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Perception/ Today Records

LoopDreamsLoopDreams 1,195 Posts
edited October 2012 in Strut Central
Anyone know more about the Perception/Today label then what Wikipedia delivers?:

Perception Records was an American jazz/R&B record label.

I mean, there are several classic titles for a small catalogue: Brother On the Run, Lawrence of Newark, Fatback 1 2 3 , Astrud Gilberto, Gillespie's real Thing. And if you look at Today rec's there's more like Bennie Johnson, Black Ivory, Brockingtons, Debbie Taylor, etc... Was it an artist driven Label like Strata- East or AJP?

  Comments

  • fishmongerfunkfishmongerfunk 4,154 Posts
    Jimmy Curtiss' label, first release is his record J.C. Life. Patrick Adams was the principal A&R man, producer and arranger.

    there are a bunch of really great records on the label, and actually very few clunkers (but steer clear of wanda what's her face spoken word garbage, teina and floyd westerman). i dig the ones you listed. i am also partial to: "teachers", jj barnes, "lawrence of newark", both albert records, "ebony godfather", "portrait of jenny". madhouse and "the united chair".

    i think that the benny johnson is the hardest one to track down.
  • strataspherestratasphere Blastin' the Nasty 1,035 Posts
    Tyrone Washington's Roots lp on Today is dope too.
  • LoopDreamsLoopDreams 1,195 Posts
    Thanks for pointing me in the right direction. I did a little research, I like this quote I found about Curtiss' Life LP:

    "Curtiss apparently likes obscurity ??? hence the the album artist is "J.C." ???which he preferred to be known by???. and he is not doing himself any "commercial" favours with the nudity on the LP's front sleeve (it's 1969) or songs like "Lack 'o' Testicle Blues".

    I always passed by that Tyrone Washington joint thinking it was just a sample, my loss. Thanks for mentioning a few I hadn't Fishmonger, one reason I started this thread was to see what I was missing. What's Dilemma like?
  • LoopDreamsLoopDreams 1,195 Posts
    The other thing I find intriguing is the crazy mixture of musical styles for such a small catalogue: Psych, soul, jazz, spoken word, tropicallia, funk, to name a few . The only common factor is, quite often, their level of excellence. It seems out of faze with the norm for an artist run label.
  • pickwick33pickwick33 8,946 Posts
    It should be noted that Perception/Today/Dwarf were more than just jazz and R&B, even though they seem to be known the most for that. Their biggest seller was King Harvest's 1972 hit "Dancing In The Moonlight," which was straightforward early-70s rock similar to Looking Glass.

    Here's an album discog for all three labels: http://www.bsnpubs.com/new/perception.html
  • fishmongerfunkfishmongerfunk 4,154 Posts
    LoopDreams said:
    t
    I always passed by that Tyrone Washington joint thinking it was just a sample, my loss. Thanks for mentioning a few I hadn't Fishmonger, one reason I started this thread was to see what I was missing. What's Dilemma like?

    for my money, tyrone washington`s ``do right`` album is where it`s at (Ntu Troop vibes). the perception jernt has one pretty funky track with heavy piano and sax and the rest is acoustic free jazz that i never have the patience to sit through.

    i have never heard `dillemma` in its entirety but i pretty sure there is 1-2 funky tracks. i often see it as a `buy it now`for about 10 bucks...
  • LaserWolfLaserWolf Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
    pickwick33 said:


    Here's an album discog for all three labels: http://www.bsnpubs.com/new/perception.html

    So many good records.
    Any one know any thing about this one:
    PLP 24 - Would - Would [1972] Reissue of Metromedia MD 1026 by group Velvet Night. Season Of The
    Witch/Velvet Night/Freak Show/Tribute: Feel Free, Sunshine Of Your Love, White Room, I'm So Glad/The
    Weight/Edge Of The Woods/Don't Let Them Stand In Your Way/If I Were A Carpenter
    ?
  • anders_sthlmanders_sthlm 23 Posts
    There's more info on Perception/Today over at BBE in connection to their release of the Best of Perception & Today Records comp:

    Check it out here
  • bass_feverbass_fever 974 Posts
    I dig the Fatback LPs, the Albert LPs, The J.C. Life LP & the Eight Minutes LP. Would love to check out the J.J. Barnes!

    The FatBack Bill Curtis 45 is a monster 2 sider and the Eight Minites - it's a brand new game 45 is a cool 70s soul record that can be had for cheap.
  • strataspherestratasphere Blastin' the Nasty 1,035 Posts
    bass_fever said:
    I dig the Fatback LPs, the Albert LPs, The J.C. Life LP & the Eight Minutes LP. Would love to check out the J.J. Barnes!

    The FatBack Bill Curtis 45 is a monster 2 sider and the Eight Minites - it's a brand new game 45 is a cool 70s soul record that can be had for cheap.

    The J.J. Barnes album is dope. I'm still looking for an original copy.
  • ElectrodeElectrode Los Angeles 3,135 Posts
    The JJ Jackson 'Dilemma' is rather good, considering that you can get sealed copies for $10-20. The first side is typical now-sound covers, but the flip has some creative stuff. I guess the track of interest is this one, but "Indian Thing" and "No Sad Songs" are nice, as well.

  • tripledoubletripledouble 7,636 Posts
    we had a thread about this last year where some of the psychier rarities (like Would) were discussed
  • MondeyanoMondeyano Reykjavik 863 Posts
    Doesn't seem like it is in the discogs for the three labels but this is my favorite Perception record. Early Patrick Adams from 1973, really showing what's to come from him in terms of an amazing sense of chords and timings.

  • fishmongerfunkfishmongerfunk 4,154 Posts
    there is an official patrick adams record? is it 45 or lp? what does the cover look like?

    please to knowledge us more on this particular record!!
  • MondeyanoMondeyano Reykjavik 863 Posts
    Have no more info on it, just saw an eBay auction for it which I bid on and lost. It's a 45 and the flip is "Touching You" which I haven't heard.

    An image of the 45 is at the Discogs page below.

    http://www.discogs.com/Patrick-Adams-Initiative-Kings-And-Queens-Touching-You/release/2060532
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