"Stax '68: A Memphis Story" by VARIOUS ARTISTS – Featuring 134 US-Single Sides by Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Shirley Walton, Carla Thomas, William Bell, Mable John, Rufus Thomas, Jeanne & The Darlings, Derek Martin, Linda Lyndell, Isaac Hayes, The Mad Lads, Bar Kays, Albert King, Johnnie Taylor, Eddie Henderson Quartet, Booker T. & The MG's, Eddie Floyd, Delaney & Bonnie, Johnny Daye, Bobby Whitlock, Judy Clay, The Delrays, The Aardvarks, Fresh Air, The Staple Singers, Ollie & The Nightingales, The Soul Children, Charmells, Southwest F.O.B., The Village Sound, Jimmy Hughes, Lindell Hill, The Goodees, Dino & Doc and more on Stax, Volt, Enterprise, Arch, Magic Touch and Hip Records (October 2018 USA Craft Recordings/Stax 5CD 134-Track Book Set of Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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RATINGS: **** Music, **** Presentation, ***** Audio

"…It's Been A Long Time Coming…"

Craft Recordings of the USA (part of the Concord Music Group out of Cleveland) have been bamboozling Stax Records fans for some years now – their inaugural releases begun in 2017. Craft have also caught the eye of those Audiophile Collectors whose interests stretch past famously well-recorded Rock and Pop Music to Vintage Music that can be re-presented better with the latest technology - old Vee Jay Blues, Latin, Salsa and Boogaloo on Fania Records, Prestige Jazz, Riverside Folk-Blues and Classic 60t's and 70t's Soul. Craft are also now synonymous with quality mastering from original tapes by award-winning Audio Engineers like Paul Blakemore (who did this set), Joe Tarantino, Kevin Gray, Greg Calbi, Jeff Powell, Dave Cooley, Bernie Grundman and more.

In fact, you could (and should) surmise that I have a thang for Craft Recordings who have celebrated loads of quirky/worthy recipients with reissues on CD, LP and Hi-Res Download Files – good folks like John Lee Hooker, Lightnin' Hopkins, Skip James, Albert King, the super-rare Cuban Jam Sessions LPs from the Sixties on Panart Records, Creedence Clearwater Revival in London at the Royal Albert Hall in April 1970, Terry Callier's beautiful almost entirely acoustic debut album The New Folk Soul Of on Prestige Records in 1968 (recorded in 1966), R.E.M at the BBC, a 2CD expanded revamp of Jewel's 1995 debut Pieces Of You, a 2CD 40th Anniversary reissue of the 1983 self-titled Violent Femmes debut album (originally on Rough Trade Records) and even England's Travis at Glastonbury.

And I've loved (reviewed most too) Craft's many celebratory releases on all things Stax-related with stunning multiple-disc retrospectives on Isaac Hayes The Spirit Of Memphis (1962-1976), The Staple Singers Come Go With Me: The Stax Collection, Various Artists for Stax Singles 4: Rarities & The Best Of The Rest, the rare 45s of an under-appreciated Stax subsidiary label The Gospel Truth: The Complete Singles Collection, a huge 140 Previously Unreleased in the Various Artists set Written In Their Soul: The Stax Songwriter Demos and live Music vs. Politics in the full-on re-presentation of Wattstax 72: The Complete Concert - originally a two x double-album set of vinyl releases back in the Seventies - now presented to us in 6 or 12-CD all-encompassing behemoth variants. There are loads more - many on celebrated well-mastered VINYL outings too that (as I said) audiophiles have been waking up to across this last seven years.

And thus, we come to a pivotal year for Soul and R&B – 1968 – Stax Records at the crossroads not just musically and commercially but spiritually too. Losses and gains – too many of the first perhaps and not enough outside of musical accolades of the second. There is much to love here BUT there is also unfortunately some serious cack to deride (hence the 4-stars and not 5). To the details…

US released 19 October 2018 - "Stax '68: A Memphis Story" by VARIOUS ARTISTS on Craft Recordings/Stax CR00103 (Barcode 888072053649) is a 5CD 134-Track Book Set of New Remasters that features the A and B-sides of 67 US 45-Singles released on STAX Records and its affiliated labels (Volt, Enterprise, Arch, Magic Touch and Hip) throughout 1968.

It has an attached 56-page book with new liner notes from Stax experts ANDRIA LISLE and ROBERT GORDON (as essay called Dreams To Remember on Pages 4 to 22) and STEVE GREENBERG (as essay called Stax 1968: The Three Shocks And Their Aftermath on Pages 23 to 47 - Greenberg is the founder of S-Curve Records and was Producer for the 9CD Box Set The Complete Stax/Volt Singles 1959-1968). Also featured are previously unissued photographs from the archives, Artist Promo and Personal Photos in Black and White and Colour, US Trade Adverts, Newspaper Clippings, Company Letters on Headed Paper and Song-by-Song Writer Credits, Catalogue Numbers, Release Dates etc (no personnel). Some titles like those on Arch Records or the primarily Rock & Pop label Hip Records make their CD debut here - while some B-sides were Non-LP and still hard to find on CD and are therefore rarities. Craft Recordings' "Stax '68: A Memphis Story" plays out as follows:

CD1 (69:23 minutes, 26 Tracks, 13 Singles)
Volt Singles Black & Orange Label repro on CD, hard card leaf holder pictures Booker T & The MGs September 1968 US LP "Soul Limbo" in colour

Each coupling of titles is the US 45 A-side first, B-side next - the release date on line 3, Label and Catalogue Number, and the chart positions on Billboard R&B and Pop will almost always be for the A-side (unless otherwise stated)

1. (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay – OTIS REDDING 
2. Sweet Lorene 
8 January 1968, Volt 45-157, R&B No.1, Pop No.1

3. I Thank You – SAM & DAVE
4. Wrap It Up
8 January 1968, Stax 45-242, R&B No.4, Pop No.9

5. Don't Pass Your Judgement – THE MEMPHIS NOMADS
6. I Wanna Be (Your Lover & Your Honey)
January 1968, Stax 45-243 – non chart

7. I Was Born To Love You – SHIRLEY WALTON
8. I'm So Glad You're Back
January 1968, Enterprise 45-001 – non chart

9. Lovey Dovey – OTIS REDDING & CARLA THOMAS
10. New Year's Resolution
24 January 1968, Stax 45-244, R&B No.21, Pop No.60

11. I Got A Sure Thing – OLLIE & THE NIGHTINGALES
12. Girl, You Have My Heart Singing
1 February 1968, Stax 45- 245, R&B No.16, Pop No.73

13. Big Bird – EDDIE FLOYD 
14. Holding On With Both Hands 
1 February 1968, Stax 45-246 – non chart

15. A Hard Day's Night – BAR-KAYS
16. I Want Someone
February 1968, Volt 45-158 – non chart - A-side is a Beatles cover version

17. Next Time – JOHNNIE TAYLOR
18. Sundown 
14 February 1968, Stax 45-247, R&B No.34

19. Every Man Oughta Have A Woman – WILLIAM BELL
20. A Tribute To A King 
12 March 1968, Stax 45-248, R&B No.16, Pop No.86

21. Able Mabel – MABLE JOHN 
22. Don't Get Caught 
12 March 1968, Stax 45-249 – non chart

23. The Memphis Train – RUFUS THOMAS
24. I Think I Made A Boo Boo 
12 March 1968, Stax 45-250 – non chart

25. What Will Later On Be Like – JEANNE & THE DARLINGS
26. Hang Me Now 
22 March 1968, Volt 45-159 – non chart

CD2 (60:17 minutes, 22 Tracks, 11 Singles)
Stax Singles Green Label repro on CD, hard card leaf holder pictures Eddie Floyd October 1968 US LP "I've Never Loved A Girl" in colour
Each coupling is the US 45 single, A-side first, B-side next

1. Soul Power – DEREK MARTIN
2. Sly Girl
22 March 1968, Volt 45-160 – non chart

3. Bring Your Love Back To Me – LINDA LYNDELL
4. Here I Am 
26 March 1968, Vol 45-161 – non chart

5. A Dime A Dozen – CARLA THOMAS
6. I Want You Back
29 March 1968, Stax 45-251 – non chart

7. Groovy Day – KANGAROO'S
8. Every Man Needs A Woman
March 1968, Hip H-113 – non chart (Produced by Isaac Hayes/David Porter)

9. Precious Precious – ISAAC HAYES
10. Going To Chicago Blues 
16 March 1968, Enterprise 45-002 – non chart

11. Whatever Hurts You – THE MAD LADS
12. No Time Is Better Than Now
8 April 1968, Volt 45-162 – R&B No.31

13. The Happy Song (Dum-Dum) – OTIS REDDING
14. Open The Door 
8 April 1968, Volt 45-163, R&B No.10, Pop No.25

15. (I Love) Lucy – ALBERT KING
16. You're Gonna Need Me
8 April 1968, Stax 45-252 – R&B No.46

17. I Ain't Particular – JOHNNIE TAYLOR
18. Where There's Smoke There's Fire
25 April 1968, Stax 45-253 – R&B No.45

19. Georgy Girl – EDDIE HENDERSON QUINTET
20. A Million Or More Times
April 1968, Enterprise 45-003 – non chart

21. Send Peace And Harmony Home – SHIRLEY WALTON
22. The One You Can't Have All By Yourself
May 1968, Enterprise 45-004 – non chart

CD3 (79:21 minutes, 29 Tracks, 15 Singles – see Notes)
Stax Singles Yellow Label repro on CD, hard card leaf holder pictures The Staple Singers December 1968 US LP "Soul Folk In Action" in colour
Each coupling is the US 45 A-side first, B-side next (see NOTES below)

1. Soul-Limbo – BOOKER T. & THE MG'S
2. Heads Or Tails
31 May 1968, Stax STA-0001, R&B No.7, Pop No.17

3. I've Never Found A Girl (To Love Me Like You Do) – EDDIE FLOYD
4. I'm Just The Kind Of Fool
31 May 1968, Stax STA-0002, R&B No.2, Pop No.40

5. It's Been A Long Time Coming – DELANEY & BONNIE
6. We've Just Been Feeling Bad
31 May 1968, Stax STA-0003 - non chart

7. What A Man – LINDA LYNDELL
8. I Don't Know
17 June 1968, Volt VOA-4001, R&B No.50

9. Broadway Freeze – HARVEY SCALES & THE SEVEN SOUNDS
10. I Can't Cry Any No More
17 June 1968, Magic Touch MTA-16001 – non chart

11. Stay Baby Stay – JOHNNY DAYE
12. I Love Love
15 July 1968, Stax STA-0004 – non chart

13. Raspberry Rug – BOBBY WHITLOCK
14. And I Love You
1 July 1968, Hip H-8001 – non chart

15. Private Number – JUDY CLAY and WILLIAM BELL
16. Love-Eye-Tis
15 July 1968, Stax STA-0005, R&B No.17, Pop No.75

17. I Like Everything About You – JIMMY HUGHES
18. What Side Of The Door
15 July 1968, Volt VOA-4002, R&B No.21

19. Lollipop Lady – THE DELRAYS
20. (There's) Always Something There To Remind Me
July 1968, Arch ARA-1301 – non chart

21. Remone – LINDELL HILL
22. Used To Be Love 
26 July 1968. Arch ARA-1302 – non chart

23. Subconscious Train Of Thought – THE AARDVARKS
24. Unicorn Man 
August 1968, Arch ARA-1303 – non chart

25. Somebody Stole My Gal – FRESH AIR
26. Somebody Stole My Gal (Instrumental)
22 August 1968, Arch ARA-1304 – non chart

27. Bed Of Roses – JUDY CLAY
28. Remove These Clouds
September 1968, Stax STA-0006 – non chart

29. Long Walk To D.C. – THE STAPLE SINGERS
September 1968, Stax STA-0007 – A-side – non chart (see Notes)

NOTES on CD3: 
The last song on CD3 is The Staple Singers "Long Walk To D.C.", the A-side to Stax 0007 – its B-side "Stay With Us" is the first track on CD4

CD4 (78:35 minutes, 29 Tracks, 14 Singles – see Notes)
Volt Singles Blue Label repro on CD, hard card leaf holder pictures Johnnie Taylor December 1968 US LP "Who's Making Love…" in colour
Each coupling is the US 45 A-side first, B-side next (see NOTES below)

1. Stay With Us – THE STAPLE SINGERS
September 1968, Stax STA-0007 – B-side - non chart (see Notes)

2. Give 'Em Love – THE SOUL CHILDREN
3. Move Over
September 1968, Stax STA-0008 – non chart

4. Who's Making Love – JOHNNIE TAYLOR
5. I'm Trying
September 1968, Stax 0009, R&B No.1, Pop No.5

6. Funky Mississippi – RUFUS THOMAS
7. So Hard To Get Along With
September 1068, Stax STA-0010 – non chart - A-side by Eddie Floyd

8. Where Do I Go – CARLA THOMAS
9. I've Fallen In Love
September 1968, Stax STA-0011, R&B No.38, Pop No.88

10. So Nice – THE MAD LADS
11. Make Room
September 1968, Volt VOA-4003, R&B No.35

12. Lovin' Feeling – CHARMELLS
13. Sea Shell 
September 1968, Volt VOA-4004 – non chart – A-side is Righteous Brothers cover

14. It's Unbelievable (How You Control My Soul) – JEANNE & THE DARLINGS
15. I Like What You're Doing To Me
September 1968, Volt VOA-4005 – non chart

16. Smell Of Incense – SOUTHWEST F.O.B.
17. Green Skies
(Originally issued 10 July 1968 on GPC Records 1945)
Reissued September 1968, Hip HIA-8002 – non chart

18. Sally's Got A Good Thing – THE VILLAGE SOUND
19. The La La Song
September 1968, Hop HIA-8003 – non chart

20. Bring It On Home To Me – EDDIE FLOYD
21. Sweet Things To Do
12 October 1968, Stax STA-0012, R&B No.4, Pop No.17

22. Hang 'Em High – BOOKER T. & THE MG's
23. Over Easy 
12 October 1968, Stax STA-0013, R&B No.35, Pop No.9

24. You're Leaving Me – OLLIE & THE NIGHTINGALES
25. Showered With Love
19 October 1968, Stax STA-0014, R&B No.47

26. Kitchy Kitchy Koo – THE POP CORN GENERATION 
27. Shake It
October 1968, Hip HIA-8004 – non chart

28. Copy Kat – BAR-KAYS
29. In The Hole
2 November 1968, Volt VOA-4007 – non chart 

NOTES on CD4:
The last song on CD3 is The Staple Singers "Long Walk To D.C.", the A-side to Stax 0007 – its B-side "Stay With Us" is the first track on CD4

CD5 (78:17 minutes, 28 Tracks, 14 Singles)
Hip Single Label repro on CD, hard card leaf holder pictures Albert King October 1968 US LP "Live Wire – Blues Power" in colour
Each coupling is the US 45 single, A-side first, B-side next

1. Mighty Cold Winter – DINO & DOC [James Walker & Arthur L. Merriwether]
2. A Woman Can't Do (What A Man Do)
2 November 1968, Volt VOA-4006 – non chart

3. I Forgot To Be Your Lover – WILLIAM BELL
4. Bring The Curtain Down
November 1968, Stax STA-0015, R&B No.10, Pop No.45

5. Condition Red – THE GOODEES
6. Didn't Know Love Was So Good 
23 November 1968, Hip HIA-8005 – non chart

7. Running out – MABLE JOHN
8. Shouldn't I Love Him
30 November 1968, Stax STA-0016 – non chart

9. Family Portrait – BILLY LEE RILEY
10. Going Back To Memphis
November 1968, Hip HIA-8006 – non chart

11. My Baby Specializes – WILLIAM BELL and JUDY CLAY
12. Left Over Love
December 1968, Stax STA-0017, R&B No.45, Pop No.104

13. I'll Understand – THE SOUL CHILDREN
14. Doing Our Thang 
December 1968, Stax STA-0018, R&B No. 29

15. The Ghetto – THE STAPLE SINGERS
16. Got To Be Some Changes Made
December 1968, Stax STA-0019, - non chart

17. Blues Power (Edit) – ALBERT KING
18. Night Stomp (Edit)
December 1968, Stax STA-0020 – non chart – both sides live

19. The Echo – THE EPSILONS
20. Really Rockin
13 December 1968, Stax STA-0021- non chart – B-side is an instrumental

21. Funky Way – RUFUS THOMAS
22. I Want To Hold You
13 December 1968, Stax STA-0022 – non chart

23. The Children Have Your Tongue – THIS GENERATION
24. Give Her What She Wants
20 December 1968, Hip HIA-8007 – non chart

25. Who's Making Love – DAARON LEE
26. Long Black Train
20 December 1968, Hip HIA-8008 – non chart – A-side is a Johnnie Taylor cover

27. Take Care Of Your Homework – JOHNNIE TAYLOR
28. Hold On This Time
21 December 1968, Stax STA-0023, R&B No.2, Pop No.20

Produced by JOE McEWEN with the help of Robert Gordon, Chris Clough, Ryan Wilson, Sig Sigworth and Mason Williams - visually these Book Sets pack a punch if not being a tad unwieldy in real world use. The hard card CD holding leaves mentioned above are gorgeous – full colour plates of iconic Stax LPs – while snaps throughout the text show cool moments like Producer Steve Greenberg with a stoned Janis Joplin at a house party – Eddie Floyd and Steve Cropper (of Booker T) giving it some twin guitar poses like a Memphis version of Status Quo, white vocalist Delaney Bramlett shares a smile moment with Pervis Staples. You get Otis Redding's vocal group discovery The Epsilons, the mighty Mavis and Pops Staples checking Stax tape boxes, Linda Lyndell looking like she's ready for a night on the Vegas craps stood beside her Cadillac, Obituary cards and service itineraries for Phalon Jones, Jr. on 21 December 1967 – the Saxophone player in Otis Redding's backing band The Bar-Kays who died in the plane crash that also took Otis. And the darker surrounding picture too - photos of Rufus Thomas at City Hall with racist Mayor Henry Loeb as Memphis erupted post the Martin Luther King assassination while armed cops sit on cars outside, a sit-in by black postal and sanitation staff with Decent Wages For All Workers placards - the No Left Turn and I Am A Man protests - Honor King: End Racism cards held in hands as they march in their thousands (the cover photo). 

As you read the text and are hit with photos that espouse both joy and menace, it's a strange brew of electric progress vs. electric shocks – one step forward musically – two steps pushed back politically. But I focus on the positive – the vibe the music gave you – the images of abandon and sexiness and cool people getting it on. You gotta love the colour shots of William Bell and Judy Clay – the Stax cool couple of 1968 – Eddie Floyd at an airport shouting at jets to get on up Big Bird. There is also talk of the bitter and hamstringing distribution deal Stax and Atlantic had on paper (clauses put in by lawyers) whilst mentors like Jerry Wexler and Nesuhi Ertegun simultaneously professed solidarity with the label Jim Stewart and Estelle Axton had built with a roster of great artists. Disgusted the money was not enough during renegotiations, Stax walked away and would eventually dissolve into financial chaos in 1975. But outside all of this is the music – their identity moving into the realms of an Independent Black Music Company that appealed to ALL sides of the bombarded demographic. 

However, there is something of an elephant in the Soul Room about this release that should be talked about – that cover photo – and its supposed context with Stax. Although Stax was considered by punters like me (shall we say) to be more hard-hitting than the hit-single-chasing Motown – politics as this set tries to frame - was NOT their thing. As you listen to five CDs of Stax singles in 1968 – they chased that Billboard dragon just as hard as Motown and only on occasion did the positivity and action messages of The Staple Singers sing anything about the Black Experience of endemic Racism, workers inequality and slumlord misery ("Long Walk To D.C." and "The Ghetto"). The Vietnam War is not in here – William Bell's response to the loss of Redding ("A Tribute To A King") was a flipside to the business-as-usual A-side - "Every Man Oughta Have A Woman". Stax Music was obsessed with girls and relationships and the battle of the sexes – it wanted dancers and Funk and popularity in their R&B chartings - but hard political action in their songs – not here. That is not to say they didn’t get involved in the background – they did – but on 45-single – out front for the public to see – Stax were about shifting hit single units as much as the next guy trying to make in a fractured world.

PAUL BLAKEMORE did the Mastering – an award-winning Audio Engineer – and it just so damn good. For sure little is going to save the disastrous Rock-orientated label Hip Records were Stax seemed to be completely oblivious to what worked or was even any good. But throughout, you are hit with clarity, very little hiss, warm Bass and punchy Brass and of course discoveries that thrill and intrigue. Details…

I cannot hear the Otis Redding death song (Dock of the Bay) another time (too sad) and the Sam & Dave cut "I Thank You" is standard dancer fare for them. The lesser-heard Memphis Nomads had one 45 on Stax – the hug you and kiss you every night B-side "I Wanna Be (Your Lover & Your Honey)" being the tastier cut. Lovely and criminally forgotten is how I'd describe the rare Shirley Walton track "I Was Born To Love You" – a piano and strings pleading stroller – Shirley ably supported by some impassioned and soulful vocals from the backing ladies. And again the flipside for Otis & Carla is the best choice - "New Year's Resolution" while the Ollie & The Nightingales winner "I Got A Sure Thing" is a gem benefitting hugely from the Gary US Bonds type guttural rasp of lead vocalist Ollie Haskins (it has an equally sexy B-side, no wonder the single is sought after). Considering how good it is and with that HUGE brass and guitar start, it is odd that the chunky/funky get on up "Big Bird" from Eddie Floyd. 

CD5 offers us the very Sam & Dave earnest intensity of "Mighty Cold Winter" by the obscure duo of Dino & Doc (James Walker and Arthur L. Merriwether) – tears falling from their collective eyes in the month of July. They swap lead vocals on the hard-hitting morality-tale dancer B-side "A Woman Can't Do (What A Man Do)" making Volt VOA-4006 a tasty and sought-after double-header. That's followed by an effective chart-tickling pleader from William Bell – our Bill forgetting to be his baby's lover – and forgetful Bell feels so bad on the flipside that he literally wants to "Bring The Curtain Down". Cheesy, cornball, hugely enjoyable kitsch, contender for Kenny Everett’s worst records of all time – you could call the girl group Goodees sole entry "Condition Red" all these things and undoubtedly it would have at home on Phil Spector Records (long-hair bearded hippy courts dew-eyed lass, skeptical parents, bike ride and car-crash all in the same song). Their flipside is better – Girl Group harmonies and cool arrangements ahoy on "Didn't Know Love Was So Good" – a cool inclusion frankly. 

How in God's name the fantastic Ashford & Simpson written "Running Out" by Mable John was not a hit is a God Damn mystery (running out of forgiveness and tear drops) – her pleading to the girls for endorsement flipside "Shouldn't I Love Him" equal too. With that slight Amy Whitehouse innocent twang in her unusual voice, this pairing shows me why Mable John is such an unsung hero in certain circles. The Albert King 45 "Blues Power" is talking-to-the-audience moocher that is edited down from the album's ten minutes to a more manageable 3:07 minutes on 45 – the almost Allman Brothers Funky-Blues instrumental flipside "Night Stomp" too – down from 6:40 minutes to a more digestible 3:40 minutes. 

The HIP Label seemed to be an unmitigated disaster - horrible twee bubblegum and attempts at Pop & Rock songs chasing the charts by acts that are forgotten - and rightly so (the end run on CD5 is particularly depressing alleviated only by the final pairing of Johnnie Taylor). But then there's the discoveries - Dino & Doc's cool duo "Mighty Cold Winter" and its flipside - the Ollie & The Nightingale sides that ooze Vocal Soul class - Jeanne & The Darlings - the ever-suave Mad Lads. Soon to be a Domino for Eric Clapton's Derek & The Dominoes - Bobby Whitlock gets his moment and there are choice entries from Lindell Hill and a personal rave of mine - Linda Lyndell (what a gal, lucky man to have her). And I love B-sides - the rare one for Judy Clay and William Bell's "Private Number" called "Love-Eye-Tis" - the Eddie Floyd flip "I'm Just The Kind Of Fool" and Jimmy Hughes "What Side Of The Door".

A 5CD Book Set like "Stax '68: A Memphis Story" was/is always going to be a serious fan-affair. But if you get the inclination and a swelling of your wallet to the point where you can hide it among the spines on shelves and the missus can't batter you over the head with a rolling-pin spiked with nails - then splash out. 

I'm actively hunting down all these Craft Recordings splurges and despite minor distractions and plot anomalies - I'm knee-trembling at the lot of them. 

Well done to all involved at Craft Recordings and Concord Music Group and like those stunning Motown Year Books Hip-O Select did with fabulous Ellen Fitton mastering - roll on 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972 etc for the equally worthy STAX...

"Part Lies Part Heart Part Truth Part Garbage 1982-2011" by R.E.M. – 40-Track Career Retrospective Including EP and Album Tracks on I.R.S. and Warner Brothers Records Plus Three New Songs – Band featuring Michael Stipe, Mike Mills, Peter Buck and Bill Berry (November 2011 UK Warner Brothers Records 2CD Remastered Compilation with Three New Songs in A Tri-fold Card Sleeve Presentation) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"…I Can Taste The Ocean On Your Skin..."

 

A career retrospective for the mighty R.E.M. was always going to be an impressive thing to listen to – and the deeply satisfying 2CD "Part Lies Part Heart Part Truth Part Garbage 1982-2011" is just that. 

 

With brilliant tracks choices, quality muscular Remasters, each of the toothsome four contributing informative and witty liner notes for all thirty-seven career songs (the three new ones too) – it may not look like the most inviting twofer that has ever existed (any R.E.M. album sporting packaging that reflects that majesty and legacy is as ever with them - another story) – but in terms of fantastic content and Audio – this double delivers. To the sidewinders and new test lepers...

 

UK released 11 November 2011 - "Part Lies Part Heart Part Truth Part Garbage 1982-2011" by R.E.M. on Warner Brothers Records 9362-49536-4 (Barcode 093624953647) is a Remastered 2CD 40-Track Career Retrospective with Three New Songs that plays out as follows:

 

CD1 (76:25 minutes):

1. Gardening At Night

2. Radio Free Europe

3. Talk About The Passion

4. Sitting Still

5. So. Central Rain

6. (Don't Go Back To) Rockville

7. Driver 8

8. Life And How To Live It

9. Begin The Begin

10. Fall On Me

11. Finest Worksong

12. It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)

13. The One I Love

14. Stand

15. Pop Song 89

16. Get Up

17. Orange Crush

18. Losing My Religion

19. Country Feedback

20. Shiny Happy People

21. The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonight

NOTES on CD1:

Track 1 from the August 1982 US 12" 5-Track Debut EP Single "Chronic Town"

Tracks 2, 3 and 4 are from their April 1983 debut album "Murmur"

Tracks 5 and 6 are from their April 1984 second album "Reckoning"

Tracks 7 and 8 are from their June 1985 third album "Fables Of The Reconstruction"

Tracks 9 and 10 are from their July 1986 fourth album "Lifes Rich Pageant"

Tracks 11, 12 and 13 are from their September 1987 fifth studio album "Document" (and last for I.R.S. Records)

Tracks 14, 15, 16 and 17 are from their November 1988 sixth album "Stand" (and first for Warner Brothers Records)

Tracks 18, 19 and 20 are from their March 1991 seventh studio album "Out Of Time"

Track 21 from their October 1992 eight studio album "Automatic For The People"

 

CD2 (75:44 minutes):

1. Everybody Hurts

2. Man On The Moon

3. Nightswimming

4. What's The Frequency, Kenneth?

5. New Test Leper

6. Electrolite

7. At My Most Beautiful

8. The Great Beyond

9. Imitation Of Life

10. Bad Day

11. Leaving New York

12. Living Well Is The Best Revenge

13. Supernatural Superserious

14. Überlin

15. Oh My Heart

16. Alligator-Aviator-Autopilot-Antimatter

17. A Months Of Saturdays

18. We All Go Back To Where We Belong

19. Hallelujah

NOTES on CD2:

Tracks 1, 2 and 3 are from their October 1992 eighth studio album "Automatic For The People"

Track 4 is from their September 1994 ninth studio album "Monster"

Tracks 5 and 6 are from their September 1996 tenth studio album "New Adventures in Hi-Fi"

Track 7 is from their October 1998 eleventh studio album "Up"

Track 8 is from the November 1999 R.E.M. Soundtrack Album to the Movie about Andy Kaufman (Jim Carrey in the title role) called "Man On The Moon"

Track 9 is from their May 2001 twelfth studio album "Reveal"

Track 10 was one of two exclusive tracks specially recorded for the October 2003 compilation "In Time: The Best Of R.E.M 1988-2003"

Track 11 is from their October 2004 thirteenth studio album "Around The Sun"

Tracks 12 and 13 are from their March 2008 fourteenth studio album "Accelerate"

Tracks 14, 15 and 16 are from the March 2011 fifteenth and final album "Collapse Into Now"

Tracks 17, 18 and 19 are NEW ORIGINAL R.E.M. SONGS recorded for this compilation

 

There are several UK/EURO variants of this release – the jewel case version on Warner Brothers 9362-49534-5 and a Digipak version on Warner Brothers 529088-2 – but I opted for the Card Sleeve variant above. As is typical of their frankly crap artwork – the pictures are useless and oblique both on the outside and in. The 20-page booklet is better in that it breaks down the tracks one-by-one and there are the comments. The audio courtesy of PAUL BLAKEMORE (an award-winning engineer associated most with Craft Recordings and their reissues of Stax and CCR) is gorgeous throughout – remasters from both I.R.S. and Warner Brothers periods that are beautifully realized.

 

But what I like about this as a listen is that both CDs are seriously impressive. For sure the Indie/Alt Rock I.R.S. Records output (1982 to 1987) just before signing to the major label Warner Brothers was beginning to sound samey and change was needed. But tunes like "So. Central Rain", "Talk About The Passion" and "It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)" still tingle the old arm-hairs. Then there are those singles too when the public began to take serious notice - "Stand", "Orange Crush" and the Andy Kaufman movie song "Man On The Moon" that not only smacked of maturity but songwriting greatness. But what I love here are the deep dives that have been forgotten – "New Test Leper" and "Electrolite" from the superb "New Adventures In Hi-Fi" album or the gorgeous I know what I am chasing "Überlin" and the return of that mandolin sound on the swirling magical "Oh My Heart". And of course the anthemic "Everybody Hurts" still slays and elicits so many memories.

 

Speaking of "Shiny Happy People" and those "Losing My Religion" - in truth you could load this 2CD retro with nuggets from the two big breakthrough albums "Out Of Time" and "Automatic For The People" on Warner Brothers. But the band wants you to take in the later releases. And man when our yank pals let it Rock - "Living Well Is The Best Revenge" or the "In Time: Best Of..." gem "Bad Day" or the punky teenage angst of "Alligator-Aviator-Autopilot-Antimatter" with guest singer Peaches and Nuggets hero Lenny Kaye on wild guitar – R.E.M. were/are utterly awesome. And while you can dismiss the decidedly disappointing "A Month Of Saturdays" (one of the three newbees) – the orchestrated Burt Bacharach-sounding "We All Go Back To Where We Belong" is a melodic thrill that reminds you of how much you loved their swaying songs – I can taste the ocean on your skin. "Hallelujah" is a worthy song to end their tenure on – a tune that somehow encapsulates a lot of their favorite soundscapes.

 

The quirkilly titled "Part Lies Part Heart Part Truth Part Garbage 1982-2011" isn't pretty to look at – hardly even tactile to hold either – but the aural song goodies are in there in spades – and then some.

 

R.E.M. would call it quits as an American Alternative Rock Band soon after (the artwork for the final album "Collapse Into Now" even had Michael Stipe waving from the front cover as if to say goodbye, but as he says in the liner notes, no one seem to get the in-joke) and in 2023 they seem all but forgotten as one of the greats. You can buy this twofer goody two shoes for under a fiver – invest and discover why all roads once lead to Athens, Georgia...

"Come Go With Me: The Stax Collection" by THE STAPLE SINGERS – Six US Studio Albums issued between January 1969 and August 1974 with a Seventh 11-Track Compilation Gathering Up "Singles, Live & More" (November 2020 UK/EU Craft Recordings 7CD Mini Box Set of Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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"...Soul Folk In Action..."

 

What a peach this is – and there's even a sought after (if not pricey) Vinyl variant. My passion for Roebuck, Mavis, Cleotha and Pervis Staples knows no bounds and I've reviewed many of their myriad CD reissues before. But this motherlode from their hugely revered STAX Records years is an embarrassment of riches (all in Stereo too).

 

Initially slated for a December 2019 release, the first version of "Come Go With Me: The Stax Collection" finally popped up 21 February 2020 in America-only as a 7LP Box on Craft Recordings/Stax CR00241 (Barcode 888072111592) on 180-grams vinyl. I figured the CD variant would follow soon, but it took until November of 2020 and then only in a Europe/UK version. Lots to discuss then, so let's have at the Soul Folk in Action...

 

UK/EU released Friday, 6 November 2020 - "Come Go With Me: The Stax Collection" by THE STAPLE SINGERS on Craft Recordings CR00364 (Barcode 888072207899) is a 7CD Mini Box Set of Remasters. It Contains 6 US Studio Albums issued in Stereo between January 1969 and August 1974 on Stax Records (all in Mini LP Repro Sleeves) plus a seventh disc Compilation of 11 "Singles, Live & More" tracks issued during that period and on later LP and CD compilations. "Come Go With Me..." plays out as follows:

 

CD1 "Soul Folk In Action" 1969 (32:31 minutes, 11 Tracks)

1. We've Got To Get Ourselves Together [Side 1]

2. (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay

3. Top Of The Mountain

4. Slow Train

5. The Weight

6. Long Walk To D.C.[Side 2]

7. Got To Be Some Changes Made

8. The Ghetto

9. People, My People

10. I See It

11. This Year

Tracks 1 to 11 was their first album for Stax Records "Soul Folk In Action" and their fourteenth studio album overall since 1960 – released January 1969 USA on Stax STS 2004 and May 1969 UK on Stax SXATS 1004 in Stereo. Produced by STEVE CROPPER of Booker T & The MG’s – it also featured him on guitar with two other members of band as backing musicians – Donald “Duck” Dunn on Bass and Al Jackson, Jr. on Drums - Keyboards by Marvell Thomas and Horns by The Memphis Horns.

 

CD2 "We'll Get Over" 1969 (34:40 minutes, 12 Tracks)

1. We'll Get Over [Side 1]

2. Give A Damn

3. Everyday People

4. The End Of Our Road

5. Tend To Your Own Business

6. Solon Bushi

7. Challenge [Side 2]

8. God Bless The Child

9. Games People Play

10. A Wednesday In Your Garden

11. The Gardener

12. When Will We Be Paid (For The Work We've Done)

Tracks 1 to 12 are their 2nd album for Stax Records "We'll Get Over" (fifteenth overall) - released June 1969 in the USA on Stax STS 2016 and November 1969 in the UK on Stax SXATS 1018 in Stereo. Same Production and Backing Band as "Soul Folk In Action".

 

 

CD3 "The Staple Swingers" 1971 (45:10 minutes, 12Tracks)

1. This Is A Perfect World [Side 1]

2. What's Your Thing

3. You've Got To Earn It

4. You're Gonna Make Me Cry

5. Little Boy

6. How Do You Move A Mountain

7. Almost [Side 2]

8. I'm A Mover

9. Love Is Plentiful

10. Heavy Makes You Happy (Sha-Na-Boom Boom)

11. I Like The Things About You

12. Give A Hand – Take A Hand

Tracks 1 to 12 are their third studio album for Stax Records (sixteenth overall) "The Staple Swingers" – released March 1971 in the USA on Stax STS 2034 and June 1971 in the UK on Stax 2362 005. Produced by AL BELL – band includes The Bar-Kays on Horns with Terry Manning on multiple instruments.

 

 

CD4 "Be Altitude: Respect Yourself" 1972 (41:09 minutes, 10 Tracks)

1. This World [Side 1]

2. Respect Yourself

3. Name The Missing Word

4. I'll Take You There

5. This Old Town (People In This Town)

6. We The People [Side 2]

7. Are You Sure

8. Who Do You Think You Are (Jesus Christ The Superstar)

9. I'm Just Another Soldier

10. Who

Tracks 1 to 10 are the fourth album for Stax Records "Be Altitude: Respect Yourself" - released February 1972 in the USA on Stax STS-3002 and April 1972 in the UK on Stax Super 2325 069. Produced by AL BELL – band featured Eddie Hinton on Lead Guitar, Jimmy Johnson on Rhythm Guitar, Barry Beckett on Keyboards, David Hood and Roger Hawkins on Bass and Drums with Ben Cauley and The South Memphis Horns.

 

 

CD5 "Be What You Are" 1973 (52:23 minutes, 11 Tracks)

1. Be What You Are [Side 1]

2. If You're Ready (Come Go With Me)

3. Medley: Love Comes In All Colors

4. Tellin' Lies

5. Touch A Hand, Make A Friend

6. Drown Yourself

7. I Ain't Raisin' No Sand [Side 2]

8. Grandma's Hands

9. Bridges Instead Of Walls

10. I'm On Your Side

11. That's What Friends Are For

12. Heaven

Tracks 1 to 12 are their fifth studio album for Stax Records "Be What You Are" – released August 1973 in the USA on Stax STS 3015 and April 1974 in the UK on Stax 2325 103. Produced by AL BELL – same band as "Be Altitude: Respect Yourself" without Horns.

 

 

CD6 "City In The Sky" 1974 (42:11 minutes, 11 Tracks)

1. Back Road Into Town [Side 1]

2. City In The Sky

3. Washington We're Watching You

4. Something Ain't Right

5. Today Was Tomorrow Yesterday

6. My Main Man [Side 2]

7. There Is A God

8. Blood Pressure

9. If It Ain't One Thing It's Another

10. Who Made The Man

11. Getting Too Big For Your Britches

Tracks 1 to 11 are their sixth and last studio album for Stax Records "City In The Sky" – released August 1974 in the USA on Stax STS 5515 and September 1974 in the UK on Stax STX 1001. Produced by AL BELL - same band as "Be Altitude: Respect Yourself" with Raymond Jackson on Guitar, Clayton Ivey on Keyboards and The Memphis Horns added. NOTE: the running order for both sides is as above and not as per the rear sleeve of the original US and UK LPs, which show the tracks in a different order.

 

 

CD7 "Singles, Live & More" 2019 (45:25 minutes, 11 Tracks)

1. Stay With Me (August 1968 US 45-single on Stax STA-0007, Non-Album B-side of "Long Walk To D.C.")

2. Brand New Day (Theme From The United Artists Motion Picture "The Landlord") – Single Version (June 1970 US 45-single on Stax STA-0074, A-side)

3. Walking In Water Over Your Head (Previously Unreleased Album Outtake, first issued May 2011 as 1 of 2 Bonus Tracks on the 'Stax Remasters' UK CD Reissue for "Be Altitude: Respect Yourself" on Concord Music Group, Inc 0888072328761)

4. Oh La De Da (February 1973 US 45-single on Stax STA-0156, A-side – from the US 2LP Set "Wattstax: The Living Word" on Stax STS-2-3010 – B-side is "We The People" from the "Be Altitude: Respect Yourself")

5. I Got To Be Myself (October 1975 US 45-single on Stax STN-0255, A-side with "Be What You Are" 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)

6. Trippin' On Your Love (April 1981 US LP "This Time Around" on Stax Records MPS-8511 while The Staples Singers were briefly signed to 20th Century. Produced by the legendary Al Bell – this 8-track vinyl LP is actually a compilation of old recordings from the 1970s reworked and reissued without the band's approval or even knowledge)

7. Heavy Makes You Happy (Sha-Na-Boom Boom) – Live

8. Are You Sure – Live (Tracks 7 and 8 from the October 2003 UK/EU 3CD set "Music From The Wattstax Festival & Film" on Stax 3SCD 4440-2, recorded 20 August 1972 at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum)

9. I Like The Things About Me – Live

10. Respect Yourself – Live

11. I'll Take You There – Live (Tracks 9 to 11 from the June 2LP set "Wattstax: The Living Word" on Stax STS-2-3010 – recordings same as Tracks 7 and 8)

 

 

As a longtime fan, you notice the tasty attention to detail – all Mini LP Sleeve Repro's are the American originals, so for us UK and Euro types there are advantages – for 1972's "Be Altitude: Respect Yourself" you get the US Gatefold Sleeve with the lyrics on the inside (the UK issue was always a single sleeve with no lyrics) - while "City In The Sky" came in a sort of silver foil effect sleeve (the UK variant distributed by Pye in the UK was a plain matt cover affair and not nearly as nice). The "Be What You Are" sleeve had embossed effects which is reproduced as well.

 

It’s a damn shame no one thought to include lyrics for all six albums (which to my knowledge has never been done) – so that's a wee bummer. But the 44-page mini-booklet more than makes up for this with loads of colour and black and white period photos for our fave Soul Foursome and in-depth liner notes from LANGSTON COLIN WILKINS and LEVON WILLIAMS – both writers steeped in the Stax Records label and Soul Music in general. Following that is track-by-track annotation for each of the six studio albums with musician/production credits (the Box set was produced by MASON WILLIAMS). 

 

All of that is cute and the outer slipcase tastefully presented, but the really great news is the brand new audio restoration and remastering from original tapes by CHRIS CLOUGH (Audio Supervision) and PAUL BLAKEMORE at CMG MASTERING (Mastering). I've had so many Stax and Ace CDs for this material before – most of which sounded great for the day – but they are firmly walloped by this Craft Recordings issue (Blakemore did the "Faith & Grace..." 4CD Box Set). I've played all six and the compilation and the AUDIO is mighty-mighty throughout – best ever for sure. The first two platters issued at the tail ends of 1969 are produced by Steve Cropper of Booker T. & The MG's fame (some minor hiss, but superb clarity) while the remaining four were helmed by the legendary Al Bell and sound glorious. I've loved the albums "Be Altitude: Respect Yourself" and "Be What You Are" for pushing on 50 years now and I've never heard either of them sound this good – a joy in every way.

 

Of the 21 singles Stax Records issued for The Staple Singers between August 1968 and July 1975 – all of them and their respective B-sides are here including chart hits like "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) and "City In The Sky" (1974).

 

What gets the pulse racing though are those forgotten LP gems that veer off the well-established hits – deep funky LP cuts that never show up on compilations. Stuff like the guitar-flicking "Top Of The Mountain" on "Soul Folk In Action" (1969), the too-much-for-me brass and funk of "The End Of The Road" and the sublime "The Gardiner" both on "We’ll Get Over", the sirens and ambulances in the ghetto of "Something Ain't Right" or the nation-crippling problems of "Blood Pressure" on 1974's "City In The Sky". And there are so many more.

 

The "Singles, Live & More" CD compilation (Disc 7 of 7) is a far better listen than it had any right to be and smartly compiled. It gathers up stragglers like the five live Wattstax tracks recorded in August 1972 that appeared across various vinyl and CD compilations (tracks 7 to 11). I’d forgotten how good the sexily funky and righteous August 1968 B-side "Stay With Us" is – a plea for the good Lord to stay with us through times of war and hatred (the A-side was the equally brill and politically-charged "Long Walk To D.C."). As regards singles, the odd man out is "Who Took The Merry Out Of Christmas" issued on Stax STA-0084 in November 1970 in both Vocal and Instrumental form (A&B-sides) – but for some reason it didn't show on Disc 7. And with regard to Rarities, the only cut missing is the demo of "Respect Yourself" that showed up on the November 2015 US 4CD+Vinyl Single Box set "Faith & Grace: A Family Journey 1953-1976". Its exclusion by Craft Recordings here on a Box Set they themselves put out is an oversight for sure – but it's not exactly the end of the world because audio-wise, the Demo Version is only a curio at best really.

 

Speaking of singles. The stand-alone "Brand New Day" from The Landlord soundtrack (Al Kooper did a version too) is way better (Mavis and Pops share lead vocals) - as is the holding hands of "Walking In Water Way Over Your Head" outtake from the "Be Altitude: Respect Yourself" sessions that turned on the Stax Remasters CD Reissue as one of two new bonus tracks (a great find if not quite a classic). The six live cuts from the August 1972 Wattstax concerts that appeared across various period double-vinyl albums in 1972 and 1973 and later 3CD compilations are all here – Tracks 4 and 7 to 11 - tremendous energy with Mavis on top form (oh Lordy Lord) and dig that Pops Staples spacey guitar sound on "I Like The Things About Me". And UK Northern Soul fans have long dug the floor-shuffling sway of "Trippin' On Your Love" – a very cool addition to Disc 7.

 

Speaking of single rarities...Although the "City In The Sky" LP from 1974 and the eventual demise of Stax Records itself in 1975 is briefly discussed, the singles aren't mentioned in the booklet text. So the history surrounding the US 45-single Stax 0255 "I Got To Be Myself" still seems unclear. The song first emerged on the 1981 Stax scraps LP "This Time Around" and it’s been included as a rarity on CD compilations for The Staple Singers ever since (see my review of the stunning 2CD set "The Ultimate Staple Singers: A Family Affair 1955-1984" issued September 2004 on Ace/Kent Soul CDKEN2 240 - Barcode 029667224024 in the UK).

 

Running to 3:41 minutes (and having "Heaven" from the "Be Altitude: Respect Yourself" 1972 LP as its flipside), the fantastically good "I Got To Be Myself" was slated for an October 1975 US seven-inch single release, but you never see either demos or stock copies up for sale. October 1975 was also the same month of release for the monster Staples hit "Let's Do It Again" on Curtis Mayfield's label Curtom Records that of course provided The Staple Singers with their biggest ever hit – a US R&B No. 1 (the album bore the same title). So its most likely that STN 0255 was not just lost in the demise of Stax Records in 1975, but was probably pulled at the last minute as a pointless issue. The band's future clearly lay somewhere else and on another label. In fact in the liner notes to "The Complete STAX/VOLT SOUL SINGLES Volume 3: 1972-1975" issued back in December 1994 (reissued March 2015 as a smaller brick-block version) – even Mavis Staples says she's never seen copies.

 

So there you have it – I love this Box Set. And even when they were sounding slightly dated like The Association irrepressible optimism of "A Wednesday In Your Garden" in 1969 or the out-of-step overly-preachy vibe to "Getting To Big For Your Britches" in 1974 – every album from those six stunning years is chock full of Soul and R&B goodness and a sense of their Peace, Love and Happiness world view.

 

The Staple Singers have always been magical to me and on the last day of December 2021 as I write this, only the mighty vocals of Mavis Staples survives. But my God - what a legacy! 

 

Small, but beautifully formed, and with that first-class audio that's now become synonymous with releases from Craft Recordings for all things Stax re-releases - "Come Go With Me: The Stax Collection" by THE STAPLE SINGERS is actually my fave Box Set reissue of the last few years (never mind 2020) and there have been some doosies for sure. 

 

Buy it and enjoy...and thanks for the inspiring journey...