Stonewall was a Long Island, NY band formed in the late 1960s. The line up includes:
Bruce Rapp (lead vocals/harmonica) Bob Dimonte (guitar) Ray Dieneman (bass) Anthony Assalti (drums)
The Stonewall band member names on the Akarma bootleg reissues are completely made up.
This is probably the rarest and most sought after of all the Tax Scam releases, usually trading hands in dangerous, dimly lit back alleys on the very rare occasions it is offered for sale! Seriously though, this is one of the very few records that matches
extreme rarity with an equal measure of musical quality. A ferociously heavy hard psych masterpiece that would undoubtedly be a classic if anybody had been fortunate enough to hear it back when it was trickled out ('released' would be an exaggeration) in minute numbers back in 1976.
Even by the murky standards of Tax Scam releases, this record is truly an enigma, and little is known about the band today despite years of research by leading Sourcerers. There is no doubt about the music though!
It was sold on eBay in 2014 for $ 14,100 (€ 12,610).
Stonewall was the house band of a recording studio owned by James (Jimmy) Goldstein, based in Long Island during the late '60s.
Goldstein was also a part-time member of the band, occasionally playing keyboards on their sessions. He was a performer of his own, using the stage name of "Jay James". Under that alias he recorded the album Good Times & Bad Times that was released on the Tiger Lily label (same as Stonewall).
Stonewall's drummer Tony (Anthony) Assalti was the drummer on this rather weak country album by Goldstein. However, Assalti was never aware of the Stonewall album being released, and apparently became upset after learning about the Tiger Lily release in recent years. He still plays drums with drums, and is involved with the biker scene. He's not interested in the Stonewall recordings these days
On the other hand, the guitar player Ray Dieneman was a good friend of Jimmy Goldstein. Dieneman was not aware of the Stonewall album until he saw a copy in Goldstein's house in New York during a visit. Ray never owned a copy of the album, but was more amused than angry about the Tiger Lily release. It appears that Dieneman is the only band member to know about the Stonewall record being released at all.
According to Ray D, Stonewall broke up at the end of 1969, which would place the recordings heard on the album (which wasn't released until the mid-1970s) sometime in the late 1960s. The other two Stonewall band members -- vocalist Bruce Rapp and bass player Robert Demonte -- have not yet been tracked down. Jimmy Goldstein, who produced, engineered and played keyboards on the Stonewall album passed away in 2009. The album was recorded at Jimmy Goldstein's Tower Sound Studios (see also Tower Sound), in the Ed Sullivan building in NYC. According to Dieneman, the band didn't record any other music on the album, so basically the entire LP on Tiger Lily is all of their music.
Samantha Summers – You / Te Iluminaré Mandioca – MS-005 Argentina 1969
An obscure singer from the underground Rioplatense scene who released only one 45 on the small indie label Mandioca in 1969.
Her real name is Monika Duek and she didn't record any more songs, she was an art student and moved to Rome shortly after this song was recorded, and then to Paris. She dedicated herself to photography and still lives in Paris.
The song "You" was written by an uruguayan friend of hers who was part of the Tupamaros, a left-wing guerrilla movement.
Ripple was an American funk band from Kalamazoo Michigan. The group was signed toGRC RecordsandSalsoul Recordsin the 1970s, and scored severalhit singles, the biggest of which were "I Don't Know What It Is, But It Sure Is Funky"and "The Beat Goes On And On," the latter onSalsoul Records, joined by theSalsoul Orchestra. After moving to Atlanta, Georgia, Wally, Kenny, and Brian restructured the group, adding Victor Burks (keyboards) and Barry Lee (guitar). The group toured extensively around the Southeast, the highlight of which was opening for George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic on their "Mothership Connection" tour. Wally, Kenny, Brian, Victor, and Barry went on to record their seminal album, "Sons of the Gods". "The Beat Goes On And On", from that album, became a disco/hustle classic that's still being played today.
The signature "oh-la oh-la ay" line from "I Don't Know What it is, but it Sure is Funky" was later incorporated into Marcia Griffiths' smash hit, "Electric Boogie (Electric Slide)."
Band members
Keith Samuels - guitar, lead vocals
Simon Kenneth Carter - bass, vocals
Brian Sherrer - drums, percussion, timbales
Walter (Wally) Carter - conga, percussion, vocals
Dave Ferguson - trumpet, flugel horn, percussion
William (Bill) Hull - tenor sax, flute, percussion
An interracial Michigan soul-funk band, Ripple had an R&B hit in 1973 with "I Don't Know What It Is but It Sure Is Funky," and made several other recordings for the GRC label in the mid-'70s. They were an eclectic hodgepodge of influences circulating in soul music at the time -- sometimes they can sound like a more pop-inclined version of Kool & the Gang, other times they sound like a less distinctive variant of Stevie Wonder. Their brand of funk was neither too raw nor too slick, with liberal pop and jazz influences. Those who like just-pre-disco funk will probably enjoy the group.
Damascus Road – Damascus Road Ichthus Records – IR 1002 CS US 1973
North Carolina xian folk rock LP private pressing.Mellow vibes and voices rural and soulish with progish outbursts (A5 Step Out To Sea) and a gospel style rock.
There is no sign of psychedelia or garage as it is categorised by some in order to create a hype and boost sales.
