Who was this man called "Sunbelt"? He was a genius in his own time. His name was Doug Groover. A dedicated and brilliant musician, a son and a brother. Even though "Spin it" was composed in 1980, it was so far ahead in it's time that it is still very popular today. It was a great 80's disco, and a wonderful dance song.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Photos Added
I have added some pictures to the page on the right hand of the blog....will add more later.
It's unfortunate that music pioneers such as Doug don't receive as much credit as they deserve. The song Spin It is incredible. SO ahead of its time. Love and respect.
I didn't know that this blog existed but I am glad that I found it because Doug was a good friend of mine when I lived in Dickinson Texas. After he started the magazine "MusicConnection" I became his Photo Editor and composed some of the front pages of the magazine. I remember one day Doug coming to me very dishearted as he had received a letter from an Attorney in Los Angeles for the magazine to "Cease and Decest" ad the name Music Connection was already being used in LA. Doug complained that the spelling was different and his magazine was "Houston's Musiconnection" with one 'c'. I said Doug let's just change the name and make it better! So we dropped the Houston (for a more universal appeal) and came up with Music Arts Monthly Magazine. And it did become better with a new glossy cover and color inside with up to 32 pages and growing. More and more advertisers and a 60,000 distribution. Doug wrote most of the articles, sold many of the ads, did cartooning and cutting and pasting the magazine by hand as this was before the age of computers. Well Doug did get one of the first Compac computers with interchangeable "daisy wheel" printer. Did I mention that he delivered most of those 60,000 copies himself? I brainstormed with Doug on ideas and took many of the photos but Doug was Music Arts. It is my pleasure to revive the magazine online and who knows maybe someday it will be back in print. He would certainly be happy with todays International circulation (see front page of Music Arts at the bottom under "who's reading Music Arts?") I would certainly like to hear from Doug's family. My contact info is online under "Contact Info" in the magazine.
I was a high school buddy of Doug's (and also his keyboard tech) in Dickinson. We used to hang out in his bedroom studio, listen to records, jam together, and talk about life. I was constantly amazed at the energy and drive he had. When I wasn't doubled over laughing from his sense of humor, or marveling at another one of his intricate drawings or cartoons, I would listen to what he was working on and be in awe of what he was able to accomplish with a 4-track reel-to-reel machine and a few primitive (by today's standards) keyboards.
He was a great friend; endlessly creative, talented, driven, and sometimes impatient. I once built him a PAiA kit on his mom's dining table, and he whisked it away to his studio to plug it in and try it out before I had a chance to get all the knobs installed :-). He was ahead of his time on the technology front too -- Doug had numerous ideas for studio equipment, synths, and effects, and these ideas started showing up in the market 20 years later. He designed Limelight Recording Studio in Dickinson when it was built over thirty years ago, and they were still in business (using the original equipment Doug ordered and installed) as of 2010.
There's more to Doug than "Spin It". Shortly after Doug moved to Ohio, he sent me a letter when one of his other songs got radio play for the first time:
"Timelab's [his studio] is doing great. Q-95 radio station played my song "Love" last Sunday. It was a rush and a half hearing MY song on FM Radio! Felt good, and good response!
He included a cassette. So, I have a copy of "Love", as well as another song that he did during the "Spin It" era: "Fantasy Girl" (with Rodney Eubanks on vocals, kind of a ballad). These are rescued from cassette, so they are a bit on the lo-fi side, but it shows another musical side of Doug. Would you like me to send these to you on a CD-R?
Anyway, I am so grateful to have stumbled on this site dedicated to Doug. In the decades since I knew him, I have never met anyone so gifted and so visionary. When he passed away, I lost an old friend and the world lost a great talent.
Hello, how do I contact you, I'd like to ask you some questions about possibly posting Spin It on my site.
ReplyDeletelildarlin57@yahoo.com
DeleteIt's unfortunate that music pioneers such as Doug don't receive as much credit as they deserve. The song Spin It is incredible. SO ahead of its time. Love and respect.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know that this blog existed but I am glad that I found it because Doug was a good friend of mine when I lived in Dickinson Texas. After he started the magazine "MusicConnection" I became his Photo Editor and composed some of the front pages of the magazine. I remember one day Doug coming to me very dishearted as he had received a letter from an Attorney in Los Angeles for the magazine to "Cease and Decest" ad the name Music Connection was already being used in LA. Doug complained that the spelling was different and his magazine was "Houston's Musiconnection" with one 'c'.
ReplyDeleteI said Doug let's just change the name and make it better! So we dropped the Houston (for a more universal appeal) and came up with Music Arts Monthly Magazine.
And it did become better with a new glossy cover and color inside with up to 32 pages and growing. More and more advertisers and a 60,000 distribution. Doug wrote most of the articles, sold many of the ads, did cartooning and cutting and pasting the magazine by hand as this was before the age of computers. Well Doug did get one of the first Compac computers with interchangeable "daisy wheel" printer. Did I mention that he delivered most of those 60,000 copies himself? I brainstormed with Doug on ideas and took many of the photos but Doug was Music Arts.
It is my pleasure to revive the magazine online and who knows maybe someday it will be back in print.
He would certainly be happy with todays International circulation (see front page of Music Arts at the bottom under "who's reading Music Arts?")
I would certainly like to hear from Doug's family. My contact info is online under "Contact Info" in the magazine.
Are there any copies/videos of Spin It with the original male voice? That would be historical and cool.
ReplyDeleteHowdy!
ReplyDeleteI was a high school buddy of Doug's (and also his keyboard tech) in Dickinson. We used to hang out in his bedroom studio, listen to records, jam together, and talk about life. I was constantly amazed at the energy and drive he had. When I wasn't doubled over laughing from his sense of humor, or marveling at another one of his intricate drawings or cartoons, I would listen to what he was working on and be in awe of what he was able to accomplish with a 4-track reel-to-reel machine and a few primitive (by today's standards) keyboards.
He was a great friend; endlessly creative, talented, driven, and sometimes impatient. I once built him a PAiA kit on his mom's dining table, and he whisked it away to his studio to plug it in and try it out before I had a chance to get all the knobs installed :-). He was ahead of his time on the technology front too -- Doug had numerous ideas for studio equipment, synths, and effects, and these ideas started showing up in the market 20 years later. He designed Limelight Recording Studio in Dickinson when it was built over thirty years ago, and they were still in business (using the original equipment Doug ordered and installed) as of 2010.
There's more to Doug than "Spin It". Shortly after Doug moved to Ohio, he sent me a letter when one of his other songs got radio play for the first time:
"Timelab's [his studio] is doing great. Q-95 radio station played
my song "Love" last Sunday. It was a rush and a half hearing
MY song on FM Radio! Felt good, and good response!
He included a cassette. So, I have a copy of "Love", as well as another song that he did during the "Spin It" era: "Fantasy Girl" (with Rodney Eubanks on vocals, kind of a ballad). These are rescued from cassette, so they are a bit on the lo-fi side, but it shows another musical side of Doug. Would you like me to send these to you on a CD-R?
Anyway, I am so grateful to have stumbled on this site dedicated to Doug. In the decades since I knew him, I have never met anyone so gifted and so visionary. When he passed away, I lost an old friend and the world lost a great talent.
Regards,
Mark
I was listening to the BBC essential mix of the year 2014 and "spin it" was in it - thanks for letting me know more about doug and this great track
ReplyDeletehttps://soundcloud.com/caribouband/caribou-essential-mix-oct-2014