“The Imperial & Minit Years” by CLYDIE KING (November 2007 EMI/Stateside/Minit 22-Track CD Compilation of Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"…Ready Willing And Able…To Give You My Love…"

Best known as one of 'the' great Backing Vocalists (especially in the Seventies) - Texan CLYDIE KING had her own stab at Solo fame in the mid to late Sixties on the Stateside and Minit Record labels in the USA. 

Not that anyone noticed - none of these 45s made the Top 40 in the US R&B charts despite the fact that her singles are beloved amongst Soul collectors. Even the presence of the mighty JIMMY HOLIDAY on the wonderful and chipper "Ready, Willing & Able" failed to move.

This fab little November 2007 CD Remaster called "The Imperial & Minit Years" by CLYDIE KING on EMI/Stateside 5099950958122 (Barcode 5099950958122) sets out to prove the chart-buying public were wrong to ignore her - and makes a damn good 22-Track point of doing so. Here are the in-depth details…

1. The Thrill Is Gone

2. If You Were A Man

1965, A&B-sides of USA 7" single on Imperial 66109

3. Missin' My Baby

4. My Love Grows Deeper

1965, A&B-sides of USA 7" single on Imperial 66139

5. He Always Comes Back To Me

6. Soft And Gentle Ways

1966, A&B-sides of USA 7" single on Imperial 66172

7. Ready, Willing And Able [Jimmy Holiday & Clydie King]

8. We Got A Good Thing Goin' [Jimmy Holiday & Clydie King]

1967, A&B-sides of USA 7" single on Minit 32021

9. One Of Those Good For Crying Over You Days

10. My Mistakes Of Yesterday

1967, A&B-sides of USA 7" single of Minit 32025

11. I'll Never Stop Loving You

12. Shing-A-Ling

1968, A&B-sides of USA 7" single on Minit 32032

13. One Part, Two Part

14. Love Now Pay Later

1968, A&B-sides of USA 7" single on Minit 32054

15. Good Kind Of Hurt

16. I'm Glad I'm A Woman

17. If You Love Me Like You Say

18. Ode To Billie Joe

19. Something To Remember You By

20. The Way I Love My Man

21. When In Rome

22. You Can't Make Me Love You

Tracks 15 to 22 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

Much of the Imperial stuff is actually very Phil Spector sounding because the recordings reflect that wall of sound feel. The Minit label material features Jimmy Holiday both on duet vocals and in song-writing credits - and are pure Sixties Soul bliss – full of "...sock it to me…and dig this…" lyrics. Check out "Shing-A-Ling", a Van McCoy song relegated to the B-side of "I'll Never Stop Loving You" - absolutely sensational – like discovering a great unheard Motown gem. And there's also her most famous song - the uptempo duet with Jimmy Holiday - "Ready Willing And Able" (lyrics above) – a lovely tune. It was featured in 1986 on a Jimmy Holiday reissue album called "Everybody Needs Help" when EMI first started dipping their toes in Old School Soul reissues.

As a session vocalist, the list of rock and soul luminaries Clydie has played is almost ludicrous - The Doors, Bob Dylan, Joe Cocker, B.B. King, The Supremes, The Rolling Stones, America, Ringo Starr, Keith Moon and my first introduction to her - via Steely Dan. Clydie King sang on Steely Dan albums - mother of God!

The Bonus Tracks all turn out to be properly produced studio recordings (all from 1968) - and they're uniformly excellent - especially "Good Kind Of Hurt" and the wicked "You Can't Make Me Love You".

This is what a Soul CD reissue should be about - ludicrously rare Soul gems given a new remastered airing - topped up with a primo haul of previously unreleased goodies from those heady times - and that's exactly what you get here. Buy this beautiful Soul compilation and you'll know why her vocals were and are - so revered. And it's less than a fiver from most sellers…very nice indeed…

"Couldn’t Stand The Weather" by STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN and DOUBLE TROUBLE. A Review Of The 2010 2CD 'Legacy Edition' Reissue.

"…Rain Or Shine…It’s Always Here To Stay…"

It's hardly surprising that Stevie Ray Vaughan's 2nd album has become a 2CD 'Legacy Edition' - it was his breakthrough record and is still a huge fan favourite. But re-listening to it now a full 26 years after the event, you're clobbered with his astonishing fretwork, his effortless cool and what a tragic loss to music he was - taken away from us at only 35 in 1990. 

But to the details of this reissue first... 

“Couldn’t Stand The Weather” by STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN and DOUBLE TROUBLE on Epic/Legacy 88697559432 was released 26 July 2010 - a 2CD ‘Deluxe Edition’ Remaster (by VIC ANESINI) that breaks down as follows:

Disc 1 (79:02 minutes):

Tracks 1 to 8 are the original LP "Couldn't Stand The Weather" released May 1984 in the USA on Epic FE 39304 and June 1984 in the UK on Epic EPC 25940

BONUS TRACKS

Tracks 10, 11, 13 and 14 are 4 of the 5 bonus tracks that appeared on the 1999 Expanded CD remaster of "Couldn't Stand The Weather" (the missing track is a short 'SRV Interview')

Tracks 12, 15 and 19 are 3 PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED versions of "The Sky Is Crying", "Boot Hill" and "Stang's Swang"  

Tracks 9, 16, 17 and 18 are from the posthumously released album "The Sky Is Crying" (1991)

Disc 2 (75:56 minutes):

Tracks 1 to 13 are a live concert recorded 'The Spectrum' in Montreal on 17 August 1984 (late show) and are listed as PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED (see below).

Eagle-eye fans will notice that of the 11 bonus tracks on Disc 1, only THREE are actually previously unreleased (the rear packaging clearly states this) - the rest are on other CDs fans will already own. Which leaves the live stuff on Disc 2, but that too has been made available via another label. This will mean that dedicated fans will feel they're being asked to fork out for only 3 songs, but I feel for the rest of us - this set is a feast of studio and live brilliance worth every penny. 

The 3-way foldout digipak is nice and there's a photo-festooned 24-page booklet with great liners notes by ANDY ALEDORT, Associate Editor of the "Guitar World" magazine. The mastering is by VIC ANESINI and the sound quality is fantastic - big, ballsy and clear. 

Niggles - there's no footage and there should be. There was a visual excitement about SRV - and I don't just mean that he looked the part - he literally exuded the Blues in his every flourish on the fret-board and growl into the microphone (check out the DVD of "Live At The El Mocambo" from 1983 for such fireworks). The wonderful 'Legacy Edition' of Jeff Buckley's "Grace" was a 3-disc set with a DVD in it and far better for it. 

I batter on about the visuals because it’s one thing to hear Stevie Ray Vaughan make that Stratocaster talk, its another matter entirely witnessing him do it. On film you can graphically 'see' his musicality and fluency. Another thing all really great guitar players have (Jeff Beck, Carlos Santana, Tommy Emmanuel) is that they can rock it out one moment, but do the beautiful the next. Check out YouTube for videos of "Couldn't Stand The Weather" (lyrics above) and then follow it with "Lenny" - excite and sway - SRV could do both.  

I've loved rehearing this album and the extra tracks are an absolute blast. Ok, there is duplicity and diehard fans will already have much of it, but for the rest of us mere mortals, this is a timely reminder of just how blisteringly good Stevie Ray Vaughan was. 

If you haven't succumbed before, then this is the place to start - there's a whole lot of genius on here for not a whole lot of money. Probably the only guitar player who made all the greats 'nervous' - and that's saying something. 

"Lie Back And Enjoy It" by JUICY LUCY (2010 Esoteric Recordings 'Expanded Edition' CD Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

This review is part of my Series "SOUNDS GOOD: Exceptional CD Remasters 1970s Rock And Pop" Download Book available to buy on Amazon to either your PC or Mac (it will download the Kindle software to read the book for free to your toolbar). Click on the link below to go my Author's Page for this and other related publications:

                       http://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B00LQKMC6I

"…Ain't Going Down That Lonesome Road All By Myself…"

Released in September 1969 – JUICY LUCY’s self-titled debut LP was only the second album on the then new progressive rock label VERTIGO Records. And on the back of their blistering UK 7” single “Who Do You Love” which was lifted off the record and released in February 1970 - the "Juicy Lucy" album finally charted in the UK in April 1970. And that’s where this cool little CD reissue kicks in. "Lie Back And Enjoy It" was their hurriedly recorded follow-up LP (featuring a radically altered band line-up) – and it’s mid-price expanded CD reissue by the renowned Esoteric Recordings Label (part of Cherry Red) is a welcome boogie blast from my distant past…

UK released August 2010 (reissued June 2015) – "Lie Back And Enjoy It" by JUICY LUCY on Esoteric Recordings ECLEC2216 (Barcode 5013929731646) is an ‘Expanded Edition’ CD Remaster and breaks down as follows (39:08 minutes):

1. Thinking Of My Life

2. Built For Comfort

3. Pretty Woman

4. Whisky In My Jar

5. Hello L.A. Bye Bye Birmingham

6. Changed My Mind, Changed My Sign

7. That Woman’s Got Something

8. Willie The Pimp/Lie Back And Enjoy It Medley

Tracks 1 to 8 are the album "Lie Back And Enjoy It" released October 1970 in the UK on Vertigo 6360 014. The album charted at number 53 on the UK LP charts for one week in November 1970. Their next two albums were on the 'Bronze' and 'Polydor' labels ("Get A Whiff A This" from 1971 and "Pieces" from 1972).

Track 9 "I'm A Thief" (Mono) is the non-album B-side to their second 7" single "Pretty Woman" (Track 3 on Side 1). It was released September 1970 in the UK on Vertigo 6059 015 (also on the Spiral label) but failed to chart.

Boasting a new 24-bit remaster by BEN WISEMAN at Audio Archiving in London (it was first put out by Repertoire in 1994) - it's also available digitally at www.losttunes.com.

The 5-piece for this LP featured PAUL WILLIAMS on Lead Vocals, Congas & Piano [ex Zoot Money’s Big Band] with GLENN ROSS CAMPBELL on Lead Guitar, Mandolin and Vocals [ex The Misunderstood], MICKY MOODY on Guitars [ex Tramline, Mike Cotton Sound - later with Snafu, Whitesnake & duet work with Paul Williams], CHRIS MERCER on Saxophones & Keyboards [ex John Mayall's Bluesbreakers], KEITH ELLIS on Bass & Vocals [ex Koobas and Van Der Graaf Generator] and ROD COOMBES on Drums and Percussion.

Building on the greasy slide-guitar boogie-band feel of their self-titled debut, “Lie Back And Enjoy It” went down the same road – only this time they’d replaced Ray Owen as Lead Vocalist with Paul Williams and Neill Hubbard’s guitar work with that of Micky Moody. Like the first album it’s a mixed batch of the great and the ordinary. The Paul Williams penned “Pretty Woman” was released as the album’s only single and you can instantly hear why – catchy as a cold in Margate. The cover of the Willie Dixon song he gave to Howlin' Wolf "Built For Comfort" is less successful as is the awful version of Zappa’s “Willy The Pimp” (although it redeems itself at about 5 minutes 34 seconds in as it fades out and suddenly turns into a lovely 2-minute long piano instrumental - not surprisingly called “Lie Back And Enjoy It”). But the track I dig the most is “This Woman’s Got Something” which was co-written by Moody, Campbell and William (lyrics above) – it’s a bluesy builder with great guitar work and has graced more than a few 70’s FEST CDs I’ve made up for shop play.

Sound - like Esoteric’s 2010 reissue of "Juicy Lucy" the audio quality is incredibly clean and crisp, full of power and a massive improvement over what I had before - a really great job done. The 16-page booklet features a really detailed account by MARK POWELL of their transition from The Misunderstood of 1966 to Juicy Lucy of 1969 and onwards into 1970 and their many line-up changes. The original album artwork was an elaborate 4-way foldout poster affair that is reproduced in parts here. There are also full-page colour-plates for each member of the band, Vertigo adverts for the group and a foreign picture sleeve of the “Pretty Woman” single. Like its predecessor, it's all very nicely done.

There are some Seventies bands I go dolally over and JUICY LUCY is one of them. And although some of the tracks on here don't quite live up to the image and promise of the elaborate sleeve - there's tunes on here that do. I've loved re-hearing this long-forgotten album.

A wicked little reissue really...

PS: Their 1st Vertigo album from September 1969 "Juicy Lucy" has also been remastered and reissued by Esoteric in 2010 with a bonus track (see separate review).

“Juicy Lucy” by JUICY LUCY (2010 Esoteric Recordings 'Expanded Edition' CD Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

JUICY LUCY are part of my Series "SOUNDS GOOD: Exceptional CD Remasters 1970s Rock And Pop" Download Book available to buy on Amazon to either your PC or Mac (it will download the Kindle software to read the book for free to your toolbar). Click on the link below to go my Author's Page for this and other related publications:

                       http://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B00LQKMC6I

"…Walked 47 Miles Of Barbed Wire…Used A Cobra Snake For A Necktie…"

Sandwiched between "Valentyne Suite" by Colosseum (VO 1) and "Chapter Three" by Manfred Mann (VO 3) - "Juicy Lucy" by JUICY LUCY was only the 2nd album ever released on the then fledgling progressive rock Vertigo Label (famous for its Spiral label design). This reissue is 24-bit newly remastered reissue of that fab boogie-woogie debut LP (it was first put out by Repertoire in 1994) and features a relevant bonus track. It's also available digitally at www.losttunes.com. The quality remaster on this mid-price CD is by BEN WISEMAN at Audio Archiving in London. Here are juicy fruity details...

UK released August 2010 on CD  - "Juicy Lucy" by JUICY LUCY on Esoteric Recordings ECLEC2215 (Barcode 5013929731547) is an ‘Expanded Edition’ CD Remaster and breaks down as follows (41:07 minutes):

1. Mississippi Woman

2. Who Do You Love?

3. She’s Mine, She’s Yours

4. Just One Time

5. Chicago North-Western

6. Train

7. Nadine

8. Are You Satisfied

Tracks 1 to 8 are the album "Juicy Lucy" released September 1969 in the UK on Vertigo VO 2 (874 901 VTY)

Track 9 “Walking Down The Highway” is the non-album B-side to their debut 7" single "Who Do You Love" (Track 2 on Side 1). It was released 6 February 1970 in the UK on Vertigo V 1 and entered the UK singles chart in late March 1970 at number 28 - eventually rising to Number 14 in mid April. On the strength of that popular rocker the album also belatedly charted in the UK in April 1970 - rising to Number 41.

The 5-piece featured RAY OWENS on Lead Vocals with GLENN ROSS CAMPBELL on Lead Guitar, Mandolin and Vocals [both ex The Misunderstood], NEIL HUBBARD on Guitars, CHRIS MERCER on Saxophones & Keyboards [ex John Mayall's Bluesbreakers], KEITH ELLIS on Bass & Vocals [ex Koobas and Van Der Graaf Generator] and PETE DOBSON on Drums and Percussion.

Sporting one of those gatefold sleeves you never forget - a nude Zelda Plum covered from head to toe in soggy fruit (she turned up at some of the early gigs and danced with the boys as they played the tune) - it promised sleazy Rock’n’Roll your mother would disapprove of. And it delivered in places too - especially when Ray Owens was at the microphone.

But therein lay the problem with this record and this band. With him to the fore, they had the kind of attention-grabbing growling vocalist they needed with a voice that sounded like a cross between Captain Beefheart and the US DJ Wolfman Jack. But of its 8 tracks only "Mississippi Woman" and "Who Do You Love" featured Owen on Lead Vocals. Glenn Ross Campbell handled the others ("Just One Time" and "Chicago North-Western") with Keith Ellis ("She's Mine, She's Yours", "Train", "Nadine" and "Are You Satisfied") - who was nowhere near as good. It meant that those who'd bought the single and expected more of the same felt short-changed.

Having said that - there's absolute gems on here. Their own "Mississippi Woman" is a cracking rock track while the eerie slow-paced menace of "Just One Time" has graced many of my Shop Play CD compilations - it's hard to categorize but its utterly brilliant. Their cover versions of Chuck Berry's "Nadine" and Buddy & Herb Rich's "Train" are good rather than great and "Chicago North-Western" sounds like sub-standard Allman Brothers. But it ends well on the mandolin-driven Dr. John voodoo of "Are You Satisfied". The non-album B-side is excellent too - far better than it had any right to be. 

But then you're back to their rip-roaring incendiary cover of Bo Diddley's "Who Do You Love" - it's the album's ace-in-the-hole (lyrics above). Loud, manic and positively dangerous for hip joint replacements - it sounds utterly astonishing even now - a full 40 years after the event. Half way through its radio-rattling 3-minute duration, Campbell just goes ape on the slide steel guitar and combined with Owen's fantastic vocal delivery, it often brings customers to our counter asking - "who the f**k is this!"

The sound quality is incredibly clean and crisp - full of power - while the 16-page booklet features a really detailed account by MARK POWELL of their transition from The Misunderstood of 1966 to Juicy Lucy of 1969. The UK inner gatefold is also reproduced, Chris Welch's original liner notes, there's pictures of the alternate Dutch, Mexican and New Zealand album artwork (more variations on a woman in fruit), the 7" single (UK Demo and Foreign Picture Sleeves) and Vertigo adverts for the album and the band. It's all very well done indeed.

There are some bands you're soppy for - and JUICY LUCY is one of them. And although some of the tracks on here don't quite live up to the wanton promise of that unbelievable single and that saucy-as-sin album cover - there's much that does...

PS: Their 2nd Vertigo album from October 1970 "Lie Back & Enjoy It" has also been remastered and reissued by Esoteric in 2010 with a bonus track - as has their 3rd LP on Bronze "Get A Whiff A This" (reissued in April 2013)

"The Ultimate Staple Singers – A Family Affair 1953-1984" by THE STAPLE SINGERS - features Mavis and Pops Staples with Production by Steve Cropper, Al Bell, Don Davis, Curtis Mayfield, Eugene Record (and more) and Songs by Homer Banks, Bettye Crutcher, Bonnie Bramlett, Roebuck Staples, Curtis Mayfield, Donny Hathaway, Jimmy Holliday, We Three and more (September 2004 UK Ace/Kent Soul Records 2CD Compilation of Remasters with Four Previously Unreleased Tracks) - A Review by Mark Barry...

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ultimate-Staple-Singers-Family-1955-1984/dp/B0002QPSW2?crid=3316QQJ3FUKPH&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.se31GaM9t97qdwwoGIRdSA.bxrmxl0G1AwXLBegphhL_j13yZa4veo6HAR1yclVZ1M&dib_tag=se&keywords=029667224024&qid=1741124163&sprefix=029667224024%2Caps%2C87&sr=8-1&linkCode=ll1&tag=mabasreofcdbl-21&linkId=a048fa2c773fe5df471881584ee36e8f&language=en_GB&ref_=as_li_ss_tl

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RATINGS: 

Overall ****

CD1 is *** to ***** - CD2 is *****

Presentation *****

Mono and Stereo Audio *** to *****

"…If You're Ready (Come Go With Me)…"

Like most people I came across the Staple Singers through their fabulous run of Stax and Curtom sides in the Seventies (although their career stretched back to Gospel roots in the early Fifties). This impressive if not slightly maddening double CD by Ace Records of the UK (using their Kent Soul logo) is a thorough 30-year deep-dive retrospective for one of the most underrated Soul acts of all time. 'Ultimate' even includes four properly storming Previously Unreleased cuts and a chunky 28-page fact-filled booklet with interviews, photos, period memorabilia, 45-single labels and LP artwork etc - pretty much typical of Ace's quality. 

But - and despite my lifelong love of The Staples where I even feel like a bit of a ham saying anything negative about this legendary cross-the-barriers group - this particular 2CD compilation features rarities in one-off single sides, flips that haven't been on CD before and the occasional obscure album cut. And my point is that CD1 has an awkward listen because of it - especially the first 14 tracks that mostly cover their overtly Gospel years and that last clunker 'Solon Bushi' - a Japanese Folk Song that show have stayed in Tokyo. But outside of those personal reservations - it's pretty much joy-unto-the-rave fantastic - including four exclusives actually worthy of the moniker. Let's get into the details anyway...

UK released September 2004 - "The Ultimate Staple Singers: A Family Affair 1953-1984" by THE STAPLE SINGERS on Ace/Kent Soul CDKEN2 240 (Barcode 029667224024) offers up 44 tracks across 2 CDs covering their record label stays with United, Vee Jay, Riverside, Vanguard, Sharp, Epic, Stax, Curtom, Warner Brothers and Private I Records - with 4 previously unreleased thrown in. 

Disc 1 deals with 1953 up to 1971 (including their rare one-off 1953 debut on United Records, Track 5) - while Disc 2 covers everything after that (mostly Seventies) up to Warner Brothers and Private Records in 1984. All songs credited to The Staple Singers except Five Solo Efforts highlighted as such. Here's a breakdown...

CD1: (76:05 minutes)

1. Hammer And Nails (June 1962, US 45-single on Riverside R-4562, A-side)

2. Nobody's Fault But Mine (1962 Riverside recording first issued 1973 in the USA on the Staple Singers compilation LP "Use What You Got" on Fantasy F-9423)

3. Too Close (October 1960, US 45-single on Vee Jay VJ 893, B-side of "Pray On")

4. Uncloudy Day (November 1956, US 45-single on Vee Jay VJ 224, A-side)

5. Won't You Sit Down (Sit Down Servant) (December 1953, US Debut 45-single on United U-165, A-side)

6. I Wish I Had Answered (Live Recording from the 1964 US Various Artists LP "Newport Folk Festival 1964 - Evening Concerts Vol.2" on Vanguard VRS-9185 in Mono)

7. A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall (December 1965 US LP "This Little Light" on Vanguard Records RM 3527 in Mono - a Bob Dylan cover)

8. Swing Low (August 1962, US 45-single on Vee Jay VJ 912, A-side)

9. This May Be The Last Time (1960, US 45-single on Sharp 45-603, A-side)

10. For What It's Worth (August 1967, Epic 5-10220, A-side - a cover of the Buffalo Springfield hit written by Stephen Stills)

11. Be Careful Of The Stones You Throw (December 1964, December 1964 US 45-single on Epic 59748, B-side of "More Than A Hammer And Nail")

12. Why (Am I Treated So Bad) (May 1967, US 45-single on Epic 5-10158, A-side - Produced by Larry Williams)

13. It's Been A Change (November 1966, US 45-single on Epic 5-10114, B-side of "Pray On")

14. Will The Circle Be Unbroken (1966 US LP "Why?" on Epic LN 24196 in Mono)

15. The Ghetto (December 1968, US 45-single on Stax STA-0019, A-side - written by Homer Banks, Bonnie Bramlett and Bettye Crutcher)

16. Long Walk To DC (August 1968, US 45-single on Stax STA-0007, A-side - written by Homer Banks)

17. God Bless The Children (March 1970, US 45-single on Stax STA-0066, B-side of "Give A Damn" - 'God Bless The Children' is a Jimmy Holliday song)

18. (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay (March 1969, US 45-single on Stax STA-0031, A-side - a cover version of the famous Otis Redding song)

19. The Gardener (June 1968, US 45-single on Stax STA-0039, B-side of "The Challenge" - written by We Three - Produced by Steve Cropper, Guitarist with Booker T. & The MG's)

20. When Will We Be Paid For The Work We Did (October 1969, US 45-single on Stax STA-0052, A-side - written by Randy Stewart of The Fiestas - Produced by Steve Cropper)

21. Who Took The Merry Out Of Christmas (November 1970, US 45-single on Stax STA 0084, A-side - Produced by Al Bell) 

22. John Henry - ROEBUCK "POPS" STAPLES (Previously Unissued Stax Recording - a Traditional probably recorded in 1969)

23. You're Gonna Make Me Cry (August 1971, US 45-single on Stax STA-0104, B-side of "Respect Yourself")

24. Solon Bushi (from the 1969 US LP "We'll Get Over" on Stax STS 2016 in Stereo - a cover of a Japanese Folk Song)

NOTES on CD1: 

Tracks 1 to 14 primarily feature their Gospel years with the Riverside, Vee Jay, Vanguard and Epic labels

Tracks 15 to 24 touch on the Stax issues from 1968 to 1971

Track 22 is PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

CD2 2: (78:14 minutes)

1. This World (July 1972, US 45-single on Stax STA-0137, A-side, Produced Al Bell)

2. I Have Learned To Do Without You - MAVIS STAPLES (June 1970, US 45-single on Volt VOA-4044, A-side, Produced Don Davis)

3. Respect Yourself (August 1971, US 45-single on Stax STA-0104, A-side - Written by Mack Rice and Luther Ingram)

4. Tryin' Times - ROEBUCK "POPS" STAPLES (Previously Unissued Version of Stax STA-0064, a US 45-single issued March 1970, the B-side of "Black Boy" - Session Probably Included Donny Hathaway and Phil Upchurch)

5. Heavy Makes You Happy (Sha-Na-Boom Boom) (November 1970, US 45-single on Stax STA-0083, B-side of "Love Is Plentiful" - Produced by Al Bell)

6. I'll Take You There (March 1972, US 45-single on Stax STA-0125, A-side)

7. You've Got To Earn It (June 1971, US 45-single on Stax STA-0093, A-side)

8. The Only Time You Ever Say You Love Me - MAVIS STAPLES (Previously Unissued Volt recording)

9. Oh La De Da (Previously Unreleased Remixed Version of US 45-single Stax STA-0156, A -side without fake audience noises)

10. If You're Ready (Come Go With Me) (September 1973, US 45-single on Stax STA-0173, A-side)

11. City In The Sky (June 1974, US 45-single on Stax STA-0215, A-side)

12. I Got To Be Myself (October 1975 US 45-single on Stax STN-0255, A-side with "Be What You Are" LP track "Heaven" as the B-side. NOTE: this 45 isn't listed in many discographies because although allocated a catalogue number, promo and stock copies never show up so it was probably unreleased, hence its rarities inclusion here. The track later appeared on "This Time Around", an April 1981 US LP on Stax Records MPS-8511)

13. Touch A Hand, Make A Friend (January 1974, US 45-single on Stax STA-0196, A-side)

14. Trippin' On Your Love - MAVIS STAPLES (Recorded circa 1975, first appeared on the April 1981 US Staple Singers LP "This Time Around" on Stax MPS-8511) 

15. Let's Do It Again (October 1975, US 45-single on Curtom CMS 0109, A-side)

16. New Orleans (January 1976, US 45-single on Curtom CMS 0113, A-side - Produced and Written by Curtis Mayfield)

17. Love Me, Love Me, Love Me (October 1976, US 45-single on Warner Brothers WBS 8279, A-side - written by Curtis Mayfield)

18. I Honestly Love You (Edit) (January 1978, US 45-single on Warner Brothers WBS 8510, A-side - Produced by Eugene Record of The Chi-Lites)

19. Slippery People (August 1984, US 45-single on Private I Records ZS4 04583, A-side - a Talking Heads cover version)

20. H-A-T-E (Don't Live Here Anymore) (April 1984, US 45-single on Private I Records ZS4 04384, A-side - Produced by Pervis Staples)

NOTES on CD2: 

Tracks 4, 8 and 9 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

Of the 20 singles they charted between 1971 and 1985 on the US Billboard R&B charts (group and solo) - an impressive 14 are here (on Disc 2) - they are "Heavy Make You Happy (Sha-Na-Boom Boom)" (1971), "You've Got To Earn It" (1971), "Respect Yourself" (1971), "I'll Take You There" (1972), "This World" (1972), "Oh La De Da" (1972), "If You're Ready (Come Go With Me)" (1973), "Touch A Hand, Make A Friend" (1973), "City In The Sky" (1974), "Let's Do It Again" (1975), "New Orleans" (1976), "Love Me, Love Me, Love Me" (1976) and "Slippery People" (1984). There's also the solo Mavis Staples torch ballad single "I Have Learned To Do Without You" from 1970.

CD1 opens with two righteous winners "Hammer And Nails" "Nobody's Fault But Mine" - but the B-side "Too Close" track might be rare but it is not great and the recording quality on the Vee Jay Gospel warbler "Uncloudy Day" sounds a lot like a hissy acetate. That is followed by their Jesus-Soul debut "Won't You Sit Down" on United Records in 1953 - another that feels like a home-recording and although I understand its historical importance - I prefer the Vanguard LP track "I Wish Had Answered" in all its warbling guitar and handclaps - lead vocals shared by Pops and Mavis - gorgeous quality for a Newport Folk Festival cut. Dylan’s Protest Song period in 1963 (featured so effectively in the film "A Complete Unknown") begins to attract the family when they cover his "A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall" - Pops in the left speaker while Mavis and her Brother and Sister fill out the right. Back to Gospel with the carry-me-home Traditional of "Swing Low" done in a near instrumental-naked manner - their voices testifying while Pops plinks away on his lone guitar. Recording values again takes a dive with "This May Be The Last Time" - a rare US 45 on Sharp Records - but after the eight that have preceded it feels like a Heavenly Reach too far. 

Better is the fantastic Stereo production values for their hip-and-happening cover of Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth" - a truly great fit lyrically and musically for The Staple Singers in 1967 (how many people have covered this Stephen Stills classic). But again, we get another unnecessary B-side called "Be Careful Of Stones That You Throw" where Pops gets all spoken-preachy about nosey neighbours. But the listen is redeemed by the fantastic social-awareness of "Why Am I Treated So Bad?" - a young black girl trying to ride the bus to school - all alone as I sing this song - gorgeous audio too. Chug like Ike and Tina Turner for their calls to the President of the USA to keep his high-talking promises in "It's Been A Change" - Pops getting to let rip on his guitar while Mavis sings about staying in school and getting an education. Finally, their first period ends with Track 14 - taking their mum away in "Will The Circle Be Unbroken".

Instead of too-slow pace of "The Ghetto" - I would have started the Stax section with the stomping heart joy that fills every sexy bop-moment of "Long Walk To DC" - a Homer Banks song about going from Alabama to Washington to once again get a white President to pay attention to social injustice. Mavis sings with real passion during the Jimmy Holiday pleader "God Bless The Children" - a gorgeous marriage of Soul meets Gospel for all the right reasons. The tremendous audio continues with their cover of the Otis Redding classic "(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay" - not my fave I would have to say but Mavis gives it such heft as she does everything, she gets her astonishing pipes around. So much better is the genuinely sweet Soul with Strings of the Stax gem "The Gardiner" - a B-side better than its A. Money and proper pay rises rears its boots-on-the-ground head for the superb "When Will We Be Paid For The Work We Did" - beat up, stoned, good to die in foreign wars but not good enough to share a water fossett, stripped of culture - the lyrics by Randy Stewart of the Doo Wop Group The Fiestas so on the money it hurts.

But then it hits - the first of four classy unreleased songs - number one credited to Pop Staples. The quality is shocking - how have these gems remained in the can until now? The Traditional song "John Henry" is given a harmonica/guitar driven John Lee Hooker boogie - its nearest approximation is "Keep On Chooglin'" by Creedence Clearwater Revival on The Paul Butterfield Blues Band circa 1965 - fabulous stuff. Although there are no charts to confirm, Rounce surmises that the band is the one used at Audio Finishers Studio in Chicago when Pops recorded the “Black Boy” and "Tryin' Times" single. Said to be Donny Hathaway on Keyboards, Phil Upchurch on Guitar, Morris Jennings, Paul Asbell and Jeff Carp on Harmonica. What a find “John Henry” is. CD1 romps home with a total winner - the lord-have-mercy help-with-it-children pleader "You're Gonna Make Me Cry" where Mavis works through a funeral-paced Soul groove helped by Brass Jabs and a funky sway. Fantastic stuff - but unfortunately followed by the rubbish that is "Solon Bushi" - who thought this ending to CD1 was a good idea.  

The unreleased goodies continue apace on CD2 with "Tryin' Times" - also by Pops Staples. An unreleased alternate version of Stax STA-0064 - it was co-written by Donny Hathaway and Leroy Hutson and first recorded by Roberta Flack in 1969 on her "First Take" album (Donny did his own version on the "Everything Is Everything" LP in 1971). Pops goes with the slower Flack interpretation of "Tryin' Times" and it's a socially aware bluesy winner. I've played both tracks many times on the shuffle play in the record shop and they've always elicited a customer response. Then on Disc 2 are "The Only Time You Ever Say You Love Me" by Mavis Staples (a gorgeous slow ballad) and a version of "Oh La De Da" without the fake audience participation that appeared on the Stax 0156 single. Both are superb too. Not a lot of unreleased stuff I know, but man the quality of the four is so good...

The mastering has been handled by DUNCAN COWELL at Sound Mastering (it's uniformly excellent throughout - especially on the Fifties and Sixties material), while the chunky 28-page colour booklet is jammed with pictured 45's and adverts and has detailed and informative liner notes by noted Soul writer and aficionado TONY ROUNCE. Between them - they've handled large numbers of Ace and Edsel soul reissues throughout the 2000's - see a TAG above for each giving pictorial displays of their work...

I love The Staples Singers - "I'll Take You There" (lyrics above), "If You're Ready (Come Go With Me)" and the wonderful number one R 'n' B hit "Let's Do It Again" - every song imbibed with their lifelong creed of positive action, love and racial harmony - and music as a healer. It must be said that CD1 with its overtly religious themes for the first 14 or so sides may not be everyone's cup of tea - especially if you're only aware of The Staple Singers sound only via their Stax releases (hence the three to five stars for material). But it is still and impressive listen from start to finish and 'Ultimate' has great audio quality too.

I know there are others that are cheaper - but make no mistake - Ace Records of the UK and their imprint Kent Soul have done the business by The Staple Singers on this twofer. "The Ultimate Staples Singers - A Family Affair 1955-1984" is a fantastic overview of their extraordinary career - buy it and thoroughly enjoy.

PS: see also reviews for the following - "Be Altitude: Respect Yourself" (1972 album on Stax) now 2011 reissued and remastered with bonus tracks as part of the "Stax Remasters" series, the "We'll Get Over" album reissue on CD, the compilation "This Time Around" from 1981 with the fabulous "Trippin' On Your Love" song, the 2015 Stax Box Set "Faith & Grace" (4CDs) which boasts awesome audio but awkward packaging and finally the motherload for lovers of their Stax period - "Come Go With Me: The Stax Collection" from November 2020 - a 6CD Craft Recordings Mini LP Repro Artwork CD Box Set with 6LPs onto 7CDs Plus Singles and Unreleased...