Category Archives: Soul
THE AROCK, SEROCK, SYLVIA SOUL STORY CONTINUED.
THE AROCK, SEROCK, SYLVIA SOUL STORY CONTINUED. Al Sears’ career began in the 1928, when he replaced Johnny Hodges in Chic Webbs’ band. This was the start of a long and successful career. In 1931, Al Sears joined Elmer Snowden’s band. He was the tenor saxophonist right through until 1932. Then in 1933, Al Sears …
MODERNISM.
MODERNISM. Ever since the birth of rock ’n’ roll, youth cults have come and gone. Some have been nothing more than passing fads. Others have lasted longer. None of the youth cults of the past sixty years have enjoyed the same longevity as the modernists. Their longevity is unrivalled, and is celebrated on Modernism, a new compilation …
PHIL’S SPECTRE-A WALL OF SOUNDALIKES.
PHIL’S SPECTRE-A WALL OF SOUNDALIKES. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. So it must have seemed to Phil Spector, as producers on both side of the Atlantic tried to replicate his famous Wall Of Sound. These producers looked enviously at Phil Spector, and wanted to enjoy the same commercial success and critical acclaim that …
THE INDEPENDENTS-JUST AS LONG-THE COMPLETE WAND RECORDINGS 1972-74.
THE INDEPENDENTS-JUST AS LONG-THE COMPLETE WAND RECORDINGS 1972-74. When Charles Jackson first met Marvin Yancy at Chicago’s Black Writer’s Workshop in 1971, he was already twenty-six, and had been working as an art director for Playboy magazine. That was why Charles Jackson had moved to the Windy City in the late sixties. However, Charles had …
MAINSTREAM MODERN SOUL 1969-1976.
MAINSTREAM MODERN SOUL 1969-1976. By 1970, Bob Shad was a veteran of the New York music scene. His career began in the forties, when he was a session musician. Bob made it his business to know everyone within the New York music scene. He knew everyone that mattered. Whether it was Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker or …
MARVIN GAYE-TROUBLE MAN-VINYL EDITION.
MARVIN GAYE-TROUBLE MAN-VINYL EDITION. When What’s Going On was released on 20th May 1971, it marked the second chapter in Marvin Gaye’s career. For many people, What’s Going On marked the start of Marvin Gaye’s career as a serious artist. Indeed, What’s Going On, was far removed from the poppy soul Marvin Gaye had previously …
ONE TRACK MIND- MORE MOTOWN GUYS.
ONE TRACK MIND- MORE MOTOWN GUYS. For some time, Berry Gordy Jr. had ben thinking of heading out on his own. He was fed up working for other people, and decided the time had come to form his own record company. So using the royalties he received from writing songs for Jackie Wilson, and an …
JACK ASHFORD-JUST PRODUCTIONS.
JACK ASHFORD-JUST PRODUCTIONS. By 1966, Jack Ashford was a familiar face in Detroit’s music jazz scene. The Philly born musician had been a member of Marvin Gaye’s touring band before he became a Funk Brother. Through meeting the Motown musicians, Jack decided to base himself in Detroit. Soon, he became part of Motown’s legendary studio band …
CALIFORNIA SOUL-FUNK AND SOUL FROM THE GOLDEN STATE 1967-1976.
CALIFORNIA SOUL-FUNK AND SOUL FROM THE GOLDEN STATE 1967-1976. Even today, many people still see California as an idyllic paradise. They see the Golden State as a place where the sun shines all summer long on a sparkling blue Ocean. Meanwhile, the beautiful people arrive at the beach in their Little Deuce Coupe, where they …
ALOHA GOT SOUL.
ALOHA GOT SOUL. The 21st of August 1959 was the day the Hawaiian history was changed forever. That day, Hawaii became the fiftieth and most recent American state. This changed Hawaii forevermore; including its cultural identity. From that day onwards, Hawaiian music changed. The next generation of Hawaiian musicians would be influenced the British Invasion …
HARMONY OF THE SOUL: VOCAL GROUPS 1962-1967.
HARMONY OF THE SOUL: VOCAL GROUPS 1962-1967. For many record companies, especially smaller independent labels, a successful compilation can be the answer to a label manager’s prayers. Suddenly, all the small losses that they’ve accumulated over the financial year are wiped out. Even better, there’s some profit left over. So it’s no surprise that the …
WHERE THE GIRLS ARE VOLUME 9.
WHERE THE GIRLS ARE VOLUME 9. Recently, Ace Records released a new volume in one of their longest running, and most successful compilation series. The compilation series in question, is Where The Girls Are. Its story began back on 27th May 1997. That’s when Ace Records released Where The Girls Are. Back then, hope was …
SAINT ETIENNE PRESENT SONGS FOR THE CARNEGIE DELI.
SAINT ETIENNE PRESENT SONGS FOR THE CARNEGIE DELI. Back in 1984, Woody Allen wrote, directed and starred in the black and white comedy, Broadway Danny Rose. Part of the film takes place over lunch in New York’s famous Carnegie Deli. It’s situated at 854 7th Avenue, and has been called the:”most famous” deli in the …
THE FIFTY-FIVE BEST COMPILATIONS OF 2015-PART 1.
THE FIFTY-FIVE BEST COMPILATIONS OF 2015-PART 1.. The next stop in my look back at 2015, is the compilations released during the last twelve months. Again, I started with a long-list, and over the course of a few weeks, gradually, narrowed it down to fifty-five albums. That took some doing. After all, 2015 was a …
THE FIFTY-FIVE BEST COMPILATIONS OF 2015-PART 2.
THE FIFTY-FIVE BEST COMPILATIONS OF 2015-PART 2. DISC0 2: A FURTHER FINE SELECTION OF INDEPENDENT DISCO, MODERN SOUL AND BOOGIE 1976-80. Just seven months after Soul Jazz Records released Disco: A Fine Selection of Independent Disco, Modern Soul and Boogie in November 2014, the London based label return with the sequel, Disco 2: A Further …
THE FIFTY-FIVE BEST COMPILATIONS OF 2015-PART 3.
THE FIFTY-FIVE BEST COMPILATIONS OF 2015-PART 3. GROOVE WITH A FEELING-SOUNDS OF MEMPHIS-BOOGIE, SOUL AND FUNK 1975-1985. By 1975, soul music was no longer as popular as it had once had been. Executives running the Sounds Of Memphis label realised this; and between 1975 and 1985, the label released a much more eclectic selection of …
THE BEST 55 NEW ALBUMS OF 2015-PART FOUR.
THE BEST 55 NEW ALBUMS OF 2015-PART FOUR. LABFIELD-BUCKET OF SONGS. Five years after the release of their sophomore album Collab, LabField, one of the leading lights of the European improv scene make a welcome return. They returned in 2015 with their genre-melting third album, Bucket of Songs. It was released on Hubro Music. Bucket …
SOUTH TEXAS RHYTHM ’N’ SOUL REVUEW 2-FROM THE VAULTS OF CRAZY CAJUN RECORDS.
SOUTH TEXAS RHYTHM ’N’ SOUL REVUEW 2-FROM THE VAULTS OF CRAZY CAJUN RECORDS. Back in February 2013, Kent Soul released South Texas Rhythm ‘N’ Soul Revue, a compilation of some of the finest soul and R&B to emerge from the Lone Star State. It was recorded at Huey Meaux’s studio, and featured many of the …