----- Original Message -----
From: "Tristan Watkins"
Beyond that, he hasn't made much of a mark on the rest of the world in the last
10-15 years unless I've missed it. To sing his praises is like yelling about
how Donald Glaude was one of the most important DJs in Seattle in the
early-mid '90s. No one would bother outside of those relatively small
communities unless there was a larger perception of them. It's useful to
remember the local instigators of change but it's useless to attribute more
than that to what they did. Frankie Bones is a regional hero and certainly
goes out of his way to attribute more than that to himself. For as long as I
can remember him I've wondered what the big deal is.
Frankie isn't a god, and his site definitely fluffs up his resume, but he
certainly was an important figure in dance music in the 80s, well *before*
raves.
He made great tracks and remixes with Tommy Musto, and his own tracks -
eg. the Bonesbreaks series - were in the crates of every dj worth their salt.
And that's in the mid/late 80s, and not 'techno' tracks, either.
He wasn't the most inventive music maker, but he lovingly wore his
influences and inspirations on his sleeve, so to speak, and he made
dance music for dance music djs: for mixing, not for 'home listening':
for nightclub dancing (there weren't 'raves' yet, not at the time).
Frankie's pushed the limits: he owned a record store,
a label, his rights; he promoted huge parties, keeping the
ball rolling in the dark daze of the early 90s. He dj-ed parties
large and small: he was an ambassador for electronic dance music,
and he *did* spin all around the US and Europe. Donald's a playboy,
and content with being a 'star'. Nice guy, good dj, but not fair to
compare with Frankie. Frankie's way more than just a dj and his importance
to electronic dance music and dance music culture is far more widespread than
than of Donald Glaude's, who is a decent, albeit flashy dj and a helluva nice guy.
There's a scene in a tape from a dance music video series from 91/92 with some
B'lyn kids at rave (can't recall the name of the vid series), talking about how
if not for
Frankie Bones' techno music and the Stormraves scene, they'd be jerks and
bullies
but because of his music, they'd learned be chill, and to enjoy dance music.
And to dance.
seek
