In the mid 1990s musician and record producer, Joe Evans, moved from his New Jersey home to enjoy retirement in Richmond, Virginia. He decided to study the history of black music at Virginia Commonwealth University. After a brief conversation with the lecturer Dr Christopher Brooks, Joe lent him “A Carnival Of Soul” Volume One the first of three Kent CDs of music from Joe’s Carnival label released in the UK.
At the next class, after reading the CD booklet notes, Dr Brooks announced to the other students that there had been a mistake; he should be sitting alongside them while Mr Evans taught the class! That relationship would eventually lead the pair to write Joe’s autobiography Follow Your Heart.
Joe had a remarkable career. The highlights included playing alto saxophone in the bands of Jay McShann, Lionel Hampton, Cab Calloway, Louis Armstrong and Fats Waller among many others. He was a regular member of the house bands at such legendary black music venues as the Savoy Ballroom and the Apollo Theatre at the very height of their fame; entertaining the dancers and backing the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Sam Cooke, Jackie Wilson, Ruth Brown and Clyde McPhatter.
After a spell as a record promoter for Ray Charles’ Tangerine label and running his own early 60s R&B label, Cee Jay, with Clarence ‘Jack Rags’ Johnson, he went back on the road with the Choker Campbell Orchestra on the very first Motown Revue. They backed Mary Wells, Marvin Gaye and the Supremes at the start of their illustrious careers, thus helping create a new sound for the nation’s youth.
Having tasted the excitement of the independent record business, he was hungry for more and teamed up with his old boss, band-leader Paul Williams, to form Carnival Records in 1962.
Originally based in New York, by the time of their big hit with the Manhattans’, ‘I Wanna Be (You’re Everything)’, Paul had left. By the issue of Barbara Brown’s ‘So In Love’ (Carnival 508), the label’s address had switched to his New Jersey home. There he ran the business with his wife Ann taking charge of the mundane but vital office work. She helped groom the acts and acted like a mom for many of the teenage singers. The music continued to be recorded in New York studios but with a younger nucleus of musicians which included guitarist Eric Gale, drummer Bernard ‘Pretty’ Purdie and bass player Jimmy Tyrell, instead of the big band stalwarts Williams had used on the early recordings.
The success of the Manhattans dominated the mid-60s releases. When they weren’t recording hits they were helping on background vocals with Barbara Brown and writing songs for their friends and protégés the Lovettes, Phil Terrell, Norma Jenkins and Harry Caldwell. The Manhattans’ sound, which became the Carnival sound, was very much based in doo wop and its inherent strong, simple melodies. The group was blessed with two superb songwriters, Winfred ‘Blue’ Lovett and Edward ‘Sonny’ Bivens. To have witnessed the guys sing at their creative peak must have been a great experience.
Needless to say it was Joe Evans’ musical knowledge, experience and talent that got the sound down so well. Apart from his entrepreneurial skills and musical vision, his own songs and collaborations with other writers and singers were of a very high quality.
By 1969 the Manhattans had left Carnival to record for the King subsidiary De Luxe. Their potential successors Lee Williams and the Cymbals had also moved on. Joe didn’t find an adequate replacement until 1970 when the Pretenders, a three guys, one girl outfit, cut a rousing, uptempo version of ‘I Wanna Be’ that wowed the dancefloors of the UK’s Northern Soul scene when “discovered” by those DJs a handful of years later.
The distinctive Carnival label has been revered by UK 60s soul music lovers since the first copies reached these shores. Prior to the Pretenders popularity here, a four-piece girl group called the Lovettes had, unknown to them, scored a belated dancefloor hit with the scorching ‘Little Miss Soul’, a track that the fans would have called a “monster sound” in the Northern Soul clubs of the early 70s. This song, though written by Blue Lovett, was more in the Motown than the Carnival mould. Adrenaline-powered and feisty, it was tailor-made for Northern Soul all-nighters, where dancers could let themselves go to the Detroit-inspired beat and revel in the glorious harmonies of the sassy girl group. Other cherished tracks for the retro dancers of the UK included the Topics ‘Hey Girl (Where Are You Going)’ and the Metrics ‘Wishes’ both released on the tiny Chadwick subsidiary and now fetching hundreds of dollars to collectors when located.
Local school teacher Phil Terrell had two great 45s on the label including the in-demand ‘Love Has Passed Me By’, Norma Jenkins’ ‘Me, Myself And I’ is a beautiful number as is Barbara Brown’s ‘So In Love’ and the rest of the Lovettes, Pretenders and Lee Williams & The Cymbals sides-that’s without counting the fabulous Manhattans. The Carnival label was a guarantee of soul music excellence; drop a needle on any of the singles and it is going to be a listening pleasure. Kent have issued four 24 track CDs, a vinyl album, both Manhattans LPs on one CD and dotted countless other Carnival gems about on Various Artists compilations over the thirty years we have worked with Joe and lately the Westwood Music Group.
That project began in the early ‘80s when I flew in to Newark to meet up with Joe for tape research and an interview. I landed just as the Eastern Seaboard was being hit by its worst snow storm for decades. That did not deter Joe and his beautiful and charming wife Annie from driving their big old sedan over several miles of icy roads to meet this total stranger. The journey back to theirs was fun with the car skidding and sliding along serenely. We stopped for lunch at a “surf ‘n’ turf” where Joe and I found we had a shared love of good food. Joe was already taking several pills for his health and Annie was concerned for him, but Joe’s charm and his impish sense of fun earned him a good meal. Eventually living to three years short of a century, I guess he read it about right.
That cold spell continued and nobody fancied another slide-a-thon to get me to my hotel so of course the lovely pair offered me the spare room, another good feed and an early start to work the next day. Apart from the priceless tapes and beautiful studio photographs of his acts, Joe showed me two fully signed programmes from the very first Motortown Revues that he played with. He told me stories about playing with Louis Armstrong, performing with John Coltrane and Charlie Parker shortly prior to Parker converting to Bebop. He recalled his times backing the big stars at the Apollo and Savoy, chuckling at stories about Satchmo and how Jackie Wilson jumped off the stage at the Apollo and knocked out three loudmouths who had called him a faggot, all in the instrumental break of the song. Annie treated me like family and a few years later I was happy to attend his 80th birthday party and present him with an award from Ace Records in Europe specifically for his achievements in soul music.
It was very sad that he lost Annie a few years later but he soldiered on and I’m sure he continued to entertain, amuse and enlighten through his later years.
Ady Croasdell: Ace Records
PhilReeves photo
Second Issue
PhilReevesJan 21 2014 09:35 AM
RIP Joe .Thanks for the wonderful music.
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Tony SmithJan 21 2014 09:57 AM
RIP Joe Evans, we salute you.
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billbJan 21 2014 11:12 AM
Well done Joe Evans and RIP
Well wrote and a great tribute, would loved to have watched Jackie Wilson jump off stage and knock out the three loudmouths.
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souljer6Jan 21 2014 11:17 AM
The world should salute Joe, and Ady too for bringing it's attention to the beauty of the Carnival label. For me, the greatest music label ever. Trancendental! and I never really properly appreciated it until that series of cds was released. Track after track of otherworldly ....heaven!
Thank you Joe. And thank you Ady. ( And what a beautiful obituary; which other Northern promoters have shown that level of love for our music?)
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soulman chrisJan 21 2014 06:51 PM
Thanks Ady for a wonderful obituary and for getting together with Joe to release those sublime soulful tunes recorded on the Carnival record label,those early Manhattens tunes were fantastic..As a tribute to Joe i think i will dig out all the Carnival records and CDs that i have got and play them over the next few days.
I also loved the story about Jackie Wilson knocking out the three loadmouths.Wasnt Jackie a great amateur boxer?As well as being a superb singer..
RIP JOE.
maccaJan 21 2014 08:24 PM
Nice one... I Wanna Be was one of my favourite tracks back then, 1975/6. RIP...
rubengijoncatJan 22 2014 02:19 AM
R.I.P. Joe & thanks for your music. Nice obituary, well done.
richo991Jan 22 2014 07:42 AM
RIP Joe your musical talants & experience will never be replaced
Richo
soul shrewsJan 25 2014 09:20 PM
Just back fro a record fair today with a Manhattons 45 on Carnival.
The music lives on. Thanks Joe !!!
Cheers Paul
polyveltsJan 27 2014 08:42 PM
A lovely read, well done Ady. RIP Joe and thanks for bringing people such great music !
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