I will be traveling for New Years so, to cover for the short hiatus, here's some good music to step into 2006 with!
1. Monk Higgins - Who Dun It
Milton Bland (aka Monk Higgins) was a mainstay of Chicago soul throughout the '60s, playing, writing, arranging and producing for a wide array of labels including the One-Derful!/M-Pac!/Mar-V-Lus group, Chess and St. Lawrence. On the latter label Higgins scored two hits of his own, the first being today's selection. "Who Dun It" features a very nice bass line and a great smoky sax melody that references the famous "Peter Gunn" theme here and there. By the '70s Higgins had relocated to California, where he turned out more great music and scored some blaxploitation pictures, but his Chicago work is my favorite.
2. Clarence Carter - Put on Your Shoes and Walk
Clarence Carter has appeared twice on this page and on one episode of the podcast, and for good reason. His Atlantic and Fame recordings are very good and show the richness of his vocals and guitar, which is lost amid the popularity of his '80s risque party anthem "Strokin'". "Put on Your Shoes and Walk" came out on Fame in 1973 and was a minor hit for him. Carter's missive to men in broken relationships is framed well by the Fame Gang's insistent beat and horn charts and good male background singers.
3. Tyrone Davis - Homewreckers
2005 brought about bad news with the passing of Chicago soul legend Tyrone Davis, whose warm vocals and great songs scored him hit after hit on Dakar and then Columbia in the late '60s and into the '70s. Davis's Southern soul-tinged 1974 hit "Homewreckers" was a departure of sorts from the usual fare he recorded, but the churchy, toe-tapping groove works well with the cautionary lyrics.
I want to thank everyone who has stopped by to check out the blog and the "Get on Down ..." show over the last couple of months. This has been very rewarding to me and I look forward to bringing more good music your way in 2006. To that end, look out for the third episode of the podcast to be here either on New Year's Day or on January 2. This go-round features early '70s soul, blues and funk and will be a lot of fun!
Friday, December 30, 2005
Thursday, December 29, 2005
A Little Nashville Soul
Fred Waters - It's a Little Bit Late
Freddie Waters' bluesy tenor and good songs make him one of my favorite among the pitifully obscure figures of the Nashville soul scene. Most of his recordings were made in conjunction with writer/producer Ted Jarrett, and today's selection comes from the Kent CD "Music City Soul," which features material from some of Jarrett's late '60s and early '70s labels. "It's a Little Bit Late" (for which he was billed as "Fred Waters") features a very laid-back groove over which Waters visits the male-revenge territory covered in such songs as "Ain't Nobody Home." Don't be fooled by the easy-going rhythm, though, as Waters slow-burns his way through a very soulful vocal performance. On another day I'll have to post his Curtom recording of "I Love You, I Love You, I Love You," which shows his great vocals in a very bluesy setting.
Freddie Waters' bluesy tenor and good songs make him one of my favorite among the pitifully obscure figures of the Nashville soul scene. Most of his recordings were made in conjunction with writer/producer Ted Jarrett, and today's selection comes from the Kent CD "Music City Soul," which features material from some of Jarrett's late '60s and early '70s labels. "It's a Little Bit Late" (for which he was billed as "Fred Waters") features a very laid-back groove over which Waters visits the male-revenge territory covered in such songs as "Ain't Nobody Home." Don't be fooled by the easy-going rhythm, though, as Waters slow-burns his way through a very soulful vocal performance. On another day I'll have to post his Curtom recording of "I Love You, I Love You, I Love You," which shows his great vocals in a very bluesy setting.
Wednesday, December 28, 2005
Funky Blues for Hump Day
Hayes Ware - You Got Me Mama
One of the fun things about doing this blog and having the podcast is that there's so much great material to choose from. One style of music that I particularly enjoy are the funky blues that came out of the late '60s, as blues artists started stretching their sound to incorporate soul and blues styles. Today's selection features a great rumbling groove courtesy the guitar line (played low during the vocals and taken up a few octaves - but otherwise unchanged - for solos). I first heard this one on "Downtown Soulville" (see link on the right) and then got it on Funkaphonix 6. It's a cooker!
One of the fun things about doing this blog and having the podcast is that there's so much great material to choose from. One style of music that I particularly enjoy are the funky blues that came out of the late '60s, as blues artists started stretching their sound to incorporate soul and blues styles. Today's selection features a great rumbling groove courtesy the guitar line (played low during the vocals and taken up a few octaves - but otherwise unchanged - for solos). I first heard this one on "Downtown Soulville" (see link on the right) and then got it on Funkaphonix 6. It's a cooker!
Tuesday, December 27, 2005
Let's Play Coffee Pot
Tony Alvon & The Belairs - Sexy Coffee Pot
I hope all of you have been having a great holiday season. Today's selection is one of the many songs whose collector status (and, therefore, price) exploded after it was included in the turntablism masterpiece "Brainfreeze." "Sexy Coffee Pot" is the instrumental version of the flip side, "Boom-Boom-Boom." It's a great slice of late '60s funk with the tastiest breakdown I've ever heard. You'll surely be getting down with this one!
I hope all of you have been having a great holiday season. Today's selection is one of the many songs whose collector status (and, therefore, price) exploded after it was included in the turntablism masterpiece "Brainfreeze." "Sexy Coffee Pot" is the instrumental version of the flip side, "Boom-Boom-Boom." It's a great slice of late '60s funk with the tastiest breakdown I've ever heard. You'll surely be getting down with this one!
Thursday, December 22, 2005
A Christmas Cornucopia!
For the first time since I started this blog in earnest in November I'm going to take a short hiatus for Christmas (I'm travelling and won't have internet access). So here's a nice range of material to listen to, Christmas-related and otherwise! Happy Holidays! See you next week!
1. John Lee Hooker - This Is Hip
Kicking things off is an early '60s Vee Jay (I think) recording by the blues legend. This thing rocks!
2. Bunker Hill - Hide and Go Seek (Pt. 1)
Several years ago I saw the movie "Hairspray" and was enchanted by this raw piece of early '60s R&B when it was played in a scene set in the record store run by Ruth Brown. The song did not appear on the "Hairspray" soundtrack CD and I'd spent a long time trying to find out the name of the song, finally breaking through last year. Bunker Hill was the nom de disc of David Walker, whose usual gig was singing with the gospel group the Mighty Clouds of Joy, to which he rejoined after a relatively short secular career. "Hide and Go Seek" is a stomping vamp over which Hill gives nursery rhymes the hard-gospel treatment.
3. Alvin Cash - Keep on Dancin'
4. Branding Iron - Right, Tight and Out of Sight
Next are two pieces of funky Chicago soul. Alvin Cash continued his string of funky 45s in 1968 with the hit "Keep on Dancin'." Robert Pruter wrote in Chicago Soul that the popularity of this tune in part lay in the fact that the Funky Broadway could be danced to it. I don't know what that dance looked like, but I can imagine some fast and furious moves for this! The Branding Iron track was produced by Chicago blues legend Willie Dixon and it's very clear to me that the Chess house band is playing. What's confusing is why this tune came out on Volt. Whatever the label, though, it's great.
5. Lenox Avenue - Little Drummer Boy
6. Bethlehem Gospel Singers - Joy to the World
Finally, here are some Christmas songs. I haven't been able to find anything out about Lenox Avenue, but their Chess 45 of "Little Drummer Boy" has a slow, Fugi/Black Merda/Funkadelic type groove and some great horn charts. The Bethlehem Gospel Singers were one of the first gospel groups I ever heard, as my parents owned one of their LPs. This take on "Joy to the World" came from their HSE LP "It's In Your Bible" and it's a lot of fun.
1. John Lee Hooker - This Is Hip
Kicking things off is an early '60s Vee Jay (I think) recording by the blues legend. This thing rocks!
2. Bunker Hill - Hide and Go Seek (Pt. 1)
Several years ago I saw the movie "Hairspray" and was enchanted by this raw piece of early '60s R&B when it was played in a scene set in the record store run by Ruth Brown. The song did not appear on the "Hairspray" soundtrack CD and I'd spent a long time trying to find out the name of the song, finally breaking through last year. Bunker Hill was the nom de disc of David Walker, whose usual gig was singing with the gospel group the Mighty Clouds of Joy, to which he rejoined after a relatively short secular career. "Hide and Go Seek" is a stomping vamp over which Hill gives nursery rhymes the hard-gospel treatment.
3. Alvin Cash - Keep on Dancin'
4. Branding Iron - Right, Tight and Out of Sight
Next are two pieces of funky Chicago soul. Alvin Cash continued his string of funky 45s in 1968 with the hit "Keep on Dancin'." Robert Pruter wrote in Chicago Soul that the popularity of this tune in part lay in the fact that the Funky Broadway could be danced to it. I don't know what that dance looked like, but I can imagine some fast and furious moves for this! The Branding Iron track was produced by Chicago blues legend Willie Dixon and it's very clear to me that the Chess house band is playing. What's confusing is why this tune came out on Volt. Whatever the label, though, it's great.
5. Lenox Avenue - Little Drummer Boy
6. Bethlehem Gospel Singers - Joy to the World
Finally, here are some Christmas songs. I haven't been able to find anything out about Lenox Avenue, but their Chess 45 of "Little Drummer Boy" has a slow, Fugi/Black Merda/Funkadelic type groove and some great horn charts. The Bethlehem Gospel Singers were one of the first gospel groups I ever heard, as my parents owned one of their LPs. This take on "Joy to the World" came from their HSE LP "It's In Your Bible" and it's a lot of fun.
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
Jeez, I'm Late!
The Sheppards - Island of Love
I got busy this morning and just realized that I hadn't put anything up here yet. Today's selection is older than most of the stuff I put on here, but this doo-wop-turning-the-corner-into-soul classic is one of my favorite doo-wop songs. The Sheppards were a Chicago group featuring Millard Edwards (who would later make some tasty Northern Soul records as "Mill Evans"), who gently guides this song along.
I got busy this morning and just realized that I hadn't put anything up here yet. Today's selection is older than most of the stuff I put on here, but this doo-wop-turning-the-corner-into-soul classic is one of my favorite doo-wop songs. The Sheppards were a Chicago group featuring Millard Edwards (who would later make some tasty Northern Soul records as "Mill Evans"), who gently guides this song along.
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Lee Austin Rules His House
Lee Austin - I'm a Man
"The Mighty Burner," Leon (Lee) Austin, was one of the lesser-known members of the James Brown family. I read somewhere that Austin was an ex-con who Brown hired as a bodyguard. Having seen Austin on a videotape of "James Brown's Future Shock," I can believe it, as Austin had that "big brute" look about him. Austin had a high, countryfied tenor that graced a smattering of James Brown productions on King, Polydor, People and I-Dentify.
"I'm a Man" came from 1974, and features a very catchy horn chart over a fairly hard-hitting background. The James Brown-penned tune features Brown's usual macho lyrics, although some of them are a little out there ("you can be Donald Duck / But I ain't no Mickey Mouse"?) The tune also features a nice breakdown in the middle and, in what must've been a fetish for JB at the time, liberal use of the "Sproing!" sound effect. As tasty as the track is, it was commercially unsuccessful (as were all of Austin's 45s), but it is a great addition to the James Brown discography. (According to the "Future Shock" videos I've seen, Brown also released the instrumental track of the song as a J.B.'s tune under the name "Man Power".)
"The Mighty Burner," Leon (Lee) Austin, was one of the lesser-known members of the James Brown family. I read somewhere that Austin was an ex-con who Brown hired as a bodyguard. Having seen Austin on a videotape of "James Brown's Future Shock," I can believe it, as Austin had that "big brute" look about him. Austin had a high, countryfied tenor that graced a smattering of James Brown productions on King, Polydor, People and I-Dentify.
"I'm a Man" came from 1974, and features a very catchy horn chart over a fairly hard-hitting background. The James Brown-penned tune features Brown's usual macho lyrics, although some of them are a little out there ("you can be Donald Duck / But I ain't no Mickey Mouse"?) The tune also features a nice breakdown in the middle and, in what must've been a fetish for JB at the time, liberal use of the "Sproing!" sound effect. As tasty as the track is, it was commercially unsuccessful (as were all of Austin's 45s), but it is a great addition to the James Brown discography. (According to the "Future Shock" videos I've seen, Brown also released the instrumental track of the song as a J.B.'s tune under the name "Man Power".)
Monday, December 19, 2005
Funky Dillard
Dillard Crume & The Soul Rockers - Mini Dress
Dillard Crume was the long-time guitarist and songwriter for the legendary gospel group the Soul Stirrers, particularly in their post-Sam Cooke period where, on Specialty, SAR and Checker, they continued to produce great material. In the late '60s Crume left the group to try his hand at secular music, which he did for about a decade before returning to gospel music and the Soul Stirrers. During his secular period he and his band, The Soul Rockers, cut some great stuff, including today's selection, a nice piece of funky soul. Enjoy!
Dillard Crume was the long-time guitarist and songwriter for the legendary gospel group the Soul Stirrers, particularly in their post-Sam Cooke period where, on Specialty, SAR and Checker, they continued to produce great material. In the late '60s Crume left the group to try his hand at secular music, which he did for about a decade before returning to gospel music and the Soul Stirrers. During his secular period he and his band, The Soul Rockers, cut some great stuff, including today's selection, a nice piece of funky soul. Enjoy!
Sunday, December 18, 2005
Get on Down With The Gospel!
Rance Allen Group - Hot Line to Jesus
Rance Allen and his brothers Steve and Thomas hold a revered place in the history of gospel music, as they were one of the first groups to introduce soul and funk grooves into their music. Their great music caught the attention of Al Bell, who signed them to Stax's Gospel Truth (later shortened to Truth) label in the early '70s. The Rance Allen Group hit the R&B charts a few times, with 1975's "Ain't No Need of Crying" becoming the anthem of Stax in its final days. "Hot Line to Jesus" is a hard-hitting funk groove that carries the gospel motif of the "royal telephone" to a new level. Try and sit still when you listen to this!
Rance Allen and his brothers Steve and Thomas hold a revered place in the history of gospel music, as they were one of the first groups to introduce soul and funk grooves into their music. Their great music caught the attention of Al Bell, who signed them to Stax's Gospel Truth (later shortened to Truth) label in the early '70s. The Rance Allen Group hit the R&B charts a few times, with 1975's "Ain't No Need of Crying" becoming the anthem of Stax in its final days. "Hot Line to Jesus" is a hard-hitting funk groove that carries the gospel motif of the "royal telephone" to a new level. Try and sit still when you listen to this!
Saturday, December 17, 2005
Bumping Along With Ike & Tina
Ike & Tina Turner - You Can't Miss Nothing
I'm running late today so I'll be brief - I first heard this Ike & Tina number from a Sonja 45 I picked up at a book fair. (I found some other cool 45s that day but I'll discuss some of them later.) As per usual for Ike & Tina's mid-to-late '60s recordings, it's got a bumping rock 'n' roll-tinged groove, but this tune features an attractive "Spanish" sound that goes well with the spoken intro. Ike's guitar is nice and reverb-laden also. It's one of my favorite songs by the group.
I'm running late today so I'll be brief - I first heard this Ike & Tina number from a Sonja 45 I picked up at a book fair. (I found some other cool 45s that day but I'll discuss some of them later.) As per usual for Ike & Tina's mid-to-late '60s recordings, it's got a bumping rock 'n' roll-tinged groove, but this tune features an attractive "Spanish" sound that goes well with the spoken intro. Ike's guitar is nice and reverb-laden also. It's one of my favorite songs by the group.
Friday, December 16, 2005
This is Real Soul!
Jerry Washington - Right Here Is Where You Belong
Today's selection comes from the second volume of the Ace/AVI series "The Heart of Southern Soul" and is one of the best '70s deep soul singles I've ever heard. Jerry Washington starts with a somewhat-hokey staged dialogue but then launches into a pleading monologue that almost takes on the tones of a sermon before moving into the gospel-tinged ballad.
Today's selection comes from the second volume of the Ace/AVI series "The Heart of Southern Soul" and is one of the best '70s deep soul singles I've ever heard. Jerry Washington starts with a somewhat-hokey staged dialogue but then launches into a pleading monologue that almost takes on the tones of a sermon before moving into the gospel-tinged ballad.
Thursday, December 15, 2005
I Can Finally Get With It!
Jimmy McCracklin - I Had to Get With It
Jimmy McCracklin, along with Jimmy Holiday and Jimmy Lewis, is better known as a songwriter, having penned the blues and soul hits "Tramp," "Think" and many others. As a solo artist, however, he has put forth nearly 60 years of blues, rock 'n' roll, soul and funk for a wide range of labels including Peacock, Modern, Chess, Imperial, Minit and Stax. McCracklin's soul sides of the '60s for Imperial and Minit are very good and showcase McCracklin's bluesy vocals and wordy lyrics to great effect. Today's selection is one of his late '60s Minit recordings and cleverly incorporates the name of every state in the country (and Washington, D.C.) in his explanation of why he's in a funky soul bag as opposed to his original blues thing.
I encourage you to check out the EMI/Stateside CD, "I Had to Get With It" to hear the wide range of his work from the Imperial/Minit years. It's one of my favorite CDs!
Jimmy McCracklin, along with Jimmy Holiday and Jimmy Lewis, is better known as a songwriter, having penned the blues and soul hits "Tramp," "Think" and many others. As a solo artist, however, he has put forth nearly 60 years of blues, rock 'n' roll, soul and funk for a wide range of labels including Peacock, Modern, Chess, Imperial, Minit and Stax. McCracklin's soul sides of the '60s for Imperial and Minit are very good and showcase McCracklin's bluesy vocals and wordy lyrics to great effect. Today's selection is one of his late '60s Minit recordings and cleverly incorporates the name of every state in the country (and Washington, D.C.) in his explanation of why he's in a funky soul bag as opposed to his original blues thing.
I encourage you to check out the EMI/Stateside CD, "I Had to Get With It" to hear the wide range of his work from the Imperial/Minit years. It's one of my favorite CDs!
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