Remember Patrick’s post on The Wiz? Well, we all know that Diana Ross played the lead in the movie adaptation in 1978. But in 1975, Stephanie Mills led the cast in the Broadway musical. Mills experienced a big bump in notoriety, not to mention the singer began dating Michael Jackson at the time (don’t ever blackout again Wikipedia - I need you for these kind of ridiculous facts).
I didn’t know any of this when I was 23/24, searching through thrift stores for vinyl gold. I had two strategies: look for the records I knew all music nerds should have in their collection AND buy any records I could that pictured an instant crush. The latter is obviously the case:
What Cha’ Gonna Do with My Lovin’ was Mills’ third record. And, the first time I heard “Put Your Body In It”, I was hooked. It had that Paradise Garage sound was resurging in the early 2000s. Mills sang in this moody, kind of nasally, high pitched voice. It’s a song with a four on the floor beat, but the essential ingredient are those epic strings. Mills made a track with disco strings that wasn’t corny and trite. Not an easy task. Plus, you got a few beefcakes in the background stating plainly: “PUT YOUR BODY IN IT”.
Four years and a hundred sweaty dancefloors in the making, it’s The Fatback 4th Anniversary! Upstairs at Liv, defy the laws of gravity and common decency with THE FATBACK FUNK ODYSSEY. Deep cuts in deep space, y’all. Then, ease on down to the ground floor for the FATBACK FAMILY CIRCUS, featuring a second sound system, a third bar, and a menagerie of props and costume pieces to set the mood. Keep your eyes peeled for special guests, surprise performances, and that sudden, overwhelming realization that this must be the place.
Saturday, January 21 @ Liv (2001 11th St NW)
Doors at 10:00pm
$5
