Daddy B. Nice’s Corner 2021 – news and opinion on Southern Soul RnB music and artists
August 14, 2021
A Daddy B Nice essay on what NOT to say to a woman (occasioned by the latest single from Soul Southern featuring Marcel Cassanova)
The Difference Between A Boy And A Man
That’s a line from Duchess Jureesa McBride’s captivating new song, “All Men Ain’t Bad,” hinting that boys…well…may be a different story. Mr. Sipp has a new song out called “Real Man” (no YouTube yet) in which he dismisses “living at home with your mama” as a sure sign you’re not a man. I wonder if Duchess Jureesa or Mr. Sipp has heard “Quit My Job,” the new song by Soul Southern, a young group headed by lead singer Marcell Cassanova. When it comes to lyrics, this otherwise musically-catchy tune does everything in its power to alienate the fair sex.
“I’ll quit my job
So I can take care of you, baby.”
What a hoot! He’s going to take care of her by quitting his job?!
“You need a man who’s
Going to be there for you, lady.
Ain’t got no money,
And ain’t got no car.
But girl I got the biggest heart.
Oh yeah, “lady” must be thinking. You ain’t got nothing, but you expect me to love and even support you for your so-called “heart”? Have the bandmembers pf Soul Southern not listened to all the songs by ladies lambasting men with these delusions? But wait, it gets even worse…
“When I first met you
I was doing bad.
Living with my mama
And I was catching —?–
But you changed my life.
Made me a new man.
Got me a job,
A woman and a plan.
But something changed
And it’s not your fault.
I got lazy
—?—-
I started lying and creeping
With your friends
Every other weekend.”
At the least, you have to give Cassanova (who’s singing it with a straight face) credit for honesty, but who values candor coming from an adolescent? And why, after all his betrayals and shortcomings, would it even occur to him that she might think it was HER fault? And it gets even worse…
“Can you give me your keys?
Let me drive your car.
I’ll pick you up from work.
Treat you like a star.”
Oh yeah? Me working? (the woman must be thinking)…That makes me a star? And what are you going to be doing with my car while I’m working?
This is the quintessential hymn of the “kept man”. Call him the “Bubblebath Kid”. It’s the one thing he can do. He can pour bubblebath, but he can’t hold a job.
No…In the annals of young, entitled male delirium, “Quit My Job,”is decidedly off-the-charts, a primer in what NOT to say to a woman. Nor is it distanced like a lot of blues, nor tongue-in-cheek or double-entendred like Marvin Sease or Bobby Rush. On the contrary, it’s romantic and misty-eyed, and with women making up probably 80% of the market for southern soul music, it makes you wonder…What audience are the boys shooting for? The small fraction of us men who’ve been there and done that and gone on to grow up?
The one positive we can take from this song is that southern soul is no longer just the preserve of grown folks. J-Wonn is undoubtedly the biggest star to bring that reality home to the chitlin’ circuit, but he is by no means the exception. There’s JD, who has a one-of-a-kind voice like J-Wonn, with “Love You Down,” a dazzling melody from Jeter Jones’ recent sampler, Fish Grease Friday.
“All your friends think
That I’m too young for you.
You tell them that I can do
What guys their age can do.”
That’s a refreshing perspective…that a “boy toy” can also feel vulnerable. But JD also ventures into Soul Southern-like quicksand on a Volton Wright tune, “Super Woman,” in which he sings:
“She don’t need nothing from me,
But she wants me.”
JD’s implying that the reason he thinks she’s so “super” is that she doesn’t demand any responsibilities or support from him. Ahhh…the luck, albeit short-lived, of youth. (In fairness, a middle-aged Volton Wright wrote the lyrics.)
And just arrived on the scene this last month is T-Lyons, The Southern Soul Kid, with “Young Thang,” in which he announces:
“I might be a young man,
I don’t bark or bite.
I might be a young man,
But I know how to treat you right.”
The Southern Soul Kid is straddling the fence pretty well there. So far he’s avoiding the Humpty-Dumpty-ish fall of Marcell Cassanova.
Maybe the reason we grown men howl with pain when confronted with the narcissism of the young is that we recognize ourselves at a certain point in our lives, when we were young and entitled and loved by women for our talent, looks and promising futures. Maybe these women even told us they’d work the nine-to-five while we pursued our respective muses. It’s too tempting not to refuse, but it never really works out. Sooner or later, the hold we have on these selfless women turns. Rock bottom beckons. And once there, growing up isn’t an option any more. It’s a necessity.
–Daddy B. Nice
August 1, 2021
AUGUST TOP TEN “SPILLOVER”: The Top 40 Southern Soul Singles
An expanded list of the songs vying for “Top Ten Singles” in August 2021.
1. “Dukes And Boots”—Avail Hollywood
2. “Cowboy Style”—Ms. Jody
3. “Evidence”—Bigg Robb
4. “Ride It”—Ra’Shad The Blues Kid
5. “Rush”—Mississippi Hummin’ Boy
6. “All Men Ain’t Bad”—The Duchess Jureesa McBride
7. “Pay 2 Play”—P2K Dadiddy
8. “Now You Wanna Come Back”—Miss Portia
9. “I Think I’m In Love”—Coldrank feat. Omar Cunningham
10. “I Got Fired”—Sheila B. Sexi Jackson
11. “Say Yea”—Ra’Shad The Blues Kid
12. “Just Can’t Help Myself”—P2K Dadiddy
13. “Young Thang (I Might Be A Young Man)”—T-Lyons The Southern Soul Kid
14. “Tomorrow”—Lil’ Runt feat. Roi “Chip” Anthony
15. “Get Out Of My House”—Princess Towanna Murphy
16. “Good Vibes Only”—Big Sacc feat. Jeter Jones
17. “Quit My Job”—Soul Southern feat. Marcell Cassanova
18. “Can We Just Talk”—Wendell B
19. “Imma Let Him Get It”—Summer Wolfe
20. “Fatal Attraction”—Luziana Wil feat. Ricky Wayne
21. “If She Ain’t Country”—Mississippi Hummin’ Boy
22. “Like Candy”—Solomon Thompson feat. J-Wonn
23. “Ladies Night”—Bill Avery
24. “Just Stay In My Saddle”—Annie Washington
25. “Dip It Low”—Al Davis feat. Jeter Jones
26. “Come And Get My Loving”—Georgi’o
27. “Pour It Up”—P2K Dadiddy feat. Rhomey
28. “Hummmin Boy Weekend”—Mississippi Hummin’ Boy
29. “I Wanna Celebrate”—Ms. Jody
30. “Can’t Keep My Hands Off You”—Solomon Thompson feat. Jeff Floyd
31. “Big Thick Mix”—Nelson Curry
32. “Enuff”—Mississippi Hummin’ Boy
33. “Don’t Want To Be Alone”—Willie Clayton
34. “Women’s Feet Never Stank”—Derrick Davis
35. “Back Down That Road”—Mr. Amazing
37. “If I Get It Up”—Miss Lady Blues
38. “I Lied To Myself”—Charles Blakely
39. “Good Girl”—Uncle Wayne
40. “My Wife Too”—Rico Baby