NEWSLETTER #141
Rhythm & Blues,
Soul & Doo-Wop
Ruby Andrews ->
Timi Yuro
| NOTE: Unless otherwise noted all DVDs
offered are in NTSC format which means that they will not play on a
European DVD players unless you have a multiple format player. |
| JAMES BROWN |
Eagle Eye DVD 39102 |
Live At Montreux, 1981 |
● DVD $13.98 |
14 tracks, highly recommended
The Minister of the New New
Super Heavy Funk & a crack 14-piece band in fine form in this live
performance that cover James' entire career, from Please Please Please
to Jam '80s. One of the highlights is a long version of It's A
Man's Man's Man's World where James goes through the role call of
deceased stars, the obvious (Otis, Sam) & unexpected (Janis) & even has a 30
second moment of silence for the recently-assassinated John Lennon, then all
of a sudden he mentions BB King who's not dead, but gives guitar legend
Jimmy "Chank" Nolen a chance to do a great BB imitation! Sound is in stereo,
Dolby & DTS. (GM)
|
| BROOK BENTON |
Collector's Choice 0532 |
At His Best |
● CD $11.98 |
14 tracks, 39 min., recommended
After leaving Epic Records
and finding success at Mercury, Benton saw his old label release his album
in an attempt to cash in on his recent popularity. This CD reissues (for the
first time) that LP (originally released as Epic LN 3573 in 1959) and adds a
paltry two tracks: Ooh as by Brook Benton & the Sandmen (originally
Okeh 7058 in 1958) and All My Love Belongs To You (originally Epic
9199 in 1957). The cover photo pictures eight white teens (who seem to have
dressed after consulting each other) clapping and almost dancing. And that's
fitting since the music tends to be a bit tame. Stylistically, the record is
all over the map, no doubt a sign that the label was in search of a
financially lucrative place to land. Most of the songs arranged by Ray Ellis
and Leroy Kirkland take a back seat to the Quincy Jones numbers. One
exception, Love Made Me Your Fool, written by Otis Blackwell and Alan
Freed, yields a lot more excitement than the titularly promising but
uninspired Rock 'n' Roll That Rhythm (All Nite Long) which feels as
if it were written by someone unclear on the concept or by someone trying to
make a buck on the latest fad or both. These aren't really Benton "at his
best," no matter how many exclamation points the cover designer uses. But
Benton's voice in outstanding throughout, and that's worth something. (JC)
|
| ALVIN CASH & THE
CRAWLERS |
Mar-V-Lus 1827 |
Twine Time |
● CD $17.98 |
25 tracks - Twine Time/ The Philly Freeze/ Shake A Tail
Feather/ Doin' The Creep/ Moanin' And Groanin'/ In Need Of Love, etc.
|
| THE COASTERS |
Collectables 6523 |
Coast Along With The Coasters |
● CD $11.98 |
Reissue of Atco 33-135 from 1962 - 12 Coasters classics -
(Aint That) Just Like Me/ Wait A Minute/ The Snake & the Bookworm/ Little
Egypt/ Run Red Run/ Bad Blood and six more.
|
| THE CRESTS |
Collectables 7819 |
Sing All Biggies/ The Best Of |
● CD $13.98 |
Two 1960 Coed LPs on one CD featuring this fine integrated
vocal group fronted by the lead of the high flying Johnny Maestro. The first
album featured three of their own hits 16 Candles/ Six Nights A Week
and The Angels Listened in along with fine covers of doo-wop and rock
'n' roll favorites like Earth Angel/ Butterfly/ A Rose And A Baby Ruth/
Silhouettes, etc. The second features the rets of their Coed hits (A
Year Ago Tonight/ Step By Step/ Journey Of Love, etc.) along with other
songs written for the group.
|
| BILL DOGGETT
& LIONEL HAMPTON |
Jazz Time 8152 |
Bill's Honky Tonk |
● CD $9.98 |
Funky R&B/jazz numbers recorded in 1977 for Lionel Hampton's
label. Eight selections, including a contemporary update of Honky Tonk
, which is one of the few tunes he did on organ for this date.
|
| THE HAWKS/ BEES |
Classics 5160 |
The Chronological Hawks/ Bees, 1953-1954 |
● CD $14.98 |
23 tracks, 56 min., highly recommended
Dave Bartholomew
scouted both The Hawks and The Bees for Imperial Records of New Orleans.
Originally built around Allen Matthews, The Hawks recorded four sessions
with Imperial without much tangible success. Musically they remind one of
the Apollo-era 5 Royales--a compliment. The previously unreleased School
Girl is almost as good as anything here, which is pretty good. It
Ain't That Way even crosses over into greatness. And That's What You
Are, with lead vocal by tenor Joseph Gaines, comes close. The (Four)
Bees lead vocalist Billy Bland went on to some measure of success as a solo
performer for Old Town Records. The Bees cut only two sessions (yielding
only six songs) for Imperial with My Toy, an early version of
Bartholomew's risque My Ding-A-Ling, garnering the most attention.
But it wasn't all complimentary and it wasn't enough to sustain them. (JC)
|
| CHUCK JACKSON |
Kent CDKEND 247 |
Tribute To Rhythm & Blues |
● CD $18.98 |
A collection of covers from the versatile Jackson featuring
his distinctive take on songs made famous by Sam & dave, Lee Dorsey, Maxine
Brown, The Ikettes, Theola Kilgore and others.
|
| CHUCK JACKSON |
Kent CDKEND 254 |
Chuck Jackson On Tour/ Dedicated To the King |
● CD $18.98 |
21 tracks, 61 min., highly recommended
In which the soul
department at Kent Records re-releases two hard-to-find Chuck Jackson LPs:
"On Tour" (Wand LP 658, 1964) and "Dedicated To The King!!" (Wand LP 680,
1967). The live one is a solid set with Chuck pleasing the people (if the
screaming girls are any indication) on such surefire material as covers of
Ben E. King's Stand By Me and James Brown's Please, Please, Please,
as well as his own hits Beg Me, I Don't Want To Cry, I Wake
Up Crying. The reason to get this, though, is the Elvis tribute album --
and not because it's an Elvis tribute album. Jackson turns his considerable
talents to top notch material with results that reflect the greatness of
both without aping the Elvis versions. His Crying In The Chapel is
wonderful, and Jackson's take on Don't is even better. (JC)
|
| GEORGE JACKSON |
Grapevine Soul 3003 |
In Muscle Shoals |
● CD $21.98 |
20 tracks, 67 min., highly recommended
Recorded at Muscle
Shoals Sound Studios in Sheffield, Alabama, between 1977-81 as demos for
other singers, these fine George Jackson sides are polished and finished
pieces of soul, despite the "demo" designation. And although the horns are
missing, the backing musicians, including ex-Fame studio fixtures Jimmy
Johnson (gtr.), David Hood (b.), Roger Hawkins (dm.), and Barry Beckett
(keys) manage a full sound. And while some of these Jackson originals were
never recorded by anyone else (including the hit-waiting-to-happen It
Takes A Storm To Make A Rainbow), others were hits for the likes of The
Staple Singers (Unlock Your Mind), Z.Z. Hill (Cheatin' In The Next
Room), and O.V. Wright (I Don't Do Windows, a more-or-less
mysterious song of sexual taboo). Aside from the obvious historical interest
to soul fans that these sides hold, Jackson has a pretty decent voice in his
own right. Another welcome release from the English Grapevine label. (JC)
|
| ETTA JAMES |
Ace CDCM2 1085 |
The Complete Modern And Kent Recordings |
● CD $22.98 |
Two CD set with 42 tracks by this wonderful vocalist
featuring at least one take of every songs she recorded for Modern and Kent
between 1954 and 1958 along with nine choice alternate takes. Classic R&B
recorded in Los Angeles and New Orleans featuring top local musicians.
|
| EARL KING |
Tomato 2119 |
New Orleans Blues |
● CD $9.98 |
15 tracks, 49 min., highly recommended
Based on a dozen
different accounts, most of which are at odds with each other, this much
seems agreed upon: King recorded these sides in 1972 at Sea-Saint Studios
with Allen Toussaint. The recordings were supposed to be issued originally
on Atlanntic Records, but never made it there. Instead they were canned
until 1981 when Charly Records issued them in the U.K. (as Charly LP 2021,
and then later as Charly CD 232) as Street Parade. Most accounts list The
Meters as backing musicians during the sessions, but none actually list Earl
King as playing the guitar. Some specificlly say he isn't, which seems to
defy logic, but then everything does these days. A couple of years back
Varese Records reissued these recordings as "Street Parade" and offered
three more songs than this disc. So it may be worth seeking out the 18-track
version. But whatever the case, this music is pretty wonderful and worth
picking up, if not in one form then in another. (JC)
|
| THE KING PINS/
SPELLBINDERS |
Marginal 835 |
The King Pins Meet The Spellbinders |
● CD $17.98 |
Two fine soul groups recorded in the mid 60s. The
Spellbinders were from Jersey City, NJ and had a more urban polished sound
and the 15 tracks by them include their hits For You and Help Me.
The King Pins had a long career recording gospel from the early 50s to early
60s as the Kelly Brothers and then switched between gospel and R&B and soul.
This features 14 of their mid 60s sould recordings as The King Pins - much
of it, not surprisingly, with a gospel flavor.
THE KING PINS: (i Wanna Do) The Monkey One More Time/ (i
Wanna Do) The Monkey One More Time/ Believevin Me (it's Gossip It's A
Rumor)/ Believevin Me (it's Gossip It's A Rumor)/ Dance Romeo Dance/ Dance
Romeo Dance/ Don't Wait Pretty Baby/ Don't Wait Pretty Baby/ How Long Will
It Last/ How Long Will It Last/ I Got The Moneky/ I Got The Moneky/ I Won't
Have It/ I Won't Have It/ It Won't Be This Way/ It Won't Be This Way/ Just
Keep On Smiling/ Just Keep On Smiling/ Lucky Guy/ Lucky Guy/ The Hop Scotch/
The Hop Scotch/ Two Hearts/ Two Hearts/ With The Other Guy/ With The Other
Guy/ Wonderful One/ Wonderful One/ THE SPELLBINDERS: A Little On The Blue
Side/ A Little On The Blue Side/ Baby I Miss You/ Baby I Miss You/ Chain
Reaction/ Chain Reaction/ Danny Boy/ Danny Boy/ For You/ For You/ Help Me/
Help Me/ I Believe/ I Believe/ I Need Your Love/ I Need Your Love/ Long Lost
Love/ Long Lost Love/ One Of A Kind/ One Of A Kind/ Self Defense/ Self
Defense/ Since I Don't Have You/ Since I Don't Have You/ Stone In Love/
Stone In Love/ That's The Way You Make Me Feel/ That's The Way You Make Me
Feel/ We're Acting Like Lovers/ We're Acting Like Lovers
|
| BETTY LAVETTE |
Varese 66708 |
Take Another Little Piece Of My Heart |
● CD $13.98 |
First CD issue of these fine sides recorded for Silver Fox
and SSS International in 1969 and 1970 by this superb soul singer from
Detroit. Sessions were produced by Lelan Rogers with backup by The Dixie
Flyers and includes two duets with Hank Ballard.
|
| SAM & DAVE |
Collectables 7757 |
Double Dynamite |
● CD $12.98 |
12 tracks, highly recommended
Reissue of Stax 712 from 1966,
their third LP (the second one on Stax). The dynamic duo hit strong on a
dozen classics, most written by Isaac Hayes & Dave Porter, and a couple by
Booker T. Plus covers of James & Bobby Purify's I'm Your Puppet and
their hit cover of The Sims Twins' Soothe Me, written by Sam Cooke,
along with the hits You Got Me Hummin'/ Said I Wasn't Gonna Tell Nobody
and their best ballad, the gorgeous When Something Is Wrong With My Baby
(GM)
|
| SAM & THE SOUL
MACHINE |
Funky Delicacies 039 |
Po'k Bones & Rice - Unreleased New Orleans
Funk,1969-74 |
● CD $15.98 |
18 tracks, 58 min., highly recommended
The first 12 tracks
were recorded at Cosima Matassa's Camp Street studio in New Orleans in 1969
in a session somehow initiated by Allen Toussaint. But the IRS charged
Cosimo with tax evasion and exacted their financial revenge on his studio,
confiscating all his master tapes in the process because, well, they're the
IRS and they don't want people listening to funky music and having a good
time. Sam Henry fortunately kept a copy of the master tapes himself,
otherwise this great funk album would have remained unheard. As it is the
12-pack of instrumentals features drum work from Joseph "Zigaboo" Modeliste
and cool saxing from Gary Brown. Henry's Hammond B-3 glues everything
together as The Soul Machine pump through a reworking of Sly Stone's
Stand, the Rascals' Beautiful Morning, a James Brown-like groove
called Meditation, Mercy-D, featuring guitar sparks from a
young Eugene Sinegal, and others. The remaining six tracks show off the
vocal side of the Machine a little. A hidden gem from one of New Orleans
finest funk bands, even if they never did break out nationally. (JC)
|
| PERCY SLEDGE |
Collectables 7676 |
When A Man Loves A Woman/ Warm & Tender Soul |
● CD $13.98 |
23 tracks, 63 min., essential
This release reissues Sledge's
first two albums on Atlantic Records on one CD. Sledge ranks as one of the
great soul song interpreters of soul music's golden age. His version of
When A Man Loves A Woman may just be the most recognizable soul song of
all time. WAMLAW (originally released in 1966 as Atlantic 8125) and Warm &
Tender Love (originally released in 1966 as Atlantic 8132, misidentified
here as 8123) features our man singing the hell out of other people's hits,
including That's How Strong My Love Is (Otis Redding, O.V. Wright),
You've Really Got A Hold On Me (The Miracles), Oh How Happy (Edwin Starr),
Love Me Tender (Elvis Presley), A Sweet Woman Like You (Joe Tex),
Love Makes
The World Go Round (Deon Jackson), I Stand Accused (Jerry Butler), and
others. Both albums, produced by Quin Ivy and Marlin Greene, feel of a
piece--as if they came from one long recording session. Greene adds his
guitar to WAMLAW, as well as the song Love Me Like You Mean It, which may
have been the partial inspiration for Wilson Pickett's non-hit Lay Me Like
You Hate Me, many years later. Greene's other song here, Heart Of A Child is
so strikingly good it's a wonder no one ever charted with it. The Dan Penn
original You Fooled Me unfairly escaped being a hit. The original liner
notes are reproduced here, which is fine, although would it kill
Collectables to hire someone to write some notes and include some photos or
chewing gum or something? (JC)
|
|
HUEY "PIANO" SMITH & THE CLOWNS |
AIM 1208 |
High Blood Pressure |
● CD $14.98 |
17 tracks, 55 min., highly recommended
Smith was a Crescent
City fixture in the 1950s and 1960s, backed Little Richard on his first
Specialty session, can be heard on Smiley Lewis' I Hear You Knockin',
and recorded such hits as Rockin' Pneumonia And The Boogie Woogie Flu
and Don't You Just Know It. These aren't those, although Smith does
re-record some of his classic here. Smith recorded very little under his own
name over the years and later became a Jehovah's Witness, which seems to
have negatively affected his rock and roll output. But despair not. These
sides, recorded in 1979 (his last recording session...so far) show Smith not
just able to play the old stuff to fine effect, but able to write new stuff
worthy of standing beside his classics--or if not beside them, then at least
somewhere near them. Booklet notes indicate that these sides were cut in
Seasaint Studios but fail to name the session musicians. This set is
surprisingly worthwhile and seemingly destined to go out of print quickly. (JC)
|
| JOHNNY SPARROW |
Classics 5163 |
The Chronological Johnny Sparrow, 1949-1955 |
● CD $14.98 |
24 tracks, recommended
The complete recordings under his own
name by obscure Grenada born tenor sax player John P. Sparrow. Little is
known of his early life but he started recording with Jay McShann's
Orchestra in 1944 and subsequently with Louis Armstrong and Lionel Hampton
before striking out on his own in 1949. His first recording for the Melford
label Sparrow's Flight reached #12 in the R&B charts and was his only
hit. His material is more jazz than R&B though a few tracks have an R&B
flavor but it's mostly a mix of swing, bebop flavored items, lush ballads,
jive and the occasional bit of jungle exotica. (FS)
|
| JOE TEX |
RPM 237 |
Live And Lively/ Soul Country |
● CD $16.98 |
Two of Joe's albums originally issued on Atlantic in 1968
plus three bonus tracks. Includes hits like Papa Was Too/ Show Me/ Skinny
Legs & All and Men Are Getting Scarce. The second album "Soul
Country" features that wonderful blend of soul and country on songs like
Dark End Of The Street/ Funny How Time Slips Awa/ Ode To Billy Joe/ By the
Time I Get To Phoenix and others.
|
| IKE & TINA TURNER |
EMI (Holland) 39145-2 |
The Very Best Ike & Tina Turner Album Ever |
● CD $11.98 |
23 tracks, 78 mins, highly recommended
Great collection of
some of this loving duo's finest work spanning a number of labels and
ranging from their first hit A Fool In Love from 1960 to their last
hit Baby Get It On from 1975. Other hits featured include I
Idolize You/ It's Gonna Work Out Fine (my favorite)/ Poor Fool/ You
Should'a Treated Me Right/ Proud Mary/ Come Together, the Phil Spector
written and produced River Deep-Mountain High and others. There are
also great non-hits like their take on The Stones' Honky Tonk Women,
the fine soul ballad A Love Like Yours, the Tina original Funkier
Than A Mosquita's Tweeter that sounds like it might have been written
with hubby in mind. The disc ends with great live versions of I Wanna
Take You Higher and I've Been Loving You Too Long. A winner from
beginning to end! (FS)
|
| TITUS TURNER |
Classics 5151 |
The Chronological Titus Turner, 1949-1954 |
● CD $14.98 |
20 tracks, 53 min., highly recommended
An underrated
singer-songwriter whose own recordings seem to be chronically out of print,
Titus Turner is best known for having written All Around The World
(a.k.a. Grits Ain't Groceries) for Little Willie John and Sticks
And Stones (for Ray Charles), although his later work on such labels as
Josie produced such wonderful titles as His Funeral My Trial. This
welcome release offers Turner's earliest recordings, including both sides of
his first record, cut for Aladdin when the guy was 16 years old (released as
by Mr. T) and both sides of his second record, waxed for the Regal label
shortly before it went belly up. His entire Okeh output (put out here) finds
Turner experimenting with styles and genres, as he not only covers Hank
Williams (Jambalaya) but turns in a convincing rendition of Over
The Rainbow. Of greater interest are such originals as It's Too Late
Now (with the Howard Biggs Orchestra) and both sides of Okeh 6961:
Big Mary's and Livin' In Misery (with the Leroy Kirkland
Orchestra)--his best seller at the time, though not a charter. A pleasure to
hear these all but forgotten sides. (JC)
|
| JOHNNY
"GUITAR" WATSON |
Shout Factory 97636 |
What The Hell Is This |
● CD $13.98 |
9 tracks, 47 min., highly recommended
The liner notes call
for a kind of re-evaluation of Watson as an underrated political commentator
or sorts and offers the title track's dissatisfaction with the economy (high
unemployment, inflation) and I Don't Want To Be President as
evidence. Sounds good. Hard to afford that credential, though, and not just
because he's riding a tricycle on the front cover or because there are three
beautiful women in the trunk of his car on the back cover and not because he
sings with his tongue in his cheek or because he wants to offer personal
violence to his wife's mother in Mother In Law or because on Proud
Of You he says, "Darling, you know you give a man a reason for living,
not to mention you're taking my paycheck," but just because it isn't true.
It hardly matters, though, since Watson's easy-going brand of funk is so
likable and since this reissue (originally released as DJM 24 in 1979)
offers two previously unreleased bonus tracks, The Funk If I Know and
Watsonian Institute. Not a great album, but a very good one and worth
the reissue. (JC)
|
| JOHNNY
"GUITAR" WATSON |
Shout Factory 97637 |
Love Jones |
● CD $13.98 |
11 tracks, 54 min., highly recommended
If I wanted to prove
that Watson was a musical genius, I wouldn't play the title track (as good
as it is) or Telephone Bill, both of which were hits (#28 and #45,
respectively, on Billboard's R&B charts) or even Jet Plane, on which
Watson writes, arranges, produces, and performs everything. I wouldn't even
point out how Watson was years ahead of his time, how he anticipated rap and
hip hop. I'd just play the non-hit Lone Ranger which is as good as it
gets on this reissue from 1980 (originally released as DJM 31), which also
includes a pair of previously unreleased tracks--Funky Blues and
Untitled Mix, the latter being the funkier of the two. (JC)
|
| JOHNNY
"GUITAR" WATSON |
Shout Factory 97638 |
Johnny "Guitar" watson & the Family Clone |
● CD $13.98 |
10 tracks, 42 min., recommended
Originally released in 1981
(as DJM 501), the album derives its title from the obvious nod to Sly Stone
and the fact that Watson plays all the instruments on all the tracks (except
for drums on What Is Love where Emry Thomas plays). And even though
I'm ready to believe that Prince and groups like Outkast owe something to
Mr. Watson, this album is uneven and not up to his usual standard of
coolness. Forget The Joneses is attitudinally refreshing, but
otherwise the two previously unreleased "bonus tracks" (a cover of Percy
Mayfield's Please Send Me Someone To Love and the superior guitar
funk workout Chill Me Out, which sound later than 1981 if only for
the Jurassic Park reference) are easily the best things here. A worthwhile
but flawed outing. (JC)
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