Category Archives: Southern Soul
WILSON PICKETT IN PHILADELPHIA.
WILSON PICKETT IN PHILADELPHIA. By 1970, when Wilson Pickett released Wilson Pickett In Philadelphia, his recording career was eight years old. He’d released his debut single If You Need Me in 1962, and since then, had enjoyed four number one US R&B singles. The first of these was his 1965 classic In The Midnight Hour, …
JOHNNIE TAYLOR-EARGASM.
JOHNNIE TAYLOR-EARGASM. By the time Johnnie Taylor released Eargasm in 1976, he was one of music survivors, capable of adapting with the ever-evolving musical landscape. During Johnnie Taylor’s career, he’d sung gospel, blues, soul, funk, R&B and by 1976, disco. Johnnie’s career had spanned three decades, and much had changed in music. Indeed, just the …
LOLEATTA HOLLOWAY-LOVE SENSATION.
LOLEATTA HOLLOWAY-LOVE SENSATION. There’s a certain symmetry that in return for Loleatta Holloway adding a vocal on what became one of Dan Hartman’s biggest hit singless, Relight My Fire, that Dan returned this favor by writing one of Loleatta’s most successful singles, Love Sensation. This story starts back in 1979, when Dan Hartman was …
LOVING ON THE FLIPSIDE.
LOVING ON THE FLIPSIDE. In my never-ending quest to bring you new and exciting compilations, recently, I’ve recently been digging even deeper than usual. This has seen me reviewing from labels far and wide, including Japan, Europe and America, plus some of my favorite British labels. One of the reasons I’ve been digging so deep …
LOLEATTA HOLLOWAY-LOLEATTA HOLLOWAY.
LOLEATTA HOLLOWAY-LOLEATTA HOLLOWAY. When Loleatta Holloway came to record her fifth album, and third for Gold Mind Records Loleatta Holloway, she encountered a very different company. Gone was Norman Harris who’d previously run Gold Mind and who’d been at Loleatta’s side every step of the way, during her Gold Mind career. Norman Harris wasn’t the …
NUTRITIOUS PRESENTS DUKE WILLIAMS AND THE EXTREMES.
NUTRITIOUS PRESENTS DUKE WILLIAMS AND THE EXTREMES. All too often, good music for whatever reason, passes unnoticed. It can be for any number of reasons, from a record company not promoting an album properly, that particular genre of music becoming unpopular, the band splitting up or even the record company becoming insolvent. I’ve come across …
BEHIND CLOSED DOORS: WHEN COUNTRY MEETS SOUL.
BEHIND CLOSED DOORS: WHEN COUNTRY MEETS SOUL. Compilers it seems, are always looking for new ideas for the compilations, that will make their particular compilation standout from the sometimes overcrowded compilation market. Record companies big and small, sometimes perceive compilations as shooting fish in a barrel, an easy way to make quick buck. Having said …
LOLEATTA HOLLOWAY-LOLEATTA.
LOLEATTA HOLLOWAY-LOLEATTA. Recently, when I reviewed Carol Williams’ ‘Lectric Lady, I referred to Carol as the First Lady of Salsoul, as she was the first female artist to sign to Salsoul Records. Now while Carol Williams was the First Lady of Salsoul, Loleatta Holloway was the undisputed Queen of Salsoul. I’d go further and say …
HOLY SPIRIT-SPIRITUAL SOUL AND GOSPEL FUNK.
HOLY SPIRIT-SPIRITUAL SOUL AND GOSPEL FUNK. In an increasingly overcrowded compilation market, certain labels can be relied upon to release quality compilations. Three labels spring to mind, BBE Music, Strut and Harmless Records. Whilst other labels, including major labels continue to recycle the same collections of familiar and sometimes tired songs, albeit using different titles. …
GEORGE MCCRAE-ROCK YOUR BABY.
GEORGE MCCRAE-ROCK YOUR BABY. Imagine an artist could record a single in an hour, costing them just $15 or $20 and that single went on to reach number one in the US Billboard and US R&B Charts. While that might sound far fetched, it actually happened. Back in 1974 George McCrae recorded Rock Your Baby …
THE BREAKS-ORIGINAL B BOY STREET FUNK AND BLOCK PARTY CLASSICS.
THE BREAKS-ORIGINAL B BOY STREET FUNK AND BLOCK PARTY CLASSICS. Recently, I reviewed one of the compilations Harmless Records released to commemorate their fifteenth anniversary, Mellow Mellow. However, that wasn’t the only compilation Harmless released to celebrate fifteen years of releasing quality music. Three other compilations were released, Jumpin’ was a collection of true disco …
STAX GOLD-HITS 1968-1974.
STAX GOLD-HITS 1968-1974. For some time, I’ve been meaning to do a feature on one of my favorite soul labels Stax. Previously, I’ve reviewed a number of albums that have been rereleased and remastered, with Johnny Taylor’s Taylored In Silk, Shirley Brown’s Woman To Woman, The Dramatics’ Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get and The Staple …
ANN PEEBLES-TELLIN’ IT.
ANN PEEBLES-TELLIN’ IT. It’s been a while since I looked back at the Hi Records back catalogue, so thought that I’d rectify that by doing a review of one of Ann Peebles’ albums. With seven albums to choose from, I’ve plenty of great music to chose from. Previously, I’ve written about Ann’s most successful album, …
THE FAME RECORDS STORY-1961-1973.
THE FAME RECORDS STORY-1961-1973. Over the years I’ve accumulated many boxed sets, some of which are stunning, some merely good and a few that were to put it politely a rip-off. Three box sets that fall into the stunning category are the trio of Stax box sets which document every single the label ever released. …
LOVE AND JEALOUSY AND BACK TO MY PLACE BABY.
LOVE AND JEALOUSY AND BACK TO MY PLACE BABY. If I was to say the words Southern, Deep, Crossover, Modern and Northern what would you say? Many people would immediately say soul. They would be correct, but they’re also the themes for some of the Backbeats compilations that have been released since 2009. In total, …
THE DRAMATICS-A DRAMATIC EXPERIENCE.
THE DRAMATICS-A DRAMATIC EXPERIENCE. Some time ago, I reviewed The Dramatics debut album Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get, which had recently been rereleased and remastered. What many people didn’t realize was that included on the album was their second album A Dramatic Experience. Their first album Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get had been a huge …
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