Stock-Aitken-Waterman / PWL Picks - #2
Yes sir, Daft is back with another blog entry for my Stock, Aitken, Waterman / PWL Picks series. I have listened to so much more of their music since then and I'm hoping to write more articles either with more "one-shots" or selected S/A/W-related acts in the future. So, continuing off with Picks #1, I have chosen 3 more songs from 3 different artists.
Lisa Carter - Doctor’s Orders (1988)
Stock/Aitken/Waterman weren't just a trio of popular songwriters, they were a team. And under the roof of Pete Waterman’s music studio PWL, were the “Mix Masters”. Comprised of Phil Harding, Pete Hammond, Ian Curnow and several others, these guys had a major helping hand in what made S/A/W such a big success in the Late 80’s and Early 90’s. Engineering, instruments, producing additional tracks for albums and singles, they did it all. And while they’re not busy working with the trio, they’re making fantastic remixes of other at-the-time popular European chart-toppers and dance-pop hits (Diana Ross’s Love Hangover ’88 and Five Star’s If I Say Yes to name a few). Though once in a while, the Mix Masters would try their luck making an original club hit, either with each other or finding an artist of their own. Such is the case for Lisa Carter’s 1988 single Doctor’s Orders, albeit strangely. Mixed by Pete Hammond, Lisa Carter’s version is a sweet Hi-NRG cover of the 1974 classic love song, with Sunny Leslie’s version being most successful in the UK and Ireland. However, Carol Douglas’ version proved to be an even bigger hit in the US, chartng at #2, #9, and #11 on the Disco, R&B, and Hot 100. Lisa Carter’s cover would only peak at #78 in the UK, but it has remained a favorite among EuroBeat lovers. The B-side of Doctor’s Orders contains a rare, original production from Ian Curnow, an instrumental Hi-NRG track known as Good Medicine. The song was originally intended to have lyrics, but who was to provide the vocals had never actually been confirmed. Though seeing it as it been released exclusively for Doctor’s Orders, we can only assume it was for Lisa Carter.
The Cool Notes - Make This A Special Night (1991)
The Cool Notes were mainly a Funk-Soul band of seven that had some great success during the Mid 80’s. Their most popular songs, Spend The Night and In Your Car both charted on the Top 20 in the UK (#11 and #13) and the band would be big all across Europe in 1985. However in 1986 and ’87, while continuing to make minor Dance hits, the band would be reduced by 2 members per year. By 1988, The Cool Notes were then only left with founder Steve McIntosh on keyboards, vocalist Lorraine McIntosh (Steve’s by-then loving wife), and guitarist Joseph 'J.C.' Charles. With the band’s final years in pop music, the trio would go up to the S/A/W team at PWL to record the song Make This A Special Night, a smooth, laid-back Disco track that was unlike S/A/W’s more recognizable “upbeat” and “lively” music style they had mainly stuck with in previous years. Stuff so funky, stuff so fresh, the song proved to be a major club hit in Japan, with later Hip-Hop/House remixes being produced and sold over there as well. During their stay at PWL, the band had also been working with the team on a new album, but would sadly be later cancelled with just Make This A Special Night and a ballad, Where Do We Go From Here? being released as one single, presumably due to MTaSN not being a big enough success in the UK. Fortunately, the very kind Souls on The Cool Notes official website have uploaded the demos of what would've been on the supposed PWL album, including Love Is A Freaky Thing, another S/A/W production that would also be released fully on iTunes along with its original remixes. As for The Cool Notes trio today, they have been working very closely with GAP Music in re-issuing many of their completed tracks, or releasing other unfinished demos the band had previously worked on in the past. The official website has also confirmed that another new Cool Notes album is still currently in the works.
Michaela - Take Good Care Of My Heart (1990)
I’m sort of cheating with this one. Neither Stock/Aitken/Waterman nor the Mix Masters at PWL had worked on this track, but given that Michaela Strachan was the co-host for Pete Waterman’s The Hitman and Her TV show anyway, and that Ralf René Maué, the actual producer of the song, had collaborated with other S/A/W-related artists before, like Sinitta and Samantha Fox, it might as well be a S/A/W-PWL Pick. Michaela’s mainstream music career was very brief with just 2 singles, the first being H.A.P.P.Y. Radio, a 1989 cover of the Edwin Starr classic. H.A.P.P.Y. Radio charted at #62 in the UK, but had unfortunately led to some criticism as well, with its hammy music video and the song itself just being a “cheap disgrace” to the Edwin original. The second and final single, Take Good Care Of My Heart, would be considered a much more respectable song from Strachan, and would also be performed on The Hitman and Her. TGCOMH would actually peak slightly lower on the UK chart at #66, but would later be considered an “underrated gem” from tons of her fans, myself included, as I absolutely love the whole song production and it happens to be one of my most favorite discoveries of last year. It manages to be SO, so catchy throughout and it puts me in such a good mood nearly every time I listen to it. H.A.P.P.Y. Radio is an okay track in my opinion, but Take Good Care Of My Heart is THE Michaela tune that really deserves the attention and more.
Yes sir, Daft is back with another blog entry for my Stock, Aitken, Waterman / PWL Picks series. I have listened to so much more of their music since then and I'm hoping to write more articles either with more "one-shots" or selected S/A/W-related acts in the future. So, continuing off with Picks #1, I have chosen 3 more songs from 3 different artists.
Lisa Carter - Doctor’s Orders (1988)
Stock/Aitken/Waterman weren't just a trio of popular songwriters, they were a team. And under the roof of Pete Waterman’s music studio PWL, were the “Mix Masters”. Comprised of Phil Harding, Pete Hammond, Ian Curnow and several others, these guys had a major helping hand in what made S/A/W such a big success in the Late 80’s and Early 90’s. Engineering, instruments, producing additional tracks for albums and singles, they did it all. And while they’re not busy working with the trio, they’re making fantastic remixes of other at-the-time popular European chart-toppers and dance-pop hits (Diana Ross’s Love Hangover ’88 and Five Star’s If I Say Yes to name a few). Though once in a while, the Mix Masters would try their luck making an original club hit, either with each other or finding an artist of their own. Such is the case for Lisa Carter’s 1988 single Doctor’s Orders, albeit strangely. Mixed by Pete Hammond, Lisa Carter’s version is a sweet Hi-NRG cover of the 1974 classic love song, with Sunny Leslie’s version being most successful in the UK and Ireland. However, Carol Douglas’ version proved to be an even bigger hit in the US, chartng at #2, #9, and #11 on the Disco, R&B, and Hot 100. Lisa Carter’s cover would only peak at #78 in the UK, but it has remained a favorite among EuroBeat lovers. The B-side of Doctor’s Orders contains a rare, original production from Ian Curnow, an instrumental Hi-NRG track known as Good Medicine. The song was originally intended to have lyrics, but who was to provide the vocals had never actually been confirmed. Though seeing it as it been released exclusively for Doctor’s Orders, we can only assume it was for Lisa Carter.
The Cool Notes - Make This A Special Night (1991)
The Cool Notes were mainly a Funk-Soul band of seven that had some great success during the Mid 80’s. Their most popular songs, Spend The Night and In Your Car both charted on the Top 20 in the UK (#11 and #13) and the band would be big all across Europe in 1985. However in 1986 and ’87, while continuing to make minor Dance hits, the band would be reduced by 2 members per year. By 1988, The Cool Notes were then only left with founder Steve McIntosh on keyboards, vocalist Lorraine McIntosh (Steve’s by-then loving wife), and guitarist Joseph 'J.C.' Charles. With the band’s final years in pop music, the trio would go up to the S/A/W team at PWL to record the song Make This A Special Night, a smooth, laid-back Disco track that was unlike S/A/W’s more recognizable “upbeat” and “lively” music style they had mainly stuck with in previous years. Stuff so funky, stuff so fresh, the song proved to be a major club hit in Japan, with later Hip-Hop/House remixes being produced and sold over there as well. During their stay at PWL, the band had also been working with the team on a new album, but would sadly be later cancelled with just Make This A Special Night and a ballad, Where Do We Go From Here? being released as one single, presumably due to MTaSN not being a big enough success in the UK. Fortunately, the very kind Souls on The Cool Notes official website have uploaded the demos of what would've been on the supposed PWL album, including Love Is A Freaky Thing, another S/A/W production that would also be released fully on iTunes along with its original remixes. As for The Cool Notes trio today, they have been working very closely with GAP Music in re-issuing many of their completed tracks, or releasing other unfinished demos the band had previously worked on in the past. The official website has also confirmed that another new Cool Notes album is still currently in the works.
Michaela - Take Good Care Of My Heart (1990)
I’m sort of cheating with this one. Neither Stock/Aitken/Waterman nor the Mix Masters at PWL had worked on this track, but given that Michaela Strachan was the co-host for Pete Waterman’s The Hitman and Her TV show anyway, and that Ralf René Maué, the actual producer of the song, had collaborated with other S/A/W-related artists before, like Sinitta and Samantha Fox, it might as well be a S/A/W-PWL Pick. Michaela’s mainstream music career was very brief with just 2 singles, the first being H.A.P.P.Y. Radio, a 1989 cover of the Edwin Starr classic. H.A.P.P.Y. Radio charted at #62 in the UK, but had unfortunately led to some criticism as well, with its hammy music video and the song itself just being a “cheap disgrace” to the Edwin original. The second and final single, Take Good Care Of My Heart, would be considered a much more respectable song from Strachan, and would also be performed on The Hitman and Her. TGCOMH would actually peak slightly lower on the UK chart at #66, but would later be considered an “underrated gem” from tons of her fans, myself included, as I absolutely love the whole song production and it happens to be one of my most favorite discoveries of last year. It manages to be SO, so catchy throughout and it puts me in such a good mood nearly every time I listen to it. H.A.P.P.Y. Radio is an okay track in my opinion, but Take Good Care Of My Heart is THE Michaela tune that really deserves the attention and more.