This is The GO Mechanism, an audio Odyssey that will take you to the empty place in your fire engine. It is conducted by Phast Phreddie, who is inclined to share musical discoveries with those whose minds are open and mouths are shut.

The GO Mechanism first airs as a Saturday Night Special on the Luxuria Music interweb streaming hustle—this one will air (aired) on November 18—and will hang there as a podcast for a few weeks until The GO Mechanism producers get around to mounting it on the mixclouds and here in The Boogaloo Bag.

In order to achieve a complete GO Mechanism experience, the listener is strongly urged to read this post before, after or during the time that you listen to the show in order to understand what’s happening. We don’t stop for red lights, nor do we stop the action in order to back-announce records. A complete track listing of the songs heard in the GO is here in The Bag.

An hour into the trip there will be a Science Corner where we discuss some interesting musical matters. For some reason, this Science Corner will feature the song “Night Train.”

“Night Train” is a song that was derived from a Duke Ellington composition called “Happy Go Lucky Local.” That composition was part of a four part larger composition by Ellington known as “The Deep South Suite,” as heard in The Science Corner. As per Ellington, “The Happy Go Lucky Local” refers to a slow moving train that travels through the South picking up passengers along the way in towns no one has ever heard of. The original composition is about six minutes long, but was cut in two—Part 1, Part 2, to fit on each side of a 10” 78 RPM record. It was recorded on November 25, 1946—two days after the entire “Deep South Suite” was performed at Carnegie Hall. Part 1 is rather abstract and modern sounding, without a distinctive theme, but with some very cool playing by the members of the Famous Orchestra—the horns squawk and go ‘wah wah’ as the train goes by. In Part 2, the musical theme that we all know as “Night Train” appears and is heard through the rest of the composition.

The Ellington Orchestra employed a series of fantastic tenor saxophonists, including Ben Webster, Al Sears, Jimmy Forrest, and Paul Gonzalves. Forrest was the lead tenor soloist only for about six months or so, from the summer of 1949 to January 1950. When he left he formed his own group and soon scored a recording contract with United Records, a Chicago-based label. His first session produced “Night Train,” incorporating the melody he must have heard when he was working with Ellington. This version of “Night Train” was a Number One R&B hit in early 1952. Its moody and greasy feel made it a favorite in jukeboxes all over the country. It would receive many cover versions, including one by Buddy Morrow—a swing-era trombonist whose recording was a pop hit internationally.

There is also a vocal version, with lyrics written by Lew Simpkins—who was a co-owner of United Records—and guitarist Oscar Washington and it was first sung by an early R&B vocal group called The Four Blazes which also recorded for United Records. Although the song is almost always performed as a an instrumental, the names of Simpkins and Washington have since been attached and thus they share in the songwriting royalties. The vocal version heard in The Science Corner is by Wynonie Harris. He was a great blues shouter who had more than a dozen major R&B hits through the last half of the forties. Somehow, he was not able to transfer this success into Rock’n’Roll stardom the way others, like Big Joe Turner, did. Harris’ career floundered after about 1953. His version of “Night Train” has been a favorite of The GO Mechanism producers ever since they found the 78 way back in the seventies.

About ten years after Jimmy Forrest cut “Night Train,” James Brown re-worked the melody—he sped it up, messed with the rhythm and, contrary to Duke Ellington’s initial concept, shouted out major cities as destinations that the “Night Train” was taking him to. It was a big hit for him in 1962. The music behind the Science Corner narration is a James Brown version of the song, but without the cities shouted out. It is only found on the album Mighty Instrumentals. The J.B. version continues to be the most popular recording. It has inspired a lot of cover versions by garage bands and R&B combos. Some of our favorites include versions by Buddy Lucas, Paul Revere & the Raiders, The Champs and especially the Travis Wammack version that ends this episode of The GO Mechanism.

What did Duke Ellington think about “Night Train.” Not much. Read an account of it in All About Jazz.

The Willows were a girl group from Canada. Originally called The Girlfriends, they appeared regularly on a local TV show. In 1966, they were signed to M-G-M records and cut two singles with producer Tom Wilson. “Outside the City” is our favorite.

Ambrose Brazelton was a physical education teacher who recorded several albums of workout programs. Some of them have been kept in print by Smithsonian/Folkways. Presented here he directs the listener for a workout to the tune of The Beatles song “Ticket to Ride.” The Go Mechanism producers encourage all listeners/readers to exercise regularly in order to maintain good physical and mental health.

“Nuttin’ Out Jones” by the Elvin Jones/Jimmy Garrison Sextet features a solo by Sonny Simmons on the English horn—a double-reed instrument usually heard in symphony orchestras, not post bop jazz combos. It is the perfect background for Danny Weizmann’s recitation of his “For Jack Jones” poem.

When The GO Mechanism producers briefly lived in Hermosa Beach, California (circa 1973), Terry Riley’s “In C” was often on the turntable when they were discussing matters of great importance with roommates. Thus the track was referred to as “the talking record.” It is incorporated here as the bed music for resident GO Mechanism narrator Oweinama Biu to read the tortoise parable from the novel Things Fall Apart by the African writer Chinua Achebe.

Ya gotta like box set anthologies and deluxe edition reissues. Sometimes, in order to fill them out, the compilers will add weird in-studio recordings that didn’t make it to the real record or album during its natural life. We have two examples in this GO. The first is The Yardbirds studio recording of “Here ’Tis” in an instrumental version. The song was previously available as a live recording on the Having a Rave Up album. This version comes to us via the Train Kept a Rollin’ box set that Charly Records of England issued a bunch of years ago. The second example is “Big Eyed Beans From Venus” by Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band—but without Captain Beefheart!! It appears on a deluxe, two-disc version of Clear Spot that came out last year.

Guitar Ray’s version of “You’re Gonna Wreck My Life” is a mind blower. The song was written and first recorded by Howlin’ Wolf in his inimitable style. Guitar Ray took the track into a smooth, seventies soul territory. Ray—real name Raymond Washington—was a New Orleans cat, but this song sounds like some of the cool Tyrone Davis records that were recorded in Chicago around this time. The record is very rare and highly desired; original copies on the Shag label have fetched more than a thousand dollars! Luckily, we have a cheap reissue!!!

Juan Virginio Rodriguez Acosta is the real name of Willie Baby—who also recorded as Willy El Baby and as Willie (Baby) Rodriguez. He was born in Cuba and once sang for the legendary mambo/salsa band La Sonora Matancera that included Celia Cruz early in her career. Who knows how this hot “Hot Buns – Part 1” record was recorded and released—with distribution by Atlantic Records! It’s a great, drum-heavy, boogaloo that drives folks nuts. The flip, “Hot Buns – Part 2,” is even crazier and we will feature it in a future GO.

Willis Jackson was a great tenor saxophonist who worked in R&B as well as jazz fields during his career, which began with a stint in the Cootie Williams Orchestra. He then cut several early R&B records for the King and Atlantic labels and was married to Ruth Brown for a while. He is a GO Mechanism favorite—many of his singles are in the library of the GO Mechanism producers. In this GO we present “Goose Pimples,” a Mod jazz raver that, for some reason, Jackson forgot to solo on. Instead, the track features the organ playing of Butch Cornell, a little known keyboard player who also made records with Boogaloo Joe Jones and Stanley Turrnetine. Why wouldn’t he be featured on the composition, since he wrote it! Cornell’s playing on this track is excellent so we’d like to ask him to stand up and take a bow!

Larry Vivo Cappel was an excellent but way underrated, gospel-influenced soul singer who cut records as both Larry Hale and Tony Fox (dig his “I Dream One Day” in GO Mechanism Number Seven). He was also the lead singer for The African Beavers, a soul group that has been mistaken for The Isley Brothers with Jimi Hendrix recording under another name; that’s how good the records are. “Shout and Do the Duck” is a fantastic duck record that puts his gospel influences on full display.

This GO closes out with another version of the subject of this Science Corner—“Night Train.” This one is by Travis Wammack, a Mississippi-born guitarist who made his mark in Memphis. When he was about 17, he had a hit record with “Scratchy,” a wild guitar workout instrumental that is not too loosely based on “Comin’ Home Baby.” Wammack was a pioneer in distorting his guitar and using unusual effects. His version of “Night Train” is another wild guitar workout. He upped the tempo to punk rock speed and just whammed the heck out of his guitar for about two and a half minutes. It is one of the greatest records of all time and it closes out this edition of The Go Mechanism.

The graphic image employed to represent this GO Mechanism is a painting by our friend Deneane Niebergall. The piece is titled “Cool Orbs” and we display it here sideways. Miss Deneane is a Kingston, NY artist who has exhibited her work in San Francisco, as well in galleries around the Hudson Valley. Also, she has worked in film and even appeared as a zombie in Jim Jarmusch’s The Dead Don’t Die. The Boogaloo Bag writers have an unwritten agreement with her—she comes to our DJ gigs and we go to her art openings!

The GO Mechanism is produced whenever we feel like it and it incorporates exclusive, copyrighted Vitaphonic, Ultra-sonic and Quasi-Tonal methods in order to provide a higher standard of standardness. Legacy GO Mechanisms may be found on the Mixclouds as well as here in The Boogaloo Bag.

Dig the show here:

The GO Mechanism originates on the Luxuria Music interweb streaming hustle as a Saturday Night Special. We thank the Luxuria Music powers-that-be for giving us the opportunity to present this program over their deluxe electronic audio delivery system for your edification. Please support Luxuria Music any way you can. We suggest you get as much money as you can—preferably unmarked tens and twenties—load it all into a shoe box and send it to Luxuria Music. Or just go to
the Luxuria Music web site and buy something from the store.

Here is a complete list of all the songs played on GO Mechanism Number Eighteen:

• Earl Bostic—Lester Leaps In (King—opening theme)
• Bud Powell—Bouncing With Bud (from album Complete Blue Note and Roost Recordings; Blue Note)
• Jon Thomas—Tizzy (Junior)
• The Willows—Outside the City (M-G-M)
• Les and Larry Elgart—The Garbage (Columbia)
• The Quartet Trés Bien—Caravan (from LP Bully!; Atlantic)
• Ambrose Brazelton—Ticket to Ride with narration (from LP And The BEATles Go On and On—Hits of The Beatles; KBH Productions)
• Enoch Light—Over Under Sideways Down (from LP Enoch Light’s Action; Project 3 Total Sound)
• Elvin Jones & Jimmy Garrison Sextet featuring McCoy Tyner—Nuttin’ Out Jones (from LP Illumination!; Impulse)
• —Danny Weizmann—For Jack Jones
• Stereophonic Space Sound Unlimited—Phantom Rider (Sheep; Switzerland)
• Terry Riley—In C (excerpt) (from LP In C; Columbia Masterworks)
• —Oweima Biu recites the tortoise story from “Things Fall Apart,” a novel by Chinua Achebe.
• Orlando Julius—Wakalole (from LP Super Afro Soul)
• Howlin’ Wolf—Mr. Airplane Man (Chess)
• Sounds Incorporated—Taboo (Decca; UK)
• Toussaint McCall—The Title Escapes Me (Ronn)
• Terry Snyder & the All Stars—Mambo Jambo (from LP Persuasive Percussion Vol. 2; Command)
• The Yardbirds—Here ’Tis (from album Train Kept a Rollin’; Charley; UK)
• The Kingston Trio—Parchman Farm (Decca)
• Oscar Peterson Trio, vocal by Clark Terry—Mumbles (Mercury)
• Son House—Death Letter Blues (from LP Father of Folk Blues; Columbia)
• Guitar Ray—You’re Gonna Wreck My Life (Shag)
• Duke Ellington & His Famous Orchestra—Happy Go Lucky Local – Part 2 (Musicraft)
• James Brown—Night Train (from LP Mighty Instrumentals; King)
• Jimmy Forrest—Night Train (United)
• Wynonie Harris—Night Train (King)
• Bettini & His Orchestra—Tequila (from LP Cha-Cha-Chas, Mambos, Rhumbas; Vox)
• Willie Baby—Hot Buns Part 1 (Ding Dong)
• Willis Jackson—Goose Pimples (Cadet)
• The Dee Felice Trio—In Heat (Bethlehem)
• Chuck Edwards—Bullfight #2 (Rene)
• Steel Pulse—Babylon Makes the Rules (Island; UK)
• Johnny Otis & His Orchestra—Boogie Guitar (from LP The Original Johnny Otis Show; Savoy)
• Charles Mingus—Hora Decubitus (from LP Mingus, Mingus, Mingus, Mingus, Mingus; Impulse)
• Larry Hale—Shout and Do the Duck (Columbia)
• Lord Buckley—The Train (from LP A Most Immaculately Hip Aristocrat; Straight)
• The Bunnys—Kuya No Hana (Seven Seas; Japan)
• Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band—Big Eyed Beans From Venus (instrumental) (from LP Clear Spot – 50th Anniversary edition; Rhino)
• Dave Clark Five—On the Move (Epic)
• The Surfaris—Bat Man (from the LP The Surfaris Play…; Decca)
• Curtis Mayfield—Freddie’s Dead (GO edit—end theme) (Curtom)
• Travis Wammack—Night Train (Atlantic)