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Ginuwine Is Ready To Ride

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Ponies, pool halls and moonwalking in this week's Forgotten Videos
GRAMMYs
May 15, 2017 - 2:36 am
GRAMMY.com

Welcome to Forgotten Videos. For some, these videos are forgotten, for others just filed away, and for others still, a totally brand-new discovery. Whichever category you fall into, each week we'll feature a video that's possibly been collecting dust when what it really deserves is a fresh look. Or vice-versa…. We're not here to judge, we just want to take you on a little trip down memory lane. Yep, you'll remember when hair was really that big, when drums were that up front in the mix, when video was young(er) and so were you.

Ginuwine
"Pony"
1996

At first it all makes sense for a song titled "Pony," sort of. R&B Romeo Ginuwine pulls into a cowboy biker bar where he precedes to mimic a side-step moonwalk across the stage (it's no surprise Ginuwine cites the late Michael Jackson as an early influence). But then you start thinking, "What's this urban singer doing in a place like this? And is this 'pony' a horse after all?" We're guessing that Pony is another name for Ginuwine, judging by the lyric, "My saddle's waiting/Come and jump on it." It seems like Ginuwine may have a little more in mind than horseback riding.

But to follow the Romeo theme, all's well that ends well. What looks at the start like something that could end up in a cowboy hats versus doo-rags war, instead ends with a peaceful comingling of the races, even as Ginuwine himself succeeds in attracting a floor full girls who can't help but move and sway to the music.

"Pony" appears on Ginuwine's debut album, 1996's Ginuwine…The Bachelor. Produced by GRAMMY winner Timbaland, the album peaked at No. 26 on the Billboard 200 and "Pony" shot to No. 1 on Billboard's R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Ginuwine followed up with 100% Ginuwine in 1999, which was again produced by Timbaland and flew to No. 5 on the Billboard 200. The album produced three Billboard Hot 100 hits in "None Of Ur Friends Business," "So Anxious" and "What's So Different," and features a cover of Jackson's "She's Out Of My Life." Solidifying himself as one of R&B's lovermen, Ginuwine released The Life in 2001 with songs resembling love letters to the woman in his life such as "Why Did You Go," "Differences" and "Just Because." The album reached No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and paved the way for 2003's The Senior, which brought out Ginuwine's hip-hop side.

Ginuwine continued to release several albums, including 2005's Back II Da Basics, 2007's I Apologize, 2009's A Man's Thoughts, and his most recent release, 2011's Elgin, all of which charted in the Top 30 on the Billboard 200, and the latter features two tracks written by GRAMMY winner Diane Warren, "How Does Your Heart Forget" and "Break." Though Ginuwine has continued to see success in a career that spans nearly 15 years, "Pony" remains his signature hit.

"I still remember in '94 when I was in front of the mirror practicing ["Pony"]," recalled Ginuwine in an interview in 2009. "I just knew that it was a hit. I was so proud of it and I was just so happy."

Do you have a pony? Got any Forgotten Video recommendations? Leave us a comment.

Last week's Forgotten Video. Click on the "Forgotten Videos" tag below for links to other GRAMMY News stories in this series.

 

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Los Lobos Do The Bamba

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A salute to Ritchie Valens in this week's Forgotten Videos
GRAMMYs
May 15, 2017 - 2:36 am
GRAMMY.com

Welcome to Forgotten Videos. Well, for some forgotten, for others just filed away, and for others still, a totally brand-new discovery. Whichever category you fall into, each week we'll feature a video that's possibly been collecting dust when what it really deserves is a fresh look. Or vice versa…. We're not here to judge, we just want to take you on a little trip down memory lane. Yep, you'll remember when hair was really that big, when drums were that up front in the mix, when video was young(er) and so were you.

Los Lobos
"La Bamba"
1987

In the spirit of Cinco de Mayo, we take a look back at arguably one of the most storied Spanish-language rock and roll songs in history: "La Bamba." Recorded for the 1987 film of the same name, Los Lobos' take on this classic Mexican folk song pays an unquestionably solid tribute to one of the first Hispanic rock stars, the late Ritchie Valens. While Valens may have been ahead of his time with his version of the song, which just missed cracking the Top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 that year, it was the right time for Los Lobos, who took it all the way to No. 1 in 1987. Valens' version was inducted into the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame in 2000.

The video opens with a scene featuring Valens, played by Lou Diamond Phillips, and Danielle von Zerneck, who portrays Valens' girlfriend, Donna Ludwig, the inspiration for Valens' Billboard Hot 100 No. 2 hit "Donna." Interspersed throughout the video are scenes from the film, which, along with Phillips, casts several musical notables, including singer/songwriter Marshall Crenshaw as Buddy Holly, famed radio DJ Rick Dees and rockabilly/swing namesake Brian Setzer as Eddie Cochron. The theme ultimately centers on a celebratory performance by Los Lobos at a summer carnival, and features a special cameo appearance by Phillips. In honor of the late rocker, the band stays true to Valens' vocal phrasing, but adds a bit of extra flavor with an updated guitar solo and closing acoustic mariachi suite.

Formed in East Los Angeles in the early '70s and heavily influenced by the sounds of Tex-Mex, country, folk, R&B, and traditional Spanish and Mexican music, Los Lobos garnered their first GRAMMY in 1983 for Best Mexican-American Performance for "Anselma," a track off their EP …And A Time To Dance. The following year the band released their major label debut, How Will The Wolf Survive?, followed by By The Light Of The Moon in 1987, which garnered a GRAMMY nomination for Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal. That same year "La Bamba" earned Los Lobos two GRAMMY nominations for the prestigious Record Of The Year and Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal. Los Lobos have gone on to win two additional GRAMMYs for Best Mexican-American Performance for "La Pistola Y El Corazon" in 1989 and Best Pop Instrumental Performance for "Mariachi Suite" in 1995. Their most recent release, Tin Can Trust, earned a nod for Best Americana Album at the 53rd Annual GRAMMY Awards in February.

Do you know how to do the bamba? Got a Forgotten Video recommendation? Leave us a comment.

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Tony! Toni! Toné!'s Feel Good Revival

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R&B/soul trio brings a positive prescription in this week's Forgotten Videos
GRAMMYs
May 15, 2017 - 2:36 am
GRAMMY.com

Welcome to Forgotten Videos. For some, these videos are forgotten, for others just filed away, and for others still, a totally brand-new discovery. Whichever category you fall into, each week we'll feature a video that's possibly been collecting dust when what it really deserves is a fresh look. Or vice-versa…. We're not here to judge, we just want to take you on a little trip down memory lane. Yep, you'll remember when hair was really that big, when drums were that up front in the mix, when video was young(er) and so were you.

Tony! Toni! Toné!
"Feels Good"
1990

Is Tony! Toni! Toné! a proposition for Raphael Saadiq similar to Justin Timberlake and 'N Sync? Given both artists' successful solo pursuits, and the latter's foray into acting, is it safe to say they have sought a comfortable distance from the bands that propelled them toward the spotlight? Only they can say, but a look at "Feels Good" — the 1990 video featuring Saadiq and his bandmates, brother D'Wayne Wiggins and cousin Timothy Christian Riley — offers plenty of clues for the former.

Far from the vintage R&B and soul sounds that mark recent Saadiq solo albums such as The Way I See It and Stone Rollin', "Feels Good" feels very much rooted in its own massively shoulder-padded era. Here we see frontman Saadiq hopping around stage in pink pants and a satiny newsboy cap, his mustard-colored oversized jacket swinging to the frenetic beat with him (or around him, actually).

While maturity and thoughtful production are two qualities associated with Saadiq's music today, "Feels Good" features DJ scratches, carnival-like melodies and a mechanized drum-machine beat. The video does feel good, however, due in part to the lively, if questionable, scenery. Twice during the video, a wild-haired female dancer in a skimpy costume shimmies and thrusts her hips to the beat, no doubt feeling good all the while. But within seconds each dancer is muscled off the stage by a tag team of more respectably coiffed long-legged ladies in dark glasses. Why? And why are those same security-type ladies patrolling the stage, hands authoritatively on hips, in the first place?

There may be more questions than answers here — this was 1990 after all, and Andrew Dice Clay, Vanilla Ice and Milli Vanilli were lodged firmly in the collective consciousness.

Regardless, for all the mysteries it leaves behind, there is no question that "Feels Good" was an enormous and enjoyable hit. Tony! Toni! Toné! emerged from Oakland, Calif., in 1987, releasing their debut album, Who?, a year later. Their sophomore effort, 1990's The Revival, ended up mining platinum on the strength of "Feels Good," one of three Top 10 Billboard Hot 100 hits for the trio. Following 1993's Sons Of Soul, in 1996 Tony! Toni! Toné! released their final album, House Of Music. Saadiq has since released four solo albums, garnered a GRAMMY and teamed with Mick Jagger for a noteworthy GRAMMY performance in February.

However Saadiq feels about "Feels Good" today, he should know that at least one element of the song seems directly traceable to him. Could anyone else have come up with the provocative "uh-uh baby" that punctuates the chorus? We can only speculate about this, and whether Tony! Toni! Toné! will ever feel good enough for a reunion.

Do you feel good? Got any Forgotten Video recommendations? Leave us a comment.

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News

C+C Music Factory Make You Go Hmmm ...

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Sly raps, sexy vocals and lots to ponder in this week's Forgotten Videos
GRAMMYs
May 15, 2017 - 2:36 am
GRAMMY.com

Welcome to Forgotten Videos. For some, these videos are forgotten, for others just filed away, and for others still, a totally brand-new discovery. Whichever category you fall into, each week we'll feature a video that's possibly been collecting dust when what it really deserves is a fresh look. Or vice-versa. … We're not here to judge, we just want to take you on a little trip down memory lane. Yep, you'll remember when hair was really that big, when drums were that up front in the mix, when video was young(er) and so were you.

C+C Music Factory
"Things That Make You Go Hmmm ..."
1991

"Hmmm. …"

Sneaking suspicion never sounded so good or looked so much fun. C+C Music Factory — the catchall group name for producers David Cole and Robert Clivillés, with various collaborators — put themselves on the pop culture map and the pop charts in 1991 with a string of singles from their debut album, Gonna Make You Sweat. The first, "Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)," topped the Billboard Hot 100 and was a straightforward call to the dance floor, but "Things That Make You Go Hmm …," also a Top 5 hit, was a tribute to those strange discomforting moments when one realizes that something fishy may be going on. The baby doesn't look like you. Your girlfriend's girlfriend is suddenly acting awfully affectionate. Your new love is strangely quiet about the intensity, and number, of past loves. These are the things that make you wonder, ponder and reconsider — in short, the things that make you go, "Hmmm. …"

The song is built around a playful James Brown groove with sly raps by Freedom Williams and sexy vocals from Zelma Davis, but what truly pulls it all together is the video, which marked a radical departure from the familiar style of the '80s. The smoke machines, soft-focus shots, neon-color schemes, and parachute pants were replaced in favor of a highly stylized 2-D world of black-and-white silhouettes, with a stark, primitive sense of graphic design that seems inspired by the late graffiti artist Keith Haring. There's no mystery in what the video images are supposed to "mean" — they tie in directly to every lyric line. When Williams says, "17 and I was having a ball," we see him wearing a shirt with a giant "17" on it, then he's bouncing a giant ball. But rather than feeling redundant, the video is almost irresistible — it's hard not to feel drawn in by the speed of the images and the inventive twists with which they're presented (when Williams' love tells him he was the first, he delivers that line standing over the "1" of an animated Olympic-style winner's platform).

Williams is a winning on-camera presence; Cole and Clivillés pop up here and there to help the visuals along; and by the end of the tune Davis has morphed into a wide-eyed, many-armed goddess of Hmmm-dom.

C+C never repeated the splash they made with their first album, and Cole died in 1995. However, it's worth noting that a 20-year-old video can still thump along with wit, energy and style, while seeming arguably smarter and fresher than plenty of its contemporaries.

Hmmm. …

What makes you go "Hmmm"? Got any Forgotten Video recommendations? Leave us a comment.

Last week's Forgotten Video. Click on the "Forgotten Videos" tag below for links to other GRAMMY News stories in this series.

News

Hope Is On Its Way For Alice In Chains

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GRAMMY-nominated rock band refuse to die young in Forgotten Videos
GRAMMYs
May 15, 2017 - 2:36 am
GRAMMY.com

Welcome to Forgotten Videos. For some, these videos are forgotten, for others just filed away, and for others still, a totally brand-new discovery. Whichever category you fall into, each week we'll feature a video that's possibly been collecting dust when what it really deserves is a fresh look. Or vice-versa. … We're not here to judge, we just want to take you on a little trip down memory lane. Yep, you'll remember when hair was really that big, when drums were that up front in the mix, when video was young(er) and so were you.

Alice In Chains
"We Die Young"
1990

Aside from perfectly blending crunching, sludgy guitars and the confusing yet brutish imagery that so defined the grunge-era aesthetic of the early '90s, Alice In Chains' lead track from their 1990 debut album, Facelift, is painfully ironic. "Scary's on the wall/Scary's on his way," warns late frontman Layne Staley, who died at the young age of 34 in 2002. Staley's death was followed by another scary incident in 2011 — the passing of original Alice In Chains bassist Mike Starr at age 44. While it's no secret that the deaths of Staley and Starr were in some way a result of the devastating effects of substance abuse and addiction, these cases serve as a sober reminder about the importance of MusiCares, The Recording Academy's nonprofit health and human services organization dedicated to providing a safety net for music people in times of need.

On May 31 at the 8th Annual MusiCares MAP Fund benefit concert, Alice In Chains guitarist/vocalist and co-founder Jerry Cantrell will be honored with the Stevie Ray Vaughan Award for his dedication and support of the MusiCares MAP Fund. Cantrell will also be recognized for his commitment to helping other addicts with the addiction and recovery process.

Getting back to the music, "We Die Young" isn't completely brutish — it helped propel Facelift, which spawned band's first GRAMMY nomination for Best Hard Rock Performance With Vocal for "Man In The Box," to No. 42 on the Billboard 200. Showcasing the band performing around people who appear to be drowning in blood, the video was directed by Rocky Schenck, who would direct more videos for the band, including "Them Bones." The album was instrumental in establishing an audience for grunge and alternative rock fans, and made Alice In Chains one of the first Seattle groups to break through to a wider audience.

Dirt followed in 1992, peaking at No. 6 on the Billboard 200 and garnering the band a second GRAMMY nomination for Best Hard Rock Performance With Vocal, followed by a self-titled album in 1995, which garnered two Best Hard Rock Performance nominations for "Grind" and "Again" in 1995 and 1996, respectively.

Following a hiatus after the death of Staley in 2002, Alice In Chains added vocalist William DuVall and in 2009 released Black Gives Way To Blue. The album peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 and garnered Best Hard Rock Performance nominations for "Check My Brain" and "A Looking In View" in 2009 and 2010, respectively.

"It's cool to get here," Cantrell said in a recent interview with GRAMMY.com. "It's cool to know that you can get here and it's nice to be [proof] that no matter where you find yourself in life you've always got a chance to turn it around."

Have you seen scary on the wall? Got a Forgotten Video recommendation? Leave us a comment.