Memorial Day 2010 :Armed Forces Edition

Photo courtesy of Ivie I. Imoisili
For each generation,many answer the clarion call for freedom.As we go our way to the numerous holiday activities let us not forget.It is not the BBQ that makes this a special day,it is the sacrifice of those soldiers who have served that makes this a hallowed day.

It is from Valley Forge to Afghanistan and Iraq ,patriots have trodden the blood stained fields for our rights that we often take for granted.My generation has went from the days in which our soldiers were outcasts in a society that did not want them to heroes we welcome back from war at DFW airport.

We as Americans,Democratic or Republican must put aside alparty labels today and focus on the label that matters most:American.The Taliban does not require a litmus test on conservatism,Al Qaeda does not care whether you are a Republican or Democrat.

Photo courtesy of Ivie I. Imoisili
Our troops suffer the daily inconveniences of war,for a luxury that is not small.
The luxury of freedom.The tree of freedom is watered by the blood of patriots and for this I am thankful that we have our soldiers who have given and paid the ultimate sacrifice for us to have American comforts.

Photo courtesy of Ivie I. Imoisili
From a military family,I remember the days watching my father go off to war in the Dominican Republic in the Viet Nam era.

My mother and myself prayed for his return.For all those who have served and those who are serving.The prayer I had for my father when I was eight years old,I say again for you ...
Dear God,Help them come home .
Because we need them here,but since they are over there.Be There with them.Walk with them,talk with them,so that we may one day,walk and talk again as a family.
Amen>>>
.

original score by Phaze

Gospel Memorial Sunday Edition : Mahalia ,Kirk ,Alicia Keys ,Sounds of Blackness

Greetings on Memorial Day Weekend 2010 !
My mother taught me the "Lord's Prayer" as a child. Though sincere with my prayer,I have never and will never be the singer Mahalia Jackson was in the reendition of "The Lord's Prayer ".


Sometimes Life can create our own personal hurricanes and we need some uplifting .We Need Jesus to come by here and give us the Spirit to show us The Way.Shirley Caesar ,Alvin Slaughter and Alicia Keys testify to this:


Kirk Franklin tells us he wants to he Wants the Almighty to Help him believe!
When you faith is almost gone,you need some help .Turn to God and He will help you believe.


The "Sounds of Blackness " answers with the definitive affirmative statement:
" I Believe" .,..

I Believe that the Lord is My Saviour,and He Will Come By Here.
See you next week on Gospel Sunday!

Vonda's Vault Box: Jam Session 16

The Vault is open this Holiday Weekend! Vonda's Vault Box is open for buisness...
While looking thru the windows of the past I was reminded that "It Ain't Gonna Hurt Nobody" to get on down.


Close your eyes,we want to "Rock With You"! Tell more about the music section of the blog,lets go viral with the boogie!


Two Words:
Flash Light!!!!


Talking about some old skool that never dies ! LL is Bad !


LL is getting "HeadSprung" in the vault!


It's the Holiday Weekend ,the vault is hot as always ! Gotta Go , Will Smith is reminding me it's "Summertime" .I gotta plate to eat! See ya next week in the vault!

Gary Coleman 1968-2010

Gary Coleman the well known actor from "Different Strokes" passed away today. Coleman was 42 years old. This blog highlights his comedic timing as well as his political forays and social conscience of his television series.His phrase 'Whatcha talkin about"was a catch phrase back in the day.



Gary Coleman was born in 1968 with a kidney condition that forever stunted his growth.As a youngster he starred in the "Different Strokes" television series,as the black kid. Arnold Jackson who was adopted by his wealthy white patron Phil Drummond.


The show aired from 1978-1986.In the show he was the wise talking , however this show addressed some issues that were widely talked about.
The Different Strokes series addressed the scourge of drugs and implores its viewers to "Just Say No".




Another critical acclaimed show was the episode addressing child molestation.
This episode educated youth on the facts regarding child molestation and abuse.


Yes Arnold Drummond was a politician!
In the 2003 California governors race to recall Governor Gray Davis ,Gary Coleman placed in eighth place.The governors race attracted 135 candidates and Coleman finished in the top 10%.Politics is a strange profession.The eventual winner was another Hollywood actor,Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Brother Can You Spare A Dime , The Texas Rangers Are Broke

This recession must be really bad! I know from my vantage seat in the stands, buying over priced hot dogs !The Texas Rangers are over $525 million dollars in debt!Companies unless they are being bailed out,have the same problems us plain folk have.

The Texas Rangers are in first place in the American League West and have four draft choices in the upcoming draft.All this uncertainty is costing the Rangers valuable time and resources. The proposed sale to Nolan Ryan is on hold until the financials are cleared up.Perhaps if they had of asked me,I could have spared a dime. Oh ,well ...
The recession is tough all over ,even for billionaires like Tom Hicks.

Pastors Text Message: A Word for U

Pastor Perry Crenshaw of the New Beginnings Christian Fellowship in Grand Prairie Texas has a exciting ministry. The church is located @ 2951 South Belt Line Road.The ministry is reaching out in new ways capturing the time and energies of a fast paced generation.Take time to read the pastor's text message..... Wisdom and the Word two powerful accomplices on the journey to salvation.

The Text Message from phone to Blog .
"All my clse frnds abhor me,&thse whm I luv hve turnd aganst me"Job19:19 B carefl who u let n ur innr crcle bcause the clsr people r 2 u-the deepr th8 cn cut u!"

Gospel Sunday May 22: Mahalia ,Aretha ,CC ,Kirk, The Clark Sisters

Good Morning Sunday! Good Morning Jesus! Today we praise Him once more in our blog.For Him all Blessings are derived from ! We began our music selection with Mahalia Jackson who shows us to "The Upper Room."


Now a message from the Clark Sisters who confess about their addiction to Faith and God!Is My Living In Vain? No,of course not! Live 4 Jesus,It will never be in Vain !


Let's go to church with one of the great pianists Aretha Franklin who says she was born to sing the Gospel!


Come back next week where we will have more selections that will rain down on you. There will be more "Musical Heavens from Heaven".
Kirk Franklin....

Vonda's Vault Box :Jam Session 15

Another Saturday ,Another Jam Session ! It"s Hot in Here in the vault,it's on Fire!We need to get the Ohio Player's to help put out the Fire! From the days of strong bass and go hard Afro's ,it's the Ohio Players!


This Saturday Morning,we need to hear from the King Of Funk ! All Hail Rick James !
You can't get pass the mad horns and straight up funky bass !Before he became widely parodied Rick was this ....


United We Stand,United We Funk !
It don't get any better than this ,Tom Joyner tell them who we got in the vault!


Another Saturday,Another Jam Session!Search with us in Vonda's Vault where the jam sessions never end and Happy Feelins are every where ! We Leave you with Happy Feelins and Maze! We got them in the vault , see ya next week !

Monday Football :The Dallas Cowboys Number One Fan

Mrs.Price and Lincoln Coleman
Photo courtesy of exposuresoul.com photography

Monday Football is back and with the Dallas Cowboys!
The best team in America is the Dallas Cowboys!It's all the same ,only the names have changed.From Meredith and Hayes,Staubach and Pearson,Aikman and Irvin,and now Romo to Dez Bryant!


From Doomsday to Doomsday II:From Jethro and Bob Lilly,to Harvey and the Manster!
We Got Demarcus Ware and a new generation.De Fense Rules!It rules from the front line to the secondary.A secondary second to none where Dion covered for us on offense and defense.Do you remember when Cliff Harris and Charlie Waters stopped them dead in their tracks! All this and more on Monday Football Dallas Cowboys!


The best thing about Dallas is their legendary fans!
The Dallas Cowboy Fan bleeds blue not red !
I met the NUMBER ONE Dallas Cowboy fan,Crazy Ray on the hottest day in Dallas history @ 110 degrees in 1980! He was on Commerce Street in downtown yelling in a mink coat "Go Cowboys" !It's the Dallas Cowboys that can make you go crazy !
Crazy Ray is gone but now his legacy and the torch has been picked up by the new Dallas Cowboy Number one Fan!
Mrs.Carolyn Price You are the Dallas Cowboys Number One Fan !
You Rock !

Gospel Sunday May 16 :Kirk Franklin,Donnie McClurkin ,James Cleveland,Yolanda Adams

Gospel Sunday is back May 16 .This Sunday Morning we talk about his "Amazing Grace".Nearer My God To Thee I Strive to Be.
Now Behold the Lamb ....The Precious Lamb of GOD!



I Believe He is Coming Back.In fact He Never Left .He was waiting for me when I Got Here.I don't want to leave unless He takes me with HIM. "I Believe ".
The Sounds Of Blackness...


Reverend James Cleveland sings and asks "Where is your Faith"?
Let's drop in on a conversation between two people as they discuss their trials and their faith.


"The Prayer ".We should never stop praying,HOSANNA!
Kirk Franklin,Donnie McClurkin,and Yolanda Adams take us to church!
Gotta go! See ya next Sunday !

Vonda's Vault Box :Jam Session 14

Music Appreciation Week In the Funk School continues in the Vault Box! It's the Dallas Music Section!All Music -All Stars - All Dallas !Lets see who we got !
Kimball High School student - Stevie Ray funks with Stevie Wonder!
Straight from Oak Cliff !



Surprised you! You didn't know we had that one. We Got Lot"s Mo!
If you was born here, Dallas will always be a part of you! Let's go with my man Usher Raymond !


Don't stop the Music!How about some Yarbourough and Peoples !
Cavin Yarbourough and Alisa Peoples,Don't stop the music! We won't !


Rememeber back in the day when Vanilla Ice ruled the charts!I used to talk to this guy back in the day about making it a big.He said he was from the streets of Miami, but more like the streets of Carrollton. And now you know,Ice Ice Baby !


Some people said Ice didn't have street cred.Never had to say that about MC Breed!Look at this video and see Dallas as we knew it back in the day!


From down south in Lancaster is Tevin Campbell,"Can we Talk " he asks the ladies!


Jaime Foxx was known back in the day as a star Quarterback @ Terrell High School.He was All Metro football player recognized by the Dallas Times Herald ! Yeah we had two newspapers then. Here's Jaime ,he is Unpredictable!


Eryka Badu is from Sunny South Dallas where the sun always shines!
She used to be a fixture in Deep Ellum befe it was trendy at the art gallery -Onasile.I am not editing this as I know Eryka is sensitive about her %$%^!
Well I gotta go ,I just thought I saw Eryka Badu walking down the street !
I gotta call Tyrone ! See ya next week @ Vonda's Vault Box !

Lena Horne 1917-2010

Lena Horne died May 9 ,she was 92.
Before there was Halle Berry it was Lena Horne. She was born in 1917,in Brooklyn,New York.She began her entertainment career at the famed Cotton Club when she was 16 years old.She went on to sing in jazz bands and was one of the few singers who performed in an integrated orchestra.Lena carried that activism throughout her career,as she refused to entertain segregated audiences in her career.




Lena was admired by many in my family for her timeless looks and sultry voice.Everyone from my grandfather to my children admired the classy way she portrayed herself on screen.



In the days when most Hollywood portrayals of African American women were the "mammy "type characterizations,Lena Horne was different.
Lena performed with Bing Crosby ,Frank Sinatra,and Judy Garland.
Lena refused to cower to any demands that put her in a situation that would degrade her race or sex. Two of her best Hollywood performances were "Cabin in the Sky"


and my favorite the classic "Stormy Weather"


Lena was active in the Civil Rights struggle.Lena not only participated in marches she bankrolled them as well.Lena Horne was an active participant and organizer in the 1963 March on Washington. Lena's Hollywood roles were awe inspiring,but her roles in the Peace Movement and Civil Rights struggle was just as awe inspiring.Lena your horn will never be silenced.

Here is "Stormy Weather" once more from the legendary then 81 year old Lena Horne.
Rest In Peace - Miss Horne.

Mothers Day 2010

This Mother's Day Video Blog is dedicated to all those women who are special -Mothers. As far as Holidays go Mother's Day is one of the most special holidays in America.The most obvious reason, everyone has a mother.There is no political litmus test,or social demographic that can eliminate one from having a mother or give someone else an additional mother.A mother's love is universal ,it is the love that causes a mother to give more than she will ever receive.I love my mother ,thank you Mama for all you have done and do.The song by Shirley Caesar "I Love You Mama" is especially meaning to me because of the lyrics and my mother's life condition.As Mama always says "Blessed Never The Less".


I have come to the conclusion that women can be more than just be nurturing mothers , they can also put us men in check .They do with style and grace , that no man has the capacity to obtain.
Just like Clair Huxtable in "The Cosby's".



Mama's are sometimes not perfect like a fictional Claire Huxtable.Maybe they are the Afeni Shakur's of the world .Who despite their life's travails and tribulations love their sons with complete dedication.A love that any son would try hard to repay.A love that can be summed up by saying " Dear Mama ".


Mama's are wise .They tell us never to rush time but to enjoy the moment.
They let us know that we have a life to live ,and for us to strive and reach for the stars!Junior was right,"Mama used to say ,don't rush to get old ".


The Spinners back in the day had one of the most beautiful songs regarding Motherhood.Early one Sunday morning ,she got us up to go to Sunday School it begins.
Mother's are sweeter than candy , and stronger than papa's brandy".
We Love You All ,you keep us strong !


Happy Mothers Day 2010!

Vonda's Vault Box :Jam Session 13

Well its'another Saturday and we are cleaning out the vault.We are feeling a 80"s vibe and we are going back in time ,"I Like" this kind of a groove!
Here are the sounds of Guy !


JAM Teddy JAM ! Keith Sweatt and Teddy say ...."I Want Her" !


I am going to have to take a walk on the funk.The best way to walk is in "My Adidas" !

Dallas own , okay lets get real Lancaster's own Tevin Campbell!
This was rockin back in the day."Can We Talk"!
Live from our seats in London to your computer its TC !


We gotta go, Me and Vonda wish we could "Stay" but its time to go.
There are more vaults to go through in our journey .
There is always next week and there is always mo music !

National Day Of Prayer

There are some things in life that should be a natural.They are just as simple as the day is long. Simple things - July days are hot in Texas!America needs prayer today and everyday!America has observed a day of prayer since President Harry Truman signed the law in 1952.Today is possibly the last day of that the National Day of Prayer will be recognized in America.

United States District Court Judge Barbara Crabb ruled in a decision on April 15, 2010 that the Freedom From Religion Foundation was correct and the National Day of Prayer violated the First Amendment. It wouldn't be the first time a court made a wrong decision.The separation of church and state is about having an organized state religion not saying a prayer.First it was the taking of prayer out of school ,and then our kids went wild. Second it was taking Christ out of Christmas thereby turning Christmas into a Winter Holiday.Now these misguided folks want to take prayer from us.

May God continue to bless our country as we shall always remember that He is first.What if these misguided folks won a court case on that day when President Franklin Roosevelt beseeched God for his mercies and blessings.We can not forget God ,for it is through He,that our blessings and our liberties are guaranteed.

Vonda's Vault Box : Jam Session 12

We made to the Funky Dozen.We only know one way to play,and thats hard !
We took a break last week to regroup and dig deeper in the dark section of the funky corner ! We Got Brass Construction who tells they got their self together and they are "mOVIN oN " !


We are "Movin "for its your viewing hits that we desire! Inspired by your comments and you forwarding the blog to others .You give to me and I can give to you .Check out The Funkmaster George Duke !


You ready for some fun with LTD and have a party !
Tear the roof and party like you don't have a care !This blog is for the people who know REAL music ! We got u in mind !


Back in Little Rock ,our fans submitted this for you to check out.Since Jeffrey started us out on the slow tip ,we will end it in the club with Michael Cooper. We gonna do it this way ,Kliff Klub style,Coaches Corner style @ Elevations in the Rock ,Little Rock Arkansas.Until next week ,when me and Vonda will see you back at the vault!