"This Is Lowrider Soul 1962-1970" by VARIOUS ARTISTS - Featuring Brenton Wood, Barbara Mason, The Webs, The Charmels, The Ambassadors, The Whispers, Bobbi Row & The Englishmen, The Esquires, The Lovelles, Lee Williams & The Cymbals, William Bell, Aesop's Fables, Bobby Burn and more (February 2019 UK Ace/Kent Soul CD Compilation of Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Oh How It Hurts..."

Sometimes terminology goes against you and I would argue that the description Lowrider is something of a case in point here. 

Fifties Vocal Groups and their falsetto crooning Doo Wop morphed into Sixties Soul and R&B – or Harmony Soul as it often called - one of the genre's many branches by the time that eventful decade itself morphed into the Seventies and all that came with it (Philly, Jazz Fusion, Rare Grooves, Disco etc). 

And that's what you essentially get here - only its entitled 'Lowrider Soul' – named after American cars and their hipster drivers cruising around Southern California in their cools-mobiles looking for a Night Club or Radio Station that championed the musical playlist they liked – heavy on the smooch – smooth on the Soul. In fact if I were to rename this compilation I'd call it 'Slide On By: Harmony Vocal Groups That Put The Smooth In Soulful 6ts Ballads' - or some such convoluted sets of words! 

What you have here is Slow Soul and a lot of it - swooning and swaying ballads sung by perplexed-looking blue-eyed guys and mascara-bleeding gals fronting Harmony Vocal Groups, both laying the blame at the other's door as they give us tale after tale of hurting, heartache, misery and woe (and that's just the break-up - the aftermath is a whole different level). I know some listeners find this kind of 24-cut Sixties-playlist boring after only Track 10 (the same pace after the same pace), but I am so down with it. These mini melodramas are authentically beautiful – the very definition of Deep Soul to me. 

Throw in careful selection of actual warmth vs. rarities in the songs - quality liner notes that genuinely illuminate - and crisp Audio that is so sweet throughout – and you get one of the loveliest listens I’ve had the pleasure of shuffling through in a long time (not something the Lowrider artwork screams out at you). Time for details - to the shattered dreams, secondhand happiness and kerbside crawlers of Californian Soul...

UK released Friday, 8 February 2019 - "This Is Lowrider Soul: 1962-1970" by VARIOUS ARTISTS on Ace/Kent Soul CDKEND 482 (Barcode 029777092920) is a 24-Track CD Compilation of Remasters that plays out as follows (65:31 minutes):

1. Take A Step - AESOP'S FABLES (October 1967, US 45-single on Atco 45-6523, A-side)

2. Why'd You Put Me On - BOBBI ROW & THE ENGLISHMEN (August 1965, US 45-single on Money 116, B-side of "Facts Of Life")

3. I Wanna Chance - THE VOWS (June 1962, US 45-single on Markay 103, B-side to "Have You Heard")

4. Where Were You - BRENTON WOOD (February 1969, US 45-single on Double Shot 137, B-side of "A Change Is Gonna Come")

5. Second Hand Happiness - JIMMY CONWELL (December 1966, Mirwood 5530, A-side)

6. 'Til You Come Back To Me - LEE WILLIAMS & THE CYMBALS (December 1968, US 45-single on Carnival CAR-540, A-side)

7. Oh How It Hurts - BARBARA MASON (October 1967, US 45-single on Arctic 137, A-side) 

8. I Really Love You - THE AMBASSDORS (December 1968, US 45-single Arctic 147, A-side)

9. As I Sit Here - THE WHISPERS (July 1965, US 45-single on Dore 740, A-side)

10. One More Chance - THE FOUR TEES (August 1970, US 45-single on Kent K 4530, A-side)

11. No Doubt About it - THE ESQUIRES (October 1968, US 45-single on Wand 1193, B-side of "You've Got The Power")

12. It's Not That Easy - REUBEN BELL with THE CASANOVAS (December 1967, US 45-single on Murco 1035, A-side)

13. It's So Hard To Break A Habit - THE WEBS (January 1968, US 45-single on Popside 4595, B-side of "Give In")

14. Pretending Dear - THE LOVELLES (April 1969, Atco 45-6670, B-side of "I'm Comin' Today")

15. Find Me - THE ATTRACTIONS (1966, US 45-single on Renfro 117, A-side) 

16. Shattered Dreams - THE ENDEAVORS (May 1970, US 45-single on Stop ST 372, B-side of "I Know You Don't Want Me") 

17. Be Kind To Love - THE INTERPRETERS (June 1967, US 45-single on A-Bet 9425, A-side)

18. When You're Poor (2019, PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED Golden State Recorders 1966/1967 recording)

19. Never Gonna Let Him Know - DEBBIE TAYLOR (March 1969, US 45-single on GWP Records GWP 501, A-side)

20. As Long As I've Got You - THE CHARMELS (December 1967, US 45-single on Volt 45-155, A-side)

21. Don't Forget About Me Baby - JEFF DALE (January 1965, US 45-single on Atco 45-6332, A-side)

22. I'm A Lonely Man - BOBBY BURN (1968/1971, US 45-single on Chant CH-522, A-side)

23. Crying All My Myself - WILLIAM BELL (July 1965, US 45-single on Stax S-174, A-side)

24. I'm Just Passing Time - MELVIN HICKS & THE VERSATILES (2019, PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED 1972 Brass Parrot recording)

All Tracks in MONO except 7 and 8 which are STEREO

Tracks 18 and 24 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

Compiled and Annotated by SEAN HAMPSEY (with some further notes on 'The Southern Soul Spinners' Group, Southern California and the Chicano music scene by Ruben Molina) - the 24-page booklet is the usual feast of rare 45-labels, trade adverts, local newspaper reviews, publicity photos, acetates and white labels (a typically classy Kent Soul reissue). There are full-page adverts given over to the lovely Barbara Mason and her "Oh How It Hurts" on Arctic distributed by Jamie/Guyden, The Whispers advertise for a band member (yes that Whispers who had huge hits in the 80s on Solar) and The Charmels look happy in colour in a garden on the rear page (lovely stuff and full of track-by-track info). 

Long-standing Audio-Engineer for Ace and Kent Soul NICK ROBBINS does the predominately Mono Remasters (two are in Stereo) and these things sound really lovely. Take The Webs much sought-after B-side "It's So Hard To Break A Habit" - amazing Production values that have been sampled before, but I bet those lifts haven't sounded as good as they do here. These are chest hugging hip-swishing smoochers and the clear audio really adds to that – swirling around your living room like vocal honey. To the playlist...

It's noticeable from the list above how many of these gems are B-sides - probably because the dancer was on the Plug Side with the Smooch on the flip. "Lowrider Soul..." opens well with a bunch of white boys getting blue-eyed Soulful with their superb "Take A Step" - the obscure Aesop's Fables being an Atco Records act you don't hear about every day of the week. A sort of 'hold you tight' cross between The Rascals and The Association - their "Take A Step" sets the scene nicely. It's followed by another sought-after shuffler from the Oxford vs. Cambridge Boat Race named Bobbi Row & The Englishmen - "Why'd You Put Me On" making me want to pull those emotional oars like a goodun. The first of a few audio wows comes with the 1962 recording of "I Wanna Chance" by The Vows - the almost operatic voice of Helen Simpson soaring on this lovely song (James Moore involved too). 

Forever associated (and rightly so) with the brilliant "Gimme Little Sign" - Brenton Wood gets to show he's so much more than that bopper by going all Smokey Robinson cool on "Where Were You" - the B-side of a Sam Cooke cover he did in 1969 on Double Shot Records - a 45 that bubbled under the R&B charts at No. 131. Jimmy Conwell and Lee Williams more than justify the huge amounts people are prepared to pay for their "Second Hand Happiness" and "'Til You Come Back To Me" - but for me Barbara Mason just exudes class on her "Oh How It Hurts" - hoping that tomorrow she'll have the strength to find someone new.

Jimmy Bishop and Kenny Gamble gave the original "I Really Love You" to Dee Dee Sharp in 1965 on Cameo – but the lowrider club community digs the medium-slow ballad version by The Ambassadors. You could imagine its stop-start melodrama beats slaughtering an audience in a live environment – here it just make you want to sway with your gal on the kitchen-diner floor. The Otis Taylor cover of "One More Chance" by The Four Tees is lovely too – our heroes pleading that you don’t come around here no more and really this heartless moll should give our truly repentant malfeasant a second go-round. And on it goes – sweetheart after sweetheart – tunes that have been sampled – or The Lovelles single that actually feature Duane Allman on guitar – or the strings and vocals majesty of The Attractions on an impossibly lusted after 45 on Renfro, a label few have ever seen let alone heard.

Lowrider Soul, Harmony Vocal Soul, Smooth Ballads – even Deep Soul. Call it what you want, but call it. 

Another CD winner from Kent Soul – a heartbeat spinner and wallet muleskinner – way to go guys...

"Funk Drops: Breaks, Nuggets And Rarities From The Vaults Of Atlantic, Atco, Reprise And Warner Bros. Records 1968-1974" by VARIOUS ARTISTS (September 2001 UK Warner Strategic Marketing United Kingdom - Rick Conrad CD Compilation - Giovanni Scatola Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Sexy Coffee Pot..."

Between 2001 and 2005 and using their Warner Strategic Marketing United Kingdom wing (often simply abbreviated to WSM) - the major label WEA were hammering the British and European markets with visually and audibly cool compilations to satisfy the then burgeoning need for Soul Breaks and especially Rare Groove Funk from the 60ts and 70ts. 

The fabulous WEA compilation series called "Funk Drops: Breaks, Nuggets And Rarities From The Vaults Of..." was one of those temptresses. Three volumes eventually covered 1968 to 1977 – laying into singles and deep LP cuts that were costing collectors a fortune on bidding sites (there was talk of a Volume 4 for Funk Drops, but it never materialised). 

WSM UK also gave us "After Hours" for Northern Soul (3 volumes) - "Natural High" for 2-Step Soul (3 volumes) - "Right On!" for Funk and Soul (5 volumes) - "The In Sound" series (11 or so volumes for covers, lounge music that crossed over into Soul, Eastern vibes, Psych in Soul) - "You Better Believe It" (2 volumes of rare Soul), "Creme De La Creme" (2 volumes for Philly Soul and Funk), "Blues And Soul Power" (1 volume of Funky R&B Crossovers 1964-1972), "From Burbank To The Bay Area..." (1 volume of Barrio Breaks, East-Bay Grease, Folk Funk and more from WEA's vaults) and so on. It was a deluge of goodies. Back to the first volume of "Funk Drops..." 

Remastered by GIOVANNI SCATOLA and compiled with smarts by RICK CONRAD at WSM UK - much to the pleasure of collectors - each playing-time-heavy CD also came in a 2LP VINYL SET complete with detailed inner sleeves that pictured all those sexy and sought-after American Funk 45s on labels like Alston, Atco, Atlantic, Cotillion, Josie, Reprise, San Francisco and of course - Warner Brothers. In fact, in the case of the Vinyl Double-Album for 'Volume 1' – it boasted one bonus track at the end of Side 4 - "Funky To The Bone" by Freddi Henchi & The Soul Setters (see list below for Barcode to locate it). 

But let's get back to the CD that first appeared in September 2001. Long forgotten and criminally so - Volume 1 of "Funk Drops" can be picked up dirt cheap in 2021 - for about four quid including P&P. The equally brilliant (if not actually better) Volume 2 from August 2002 is still out there for about nine pounds but June 2004's Volume 3 currently pushes an extortionate ninety quid or so! I loved the lot and actually bought both variants – CD and VINYL. Time to explore the Sexy Coffee Pot of dark musical delights sloshing aromatic in Volume 1...

UK released 3 September 2001 - "Funk Drops: Breaks, Nuggets And Rarities From The Vaults Of Atlantic, Atco, Reprise And Warner Bros. Records 1968-1974" by VARIOUS ARTISTS on Warner Strategic Marketing UK 0927-40712-2 (Barcode 809274071224) is a 20-Track CD compilation of Remasters (the first of three) that plays out as follows (72:55 minutes): 

1. You Gotta Know Whatcha Doin' - CHARLES WRIGHT (September 1972, US 45-single on Warner Bros WB 7630, A-side)

2. Sexy Coffee Pot - TONY ALVON & THE BELAIRS (May 1969, US 45-single on Atlantic 45-2632, B-Side of "Boom-Boom-Boom")

3. Soul Machine - THE METERS (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED recording made during the sessions for "The Meters" LP issued April 1969 on Josie LP 4010. "Soul Machine" issued Stateside on the 'Expanded Edition' CD of "The Meters" by Rhino in 2001 and by SoulMusic in 2020 on the "Gettin' Funkier All The Time..." 6CD Box Set)

4. Dirty Red - THE FABULOUS COUNTS (April 1969, US 45-single on Moira 45-105, B-side of "Scrambled Eggs" - also on the June 1969 Stereo LP "Jan Jan" on Cotillion SD 9011)

5. Cold Bear - THE GATURS (January 1972, US 45-single on Atco 45-6870, A-side - featuring Willie Tee)

6. Nobody But You Babe - CLARENCE REID (May 1969, US 45-single on Alston 45-4574, A-side - also on the 1969 US Stereo LP "Dancin' With Nobody But You Babe" on Atco SD-33-307)

7. Pop, Popcorn Children - ELDRIDGE HOLMES (August 1969, US 45-single on Atco 45-6701, A-side - Produced Allen Toussaint)

8. Engine Number 9 [6:26 minutes] - WILSON PICKETT (September 1970, US 45-single on Atlantic 45-2765, A-side. The original US 7" single had only the 2:46 minutes of Part 1 on the A-side with "International Playboy" as its B-side. This CD offers the full album version of 'Part 1 and 2' running to 6:26 minutes. It was also called "Get Me Back On Time - Engine Number 9" in the UK when it was issued there October 1970 on Atlantic 2091 032) - hence it is given that title on this CD.

9. What So Never The Dance (Pt. 1 &2) - HOUSE GUEST RATED X (November 1971, US 45-single on House Guests 28205 - offers both A&B-sides at 3:58 minutes)

10. C'mon Children - EARTH, WIND & FIRE (January 1972 US 45-single on Warner Brothers WB 7549, B-side of "I Think About Lovin' You" - also on the 1972 US LP "Earth, Wind & Fire" on Warner Brothers WS-1905)

11. Back On The Streets Again - TOWER OF POWER (January 1971, US 45-single on San Francisco 45-64, A-side edit of 3:16 minutes - full version on the "East Bay Grease" LP on San Francisco 204)

12. Getting Uptown (To Get Down) - UNITED 8 (June 1972, US 45-single on Atlantic 45-2896, A-side - Instrumental)

13. Love The Life You Live - BLACK HEAT (from the 1973 US LP "No Time To Burn" on Atlantic SD-7294 - full album version 6:33 minutes - Kool & The Gang song)

14. Come Little Children - DONNY HATHAWAY (from the June 1973 LP "Extension Of A Man" on Atco SD 7029 - full album version at 4:33 minutes, single edit was 3:38 minutes - Phil Upchurch Guitar Solo - Produced Arif Mardin)

15. 65 Bars And A Taste Of Soul - THE WATTS 103rd STREET RHYTHM BAND (July 1968, US 45-single on Warner Brothers 7222, B-side of "Bottomless")

16. Don't Come Around Here Anymore - MARK PUTNEY (April 1969, US 45-single on Atlantic 45-2617, B-side of "Today's Man")

17. It's Your Thing - COLD GRITS (August 1969, US 45-single on Atco 45-6709, A-side - Isley Brothers cover) 

18. Ridin' Thumb - KING CURTIS (from the 1972 US LP "Everybody's Talkin'" on Atco SD 33-385 - features Billy Preston on Organ and Richard Tee on Piano - written by James Seals)

19. Same Old Thing - THE METERS (from the June 1970 US LP "Struttin'" on Josie LP 4012)

20. Shop Talk (Version No. 1) - COLD BLOOD (from the Various Artists "San Francisco Fall 1970 Sampler" LP on San Francisco SD-158 - differs from the version of their 1971 "Sisyphus" album on San Francisco SD-205)

Compiled and Annotated by RICK CONRAD - the 12-page booklet gives you track by track info followed by the discography info you would want. But if I'm honest, the booklet is visually dire, letting the side down by not picturing those tasty 45 labels or even the colourful album sleeves you never see like the completely forgotten King Curtis "Everybody's Talkin'" and Clarence Reid "Dancing With Nobody But You Babe" albums. They would rectify this in further 'Funk Drops' issues and on the "After Hours", "You Better Believe It" and "Right On!" compilations. What isn't a let down are the fantastically muscular GIOVANNI SCATOLA Remasters - bringing to life each and every entry. To the grooves...

Any compilation which acknowledges that Donny Hathaway was Funky as well as a beautifully expressive Soul singer gets my vote - "Funk Drops" cleverly featuring the full album cut of "Come Little Children" from his fabulous "Extension Of A Man" album. It's typical of so many cuts on this CD - a tune that surprises by an artist you think you have pegged. The great groove opens with a James Brown-ish growl followed quickly by Phil Upchurch on Lead Guitar - Arif Mardin providing the tasty Production. There are also those obscure B-sides like the Brass and Guitar Meters-like flick of "65 Bars And A Taste Of Soul" - a neck-jerking instrumental from The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band that is certain to lively-up any dancefloor. 

Obscure but worthy comes in the shape of "Sexy Coffee Pot" by Tony Avlon & The Belairs - an upon-my-soul uh-huh-huh sure-feels-good chugger that again hits you with brass first, then cements the butt-wiggling deal with those so-want-to-sample drums and guitar flicks (Rhino would give it pride-of-place too on their award-winning "What It Is!" 4CD box set in 2006). Also included on that Box Set is the getting down and hanging around of United 8 – essentially a guitar-flicking instrumental with some man/woman to-and-fro scat vocals at either end. In a similar vein is the irresistible instrumental cover of The Isley Brothers signature groove "It's Your Thing" by Cold Grits – an obscure bunch of musicians who some say turned out to be members of John Fred's Playboy Band mixed up with Wayne Cochran's backing group. Conrad's liner notes advise that there is an entire album of the same still in the vaults awaiting release. 

Before they went full-on commercial Soul – Earth, Wind & Fire had a sort of Tower of Power vs. Prog Funkadelic feel to album cuts like "C'mon Children" – a hard-driving Funky workout. Speaking of forgotten album stints, Clarence Reid gets a truly brilliant groove to "Nobody But You Babe" – a big and brassy doing my thing 1969 A-side on Alston Records that Bear Family of Germany featured on their "Sweet Soul Music" Series of CDs for that year. And I have never heard the alternate Version 1 of Shop Talk by Cold Blood – darlings of the Soul-Funk discovery trail. There are loads more where they came from...

It probably shouldn't come as any real shock that a record label as genre-wide reaching as Warner Brothers would have Funk, Soul and Rare Grooves galore in their vaults. But that it would come as a surprise that thrills like this CD does – is – well a surprise. And Volume 2 of "Funk Drops" trumped the opening salvo, as far as I'm concerned. 

Cheap and cheerful - I'll drop either Volume of "Funk Drops" in my sexy black coffee any day of the week...

The "Funk Drops" CD and 2LP Series of Compilations

From Warner Strategic Marketing United Kingdom

Volume 1 - released 3 September 2001: 

CD: "Funk Drops: Breaks, Nuggets And Rarities: From The Vaults Of Atlantic, Atco, Reprise and Warner Bros. Records 1968-1974" on Warner Strategic Marketing 0927-40712-2 (Barcode 809274071224) - 20 Track CD

VINYL: Warner Strategic Marketing 0927-40713-1 (Barcode 809274071316) – 21-Track 2LP set with One Bonus - "Funky To The Bone" by Freddi Henchi & The Soul Setters (last track on Side 4)

Volume 2 - released 5 August 2002: 

CD: "Funk Drops 2: Breaks, Nuggets And Rarities: From The Vaults Of Atlantic, Atco, Reprise and Warner Bros. Records 1968-1975" on Warner Strategic Marketing 0927-48413-2 (Barcode 809274841322) - 23 Track CD

VINYL: Warner Strategic Marketing 0927-48413-1 (Barcode 809274841315) - 23-Track 2LP set (no bonus tracks)

Volume 3 - released 21 June 2004:

CD: "Funk Drops 3: Breaks, Nuggets And Rarities: From The Vaults Of Atlantic, Atco, Reprise and Warner Bros. Records 1968-1977" on Warner Strategic Marketing 5046-66295 2 (Barcode 5050466629524) - 25-Track CD

VINYL: Warner Strategic Marketing 5046-66295-1 (Barcode 5 050466 629517) - 25 Track 2LP set (no bonuses)

"You Got The Power: CAMEO PARKWAY Northern Soul 1964-1967" by VARIOUS ARTISTS - Featuring The Four Exceptions, Evie Sands, Frankie Beverly & The Butlers, Bunny Sigler, Jerry Jackson, The Orlons, Bobby Paris, Chubby Checker, Eddie Holman and more (June 2020 US ABKCO Records CD Compilation of Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

 

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"...Shake And Shingaling..."

I've reviewed nearly 500 or so R&B and Soul CDs across the years and most buyers will not be in the least bit surprised when I rave about England's Kent Soul releases, Bear Family's Sweet Soul Music Series (15 amazing volumes out of Germany) or any number of American Rhino R&B, Funk and Soul Box Sets. Other British labels like Edsel, Demon and Soul Jazz Records in my prayers too. 

Add to that roster stunning independent newcomers like England's SoulMusic, Big Break Records (of Cherry Red) and Real Gone Music (of the USA) - and it comes as something of a shock to me when I now find myself championing a (ahem) 'major' label - in this case ABKCO Records of the USA - a set of letters far more associated with copyright shenanigans to do with The Rolling Stones and their late 60ts catalogue on London/Decca. 

But, I recently bought and reviewed ABKCO's stunning Sam Cooke 5CD Box Set "The Complete KEEN Years: 1957 to 1960" of 2020 - and here's yet another unassuming gem come slithering out of that New York City-based camp. Perhaps because there are so many Soul Reissues these days – it has gone slightly unnoticed. We need to rectify that. 

For sure "You Got The Power" boasts only 20 Northern Soul tracks from an array of labels under the Cameo-Parkway umbrella (those US 45-labels are pictured on the last page of the booklet) and with that sub 52-minute total playing time, it really should have had five or six more rarities added in. 

But with ADY CROASDELL compilation choices (some of these 1964 to 1967 cuts are so sought after) and TERI LANDI first-generation tape transfers - what "You Got The Power..." loses in waist bulge, it more than makes up for in quality stitching. Fit? It's a cracking listen, and fun too. Let's get to the Shake and the Shingaling...

US released 19 June 2020 - "You Got The Power: (Cameo Parkway) Northern Soul 1964-1967" by VARIOUS ARTISTS on ABKCO 8536-2 (Barcode 018771853626) offers 20-Tracks Remastered and plays out as follows (51:53 minutes):

1. You Got The Power - THE FOUR EXCEPTIONS (June 1966, Parkway P-986, A-side)

2. Because Of My Heart - FRANKIE BEVERLY & THE BUTLERS (1967, Fairmount F-1017, A-side - also 2012 UK Reissue on Outta Sight OSV-074, A-side)

3. (Whao, Whoa) I Love Him So - NIKKI BLU (November 1964, Parkway P-931, A-side - Chubby Checker Production - Ernest Evans and Thom Bell song)

4. Girl Don't Make Me Wait - BUNNY SIGLER (December 1966, Parkway P-123, A-side - Leon Huff song)

5. It's Rough Out There - JERRY JACKSON (September 1966, Parkway P-100, A-side - also October 1966 UK on Cameo-Parkway P-100, A-side and Reissued 2012 UK on Outta Sight OVS-076)

6. Envy In My Eyes - THE ORLONS (October 1965, Cameo C-384, B-side of "No Love But Your Love" - Gamble & Huff Production of Eugene Dozier song)

7. Picture Me Gone - EVIE SANDS (June 1966, Cameo C-413, A-side - also August 1966 UK on Cameo-Parkway C 413, A-side - from the Motion Picture Soundtrack "Step Out Of Your Mind" - a Chip Taylor, Al Gorgoni song)

8. Country Girl - VICKIE BARNES (November 1965, Parkway P-966, A-side)

9. Night Owl - BOBBY PARIS (February 1966, Cameo C-396, B-side of "Tears On My Pillow" - November 1977 UK reissue on London HLU 10553, B-side of "You Didn't Say A Word")

10. Village Of Tears - BEN ZINE (July 1966, Parkway P-996, B-side of "What The Heck's The Hanky Panky")

11. You Just Don't Know (What You Do To Me) - CHUBBY CHECKER (December 1965, Parkway P-965, A-side - January 1966 UK on Cameo Parkway P 862, B-side of "Two Hearts Make One Love")

12. The 81 - CANDY AND THE KISSES (October 1964, Cameo C-336, A-side - January 1965 UK on Cameo-Parkway C 336, A-side)

13. Shake And Shingaling (Part 1) - GENE WALTERS (1967, Fairmount F-1018, A-side)

14. S.O.S. (Heart In Distress) - CHRISTINE COOPER (January 1966, Parkway P-971, A-side) 

15. Eddie's My Name - EDDIE HOLMAN (April 1966, Parkway P-981, B-side of "Don't Stop Now")

16. Pass Me By - HATTIE WINSTON (1964, Parkway P-956, A-side)

17. The Grass (Will Sing For You) - LONNIE YOUNGBLOOD (November 1966, Fairmount F-1016, A-side)

18. (Your Love Was Just A) False Alarm - TARI STEVENS (March 1955, Fairmount F-1001, A-side)

19. Who Do You Think You Are - THE SOUL CITY (1967, Good Time GT-802, B-side of "Cold Hearted Blues")

20. You Didn't Say A Word - YVONNE BAKER (March 1967, Parkway P-140, B-side of "To Prove My Love Is True" - November 1977 UK reissue on London HLU 10553, A-side)

There are very classy black and white publicity shots of Frankie Beverly & The Butlers, Evie Sands, Candy And The Kisses (their single "The 81" actually dented the US Billboard charts at No. 19 R&B, No. 51 Pop), Christine Cooper, Yvonne Baker, The Orlons, Eddie Holman and Bunny Sigler who each get a page shot, and so on. The track-by-track annotation includes songwriting credits, US and UK Catalogue Numbers, US chart info if any and the last page of the booklet gives you a collage 16 rare 45 labels - Cameo, Parkway, Fairmount, England's Cameo-Parkway. It's nicely done and Croasdell goes into the songs and their history with typically enthusiastic and informative details. The TERI LANDI Remasters are tremendous - full of punch and the sheer hutzpah that 60ts Soul recordings elicit. To the tunes... 

A frantic bom-bom backing group of boys and girls anchors the 'goddess of temptation...relieve me of my frustration' dance-a-thon that is "You Got The Power" - The Four Exceptions tearing into it like their lives depended on it. It's a cool opener and a taster of themes. As it is with all the best Northern Soul compilations like this, misery and elation are the subject matters. My man's the best (say the girls), better than all the crappy rest, then quickly descending in emotional scales to false alarms, jealousy, envy, broken hearts, tickers in distress, send out an S.O.S. to the love doctor - you get the picture. 

Take "Pass Me By" by Hattie Winston, a Thom Bell Production of a song he co-wrote with Arthur Ross. She starts her story with "I was your only girl...I don't know why you cheated and lied..." and in comes the brass and strings as the drums whack out the hoo-hoo pain in the chorus. You can just imagine earnest young men shimmying on a Northern Soul night dancefloor loving every "...now that you disown me..." line (is it any wonder people want the 45 and Croasdell included it here). 

Eddie Holman doesn't drive a big car, doesn't act like a movie star, because pleasin' is his game and he assures us in the great dancer "Eddie's My Name" that business is good (you go Eddie). Evie Sands has eyes and she can see that some other girl is telling her man that it's over, but she pleads "Picture Me Gone" (another great strings and melodrama dancer). And on it goes...

"... What a fool you've been..." - Bobby Paris tells us in his cautionary "Night Owl" B-side. Northern Soul fans need to buy this and not make a mistake like poor heartbroken Bobby...

"Gold" by MARTHA REEVES & THE VANDELLAS – Single and Album Tracks from 1962 to 1978 on Gordy and MCA Records Including Solo Titles and Previously Unreleased Stereo Versions (April 2006 UK Universal/Hip-O/Motown 2CD Definitive Edition Anthology – Ellen Fitton Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Like A Heat Wave..."

Often stickered as a 'Definitive Edition', I've reviewed about six of Universal's "Gold" 2CD sets - The Crusaders, Steppenwolf, Marvin Gaye, Cream, Lionel Richie & The Commodores, Traffic, Kool & The Gang and so on. And have found that the right ones have stunning Remastered Audio. This Hip-O Select double for Motown's Martha Reeves & The Vandellas is one of those. 

"Gold" is Mastered by ELLEN FITTON, the lady who did all fourteen of 'The Complete Motown Singles' Hardback Book Sets across eight years (2005 to 2013) - an award winning series that unleashed 1847 US Singles over 75 CD Volumes in packaging so lavish it literally made your eyes water. 

So our Ellen knows her way around a Mono or Stereo master tape box or two. And that's the kind of quality you're getting here. First up is the Martha & The Vandellas girl-group years and then the solo Martha Reeves stuff - 22 US R&B chart hits in (each is here), a smattering of hard-to-find B-sides on digital, CD compilation Rarities and even Three Previously Unreleased Stereo Mixes, including one for the huge hit "...Heat Wave". You could argue that given the playing-time room on either CD that more rare B-sides and LP cuts could and should have been included, but it is impressive nonetheless. 

So ignore the boring generic title/packaging and feel the sonic boom. And the fact that "Gold" is new for less than seven squid (or about four if you look around on the secondhand market) is only a bonus. To the details and the original Heat Wave gals...

UK released 3 April 2006 - "Gold" by MARTHA REEVES & THE VANDELLAS on Universal/Hip-O/Motown 0602498840993 (Barcode 602498840993) is a 2CD 42-Track Definitive Edition Anthology of Remasters that plays out as follows: 

CD1 (56:29 minutes): 

1. I'll Have To Let Him Go (September 1962, Gordy 7011, A-side)

2. Come And Get These Memories (February 1963, Gordy 7014, A-side)

3. (Love Is Like A) Heat Wave (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED Extended Stereo Mix)

4. A Love Like Yours (Don't Come Knocking Everyday) (July 1963, Gordy 7022, B-side of "Heat Wave")

5. Quicksand (November 1963, Gordy 7025, A-side)

6. Darling, I Hum Our Song (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED Stereo Mix)

7. Live Wire (January 1964, Gordy 7027, A-side)

8. In My Lonely Room (March 1964, Gordy 7031, A-side)

9. Dancing In The Street (July 1964, Gordy 7033, A-side)

10. There He Is (At My Door) (July 1964, Gordy 7033, B-side)

11. Wild One (November 1964, Gordy 7036, A-side)

12. Nowhere To Run (February 1965, Gordy 7039, A-side)

13. Motoring (February 1965, Gordy 7039, B-side)

14. You've Been In Love Too Long (July 1965, Gordy 7045, A-side)

15. Love (Makes Me Do Foolish Things) (July 1965, Gordy 7045, B-side)

16. My Baby Loves Me (Stereo Version from the January 2003 CD compilation "The Love Songs Of Motown")

17. What Am I Going To Do Without Your Love (May 1966, Gordy 7053, A-side)

18. I'm Ready For Love (Alternate Stereo Version that was included on the US LP "Watchout!" on Gordy G920 in December 1966)

19. Third Finger, Left Hand (October 1966, Gordy 7058, Non-LP B-side of "Jimmy Mack" – see also Track 1 on CD2)

20. It's Easy To Fall In Love (With A Guy Like You) (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED Stereo Mix)

CD1: All Tracks credited to MARTHA & THE VANDELLAS 

CD2 (66:32 minutes):

1. Jimmy Mack (Stereo Single Version, Mixed by Tom Moulton and First Issued July 2005 on the 4CD Box Set "The Motown Collection")

2. Love Bug Leave My Heart Alone (August 1967, Gordy 7062, A-side)

3. One Way Out (August 1967, Gordy 7062, B-side)

4. Honey Chile (October 1967, Gordy 7067, A-side)

5. Show Me The Way (October 1967, Gordy 7067, B-side)

6. I Promise To Wait My Love (April 1968, Gordy 7070, A-side)

7. Forget Me Not (April 1968, Gordy 7070, B-side)

8. I Can't Dance To That Music You're Playing (July 1969, Gordy 7075, Non-LP A-side)

9. Sweet Darlin' (October 1968, Gordy 7080, Non-LP A-side)

10. (We've Got) Honey Love (April 1969, Gordy 7085, A-side)

11. Taking My Love (And Leaving Me) (August 1969, Gordy 7094, A-side)

12. I Should Be Proud (February 1970, Gordy 7098, A-side)

13. Love, Guess Who (February 1970, Gordy 7098, B-side)

14. I Gotta Let Me Go (November 1970, Gordy 7103, Non-LP A-side)

15. Bless You (September 1971, Gordy 7110, A-side)

16. In And Out Of Life (January 1972, Gordy 7113, A-side)

17. Tear It On Down (May 1972, Gordy 7118, A-side)

18. Willie D (from the December 1974 US LP Soundtrack "Willie Dynamite" on MCA Records MCA-393)

19. Power Of Love (February 1974, MCA 40194, A-side)

20. Wild Night (August 1974, MCA 40274, A-side)

21. Love Blind (May 1975, Arista AS-0124, A-side)

22. Free Again (from the 1978 Henry Cosby US LP "We Meet Again" on Milestone/Fantasy 9549)

CD2: Tracks 1 to 3 credited to MARTHA & THE VANDELLAS

Tracks 4 to 17 credited to MARTHA REEVES & THE VANDELLAS 

Track 18 credited to MARTHA REEVES & THE SWEET THINGS 

Tracks 19 to 22 credited to MARTHA REEVES 

The 20-page booklet has some fab photos and none moreso than the gorgeous hipster 60ts shot on the last page – the three gals looking glad to be alive in full colour. MARK BEGO, co-author of the MR autobiography "Confessions Of A Motown Diva", gives us a potted history of the group and their hit-making machine in the excellent liner notes. Both "Heat Wave" and "Jimmy Mack" hit the coveted No. 1 spot on the US R&B singles charts in 1963 and 1967 respectively, whilst the iconic "Dancing In The Street" and "Nowhere To Run" 45s were huge Top 10 hits too in 1964 and 1965. 

The other colour photos in the booklet are very cool culminating in a solo pose, while the last few pages are given over to detailed track-by-track info including release dates for the 45s and LPs and Pop/R&B US Chart positions. But the big news is the ELLEN FITTON Remasters ("Heat Wave" was by Suha Gur) and they are just fabulous – punchy and alive and rearing to go. 

Although they are all but forgotten now (even on oldies Radio) - "My Baby Loves Me" and "I'm Ready For Love" were huge hits of the day (No. 3 and No. 2 in November 1966 and March 1967). Rehearing them now (and so many of the others) is like revisiting friends from the past you regret losing touch with. Martha and her gals benefitted of course from gifted songwriters like Smokey Robinson, Sylvia May and Ivory Joe Hunter and of course the magic of H-D-H (Holland-Dozier-Holland). 

Northern Soul hero Frank Wilson (whose lone copy of the withdrawn 1966 45 "Do I Love You" reputedly exchanged hands for 25,000 dollars in the last few years) has a cover of his "It's Easy To Fall In Love (With A Guy Like You)" at the end of CD1 – but this time in the shape of a Previously Unissued Stereo variant - a genuine find if ever there was one.

By the time we're into CD2 and nearing the Solo years, we get Richard Morris, Norman Whitfield, Ashford & Simpson and Clarence Paul contributing the tunes. Martha covers Van Morrison's "Wild Night" and J.J. Johnson's "Willie D" whilst offering up a rare song of her own in "Love Blind". Her last brush with the US charts came on MCA Records - the catchy "Power Of Love" given to her Kenneth Gamble, Leon Huff and Joe Simon (it peaked at No. 22). 

"Gold" by MARTHA REEVES & THE VANDELLAS gives you a whole lot of goodies for not a lot of wonga. Sure, in 2021, some fifty to sixty years after the main event, we may not have the stamina to 'dance in the street' anymore - and with Covid-19 - it may actually be illegal. But there is naught stopping a body from dancing towards this joyous little twofer. Come and get these memories - good advice I say...

"Precious: The Anthology 1963-1972" by LINDA JONES – Single and Album Tracks on Cub, Loma, Atco, Blue Cat, Warner Brothers, Neptune, Turbo and Stang Records - featuring The Whatnauts (November 2016 UK Ace/Kent Soul CD Compilation of Duncan Cowell Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Do I Love You...I Do..."

Here's the odd thing. I know that of all the 24-cuts assembled on this comely CD compilation covering Linda Jones' criminally cut-short career (she died early 1972, aged only 27) - I'll probably only play maybe 10 of these songs. Yet despite that, I would still award this CD Anthology a full five-stars in a heartbeat, when it should really be three or four. Why? Because the goodies contained within are the absolute business in my Soul book – they really are. 

Stuff like her debut seven-inch single – a cover of Jackie Wilson's Brunswick hit "Lonely Teardrops" issued May 1963 on the obscure Cub is a starting point (she was only 19) - ok rather than ever rising above that. But once Linda Jones got into her stride - especially between 1967 and 1972 when she was handled by Loma, Neptune, Turbo and Warner Brothers Records and given better material - she was staggering. 

"I Do" from the obscure September 1972 US LP "Let It Be Me" on Turbo Records is a primo example - she wails, she pleads, she moans - it's like Etta James on some serious substances. I just love that abandon-passion, as I suspect many others do too. And don't get me started on the ball-busting "Hypnotized" from 1967 – we could be here for decades. 

Let's waste no more tears and get to one of the most beloved lady singers in the Soul genre and a typically classy homage to her musical legacy by England's Ace Records on their label imprint Kent Soul...

UK released 25 November 2016 (December 2016 in the USA) - "Precious: The Anthology 1963-1972" by LINDA JONES on Ace/Kent Soul CDTOP 458 (Barcode 029667078122) is a 24-Track CD Compilation of Remasters that plays out as follows (71:34 minutes):

1. Hypnotized (May 1967 US 45-single on Loma 2070, A-side)

2. Lonely Teardrops (May 1963 US Debut 45-single on Cub 9124, A-side, as Linda Lane – a Jackie Wilson cover)

3. I'm Taking Back My Love 

4. Take The Boy Out Of The Country (Tracks 4 and 3 [note playing order] are the A&B-sides of a May 1965 US 45-single on Atco 45-6344)

5. Fugitive From Love 

6. You Hit Me Like T.N.T. (Tracks 5 and 6 are the A&B-sides of a July 1966 US 45-single on Blue Cat BC 128)

7. Give My Love A Try (December 1967 US 45-single on Loma 2085, A-side)

8. A Last Minute Miracle (from the August 1967 US LP "Hypnotized" on Loma LS 5907 in Stereo)

9. What I've Done (To Make You Mad) (September 1967 US 45-single on Loma 2077, A-side)

10. My Heart Needs A Break (February 1968 US 45-single on Loma 2091, A-side)

11. That's When I'll Stop Loving You (October 1969 US 45-single on Neptune N-17, B-side to "I'll Be Sweeter Tomorrow" - see Track 13 for A-side)

12. I Just Can't Live My Life (Without You Baby) (April 1969 US 45-single on Warner Brothers 7278, B-side of "My Heart (Will Understand)"

13. I'll Be Sweeter Tomorrow  (October 1969 US 45-single on Neptune N-17, A-side - see Track 11 for B-side)

14. Can You Blame Me? 

15. Ooh Baby You Move Me (Tracks 15 and 14 [note order] are the A&B-sides of a May 1970 US 45-single on Neptune N26)

16. I Do 

17. If Only We Had Met Sooner (Tracks 16 and 17 from the September 1972 US LP "Let It Be Me" on Turbo Records TU-7008)

18. I Can't Make It All Alone (November 1971 US 45-single on Turbo TU 017, A-side)

19. Stay With Me Forever (May 1971 US 45-single on Turbo TU 012, A-side - for B-side see Track 23) 

20. Behold (from the May 1972 US LP "Your Precious Love" on Turbo TU-7007)

21. Not On The Outside (May 1972 US 45-single on Turbo TU 024, A-side)

22. I'm So Glad I Found You (Linda Jones & The Whatnauts) (June 1972 US 45-single on Stang 5039, A-side)

23. I've Given You The Best Years Of My Life (May 1971 US 45-single n Turbo TU 012, B-side to "Stay With Me Forever" - for A-side see Track 19)

24. Your Precious Love (February 1972 US 45-single on Turbo TU 021, A-side)

Tracks 1, 7, 8, 9, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22 and 24 in STEREO

Tracks 2 to 6, 10 to 15, 18 and 23 in MONO   

Outside of three deep LP cuts from 1972, the remaining 23 entries are single sides, Ace cleverly choosing the lesser-trodden path of B-sides that to my knowledge have never been on CD before. You could argue that someone somewhere should really do a full-on Anthology for Linda Jones because again as far as I know in 2021, neither of the albums featured here on Turbo have ever been on CD anywhere in the world. So what do you get? 

The 16-page booklet is headed-up with TONY ROUNCE liner notes that acknowledges how her legend has grown amongst Deep Soul collectors in the last five decades – a sort female version of Chuck Jackson or Tommy Tate. All of those rare US 45-single labels for Loma, Warner Bros, Stang, Turbo, Atco, Blue Cat, Neptune and so on are pictured amongst the text and facts. The two Turbo LPs are here too as is the Loma "Hypnotized" album that actually charted in October 1967 eventually achieving an impressive No. 26 on the US R&B LP charts. "Your Precious Love" would hit the US LP charts in June 1972 (shortly after its release in May) and achieve a peak placing of No. 35. There are trade adverts for Loma Records and a French picture sleeve for the magical Northern Soul-ish "Hypnotized" graces the rear sleeve (tasty all around, as usual). Long-standing Audio Engineer for Ace Records DUNCAN COWELL has done the Remasters and they are lovely – pleasing for me to hear more Stereo than Mono – though both have punch and clarity. To the music...

"Precious: The Anthology..." opens on a barnstormer - the gorgeous melodrama of "Hypnotized". It hit the US R&B singles chart weeks after release in late June 1967 whereupon Loma 2070 rose to a deserved No. 4 position. Her first album by the same name would follow into the R&B LP charts. With its bells and brass and slow lurch - the all-it-took was just-one-little-look pleader sailed its way into Northern Soul hearts with a speeding bullet. 

Linda Jones has always been a fave of NS fans - in fact when WEA were assaulting the British marketplace in 2002, 2003, 2004 with volume after volume of single CD/2LP sets like "Funky Drops" and so on - their "After Hours...Northern Soul Masters" Series showcased Linda with "My Heart Needs A Break" on Volume 1, "Just Can't Live My Life" on Volume 2 and "A Last Minute Miracle" on Volume 3. Loma played it smart by following the breakthrough of "Hypnotized" with the equally beautiful "What've I Done (To Make You Mad)" - the ballad rewarding the Warner Brothers distributed label with a No. 8 hit single in October 1967 (Loma 2077). 

This set also features her other four US R&B chart entries - "Give My Love A Try" (Loma 2085, entered January 1968, peaked at No. 34), "That's When I'll Stop Loving You" (Neptune N-17, entered January 1970, peaked at No. 40), "Your Precious Love" (Turbo 021, entered February 1972, peaked at No. 15) and "Not On The Outside" (Turbo 024, entered June 1972 and peaked at No. 32). Another Northern Soul fave is "I Just Can't Live My Life (Without You Baby)" - the much-sought B-side of her only single on the Warner Brothers label "My Heart (Will Understand)". I also like her cover of The O'Jays "I'll Be Sweeter Tomorrow (Than I Was Today)" - an early song for them in October 1967 on Bell 691. And on it goes...

Rounce quite rightly argues that had she lived to fulfil her potential, Linda Jones would be up there with more revered/famous names like Aretha Franklin, Dionne Warwick and Etta James - and he's right. But you have to say that once again Ace's Kent Soul have pulled off a CD winner to honour her tantalising and indeed hypnotising legacy. RIP you sweet lady...