RIP Robert Ward

Robert Ward & The Ohio Untouchables - Touch Me Not

Greetings, wonderful people! I hope the holiday season has been good to you! I know that my posting here has been very very sporadic lately. Honestly, the situation discussed in the "DMCA Blues" post almost brought me to the verge of closing down the site, but I think I'll just soldier on for awhile, and I think if push comes to shove, I'll just take the site private. We'll see how that goes. My resolution for 2009, at any rate, is to pick up the frequency of my posting to the level it was at prior to my taking the bar exam, etc. There's too much good soul music to discuss!

This week, the singer/guitarist Robert Ward, whose comeback story resulted in some fine blues albums of the '90s and beyond after an earlier stab at success as the leader of the Ohio Untouchables (who became the Ohio Players some time after he left the group in 1965) and as a session musician, passed away. Ward's watery guitar sound, by way of a Magneto amp, resulted in lots of fine sides in the early '60s for LuPine, including today's selection. "Touch Me Not" is an awesome instrumental which, despite featuring some hot saxophone solos, shows off Ward's guitar work over a groove that leaves the listener with no choice but to "get on down"!

It's fortunate that Ward was rediscovered in the early '90s and got the chance to get the recognition he deserved before his death. His fine talent will be missed.