THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
1,575) King Coleman — “Down in the Basement”
This “early 60s, low slung and sleazy R&B dancer[]” from a “larger than life, cult hero” is a “total killer[]” (Sounds of the Universe, https://soundsoftheuniverse.com/sjr/product/king-coleman-down-in-the-basement-crazy-feelin), a “proper sloppy greasy RnB side[] . . . . pretty souly with great girl backing and fine sax work . . . made for gone midnight subterranean groovers”. (No Hit Records, https://nohitrecords.co.uk/product/king-coleman-down-in-the-basement-crazy-feelin-togo-r-p/) Down there “You can monkey with your partner to your heart’s desire”!
Dave Laing tells us of King Coleman:
In America, the late 1950s and early 60s was an era of dance crazes . . . . Among them was the Mashed Potatoes, whose praises were first sung on a hit record by “King” Coleman . . . . This was the prelude to Coleman’s career as a compere, singer, disc jockey and preacher. . . . After winning a local talent show at the age of 15, he joined the Charles Taylor Bronze Mannequin Revue, which toured the south as part of a carnival show. By the time he was drafted in 1952, Coleman had also sung with the jazz vibraphone player Lionel Hampton’s band. Leaving the army, he returned to Florida and acquired the nickname “King Coleman” as a DJ. He had a reputation for extemporising rhyming couplets . . . . When James Brown’s band visited Miami in 1959, the local music mogul Henry Stone decided to make a recording of their crowd-pleasing song “(Do the) Mashed Potatoes”. For contractual reasons, Brown was unable to sing lead vocals on the track, so Coleman took over. The track was credited to Nat Kendrick and the Swans and became a Top 10 r’n’b hit in 1960 . . . . Now known as “The Mashed Potato Man”, Coleman recorded a number of less successful singles in the 60s, including songs celebrating the Shimmy, Hully Gully and Booga Lou dances. Coleman, who was in demand as a compere of national package tours by black artists, was radicalised by the civil rights movement. A heated argument with Bobby Schiffman, the white owner of the Apollo theatre in Harlem, New York, led to Coleman being barred from the leading black music venue for a year. After surviving a serious car crash in 1967, Coleman decided to devote himself to religion. He was ordained and recorded an album of gospel songs. He spent the late 1970s and early 80s in California, preaching, doing charity work, running a security business and acting. He appeared in the television sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter (1975-79) and in several films including Claudine (1974) and Up the Academy (1980). . . . His eldest son, Tony, a drummer with BB King’s band, paid tribute to his father, saying: “He was one of the originals. He was one of the roots, and I’m one of his fruits.”
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/sep/14/king-coleman-obituary
Pay to Play! The Off the Charts Spotify Playlist! + Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock Merchandise
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