Source Magazine - Soul Music News & Articles

New 45 from Jai Alai Records
Tommy McGee - We Ought To Be Together/ Make Sure -Jar 03
The world of soul music has always been full of stories of bad luck, if-onlys and might-have-beens, and Tommy McGee has certainly had more than his fair share of all three. Bad timings with record deals, contract arguments, label cash-flow problems, a payola scandal, getting squeezed out by deals for other artists such as The Ohio Players, Johnny Bristol and William DeVaughn, have all added to his frustrations.
Tommy McGee - We Ought To Be Together - Video
Tommy McGee - Make Sure - Video
Amazingly, McGee had the drive to keep going as he was determined to release an album with his band The TMGs. Writer/producer Palmer James, also from his home town Grand Rapids MI, convinced him to sign as a solo artist instead, although he continued to work on the (then unnamed) "Positive-Negative" album from 1970-72. James had been in The Creations with Al Green (then Greene) and in trying to market and release Greene’s "Back Up Train" album on his label Hot Line Music Journal almost went bankrupt; McGee’s debut single, "Give & Take" / "To Make You Happy" on Golden Voice Records, got lost in the process.
McGee finally got the funds to release "Positive-Negative" on his own label MTMG Records in 1976, pressing 500 copies, and whilst not a commercial success, this highly collectable album brought him recognition on the underground soul scene. It was reissued on Chicago imprint Numero Group in 2016 and he is probably best known for the fabulous single "Now That I Have You" on another of his labels, TMG.
For their third release, Jai Alai have taken the two cream cuts "We Ought To Be Together" and "Make Sure", showcasing McGee’s production skills and his wonderful Curtis Mayfield styled falsetto vocals. This limited edition 7” single will quickly disappear, so make sure you don’t miss out.
𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗩𝗘 𝗛𝗢𝗕𝗕𝗦
(Solar Radio, Totally Wired Radio)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Remastering by Jorge Muñoz-Cobo. Label design by Jordi Duró.
𝗣𝗥𝗘 𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗘𝗥 𝗡𝗢𝗪 for 7th January 2022
13 𝗲𝘂𝗿𝗼𝘀 + postage as it follows:
1 to 5 copies: 6,80 euros UK & Europe
1 to 5 copies: 2,50 euros Spain
1 to 5 copies: 10,45 euros USA & rest of the world
𝗣𝗮𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗯𝘆 𝗣𝗔𝗬𝗣𝗔𝗟 𝗮𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 & 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆:
soul4realrecordlabel@gmail.com
Check previous releases: www.soul4real.es

By Alexsubinas in News Archives · December 24, 20213 yr

It's that time of year again...
A Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year to all
Season Greetings!
Soul Source Team

By Mike in News Archives · December 23, 20213 yr

As the years past it seems more and more archival material is becoming available online, local papers just being one available source for looking back.
The British Newspaper archive being just one current source, be a bit wary as once you start digging the hours may fly past.
https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/

Used the North Wales Soul Club as an example as it did play a part in my own soul youth, while just a 13 year old kid at the time of the article, memories of a few visits up the stairs to the offices, opposite The London pub on a Saturday do linger along with later trips to the Riverboat.
North Wales Weekly News Thursday 16 May 1974
North Wales Club is hub of soul
Mention "soul" and you can guarantee the attention of most young people interested in music. So it is not surprising that the following in this area is enough to warrant a soul club the North Wales Soul Club.
On Saturday the club opens an office at 100 Upper Mostyn Street. Llandudno. The premises will put not only Llandudno but the whole of North Wales well on the map as a "soul scene."
The club already boasting a membership of 200 is the brainchild of Robert Redhead and Gilbert Gilian of Discos Incorporated (Entertainment) Ltd. Llandudno who have been responsible for several promotions during the year, featuring many top name artistes from Britain and the United States. For Robert and Gilbert. May" 18 will see a dream come true. In recent months they have done more for soul fans In North Wales than anyone in the last decade.
Discos Inc. started just over two years ago when Robert and Gilbert Joined forces to provide top .line disco entertainment. They do this using SAI (Sound Advice Installations) equipment, of which they have two independent units, coupled with comprehensive lighting effects. Single records which they carry with them number approximately 1.000 and albums total 50. The transportation of all the equipment could become quite a nightmare, but as it was explained. everything is under control thanks to Robert's father, Mr. Roy Redhead described as "road manager."
Discos Inc. soon became recognised as.one of the leading soul discos in the area, as well as being able to provide music for any occasion, and they decided it was about time fans were given the chance to see the artistes on stage without having to travel considerable distances. Their first promotion was in October of last year when Major Lance made a big impact at the Dixieland Showbar. Colwyn Bay. As Gilbert explained promotions of this nature require a considerable amount. of administration and therefore on March 28 the North Wales Soul Club came into being and presented their first promotion featuring "Limmle and Family Cookin."
As well as providing such entertainment Robert and Gilbert opened a record and badge bar at the dances which proved successful and have now become a feature of their promotions.
Annual membership of the North Wales Soul Club costs 15p and enables soul fans to buy records which they would normally find difficult to obtain without such a service as provided by the club. Soul "packs" will be on sale along with American imports and albums.
Members will also be able to buy ticket in advance for dances in and out of the area, as the promoters are official ticket agents for the Northern and International Soul Clubs, with whom they will be in close contact.

history

By Mike in Articles · December 22, 20213 yr

Wigan Today running a feature on the unveiling of a new blue plaque dedicated to Mr M's near its former site

Wigan Casino: New plaque dedicated to Mr M's unveiled near former site
A new plaque dedicated to a beloved part of Wigan Casino has been unveiled near its former site.
Former DJ Steve Whittle, who has recently released a book about Mr M’s, said: “It was a successful weekend, even though it was raining, and we did get cold and wet.
More via
https://www.wigantoday.net/news/people/wigan-casino-new-plaque-dedicated-to-mr-ms-unveiled-near-former-site-3498640

wigan casino

By Mike in News Archives · December 17, 20213 yr

Northern Soul a Wigan Casino: 'Ffordd o fyw'
BBC Cymru running 'Northern Soul a Wigan Casino: 'Ffordd o fyw'' on their website featuring Vaughan Evans
Video

'Ffordd o fyw'
I Vaughan Evans mae Northern Soul yn "ffordd o fyw" ac yn Wigan Casino wnaeth pob dim ddechrau pan agorwyd hi yn 1973.
"Ro'n i tua ugain oed a es i i mewn i siop Guests yn Llangefni ac roedd 'na magazine Blues and Soul ar y shilff. Nes i jest darllen hwnnw a ffeindio tudalen 'Wigan Casino All Nighter' ac mi oedd Edwin Starr yn chwarae yno," meddai Vaughan, sefydlydd gorsaf radio Môn FM.

The full article with images can be read via https://www.bbc.co.uk/cymrufyw/59681953

wigan casino

By Mike in News Archives · December 17, 20213 yr

News just in all about the latest release from Soul Direction Records...
Legacy - 'Boy, You've Been Acting Strange' / 'Celebrate (Legacy To The Bone)' - Soul-Direction SD-007
Due for release on 3rd January 2022. Available for pre-order from Friday 17th December

Info
Legacy was formed around 1975 by Eddie Watkins Jr who started the band.
Legacy recorded very few songs under the guidance of Don Davis. The only two songs to be released were: “I Must Confess” and “Believe In Yourself” on Tortoise International Records. Soul Direction having purchased the master tapes found that there were two other songs on the same master tape entitled “Boy, You’ve Been Acting Strange” and “Celebrate (Legacy to The Bone)”.
After tracking down Eddie and several conversations later, Eddie Watkins who wrote all the songs agreed to license the tracks to Soul-Direction for a 7” Vinyl Release.

Promo Video

Legacy Background
The original members were: Eddie Watkins Jnr, Brenda Evans, LaMarvin McMorris, Delbert Nelson, Butch Small, Mark Johnson on keyboards, Ricardo Rouse and Anita Baker the iconic vocal artist who did some vocal performances with the band. Some of the band members were originally from The Undisputed Truth.
Eddie N Watkins Jr was born & raised in Detroit MI. He started his music career playing piano for a bingo game at 10 years old. His grandmother “Big Mama” bought him a piano at age 7 and his parents forced him to take piano lessons apparently against his will. As it turned out they were right cause by the age of 13 Eddie had switched to bass guitar joined the Musicians Union and got hired by the Jonny Trafton big band performing with seasoned local Motown musicians. At age 17 still in high school Eddie was noticed by legendary Motown producer Norman Whitfield at a Undisputed Truth band rehearsal. A few day later he got the call from Motown to play for Norman Whitfield’s new Temptation album Masterpiece.
Lead Vocalist Brenda Joyce Evans was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. After high school Brenda became a part of the group called the Delicates (Brenda, Michelle and Dale). The manager for the Delicates was Bobby Sanders. He was known for working with local male singing groups, like the Younghearts. Around 1969 during a performance Bobby Taylor of the Vancouvers heard the Delicates sing and invited them to open up for him at the 20 Grand, in Detroit, Michigan. The Delicates eventually signed with Motown Records. After signing with Motown Records; the Delicates received more opportunities to sing background in the studio for other artists.

Purchase Options
Due for release on 3rd January 2022. Available for pre-order from Friday 17th December via
https://soul-direction.co.uk/

releases

By Mike in News Archives · December 14, 20213 yr

A 48 hour Soul Source fast and furious competition to get this Christmas is almost here week going...

Yep the Soul Source competition makes an overdue return. This time around we have up for grabs, thanks to those Anglo-American people, a brand new copy of the just released book '1975 - A Year In The Life Of Northern Soul' by Tim Brown
The book has already picked up reviews from our members such as 'a beautifully illustrated and content rich book'
The official release blurb follows below...
The first ever detailed look at a specific year in the life of Northern Soul focuses on its most important year. It was the year when seventies soul was embraced to sit alongside traditional sixties stompers in all dancehalls and venues such as Cleethorpes Pier and The Ritz ,Manchester as all-dayers took a hold on the scene. Wigan Casino and the Blackpool Mecca remained as twin towers of the nightlife however. Television, radio and newspapers were fascinated by the ultimate underground music scene and this book analyses their interest. Tim Brown, author of "The Wigan Casino Years" details all the events and records that make 1975 Northern Soul`s most important year, many of which are recounted for the first time. A definitive account of a year in the life of Northern Soul, richly illustrated in full colour.

Competition
To enter the competition all you have to do is simply answer these 5 x Northern Soul 1975 related questions

1975 A Year In The Life Of Northern Soul by Tim Brown Competition Question
1 The first label for The Chosen Few`s “Footsee” was?
2. The International GTO`S recorded under two other names. What were they?
3. The co-writer of which famous Northern Soul song that was big in 1975 also co-wrote “Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini”?
4. Lou Pride`s label Suemi stood for what?
5. In 1975 the location for the “new” Torch club was at what venue?

Just send your asnswer into the site via

The competition will close at 9am Tuesday Morning 14 Dec 2021
The person with the most correct entries will be declared the winner (if a draw the winner will be drawn out of the Soul Source hat) and will very shortly receive a copy of 1975 A Year In The Life Of Northern Soul book

books

By Mike in News Archives · December 12, 20213 yr

Tesla Groove, Cannonball Records and Epsilon Record Co. join forces to create a little imprint dedicated to bring a STREAM of the most elusive sounds on Earth to the decks of Black Music fans around the world.
We’ll pick from our collections, we’ll license directly from the Artists or the rights holders and we’ll deliver to your turntables at the best sounding conditions we are allowed to pull. One in every home!
STR001 - Johnny Horton and Nature
“I’ve Got You” b/w “Shake Your Booty”
Fully Licensed 7”/45 rpm - 200 copies - out February ’22
Free Digital Download included!
Listen:

Preorder: https://cannonballsoul.com/streamrecords/
Preorder: https://www.epsilonrecord.com
IMPOSSIBLY RARE and extremely obscure 45 that almost never turns up. A monstrous modern soul dancer with a funky edge on the a-side and a great boogie banger on the flip side now available to soul and funk fans around the globe at the price of a pizza for one. This version comes out of a fortunate demo on a 1/4” reel tape which is the only recording that survived a car crash Mr. Horton was involved in many years back. Johnny kindly allowed us to license this beautiful piece of music and we are very proud to bring to your decks such a testament to the Alabama sound of the seventies. One in every home!
STR002 - The Nombres
“Trivialities” b/w “Todos”
Fully Licensed 7”/45 rpm - 200 copies - out February ’22
Free Digital Download included!
Listen:

Preorder: https://cannonballsoul.com/streamrecords/
Preorder: https://www.epsilonrecord.com

One part War, two parts Santana, and a dash of Motown, immersed in a rich Puerto Rican stock, Los Nombres were the undisputed kings of Northern Ohio’s Rust Belt barrios. Following successive explosions of brown-eyed and Latin soul in Los Angeles and New York during the mid and late ’60s, Willie Marquez led a rotating cast of Latino teens through numerous underfunded recording sessions for the Day-Wood, Beth, and Lorain Sounds imprints. “Trivialities” was initially recorded in 1972 for release on Beth label and was again re taken in 1977 for the Lorain Sound imprint. Both releases are today as rare as Caribbean pirate’s doubloons and were backed on the flipside by the incredibly groovy barrio banger “Todos”. Here we present the 1977 version of Trivialities and the only existing take of Todos, finally affordable. One in every home!

By Yann V in News Archives · December 10, 20213 yr

It's that time of year...
and after two previous releases it's looking like that this the 2022 edition may be the third and final Northern Soul Calendar
Following the same format as previous years its now available at £12.99 online.
Blurb and pictures follow below

NORTHERN SOUL CALENDAR 2022
...make a date with Northern Soul
PERFECT FOR A WALL NEAR YOU!
FEATURING MANY NEW HISTORIC DATES
CURATED BY RICHARD SEARLING
This unique full-size (600mm x 300mm), full-colour, wall calendar is a collectable guide through 2022 featuring month-by-month information with over 2,000 key birthdays of the legends of Northern Soul, Modern Soul and Motown, plus other historic dates from the timeline of this incredible scene!

Purchase online via the below link
Tap to buy

By Mike in News Archives · December 8, 20213 yr

Bit of a delay with this pass on of a review of a current release, Tendavillage EP A Tenda Universe....

I had a recent conversation with Kate Melvina, lead singer/writer/producer of Calgary's Tendavillage about her new EP to be released on Nov 26, A Tenda Universe.
Below is the EP review resulting from our conversation.
- - - - - - - - - - - -
Review of Tenda Village EP A Tenda Universe
Mike Lauchlan

Kate Melvina curls up in the corner of a thick couch, a Griffin tattoo curling up one arm and her cuddly orange and white cat Willis claiming the space on the other. It’s a sunny but cool late fall afternoon in the foothills west of Calgary and we’re talking neo-soul music.
“There are some playful moments, but I wrote many of these songs during a dark period, you could say.”
Yes, Covid-19.
“The pandemic didn’t bring much light to the world, but it did provide plenty of time for songwriting!”
A Tenda Universe, veteran Calgary musician Kate Melvina’s sophomore Tendavillage EP, takes us on a stunningly relatable emotional tasting tour across our inner spaces. Circumnavigation of this project leaves the listener sparkling, with every nerve touched, every memory activated.
We spin through the tracks as we chat.
Right off the top we find ourselves engulfed in the pure sensorial pleasure of Waiting for your Love. The experience offers a beautifully balanced 60s Motown groove, exotic highlights in drifting synthesizer runs, a driving beat, and Kate’s honey-smooth lead gliding over a supporting cast of wawa guitar, bass, strings and complex backing vocals.
“The saying timing is everything is really true. To be honest, I’ve been thinking that this song should come with a disclaimer to not do this (a long story). But this is still one of my favorite songs on the EP.”
Mad finds us hurtling through rumination space, still stinging from a recent explosion. The feel is Louisiana bounce, imparting notes of DiAngelo, Beyonce, and Dr. John. There’s a clear edge here in Kate’s composition and production, featuring enhanced rhythmic components of a skilled ensemble. Try sleeping on this one.
I comment that the sound feels bigger than the first EP.
“I see this second EP as an improvement over the first. I put a lot more effort into production elements, adding many more layers to the sound this time. It feels more fully fleshed-out.”
Frequent Tendavillage listeners will recognize the next two tracks. Released as singles in the spring of 2021, Escargot & Risotto and Sprung observe love’s light and dark sides, acceptance and despair, movement and paralysis. The former is funk-driven, crisp and clean with a Stevie Wonder feel and elevated rhythms, delivering notable depth. The latter is dark in aspect, well-structured with a distinct Solange feel, and classic neo-soul character framed within a tenacious, but relaxed beat.
“The common thread in my music is R&B and soul,” Kate offers. “Many have an element of funk and jazz as well. I’m inspired by many genres really.”
Tide provides us with the thousand light-year view on our own personal journey. Introspective and disarmingly melodic, it leaves the listener both uplifted and on the verge of tears. Tide possesses elegant, Jamie Lindell-like character with Moonchild influences and hints Mac Ayres, all in balance, ultimately drifting to infinity at its close.
At the EP’s end we embark on a frantic spin around Mac’s Galaxy. The bonds of close siblings are unbreakable through time or space, or crazy rhythmic changes, or soaring synth solos. Mac’s Galaxy, dedicated to Kate’s big brother, is an explosion of joy and fun. It is expansive and complex with spicy jazz ingredients, sparkles, pops, fizz and flavors enhanced by a next wave, new world style and character.
Where Tendavillage’s self-titled premier EP celebrated life through fun and frivolity, A Tenda Universe serves as Kate’s rite of passage into a thematically broader, richer place, experienced through skillful and challenging composition, arrangement, and production.
“This is why I idolize Stevie Wonder so much. He just had so many different influences and so many flavors running through his music. I honestly think that’s the way to do it.”
“I just write from the heart. I guess we’ll see if it’s commercial.”
I say that the universe is her oyster.
Mike Lauchlan
https://www.instagram.com/tendavillage/
https://www.facebook.com/tendavillage
https://bfan.link/a-tenda-universe

By Mike in News Archives · December 6, 20213 yr

TAXIE EPS008: ROCK DON'T STOP/ I THINK I'M FALLING IN LOVE Epsilon Records Co
T.A.X.I.E In 1978 ,three friends.
Woody Whittaker, Ronnie Arch, and Wayne Chatman
Came together with their musical ideas and talents to form the music production company, “Cabfare Productions”. Under that parent company, the performing group
T.A.X.I.E.
Talented Artist Xclusively In Entertainment
Archwoods Productions and Archwoods Publishing was born. Eventually adding musicians/song writers, Charles (Ice Cream) Williams, Oneida James, and the amazing vocalist, Carlita Durhan, the original guitarist for the R&B group Taste Of Honey.
T.A.X.I.E. performed many engagements through out the Los Angels Hollywood circuits. Opening and appearing with renowned artist such as Stevie Wonder, Dennis Edwards, and the Mary Jane Girls. The members of T.A.X.I.E. are not only great musicians and performers, but also are very talented and awesome song writers. Some of their compositions have been performed and recorded by, Grammy winner Diane Reeves, Tahj Mowry, AlfredaJames, Greg Rose, and musical groups such as Infinite. Archwoods Productions also produced, published and promoted music and live concerts throughout the United States and Europe. Over the years, this partnership has developed a music catalog of over 100 songs, compositions, and videos. In the future, they will continue to write and produce excellent music, promoting new and established artist.
Buy it now:
https://www.epsilonrecord.com
Contact: epsilonrecord45@gmail.com
Limited Edition 7" :
Alternatives Mix Re-Mastered by Steve Fuji

By Yann V in News Archives · December 3, 20213 yr

This is John Warren an (Australian soul music lover) 2nd book titled '' Our Soul Music Journeys '' which will be released in December 2021.
Being dyslexic made it very difficult writing a book so Soul music lovers I have met on my music journey have contributed with their own personal stories .
The main object of our Soul music books is to gain awareness that a lot of soul music artists, especially in the USA find it difficult to survive.
Hopefully all music lovers will understand this sad fact and as the project evolves so we can publish more Soul music journey books to help them.
Music has been my passion for 46 years from being a DJ (Johnny ''Redpants" Warren) to a collector of vinyl soul music. I am currently living in Scarborough village Queensland Australia. I have been blessed having 3 daughter's & 1 son.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0646850369

books

By Rushden8 in News Archives · December 2, 20213 yr

IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME COMING, but... THE ESTIMATIONS ARE BACK WITH A SECOND RECORD!
The A side, Heart Of Stone brings fuzz guitar, 4/4 drums, and a Levi Stubbs lead with haunting backing vocals to set a Norman-Whitfield-psychedelia-inspired soundscape for repressed lovers. If you’ve spent your life getting hurt, it’s near impossible to trust and give yourself to someone completely. This song is a hymn for the inhibited, rejected and pained out there who aren’t ready to get back in “the ring”.
Turn over the disc and Don’t Go Kissin’ My Baby maintains the Motown theme with a bouncy bubblegum-soul arrangement, this time more typical of mid-60s Frank Wilson or Smokey Robinson productions. Not only are we still in Mr. Gordy’s sphere of influence, but we’re also keeping the continuity here with the subject of trouble in relationships.
Between being withholding and being jealous, this release shows that Jory and Co. might not be scoring high on the next Facebook relationship quiz, but musicians aren’t supposed to be good role models anyway, so who’s really surprised?
So where’s Kimberlite been for the last two years? Let’s please just accept that it’s been a hard time for everyone, and understand that real life has gotten in the way of a lot of passion projects. We’ve got a lot in the works and are trying to get ourselves back together.
Hand printed sleeve designed by the inestimable graphic artist Elaine Banks.
You can pre-order now at
WWW.RARETOONES.COM
Release Date - 10th Dec 2021

releases

By Rare Toones in News Archives · December 1, 20213 yr

This Is Lowrider Soul Vol 2 - VA - Kent Records CD
A brief clip from the release notes by Ady Coasdell tells the story.
It’s been almost three years since Sean Hampsey and the Southern (California) Soul Spinners created “This Is Lowrider Soul” for Kent Records, and the ensuing acclaim and enjoyment have made this second volume essential.
The full release notes can be read via the Ace website - tap here

Booklet Preview
A glossy 24-page booklet featuring images and informative notes written by Sean Hampsey

Tracks
Side 1
01 So Much In Love - The Exceptions
02 Please Say It Isn't So - Lee Williams & The Cymbals
03 Somebody Please - The Vanguards
04 Yes I'm Ready - The Hesitations
05 You Never Loved Me (At All) - Barbara Mason
06 Sad, Sad Story - The Ethics
07 Try Love (One More Time) - The Sparkels
08 Follow Your Heart - The Manhattans
09 Someone - The Lovers
10 Little Girl - Darrow Fletcher
11 I Want You - Dee Torres
12 It Hurts So Much - The Superbs
13 I Want You (Back) - The Larks
14 Trust In Me - The Magicians
15 Believe In Me - The Hyperions
16 Here It Comes - The Persians
17 Can't Nobody - Brothers Of Soul
18 That's The Way Our Love Is - The Radiations
19 My Sweet Baby - The Mark-Keys
20 Don't Take Your Love From Me - The Perfections
21 (I'm Not Ready To) Settle Down - Little Ben & The Cheers
22 You Can't Blame Me - Johnson, Hawkins, Tatum & Durr
23 What Am I Going To Do - Houston Outlaws
24 A Man That Is Not Free - Soul Sensations

CD Availability
Available now at all your usual soul stockist including your own Source Store here...

releases

By Mike in News Archives · November 26, 20213 yr

Long time readers of Soul Source may sit up to this heading. Back in the 1990s here on Soul Source, one member aka @Benji told us how he had got hold of the original test pressing copy of this never released lp. Sourced from the producer/engineer (memory) and of course the lp contained the 'original never released mix' of 'Hold On' a powerful 4+ minutes long version, which went onto be a classic play at the Capitol Soul Club Dome events in London for Irish Greg at the turn of the century.
Well, 20 odd years since then and 50 plus years since the lp was recorded the lp has finally had a (digital) release and is now available via the likes of Spotify and so on
Judy Freeman & Blackrock - Lp - Digital release -1971

By Mike in News Archives · November 25, 20213 yr

1975... the year that broke the mould! 12 months that saw the musical direction of the scene broker two different styles, acceptable to many, hard to swallow for some.
208 pages determining exactly where allegiances would lie...fully documented, many photographic items never in print before, along with media coverage of those heady times and the advertising to go with it.. the banality, the fun and the vociferous voices..
a year in the life of the devotee to the ever changing, constantly strange world of Northern Soul...and its Modern bedfellow!
Tim Brown, puts it all into sharp focus and perspective. The real world through the eyes of one of the scene's foremost experts on not just the vinyl but the history as a whole.
This will make a fascinating read for any collector and a momentous year end addition to your personal library!
Official Description:
The first ever detailed look at a specific year in the life of Northern Soul focuses on its most important year. It was the year when seventies soul was embraced to sit alongside traditional sixties stompers in all dancehalls and venues such as Cleethorpes Pier and The Ritz, Manchester as all-dayers took a hold on the scene. Wigan Casino and the Blackpool Mecca remained as twin towers of the nightlife however. Television, radio and newspapers were fascinated by the ultimate underground music scene and this book analyses their interest. Tim Brown, author of "The Wigan Casino Years" details all the events and records that make 1975 Northern Soul`s most important year, many of which are recounted for the first time. A definitive account of a year in the life of Northern Soul, richly illustrated in full colour.
Check out the Anglo American website (link below) for full details of how to purchase
https://www.raresoulvinyl.co.uk/
or email : raresoulvinyl@btconnect.com
Or call: 01706 818604

books

By Agentsmith in News Archives · November 18, 20213 yr

Autumn arrives and so does...
The Soul Up North #110 Autumn 2021 issue is now out and about, as always brimming with soul related words and info
Contents of this issue follow
Soul Up North #110 Autumn 2021
Issue Details
OPENING PAGE : CONTENTS – EDITORIAL & INFO
GOOD TOONS & GREAT GROOVES
Dave Halsall
TRACK LISTING FOR COLLECTORS CD – ‘ACROSS THE BOARD & BACK’ (PART 2)
Steve ‘Waggy’ Wagstaff
FUNK IN YO’ FACE – “NOT SUCH A NASTY GAL – AN APPRECIATION OF BETTY DAVIS”
Howard Priestly
SOUL SPOTLIGHT – B.R.C RECORDS (PART 1)
Steve Guarnori
HOT OFF THE VINYL PRESS
Howard E
FIVE TIMELESS GEMS REVISITED – THE SEVENTIES
Martin Scragg
HOT OFF THE VINYL PRESS -- EXTRA
Howard E
SOUL IN A DIGITAL AGE
John Farrar
THE LADIES CHOICE – COLLECTING RARE SOUL
Julie Molloy
THOSE LITTLE SILVER DISCS
Howard E
SOULFUL SEVENTIES SPINS aka ‘PLUMB’S PEACHES’
Steve Plumb
SOUL IN PRINT – MAGAZINES & FANZINES (Part 13)
Iain McCartney
1964 – THE YEAR BILLBOARD ABANDONED R&B
John Smith
MD RECORDS CONTINUED - 2021
Mark Anderson
COLLECTING BRITISH
Lord Snooty
HEAVEN IN THE AFTERNOON – HIBS SOUL CLUB
George Reed
FLASHBACK FEATURES – BILLY YOUNG
Terry Hennessey
VIEW FROM THE APE HOUSE
Tim Brown
And finally…DEEP SOUL CORNER
Mike Finbow
Cover Photo – Betty Davis

Available now via all your usual outlets and of course your very own Soul Source store (link below)
https://www.soul-source.co.uk/store/product/454-soul-up-north-110-autumn-2021/

By Mike in News Archives · November 16, 20213 yr

𝗡𝗘𝗪 𝗥𝗘𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗘 𝗙𝗥𝗢𝗠 𝗦𝗢𝗨𝗟4𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗟 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗦!
𝗣𝗔𝗧𝗧𝗜 𝗟𝗮𝗕𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗘 & 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗕𝗟𝗨𝗘𝗕𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗦
How Can You Throw My Love Away / When Joe Touches Me (S4R17)
Listen here:

The Patti LaBelle and The Bluebelles period in Atlantic wasn't a success story. According to Jerry Wexler, neither the material nor the promotion was right for Patti, Nona and Sarah, pigeon-holed into some sort of Supremes role which did them no good, especially after Cindy Birdsong, the fourth Bluebelle, left the group to replace Florence Ballard.
However, their later recordings for Atlantic didn't lack quality. Some fine examples are the unreleased tracks featured on this record, two fabulous slabs of crossover soul produced by Don Davis and (presumably) Curtis Mayfield.
"How Can You Throw My Love Away" was also recorded by Carla Thomas on her "Memphis Queen" LP, although this unissued take has Detroit stamped all over it, a perfect example of 1968 Motorcity sound. The bizarrely named flip, though, has all the warmth and sophistication of a Chicago production. Recorded in 1969 at the same session as their Curtis Mayfield-produced 45 "Trustin´ In You / Suffer", it's pretty safe to think that he was also involved, as it was even produced at Chi-Sound Inc.
𝗘𝗗𝗨𝗔𝗥𝗗𝗢 𝗗𝗢𝗠𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗢
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Presented in a beautiful picture cover laminated 7" designed by Jordi Duró. Liner notes by Eduardo Domingo.
𝗣𝗥𝗘 𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗘𝗥 𝗡𝗢𝗪 for 25th November 2021
14 𝗲𝘂𝗿𝗼𝘀 + postage as it follows:
1 to 5 copies: 6,80 euros UK & Europe
1 to 5 copies: 2,50 euros Spain
1 to 5 copies: 10,45 euros USA & rest of the world
𝗣𝗮𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗯𝘆 𝗣𝗔𝗬𝗣𝗔𝗟 𝗮𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 & 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆:
soul4realrecordlabel@gmail.com
Check previous releases: www.soul4real.es

releases

By Alexsubinas in News Archives · November 10, 20213 yr

A letter from Lorraine Silver was featured in an early days article on here via Pete Smith (link at bottom), fast forward 24 years and here's what shes up to today in 2021
Had the below press release sent in to us...
Lorraine Silver - Fever Raging Out Of Control - The Brand New Single Impacting 3rd December 2021
Northern Soul legend Lorraine Silver recorded Lost Summer Love when she was just 13 years old in August 1965. Whilst not a chart hit on its release, the track did become a massive anthem at the iconic Wigan Casino and was reissued on the Casino Classics label in the late 70s selling in excess of 30,000 copies. However, Lorraine knew nothing of her heroic Northern Soul status until the late 80s.
23 years after the original recording, Lorraine’s husband, agent Barry Collings, was reading Blues & Soul magazine which featured a top ten selection of favourite Northern Soul tracks that included Lost Summer Love. Lorraine called the editor and was flabbergasted to discover it really was her song. Following this, her story was told in a whole selection of Northern Soul publications. She contacted the original record company PYE and was told that the track had sold some 34,000 copies worldwide and she could claim her royalties!
At around the same time Barry was involved in promoting Northern Soul weekends across the country and Lorraine was able to meet all the DJs who had been playing her record for years. She was persuaded to get up and do a couple of PA’s of Lost Summer Love much to the delight of the audience who were queueing for autographs.
Since then, Lorraine’s resurrected career has gone from strength to strength, with airplay on BBC Radio 2, performances at Northern Soul events, and an appearance at the Edwin Starr Memorial Concert alongside the likes of Clem Curtis, Geno Washington, and Jaki Graham. In 2011 she was asked to join the line-up of a new touring show ‘The Mod All Star Band’ with artists she herself had idolised in the 60s including Steve Ellis and Chris Farlowe.
Now, at the age of 70, Lorraine continues to perform, record, and release new material in a career that now spans an incredible 57 years. Her brand-new single Fever Raging Out Of Control was produced by legendary Northern Soul DJ Ian Levine who has also produced pop hits for Take That including ‘A Million Love Songs’ and ‘Could It Be Magic’. The final mix of the track was done by Nigel Lowis who has also worked with Burt Bacharach, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Stevie Wonder, Luther Vandross, Mariah Carey and Celine Dion to name just a few.
And…that original recording of Lost Summer Love, has now become quite the collector’s item, with a recent copy selling on eBay for some £700.00!
Video Lorraine Silver - Fever Raging Out Of Control

UK TOUR DATES

2022
MINEHEAD, BUTLINS, MADNESS HOUSE OF FUN WEEKENDER
Saturday 5 Feb
TAMWORTH, ASSEMBLY HALL
Saturday 12 Feb
BASINGSTOKE, HAYMARKET THEATRE
Saturday 5 Mar
DEAL, ASTOR THEATRE
Saturday 12 Mar
FELIXSTOWE SPA PAVILION
Friday 29 APR
PRESTON, RIVA
Friday 6 May
RHYL, PAVILION
Friday 20 May
BASILDON, TOWNGATE THEATRE
Saturday 28 May
ISLE OF WIGHT, SHANKLIN THEATRE
Saturday 9 July
MILTON KEYNES, STABLES THEATRE
Friday 22 July
STOCKPORT, RUGBY CLUB, NORTHERN SOUL ON THE PITCH
Friday 29 July
EASTLEIGH, CONCORDE CLUB
Saturday 17 Sep
SCUNTHORPE, BATHS HALL
Friday 30 Sep
CHRISTCHURCH, REGENT CENTRE
www.lorrainesilver.com
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION & INTERVIEW OPPORTUNITIES:
Please contact Barry Collings 07717848115

By Mike in News Archives · November 9, 20213 yr

LRK Records have their first-ever full length LP (LRKLP-01) by Laura Rain and The Caesars up for pre-order.
8th April 2022 release date.
All Formats available (LP/CD/DIGITAL) and a 45 of the hit and the first mix of "I Am" and a brand new mix of "In My Life"
Pre-order here: https://lrkrecords.bandcamp.com/album/rise-again
Laura Rain and The Caesars have returned with their fifth full album:
Rain is able to convey an inspiring vocal as the song evolves, with her soprano lifting through the melody, encouraging the listener that "it's gonna be okay.....we will rise again." - SoulTracks
Thet title track Rise Again is an organ-led, old school Detroit flavoured. Busy and bustling, it’s bound to add momentum to Laura’s upward career trajectory and once again it underlines Ms. Rain’s soul credibility as it builds to a powerful climax. We look forward to the album which, we’re told, is named for this single! - SoulFunkandJazz
The haunting piano refrain meets the gospel tinged voices and Hammond organ effortlessly, giving Rain the space to deliver her inspirational message of hope, equality, healing and triumph. I think this could be the best single to date! - Soulstrutter

CHANNELING VINTAGE SOUL AND R&B: DETROIT'S LAURA RAIN UNLEASHES FIFTH ALBUM "RISE AGAIN"
The last year and a half was quite a flurry of activity for husband and wife songwriting team George Friend and singer Laura Rain. Their smashing Motor City soul band Laura Rain and the Caesars released a non-stop carousel of new singles, signed a UK record deal, collaborated on a successful sample collection, took home three Detroit Music Awards, and recorded their fifth full length album "Rise Again" to be released sometime in 2022.
The pair navigated the pandemic working from home non-stop; writing, recording, and collaborating with other artists. Landing a vinyl deal in the UK, and a placement with producer Jermaine Dupri's artist LaTheGoat on "You Wouldn't Believe Me", proved the songwriters they were getting somewhere.
"The pandemic has been tough on everyone" says Rain. "We used our time wisely to connect with others, and keep our music flowing. We write and record a lot of music at home, but reaching out and collaborating really helped keep us focused. Without being able to perform live, it felt good to be creating with others while stuck at home".
Following up a series of singles released in 2020, "Rise Again" is the culmination of the songwriters' recent inspiration. Channeling the spirit of vintage soul, Laura Rain delivers her music with a fearless sense of emotion and range, offering up a signature blend of contemporary soul and vintage R&B. From the Detroit flavored northern soul opener "I Am" to the synth driven retro dance music of "I'm Yours," Rain uses the power of her own voice to deliver the group's unique vision.
Producer and songwriter George Friend says "Since our very first album, we have always tried to stay true to ourselves and remain authentic. We mix a lot of music in interesting ways. We write and perform blues, dance music, soul...there's a lot of variation in styles, but we tend not to worry too much about the categories imposed on the music". Laura adds "We don't imitate, we originate. When performing, we really want to keep the audience engaged and excited. It's tougher to do that in the studio, but we've written our music with the live show in mind".
Vocalist Rain is known for her melismatic, and gut-wrenching delivery live. From the heartfelt, romantic grooves of "Take My Hand" and "Bring it on Back", to the hard-driving rock/soul strut of "Diamond in the Rough", Rain sings with authentic passion, and uses her voice to effortlessly guide the melodies and dynamics. Both "I Can Fly" and "Runnin' in Circles" demonstrate her acrobatic vocal finesse, while gliding over a funky backbeat from the Caesars. The music is diverse, and the group demonstrates a versatility few can ignore.
The title track "Rise Again" is a focal point for the production, resulting from a collaboration with Seattle based beatmaker/producer UNKWN. "We were fortunate to meet, and write a bunch of material together" says Friend of their album "Garnet", a sample collection which was released early 2021. The song was composed around a sample from the release, and arranged with the addition of the full band in the recording. Rain sings a personal message of triumph and hope, climaxing with an inspirational note of unity and equality. "The world is clearly out of sorts with itself" says Rain, "the song embodies an idea of what I wish us to feel as humans, and to know we're not alone...
We're all here together to comfort and take care of each other, and to lift each other up".
Scheduled for 8th April 2022 release date

PRE-ORDER HERE: https://lrkrecords.bandcamp.com/album/rise-again
Rise Again by Laura Rain and The Caesars

releases

By LRK in News Archives · November 5, 20213 yr

Been dropped news about Soul Directions new label imprint 'Origins'
Soul Direction Label 'Origins'
'This label will focus on rare and obscure soul releases and bringing them to a wider audience in the soul community. All releases are licensed through the proper channels and are hopefully giving back to the writers and artists that deserve it.'
Audio and scans of the first 45s lined up for a mid November release follow below
The Combinations - Too Long (I've Been Waiting/ Please Don't Leave Me - Soul Direction Origins SDO-1001
SDO-1001- Combinations-Too Long Ive been waiting.mp3

Sir Joe - Nobody Beats My Love/ If You Give Up Your Love - Soul Direction Origins SDO-1002
SDO_1002A_SIR_JOE_Nobody_Beats_My_Love_M_2496_29-06-2021.mp3

https://soul-direction.co.uk/

Video Promos

releases

By Mike in News Archives · November 3, 20213 yr

This evening brings the sad news of the passing of Dr Edward J Wolfrum. Ed was the man behind the screen, the engineer for Motown, Golden World, and United Sound Systems studio, and from the very late 60s running his business from home under the name of Audio Graphics until recently. It's a sad day for music, in the UK we know and take for granted songs such as The Tomangoe's. I Really Love You. Washpan. Norma Jenkins. The Airplane Song. Maltese. The Utopias. Girls Are Against Me. La Salle. Marva Whitney. Savin' My Love For You Baby. Federal. Edwin Starr. Stop Her On Sight/Headline News. Ric Tic. Larry Wright. Sweet, Sweet Kisses. Ago go. Brothers of Soul, Candice Love.. and hundreds more.
The passing of Ed has a personal connection with myself, I, Chris King, and Guy Hennigan visited his house in 1985. And later trips I made with Andy 'tats' Taylor, Rob Wigley we found the un-released version of My Dear Heart. Barbara Mercer, and Gwen Owens. You Better Wake Up (before we break up) Candy. Ben Knight. Popcorn Wyley's Sweet Understanding. Got 3 Golden World acetates. Gwen Owens. Hit and Run, Heart Trouble, and Daddy-O.
Visited Ed +Sue Wolfrum with John Kingan in 94 Each time went out for dinner, alongside Artie Fields (Top Dog) and heard some wonderful stories, and not all musical.

Rest on Ed, you did your bit, and more

Gonna miss you
Gilly

By Gilly in News Archives · November 2, 20213 yr

Ella Woods & Miss Lady by Kenb
Ella Woods was born in Lexington, Mississippi and moved with her family to L.A when she was 5 years old. She studied opera/classical at U.S.C and majored in English Literature at Redlands. In 1970 she spent 18 months with The (Buck Ram} Platters.
It's said she completed a love song for "Slaughter", a 1972 blaxploitation low-budget film starring Jim Brown. However no soundtrack LP was ever issued. (The theme song for Slaughter was written and performed by Billy Preston which went on to feature in Quentin Tarantino's
lnglourious Basterds 2009 film}.

artists

By Kenb in Articles · November 2, 20213 yr

Over last year or so you long time member @Andybellwood has been working on a new label, looking like it's all coming together as we have just had details of the first release for 2022!
A limited release of a previous unreleased version of 'I’m Com’un Home In The Morn’un' recorded all the way back in 2004
Here's the blurb, flyer and can check out the video below...
Sleeve Notes Clip
How this release came about, was that musically, on fire and inspired by words and advice from his friend Curtis Mayfield, veteran Chicago soul/blues vocalist Lou and a backing band, visited David Earl's Severn Record studios, Maryland USA In 2004. There he recorded a treasure trove of soul for the 'Keep on Believing' (Severn Records) cd release, plus remarkably a complete remake of his 1972 Northern Soul classic 45 "I'm com'un home in the morn'un" which was originally released on El Paso (Texas) label, Suemi and now commands in excess of £7k.
In addition to the full length 2004 recording which forms the flip side, the A side (also produced by David Earl) is a new Dj /radio station edit destined to be a dance floor and Northern Soul favourite.
Detour Records in conjunction with Last Bastion Records brings you this Monster Northern Soul release....
Pre-Orders being accepted now for this MUST HAVE 45.
RELEASE DATE IS: FRIDAY 25th FEBRUARY 2022
LOU PRIDE - I'm Com'un Home In The Morn'un 7"
PRESENTING.....
Last Bastion Records ‘Making Music Matter’.
A new indie label committed to making recordings available for the first time, on limited edition 45s.
First up on our label is Lou Pride’s sensational 2004 unreleased recording of ‘I’m Com’un Home In The Morn’un” This is not a reissue of the 1970’s Suemi 45.
“It's been my pleasure and privilege to have had the opportunity to release this limited edition 45 and in doing so, launch Last Bastion Records. Hopefully it's also a fitting tribute to George Louis Pride” Andy Bellwood (Last Bastion Records)
Neither track has previously been committed to vinyl, with the A side previously unreleased in any format. Only 300 Copies being pressed and once they are gone they are gone!
FEATURES
I'm com'un home in the morn'un (Radio edit Version)
I'm com'un home in the morn'un (Full Length 2004 Version)

£12.00 Plus delivery via http://shop.detourrecords.co.uk/epages/es785745.sf/?ObjectPath=/Shops/es785745/Products/LOUIMC-45

releases

By Mike in News Archives · October 31, 20213 yr

People Get Ready: The Curtis Mayfield Songbook - VA (Songwriter Series) is Kent Records latest addition to its long running 'Songwriter Series'.
Billed as 'An extensive overview of the words and music of Chicago’s Gentle Genius Of Soul', this cd focuses on Curtis Mayfield. Offering a select selection from his vast catalogue of songs.
A brief clip from the release notes by Tony Rounce says it all.
The “Gentle Genius” from Chicago’s Cabrini-Green projects wrote for the romantic, and also for the revolutionary. His songs spoke to his people, and for his people. Many of his biggest successes as writer carry important social messages, others simply say “you are beautiful and I love you”. All of them are finely crafted masterpieces that confirm Curtis’ standing as one of the great creators of 20th century popular song.
The full release notes can be read via the Ace website - tap to visit

People Get Ready: The Curtis Mayfield Songbook - VA (Songwriter Series) CDTOP 506
Booklet Preview
A glossy 20-page booklet featuring images and detailed notes written by Tony Rounce.

Tracks
01 Gypsy Woman - The Impressions
02 The Monkey Time - The Miracles
03 Behind The Curtains - Jan Bradley
04 Rainbow (Alt) - Gene Chandler
05 Mama Didn't Lie - The Orlons
06 Um, Um, Um, Um, Um, Um - Major Lance
07 I've Been Trying - Jerry Butler
08 Queen Majesty - The Techniques
09 It's All Over - Walter Jackson
10 He Will Break Your Heart - Freddie Scott
11 People Get Ready - Dionne Warwick
12 That's What Love Will Do - The Gaylads
13 Man's Temptation - The Jackson 5
14 Give Me Your Love - Barbara Mason
15 Need To Belong To Someone - Isaac Hayes
16 I'm So Proud - The Main Ingredient
17 Make Me Believe In You - Patti Jo
18 Keep On Keeping On (UK single edit) - Curtis Mayfield
19 The Makings Of You - Gladys Knight & The Pips
20 Let's Do It Again (Single edit) - The Staple Singers
21 Look Into Your Heart (Single edit) - Aretha Franklin
22 Never Stop Loving Me - Keni Burke
23 Giving Him Something He Can Feel - En Vogue
24 Hard Times - John Legend & The Roots featuring Black Thought

Availability
Available now at all your usual soul stockist including your own Source Store here...
https://www.soul-source.co.uk/store/product/447-people-get-ready-the-curtis-mayfield-songbook-va-song-writer-series-kent-records-cd/

releases

By Mike in News Archives · October 29, 20213 yr

The Drifters Girl throws a spotlight on the murky world of a music industry often marked by accusations of betrayal, exploitation and plagiarism through a complex web of accusation and counter accusation. Soul music history is of course rife with such tales, but few matched The Drifters in its scale and length.If you probe a bit further you find a litany of broken promises and contracts , poached talent and double crossing that many football fans might recognise.The Drifters Girl musical presents Faye as a feisty heroine fighting for the groups name , but the Treadwell family made some shrewd and sometimes ruthless decisions to assert control over what in effect was less of a creative collective and more of a lucrative ‘Brand “ or Franchise. The show includes Faye declaring
“The Drifters are like the New York Yankees , you can change the team but you can’t replace the Yankees.” .
The Treadwell’s are just three members of a complex web of characters who , over 60 years , fought for rewards that came with such a popular brand name.

“There Goes My First Love “

In 1953 Atlantic Records co founder Ahmet Ertegun seized an opportunity to coax Clyde Mc Phatter , lead tenor with Billy Ward and the Dominoes - away with the promise of his own backing group, The Drifters.Ertegun initially recruited, but soon ditched five members of the gospel Mount Lebanon Singers , in favour of another line up which achieved early success for Atlantic .Mc Phatter later used his army draft as the opportunity to pursue a solo career leaving the Drifters. In doing so he sold his share of the groups name to George Treadwell. In doing so Clyde later admitted that he denied the existing and subsequent members little or no control over the group or their income.
Treadwell was a Jazz Trumpeter and husband of Sarah Vaughn , Under Treadwells control the group achieved success but was soon marred by financial disputes and departures including lead tenor Bill Pinkey , who was later to form his own group “ Bill Pinkney's Original Drifters” , further disputes also saw former members start ‘The Original Drifters ‘, Within five years of the groups birth there had been, at least 5 lines ups involving three groups and three managers in dispute over control of the brand. During a performance of at the Harlem Apollo feuds escalated to fights, and in a ruthless move Treadwell sacked all the group and persuaded the manager of The Five Crowns (Lover Patterson) to rebrand them as The Drifters, bringing B E King as lead. Musically this is the equivalent of Wimbledon FC being relocated to Milton Keynes as a new entity , which rightly earned the wrath of most football fans . Treadwell’s decision also didn’t initially go down well with the Drifters fans who were loyal to Mc Phatter . This reportedly saw some frosty audiences before most succumbed to Ben E King and chart success . Treadwell’s loyalty to his wife was equally flimsy . During a stay in LA he wooed a member of the Board of Education and daughter of Arkansas Baptist Minister Fayrene Johnson, who turned a blind eye to his marital status , until they were free to wed. The musical suggests Faye impressed George with some shrewd and adept suggestions and that he eventually took her on board to help manage the group.

Following Mc Phatters’s departure the Drifters were plagued by further complex changes in their line up.Ben E King’s period is often cited at their ‘Golden Years ‘ but in truth Johnny Moore was the groups main stay during their most successful period in the late fifties and early sixties . During this time group members were in effect salaried employees of the Treadwells ‘Drifters Inc’ , Members of a group often referred to as ‘The Treadwell Drifters.’ Group members were denied a share of royalties or record shares and any right to use of the groups name. This was a period of relentless touring schedules , which continued into the seventies and eighties . At one point , Moore, the groups mainstay quit due to exhaustion but later returned only to die of pneumonia aged just 64. He was cremated in Croydon in 1998.George Treadwell met an early death in 1967 aged just 47 , and Faye was left with control of the group.
Litigation and a move to the UK
In 1969 magazine editor Larry Marshak planned a series of retro Rock and Roll tribute shows and recruited some former members to perform. (Finding an ex and often emitted Drifter never proved too difficult , there have been at least sixty in circulation . ) He subsequently began to promote them as The Drifters , which triggered a twenty year litigation battle with Faye Treadwell over rights over the name.Faced with declining sales and chart success in a new age of music in 1972 Faye moved The Drifters to England where they secured both extensive live tours and chart success with an extension of their brand of popular RnB/Soul. The UK offered Faye and the ever changing Drifters a wealth of cabaret and working mens clubs and provincial theatres as well as a number of US Air Force bases, not to mention markets in mainland Europe. In the stage show there is evidence that the move also allowed Faye to delay costly US litigation proceedings, which led to an accusation of ‘abandonment’ of the brand name in the USA . Whilst UK success later helped fund Faye’s litigation , it brought with it further splits and legal wrangles. So in the same year that The Drifters were inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame , a legal battle was being played out in the UK by rivals operating out of Woking and Cleveleys. You could imagine “There Goes My First Love” playing over this sad event.
Two former members of The Drifters Inc , Tour Manager Mark Lundquist and Agent Phil Lunderman set up The Drifters UK.It was eventually resolved in Faye’s favour. (Public records reveal that Lundquist was allegedly fighting for performance revenues that averaged £218,000 a year, hardly lavish !)By 2001 Faye returned to the USA allegedly bankrupt. Control was handed over to her daughter Tina (who is featured in the Drifters Girl show as a child) it was to be another seven years before the litigation with Larry Marshak was resolved in Faye’s favour of the Treadwells.
By which time the number of variations of The Drifters had exceeded to absurd levels . These would include The American Drifters, Don Thomas and the Drifters, The Dock Green Drifters , The UK Drifters , The Drifters Legends, Clyde Mc Phatters Drifters , Bill Pinkeys Original Drifters , The New Drifters. At least a third of these were in the UK . There was a version of The Drifters to suit every purse, cause and venue. They were booked by Princess Anne , Tony Blair and Bill Clinton, .They offered stage appearances for Primary school children, swooped in to a Birmingham ASDA for Children in Need , or you could win a chance to record your favourite Drifters song with them via The Daily Express . These were not mere ‘Tribute Acts’ , each of them might lay claim to a lineage that spread back to Ahmet Ertegun and Clyde Mc Phatter.
Faye Treadwell died of breast cancer aged of 84 in 2011.

Beverley Knight and Tina Treadwell
Today Tina Treadwell is president of the Treadwell Entertainment Group based in Los Angeles, a long way from the world of her parents. She was a graduate of Princeton University , and went on to a successful career as a Casting Manager for Disney Films .She written a number of award winning stage productions , served as a US Foreign Emissary in SE Asia and is planning a film about her parents. The West End Musical staring Beverley Knight was supposedly based on a book by Tina , but I have yet to find details of it .The Drifters were certainly not the only group to fracture into multiple line ups, Soul music is littered with similar stories. The Platters , The Temptations. Like the Drifters they hide stories of feuds , alleged betrayal, and often greed. Truth be told many of the audiences probably didn’t even care of the legacy of the group they were seeking. Yet you could argue that Brand over Band serves in some way to cheapen the music in some way.
Cool Notes
The Drifters Girl opens at the Garrick Theatre London next week.

artists

By Coolnotes in Articles · October 28, 20213 yr

Special Delivery - This Kind Of Love (Long Version) - SHOT 114
Details of Shotgun Records latest 45 release, available now.
SPECIAL DELIVERY: THIS KIND OF LOVE (Long Version)/ l'VE GOT TO BE FREE THE LONG VERSION of club soul favourite 'This Kind Of Love' by Special Delivery is scheduled for release on Shotgun Records. The 7" single will be available from 29 October.
The group evolved from Act 1 who recorded for Spring Records from 1973 under the direction of group leader Raeford Gerald, a prolific writer and producer. Terry Huff became lead singer in 1975 and they joined Mainstream Records where their records were credited to variations of 'Terry Huff & Special Delivery'.
When Huff left, the remaining four members - Chester Fortune, George Parker, Veronica Martin and Reginald Ross - recorded in Washington, D.C. and released three singles and a self-titled LP on Shield Records with national distribution via TK Productions.
Their third Shield single, issued in 1978, was a radio edit of 'This Kind Of Love' which, sadly, cut out the album version's spoken section by Chester and Veronica. It wasn't released in the UK where the song became a minor 1985 pop hit for Phil Fearon & Galaxy.
Shotgun Records and sister label One World Records are distributed by Selrec International. Further information is available from Paul Mooney and Paul Conroy. Radio plugging is handled by Steve Ripley.
Flyer

Video

Availability

Available now from all the usual online stockists including our/your very own Source Store
Tap below to visit

releases

By Mike in News Archives · October 27, 20213 yr

What’s It All About: The Counts
Press Release:   The Counts “What’s It All About/Watch The Clock” SJ1017
Release Date:   Monday 15th November 2021

The Fabulous Counts were originally a Detroit High School group of five musicians who hung out together performing at local sock hops. Through a later chance meeting in a Wurlitzer Music Store with a slightly older guy, accompanied by his mother buying him a new guitar the group eventually became six. The Fabulous Counts, Mose Davis (Organ and Piano), Demetrius ‘Demo’ Cates with ‘Demo being pronounced as De-Mo (Alto Saxophone and vocals), Jim White (Tenor Sax), Andrew T. Gibson (Drums) and Raoul Keith Mangrum (Percussion and Flute) met Leroy Emmanuel for the first time. Leroy had recently returned from New York’s Apollo Theatre where he had been working as a session musician in a show that showcased Dione Warwick and Timmy Shaw. Leroy by now a seasoned musician had been backing other notable blues, jazz and soul performers of the time, Betty Lavette, John Lee Hooker and Carolyn Franklyn etc. Leroy began hanging out with The Fabulous Counts and following a subsequent meeting between the original five members and their manager Fred McClure, Leroy was invited not only to join the group but due to his greater experience become its leader. Fred McClure also happened to be the manager of another notable Detroit vocal group The Singing Metros, Percy Williams, Robert Lee Suttles, Gordon Dunn, Joe Buckman and Alfred Mitchell whom he managed either side of their RCA tenure. Being the manager of both groups, McClure often used The Fabulous Counts as the backing musicians on many of the Metros live performances as well as their Pied Piper stablemate September Jones. McClure had previously been a lightweight boxing champion of Detroit. A great career was halted when he attained a dislocated shoulder in winning a fight with an opponent named Grier at the Olympia. McClure did try to fight again, but all he did was spoil a record of some fifty undefeated fights, although losing his last fight he was never floored. McClure did eventually quit the music business for a quieter life as an FBI agent! The Fabulous Counts also work frequently with Dwight ‘Spyder’ Turner after he left the vocal group, The Nonchalant’s notably featuring as the backing musicians on his R&B Billboard and Hot 100 chart hit “Stand By Me”. Originally recorded for release under the artists name Of Spyder Turner & The Fabulous Counts, The Fabulous Counts name was dropped due to contractual reasons at the insistence of their manager Fred McClure. The younger Fabulous Counts had originally just been performing cover versions of blues and jazz standards of the day had under Leroy’s leadership began to create a more funk orientated sound of their own. So armed with some of their own original material they began knocking on several local recording studios doors. It was local Detroit Record Entrepreneur Ollie McLaughlin who extended an invitation to step inside his studio to see what they had on offer. In just one take the Fabulous Counts laid down the classic and much covered funk hit “Jan, Jan”. Mclaughlin both impressed and surprised took the song to Atlantic Records suitably impressed they told McLaughlin to release it in Detroit and if the sales were favorable, they would pick it up. 110,000 copies sales later and Atlantic did pick it up placing it on their Cotillion subsidiary label. Under the supervision of producer Richard ‘Popcorn’ Wylie The Fabulous Counts had recorded a total of 3, 45 single releases for Mclaughlin’s Moira Label, Jan, Jan/ The Girl From Kenya (Moira -103), “Scrambled Eggs/Dirty Red” (Moira 105) and “Get Down People/Lunar Funk Moira (108) of which only “Scrambled Egg/Dirty Red” failed to chart. Both A and B-sides of all their 3 Moira releases featured on the 1969 Cotillion album amongst cover versions of popular songs of the day.

The Fabulous Counts left Moira Records during 1970 to join Armen Boladian’s Westbound label where they simply changed their name to The Counts. Charting during 1971 with their “What’s Up Front” album plus the release of a solitary 45 single “Thinking Single/Why Not Start All Over Again (Westbound 191)”. In 1972 while still part of the Westbound set up The Counts recorded two major label 45 singles under the pseudonyms of Bad Smoke Crawl Ya’ll Part 1&2 ((Chess-2124) and as Lunar Funk Mr. Penguin Part 1&2 (Bell 45-172) the latter being their biggest hit.

A subsequent move south to Atlanta, Georgia saw the group become a quartet with original members Jim White and Raoul Mangrum choosing to remain in Detroit. Now based in Atlanta they joined Michael Thevis’s Aware Records label. While with Aware they released two successful albums and a handful of 45 releases taken from each. Their first album “Love Sign” released during 1974 reached #45 on the US Black Album Charts and their final Aware album “Funk Pump” during 1975 reached #58 on the black Albums chart. The Lineup of The Counts on the Aware projects was original members Mose Davis, Leroy Emanuel, Demo Cates and Andrew Gibson with session musicians Jimmy “Junebug” Jackson Jr (Drums and vocals) and Jimmy Brown (Saxophone and vocals) being brought in to supplement the band at regular intervals. Although never officially breaking up The Counts members began to go their separate ways to explore different life opportunity’s.

During 1978 and while still in Atlanta Leroy Emanuel borrowed some money from his family and independently recorded several tracks which he hoped to tout around to independent record labels. By now Andrew Gibson had returned to Detroit so the late Jimmy “Junebug” Jackson stepped in as the drum on these sessions alongside Mose, Demo and Leeroy with the addition of local string section. Two of the songs from these sessions “What’s It All About” and “Motorcity” did eventually gain a 45 release when Leroy stuck a deal with Terry Mendelson to release them on his TM label. The Counts had previously known Mendelson through his brother Bernie while previously employed at Westbound. The TM 45 made very little noise through poor promotion and with many of the copies having mispressed labels. Although later reissued and mistakenly credited as being two previously unissued Westbound recordings on several later CD compilations it came to light that quite a few copies of this high quality elusive 45 had found their way into avid European Soul collector’s collections. With this in mind and after several years of cajoling with Leroy Soul Junction hopes to satisfy the demand amongst fans of this desirable record. The A-side “What’s It All About” features its composer Leroy Emanuel on lead vocals with the other Counts joining in on the chorus. The B-side of this 45 release which was taken from the same 1978 Atlanta sessions is the previously unissued Mose Davis penned “Watch The Clock” which is more in keeping with The Counts traditional funk groove and features Mose singing lead vocals, enjoy.
As previously mentioned, the Counts never officially broke up and over the ensuing years have periodically reunited for occasional one-off shows. Mose Davis has remained in Atlanta and can be found playing his keyboard in the city’s airport. Leeroy Emanuel and Demo Cates later relocated to Canada with Leroy forming a new funk band called The LMT Connection which led to him frequently touring Europe pre pandemic. Demo Cates while still working as a musician also branched out into the world of acting securing parts in TV and movies including The Lion King, the musical.
Words By:   David Welding
With acknowledgements to: Leroy Emanuel, Mose Davis, Dwight ‘Spyder’ Turner & Alfred Mitchell of The Metros.
For further information please contact Soul Junction at:
Tel: +44 (0) 121 602 8115 or E-mail: sales@souljunctionrecords.co.uk
To buy visit https://www.souljunctionrecords.co.uk/SJ1017.html or your usual stockists

SJ1017 -The Counts Promo.mp3

By Chalky in News Archives · October 25, 20213 yr

The latest (#27 no less) in the long running series of 'Northern Soul Connections' from @Kenb
Teens With Talent

Guests on the late Bob Abrahamian's Sitting In The Park radio shows would occasionally mention Teens With Talent (TWT).
The show of that name was first presented Sunday 17th Feb 1963 at the Studebaker Theater, in the Fine Art Building, sponsored by Sears Roebuck Y.M.C.A. The main principles behind that first TWT were Al Johnson & Johnny Nixon. Al Johnson was an Illinois Bell Telephone company employee long associated with youth work in Lawndale and other areas of Chicago's West & South sides
Started in 1965 with $500, Act IV Productions grew out of TWT to be self-supporting/profit making for the 40-60 youngsters making up the TWT 'troupe'. Al Johnson, Ernie Jenkins and James (Jimmy} Hudson (a volunteer worker at the A.B.C. youth center} all took roles. Act IV made records, staged productions, wrote & produced plays and published sheet music. Act IV Productions had offices above ....
Northern Soul Connection #27 ( click twice for best view)

Site info - You can check out Kens other quality 26 Northern Connections all available via his 'activity' profile page, the link follows below...
https://www.soul-source.co.uk/profile/37754-kenb/content/?type=cms_records5&change_section=1

connections

By Kenb in Articles · October 24, 20213 yr

WE ARE PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE THAT BMR 1007 FREDDIE HOUSTON B/W THE FIESTAS WILL BE READY AND AVAILABLE AT THE END OF NOVEMBER MUCH QUICKER THAN WE WERE ORIGINALLY TOLD, TO PRE ORDER PM HERE OR EMAIL bicknellmark@aol.com
BMR 1008 HAS ALSO BEEN ALLOCATED FOR THE END OF JANUARY 2022 AGAIN MUCH QUICKER THAN WE THOUGHT.
UNDER LICENCE FROM THE EMBASSY MUSIC CORPORATION (BMI) TO BIG MAN RECORDS, FROM OLD TOWN MASTERS, BOTH OF THESE RELEASES WILL NOW COME IN A CUSTOM SLEEVE WITH REGULAR COLLECTORS CARD IN A POLY SLEEVE.
FULL DETAILS HERE.

FURTHER NEW RELEASES TO FOLLOW IN 2022.

By Mark Bicknell in News Archives · October 21, 20213 yr

𝗝𝗔𝗜 𝗔𝗟𝗔𝗜, 𝗔 𝗡𝗘𝗪 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗 𝗟𝗔𝗕𝗘𝗟
PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE THE LAUNCH OF 𝗝𝗔𝗜 𝗔𝗟𝗔𝗜, A NEW LABEL SUBSIDIARY OF SOUL 4 REAL RECORDS AND ITS FIRST TWO REFERENCES BY THE RANCE ALLEN GROUP AND URSULA RICKS
𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗥𝗔𝗡𝗖𝗘 𝗔𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗡 𝗚𝗥𝗢𝗨𝗣 (𝗝𝗔𝗥01)
𝗦𝘁𝗮𝘆 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗠𝗲 / 𝗟𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀
LISTEN HERE:

After hearing them win a local Detroit gospel talent competition it was no surprise veteran promotions man Dave Clark took brothers Rance, Steve and Tom to Stax Records and they were signed to the subsidiary label Gospel Truth.
The Rance Allen Group were clearly no ordinary talent; "There’s Gonna Be A Showdown", the first track on their first album Truth Is Where Its At (1972), revealed in the opening minute the extraordinary lead vocal gymnastics of Rance, effortlessly swooping from delicate falsetto to gritty bass and back to a powerful falsetto. A new gospel sound was born.
Unfortunately, after four albums Stax folded. They made one album for Capitol (released under two different titles) a couple each for the re-started Stax, Myrrh and Bellmark, but without much commercial success, although their reputation continued to build.
In 2002 they signed with Tyscot Records and released "All The Way", a fabulous (CD only) album from which these two tracks are taken. The sound of contemporary gospel music had changed forever, and their blend of soul and jazz flavoured gospel appealed to traditionalists as well as those in the secular field, and performing at the Apollo Theater plus TV appearances on Arsenio Hall and Bobby Jones Gospel Shows brought this new gospel sound straight to the R&B masses.
"Stay With Me" has remained in high demand on the modern soul scene and is now available on 7” vinyl for the first time and is a fitting first release for Soul4Real’s new subsidiary label Jai Alai (pronounced Hi-Uh-Li) so don’t miss out on owning this limited edition collector’s piece.
𝗦𝘁𝗲𝘃𝗲 𝗛𝗼𝗯𝗯𝘀
(𝗦𝗼𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗥𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗼, 𝗧𝗼𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗪𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗥𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗼)
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𝗨𝗥𝗦𝗨𝗟𝗔 𝗥𝗜𝗖𝗞𝗦 (𝗝𝗔𝗥02)
𝗦𝘄𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝗧𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 / 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗠𝗲 𝗕𝘂𝗲
LISTEN HERE:

Having spent half a lifetime reviewing and playing new soul music I still get excited about the prospect of finding new artists. In this day and age, the internet has replaced the good hard graft of getting out there and doing the digging, but the end result is no less gratifying. Our beloved specialist record shops may have become virtual (or disappeared altogether) but social media has increased one’s exposure to our music.
So, how is it then that a music junkie like me could have completely missed "My Street" (Severn Records), the 2013 CD-only debut release by Baltimore-based soul/blues singer Ursula Ricks? Luckily, the guys at Jai Alai most certainly did not, and their new imprint will concentrate to on releasing 21st century gems like this on to 7” vinyl.
Even if you have the original album, you will still want this wonderful remix of "Sweet Tenderness". Severn’s boss, David Earl, has done an amazing remix that aims directly at the European soul scene’s dance floors. What you get is a string-laden stepper with the most sublime, almost unique, vocals and an instant recommendation from yours truly. On the flip is "Make Me Blue", the other real winner from the album, making this a contender for the classiest 7” release that you will buy this year.
𝗦𝘁𝗲𝘃𝗲 𝗛𝗼𝗯𝗯𝘀
(𝗦𝗼𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗥𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗼, 𝗧𝗼𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗪𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗥𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗼)
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Remastering by Jorge Muñoz-Cobo (Circo Perrotti). Label design by Jordi Duró.
𝗣𝗥𝗘 𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗘𝗥 𝗡𝗢𝗪 for 1st November 2021
13 euros + postage as it follows:
1 to 5 copies: 6,80 euros UK & Europe
1 to 5 copies: 2,50 euros Spain
1 to 5 copies: 10,45 euros USA & rest of the world
𝗣𝗮𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗯𝘆 𝗣𝗔𝗬𝗣𝗔𝗟 𝗮𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 & 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆:
soul4realrecordlabel@gmail.com
Check previous releases: www.soul4real.es

By Alexsubinas in News Archives · October 20, 20213 yr

Details of 'Piece Of Me'. a new album from Lady Wray, available from today (19th Oct 2021) for pre-order from Big Crown Records. Due out January 28th.
Big Crown Records is proud to present Piece of Me, the sophomore full length offering from Lady Wray. This is something of a homecoming for Nicole. Where her 2016 solo debut Queen Alone leaned more towards Soul and R&B with tinges of hip-hop, this record changes the mixture. It’s still R&B with the textures of analog Soul, but there is a heavy Hip Hop influence that brings the sum of Nicole’s career together in a new sound that will define her future. Boom-bap drums and chunky bass lines are front-and-center creating a perfect head-nodding backdrop for Lady Wray to take on the good, the bad, the difficult, and the joyful on her most personal collection of songs to date.

The title track, “Piece of Me,” which has already become a classic since it’s 2019 release is about the people in your life who need more than you are willing to give. This tune and the B side of the 7” “Come On In” were the first songs put to tape for this album and they were recorded with Nicole sitting in a chair 8 months pregnant with her daughter. Her voice is so powerful, so raw, so thorough on these initial songs—it’s wild to think that they were recorded this way. And even wilder to know that she knocked them all out in one take. Long time collaborator and producer Leon Michels keeps the musical backing restrained and expertly executed, setting up Lady Wray for the full spotlight and setting the tone for the rest of the album.

While the upbeat energies of “Under The Sun” and “Through It All” are sure to become hits that reconnect Lady Wray with her 90s R&B fanbase, “Where Were You” offers a behind the scenes look at what those days of stardom in her youth were really like. Nicole takes on the racial tension in America with her poetic and powerful “Beauty In The Fire” and leans heavy into her faith and church upbringing on the showstopper, “Thank You”. She gushes about the profound love she’s come to know for her daughter on “Melody” and celebrates life’s ups and downs on “Joy & Pain”. In 2021 it is rare to hear a varied yet cohesive album with no “skippers”, but that is what you have here in spades. The tried and true chemistry between Lady Wray and Leon Michels has undeniably found a higher level and this album stands as a testament to conviction and dedication for all of us to enjoy and be inspired by.
With this in mind, when talking about this record, for Lady Wray, it’s about a larger purpose. “My goal is always to help and to heal people with singing,” she explains. “Part of that is to try and bring back real music, real singing, so people can feel something again.” Now, she’s not dissing anyone here, to be clear. It’s just that Lady Wray cannot sing without tapping into something deeper, searching for that shared compassion between all of us. Perhaps it comes from her church upbringing, or maybe from her years of trials and tribulations in the music industry. Either way, Lady Wray is looking to bring that “Good Sound” back and the good feelings that come with it. She calls it “those inner hands,” and she always means to stir them up, grabbing your attention from within.
With past albums like the Lady project and Queen Alone, it’s hard to not acknowledge that Lady Wray plus Leon Michels production equals magic. But this magic is also coming from the fact that Lady Wray is now squarely herself, calling her shots, and singing to help heal first—everything else is secondary. “It’s a beautiful thing I’ve always wanted in my career, and now I have it,” Lady Wray says. “They encourage me to be me all day long.” This is Lady Wray at her finest, and she’s giving us all a piece of where she’s at these days.
Tracks
1. I Do
2. Through It All
3. Piece Of Me
4. Come On In
5. Under The Sun
6. Where Were You
7. Beauty In The Fire feat. Kenneth Wray Sr.
8. Games People Play
9. Melody feat. Melody Bloom Bacote
10. Thank You
11. Joy & Pain
12. Storms
Store links
Pre-Order the Colored LP, LP & CD in the BCR Webstore
https://bigcrownrecords.com/store/piece-of-me/
Pre-Order / Stream here:
https://smarturl.it/Piece-Of-Me

releases

By Mike in News Archives · October 19, 20213 yr

Out Now!
Epsilon Record Co.
Proudly presents its latest release: EPS004
Realside
A: WHEN I SEE YOUR SMILE
B: WHEN I SEE YOUR SMILE (EXTENDED VERSION)
“When I See Your Smile” is a truly beautiful and elegant soulful song, which was recently recorded in Jackson Mississippi in March 2021 for Epsilon Record Co.
Listen:

Buy it:
https://www.epsilonrecord.com/

REALSIDE
Born in 1942 in Jackson Mississippi, Walter Johnson began his musical career as a singer in a doo wop group in 1958.
A true veteran in the music business.
He met bassist Greg Smith in 1974 in class at Jackson State University in Jackson MS.
They started connecting and discovered that their mothers knew each other. At this time, Walter was the leader of a group called Rock-Bottom.
He asked Greg to play in the group.
They both moved to Kansas City in the early 1980s for work.
They formed a new group and called it Realside,
They just wanted to be real when writing their songs, music that touches you deep in your heart.
Walter was the lead singer at the time.
They wrote "Hang Loose" and “Flyin High” as well as "I got a Jones for you" on their own label called Walterhouse Records, all of which are extremely collectable these days.
Their records were well received locally and unknown to them, “Flyin High” & “Hang Loose” were bootlegged in 1984 on SBR (Song Bird Records) records. They only recently found out via the internet.
Walter got in trouble in the mid-80s and that was the end of Realdside.
Greg and Walter separated for almost 35 years but never forgot that they always loved music.
After living in Dallas, Texas for a few years, Walter returned home to Jackson Mississippi.
He found out that Greg was still living there and talked to him about getting him into another group.
They teamed up with a singer by the name of Tommy Johnson who they now work with almost every weekend.
Walter is now almost 80 years old and Greg 10 years younger. They decided to make music until they die.
They hope people will love “When I See Your Smile” and have many more songs to share with soul music lovers.
This is REALSIDE

releases

By Yann V in News Archives · October 17, 20213 yr

The McClintons Love Doctor' - 4 Track Disco 12 - 7th Galaxy
Super Disco Edits have a new 12 lined up for late October release, here's the labels blurb...
Welcome to our last instalment from Eryk and Antoinette McClinton. Brother and sister duo who recorded these demo tracks with Detroit legends Mike Theodore and Dennis Coffey. Recorded around 1979 these cuts were a spotlight on the duo's talents, hoping land them a record deal. Both had been active in the past with various recordings. Erik & the Vikings, and together as Eryke and Aronnette on Honey records.
Here we have Four cracking disco fused funky songs, "Love doctor" made it on to our record store day lp "Long Distance Love Affair" so you may have already heard this.
Accompanying this track are two more disco funk cuts. "Its all in your mind" & "Funky time Saturday night". Last and not least is the 2 step jam of "Recollections".
All four cuts included some tasty breakdowns.

The McClintons - Love Doctor unissued

The McClintons - Funky Time Saturday Night
The McClintons - Recollections
The McClintons Its All In Your Mind unissued Disco 12 7th Galaxy

Pre-order etc via
https://superdiscoedits.bigcartel.com/

By Mike in News Archives · October 15, 20213 yr

Hi Guys
Some great new Modern soul on my label Liquid Soul, all now available exclusively on www.sonicwaxrecords.com

JEFFRIES & EARLY - ILL GO
WINNER WINNER CHICKEN DINNER , CLICK THE SOUND FILE... YOU'LL SEE THIS REWORKING OF THE FABULOUS RASHAN PATTERSON 'I'LL GO' IS GOING TO FLY , ITS GOT IT ALL MAN . PERFECT MODERN ROOM STEPPING BEAT , BRILLIANT INSTRUMENTATION GENTLY BUILDING IN THE BACKGROUND & WILL'S SEAMLESS VOCAL IS THE ICING ON THIS SLAB OF SOUL CAKE .
JEFFRIES & EARLY - YOUR LOVE KEEPS WORKING ON ME
ORIGINALLY A CD ONLY RELEASE BY JOEY DIGGS BURIED AWAY ON AN ANIMATED MOVIE SOUNDTRACK , AS DISCOVERED & PLAYED BY THE HIGHLY RESPECTED MODERN SOUL SPINNERS TERRY JONES & LLOYD ATRILL BACK IN THE DAY. JEFFRIES & EARLY WITH THE SMOOTH VOCALS OF WILL BEE BRING THIS LITTLE KNOWN BANGING SOUL STEPPER BACK INTO LIGHT OF DAY ONCE MORE FOR THE PLEASURE OF ALL MODERN SOUL FANS.
JEFFRIES & EARLY - TREASURE MIND
MODERN SOUL FANS JUST CLICK THE SOUND FILE YOU'LL BE HOOKED, JEFFRIES & EARLY'S TAKE ON THE IMPOSSIBLY RARE TRACE OF SMOKE'S TREASURE MIND ORIGINALLY A B SIDE ON BJ RECORDS FROM 1978. FABULOUS INSTRUMENTATION & SHARP, TIGHT PRODUCTION FROM THE BOYS BUT WAIT UNTIL THE VOCAL HITS YOU. TICKS ALL THE BOXES, WE ARE SURE YOU'LL AGREE.
JEFFRIES & EARLY - SOMEBODY KNOWS HOW YOU FEEL
LIQUID SOUL 006; JEFFRIES & EARLY DJ FRIENDLY EDIT OF THE ORIGINALLY CD ONLY SUPER COOL MODERN SOUL BOUNCER FIRST PLAYED AS A NEW RELEASE IN THE LEGENDARY MODERN ROOM AT CLEETHORPES WEEKENDERS BACK IN 1996, FEATURING THE SWEET, SWEET VOCALS OF OUR VERY OWN WILL BEE. CHECK THE SOUND FILE , YOU'LL BE RUNNING FOR THE NEAREST DANCE FLOOR.
Enjoy Lee
VISIT SONIC WAX

modern soul

By perux in News Archives · October 9, 20213 yr

Daptone celebrates 20 years of soulful music with the release of The Daptone Super Soul Revue "LIVE at the Apollo".
Full digital album and 3xLP available now!
'Performed and recorded over three nights in front of a sold-out crowd at The World Famous Theater in Harlem, NY (December 4th - 6th, 2014), this album brings the electrifying performances that helped put Daptone on the map directly to your living room!
Featuring live sets from Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings, Charles Bradley and his Extraordinaires, Naomi Shelton and the Gospel Queens, Antibalas, The Budos Band, Menahan Street Band, Saun & Starr, The Sugarman 3, as well as our em-cee, Binky Griptite.
This album is lovingly dedicated to the memory of our dear friends Sharon, Charles, Naomi, and Cliff.'
The Daptone Super Soul Revue - Live at the Apollo (Trailer)

Photobook Preview

Tracklist:
Side One:
1. Introduction by Binky Griptite - The Dap-Kings
2. Hot Shot - Saun & Starr
3. Confess It - Saun & Starr
4. In the Night - Saun & Starr
5. Witch's Boogaloo - The Sugarman 3
6. Love Went Away - The Sugarman 3
Side Two:
1. Thank You Lord - Naomi Shelton and the Gospel Queens
2. Stranger - Naomi Shelton and the Gospel Queens
3. Higher Ground - Naomi Shelton and the Gospel Queens
4. Make the Road by Walking - Menahan Street Band
5. Out of the Wilderness - The Como Mamas
Side Three:
1. Heartaches and Pain - Charles Bradley (And His Extraordinaires)
2. The World (Is Going Up In Flames) - Charles Bradley (And His Extraordinaires)
3. Lovin' You Baby - Charles Bradley (And His Extraordinaires)
4. Slip Away - Charles Bradley (And His Extraordinaires)
5. How Long - Charles Bradley (Featuring the Menahan Street Band)
Side Four:
1. Let Love Stand A. Chance - Charles Bradley (And His Extraordinaires)
2. The Sticks - The Budos Band
3. Ain't It A Sin - Charles Bradley (Featuring the Budos Band)
4. Sáré Kon Kon Pt. 1 - Antibalas
Side Five:
1. Sáré Kon Kon Pt. 2 – Antibalas
2. Miss Sharon Jones' Intro - The Dap-Kings
3. He Said I Can - Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
4. If You Call - Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
5. Tell Me - Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
6. Get Up And Get Out - Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
Side Six:
1. Making Up And Breaking Up (And Making Up And Breaking Up Over Again) - Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
2. I'm Not Gonna Cry - Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
3. Calamity - Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
4. Every Beat Of My Heart - Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
5. There Was A Time - Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings (And Friends)
6. Family Affair / Outro - Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
Availability
Buy/Download/Stream via
https://daptone.ffm.to/dssr

By Mike in News Archives · October 4, 20213 yr

Out Now!
Epsilon Record Co.
Proudly presents its latest release: EPS007
Ira Raibon
Shake it off (Live) / You’re my dream (Live)
2 Sophisticated Modern Soul winners live performances that have never been released on a 45.
(limited to 300 copies only)
Listen:

Buy it now:
https://www.epsilonrecord.com/

Ira Raibon..." Is the musical genius behind the "Indiana Funk" sound that was heard throughout the world.
He shares songwriting credits with Gene Rogalski (Brady Bunch theme writer) for the 'Nursery Rhyme Song recorded by 70's teen idol/T.V. series 'Seattle', Bobby Sherman as well as songwriting credits with Freeman King, from the original "Sonny and Cher Show" for the "Vanguards" hit, "Gotta Have Love".
Ira is also the writer, singer, and saxophonist for the "Fabulous Souls" hit, "Take Me". The song and group credited for starting the"Digital Underground" (music on the internet).
For years historians and archivists believed he was from Indiana but the truth of the matter is Ira Raibon is from San Diego's North County, Oceanside.
Ira started playing instruments and singing at a very early age.
My mom said, I was singing at 2 months and she could put me down and I would just sing myself to sleep. At 3-5 years old, I remember listening to the old wringer washing machine and making up songs to the different rhythms it would be throwing out.
At 6-7 I rode a bus to school with high schoolers and I remember blowing their minds making up songs on the bus as we went to school. I started my instrumental study at 7.5 years with the clarinet although I had taken piano lessons from my mom prior to this.
I remember I could already play and didn't understand why I had to learn how to read music. So I threw all my books away and that had ended the piano lessons.
Today Ira performs and plays 40 instruments and performs all instruments on his recordings.

By Yann V in News Archives · October 2, 20213 yr

WE ARE PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE OUR NEXT BIG MAN RECORDS RELEASE BMR 1008 JESSE JOHNSON - LEFT OUT B/W YVONNE AND THE VIOLETS - CROSS MY HEART BOTH RECORDED BACK IN 1966 FOR OLD TOWN & BARRY RECORDS, UNDER LICENCE FROM EMBASSY MUSIC CORPORATION (BMI) TO BIG MAN RECORDS, THIS RELEASE WILL COME IN A CUSTOM SLEEVE, COLLECTORS CARD IN A POLY SLEEVE. TAKEN FROM OLD TOWN/BARRY MASTER FILES.
LEAD TIMES ACROSS THE INDUSTRY ARE STILL A LITTLE CRAZY BUT THIS RELEASE IS NOW IN PRODUCTION AND WILL BE RELEASED EARLY 2022, JESSE JOHNSON HAS BEEN A TOP DANCE FLOOR WINNER FOR MANY YEARS REMAINING HARD TO FIND ON THE OLD TOWN ORIGINAL, 'CROSS MY HEART' IS PURE GIRL GROUP DRAMA BIG HAIR, SPARKLY DRESSES AND SLING BACKS THIS BARRY RARITY STILL HAS THAT SOMETHING SPECIAL, FIRST TIME UK 45 OFFICIAL RELEASE FOR BOTH RECORDINGS.
PRE ORDERS SECURES A COPY, PM HERE FOR FURTHER DETAILS, EMAIL bicknellmark@aol.com
BMR 1008 - JESSE JOHNSON - LEFT OUT B/W YVONNE AND THE VIOLETS - CROSS MY HEART

Video Promos
QUIK_20210902_152401.mp4 QUIK_20210902_152718.mp4.f29ba984c55d9fc381f3cebd58cc16be.mp4

releases

By Mark Bicknell in News Archives · October 1, 20213 yr

Pee Wee Ellis, best known for his ground breaking work with James Brown, had worked as Esther Phillips' bandleader back in the 1970's; in an interview in (I believe) The Wire back in 1995 or so, he said he had some beautiful live show tapes which he would have liked to see released as a tribute to her.
Esther has always been one of my favorite female vocalists; I produced and annotated the 1984 Savoy Jazz "Complete EP Savoy Sessions" set (originally a double LP - one LP of early 1950's Johnny Otis Band sessions, the second covering her 1956 and 1959 solo works); it's still around as a CD through all of the subsequent Savoy changes of ownership. I contacted Ellis through his management and eventually arranged to meet with him while he was in New York (touring with Van Morrison). I had spoken with a couple of labels I had done work for (including Joe Fields' High Note label, successor to Muse which had put out my EP project during the time they owned Savoy) and there was definite interest in a CD.
We met at his hotel and I listened to a cassette he'd brought; beautiful soundboard quality and lovely performances of some EP classics ("And I Love Him", "Whisper To A Scream", etc., and a 20 minute version of "What A Difference A Day Makes" with long instrumental solos; nice material but not enough there for a CD. I asked if there was more, and he said he had more tapes "back in Vegas".
So we left it there; I tried to hook up with him again several times, but unfortunately the wheels fell of the car on this project. I'm sure those tapes are gone now, what a shame !!
Esther, to my mind, was at her best "live", and there are some lovely performances floating around on Youtube....

By Daniel Nooger in News Archives · September 29, 20213 yr

Another new soul cd release from Kent Records out this week.
Soul Superman / With A Dab Of Soul - VA (Pied Piper) CDKEND 505
The cd is actually two classic Detroit soul Pied Piper connected lps served up via the one cd.
The release notes from Ady Croasdell tell the story...
The rare soul scene is overwhelmingly a 7” record-collecting world but there are a few notable exceptions. 1967 saw two Detroit-recorded LPs issued from one of the most admired production teams in the city – Pied Piper Productions.
Motown musician Jack Ashford and his business partner Shelley Haims assembled the cream of Motown’s Funk Brothers musicians for the sessions and supplied classic sophisticated soul songs for the diverse artists who were to be given a shot at the album market.
Cleveland group the Hesitations had hit with their debut 45 ‘Soul Superman’ and this success gave them a chance to expand into the album market.
Detroit singer Freddy Butler’s more sophisticated ballad-singing was seen as ripe for an LP by the team....
...songs of Jack Ashford, Lorraine Chandler, Joe Hunter, Mike Terry and Herbie Williams – coupled with the best Detroit soul arrangers and musicians – mean this really is a case of dropping the needle anywhere and finding a gem.

With such high-quality music, it was inevitable the records’ prices would rise dramatically; originals are three-figure items. Here they are remastered from tape on one easily affordable CD.

The full release notes. purchase options and more can be found on Ace Records site https://acerecords.co.uk/soul-superman-with-a-dab-of-soul
Booklet Preview
A glossy 20 page booklet featuring images and detailed info as per below

Tracks
01 She Won't Come Back - The Hesitations
02 You'll Never Know - The Hesitations
03 You Can't Bypass Love - The Hesitations
04 I Believe To My Soul - The Hesitations
05 That's What Love Is - The Hesitations
06 Soul Superman - The Hesitations
07 Soul Kind Of Love - The Hesitations
08 I'm Not Built That Way - The Hesitations
09 I'll Be Right There - The Hesitations
10 Wait A Minute - The Hesitations
11 Soul Superman #2 - The Hesitations
12 Clap Your Hands - The Hesitations

13 There Was A Time - Freddy Butler
14 That's When I Need You - Freddy Butler
15 I Like Your Style - Freddy Butler
16 I Fell In Love (I Can't Help It) - Freddy Butler
17 Never Let Love Go - Freddy Butler
18 They Say I'm Afraid (Of Losing You) - Freddy Butler
19 This Thing! - Freddy Butler
20 Just Because You've Been Hurt - Freddy Butler
21 You'd Better Get Hip Girl - Freddy Butler
22 Give Me Lots Of Lovin' - Freddy Butler
23 She's Foolin' You - Freddy Butler
24 Deserted - Freddy Butler

Availability
Available now at all your usual soul stockist including your own Source Store here...
https://www.soul-source.co.uk/store/product/418-soul-superman-with-a-dab-of-soul-va-pied-piper-kent-records-cd/

releases

By Mike in News Archives · September 25, 20213 yr

Can I Be A Witness - Stax Southern Groove - Various Artists (Stax) Kent CD 507
Out today from Kent
A brand-new collection gathered from the Stax catalogue of southern-flavoured dancers, from soul to funk and in between.
Can I Be A Witness offers 20 tracks in total, 11 being previously unreleased.
The release notes from Kent tell the story better.
“Can I Be A Witness: Stax Southern Groove” features 11 previously unreleased tracks from such illustrious names as the Soul Children, Little Milton, the Emotions, the Sweet Inspirations, the Nightingales and Frederick Knight, amongst others.

The other nine tracks from artists such as Eddie Floyd, R.B. Hudmon, the Rance Allen Group and Eric Mercury delve deep into the archive, bringing you B-sides, obscure album cuts, dancefloor favourites and originally unissued tracks.
Full info including images and purchase options can be had via https://acerecords.co.uk/can-i-be-a-witness-stax-southern-groove

Booklet Preview
The booklet is well illustrated and comes with an in-depth essay from compiler Dean Rudland.

Tracks
01 Bad Water - Little Milton
02 Can We Talk This Over - Eddie Floyd
03 How Can I Be A Witness - R.B. Hudmon
04 Love Is Taking Over - Eric Mercury
05 Burning On Both Ends - The Nightingales
06 Forever And A Day - Mel & Tim
07 I Wanna Make Up (Before We Break Up) - Major Lance
08 You Ain't Playing With No Toy - The Soul Children
09 I Got To Be Myself - The Rance Allen Group
10 Passing Thru/World Keeps Turning - Frederick Knight
11 Ain't Enough Hours - The Emotions
12 Changes - Jeanne & The Darlings
13 Slow Down - The Nightingales
14 Soul Groove - Art Jerry Miller
15 Don't Fight The Feeling - The Sweet Inspirations
16 Three's A Crowd - The Temprees
17 Helping Man - Jean Knight
18 True Love Don't Grow On Trees (Demo) - Veda Brown
19 The Natural You - Ollie & The Nightingales
20 Leaning On Your Undying Love - Shack

Availability
Available now at all your usual soul stockist including your own Source Store here...
https://www.soul-source.co.uk/store/product/419-can-i-be-a-witness-stax-southern-groove-va-kent-records-cd/

By Mike in News Archives · September 24, 20213 yr

A recent release, Magnus Carlson teaming up with Kevin Fingier to offer 'Play To Win', the official details follow below...
Magnus Carlson Goes Latin!
PLAY TO WIN – THE NEW SINGLE FROM MAGNUS CARLSON
Blue eyed soul meets latin on the new single by platinum selling Swedish artist Magnus Carlson. When Magnus Carlson releases solo material outside his band Weeping Willows, he usually tries to seek out unexpected and surprising collaborations. On his new single “Play To Win” he has hooked up with Argentinian producer Kevin Fingier and his collective of the same name. Magnus had - like so many other soul and jazz aficionados - been completely blown away by Fingier’s rather edgy and tough, but yet very groovy latin sound and wanted a part of that for his next release. They wrote “Play To Win” on opposite sides of the planet and recording sessions and mixes was then sent back and forth between Kevin’s studio in Buenos Aires and the Cosmos Music Studio complex in Stockholm, until the right balance of latin, R&B and blue eyed soul had been struck.
The result is a cool, beat driven, no-nonsense, but soulful latin groove with Magnus' unmistakably warm and powerful vocals leading the charge.

Life is short
And my time is now
Roll the dice
Give the wheel a spin
I’ve paid the price
Now I Play To Win
Both Magnus and Kevin are passionate vinyl collectors and DJ’s. They share a passion for danceable live music with a strong sixties flavour - and a sound that is best enjoyed on the dance floor. They are both recording artists and songwriters in their own rights, but will surely work together again going forward. And even though they are based over twelve thousands miles apart, there is a palpable presence in this, their first collaboration.
"Play To Win” with Magnus Carlson feat. The Kevin Fingier Collective is released through Amigo/Cosmos with a Swedish language version called “Här Och Nu” as a second track.
More tracks from this project..

releases

By Mike in News Archives · September 23, 20213 yr

Article found online about the group formed circa 1965 in San Diego and recorded "This Is The Day" on John B Kopit's" KOPIT label.
This is the Day: Breaking Out of Obscurity with THE INMATES
Jon Kanis sets the controls for San Diego, 1966.
The Inmates, 1966. L to R: John Poppe, Steve Phillips, Gale Kellogg, Jim Conder, Lloyd (Kenji) Kozuma, Tom Kruze.
[Photo: Cecil Caufield) Ugly Things

Have you heard the one about the garage band from Ocean Beach, California, who, after making one obscure 45 rpm record in 1966, disappeared off the face of the Earth, with their singular piece of plastic destined to become a prized collector's item, fetching hundreds of English pounds amongst the Northern Soul cognoscenti in Britain? No? Then it's high time to get hip to the Inmates, one of the great, lost bands of San Diego music lore.
The Roman candle trajectory of the Inmates is a classic American tale, paralleling thousands of fellow aspirants across the trashed-out teenscape of the post-apocalyptic early 1960s. After a futuristic-looking quartet from Liverpool, England, magically shifted the cultural paradigm overnight via mass televisual hypnosis, the resultant aftermath touched off the seismic perception that any four guys could stand on stage, make their own kind of rhythmic racket, shake their heads and hips in unison, and the girls would summarily fall at their feet. From San Bernardino to Boston, a significant number of baby boomers, overwhelmed by their suddenly surging hormones, flashed on the notion of exploring their own creative potential-which was no doubt inspired by the phenom of witnessing 300 pubescent girls shrieking in unison.
The Beatles provided proof positive that it was cool to be in a gang. And during their leather-jacketed, pill-popping, drunken apprenticeship in Hamburg, Germany, they were as "punk rock" as anyone-before or since. But by 1964, the media passed the rebellious aroma of "bad boys supreme" onto the Rolling Stones, whose contrived menace embodied the 'tude of "punk" until the entire idea was co-opted into some bastardized, fascist marketing campaign. The Beatles and the Stones: two sides of the same coin, establishing the contextual benchmark of "cool" for the ages.
And, really, who among us doesn't wish to strut their stuff and project an aura of "cool" to the world? Inspired by surf music, R&B, and the escalating wave of the British Invasion, a motley assortment of 18-year-olds, recently graduated from Point Loma High School, discovered exactly how "cool" it is to be in a band when they started informally jamming together. Their efforts eventually resulted in having their music played on the radio and performing to packed dance floors across San Diego County.

Gale Kellogg: "We were all surfers and that's how I met [guitarist] Steve Phillips. He lived at the end of [4858] Pescadero Avenue, which was the surf spot down in OB. I've always liked music and I always wanted to play the drums, but in elementary school they told me I had no aptitude for it: 'Take this clarinet, boy.' So I played clarinet and in junior high I played some sax. I tried trumpet, I tried a bunch of instruments, but they didn't really blow up my skirt. I wanted to play the drums, but my family couldn't afford it.
"However, that all changed in June of '64 when we hosted a big graduation party at my house [4352 Niagara Avenue]. My dad had built a two-car garage and that's where we had this big bash, because my mom would buy the booze.'' When the Impalas were enlisted to provide entertainment, Kellogg suddenly found himself with a coveted set of skins. "The Impalas had been together for awhile," he explains. "They were already playing high school dances. And after our graduation party, Scott Beamer left his drums in the garage. And me being me, I went out there and played 'em for about 12 hours a day.
"Whenever the surf wasn't very good I would go down to Hazard Brick and Block in Mission Valley [now Hazard Construction
Company] and work as a yard boy loading cement bags and blocks for a buck and a quarter an hour, which was good money, and that enabled me to rent a set of drums at Dave's Music on Fifth Avenue.'' Almost immediately, Kellogg began performing with some of his neighborhood pals: lead guitarist and background vocalist Steve Phillips, bassist Tom Kruse, rhythm guitarist John Poppe, and saxophonist Lloyd (Kenji) Kozuma.

It's All in the Proximity
Tom Kruse: "The Inmates evolved from parties around OB where a few of us were learning to play guitar. Gale and I lived across the street from one another and he had a garage that he converted into his bedroom and a general hangout place for friends. We learned a lot about booze and girls there. The Kelloggs also had another garage in the back that we used for practice. My stepfather often called the police to complain about the noise: especially the bass. He was an asshole."
Steve Phillips: "I'm basically a long-time native of the beach area and when I was eight years-old my mother asked me 'How would you like to learn some music?' We had an accordion studio across the street and I said 'Sure, I'll give it try' and started taking lessons. And I loved the music, but I didn't particularIy love the accordion, so I made the switch to guitar a couple of years later. I think I got my first cheap electric guitar at age 12 and eventually picked up a Fender Mustang.
"The band came together as a typical garage band: we were all friends in the neighborhood. And Gale's mother would bring us beer when we practiced. We loved her, Ma Kellogg, as if she were our own mom. Her rules were: as long as you're in the back yard in the garage you can drink the beer-you're not taking it with you. And if you're too drunk to drive you sleep on the couch. And she'd set us up with cold ones.
'As we started getting better, the next thing you know we were hiring out. As part of the City of San Diego's recreation program there were weekly community dances at various rec centers, and we played at every one. And they were always packed. This was before drugs, with everyone just having a great time naturally. Or they were slugging down a half-pint of vodka in the parking lot, and then walking inside, and as soon as the music hit 'em they'd get that rush, and whoosh, away they went. In the early days at least one fight would break out at every gig. But it wasn't like today: people fought and then it was over. A guy didn't go out to his car, grab a gun, and kill somebody.
"The odd thing about those days: San Diego was a much smaller place. There were very few places to play and there were very few bands. There was a whole youth scene that doesn't exist anymore and it hasn't for years. Remember, this was the leading edge of the baby boom, so there was a Jot of kids, and they all loved music. We were doing two, often three gigs a week, playing for enormous audiences, and we were getting paid very well. The going rate for a three-to-four hour dance gig would be between 350 and 500 dollars-in 1965-66 money."

What's In a Name?
Kruse: "The fact that many of the guys in the band had been detained at one point or another by the local police led to the name the Inmates. To the best of my knowledge no one had ever served time. But in those days, that would have been a badge of honor.
"We started off playing instrumentals like 64 'Perfidia' and 'Wipe Out,' since none of us could sing. Lloyd's younger sister Gerry sang a few slow numbers like Angel Baby' for us, but that was about it. Our first gig was an adult social for Sacred Heart Church on a harbor tour boat. We played for free but took donations and were surprised when people actually put cash into the kitty. Then we got a few gigs with middle school dances. I remember one in Chula Vista where the kids wouldn't dance at first, which is real scary when you're playing and everyone stares at you in silence. Eventually a teacher got a few students to dance and then everyone got into it. By the time we finished, they were asking for our autographs."
"But we needed a singer, and finally found one in Jim Conder [Point Loma High School, class of '63]. That enabled us to expand our song list, and we played a lot of Rolling Stones (but not Beatles) songs. Jim considered himself the reincarnation of Mick Jagger-even down to copying his mannerisms."
Phillips: "Oh, I really loved the Beatles, but to us they were kind of a candy pop group. We were huge Stones fans and we were more like them. We were grubby-counterculture-street kids. The Beatles were clean, the vocals were pretty, their lyrics were outstanding and I loved them-I think we all loved them. But we never played their music. We were into a grittier sound.
"There was really only one person in the group who was a 'stand above' incredible talent and whom I had dealings with later on in music after the Inmates and that's Jim Conder. He was also a very gifted keyboardist, but he did not play keyboards in our group. He was the front man."

Jerry Herrera's Battle of the Bands
If ever there was a notorious figure within the San Diego music scene, it is club owner and promoter Jerry Herrera. Known primarily for operating the Spirit Club from 1975 to 1995 (now occupied by Brick-by-Brick), Herrera also ran three other significant San Diego nightspots before that: the Palace, JJs, and the Powerhouse in El Cajon, where the Inmates performed frequently. Phillips: "Jerry Herrera runs all through our history. He was the first one to go out and start up these teen nightclubs, and a big thing back in those days was the Battle of the Bands. We competed, and lost, to their house band who were called the Impulses." Kellogg: "That was where Herrera snaked us. We thought we should have won." Phillips adds that "Jerry had some detractors, but I would have much rather hitched my wagon to his bumper than the other guy, but that's the way it goes."

The Inmates land in Jail
After establishing themselves on the San Diego music scene for nearly a year, Phillips was approached by a young entrepreneur by the name of John Kopit. Inspired by Herrera's success, Kopit convinced the Inmates that he could take the band to a higher level of success, and commenced with building his own youth club in Encinitas, 25 miles to the north of San Diego.
Phillips: "I was the bandleader, but my work was with the guys, and that took up all my time. Although we had more jobs than we could handle due to word of mouth, I didn't have any energy left to do additional promotion and Kopit sold himself to me-he was a very energetic businessman, a Jewish lad from St Louis who had already established and lost a newspaper before he was 26." The first thing Kopit did was rent a building next door to the La Paloma Theatre in Encinitas, where the Inmates were installed as the house band. In a punning masterstroke of branding, Kopit christened the place the Jail.
Phillips: "John's first move was to find a place where we could play, and since he lived in Del Mar, the location was convenient for him. He utilized our young backs to help build the Jail: in other words we were free labor. We tore out the counter, built a huge dance floor and a professional stage with the help of some craftsmen." The finishing touch to the overall theme was to take faux-black wooden dowel bars and stick them in the windows: the perfect pleasure prison for teenagers.
"It was what you would call a youth club," says Phillips. "No alcohol, just food and soda pop: real wholesome. On opening night, you could see the lights going by on the 101, because the Interstate 5 hadn't been built yet. We're on the main route, the onlyroute between San Diego and LA. We're sitting there looking outside and as the headlights went by we can see all these people gathering: there must have been 500 kids out there, going in both directions. The place reached the fire marshal's limit and we had to cut 'em off.
"We lit off on our sets and we're seeing a sea of heads dancing [laughs], with silhouettes
"The last night The Jail was open we were there playing on stage and all of a sudden they shut off the power.
The door fly open and in come the pf, putting everybody up against the wall."
in the window, and an equal number of heads bopping up and down and dancing on the sidewalk. That attracted attention, and not good attention. Encinitas is kind of a hip place now. Back then it was a Cowtown, and the locals were frightened of us. But we just went ahead packing the place."
When asked what the locals were so concerned about, Phillips lets out a deep sigh. "I think they were afraid that we were going to have sex with their daughters: which we certainly wanted to do. [laughs] And we were going to corrupt the kids, playing 'the devil's music.'
"When Elvis would come to town, all the local churches would have alternative events to keep the kids away from seeing him bring his 'black' music and his thrusting hips to town-it was that kind of thing. It's hard to believe that I'm old enough to remember that mentality. In fact, they were so eager to shut us down, that one of the angles they came at us with was an old statute prohibiting Asians from participating in mass gatherings that had been on the books since the railroads had finished and North County was hit by a big influx of Chinese immigrants. And we had a Japanese sax player. This is how ugly it got. It was not the pretext for shutting us down, but it was mentioned. Unbelievable, huh?"
After three months of packing in the audiences and raising the ire of the local authorities, the doors to the Jail were suddenly slammed shut.
Phillips: "The last night the Jail was open we were there playing on stage and all of a sudden 'booodoop'-the whole stage goes dead: they had shut off the power. The doors fly open and in come the cops, putting everybody up against the wall. They ushered all the kids outside, all the patrons. They took us off stage and separated us, asking us questions about everything: 'What drugs had we taken?' 'What type of stuff were we on?' They didn't have breathalyzers yet, but they were looking to see if maybe we were drunk, because we were all under 21. They didn't arrest anybody, but they taped the door shut and closed the place down-the long story short is that Ko pit lost the Jail. The locals were honest about it from the very start: the public sentiment was that we weren't welcome in Encinitas. So we left."

This Is the Day: enter June Jackson
Phillips: "Somewhere along the line Kopit became convinced that we should make a record, because we were getting to be a pretty damn good band. Even though we were all intermediates at our instruments, you get to the point where you just know what each other is thinking, by virtue of growing up together. Our sound was seamless, tighter than a gnat's ass, and that really came across. But for some reason Kopit decided it would be best not to record any of the original material that the group had worked up, which was a big mistake. We had a couple of originals, but Kopit hired songwriter June Jackson, who was out of the Motown school, and it was totally wrong for the Inmates.
"Then June insisted on bringing in his singers, Rita and Cathy, who called themselves the Crispy Twins. And the three of them lived and performed together, which was unusual in those days, because June was black and the girls were white. And I liked them as people, they were great, but the material was just totally wrong. I would have loved to hear us lay into something like "Sweet Little Lisa" or one of the old Chuck Berry songs. But just the same, the record became very popular locally."
According to Kellogg, it was Jackson who was responsible for setting up the Inmates one and only recording session. "June Jackson was as big a hype-crook as John Kopit: they were two peas in a pod. And they were trying to outdo each other. Kopit didn't have that kind of money to pay for studio time and June Jackson just wanted to record, so he could then take that product to Capitol or A&M or whoever and use it to sell his songs."
Whoever arranged for the studio, all six of the Inmates piled into Phillips' Plymouth Valiant station wagon in January of '66 and headed north to Johnny Otis' El Dorado Studios in Burbank to record two of Jackson's compositions: "This Is the Day" and "Gypsy Heart."
Phillips: "El Dorado was an enormous place-every instrument that you could think of was in this room. It took us a while to get the instrumental tracks down so that they were pretty much error-free. We were well rehearsed, but we had never worked with a sound engineer before, so he had to take 20-30 minutes with each person, getting their tone and levels-a lot of stuff before you even start tracking. We recorded on a two-track machine: first we recorded the instrumental tracks and then the vocals, all live in one take, mixed down to mono.
"It was a long day. I still remember coming down the 101 and on the radio was Lou Christie's 'Lightning Strikes.' And we're all cracking up 'cause we thought it was such shit. If that stuff's making it, maybe there's hope for us after all!"
In retrospect it is easy to understand how "This Is the Day" became a later-day Northern Soul favorite: the record has an irresistible beat and grooves with the best of the dance floor favorites then coming out of Motown. But once the record was pressed up on the generic looking KOPIT label (which was distributed by CIRCA: the Consolidated International Record Company of America based out of Hollywood), the real challenge began of how to get their music played on the radio.
Phillips: "I didn't know how the recording industry worked in those days, because it was very, very hard to get into the main markets. But we did get some airplay. One of the biggest kicks of my life was hearing that the record had cracked the Top 20 in Escondido. And here kicking-ass again this week from San Diego, California: the Inmates!' Some of the outlying stations would play the record in Oceanside, El Centro. We ended up with a following of likeminded people and having a little brush with fame. We signed autographs-I had girls coming up to me crying, offering me their skirts to sign. In El Centro we played a teen nightclub called Poncho's. We were in the Top 10 out there and we were well known in that little community: Brawley, Calexico, El Centro. Once again, blacks were not allowed in the club: they had to enjoy the music outside in a similar situation to the Jail. There's just a sea of these kids pressed up against the stage, and it's like 'Wow, my little taste of what it's like to be a star.' But the big thing again was through the window, these silhouettes; I could see all these black kids just rocking out on the sidewalk. [laughs] And there was no trouble at all, it was such a nice night, everybody was really cool.
"But nowadays, I'm so glad that we have those recordings, because otherwise we'd have nothing."

I Ain't A-Marching Anymore
After recording their debut single, the Inmates believed it was the beginning of a prolonged recording career. But all that changed on February 8, 1966, when Kellogg was absconded by the US Army. "I was the first one to get drafted out of the band," says Kellogg. 'And Paul Bleifuss took my place [Point Loma High School, class of '65]. Paul was an excellent drummer and actually became quite famous as an innovative drum maker." Bliefuss had a distinguished career as an artesian before succumbing to cancer on September 5, 2007.
"There was all this talk about our 'next record,' that this was just the beginning for the Inmates," says Phillips. "It turned out not to be the case. By this time we were really feeling our oats, I think the biggest gig we ever played was at the Balboa Park Organ Pavilion in the first part of '67-the year that Vietnam wiped us out and we were all in uniform. Kenji and Poppe were drafted at the same time. Tom Kruse saw it coming, got in the Peace Corp and went to Venezuela. I was able to hold off with a hardship deferment until they got me. Jim Conder was the lucky one: he had been a member of the National Guard Unit before Vietnam got really hot. The most dangerous thing he did was put on a uniform and go to the '65 Watts riots." He pauses and laughs: 'A lot of history there."
"Let me tell you about the breakup with Kopit, because that's pretty important. We were decimated by the Vietnam draft: we just couldn't go on. Kopit and I had a meeting and he saw the end coming. And he basically said, 'I spent a lot of money on you guys, you guys are letting me down through no fault of your own, but I need to be repaid for my investment.' And I said, 'We're poor kids, we don't have any money.' And he said, 'Well, I want your equipment.' And I said, 'Fuck, no.' So we got into a bit of a 'toe-to-toe.' And I came back and said, 'No, John, no. We're keeping our gear. I'm sorry you lost money, but that's it, it's over.' But he still had all those records ...
"I wish we could have met the right person, because we were very young and unsophisticated. We didn't know anything about the business; we were just playing our music. We needed someone to handle us properly." The Inmates tale smacks of familiarity, with more than a passing resemblance to the film That Thing You Do. 'Actually,'' says Kruse, "I think the movie The Commitments is the best story of a band coming together, having a few brief moments of fame, and then falling apart. I see a lot of similarities with our band in it.'' Regarding Kopit, Kruse remembers him being "an asshole, and a creepy one at that: the perfect personality for a manager. I never liked him personally but he did force us to become more professional."

Breaking Up That 0Id Gang of Mine
Phillips: 'After the Inmates broke up we all went our separate ways and then came back and settled down after the war. I went to school and became an urban planner, engineer, and architect. So that took me away from music for a spell. I had just finished college when I was approached by Jim Conder in 1979 about representing a group that he had called the Roosters, and I managed them for a couple of years. They were a three-piece and they were freakin' awesome.'' (For the record, an entirely different San Diego Roosters recorded a single for A&M in 1967: "Shake a Tail Feather" b/w "Rooster Walk.") These days Phillips can be heard performing with his group the Pescadero Pickers and has this to say about his music: 'As long as I've said my piece the way I want it said, the people who are tuned into my approximate frequency will find it. And that's what's rewarding for me. It could be one person or it could be a thousand, but to make that connection is a real turn-on for those of us who create music like this. I could write the best song in the world, and there's still going to be people that would rather go down and stand in line and get Taylor Swift's latest album,'' he says laughing. 'And there's nothing I can do about that.''
After getting out of the army in '68, Gale Kellogg spent several years gigging with bassist Greg Willis (Iron Butterfly, Glory) and guitarist Dave Dorn. It was during this period that he claims psychedelics taught him how to play music. "It opened my mind up," he says. "I'm not the world's best drummer-I'm not a technician. I play from the seat of my pants and the music tells me what to play; that's the best way I can put it.'' After touring for almost a decade, including a stint backing up Al Wilson ("Show and Tell"), he found himself living on the street for 15 years. Eventually, he cleaned up his act and worked for a dozen years for the Veterans Administration until his retirement a few years ago. These days, Kellogg is back behind the drums, playing several times a week all over town. "Music is my life right now, this is what I live for,'' he says. "This is what's keeping me going. And that's why I play every chance I get.''
Phillips: "I heard through a mutual acquaintance that Jim Conder died in Florida (on June 19, 2014) due to cirrhosis of the liver. And none of us know what became of John Poppe.''
As for the other Inmates, saxophonist Lloyd Kozuma owned and operated a successful dental laboratory until his retirement a decade ago. He still lives in San Diego. After finishing college in 1969, and joining the Peace Corps in Venezuela, bassist Tom Kruse enjoyed a career for over 20 years as a corporate executive at Reynolds Metals Company in Richmond, Virginia, until a buyout from Alcoa caused his early retirement in 2000. He explains via email: "My wife retired in 2011, and all seven of our children were grown up, so we sold our house and most of our belongings and set off to see the world. What we do is rent an apartment somewhere for 3-12 months and just live there. So far we have done this in La Paz, Mexico; Monterey, California; Salem, Oregon; Plymouth, Massachusetts; St Augustine, Florida; Valencia, Spain; and now Bordeaux, France. The next stop is unknown but we are checking into Italy and Portugal. We feel it is a more interesting way of spending our retirement years than sitting on the stoop watching your neighbor water his lawn.
"Today my wife was doing some checking on Google. Apparently this group of collectors in Northern England is still going strong and an original copy of "This Is the Day" by the Inmates can fetch very high prices. A few years ago I saw one cited on eBay for 1,500 English pounds! Another entry lists it for £400.I did get a thrill when my son found it on the Internet about three years ago, because I had told my kids about my band days and they didn't believe me. So the hype is not fictional.
"Not bad for a garage band from O.B.''

Copyright (c) 2016 by Jon Kanis. Reprinted here on Soul Source with authors permission
"This Is the Day: Breaking Out of Obscurity with the Inmates" by Jon Kanis first appeared in Ugly Things issue #43, Winter, 2016/2017.
It was subsequently re-printed in the San Diego Troubadour for Vol. 16 No. 1 October, 2016. For more information please visit http://ugly-things.com/ or https://sandiegotroubadour.com/
"This Is the Day" is now available on the compact disc Look Out! The San Diego Scene 1958–1973, which is available through Relampago-go Records, out of National City, California. That is Andy Rasmussen's label, who produced the compilation. The liner notes are written by Mike Stax, the publisher of Ugly Things.
----------------------------------------------

The Inmates
Guitarist Steve Phillips grew up in Ocean Beach, and entered the local music scene in the mid-1960s with his group the Inmates, one of a handful of bands that played San Diego’s large dance venues popular at that time; the War Memorial Building in Balboa Park, San Diego State College, UCSD Elliot, OB and Santa Clara Rec. Centers, and others. The band also included drummer Gale Kellogg (later of Useless Rhetoric) and bassist Tom Kruse.
Often considered a Northern Soul group, the Inmates teamed with songwriter June Jackson and recorded at Johnny Otis' studio in Burbank, CA in 1967-68. Their single “This is the Day” (written by Jackson) on the Kopit label made local top-40 charts in many outlying markets. The Vietnam draft effectively put an end to the Inmates in 1968-69. All members of the band survived the war, but never played together again.

Site note the full articles can be read via
YESTERDAY AND TODAY
This Is the Day: Breaking Out of Obscurity with the Inmates
By Jon Kanis, October 2016
https://sandiegotroubadour.com/this-is-the-day-breaking-out-of-obscurity-with-the-inmates/
and
https://www.sandiegoreader.com/bands/inmates/

artists

By Chalky in Articles · September 19, 20213 yr

Hot on the heels of the hugely successful Decisions "We're In Love/I Love You" Soul Direction release, come for me a track that should have made a 45 release before now and after a conversation with Numero they agreed so here we are.
Release date end of September with TP's going out to the radio shows for pre release plays.
The Summits - P's and Q's / Instrumental version
These 2 tracks were part of the groups recordings with DC International and did not see the light until Numero released a EP of the groups best songs.Soul-Direction Records have
secured the only 7" vinyl release of "P's and Q's and the instrumental version. We hope you enjoy them as much as we have bringing them to you.
This quartet from Washington DC. formed While students at Francis Cardoza High they used to sing there sweet soul style around the school corridors, honing their craft until a faculty member spotted them.
Baritone Willie “Sherman” Flannagan and alto Alvin “Lumberjack” Middleton supported tenors Sanders and Hawkins, with second tenor Sidney Smith replacing Sanders in 1971.
The Summits founders Andre Sanders and Juan Hawkins spent a lot of time on the 16th Street bus, a route that begins at the D.C.’s center and runs due north for a few miles.
Discussions of starting a band began during this long commute, which was most often taken to visit a pair of uptown girlfriends. The bus displayed the name of the last northbound stop, in this case, Summit Hill. A casual nod to their municipal transport, the Summits seemed a fitting title for the group.
The group soon fell under the tutelage of Joe Tate, who maintained a stable of musicians, among them national recording artists the Fuzz, the Choice Four, and the Blendells.
The Summits’ “I Can’t Get Over Losing You” would appear on Tate’s Dontee label in 1970, but limited distribution and radio play didn’t give the group much fame or fortune.
The Summits would not get a second recording until Tate’s other recordings and business deals were completed, and it wasn’t until Tate paired the Summits with staff songwriter Joe Phillips that things began to take shape.
Phillips would write half a dozen songs for the Summits, four of which were released as singles on Stan Bethel’s D.C. International label.
While the records generated a respectable local buzz, it never translated into the wealth their fellow chart-toppers achieved.
They never left their day jobs and, with girlfriends and soon growing young families, their tried-and-true tour routes became something they made the decision not to continue.
While Joe Tate’s model worked out for a few lucky groups, the Summits decided that the musical journey had sadly come to an end.
Band Members:
Andre Sanders
Juan Hawkins
Willie “Sherman” Flannagan
Alvin “Lumberjack” Middleton
Sidney Smith replaced Andre Sanders in 1971.
Alan Kitchener (Soul-Direction Records)
Licensed courtesy of The Numero Group
https://soul-direction.co.uk/

releases

By Manfromsoul45s in News Archives · September 14, 20213 yr

A heads up on the next upcoming 45 release from Shotgun Records plus other related 45 release news.
Out in a couple of weeks....
Special Delivery - This Kind Of Love (Long Version) - SHOT 114
It's the 'long' version (original LP version) of 'This Kind Of Love' by Special Delivery.
This cut features the male-female monologue section which was edited out of the US single.
Currently scheduled for a 1st Oct 2021 release
Can listen below to a cut preview of the release

Other related 45s release details follow below, release dates not firm yet but between November and January 2022 is likely
OSP 5008
Michelle David & The True-Tones - It's Gonna Be Alright (Vocal) / (Instrumental)

SHOT 115
The Fantastic Puzzles - Come Back (Part 1) / (Part 2)

SHOT 116
Randolph Brown & Company
It Ain't Like It Used To Be / You Can Be Cured

OSP 5009
The Freedom Affair
Give A Little Love / Searching (Find My Own Faith)
Also planned awaiting confirmation are two more early 2022 releases on One World, Watch out for them!

By Mike in News Archives · September 13, 20213 yr

Bettye Swann’s heart has been broken lots of times; we know this because we’ve heard it break on many of her records. Bettye’s voice captures these moments perfectly, her delivery is soft and sensitive, almost country, giving it a realness that you can almost touch.
The most exquisite mix of warmth and sweetness wraps around the vulnerable sound, whilst a gentle quiver in her throat amplifies the pain of heartbreak. It’s a wonderfully potent combination that has been felt by soul music lovers all over the world.
These two tracks were shamefully left discarded in a Nashville tape vault for over 40 years. Both sides showcase the magnificence of Bettye’s vocals, but also highlight the fact that, despite a catalogue of consistently brilliant recordings, she achieved only moderate success and was somehow denied the superstar status that such a voice should command. My heart breaks for anyone who has never had the joy of hearing her sing.
TATS TAYLOR

Presented in a beautiful picture cover laminated 7" designed by Jordi Duró. Liner notes by Tats Taylor.
𝗣𝗥𝗘 𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗘𝗥 𝗡𝗢𝗪 for 24th September 2021
13 euros + postage as it follows:
1 to 5 copies: 6,80 euros UK & Europe
1 to 5 copies: 2,50 euros Spain
1 to 5 copies: 10,45 euros USA & rest of the world
𝗣𝗮𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗯𝘆 𝗣𝗔𝗬𝗣𝗔𝗟 𝗮𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 & 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆:
soul4realrecordlabel@gmail.com
Check previous releases: www.soul4real.es

releases

By Alexsubinas in News Archives · September 11, 20213 yr

The film 'Respect' is at long last out in the Uk this Friday 10 September 2021
Following the rise of Aretha Franklin's career from a child singing in her father's church's choir to her international superstardom, RESPECT is the remarkable true story of the music icon's journey to find her voice.
Uk Showings/tickets
Cineworld has a ticket booking page, link below
https://www.cineworld.co.uk/films/respect/ho00007570#/buy-tickets-by-film?for-movie=ho00007570&view-mode=list
Google 'respect' also works well for uk showing details - tap here

DIRECTED BY: Liesl Tommy WRITTEN BY: Tracey Scott Wilson PRODUCERS: Scott Bernstein, Harvey Mason Jr. EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Stacy Sher, Sue Baden-Powell, Aaron L. Gilbert and Jason Cloth CAST: Jennifer Hudson, Forest Whitaker, Marlon Wayans, Audra McDonald, Marc Maron, Tituss Burgess, Saycon Sengbloh, Hailey Kilgore, Tate Donovan, Heather Headley, Skye Dakota Turner, and Mary J. Blige
Running time: 145 minutes

By Mike in News Archives · September 7, 20213 yr

Press Release:    “Willie Williams   “Give It All I Got/Do You Understand”   SJ545
Release Date:   Monday 27th September 2021

Blind, Chicago soul singer Willie Williams was first discovered performing in clubs in and around the Windy City. He was signed to ABC records by their A&R Director for the Midwest Johnny Pate a former Jazz bassist, independent producer, arranger and songwriter in his own right. Pate was a friend and colleague of fellow musician, songwriter and founding member of one of ABC’s prolific vocal groups The Trends, Tom Dorsey. Pate and Dorsey would contribute heavily as writers and producer throughout Willie’s recording career, beginning with his first ABC 45 release in 1966 “Have You Ever Been Played For A Fool/With All My Soul”. The release’s b-side became a popular radio play at the time with Willie becoming known as Willie “Soul” Williams for a while. Two further ABC releases were to follow “It Doesn’t Pay/Just Because” (1967) and “I’m Through With You/Strung Out” (1968).

Willie’s next 45 release although recorded in Chicago under Johnny Pate’s supervision found it’s way to another major label, RCA, although credited as a GWP Production (Gerrard W. Purcell).  The 45 in question being the excellent Tom Dorsey penned songs “Just To Be Loved By You/Name It” released during 1969.

Two Willie Williams 45 releases did appear on the Gamma label but I’m unsure if one or both of these are by the same Willie Williams in question.
Throughout his recording career Willie continued to work the clubs with his own band which was led by his bass guitarist and confidant Bradley (Brad) Bobo a man who featured as a session musician on many recording sessions including the creation of The Notation’s album of the same name for Curtis Mayfield’s Curtom subsidiary label Gemigo.

On the 22nd of December 1970 a recording session was held in RCA’s Studio B, on North Wacker Drive, Chicago with sound engineer Russ Vestuto. The session was financed by Tom Dorsey who amongst other song writing gratuities had been paid handsomely for the 3 songs “Love Machine”, “My Baby’s Love” and “How Are You Fixed For Love” which he had wrote and contributed to the blue-eyed hit group, The O’Kaysion’s “Girl Watcher” ABC album. The result of this session yielded four Willie Williams tracks. Brad Bobo played bass guitar on the session, the composer of the four songs Tom Dorsey supplied the arrangements and Tom’s wife Carolyn (also a former group members of The Trends) joined both he and Brad on backing vocals.
The four songs were then offered to Eddie Thomas who chose two of them to release on a 45 single. The two songs being “Must Mean Love which was later renamed “The Baa Baa Song “and “Psyched Out” which Eddie  then released on his own Lakeside label, thus leaving the two other songs to remain unissued in the can.

Willie has now sadly passed away but in his later life once the opportunity’s for performing artists began to dwindle he chose a different path in his life, gaining a Doctors degree, he went on to become a College Lecturer. Tom Dorsey too turned his back on the music industry apart from his publishing company to concentrate on his family life as well as founding a very successful business involving one of his other great life passions, photography. Luckily for us he never lost the master tape of Willie’s sessions and after several years of tentative enquiries he graciously relented to my request to put them out.  So now before you we have the two excellent previously unissued Willie Williams songs that Eddie Thomas passed on, the delightfully soulful “Give It All I Got” backed with the funky, social conscience themed “Do You Understand”, lost early 1970’s Chicago Soul at its finest.
For Further information please contact Soul Junction at:
Tel: +44 (0) 121 602 8115 or E-mail:   sales@souljunctionrecords.co.uk
To buy visit SOUL JUNCTION RECORDS or the usual stockists

releases

By Chalky in News Archives · September 5, 20213 yr

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