New Releases: March-> November, 2011
Rhythm & Blues, Soul & Doo-Wop
The 5 Royales
-> Herbert Hunter + Book+DVD
THE CHITLIN CIRCUIT
And The Road To Rock 'n' Roll by
Preston Lautebach |
● BOOK $26.95 |
Hardbound, 338 pages, counts as
five CDs for shipping, very highly recommended One of the most intriguing books on popular music
to come along in quite a while. Most blues and R&B
enthusiasts have come across the term "chitlin'
circuit" referring to the network of black clubs
throughout the country where blues, R&B and jazz
musicians found an appreciative black audience and
were able to hone their craft. For the first time
the story behind this important network is told
in depth based on original research by author
Preston Lauterbach. From the birth of the circuit
in the 1930s propelled by Indianapolis based
racketeer-nightclub boss Denver Ferguson and
dapper and ill-fated bandleader Walter Barnes out
of Chicago. Barnes was the first black bandleader
to perform on Chicago radio thanks to the
patronage of Al Capone. When Barnes was told by
the radio station he approached that they didn't
air colored performers he returned with Capone who
told them "now you do." Barnes and most of his
band died in an infamous fire in a Natchez clun in
1940 but the network began to expand and this book
tells the colorful story of the promoters and
night club owners (Don Robey, Sunbeam Mitchell,
Ben Bart, Clint Bradley, Robert Henry and many
others), the clubs (The Bronze Peacock, Dew Drop
Inn, The Keyhole Club, The Domino Lounge, etc.) and
of course, the musicians, famous and unfamiliar.
The book is packed with fascinating anecdotes
including information on B.B. King's role in a
bootlegging operation, Little Richard's time as
drag queen Princess Lavonne, a "Battle Of The
Blues" between Richard and Amos Milburn and much
more more. The book includes a host of great
photos - many previously unpublished though,
unfortunately, the quality of reproduction is not
the greatest. This book provides a fascinating
insight into a subject that is frequently
mentioned and has seemed almost mysterious until
now. (FS)
|
DIZZY GILLESPIE/ LOUIS JORDAN |
Alpha Video 5494 |
Jivin' In Be-Bop/ Beware |
● DVD $5.98 |
DVD, 2 movies, 113 min.
recommended While a lot of films issued by the black film
industry have forced latter-day music aficionados
to wade through horrible scripts and questionable
acting to get to the musical performances,
"Jivin'" is 99 percent music. Dizzy Gillespie (so
young his cheeks barely puff out when he plays)
leads an orchestra through be-bop inspired numbers
with interstitial vaudeville style comedy tidbits
from Freddie Carter and some tap dancing by Ralph
Brown. Helen Humes sings a pair of songs,
including Crazy 'Bout A Man. And while the
film print is not the best, it may in fact be the
only surviving print and thus the best. Who knows?
Still, one suspects Criterion could do better. The
second film features Louis Jordan and his Tympany
Five (including William Davis on piano, Joshua W.
Jackson on sax, Aaron Izenhall on trumpet, Carl
Hogan on guitar, Jesse Simpkins on bass, and Eddie
Byrd on drums (and yes, that is six) circa 1946.
The music is sharp, which is more than can be said
of the plot and acting, and thus quick hands on
the DVD remote may be advisable. (JC)
|
THE 5 ROYALES |
El Toro R&B 118 |
Right Around The Corner - Rare And Undiscovered Gems |
● CD $17.98 |
25 tracks, 64 mins, highly
recommended with reservations Seminal 50's R&B group the 5 Royales get the
re-issue treatment from the gang at El Toro;
usually, the label can be counted on to have the
exclusive on a given artist, but this time they
come up a bit short. Although there are indeed
some 'rare and undiscovered" songs here, there is
also quite a bit of overlap with Collectables'
"The Very Best The 5 Royales" (and with two King
re-issues); all told, there's only seven tracks
that haven't appeared on CD before. However, none
of this consumer information should detract from
the quality of the music. It's said that series
doo wop collectors should focus on the groups'
Apollo sides from the early 50's, but to give
these King cuts (recorded 1954 to 1959) short
shrift is not only unfair it's downright criminal.
These are some very entertaining tunes ranging
from the sexy and sassy - You Didn't Learn it
At Home/ School Girl/ Do the Cha Cha Cherry/
Monkey Hips and Rice and Devil With the
Rest - to the dreamy and romantic - When you
Walked Through the Door/ Someone Made You For Me/
When I Get Like This, and Miracle of
Love. If you have the Apollo recordings- or
even if you have nothing by this amazing group
this is a good place to start. NB Tracks 15 and 16
are reversed on the rear cover. (GMC)
THE FIVE ROYALES: Come on
and Save Me/ Devil With the Rest/ Do the Cha Cha
Cherry/ Don't Be Ashamed/ Don't Let It Be In Vain/
Double or Nothing/ Get Something Out of It/ How I
Wonder/ I'd Better Make a Move/ Just as I Am/
Messin' Up/ Miracle Of Love/ Monkey Hips and Rice/
My Sugar Sugar/ Real Thing/ Right Around The
Corner/ School Girl/ Someone Made You For Me/
Tears of Joy/ Tell Me You Care/ Thirty Second
Lover/ When I Get Like This See All 2/ When You
Walked Through the Door/ Wonder Where Your Love
Has Gone/ You Didn't Learn It at Home
|
THE BARONS |
Funky Delicacies 0005 |
Society Don't Let Us Down |
● CD $13.98 |
20 tracks, 57 min., essential Back in stock. A vocal group out of New Orleans,
The Barons spent the 1960s and '70s melding
elements of doo wop and soul and succeeded every
way but financially. They could sing as sweeter
than aspartame or turn so funky that Perry Como
and Pat Boone would run frightened and confused
into the streets. This collection includes their
earliest releases on the tiny Etah label, their
last stab at monetary reward was undertaken in
1981 when they still sounded fine despite
considerable lineup changes, and lots of good
stuff in between. Impressive. (JC)
|
THE BASIN STRET BOYS |
Night Train 7028 |
Satchelmouth Baby |
● CD $13.98 |
18 tracks, recommended Available again. The Basin Street Boys were a late
40's vocal group in the same vein as the Ink Spots
and The Five Red Caps. The group was formed in LA
by singer/ guitarist Ormand Wilson and had some
good success in 1946 with the song I Sold My
Heart To The Junkman recorded for Exclusive
with accompaniment by Eddie Beale's Quartet. The
18 tunes featured here were all done for Leon
Rene's Exclusive label and show the boys to be
very talented in a variety of styles from slow
crooning to gently rocking. They recorded some of
the hippest jive numbers too like Voot Nay On
The Vot Nay/ I Need A Knife, A Fork, And A
Spoon and the title Satchel Mouth Baby.
You'll also dig tenor sax great Lucky Thompson,
and alumnus of the Counta Basie Band, who appears
on many of these. Other cuts include Nothing
Ever Happens To Me/ Exactly Like You/ Near To You/
Josephine/ Summertime Gal, etc. (AE/ FS)
|
JESSE BELVIN |
Jasmine 156 |
The Unforgettable Mr. Easy |
● CD $15.98 |
2 CDs, 50 tracks, 2 hours 17 min.,
very highly recommended Another reasonably-priced musical gem in the
recent spate of Jasmine Records compilations. Disc
1 collects singles from Specialty, Modern,
Recorded In Hollywood, Aladdin, Cadlelight, Cash,
and Money labels cut between 1952-59, including
one cut as Johnny And Marvin and one as by The
Cliques. Disc two reissues his two RCA LPs in
stereo, apparently for the first time on CD --
"Just Jesse Belvin" from 1959 (LP-2089) and "Mr.
Easy" from 1960 (LP-2105). Belvin of course died
tragically in, some say, suspicious circumstances
in 1960, so this works as a nice career overview,
following his rich baritone from doo-wop to the
glass-smooth days at RCA. A solid pleasure all
down the line. (JC)
|
JESSE BELVIN |
Night Train 7097 |
So Fine - The Shorty Rogers & Swing Time Demos |
● CD $13.98 |
Back in stock. Amazing collection
of 29 previously unissued demos from 1954 and 1954
by this legendary and influential vocalist. All
original songs with Jesse accompanied only by his
own piano playing including some cuts with vocal
group The Chargers.
JESSE BELVIN: Black
Stockings/ Black Stockings/ Confessing/
Counterfeiter/ Country Boy/ Dandelion/ Dear Heart/
Deep In My Heart/ Dollar And A Quarter/ Don't
Worry About That Girl/ Father Time/ Here In My
Heart/ I Love Her So/ I Need Your Love/ It's
Mighty Funny/ Old McDonald/ Rock 'N' Roll Cowboy/
Shotgun Wedding/ So Fine/ Taboo Man-Takes 1 & 2/
Tarzan/ The Time Is Coming Close To Christmas/
This Heart Of Mine/ Trudy My Love/ What Have You
Done To My Heart/ Where's My Girl/ Who Baby Who/
Wondering/ You're So Divine
|
BROOK BENTON |
Jasmine 687 |
The Silky Smooth Tones Of Brook Benton |
● CD $18.98 |
2CD, 54 tracks, highly
recommended Brook Benton's early career has long been
under-represented in re-issues of his songs; the
focus tends to be on his years with Atlantic
Records and his biggest hit Rainy Night in
Georgia. However, Jasmine has brought us
Benton's first three albums - "It's Just a Matter
of Time" (1959), "Endlessly" (1959, first time on
CD), and "Songs I Love to Sing" (1960) - the
important tracks of an aborted duet album with
Dinah Washington circa 1960, and tracks from a
"golden hits" album from 1961. Like many male R&B
singers of this era, Benton modeled himself on the
smooth tones of Nat King Cole, and for every
stunning original composition (It's Just a
Matter of Time, a No. 1 R&B, No. 3 pop hit;
Endlessly, No. 3 R&B, No. 12 pop) he
recorded a host of standards - The Nearness of
You/ I'm in the Mood For Love, and People
Will Say We're in Love, and that's just for
openers. In fact, the "Songs I Love to Sing" album
is comprised entirely of standards, and Benton and
producer/mentor Clyde Otis pull out all the stops.
September Song/ They Can't Take That Away From
Me/ Baby Won't You Please Come Home, and
Fools Rush In (Where Angels Fear to Tread)
(another R&B, Pop hit) are all perfectly
realized-vocally and instrumentally-and are worth
the price of admission on their own. And Otis was
smart enough not to dilute Benton's soulful vocals
in the quest for pop favor; a plus in my book. Add
all four of the inspired Benton/Washington duets
in one place (don't miss A Rockin' Good Way
and Baby (You've Got What it Takes)) and
what more could a fan ask for? Good on Jasmine for
letting the world know that there's more to Brook
Benton than Rainy Night in Georgia. (GMC)
|
CHUCK
BERRY |
Bear Family BCD 17139 |
Rocks! |
● CD $24.98 |
32 classic Chess sides from one of the true
architects of rock 'n' roll whose songs have been covered by more
artists than just about any performer except possibly Elvis but Chuck
also wrote all his songs. Includes just about all his chart hits from
1955 through 1965 - Maybelline/ Thirty Days/ Roll Over
Beethoven/ School Day/ Rock & Roll Music/ Johnny B. Goode/
Little Queenie/ Sweet Little Rock 'n' Roll and many other
great sides that helped define
rock 'n' roll. Includes 52 page booklet.
CHUCK BERRY: Almost Grown/
Around & Around/ Back In The U.S.A./ Beautiful Delilah/ Betty
Jean/ Brown Eyed Handsome Man/ Bye Bye Johnny/ Carol/ Dear Dad/
Go-Go-Go/ Jaguar And Thunderbird/ Johnny B. Goode/ Let It Rock/ Little
Queenie/ Maybellene/ Memphis, Tennessee/ Nadine (Is It You?)/ No Money
Down/ No Particular Place To Go/ Oh Baby Doll/ Promised Land/ Reelin'
And Rocking/ Rock And Roll Music/ Roll Over Beethoven/ Run Rudolph Run/
School Day (Ring! Ring! Goes The Bell)/ Sweet Little Rock And Roller/
Sweet Little Sixteen/ Thirty Days (To Come Back Home)/ Too Much Monkey
Business/ You Can't Catch Me/ You Never Can Tell
|
THE BLOSSOMS |
Gerry Giraffe 1001 |
They Came To Sing, Vol. 1 |
● CD $17.98 |
27 tracks, 71 min., highly
recommended Forming originally as The Dreamers in 1953, Gloria
Jones, Fanita Barrett, Annette Williams, and twin
sister Nannette Williams sang backup on a variety
of singles before moving to Capital Records, who
renamed them The Blossoms. Soon Annette Williams
was replaced by Darlene Wright, better known now
as Darlene Love. Throughout the 1960s the ladies
recorded for enough labels and under enough
different names to make life confusing for the
poor collector. This disc (and Vol. 2) collects
some of the best of those records. Most tracks are
as by The Blossoms, including the outstanding
Have Faith/ The Search Is Over/ What Makes
Love, and the superb Stand By, but also
included are songs released as being by The Coeds
(Son In Law, The Playgirls (Hey
Sport), The Wildcats (My Love Come Home),
and The Rollettes (Sad Fool). On two tracks
the girls recorded as The Rebelettes with none
other than twang king Duane Eddy. The recordings
reflect the changing nature music in the 1960s, so
a few songs are too pop for their own good, a few
mirror the production one associates with Motown
Records. The unusually deep soul of The Last
Letter stands as one of the brighter moments
here, and not far behind is the uptempo Touch
Down. For oddest lyrical moment, try One
Step Away, in which the lead singer announces
that "I'm one step away from self destruction."
Sound is generally pretty good, all things
considered. (JC)
|
THE BLOSSOMS |
Gerry Giraffe 1002 |
They Came To Sing, Vol. 2 |
● CD $17.98 |
27 tracks, 72 min., highly
recommended The material moves from saccharine throw-away pop
(Baby Daddy-O) to soulful blues You Got
Me Hummin' to 1950s doo wop throwback (Write
Me A Letter) to rock (Tweedle Dee) to
Motown knock-off (Let Your Love Shine On Me.
Like Vol. 1, compilers have scoured labels big and
small and uncovered records released under
pseudonyms (e.g., The Coeds, The Playgirls). Among
the indispensable offerings, list That's When
The Tears Start, which is reminiscent of the
best Motown performances, near the top. Put the
ballad Good Good Lovin' right next door.
Other cuts deserving of recognition include
Move On, I'll Wait, Cry Like A
Baby, Stoney End, and Moody. Weaker
moments include What Are We Gonna Do In '64,
which sounds like part of a bad score from a
period B-movie, the novelty-like song Guitar
Child, and a forgettable live performance of
I Like It Like That. And for oddest moment,
why not go with The Blossoms' cover of James
Taylor's Fire And Rain. The ratio of wheat
to chaff is not as favorable as on Vol. 1, but
there's too much good here to walk away. (JC)
|
EDDIE BO |
Night Train 7025 |
New Orleans Solo Piano |
● CD $13.98 |
10 tracks, 52 min., highly
recommended Available again. The first six tracks were
recorded at the Boiler Room, New Orleans, June
1995, and the remaining four at MAI studios, New
York, in April 1993. For those who are familiar
only with Bo's outstanding funk work, these
self-penned, solo instrumental piano blues will
reveal another side of the man. Born Edwin Bocage,
Bo has been recording and doing session work since
the mid-1950s. Still hitless after all these
years, Bo's best-known song is perhaps Check
Mr. Popeye, included on the Southside Johnny
and the Asbury Jukes 1977 LP This Time It's For
Real. Bo's style at the ivories here reflects both
blues and jazz influences, as one might expect
from a long-time resident of the Crescent City.
Songs such as Havin' Fun In New Orleans and
Boogie At The Boiler Room highlight the fact
that even into his mid-sixties Bo's command of the
keys was impressive. A solid and satisfying outing
from an influential if under-appreciated
performer. (JC)
|
FREDDY BRIGGS |
Outta Sight 026 |
Defrost Me - The Lost Soul Of Freddy Briggs |
● CD $23.98 |
12 tracks, 39 mins, highly
recommended I don't usually write reviews like this, but every
once in a while won't hurt; this is like Bobby
Womack singing Jimmy Webb songs with a little of
Isaac Hayes and Jim Ford thrown in, but not quite
as strong as most of those singers. Billed as "The
Holy Grail Of Soul Music," this CD isn't quite all
that, but it is a great find and well worth
picking up. This features all of the tracks from
Freddy Briggs' ill fated 1973 "Defrost Me" album
plus two fine bonus tracks from 1967. Briggs, aka
"Coldwater Stone," was a pretty great songwriter,
writing all but one of the tracks featured here,
but more well known for writing songs for the
likes of Carla Thomas, Johnny Taylor, Mavis
Staples, Big Maybelle, and many others (probably
most famously for Big Maybelle's Quittin
Time). Highlights for this CD include the epic
"Jefferson Park," the surprisingly sad Diddy
Wah Diddy, and the heartbreak of Outside
Love Affair, and The Shape You're About To
Leave Me In. The original release of this album
suffered from usual story of indie label on the
decline with financial and business troubles
dooming the album's chances, which were also not
helped any by the notoriously bad cover art
(reproduced on inner sleeve of CD.) That all adds
to the legend that has grown about this album,
making original copies fetch a pretty penny on
auction sites. Soul fans will most certainly want
to pick this up. (JM)
|
JAMES BROWN |
Fantastic Voyage 086 |
I'll Go Crazy |
● CD $19.98 |
2 CD, 47 tracks, essential OK, listen up all you James Brown fans: if you
missed out on the early volumes of Hip-O Select's
The Singles compilations (they are now out of
print and fetch big bucks on E-Bay), this new
collection from the good folks at Fantastic Voyage
is an excellent substitute. Although it's true
that this set doesn't have the alternate
takes/versions or thorough liner notes found on
the Hip-O sets, on the plus side the songs that
are here are the original recordings presented in
order of recording (as opposed to in order of
release) and this set is much more reasonably
priced than the original Hip-O sets (they used to
list at $29.98 for two CDs) for virtually the same
music. So if you want a reputable collection of
the Godfather's seminal early recordings, look no
further. (GMC)
JAMES BROWN: And I Do Just
Want I Want/ Baby Cries Over The Ocean/ Baby
You're Right/ Begging Begging/ Bewildered/ Can't
Be The Same/ Chonnie-On-Chon/ Don't Let It Happen
To Me/ Fine Old Foxy Self/ Gonna Try/ Good Good
Lovin'/ Got To Cry/ Hold My Baby's Hand/ I Don't
Know/ I Feel That Old Feeling Coming On/ I Know
It's True/ I Walked Alone/ I Want You So Bad/ I
Won't Plead No More/ I'll Go Crazy/ I'll Never
Never Let You Go/ I've Got To Change/ If You Want
Me/ It Hurts To Tell You/ It Was You/ Just Won't
Do Right/ Let's Make It/ Love Or A Game/ Messing
With The Blues/ No No No No/ Please Please Please/
So Long/ Strange Things Happen (aka Why Does
Everything Happen To Me)/ Tell Me What I Did
Wrong/ That Dood It/ That's When I Lost My Heart/
The Bells/ There Must Be A Reason/ Think/ This Old
Heart/ Try Me/ Why Do You Do Me/ Wonder When
You're Coming Home/ You're Mine You're Mine/
You've Got The Power/ NAT KENDRICK & THE SWANS: Do
The Mashed Potatoes [part 1]/ Do The Mashed
Potatoes [part 2]
|
JAMES BROWN |
Hip-O Select 015279-02 |
The Singles, Vol. 10: 1975-1979 |
● CD $29.98 |
2 CDs, 36 tracks, 2 hours 33 min.,
highly recommended Volume 10 in this excellent and long-running
limited-edition series finds the fire burning a
bit less brightly as the Godfather of Soul
navigates the disco era, and yet there's still
enough heat to set the couch on fire. The hits are
here, of course, including Get Up Offa That
Thing and others, as well as more obscure
"lost" sides, such as Dooley's Junkyard Dogs
and a cover of Elvis Presley's Love Me
Tender. Not the place to start but still
remarkable. As in previous releases, the booklet
itself is almost enough to make this indispensable
for the James Brown devotee. (JC)
|
NAPPY BROWN |
Raven 7440 |
Don't Be Angry |
● CD $17.98 |
CD-R, 32 tracks, 80 min.,
recommended Nice one-disc introduction to Nappy Brown's hits
and misses, including the 1955 title track,
Little By Little, and It Don't Hurt No
More, all of which charted RB-wise. A soulful
(before they called it that) R&B singer, Brown
never phoned in a performance, and everything here
is at least fun. Sure, maybe too many titles
contain language such as "Deedle," "Hoonie,"
"Piddly," and "Skiddy," but what the hell. If some
of the songs might be too cute by half, most are
straight ahead, red-blooded R&B, such as
Allright Now and If You Need Some
Lovin'. A few songs sound a lot like each other
(e.g., They'll Come A Day and Apple Of My
Eye), but withover 32 tracks, that's bound to
happen. The ballads You're Going To Need
Somebody/ This Is My Confession, and It
Don't Hurt No More come as nice surprises in
the midst of the mostly up-tempo material and
perhaps hint at the idea that the singer's talents
were all too often squandered on mediocre
material. (JC)
|
RUTH BROWN |
Jasmine 3022/3 |
Taking Care Of Business: Early Hits & Singles, 1950-196 |
● CD $18.98 |
Two CD set with 59
tracks from this great R&B singer featuring both
sides of all her singles issued between 1953 and
1960 along with two of her earlier sides that made
the R&B charts. RUTH BROWN:
5-10-15 Hours/ 5-10-15 Hours (Recut)/ A New Love/
As Long As I'm Moving/ Book Of Lies/ Bye Bye Young
Men/ Don't Decieve Me/ Ever Since My Baby's Been
Gone/ Hello Little Boy/ Here He Comes/ Honey Boy/
I Burned Your Letter/ I Can See Everybody's Baby/
I Can't Hear A Word You Say/ I Don't Know/ I Gotta
Have You/ I Hope We Meet Again (On The Road
Someday)/ I Still Love You/ I Want To Be Loved/ I
Want To Do More/ I'll Step Aside/ I'm Getting
Right/ If I Had Any Sense/ If You Don't Want Me/
It's All In Your Mind/ It's Love Baby (24 Hours A
Day)/ Itty Bitty Girl/ Jack O Diamonds/ Just Too
Much/ Look Me Up/ Love Contest/ Love Has Joined Us
Together/ Lucky Lips/ Mama He Treats Your Daughter
Mean/ Mama He Treats Your Daughter Mean (Recut)/
Mambo Baby/ Mend You Ways/ Mom Oh Mom/ My Heart Is
Breaking Over You/ Oh What A Dream/ Old Man River/
One More Time/ Papa Daddy/ Please Don't Freeze/
Sentimental Journey/ Show Me/ Smooth Operator/
Somebody Touched Me/ Sure ‘nuff/ Sweet Baby Of
Mine/ Taking Care Of Business/ Teardrops From My
Eyes/ The Door Is Still Open/ This Little Girl's
Gone Rockin'/ What I Wouldn't Give/ What'd I Say/
When I Get You Baby/ Why Me/ Wild Wild Young
Men
|
SOLOMON BURKE |
Rhino (Europe) 75127 |
King Of Rock 'n Soul - The Ultimate Collection, 1961-20 |
● CD $29.98 |
3CDs, 66 tracks, very highly
recommended This collection of sides from the soul music
pioneer may or may not have been created to cash
in on his untimely death in October 2010, but it
certainly is very welcome. Basically an extended
version of Rhino's "Definitive Soul Collection"
(2007), this has all of Burke's essential
recordings from the '60s, fleshed out with
selected tracks from the 70's, 80's, and his
towering comeback album, 2002's "Don't Give Up on
Me." Burke wasn't a pop chart presence during his
heyday, but every self respecting soul freak knows
his name and songs like Everybody Needs
Somebody to Love/ Got to Get You Off My Mind/ Just
Out of Reach/ Cry to Me/ If You Need Me, and
Tonight's the Night. All of these are here
and they're just the tip of an iceberg of soul
goodness. Burke was a more than adequate
songwriter in his own right, but he could also
interpret the hell out of a song as demonstrated
by his versions of Maggie's Farm/ What'd I Say/
Since I Met You Baby/ Proud Mary, and I'll
Be Doggone. While discs one and two are
essential Burke, disc three is a patchy affair: it
starts off great with Up Tight Good Woman
and keeps the groove going until he starts getting
all Barry White with a couple of 1975 tracks -
Let Me Wrap My Arms Around You and You
and Your Baby Blues - and then goes disco on
Please Don't You Say Goodbye to Me. From
there, we get a couple of 80's live cuts, a nice
1986 reading of A Change is Gonna Come, two
excellent tracks from "Don't Give Up on Me," some
dubious electronica re-mixes, and finally, three
tracks from Burke's collaboration with Willie
Mitchell, 2010's "Nothing's Impossible." Even at
the end of his recording career, Burke still had
the goods and these tracks prove it. Despite some
questionable additions, this is a solid testament
to talented man. Docked a notch for liner notes
written in Dutch. (GMC)
SOLOMON BURKE: A Change Is
Gonna Come/ Baby (I Wanna Be Loved)/ Baby Come On
Home/ Can''T Nobody Love You/ Catch Up To My Step
(with Junkie XL)/ Cry To Me/ Dance Dance Dance/
Detroit City/ Don't Give Up On Me/ Down In The
Valley/ Everbody Needs Somebody To Love/ Everybody
Needs Somebody To Love (live)/ Get Out Of My Life
Woman/ Go On Back To Him/ Goodbye Baby (Baby
Goodbye)/ Got To Get You Off My Mind/ Home In Your
Heart/ I Feel A Sin Coming On/ I Really Don't Want
To Know/ I Stayed Away Too Long/ I Wish I Knew
(How It Would Feel To Be Free)/ I'll Be Doggone/
I'm Gonna Stay Right Here/ I'm Hanging Up My Heart
For You/ If You Need Me/ It's All Right/ It's Been
A Change/ It's Just A Matter Of Time/ Just Out Of
Reach (Of My Two Empty Arms)/ Keep A Light In The
Window/ Let Me Wrap My Arms Around You/ Looking
For My Baby/ Maggie's Farm/ Meet Me In Church/
None Of Us Are Free/ Nothing Impossible/ Party
People/ Please Don't You Say Goodbye To Me/ Proud
Mary/ Proud Mary (live)/ Save It/ Send Me Some
Loving/ Shambala/ Shame On Me/ Since I Met You
Baby/ Someone Is Watching/ Someone To Love Me/
Soul Meeting (With The Soul Clan)/ Stupidity/ Take
Me Just As I Am/ The Electronic Magnetism/ The
Price/ This Is Little Ring/ Time Is A Thief/
Tonight's The Night/ Up Tight Good Woman/ We're
Almost Home/ What A Woman (with De Dijk)/ What'd I
Say/ When She Touches Me (Nothing Else Matters)/
Woman, How Do You Make Me Love You Like I Do/
Words/ You And Your Baby Blues/ You Needed Me/
You're Good For Me/ You're Not Alone
|
JERRY BUTLER |
Jasmine 594 |
No End Or Time - The Early Years |
● CD $14.98 |
29 tracks, 77 mins, highly
recommended Another of the Jasmine label's two-fer series,
this CD combines Jerry Butler's first two albums -
"Jerry Butler, Esquire" (1959) and "He Will Break
Your Heart" (1960) - both released by leading
Chicago independent label of the time Vee Jay.
Although Butler went solo almost immediately after
the Impressions' breakthrough hit For Your
Precious Love, the label bosses found it
necessary to pad out the LPs with Impressions
songs with Butler on lead vocals. Now, anyone
familiar with Butler's later hits with Gamble and
Huff on Mercury might be taken slightly aback with
the more mainstream pop feel to the songs on
"Esquire" (it sounds like someone was grooming him
to be the next Johnny Mathis or Nat King Cole),
but Butler's commanding voice cuts through the
surface tweeness. And there's no denying the power
of the Impressions' tracks: For Your Precious
Love is one of the seminal R&B hits of the 50's
and its follow up single Come Back My Love
is nearly as good. The second LP, "He Will Break
Your Heart," is closer to the Butler I know;
kicking off with the title hit-co-written with
Curtis Mayfield-the songs are more R&B grounded,
there's less pop pandering and Butler sounds like
himself. Rounded out with non-LP singles-both solo
and with the group-the CD contains more or less
all of Butler's recordings through to the end of
1960. Great sound and liner notes, this collection
of early Jerry Butler is a great addition to any
R&B library. (GMC)
|
RAY CHARLES |
Concord 31439 |
Live In Concert |
● CD $11.98 |
19 tracks, 75 mins, essential First CD appearance of this fabulous live concert
by the great Ray Charles with his big band (up to
a dozen horns!) recorded at the Shrine Civic
Auditorium in Los Angeles in September 1964. Some
of these sides were issued on an ABC LP but for
the CD release Concord have added seven previously
unreleased songs. Apparently the concert was
recorded at the instigation of Ray's manager Joe
Adams without Ray or ABC's knowledge in order to
maintain the spontenaiety of his live performance.
The recording was supervised by legendary
recording engineer Wally Heider and the result
must rank as one of the all time great live R&B
recordings. The material is mostly drawn from his
classic Atlantic and ABC repertoire including I
Got A Woman/ Georgia On My Mind/ Hide Nor Hair/
That Lucky Old Sun/ Hallelujah I Love You So/
Busted/ Don't Set Me Free/ What'd I Say and
more. He also does an on the spot improvised
version of Makin' Whoopee accompanied only
by guitar, bass & drums - the only time he
recorded the song. Ray is featured on piano and
organ and the pop and country songs never sounded
better thanks to the absence of the string
section. On the last four songs he is joined by
his wonderful group The Raelettes. An indispensible
set from one of the greatest musical talents of
the 20th century at the top of his form. (FS)
|
DEE CLARK |
Jasmine 593 |
A History, 1952-1960 |
● CD $15.98 |
2 CD, 46 tracks, highly recommended Dee Clark was an immensely talented R&B singer who
is best known to early 60's pop fans for his 1961
hit Raindrops (which is not included here),
but had much more than that to offer. It's those
other offerings that are the focus of this latest
salute to 50's R&B from Jasmine. Clark had the
gift of being able to sound like other singers -
such as his uncanny imitations of Clyde McPhatter
and Little Richard, on Wondering and Oh
Little Girl respectively - but he also managed
to carve his own niche on R&B hits like Nobody
But You/ Just Keep it Up, and You're Looking
Good. This compilation covers Clark's solo
career on Vee Jay Records up to 1960, and his
early sides with doo wop groups Kool Gents and the
Delegates. The solo tracks make very clear that
Clark was talented and versatile: witness his
versions of blues numbers from Jimmy Reed (Baby
What Do You Want Me to Do) and Bobby Parker
(Blues Get Off My Shoulder). Mostly
forgotten today (he died penniless in 1990), this
CD goes a long way toward making a case for Dee
Clark's rediscovery. (GMC)
DEE CLARK: 24 Boyfriends/ A
Foggy Day In London Town/ At My Front Door/ Baby
What Do You Want Me To Do/ Because I Love You/
Blues Get Off My Shoulder/ Cling A Ling/ Come To
California/ Count On Me/ Emma Jean/ Gloria/ Hey
Lttle Girl/ How About That/ I Can’t Dream/ If It
Wasn’t For Love/ Just Keep It Up/ Just Like A
Fool/ Kangaroo Hop/ Little Red Riding Hood/ Lucky
Me/ Moonlight In Vermont/ Nature Boy/ Nobody But
You/ Oh Little Girl/ Senor Blues/ Seven Nights/
Silently Loving You/ The Time Has Come/ They’re
Talkin’/ What’d I Say/ When I Call On You/
Whispering Grass/ Wondering/ You There/ Your
Friends/ You’re Looking Good/ I Love You Darling/
THE DELEGATES: I’m Gonna Be Glad/ Mother’s Son/
The Convention/ THE KOOL GENTS: Crazy Over You/ Do
Ya Do/ I Just Can’t Help Myself/ Just Like A Fool/
This Is The Night/ You Know
|
THE CLOVERS |
Jasmine 576 |
The Feelin' Is Good |
● CD $15.98 |
Two CDs, 60 tracks, 159 mins,
essential Most extensive ever collection devoted to the 50s
recordings of one of the greatest and most popular
doo-wop groups of the era. The group was very
versatile with the core group boasting 3 singers
who could all sing lead plus the fine guitar of
Bill Harris. Harold "Hal" Lucas formed the group
in the late 40's and in 1951 they signed on with
Atlantic. The Clovers had the first crack at all
the hippest songs and also were fortunate to be
backed up by the finest sessionmen of the time
like Floorshow Culley, Harry Van Walls, Gatortail
Jackson, Mickey "Guitar" Baker, etc. This set
opens with their first two sides recorded for the
Rainbow label in 1950 after which they were picked
up by Atlantic and the set includes all their
singles recorded for the label which included 22
R&B chart hits over the next five years - three of
them reaching No. 1. Includes such all time
classics Fool, Fool, Fool/ Ting A Ling/ Good
Lovin'/ Your Cash Ain't Nothin' But Trash/ Blue
Velvet/ Hey Doll Baby and many others. After
being dropped by Atlantic in 1958 they joined
their manager's Poplar label where they recorded a
couple of singles and a hard to find LP where they
did great soulful renditions of standards like
The Good Old Summertime/ Pennies From Heaven/
My Mother's Eyes and others and this set
includes all their Poplar singles and the set ends
with their 1959 United Artists recording of
Love Potion No. 9 which returned them to the
charts for the first time in three years. Sound
quality is excellent and their are brief,
informative notes by Bob Fisher. Indispensible for
doo-wop lovers! (FS)
THE CLOVERS: All About You/
Alrighty Oh Sweetie/ Baby Baby Oh My Darling/ Blue
Velvet/ Bring Me Love/ Comin' On/ Crawlin'/ Devil
Or Angel/ Don't You Know I Love You/ Down In The
Alley/ Feeling Is Good, The/ Fool Fool Fool/ From
The Bottom Of My Heart/ Good Lovin'/ Good Old
Summertime, The/ Gossip Wheel, The/ Here Comes
Romance/ Here Goes A Fool/ Hey Doll Baby/ Hey Miss
Fannie/ I Confess/ I Got My Eyes On You/ I Played
The Fool/ I'm A Lonely Fool/ I-I-I Love You/
Idaho/ If I Could Be Loved By You/ If You Love Me
(Why Don't You Tell Me So)/ In The Middle Of The
Night/ In The Morning Time/ Jamaica Farewell/
Kentucky Babe/ Little Mama/ Love Bug/ Love Love
Love/ Love Potion No.9/ Lovey Dovey/ My Mother's
Eyes/ Needless/ Nip Sip/ One Mint Julep/ Pennies
From Heaven/ Please Come On To Me/ Rock And Roll
Tango/ Skylark/ So Young/ That Old Black Magic/
There's No Tomorrow/ Ting A Ling/ To Each His Own/
Vaya Con Dios/ What Is This Thing Called Love/
When You Come Back To Me/ Wishing For Your Love/
Wonder Where My Baby's Gone/ Yes It's You/ Yes Sir
That's My Baby/ You Good Looking Woman/ Your Cash
Ain't Nothing But Trash/ Your Tender
Lips
|
ARTHUR CONLEY |
Kent CDKEND 358 |
I'm LIving Good - The Soul Of Arthur
Conley, 1964-1974 |
● CD $18.98 |
Arthur Conley's career as a first-tier soul man was
largely overshadowed by the worldwide success of his biggest hit,
Sweet Soul Music and the entertaining, but often clichéd, funk and
dance tracks that he was obliged to record in his attempts to find a
follow-up hit of comparable magnitude. Hidden on the flips of many of
those funk workouts and/or spread across three albums were some of the
best deep and sweet Southern Soul sides of the late 60s. Although highly
collectable they have never been available in once place - until now. 24
tracks including: Take Me (Just As I Am)/ Love Comes And Goes/ Otis
Sleep On/ This Love Of Mine/ Ain't Nobody's Fault But Mine/ Keep On
Talking, etc.
|
THE CONTOURS |
Kent CDTOP 350 |
Dance With The Contours |
● CD $21.98 |
26 tracks, 66 mins, highly
recommended Although the Contours are best remembered-if at
all-for providing the Temptations with a
replacement for David Ruffin (Dennis Edwards) and
their 1962 hit Do You Love Me, they were a
noteworthy Motown group in their own right
providing a rough and lively sound that was out of
step with the smoother brand of sophisticated R&B
that Berry Gordy envisioned for his empire. On
this CD are 24 previously unreleased tracks from
1963/64 (the exceptions being two singles from
1964, Can You Do It and Can You Jerk Like
Me) featuring the first and second versions of
the group (FYI, Edwards was in a much later
version of the group); there is speculation from
discographers that these songs were supposed to
comprise an album called "Dance With The Contours"
(or "Can You Dance"), but that has never been
proven. At any rate, Kent likens the Contours to
the Satintones (who Ace compiled very nicely on CD
in 2009 on CDLUX 002) because both groups were
part of Gordy's early attempts a world domination
- the only thing the former had over the latter
was that the Contours had an exciting live act and
could DANCE. And their dance groove prowess is on
fine display among these 26 tracks. This is early
Motown at its best; gritty, earthy and just a
little rough around the edges and the guys keep
things lively on Let's Do the Uncle Willie/
Party Groove, and Do the See Saw, and
slow things down on Love is Uncertain and
He Couldn't Do the Cross Fire. The Contours
never had another hit as big as "Do You Love Me"
and it's hard to figure why, since there's some
hit potential here; not least Can You Jerk Like
Me, a winner if there ever was one. In any
case, R&B fans, and you know who you are, can do
worse than give this a listen. (GMC)
|
JACKIE DAY |
Kent CDKEND 359 |
The Complete Jackie Day - Dig It The Most |
● CD $18.98 |
20 tracks, 59 mins, recommended The wife of sax player/band leader Big Jay
McNeely, soul singer Day cut a handful of 45s for
Los Angeles labels Modern and Specialty that made
some local noise in 1966/67, but it's the single
she cut for the Phelectron label in 1965 - I
Want Your Love/ Naughty Boy - that she's
beloved for on the Northern Soul circuit. In fact,
those two tracks are her best works, and one can
see what attracted discerning Northern Soul DJs:
the songs are sassy and brassy and have that
certain something that the other tracks here lack.
But that doesn't mean that the other 18 tracks on
this disc are a waste; indeed, arranger Maxwell
Davis does a fine job giving Jackie a proper
platform to work from and she certainly delivers.
However, magic is not something that can be
manufactured, and the fact is that the Phelectron
tracks have it while the other cuts don't. Still
Day, vocally a cross between Martha Reeves and Kim
Weston, deserves her place in the sun and these
recordings (which include a single cut for Paula
in 1971 and a smattering of unreleased Music City
cuts) should be appreciated by all serious soul
collectors. And she gets bonus points for making a
song out of one of my favorite expressions, Get
to Steppin', that is by far the best of her
Modern sides. (GMC)
|
BO DIDDLEY |
Hip-O Select 15214-02 |
Bo Diddley's Beach Party - Recorded Live |
● CD $14.98 |
10 tracks, 33 mins, very highly
recommended The shortness of this CD is more than compensated
by the incredible excitement generated by Bo and
his band (including Jerome Green on maracas and
The Duchess on guitar) on this reissue of of Bo's
first live LP (originally Checker 2988) recorded
in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina (world's shag
capitol!) in 1963. The original recording quality
was very muddy and is still far from high fidelity
but remastering engineer Eric Labson has done a
remarkable job in restoring some of the vibrancy
and clarity of the original performances. Half the
songs are from the Diddley songbook
(Gunslinger/ I'm All Right/ Road Runner,
etc), there's a new song Bo Diddley's Dog
(about a dance - not a canine friend) and three
incredible instrumentals including a Diddlified
version of Chuck Berry's Memphis, a
surprising version of On Top Of Old Smoky
and even Bo's Waltz! Bo is in stunning form
- rocking up a storm vocally and instrumentally.
My only regrets are that this isn't longer and
that nobody filmed it! (FS)
|
BO DIDDLEY |
Jasmine 3010 |
I'm A Man - The Singles, A&Bs - 1955-1959 |
● CD $11.98 |
Both sides of every single issued
between 1955 and 1959 by this great R&B/ rock 'n'
roll pioneer - I'm A Man/ Bo Diddley/ Pretty
THing/ Diddley Daddy/ Dearest Darlin' and all
the rest - 26 tracks in all. BO DIDDLEY: Before You Accuse Me/ Bo
Diddley/ Bo Meets The Monster/ Bring It To Jerome/
Cops And Robbers/ Crackin’ Up/ Dearest Darlin/
Diddley Daddy/ Diddy Wah Diddy/ Down Home Special/
Hey Bo Diddley/ Hush Your Mouth/ I’m A Man/ I’m
Bad/ I’m Looking For A Woman/ I’m Sorry/ Mona/ Oh
Yeah/ Pretty Thing/ Say Boss Man/ Say Man/ She’s
Fine She’s Mine/ The Clock Strikes Twelve/ The
Great Grandfather/ Who Do You Love/ Willie And
Lillie
|
FATS DOMINO |
Ace CDCHD 1306 |
The Imperial Singles, Volume 5: 1959-1961 |
● CD $18.98 |
26 tracks, 57 min., highly
recommended In the fourth of Ace's five Fats singles CDs, Mr.
D continues to live in the Billboard charts as if
he owned them. Not only did all his A-sides chart,
most highly, but all but two of the B-sides
charted. Unreal. Musical gems include I'm
Ready/ I Want To Walk You Home/ My Girl Josephine/
Walkin' To New Orleans, and many more. And
while the addition of strings on Walkin' To New
Orleans works nicely, the same cannot be said
of the violins on Don't Come Knockin'/ Three
Nights A Week, and a few other post-1950's
sides where they fly in like wasps at a picnic and
all but ruin a perfectly good outing. But overall
Fats was still turning out the good stuff. (JC)
FATS DOMINO: Ain't That Just
Like A Woman/ Be My Guest/ Before I Grow Too Old/
Country Boy/ Don't Come Knockin'/ Fell In Love On
Monday/ Good Hearted Man/ I Just Cry/ I Want To
Walk You Home/ I'm Gonna Be A Wheel Someday/ I'm
Ready/ I've Been Around/ If You Need Me/ It Keeps
Rainin'/ Let The Four Winds Blow/ Margie/ My Girl
Josephine/ Natural Born Lover/ Put Your Arms
Around Me Honey/ Rockin' Bicycle/ Shu-Rah/ Tell Me
That You Love Me/ Three Nights A Week/ Walking To
New Orleans/ What A Party/ What A Price
|
FATS DOMINO |
BGO BGOCD 957 |
Rare Dominos, Volumes 1 & 2 |
● CD $18.98 |
2 CDs, 34 tracks, 86 min.,
recommended Vol.1 (CD #1) covers 1950-53 and its best song,
Boogie Woogie Baby suffers sonically since
the master tape was lost and it was dubbed from a
clean 78 rpm. Oddly, Hey La Bas Boogie
sports a decent performance but suffers from poor
sound quality. These are mostly B-sides, uncharted
singles, and LP-only tracks; nothing here could be
used to explain to Martians why Fats was 2nd only
to Elvis P. in record sales during the 1950s. Only
the slower take of Rose Mary, the song FD
dedicated to his wife, does the legend justice.
Volume 2 (CD #2) does much to redeem its big
brother. Not only are Yes My Darling/ Don't You
Know I Love You, and Don't Know What's
Wrong, Set Me Free better than anything on Vol.
1, but Don't Leave Me This Way/ I'll Be
Gone, and I Lived My Life are pretty
damn good too. And the album includes the risque
Little Bee, which was banned from some radio
stations for its naughtiness and is all kinds of
fun. (JC)
FATS DOMINO: Boogie Woogie
Baby/ Careless Love/ Don't Leave Me This Way/
Don't Leave Me This Way/ Don't You Know/ Don't
Know What's Wrong, Set Me Free/ Don't Lie To Me/
Don't You Know I Love You/ Dreaming/ Fats Domino
Blues/ Help Me/ Hey Fat Man/ Hey La Bas Boogie/
How Long/ How Long/ I Guess I'll Be On My Way/ I
Lived My Life/ I'll Be Gone/ I've Got Eyes For
You/ Korea Blues/ Little Bee/ Mardi Gras In New
Orleans/ My Baby's
Gone/ No No Baby/ Nobody Loves Me/ Oh Baby/ Right
From Wrong/ Rocking Chair/ Rose Mary/ Sometimes I
Wonder/ Stay Away/ The Fat Man's Hop/ Trust In Me/
What's The Matter Baby/ Yes My Darling/ You Know I
Miss You
|
LEE DORSEY |
Charly SNAP 235 |
Holy Cow - The Very Best Of Lee Dorsey |
● CD $12.98 |
28 tracks, 79 mins, essential Great artist, great collection; simply put, this
is all original versions of all of his best stuff
and if you don't have a Lee Dorsey collection,
this one is as good as they come. You get all of
those wonderful New Orleans recordings with the
legendary Allen Toussaint at the helm: Working
In A Coal Mine/ Holy Cow/ Ya-Ya/ Ride The Pony/
Get Out Of My Life Woman/ Great Googa Mooga/
Everything Gonna Be Funky (From Now On,)/ Sneakin'
Sally Through The Alley/ Yes We Can, plus a
whole mess of great non-hits as well. This is a
collection of some of the most uplifting and
danceable music ever. Lee Dorsey was a special
artist who always gave it his all, and every track
here showcases his beautiful talent. (JM)
|
LEE DORSEY |
Charly SNAXCD 628 |
Soul Mine - The Greatest Hits & More, 1960-1978 |
● CD $18.98 |
2CD, 56 songs, highly recommended New Orleans R&B star Lee Dorsey gets the deluxe
compilation treatment from Charly, in the same
manner of the recently reviewed Allen Toussaint
set (Charly 624, $18.98). The first CD of this
collection was originally released in 1987 as "Am
I That Easy to Forget?", a 2 LP tribute issued on
the occasion of his death, which appears for the
first time on CD here. The second disc collects
his hits and other assorted A sides. Although this
set contains nearly all the same tracks on "Holy
Cow!: The Very Best of Lee Dorsey" (Charly 235),
it's augmented with a cut each from "Yes We Can
Can" (1970) and "Night People" (1978) not
represented on Holy Cow! (Tears, Tears and More
Tears and Can I Be the One?,
respectively, both simply amazing), and some
fantastic unreleased tracks (including a cool
cover of If I Were a Carpenter) from the
early and mid 60's and from 1971/1972. Also
included are two samples from a country album that
Dorsey was working on before he died, Am I That
Easy to Forget and Before the Next Teardrop
Falls, which prove that he still had it even in
his twilight years. For those of you who can't get
enough Lee Dorsey, or who just want to find out
what the man was capable of beyond the hits, this
compilation is for you. (GMC)
|
THE DU DROPPERS |
Acrobat ACRCD 214 |
Boot 'Em Up |
● CD $10.98 $7.98 |
23 tracks, 61 mins, highly
recommended Great 23 track collection of this superb New York
based group that excelled in rocking up tempo
numbers. It includes everything they recorded
between 1952 and 1954 including several titles
originally unissued. Formed in 1952 by
music/gospel veterans already in their 40's, the
Du Droppers began their recording days under their
new name for Bobby Robinson's Red Robin label, but
switched to RCA in 1953 where they remained until
the group folded in 1955. This set opens with
their first four sides for Red Robin including
their answer to The Dominoes Sixty Minute
Man, their great Can't Do Sixty No More
(the poor guy can only manager 30 minutes!) which
they follow with the great blues ballad Chain
Me Baby which shows that weren't only great at
up tempo numbers. Lots of other great sides here
like I Wanna Know/ Get Lost/ I Found Out/ Ten
Past Midnight/ Don't Pass Me By/ Speed KingI Only
Had A Little / How Much Longer and more. They
are accompanied by top New York session musicians
like Mickey Baker, Ben Webster, Sam "The Man"
Taylor, Bud Johnson and others. Sound is excellent
and 8 page booklet has informative notes by Bob
Fisher and full discographical info. (FS)
THE DU-DROPPERS: Bam Balam/
Boot 'em Up/ Can't Do Sixty No More/ Chain Me
Baby/ Come On And Love Me Baby/ Dead Broke/ Don't
Pass Me By/ Drink Up/ Get Lost/ Go Back/ Honey
Bunch/ How Much Longer/ I Found Out/ I Only Had A
Little/ I Only Had A Little (fast Version)/ I
Wanna Know/ If You Just Don't Leave/ Laughing
Blues/ Let Nature Take Its Course/ Little Girl
Little Girl (you'd Better Stop Talking In Your
Sleep)/ My Thrill Girl/ Speed King/ Ten Past
Midnight
|
THE DUKAYS |
Nat 1961 |
1961-1965 |
● CD $17.98 |
22 tracks, recommended Not a new release but not listed before. The Dukays were an excellent group from Chicago
initially fronted by Eugene Dixon aka Gene
Chandler. Their first two releases for the tiny
Nat label were excellent and and popular locally
but their third release Duke Of Earl/ Kissing
In The Kitchen was picked up by Vee-Jay who
issued it under Chandler's name and the song
rocketed to the top of the pop and R&B charts. The
Dukays continued to back Chandler on his
subsequent three Vee-Jay singles which were
credited to The Duke Of Earl and the Vee-Jay
signed the Dukays who were now being led by
Charles Davis (Nolan CHance) separately. This disc
collects all these recordings along with the
groups last couple of sides for the Jerry-O label.
The recordings are a fine selection of doo-wop and
early soul. A varied selection of ballads and up
tempo records. It deserves a higher rating for the
music but is somewhat let down by rather muffled
sound quality. (FS)
THE DUKAYS: Combination/
Daddy's Home/ Duke of Earl/ Every Step/ Festival
of Love/ I Feel Good All Over/ I Never Knew/ I'll
Follow You/ I'm Gonna Love You So/ Kissin' in the
Kitchen/ London Town/ Mellow Fezneckey/ Nite Owl/
Please Help/ Say You Love Me/ Sho Nuff/ The Big
Lie/ The Big Lie/ The Girl's a Devil/ The Jerk/
Walk on With the Duke/ You Left Me
|
CORNELL DUPREE |
Dialtone 0023 |
I'm Alright |
● CD $13.98 |
11 tracks, recommended Texan Cornell Dupree was a legendary session
guitarist who reputedly played on over 2,500
sessions. He only made a handful of recordings under his own name and the tracks here are from
his last sessions cut just a few months before his
death from emphysema at the age of 68. On this all
instrumental set he is accompanied by a fine group
with Kaz Kazonoff on sax, Mike Flanigan on organ
and others. The music is a blend of jazz and R&B
along with a bit of funk and mixes Dupree
originals along R&B/ pop favorites like Rainy
Night In Georgia and Grandmas' Hands.
Dupree was pretty sick by the time these
recordings were made and his playing is rather
subdued but still fine and worth a listen. (FS)
|
BETTY EVERETT |
Charly SNAP 226 |
It's In His Kiss - The Very Best Of The Vee-Jay Years |
● CD $13.98 |
30 tracks, 75 mins, highly
recommended R&B chanteuse Betty Everett's most popular period
is compiled on this excellent CD; all of her best
loved hits are here: You're No Good/ The Shoop
Shoop Song (It's in His Kiss), and Getting
Mighty Crowded. The Vee Jay era (1963-1965)
produced many tasty sides including Chained to
Your Love/ It Hurts to Be in Love (not the Gene
Pitney song)/ I Can't Hear You, and
Chained to a Memory. She was versatile: she
could be tough-as on You're No Good or
Hands Off - or tender, like on Let it Be
Me, one of a series of gorgeous and/or sassy
duets with Jerry Butler that culminated in an
album ("Delicious Together," from September 1964).
Everett recorded for many other labels before and
after her Vee Jay tenure (and the compilers manage
to sneak on two tracks from her stint on the
One-derful label, from 1962 and '63, which give
more exposure to her blues roots), but this is the
era that matters and this collection does the job
more than admirably. (GMC)
|
FRANKIE FORD |
Jasmine 150 |
Sea Cruise And Other Hits |
● CD $13.98 |
22 tracks, 54 m ins, highly
recommended Chock full o' goodies compilation which includes
the 12 selections from Ford's "Sea Cruise" LP plus
10 more tracks recorded for Ace Imperial between
1958 nand 1960. Ford's rise to stardom is a
typical late 50's success story - Sea Cruise
and Roberta were recorded by Huey "Piano"
Smith, but label head Johnny Vincent felt the
songs needed some "improvement". His solution was
a simple one - bring in a good looking white kid
in a suit and tie to re-record Smith's vocal atop
the original backing tracks! The result was a
smash international hit that eclipsed Ace's
previous charttopper Rockin' Pneumonia, by
guess who - Huey Smith!! (some guys have all the
luck). Ford's better tracks, like Alimony/ I
Want To Be Your Man/ What's Goin' On/ It Must Be
Jelly/ You Talk Too Much/ If You've Got Trouble
and others have that patented Crescent City sound, with Ford's surprisingly
gutsy singing out in front. Other tracks are clearly reaching for the teen pop
market, exhibiting the "Bobby Darin imitating Frank Sinatra" sound - well done
not the sort of thing to appeal to diehard rock 'n' roll fans. Excellent sound
and informative notes by Bob Fisher. (GMC) FRANKIE FORD:
Alimony/ Can't Tell My Heart What To Do/ Cheatin'
Woman/ Chinatown/ Danny Boy/ Hour Of Need/ I Want
To Be Your Man/ I'm Worried Over You/ If You've
Got Troubles/ It Must Be Jelly/ Last One To Cry/
My Southern Belle/ Roberta/ Sea Cruise/ The Groom/
Time After Time/ Watchdog/ What's Goin On/ You
Talk Too Much/ Your Game Is Over/ FRANKIE & MAC:
Lonely Boy/ MORGUS & THE THREE GHOULS: Morgus The
Magnificent
|
STEVE GIBSON
& THE REDCAPS |
Acrobat 3000 |
It's So Good! |
● CD $18.98 $10.98 |
Two CDs, 43 tracks, recommended
Two CD set with 43
tracks by this fine vocal group recorded between 1943 and 1951 for
several different labels. Ballads and jump tunes from this whose
founding members were Jimmy Springs (lead tenor), David Patillo (lead
tenor), Romaine Brown (baritone & piano), Steve Gibson (bass & guitar)
and Doles Dickens (string bass). This line up is featured on the first
disc and the music rests firmly in the jive vocal group tradition that
made stars of The Cats & the Fiddle and The Three Peppers. Influenced
greatly by the Mills Brothers and The Ink Spots, the sound of The Red
Caps was infused with a comedic element that carried over to their
shows. And while they could turn a ballad -- usually led by Jimmy
Springs -- as sweetly as you please, the sillier jive jolts -- usually
led by Steve Gibson or Romaine Brown are immensely entertaining. Other
notable lead singers featured on the second disc include Earl Plummer
and David Patillo and three tracks feature them accompanying vocalist
Damita Jo. Includes Don't Fool With Me/ Mama Put Your Britches On/
Just For You/ Boogie Woogie Ball/ Somebody's Lyin'/ Sugar Lips/ Mary Had
A Little Jam/ Get Off That Kick/ Monkey & The Baboon/ Jack You're Dead/
I'm Living For You/ Blueberry Hill/ Sidewalk Shuffle/ Boogie Woogie On A
Saturday Night, etc. Excellent sound and booklet features brief
notes and discographical data. (FS)
|
ROY HAMILTON |
Jasmine 558 |
The Definitive 50s Singles Collection |
● CD $15.98 |
2 CDs, 52 tracks, 2 hours 13
min., recommended His ballads showcased his irresistible baritone in
the mid-1950s, but despite many a hit on the R&B
charts, and his extreme popularity among white
audiences, his style owed more to the 1940s than
to '50s, more to Sinatra and Bennett than Wilson
and McPhatter. By the time soul music came along,
Hamilton's career faded fast. His singles were
issued on the pop Epic label rather than the R&B
Okeh imprint, presumably part of a deliberate
strategy by Columbia to exploit Hamilton's
crossover potential. Financially it must have been
a smart move, but these sides are a bit tame and
similar sounding to wade through 52 of them.
Still, the man could sing, and he influenced The
Righteous Brothers and Elvis, among others, and
Jasmine does a decent job all around. (JC)
|
THURSTON HARRIS |
Hoodoo 263372 |
Little Bitty Pretty One |
● CD $14.98 |
25 tracks, 54 mins, highly
recommended Thurston Harris has two songs that cemented his
place amongst the all time greats. First is
Over and Over, better known for its cover
version hit by the Dave Clark Five, but legendary
in its own right long before the DC5 had even
thought about crossing the Mersey. Then there's
Little Bitty Pretty One, a cover of Bobby
Day, but Harris' version is one of the small
number of perfect recordings in the Rock & Roll
era and a song that should keep Thurston Harris'
name alive for decades to come. This swell CD
collection goes on to show that there was a lot
more to old Thurston than those two classic
records and, even though there are no other big
hits among the tracks herein, in a perfect world
many more of them would have been hits. Great Rock
& Roll and Rhythm & Blues cuts like Do What You
Did/ Fine, Fine Frame/ Runk Bunk/ Hey Baba Leba/
Bless Your Heart, etc. On top of all that you
even get Harris' somewhat bizarre novelty attempt
Purple Stew, which might not be appreciated
by some more discerning music fans, but I
definitely have a soft spot for it. All of these
recordings were done between 1957 - 1959 and
feature fantastic backing by Earl Palmer on drums,
Plas Johnson on sax, Pete Lewis on guitar, and The
Sharps on back-up vocals, you can't ask for much
better than that, can you? (JM)
|
Z.Z. HILL |
Shout 70 |
Snap Your Fingers With Z.Z. Hill |
● CD $18.98 |
23 tracks, 71 mins, highly
recommended In a previous catalog, we reviewed the Z.Z. Hill
compilation Am I Groovin' You?: Great R&B Hits
(Micro Werks 057 - $11.98) and up until now it was
the best collection available of Hill's mid 70's
work for the United Artists label. Now we have
this fine two-fer from Shout containing the LPs
"The Best Thing That's Happened to Me" (1972) and
"Z.Z." (1974), that spotlights Hill's most
fruitful and hit-filled period. As noted
previously, Hill was a consummate R&B/Blues
shouter from the Pickett/Redding school that is
scarcely remembered today. The former album,
featuring backing from some of New Orleans' finest
session players (including Allen Toussaint, Art
Neville, George Porter, and Leo Nocentelli), is
steeped in a funky groove which is put to good use
on I've Got to Get You Back/ You Were Wrong,
and a sultry cover of Can I Get a Witness.
By contrast, some of the tracks on the "Z.Z."
album have a country soul feel: Let Them Talk/
Country Love/ The Best I Ever Had, and Funny
Face. Also present are samples of Hill's gutsy
way with the Blues-Bad Mouth and Gossip and
Am I Grooving You plus a bit of social
commentary in Clean Up America. Anyone
looking for a nicely packaged, well annotated, and
great sounding CD of Z.Z. Hill material need look
no further than this compilation. (GMC)
|
PATRICE HOLLOWAY |
Kent CDKEND 354 |
Love & Desire - The Patrice Holloway Anthology |
● CD $18.98 |
25 tracks, 64 min, highly
recommended Patrice Holloway was one of those talents who had
the goods but not the luck/support/timing that's
necessary to make the big time. She was a session
singer of the first rank-she backed everyone from
Neil Young to Aretha Franklin-and had the honor of
being the singing voice of Valerie Brown of Josie
& the Pussy Cats. The sister of Motown star Brenda
Holloway, she also had a short stint with the
Detroit label (from 1963 to 1965); later, Patrice
had a couple of go-rounds with Capitol. The
singles she cut for both labels-many which barely
got beyond promo stage-are represented here, along
with a host of unreleased tracks from Motown's
vaults. She had a golden voice and proved it on
songs like Stolen Hours (a big Northern Soul
hit), Lucky, My Boy/ Love and Desire, and
That's All You Got to Do. Of the previously
unissued stuff, All That's Good and Come
Into My Palace, a duet with Brenda that should
have been a hit, are the cream of the crop, but
all merit the attention. Patrice's recording
career ended at age 22 (although she continued
doing back up and session work until the end of
the 70's) in 1972 and she never cut an album, but
these tracks prove beyond a doubt that, with the
right breaks, she could have been a world class
recording artist. (GMC)
|
HERBERT HUNTER |
Superbird 042 |
The Rockin' Spar Masters |
● CD $16.98 |
20 tracks, 46 mins, highly
recommended The R&B scene of the 50's and '60s is littered
with artists who never had any hits, but still
sold records and these same records are prized by
collectors to this very day. Herbert Hunter is one
of those artists. Working throughout his career
with Nashville songwriter and producer Ted
Jarrett, Hunter cut many sides under assorted
aliases as well as under his own name. Hunter's
earliest records were cut for Alan Bubis' Spar
label and are featured here; a mixture of Twist
cash-ins and pop/soul country covers (big business
in the early 60's thanks to Ray Charles). The
country songs, especially I'll Hold You in My
Heart, demonstrate that Hunter had a seductive
and sincere tone that is very appealing. The twist
tunes are fun and Hunter pulls off a decent Sam
Cooke imitation (as Leroy Jones) on Twistin'
the Night Away. Before anyone starts getting
any wrong ideas about Hunter, it should be noted
that his early career was founded primarily on his
uncanny ability to mimic other vocalists. It's a
testament to his own abilities that he managed to
find his own voice on the recordings under his
name. The Northern Soul collectors prize this
stuff very highly; the rest of us should enjoy the
twist numbers for what they are (they are well
sung and exuberantly played by a crack band that
includes Boots Randolph, Bill Justis, Floyd
Cramer, Grady Martin, and Hank Garland) and pay
special attention to Hunter's effortless handling
of the country material and the final track,
Cooke's Bring it On Home to Me. (GMC)
|
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