Hollidaysburg - A Review of The 2014 Film Starring Rachel Keller, Tobin Mitnick, Claire Chapelli, Tristan Erwin, Phillip Quinaz, Kate Boyer and Director A. M. Lukas - A Review by Mark Barry...

"...Underling Passages In Other People's Novels..." 

HOLLIDAYSBURG 

The 2014 FILM - A Review by Mark Barry

Fresh, fun, genuinely brilliant script too - for sure "Hollidaysburg" (a town and borough in Pennsylvania) falls just a teeny bit in the last hurdle when characters either fizzle out or don't sort unfinished business.

But in a world where college romances and small town relationships, growing up, falling in love, falling out of love, longing for connection, trying to find yourself type movies are either crude or just too cynical - I thought A.M. Lukas' "Hollidaysburg" felt like a breath of fresh air. A Thanksgiving/Holidays movie with head & heart. 

And all four of the principal leads get real meat on their dialogue plates to work with - especially actors Rachel Keller and Tobin Mitnick as mismatched will-they/won't-they lovers Tori and Scott. Tori underlines other people's wisdoms in books – she secretly loves her nutty obsessive sibling-heavy family and her loaded with past-life hang-ups hometown - whilst having other days when every part of her new maturing self is screaming inside to finally leave both – or take an Uzi to the lot – whichever comes first. Tori mulls on truths swirling around her overactive worrying-about other people brain – insights that she likes but finds hard to actually follow through on.

Sided with Tori and Scott are the other awkward principal couple of the film – their friends and mixed-up lovers Claire Chapelli and Tristan Erwin as Heather and Petroff. Brainy, unshaven and permanently bonged - Petroff is sat on his couch of half-life hopelessly smitten with a girl who doesn't really notice him (and should). Pizza-loving Heather comes with her own issues too - like finding a reason to get out of bed in the morning and not think about death 24/7 beneath the duvet. Or change her grey hoodie just once in a week. Or even praise her boyfriend trying valiantly in bed to move her plank-like expression when really she just wants to say the words "...I think we should break up..." and run away from her walled-in-life and equally loon-filled family and its nutjob entourage.

Other brilliant-part notables include Phillip Quinaz as Scott's older and taller brother Phil – himself a tad lost to the world in his soiled cook's apron as he traipses around the Pumpkin Pie filled kitchen of the childhood home they're going to loose in a week (it's shortly before Thanksgiving in November and the brother's parents have sold up whether the boys like it or not) - manically trying to realise that perfect recipe their absent Dad always made work. So why won't it gel now? How do you say goodbye to things? Or Tori's never-off-the-text-stream friend Katie (played with gusto by Kate Boyer) who is like crack cocaine times five - now-now-now as she sleeps with everything and anything that moves at a party but not the one her heart really yearns for. And on it goes...

In a genre that's always been hard to get right - "Hollidaysburg" is a film way above so many others, even if it didn't quite scale genius levels with an ending that felt disappointingly hurried and underdeveloped. But for me there was more than enough five-star good stuff to keep me glued (a dense and deep script from Dan Schoffer).

I liked 2014's "Hollidaysburg" a lot and I suspect many bleary Covid-19 lockdown-wasted viewers seeking some kind of filmic solace and respite will feel exactly the same.

And a little like Rachel Keller's bewitching blue eyes when Tobin Mitnick's character sees them on her Facebook page and suddenly realises he's become more than casual but seriously invested - this rather moving little movie is a mirror of life in all its frazzled messiness - frustrating and yet profoundly beautiful in equal amounts if you give it a chance...

"Spotlight On Maxine Brown/Maxine Brown's Greatest Hits" by MAXINE BROWN – March 1965 and November 1967 US Albums on Wand Records in Stereo – Guests include Arrangers and Songwriters Ed Townshend and Van McCoy with Backing Singers Cissy Houston, Dee Dee Warwick, Estelle Brown and Sylvia Shemwell who became The Sweet Inspirations (July 2000 UK Ace Records/Kent Soul Compilation – 2LPs Remastered onto 1CD in MONO with Bonus Tracks Including Two Previously Unreleased) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...My Baby... "

What a peach of a CD reissue this is. Class and quantity combined. 

In a nutshell, you get the full 12-tracks of Maxine Brown's second US studio album "Spotlight On..." (first issued March 1965) sat alongside the guts of a "Greatest Hits" mop-up set from November 1967 that featured chart R&B winners across several labels from the previous two years itself pumped up by unique new cuts to tempt customers of the day. Both were originally on Wand Records. 

You should say that a wee glitch in proceedings is that the original 15-track Greatest Hits LP does inexplicably have two tunes missing (see Notes below), but those omissions are more than compensated for by seven very tasty and period-applicable Bonus Tracks. Featured amongst those are four unissued sides from a long deleted but much admired 1985 UK LP on Ace's own Kent label ("Like Never Before"), a rare stand-alone British 45 B-side first released in 1986 (also on Kent) and Two Previously Unreleased making their debut here.

Talk about spotlight on some classy 60ts Soul and the lady who delivered it. Oh no, not my baby - oh yes indeed I say. Let's get to the magic wands...

UK released 31 July 2000 (August 2000 in the USA) - "Spotlight On Maxine Brown/Maxine Brown's Greatest Hits" by MAXINE BROWN on Ace Records/Kent Soul CDKEND 187 (Barcode 029667218726) offers 2LPs Remastered onto 1CD with Eight Bonus Tracks (Two Previously Unreleased) in MONO that plays out as follows (71:31 minutes):

1. Oh No, Not My Baby [Side 1]

2. It's Gonna Be Alright 

3. Ask Me 

4. I Cry Alone 

5. Coming Back To You 

6. He Does Something To Me [aka "You Do Something To Me"]

7. I Wonder What My Baby's Doing Tonight [Side 2]

8. Since I Found You

9. Gotta Find A Way 

10. Yesterday's Kisses

11. You Upset My Soul 

12. Little Girl Lost 

Tracks 1 to 12 are her second studio album "Spotlight On Maxine Brown" - released March 1965 in the USA on Wand Records LP-663 (Mono) and Wand WDS-633 (Stereo) – the MONO mix is used.

13. We Can Work It Out 

14. I Don't Need Anything 

15. Anything For A Laugh 

16. If You Gotta Make A Fool Of Somebody 

17. One Step At A Time 

18. I've got A Lot of Love Left In Me 

19. One In A Million 

20. Soul Serenade

Tracks 13 to 20 are from the "Maxine Brown's Greatest Hits" LP in MONO – see NOTES

22. He's The Only Guy I'll Ever Love (first issued November 1985 on the Maxine Brown UK Compilation LP "Like Never Before" on Kent Records KENT 047 - then a Previously Unissued track)

23. Slipping Thru My Fingers (as per Track 22, from the LP KENT 047, November 1985)

24. Do It Now (as per Track 22, from the LP KENT 047, November 1985)

25. When I Fall In Love (as per Track 22, from the LP KENT 047, November 1985)

26. I Got Love (B-side of "It's Torture", first released March 1986, UK 45-single on Kent Records TOWN 110)

27. Listen to My Heart (Previously Unissued, 2000)

28. Wrong Number, Right Girl (Previously Unissued, 2000) 

All songs in MONO 

NOTES (Tracks and Audio): 

The November 1967 US LP "Maxine Brown's Greatest Hits" on Wand Records WDM-684 (Mono) and Wand WDS-684 (Stereo) featured 15-Tracks when originally issued (the front cover artwork lists only 14 sides in error). So it should really have 15-songs as this release claims to have all of both LPs. But it doesn’t – two are missing. Ace later explained that those songs ("All In My Mind" and "Funny") were originally on Nomar Records so excluded from this Wand Records based CD. 

Also, with regard to Audio, the Remasters were done at Sound Mastering in London (probably Nick Robbins) but although this reissue uses a STEREO LP on the front page of the booklet artwork – the Remasters are actually all MONO (fans will note that many of the song titles have their US 45-single catalogue number beside them because of this). 

So, with the exception of two songs, the full 15-track MONO variant of "Maxine Brown's Greatest Hits" US LP can be sequenced from CDKEND 187 as follows:

Side 1: 

1. All In My Mind (Not on this CD)

2. Oh No, Not My Baby (Track 1)

3. Funny (Not on this CD)

4. We Can Work It Out (Track 13)    

5. It's Gonna Be Alright (Track 2)

6. Ask Me (Track 3)

7. I Don't Need Anything (Track 14)

8. Anything For A Laugh (Track 15)

Side 2:

1. If You Gotta Make A Fool Of Somebody (Track 16)

2. Since I Found You (Track 8)

3. One Step At A Time (Track 17) 

4. Little Girl Lost (Track 12)

5. I've Got A Lot Of Love Left In Me (Track 18)

6. One In A Million (Track 19) 

7. Soul Serenade (Track 20)

You have to love liner notes where your interviewee (Mick Patrick, Peter Gibbon and Rob Hughes do the writing and explaining) tells you with a clear twinkle in her eye that she bought the mini-skirts used for the cover art of two 60ts LPs ("Hold On, We're Coming!" and Commonwealth United") in London's Oxford Street while on a British 1967 tour. There are 1997 photos of Maxine, adverts for her shows in the UK, even a signed publicity photo. It's very good, although you'd have to say that if this compilation should be reissued in 2021, it would be packed out more and feature better photos applicable to the years of the LPs and the singles that surrounded it. The AUDIO from original master tapes is all MONO and kicks like a mule - lovely clarity (45-junkies will dig all those A&B-sides they can sequence with practically every song). Speaking of which, to the tunes...

Dee Dee Warwick and Cissy Houston are amongst the girly backing singers for the utterly sublime "Oh No, Not My Baby" - a Goffin and King song that had been previously butchered by The Shirelles. Maxine's gorgeous almost languid 'Dock Of The Bay' interpretation simply oozed class - and the public thought so too raising the 45-single of Wand 162 up to No. 2 R&B in October 1964 and No. 24 in December 1964 on the Pop Charts. As well as Cissy and Dee, the backing singers also included Sylvia Shemwell and Estelle Brown - all four of who would go on to be The Sweet Inspirations on Atlantic Records. 

Other notable Arrangers and Songwriters include Ed Townshend and Van McCoy for "Since I Found You" with Luther Dixon on "Little Girl Lost" and "I Cry Alone". Goffin & King also sprinkle their songwriting magic dust on the lovely "It's Gonna Be Alright". Van McCoy was also the songwriter on the wonderful "Wonder What My Baby's Doing Tonight" and one of the newbees - "Listen To My Heart".

There are loads more like say Ashford & Simpson's "One Step At A Time" and Maxine's own "Anything You Do Is Alright". It may be over 20 years old, but this little groover still has the goods and the lovely lady is still with us. How cool is that...

"There's Gonna Be A Showdown" by ARCHIE BELL & THE DRELLS - August 1969 US Album on Atlantic Records in Stereo (November 2004 UK Warner Strategic Marketing (WSM)/Rhino 'Extended Edition' CD Reissue and Remaster with Fifteen Bonus Tracks – Eleven Single Sides From 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972 Plus Four Previously Unreleased) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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This Review Along With Nearly 200 Others Is Available in my

SOUNDS GOOD E-Book on all Amazon sites

"SOUL GALORE!" 

60ts Soul, R&B, Northern Soul

Mod, New Breed, Funk, Jazz Dancers, Rare Grooves

Atlantic, Chess, Motown, Stax Labels and many more... 

 

Your Guide To The Best CD Reissues and Remasters 

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All Details and In-Depth Reviews From Discs 

(No Cut and Paste Crap)

 

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"...Here I Go Again..."

The second Expanded Edition CD Reissue by Warners and Rhino for Archie Bell & The Drells is another reasonably priced well-presented audio winner - the first being November 2004's "Tighten Up/I Can't Stop Dancing", both of those albums from 1968 and also on Atlantic Records (see separate review).

This time remastering their August 1969 third studio album "There's Gonna Be A Showdown" in luverly Stereo - WSM have bolstered up proceedings with a generous eleven 45-single sides and a further Four Previously Unreleased. The other three cuts newly discovered in the Warner Vaults are on the "Tighten Up/I Can't Stop Dancing" twofer reissue along with other non-LP goodies. 

There is a lot of talcum powder dancing nirvana available on this rather brill little CD - very tasty indeed. So as Archie Bell, The Drells and their songwriting pals Gamble & Huff used to say, here we go again...

UK released 15 November 2004 - "There's Gonna Be A Showdown" by ARCHIE BELL & THE DRELLS on Warner Strategic Marketing (WSM)/Rhino 5046-76156-2 (Barcode 5050467615625) is an 'Expanded Edition' CD Reissue and Remaster featuring the 1969 Atlantic Records Album in Stereo plus 15 Bonus Tracks (11 Single Sides and 4 Previously Unreleased) that plays out as follows (71:51 minutes):

1. I Love My Baby [Side 1]

2. Houston Texas 

3. (There's Gonna Be A) Showdown 

4. Giving Up Dancing 

5. Girl You're Too Young 

6. Mama Didn't Teach Me That Way 

7. Do The Hand Jive [Side 2]

8. My Balloon's Going Up 

9. Here I Go Again 

10. Go For What You Know 

11. Green Power 

12. Just A Little Closer 

Tracks 1 to 12 are their third studio album "There's Gonna Be A Showdown" - released August 1969 in the USA on Atlantic Records SD 8226 in Stereo (didn’t chart R&B but made No. 183 in the Rock LP charts). It received a belated UK release in September 1972 on Atlantic K 40454 with the same 12-tracks but using different artwork. 

NON-ALBUM SINGLES (US catalogue numbers)

13. Get It From The Bottom 

14. I Wish 

Tracks 13 and 14 were the A&B-sides of Atlantic 45-2744, July 1970 

15. A World Without Music   

Track 15 was the A-side of Atlantic 45-2693, December 1969 - its US B-side was "Here I Go Again" (Track 9)

16. Don't Let The Music Slip Away 

Track 16 was the A-side of Atlantic 45-2721, April 1970 - its B-side was the LP cut "Houston Texas" (Track 2)

17. Wrap It Up 

18. Deal With Him 

Tracks 17 and 18 were the A&B-sides of Atlantic 45-2768, October 1970 

19. I Just Want To Fall In Love 

20. Love At First Sight 

Tracks 19 and 20 were the A&B-sides of Atlantic 45-2793, May 1971 

21. Archie's In Love

22. Let The World Know You Got Soul 

Tracks 21 and 22 were the A&B-sides of Atlantic 45-2829, August 1971

23. I Can't Face You Baby 

Track 23 was the A-side of Atlantic 45-2855, January 1972 - the B-side was the LP cut "Green Power" (Track 11) 

PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED SELECTIONS

24. One Night Affair (Gamble & Huff song, 2:36 minutes) 

25. Smile (2:40 minutes)

26. Slow Down Baby (Gamble & Huff song, 2:43 minutes)

27. Patches (General Johnson & Ron Dunbar song, 3:54 minutes)

Compiled by RICK CONRAD - the 16-page booklet is a pleasingly chunky affair with new liner notes from CHARLES WARING, long-time contributor to the Blues & Soul, Mojo and Record Collector magazines as well as the principal penman for Beat Goes On and their vast array of BGO Soul, Funk and Jazz CD reissues. There are two page-sized Atlantic Records promo photos for the smiling toothsome four-piece as well as repros of those American Atlantic 45s. There is even a Note on the large amount of Bonuses and the newly discovered outtakes - two of which are Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff originals - and a further 2004 interview with Archie Bell commenting on his group's place in Soul Music history.  And the DAN HERSCH/BILL INGLOT Remasters from real tapes kick ass - so many cool Stereo moments. To the tunes...

As the liner notes explain – Archie Bell & The Drells to the American public seemed to be a great SINGLES band – and no more. The "Showdown..." LP was not a success by any means on release in the summer of 1969. It didn’t make the Top 100 US R&B LP charts at all and scraped No. 163 in the adult LP charts where it lasted a paltry 3 weeks. But re-listening to it now, you have to wonder why? Perhaps a glut of so many great Soul records in 1969 – who knows? 

Hindsight, however, has been kinder – especially for those looking to limber up their limbs. Time to talk about the song the album is most famously associated with. Sporting a deadly Motown backbeat and irresistible dancefloor shuffle, "Here I Go Again" had belatedly become a huge hit on the British Northern Soul circuit. Issuing the 1969 cut in Blighty in August 1972, Atlantic K 10210 eventually entered the UK Pop charts in early October 1972 and thereafter rose up to an impressive No.11. A further surprise came when the LP's title song "(There's Gonna Be A) Showdown" was smartly paired with the popular Drells 60ts anthem "Tighten Up" on Atlantic K 10263 in January 1973 - only to see that British 45 rise to No. 36.Both A-sides from the album "Showdown..." and their equally tasty flips would become the Houston foursome's British chart debuts. 

Recorded at various sessions between October 1968 and May 1969 – a huge eleven of the twelve tracks on the LP made it onto singles – the exception being Archie's own "Mama Didn't Teach Me That Way" (the booklet provides their catalogue numbers beneath each track entry should you want to know what went where). The songwriter shadows of Gamble & Huff as well as Thom Bell loom large on quality tracks like "Do The Hand Jive" and the bopper "I Love My Baby" - while Archie placed a further tasty titbit in the shape of the Side 2 finisher "Just A Little Closer". 

The non-LP US 45s appeared quickly after the relative failure of the August LP – starting at December 1969 with the excellent Atlantic 2693 that unwisely put "A World Without Music" on the A-side with the winner that is "Here I Go Again" relegated to the flipside. The singles kept on coming through 1970 and into 1971 – getting funk and sexy on cuts like The Temptations-sounding "Wrap It Up". And even if the no-dancing warning in "A World Without Music" wouldn't be my cup of tea in 2021, "One Night Affair" in the unreleased foursome is a discovery G&H fans will chew up. 

"...I been in a daze, gotta find another girl that can be trusted... " Archie warns in the so Northern Soul dancer "My Balloon's Going Up". So many great tunes like that bringing me back to a misspent youth. Think with your heart, this is one you can trust...

"The Ultimate" by TYRONE DAVIS – 40 Album and Single Tracks from 1968 to 1976 on Dakar Records Including 22 American R&B Chart Hits (October 2005 US Brunswick 2CD Anthology of Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...If I Could Turn Back The Hands Of Time..."

Even in February 2021 as I pen this tome to a fantastic criminally forgotten giant of 60ts and 70ts Soul Music - finding a decent TYRONE DAVIS compilation that will do justice to his huge career is actually a bit of a task.

Like most fans, my poison has always been his stay at Dakar Records between 1968 and 1976 (a subsidiary of Brunswick) where he enjoyed plenty of chart action on both the American R&B 45 and LP charts. Edsel and Demon touched on this period back in the 90s/00s - but those digital compilations are long since deleted and have subsequently acquired rather nasty price tags. Plus, you want a dedicated 'Brunswick' anthology to guarantee that great sound Engineer Bruce Swedien used to get (Swedien famously handled biggies for Michael Jackson). 

Which brings us to this naffly titled and so-so presented American 2CD Anthology. There is barely a catalogue number in sight (I have provided a blow-by-blow account below), but "The Ultimate" comes up trumps where it matters most because it’s remastered from real tapes and man what an audio winner it is. Time to turn back the hands of time and get with the Dakar details...

US released 18 October 2005 - "The Ultimate" by TYRONE DAVIS on Brunswick BRC 33013-2 (Barcode 646953301322) is a 40-Track 2CD Anthology of Dakar Records Remasters covering 1968 to 1976 that plays out as follows: 

CD1 (65:05 minutes):

1. Is It Something You've Got (March 1969 US Single on Dakar 45-605, A-side - for B-side see Track 10 on CD1)

2. Can I Change Your Mind (June 1968 US Single on Dakar 1452, B-side of "A Woman Needs To Be Loved" - reissued November 1968 on Dakar 45-602 with the same A-side - see Track 5 on CD1)

3. Knock On Wood (from the March 1969 US LP "Can I Change Your Mind" on Dakar SD-9005, Stereo)

4. Love Bones (from the July 1970 US LP "Turn Back The Hands Of Time" on Dakar SD-9027, Stereo - also September 1970 US Single on Dakar 45-621, B-side of "Let Me Back In" - see Track 8 on CD1)

5. A Woman Needs To Be Loved (June 1968 US Single on Dakar 1452, A-side - reissued November 1968 on Dakar 45-602 with the same A-side - B-side is "Can I Change Your Mind" - see Track 2 on CD1)

6. I'll Be Right Here (June 1970 US single on Dakar 45-618, A-side)

7. I Keep Coming Back (March 1970 US single on Dakar 45-616, B-side of "Turn Back The Hands Of Time" - for A-side see Track 9 on CD1)

8. Let Me Back In (September 1970 US single on Dakar 45-621, A-side - for B-side see Track 4)

9. Turn Back The Hands Of Time (March 1970 US single on Dakar 616, A-side - for B-side see Track 7)

10. Undying Love (March 1969 US Single on Dakar 45-605, B-side of "Is It Something That You've Got" - for B-side see Track 1 on CD1)

11. One Way Ticket (To Nowhere) (June 1971 US single on Dakar 45-624, A-side)

12. Could I Forget You (March 1971 US single on Dakar 45-623, A-side)

13. Your Love Keeps Haunting Me (from the July 1972 US LP "I Had It All The Time" on Dakar DK 76901)

14. Was It Just A Feeling (from the July 1972 US LP "I Had It All The Time" on Dakar DK 76901, see also Track 9 on CD2)

15. I Had It All The Time (from the July 1972 US LP "I Had It All The Time" on Dakar DK 76901)

16. Come Get This Ring (from the July 1972 US LP "I Had It All The Time" on Dakar DK 76901)

17. How Could I Forget You (from the July 1972 US LP "I Had It All The Time" on Dakar DK 76901, see also Track 4 on CD2)

18. You Wouldn't Believe (from the July 1972 US LP "I Had It All The Time" on Dakar DK 76901)

19. You Keep Me Holding On (September 1971 US single on Dakar 45-626, A-side)

20. Was I Just A Fool (June 1972 US single on Dakar DK-4507, A-side)

CD2 (76:09 minutes): 

1. I Wake Up Crying (from the January 1974 US LP "It's All In The Game" on Dakar DK 76909 - full album version 8:47 minutes)

2. There It Is (July 1973 US single on Dakar DK-4523, A-side)

3. Where Lovers Meet (At The Dark End Of The Street) (from the January 1974 US LP "It's All In The Game" on Dakar DK 76909 - also B-side of "Happiness Is Being With You", August 1974 US 45 on Dakar DK 4536)

4. Without You In My Life (March 1973 US single on Dakar DK-4519, A-side - B-side "How Could I Forget You" is Track 17 on CD1)

5. I'm Just Your Man (from the May 1973 US LP "Without You In My Life" on Dakar DK 76904)

6. What Goes Up (Must Come Down) (April 1974 US single on Dakar DK 4532, A-side)

7. You Don't Have To Beg Me To Stay (January 1974 US single on Dakar DK 4529, B-side to "I Wish It Was Me" [A-side is Track 10, CD2] - also from the April 1975 US LP "Home Wrecker" on Dakar DK 76915)

8. I Got A Sure Thing (from the April 1975 US LP "Home Wrecker" on Dakar DK 76915)

9. If You Had A Change Of Mind (October 1972 US single on Dakar DK 4513, B-side to "Was It Just A Feeling" - A-side is Track 14 on CD1)

10. I Wish It Was Me (January 1974 US single on Dakar DK 4529, A-side [B-side is Track 7, CD2] - also from the January 1974 US LP "It's All In The Game" on Dakar DK 76909) 

11. It's All In The Game (from the January 1974 US LP "It's All In The Game" on Dakar DK 76909) 

12. Happiness Is Being With You (August 1974 US single on Dakar DK 4536, A-side - B-side is Track 3 on CD2)

13. Wrapped Up In Your Warm & Tender Love (September 1973 US single on Dakar DK-4526, A-side)

14. Homewreckers (February 1975 US single on Dakar DK 4541, A-side)

15. It Ain't Me No More (from the April 1975 US LP "Home Wrecker" on Dakar DK 76915)

16. Don't Let It Be Too Late (from the February 1976 US LP "Turning Point" on Dakar DK 76918)

17. It's So Good (To Be Home With You) (from the February 1976 US LP "Turning Point" on Dakar DK 76918 - Full Album Version 5:15 minutes)

18. Forever (from the February 1976 US LP "Turning Point" on Dakar DK 76918)

19. Ever Lovin' Girl (from the February 1976 US LP "Turning Point" on Dakar DK 76918)

20. Turning Point (from the February 1976 US LP "Turning Point" on Dakar DK 76918 - Album Version 4:25 minutes)

Compiled and Mastered by DENNIS DRAKE, the Audio is superb (as it is with all of these beautifully recorded Brunswick compilations) even if the DAVID NATHAN foldout double-sided 8-leaf inlay is good rather than great. But as fans will no doubt have worked out from my details above, this 40-track 2CD set gives you "all" 22 of his American R&B charters (in one form or another) including three deserved number ones - "Can I Change My Mind", "Turn Back The Hands Of Time" and "Turning Point". 

They might not all be strictly the single mixes, but they do sound fabulous. Also with a compilation like this, Drake has dug deep and churned up lesser-heard LP delights like the eight-and-half-minute "I Wake Up Crying" from the "It's All In The Game" album and a few choice non-album B-sides too. It makes for long glorious listen, even if the packaging is functionary in my mind when the man and his legacy deserved so much more.

Ideally someone like Ace Records or SoulMusic Records of the UK should issue a comprehensive Box Set covering all seven of his Dakar albums and plus those straggler 45s as Bonuses thereby giving us access to a marvellous stockpile. But that's for the future Remastering boffins. 

In the meantime, turn the hands of time back to 2005 and enjoy "The Ultimate" instead you home-wrecker you...

"That's It! The Complete Kent Recordings 1964-1968" by Z.Z. HILL – Including The 1967 US Stereo LP "A Whole Lot Of Soul", Over 30 US 45-Single Sides and Subsequently Released Period Outtakes Issued Between 1970 and 2000 (February 2018 UK Ace Records/Kent Soul 2CD Compilation of Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Make Me Yours..."

It's become something of a cliché in collector's circles to praise Ace Records and their extraordinary back catalogue of reissues now stretching back 47 years to 1975. Those saintly sanctified Soul Men and their undoubtedly nubile minions over at Steele Road in London's NW10 have whomped us with more than a few digital-doosies in the 80ts to 20ts too. 

But this Z.Z. Hill Southern Soul 2-CD Anthology from 2018 on their imprint Kent Soul is just the absolute dog's dangly bits and dingbat's wing nuts. It may also (in my book anyway) be up there in the Top 10 'Best Soul and R&B Reissues' ever made. 

Sometimes, bluntly, reissue companies of real distinction like say Ace, Bear Family, Esoteric, Light In The Attic, Rhino etc (to name but a few) just get it so damn right. And this is one of those. There's a whole lot of soul and vocal classiness to wade through here (never mind miles of pain), so let's have at one of the finest voices Texas had to offer, Mr. Arzell Hill...

UK released 23 February 2018 (March 2018 in the USA) - "That's It! The Complete Kent Recordings 1964-1968" by Z.Z. HILL on Ace Records/Kent Soul CDTOP2 476 (Barcode 029667087629) is a 49-Track 2CD Anthology of Remasters that plays out as follows: 

CD1 "The Kent Singles 1964-1968" (75:39 minutes, all MONO):

1. You Don't Love Me

2. If I Could Do It All Over (Tracks 1&2 are the A&B-sides of Kent 404, 1964)

3. Someone To Love Me

4. Have Mercy Someone (Tracks 3&4 are the A&B-sides of Kent 406, 1965 - "Have Mercy Someone" also used as the B-side to "You Got What I Need" on Kent 494 in September 1968 - see Track 25 on Disc 1)

5. Hey Little Girl 

6. Oh Darlin' (Tracks 5&6 are the A&B-sides of Kent 427, 1965 - "Oh Darlin'" also used as the B-side to "Greatest Love" on Kent 460 in February 1967 - see Track 16 on Disc 1)

7. What More

8. That's It (Tracks 7&8 are the A&B-sides of Kent 432, 1965)

9. Happiness Is All I Need 

10. Everybody Has To Cry (Tracks 9&10 are the A&B-sides of Kent 439, 1965 - "Everybody Has To Cry" was also used as the B-side to "Nothing Can Change This Love (I Have For You)" on Kent K 4577 in 1974 - that 70ts version of "Nothing... is not on this 2CD set)

11. No More Doggin' 

12. The Kind Of Love I Want (Tracks 11&12 are the A&B-sides of Kent 444, 1966)

13. I Found Love (Track 13 is the A-side of Kent 449, 1966 - it's B-side was "Set Your Sights Higher" - see Track 27 on Disc 1)

14. You Can't Hide A Heartache

15. Gimme Gimme (Tracks 14&15 are the A&B-sides of Kent 453, 1966)

16. Greatest Love (Track 16 is the A-side of Kent 460 - it's B-side was "Oh Darlin'" - see Track 6 on Disc 1)

17. Where She Att

18. Baby I'm Sorry (Tracks 17&18 are the A&B-sides of Kent 464, 1967 - A-side is spelt "Att", probably in error)

19. Everybody Needs Somebody 

20. You Just Cheat And Lie (Tracks 19&20 are the A&B-sides of Kent 469, 1967)

21. What Am I Living For 

22. You're Gonna Need My Lovin' (Tracks 21&22 are the A&B-sides of Kent 478, 1967)

23. Nothing Can Change The Love I Have For You 

24. Steal Away (Tracks 23&24 are the A&B-sides of Kent 481, 1968)

25. You Got What I Need (Track 25 is the A-side of Kent 494, 1968 – B-side was "Have Mercy Someone" – see Track 4 n Disc 1)

26. Don't Make Promises (You Can't Keep) 

27. Set Your Sights Higher (Tracks 26&27 are the A&B-sides of Kent 502 - "Set Your Sights Higher" was also the B-side of "I Found Love" on Kent 449 – see Track 13 on Disc 1)

NOTE: From Disc 1 you will also be able to sequence his 1965 debut album "The Soul Stirring Z.Z. Hill" on Kent KLP 5018 in MONO using the following tracks: 

Side 1: Tracks 9, 5, 3, 1, 2 and 10

Side 2: Tracks 8, 7, 6, 4, 13 and 27 

CD2 "A Whole Lot of Soul" 1967 US Kent LP Plus Bonuses 

(62:42 minutes, all STEREO except 13-17 and 21 Mono):

1. When Something Is Wrong With My Baby [Side1]

2. What Am I Living For 

3. Nothing Takes The Place Of You 

4. Knock On Wood 

5. Steal Away 

6. You Gonna Make Me Cry 

7. You Send Me [Side 2]

8. Midnight Hour 

9. When A Man Loves A Woman 

10. Make Me Yours 

11. Nothing Can Change The Love I Have For You 

12. Greatest Love 

Tracks 1 to 12 are the album "A Whole Lot Of Soul" - released June 1967 in the USA on Kent Records KLP 5028 in Mono and KST 528 in Stereo - the STEREO Mix is used here. 

PLUS: 

13. You Won't Hurt No More (first issued 1992 on the UK CD compilation "The Down Home Soul Of Z.Z. Hill" on Ace/Kent Soul CDKEN 099)

14. You Got Me Chained To Your Love (first issued 2000 on the UK CD compilation "Southern Soul Brothers" shared with Clay Hammond on Ace/Kent Soul CDKEND 188)

15. I'm Gonna Love You 

16. Please Take Me Back (Tracks 15 and 16 first issued 1984 on the US compilation LP "Final Appearance" on Kent KLP 2026)

17. My Girl Has Gone Away (first issued 2000 on the UK CD compilation "Southern Soul Brothers" shared with Clay Hammond on Ace/Kent Soul CDKEND 188)

18. I Need Someone (To Love Me) (with strings) - A-side of a May 1971 US 45-single on Kent KS 4547

19. You Don't Love Me (with strings) - A-side of a July 1971 US 45-single on Kent KS 4550

20. If I Could Do It All Over (with strings) 

21. You Won't Hurt No More (with strings) - Tracks 20&21 are the A&B-sides of a 1972 US 45-single on Kent KS 4560

22. Nothing Can Change This Love (I Have For You) (with strings) - A-side of a 1973 US 45-single on Kent K 4577

The 16-page booklet features typically info-packed details from long-standing Soul expert TONY ROUNCE – his text peppered with illustrations of US trade adverts, two pages with nine Kent 45 labels on each, a Portuguese picture sleeve for the Tim Hardin cover of "Don't Make Promises" and the uber-rare/seriously desirable British pic sleeve for the "Gimme Gimme" Sue Records EP (IEP-711) – a 1966 zero-sales 4-Track artefact that regularly lists for £300 or more (if you can find one). There is 1964 to 1968 'Session Details' listing studio locations that are given letters from 'A' to 'O'. This will allow aficionados to find out that "Everybody Has To Cry" from 1965 for instance was recorded at 'E' - Western Recorders in May 1965 - arranged and conducted by Maxwell Davis. The US album artwork for the Stereo versions of "The Soul Stirring Z.Z. Hill" (Kent KST 518, 1965) and "A Whole Lot Of Soul" (Kent KST 528, 1967) are here as is other period pieces like adverts from Cash Box, a British 45 on Action (and so on) – many of the cool images supplied by another compilation stalwart to Ace Records – ADY CROASDEL. 

Long-standing Audio Engineer NICK ROBBINS has handled the master tapes – Mono on CD1 and (mostly) Stereo on CD2 - including the unfinished overdubbed stuff Kent issued in the 70ts (credited on Disc 2 as 'with strings') and it all sounds just stunning. There is a sense of pride to this release – a good company doing the great man's legacy right. To the music...

A 27-track Disc 1 will allow fans to sequence the A&B-sides of 19 American 45s (with some flip-sides duplicated of course) and a very tasty haul through Sixties Soul and R&B it is too. Even now it's astonishing to think that quality swayers like the Gospel-organ lurch of "Nothing Can Change The Love I Have For You" (a Sam Cooke cover), the misery march of "Someone To Love Me" (one of his own) or "You Can't Hide A Heartache" (a Fred Hughes tune) didn't dent the US R&B charts (none of his Kent sides did). And he was no slouch when it came to boppers - as far back as the legendary second album in the Kent Soul LP series "For Dancers Also" from 1983 - Ace featured "You Just Cheat And Lie". 

The strings and guitar shuffle of "You Don't Love Me" is the kind of 'hold me' 'love me' 'I just want to talk about it' bawler that Northern Soul fans love, while the blasting brass and backing-singing girls joy in "Where She At" has tears in poor Z.Z.'s bloodshot eyes. Southern Soul Man hero Allen Toussaint (long associated with The Meters) supplied "Gimme Gimme" and its fun Soul Bop should have made dents too on the R&B charts. She-done-me-wrong misery is never far away here – Z.Z. loving to get his teeth into a moaner. The if not for you "What Am I Living For" crawl or the Jimmy Holiday smoocher "Everybody Needs Somebody" are two such highlights - hands across your chest as you distribute the talcum powder on the dancefloor into scuff-patterns of pain. Even the upbeat Arthur Adams feel-so-bad dancer "You Got What I Need" (with great audio) failed to breach the charts. 

Disc 2 is primarily STEREO and what a fantastic thing to hear the legendary "A Whole Lot Of Soul" LP swirling around your speakers like this. Although very top heavy with covers - "When Something Is Wrong With My Baby" from Sam & Dave, "You Send Me” from Sam Cook, "In The Midnight Hour" from the wicked Pickett and Eddie Floyd with his "Knock On Wood” – they suit Hill and his gravel-one-minute silk-the-next voice. "Make Me Yours" by Bettye Swann and the echoed-guitar of "Steal Away" by Jimmy Hughes is manna to me. And I even like the "with strings" slurry of titles from 1971, 1972 and 1973. 

He would eventually find US chart success with Mankind Records, United Artists and Columbia in the Seventies and a renewed recognition from the lovely Malaco album "Down Home Blues" in 1981 – letting his hair down on the title track while her bad ways in "Cheating In The Next Room" became a compilation fave. But this is where Z.Z. Hill cut those teeth. 

Such a great reissue and since his loss in February 1984 to a car-crash – a worthy reminder of what Z.Z. Hill gave us and what we lost. Tops for CDTOP2 476...