Mr. Wiggles "The Sound of Mr. Wiggles"
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2024, Secret Stash Records (compilation)
Mr. Wiggles was born Alexander Randolph in Richmond, VA on August 7, 1937. As a youngster, he honed his skills as a performer by singing with the Ben Cotton Theater Company in Newark, NJ. By the end of the ‘50s, he had taken on the stage name Mr. Wiggles, traveling up and down the coast performing and selling novelties. Eventually his goals shifted from performing to the music business.
Between ‘64 and ‘66, he released records by Little Tommy, Dickie Wonder, and Sebastian Williams on his Sound of Soul label. During this time, he also cut a flurry of Mr. Wiggles tracks, most of which remained unreleased for decades.
In ‘67, Randolph’s labels went on hiatus when he adopted the alias Dickie Diamond and started booking acts like The Jackson Five, Sly and The Family Stone, The Dells, The Delfonics, Kool and The Gang, The Moments, and Patti Labelle and The Bluebelles – whom he also managed.
In ‘76, now known as August Moon, he released “Seven Minutes of Funk” by Tyrone Thomas And The Whole Darn Family, which was sampled by Jay-Z, Kurtis Blow, Grandmaster Flash, Brandy, Wu-Tang, Busta Rhymes, and many more. In the ‘80s, he produced hip-hop records out of his studio while also emerging as a social justice activist and host of a local access television show called “Tell It Like It Is.”
An aneurysm in ‘98 left Moon in a wheelchair but it never slowed his spirit until his passing in 2023. He is sorely missed by many in his hometown of Richmond and beyond.