How TEENA hooked me for life!
(A Mini Diary/Review)
1979 - WILD AND PEACEFUL
Favourite Track: De Ja Vu (I've Been Here Before)
I was listening to my elder Sister playing some records before going out one night and I asked her what the record was that she was playing. It was “I’m just A Sucker For Your Love” She told me she first heard it in the Royalty nightclub in North London.
I decided then I wanted to hear more of this music and went down there (I was under age and looked even younger!). Once I had talked my way into the club I was gobsmacked at the vibe in the place. Watching people getting down to great records. One vivid memory I have is lots of people singing all of the words to the 15-minute version of ‘Rappers Delight’ and loving every minute of it.
When they eventually played “Sucker” I went to the dance floor and danced. I had never danced before let alone in public and never realised that I could. I was so into the song I didn’t care and my head was spinning and I didn’t drink in those days!
I had to get this record and finally found a shop that had "Wild and Peaceful". I carried it home as fast as I could and put it on, I was overwhelmed, as I had never heard anything like it before. The only exposure to Soul music I had had previously was material like Donna Summer & Gladys Knight & the Pips.
This Album was so aptly named. I lay on my Bed and listened to ‘Gonna Have My Cake’, ‘Can’t Love Anymore’ and ‘De Ja Vu’ and thought this was one special voice. I wanted to hear this album every day. Turning me on? She certainly turned me on to her music!
I couldn’t work out where this woman had been or what other records she had done before. Upon investigation I found nothing. What was next? Was this a one off? I couldn’t wait for the next one.
Then came Behind The Groove………..
1980 - BEHIND THE GROOVE
Favourite Track: Aladdin’s Lamp
What a record Behind the Groove was! I heard it played one night when I was out clubbing and of course knew instantly whom it was by. I thought great, I hope this is from an Album and lo and behold I was a FAN!! Two albums by the same Artist, that was unique in itself.
I was now not only a fan of Teena Marie but also a lover of Soul music. My record collection started to grow and my awareness of music outside of the mainstream grew rapidly. There were not many ‘Soul Music’ Radio stations back then and I remember tuning my radio into the Pirate stations of the day.
I recall hanging a wire coat hanger connected to my Aerial out of the window to get a reception from nearby tower blocks for a few hours on a Sunday morning.
I got my hands on BTG. Oh my! What an Album. ‘Now that I have you’ & Can It Be Love’ I was hooked! ‘Too Many Colours’ moved me - I was born and raised in a multi - cultural part of London and here she said it all - Rainbow coloured people!
‘Aladdin’s Lamp’ and ‘Why Did I Have To Fall In Love With you’ still gets me finger snapping whenever I hear them.
I needed more!
1980 - IRONS IN THE FIRE
Favourite Track: Tune In Tomorrow
INYL - I needed it!
It doesn’t get much better than this or so I thought!
The funky bass lines that got me on my feet whenever I heard it! Oh! She was the one! There was no improvement on this. The title track was very relevant to me at the time and in hindsight I believe even more so.
‘Young Love’ and the anthem-like ‘Springtime’ What more can I say that hasn’t been said before. These were works of art beyond the reaches of her peers. My fears at this time were that she was going to stop making music when there was obviously more to come
‘Tune in Tomorrow’ is my favourite song from this album, It has everything I love about Teena Marie. The real instruments, that voice we all know and love and lyrics to die for!
Tune in Tomorrow? You better believe it!
1981 - IT MUST BE MAGIC
Favourite Track: Where’s California
And it certainly was!
The title track along with Square Biz made me think she was going to hit it big. I was now telling friends constantly all about Teena Marie, and yes they knew her... And yes they liked her… But the singles weren’t doing it for her and the music buying public here in the UK, looked upon Teena as an Album purchase not for the Singles that were being released. That was great, but how many were buying the Albums? Not enough obviously.
Where’s California? I didn’t care. I knew Teena was here in London on my turntable. This album was when I first realised the depths of thought that lurked behind the grooves. Playing the tracks and having my mind turned to thinking about issues such as racism, psychotics, and other social issues. I hadn’t heard anything like that since the Gamble and Huff days, but even then I was too young to really appreciate what they were saying. I only hear Terry Callier doing similar thought provoking material like that today. Does anyone care? I certainly did.
The bouncy ‘365’ makes me smile. It reminds me of the 60’s Motown songs. ‘Revolution’ tapped into my socialist views and the glorious ‘Portuguese Love’. I remember my friends and I saying to each other “Blinding Choon” and I still say it today.
‘Yes Indeed’ Oh! Yes Indeed!
1983 - ROBBERY
Favourite Track: Casanova Brown
A move to a Company that had a name suited to the Lady. An Epic talent.
At this point I didn’t need to hear any of the tracks from a Teena Album. Once it was available I would purchase it. I knew I was going to like whatever she did. If Teena sang the names and addresses in a telephone directory it would sound fabulous.
I put the album on and took a step back when ‘Robbery’ came on - I thought to myself ‘What the hell is going on?’ Synthesized music? Teena? My heart sank. She had sold out.
‘Playboy.’ Now that was more like it, OK, so it was not musically her best but still the ‘Tee’ feel.
After listening to ‘Shadow Boxing’ and ‘Dear Lover’ I thought that she was still with us. ‘Shadow Boxing’ was a monumental song for me. I couldn’t get it out of my head. I used it as part of my chat up lines back then (and occasionally still do today!)
Midnight Magnet touched me like no other Teena tune before. It seemed so real and full of pain. I played that over and over to ascertain the hidden meanings behind it. That is, if there were any.
I started to get a bit obsessed with plugging Tee at any opportunity. I was DJ’ing now regularly and my set would always include a Tee Track. I felt good about ‘doing my bit’ to market this ‘phenomenon’ as I had come to view her.
‘Stop The World’ was in the vein of both ‘Portuguese Love’ and ‘Gonna Have My Cake.’ It reaffirmed my view that this was still Teena style and she was here to stay.
‘Casanova Brown’ like ‘Shadow Boxing’ is a song that tugs at my heartstrings and I will never tire of playing it. When Teena sang it at the Hammersmith odeon in London it was the highlight of the evening for me.
1984 - STARCHILD
Favourite Track: Out on a Limb
As with Robbery I had some reservations regarding ‘Help Youngblood Get to the Freaky Party’, ‘Alibi’ and ‘Jammin’ when I first heard them. I thought to myself “Am I a true fan if I dislike any of her tunes?” Fortunately these were only temporary feelings as I realised as time passed by that they are good songs even if they are not up to Teena’s best. But we can’t be perfect all the time.
‘Starchild’ and ‘We’ve Got To Stop (Meeting Like This)’ were more along the lines of what I wanted from Teena and expected from her
The tribute song ‘My Dear Mr. Gaye’ would have done Mr G. himself proud. There were friends of mine that finally accepted Teena on the back of this song. I think they always did deep down but were just trying to aggravate me (only joking guys!)
‘Out on a limb’ was the pick of the album for me. Showing yet again that the Lady is something really special. The pain and the voice, the sense of believing that it was real experiences that inspired Teena.
1986 - EMERALD CITY
Favourite Track: Sunny Skies
WOW!! I bought this and the cover got me more excited about this album than any other. I thought it was fantastic and as I rode home on the bus I was very disappointed with the plain inner sleeve. That was not like her other albums!
On to the Turntable it went.
‘Emerald City’??? What! ‘Once is not enough’ ??? WHAT!! ‘Lips to find You’ ??? WHAT!!!
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “What has she done?” I thought to myself. I was devastated. I couldn’t understand what she was doing. I couldn’t listen to Rock music!
Fortunately ‘Shangri-La’, ‘Batucada Suite’, ‘Love Me Down Easy’ and ‘Sunny Skies’ were enough to prevent me throwing the album into the dustbin or making an ashtray out of it.
This will never be my favourite album, however it has grown on me more and more as the years have passed. I don’t dislike it now as I did back then but I do wonder what inspired that Album.
’You So Heavy’…..Yes, but it is a lot lighter now !!
1988 - NAKED TO THE WORLD
Favourite Track: Naked To The World
Yes, Yes, Yes, She was back with a vengeance. My Baby was home again.
I remember playing this Album for the first time. I was in Lincolnshire visiting friends when I purchased it. When we got back I placed it on their turntable all cautious and professional-like trying to impress my friends. I had a good feeling about this Album. The cover was beautiful and I knew this was going to be a good one and it was. My friends also liked it and bought a copy soon after.
‘Trick Bag’ & ‘Work It’ were great dance tunes along with ‘The Ball’ and ‘Crocodile tears’ which are personal all time Tee favourites of mine (not that there are many that are not!).
Ooh La La La is not her best work in my opinion, and although a nice enough song I don’t think it is the best on the Album.
1990 - IVORY
Favourite Track: All of them
A long awaited album as they all are but this is one the Lady’s best. There is not a weak track on the Album.
From the opening ‘Here’s looking at you’ to the funky British influenced ‘Since day One’ a true masterpiece.
There is not more I can add except that I couldn’t wait for the next and the next.
The Following year Teena visited our shores to promote this Album and I went to see the concert on two consecutive nights.
I was very apprehensive about going to see her in case I had ‘built her up’ too much and she would disappoint me and not be able to perform live as I hoped she could. I was not disappointed. Teena was fantastic and I was in awe of her from the moment she literally bounced out onto the stage. The best live performance I have ever seen and that is without bias.
See Chris Ludwick’s review https://www.angelfire.com/rnb/teenamarie/page2
1994 - Passion Play
Favourite Track: All of them
Just when I had given up on Teena recording again or thought that she retired she hit me with the BIG one!
I didn’t think Ivory could be bettered but the Lady Tee had done it again. This was for me by far the best ever.
When I played the opening Track I thought oh my God! This sound is so fresh, so original and the Album continued in this vein throughout.
The Latin feel to ‘Pretty man’ took a while to adjust to, but overall this was the best yet from Teena. I don’t think it had anything to do with the long wait but it seemed such a perfected Album. This was a classy piece of work. Vocally and lyrically Tee’s best work by far.
Teena had always had an undercurrent of sex and double entendres in her music but I found that this Album was more blatantly sexier than any of her others, and yet still had dignity and didn’t stoop to the levels of today’s more ‘bump & grind ‘ music.
This is the Album I introduce ‘new’ ears to. It gives a broader vision of what Teena is about. It reflects her skills as a musician, singer, songwriter and poet, but also shows how diverse Tee can be.
This is my favourite Album by Teena Marie and if Black Rain is released this summer, and if it is half as good as this I will be one UK Fan that will be very, very happy.
I hope that you find this mini diary interesting and maybe it will inspire you to do something similar for The Ivory Queen Of Soul Site.
I didn’t want to get too detailed about each album or to give them a review as that is already covered on this site. I just wanted to ex-per-ess what thoughts each of Teena Marie’s albums provoke in me.
Kevin (Mr. Icecream)
Email: Kevinob@Totalise.co.uk
http://www.totalise.net/go.htm?ref=Kevinob
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