Mickey Finn

Van himself describes his work as Caledonian soul music. I can't say I like everything or even most of what he has recorded, but when he hits the spot it can be spellbinding:

Check out Myspace (when was the last time anyone said that?): https://myspace.com/georgesoule/photos

Hi Heikki, thanks for the heads up. The Kent bandwagon shows no sign of letting up - not good for people desperately trying to set aside spending money for the holidays... Re recommended books, I haven't read those recommended by Mr Rounce, but I did read the Jackson book, also the more recent book by Bruce Hawes, which was very critical of Jackson, for reasons that aren't hard to to see if you've read it yourself. Jackson can barely contain his dislike of Kenny Gamble and by the end is calling him a "pseudo-intellectual", which for me tarnishes the book. Jackson seems to have done the research thoroughly and the story he tells is compelling, but if an editor had been able to restrain him the readers could have made up their own minds without being led like that. Bruce Hawes could have used an editor too, but only to allow his story to come through more clearly.

Exactly. Just like houses. And how easy is it for youngsters to find affordable rented accommodation, let alone climb aboard the absurdly named property ladder? Perhaps the government will introduce a new "Help to Buy" scheme, or "Help to Listen to OVO" scheme, so that youngsters don't become totally excluded.

For collectors, owning the original sevens will always be the main prize. But if people here are genuinely concerned about youngsters being able to enjoy the music, is it not time to allow them to enjoy it off a compact disc or reissue, which would be both cheaper and higher quality audio-wise? That wouldn't stop anyone from collecting original vinyl, and would be more likely to encourage new ones to start, and for the right reasons, rather than speculators looking for the latest place to park their money for as long as it takes to make a few thousand more quid.

I like a lot of deep and enjoyed what you've posted so far. Recently I've been catching up on stuff by Grant Nelson, Kenny Summit, Kenny Carpenter, DJ Man-X, as well as Louie Vega, DJ Spen, Ron Trent, Ralf Gum, Vick Lavender, Jonny Montana, ... I love the instrumental of this, but the vocal works for me too, as in burrowing into the grey matter: And this is pretty good too:

Hey, you started it! But feel free to continue with tunes like that I first discovered Ron Trent years ago when I was looking for a copy of Freeez "Keep in touch" on cd - at the time the only place to find it was on a Ron Trent mix cd which I duly bagged, and the rest is history.

Well I know you're a big Kashif fan and who knows what sort of mixes you've been able to get your hands on compared to us lesser punters As for Ron Trent, it was thanks to your previous mix here that I've been digging through his catalogue - the recent double cd retrospective comp of Prescription Records was well worth the pennies

Another good 2 hours here - especially liked the Joey Negro and Jose Carretas tracks, and Kashif at the end was a nice touch. Looking forward to the new Joey Negro album now!

Wonderful comp, and grateful as always for the liner notes. According to the original release, the Ruthie track is lifted from an album, "Just for love". Was that ever released? The only other release I can find on Guiding Light Records out of Wisconsin is Bob Fisher, "Lucifer is back in town", also released in 1980. Was there anything else released or just stored away in the can from this period? Appreciate any help.

It took me years to appreciate them. The first time I was aware of them was when they had a hit with "$7000 and you". That, combined with the unfamiliar sound of falsetto, sent me running, especially as it seemed to get played all the time on the radio. Third rate cabaret. So when I heard "Hey girl come and get it" on Shaun Robbins' Sunday Soul Selection centuries later, it was a real wake up call. And Paul Collins would also play this stellar tune on his excellent show:

That's a fair point, but when the Stairsteps, Keni Burke and William Bell (plus the Dells, Johnny Bristol) have all been released in this way, it's reasonable to expect some kind of public protest at least, if something dodgy is going on. There's also the estate of George Harrison to think about for the Stairsteps and Keni Burke, since those albums came out originally on the Dark Horse label. It's only a few years back when the music majors were going after kids for illegal file shares, with expensive lawyers hired to take them to court. Meanwhile, if these bootleggers really are making money on this stuff, what does that say for the majors just sitting on it, unwilling even to help enthusiastic volunteers to do the legwork and help put together a more professionally produced end-product for a dedicated target market?

That's the strongest testimony so far and good enough for me to be putting any further Play Back purchases on hold. It's not like there's a lack of choice out there. Nevertheless, hard to believe that there wouldn't have been some copyright holder with deep enough pockets to engage lawyers to warn off retailers from stocking these. Amazon has to buy them from somewhere, as would any wholesaler etc. What's difficult? It would still be worth checking with Sonny Marrow if possible. Another artist still active and able to give a view on this (like Keni Burke) is William Bell, whose "Coming back for more" album originally on Mercury 1977 was reissued by Razor & Tie back in the 90s, before "Solaris" released another reissue a few years back. Looking forward to seeing Mr Bell perform in Finland this summer

So far all we have is suspicion and accusation, despite (a) lack of any legal action, (b) lack of any public protest from parties concerned, and (c) quality of the packaging. Not a question of worry about budgets, simply that the level of investment compared to the size of the market makes these operations look less than a typical quick buck bootlegging scam. It's also quite high profile, hence risky, since the target market is going to have more than a few with acute sensitivity to this sort of thing. None of this disproves the charge, but there's only suspicion the other way, so far. But it's not so long ago that the majors were chasing after ordinary punters doing illegal file sharing. The Play Back and Interstate operations are on a completely different scale, and surely easier to target with at least official public warnings. There's a level of care and attention going on in both the Play Back and Interstate releases, which suggests a labour of love rather than a get rich quick scheme. But of course that's no proof of legality. As Sonny Marrow is now the common link between these two operations, it would be worth contacting him if he's on Facebook or even here. Concern for artists is definitely valid. But like national security it can be exploited for less worthy motives. Inflating the value of long deleted sevens does not earn the artist a penny. Anyway, I appreciate the time you've taken on this.

Simple it most certainly isn't. I don't think it's right to buy bootlegs, but if reputable retailers are flogging stuff and reputable jocks playing it then, without access to the kind of lawyers that e.g. record companies or Amazon can afford, I'm kinda stuck with the appearance of legit. Until proven otherwise I think it's a reasonable assumption. As it is also helping some artists to get their work noticed again and even played on radio (with money collected by outfits like the Performing Rights Society - yes, pennies at best, but still...) it is better for the artists than simply remaining in the vaults and forgotten. The people behind Solaris/Fever Dream/Play Back have gone to a lot of trouble to put together a set of rather nice and desirable modern soul releases in decently packaged, decently mastered nick. That plus distribution means a decent budget to back it up. And all it would take to close down the whole thing would be the threat of a writ from any lawyers acting on behalf of the music majors, whose copyright would surely have been infringed by now if there was anything dodgy going on. And the artists concerned would surely pipe up - Keni Burke could easily say "bootleg" and that's it for many who might be considering the purchase of these discs. If Amazon pulled all its titles from this label, that would be a clear enough signal for others to follow. Somebody could check with Sonny Marrow ... presumably he's getting paid something. As for Polish text on Czech-produced discs, there's English text on Soul Junction's Czech-produced discs. And to be running a bootleg scam from the USA, litigation capital of the world, sounds like a high risk strategy at the best of times. But if that is what is happening, with either Play Back or Interstate, I'll be avoiding those as soon as it's clear that it's all a bootleg scam. It's possible that a lot of people who are very publicly upset about bootlegs are worried that the exclusivity of their collection is going to be compromised by reissues, especially comps involving singles-only releases. Easy to hide that worry behind concern for artists. Almost all of my purchases are brand new, meaning that the money goes to the record company, the retailer and the artist. I get the satisfaction of properly made stuff that enables me to enjoy the music at best quality, with decent packaging that (hopefully) lets me learn about who else is playing on the sessions, production, and any further background info, being the trainspotter that I am. That's why anything from Expansion, Soul Brother, Soulmusic.com, BBR, Kent, Soul Junction, Outta Sight, etc. is likely to end up making its way to my music system (subject to budget restrictions - it's hard to keep up sometimes). I want to support legitimate issues and the people behind them, including the artists. No better than bootlegs in my view are the music majors sitting on piles of mastertapes and refusing to do anything with them, even when there are enthusiastic reissuers begging for licensing rights. I can see why a few collectors might like that situation, though.

Play Back seems to be the latest incarnation of a Polish label that has been releasing some desirable and neglected soul LPs. As Play Back it is doing some interesting compilations ... I've ordered the Frankie and the Spindles one and the Dynamics won't be far behind. The sound quality is good and the packaging is faithful to the originals, but there is a question about whether its a bootleg operation. That Australian version claims that it is, but by now you would reckon that the long arm of somebodys law would have reached out.

3. Van McCoy volume 2? 4. Complete Players Association 12" singles 5. Two-on-one Players Association "We got the groove"/"Let your body go" album reissue to go with earlier Southbound twofer 6. Complete Bluebird Records singles - stretching it a bit perhaps but that's a label that deserves recognition

Enough material for a good series of comps: Johnny Bristol, "Love no longer has a hold on me" Bobby Womack, "The roots in me" Lamont Dozier, "Wild frame of mind" Phyllis Hyman, "Gonna make changes", "The sunshine in my life", "The love too good to last", "In between the heartaches" Sandra Wright, "I come running back" Nancy Wilson, "Other side of the storm" Leon Ware, "Got to be loved" Lou Rawls, "Time" Marvin Gaye, "When did you stop loving me, when did I stop loving you" Scherrie and Susaye, "When the day comes every night"

Looks like a nice mix of styles there Dave Jealous once again

Norman Whitfield productions - and a great version of the song made famous by Rose Royce. Will definitely be buying this

In addition to the new stuff I think there's room for 2 separate new threads: Albums reissued on cd, and CD compilations. The Jerry Ross collection fits into the second perfectly. I've got various candidates for both but for me I would love to learn more about those that I might have missed, i.e., not necessarily recent releases but (to whatever extent) still available and worth bagging. Meanwhile, I guess the "Albums you would like to see on cd" thread would be a good place to think of dream compilations like the Randazzo and co. suggestion above - track listings included!

Yes indeed - so many good tunes on there, including this, originally from an otherwise mediocre album if I remember correctly:

Probably not this but it was an honourable effort to restore dignity to this lady after having been shamelessly ripped off by Black Box:

Sticking with Motown, we move forward to 1984 for what was the second solo LP of Bobby King, who had previously recorded for Warners in 1981. Bobby's solo albums contrast strongly with his more rootsy r&b style duets with Terry Evans and in his work with Ry Cooder. On his Motown set, Bobby is produced by Steve Barri and Brian Potter, who together with Dennis Lambert was famous for their work with the Four Tops on ABC, among other acts. The album itself is a mix of styles indicative of the confusion of Motown during this period - a scattergun aimed at various charts and not quite making it at the time, despite all that state of the art 80s polish. However, a few years later Ralph Tee put together a brilliant compilation "Motown Trackin'" of 70s and 80s album cuts which featured this mid-tempo shuffler: And more recently interest began to revive in the more dancefloor oriented "Lovequake": and there's a good duet with Alfie Silas on the kind of song Dionne Warwick would have been very comfortable with: The album opens with an uptempo Leon Ware song "Show me the magic", which also appears on Leon's "Undercover" LP from 1987. Overall, there's enough here to justify a reissue, and a proper crisp remastering would do justice to the production which, when coupled with decent songs, makes for a very worthwhile effort that holds up well after all these years.