Donny Benet is no fool when it comes to sweet music videos. His latest for single “Sophisticated Lover” combines fast cars, facial hair and pastel blazers in what might be one of the greatest video clips of 2011. The moustachioed electro-funk maverick is taking his tunes on the road in December. To honour the occasion he selected a mix of his top ten YouTube videos. Warning: may contain Rick James, ’80s funk and references to “mojo”…
Michael McDonald/James Ingram – Yah Mo Be there
I love the opening sequence! Two guys that sound like Michael McDonald in the same song!
Michael McDonald is the epitome of yacht rock possessing not only a great voice but great songwriting skills. All of my bv’s in my recordings are influenced by him- whenever I record I put on the Michael McDonald voice to achieve the premium touch.
Luther Vandross – Never too much
Such a great bass line! A very catchy song and Luther is such a great singer. When I hit the big time I’m going to get a tracksuit just like his to wear in recording sessions…
Prince American Bandstand – I Wanna be your Lover
What a vibe! Prince’s voice is good but not great when compared to the R&B masters BUT he has such a vibe and energy that his voice is some kind of sexual instrument. Unfortunately there’s not too many Prince clips available with decent recording quality on the youtubes but I think this clip will suffice!
Man, I would do anything to be Andre Cymone (Prince’s bassist) in the early 80’s! I recently bought a LinnDrum machine while in Japan and I just love programming all the Prince beats from the early 80’s and pretend to be Prince!
Alan Vega- Saturn Drive
Thanks must go to Kirin J Callinan for introducing me to Suicide… Alan Vega has become one of my special favourites of all time. This clip and Show Me You Care are some of my favourite youtubes. His stage presence is so powerful and he projects such a vibe. I always try and channel some Alan Vega before a live show… Masterful!
Lilo Thomas -Sexy Girl
Great beat, great bass, sexy girls and the worst dancing soulful cowboy ever- all boxes are ticked for awesomeness. I wore the same outfit in some Jack Ladder shows in Perth a while ago courtesy of Kirin’s Kostumes. My moves were nearly as good as Lilo’s! Sadly we lost the hat somewhere in Perth and I could never be Deputy Don again. A few weeks later we stopped at the cowboy shop on the way to Splendor but neither of us had the funds to replace it. Sorry Kirin.
Jeffery Osborne- Stay with me tonight
More 80’s smooth R&B. George Duke cameo on keyboards. I’m not sure why the drummer is smoking- it all looks cool until the smoke gets in your eyes.
There’s a fantastic version of Jeffery performing this song at a beauty pageant which almost has more vibe. I’d love to do a gig at some form of pageant or fashion launch. I think it would help boost the sales for the fledging Myer or David Jones (call me).
Stevie Woods – Gotcha
I just found this last week. I think it’s my youtube find of the year. There’s so much heat going on in this clip- the audience is simply so stunned by his raw sexuality that no one can move from their seat. I think I’ve listened to it at least 3 times a day for the last 2 weeks. The guitar sound on this track is perfect. Pure chorus perfection. I just wish there was more Stevie Woods on the youtubes….
[Ed: the specific clip Donny chose isn’t embeddable unfortunately. This will have to do.]
Rick James – Cold Blooded
Slick Rick. This song is so slick- Rick has written some real stinkers but amongst the pile there are some gems such as this one. I love how sparse the bass is- it’s so effective when it does play. It would have been so amazing to see the Prince/Rick James tours in the early 80’s – apparently there was a major mojo competition between those guys every night with Rick accusing Prince of stealing his moves and vibes. Either way he is cold blooded.
Rick James on Letterman – 69 Times
Again an example of Rick James’ mojo frenzy. He’s whipped the band into a frenzy before totally owning the audience. All this while looking so relaxed!
He’s such a great performer with confidence and charisma to burn. I try and channel Rick’s vibe for my shows.
Bobby J
Italo disco. He looks so uninterested in being on television, almost like if he owed members of the “organization” some money, with them waiting side of stage to make sure he settled his debt.
His fashion sense is impeccable. His facial hair glorious. His mojo is more intimidating than say Prince or Slick Rick – you know you want to go grab an ice-cream cone with him but you’re not sure what happens next..
I’m sure he’s a good Italian boy.
Donny Benet is about to embark on a national tour. Check the dates and join the party.
