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

 

 

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Also, the brand new Funky16Corners ‘Keep Calm and Stay Funky’ stickers have arrived!

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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.

One Response to “Dave Hamilton and his Peppers – Beatle Walk”

1. ady croasdell says:

   November 8, 2017 at 10:13 am

   This was actually recorded at least 3 years earlier when it came out as ‘Cooter Bug’ on Hi-Q in 1961, the flip was also re-named from ‘Donna’s Cha Cha’ to ‘The Argentina’. Fortune and Hi-Q were from the same owners.