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By Larry, May 24, 2016 11:23 am

“Paul Nero” AKA Klaus Doldinger

Listen/Download – Paul Nero – Soul Medley #1 MP3

Greetings all.

The record I bring you today is an interesting combination of groovy sounds and an interesting back story.
A couple of years back someone on Facebook posted a clip of today’s selection and I knew I had to go out and find myself a copy.

The interesting thing is that ‘Paul Nero’ doesn’t exist, at least under that name. He is in actuality German saxophonist and arranger Klaus Doldinger, working under a pseudonym.

Using the ‘Paul Nero’ name, Doldinger and a collection of prominent German musicians, including organist Ingfried Hoffman (aka Memphis Black) and guitarist Siegfried Schwab (who with Manfred Hubler went on to record a bunch of incredible exploitation soundtracks later compiled as Vampiros Lesbos Sexadelic Dance Party) and American expat guitarist Joe Quick (who recorded on the Memphis Black records).

There were at least four albums released under the ‘Paul Nero’ name, all composed of covers of then popular hits, some focusing on soul, and some on pop/rock.

Today’s selection (actually listed on the album as ‘This Is Soul/Soul Finger/Soul Man’) is from the 1968 ‘Soul Party’ album, which is composed entirely of similar medleys. ‘This Is Soul’ is an original composition and the other tunes were -of course – originally done by the Bar Kays and Sam & Dave.

The opening section ‘This Is Soul’ features someone (with a German accent) speaking the intro, after a sweet drum break (one of the reasons this album is sought after) and the members of the band joining in one by one, a la ‘Memphis Soul Stew’. The playing – across the entire album – is quite good, in the style of a UK/Euro library LP.

My only complaint is the medley format, since I’d like to hear this band playing the entire songs.

That said, I’m going to be on the lookout for the rest of the albums (most of them were only released outside of the US).

I hope you dig the sounds, 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.

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By Larry, April 24, 2016 9:49 am

Sandy Nelson

Listen/Download – Sandy Nelson – Love Is Like an Itching In My Heart MP3

Greetings all.

Today’s selection sees us returning to the “you find groovy music in the strangest places file”, as well as another visit from our friend Sandy Nelson.

Long story short, Sandy Nelson was one of the most ubiquitous instrumental artists of the 1960s. The drummer had his first hits with ‘Teen Beat’ in 1959 and ‘Let There Be Drums’ in 1961, and though he didn’t make much of a stir on the charts after that, he churned out a steady succession of LPs (mostly for Imperial) in the 60s and early 70s, covering rock, pop and soul hits with a fair amount of style and verve, backed by the cream of LA sessioners.

Today’s selection is Nelson’s 1966 cover of my all-time favorite Supremes cut ‘Love Is Like an Itching In My Heart’.

Released on his ‘Superdrums’ LP, Nelson’s version of the tune has enough punch and style to make it on a soul dance floor. He hits that snare drum like it owes him money, and the arrangement, heavy on guitar and sax is a killer.

Nelson had enough style imbue his soul covers with plenty of heat (I really wish I had this one on a 45), and managed to attack garage and pop tunes with the same verve.

His records are cheap and easy to find at your better garage sales and flea markets (or on-line if that’s how you roll), and there is always something cool on them.

So get digging, 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.

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By Larry, April 19, 2016 11:32 am

The Crusaders on the cover of ‘2nd Crusade’

Listen/Download – The Crusaders – Gotta Get It On MP3

Greetings all.

I though we’d all ease into the middle of the week with something funky by the mighty Crusaders.

If you’re a seasoned digger, it’d just about be a miracle if you weren’t already deep into the Crusaders catalog.

Their records, both in their earlier incarnation as the Jazz Crusaders (for World Pacific/Pacific Jazz) and then in their time as the Crusaders (the funky instrumentals on Blue Thumb/Chisa, like today’s selection) and the smoother hitmakers (like ‘Street Life’ on MCA), are ubiquitous and almost always affordable, and in most cases, worth taking home.

Today’s tune, the very groovy ‘Gotta Get It On’ hails from their 1972 LP ‘2nd Crusade’.

Written by drummer Stix Hooper, the tune is pushed along by Joe Sample’s electric piano, the horns of Wayne Henderson and Wilton Felder, and Larry Carlton’s guitar.

The Crusaders always had a funky edge (‘small ‘f’ funky’ in the old school, down and dirty soul jazz stylee), and their early 70s albums pump it into upper case, creating a very tasty, bright, somewhat laid back Southern California groove that you can hear echoes of in early Steely Dan albums.

You probably won’t be spinning this stuff for a funk 45 crowd, but its ability to get heads nodding is second to none.

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.

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By Larry, April 14, 2016 9:26 am

Big Jay McNeely and Band – The Squat (Swingin’)
Big Jay McNeely and Band – Without a Love (Swingin’)
Leon Haywood – The Fat Fish (Fat Fish)
Leon Haywood – A River’s Invitation (Convoy)
Leon Haywood – Soul Cargo (Fat Fish)
Leon and the Burners – Whiplash (Josie)
Leon and the Burners – Crack Up (Josie)
The Packers – Hole In the Wall (Pure Soul Music)
The Packers – Go Head On (Pure Soul Music)
The Hideaways – Hide Out (Mirwood)
Leon Haywood – Soul On (Imperial)
Leon Haywood – Cornbread and Buttermilk (Imperial)
Leon Haywood – 1-2-3 (Imperial)
The Soul Machine – Bag of Goodies (Pzazz)
The Soul Machine – Twitchy Feet (Pzazz

Listen/Download – Funky16Corners Presents: Leon Haywood at the Organ 1962-1968 MP3

Greetings all.

The end of the week is here, and so is the Funky16Corners Radio Show, dropping 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, listen online via the TuneIn app or Mixcloud, or grab an MP3 right here at the blog.

News came down the pike last week that the great Leon Haywood had passed away at the age of 74.

Fans of 60s and 70s soul would have been familiar with vocal hits like ‘It’s GotTo Be Mellow’, ‘Mellow Moonlight’ or ‘I Want’a Do Something Freaky To You’.

However, as I discovered – quite by accident, years ago – Leon Haywood was not only a smooth singer, but a Hammond wrangler of the first order.

Turning over a few of his Decca and Imperial 45s revealed organ instrumentals, and then delving deep into the mystery behind that recording of the Packers’ ‘Hole In the Wall’, it was gradually revealed that in addition to a great singing voice, Haywood was just as comfortable on the keys.

He recorded on organ and piano frequently through the 1960s, often as a backing musician, or under a group alias, and then pretty much abandoned the sideline as he got more popular in the 70s.

I had this mix simmering long before he passed away, but as soon as I heard he was gone, I moved it to the front burner.

Born in Texas, he moved to California in the early 60s where he hooked up with the band of R&B saxophonist Big Jay McNeely, with whom he made his first records as an organist. I’ve included both sides of one of his 1962 McNeely 45s, both tunes co-written by Haywood. ‘The Squat’ and ‘Without a Love’ both feature Haywood using a wide open, slightly distorted/overmodulated organ sound in a heavily reverbed production. ‘The Squat’ is a wild R&B dancer, with it’s flipside working a more sedate, bluesy side of the street.

The next few songs fall into the window of 1965-1966, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they weren’t in exact chronological order.

Haywood recorded a full album for the LA label Fat Fish in 1966, which included a few vocal numbers (but did not include his big Northern Soul number ‘Baby Reconsider’ which was on a later Fat Fish 45), as well as a grip of piano and organ instrumentals. I’ve included three tracks from this album, including the tunes ‘Fat Fish’, ‘Soul Cargo’ and his swinging cover of Percy Mayfield’s ‘A River’s Invitation’, which appeared on the album as well as a Convoy 45 (where I first heard it).

Next up is both sides of a 45 that I had for at least 15 years before I realized it was Haywood, by Leon and the Burners. ‘Whiplash’ – which uses a similar organ sound to the McNeely 45 – owes a debt to Alvin Cash’s ‘Twine Time’. The flipside, ‘Crack Up’ has a lean, Memphis sound to it.

The next two sides see Leon Haywood walking into the midst of the one of the most interesting musical mysteries of the classic soul era. The Packers ‘Hole In The Wall’ was a Top 5 R&B/Top 40 Pop hit in the Fall of 1965. The session was put together by LA DJ the Magnificent Montague, and included most of Booker T and the MGs (minus Duck Dunn) who were in LA recording with Bobby Darin, saxophonist Packy Axton of the Mar-Keys, and none other than Leon Haywood on organ (Booker T on piano) and Earl Grant on bass.

All would have been clear enough had this been the only record the Packers did, but Axton went on (with a variety of other players) to record a bunch of “Packers” records over the next few years, as well as both sides of the ‘Hole In the Wall’ 45 being issued in the US and the UK as two differently named songs by someone named Joe S. Maxey (more here).

Complicating matters even more, is the fact that Nat Nathan, sometimes with Haywood (sometimes without) would also record a bunch of ‘Hole In the Wall’-esque 45s (you can see the roots of the Packers “sound” in Haywood’s Fat Fish sides), including ‘Hide Out’ by the Hideaways on the LA Mirwood label.

As I mentioned earlier, Haywood included organ and piano instrumentals on his Decca LP ‘It’s Got To be Mellow’ and on the B-sides of his Decca and Imperial 45s. Included here are the originals ‘Soul On’ (45 only) and ‘Cornbread and Buttermilk’ (from the LP) and the 45-only cover of Len Barry’s ‘1-2-3’.

The last two tracks in this mix are the two sides of a great, funky 1968 Hammond 45 that I was after for years, only bagging a copy late last year. The Soul Machine’s ‘Twitchie Feet’ b/w ‘Bag of Goodies’ (recently covered by the Incredible Say Whats) were played, produced and written by Haywood, during his time with the LA-based Pzazz label (where he also recorded with Little Janice).

Now, I have no doubt whatsoever that there are gaps in this mix, especially where Haywood’s work as a sideman, or pseudonymous bandleader are concerned. I have a few 45s that I suspect are his handiwork, but no hard evidence to go on. If any of you have any records to add to the list, please let me know.

Haywood spent time between his 60s and 70s hits working in the studio, backing people like Shuggie Otis. He also started his own Evejim label, and worked as a producer.

He was a talented performer, and will be missed.

I hope you dig the mix, 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.

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By Larry, April 10, 2016 11:18 am

Travis Wammack

Listen/Download – Travis Wammack – Night Train MP3

Greetings all.

It behooves me to warn you that listening to the 45 you see before you may cause heart palpitations, nervous collapse or both, depending on how much coffee and or sugar you have ingested.

Travis Wammack is one of those names that keeps popping up on compilations of instrumental hits, due to his 1964 hit ‘Scratchy’.

Wammack was born in Mississippi but made his name playing in Memphis as a leader, sideman and working as a hired gun for giants like Little Richard (he was Mr Penniman’s bandleader for a decade).

Today’s selection, a cover of the strip club perennial ‘Night Train’. Written and performed by Jimmy Forrest in 1951, ‘Night Train’ was covered countless times by R&B, soul, jazz and rock performers, including the mighty James Brown.

Wammack’s version of the song is one of those instances of source material taken out back, draped over a pile of hand grenades, soaked in nitroglycerine and then blowed up (real good).

I mean, hot damn if this isn’t two and a half minutes of pure, unadulterated insanity. Wammack’s guitar sounds as if it’s being pumped through a Leslie speaker, and the band (just guitar, bass and drums) is recorded in as raw a fashion as I have ever heard on a major-label 45.

Ostensibly a showcase for Wammack’s guitar bad-assery, it serves more as a vivid example of what will happen when intoxicated people are let loose on musical instruments and recording equipment.

The flipside, ‘Karate Time’ is infinitely more subdued, but also quite groovy.

I hope you dig the sounds, and I’ll 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.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

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By Larry, March 31, 2016 10:42 am

Listen/Download – The Bobby Sockers – Sock It To Me Bobby MP3

Greetings all.

The end of the week is near, and so is the appearance of the latest episode of the Funky16Corners Radio Show podcast. The show drops every Friday with the best in soul, funk and rare groove, all on original vinyl. You can subscribe to the show as a podcast in iTunes, listen on your mobile device via the TuneIn app, check it out on Mixcloud, or grab yourself an MP3 right here at the blog.

Today’s selection is the unusual (soulful) by-product of a string mid-1960s comedy-novelty 45s by a guy named Bill Minkin.

Minkin, along with an assembledge known as the Hardly-Worthit Players (the name being a play on then famous newsmen (Chet) Huntley and (David) Brinkley) released a version of the Troggs’ ‘Wild Thing’, as performed in the (impersonated) voice of Senator Bobby Kennedy. Though this is little-known to anyone that wasn’t around to hear it the first time, it was a fairly substantial pop hit in the Winter of ‘66/’67.

As has always been the case, the parties involved decided to milk the success as much as they could, eventually releasing three 45s (and two LPs on Cameo/Parkway called ‘Boston Soul’ and ‘Senator Bobby’s Christmas Party’) between 1966 and 1968, with covers of Donovan’s ‘Mellow Yellow’ and finally Mitch Ryder’s ‘Sock It To Me Baby’.

The tune I bring you today was the flip side of that final 45. Billed as ‘Sock It To me Bobby’ by the ‘Bobby Sockers’, what you get here is a straight cover of the Mitch Ryder tune, with the ridiculous Bobby Kennedy imitation stripped off, returning it to its roots as an upbeat dancer.

The only downer (as it is) is the inclusion of a super-white-sounding female chorus running under things.

That said, it’s still a groovy record, which I included in one of my 2014 Pledge Drive mixes.

It’s a cool 45 (with a cool story) and I hope you dig it.

Have a great weekend, 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.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

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By Larry, March 24, 2016 11:49 am

Funky16Corners Presents Go Go Shoes – Mix for Night Train Radio Show
The La Salles – La La La La La (VIP)
Jimmie Preacher Ellis and the Odd Fellows – (C’Mon) Let’s Dance to the Drum Beat (Kris)
Tina Britt – The Real Thing (Eastern)
Johnny Jay and the Gangbusters – Gangbusters Blues (Josie)
Gene Waiters – Shake and Shingaling Pt2 (Fairmount)
Cannibal and the Headhunters – Shotgun (Date)
Dottie Cambridge – He’s About a Mover (MGM)
Gravities (Bobby Newton’s Band) – Do the Whip (Instrumental Version) (Mercury)
Lonnie Youngblood – Go Go Shoes (Fairmount)
Ronnie Rae and the Dynamics – Funky Shuffle (RJR)
Soul Continentals – Bowlegs (Sound Stage Seven)
Big Maybelle – 96 Tears (Rojac)

Listen/Download – Funky16Corners Presents: Go Go Shoes MP3

Greetings all.

A while back Steve and Paul of the Night Train radio show (92.3 Sheffield Live in the UK) asked if I’d put together a guest mix for their show.

That mix airs this Thursday, (3/24 11pm GST/ 7pm EST), and you can pick yourselves up a download right here at the blog.

The Night Train guys requested a tight half hour, and that’s what you get, with soul, R&B and Northern sides mixed together for your dancing (and listening) pleasure.

These are all (with a few exceptions) fairly new additions to the Funky16Corners crates, so aside from a play or two in the podcast, they haven’t appeared here before.

So tune into the Night Train, pull down the ones and zeros, and have yourselves a great weekend.

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.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

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By Larry, March 8, 2016 1:00 pm

Ernest Vantrease

Listen/Download – Ernest Van Treose and the McDaniel Mary St Band – Popcorn Push Push MP3

Listen/Download – Ernest Van Treose and the McDaniel Mary St Band – Medicine Man MP3

Greetings all.

The track I bring you today is a very funky 45, with a very funky pedigree.

‘Popcorn Push Push’ by Ernest Van Treose and the McDaniel Mary Street Band is one of those old-school, funk 45 crate staples. I was after it for years, finally grabbing an OG for my play box last year.

The tune rumbles along on a wave of pulsing bass, ringing, Meters-like guitar, and some tasty organ action.

Released in 1969, the 45 (both sides) was written and produced by none other than James Shaw, aka the Mighty Hannibal.

I’m not sure if Ernest Van Treose (often credited under what appears to be the correct spelling ‘Vantrease’) hooked up with Hannibal in Atlanta (though the band takes its name from an intersection in Atlanta), but he was a busy player. Vantrease was for years a sought after keyboard player for giants like BB King, Buddy Rich and Ray Charles as well as playing in the band of his brother, trumpeter Earl Vantrease.

‘Popcorn Push Push’ is a killer, and the flipside, ‘Medicine Man’ gives Vantrease a little more space to solo on the organ.

Vantrease did at least one more 45 with Hannibal for RCA, though this time it was a vocal soul effort ‘These Are the Things’ , released as Ernest Vantrease with the McDaniel and Mary Street Band in 1970.

I hope you dig the tunes (make sure to grab Monday’s mix) , and I’ll see you all 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.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (1)

By Larry, March 6, 2016 11:33 am

Funky16Corners Presents – Funky Music Is the Thing
Harvey Scales – Dancing Room Only (Casablanca)
Alvin Cash – Twine Time (XL)
Eddie Drennon and BBS Unlimited – Get Down Do the Latin Hustle (Friends and Co)
United Image – African Bump (Branding Iron)
Cookie Jarr and His Krums – Ain’t No Use Pt1 (Roulette)
Willie Henderson and the Soul Explosions – Is it Something You’ve Got (Brunswick)
Robert Parker – Get To Steppin’ (Island)
Seven Seas – Pat’s Jam (Glades)
Dave Richmond – Phase Out (KPM)
Frankie Gee – Date With the Rain (Claridge)
Hack Bartholomew – La La You (CTI)
Lyn Collins – Give It Up or Turnit A Loose (People)
Rimshots – Do What You Feel Pt2 (Stang)
Jr Walker and the All Stars – Gimme That Beat Pt2 (Soul)
The Brothers – Fire (RCA)
Dynamic Corvettes- Funky Music Is the Thing (Abet)
Maceo and the Kings Men – Thank You Fallettinme Be Mice Elf Agin Pt2 (House of the Fox)
Bobby Keys – Gimme the Key (Ring’O)
Jimmy Bo Horne – Dance Across the Floor (Sunshine Sound)
ST4 – Funky (Scepter)

Listen/Download – Funky16Corners Presents: Funky Music Is the Thing 113MB Mixed MP3

Greetings all.

I hope the new week finds you all well, at least well enough to get out on the floor.

A while back, I took my son out for a long-promised digging session at one of the few decent local record stores. He grabbed himself a bunch of LPs, while I scoured the 45 bins, picking up mostly disco 45s.

Most of the stuff I found fell on the funky side of things, and while listening to them, I started to work up  the mix you see before you today, in which that kind of thing is mixed in with more of the same, some slightly later, danceable funk, as well as a couple of unusual things that sounded right to me.

The hour-long mix is (with three exceptions) culled exclusively from 45s, heavy on the drums (there are a couple of nice breaks in there) and all right, tight and outtasite for the dance floor.

As always, I hope you dig it, and I’ll see you all 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.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

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By Larry, March 3, 2016 12:01 pm

Listen/Download – Shalamar – Simon’s Theme MP3

Greetings all.

Here’s a crazy one to close out the week, but first a message from our sponsor.

The end of the week is nigh, and so you should be on the lookout for this week’s episode of the Funky16Corners Radio Show – dropping a day early this week –  in which I (as always) endeavor to bring you the finest in funk, soul, jazz and rare groove, all on original vinyl. You can subscribe to the show as a podcast in iTunes, listen on your mobile device via the TuneIn app, check iut out on Mixcloud, or grab yourself an MP3 right here at the blog.

Now, the record you see before you, a 12” single by Shalamar, might lead you to believe that you’re about to hear some late 70s/early 80s disco ish, featuring the voice of Jodi Watley (who doesn’t appear on this record). Not at all an unreasonable expectation, but as usual, I am here to confound you (and your expectations).

Fans of the history of Northern Soul will probably be familiar with the name Simon Soussan. His reputation (not all that healthy, as you’ll see if you go a-Googling) was as a producer, and popularizer/exploiter (good and bad) of Northern Soul and disco sounds.

There are countless stories about Soussan and his comings/goings/working on the music scene, including the propagation of one of the few known copies of Frank Wilson’s ‘Do I Love You’ via the world of bootlegs/carvers.

That said, the record you see before you today was the very first release by the group Shalamar, created by Soussan and Dick Griffey.

The topside of this 12” was a Stars on 45-type medley of 1960s Motown classics presented with a disco beat called ‘Uptown Festival’ (which was a US R&B Top 10 hit in 1977, making it into the Pop Top 30).

The side I bring you today, ‘Simon’s Theme’ struck me the first time I heard it (thank you Soul Chef) as a very modern take on the Northern Soul sound (though not too modern to spin for a Northern dance floor).

‘Simon’s Theme’ features the famous four-on-the-floor beat, vibes and strings and a melody full of hooks, that had it been produced in the 60s, would fit right in on any Northern Soul playlist, and (as they used to say) therein lies the rub.

You see, the song had been recorded in the 1960s, by an Allentown, PA group called Father’s Angels, under the title ‘Bok to Bach’. The song was originally issued in the UK as a b-side (to a song called ‘Don’t Knock It’), where it languished for a few years before being discovered by the Northern Soul scene, where it would go on to be a huge hit (and re-pressed a number of times).

So, when Simon Soussan went into the studio in 1977, he rather conveniently (for him) “borrowed” (cough, cough…) the entire melody of the song, retitled it ‘Simon’s Theme’ and tacked it onto the b-side of a disco single.

How’s about that for balls?

Soussan went on to be a successful producer of disco records, but he seems to have left quite a bad taste in the mouths of the Northern Soul scene, especially among record collectors/dealers, after which he appears to have disappeared into the ether.

Either way. It’s a crazy story, and a pretty cool record.

I hope you dig it, 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 (1)

By Larry, February 14, 2016 12:57 pm

Listen/Download – One G Plus Three – Poquito Soul MP3

Greetings all.

While browsing through the great, digital repository of records that I have converted from grooves into ones and zeros in furtherance of this here blog, I stumbled over this 45, which I picked up a long time ago and for some unknown reason – now lost to time – forgot to offer up to you.

The disc in question is a tasty slice of East LA Hammond action, courtesy of the group calling themselves One G Plus Three, or as is explained on the label, ‘Mas Chicano + One Gringo’).

Though both sides of this disc are very cool (the flip being a groovy reworking of Gershwin’s ‘Summertime’) I will stick with the A-side, ‘Poquito Soul’.

I do so, since ‘Poquito Soul’ was a minor hit in Southern California (and a few other markets) in 1970, but also because it’s popularity can probably be ascribed to its sailing in the wake of a much bigger hit by another band of Chicanos.

If you give ‘Poquito Soul’ a couple of listens, another languid groover might start to come to mind, that being El Chicano’s version of Gerald Wilson’s ‘Viva Tirado’, which was a substantial hit in the Spring of 1970, all over the country, but especially in SoCal.

Their hit spawned a bunch of covers, and it would seem a few imitators, of which I would venture to say, ‘Poquito Soul’ (which hit the charts in the late Summer of 1970) is one.

The group, Randy Thomas (the ‘Gringo’) on organ, Rudy Salas on guitar, Max Garduno on percussion and Manny Mosqueda on drums, recorded only this one 45, released first on Eddie Davis’s Gordo label, then picked up for national distribution by Paramount.

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

I’ll be back 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.

PS Head over to Iron Leg too.

Comments (0)

By Larry, January 28, 2016 1:07 pm

Willie Mitchell

Listen/Download – Willie Mitchell – Pearl Time MP3

Greetings all.

The end of he week is upon us, and so I will remind you once again to check out the Funky16Corners Radio Show podcast, which drops every Friday, bringing you the finest in funk, soul, jazz and rare groove all on original vinyl. You can subscribe to the show as a podcast in iTunes, listen on your mobile device via the TuneIn app, groove to it on Mixcloud, or grab and MP3 right here at the blog.

We close out the week with one master of soul – Willie Mitchell – covering another – Andre Williams.

I picked up my copy of Mitchell’s 1968 ‘Soul Serenade’ LP years ago, but only recently realized that it included a cover of Andre Williams 1967 single ‘Pearl Time’.

My best guess is that I couldn’t imagine anyone outside of Detroit or Chicago covering an obscure Williams tune, but as it turns out, it wasn’t quite as obscure as I thought.

After doing a little research (or more than I had done before) I found out that though Williams original version of ‘Pearl Time’ didn’t hit the R&B charts, it was a minor pop hit, generating some heat in the Midwest and the Northeast.

Willie Mitchell recorded his version in 1968, alongside covers of tunes by James Brown, Otis Redding and Bobby Hebb among others.

Mitchell’s take includes a robust horn section and a slightly cheesy (in a good way, natch…) organ over some tight drums, with Mitchell just about speaking the lyrics.

I dig it a lot, and I hope you do, too.

Have yourselves a great weekend,and I’ll see you all on Monday.

Keep the faith

Larry

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