Saché - Are You Attracted To Me (1987)

Thanks to the magical Lumel, I can now share with you the only album by girl group Saché. I originally bought this cassette for $1 when on a trip to the US based on the group name and cover alone. As I had just received my first CD player and had also bought numerous cheap CDs while on this trip, I barely gave this cassette a listen since I was slowly converting my cassettes to CDs and the cassettes were being relegated to boxes in the back of my closet. The only song I remember really liking off of this album was the poppy, freestylish "All Over", but even that was soon forgotten. I had heard nothing about this group before or after I bought the cassette. So I didn't have much hope locating MP3s of the album until Lumel spotted the album on my 'wanted' list and sent it to me! I have no idea where he finds this stuff but I am grateful he does. And you will be too, as the album is far better than I originally gave it credit. Thanks to the production, mainly by Keg Johnson and Wilmer Raglin, who had also worked with 80s funk acts like The Sylvers, Krystol, Levert and Body, the album is a funky dance-pop joy. The ladies released two singles - the title track, which is a ballad, and the mid-tempo "Help Me To Get Over The Hurt". If you ask me, they would have done much better releasing one of the more upbeat numbers. Whatever the case, they came and went without a trace. All I know about them is that their names were Tamara, Brooke and Cathy. Anyone else out there able to help with the details? :)

Download Are You Attracted To Me

1		Are You Attracted To Me
2		Help Me To Get Over The Hurt
3		Just One Little Kiss
4		All Over Again
5		Boys Will Be Boys
6		Constant Motion
7		Lover Boy
8		Nice Girls
9		Something Crazy Like That

Raiana Paige - One Girl's Story (1994)

Recently I was looking for the latest album by KHZ, a Latin hard rock/industrial band fronted by Raiana Paige, a lovely half-Puerto Rican, half-Italian singer. (Yes, I do like that kind of music. I love a bit of everything. ;) I knew that Raiana had a history in freestyle music, but I didn't know that in the mid-90s she released a solo album on an indie label. Of course, once I learned this I had to have it, and I immediately ordered it off of eBay, with the intention of posting it here for you all. And here it is! Raiana was born in Puerto Rico and raised in the Bronx. Though the details regarding the beginning of her music career remain vague, it is clear that she did get the attention of Sleeping Bag Records, who, along with Cutting, were probably the most successful freestyle label by the late 1980s. In 1988 she released her first freestyle single, "Open Up Your Heart", produced by none other than Andy "Panda" Tripoli, who'd had huge club success with The Cover Girls, Sa-Fire and Nayobe, among others. The song reached #10 on the Billboard Dance Chart and led to a follow-up single in 1990, "Rescue Me", also on Sleeping Bag. Despite being produced by Albert Cabrera, another popular freestyle producer who also worked with Sa-Fire and The Cover Girls, the song didn't manage to do as well and only reached #27 on the dance chart. This ended Raiana's run with the label, and it took three more years for her to release another single. "You're My Only Man" was released on London Records in 1993, and was produced by yet another freestyle producer extraordinaire, Carlos Berrios, famous for his "new freestyle" hits with Corina and Lisette Melendez. The song failed to chart at all, however, likely due to the fact that freestyle music had fallen out of public favour and was taking it's last gasp. It appears that Raiana was also over the freestyle sound, as a year later she released her only solo album, and it was pure rock. This was probably the type of music she wanted to sing in the first place, as she sites The Beatles, Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd as influences in the liner notes. Their influence is obvious in the music, which is mostly atmospheric downtempo rock, and the album features her vocals much better than her freestyle tracks did. The album's producer Eddie Frenté had done some mixing and production on "You're The Only Man", but he clearly also appreciated the rock direction Raiana wanted to go, so much so that the two formed the group KHZ in New York soon after. KHZ's first EP appeared in 1996, and they have released four albums since. The musical direction went even further into the rock genre, embracing heavy metal and industrial, with touches of trip hop. Raiana's vocals are much more powerful and she often breaks into guttural wails. (Her stylistic trajectory is actually quite similar to Tairrie B, former member of previous postees Bardeux.) KHZ have remained quite successful within their genre and are still active. They just released a DVD of their videos and will soon release a double album of rarities. (For more info go to their website.) So as you can see, Raiana is proof that you can't judge a failed "pop tart" by her cover, as she may surprise you with something completely different and actually find success with it.

Download One Girl's Story

1		Running Waters
2		One Girl's Story
3		Love & Emotion
4		Love & Emotion (Pt. II)
5		The Clown (Gonna' Need A Little Love)
6		I'll Be There
7		Tomorrow Never Happened
8		Scattered Thoughts
9		No Toys To Take Away
10		End Of Innocence
11		One Girl's Story (Pt. II)

Jomanda - Someone To Love Me (1990) & Nubia Soul (1993) DOUBLE POST!!

Sorry, April was a very busy month for me, so I haven't been able to post anything for awhile (BTW, saw Kylie and she was SPECTACULAR!) But Lumel requested Jomanda, and since I mentioned them in the previous post, I'm finding a moment to post this. Luckily I already did my research for them when I did the write-up for their Lastfm page, so I have the info ready. ;) Jomanda was formed in New Jersey and consisted of Joanne Thomas, Cheri Williams and Renee Washington. They had all worked solo with the production trio of Derek A. Jenkins, Dwayne Spen Richardson & Cassio Ware, also known as Backroom Productions, who brought the ladies together. They debuted in 1986 with the independently released house song “On Top (Of The Groove)” and followed it up with "I'll Give It To You (Come Get It)" in 1987 and "Drifting" in 1988, both on the Quark label. While these singles generated interest, it was their next track, “Make My Body Rock”, which became their first genuine hit, partly due to their being signed to the Big Beat label. It hit #5 of the Billboard Dance Chart and made them genuine house divas. The track was also heavily sampled the following year by previous Isle postees The 28th Street Crew on their dance hit "I Need A Rhythm". (Incidentally, they also did backing vocals on previous Isle postee Jamie J. Morgan's track "She's On It" around this time.) Their next single, "Don't You Want My Love", also hit the Billboard Dance Charts, and they soon had an album deal with Big Beat. It was their next single, however, that would make them, temporarily, a household name. "Got A Love For You" reached #40 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1991 and took them from the clubs to living rooms everywhere thanks to radio and the flashy video. The album included all of their Big Beat singles as well as follow up singles "The True Meaning (Of Love)", which also hit the dance charts, and "Share", which didn't, likely because it was much more downtempo and not the house sound fans expected. The failure of this track didn't deter them from changing their sound on their follow-up album, however. Though their house fans were kept happy the following year with Felix's progressive house hit "Don't You Want Me", which relied on a sample from "Don't You Want My Love", when Jomanda emerged in 1993 with their new album, their sound had almost totally transformed. Instead of the exciting garage house jams fans had come to love and expect, the lades instead focused on new jack swing and soul, thus the title Nubia Soul. It was much more downtempo and only contained two house tracks. They also brought in a host of other producers. The first single, a remake of DeBarge's "I Like It", managed to hit the bottom end of the Billboard Hot 100 and the dance chart. But the follow up, "Back To You" barely dented the R&B charts. There were a number of new jack swing girl groups at the time who specialized in the sound, and since Jomanda began in a much different genre, they go lost in the fray. In an attempt to get back their original fan base, they released the non-album house track "Never" the same year, to minimal success. In 1994, one of the two album house tracks, "I Cried The Tears", was released and hit the top 20 of the Billboard Dance Charts, but it was too little too late and the ladies soon broke up. Since then the whereabouts of Renee Washington and Cheri Williams remain unknown. Joanne Thomas, however, rejoined her old producers in 1995 and they revived a group they began in the late 80s called Ruffneck. Joanne took on the moniker Yavahn and took lead, releasing two albums and many singles with Ruffneck, including the huge dance chart hit "Everybody Be Somebody". Sadly, in 2000 Joanne learned that she had colon cancer, and three years later she succumbed to the disease. Though we can never have a full Jomanda reunion, it would be awesome if the other two ladies could get together once again as a tribute to their former bandmate and friend. Jomanda are one of my fave acts of the 90s and I would love to hear something from them again.

Video for Make My Body Rock

Video for Got A Love For You

Download Someone To Love Me

1		Make My Body Rock 1990
2		Someone To Love Me
3		Share
4		Don't You Want My Love
5		What's The Deal?
6		You Knew, Boy
7		Dance
8		Got A Love For You
9		It Ain't No Big Thing
10		When Love Hurts
11		The True Meaning (Of Love)
12		I Will Always Be There For You
13		Without You
14		Make My Body Rock (Basic Mix)

Video for I Like It

Download Nubia Soul

1		Don't Deny
2		Just A Little More Time
3		I Like It
4		I Cried The Tears
5		Back To You
6		When You Come Home
7		Tell Me (Whatcha Gonna Do)
8		Don't Fight The Feeling
9		Ez'A Said Than Done
10		Life
11		Gotta Be With You
12		After All This Love
13		Tonight's The Night
14		Kiss You
15		I Like It (Kenny Smoove Remix)