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ORIGINS
Go-go pioneer Chuck Brown performing at the 2005 Duke Ellington Jazz Festival.Go-go is a musical movement that can largely be traced back to just one person, Chuck Brown.Brown was a fixture on the Washington music scene with his band the Soul Searchers as far back as 1966. By the mid-1970s he had developed a laid-back, rhythm-heavy style of funk, performed with one song blending into the next (in order to keep people on the dance floor). The beat was based on one used in Grover Washington Jr.'s song Mr. Magic.[3]Another popular local cover band in the early 1970s, Aggression, would use rhythm breaks to keep fans dancing while they prepared for the next song, fixed guitar strings, etc. As Aggression gained popularity, they started holding dance contests during the rhythm breaks, which subsequently grew in length. The audiences began to look forward to these contests and the band's style evolved to where the beat would stop only occasionally during the course of a show.In 1976, James Funk, a young DJ who spun at clubs in between Soul Searchers sets, was inspired (and encouraged by Brown himself) to start a band—called Rare Essence (originally the Young Dynamos)—that played the same kind of music.Experience Unlimited (a.k.a. E.U.) was a band more influenced by rock (their name a nod to the Jimi Hendrix Experience[4]), that started out in 1970. After witnessing Rare Essence in the late-1970s, they modified their style to incorporate the go-go beat.Trouble Funk had its roots in a 1960s Top 40 cover band called Trouble Band. At some point they changed their name and in the late-1970s, after seeing the light at a gig they played with Chuck Brown, they, too, adopted the go-go beat.Go-go's first national chart action came when Chuck Brown and the Soul Searchers released their "Bustin' Loose" single in late 1978; it reached the 1 spot on Billboard's R&B chart and held it for a month during February and March of 1979 (peaking at 34 on the Pop charts).
The 1980s: Go-Go's Golden Age
The 1980s held a lot of promise for go-go but only came through a few times. Trouble Funk put out a few records on New Jersey-based label Jamtu before signing with one of the more powerful independent hip-hop labels, Sugar Hill, where they released a six-track EP called Drop the Bomb in 1982, which included the minor hit "Pump Me Up."In 1984, Island Records founder Chris Blackwell heard Chuck Brown's "We Need Some Money" on the radio in New York, which ultimately led to him signing some of the brightest stars of the go-go scene.[5] Trouble Funk and E.U. were both signed to Island, while Chuck Brown, Mass Extinction, Yuggie, Redds and the Boys and Hot, Cold, Sweat were signed through a distribution deal between T.T.E.D. and Island subsidiary 4th & B'way. As a result of this deal, Redds and the Boys had a 1 single in the UK with "Movin' and Groovin'."[citation needed]Along with the recording contracts Blackwell was handing out, he also wanted to make a go-go movie; a D.C.-based version of The Harder They Come, perhaps. The resultant film, Good to Go (or Short Fuse, as it was called on video) was plagued with problems: co-director Don Letts was let go halfway through production,[6] the film became less about the music and more about drugs and violence, and despite the fact that most of the post-production was completed in the fall of 1985, the film was held for release until late-summer 1986. When it did poorly on release, it seemed that go-go had missed its best chance to break into the mainstream.The Junk Yard Band started out in 1980 as a group of kids (as young as nine) from the Barry Farms projects. Unable to afford instruments for their band, they fashioned drums out of empty buckets and traffic cones, tin cans substituted for timbales, and, in place of a brass section, they used plastic toy horns. Adding real instruments to their gear a little at a time, by 1985 they had joined the ranks of D.C.'s finest; they were scooped up by Def Jam, who released a Rick Rubin-produced single, "The Word," in 1986. Not much happened for that record—at first. However, within a year or two of its release, the flipside, "Sardines," had become (and remains to this day) the group's signature song; they even perform it in the 1988 film Tougher Than Leather.Rare Essence signed with Mercury Records but their one single for that label—"Flipside," released in 1986—was unremarkable.E.U. got their big break in 1986, when they were booked to play a party celebrating the release of Spike Lee's debut film, She's Gotta Have It.[7] Lee liked what he heard, and tapped the band to perform a song in his next movie, School Daze. "Da Butt" (written for the film by Marcus Miller) made it all the way to 1 on Billboard's R&B chart (35 Pop) and scored them a Grammy nomination (they lost out to Gladys Knight). Hoping to build on their success, in 1989 they released Livin' Large on Virgin Records. Two singles from the album ("Buck Wild" and "Taste of Your Love") made respectable showings on Billboard's R&B/Hip-Hop singles chart but they failed to repeat the success of "Da Butt." (The album peaked at 22 on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart and 158 on the Top 200.) A second Virgin release, Cold Kickin' It, came out the following year but failed to make much of an impression on the national charts.
Modern day
As time has passed, more and more of a hip-hop influence has crept into go-go. Early MCs like D.C. Scorpio gave way to DJ Kool, whose 1996 indie release, "Let Me Clear My Throat," was picked up by American Recordings and became go-go's last certifiable hit, in 1997 (4 on Billboard's Rap singles chart, 21 on the R&B/Hip-Hop singles chart, and 30 on the Hot 100). As the hip-hop content in go-go has increased, the complexity of the musical arrangements has decreased. Where bands once featured horn sections and multiple guitarists in addition to a phalanx of percussionists, many current go-go bands have stripped down towards just keyboards and percussion.There is, however, a retro movement going back to go-go's original style of marathon sessions covering currently popular R&B songs. Bands playing in that style include Suttle Thoughts, WHAT? band, and Familiar Faces. Many of these bands use the term "Grown 'n Sexy" to indicate a focus on appealing to audiences over 25. In 2006 and again in 2007, there was a "Grown and Sexy" Category at the WKYS 93.9 Go-Go Awards ceremony held at DAR Constitution Hall, which the Familiar Faces won in 2006, and L!ssen Da Grew^p in 2007.[8]A new style that has branched off from go-go is called bounce beat.[citation needed] The bounce beat is primarily popular with a younger (teen) audience; many Go-Gos in this style are advertised as "all ages" and are performed in alcohol-free venues. It is considerably faster in tempo than the original go-go, and performed on drums, timbales and keyboard. A dance style called "beating your feet" was popular for a time. Beating your feet involves moving your feet and body in a swift motion in sync with hand movements. The bounce beat is characterized by overlapping beats that "bounce" at an 1/8th beat and repetitive chanting, like "hey hey hey hey". also at that same 1/8th beat. The invention of the Bounce Beat style of go-go is credited to the TCB (Total Control Band). The TCB band receives much scrutiny for this claim. This is more than likely due to the confusion that many go-go fans have between the "bounce beat" style of go-go a groove and the "breakdown" style of a go-go groove, both of which are characterized by heavy use of timbales and a generally faster tempo. While TCB did in fact create the bounce beat style, the breakdown style has been used for years before forming of the TCB band. One of the first popular go-go with a breakdown groove was "Work the Walls" by Rare Essence.[citation needed]Some go-go artists have been able to transition into other areas of entertainment. Notably, Anwan "Big G" Glover—a founding member of the Backyard Band—acts, playing Slim Charles on HBO's The Wire.[9]
VIOLENCE
While go-go's international profile was on the rise in the 1980s, go-go clubs in D.C. were acquiring an unfortunate reputation for violence. In some areas of Washington—even today—clubs are not permitted to play go-go or have go-go bands appear. In 1988, an all-star go-go band dubbed the Go-Go Posse recorded "D.C. Don't Stand for Dodge City," in an attempt to raise awareness and stop the violence. Suffice to say, any reduction in violence was short-lived at best.One well-publicized venue with trouble was Club U, located inside a District-owned building at the corner of 14th and U Street NW, where numerous incidents—including murder—occurred, leading to the revocation of its liquor license,[10] and eventual closing.[11]In March 2007, Jack B. Johnson, County Executive in nearby Prince George's County, Maryland, also cracked down on go-go music, announcing the indefinite closing of nine area clubs. which had seen a high frequency of police calls (many for violent incidents) in the last year.[12] A court battle is ongoing over whether the closings were justified, with a court order temporarily stopping the closing of five of the clubs.
QUALITY MUSIC PRODUCTION SERVICES!
WOODZ ENTERTAINMENT, llc.
(Sometimes It's Good, Not To Peak When You Want to?)
W.E. began in 1990 after spending previous years in such local Go.Go groups as N.E. Connection, Fantasy, (Eastern Sr.High's) Eastside Band and Keystone.
W.E. consists of two brothers + Three Others, who have been performing music together since the mid 80's. In addition to Go.Go, most of W.E. were members of the Eastern sr. High "Blue & White Marching Machine" under the direction of Mr. R.Sands. Sup Easten Alumni?
W.E. recorded their first ep release "The Jungle" in 1992.
Our Music Studio is based in Fairfax, VA.
W.E. are considered to be the new innovators of blending rap,r&b,gogo,soul,funk and jazz into an interesting new sound "to make listeners move" F*&kin Feel It!
Remix/Music Credits:
Amerie
Boys 2 Men
Everett Silver
Eric Kelly
Ron Artest
Bill Samaneck (TV/Movies)
Amaris Vonnae
Lyrikkal
Miller Brewing Company
Black Entertainment Television (BET)
The Don & Mike Show (106.7 WJFK)
The Howard Stern Show (SIRRIUS)
1450 WOL AM (Circa 1982/1983)
Past W.E. Sightings:
Zanzibar On The Waterfront
Martini's
The Turntable (GA. Ave)
The Legend Club
The Mirrage
The Chapter III
The Eastside Club
Lincoln Theater
MD University
The Classics
Howard University Blackburn Ctr.
The Ascott
The Apollo (NYC)
Past W.E. (DJ) Sightings:
Irvings Banquet Club (Gonna Play That Thang 4 Ya)
Sugarcane Palace
Ebony Inn
Masonic Temple
930 Club
WUST Music Hall
RSVP
Zelcys
Bryan Manor
Glen Arden Comunity Ctr.
Washington Hilton
TPC at Avanell
Probably Your Aunt's Basement?
