Dystopian Dance Party

Tag: kleeer

  • Jheri Curl June: Michael Wycoff’s “On the Line”

    Today’s Jheri Curl June inductee, Michael Wycoff, was a backup singer on Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life, as well as a contributor to some of 7th Wonder’s and Natalie Cole’s albums. In 1980 he began releasing solo albums, but it wasn’t until 1983’s On the Line that he fully embraced the Jheri.

    Aside from the obvious musical qualifications of the title track in particular, On the Line also makes use of a red landline phone on the album cover. My theory, which I’m still fleshing out, is that the red phone is is a staple in Jheri Curl Music imagery: as you might recall from Jheri Curl June 2017, it also makes an appearance on the cover of Kleeer’s Intimate Connection.

    We’ll be back with more Jheri Curl Music–and possibly even more red phones, who knows–tomorrow. In the meantime, YouTube and Spotify playlists are below!

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  • Jheri Curl June: Kleeer’s “Tonight”

    Kleeer had a rocky road to Jheri Curldom. Originally conceived in  1972 as the Jam Band, the backing band for the Choice Four, they later became their own entity, changed their name to Pipeline, and recorded the hard rock infused “Gypsy Rider.” After the single tanked, Pipeline transformed into the Universal Robot Group, under which they recorded and toured for two years. Finally, in 1978, they became a new entity yet again, Kleeer.

    Kleeer’s 6th studio album, Intimate Connection; © Atlantic Records.

    Similar to One Way, Kleeer released a consistent output of minor hits in the late ’70s and ’80s, but they were immortalized by being extensively sampled by G-Funk artists, like DJ Quik. “Tonight,” from their 1984 album Intimate Connection, was practically made to be sampled: it’s essentially just five minutes of a funky groove with Roger Troutman-esque horny robot talkbox vocals.

    We have one more day to go for Jheri Curl June this week–see you then! In the meantime, Spotify and YouTube playlists are below.

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