Lushus Daim & The Pretty Vain - More Than You Can Handle (1985)

Imagine, if you will, that a 15 year old small town Canadian boy, obsessed with Prince and his protegees and really any female R&B singer at that time, picks up at his local record store a 7" single called "More Than You Can Handle" by a mysterious act called Lushus Daim & The Pretty Vain, and it's on the Motown label. An instant rush of excitement and forbidden desire overcomes him and he simply MUST have it, even though he has no idea who this act is or what the song sounds like. Imagine further when said record turns out to be even more than he could have hoped for, yes, more than he could handle!! Well, that boy was me, and I was instantly smitten. Of course, all I had was this single, without even a picture sleeve, and no way of finding out more about this mysterious 'Lushus Daim'. Then, sometime later, I was casually flipping through albums at a used record store in Toronto and happened across a lovely visage that I first mistook to be that of my goddess Vanity. Instead, it turned out to be THE Lushus Daim and her album of the same name as my precious single! I was overwhelmed by just how awesome that image was. She looked even better than I could have imagined! I could barely wait to get home to listen to the album. And then...I was underwhelmed. Perhaps too much time had passed, but the music just didn't move me as I'd hoped. Then again, my expectations were very high. I gave it a few listens and then forgot about it until recently. Upon listening to it again, I finally appreciate it's brilliance. Thanks to the retro-electro-funk revival over the past couple of years, this album seems fresh and exciting. It's solid from beginning to end. It seems that Motown may have been looking for another Vanity, whose debut solo album they released the year before, or at least a female artist who emulated the looks and vibe that Prince had created in his protegees. But while the music has many Prince-ish qualities, it was in fact produced by Leon Sylvers III, who was at the height of his electro-funk craft, having produced groups like Shalamar, The Whispers, Krystol and Five Star. The title track was released as a single but, aside from rocking my world, it didn't make an impact. Neither did the follow-up, the lovely mid-tempo ballad "The One You Love". And that seems to be the end of it. Nothing more was heard from or can be found on this elusive beauty. I did read a brief interview back in the day where she claimed that Lushus Daim was her real name. Also, I don't think there ever was a 'Pretty Vain', as the credits on the album encompass a wide array of players, with Sylvers being the most prominent. Lushus did co-write all but the title song, however. Whatever the case, we luckily have this piece of electro-funk magic to remember her fondly by. Today's retro-loving acts only wish they could craft something so tasty.

UPDATE: Here is a little update left in the comments from an anonymous visitor (perhaps Lushus herself?):

"The Pretty Vain was the name of her band. She is doing well, married with 3 children living in Los Angeles. She only sings for fun now around family and friends but she still has an amazing voice. Her daughter has inherited her talent and hopefully we'll be hearing from her soon."

Video for The One You Love

Download More Than You Can Handle

1		More Than You Can Handle
2		The One You Love
3		Be There For Me
4		The Rhythm Of Love
5		Flex
6		Pretty Poison
7		Attention Addict
8		Payback
9		For You

RubyBlue - Beyond Pink (2001)

Last week I saw indie darlings Sleigh Bells in concert (great show with Die Antwoord, who were AMAZING!) and whilst reading up on the noise/electro duo, I came across a very interesting piece of info: Singer Alexis Krauss used to be part of a pop girl group in the early 2000's. This amazed me as Sleigh Bells music is so rough and hard that you could never imagine one of it's members was in a mainstream pop group. So of course I trolled the internet in search of the girl group RubyBlue's album. The problem was that it never got a proper release, and I could find it nowhere for download. Luckily, once again through the magic of eBay, I tracked down a copy and ordered it immediately. It just arrived and, as always, I am rushing to share it with you all. The story goes that some producers were looking for four multi-cultural teenage girls who could sing AND play instruments. This was a novel idea as pop puppets like Britney and Xtina were huge stars at the time, and many a singing girl group was created to cash in on their vibe (like previous Isle postees Innosense and Nobody's Angel), but none of them played instruments and wrote their own songs. RubyBlue was to be a pop band in the vein of a female Hanson. They played their own instruments, helped co-write their songs and perfected sweet harmonies. Four girls were eventually chosen: Alexis Krauss (lead vocals, bass), Jayme-lyn Amoscato (lead guitar, backing vocals), Alice Tai (guitar, backing vocals) and Candy Paulino (drums, backing vocals). They were signed to Edel America and were set up with producers Jeff Coplan (who had previously produced Canadian boy bands The Moffatts and Sky) and the Berman Brothers (who had also produced The Moffatts, as well as Real McCoy, Amber and previous Isle postees She Moves). Their sound was often compared to the Go-Go's, The Bangles, or even Wilson Phillips, though the female Hanson tag seems more appropriate - and that is actually a good thing. They opened on tour for teen boy band Dream Street (which featured Jesse McCartney) and released the single "That's What Girls Do" to much critical acclaim. However, No Secrets (who were only a vocal girl group) also recorded and released the track the same year and had more success with it. RubyBlue managed to release a promo of one more single, "Run Away", but by then the label was having difficulty and failed to promote it properly. The label's troubles also kept the album from seeing a proper release. By this time the girls were growing restless with their management and direction anyway, feeling like puppets who were being pushed even more in the Britney direction. There were also rumours that Alexis' mom (who was instrumental in getting her the gig in Sleigh Bells) was overbearing and causing tensions with the rest of the band. The girls soon disbanded and went their own way, though a few of their tracks appeared on the soundtrack to Dream Street's film The Biggest Fan. What the rest of the girls are doing remains unknown, but at least we know that Alexis has went on to bigger and better things. And listening to the album, you can see how her work with RubyBlue has influenced her work with Sleigh Bells, as the soaring girly pop vocals are still indeed there, only much deeper in the Sleigh Bells mix.

UPDATE: Awesome! One of RubyBlue's other members, Jayme-lyn Amoscato, just left a comment and updated us with what she's been up to. Thanks so much, Jayme-lyn! Love the album!!

"Holy crap, so i decided to google my name to see what came up...lol I'm glad Alexis is doing well ... i do miss all the girls...we were all so young. I went on to swimsuit/bikini modeling in CA. Actually just started to transfer my RubyBlue footage from VHS (OMG) to DVD...lol can you believe it....all i'm missing in the actual G-Shock Watch official commercial. It was a blast. Best to you all. Jayme-lyn (Amoscato) "

Download Beyond Pink

1		That's What Girls Do
2		Run Away
3		Through The Rain
4		Fallen For You
5		I See You In My Dreams
6		I'm Gonna Make You Mine
7		What Are We In It For
8		Losing My Mind
9		That's The Way I Like It
10		Stronger Than That
11		Match
12		Wish You Away

Razor N' Guido - Dancefloor (2000)

I've been featuring so many truly old school releases lately, I figured I'd bring it back this time to this decade - barely. Razor N' Guido are Peter Osback and Guido Osorio, two DJs from Long Island, New York. Though they began remixing separately (Guido having the higher profile with mixes for a wide range of acts like Book Of Love, Billy Idol, Captain Hollywood Project and Deep Forest), they teamed up in 1994. They probably first came to mass attention with their 1997 remixes of Robert Miles' "Fable" and Notorious B.I.G.'s "Mo Money Mo Problems". From there there were in demand, taking tracks from all kinds of artists and genres and giving them a very upbeat house vibe. This naturally led to an interest in production and creating songs of their own. They released their first single, "Men Beat Their Men", in 1997. Encouraged by the track's underground success, they released a few more singles over the next few years - "Don't Look Behind You", "Follow Me", "This Joy" and their biggest dance hit to date, "Do It Again", all on the Groovilicious label. They finally embarked on a full album of progressive house music, recruiting a variety of vocalists including Octahvia, Renee Goldstein, Alan T, Darrell Martin, and house diva Reina. The track "Miss The Way", with Reina taking lead vocals, became a dance smash, though it was attributed more to Reina than R&G. They released the title track next, featuring vocals by Octahvia, but it didn't generate the same amount of heat. The album also failed to ignite, and they went back to mainly remixing. But luckily, the quality of acts that they have been remixing since is high, including the likes of Cyndi Lauper and Kristine W. Their latest remix successes are of Korean diva BoA's "Energetic" and British 'next big thing' La Roux's "Bulletproof". They have managed to stay in demand and luckily are having a chance to remix diverse and well-hyped new acts.

Download Dancefloor

1		Intro
2		You
3		Imagination
4		Tweek It
5		Interlude #1
6		Dancefloor
7		In The Music
8		Never
9		Set Me Free
10		Miss The Way
11		Work It
12		Recycled Plastic (Twix)
13		Interlude #2
14		Won't You Tell Me
15		Do It Again
16		Interlude #3
17		Cheesy

Lazet Michaels - Too Strong (1991)

My 300th post! And it's been almost three years since I started this blog! Whew! Anyway, I bought this cassette when it was released solely because of the cover. It looked like it would be some sort of funky house album. While there is little in the way of house music on it, it is quite funky. Like the Jamie J. Morgan album, I barely listened to it at the time, but I just got the CD from eBay and it is actually better than I remembered. Though the vocals at times seem out of sync with the music, Lazet does have a very strong voice. She grew up in Detroit and then moved to New York to finish college and get her career going. She performed off-Broadway and did session work for several artists including Skyy and Diana Ross. She soon signed to EMI, but was then bought by new label Zoo Entertainment, an offshoot of BMG. Her first single was the funky "Krazē", and it made only a minor impact in the R&B world and dance clubs. Her second single was the ballad "Give Me All The Love", and it also failed to generate any heat. It seems Zoo dropped her soon after, and like so many session singers before her, she faded into the background once again. However, Lazet had another passion - fitness. She moved back to Detroit and became a fitness trainer. This eventually led to her opening her own fitness center, Lazet's Place. It also led to her own television show, Working Out With Lazet, which is shown at 5:30 AM (!) every morning on the Word Network, a national Christian station. She is also a 'Minister Of Music' and returned to recording, releasing a solo gospel album, Pressing Forward, in 2005. So here we have another act that may have failed initially in the music world, but thanks to perseverance and other talents, she has maintained a healthy and successful career, with the ability to record whenever she chooses. Many artists on the Isle could take a lesson from her example.

Download Too Strong

1		Krazē
2		Beggar For Your Kisses
3		Too Strong
4		Showtime Bit
5		My Rage
6		Give-N-Take
7		Interlude
8		Blue Suede Shoes
9		Give Me All The Love
10		Summer In Paradise
11		Over And Over
12		Midnight Magic
13		Can't Imagine Being Without You
14		Sent 4 U
15		Eazy Street

Jamie J. Morgan - Shotgun (1990)

This is another album that I bought on cassette for a dollar, then I barely listened to it and forgot about it. Then a few years ago I popped the cassette in and it wasn't near as innocuous as I'd supposed! So I just acquired the CD to share with y'all! Jamie is another of those artists that still remains an enigma on the internet (though most of the artists I've featured on here eventually resurface a year or two later). Anyway, the first bit of info I can find about him is that he was part of the duo Morgan/McVey. They released a synth-pop song called "Looking Good Diving" in 1986 (see the video here). The song was later remade by Nick Kamen, but it is most notable for the fact that Neneh Cherry was featured on the B-side of the single, on the reworked "Looking Good Diving With The Wild Bunch". She would take the rap she does on that track and have her breakout smash "Buffalo Stance" a couple years later, which Jamie co-wrote. Of course, the 'McVey' in the duo is Cameron McVey, who would later become Neneh's husband and main co-writer, as well as producer of act likes Sugababes and All Saints. In fact, the two co-wrote the lovely track "Mercedes Blue" on this album. Even more interesting, 'The Wild Bunch' mentioned in the title, and who reworked the track, would later go on to form Massive Attack and Soul II Soul. So you know what to expect from this album, as many of the people involved in that posse are involved on this album (including Nellee Hooper, Caron Wheeler, 3D from Massive Attack, and McVey), though the majority of it was produced by new wave producer Richard Mazda, so it has a poppier edge. Jamie's voice isn't terribly strong, but it serves the songs well enough, and the beats are quite good. My fave track is the house jam "She's On It" featuring backing vocals by house divas Jomanda. His first single was a remake of Lou Reed's "Walk On The Wild Side" and it featured female rap duo Finesse & Synquis. It was a middling hit in the UK, but the follow up "Rocksteady" barely dented the UK charts. It seems his label Tabu dropped him soon after, and his only other recorded appearance was on A&M Records in 1992 with the house song "Why". I can find nary a thing about his career or whereabouts since. Considering the pedigree of his friends, however, don't be surprised if he pops up again someday.

UPDATE: Yes, another next day update! Thanks Michael for finding out more about Jamie. I had no idea he was a photographer. Here is his bio from this site. Obviously my investigative skills are lacking! LOL

"Jamie Morgan began his career as a photographer. After a short-lived pop career in the 80s as Jamie J Morgan, he became the founder of London's creative collective Buffalo, a group who changed the nature of image-making through its pioneering work in The Face magazine for which he shot more covers than any other photographer.

He also shot album covers for music stars such as Culture Club, Soul II Soul, Neneh Cherry (for whom he co-wrote Buffalo Stance) and many more. He also created campaigns for the likes of Levis and Comme de Garcons.

Jamie progressed to music video direction working with Bush on their US number one hit 'Swallowed'. Since then he has shot many chart topping videos for groups such as Sugababes and Richard Ashcroft. He has recently completed a series of six fashion / art films for Givenchy designer Ozwald Boateng. These beautiful, emotive films are to feature as part of a major documentary for Sundance Channel on the designer.

He has also shot several short films, including a powerful portrait study of young Thai boxers, and an art documentary on artist Andy Goldsworthy which was in official selection at the Florence Film Festival 2006.

2007 has seen the culmination of Jamie's talent as a director with his debut feature film 'The Workshop', a provocative and personal documentary / drama, exploring sexuality and the human need for self-discovery."

Video for Walk On The Wild Side

Download Shotgun

1		Shotgun
2		Walk On The Wild Side
3		Could You Be That Girl
4		Third World Man
5		I'm No Angel
6		Rock Steady
7		Shame
8		She's On It
9		Mercedes Blue
10		Blind Love
11		Gangster Boogie
12		Heaven Can Wait
13		Walk On The Wild Side (Extended Mix)

Robey - Robey (1985)

I meant to post this last week on Canada Day, but I got a bit too heavy into the wine and then it was Pride weekend and I got even heavier into the sauce, so I only got to it now. LOL This album come courtesy of Isle fan Robert, which is awesome as it was on my want list and it is so perfect for this blog. Thanks SO much again, Robert! :) The story goes that Louise Robey was born in Montreal, though she moved to Europe and attended a boarding school in Scotland. She was discovered sunbathing on the French Riviera by a famous photographer, which led to modeling for many high profile fashion magazines. She had a passion for music, however, and while busking on the streets of Paris, she was discovered yet again, this time by the head of CBS Records France. She was asked to front a ska band, Louise & The Creeps, and they moved to New York in 1980, but broke up before they signed a deal. Staying in New York, she went back to modeling but also studied acting and dance. However, CBS was still interested and they signed her to a deal on their Silver Blue label in 1984. Dropping her first name, she released the double-sided single "Hungry For You Boy / Be Mine (Be My Baby)", to little attention. Then she recorded a version of the song "One Night In Bangkok" from the musical Chess. It reached #77 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was a dance hit, though a version by Murray Head became a Billboard top ten hit the same year. She released her Joel Diamond produced self-titled dance-pop album the next year along with the singles "Killer Instinct" and "Moth To A Flame" (and "Tighter Tighter" in Australia), though they were only minor dance hits. She also appeared in the movie The Money Pit that same year. She signed to Chrysalis Records in 1986 but only managed to release one more single, "I Surrender". (She also appeared on the song "Flight Of The Phoenix" with Cerrone in 1987.) For many, that could have been the end of their fame and fortune, but Robey moved to Los Angeles and continued to study acting and improv comedy. This helped her snag the lead role in the syndicated television show Friday the 13th: The Series (not based on the movies, BTW) in 1987. The show lasted for three seasons (and will always be remembered fondly by me, especially for the episode that starred my goddess Vanity. It was a life changer!). After the show ended Robey continued acting in small parts and studying. She also wrote children's books and took up photography. She married, had a child, divorced, and remarried. She now lives in France and is still recording music, some of which you can buy on iTunes. Check out her website and Myspace page for more. Most excitingly, she apparently plans to release the "Louise Robey Music Anthology (1979-2010) The Essential Collectors Edition" in the future, which indicates she possesses never before heard music from very early in her career! This post will have to suffice until then. (BTW, this download is actually taken from the CD reissue of the album from 1996 titled One Night In Bangkok.)

UPDATE: Yes, I ALREADY have an update for this post, and I just posted it yesterday! Louise's manager and friend, F. Lauver, wrote to fill us in on more of her bio as well as her current happenings and whereabouts. Sadly, her husband died recently and she is in mourning. We send our love. But she is indeed working on new music, and you can go to the Lauver Management Myspace page for much more info. Please also read Mr. Lauver's comments in the comments section here. I'd repost them here, but they are very lengthy. ;) Thanks again, "F.". Much appreciated.

Video for One Night In Bangkok

Download Robey

1		Turn My Head
2		The Right Combination
3		One Night In Bangkok
4		One Monkey Don't Stop No Show
5		Killer Instinct
6		Tighter, Tighter
7		Bored And Beautiful
8		Moth To A Flame