“Taking No Prisoners (With Gypie 1977-1981)” by DR. FEELGOOD (July 2013 EMI 4CD and 1DVD Book Set of Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"...Night Club...I Paid In...Got A Stamp On My Skin..."

I'm in Hog Heaven - I really am. I know fan affection lies firmly with the original Wilko Johnson line-up of the mighty Dr. Feelgood (Britain's best Pub Rock and R'n'B band) - but for me the John 'Gypie' Mayo line-up was even more mind-blowing than its superlative predecessor. And this truly fantastic jam-packed 5-disc EMI Box Set only hammers that home in spades. Here's the soiled beer mats...

"Taking No Prisoners (With Gypie 1977-1981)" by DR. FEELGOOD is a 4CD/1DVD hardback book-shaped box set issued July 2013 in the UK on EMI 5099901954029 (Barcode 5099901954029) and breaks down as follows:

Disc 1 - STUDIO (77:45 minutes):

Tracks 1 to 12 are the album "Be Seeing You" - UK released in September 1977 on United Artists UAS 30123

Tracks 13 to 22 are the album "Private Practice" - UK released in September 1978 on United Artists UAS 30184

Tracks 23 and 24 are the non-album single "As Long As The Price Is Right" and "Down At The (Other) Doctors".

The A is a 'Second Version' and was issued as a UK 7" single in April 1979 on United Artists UP 36506 (the original mix is on the "Be Seeing You" LP).

Track 25 is "Riding On The L&N (Demo Version)" and is Previously Unreleased.

Disc 2 - STUDIO (76:25 minutes):

Tracks 1 to 10 are the album "Let It Roll" - UK released September 1979 on United Artists UAG 30269

Tracks 11 to 22 are the album "A Case Of The Shakes" - UK released September 1980 on United Artists UAG 30311

Tracks 23 and 24 are their final 7" single on UA - "Waiting For Saturday Night" and "Eileen"  - UK released October 1981 on EMI/Liberty BP 404 (with Johnny Guitar).

Disc 3 - LIVE (77:51 minutes):

Tracks 1 to 12 are Previously Unreleased - recorded live "The Paddocks" in Canvey Island on 10 June 1977.

Tracks 13 to 25 are the live album "As It Happens" - UK released June 1979 on United Artist UAK 30239 (with a Free EP - see Disc 4)

Disc 4 - LIVE (68:59 minutes):

Tracks 1 to 4 are the FREE EP given with initial copies of the "As It Happens" LP

Tracks 5 to 11 are Previously Unreleased - recorded live at The Pavilion in Hemel Hempstead 18 October 1978

Tracks 12 to 23 are the live album "On The Job" - UK released August 1981 on Liberty LBG 30328

DVD:

BBC Sight And Sound Concert Recorded and Broadcast December 1977 (Tracks 1 to 11)

Top Of The Pops Broadcasts - 5 songs from 1977 to 1979

6 Video Clips for 6 songs

Tyne Tees Television clip from "Alright Now" Program July 1980

The South Bank Show recorded June 1981 - Interviews etc

PETER MEW has done the peerless remasters - a man I've raved about on many occasions and an engineer whose handled hundreds of reissue projects. The sound quality here is FABULOUS - punchy, great power and never too amped up to be over trebled. And the full colour 72-page booklet is incredible - full of adverts, single sleeves, live shots, memorabilia, outtakes from album covers - even the 4 discs ape the band-member Toby Jugs on the front cover of "Let It Roll".

Niggles

For such a beautifully laid out and annotated booklet - it's a little sloppy in places. There's mistaken credits - two same catalogue numbers to "Be Seeing You" and "Private Practice" and a wrong catalogue number to "On The Job" (the right one is supplied above). And the mechanism for getting the disc in and out of their clip positions is more than awkward. They even provide you with a page to tell you how - but I almost broke one or two trying to get them out - so I put them in separate paper CD bags for ease of use - and I advise you to do the same. But these are only minor irritations (worth pointing out though).

I saw this line up in Dublin with The Specials on the same bill - both at the height of their live power. It's a gig I rave about to this day. And I've lost count of the number of "Private Practice" copies I have on vinyl. How good is it to finally hear these superlative albums in truly great sound. I'd admit that the live stuff can become tedious after a while (as it did back in the day when we bought them) - but the unreleased tracks are fantastic - the band clearly relishing a second coming. And the DVD stuff brought tears to my eyes - so many great memories of a band I loved.

As Number 2 said to Number 6 in "The Prisoner" TV Series - "Be Seeing You".

You're too damn right.

The absolute business folks - buy it and enjoy. (I've also reviewed the Wilko Johnson Box Set "All Through The City")

PS: There's an obituary in the Christmas 2013 issue of The Record Collector Magazine for John Mayo who sadly died (aged 62) in October 2013. RIP you rockin' genius.

MADBID.COM. A REVIEW. AVOID LIKE THE PLAGUE - HIDDEN CHARGES ARE A RIP OFF AND COST YOU MORE THAN YOU GAIN.

The internet is awash with scamsters and MADBID is probably the best of them.

After signing in - you have to buy credits to bid - say £30 or £50 or more.

What this crafty penny bid system doesn't tell you is that EACH BID YOU MAKE COSTS CREDITS TO MAKE THE BID (bids on eBay are free) - and you can spend hours endlessly bidding on tasty items and getting nowhere. Soon the £30 or £50 you bought dwindles down to nothing and you wasted your time.

The counters keep going to zero but then keep popping back up to say an 8-second countdown because someone else has bid. They even have credits themselves on auction so you end up chasing your tail.

REMEMBER - you are not bidding a penny at a time - you are using credits you paid considerably more for - with a hugely unlikely chance that you'll win those tempting and expensive Apple products.

I closed the account immediately and LOST MY MONEY.

"I Feel Like Dynamite: The Early Chimneyville Singles And More 1970-1974" by KING FLOYD (2013 Ace/Kent Soul CD Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"...Let's Get Down With The Groove…" 

Forever seen as a one-hit wonder ("Groove Me") - this typically superb Ace CD reissue will go a long way to changing minds on that count. It also offers fans of the mighty Atlantic label and its more obscure offshoots (like Chimneyville Records) a lot of good Seventies Soul to savour - most of it new to CD.

UK released September 2013 - "I Feel Like Dynamite: The Early Chimneyville Singles And More 1970-1974" by KING FLOYD on Ace/Kent Soul CDKEND 404 (Barcode 029667240420) is a 24-track CD compilation of Remasters and breaks down as follows (77:18 minutes):

1. What Our Love Needs

2. Groove Me (Tracks 1 & 2 are the A&B-sides of Chimneyville CH-435, September 1970)

3. Baby Let Me Kiss You

4. Please Don't Leave Me Lonely (Tracks 3 & 4 are the A&B-sides of CH-437, March 1971)

5. Got To Have Your Lovin'

6. Let Us Be (Tracks 5 & 6 are the A&B-sides of Chimneyville CH-439, July 1971)

7. Let Me See You Do That Thing

8. It's Wonderful (Tracks 7 & 8 are the A&B-sides of Chimneyville CH-442, November 1971)

9. Everybody Needs Somebody

10. Woman Don't Go Astray (Tracks 9 & 10 are the A&B-sides of Chimneyville CH-443, July 1972)

11. What Our Love Needs

12. Here It Is (Tracks 11 & 12 are the A&B-sides of Chimneyville CH-446, February 1973)

13. Messing Up My Mind

14. So Glad I Found You

15. A Day In The Life Of A Fool

16. My Girl

17. Do Your Feeling

18. It's Not What You Say

19. Thank You

20. Hard To Handle

21. You’ve Got Me (Tracks 13 to 21 inclusive are from 2 LPs - see list below)

22. So Much Confusion (Track 22 is the A-side of Chimneyville CH-1779, November 1973)

23. I Feel Like Dynamite

24. Handle With Care (Tracks 23 & 24 are the A&B-sides of Chimneyville CH-10202, July 1974)

You can also sequence two whole 70t’s albums from this CD compilation using the following track numbers [6 = track 6 etc]:

"King Floyd" - 1971 LP on Atco/Chimneyville SD 9047 (USA) and 2466014 (UK)

Side 1:

1. Groove Me [Track 2]

2. Let Us Be [6]

3. Woman Don’t Go Astray [10]

4. Baby Let Me Kiss You [3]

5. Messing Up My Mind [13]

Side 2:

1. It's Wonderful [8]

2. So Glad I Found You [14]

3. Don’t Leave Me Lonely [4]

4. Day In The Life Of A Fool [15]

5. What Our Love Needs [1]

"Think About It" - April 1973 LP on Atco/Chimneyville SD 7023 (USA) and Atlantic Records K 40490 (UK)

Side 1:

1. My Girl [16]

2. Here It Is [12]

3. Do Your Feeling [17]

4. It’’s Not What You Say [18]

5. Woman Don’t Go Astray [10]

Side 2:

1. Think About It [11]

2. Thank You [19]

3. Hard To Handle [21]

4. You’ve Got Me [20]

5. Everybody Needs Somebody [9]

The 12-page booklet features fantastically detailed liner notes by noted Soul expert TONY ROUNCE - every page picturing those elusive American Chimneyville labels (courtesy of Giles Petard). The excellent sounding remaster has been done by DUNCAN COWELL at Sound Mastering in London whose handled literally hundreds of this reissues.

Most people know King Floyd through "Groove Me" which was originally a B-side played at a party when the crowd went nuts (it charted as an A in October 1970 in the USA and rose into the Top 5 by year’s end) - and I’m afraid you could accuse too many tracks here of trying to emulate that hugely popular and successful groove. But I found on second listen that belters like "I Feel Like Dynamite" (lyrics above) where he does his best James Brown mid Seventies Funk impression - backed with the lovely "Handle With Care" - is a bit of wee gem frankly. It’s also cool to see so many of these rare single sides make their CD debut after nearly 4 decades in the wilderness. But although “You’ve Got Me” is a lovely ballad - his voice lets the side down a tad and I’m not so sure about his 6 and half minute Isaac Hayes style re-working of “My Girl”. Floyd’s cover of “Hard To Handle” (Otis Redding) is far better - cracking stuff - as is The Staple Singers funky feel to “Thank You”.

To sum up - another quality release from Ace and their Kent/Soul imprint - who remain heroes to all of us Soul reissue junkies. There’s a lot on here worth checking out...

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"Mannish Boy - The Stax, Volt & Truth Recordings 1969-74" by THE NEWCOMERS. A Review Of The 2013 Ace/Stax CD Remaster - A Limited Edition Of Only 1500 Copies.

This review is part of my "SOUNDS GOOD: Exceptional CD Remasters Soul, Funk & Jazz Fusion" 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

Hailing out of Memphis - I've had only three tracks by the Vocal Soul group The Newcomers to my name - all of which turned up on "The Complete Stax/Volt Singles Volume 2" 9CD Box Set in 1993 - over 20 years ago. So being a voracious Stax Records collector/fan  - this CD caught my eye - and I'm so glad I bought it.

Released 30 September 2013 as a limited edition of 1500 copies, Ace/Stax CDLUX 010 (Barcode 029667056120) runs to a generous 77:48 minutes and breaks down as follows:

Track 2 and 1 "Open Your Heart (Let Me In)" and "Girl, This Boy Loves You" make up the A&B sides of their debut 45 on Volt VOA-4022 (issued September 1969).

Tracks 3 and 4 "You Put The Sunshine In My Heart" and "Still A Boy In My Heart" make the A&B sides of their 2nd 45 on Volt VOA-4049 (issued October 1970).

Tracks 5 and 6 "Pin The Tail On The Donkey" and "Mannish Boy" are the A&B sides of their 3rd 45 on Stax STA-0099 (issued September 1971). It was also their first of only two 45s in the UK - it was issued on Stax 2025 063 in 1972.

Tracks 7 and 8 "The Martian Hop" and "Humpty Dumpty" are their 4th 45 on Stax STA-0186 (issued 1973). It was also issued as the second 45 in the UK on Stax STXS 2023 in 1975.

Track 9 is "Keep An Eye On Your Close Friends" - the A-side is their 5th 45 on Truth TRA-3204 (issued September 1974). The 'Instrumental' B-side is not included on here.

Tracks 10 and 11 "(Too Little In Common To Be Lovers) Too Much Going To Say Good-Bye" and "The Whole World;s A Picture Show" are their 6th single on Truth TRA-3213 (issued January 1975).

They had one other 45 on Mercury in 1978 which is not within the reaches of this CD. They never made an album.

Track 12 is "Betcha Can't Guess Who" which was unissued until the Ace/Kent Soul CD compilation "More Perfect Harmony - Sweet Soul Groups 1967-1975" (CDKEND 252) in 2005.

Track 13 is "See Saw Lovin'" which was unissued unto the Ace/Stax CD "5000 Volts Of Stax" (CDSXD 116) in 1998.

Tracks 14 to 24 are all previously unreleased (14, 15, and 21 are Mono, the rest Stereo)

The group were made up of several accomplished singers all of whom auditioned at Stax for their parts - Bertram Brown, Terry Bartlett, Homer Garis, Carl Lloyd and Randy Brown were the original line-up. William Sumlin, Terry Bartlett and Randy Brown made up the core of the new line-up. The song-writers included Allen Jones, Bobby Manuel, Marshall Jones, Melvin Davis, Homer Banks and many others.

This compilation feels like a tale of two cities - the singles and the unreleased stuff. I say this because Stax clearly thought of The Newcomers as their answer to Tamla's Jackson 5 and therefore pitched some terrible A-sides to that effect ("Put The Tail On The Donkey"). And their B-sides were so much better than the A - which is probably why the opener here is "Girl, This Boy Loves You" - a glorious slab of high-vocals Sweet Soul - the kind of tune Northern Soul fans would throttle a close relative for. But stuff like their awful reworking of The Ran-Dells 1963 novelty hit "The Martian Hop" backed by the sickly "Humpty Dumpty" fail terribly. But then just when you're getting worried - you get the fantastic "Mannish Boy" and the truly aching "(Too Little In Common To Be Lovers) Too Much Going On To Say Good-Bye" which is properly gorgeous Slow Soul.

But what's most shocking is the sheer quality of the unreleased stuff - mostly consisting of slower ballads. Tony Rounce's typically superb liner notes point out that the six-minute slow stew of "The Exit" is the toppermost - and he's right. In fact listening to these tracks feels like some long lost smoocher album that somehow slipped through the net. Many of the songs feature The Bar- Kays as the backing band too (their cover of Steve Mancha's "I Don't Want To Lose You" is a highlight). Another nugget is the vocal harmonies achieved by Stax stalwarts Bettye Crutcher and Marvell Thomas on "What A Girl I've Got (Lovin' Me)" - 'so' good. The demos are not fluffs either but fully recorded tracks - and even they sound great. In fact the audio quality is superb throughout (typically top transfer work done by NICK ROBBINS at Sound Mastering).

Ace Records of the UK is beloved among fans and collectors - and this kind of release is testament as to why. You couldn't imagine a major label giving a monkeys about this stuff - but Ace have made the effort and made it available to Soul lovers everywhere.

Fabulous stuff - and easily one of my Soul reissues of the year for 2013.

"Karla Bonoff/Restless Nights/Wild Heart Of The Young" by KARLA BONOFF - 1977, 1979 and 1982 Albums on Columbia Records (November 2013 UK Beat Goes On Records (BGO) Compilation - 3LPs Remastered onto 2CDs) - A Review by Mark Barry...

This review and hundreds more like it can also be found in my 

SOUNDS GOOD Music Book: 
1960s and 1970s MUSIC Volume 2 
- Exceptional CD Remasters 

It contains over 210 in-depth reviews (a whopping 2400+ e-Pages) 
And is available to buy/download at Amazon at the following link...

"...Sings Me Sweet Things..."

Like most people I came to Karla Bonoff and her affecting songs via Linda Ronstadt. I'd loved both "Someone To Lay Down Beside Me" and "If He's Ever Near" - Bonoff originals issued as singles by Linda in the USA. This excellent 2CD set is a great place to look for more...

UK released November 2013 – "Karla Bonoff/Restless Nights/Wild Heart Of The Young" by KARLA BONOFF on Beat Goes On BGOCD 1126 (Barcode 5017261211262) features 3 albums Remastered onto 2CDs and plays out as follows:

Disc 1 (74:20 minutes):

1. Someone To Lay Down Beside Me

2. I Can't Hold On

3. Lose Again

4. Home

5. Faces In The Wind

6. Isn't It Always Love [Side 2]

7. If He's Ever Near

8. Flying High

9. Falling Star

10. Rose In The Garden

Tracks 1 to 10 are her debut solo LP "Karla Bonoff" released in September 1977 on Columbia PC 34672 in the USA and January 1978 in the UK on CBS S 82455.

11. Trouble Again

12. Restless Nights

13. The Letter

14. When You Walk In The Room

15. Only A Fool

16. Baby Don't Go

17. Never Stop Her Heart

18. Loving You

19. The Water Is Wide

Tracks 11 to 19 are her 2nd album "Restless Nights" released in September 1979 on Columbia JC 35799 in the USA and January 1980 on CBS S 83587 in the UK

Disc 2 (37:56 minutes):

1. Personally

2. Please Be The One

3. I Don't Want To Miss You

4. Even If

5. Just Walk Away

6. Gonna Be Mine

7. Wild Heart Of The Young

8. It Just Takes One

9. Dream

Tracks 1 to 9 are her 3rd album "Wild Heart Of The Young" released in April 1982 on Columbia FC 37444

The card wrap pictures all 3 albums and the detailed 16-page booklet outlines session details and a history of her career and associations (John Tobler liner notes). Quite apart from Ronstadt, the albums are littered with the West Coast session mafia - Russ Kunkle, Waddy Watchel, the Eagles, Andrew Gold, Steve Forman, Leland Sklar, Joe Walsh, and long-time producer and friend Kenny Edwards. ANDREW THOMPSON at Sound Performances in London did the remastering and they're beautifully clear and full of presence - reflecting the superb original production values.

The debut album is probably the best with gems like "Home" (lyrics above), "Faces In The Wind" and "Falling Star" as well as the fabulous "Someone To Lay Down Beside Me". In fact as the tunes and ace musicianship go softly by - you're hit over and over by her affecting song writing - rather like a female Jackson Browne on a good day. You could just imagine the Eagles recording an entire album of her songs and making them sound like their own compositions. Bonnie Raitt covered "Home" on her April 1977 LP "Sweet Forgiveness" and Warners even released it as a UK 7" single on K 16953 in May 1977 to promote the album. In the meantime Linda Ronstadt arguably took "Someone To Lay Down Beside Me" to even greater heights. She featured it on her April 1976 album "Hasten Down The Wind" (a top 3 record in the USA) and the song turned up as a US and UK 45 in late 1976 and early 1977 (it was also featured on her May 1980 "Greatest Hits Vol.2"). Bonoff is like this – a songsmith – picked up on by others who know a winning melody when they hear one. Her self-titled debut rose to No. 52 on the US Pop LP charts and had a 40-week run – but it's unfairly forgotten now and shouldn't be.

The second and third albums saw the tunes drop too many times into terrible late-Seventies Neil Diamond schlock territory. Jackie De Shannon provides backing vocals on her own song "When He Walked Into The Room" and another winner is her beautiful cover of the Traditional "The Water Is Wide" (James Taylor does a gorgeous version of it on his "New Moon Shine" album from 1991). The polished "Wild Heart..." from 1982 is unfortunately all production and too few actual tunes ("Just Takes One" is a lovely exception with nice slide guitar from Joe Walsh). And Kenny Edwards and Andrew Gold (long-time collaborators with Bonoff) have their talent and presence on almost every track (both are now sadly passed on).

It might not be everyone's idea of heaven - but those languid melodies I've mentioned will affect you. If you're a Karla Bonoff fan - this superlative sounding and well-presented reissue is a must own...especially for that lovely debut...