were then, but just towards different people, different areas of the world. Back when we were doing Songs From the Big Chair and ‘Everybody Wants to Rule the World,’ we were really discussing the Cold War,” he says. “But it was the U.S. and Russia then, and now the concern is more the U.S. and Korea. I find that fascinating.” It is fascinating in that I'm sure it never occurred to them that the song would remain relevant with future generations. Check out the video below. Do you love it as much as I do?
"Cross my broken heart, boy Swear, I'll never part from you I want you to be mine I know you think I'm not Your picture-perfect jewel And let us break apart When everything was cool I needed to explore And open up the door But now I need you more"
Today we're going back in time to the summer of 1987. Beverly Hills Cop 2 had just blasted into theaters and while it may not have been as fantastic as the original, it did serve up a great soundtrack. The Jets, a family band out of Minnesota had already had a string of hits when they brought us "Cross My Broken Heart". It was the first single off of their second album and did really well, reaching number seven on Billboard's Hot 100.
More importantly, the song got tons of radio play and was a really big dance hit. While the Wolfgramm family eventually became best known for some of their ballads (like "Make It Real"), songs like "Cross My Broken Heart" were really a lot of fun and still get plenty of play on satellite radio. As for The Jets, they are still performing together and you can often catch them out there as part of the Freestyle Explosion tour.
Steve & Cate's All Request Sunday Night airs 7-10pm each week on DailyBOOM.net. Old school music from every genre, giveaways & live artist interviews. This episode features Wyatt Pauley of 90's dance group Linear literally interviewing himself when technology failed on our end!
Boom Radio is your old school music authority & streams 24/7 with genre-based programs each evening.
A few lines in and I'm standing in my parents' very first apartment where my love of music all began. It's a few days before Halloween and my parents were throwing a party for all of their friends. The night before was my kiddie party in our basement. I wore a Wonder Woman costume that was so NOT a Wonder Woman costume because it had a skirt and no lasso. I remember a punch bowl and bobbing for apples and little else. But my parent's party, well that was the real deal. There was neat lighting, a table full of sweets that I was never allowed to have and all of our doorways had beads hanging from them that you were supposed to walk through.
I was 7 years old and beginning to develop my own taste and thanks to my dad's music obsession disco was a big part of it. When I was about five dad started to train as a DJ at a local radio station and his little record collection on a tiny cart with wheels suddenly took over a whole wall of our living room. Even in that small apartment dad's stereo was front and center. His love of music turned into an educated love of stereo equipment. He spent two hours without fail every night cranking out tunes, everything from Pink Floyd to Blue Oyster Cult to ABBA and all the while he was fiddling with levers on all sorts of boxes that were supposed to somehow enhance the sound. I didn't know if the “woofers and tweeters” did any good but the day that he played Chic's “Le Freak” my life immediately changed.
The last song of every evening was picked out by me and by the time 1978 rolled around I was choosing things like “Ring My Bell”, “The Hustle” and “Disco Inferno”. I also waited anxiously for Saturday afternoons to roll around because, thanks to cable television and WPIX in NYC I had discovered The Soap Factory, a weekly dance show. A few weeks before my parent's party we were all watching as Blondie performed a song called “Heart of Glass”. I was mesmerized by the lead singer'sblonde hair, bright lipstick and her turquoise pants suit. My dad always watched The Soap Factory with me, but this time even my mom stopped to check out Debbie Harry. I mean, how could you not?
My mom spent the next week or so in party planning mode. She would fill the bathroom sink with water and bubbles and I'd spend an hour in there playing with all of my Fisher Price Little People. I loved having them swim and ride in their boats every night after dinner and I can remember my mom on the phone in the next room on the phone night-after-night making plans for this bash. My dad was always the laid back one and seemed to have little involvement. She hung sparkly decorations, made food and spiked the punch all while dad was engrossed in his albums. Neither of us realized what he was actually up to and as it turned out, dad's involvement was actually monumental because he was preparing to put all of those newfound DJ skills to good use.
My mom had a surprise or two up her sleeve as well. The creativity was always flowing in that little apartment and so for the week leading up to the party when dad and his music was taking over the living room, mom was in her studio. It was a small room with her easel and mountain of art supplies on one side and her Singer sewing machine on the other. Beneath a window was a big cushion with built-in pillows to nap on. That was my spot to read or draw when mom was busy drawing advertisements for our local newspaper. Dad had thought that mom was working on extra assignments for art school when in fact she had been busy at her sewing machine making a turquoise satin pants suit, just like Debbie Harry's. She had decided to put her blonde wavy hair and 100-pound frame to good use and transform into his new favorite singer, gold cuff bracelet and all, for their Halloween party.
This one night, in particular, reminds me that at one point in time my parents really, truly were on the same page. They really did “get” each other. As mom shocked dad with her costume he was just getting the party started. Dad was the man, but his music collection was the true star of the evening. His friends were all on the floor in front of his racks of records, flipping through everything in amazement and helping him to decide what to play next. Dad's dedications were also a hit because the songs that he played weren't just for particular people but he also had hilarious reasons for his selections.
An hour or so into the party dad pulled out a surprise record that he was really excited about. It was Blondie's “Heart of Glass”, an extended dance mix that wasn't available in the states yet. When he ordered music for the station he would also add a few import records from the UK for his own collection and Blondie had just become available. It was a song that no one else knew until he played it that night but everyone loved it. Even the guys that had been downing their Michelob beer on the floor in front of the stereo all night were finally dancing. One spin of that record led to about 20 more before the night was over.
At first, I might have been the only one not in costume and that was because there was no way that I was going to put that fake Wonder Woman thing on again. My aunt (mom's younger sister) decided in the middle of what looked like a Soul Train line dance that I needed some makeup at least. She grabbed me and her purse and hauled us both into the bathroom. There Aunt Elaine pulled out her black eyeliner and within a few minutes had transformed me into “Cleopatra”. I wasn't sure exactly who that was but my eyes looked like I belonged on The Soap Factory so that kindasorta made me Debbie Harry for the night too, right?
Everyone left after midnight. I remember my dad explaining the concept of time to me and how the digital clock turning to 2:01 am meant that it was Sunday morning even though it still felt like Saturday night. Truth be told it was far later than that and somehow I was still awake. My mom tried to make me go to bed but when I begged for one more spin of “Heart of Glass” my dad put the record on before she could even bother to protest. My room needed to be cleaned up anyway because my bed was where everyone left their belongings upon arrival. They and their coats might have been gone but my toys were all over the place and my precious Little People were scattered all over the room.
I swore that I would help clean up if they let me stay up but instead I climbed into the green recliner that had been temporarily moved into my room during the party. The French doors to my room were open and I curled up there, watching as my parents dragged garbage bags around toclean up the wreckage. My mom told me that I had 5 minutes until she was putting me to bed and so I closed my eyes as Debbie Harry sang.
Who knew that nights like this one actually existed? If beaded doorways, little packs of M&M's and unexpected dance battles were what it meant to be an adult then I really couldn't wait to grow up. I closed my eyes tighter as I heard mom approaching and when she whispered to dad that I was asleep I stayed extra still until she went back to cleaning up. Eventually, I really did drift off to sleep in that chair and woke as dad was carrying me across the room to my bed. As mom tucked me in and kissed me goodnight she did the only thing that could have made this night any better, she took off her shiny cuff bracelet and put it on my arm.
Queensryche's latest release, "Dark Reverie", off of their forthcoming album The Verdict (out March 1) has the band's longtime fans dying to hear more. The buzz on this effort is nothing but positive and the guys are counting down the days until they get to hit the road to support their newest "baby". Steve and I had a chance to chat with Queensryche founder Michael Wilton this week and his excitement is more than a little infectious!
DailyBOOM:The last time we spoke you were finishing up work on the new Queensryche album and you were dying for everyone to hear it. You now have two singles out, "Man The Machine" and "Dark Reverie" and they are just beyond fantastic. How are you feeling now that we're actually hearing the new music?
Michael Wilton: My expectations have been flooded. The response is way more than I could have ever anticipated and it has taken off so much better than I could have ever hoped for. We knew we had something special and it becomes your baby, you just never know how people are going to actually perceive it. So it was released to the press and all of the interviews that I've done have just been filled with positive vibrations, which is just incredible. I'm just beyond words.
DailyBOOM: You said that you guys knew that you had something special, so take us back to the studio. How did this one come together differently?
MW: The whole beginning process was an arduous task because when we started pre-production with our producer Zeus there were only a couple of songs that were in demo form and near completion. Everything else was in scattered bits and pieces of riffs and everything so that in itself was a big challenge. It was also one of the most gratifying experiences that I've had since the early '80s. Going through each song, just pulling the deepest and most creative elements out of each individual and building each song with lots of thought. Getting it to the point where everybody was happy with the sound took probably the first two weeks of pre-production and then the next two weeks were spent learning the songs before finally recording the songs. It was quite a task.
Making things more challenging was the fact that Scott (Rockenfield) couldn't play on this album so we had to get a drummer. Todd LaTorre had to get the rust off his drumsticks and he had to write the album on the drums as well as the lyrics. You can imagine the organizational nightmare (laughing) but you know, we believed in it. Zeus was the guy kind of orchestrating everything and we had to get a midi drum kit into the studio so Todd could play along and learn or write the parts. It was just mind-blowing but during this whole process, the ideas and energy were fantastic. It was all of us at the top of our game just devoting so much of our own creative elements to this album. You don't realize until after you're done that these songs are turning into monsters. We're just so proud of them.
(Official Queensryche Promo Shot)
DailyBOOM: It sounds like Todd has really stepped up his musical game this time out.
MW: Yes! As a musician, he's growing like you would not even believe. He's more comfortable and it shows. Todd has definitely stepped up his game obviously because he had to write drum parts now too. He gets to really let loose (laughing). The writing process with everybody is amazing. I think the band as a whole believes in our own creativity and so we're really giving our all. It's crazy but when all is said and done we can sit back and say, 'Wow! We created that!'
DailyBOOM: Do you foresee Scott returning to the band?
MW: We don't know. He is on a different path right now and raising a child so we'll wait and see. The door is always open. People change and they want to do different things so they need some time and their privacy. Casey Grillo has been on tour with us for the last two years and he actually played drums on two of the extra songs included on our bonus cd. We did acoustic versions of "I Dream in Infrared" and "Open Road" and he did all of the percussion on both those. He's a great drummer, really well-rounded and he has a wide palette in his musical style. He's filling big shoes and he's doing a great job. The fans really love him and he is scheduled to be on the road with us again this year.
DailyBOOM: I have to say, "Dark Reverie" has us really excited. It just seems like every note is so perfectly placed and balanced.
MW: It's the same with everyone that I talk to! I've heard that the flow of the album is great and that listeners can really tell that each song has so much thought that has been put into it. So many different positive comments and it's just mind-blowing to think that we've actually accomplished exactly what we set out to capture with this. I think that on March first when The Verdict is released, it's really going to impact the fans just as it did us last year.
Check out Queensryche's official site for tickets, merch & more!
"There`s a real fine line Between love and hate And I`m not the type To just sit and wait I`ve made up my mind I can`t wait for you anymore"
Ya know that one song that you remember so well years (okay decades) later that no one else can recall? Bardeux's "When We Kiss' fits that bill for me. I have never mentioned it to another soul that has any idea what I'm talking about and if I play it for them, they still don't remember it. Bardeux was actually a dance duo from OC, Stacy "Acacia" Smith and Lisa "Jaz" Teaney (at least on this song), who released their first album, Bold As Love in 1988.
While Bardeux is often described as a one-hit-wonder, they actually had a few singles that charted on Billboard's Hot 100 and they did really well on the dance charts during their short time together. I've always loved "When We Kiss' because it's almost more of a spoken word song than anything else and that really made it stand out back in 1988. Check it out below. Do you guys remember Bardeux?
"Baby how could you be hangin' out on a diamond queen Ain't you missin' me poor little me When you knew all the time that you could have been With your homegirl lovin' and a Kissin' on sweet little me
Don't you know if you want to be a man you Gotta work real hard If you want to make me feel like I'm your number one then Nothin' in the world should make us part 'Cause we can make it work if you Take it with the hurt from the heart."
Long before Pebbles was linked to the girl group that she created, TLC, she could be found burning up the charts herself. In 1990 she released her second album, Always, which was completely produced by Babyface and then-husband L.A. Reid. The result was some literal New Jack Swing magic. "Giving You the Benefit" was the lead single off of the album and it landed in the top ten on Billboard's Hot 100.
This song was straight dancefloor fire when it was first released and it's one of those that still gets people moving. This queen had a way of throwing down female anthems that we were all able to sing along to with a nice bit of attitude. Pebbles, the artist hasn't made an album in a while, but Sister Perri can be found on social media promoting all things peaceful and godly.
But let's revisit this fantastic song. Oh and another thing, this video is for me, one of the very best of the 90's. Check it out.
Robin McAuley has been a steady fixture on the hard rock scene for close to 40 years now and if you think that he is ready to slow down you'd be completely wrong. He has spent the last five years performing several nights a week on stage in Vegas while also touring the world once again with Michael Schenker (the McAuley Schenker Group- or MSG first shot to fame in the states back in the '80s). Add to that a sweet side project with Jeff Pilson and Reb Beach and you've got an incredibly fruitful career.
I had an opportunity to chat with Robin this week and listened as he grieved the loss of a bandmate, anticipated the release of new music and reflected on what keeps him centered in that crazy rock and roll world.
DailyBOOM: So tell me, how are you? What have you been up to?
Robin McAuley: I haven't had new material out myself in a while, but I've been very busy. I spent nine hours recording just yesterday for the new Michael Schenker Fest cd. The deadline for that has been overshadowed by the fact that we lost our drummer, Ted McKenna, in a freaky routine surgery just a few days ago and it has really devastated everyone. It's the most routine, piece of cake surgery (hernia repair) usually but he hemorrhaged and they couldn't stop the bleeding. He was just the nicest dude, an absolutely gentle, kind man. A powerhouse drummer and a force to be reckoned with up there behind us, just so easy to work with. God rest Ted McKenna.
We've been out there with Schenker Fest for almost three years now, it first began at the Bang Your Head Festival in Germany and we're scheduled to do that one again this year. We've toured Japan and did a live DVD out of Tokyo that got a great response. Then we toured in support of our Ressurection album, again in Japan, then also Europe, the U.K and the states. We're scheduled to kick off our U.S. dates for this year on April 15th at The Whiskey in Hollywood. It'll be chaos and I think that's the whole idea (laughing). There's a lot of people in the band so it'll be a cluster (laughing) and that's what we want.
(Photo: Paul Bossenmaier)
DB: You're still working in Vegas too, aren't you?
RM: I've been working with Raiding the Rock Vault for a solid five years now. It has been voted the best in Vegas for five years in a row and that show keeps us really busy. We do five nights a week and it has an ever-evolving lineup. When I'm in town and not on tour, then I'm there onstage five nights a week Saturday through Wednesday. You get into an automatic mode when doing a five night a week show and you really have to stay on top of things. Your voice is a different kind of instrument and you're totally reliant on your health and the conditions around you, so Vegas is not an easy place to work. The air is very dry and it's windy, plus the casinos are very smokey. You get into a routine and you know what you have to do in order to maintain yourself to do this job, but I choose not to live in Vegas. Instead, I live in California with my family, so I drive home on Wednesday nights and roll in at around 3am.
People think I'm crazy for driving but there are no late night flights into Burbank and if I flew into LAX and then had to drive from there it's still going to take me four hours to get home. Driving is almost like detoxing for me, I don't mind the trip through the desert. One of my brothers will usually call me from back home in Ireland and we have a good old chat. I also listen to talk shows and wonder if some night I'll stumble across some sort of alien being while driving (laughing). It hasn't happened so far, that I know of, so I guess I'm of no interest (laughing).
DB: A little birdie by the name of Jeff Pilson told me that you're working on a project with him and Reb Beach. I think I need some details on that (laughing).
RM: Ah Mr. Pilson, the crazy Jeff Pilson (laughing). Maybe about 2 months ago he said he had this thing going on that he wanted me to do and I said, 'Nah' (laughing). He said, 'Please do it' and then he told me that Reb Beach is in it and that he thought that it was something that I should do. I then asked what he was doing in it and he said that he would be producing it and co-writing. I procrastinated a bit and then we got together and I wondered how we were going to do this. Reb is in Pittsburgh and he has Winger shows, I've got my stuff and Jeff, of course, he has Foreigner, but we're deep in the hole. We've made it all work and we're almost done, with a release date scheduled for later this year. It's really, really good. One of the most fun things and probably one of the very best things I've ever gotten into. When we heard the material we realized that it's great.
I'm absolutely stoked, hyper even because Reb and I managed to talk Jeff into playing bass with us. He wanted to take a backseat on this one and we basically said sure, take a backseat on this just bring your bass guitar with you (laughing). He agreed to play and at the moment it looks like we'll have Mark Schulman (Pink, Cher, Stevie Nicks) playing drums. We do have a band name but it has to stay under wraps for now. The material is just great and I can't wait for it to come out.
DB: How will you orchestrate this when like you've said, you're all already ridiculously busy?
RM: One of the biggest difficulties is to have us all in the same place at the same time but we have pledged to make it all work because it has to see the light of day (laughing). We have discussed it at great length though because we all have our own things to do. I hate that it's referred to as a side project because it makes it sound secondary or meaningless and I believe that it's a lot more than that. We've put a lot of work into it and so it really does mean a lot. Reb Beach is just a son of a bitch guitar player, he's just awesome. Jeff Pilson knows how to work on a level ten all the time. He's always on ten and ya know, I've known him for a very long time. Not many people know but Jeff was our chief witness when my wife and I got married. I've been married for 25 years and Jeff and I go back even way before that because he did an unplugged tour with Michael (Schenker) and myself.
DB: How do you do it all and still have so much positive energy just bouncing off of you?
RM: I love waking up to a good day. Life's too short. My family is my core and my foundation. I'm Irish and come from a very large family and that has always been my backbone, it's family first. Knowing that I have such a solid family is what allows me to step forward and not only do what I do but also really enjoy it. It's great to do what I'm doing because I know that I have a great family to come home to. We make more than the best of our downtime and personally I would be lost if I didn't have someone to come home to. I've always been like that, going home to a great one-bedroom place would depress the shit out of me (laughing). I couldn't live like that. The family balances my work and my work makes me grateful for my family.
Schenker Fest will hit the road this spring with about 25 U.S. dates coming your way. Grab your tickets here.
"A girl in love With a gleam in her eye I was a younger boy All dressed in white We're older now Do you still think about me"
When I think back to middle school musical artists like Madonna, Prince, Michael Jackson and Cyndi Lauper had everyone's' attention. They were like the top flight of what you heard every few hours on the radio but there were also a lot of solid rock groups in the mix too. Journey, Foreigner, and Heart did a great job of breaking up the pop music. So did Night Ranger, the powerful rock band formed in San Francisco back in 1979. They were building steadily and getting decent airplay and then "Sister Christian" broke through and became one of the biggest summer songs of 1984.
It seemed impossible for the band to put out a better song but they did, by chasing "Sister Christian" with "When You Close Your Eyes". Singer Jack Blades wrote the song about reflecting on an ex-girlfriend and apparently, a lot of people could relate to wondering if an ex ever thinks of you. The chorus is infectious and whether you're 15 or 50, the sentiment will inevitably strike a chord. When it first came out I was at an age where everyone around me, myself included, was going through some sort of breakup and so the song sat at number one on the local evening radio request countdown for a really long time.
Looking back on Night Ranger's work now I think what I like the most about it is how truly timeless it is. Songs like "When You Close Your Eyes" could be released now and still have the same gut-punch effect. Check out the video below and you'll see what I mean.
"I can't stop the feeling I've been this way before But, with you I've found the key To open any door I can feel my love for you Growing stronger day by day, An' I can't wait to see you again So I can hold you in my arms"
While the 80's launched synth rock and the careers of icons such as Prince and Madonna it also gave us some pretty magical hair bands, didn't it? I know that you all still (maybe secretly) love your glam rockers because posts featuring them both here and on Boom's Facebook page tend to do really well. There's no shame in my game either because I have no problem admitting that at least one headbanger song turns up in my playlist each and every day.
Back in the 80's bands like Motley Crue, Ratt, Dokken andWinger were smart because each and every album included at least one power ballad. If the female audience wasn't into the blaring guitars then these guys hooked them anyway, one love song at a time. I think we all had our favorites and one glimpse of Whitesnake's "Is This Love" video made me not only fall in lust with the song but also with David Coverdale. It was a dreamy song and even Coverdale's future ex-wife Tawny Kitaen romping around couldn't kill the vibe. In fact, it actually MADE it for every guy that I knew. This song prompted me to buy Whitesnake's self-titled release and the cassette lived in my Walkman for years I think. While my friends had Def Leppard and Motley Crue hanging in their lockers mine was devoted to Coverdale (he may still have a spot on my office wall but that's a totally different story).
I mean, to this day you can't deny the hotness. Also to this day, Whitesnake's 1987 release is by far one of the best records to come out of the 80's and "Still Of The Night" is pretty legendary among every guitarist I've ever talked to. Do your self a favor and revisit the album if you haven't listened in a while. In the meantime, check out the stunning Mr. Coverdale below!
I'm waiting for the right moment to come So I can thank you for all the tender love you've given to me
If you were listening to American Top 40 on your radio 30 years ago this week then one of the songs that you might have been waiting to record was the Force MD's "Tender Love". It was sitting in tenth place on Billboard's Hot 100 after becoming one of the best songs to come out of the Krush Groove soundtrack. Those are the details but if you were a teen then you knew this song because it was THE love song of the moment. "Tender Love" generated lots of dedications (remember when that was actually a thing?) from the left coast to the right and to this day it's easily recognized the minute it begins to play.
The Force MD's first connected in Staten Island back in 1981 and despite having some old school hip hop roots it was their ballads that really brought them success. The band was also considered to be very early pioneers of the New Jack Swing movement that really took off in 1990. Sadly, three of the group's original members died of various causes in the late 90's. The remaining members put out their last Force MD's album in 2000.
Check out "Tender Love" below. I promise that you're going to remember it.
I think between late 1983 and 1984 it was absolutely impossible for MTV to play for more than an hour without showing a Billy Idol video. "Rebel Yell" became an instant anthem and Idol's classic sneer and bad boy demeanor made "Eyes Without A Face" equally popular. But "Flesh For Fantasy"? That was my favorite. Probably because it was edgier and the video featured some (barely dressed) bad ass dancers. The fact that my bible thumping mother thought that Idol was the devil in black leather only made me like him even more.
I love the fact that even 30 years later you can still catch Idol rocking out, lip curl and all. What song is your favorite?
So, there was this one Saturday WAY back in 1989 that I can remember like it was yesterday, because I had perfect timing (a rarity). I had arrived for a taping of Dance Party USA and the energy was crazy because one of the guests for that days' taping was Sweet Sensation. I loved them. I mean, we ALL loved them. If you were even slightly a freestyle fan than the opening to "Take It While It's Hot" probably made your heart race. Betty Dee put on one hell of a show even then. Sure she was all sparkles, leather, ripped jeans and big hair but even more so, she was a performer.
When DAilyBOOM first launched in the summer of 2015, I had a bucket list of people that I wanted to interview and Betty was on it. At the time Sweet Sensation was on hiatus but as luck would have it, they returned to the stage by summers' end. In the last few years the ladies have criss-crossed the country, performing for freestyle fans that still know all of the lyrics to their string of hits.
I finally had a chance to chat with Betty this week and the only thing bigger than her laugh is her heart. I wish that everyone could experience a bit of time with her because Betty is one of those rarities that leaves people better than she first finds them. Well, unless she's really mad then you better start running! Seriously though, Betty is equal parts crazy, outgoing Latina and introverted cat lady. She is also ALL parts love, joy, positivity and acceptance. The woman you see on stage is exactly who she really is, and that's a gift to all of us.
(Photo: Sweet Sensation's Official Facebook)
Cate Meighan: Can you believe that Sweet Sensation has been around for more than thirty years? Betty Dee: Sweet Sensation has obviously had personnel changes through the years. Since 1991 it has been me, Jenae Colon and Belle Ritter. I've jumped in and out of the group a few times. The last time that we faded into the music background my dad was really sick and I was dealing with a bunch of other personal things. So I decided to step away from the spotlight and just live my life. In August of 2015, we got back together. I received a call from K7 of TKA, my work husband (laughing) asking me to come back. He said that we needed to return to the stage and start doing shows again. I couldn't believe there was interest but he has been my best friend for thirty years, and so I listened to him. I called the girls and just like that, we got back together. The first thing we did was meet for rehearsals and I can remember thinking, oh my god, I'm going to have to go and by lashes again (laughing)!
CM: How do the logistics work now that you're all older and juggling other responsibilities?
Betty Dee: We all live in different parts of the country. I work a crazy, very demanding, but fulfilling day job during the week and then on weekends, I get to perform. My week is busy. I'm a mom to my kitties and my dog and I do the things that I need to do at home. Then on the weekend, I get to put on lashes, make my hair shiny (laughing) and then hop on stage and perform with my friends. I mix the two lifestyles and they're easy for me to balance because I'm a good multitasker. I need to be busy and performing is something that I really love to do.
If we are in NY for a show then we travel into the city and gather atone location for a quick rehearsal. We'll get ready there, do the show and on Sunday we'll go our separate ways again until the next weekend. If we go out of town and have to really travel then it becomes more work but I love it and I wouldn't have it any other way.
CM.: How was it coming back this time around? Betty Dee: Coming back this time has been so different. We're older and we appreciate things more. I feel better now at 50 than I did at 30 (laughing). I'm more energized and I want to keep giving the fans more. I mean, there's a mortality thing of- okay how much longer can we really keep doing this? If I'm going to do it now then I'm going to give 1000% and I've got to give it my absolute all. I think other freestyle artists think the same way.
CM: Freestyle fans are like no other. No matter where the venue is, it really is like a family at the shows. Betty Dee: The fans are the fuel. They're the gasoline that lights the fire for us. If we went out there and didn't have the support it would be totally different because that's what drives us. I speak for my work husband, my work wives and all of the people that we do shows with. We see each other so often that we really are a family and we really do get together and talk about how amazing it is that we can still do this thing that we love so much. It's valuable to me and not just as an artist. I listen to them perform and it takes me back- like thirty years!
I remember what I was doing when Noel's "Silent Morning" came on KTU in NYC! We sang about love and dancing and heartbreak. I can't find a freestyle song that's not about one of those things (laughing). It's all about love and tears and that music created a bond 30 years ago and it's still there now. We all share that same bond now and I'm humbled by it. Understanding the genre and growing up with the people that listened to it, I totally get it. We hold on to this music and the time in our lives that it takes us back to until it's ingrained in our DNA. It's literally who we are.
CM: You look like you're in the best shape of your life right now and I've gotta ask, what's your secret? Betty Dee: I had spent years depriving myself of calories and running around like crazy until my metabolism slowed down. It was in starvation mode and so I was gaining weight instead of losing it. I was trying to stay in shape and I wasn't eating fatty foods and it just wasn't working so I decided to experiment and cut out leafy greens. I would eat more meat and some cheese instead. I also started to work out differently. Instead of being on the elliptical for like, ten hours a day, I started lifting weights and dancing. I was doing that and eating full meals throughout the day because the food was giving me fuel.
(Photo: Sweet Sensation's Official Facebook)
Once I started switching things around and feeding my body, it did me the service of getting really lean. So no more measuring and weighing food for nothing. Now I eat everything in moderation, including the healthy stuff. I have more energy and I don't feel sick every day. Here's the thing, you have to figure out what works best for you because there's not one set cure-all program
CM: You're one of the happiest people that I think I've ever met. Where does the joy come from?
Betty Dee: We're on borrowed time and we all end up in the same place so don't take life too seriously. Do the things that make you happy and do them 1000%. Life is short and at some point, we lose each other so make the most of it. Be happy and make others happy too. That's where I'm at in my life and if that means going out on stage wearing sparkles and singing songs, then it's what I'm going to do.
