General Kane (known as General Caine before 1986) was an American music group fronted by Mitch McDowell. They would go on to have a number of hits during the 1980s.
Background
Mitch McDowell (born Mitchell Leon McDowell was born on June 29, 1954, in San Bernardino, California. He died January 22, 1992, in San Bernardino).
He formed the band Booty People. He would later form General Kane.[ Motown Encyclopedia, By Graham Betts · 2014 - - GENERAL KANE]
McDowell took the professional name General Kane in tribute to an officer who had supported his artistic ambitions when he was at military school.
Booty People career
Booty People was made up of childhood friends, Richard Le Mon Smith aka Lemonsmyth, Ricky Goodloe aka
Riki Hendrix, Mitch McDowell, Robert Palmer, and Joe Phillips.
[ Inland Empire Community Newspapers • May 16, 2013 - Page A7] Riki Hendrix is related to
Jimi Hendrix.
[ Tri-Community NewsPlus, 8 June 2023 - Arts & Culture, “Riki Hendrix Experience” Headlines This Years Wrightwood Houz ah Blues][ Billboard, July 12, 1980 - Page 31, Talent, Signings]
"Spirit of '76"
Success would come their way with the song "Spirit of '76".
[ MusicVF.com - Booty People Top Songs, Greatest Hits and Chart Singles Discography] Producers, Steve Gold and Jerry Goldstein were in a room with ABC vice president Otis Smith. Smith played a tape by Booty People and said that he loved the record as a single, but he just didn't know. He said that he thought it had to come down. Goldstein interjected with "Way down". Gold closed his eyes and put his head back and was apparently grooving to the music while Goldstein was dancing in the room. He screamed out, "Now That's funk. Great damn, I love it". Smith then said to get this one ready to go right away and said he going to show them why he was the best at his job and would break in the record for them.
[ Billboard, March 26, 1977 - Page 19 A Day In The Life Of OTIS SMITH, ABC vice president keeps his hand on the pulse of his firm's music] Making its debut on the
Cash Box Top 100 R&B chart for the week of 22 May 1976,
[ Cash Box, May 22, 1976 - Page 46 CASH BOX TOP 100 R&B May 22, 1976, 100 SPIRIT OF '76 BOOTY PEOPLE (Calla CA 110), 5/15 _] and the
Billboard Hot Soul Singles chart for the week of 29 May 1976.
[ Billboard, May 29, 1976 - Page 58 Billboard Hot Soul Singles, Blllboard SPECIAL SURVEY For Week Ending 5/29/76, This Week 88, NEW ENTRY, SPIRIT OF '76-Booty People] it peaked at no. 63.
[ Cash Box, June 19, 1976 - Page 43 CASH BOX TOP 100 R&B June 19, 1976, 63 SPIRIT OF ’76 BOOTY PEOPLE (Calla CA 110), 6/12 65, Weeks On Chart 5][ Cash Box, June 26, 1976 - Page 41 CASH BOX TOP 100 R&B June 26, 1976 65 SPIRIT OF ’76 BOOTY PEOPLE (Calla CA 110), 6/19 63, Weeks On Chart 6] no. 55 respectively.
[ Billboard, June 26, 1976 - Page 52 Billboard Hot Soul Singles, Blllboard SPECIAL SURVEY For Week Ending 6/22/76, This Week 55, Last Week 57, Weeks on Chart 5][ MusicVF.com - Booty People Top Songs, Greatest Hits and Chart Singles Discography, 1976 1. 05/1976 #1 Spirit of '76]
Further activities
Members of the group were photographed at a party in Los Angeles which was hosted by their management and Far Out Production. This was for them being signed to ABC and the group WAR for their November release of the album
Love Is All Around, which contained previously unreleased material. The
Booty People members in the photo were, Ray Goodlow, John Iaun,
Riki Hendrix,
Mitch McDowell, Richard Smith and Robert Palmer.
[ Record World, December 4, 1976 - Page 12 Far Out Affair]
In 1977, the group's self-titled debut album was released.[Jointz of the Day, Jun 30, 2024 - Mitch McDowell (June 29, 1954 – January 21, 1992) – L.R.J. Pop (1980)]
Booty People members such as Mitch McDowell, Robert Palmer, and Joe Phillips broke away and started General Caine.
General Caine career
They released one album for
MCA Records. Mitch assembled an eight-piece funk group and signed with Groove Time Records in 1978, releasing two albums:
Let Me In (1978) and
Get Down Attack (1980).
The group then moved to Tabu Records. General Caine's third album entitled Girls features the hit song "For Lovers Only". The radio station 93.1 FM WZAK in Cleveland (Ohio) penned "For Lovers Only" as a theme song for their late night segment with the same title. Their debut single for the Tabu label and the fourth album Dangerous with many songwriting chores, were done by Johnny Guitar Carson.
After a brief appearance at Capitol Records with one single released called "Where's the Beef?" (a popular catch phrase at that time), a slimmed down version of the group with new writers and producers signed a recording contract with Motown Records in the mid-1980s. With a slightly new name (from General Caine to General Kane to reflect the changes in the band's lineup) and sound, they debuted for the new Motown Records label with the album In Full Chill (1986).
Later years
Mitch McDowell pursued a career in law enforcement as a bail bondsman after leaving the music industry. He was murdered in January 1992 along with a nephew, Akili John Davis, 18, who worked in his office. Police noted that the office safe was empty.
General Kane's catalogue remained in print through the efforts of their former producer, Grover Wimberly III, who runs his own label, Groove Time Records.
Musicians
-
Mitch McDowell, bass, percussion and lead vocals / rap
-
Wayne Sanders
-
Wayman Ballinger, lead and background vocals
-
Kevin Goins, lead and background vocals
-
Rodney Trotter, lead and background vocals
-
Daryl Haywood, background vocals
-
Nelson Hardwick Jr., bass vocals
-
Trey Stone, lead guitar
-
Robert Palmer, lead guitar
-
Riki Hendrix, lead guitar
-
David Chadwick, keyboards
-
Jim Morrison, keyboards
-
Tony Patler, keyboards
-
Brenda Jackson, keyboards
-
Robert G. Summers, keyboards
-
Johnny "Guitar" Carson, lead guitar
-
Dave Dobler, keyboards and synthesizers
-
Craig Owen, drums, background vocals
-
Alvino Bennett, drums
-
Gerry Davis, drums
-
Marion McQuery, trumpet
-
David Findley, trumpet
-
David Jarimillo, trumpet
-
Gary Metz, alto sax
-
Jimmy Carter, tenor and soprano saxophone
-
Sidney Washington, background vocals
Discography
Albums
-
Let Me In (1978)
-
Get Down Attack (1980)
-
Girls (1982)
-
Dangerous (1983)
-
In Full Chill (1986)
-
Wide Open (1987)
Singles
|
|
| 1981 | "Shake" | — |
| "L.R.J. Pop" | — |
| "Get Down Attack" | — |
| 1982 | "Don't Stop" | — |
| "The Girls" | 72 |
| 1983 | "Ooh, Aah" | — |
| "Bomb Body" | 74 |
| 1984 | "Where's the Beef?" | — |
| 1986 | "Can't Let Go" | — |
| "Crack Killed Applejack" | 12 |
| "Hairdooz" | — |
| "House Party" | — |
| 1987 | "Girl Pulled the Dog" | 33 |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. |
External links
