Debbie Deb vs Alisha

Message Bookmarked

Bookmark Removed

There’s not nearly enough love for Freestyle on this board, and nowhere near enough love for these two girls. Not sure who I like most. The Debbie Deb album is superb, about 4 or 5 killer singles on there – from ‘There’s a party going on’ (covered by many many other Freestyle acts, but Debs is the best) to ‘I wanna dance’ (so perfect lyrically, about nothing except going out to a club to dance after working all week) to the ones everyone knows: ‘When I hear music’ and ‘Lookout weekend’. Alisha’s album isn’t as strong but ‘All night passion’ is one of the best tracks to come out of the whole era, ‘Stargazing’ is also brilliant (that extended remix with the chorus of cd skips boggled my mind when I first heard it), ‘Baby talk’ is decent, ‘Too turned on’ is a great little number, and not on her first album but definitely worth a mention is the house mix of ‘I don’t know what comes over me’.

There’s a great broken-english description of Freestyle here: http://www.freestylemusic.de/freestyle/geschichte/definition-e.html
“Normally the themes are romantic, unpolitical and try to submit a positive message. Instead of being a summary of the text, the lyrics are a clear emotional reaction.” Perfect. (ignore what it says about Stevie B and Johnny O though, those two ain’t so hot).

Some qus for the one or two people out there who know anything about these two proto-Britneys:

Was Alisha only 14 when she started off? Singing songs like ‘All night passion’ and ‘Too turned on’?! Wasn’t there a huuuge scandal about it?

Did Deb or Alisha ever bother the charts? Did they have any impact at all in the UK (other than ‘When I hear music’ being slammed onto a dozen Street Soundsy comps)?

What did they look like? It’s difficult to find pics of them on the internet.

What are they doing now?

Who do you like best? I’m loyal to Debbie but I can’t get ‘w-w-w-while I’m wa-wa-wa-wa-waiting I’ll be Staaargaaaziiing” out of my head.

For those who don’t know them, if you like big silly hooks made on synths and drum machines with a whole load of disco mixed in, and lyrics about a girl going to a club and dancing and meeting a boy and screwing the boy and then being heartbroken over the boy, then it’s odds on you’ll like these two.

― Affectian (Affectian), Monday, 24 January 2005 13:58 (twenty-one years ago)

not heard Alisha but i thank you for the Deb tip-off. i'm still having trouble chronologising her hits if someone can help. also cheers for the Cherelle version of 'I Didn't Mean To Turn You On' (is this the original then?) as i never knew about it.

― Stevem On X (blueski), Monday, 24 January 2005 14:03 (twenty-one years ago)

Yeah, Cherelle did the original before Robert Palmer did his (still pretty great) version of it. Cherelle's 8 minute version is the one to grab, there's a moment about 5 or 6 minutes in that floors me every time.

Alisha comes highly recommended, I think you'd like her stuff. I'm sharing it all so grab at it. Not too sure about the Deb dates but I'm guessing it's 1983.

― Affectian (Affectian), Monday, 24 January 2005 14:06 (twenty-one years ago)

Equally as good as Debbie Deb are Connie (who could also be the Connie Case of Disco Not Disco fame) and Trinere. All three girls sound exactly the same and could well be the same person for all I know. I believe they were all produced by Amos Larkin III and as the internet has almost zero info about him does anyone here have any info to give? Most of the guy's stuff is awesome, if you're interested I highly recommend 'Experience' by Connie (not particularly danceable but such a stunning lazy track).

― Affectian (Affectian), Monday, 24 January 2005 14:11 (twenty-one years ago)

there is too love for freestyle on ilm. use the search function. alisha looked like she was 14 on her album cover. she sure as hell didn't look like britney.

― scott seward (scott seward), Monday, 24 January 2005 14:12 (twenty-one years ago)

Yeah I seen that thread but this is in praise solely of the girlz, plus Freestyle's so good there should be a new thread about it every week damnit. Do you have the picture to hand?

― Affectian (Affectian), Monday, 24 January 2005 14:14 (twenty-one years ago)

i have the album. but i don't have a scanner or anything.

― scott seward (scott seward), Monday, 24 January 2005 14:17 (twenty-one years ago)

Amos Larkin III

I seem to remember an interview with him where he mentioned that there were multiple singers under the Debbie Deb name, although I think it was the same girl for both the "Where I Hear Music" and "Lookout Weekend" trax.

― Scott Warner (thream), Monday, 24 January 2005 14:28 (twenty-one years ago)

where is maria venchura, tina b, or liz torres? heck, where are any of those people? ya know, it's only 9:30 in the morning and i've already listened to the 9 and a half minute remix of expose's point of no return, little louis vega's freestyle orchestra and richie rich's "salsa house". where is deniz? download "little bicho" by the girls on the block immediately. it's my heatseeker missile with a bullet single of the week.

― scott seward (scott seward), Monday, 24 January 2005 14:39 (twenty-one years ago)

I salute your huge Freestyle knowledge and shall check out that song and the others as soon as I get home from work. Let me add Jenny Burton ('Remember what you like') to the list, and Denise Lopez ('Causa u', 'Don't you wanna be mine', 'Sayin sorry') or are they not strictly Freestyle?

I'm quite shocked at the thing about Debbie Deb being a variety of girls - who did it first though, Bobby O with his revolving Flirts or Amos?

― Affectian (Affectian), Monday, 24 January 2005 16:39 (twenty-one years ago)

debbie deb needs more love for "i wanna work it out."

ts: stacey q vs suzy q

― cathy berberian (Jody Beth Rosen), Monday, 24 January 2005 17:51 (twenty-one years ago)

ps- i have a postcard on my wall for a triple-bill of tka/judy torres/cover girls.

― amanda lear (Jody Beth Rosen), Monday, 24 January 2005 18:28 (twenty-one years ago)

Freestyle never died in Toronto and its outlying suburbs:

http://www.odeonrecords.com/index2.html

― Tantrum The Cat (Tantrum The Cat), Monday, 24 January 2005 22:10 (twenty-one years ago)

Scott, "little bicho" is nowhere to be found, do you have an mp3 of it?

Suzy Q beats Stacey Q on points:
'get on up', 'get on up and do it again' & 'can't live (without your love)' beats 'two of hearts' (though that is ace, and the video is king). what other tracks by these are worth checking out? also worth a mention is Stacey Lattisaw, 'jump to it' is great but 'attack of the name game' is unbeatable.

oh and here's the photo of Alisha from the other thread:
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000000EM3.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

she kinda looks like the ginger girl who left Sugababes and yeah, zero like Britney.

― Affectian (Affectian), Wednesday, 26 January 2005 22:16 (twenty-one years ago)

Oh, Suzy Q's 'with your love' is great too.

― Affectian (Affectian), Wednesday, 26 January 2005 22:25 (twenty-one years ago)

two months pass...

Dear Debbie, I still love you though no one else does (I overdid it on Alisha), except Gwen Stefani who keeps namedropping you in interviews:

'I was super-ska girl when I met Tony,' she says. 'I wore only black and white and hoop earrings. Tony went to Anaheim High School, the big cholo [Mexican] school. He came over here from England at 11. He has Indian parents, and he was the first-born, so he didn't have any influences. He thought he was Prince. Because I had a crush on him, he turned me on to Prince and Lisa Lisa and Debbie Deb, and that stuff has always had a special place in my heart.'

From an interview in the Observer, 30/1/05.

Dear Frank Kogan, I read somewhere that you once saw Debbie Deb live. It would be really really good if you could describe that gig. I will pay you 1p per word. Thank you.

― Affectian (Affectian), Tuesday, 29 March 2005 21:42 (twenty-one years ago)

except Gwen Stefani who keeps namedropping you in interviews:

ah is THAT why everyone's suddenly all into debbie deb.

― jody von oy (Jody Beth Rosen), Tuesday, 29 March 2005 21:44 (twenty-one years ago)

Also, what bits of the Gravy Train sound like Debbie Deb (as mentioned in a Chuck Eddy post late last year)?

― Affectian (Affectian), Tuesday, 29 March 2005 21:45 (twenty-one years ago)

xpost

Who else likes her? I've started seeing her name mentioned in reviews of people like Ciara but not in any major publications or from the mouths of any other major stars. Hurrah for Gwen though, DD deserves some dues.

― Affectian (Affectian), Tuesday, 29 March 2005 21:47 (twenty-one years ago)

haha everyone here for starters.

― jody von oy (Jody Beth Rosen), Tuesday, 29 March 2005 21:50 (twenty-one years ago)

Manchester will probably catch up sometime next year once we get over 'electro sleaze' and the colours red and black.

― Affectian (Affectian), Tuesday, 29 March 2005 21:52 (twenty-one years ago)

Haha, what will the post electro-sleaze palette consist of?!

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Tuesday, 29 March 2005 22:04 (twenty-one years ago)

Warm yellow and sky blue, duh. Maybe a dash of silver.

― Affectian (Affectian), Tuesday, 29 March 2005 22:09 (twenty-one years ago)

Debbie Deb gets my vote -- for "Lookout Weekends" alone

― ken taylrr (ken taylrr), Tuesday, 29 March 2005 22:09 (twenty-one years ago)

I love Lookout Weekend. It fits right into a certain Elementary School / Jr. High nostalgia for me along with stuff like "Give it all you got", "My Posse's on Broadway", "Push It", "Cars That Go Boom", etc.

What other songs of hers are worth hearing?

― walter kranz (walterkranz), Tuesday, 29 March 2005 22:28 (twenty-one years ago)

Hi Walter, who is 'Give it all you got' by?

Along with 'Lookout weekend' you need 'When I hear music', 'I wanna dance' and 'There's a party going on' but really, just get the album. Other people seem to rate 'You are my fantasy' too but that never grabbed me. And if you're liking those then it's time to move onto Connie, Trinere, Jennie Burton, Alisha, Judy Torres and the rest of the gang.

― Affectian (Affectian), Tuesday, 29 March 2005 22:44 (twenty-one years ago)

"Give it all you got" is by Afro-Rican. Not sure that's exactly the real title but you know, it's the song that goes Gi-Gi-Gi-Give it all you got / Gi-gi-give it all you got and features the "It's More Fun To Compute" synth line plus various James Brown samples.

― walter kranz (walterkranz), Tuesday, 29 March 2005 23:25 (twenty-one years ago)

Oh come on, "You are my fantasy" is her finest moment - the acid line, the tweeky stabs and the bollywood style male chants. It's great because it sounds like nothing else whereas "Lookout weekend" and "When I hear music" are basically the same song (I mean, it's a good song, but still). Also, I can't listen to "when I hear music" the whole way through because it's just too repetitive (mind you I only have the 12"s so I don't know if the album version is shorter). Whereas "You are my fantasy" switches it up and builds as it goes in a much more satisfying manner.

Plus also, wasn't there a freestyle revival during electroclash in any case? I certainly was hearing lots of Debbie Deb played out back in '01.

Liz Torres got crowned "Queen of house" and turned out some pretty corny Junior Vasquez type stuff in the early 90s, dunno what happened to her after that. Girl had scary fingernails.

But I have to say, my favourite thing about freestyle is the dub mixes. They totally kill it. B-sides to TKA, Cover Girls and Expose are evil slabs of off-balance percussion spastic vocal chops and slow-down speed-up effects. Especially the Omar Santana ones.

Oooh, also, "Fix it in the mix" needed to be on this thread and now it is.

― Jacob (Jacob), Wednesday, 30 March 2005 00:14 (twenty-one years ago)

eighteen years pass...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTT_opq0VyQ

Where has “stargazing” been all my life? Great tune

― calstars, Monday, 4 March 2024 05:40 (two years ago)

You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.