Elton John
Bennie And The Jets
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Album: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1974)

R. Kelly (w/T.I. & T-Pain)
I’m A Flirt (Remix)
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Album: Double Up (2007)

In this post, I feature distant Musical Cousins R. Kelly and Elton John. They don’t have any obvious connection but somehow it’s clear to me that R. Kelly had “Bennie And The Jets” in mind when he wrote “I’m A Flirt.” The bouncy, driving piano lines that feed both tracks result in vastly different songs, but both are 5-star classics to this listener.

I wonder if Elton John had any clue what his lyricist Bernie Taupin was talking about in “Bennie And The Jets.” Maybe that’s why he chose to mumble his way through the lyrics, shifting focus to the anthemic melody he devised for the song. Reading over the lyrics, my interpretation is that it’s a glimpse into the fascinating but vapid characters a famous pop star like Elton must have met after he hit it big, and the misplaced idolatry that comes along with fame.

In my prep for this post, I learned that “Bennie And The Jets” wasn’t intended to be a single until a Detroit R&B radio station started playing it. The song blew up, and eventually became a number-one hit on both the pop and R&B charts. Here’s Elton performing the song on Soul Train in 1975.

As usual with anything from 70s-era Soul Train, there’s much to admire. Elton’s pimp/leprechaun ensemble. His falsetto freakout. His lucite-encrusted piano. To be honest, I don’t think the Soul Train dancers knew quite what to do with this one; I enjoy watching the dude in the beige suit just behind Elton attempt to figure it out.

“I’m A Flirt” is one of the funniest and catchiest tracks you’ll ever hear. No matter what you think of R. Kelly as a person, it’s hard to deny that he’s a musical genius.

Joining Kelz is rapper T.I., who puts in a rock-solid verse that showcases his clockwork flow, and T-Pain, who proves why he remains Auto-Tune’s chief ambassador.

But it’s Kelz’s final, twisted verse that takes this joint to the next level. He was one of the first to fuse rap and R&B, and his double-time delivery rides that edge masterfully. Lyrically, he’s in all-out playa mode, no more so than in this couplet:

She be calling me daddy!
I be calling her mommy!
She be calling you Kelly!
When your name is Tommy!

As I said, the man is a genius.

People Say
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Just Kissed My Baby
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Africa
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Album: Rejuvenation (1974)

Though it’s not the most popular of The Meters’ records (I would guess it’s a tossup between Look-Ka Py Py and Fire On The Bayou), 1974′s Rejuvenation captures the transition from The Meters’ early, tight funk days to their later, jam-band incarnation.

Though The Meters haven’t released a studio album in the past 30 years, they continue to tour with some permutation of the original lineup. I’ve had the privilege of seeing them live on many occasions during the mid-1990s, and it is impossible not to seriously get down at a Meters show.

Though my perception of The Meters is rooted in their live performances, that’s a limited perspective, and there is no greater testament to this than the volumes of artists who have recorded with, covered, or sampled The Meters over the years: Paul McCartney, Labelle (The Meters were the studio band for “Lady Marmalade”), The Grateful Dead, A Tribe Called Quest, and many others.

“People Say” kicks off the album with a sweet guitar lick, then builds instrument by instrument until the groove is set. Lyrically, this track mines rare political territory, railing against the inequities of capitalist society. And you can dance to it!

“Just Kissed My Baby” feels like an outtake from The Meters 1969 influential Look-Ka Py Py LP. But unlike the stripped-down instrumental jams from that record, “Just Kissed My Baby” includes turned-on vocals from leader Art Neville. Zigaboo Modeliste — a true virtuoso on the drums — manages to concoct a beat that is simultaneously simple, complex and perfectly in the pocket. This track is a total 5-star classic.

The final selection, “Africa,” ends the record with some slinky cultural pride. The Red Hot Chili Peppers’ “Hollywood” is a cover version of this song, and it probably didn’t do them any favors that they changed the lyrics from Africa as the “motherland” to Hollywood as the “brotherland” — isn’t Africa the motherland for all humanity? I may be digging too deep on that one. Check out George Porter, Jr.’s acrobatic base line.

Bus Stop
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Laid Back
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Album: Bus Stop (1974)

Introducing Crate Diggin’, where I’ll digitize some tracks from my neglected record collection. I’ll try to focus on music that is still unavailable on CD and artists you may not be familiar with. This feature will be heavy on soul/funk/jazz from 1970-1975, since that’s what I was into when I was on the vinyl tip.

To kick things off, I’ve unearthed a record I picked up when I lived in New Orleans, Oliver Sain’s Bus Stop. Oliver was a big name in the St. Louis R&B scene, not just as a sax player, but also as a songwriter and producer. Each year, he organized an annual Soul Reunion, which just celebrated its 45th anniversary (even though Sain died in 2003).

Bus Stop was his second LP as a solo artist and focused on Oliver’s songwriting and sax skills. The record is a mixture of funk, blues, and the unfortunately-titled track, “Blowing For Love.”

The title track, “Bus Stop,” jump starts the record. Some of the heads out there may be familiar with this stomper. I think it’s been on a few comps. There’s a tight breakdown 1:20 in. I don’t think anyone has sampled it yet. You’re welcome.

The second selection is “Laid Back,” a slow-groover that will inspire you to seek out some sexytime, preferably with that special someone you really, really dig.

Oliver Sain, photo from the Bus Stop gatefold