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By Larry, July 20, 2014 11:45 am

Sam and Dave

Listen/Download Sam and Dave – I Can’t Stand Up For Falling Down

Greetings all

The summer is in full swing.

The thickness of the air does however force one to slow down a bit, and in times like these I develop a taste for deep soul.

Earlier this year I had the great honor to meet and DJ for the mighty David Porter.

Alongside Isaac Hayes, Porter was part of one of the great songwriting teams of the classic soul era.

As it happens, not long after that night, I got my hands on Robert Gordon’s ‘Respect Yourself: Stax Records and the Soul Explosion’ (highly recommended).

The combination of these two things had me digging deep in my own crates and doing some intense listening to all things Stax and Stax-related.

Aside from the pure pleasure of digging all that amazing music, I came out of it with a new, deeper appreciation for Sam Moore.

I have always had a pet peeve of sorts in regard to amazing soul singers – Levi Stubbs especially – who ought to be placed in the pantheon of the greats, alongside Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett, yet seem trapped withing the group identity.

No matter how great he was, Levi Stubbs will forever be ‘Levi Stubbs of the Four Tops’, and Sam Moore, will always be ‘Sam’ of Sam and Dave.

This is not to cast aspersions on Dave Prater, a great singer in his own right, but rather to focus on the fact that Sam Moore was possessed of a voice that had few equals, at Stax or anywhere else.

The fact that what we consider to be soul music would not exist without deep and strong gospel roots is something that a lot of people need to be reminded of.

Though gospel music is in the midst of a collector’s renaissance, the average listener rarely makes the connections between the amen corner and the soulful sounds they hear on their favorite oldies station.

Both Sam Moore and Dave Prater got their start singing in church, and their vocal stylings, as individuals and in their interplay as a duo, brought that training to the fore.

The record I bring you today is a tune that I first came to know via the (much faster) 1980 cover by Elvis Costello and the Attractions.

The first time I heard the original 1967 version by Sam and Dave, the radical difference in presentation gave me pause.

Co-written by the mighty Homer Banks and Allen Jones, the song is the deep, gospel confessional channeled through romantic regret. Instead of confessing their sins before the congregation, Sam and Dave deliver a sermon about broken hearts.

‘I Can’t Stand Up For Falling Down’ is a great window into the duo’s technique, both individually and in tandem.

Moore takes the opening verse, with its amazing line ‘I’ve tasted the bitterness of my own tears’ and his clear, high tenor soars into the rafters.

Prater follows in the second verse, his grittier voice (punctuated by Moore’s cries) coming from another place entirely.

The singers join together on the chorus, and then in the bridge, where the record finds its only odd note, with Moore taking the line ‘But that won’t stop me from loving you’ and changing it to ‘But that can’t stop Sam and Dave from loving you.’*

‘I Can’t Stand Up For Falling Down’ is hardly the only great performance in the Sam and Dave discography, but it is one of the finest, as well as one of the greatest ballads in the entirety of the Stax catalog.

If you haven’t given them a good listen lately, take your Sam and Dave 45s out, dust them off and dig in.

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

Keep the faith

Larry

*Listen, it’s none of my business what Sam and Dave did in their free time…

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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.

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By Larry, July 17, 2014 7:01 pm

Clarence Curvan

Listen/Download Clarence Curvan – Feeling Nice

Greetings all

The end of the week is at hand, and so I will remind you once again that the Funky16Corners Radio Show takes to the airwaves of the interwebs each and every Friday night at 9PM on Viva Radio. If you cannot be there at airtime, you can subscribe to the show as a podcast in iTunes, or grab yourself an MP3 out of the Archive here at the blog.

The song I bring you today is one of those ‘white whale’ 45s that I chased (fruitlessly) for years.

I first heard Clarence Curvan’s ‘Feeling Nice’ many years ago when the esteemed Dave Withers did a guest set at the Asbury Park 45 Sessions.

As soon as the needle hit the record I was running up to the decks to see what the song was.

I plugged the info into my (old) phone, and started looking.

It bears mentioning that that was two phones ago.

I had the record plugged into an E-Bay saved search, which continually came up snake eyes.

I had all but given up hope that I would ever get my hands on a copy of the 45 (It popped up once but got bid out of my grasp pretty quickly), when it finally showed up early this year.

This time (thanks to a healthier bid..cough..) I prevailed, and in a few short weeks ‘Feeling Nice’ was heating up my play box.

Clarence Curvan was a Trinidadian drummer/bandleader who recorded traditional island sounds and calypso as well as soul and funk over the years.

He and his band migrated to the United States in the early 70s, where they recorded ‘Feeling Nice’ for Brooklyn-based Charlies Records.

‘Feeling Nice’ is as aggressive an ode to the wonders of the kind bud as has ever been laid down (maybe a little too aggressive for most folks smoking it…), but one shouldn’t let that get in the way of a good party, and this party is GOOD.

The bass (especially groovy), organ and guitar chug alongside the drums with a wailing vocal, all over a funky rhythm with a distinct island flavor.

So slip this one onto your podlike thingy, make yourself up a nice, fruity tropical drink and start dancing.

Have a great weekend.

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.

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By Larry, July 15, 2014 12:10 pm

Joe Williams

Listen/Download Joe Williams and the Jazz Orchestra – Get Out of My Life

Greetings all

I thought I’d whip something as smooth and delicious as a snifter of cognac on you this fine day.

Years ago I remember watching a documentary in which someone was talking about Burt Bacharach, and remarking on how when he arranged a song, they were so important to the structure of a number, that the elements of the arrangement often remained in plce when the song was covered.

Such is the case with renditions of Lee Dorsey’s (written by the mighty Allen Toussaint) 1966 hit (R&B Top 5, Pop Top50) hit ‘Get Out of My Life, Woman’.

No matter who decided to cover it, from rock bands like the Leaves/Q65, soul artists like Solomon Burke/Wilmer and the Dukes, to jazzers like Jimmy Smith and George Semper, you always seem to get that funky, loping, New Orleans drum figure kicking open the door at the beginning.

The version I bring you today is very groovy, and in the words of Slim Gaillard, mellow as a cello.

Performed by legendary jazz singer Joe Williams, backed by the Thad Jones big band, ‘Get Out of My Life’ (‘Woman’ symbolically, our of his life, and the title) was recorded in 1966 for the Solid State label.

Taken at a relaxed, yet solid pace, with an outstanding vocal by Williams, the recording also features (at around six seconds in) one of the tastiest, choppable/loopable bits of sound ever laid down.

So tasty, that it was sampled more than a dozen times* by cats like Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie, Doug E Fresh and Pete Nice, which is why when copies turn up, they change hands for a few dollars more than your average Solid State 45.

As soul jazz 45s go, it’s one of those biscuits that you can just put on repeat and soak in it like a tub of warm water.

I hope you dig it (I know I do).

Keep the faith

Larry

 *Songs that sampled Joe Williams ‘Get Out of My Life’:
    Big Daddy Kane’s “Very Special”
     Biz Markie’s “Funk is Back”
     Double XX Posse’s “Ruffneck”
     Doug E Fresh’s “Bounce”
     Funkdoobiest’s “I’m Shittin’ on ‘Em”
     Jill Scott’s “Brotha”
     Kool G Rap’s “Ill Street Blues”
     Main Source’s “How My Man Went Down in the Game”
     Pete Nice’s “Outta My Way Baby”
     Queen Latifah’s “Latifah’s Had it up 2 Here”
     Shabazz the Disciple’s “Party with a Tec”
     Skoolbeats’s “Outta My Way”
     UMC’s “Woman Be Out”

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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.

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By Larry, July 13, 2014 1:01 pm

Boz Scaggs

Listen/Download Boz Scaggs – Hercules

Greetings all

When I was picking through tracks trying to decide on something to start the week, my natural inclination was to go back into the dark recesses of the archives, yet I was met time and time again by the siren song of something brand new.

Not long ago, while searching for something else entirely (as is often the case)I happened upon a completely unexpected cover version of a familiar song.

I first heard Aaron Neville’s original version of ‘Hercules’ (written by Allen Toussaint) close to 15 years ago on an old Charly Records CD comp of New Orleans soul and funk.

The song –a very tasty groove indeed – lodged in my consciousness soon after when I realized that the original 45 – of which there are very few – had become a sought after disc among collectors of my ilk.

While I have never encountered a copy myself, I remain on the lookout.

That said, while seeking something else Toussaint-related, I came across a listing for a cover of ‘Hercules’, by none other than Boz Scaggs.

Now, if you grew up in the 70s (like me, for instance) the sounds of Mr Scaggs were inescapable. He had a number of big hits in the decade, including groovers like ‘Lowdown’ and ‘Lido Shuffle’.

It was only many years later that I discovered that he had a much deeper history, having recorded his first solo records in the 60s, and spent time as a sideman with the early Steve Miller Band.

When I discovered that Scaggs had covered ‘Hercules’, I set out in search of a copy of the record, which proved both easy and cheap.

Appearing on his 1974 LP ‘Slow Dancer’, Scaggs’ version of ‘Hercules’ is very groovy indeed.

Though it lacks some of the heat of the NOLA-based OG, it comes awfully close.

Produced by Johnny Bristol with arrangements by HB Barnum, this version of ‘Hercules’ is a funky, slow burner.

Scaggs takes the song at a slightly slower pace than Neville, but the groove here is deep indeed. The addition of strings gives this version a slightly smoother, nighttime vibe.

As far as I can tell, Boz Scaggs’ ‘Hercules’ has remained largely unnoticed for the last 40 years, instead of heating up dance floors, where it should have been. I suspect that this has something to do with Scaggs’ (somewhat undeserved) reputation as a middle-of-the-road pop artist.

Give this one a spin and then pass it on to someone who will dig it.

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.

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By Larry, July 10, 2014 1:07 pm

Roosevelt Grier (L), Clyde McPhatter (R)

Listen/Download Roosevelt Grier – In My Tenement

Listen/Download Clyde McPhatter – In My Tenement

Greetings all

The end of the week is approaching, so I thought I’d remind you that the Funky16Corners Radio Show takes to the airwaves of the interwebs each and every Friday night at 9PM on Viva Radio. If you prefer to do the pod-thing, you can subscribe to the show as a podcast in iTunes, or grab an MP3 out of the archive here at Funky16Corners.

The tune(s) I bring you today are one of the interesting intersections of artist and song that I’ve come across in the last few years.

I first heard of the song ‘In My Tenement’ (written by Bobby Scott and Artie Resnick) when I started researching the singer Jackie Shane (more here).

Not long after that I picked up a copy of Roosevelt Grier’s 1964 LP on the RIK label.

Grier, best known as a professional football player and TV personality had a very groovy sideline as a soul singer during the 60s. Many of the records he made during that period are quite good and I pick them up whenever I find them.

So, what turns up on Rosie’s LP but another version of ‘In My Tenement’, which as it turns out is also sought after in 45 form, often pulling in a couple of hundred bucks.

Then, a few months ago, while chasing down some of Clyde McPhatter’s later recordings, what do I encounter but his version of ‘In My Tenement’, also recorded and released in 1964.

The weird thing is, none of these recordings were hits, nor were they connected in any other way.

As far as I can tell Shane recorded in New York (with Juggy Murray), Grier in LA (with Bobby Darin!) and McPhatter somewhere (Nashville?) with Shelby Singleton.

The Shane and Grier versions are taken at a similar pace, with enough backbeat for the dancers (thus the cost of the 45s!), with McPhatter (more on his mid-60s recordings coming soon) taking things at a brisk pace.

I’m very curious about how the song got around so much.

There were always publisher’s demos circulating, so it’s possible that an aggressive song plugger got the tune to the right people.

Both Scott and Resnick were both successful songwriters (Scott had composed the music to ‘A Taste of Honey’, and Resnick would go on to be a mover in the the bubblegum sound later in the 60s).

The song was also covered by a group called the Lovers on the Agon label.

If anyone has any information on the history of the song (or any other versions) please let me know.

That said, have yourselves a groovy weekend, and I’ll see you all next week.

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.

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By Larry, July 8, 2014 1:19 pm

The Olympics

Listen/Download The Olympics – Mine Exclusively

Greetings all

The mid-week doldrums were creeping up on me, so I felt the need for some hard-charging Northern Soul.

The mighty Olympics were one of those lucky groups to straddle the eras of 50s R&B and 60s soul.

They had their first string of hits from 1958 to 1960 with tunes like ‘Western Movies’, ‘Big Boy Pete’ and ‘Baby (Hully Gully)’, all working a Coasters-type groove.

They continued to record for labels like Tri-Disc and Loma (where they waxed the original version of ‘Good Lovin’ in 1965) eventually landing at the storied LA soul label Mirwood.

It was with Mirwood that they would place two records in the R&B Top 30 in 1966, one of which is he record you see before you today, ‘Mine Exclusively’.

Co-written by Bob Relf and Sherlie Matthews, ‘Mine Exclusively’ is one of the finest soul dancers to come out of Los Angeles in the 60s.

Oddly enough, I first encountered the song in a long-lost 1988 film called ‘The In Crowd’.

The story of Philadelphia teens from opposite sides of the tracks meeting on a dance party show (with a host that bore an uncanny resemblance to Jerry ‘The Geator’ Blavat*).

The flick has lots of high energy dance scenes, and a surprisingly good soundtrack, featuring the Olympics, Tina Britt, the Marvelows, Five Du-Tones, Dobie Gray (of course), Wilson Pickett and more.

It’s a lot of fun, but doesn’t turn up much these days. It was never released on DVD and doesn’t make it onto TV too often.

That said, ‘Mine Exclusively’ opens with a powerful drum/handclaps combo and never lets up until the needle hits the run out groove. It’s a fine example of the kind of top notch records that Fred Smith and James Carmichael were making for Mirwood at the time.

I pick up Mirwood 45s wherever I find them, but if you’re not a wax-hound, you can grab the two excellent volumes of the The Mirwood Soul Story on CD or on iTunes. You will not be disappointed.

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

Keep the faith

Larry

*A resemblance so close that it was rumored to have resulted in legal action….

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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, July 1, 2014 12:53 pm

Miss Barbara Lynn

Listen/Download Barbara Lynn – I’m a Good Woman

Greetings all

Hows about traversing the middle of the week with something deep?

The record you see before you is one of those 45s that I chased for a long, long (loooong) time before I finally tackled it and tossed it into my record box.

‘I’m a Good Woman’ by Barbara Lynn is a popular side with DJs and collectors, and as a result it can be a little pricey and there’s a fair amount of competition when copies show up for sale.

This can be attributed 100 percent to the undeniable bad-ass-ness of the song/performance.

Barbara Lynn is one of the most underrated performers of the 60s and 70s, having had her biggest hit (‘You’ll Lose a Good Thing’) right out of the gate in 1962.

She wrote and recorded ‘I’m a Good Woman’ for the Tribe label in 1966,and despite its brilliance, it went exactly nowhere.

This might have something to do with the fact that ‘I’m a Good Woman’is something of a slow burner/builder.

It opens with a spellbinding (largely) a capella segment, and then starts stomping right away.

The rhythm section and the horns hit hard, and get harder as the song moves on.

I like to compare ‘I’m a Good Woman’ to a record like Tommy Tucker’s ‘Long Tall Shorty’, which starts off like a blues shuffle and turns into a buffalo stampede before you know it.

‘I’m a Good Woman’ is a solid dancer, which is why the DJs sweat it so hard.

All of that, and the fact that the song is a stone solid feminist statement.

Does it get any more plain spoken than ‘I’m a good woman, so don’t treat me like dirt!’ ?

No, it does not.

‘I’m a Good Woman’ has been covered over the years by artists like Cold Blood (very nice reading by Lydia Pense) and El Chicano, and there’s a very tasty modern cover by a UK group called Hannah Williams and the Tastemakers.

It is a killer.

Dig it and I’ll see you 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.

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, June 29, 2014 11:56 am

Bobby Womack

Listen/Download The Valentinos – It’s All Over Now

Listen/Download Percy Sledge – Baby Help Me

Listen/Download Bobby Womack – Take Me

Listen/Download Bobby Womack – A Simple Man

Listen/Download Sammy Gordon and the Hip Huggers – Breezin’

Listen/Download Bobby Womack and Peace – Across 110th Street

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Greetings all

Last week ended on a down note, with news of the passing of the mighty Bobby Womack.

Womack, who was 70, had fought multiple health-related battles over the past few years.

As has been stated in this space a few times in the past, I came to the music of Bobby Womack fairly late in the game.

Womack’s was one of those names that I ‘knew’ (that much was unavoidable) but his music was always just outside of my view.

Typical of my musical wandering, it was via his singing with his brothers in the Valentinos that I first heard his voice.

As an inveterate seeker of all things ‘original’, it was the Valentinos’ ‘It’s All Over Now’, covered by the Rolling Stones, that I had to put my hands on, and I was very happy to do so.

Over the years, thanks to reading about his exploits in a number of books, I became better acquainted with his life, and by picking up his records when I could, his music.

Discussing his passing with a friend on Facebook, I described Bobby Womack as a kind of ‘Zelig’ of soul (referencing the omnipresent Woody Allen character), popping up all over the musical landscape, working with artists like Sly Stone, Aretha Franklin and Janis Joplin over the years.

He got his start singing gospel with The Womack Brothers, that group evolving (much to their father’s consternation) into the R&B Valentinos.

Womack worked closely with Sam Cooke, and after that giant’s untimely death, eventually married his widow, a move that was reportedly so unpopular in the music business that it all but torpedoed his career at the time.

Through the 1960s Womack worked steadily as a guitarist (for Ray Charles, among others) and songwriter, composing a number of Wilson Pickett’s big hits (‘I’m In Love’ and ‘I’m a Midnight Mover’ among others), yet didn’t make it onto the charts under his own name until 1968 and ‘What Is This’, which started long string of R&B hits that lasted all the way until 1986.

The more I listen to his music, the more I realize that Bobby Womack should have been a much, bigger star. I think, had his string of hits started a few years earlier, he would be spoken of in the same breath as Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, Solomon Burke and the like.

He was a prodigiously talented artist, as able a composer and musician as he was a singer, able to mix and match those talents as needed.

That he was already held in that high esteem by soul fans is without question. The outpouring of sadness and respect I have seen over the past few days attests to that.

I have posted a number of Bobby Womack (and related) tracks in this space over the last half-dozen years. As I was digging through the archives, I pulled a number of those out, as well as something I’d been wanting to feature for a while.

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The first track is – of course – the Valentinos ‘It’s All Over Now’. Released in 1964 on Sam Cooke’s SAR label, but soon pushed out of the spotlight by the Rolling Stones cover, ‘It’s All Over Now’ is a fantastic piece of early West Coast soul, and maybe the grooviest record ever to feature both the glockenspiel and the tuba. It wasn’t the Valentinos biggest hit – ‘Lookin’ For a Love’ made it into the R&B Top 10 in 1962 – but it is nonetheless amazing.

Percy Sledge

Next up is a track from Womack’s songwriting days, just prior to his own chart ascendancy. ‘Baby Help Me’ was a minor hit for Percy Sledge in early 1967. It is a departure for Sledge, seeing him working the uptempo, soul shouting side of the street.

‘Take Me’ from 1968, was the flipside of his Top 20 R&B hit cover of ‘Fly Me To the Moon’. I am here to tell you – though you’d be able to pick up as much listening to the song – that this is not only one of Bobby Womack’s best (though, strangely enough, composed not by him, but by Big Dee Erwin/Ervin) but one of the finest soul records laid down in the 1960s.

Recorded in Memphis with the American Studios band (of whom Womack had been a part), ‘Take Me’ (this is the 45 mix, noticeably different from, and superior to the LP track) is a mid-tempo epic, with a powerful ascending horn chart, and an epic vocal by Bobby. There are times when this record can bring me to tears, it’s so good.

1971 found Womack in the studio with another Funky16Corners favorite, Gabor Szabo on the ‘High Contrast’ LP (Womack writing four of the album’s seven tracks). He presented Szabo with a new composition entitled ‘Breezin’, and the two of them grazed the R&B Top 40 with their version of the song.

A year later, NY-based Sammy Gordon and the Hiphuggers covered ‘Breezin’ for the Archives label. Gordon, who had come to New York (as did his cousin Benny, of Benny Gordon and the Soul Brothers) from the Carolinas, recorded a couple of excellent, funky 45s. Their amazing version of ‘Breezin’ went nowhere near the charts, but its loopable drum and bass opening (try to keep from nodding your head) and mellow groove is fantastic, and for me far superior to the better known, 1976 hit by George Benson.

The very funky ‘Simple Man’ (co-written with Joe Hicks) is one of my favorite tracks from Womack’s 1972 LP ‘Understanding, which also included ‘Woman’s Gotta Have It’ his first R&B #1 hit. The cut features a wild vocal by Bobby, some rolling electric piano and plenty of fuzz guitar.

I wanted to include Womack’s 1973 cover of Bob Dylan’s ‘All Along the Watchtower’. Recorded with the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section for the ‘Facts of Life’ album, it’s a hard rocking take on the tune, which sounds more like Neil Young than Jimi Hendrix, and is a great window into the complexity and variety of Womack’s sound.

The last track I’m posting today is Bobby Womack’s famous entry into the Blaxploitation world, 1973’s title track from the film ‘Across 100th Street’. A funky cut, with just enough strings (co-written with jazz trombonist JJ Johnson, who created much of the instrumental music on the soundtrack), it is pushed along by percussive keyboards and heavy bass. The song had a second life when Quentin Tarantino used it in his film ‘Jackie Brown’.

He continued to record through the 80s and 90s (having some of his biggest hits with the LPs ‘The Poet’ and ‘The Poet II” in 1981 and 1984 respectively), eventually guesting on the Gorillaz ‘Stylo’ in 2009 (the year he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame)

Bobby Womack was a master.

He will be missed.

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 26, 2014 4:22 pm

Theresa Lindsey

Listen/Download Theresa Lindsey – Daddy-O

Listen/Download Theresa Lindsey – I’ll Bet You

Greetings all

The weekend is looming, so I’ll remind you that the Funky16Corners Radio Show takes to the airwaves of the interwebs this and every Friday night at 9PM on Viva Radio. You can also partake in the soulfulness by subscribing to the show as a podcast in iTunes, or by grabbing an MP3 at the blog.

I’ve been wanting to drop today’s selection for a long time, but I wanted to wait until I was in the exactly right frame of mind.

A while back I was listening to Gail Smith’s most excellent ‘Work Your Soul’ podcast, when I encountered a song that shot right to all the soul-related pleasure centers of my brain. A quick glance at the playlist indicated that what I was digging was a tune called ‘Daddy-O’ by Theresa Lindsey.

Her name was already familiar as a Detroit-based singer who had recorded the original version of ‘I’ll Bet You’, which she co-wrote with George Clinton and Sidney Barnes (and was later recorded by Funkadelic, Billy Butler, Jean Carter and the Jackson Five).

What I discovered in short order (as soon as I set out in search of my own copy) was that ‘Daddy-O’ was the flipside of ‘I’ll Bet You’! Now I really had to get a copy!

Once I did (at what I would consider to be not too extreme an expense), I digimatized the 45 and played it over, and over and over again.

You see, ‘Daddy-O’ is one of the most sublime examples of the art form known as Detroit Soul that was ever created.

What you get here is a solid dancer’s beat, combined with a beautiful melody, a tight Detroit band and above all, the sexy, soulful delivery of Miss Theresa Lindsey.

This record is as close to perfect as it gets, my friends.

Opening with piano (the piano is really the heart of the band on this one), and then picking up with drums, vibes, bass and hand-claps, ‘Daddy-O’ is a showcase for Lindsey’s voice and the subtle backing vocals. There is no point where the essence of this record diverges from sublime wonderfulness, which makes it all the more surprising that it wasn’t a hit.

‘I’ll Bet You’ is taken at a brisk pace (much like the Billy Butler take from the following year) and features some tasty Dennis Coffey guitar licks.

Despite her obvious talents, Theresa Lindsey’s only chart success was a regional hit with her 1964 ‘Gotta Find a Way’ for the Correc-tone label.

Lindsey recorded a total of five singles, three for Correc-Tone, the one you see before you for Golden World, and then a UK-only release (recorded in New York) for the President label as ‘Terry Lindsey’.

Both sides of this 45 and some of her Correc-Tone recordings have been comped over the years, with both ‘Daddy-O’ and ‘I’ll Bet You’ currently available in iTunes (on a couple of shifty-looking comps).

That said, you can pull down the ones and zeros here, and bathe your ears in the goodness.

Have yourselves 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.

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, June 25, 2014 10:32 am

Carole King, Gerry Goffin and the Cookies

Listen/Download The Cookies – Chains

Greetings all

It is with this post that we resume regularly scheduled programming here at Funky16Corners.

I will take a moment here to give my deepest thanks to all of those that took part in the 2014 Allnighter and Pledge Drive, from the selectors that brought the heat, to the donors whose contributions will keep the lights on around here for another year.

This November will mark the tenth anniversary of the Funky16Corners Blog, and these pledge drives (this was the eighth year) always remind me of the generosity and dedication of the readership. That so many of you are willing to help keep this labor of love up and running warms my heart.

So thanks again, and stick around for more goodness.

__________________________________________________________________________________

I had something else lined up for today, but the word came down late last week that the great Gerry Goffin had passed away at the age of 75.

Whether or not you knew his name, you certainly knew the music he helped to create over a career that lasted half a century.

Starting in partnership with his then wife Carole King, Goffin wrote some of the most memorable pop and R&B songs of the 60s, 70s and 80s.

The list is incredibly long (flip on over to the Wikipedia article listing the charting hits from 1961 to 1989) and includes an amazing number of certifiable classics.

The sounds include straight pop, girl groups, R&B, soul and rock, many of them huge hits.

I was genuinely surprised to discover that following the dissolution of the Goffin-King marital and creative partnerships that Gerry Goffin continued to generate hits (with partners like Barry Goldberg and Michael Masser), including a number of very big R&B hits for artists like Gladys Knight and the Pips (I’ve Got To Use My Imagination), Diana Ross (The Theme From Mahogany), Roberta Flack and Peabo Bryson (Tonight I Celebrate My Love) and Whitney Houston (Saving All My Love For You, originally recorded by Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis, Jr.).

Though I count a numberof Goffin-King songs among my very favorites (especially the Monkees ‘Pleasant Valley Sunday’) one of the first songs of theirs that drilled its was into my head was a tune called ‘Chains’.

The version I first heard (on the very first record I ever bought) was the cover by the Beatles.

The VeeJay LP ‘Introducing the Beatles’ was a gateway for me into R&B and soul, introducing me to the Shirelles (Boys, Baby It’s You), Arthur Alexander (Anna), The Isley Brothers (Twist and Shout) and (as on the record you see before you today), the Cookies and ‘Chains’.

Over the next few years, I would hear (and dig) the original versions of almost all of those songs, with the exception of the Cookies.

The group had a small string of hits in 1962 and 1963, of which ‘Chains’ was the first, but ‘Don’t Say Nothing Bad (About My Baby)’ was the biggest, making it into the Pop and R&B Top 10. It was the latter song that got airplay on oldies radio.

It wasn’t until many years later that I finally heard their version of ‘Chains’ (and only a few months ago that I finally got a copy of the 45).

The line up of Cookies that recorded ‘Chains’ was the second incarnation of the group, with members of the first version (which included Margie Hendrix) going on to join the Raeletts.

The Cookies Mk2, which provided backing vocals on a number of other artist’s (Little Eva, Mel Torme) records, included Earl-Jean McRea (the lead on ‘Chains’), who went on to record the original version of ‘I’m Into Something Good’, another Goffin-King song that went on to be a huge hit for Herman’s Hermits.

‘Chains’, which made the R&B Top 10 (and the Pop Top 20) in December of 1962 is a great bit of early girl group soul, driven by the group’s harmonies (and handclaps), a ringing rhythm guitar, a bass that sounds like it’s coming from the subway, and interjections from the horn section.

Interestingly enough, the record was also produced by Gerry Goffin!

All in all, a great record, and a great way to remember a truly great songwriter.

See you on Friday.

Keep the faith

Larry

 NOTE: The winner of the ‘Soul City Los Angeles’ CD comp was Jeff Ash!

_________________________________________________________________________________________

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, June 22, 2014 1:49 pm

Funky16Corners: The New Breed
Homer Banks – A Lot of Love (Minit)
Robert Parker – Secret Service (Makes Me Nervous) (Nola)
Clyde McPhatter – A Shot of Rhythm and Blues (Amy)
Delores Hall – Good Lovin’ Man (Keymen)
Dusty Springfield – Can I Get a Witness (Philips)
Fabulous Emotions – Number One Fool (Tamboo)
JJ Barnes – Real Humdinger (Ric Tic)
Jackie Wilson – I’ve Lost You (Brunswick)
Linda Jones – You Can’t Take It (Loma)
Marvelettes – Danger Heartbreak Dead Ahead (Tamla)
Madeline Bell – Picture Me Gone (Philips)
Ron Moody and the Centaurs – The New Breed (Columbia)
Al Greene and the Soul Mates – Don’t Leave Me (Hot Line Music Journal)
Betty Harris – Mean Man (Sansu)
Theresa Lindsey – I’ll Bet You (Golden World)
Vibrations – Soul a Go Go (Okeh)
Bobby Sockers – Sock It To Me Bobby (RCA)
Jimmy Holiday – Love Me One More Time (Diplomacy)
The Soul Finders – Sweet Soul Music (Camden)
The Monitors – Number One In Your Heart (VIP)
Glories – (I Love You Babe But) Give Me My Freedom (Date)
Mamie Galore – It Ain’t Necessary (St Lawrence)
ZZ Hill – Don’t Make Promises (Kent)
Soul Brothers Six – Thank You Baby For Loving Me (Atlantic)

Listen/Download Funky16Corners Presents: Funky16Corners: The New Breed!

NOTE: Today’s mix is the final entry in the Funky16Corners 2014 Allnighter/Pledge Drive, and as is always the case, it’s yours truly, the proprietor batting clean-up.

Funky16Corners: The New Breed represents the best dance floor soul that has dropped into my record box in the last several months.

There are some real killers here, and you will certainly see many of them (and their stories) featured on the blog in the coming year.

Once again, I’d like to thank all the selectors for their mixes, and all of you readers/listeners for coming by to check it out, and helping to keep Funky16Corners up and running!

I’ll be back on Wednesday with the regular stuff, so stay tuned!

Larry

____________________________________________________________________________________________
Contest!

Anyone that donates today to the Allnighter/Pledge Drive will (in addition to getting the badge and stickers) be entered into a random drawing for a copy of the Fantastic Voyage 2-CD collection ‘Soul City Los Angeles’, a compilation of West Coast soul from labels like Arvee, Alladin, Liberty, Imperial, Ebb and SAR!
This is the final drawing for the Funky16Corners 2014 Allnighter/Pledge Drive!

___________________________________________________________________________

The winner of the Fantastic Voyage ‘Youths Boogie’ 2-CD comp is Rebecca Pang!
___________________________________________________________________________

Greetings all

Welcome to the 2014 edition of the Funky16Corners Allnighter/Pledge Drive.

This is the ninth annual Pledge Drive, and the fifth Allnighter.

If you haven’t experienced the Allnighter/Pledge Drive, it can be explained as thus: once a year, the Funky16Corners Blog, your home for the best in funk, soul, jazz and rare groove vinyl for almost 10 years comes to you with hand outstretched, asking for donations to offset the operating expenses of the web site.

The Funky16Corners ‘operation’ (as it is) included the Funky16Corners and Iron Leg blogs, the mix archives for both (containing well over 200 mixes), and the Funky16Corners Radio Show/Podcast (another 200+ files available for download, or through subscription in iTunes).

The money raised during the pledge drive goes to pay for the server space and fees associated with hosting the whole megillah.

As has been attested to many times in the past, Funky16Corners has humble beginnings, starting out on the old (free) Blogger service, moving to WordPress, and then to self-hosted WordPress. The move to paid hosting was necessitated by increased bandwidth usage, as well as the need for a place to store all the mixes (and eventually the radio show episodes).

The Allnighter/Pledge Drive is a once-yearly occurrence, in which yours truly, and some of the finest selectors out there whip up new mixes for your delectation.

In past years, I have posted all of the mixes in a single post, and left it up for a week.

This year, the quality and quantity of the mixes spurred me on to try something a little different, i.e. posting a new mix each weekday for a period of just over two weeks. This way, each selector gets their moment in the spotlight, and the mixes get spaced out so that the listeners don’t suffer from mix-fatigue.

Each day, you’ll get a fantastic mix (there really are some amazing ones this year) from one of my favorite DJs, many of whom have participated in the Allnighter before, as well as a couple of great new contributors.

So, if you dig what we do here at Funky16Corners, click on the Paypal link and toss some cash into the barrel.

Contributors will receive a 2014 Allnighter badge, as well as some stickers from the archive (as long as they last).

This year I will also be drawing the names of contributors at random for groovy swag, including CDs and 45s from Cultures of Soul, and CDs from Light in the Attic and Secret Stash.

So, dig the sounds for the next couple of weeks, and make sure you stop back on a daily basis to pick up new mixes and contribute for a chance to win some cool stuff.

Thanks, and as always,

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, June 19, 2014 11:18 am

DJ Bluewater – For the Cause
The Ethiopians – Headache
Al & The Vibrators – Check Up
Errol Dunkley – Love Another
Alton Ellis – Trying To Reach My Goal
John Holt – I’m Your Man
Bongo Herman – Dew of Herman
Prince Buster All Stars – The First Time I Met You
The Kingstonians – Kiss A Little Finger
King Stitt – I and I
The Maytals – Sweet And Dandy
Prince Buster – Closer Together
Ewan & The Soulcats – Keep It Moving
The Ethiopians – Promises
Delano Stewart – Stay A Little Bit Longer
The Melodians – Say Darling Say
Roland Alphonso – Peyton Place
Higgs & Wilson – Don’t Mind Me
Cynthia Richards – Foolish Fool
Roland Alphonso – Psycho Rhythmic
The Carib Beats – Munster’s Ska
The Gladiators – Re Arrange
Glen Adams – Miss Whiney
Freddy McKay – Love Is A Treasure
Vin Gordon – Vin’s Beat
Ernest Ranglin – Come Get Me

Listen/Download Funky16Corners Presents: DJ Bluewater – For the Cause

NOTE: Today’s mix is another oustanding collection of Jamaican sounds by my old Asbury Park 45 Sessions cohort DJ Bluewater.

Bluewater is always scouring the bins for the finest in rocksteady and reggae, and his mixes are always packed with heat.

‘For the Cause’ is no exception.

I hope you dig it, and I’ll be back on Monday with the last mix in the series.

Larry

____________________________________________________________________________________________
Contest!

Anyone that donates today to the Allnighter/Pledge Drive will (in addition to getting the badge and stickers) be entered into a random drawing for a copy of the Fantastic Voyage 2-CD collection ‘Youths Boogie: Jamaican R&B and the Birth of Ska’.
This is a very groovy comp of island sounds from 1959-1962 with a who’s who of future ska, rock steady and reggae stars like Laurel Aitken, Roland Alfonso, Owen Gray, Jackie Edwards and many more!
There will be more drawings over the next week for CDs by Fantastic Voyage, and 45s from Cultures of Soul!

___________________________________________________________________________

The winner of the Cultures of Soul Emanuel Taylor 45 is Ryan Bricker !
___________________________________________________________________________

Greetings all

Welcome to the 2014 edition of the Funky16Corners Allnighter/Pledge Drive.

This is the ninth annual Pledge Drive, and the fifth Allnighter.

If you haven’t experienced the Allnighter/Pledge Drive, it can be explained as thus: once a year, the Funky16Corners Blog, your home for the best in funk, soul, jazz and rare groove vinyl for almost 10 years comes to you with hand outstretched, asking for donations to offset the operating expenses of the web site.

The Funky16Corners ‘operation’ (as it is) included the Funky16Corners and Iron Leg blogs, the mix archives for both (containing well over 200 mixes), and the Funky16Corners Radio Show/Podcast (another 200+ files available for download, or through subscription in iTunes).

The money raised during the pledge drive goes to pay for the server space and fees associated with hosting the whole megillah.

As has been attested to many times in the past, Funky16Corners has humble beginnings, starting out on the old (free) Blogger service, moving to WordPress, and then to self-hosted WordPress. The move to paid hosting was necessitated by increased bandwidth usage, as well as the need for a place to store all the mixes (and eventually the radio show episodes).

The Allnighter/Pledge Drive is a once-yearly occurrence, in which yours truly, and some of the finest selectors out there whip up new mixes for your delectation.

In past years, I have posted all of the mixes in a single post, and left it up for a week.

This year, the quality and quantity of the mixes spurred me on to try something a little different, i.e. posting a new mix each weekday for a period of just over two weeks. This way, each selector gets their moment in the spotlight, and the mixes get spaced out so that the listeners don’t suffer from mix-fatigue.

Each day, you’ll get a fantastic mix (there really are some amazing ones this year) from one of my favorite DJs, many of whom have participated in the Allnighter before, as well as a couple of great new contributors.

So, if you dig what we do here at Funky16Corners, click on the Paypal link and toss some cash into the barrel.

Contributors will receive a 2014 Allnighter badge, as well as some stickers from the archive (as long as they last).

This year I will also be drawing the names of contributors at random for groovy swag, including CDs and 45s from Cultures of Soul, and CDs from Light in the Attic and Secret Stash.

So, dig the sounds for the next couple of weeks, and make sure you stop back on a daily basis to pick up new mixes and contribute for a chance to win some cool stuff.

Thanks, and as always,

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.