DESCRIPTION
A photo in Rodney Stepp’s scrapbook sums this period in his life in music.
It's 1974, The Spinners were headliners at the "Zaire 74" music festival, a sideshow to Muhammad Ali’s fabled "Rumble in the Jungle" fight with George Foreman. Among the faded snapshots, there’s a picture of Stepp backstage posing arm in arm with Ali; another image shows The Greatest seated at Stepp’s Fender Rhodes alongside vocalist Etta James.
It was all a dream for this Naptown Wunderkind, who had previously recorded for Herb Miller's LAMP Records as the Diplomatics and had issued the sweet soul killer "Young Girl" as Jazzie Cazzie and the Eight Sounds on a rare Knaptown 45.
But as exciting as his rise out of those local status was, as exciting as it was to headline festivals and arenas and appear on late night talk shows, Stepp grew restless with the mechanical routine of being a sideman.
He grew tired of playing the same charts night after night.
He was hungry for a creative outlet that mimicked his earliest days in recorded music. So, in 1978, Stepp left The Spinners and returned to Indianapolis, where he established an all-star group of musicians - including members of Jazzie Cazzie and the fabled Amnesty - and he named the band Rapture.
They inspired countless others. They recorded an album's worth of material. This is the first time it is seeing the light of day, a triumphant, late career moment for Stepp and a cause for celebration of those intrigued by deep, sweet soul and disco funk.
Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds:
"Rodney was the guy that played with The Spinners. He was one of the musicians that had made it out of Indianapolis. Rodney was a step ahead of us because of that. The group that started to rise above everyone was Rapture. They started to take over.
When I look at my journey, and Rodney's journey, I see two guys from the same town that took two different routes.... in one sense Rodney is every bit as successful as I am. Because he's been able to make a living with music. He's been able to play with people that he respects and he's played with major artists everywhere. Most importantly, he's been able to do what he loves."
TRACKLIST
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Junkman's Song
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Thirty Days Hath September
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Cooking
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Dreams
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Grandfather Clock
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Shooting Stars
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Rocket Ship
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Bustin' Out Of Doors
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Comrades
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All You Need To Make Music
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Merry Go Round
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The Whale
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The Old Prospecter
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Traveling
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Clouds
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Swing High
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Blue Pillow