Comments (3)

By Larry, June 18, 2013 11:26 am

Mose Allison, chilling in his far out chair, in the woods…

Listen/Download Mose Allison – The Seventh Son

Listen/Download Mose Allison – Young Man (Blues)

Listen/Download Mose Allison – I’m Not Talking

Greetings all

Have you heard about Mose?

Allison, that is…aka the Sage of Tippo…aka the smoothest badass to ever prop himself up at a piano and lay it down.

If you – like me – has made a study of the roots of rock, especially the British Invasion, or just surveyed the history of coolness, then you have certainly crossed paths with the mighty Mose.

Mose Allison has the kind of voice/manner that immediately brings to mind the black-and-white, beatnik cool of the 1950s. Jack Kerouac’s America, in which one was free to roam the highways and back roads of this great country, partaking in, and becoming part of the great tableaux, digging and being dug in equal measures.

Mose Allison – born and raised in Mississippi – sat himself down at the piano and made his first record in 1957, and hasn’t stopped being one of the coolest of cats since then.

I don’t think I heard Mose until I was all but drowning in the British beat/R&B thing, up to and including the sounds of Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames, which is important because if Mose Allison had never recorded a note, old Clive Powell would likely disappear from the face of the earth.

The first time I heard Mose, an overloaded socket in theback of my brain threw sparks and I realized how much Georgie idolized and emulated him, as well as all of the Brits who looked to him as a songwriter and interpreter of songs.

It was Mose that wrote ‘Parchman Farm’ (John Mayall and everyone else with a blues fetish), ‘Young Man Blues’ (the Who) and ‘I’m Not Talking’ (the Yardbirds) among many others, and laid down what I would consider to be the definitive interpretation of Willie Dixon’s ‘Seventh Son’.

I’m including the last three tunes here today, so that you might head out and dig for your own stack of Mose Allison records, that you can whip out and impress the ladies at your next soiree.

Both ‘Young Man Blues’ and ‘The Seventh Son’ hail from Allison’s landmark 1963 ‘Mose Allison Sings’ LP for Prestige.

‘Young Man Blues’ – clocking in at less than a minute and a half – is a laid back meditation, barely a whisper compared to the angry box of TNT that the Who detonated on ‘Live at Leeds’.

Mose’s take on ‘The Seventh Son’ is a masterpiece of relaxed, swinging Zen, every note perfectly placed, a wonder. He takes the Mississippi hoodoo boasts of the OG and delivers them in a matter-of-fact way that puts the text in boldface.

‘I’m Not Talking’, from 1964’s ‘The Word From Mose’ on Atlantic, is once again, the placid, almost dehumidified-it’s-so-dry foundation on which the mighty Yardbirds built a souped-up, nitro-fueled funny car with which they blew the doors off of the ‘For Your Love’ album in 1965.

The grooviest thing of all is that for all of the influence he pushed out, Mose himself was always more like a shadow, hanging back, just being, than anyone who took their marching orders from his records. He spent the last 50-plus years making music of high quality, crossing the border back and forth between the blues and jazz, always being more himself than anything else and that was all he ever needed to be.

If you’re not hip to Mose, get there.

That is all.

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.
Also, make sure that you check out the links below to the Be The Match Foundation and POAC (click on the logos for more info).

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (1)

By Larry, June 13, 2013 12:36 pm

Willie “Little Beaver” Hale

Listen/Download Little Beaver – Party Down Pt1

Greetings all

The end of the week has arrived, and so has the Funky16Corners Radio Show, which comes to you this and every Friday night at 9PM on Viva Radio. If you can’tbe there to hear it, you can always subscribe to the show as a podcast in iTunes, or grab an MP3 here at the blog.

The tune I bring you today is just about three and a quarter minutes of perfection, custom made for a weekend night in the summertime.

Willie ‘Little Beaver’ Hale was an Arkansas-born singer/guitarist who laid down some of the finest grooves of the Miami scene in the 1970s.

In addition to his own records, he also played guitar for other TK/Glades/Cat artists like Betty Wright (that’s him on ‘Clean Up Woman’) and George McCrae.

He had recorded 45s for labels like Saadia and Phil-La of Soul before having his first hit (‘Joey’) with Cat in 1972.

‘Party Down’ was a #2 R&B hit in the summer of 1974. It features Little Beaver working it out on the guitar, laying down a mellow, late night, cognac groove, working in a little scat here and there while his friends make a little noise in the background.

Little Beaver waxed more than a dozen 45s and four albums for Cat in the 70s before going into retirement for years, only to reemerge in 2003 to play on Joss Stone’s ‘Soul Sessions’ album.

It is a very groovy tune indeed, and I hope you dig it.

I’ll see you all on Monday.

Keep the faith

Larry

___________________________________________________________________________________________

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.
Also, make sure that you check out the links below to the Be The Match Foundation and POAC (click on the logos for more info).

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (10)

By Larry, May 26, 2013 1:01 pm

Greetings all.

Welcome to the 2013 Funky16Corners Allnighter and Pledge Drive.

Those of you that fall by F16C on the reg will already be familiar with our yearly do, in which I ask some of the finest selectors I know to dip into their crates and put together mixes (from a wide variety of styles, but always soulful) for your listening pleasure.

This being the interwebs, with the selectors coming to you from points all over the map (NJ, New Zealand, NY, UK, Ohio, Minnesota), and all of you good people spread even further afield, we get together for this virtual “Allnighter” (in the tradition of the great soul clubs the world over) once a year.

There are two basic reasons for this, both equally important.

First and foremost, we try to raise some dough (via Paypal donation, see links below) to fund the server costs associated with keeping Funky16Corners (and Iron Leg) up and running. This includes the regular, thrice-weekly blog posts, as well as the Podcast, Soul Club, Guest Mix and Radio Show Archives (collectively holding well over 200 mixes of all kinds).

Second, is of course the fact that music – to paraphrase Willie the Shake – is the food of life, and so we assemble here to play on.

Blogging is for many – creators and readers alike – a transitory thing, but for the selectors here, and for many of the people that stop by here on a regular basis, music, especially soul, funk and jazz is life. These are no mere “collectors’. The mix-makers that you see here (and in all the previous years) have devoted a tremendous amount of time (not to mention,resources) to studying the sounds you will soon hear pouring out of your speakers.

Just the other day I saw someone bemoaning the overuse of the word “curating”, but I assure you that it applies to the work of every one of the people involved in this enterprise.

We all collect these sounds because we love them, but we have also all spent time sharing them, on blogs, and more importantly in live venues because we want to spread the word.

When I approach my fellow DJs to put together mixes for the Allnighter, I do so with complete confidence that they will select to impress, and impress they have.

What you here is roughly eight-and-a-half hours (in nine mixes) of the finest in funk, soul, latin, rocksteady, blues, disco, and Northern, put together by some of the best in the biz.

Funky16Corners is – and always has been – a not-for-profit enterprise. I have never taken ads here at the site and hopefully never will.

What I ask, is that if you dig what we do here, and you have the resources to do so, please throw a couple of bucks our way to keep the machine running for another year.

Everyone that donates five dollars or more will receive a Funky16Corners 2013 Allnighter Badge, F16C sticker, and one of our Keep Calm and Stay Funky stickers as well.

The Funky16Corners Blog will enter its 10th year of existence this year and though I’d probably still be at it if no one was paying attention, it’s much cooler doing it for folks like you!

So, I’ll offer you my thanks once again, and hopefully we’ll all be together again this time next year for more of the same.

Keep the Faith
Larry

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Click here to donate to Funky16Corners!

NOTE: It has been brought to my attention that the donation button has been experiencing technical difficulties. If you can’t get it to work, you can always log into Paypal and send the money to this address:

funky16corners@lycos.com

Thanks

Larry

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The Soul City – Everybody Dance Now (Goodtime)
Ross D Wyllie – Do the Uptight (A&M)
Popular Five – Little Bitty Pretty One (Minit)
Chuck Jackson and Maxine Brown – Can’t Let You Out of My Sight (Wand)
The Naked Truth – The Shingaling Thing (RCA)
Brenda Lee – Time and Time Again (Decca)
Derek Martin – Sly Girl (Tuba)
Shirelles – No Doubt About It (Scepter)
Robert Walker and the Soul Strings – The Blizzard (RCA)
The Trends – The Soul Clap (ABC)
The Tempests – Would You Believe (Smash)
Robert John – Raindrops, Love and Sunshine (A&M)
Kim Weston – Helpless (Gordy)
Earl Cosby – Ooh Honey Baby (Mirwood)
Four Pennies – You’re a Gas With Your Trash (Brunswick)
Ray Charles – I Don’t Need No Doctor (ABC)
Jo Armstead – I Feel an Urge (Giant)
Soul Sisters – Good Time Tonight (Sue)
OV Wright – Baby Mine (Goldwax)
The Velvelettes – He Was Really Saying Something (VIP)
Ronnie Love – Chills and Fever (Dot)
Little Caesar and the Empires – Everybody Dance Now (Inst) (Cameo/Parkway)

‘Everybody Dance Now’ is just under an hour of top shelf, hard charging Northern Soul, including some old faves as well as a grip of recently excavated heat that I think you’ll dig (and a couple of surprises too!).

Listen/Download Funky16Corners – Everybody Dance Now!
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Tony C: Feeling Good F16C Pledge drive 2013
Jean Dushon-Feeling good-Cadet
Merced Blue Notes-Whole lotta nothing-Tri Phi
Junior Wells-I’m gonna cramp your style-Bright Star
The Marvels-Forget about that mess-Sensation
Buddy Ace-Baby please don’t go-Duke
Buddy Greco-Twistin’ to the blues-Coronet
JJ Barnes-Won’t you let me in-Rich
The Charmaines-I idolise you-Kent
Joe Simon-Troubles-Hush
The Young Holt Trio-Ain’t there something that money can’t buy-Brunswick
Sonny Raye-Whip it on me-Jetstream
Pearl Woods-Sippin’ sorrow-Charge
BB King-16 tons-Crown
Ricardo Ray-Nitty Gritty-Alegre
Jack Constanzo-Evil ways-Discomoda
Willie Bobo-Be’s that way-Tico
Charlie Palmieri-Uptight-Atlantic
Tito Ramos-Big T-Cotique
The Beginning Of The End-Come down baby-Alston
The Soul Creations-Funky jive-GES
Tommy Wills-KC drive-Juke
Spanky Wilson-You-Mothers
Big Ella-It takes a lot of loving-Lo Lo
Eddie Parker-I need a true love-Triple ‘B’ Records

Tony Crampton is a UK based DJ/Collector whose mixes should be immediately familiar to readers of Funky16Corners. He has excellent taste, and gets frequent shout-outs here at F16C for records that he first put me onto.

Listen/Download Tony C: Feeling Good
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Kris Holmes – Greenville and Beyond

Slim Willis – I Say That
Little Eddie – There’ll Be A Day
Virgil Griffin – If You Can’t Go
The Trademarques – I Can Set You Free
Chick Willis – My Bowlegged Woman
Heavenly Kings Singers – If You Wake Up In The Morning
Vikki Styles – Mark My Words
The Premiers – Funky Monkey
The Perails – Boss Walk
The Cherries – You Know You Gonna Need Me
Vicki Williams – Your Love Makes Me Stay
L. Johnson Jr. – You Gotta Have Soul
W. Williams & Sonny Wash – Don’t Lie To Me Lover
Spencer Jackson Family – Bring Back Peace To The World
Johnny Littlejohn – Can’t Be Still
Johnny Nix – Matchbox
Pops Porter – Baby Put Your Legs Upside The Wall
Willie Buck – Get Down & Disco To The Blues
Bobby Williams – Soul Party
Ervin Little – Teach Me How To Boogaloo

Kris Holmes ‘Greenville and Beyond’ mix is an extension of the website he created to track the wide variety of records associated with several Greenville, Mississippi labels and their Chicago connections. Kris is one of the premier DJ/Collectors in New Zealand, rocking it in live venues and on his show the Sunday Shuffle on Radio Ponsonby (which can be heard Saturday nights here in the US). He has exquisite taste, and has been a big influence on new additions to the crates here at Funky16Corners.

Listen/Download Kris Holmes – Greenville and Beyond
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Reaching Onward – A FleamarketFunk.com All 45 Excursion
Studio G’s Beat Group – Hi Bird/ Licorice Soul
Quantic and His Combo Barbaro – Enyere Kumbara/ Tru Thoughts
Lonnie liston Smith & The Cosmic Echoes – Goddess of Love/ Flying Dutchman
Big Pimp Jones – The Smokeout/ Recordbreakin’
Hard Proof – Dragon/ Kept Records
The Jive Turkeys – No Answer/ Colemine
Yambu – Sunny/ Motuno
The T.M.G.’s – Agravation/ Funk 45
The DT6 – Don’t Doubt Me/ Starla
East L.A. Carpool – Linda Chicana/ GRC
Victor Green – The Ghetto/ Rejoint
Sir Ali Bengal – ABX (Instrumental)/ Our Label Records
Banda União Black – Yeah Yeah Yeah/ Vampi Soul

A Word from DJ Prestige

“Once again I’m honored to put together a guest mix for Larry at Funky 16 Corners. Today I’ve dug into my collection of 45s and pulled out a bunch of sides that I built around the intro from Sun-Ra. For the most part, these 45s represent a lot of the future of Funk, Soul, and who will be carrying on the torch of funky music in general in the years to come playing right along side a few older tracks that lend themselves nicely to this mix. Record labels like Colemine, who offer up The Jive Turkeys, Kept, who give us the Afro Beat of Hard Proof out of Austin, TX, The DT6 on Starla coming out of Scotland, Big Pimp Jones from Philly on Recordbreakin’, Our Records Label and Sir Ali Bengal out of Germany, and Quantic out of the UK represent a small amount of artists doing it like they did in the late 60’s and early 70’s. Some of these limited edition 7″s will be the sought after 45s in years to come. They’re recorded in the same manner as the originators, and each band lends it unique sound to the time line of music. I’ve also included some older sides such as Lonnie Liston Smith & The Cosmic Echoes, a Disco Soul cover of “Sunny” by Yambu, a Latin influenced Donnie Hathaway cover from Victor Green, some Psychedelic Library Hammond Funk from Studio G’s Beat Group, as well as some West Coast Lowrider Soul with East L.A. Carpool. Each one of these bands, no matter if it the present day or the past has been reaching outward to put out good music, and that’s what I want to do with this mix. Please enjoy. DJ Prestige, Flea Market Funk 2013″

Listen/Download DJ Prestige: Reaching Onward
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Tarik Thornton: TCB
James Black and the Southern University Stage Band- Ole Wine ( Intro)- Whit
Oliver Morgan- Roll Call- Seven B
Gene Chandler- Soul Hootenany Part 1- Constellation
Temptations- Girl, Why You Wanna Make Me Blue- Gordy
Little Eva- Get Ready/Uptight- Spring
Seven Souls – I Still Love You- Okeh
Natural Four-I Thought you Were Mine – ABC
Claude Huey- Drifting – M.I.O.B
Richard Brown- Sweet & Kind- SteeleTown
Gino Washington- What Can A Man Do- Washpan
Charles Brimmer- This Feeling in My Heart- Broadmoor
The Pearls – Shooting High- Lamp
The Symphonic Four- Who Do You Think Your Fooling Part II- Sudan
Bob & Gene- It’s Not What You Know It’s Who You Know
Aaron Neville- Hercules- Mercury
Willie Joe – Funny Thing- Pure Black Soul
Detroit Emeralds- You’re Getting Too Smart- Westbound
Eddie Floyd- Stealing Love- Stax
The 13th Amendment – The Stretch – Slave
James Brown – I’ll Go Crazy – King

Tarik Thornton is a New Orleans native who has relocated to the Midwest. He has worked as part of a number of top DJ crews, and guested at some of the hottest nights around the country. He is always digging, and never fails to bring the heat.

Listen/Download Tarik Thornton – TCB
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Prime Mundo: Positive/Negative – A Live Mixtape
alzo & udine – c’mon and join us (mercury)
jim ford – i wanta make her love me (sundown)
truth – i can’t go on (roulette)
southside movement – i’ve been watching you (20th century)
stevie wonder – i was made to love her (tamla)
trapeze – what is a woman’s role (threshold)
bo diddley – go for broke (chess)
yardbirds – baby what’s wrong (sire)
fiesta dance party – summertime (fiesta)
jesse morrison – tell me, can you feel it (a-bet)
edwin starr – easin’ in (motown)
charles spurling – popcorn charlie (king)
the watts 103rd street rhythm band – 65 bars and a taste of soul (warner bros)
gilberto sextet – yes i will part 1 (tico)
albert collins – thaw out (blue thumb)
jerry maccain – juicy lucy (jewel)
charlie earland – sing a simple song (prestige)
aluar horns (nonesuch)
mongo santamaria – fingers (vaya)

DJ Prime Mundo is one of the OG Asbury Park 45 Sessions crew. He’s got a spectacular ear for the finest in funk, soul and jazz his turntable skills are next level. No matter how much you think you know, you will always find  something new to dig in his mixes.

Listen/Download DJ Prime Mundo – Positive/Negative
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DJ Bluewater Presents: Turn To This Sound
The Vibrators – I’m Depending On You
Alton Ellis – The Preacher
Roland Alphonso – How Soon
The Fugitives – Cantelope Rock
The Maytals – Bim Today Bam Tomorrow
Roy Shirley – The Prophet
Prince Buster’s All Stars – All In My Mind
The Gaylads – Joy In The Morning
The Uniques – My Woman’s Love
The Modifies – Death In The Arena
Slim Smith – Burning Desire
Glen Adams – Mighty Organ
The Dee Set – I Know A Place
Max Romeo – She’s But A Little Girl
Roy Shirley – Don’t Be Afraid
The Gladiators – Fling It Gimme
Sound Dimension – More Scorcher
Tony Brevett – Don’t Get Weary
The Ethiopians – Selah
The Rulers – Let My People Go
Lee Perry – Whup Whop Man
Teddy King & Prince Buster – Mexican Divorce
Derrick Morgan – Too Bad
The Soul Brothers – Windell
Ken Boothe & Norma Frazer – Give Me The Right

DJ Bluewater is another member of the Asbury Park 45 Sessions crew. He is as deep into the rocksteady 45 game as he is with funk and soul. He has been contributing mixes to the Funky16Corners Pledge Drives since the beginning.

Listen/Download DJ Bluewater – Turn To This Sound

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Funkdefy: Take Time To Know Her
Roy “C” – I Found-A-Man In My Bed – Pan Records
The Esquires – Listen To Me – Bunky Records
Tony Fox – Do It To It – Calla Records
The Soul Sisters – Think About The Good Times – Sue Records
Bobby Lewis – Tossin’ and Turnin’ – Beltone
Charles Spurling – Popcorn Charlie – King
William Alexander, Jr. and the Dukes – Give Me One More Chance – Aphrodisiac
Mary Jane Hooper – That’s How Strong Love Is – World Pacific Audition Records
Harvey Scales – What’s Good For You (Don’t Have to be Good to You) – Stax Records
Jay Dee Bryant – Get It (Come On and Get It) – Enjoy Records
Johnnie Taylor – Take Care Of Your Homework – Stax
J. J. Jackson – But It’s Alright – Calla Records
Otis Redding – Papa’s Got A Brand New Bag (Live) – ATCO Records
Tony Clarke – Ghetto Man – Chicory Records
Don Gardner – My Baby Likes To Boogaloo – Tru-Glo-Town
Dyke And The Blazers – Funky Bull Pt. 1 – Original Sound
George Torrence & The Naturals – Lickin’ Stick – Shout
Billy Stewart – Summertime – Chess
Percy Sledge – Take Time To Know Her – Atlantic

A Word from DJ RP

FUNKDEFY, located in Columbus Ohio, is the longest running Funk-N-Soul dance party of Central Ohio. Founded in 2004, the Crew is an ensemble group of crate diggers and beat battlers. Not only have they been throwing monthly all vinyl dance parties, but in years past introduced live Soul to Columbus, heating up the city with their combination of dance parties on wax mixed with some incredible live bands, including The Dynamites featuring Charles Walker, The Budos Band and Eli “Paperboy” Reed & The True Loves. The following contribution was put together by founder DJ RP for your audio pleasure. You can hear other mixes of theirs on Soundcloud and see updates about them on Facebook. The crew hopes you will become part of, and a friend of, the funky collective.

Listen/Download Funkdefy – Take Time To Know Her
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F16C Presents: Are You Ready For This
Jackson Sisters – I Believe In Miracles (Prophecy)
Brothers – Are You Ready For This (RCA)
Papa John Creach – Joyce (Tom Moulton Mix) (Buddah)
Johnny Hammond Smith – Los Conquistadores Chocolates (Milestone)
Eddie Kendricks – Going Up In Smoke (Tamla)
Muscle Shoals Horns – Breakdown (Bang)
Charles Mann – Do It Again (ABC)
Touch – Love Hangover (Breaking Down) (Brunswick)
Lyn Collins – Rock Me Again & Again & Again & Again & Again & Again (People)
JBs – All Aboard the Funky Soul Train (Polydor)
Silvetti – Spring Rain (Salsoul)
Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes – Bad Luck (Tom Moulton Remix) (Philadelphia International)
Ray Charles – Compared to What (Atlantic)

‘Are You Ready For This’ includes all manner of funky disco, disco-y funk, and even a couple of similarly inclined tunes from the Northern Soul canon. Mostly 45s, a couple of 12’s and an LP track here and there.

Listen/Download Funky16Corners – Are You Ready For This?
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Click Here To Donate to Funky16Corners

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Also, make sure that you check out the links below to the Be The Match Foundation and POAC (click on the logos for more info).

If you want one of the new Funky16Corners stickers (free, of course) click here for info.

Check out the Funky16Corners Store at Cafe Press

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (0)

By Larry, May 19, 2013 12:51 pm

Tommy Tucker

Listen/Download Tommy Tucker – Long Tall Shorty

Listen/Download Tommy Tucker – Mo’ Shorty

Greetings all

Welcome once again into the inner sanctum of all things soulful.

Welcome to another groovy week here at Funky16Corners.

I thought we’d get things started with one of the truly great slabs of R&B/soul.

‘Long Tall Shorty’ is one of the UR documents of the mod/beat sound, having been covered by both the Kinks and the Graham Bond Organization and holding a place of honor on many a sweaty basement club turntable during the early 60s.

Tommy Tucker had already had a hit with ‘High Heel Sneakers’ in 1963, before laying down ‘Long Tall Shorty’ (co-written by none other than Don Covay) the following year.

Tucker, born Robert Higginbotham in 1933 was a singer, pianist/organist who recorded in a variety of settings (groups and solo) between 1951 and 1967.

‘Long Tall Shorty’ is an especially interesting cut. It – like ‘High Heel Sneakers’ is built on a pretty standard, uncomplicated, Jimmy Reed-esque frame, but thanks to a sly build up and some very tasty guitar turns into something else entirely by the time its 2:23 are done.

Though Tucker worked extensively with guitarist Welton ‘Dean’ Young, it would seem that the guitarist on this 45 is in fact Timmy Oliver, as Young was on the road performing as one half of Dean and Jean.

The song starts off chugging amiably, but gathers steam gradually, almost imperceptibly until the band is running at top speed. It’s not hard to imagine a cellar full of pilled up modernists moving and grooving to this one.

Though the record has obvious roots in a slightly earlier bag, by the time the organ kicks in it’s obvious that Tucker is operating in a fully modern context. Aside from a couple of Bo Diddley sides, I can hardly think of an artist dragging quite so much old school R&B into a soulful setting this late in the game (though I have full confidence that one of you fine souls will provide an example or two that blows that thesis out of the water).

If you can get your hands on a copy of this 45 – which shouldn’t be too terribly difficult – you need to get to the end of ‘Long Tall Shorty’ and continue on to the b-side, the instrumental take thereon, entitled ‘Mo’ Shorty’. The guitar work is outstanding, and if anyone out there knows anything about Timmy Oliver (I haven’t been able to find anything) please let me know.

So roll back the rug, throw back a pint or two and get to dancing.

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.
Also, make sure that you check out the links below to the Be The Match Foundation and POAC (click on the logos for more info).

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (0)

By Larry, May 2, 2013 10:40 am

Richie Barrett

Listen/Download Richie Barrett – Some Other Guy

Greetings all

The weekend is once again upon us, and so is the Funky16Corners Radio Show. Coming to you this and every Friday night at 9PM on Viva Radio, we bring you the finest in funk, soul, jazz and rare groove, all on original vinyl. If’n you cannot dig at airtime, you can always subscribe to the show as a podcast in iTunes, or grab yourself an MP3 copy out of the archive here at the blog.

The tune I bring you today is without question one of my all-time favorites, and a 45 that eluded me for quite a while.

This is odd, because Richie Barrett’s ‘Some Other Guy’ is not a crazy expensive disc (between 50 and 100 USD on a good day), but it is in demand, so when copies pop up, the get knocked down rather quickly with a certain amount of competition in the bidding and so forth.

I was lucky enough to get my copy on the cheap side of things, and have probably given it a spin (or a digital play) every day since then.

Thing is, this record is one that loomed large in my musical tutelage for many years, thanks in large part to the fact that ‘Some Other Guy’ became one of the go-to covers for Liverpool bands of certain vintage, that being the heart of the beat era, and naturally, the Beatles.

The song was part of the playlist of the Fabs (it is the song they were playing when they were first filmed playing at the Cavern Club) and it was also recorded by bands like the Big Three, Johnny Kidd and the Pirates and a bit later on by ex-Beatle Pete Best.

It was the killer version by the Big Three that caught my ear first and made me want to track down the original.

Richie Barrett is a particularly interesting figure in the history of R&B and soul in that he was not first and foremost a recording artist.

Barrett made his mark as a producer and songwriter for groups like the Chantels, and hadn’t done a ton of recording before he found himself in the studio alongside the mighty Leiber and Stoller in 1962.

The record they made, ‘Some Other Guy’ is a brilliant bit of R&B well on the way to soul, with rumbling bass, electric piano and even a groovy organ solo.

Those widely separated opening notes on the electric piano build a tremendous amount of drama, especially considering what follows.

What ‘Some Other Guy’  also is, is one of the most blatant bits of imitation Ray Charles as has ever been impressed on a lump of vinyl.

‘Some Other Guy’ sounds like Leiber, Stoller and Barrett took a pile of Brother Ray’s late-period Atlantic ish, tossed it into a blender and poured the resulting slop into a microphone.

Not only do you get the rolling electric piano rhythm of ‘What’d I Say’, but Barrett is all but channeling Charles’s voice in every possible way.

It’s positively shocking that they didn’t try to release it under some name like ‘Charles Ray’, or ‘Brother Ray’ or some such tomfoolery.

Of course we are talking about Leiber and Stoller, who managed to kick ass just about every time they entered a studio, so despite any similarities to records living or dead, ‘Some Other Guy’ is epic.

Oddly enough, despite the obvious greatness of this record, L&S didn’t bother to mention it in their autobiography.

Slap this on at your next ripple and potato chip party and watch every last soul tear their way out onto the floor fighting over which part of the rug they get to slice.

In fact, I suggest that you go get lubricated, pop this one on at high volume and tear up the joint yourself, as best you can.

It is – after all – almost the weekend.

Capisce??

Groovy.

See you cats 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.
Also, make sure that you check out the links below to the Be The Match Foundation and POAC (click on the logos for more info).

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (1)

By Larry, April 28, 2013 2:19 pm

Dave Hamilton

Listen/Download Dave Hamilton and His Peppers – Beatle Walk

Greetings all

Welcome to another week here at the Corners.

The tune I bring you today is – once you get past the title – a cool one.

Dave Hamilton (accompanied here by his Peppers) is a name that should be familiar to both fans of Detroit soul, but also of funky instrumentals like ‘Cracklin’ Bread’.

Hamilton, who was born in Georgia in 1920 (!?!) relocated to Detroit, where he started to record R&B and blues in the late 40s.

Though he started out playing vibes and the xylophone, the guitar eventually became his bread and butter.

Over the years he released 45s for labels like Chess. Fortune and Hi-Q, before eventually starting his own Tempo, Topper and TCB imprints.

Hamilton was one of the original Funk Brothers, but a strong independent streak caused him to part ways with Motown and work on his own.

He produced and arranged for a wide variety of Detroit acts like Little Ann, OC Tolbert and Sugar Billy Garner.

‘Beatle Walk’ which was released in 1964, yet sounds like it could have been waxed half a decade earlier, has a title that was an obvious (if wholly dishonest) stab at the charts.

I’m not saying that the Fabs themselves wouldn’t have dug ‘Beatle Walk’ but rather that the vast majority of their audience, some of whom might have purchased this 45 because of the title, would have flipped out.

You can just imagine some teenybopper in her maryjanes picking this up at the local record store, coming home, slapping it on the Victrola and passing out.

Instead of the jangly guitars, yeah yeah yeahs and moptops, what you get here is the kind of straight-ahead R&B you’d hear cranking out of any urban strip club or tavern. The production on the sax and the drums is plenty raw, and the guitar has a lot of bite as well.

Plus, you get that classic Fortune Records label design.

It’s a nice, gritty workout, and I hope you dig it.

See you on Wednesday.

Keep the faith

Larry

___________________________________________________________________________________________

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.
Also, make sure that you check out the links below to the Be The Match Foundation and POAC (click on the logos for more info).

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (5)

By Larry, April 9, 2013 11:26 am

Ike and Tina Turner

Listen/Download Ike and Tina Turner – Ooh Poop A Doo

Greetings all

How’s about a little Ike and Tina to get you through the middle of the week?

This is an especially groovy one, because you get some of that soulful action, delivered in the form of one of the classic New Orleans R&B numbers.

Released in 1964 on the flipside of the epic ‘Merry Christmas Baby’, Ike and Tina’s version of Jesse Hill’s ‘Ooh Poop A Doo’ (spelling of title will vary from artist to artist) has the rough and ready sound of a ‘live in studio’ joint.

While I’m not positive, I think this might be the same version that appeared on the ‘Ike and Tina Show Live’ LP in 1965.

There’s a decidedly lo-fi vibe to the proceedings, but Tina and the Ikettes are – as always – in rare form (dig the call and response at the beginning).

Hill’s OG was an R&B Top 5 hit (Pop Top 30) in 1960, and it seems that every act of the time, rock and soul alike either recorded it or made it a staple of their live sets.

Ike and Tina released the song at least two more times, in 1971 and 1974 (on the flips of ‘I Want To Take You Higher’ and ‘Nutbush City Limits’), so you know they dug it.

Though it seems to jump across a few different labels, I’d love to see someone assemble Ike and Tina’s live recordings from the 60s into some kind of comp. Ike always had a hot band going, and of course with Tina and the Ikettes out in front they could do no wrong.

I hope you dig the cut, and I’ll be back on Friday with some more soul.
.

Keep the faith

Larry

___________________________________________________________________________________________

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.
Also, make sure that you check out the links below to the Be The Match Foundation and POAC (click on the logos for more info).

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (3)

By Larry, March 17, 2013 12:26 pm

Timmy Shaw

Listen/Download Timmy Shaw – Gonna Send you Back To Georgia (City Slick)

Greetings all

If you’ve been loitering here under the streetlamp at Funky16Corners for a few years, you probably heard this song (the James Carr cover)when I posted it back in 2009.

At the time, I mentioned how surprised I was when I spun that particular 45 and realized that it was a take on the song that I had known by the Animals as ‘Send You Back To Walker’.

When I posted it, I did some digging and discovered that the James Carr tune was not only not the OG, but came after the one by our friends from Newcastle upon the Tyne, which itself was a cover of the O-est of G’s, which (not coincidentally) you see before you this fine day.

Assuming that you read the title of the post, you know by now that the tune was written and first recorded by a cat named Timmy Shaw (though his Ma and Pa knew him as Jake Hammonds, Jr).

Shaw, who co-wrote the tune with Johnnie Mae Matthews was a Detroit-based singer who waxed the tune in 1964.

Shaw recorded a number of 45s for local labels, with ‘Gonna Send You back To Georgia’ having originally been released under it’s parenthetical title ‘City Slick’ earlier that year on the Audrey imprint.

The Wand version grazed the outer reaches of the R&B Top 40 in January of 1964.

The original version of the tune is a hard-charging, highly danceable number with some very tasty guitar and a great vocal by Shaw, who reminds me a little of Gary US Bonds.

Timmy Shaw – one can assume he pulled in a couple of bucks from the Animals cover – only recorded a few more 45s (for Premium Stuff and Big Hit), the last in 1968 before dropping out of sight.

He passed away in 1986.

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

Keep the faith

Larry

PS What’s a Sternphone??
___________________________________________________________________________________________

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.
Also, make sure that you check out the links below to the Be The Match Foundation and POAC (click on the logos for more info).

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (4)

By Larry, March 14, 2013 11:44 am

Ricky Allen

Listen/Download Ricky Allen – Cut You A Loose

Greetings all

The end of the week is nigh and so must be the Funky16Corners Radio Show, Friday night at 9PM on Viva Radio. If you cannot join me at airtime, you can always subscribe to the show as a podcast in iTunes or grab an MP3 here at the blog.

Now…I hope you’re all strapped in securely and have ingested your blood pressure medicine and all necessary sedatives.

I only mention this because the record I’m going to whip on you this fine day is likely to blow your doors off, set your hair on end and (if you’re lucky) drive you into the kind of convulsions often recognized as “dancing”.

I first heard Ricky Allen’s ‘Cut You A Loose’courtesy of my friend Michael Newman’s ‘Hinky Dinky Time’ radio show.

It was one of those times where I heard a record for the first time (happens a lot at DJ nights) and the intersections of the pleasure and acquisition centers of my brain light up at exactly the same time.

Gotta hear that record again, and gotta get me a copy to stash in my play box, in that exact order.

It didn’t take me too long to find a nice, clean copy of the 45, and when it did fall through the mail slot I digimatized it forthwith and put the digital copy on a loop.

Like Bobby Parker’s ‘Watch Your Step’, ‘Cut You A Loose’ is one of those records that lives in the mystical land where blues and soul (and rock’n’roll) coexist peacefully, breeding at will and producing offspring like this.

‘Cut You A Loose’ was a Top 20 R&B hit in August of 1963 and Allen (who was born in Nashville but relocated to Chicago in the late 50s) went on to record a handful of 45s in a similar vein through the 60s.

After I’d digested this tune, it occurred to me that it sounded familiar. It wasn’t until I’d played it a dozen or so times that it occurred to me that ‘Cut You A Loose’ bore an interesting resemblance to another record, that being Dave Baby Cortez’s ‘Getting To the Point’.

As far as I can tell, ‘Cut You A Loose’ came first (by a few months), with ‘Getting To the Point’ being a rather savage, Hammond-driven “homage”, if you will.

‘Cut You A Loose’ became a Chicago blues standard of sorts, with cover versions by James Cotton, Otis Rush, Buddy Guy and Junior Wells, and Koko Taylor among others (I have no idea how this song didn’t become a staple of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s repertoire).

Allen apparently retired in the early 70s to run a limousine business and a laundry, before returning to the festival circuit years later.

This record is as powerful 2:47 of music as you’re likely to find, and I hope you dig it as much as I do.

See you soon.

Keep the faith

Larry

___________________________________________________________________________________________

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.
Also, make sure that you check out the links below to the Be The Match Foundation and POAC (click on the logos for more info).

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (1)

By Larry, March 12, 2013 11:54 am

Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee

Listen/Download Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee – People Get Ready

Greetings all

Here’s an odd one.

Many, many moons ago I was out digging and happened upon the 45 you see before you today.

When I saw a version of ‘People Get Ready’ by Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee I had to double check and make sure it was in fact the Curtis Mayfield song.

Indeed it was.

This was a record that cried out for further investigation, and since it was on sale for a shiny United States quarter, I paid the man and brought it home, where it languished for a good long time.

When I first recorded it I wasn’t quite sure what to make of it.

Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee were known mostly as a folk blues act, having joined forces for the first time in 1942.

McGhee, the singer and guitarist (brother of Stick McGhee of ‘Drinkin’ Wine Spo-dee-o-dee’ fame) had played with the Rabbit Foot Minstrels and followed/studied with Blind Boy Fuller.

Harp player Sonny Terry had been accompanying Fuller until the latter’s death, after which he teamed up with McGhee.

Now, I mentioned that Terry and McGhee were best known (to me, anyway) as folk blues players, but as it turns out, they spent the early part of their career working at a more popular/mainstream success. They recorded jump blues and R&B under a few different names during the 40s and 50s, only really getting firmly into their better known bag riding the wave of the folk/blues revival in the late 50s/early 60s.

When I first listened to this version of ‘People Get Ready’ I was surprised by the arrangement, in which Terry and McGhee change the tempo, moving away from the gospel feel of the original (and many ensuing covers) and settling into a rootsy, ever so slightly funky groove that reminds me of some of Taj Mahal’s ish from around the same time.

As it turns out the single was pulled from the 1973 LP ‘Sonny and Brownie’, which featured an all-star backing group (Arlo Guthrie, Sugarcane Harris, John Mayall, Michael Franks) and a variety of contemporary covers, including Randy Newman’s ‘Sail Away’, a couple of Franks’ songs and some originals.

As I said before, the re-arrangement might see a little jarring at first, but after a listen or two it starts to make complete sense (at least to me, your mileage may vary…).

Something unusual to feed your ears in the middle of the week.

I hope you dig it, and I’ll be back on Friday.

Keep the faith

Larry

___________________________________________________________________________________________

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.
Also, make sure that you check out the links below to the Be The Match Foundation and POAC (click on the logos for more info).

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (2)

By Larry, February 21, 2013 11:07 am

Lou Bond

Listen/Download Lou Bond – That’s the Way I Always Heard It Should Be

Listen/Download Lou Bond – To the Establishment

Greetings all

This is the end of another week, so it is – as always – time to remind you to tune in to the Funky16Corners Radio Show. It airs this and every Friday night at 9pm on Viva Radio, and can be subscribed to as a podcast in iTunes or picked up as an MP3 here at the blog.

I was saddened the other day when word came down the line that Lou Bond had passed away.

Bond (born Ronald Edward Lewis) , who in his short career laid down just two 45s and one amazing LP is less a “cult” artist than an unjustly/tragically forgotten one.

Bond recorded two very cool 45s in 1966 and 1967 while in Chicago (rooming with none other than Sidney Barnes!), the groovy midtempo ‘What Have I Done’ for Fontana and the uptempo Northern flavored ‘You Shake Me Up’ for Brainstorm.

He recorded his only LP, the self-titled ‘Lou Bond’ for the short-lived Stax subsidiary We Produce in 1974.

‘Lou Bond’, which was reissued by Light In the Attic in 2010 (there was a brief digital reissued by Stax prior to that) is a truly remarkable piece of work.

Record collectors/music hounds are constantly bombarded with “lost” albums and rediscoveries that – following the flavor of the month pattern – are often less interesting than they first appear.

‘Lou Bond’ is a rare and powerful exception to that rule.

I first heard about the record years ago when it was popping up with regularity in ‘finds’ lists on a message board I used to frequent.

I finally got my hands on a copy of the album back in 2007 and had my mind blown.

Though he was unmistakably a soul singer, one need only look at the pictures of Bond on his album cover to get the message that he was in other bags as well.

Bond was starting off in a soul groove, but also mixing jazz, folk and contemporary pop into his sound.

‘Lou Bond’ draws from a wide range of influences, most notably Marvin Gaye and Isaac Hayes, but also a variety of early 70s singer songwriters (soul and non).

It’s important to note that among the album’s six tracks, three of them were written or co-written by Bond, the other three being covers of songs by Bill Withers, Carly Simon and Jimmy Webb.

The album moves effortlessly between intimate moments and lush orchestration, with Bond touching on love, the environment and politics.

The two tracks I bring you today are my favorites from the album.

I’ve always found Carly Simon’s ‘That’s the Way I Always Heard It Should Be’ to be one of the most haunting and uniquely dark singles of the early 70s. Bond’s take on it rinses out some of the darkness, replacing it with a hopeful tone (due in large part to a short, spoken prelude).

The eleven-minute-plus ‘To the Establishment’ bears the influence of Gaye’s ‘What’s Going On’, with Bond taking things in a looser, free-form direction that might almost be described as a hippie vibe.

Both tracks are solid stylistic indicators of the sounds that can be found on the rest of the album.

The big mystery in relation to Bond has always been two-fold.

First, how did Stax/We Produce decide to let an unknown commodity like Bond stretch out like he did, with the backing of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra?

Second, why didn’t an album this good make a bigger impression?

The answer to the first question may very well be that this was 1974, and record companies were still taking chances like that all the time. Bond was prodigiously talented, and it’s not hard to imagine someone hearing Bond singing his (and others) songs and handing him a blank check.

The answer to the second question probably has something to do with the impending collapse of Stax.

Bond was already on one of the most sparsely populated Stax sub-labels. We Produce only released albums by three artists – the Temprees, Ernie Hines and Bond, releasing a 45 by one additional artist – Lee Sain (who brought Bond to the attention of Stax), at a time when when the mothership was spreading itself mighty thin.

As far as I can tell ‘Lou Bond’ was poorly promoted/distributed, and Bond himself had to contend with the fact that the concept of a black singer/songwriter (outside of the accepted funk/soul mold) was not an easy fit in the musical landscape of the time.

The sad fact is that after his one LP, Bond never recorded again.

His music was sampled a number of times (by Outkast and Prodigy among others), and the Light In the Attic reissue brought his amazing talent back into the light of day.

If you get the chance, check out the nearly hour-long interview (audio) with Bond posted at the Light In the Attic web site.

You can still get the Light In the Attic reissue (with bonus tracks) on iTunes. If you dig what you’re hearing here today, I assure you that you’ll like the rest just as much.

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

Keep the faith

Larry

___________________________________________________________________________________________

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.
Also, make sure that you check out the links below to the Be The Match Foundation and POAC (click on the logos for more info).

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (0)

By Larry, February 14, 2013 12:14 pm

Nathaniel Mayer (and his hay-er…)

Listen/Download Nathaniel Mayer and the Fabulous Twilights – Village Of Love

Greetings all

The close of another week is at hand, and so then is the Funky16Corners Radio Show, which hits the airwaves of the interwebs this and every Friday night at 9PM on Viva Radio.

If you cannot join us at airtime, you can always keep up with the soul by subscribing to the show as a podcast in iTunes, or by grabbing an MP3 here at the blog.

I know I already posted the Valentines Day mix, but when I sat down to hammer out a few future blog posts, I happened upon something in the on deck circle that I knew I had to post, even if some of you will be getting it the day after the holiday.

I spend a lot of time working my way through the old Billboard R&B charts, and always make my way into the right margin to see if a given record ever made its way into the pop charts. This is always an interesting indicator of how much an artist managed to crossover (if at all). The absence of a pop chart position – especially in the listing for an artist that was very popular in the R&B charts – is also important evidence of the divide that often existed between black and white audiences.

I’m always surprised to find out that artists that I would have assumed were one-hit wonders had substantial chart runs on the R&B side of things.

As someone who spent a lot of time as a kid listening to oldies radio, I am shocked by how many times I find a record that did crossover into the Pop Top 40 that never made it onto oldies playlists.

Such is the case with ‘Village of Love’* by Nathaniel Mayer and the Fabulous Twilights, which was an R&B Top 20 hit (grazing the Pop Top 20) in 1962.

Mayer’s music didn’t pop up on my radar until he made a comeback in the early 2000s on labels like Fat Possum (where he recorded and toured with the Black Keys) and Norton.

The Detroit-born Mayer recorded for the legendary Fortune label from 1961 to 1966 (hitting only once with ‘Village of Love’) and then all but disappeared (with the exception of one 45 in the early 80s) until 2004. His Fortune sides – like ‘I Had a Dream’ and ‘From Now On’ – are as raw and dynamic as they are rare and expensive (very…).

‘Village of Love’ is one of those great records that bridge the gap between R&B/doowop vocal harmony and the early years of soul. The instrumental and vocal backing have a foot planted firmly in the 1950s, but Mayer’s wailing pulls the whole thing into the 60s. I especially dig the part at about 55 seconds in where the guitar starts to solo and the drums and handclaps are bouncing around in the reverb.

It’s the kind of record that played at the appropriate volume verily compels you to get off your ass and move out onto the dance floor.

Sadly, Nathaniel Mayer only managed to squeeze in a few comeback years before being felled by a series of strokes in 2008.

You can find his best stuff, old and newer on iTunes.

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

Keep the faith

Larry

___________________________________________________________________________________________

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.
Also, make sure that you check out the links below to the Be The Match Foundation and POAC (click on the logos for more info).

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.