Zu Zu BLUES BAND (Dr. John, Jessie Hill) - "ZU ZU MAN" (A&M, 1966): NYNT Daily Party Platter

This is the continuing series I will post every other day while i'm out of town, thanks to Jonathan Toubin DJ of New York Night Train

When Mac Rebennack night-tripped to L.A. in 1965 he joined up with one of the Big Easy's most distinctive vocalists to record this lone single for A&M Records. For such a supreme quality record on a major label to be such a rarity means that the Zu Zu Blues Band was lost in the label's mountain of whipped cream that year and clipped before it ever had a chance to get off the ground. This is too bad because "Zu Zu Man" may be the perfect all-time soul dance record - groovy, infectious, dynamic, timeless, and unique in almost every way from the wild beat to the shimmering B3 to the exotic riff. Though it retains a very New Orleans syncopation, its way more upbeat than a lot of Louisiana groovers and so spacious and pentatonic and weird that its hard to place when and where it comes from. Dr. John and Jessie Hill sound exactly like Dr. John and Jessie Hill but this recording is an entirely new place and time for them. Two familiar characters in an unfamiliar setting. Though the two collaborated in L.A. on a few Pulsar Records after this, Zu Zu Man is a portal to a dimension that neither of them, and none of us for that matter, have ever entered again.... Turning this is as close as any of us will ever get.


This is my daily addition to the New York Night Train Party Platter playlist. Each track here is recorded directly from the original 45 (no bootlegs, reproductions, etc) to give you an idea of what the real deal authentic vinyl sounds like. COME BACK EVERY DAY FOR A NEW FIX! Because the records pass so quickly at my parties, this channel is an attempt to stop and focus on one record at a time in hopes that it'll turn you on to the artists, tracks, labels, etc. But mostly I hope this music moves you as much as it moves me.

Get your enjoys,
Jonathan Toubin
Soul Proprietor, New York Night Train

http://www.NewYorkNightTrain.com
https://www.facebook.com/newyorknight...
https://twitter.com/jonathantoubin
https://instagram.com/jonathantoubin/

Young Jessie "Mary Lou" (Mercury, 1963 Jack Nitzsche version): NY Night Train Daily Party Platter

This is the continuing series I will post every other day while i'm out of town, thanks to Jonathan Toubin DJ of New York Night Train

In 1963 supreme rhythm and blues vocalist Young Jessie updated his 1955 rock and roll hit "Mary Lou" for the soul generation on Mercury Records. Legendary producer/engineer Jack Nitzsche gives this one a firm latin beat and a super-elegant arrangement that turns the song into something completely new while still remaining true to the spirit of the original. All of this restraint forefronts the personality and deep nuances of Young Jessie's huge pipes and engulfs the song in his resonance. About as close to perfect as it gets. The other side "You Were Meant For Me" is also stellar.

I was lucky enough to have Young Jessie sing at the 2013 Lincoln Center Soul Clap and Dance-Off and, not only did he look like a million bucks, but his voice hadn't lost a drop of its brilliance... Check him out live and look for his consistently top-notch records!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_Je...


This video is a today's installment in the New York Night Train Party Platter YouTube playlist (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...). Every track is recorded directly from the original 45s (no bootlegs, reproductions, etc) to give you an idea of what the real deal authentic vinyl sounds like. COME BACK EVERY DAY FOR A NEW FIX! Because the records pass so quickly at my parties, this channel is an attempt to slow down a bit and focus on one record at a time in hopes that it'll hip you to artists, tracks, and other details - and, on the most base level, give you something to listen to.

Get your enjoys,
Jonathan Toubin

http://www.NewYorkNightTrain.com
https://www.facebook.com/newyorknight...
https://twitter.com/jonathantoubin
https://instagram.com/jonathantoubin/

Little Ray "Come Swim With Me" (Faro, 1964): NY Night Train Daily Party Platter

This is the continuing series I will post every other day while i'm out of town, thanks to Jonathan Toubin DJ of New York Night Train

One of East L.A.'s biggest recording stars and top-drawing performers, 15-year-old Little Ray rode the wave of Bobby Freeman's 1964 hit "C'mon and Swim" with this answer song that name-check's Freeman. You can't not dance to this beat. Exactly what summer should sound like...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Ray
http://wwwyoufoundthateastsidesoundco...
http://www.markguerrero.com/17.php

This video is a today's installment in the New York Night Train Party Platter YouTube playlist (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...). Every track is recorded directly from the original 45s (no bootlegs, reproductions, etc) to give you an idea of what the real deal authentic vinyl sounds like. COME BACK EVERY DAY FOR A NEW FIX! Because the records pass so quickly at my parties, this channel is an attempt to slow down a bit and focus on one record at a time in hopes that it'll hip you to artists, tracks, and other details - and, on the most base level, give you something to listen to.

Get your enjoys,
Jonathan Toubin

http://www.NewYorkNightTrain.com
https://www.facebook.com/newyorknight...
https://twitter.com/jonathantoubin
https://instagram.com/jonathantoubin/

Margie Silva and the Bossa Novas "Bailar, Pt II" (Rendezvous Records, 1963)

This is the continuing series I will post every other day while i'm out of town, thanks to Jonathan Toubin DJ of New York Night Train

I've learned nothing about this artist or this record so far! "Bailar Pt II" has that sort of Bert Bern's latin-tinged "Twist and Shout" beat, chord progression, and builds with voices rising in pitch: "ahhhhh.... ahhhh... ahhhh..." The predecessor and aesthetic sister of "Lucy Baines"! And also in-your-face maracas all over the place... This sat in my collection for a long time before it started popping out and is now one of those signature cuts that I've never heard elsewhere. More of a pop dance oddity than a soul song but fits well enough at the parties to be included near the deep end of side B of Norton Records' "Souvenirs of the Soul Clap, Vol. 4." A unique and lively builder.

I have a feeling it was mislabeled as Pt I is the more boring instrumental side and Pt II is the vocal side...

Does anybody have any information about this record or artist?


This video is a today's installment in the New York Night Train Party Platter YouTube playlist (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...). Every track is recorded directly from the original 45s (no bootlegs, reproductions, etc) to give you an idea of what the real deal authentic vinyl sounds like. COME BACK EVERY DAY FOR A NEW FIX! Because the records pass so quickly at my parties, this channel is an attempt to slow down a bit and focus on one record at a time in hopes that it'll hip you to artists, tracks, and other details - and, on the most base level, give you something to listen to.

Get your enjoys,
Jonathan Toubin

http://www.NewYorkNightTrain.com
https://www.facebook.com/newyorknight...
https://twitter.com/jonathantoubin
https://instagram.com/jonathantoubin/

Cannibal and the Headhunters "Out of Sight" (Rampart, 1966): NY Night Train Daily Party Platter

This is the continuing series I will post every other day while i'm out of town, thanks to Jonathan Toubin DJ of New York Night Train

Many of the best 1960s East L.A. chicano rock'n'roll recordings, are lo-fi garagey versions of soul dance hits rocked up with passion and distortion. Thee incredible Cannibal and The Headhunters' fast and muscular take on James Brown is a classic exemplar of this phenomenon at its finest. Soul power! Don't fight it! Feel it!

http://www.cannibalandtheheadhuntersm...
http://www.markguerrero.com/10.php
http://wwwyoufoundthateastsidesoundco...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannibal...


This is my daily addition to the New York Night Train Party Platter playlist. Each track here is recorded directly from the original 45 (no bootlegs, reproductions, etc) to give you an idea of what the real deal authentic vinyl sounds like. COME BACK EVERY DAY FOR A NEW FIX! Because the records pass so quickly at my parties, this channel is an attempt to stop and focus on one record at a time in hopes that it'll turn you on to the artists, tracks, labels, etc. But mostly I hope this music moves you as much as it moves me.

Get your enjoys,
Jonathan Toubin
Soul Proprietor, New York Night Train

http://www.NewYorkNightTrain.com
https://www.facebook.com/newyorknight...
https://twitter.com/jonathantoubin
https://instagram.com/jonathantoubin/

Brenton Wood "Psychotic Reaction" (Festival, 1967): NY Night Train Daily Party Platter

This is the continuing series I will post every other day while i'm out of town, thanks to Jonathan Toubin DJ of New York Night Train

Just when you thought they couldn't improve on "Psychotic Reaction", Brenton Wood gets a hold of it... He dedicates this one to the girls out there who've cast a spell on him with all of their "oogum bogum" and keeps it weird throughout. This track never came out on 45 in the USA - so this is ripped from the Australian "Gimme Little Sign" EP pictured here...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brenton_...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychoti...


This is my daily addition to the New York Night Train Party Platter playlist. Each track here is recorded directly from the original 45 (no bootlegs, reproductions, etc) to give you an idea of what the real deal authentic vinyl sounds like. COME BACK EVERY DAY FOR A NEW FIX! Because the records pass so quickly at my parties, this channel is an attempt to stop and focus on one record at a time in hopes that it'll turn you on to the artists, tracks, labels, etc. But mostly I hope this music moves you as much as it moves me.

Get your enjoys,
Jonathan Toubin
Soul Proprietor, New York Night Train

http://www.NewYorkNightTrain.com
https://www.facebook.com/newyorknight...
https://twitter.com/jonathantoubin
https://instagram.com/jonathantoubin/

Martha Branch "All the Way to L.A." (Jim Jam, 1966): NY Night Train Daily Party Platter

This is the continuing series I will post every other day while i'm out of town, thanks to Jonathan Toubin DJ of New York Night Train

I know absolutely nothing about this killer track or artist.

The Rollers "Troubles" (Bel Star, 1962): NY Night Train Daily Party Platter

This is the continuing series I will post every other day while i'm out of town, thanks to Jonathan Toubin DJ of New York Night Train

A Los Angeles group that evolved out of the Jewels in the early 1960s recorded this weird and wild dancer produced and arranged by Gary Paxton - the legend behind Monster Mash, Alley Oop, and many more! A snappy beat, an unusual arrangement, and a pentatonic riff. While it sounds like a party, the lyrics are about "troubles" and if you missed the theme, the word "troubles" is repeated dozens of times....


This video is a today's installment in the New York Night Train Party Platter YouTube playlist (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...). Every track is recorded directly from the original 45s (no bootlegs, reproductions, etc) to give you an idea of what the real deal authentic vinyl sounds like. COME BACK EVERY DAY FOR A NEW FIX! Because the records pass so quickly at my parties, this channel is an attempt to slow down a bit and focus on one record at a time in hopes that it'll hip you to artists, tracks, and other details - and, on the most base level, give you something to listen to.

Get your enjoys,
Jonathan Toubin

http://www.NewYorkNightTrain.com
https://www.facebook.com/newyorknight...
https://twitter.com/jonathantoubin
https://instagram.com/jonathantoubin/
Category
Music
License
Standard YouTube License

Andre Franklin with the Preston Epps Trio "SAY YEAH!" (Polo, 1965): NY Night Train Party Platter

This is the continuing series I will post every other day while i'm out of town, thanks to Jonathan Toubin DJ of New York Night Train

Los Angeles Soul dance party excellence featuring Mr. Bongo Rock himself! I hear Preston Epps is still active in the Los Angeles area and still amazing! This track pairs him with a smokin' band and the soulful vocals of Andre Franklin. "Lemme hear you say 'Yeah!'" "Yeah!" The floor always gets involved in the call and response when DJs drop this one. And if this doesn't make you wanna move, you may be dead...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preston_...


This video is a today's installment in the New York Night Train Party Platter YouTube playlist (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...). Every track is recorded directly from the original 45s (no bootlegs, reproductions, etc) to give you an idea of what the real deal authentic vinyl sounds like. COME BACK EVERY DAY FOR A NEW FIX! Because the records pass so quickly at my parties, this channel is an attempt to slow down a bit and focus on one record at a time in hopes that it'll hip you to artists, tracks, and other details - and, on the most base level, give you something to listen to.

Get your enjoys,
Jonathan Toubin

http://www.NewYorkNightTrain.com
https://www.facebook.com/newyorknight...
https://twitter.com/jonathantoubin
https://instagram.com/jonathantoubin/

Thee Midniters "Jump, Jive, and Harmonize" (Whittier, 1967):NY Night Train Daily Party Platter

This is the first in a series I will post every other day while i'm out of town, thanks to Jonathan Toubin DJ of New York Night Train

"Turn On Your Love Light" times a million! Stone cold East L.A. classic! The finest recorded moment of one of the best bands ever! What the heck, let's just say this is one of the most exciting musical performances committed to tape in any genre... anywhere... ever! A heart-stopping guitar riff intro, relentless drumming, blasting harmonicas, heart-stopping dynamics, and the kind of tension and release teetering on the edge of collapse that makes all the best art live way past its time!

Like most of the best stuff, now and then, they only sold a few copies! "Jump, Jive, and Harmonize" probably peaked at number 362,541 on the Billboard chart that year while "Light My Fire," recorded a few miles away, was a number one hit. How could anyone have any faith in the popularity of a record? How could you believe in consumers or the music industry that creates them? Now or then? Could it be that records like this are too out of this world and there aren't enough cool people to buy 'em? Fortunately time has a way of elevating neglected masterpieces to the rightful position in culture and now, fifty years later, this is probably Thee Midniters second-most notable track thanks to Norton Records' "In Thee Midnite Hour" compilation and 2009 pressing of this single....

After years of searching, I found this original 1967 copy in East L.A at Highland Park's Avalon Records - not far from the source.... The perfect place to find the perfect record and the rare experience that justifies all of those hours of failed hunting.

You got the soul baby! That's all it takes...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thee_Mid...
http://wwwyoufoundthateastsidesoundco...
http://www.nortonrecords.com/315-thee...


This is my daily addition to the New York Night Train Party Platter playlist. Each track here is recorded directly from the original 45 (no bootlegs, reproductions, etc) to give you an idea of what the real deal authentic vinyl sounds like. COME BACK EVERY DAY FOR A NEW FIX! Because the records pass so quickly at my parties, this channel is an attempt to stop and focus on one record at a time in hopes that it'll turn you on to the artists, tracks, labels, etc. But mostly I hope this music moves you as much as it moves me.

Get your enjoys,
Jonathan Toubin
Soul Proprietor, New York Night Train

Hookin you motherfuckers up: Jonathan Toubin's NY Night Train Daily Party Platter bringing you up to speed to begin the week with his 1st 4

From one of my favorite current party DJ's out there, ever, the always incredible and shitloads of fun rock'n'roll, May I introduce to you: Jonathan Toubin!

From the original 45 of Eddie King and Mae B. May's 1967 recording "Please Mr. D.J." on Chicago's Conduc Records!



The inaugural track of the NY Night Train “Daily Party Platter” series is a supremely spicy slab of wax! Its hard to go wrong when raw electric blues collides with a raw rhythm and blues beat. This pleading minor key diamond takes the cake with all of its intensity and wild pleading vocals. “Please Mr. DJ! Play my song!” What song are they begging to hear? I hope it goes something like this! The rough production and primal nature of the thing makes it difficult to believe this is a 1967 recording! I would’ve guessed five years earlier… Is your hair standing on end?

Eddie King was an Alabama-born Chicago West Side blues guitarist who worked with Little Mac early on, led his own band and was recorded by Willie Dixon. Mae B. May was his little sister who was reluctant to sing at first (hence her nickname – “Maybe I will, maybe I won’t”) but when she got down to it, the wind reakky blew through those mighty pipes! Not long after this single the siblings separated. King would become Koko Taylor’s longtime guitarist and Mae drifted back and forth between music and raising her ten children – doing a brief stint in Lonnie Brooks’ legendary band. The duo reunited nearly two decades later for their first and only LP “Blues Has Got Me” before parting ways again. Eddie King just passed away in 2012.

you can read up about them here: http://www.last.fm/music/Eddie+King+&...
and eddie king's wikipedia is here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddie_Ki...



This is my daily addition to the New York Night Train Party Platter playlist. Each track here is recorded directly from the original 45 (no bootlegs, reproductions, etc) to give you an idea of what the real deal authentic vinyl sounds like. COME BACK EVERY DAY FOR A NEW FIX! Because the records pass so quickly at my parties, this channel is an attempt to stop and focus on one record at a time in hopes that it'll turn you on to the artists, tracks, labels, etc. But mostly I hope this music moves you as much as it moves me.

Get your enjoys,
Jonathan Toubin
Soul Proprietor, New York Night Train

http://www.NewYorkNightTrain.com
https://www.facebook.com/newyorknight...
https://twitter.com/jonathantoubin
https://instagram.com/jonathantoubin/

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From the original 45 of The Premiers 1966 recording "Get On This Plane" on Faro Records.



This one is a shout out to all of my Los Angeles friends! See you at the Soul Clap and Dance-Off Sunday (May 24) at The Regent Theater! The Premiers are the supreme San Gabriel ,CA group best known for their 1964 smash hit version of Don and Dewey's "Farmer John" - which kicked in the door for an entire generation of killer East L.A. Chicano rock'n'rollers. They also recorded a number of other NY Night Train-approved killers of the highest order during their brief career that came to a halt when two of the members were drafted to go to Vietnam. On a dark night in 1966, in the flash of an electrical storm, in a single gargantuan thunderclap, this teenage quartet breathed life into this drop-dead gorgeous monster. Driven by a relentless "I Can Give You Everything" baseline, this groovy fuzz-drenched beast builds and builds to "take you on a trip that'll blow your brain"! Come on baby! Get on this plane....

And get on this train! The New York Night Train!

learn more about The Premiers here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Prem...
and here: http://markguerrero.com/11.php
and here: http://www.npr.org/2014/08/10/3386324...
http://www.markguerrero.com/17.php


This is my daily addition to the New York Night Train Party Platter playlist. Each track here is recorded directly from the original 45 (no bootlegs, reproductions, etc) to give you an idea of what the real deal authentic vinyl sounds like. COME BACK EVERY DAY FOR A NEW FIX! Because the records pass so quickly at my parties, this channel is an attempt to stop and focus on one record at a time in hopes that it'll turn you on to the artists, tracks, labels, etc. But mostly I hope this music moves you as much as it moves me.

Get your enjoys,
Jonathan Toubin
Soul Proprietor, New York Night Train

------------------



A few weeks ago I came across this Decca version of Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ “I Put A Spell On You” at Detroit’s People’s Records. Since “All Night,” one of my favorites, is also the same label from the same period, and since, what the heck, he’s the best singer/performer/musical personality of all time (I always buy even his worst stuff!), I adopted this puppy and gave it a home with me back in New York City! And it’s been driving the dancers wild ever since!

I’m definitely aware that this comes nowhere near the incomparable first couple of versions in terms of quality. And I admit that the competent vanilla studio band chugging through the glossy arrangement may as well be Blood Sweat and Tears in Vegas (the arranger was later not surprisingly responsible for The Main Ingredient - "Everybody Plays The Fool, "etc). And there are female backing vocals! This time Hawkins’ signature song has been reassembled and locked onto a fast enough grid that you can finally turn “I Put A Spell On You” for the dance floor! In that sense this one''s conceptually similar to the contemporary remix - given a more danceable makeover on one hand at the expense of losing focus and being nowhere near as good as the original! But what the heck, in this case the disparate aesthetically questionable ingredients have their own perverse magic when combined. It just works and he's having fun with it.

In the intro and the awkwardly introduced mid-section we find Screamin' Jay at his weirdest and wildest. Nearly one-third of this short spin is devoted to the beatless stops and starts in the break - showcasing Screamin’ Jay’s trademark grunting and shrieking. Its long enough and weird enough to make anybody dance floor uncertain of what they should be doing and, in general, very uncomfortable. The decadent tedium of this section's length, combined with the freakishness, dissonance, and frustrated anticipation of a return to rhythm, insures that when the beat finally hits again, the floor will commence the dance with the type of universal shared relief and excitement you witness when geriatrics hear a wedding DJ drop the Four Seasons on the heels of an extended Iggy Azalea megamix...

Maybe I’m so hypnotized by Screamin' Jay's hoopin’ and hollerin’, that “I Put A Spell On You” ’66 may in fact be the worst record of all time and I’m too blinded to notice. And next week I may well regret bringing this platter to your attention. But I know that in this life (as well as in any other life) you might as well go out on a limb at the risk of looking ridiculous. There’s a fine line between the worst and the best so I’ll just take my chances, go way beyond the safety zone, and irresponsibly proclaim this the best record ever made… by anybody… EVER… of all time! And even if this track, which I just heralded the preeminent exemplar of the art of recorded music, doesn't even measure up to Screamin’ Jay’s top twenty sides, his most humdrum nostril booger is more resplendent than Drake’s chef d’oeuvre (or his coffee cake for that matter). Like Louis Armstrong before him, Screamin' Jay proves here that his distinctive musicianship can swing even the squarest of musical combos. And what the heck, the man dabbled in schmaltz since day one and I'll take this curiosity over his classic version of, say, "I Love Paris" any day.

If archeologists in the not-so-distant future dive down, deep down below the ocean, into the submerged ruins of New York City and find a random box of records and they pull out this firecracker and drop the needle, they would no doubt assume that this must be the voice of god speaking to them. What’s left of civilization would try to talk and grunt and sing like Screamin’ Jay Hawkins and they would spend the rest of eternity trying to figure out the meaning of his words and sounds, what he looked like, how he dressed, his morality, etc. "What would Screamin' Jay do?" (I often ask myself the same question). This shiny little slab of black petroleum would herald a new awakening and change the course of humanity the same way Poggi’s discovery of “De Rerum Natura” sparked the renaissance...

Or at the very least our progeny would dig the vocals...

In summary, this isn’t Screamin' Jay Hawkins' best work but what's not to love? Its wild and unique and I don’t plan to stop turning it anytime soon. Sooooo... You.... You've no doubt heard the entire thing if you've read this far. And YouTube has probably since moved on to the theme from "Ghostbusters" by now... Or maybe your computer has already gone to sleep? Or you've gone to sleep? Anyway, if you're still with me, I'm talking to you... I wanna know... What do you think of this 1966 Decca version of "I Put A Spell On You"?

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From the original 1958 vinyl 45 MISS LA-VELL (LaVelle White) "TEEN-AGE LOVE" on DUKE Records

So far this YouTube playlist has featured relatively new acquisitions, but this one is an old New York Night Train classic that I've turned so many times over the years that its downright embarrassing! But I can always count on this hot little pepper and its one of the few tracks I never get bored with. I planned on highlighting another track for today but when I turned this last night I felt in my gut that this one had to go up today!

And take a listen! That's how you start a song! A strong fast blow right to the head! The screaming intro slides right in after only a couple of seconds and glides across rocky terrain for two minutes of pure bliss! The fluidity of her vocals melt across the top of the coarse rhythm like the perfect grilled cheese! Feel her power and hear that band go! It’s over so fast! A sonic whippit! Play it again!

If you haven't seen thee fantastic LaVelle White play live, she's still got it! Everything! Pipes, showmanship, style... the entire package. Its hard to imagine that such a dynamic contemporary entertainer was making records nearly six decades ago. Though born in Louisianna, she moved to Houston, TX and started singing in blues clubs in the 1940s. She made this, her first record on local/international entertainment don Don Robey's legendary Duke Records - the most commercially successful black-owned record label of the 1950s and one of the most consistently solid imprints of all time. "Teen-Age Love" kicked off a small but mighty string of supreme and highly underestimated Miss LaVell Duke sides that are hands-down some of the finest raw rockin' late rhythm and blues/early soul you'll find anywhere - including NYNT favorites "Stop These Teardrops," "Stolen Love," and "Why Men Go Wild."

Supreme and highly underestimated!

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavelle_White
http://www.ponderosastomp.com/music_m...



This is my daily addition to the New York Night Train Party Platter playlist. Each track here is recorded directly from the original 45 (no bootlegs, reproductions, etc) to give you an idea of what the real deal authentic vinyl sounds like. COME BACK EVERY DAY FOR A NEW FIX! Because the records pass so quickly at my parties, this channel is an attempt to stop and focus on one record at a time in hopes that it'll turn you on to the artists, tracks, labels, etc. But mostly I hope this music moves you as much as it moves me.

Get your enjoys,
Jonathan Toubin
Soul Proprietor, New York Night Train

---------------

thank you, Joie Jerkface

I'll share more when i take my summer break
look forward to it, JT rocks!