In episode 60 I talk to Rachid Fakhre (Spang Sisters) about Eugene McDaniels, an indelible stamp on the face of modern music. His career as an artist, songwriter, and producer not only spanned decades and genres, but entire generations, weaving its way through the work of fellow artists, often marking their successes as well as taking its own trailblazing path. Eugene McDaniels always arrived in the first wave – seeking then finding new, and sometimes strange, territories. He will always be known as one of the pioneers, wherever his work and words take him. Even from its inception, his career was destined to rattle the establishment. His first Billboard hits as Gene McDaniels, “A Hundred Pounds of Clay,” and “Tower of Strength,” shot to the Billboard Top 10 on the mainstream pop charts in an era where music by black artists was relegated to “race music.” A decade after his initial successes, Eugene planted a flag for the emerging black consciousness movement, reclaiming his name, his identity as an artist, and declaring a new purpose for the socially explosive Outlaw and Headless Heroes of the Apocalypse albums.
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