RIP, Mr. James!

Post by **Smokey H** » Fri Aug 06, 2004 11:16 am

DAMN!!!!

A sad-ass day...

-Smokey
~~~
Funk singer Rick James, best known for the 1981 hit "Super Freak," died Friday, apparently of natural causes, police said.

James, 56, died at 9:45 a.m. at a residence near Universal City, said Officer Esther Reyes, a Police Department spokeswoman.

"He died apparently of natural causes. We learned of his death after responding to a radio call," Reyes said.

After his big hit, James' fame began to fade as he became embroiled in legal problems and health troubles.

James was convicted in 1993 of assaulting two women. The first attack occurred in 1991 when he restrained and burned a young woman with a hot pipe during a cocaine binge at his house in West Hollywood. He was free on bail when the second assault occurred in 1992 in James' hotel room.

James was sentenced to more than two years in state prison.

In 1997, he released a new album, but a year later he suffered a stroke while performing at Denver's Mammoth Events Center, derailing a comeback tour.

BACKGROUND
In the late '70s, when the fortunes of Motown Records seemed to be flagging, Rick James came along and rescued the company, providing funky hits that updated the label's style and saw it through into the mid-'80s. Actually, James had been with Motown earlier, though nothing had come of it. After growing up in Buffalo and running away to join the Naval Reserves, he ran away from the Navy to Toronto, where he was in a band with future Buffalo Springfield members Neil Young and Bruce Palmer, and with Goldy McJohn, later of Steppenwolf. As the Mynah Birds, they signed to Motown and recorded, though no record was ever released.

James had a journeyman's career playing bass in various groups before signing again to Motown as an artist, songwriter, and producer. His first single, "You and I" (May 1978), topped the R&B charts and reached the pop Top 40. "Mary Jane" (September 1978) was another hit. Both were on James' debut album, Come and Get It! (June 1978), which went gold. Subsequent efforts were not as successful, though Bustin' Out of L Seven (January 1979) featured the R&B hit "Bustin' Out" (April 1979). James returned to form with the number one R&B hit "Give It to Me Baby" (March 1981), featured on the million-selling Street Songs (April 1981), which also featured the hit "Super Freak."

James turned his production attention to resuscitating the career of the Temptations, recently returned to Motown, and "Standing on the Top" (April 1982), credited to the Temptations Featuring Rick James, was an R&B Top Ten. (He also produced recordings by Teena Marie and the Mary Jane Girls.) James' follow-up to Street Songs was the gold-selling Throwin' Down (May 1982), which featured the hit "Dance Wit' Me." The title song of Cold Blooded (August 1983) became James' third R&B number one, and the album also featured his hit duet with Smokey Robinson, "Ebony Eyes." James' greatest hits album Reflections (August 1984) featured the new track "17" (June 1984), which also became a hit. Glow (April 1985) contained Top Ten R&B singles in the title track and "Can't Stop," which was featured in the summer movie blockbuster Beverly Hills Cop. The Flag (June 1986) featured the hit "Sweet and Sexy Thing" (May 1986).

James left Motown for the Reprise division of Warner Bros. Records as of the album Wonderful (July 1988), which featured his number one R&B hit "Loosey's Rap," on which he was accompanied by rapper Roxanne Shante. Nevertheless, his "punk funk" didn't seem to rest comfortably with the trend toward rap/hip-hop. In 1989, James charted briefly with a medley of the Drifters hits "This Magic Moment" and "Dance With Me."

In 1990, MC Hammer scored a massive hit with "U Can't Touch This," which consisted of his rap over the instrumental track of "Super Freak." That should have made for a career rebirth, but James has been plagued by drug and legal problems that have found him more frequently in court and in jail rather than in the recording studio.

YouTube · Post by **bingolong** » Fri Aug 06, 2004 11:53 am

Smokey H,
DAMN,DAMN,DAMN James.......

Post by **JTF** » Fri Aug 06, 2004 1:14 pm

bingolong,

Godspeed, Mr. Matthews.

Post by **dougdigitalpro** » Fri Aug 06, 2004 2:00 pm

JTF,
I was in the car today and cut it on and they were playing this obscure Rick song and I was like, "hmmm, haven't heard that in years." and then the DJ came on and said WHY they were playing it.
Another true artist has left us and what saddens me most about losing all these great entertainers recently is there is no one really to fill their shoes.
The world seems to just keep getting a little darker with each passing. I guess the greatest thing is he went out with a bang.

And HE DID get the last word...

I'M RICK JAMES, BITCH!

At the end we were all laughing together with him in his recollections of that bygone, crazy era and that I feel really good about.

Here's a sticky icky to the ol' boy!
Thanx fo' tha funk!

Much Luv & RIP

Post by **JTF** » Fri Aug 06, 2004 2:11 pm

dougdigitalpro,

After all, cocaine IS a hell of a drug!

Post by **Smokey H** » Fri Aug 06, 2004 2:59 pm

dougdigitalpro,

Great post! I was doing a production
order (BTW, WHY do folks think they
are going to get DV quality from 8mm?)
and heard SUPER FREAK, then the news...

I agree, there is NO ONE on the horizon
who can take the place of these talents.

"He AIN'T dead, BITCH!!"

GOD BLESS him and his children...

Peace & love from ATown,
Charlie

Post by **dougdigitalpro** » Fri Aug 06, 2004 3:24 pm

Smokey H,
Off the topic, but DV is tha shiznit! I just viewed my film yesterday on a good TV and the image is superb! My cam wasn't even that expensive. A consumer model that cost around $700. What type of production work do you do?

Post by **Jennifer** » Fri Aug 06, 2004 4:04 pm

dougdigitalpro,

rick...bye, bye-
we love you, jenny and richard

Post by **mayn00** » Fri Aug 06, 2004 4:22 pm

Jennifer,
Damn it saddened my day after I found out that the Super Freak died. Why all the cool people gotta go? Like Doug said, we all laughed together with him on Tv and everything, which made him popular again. He will always be Rick James, bitch! He will be missed

Post by **dougdigitalpro** » Fri Aug 06, 2004 4:52 pm

mayn00,
Yeah, after hearing that, it kinda instantly fucked the rest of my day up also. I was just bummed afterwards. That's all the fellas been quoting for the last six months is the Chappelle skit...

"I'M RICK JAMES, BITCH!"

"IT'S A CELEBRATION, BITCHES!"

"DO WITH HIM WHAT YOU LIKE!"

"THEY SHOULDA NEVER GAVE YOU NIGGAS MONEY!"

and one more from the man himself...

"COCAINE IS A HELL OF A DRUG!"

He'll definitely be missed.