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By Larry, October 11, 2016 10:25 am

The Vibrations

Listen/Download – The Vibrations – Soul A-Go-Go MP3

Greetings all.

Before we get started, take a moment to head on over to Mixcloud (by clicking on the graphic below) and vote for the Funky16Corners Radio Show as best funk/soul radio show!

When prompted for an example of the show, just click on this link and select the address of the page  as an example.

Thanks very much, and now, on with the post….

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Heart not started right?

Coffee not doing the trick?

Down in the dumps?

Well, my friends, prepare to get your wagon fixed, because the 45 I am about to lay on you is one of the pumpingest, slammingest, four on the (dance) floor moving, soul grooving, blood pressure elevating burners ever committed to wax.

The Vibrations are one o the truly great groups of the classic soul era, and have appeared here before (and will again).

Though they never had a lot of crossover success in the pop market, they did manage to make the R&B Top 40 half a dozen times between 1961 and 1968, making great records in Los Angeles, Chicago, and later on in Philadelphia.

‘Soul a Go Go’ was released in 1966, arranged by the great Teacho Wiltshire and produced by a cat named Manny Kellem who seems to have spent most of his time recording mainstream/adult pop by people like Mike Douglas, and Jane Morgan with the occasional soul or rock artist in the mix.

The song was written by Del Shahr (aka Vibrations member Carl Fisher, who wrote a bunch of amazing soul tunes), Ricky Castel and Roscoe Johnson.

Opening with a powerful drum roll, and joined by a blazing horn section, bass, and guitar, ‘Soul a Go Go’ is one of those records guaranteed to get people out of their seats and on to the dance floor.

The propulsive energy of the song is just about relentless and it kind of boggle my mind that it wasn’t a hit on the R&B or Pop charts (though the other side of the 45, a version of the Beatles ‘And I Love Her’ was a hit in Chicago.

It’s nothing less than a killer, and ought to have a home in the playbox of any self-respecting DJ.

I hope you dig it, and I’ll see you all on Friday.

Keep the faith

Larry

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived! The stickers are 4″ x 3″ and printed on high quality, glossy stock. They are $2.00 each, with free shipping in the US ($2.00 per order shipping outside of the US). Click here to go to the ordering page.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (0)

By Larry, October 6, 2016 11:00 am

The High Keys featuring Troy Keyes

Listen/Download – Troy Keyes – Love Explosions MP3

Greetings all.

The end of the week is here and so is the Funky16Corners Radio Show, which drops a brand new episode each and every Friday with the best in funk, soul, jazz and rare groove, all on original vinyl. You can subsribe to the show as a podcast in iTunes, listen on your mobile device via Stitcher and the TuneIn app, check it out on Mixcloud or grab a download out of the archive here at Funky16Corners.

This week’s show is a very special edition of the podcast, about the New Orleans/L.A. Connection, in which a bunch of NOLA expats, including Mac Rebennack, Jessie Hill, Harold Battiste, Alvin Robinson and King Floyd head out to California in the mid-60s and worked on a grip of amazing records. It’s almost two full hours of music and information, so make sure to check it out.

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We end the week with a very groovy bit of stylish, Northern Soul by Troy Keyes.

Keyes is an interesting performer in that he goes back to the doowop era with the Velours, moves on into the classic soul era as the lead vocalist in the High Keys/Keyes (‘Living a Lie’ is a stone classic) who recorded for Atco and Verve between 1963 and 1966, and then went on to record under his own name.

The High Keys managed to record with both the duo of Bob Crewe and Charlie Calello (famous for working with the Four Seasons) who produced the group’s 1963 hit version of ‘Que Sera Sera’ and then George Kerr (who would also produce Troy Keyes solo 45s).

Though it has East Coast fingerprints all over it (Kerr, Richard Tee) ‘Love Explosions’ has the sound of a Detroit joint (specifically something out of the Four Tops oeuvre).

Opening with a female backing chorus, and waves of harp over a pulsing rhythm section, Keyes joins in, sounding like a more tightly wound Levi Stubbs.

The song (written by Kerr and Gerald Harris) has enough push for the dance floor, and a great, anthemic chorus.

Though the record made it into the Top 20 in a bunch of Mid-Atlantic/Northeast markets, it didn’t break through nationally.

It did however catch on with the soulies in the UK, where it was issued in 1968 and the reissued a year later to satisfy demand.

Keyes went on to have a local New York hit with ‘If I Had My Way’ in 1971, and has performed in the UK at Northern Soul shows.

I hope you dig the track, and I’ll see you all on Monday.

Keep the faith

Larry

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived! The stickers are 4″ x 3″ and printed on high quality, glossy stock. They are $2.00 each, with free shipping in the US ($2.00 per order shipping outside of the US). Click here to go to the ordering page.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (0)

By Larry, September 20, 2016 10:08 am

Miss Delores Hall

Listen/Download – Delores Hall – Good Lovin’ Man MP3

Listen/Download – Delores Hall – W-O-M-A-N MP3

Greetings all.

One of the great pleasures of doing a blog like this is discovering that names on obscure 45s have entire careers attached to them that I knew nothing about.

Today’s artist, Delores Hall is a great example thereof.

I’ve had the 45 you see before you today for a while (if memory serves I first heard it on Kris Holmes’ radio show) and I knew of (but do not yet own) her duet 45 with Jackie Lee.

That said, her presence on the Keymen and Mirwood labels suggested to me that she was an LA-based singer, but I had no idea.

As it turns out, Hall was not only a recording artist (she went on to make albums for RCA and Capitol in the 70s) but was primarily a musical comedy performer, working in the original LA cast of HAIR, and acting on stage and in TV and movies, including a long run on the show ‘Diagnosis Murder’ in the 90s.

Her 1968 Keymen 45 is one of those great, sort of crossover (not in the collector sense of the word) discs, with a Northern-flavored number on one side and something funkier on the flip.

‘Good Lovin’ Man’, written and produced by LA giant Fred Smith is an upbeat dancer with a great four-on-the-floor beat and nice vibes and guitar accents (right out of the Mirwood playbook) through the song. Hall has a powerful voice that soars into the rafters at points.

The breakdown at 1:27 sounds like an outtake from an Aretha Franklin session.

The flip, ‘W-O-M-A-N’, written by Smith and Jackie Lee and produced by Lee, is a funkier affair, with a slower beat, a more gospel-inflected vocal by Hall and more of a southern soul sound to it.

It’s a very cool 45, and last I checked, not terribly hard to find or expensive, either.

I hope you dig it, and I’ll see you all on Friday.

Keep the faith

Larry

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived! The stickers are 4″ x 3″ and printed on high quality, glossy stock. They are $2.00 each, with free shipping in the US ($2.00 per order shipping outside of the US). Click here to go to the ordering page.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (0)

By Larry, September 8, 2016 11:09 am

Taj Mahal

Listen/Download – Taj Mahal – A Lot of Love MP3

Greetings all.

The end of the week is here, and so is the Funky16Corners Radio Show, which drops each and every Friday with the best in funk, soul, jazz and rare groove. You can (and should) subscribe in iTunes, listen on your mobile device via the TuneIn app, check it out on Mixcloud or grab yourself an MP3 right here at Funky16Corners.

You all know that I am all about a groovy cover version, and especially when it comes from an unexpected source.

I have been a Taj Mahal fan since way back in the day, but always associated him with a more hippy/bluesy train of sound (if you will), from his early days with the Rising Sons, through his Woodstock-era sounds and beyond.

So, when I picked up an old CBS records loss-leader (so budget-y that it was released with two LPs jammed into a single sleeve?!?) and discovered Taj working it out on one of my fave soul tunes, Homer Banks’s ‘A Lot of Love’, I was stunned!.

The version in the LP was a longer (4:00) LP edit, but when I started looking on the intertubes for information, I discovered that there was also a much tighter 45 edit (2:44) that had a certain amount of popularity with the Northern Soul crowd.

I set myself a saved search, and before long the 45 popped up and I grabbed it for my playbox.

One of Taj Mahal’s greatest strengths (and also, oddly enough, a weakness of sorts) is that he was an able interpreter of all kinds of material. This is something that was for decades and essential talent in singers, but in the rock era kind of fell by the wayside.

He took full advantage of this talent over the years, and as as a result, his managed to avoid being pigeonholed, but also (unfortunately) avoided the charts.

‘A Lot of Love’ originally appeared on his 1968 LP ‘The Natch’l Blues’ which included traditional material like ‘The Cuckoo’ and ‘Corinna’ alongside soul material like ‘A Lot of Love’ and William Bell’s ‘You Don’t Miss Your Water’.

While the longer, LP version of ‘A Lot of Love’ is excellent, the 45 edit is trimmed nicely to give it a lot more dance floor/jukebox appeal, thus its popularity with the soulies.

Aided by a tight band, including a couple of Leon Russell’s Okie homeboys, Jesse Ed Davis and Chuck Blackwell, Taj kicks up the tempo of the original, and delivers a very groovy vocal.

It’s a tasty bit of late 60s soul, and I dig it a lot.

I hope you do, too.

See you on Monday.

Keep the faith

Larry

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived! The stickers are 4″ x 3″ and printed on high quality, glossy stock. They are $2.00 each, with free shipping in the US ($2.00 per order shipping outside of the US). Click here to go to the ordering page.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (0)

By Larry, August 28, 2016 10:58 am

The Velvelettes

Listen/Download – The Velvelettes – These Things Will Keep Me Loving You MP3

Greetings all.

Writing and listening to music as much as I do, I often wonder why some groups are considered ‘major’ and others are not.

Sometimes, it’s obvious issues of quality that disqualify a group, but often it’s less objective criteria.

When you consider a group like the Velvelettes, who had three R&B hits (one a year for 1964, 1965 and 1966) only one of which grazed the Top 20, most people – at least casual listeners – would not think of including them alongside much better known acts.

However, to soul fans, who are willing to dig a little deeper and familiarize themselves with slightly less obvious facts (like who produced a record, for instance) the Velvelettes are a group worth reconsidering.

They made seven 45s between 1963 and 1966, almost all classics, and for most of that time were one of the early examples of the genius of Norman Whitfield.

Whitfield wrote and produced all but their first and last singles, and they remain among the finest things to come out of the Motown hit factory in its prime.

The record I bring you today was the group’s swan song, and though Whitfield was no longer involved, the Velvelettes were in good hands, indeed.
‘These Things Will Keep Me Loving You’ failed to chart here in the US, but it was a favorite of the soulies in the UK, where it grazed the Top 40 in 1966 and then returned to it in 1971 (another one of those records that the Northern Soul explosion brought back into the charts).

Written by Harvey Fuqua, Johnny Bristol and Sylvia Moy (and produced by Fuqua and Bristol), ‘These Things Will Keep Me Loving You’ is one of those records whose absence from the charts is positively mind-boggling.

It is beautifully written, performed, arranged and produced, highly danceable, and with enough hooks to make an east crossover into the Pop charts, yet, bizarrely, it did not.

I always attribute these incidents to the veritable deluge of high quality music entering the market in the mid-60s, yet in this case it is especially curious and galling.

Had the Velvelettes had the opportunity to remain with Whitfield, and had lead vocalist Cal Gill not decided to leave music (at least temporarily) it’s possible that we’d be talking about the group in the same breath as the Supremes or Martha and the Vandellas (and certainly their records are at least as good as both) instead of trying to bolster their reputation.

Though their 45s aren’t incredibly hard to find, they’re not cheap, either, and this one can be a little more expensive than most. That said, all of their work is easy to find in reissue, and is, as described above, indispensable.

So dig it, and I’ll see you on Wednesday.

Keep the faith

Larry

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived! The stickers are 4″ x 3″ and printed on high quality, glossy stock. They are $2.00 each, with free shipping in the US ($2.00 per order shipping outside of the US). Click here to go to the ordering page.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (0)

By Larry, July 10, 2016 1:38 pm

Sandy Wynns aka Edna Wright

Listen/Download -Sandy Wynns – Love Belongs To Everyone MP3

Greetings all.

One of my favorite things, is when I start to research a record in one place and find myself carried away by the current in a completely different direction.

I first heard of Sandy Wynns years ago, via her Northern Soul fave ‘A Touch of Venus’. It is a storming, stylish number written and produced by West Coast pop genius Ed Cobb (who also made some beautiful 45s with Gloria Jones).

I picked up the 45 you see before you today on the strength of that record, and I was not disappointed.

So when I pulled it out of the box to write up here on the blog, I figured I was just going to rave about another obscure but wonderful 45 and that – as they say – would be that.

Then I started looking for information and the story became a lot more interesting.

‘Sandy Wynns’ as it turns out was a pseudonym for a Los Angeles singer named Edna Wright.

Edna Wright, was the sister of none other than Darlene Love. She recorded alongside Love in the Crystals and the Blossoms, and then a few years after putting the ‘Sandy Wynns’ name to rest, went on to be the lead vocalist in the Honey Cone!

Wright recorded a handful of 45s for west coast labels like Champion and Canterbury between 1964 and 1967.

‘Love Belongs To Everyone’ was her follow-up to ‘A Touch of Venus’ in 1964 and it takes the promise of that record to another level entirely.

The arrangement (by Lincoln Mayorga) is a stunner, with a relentless rhythm section led by a chiming rhythm guitar, and subtly applied horns moving things along at a brisk place. The song is filled with hooks and Wynns/Wright’s vocal is just beautiful.

Cobb’s production is fantastic, letting the instrumental power come through without getting in the way of Wynns’ voice.

The flipside, ‘Yes I Really Love You’ is very cool too, with a repeated refrain that sounds like it was lifted from the backing vocals to the Supremes ‘Come See About Me’.

It really boggles the mind that a record like this wasn’t a hit. You look at someone like Cobb, who followed this in 1965 with both ‘Tainted Love’ and ‘Heartbeat’ for Gloria Jones, both of a similar high quality, and both met with the same commercial indifference. Fortunately, fame would catch up with Wright with the Honey Cone, who would have nine R&B and Pop hits between 1969 and 1972.

It’s a great record, and I hope you dig it as much as I do.

See you on Wednesday.

Keep the faith

Larry

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived! The stickers are 4″ x 3″ and printed on high quality, glossy stock. They are $2.00 each, with free shipping in the US ($2.00 per order shipping outside of the US). Click here to go to the ordering page.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (0)

By Larry, June 21, 2016 11:55 am

Funky16Corners/Larry Grogan – Queens

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DJ Prime Mundo – Sound Recording

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Ben Gibson of Mo’Soul/The Hit Git & Split

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HeavySoulBrutha – Another 14 @ 45RPM

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DJ Bluewater – Tell the People

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Vincent the Soul Chef Warmup/Windup

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DJ Prestige – Reggae Explosion!

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Chris Lujan – The Adrian Younge Instrumentals

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Tarik Thornton – There Was a Time

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DJ RP/DJ Trueskillz- Live Shindig!

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Funky16Corners/Larry Grogan – Kings

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Greetings all 

Welcome to the wrap-up of the Funky16Corners 2016 Allnighter/Pledge Drive

We haven’t quite met our goal for 2016, so I’ve put together this recap/wrapup of the Allnighter with links to all of the mixes/pages for the last few weeks so you could see them all in one place, and pick up any that you might have mixed.

This page will stay up until the end of the week, and if you dig what we do here (the Funky16Corners Radio Show, mix archives and all of the same over at our sister blog, Iron Leg)  but haven’t donated, please consider clicking on the Paypal button and tossing something into that hat to help make the 2016 operating budget.

Everyone that donates will receive the new 2016 sticker and badge (see below, as well as any other swag we have remaining) and will be entered into the drawing for the groovy new 45 by the M-Tet.

I’ll be back on Monday with another, brand new BONUS mix of funk and soul, so stay tuned for that!

It is all greatly appreciated!

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Your donations help to keep Funky16Corners up and running, with the blog, Funky16Corners Radio Show podcast and hundreds of hours of archived mixes.

Everyone that donates will get the new 2016 Funky16Corners badge and bumpersticker, with which you can adorn the garment and flat surface of your choosing.

Also, everyone that donates will be entered into a drawing to win a copy of the new 45 by the M-Tet!

So pull down the ones and zeros, dig deep and Keep the Faith!

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Keep the faith

Larry

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived! The stickers are 4″ x 3″ and printed on high quality, glossy stock. They are $2.00 each, with free shipping in the US ($2.00 per order shipping outside of the US). Click here to go to the ordering page.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (2)

By Larry, June 19, 2016 11:25 am

Larry Grogan – Kings

Artistics – So Much Love In My Heart (Okeh)
Millionaires – A Rather Hip Shing (Philips)
Volcanos- You’re Number One (Arctic)
Sims Twins – A Losing Battle (Omen)
Spirit of St Louis – Wait Until Tomorrow (Philips)
Eddie Purrell – The Spoiler (Volt)
The Spellbinders – A Little On the Blue Side (Columbia)
Bobby Bland – Shoes (Duke)
Bull and the Matadors – Move With the Groove (Toddlin’ Town)
Bobby Taylor and the Vancouvers – It’s Growing (Gordy)
Billy Leonard – Tell Me Do You Love Me (Fairmount)
George Guess – No Matter What (Pearl Harbor)
Olympics – Baby Do the Philly Dog (Mirwood)
Benny Gordon and the Soul Brothers – I’m Gonna Give Her All the Love I Got (Wand)
Marketts – Stirrin’ Up Some Soul (WB)
Trade Martin – Moanin’ (RCA)
Bobby Newton – Do the Whip (Mercury)
The Groovers – I Got To Go Now (Up On the Floor) (Groovy)

Listen/Download – Larry Grogan – Kings 103MB Mixed MP3

Greetings all 

Welcome back to the Funky16Corners 2016, Allnighter/Pledge Drive.

Today I give you the final mix of this year’s Allnighter, the complementary/second half of this years mix from yours truly, ‘Kings’.

This is an hour of the finest male soul 45s – all dancers – from the classic era. You get soul from Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, New Jersey, Los Angeles, St Louis, Memphis and Houston, all with the sounds to put some pep in your step.

Make sure to spin this one with the ‘Queens’ mix posted on 6/5 for the full effect.

I want to thank all the selectors that participated this year for putting together these great mixes, as well as everyone that donated.

If you haven’t donated, please click on the Paypal link and drop something in the bucket to help cover the 2016 operating costs.

Don’t forget to click that Paypal button and donate, and we’ll be back later in the week with some more of the soul and funk goodness you’ve come to expect from Funky16Corners!

___________________________

Your donations help to keep Funky16Corners up and running, with the blog, Funky16Corners Radio Show podcast and hundreds of hours of archived mixes.

Everyone that donates will get the new 2016 Funky16Corners badge and bumpersticker, with which you can adorn the garment and flat surface of your choosing.

Also, everyone that donates will be entered into a drawing to win a copy of the new 45 by the M-Tet!

So pull down the ones and zeros, dig deep and Keep the Faith!

___________________________

Keep the faith

Larry

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived! The stickers are 4″ x 3″ and printed on high quality, glossy stock. They are $2.00 each, with free shipping in the US ($2.00 per order shipping outside of the US). Click here to go to the ordering page.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (1)

By Larry, June 5, 2016 11:33 am

Funky16Corners Presents: Queens
Vicki Gomez – Boys Are a Dime a Dozen (ABC/Paramount)
Rita and the Tiaras – Gone With the Wind Is My Love (Dore)
Apollas – Mr Creator (WB)
Clara Ward – The Right Track (Verve)
Gloria Jones – Heartbeat Pt1 (Uptown)
Sandy Wynns – Love Belongs To Everyone (Champion)
Tina Britt – The Real Thing (Eastern)
Brenda Lee – Dancing In the Street (Decca)
Candy and the Kisses – Keep On Searching (Scepter)
Dorothy Berry – Shindig City (Planetary)
Marie Queenie Lyons – Drown In My Own Tears (Deluxe)
Mirettes – Now That I Found You Baby (Mirwood)
Bobbettes – Tighten Up Your Own Home (Mayhew)
Funky Sisters – Soul Woman (Aurora)
Ella Fitzgerald – These Boots Are Made For Walkin’ (Salle)
Sari and the Shalimars – No Reason To Doubt My Love (Veep)
Judy Clay – Sister Pitiful (Atlantic)
Lesley Gore – Take Good Care (Of My Heart) (Mercury)
Barry St John – Cry Like a Baby (GRT)

Listen/Download – Funky16Corners Presents: Queens 86MB Mixed MP3

Greetings all and welcome to the 2016 Funky16Corners Allnighter/Pledge Drive!

This is the time of year where I and some of the finest selectors I know create some brand new mixes and post them here in the hope that you will all show your appreciation by clicking on the Paypal link and tossing something into the hat to help cover our yearly operating budget. This is the 10th Anniversary of the Pledge Drive and the 6th year of the Allnighter format.

This year’s line-up includes mixes from Asbury Park 45 sessions alums DJ Prestige, DJ Prime Mundo, DJ Bluewater, Vincent the Soul Chef, my man in the UK Ben Gibson, Tarik Thornton, HeavySoulBrutha Dave B, Chris Lujan of the M-Tet and the Dirty Dirty Podcast, DJ RP of Funkdefy Ohio and yours truly book-ending the whole thing.

The mixes this year are uniformly excellent, with sounds ranging from funk 45s, to Northern Soul, sweet soul, reggae, modern funk instros, soul jazz and everything in between.

We’ll be posting a mix each weekday for the next few weeks.

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Your donations help to keep Funky16Corners up and running, with the blog, Funky16Corners Radio Show podcast and hundreds of hours of archived mixes.

Everyone that donates will get the new 2016 Funky16Corners badge and bumper sticker, with which you can adorn the garment and flat surface of your choosing.

So pull down the ones and zeros, dig deep and Keep the Faith!

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We’re going to get things started (and eventually finished) with a two-part mix by yours truly, entitled Queens & Kings. These are each an hour long and feature an hour of danceable soul, first by the ladies, and then by the fellas.
I’ve picked up a lot of outstanding stuff in the past year, including some of my personal Northern Soul grails, a couple of unexpected things (from people you wouldn’t expect, naturally) and lots of other groovy sounds!

So dig it, and we’ll be back tomorrow with DJ Prime Mundo!

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Keep the faith

Larry

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived! The stickers are 4″ x 3″ and printed on high quality, glossy stock. They are $2.00 each, with free shipping in the US ($2.00 per order shipping outside of the US). Click here to go to the ordering page.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (1)

By Larry, May 22, 2016 11:32 am

The Apollas

Listen/Download – The Apollas – Mr Creator MP3

Greetings all.

I was driving around this past week, working my way through one of a couple of huge Northern Soul playlists I have stacked up in the iPod, and found myself replaying today’s selection several times.

The Apollas are one of those soul groups that despite laying down a collection of demonstrably amazing 45s, were met with utter indifference on the charts.

Composed of three singers – Leola Jiles, Ella Jamerson and Dorothy Ramsey – the Apollas worked for a short time in New York with Lieber and Stoller before moving on to do most of their recording for Loma and Warner Brothers out on the West Coast.

The bulk of their 45s were produced by Dick Glasser, and arranged by cats like HB Barnum and Gene Page.

Today’s 45 is – at least in my opinion – the finest thing they ever did, and that has a lot to do with the fact that the song in question was penned by no less a duo than Nick Ashford and Valerie Simpson.

‘Mr Creator’ was released in early 1967, and though it made little to no impact on its release, it went on to be a huge favorite in the soul clubs of the UK.

The record is in many ways the perfect intersection of talents, with stellar vocals by the Apollas, booming production by Glasser, a punchy, danceable arrangement by HB Barnum (dig the way the horns and vibes come in and out of the mix) and a great, hook filled tune by Ashford and Simpson.

As with any great Northern Soul anthem, “Mr Creator’ is a masterpiece of dynamic/daramatic shifts. The way the song lifts at the bridge (around 1:05) and then again when the horns come in at around 1:35 is a thing to behold.

It kind of boggles the mind that a record this perfect went nowhere. The Apollas never made the R&B charts, and as far as I can tell they didn’t find any regional Pop or R&B success either. They were lucky enough to have access to great material and a dedicated producer, and fortunately soul fans have embraced them retroactively.

Their records are now in demand, and I’m lucky that I was able to score a copy that plays well in spite of it’s less than stellar visual condition.

I hope you dig it, and I’ll see you all on Wednesday.

Keep the faith

Larry

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived! The stickers are 4″ x 3″ and printed on high quality, glossy stock. They are $2.00 each, with free shipping in the US ($2.00 per order shipping outside of the US). Click here to go to the ordering page.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (3)

By Larry, May 19, 2016 12:02 pm

Timothy Wilson

Listen/Download – Timothy Wilson – Love Is Like an Itching In Your Heart MP3

Greetings all.

The end of the week is upon us and so is the Funky16Corners Radio Show, coming to you each and every Friday with the best in funk, soul, jazz and rare groove, all on original vinyl. You can subscribe to the show as a podcast in iTunes, on Mixcloud, on your mobile device via the TuneIn app, or an an MP3 any old time you like right here at Funky16Corners.com.

Today’s selection is a very groovy cover version of one of my all time favorite records, the Supremes’ ‘Love Is Like an Itching In Your Heart’.

The artist is the little known (outside of soul collector circles), but excellent singer Timothy Wilson.

Wilson, who was born in Maryland was an early member of the Serenaders, alongside George Kerr and Sidney Barnes, and went on to record a grip of excellent 45s under his own name for labels like Veep, United Artists, Buddah, Blue Rock and Sky Disc between 1965 and the early 70s.

Wilson’s version of ‘Love Is Like an Itching In Your Heart’ (produced by Kerr, who worked on a lot of Wilson’s sides) was released on Blue Rock in 1969.

Sticking to the general template of the original, the pace is a bit faster (making it great for the dancers) with booming saxophone. Wilson has a high tenor voice that often veers to the edge of falsetto and it gives his version of the song and edge missing from the original.

Though he appears to have made his last record in the 70s, Wilson has toured as a member of the modern incarnation of the Teenagers (as in ‘Frankie Lymon and…’).

I hope you dig the record, and I’ll see you all on Monday.

Keep the faith

Larry

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived! The stickers are 4″ x 3″ and printed on high quality, glossy stock. They are $2.00 each, with free shipping in the US ($2.00 per order shipping outside of the US). Click here to go to the ordering page.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (0)

By Larry, May 17, 2016 11:04 am

Edwin Starr

Listen/Download – Edwin Starr – Back Street MP3

Listen/Download – Edwin Starr – Back Street (Inst) MP3

Greetings all.

Though the mighty Edwin Starr is best known to the general public for his Motown-era hits like ‘War’ and ’25 Miles’, the soulies will tell you that his greatest days were recording for the mighty Detroit soul powerhouse Ric-Tic between 1965 and 1967.

Ric-Tic, run by Joanne Bratton and Ed Wingate, released some of the finest Motor City soul of the classic era, with sides by Starr, Gino Washington, JJ Barnes, Rose Batiste, the Fantastic Four, Al Kent and many more.

Edwin Starr’s Ric-Tic sides are consistently excellent, and ‘Back Street’ is one of the best of the lot.

Written by Starr and LeBaron Taylor (both under other names) ‘Back Street’ is a fast moving number with a big following among the Northern Soul crowd.

The arrangement, featuring drums, percussion, handclaps and a prominent rhythm piano is pushed along by horn stabs and female backing vocals.

Starr’s vocal is, of course, top notch. He was one of the finest male voices working in Detroit during the classic era.

I’m also including the groovy instrumental take from the b-side, which has also been known to be spun for dancers of distinction.

I hope you dig the sounds, and I’ll see you all on Friday.

Keep the faith

Larry

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