Brooklyn Dreams

Brooklyn Dreams was comprised of Bruce Sudano, Eddie Hokenson and Joe "Bean" Esposito. Three Brooklynites who who sang harmonic melodies in a similar style to The Righteous Brothers or Three Dog Night. Persevering mainly through weekend gigs, the group finally got a break from an old friend who was now a record company executive out in California. The record company was none other than Casablanca Records and their friend, Susan Munao, was the vice president. She became their manager and hooked them up with Jimmy Ienner at Millennium Records who signed them to a contract and in 1977 recorded the tracks for their first album, "Brooklyn Dreams". Susan Munao also managed Donna Summers and it was through this connection that a close relationship would form between Summers and Brooklyn Dreams. For you Donna Summer fans, she appears as a supporting vocalist for the track, "Old Fashioned Girl", on their first album. Vocalist, Joe "Bean" Esposito would later appear on the Summers' release of "Heaven Knows" and she in return, would sing his part on the "Heaven Knows" version found on the Brooklyn Dreams album "Sleepless Nights". And of course, we all know that Donna eventually married Bruce Sudano. Their first album, originally released in 1977 on the Millennium label, was a big success with the release of the 12" single, "Music, Harmony and Rhythm". The song "Street Dance" did not contribute to the album's popularity which seems strange to me, given it's danceablity and similar sound to the former. Still, it's a solid album and somewhat of a rarity, despite copies that are readily available on the internet.

Brooklyn Dreams - Brooklyn Dreams LP (1977 Millennium Records)

Tracks:
Side-1:

1. Music, Harmony and Rhythm

2. Sad Eyes

3. I Never Dreamed

4. Don't Fight The Feeling

5. Another Night At The Tango

Side-2:

6. On The Corner

7. Street Dance

8. (Baby) You're The One

9. Old Fashioned Girl

10. Hollywood Circles

Credits:

Produced by: Skip Konte

All Vocals by: Brooklyn Dreams

All Songs written by: Brooklyn Dreams

All Arrangements by: Brooklyn Dreams & Skip Konte

Orchestrations by: Bill Baker & Dave Garland

Recording Engineer: Jerry Shirer

Recordist: Bill Harlan

Mixing Engineer: Gary Ladinsky

Musicians:

Drums: Andre Fischer

Bass: Dennis Belfield & Veyler Hildebrand

Guitars: Joe Bean, Al Ciner, Snuffy Walden, Tony D. Eisenbarger

Keyboards: Bruce Sudano, Ron Stockert, Mark Olsen, Skip Konte

Percussion: Eddie Hokenson, Joe Lala

Donna Summer appears on "Old Fashioned Girl"courtesy of Casablanca Records and Filmworks, Inc.

Tony Maiden, guitar on "Sad Eyes" appears through the courtesy of ABC Records and Rufus

Recorded: May, June, July, 1977 at I.A.M. Studio A, California

We would like to thank the following people for their

love, guidance, inspiration and understanding:

Jimmy "Teeth" Ienner-it's been a pressure

Skip "Kunta" Konte-truly a wizard

Donna Summer-you're a true friend and we love you

Stan Diamond-hold your point

Snuffy Walden-more grease

Sue Rose-keeper of the faith

Lynda, Phyllis & Nancy G.

Everyone at Millennium Records-Joe, Eddie & Bruce

Mastered at: Allen Zentz Mastering

Art Direction: Phyllis Chotin & Susan Munao

Graphics: Stephen Lumel/Gribbitt!

Photography: Norman Seef

Illustration: Ed Scarisbrick

1977 Millennium Records Inc.

3 West 57th Street, New York, New York 10019

Manufactured and Distributed by Casablanca Records and Filmworks, Inc.8255 Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles, California 90046

DOWNLOAD: Link Expired

References:

Brooklyn Dreams at Discogs.Com

Brooklyn Dreams at Discomuseum.Com

Buy the album HERE

Sarah Dash (1978)

OK, so I originally had Charisma earmarked for this installment but, after seeing that they'd been covered a number of times in the, not so distant past, I decided to change my itinerary.
Sarah Dash is a native New Jerseyan who was born on August 18, 1945 in the city of Trenton. One of thirteen siblings, she began to hone her singing skills in the "Young Peoples Choir" of The Trenton Church Of Christ. She began exploring secular music with classmates in grammar school and later formed a group called, "The Del Capri's", taking on Nona Hendryx as one of it's members. The group soon became quite popular and they hired a manager but, Sarah and Nona had to find replacements for the other two members who lacked the dedication and commitment needed for a professional undertaking. Their manager hooked them up with Cindy Birdsong, Patricia Holte, Patti LaBelle and changed their name to "The Bluebells". Later on, that name would change to "Patti LaBelle and The Bluebells" and then simply, "LaBelle". Now, I could go on and on about the history of The Bluebells and LaBelle but, this is about Sarah. By 1977, the members of LaBelle had gone on to pursue solo carrers, all of which were successful in their own right but, Sarah Dash was the first of these success stories. She ran into her old friend Don Kirshner and in 1978, released her first self-titled album on Don's own label. The first single off that album, "Sinner Man" raced up the Disco charts and made Sarah an overnight solo sensation. The second single from that LP, "(Come And Take This) Candy From Your Baby" was a close second in popularity. Sarah even performed on the late-night, Don Kirshner's Rock Concert, for those of you who remember that television series. That's where I first saw KC & The Sunshine Band perform Live and Steve Martin's debut stand-up routine with his "fake arrow through the head" stage prop. Anyhow, this is her self-titled debut solo album off my Promo LP on the Don Kirshner label, released in 1978. It's a rather rare find but I managed to track down a couple of used copies. Enjoy.

Sarah Dash - Sarah Dash LP (Don Kirshner 1978)

Tracks:
Side-1:
1. Sinner Man
2. You
3. Touch And Go
4. I Can't Believe (Someone Like You Could Really Love Me)
5. Do It For Love

Side-2:
6. Charge It
7. Give Your Man A Helping Hand
8. Look But Don't Touch
9. We're Lovers After All
10. (Come And Take This) Candy From Your Baby

Credits:
Produced by W. Gold, J. Siegel, G. Knight, G. Allan

Arranged by Leon Pendarvis
Recorded at Media Sound, NYC

Engineer: Harvey Goldberg
Assisted by Michael Barbiero
Mastered at Sterling Sound Studios by George Marino

Management: Vicki Wickham, Take Out Productions
Design: Ed Lee
Photos: Frank Laffitte
Distributed by CBS Records

DOWNLOAD: Link Expired

References:
Sarah Dash at Discogs.Com
Sarah Dash at Discomuseum.Com
Sarah Dash MySpace Page
Sarah Dash at Soul-Patrol.Com
Buy the album HERE and HERE