“...Gimme Some Of Yours...”
Back in my
pre-Heart Attack and Vine days of 2011 – I excitedly reviewed the first Volume
of “Shattered Dreams – Funky Blues 1967-1984” on Ace’s Beat Goes Public Label
(BGP) and duly raved about its many charms and butt-wobbling eblutions. Well
take me up the back passage with Shergar’s love truncheon but the crafty
buggers have only gone and put out Volume 2 (no shame that lot) and it’s
another star in a reasonably priced car. Here are the necessary toiletries...
UK released June
2015 – “Hard To Explain: More Shattered Dreams – Funky Blues 1968-1984” on
Ace/Beat Goes Public CDBGPD 285 (Barcode 029667528528) pans out as follows
(63:08 minutes):
1. The Creeper –
FREDDY ROBINSON (from the 1979 LP “Blue Monday: The Stax Blues Masters Vol.2”
on Stax 3015)
2. Gimme Some Of
Yours (I’ll Give You Some Of Mine) – ARTIE WHITE (1970 USA 7” single on Gamma
11112, A)
3. You Upset Me
Baby – LARRY DAVIS (1968 USA 7” single on Pisces 8114)
4. Walk On –
FINIS TASBY (1977 LP Big Town 1009)
5. Getting Down
With You – OBREY WILSON (2014, Previously Unreleased Bastille Productions
Recording)
6. It’s Hard To Explain
– RAY AGEE (1972 USA 7” single on Romark RK-118, A)
7. Don’t Down Me
People Part 1 – MEMPHIS SOUL (2014 USA 7” single Numero 027, A - 70s Recording
from Phoenix, Arizona and not Memphis)
8. Lovemaker –
LOWELL FULSOM (1978 USA LP “Lovemaker” on Big Town 1008)
9. Cold Sweat –
ALBERT KING (1969 USA 7” single on Stax 0069, A)
10. I Want You –
SMOKEY WILSON (2014, Previously Unreleased Modern Recording)
11. I Don’t
Understand It – ICE WATER SLIM & THE FOURTH FLOOR 9174 USA 7” single on
Hawk Sound HS 1001, A)
12. Go Go Train
– SMOKEY WILSON (1976 USA 7” single on Big Town BT-711, A)
13. He Made You
Mine – BID DADDY RUCKER featured with The Johnny Otis Show (1972 USA 7” single
on Hawk Sound H-101,B-side)
14. Fine
Something Else To Do – FINIS TASBY (1984 UK LP “Blues Mechanic” on Ace Records
CH 122)
15. Getting’
Down With The Game – ADOLH JACOBS (1972 USA 7” single on Romark RK-117, B-side
of “Do It”)
16. I Finally
Got You – JIMMY McCRACKLIN (1972 USA LP “Yesterday Is Gone” on Stax STS 2047)
17. Them Love
Blues – EARL WRIGHT (1969 USA 7” single on Virgo 101, A)
18. Hey Little
Girl – TOMMY YOUNGBLOOD (1970 USA 7” single on Kent 4516, A” and on the “The
Soul Of Tommy Youngblood” Kent LP)
19. Sister Rose
–SHAKEY JAKE HARRIS (1974 USA 7” single on Grenade GR 1004, A)
20. It’s Real
(Part 1) – JIMMY ROBINS (1968 USA 7” single on Kent 487, A)
Tracks 1, 5, 6,
8, 9, 11 to 14, 16 and 18 to 20 are STEREO
Tracks 2, 3, 4,
7 10, 15 and 17 are MONO
The 16-page
booklet has detailed and (deeply) affectionate liner notes from genre lover and
expert DEAN RUDLAND – picturing along the way those rare American 45 labels
like Romark, Hawk Sound, Big Town and Grenade. There’s colour photos of Lowell
Fulsom (looking dapper with his guitar and a white suit), Albert King thrilling
the crowds live at WattStax and a black and white snap of Jon Kincaid &
Smokey Wilson live at the Pioneer Club in Los Angeles in November 1980. At the
end there’s a two-page interview with Phillippe Rault about songwriter and
singer OBREY WILSON and Rault’s recordings with him in New Orleans from 1975
through to the early Eighties. It’s the usual classy affair from Ace.
NICK ROBBINS at
Sound Mastering has handled the Transfers and Remasters – and there’s loads of
Funky oomph and punch in these recordings - even the Mono cuts like “Gimme Some
Of Yours (I’ll Give You Some Of Mine)” and the wildly brilliant “Don’t Down Me
People – Part 1” punch way above their weight.
It opens with a
belter from a 1979 Stax LP I used to own and treasure called “Blue Monday: The
Stax Blues Masters Vol.2” which primarily featured Previously Unreleased Funky
Blues cuts from that great label. Ace Records have smartly chosen Freddy
Robinson’s infectious “The Creeper” to kick off proceedings in all its groovy
Stereo glory. We dip aurally to Mono for the excellent “Gimme Some Of Yours”
from Artie White but the Larry Davis cover of B.B. King’s classic “You Upset Me
Baby” is a funk-version that doesn’t really work. Sounding stylistically
similar to BB – guitarist Finis Tasby gives us a mid-tempo shuffle on “Walk On”
- but things get infinitely better and Sly Stone/Millie Jackson biting Funky
with Obrey Wilson on the nasty and lyrically loaded “Getting Down With You”
where he assures his lady his love is “doggone hard” (which is very reassuring
you have to say).
Organ Blues gets
a lovely outing with “It’s Hard To Explain” by Roy Agee – a very cool groove
similar to Albert King on Stax with strings. One of the compilation highlights
is the mysterious group Memphis Soul giving it some Hendrix Guitar/James
Brown’s JBs backing on the fabulous “Don’t Down Me People” – a stunning groove
that Funks along in a Bluesy Rock way and just won’t quit (I wish they’d
included Part 2). It’s cleverly followed by the title track to a long forgotten
Lowell Fulsom album “Lovemaker”. Johnny Otis had a hand in the writing of “He
Made You Mine” along with Ervin “Big Daddy” Rucker – probably the most straight
up Blues cut on here. Some tracks like “Them Love Blues” and “It’s Real” try
hard but don’t really excite while others like the sly hook for “I Finally Got
You” from Jimmy McCracklin and the wicked guitar-boogie of “Sister Rose” (is
alright with me) by Shakey Jake Harris are growers that will be on one of my
home compilations real soon.
A
more-than-worthy compliment volume to 2011’s “Shattered Dreams” (pictured above) – Volume 2 is
making me groove the more I listen to it. And when it comes to Funky Blues I
likes that a whole lot...
