Not the Original Artist

Oui Oui Music Newsletter

September 20, 2024

Greetings Slimmest of All People,

I went to a psychiatrist, she told me I had a split personality, then charged me $150.

I gave her $75 and told her to get the rest from the other guy.

Slim Folks!

Before I amaze you with another amusing anecdote, let me tell you about some exciting stuff we gots coming up next week.

Sax Man Chase Huna and I are playing at Larkspur Grill in Palm Desert CA on Wednesdays. The Rat Pack Duo Rides Again! That's exciting! Give the Larkspur a ringading and book a table. 760.340.6069.

And on Tuesday September 24th at Vicky's, Shea Welsh will be playing guitar with the Slim Man Band. Now that's also exciting!

Even if you don't live near Palm Springs, gas up the biplane, strap on the goggles and fly on over!

We'll be doing all those guitar songs that feature Shea, Lunch with the Queen, Midnight Train, and more!

And let's not forget about Craig Chesnut on drums, Chase Huna on sax, and Tateng Katindig--the Thrilla from Manila--on piano.

SHOWTIME is 6 PM.

Make a reservation online. Or go old school and pick up the shoe phone and call now. 760.347.9770.

And then, why not stop by the Slim Man website. You could buy a CD or a cookbook!

And you can check out all concert info there as well.

Joy to the World!

AND NOW FOR THE REAL NEW REAL NEWS FROM SLIM'S SHADY TRAILER PARK

I went to see Bonnie Raitt in concert last week.

She was really good. Really good. And so was the band. The concert was at a casino in Coachella. The acoustics weren’t great, but the performance was wonderful. Inspired. Stellar!

The band was tight, you could tell they've been playing together for a while. Bonnie Raitt's voice was strong and true. Soulful. Her guitar playing was impressive. She played acoustic and electric. Her slide guitar solos were stunning.

It was refreshing to see a real live band, playing real instruments, and playing them really well.

They weren't surrounded by 150 dancers. No pyrotechnics or explosions. Not like those dang kids do these days!

Just a gal on stage, singing her heart out, playing guitar with a badass backup band.

It was the first time I'd seen Bonnie Raitt in concert. But I did meet her many years ago...

In the mid 1970s there was a big-time recording studio in Timonium MD. The studio was Blue Seas, owned by Steve Boone, bass player in a band called The Lovin' Spoonful.

STEVE BOONE FAR RIGHT

I was in Studio B, doing sound-alike records for a record company. Here's how it worked: the record company would keep their eyes on the charts. When a song seemed like it was gonna hit, they rushed into the studio to do a cover version. Which would be released immediately.

In the credits, the song title would be the same. But underneath, instead of having the band's name listed, it would read "Not the Original Artist."

That was me: "Not the Original Artist."

When a single called Rock the Boat by the Hues Corporation came out, the record company thought it could be a smash. They asked me to sing and play bass on the cover version.

The bass part was fairly easy. But that vocal part was tough! When the singer hits that really high note at the very end of the song?

I tried to mimic it and nearly got a hernia. I think I damaged some internal organs.

But the record company really liked what I did and released the song soon after.

So if you ever hear a version of Rock the Boat and the vocal sounds like a castrated Michael McDonald and the band is listed as Not the Original Artist, that's me.

You Slim People may be wondering: if Uncle Slimmy was doing sound-alikes in Studio B...

Who was in Studio A?

Little Feat.

One of my all-time favorite bands. I loved their Dixie Chicken album. I wore it out!

Every now and then I would sneak into Studio A to hear what Lowell George and company were working on. I'd just stand there in the shadows and listen.

And then it was back to Studio B.

I got there early every day just to figure out how to record, mix and make records. I was learning the craft. I was in heaven.

One day I got there early for a session. I wanted to play an album my mom had just bought.

There was a music store up the street from our house on Rosebank Avenue. My mom would walk there--she didn't drive--and talk to the guy behind the counter. He'd suggest new albums, my mom would pick one, buy it and bring it home.

She brought home a wide variety of really great music. The Beatles. Aretha Franklin. James Taylor. Isaac Hayes.

One day my mom came back with a debut record by a band called Rufus, featuring a new singer, Chaka Khan.

The next morning, I took it with me to Studio B. I put it on the turntable, and as the first song started playing...

Bonnie Raitt walked in. I knew who she was. My mom had bought her Home Plate album a few years before.

I asked Bonnie what she was doing in Baltimore. She told me she was in Studio A, singing backups for Little Feat.

She had been walking by Studio B, heard the music, and wondered what was playing. I handed her the album cover.

Rags to Rufus.

She sat down and we listened to the first song. You've Got the Love.

Slim People, if you don't love this song, we might not be able to be friends anymore.

It was a rockin', soulful, funky tune. And when Tell Me Something Good came on, we were floored. Written by Stevie Wonder. And the song went on to win a Grammy Award.

We listened to the whole album, start to finish. And then?

Bonnie thanked me, kissed me on the lips...

JFK. Just Effing Kidding!

We shook hands, said goodbye and she walked over to Studio A to sing on the Little Feat album. That was the last time I saw her.

Little Feat named that record Feats Don't Fail Me Now. I loved it. Still do.

Blue Seas eventually relocated the studio onto a barge moored in the Inner Harbor of Baltimore. Bonnie Raitt would record there...

But not me.

I wasn't doing sound-alikes anymore. I had started writing my own songs, recording them in a studio near my mom's house. I'm kinda glad I found a new studio. Why?

Because soon after, Blue Seas succumbed to the blue seas.

On Christmas Day 1977, Blue Seas tanked. Literally. The barge suddenly sank to the bottom of the Inner Harbor. All that expensive sound equipment, all those precious master recordings went with it.

And...Blue Seas was not insured.

True story.

There were rumors of drug debts, mob vengeance and loan sharks...

But not insurance fraud.

This story was in my first cookbook, so I brought a copy to the Bonnie Raitt concert last week. I was hoping to go backstage and give it to her. Thought Bonnie and I might sip some Joy Juice and talk about old times.

But I was told by one of the casino folks that she wasn't available for a meet and greet. I cracked them over the cranium with my cookbook and screamed, "DON'T YOU KNOW WHO I AM??!!??"

JFK.

I quietly explained, I wasn't looking for a meet and greet. Just a give and go.

But...no go on the give and go. Oh well.

Maybe I'll try reaching out to Bonnie's people. It must be good to have people.

Especially when they're Slim People!

Keep smiling. And keep in touch, Slim People.

It's all about love.

Who loves ya?

Uncle Slimmy

PS: In the first cookbook, the recipe that goes along with this story is a delizioso tomato sauce. Here's a video that shows you how to make it. Let me know how it turns out. Tell me something good!

Click Here To See The YouTube Video

Visit our website

Visit the Slim Store

Slim Man Concerts

WEDNESDAYS IN SEPTEMBER!

The Slim Man Chase Huna Rat Pack Duo

Larkspur Grill at Hotel Paseo

45400 Larkspur

Palm Desert, CA 92204

760.340.6069

SHOWTIME 6 PM

Come see the Slim Man Chase Huna Rat Pack Duo!

We have a cool video screen behind us that shows hundreds of vintage photos of the Rat Pack, Vegas, Palm Springs, old album covers, travel posters and postcards from the 1960s. Come check it out!

It's fun. Ain't that a kick in the head!

See you there!

https://www.larkspurgrill.com