La La La La ... La La, La La La ...

Jimmy Ruffin - Our Favorite Melody

Some years ago I responded to an online survey that asked respondents to name their favorite Motown songs. I forget what I listed as my top five or top ten, but I do remember my pick for #1, "What Becomes of the Broken Hearted" by Jimmy Ruffin. That atmospheric ballad is, of course, the hit for which Jimmy (older brother of David) is remembered, although he had a few other hits in the '60s, '70s and early '80s, including one with David, and made noise in the UK with "Tell Me What You Want" in the '70s. Outside of "What Becomes of the Broken Hearted," today's selection is my favorite Jimmy Ruffin record. The long introduction of "Our Favorite Melody" effectively establishes the song's sing-along hook, so when Ruffin comes in to tell the story it all makes sense. (If you don't believe the "sing-along" part, wait until I post an aircheck in a future "Soul on the Air" installment of Mr. V on WGRT, singing along on the air! Besides, you might find that the hook is stuck in your head and you'll sing it yourself!)

It's Good; That's All I Know

Samson & Delilah - Keep Me In Mind

Today's selection is one of those tunes that falls into the "I don't really know anything about it, but I like it" category. The ABC single "Keep Me In Mind" is a strutting piece of funky soul featuring strong vocals by Samson & Delilah, a mixed duo I know nothing about other than that they had at least one other ABC single ("Woman"). (As always, any other info that you, dear reader, may have is welcomed.) At any rate, it's a nice piece of "get on down" that has brightened up my morning!

Funky Clarence!

Clarence Reid - No Way Out

It's time to rev up something a little funky to move through what is turning into a slow Tuesday, and this gem from the Numero comp Outskirts of Deep City fits the bill nicely. I've discussed this comp in a prior post, so I'll just focus on "No Way Out" by Clarence Reid, the singer/songwriter/producer/"Blowfly" alter ego whose contributions to the Miami soul scene resulted in hits for himself and others, including Betty Wright and Gwen McRae. This funky thing would have been a Deep City 45 had it been released, but fortunately the Numero guys were able to find the track in the box of tapes that gave rise to the comp - which is doubly fortunate, because they had possession of an acetate of the tune that was too scratchy for use; to know that such a great tune was out there but unreleasable would've been criminal! Dig the Steve Cropper-styled guitar work at the end of each verse on this one.

He Went to the Mountain Top!

Hoss Allen - He Went to the Mountain Top

In the midst of the two series I ran last week, I failed to pause to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., which was on Friday, April 4. To rectify this I turn to The Rogana Story once again to feature "He Went to the Mountain Top," a narration by Hoss Allen set to a gospel accompaniment. Allen's closing strikes me as particularly powerful today, after a weekend of news stories and documentaries celebrating King's legacy, because the message he gives still remains true. "His death may hinder or help [the civil rights] cause, perhaps both," the Hossman states. "But all of us owe him the honor of not letting ourselves distort, becloud or belittle the cause he brought to such noble purity of expression." Amen.

Basso Profundo Gospel Time!

Jimmy Jones & The Sensationals - I Don't Need

As I mentioned yesterday, since I've been doing thematic posts all week, I'll close out the "Basso Profundo" series with gospel's greatest bass singer, Jimmy Jones. As mentioned in a prior post, Jones went beyond the "boom-de-boom" that most basses employed (Willie Bobo of the Dixie Hummingbirds being the best at that style) to become quite an effective lead singer. After he made his mark in the Harmonizing Four he formed his own group, the Sensationals. Their recording "I Don't Need" features cheerful lyrics, but the minor-key arrangement and Jones' vocal (sounding almost like it's coming from some ethereal source) give the tune an ominous feel. It's a little eerie, but it's effective.

More Basso Profundo!

The Temptations - I Truly, Truly Believe

I guess this week is just a week of thematic posts, because I'm following yesterday's "Basso Profundo" post with another post featuring a bass lead. (I suppose I should pick a Jimmy Jones gospel number tomorrow, to round out the whole week!) The late Melvin Franklin was the one constant of the Temptations, whose personnel changed quite often from the late '60s through the '90s. Melvin's bass added a lot to the Temptations' sound, and interjections on songs like "Papa Was a Rolling Stone," "I Can't Get Next to You" and others helped make those songs classics. Today's selection was the B-side of "I Wish It Would Rain" and it found Franklin leading the group quite effectively.

Basso Profundo!

The Esquires - The Feeling's Gone

The Milwaukee-based group The Esquires were known for their Chicago soul records of the '60s and early '70s, most notably for their biggest hit, "Get on Up." The group's fine falsetto stylings, counterbalanced by Mill Edwards' bass (the "get on up" refrain in the aforementioned song was his), linked doo-wop harmonies with soul singing. In addition to dancers like "Get on Up," its follow-up, "And Get Away," and "Reach Out" were fine floaters like "Girls in the City" and today's selection. On "The Feeling's Gone," Edwards is given the lead vocal and he puts the lyrics over nicely while the group provides fine support.

I Think The Problem Is Resolved

I talked to a GoDaddy representative today and I think I've accomplished what they need of me in order to keep my account afloat. I've dashed out a couple of webpages at stepfatherofsoul.com to create an archive page for the podcasts. I think I will develop the site into a bit more than that, but in the meantime, you can check out the new site. I'm going to change the "Podcasts" section of the links to lead you to stepfatherofsoul.com. RSS feeds, then, should work as usual.

We'll see how things shake out tomorrow afternoon. Keep your fingers crossed!

An Important Message From the Stepfather of Soul

I'm having a bit of a struggle with GoDaddy.com, which has hosted my "stepfatherofsoul.com" domain since I started the blog back in 2005, because GoDaddy has initially deemed that my use of their services is solely "file storage" (a violation of their Terms of Service) because I don't have a "stepfatherofsoul.com" website. By later today, should GoDaddy deny my appeal, GoDaddy will delete all the files that I have there. This will not affect the daily posts or HIPCAST playbacks of the podcast, as HIPCAST is a separate entity and does not have limitations about "file storage." However, it will cause all of the pictures that appear in various posts to disappear, it will prevent downloads of the podcast from this site, and the RSS feeds I have at present for the podcast will not work. I have sent an "SOS" e-mail to several of my fellow music bloggers, and have received great advice on what service may be a good alternative to GoDaddy. I have lined up a replacement, and should my appeal to GoDaddy fail, I will establish an RSS feed there so that iTunes users will have no interruption in downloading the new podcasts. I'll share more news as events unfold.

"Funny How Time Slips Away" - The Series (#4)

Joe Hinton - Funny (How Time Slips Away)


The Spinners - Funny How Time Slips Away


B.B. King & Bobby Bland - Funny How Time Slips Away

Today's post concludes the "Funny" series, and it spans 40-plus years of R&B treatments to the Willie Nelson classic. Accordingly, I am featuring a '60s version, an '80s version, and one from the present decade.

I thought it would only be fitting to feature what I think was the first (and definitely the most successful) R&B version of the song, as performed by Joe Hinton. Way back in the earliest days of this blog I featured the Spirit of Memphis Quartet's "Lost in Sin," on which Hinton sang lead. Peacock prexy Don Robey convinced Hinton to try his hand at R&B, and in 1964 "Funny" was a hit. Hinton's version featured a big band backing, and Hinton's confident reading of the song, replete with a strained falsetto ending, really worked. "Funny" would end up being the biggest hit for Hinton, who died in 1968.

By the time the Spinners recorded "Funny" for their 1982 LP Grand Slam, the group's fantastic run of hits on Atlantic that stretched back to 1972 was coming to an end. Although John Edwards had replaced Phillippe Wynne in 1977 (Wynne started an ill-fated solo career and also did some work with the Parliament-Funkadelic crew, like Funkadelic's "Uncle Jam"), the group continued to have hits, especially with the disco medleys "Working My Way Back to You / Forgive Me Girl" and "Cupid / I've Loved You for a Long Time." Although neither Grand Slam nor any singles pulled from it did very well commercially, Edwards' vocal on "Funny" was thrilling. The arrangement of the Spinners record was a contemporary take on the Hinton original, and Edwards also closed the song with a thrilling falsetto.

I knew that I had to close out this series with B.B. King and Bobby Bland's reading of "Funny" from the B.B.'s duets LP 80, which was recorded a couple of years ago in commemoration of the bluesman's reaching octogenarian status. King and Bland, who by the time they recorded the song had over 50 years of history together, provide a warm, autumnal vocal over a country arrangement. Lyrically, they had to stretch a bit, since the "you're my old flame" narrative wouldn't work for a male duet, but they pulled it off, turning the song into a conversation between old friends in which Bland gently chided King for having a new woman ("that's the same thing that you told her, in time you're gonna pay," Bland sings in the second verse). To my ears, B.B.'s vocals sound very tired, but that weariness actually adds to the ambiance of the song, and the way he and Bobby close the song always makes me smile.

"Funny How Time Slips Away" - The Series (#3)

Reuben Howell - Funny How Time Slips Away


Dorothy Moore - Funny How Time Slips Away

Today's installment of the "Funny" series features two '70s Southern soul takes on the song, albeit that one of them was a Motown record. Blue-eyed soul man Reuben Howell was featured on this blog before, although erroneously (Howell was erroneously credited with Johnny Adams' "Bad Habit Baby" on Soul Resurrection, which I had featured). Howell cut two albums and a few singles for Motown (some of which were released on VIP), none of which were successful. His first LP, Reuben Howell, was produced by former Fame Gang musician Clayton Ivey and Terry Woodford and featured quite a few of the Muscle Shoals and Memphis soul scene regulars as instrumentalists and background singers. Ivey and Woodford chose to take strip the tune of its country flavor, choosing instead to have Howell sing the song over a stripped-down rhythm with nice piano and string accents. Howell brought the goods with his performance, alternating between a conversational style and fuller belting. It's a shame that Howell's Motown stuff got lost in the shuffle, because it was quite good.

Dorothy Moore had a smash hit - and kept the then-struggling Malaco concern from going out of business - in 1976 with the deep soul ballad "Misty Blue," the song for which she is best known. In that same year, however, she also raced up the pop and R&B charts with her version of "Funny." The arrangement on this version has more of a Southern soul feel than the Howell record, featuring a fine piano (both electric and acoustic) and guitar-based groove (dig the accompaniment in the last verse) and strong vocals by Moore.

"Funny How Time Slips Away" - The Series (#2)

Joe Tex - Funny How Time Slips Away


Danny Woods - Funny How Time Slips Away

Joe Tex needs no introduction to the readers of this blog, so the second installment of the "Funny" series will feature his great reading of the song from the Soul Country album. It's no surprise that Joe was very comfortable with country music, and it didn't hurt things that he worked with Nashville music impresario Buddy Killen. Joe's warm reading of the song fit nicely with the relaxed, stop-time groove the rhythm section put down, and the heavy horns provide a nice shading to the track.

Danny Woods is a member of the Chairmen of the Board, the Detroit soul act put together by Holland-Dozier-Holland after they left Motown to start their Invictus/Hot Wax concern. (I say "is" rather than "was" because in the '90s Woods and General Johnson re-formed the group, and they are quite popular in the Carolina shag music scene.) Although General Johnson's lead vocals are given most of the praise (in part because of his brilliant job on the smash hit "Give Me Just a Little More time"), Woods' gospel-rich voice fronted quite a few hits by the group, including "Pay to the Piper," "Tricked and Trapped" and others. In 1972, H-D-H decided to record each member of the group on a solo project alongside the group's Bittersweet LP. Unfortunately, all four projects were not big successes, but they all included some great music. Danny's album, Aries, included this great version of "Funny." Woods set up the song with a nice monologue (which includes the line "I walked into this barbecue joint - I mean steak house," which never ceases to make me smile) and then did a fine job with the song.