ROCK Sex: "Last Child" - The Meters > Aerosmith > Rufus Thomas > Wu-Tang

ROCK Sex is 'just a punk in the streets'.

Creative culture is relay and response.

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Creativity is an ongoing jam.

Hand it to next, see what they bring to it.


The Meters specialized in Cajun gumbo Funk with a tough strut on it.

THE METERS -"Fire On the Bayou" (1975)



After listening to The Meters, guitarist Brad Whitford of Aerosmith was inspired with the riff for their song, "Last Child".

(Since Brad was responding to the general spirit of the band's sound, I picked "Fire On the Bayou" as a stylistic parallel.)

AEROSMITH -"Last Child" (1976)



Stax Records' king of dance tunes, Rufus Thomas, emphasized the Funk slant of the Aerosmith song in his own.

RUFUS THOMAS -"Fried Chicken" (1978)



And Wu-Tang sampled Rufus Thomas.

WU-TANG CLAN -"Put the Hammer Down" (1998)



Everyone puts their own angle on something, and it's all valid.



© Tym Stevens

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See Also:

• "TRAIN KEPT A-ROLLIN" - Tiny Bradshaw > Johnny Burnette Trio > The Yardbirds > T.Rex > Aerosmith

• SHAKE AND FINGER POP! Soul Music and the Interior Truth, with Music Player!



• The Real History of Rock and Soul!: The Music Player Checklist

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LADIES FIRST: "Can't You Hear My Heartbeat?" - Goldie And The Gingerbreads > Herman's Hermits

LADIES FIRST heralds classic songs that actually 'she did first'.

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The first all-female rock band signed to a major record label was Goldie And The Gingerbreads in the mid-'60s.

They held their own while touring with The Rolling Stones, The Animals, The Yardbirds, The Hollies, and The Kinks. But they had an uphill struggle against both a sexist industry and radio stations that thought they sounded 'too black'.

They did the original version of "Can't You Hear My Heartbeat?", sounding fresh out of a Brill Building Soul recital.

GOLDIE AND THE GINGERBREADS -"Can't You Hear My Heartbeat?" (1965)



Their single went weakly promoted, while this cover version by Herman's Hermits escaped those hurdles.

HERMAN'S HERMITS -"Can't You Hear My Heartbeat?" (1965)


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"Goldie" (Genya Zelkowitz), the singer and group leader, later became the fiery Rock'n'Soul singer Genya Ravan of Ten Wheel Drive, and producer of The Dead Boys' debut album.

TEN WHEEL DRIVE -"Tightrope" (1969)


GENYA RAVAN / THE WARRIORS soundtrack: "Love Is A Fire" (1979)



Guitarist Carol MacDonald and drummer Ginger Bianco went on to form the formidable all-female FunkRock collective Isis.

(Note: there is nothing inappropriate about the following video, YouTube are just prudes and censors. I should know, since I made all three.)

ISIS -"Do The Football" (1974)


ISIS -"April Fool" (1974)


ISIS -"Ain't No backin' Up Now" (1975), produced by Allen Toussaint




© Tym Stevens

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See Also:

• YOU DON'T OWN ME: The Uprising of the 1960s GIRL GROUPS, with Music Player!

• SHE'S A REBEL: Decades Of Songs Influenced By The GIRL GROUPS, with Music Player!

• WOMEN OF ROCK: The 1960s, with 2 Music Players!

• THE BRITISH INVASION!, with Music Player!

• THE RUNAWAYS, And Why Women Of Rock Are Essential!

• FUNK, The True History: 1970-1974, with 3 Music Players!


• The Real History of Rock and Soul!: The Music Player Checklist

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