We are about to witness the biggest sporting event of this century where an estimated 17,000 athletes, 20,000 journalists, 63,000 personnel and 500,000 spectators will all descend into London town in late July to witness the greatest athletic event of all time - the London 2012 Olympic Games.
A mind-boggling 4 billion plus people are expected to watch the various events on TV alone! Damn. And this is right on Harmless's own doorstep too! Opportunities like this don't pop up that regularly - the last time in London was in 1948 and Harmless wasn't around back then unfortunately.
So we had to do SOMETHING for the occasion but what....?
Bingo! What about an album which picks some of the greatest records about running, jumping, winning, losing, elation, heartbreak, inspiration and aspiration that have ever been ever made.......?
Then we'd be talking ay!
Even better, what if we heavily promoted the album to a world media which is always thirsty for great topical angles? Most of these guys would probably never even hear these records under normal circumstances in their entire lifetimes! So this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get some incredible music in front of the international media at the perfect time. How could we say no?
The opportunity of attempting to reach such a huge worldwide audience for such an iconic event that just happens to be on one's doorstep is obviously pretty enticing to those of us who are still in the business of selling music. So it was really a no-brainer.
Opportunist? For sure! Harmless WANT as many people as possible to listen to this album. It's probably the greatest sports compilation ever made for those with impeccable taste. Hand selected with love no less.
We trawled through the 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's and 00's to dig out the gems and went through the usual licensing hell to present them here against a deadline that was set in stone and boy, was it worth it!
As with most Harmless releases we give a little bit of history about the songs in question and cheekily add a new section called 'programming opportunity' which suggests the circumstances where the song may work best. CD1 concentrates on some of the most brilliant inspirational and aspirational output from the late 1960's to early 1970's and CD2 covers the late 70's to the late 00's. This package spans the eras. Throughout the journey we take in numerous 60's RnB, Northern Soul, Modern Soul, Crossover Soul, Philly Soul, Funky Soul, Deep Soul and just all-time great Soulful gems from right across the last 5 decades. Numerous tracks have been widely unavailable until now, some are on legitimate release for the first time ever and most of 'em are in demand somewhere in the world right now. It's quite a journey so strap yourself in and enjoy the ride.
No one can accuse us of not getting in the spirit of things eh?
HURTXCD121 "Inspired! Blood, Soul, Sweat & Cheers" - Released 23/07/2012
Amazon Link
http://www.amazon.co...pd_rhf_se_p_t_1
CD1: Inspirational 60's & 70's Northern Soul & RnB
1. The MVP's - Turning My Heartbeat Up
2. N.F. Porter - Keep On Keeping On
3. The Steve Karmen Big Band - Breakaway
4. The Tempos - Countdown (Here I Come)
5. Curtis Mayfield - Move On Up
6. Archie Bell & The Drells - There's Gonna Be A Showdown
7. Roscoe Shelton - Running For My Life
8. Linda Jones - You Can't Take It
9. Dean Parrish - Determination
10. Willie Mitchell - The Champion
11. Lee Dorsey - Ride Your Pony
12. Tami Lynn - I'm Gonna Run Away From You
13. Billy Butler - Right Track
14. Major Lance - Ain't No Soul (Left In These Old Shoes)
15. Johnny Johnson & The Bandwagon - Sweet Inspiration
16. The Exciters - Reaching For The Best
17. Alice Clark - You Hit Me (Right Where It Hurt Me)
18. The Mike Post Coalition - Afternoon Of The Rhino
19. The Just Brothers - Sliced Tomatoes
20. Betty Moorer - Speed Up
21. Bill Moss - Sock It To 'Em Soul Brother
22. Jimmy 'Soul' Clark - I'll Be Your Champion (I'll Be Your Winner)
23. Gene McDaniels - Walk With A Winner
24. Chairmen Of The Board - I'm On My Way To A Better Place
CD2: Inspirational 70's, 80's, 90's and 00's Soul, Dance & RnB
1. LTG Exchange - Keep On Trying
2. Betty Swann - When The Game Is Played On You
3. Sly & The Family Stone - Runnin' Away
4. Sandra Wright - I Come Running Back
5. The Controllers - Somebody's Gotta Win, Somebody's Gotta Lose
6. The Spinners - Games People Play
7. New York City - Quick Fast In A Hurry
8. Joe Simon - Step By Step
9. The Intruders - (Win Place Or Show) She's A Winner
10. Michael Valvano's Contours - I'm A Winner
11. Larry Wedgeworth & Clique - No More Games
12. Average White Band - Let's Go Round Again
13. GQ - Standing Ovation
14. Kleeer - Keep Your Body Workin'
15. Aretha Franklin - Jump To It
16. Mousse T - Brother On The Run
17. The Heavy - How You Like Me Now
18. Des'ree - You Gotta Be
We're promoting the album heavily to Radio & TV over the next 4 weeks, so who know? With a bit of luck we may hear some decent tunes for a change!
Ian D 
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