Ground control to Major Lance

If there isn't a plaque on a wall or a monument somewhere at Wells High School in Chicago celebrating it's role in the cities musical history there certainly should be, because at one point Curtis Mayfield, Jerry Butler and Major Lance were all pupils there. Lance may be the least widely-known of the three these days but he was the top-selling act on Okeh Records during the 60s with a string of big hits like "The Monkey Time" and "Um, Um, Um, Um, Um, Um" (is that enough Ums?)

Lance had a warm, sweet voice and his records had the signature smooth and airy sound of Chicago Soul very similar to what The Impressions were also doing at the time. Not surprising really because the majority of his hits were written by Curtis Mayfield and the backing harmonies were usually by The Impressions themselves. "Rhythm" was a 1964 single and another big seller from the pen of Mayfield. Though Lance's records were usually too cool and sophisticated to work up a real sweat the swinging Latin-flavoured beat and vampy brass on this gives off quite a bit of sultry steam. The snazzy production by Carl Davis is right on the uptown money.

Unfortunately Lance's success at Okeh petered out by the end of the 60s and he spent years jumping between record labels and lived in England for a while milking his popularity on the Northern Soul scene. Then he spent four years in prison for dealing cocaine and... well, who cares about that stuff? Lance died in 1994. If you like that sweet Chicago Soul sound you'll want to get "The Very Best of Major Lance."

[Download]
Rhythm - Major Lance

Boogie Friday

Wally Jump Jr. and The Criminal Element Orchestra were aliases of producer Arthur Baker which first made an appearance with the rollocking club classic "Put The Needle On The Record" in 1986 which stitched together samples from Prince and Jody Watley over a massive live drum workout by Keith LeBlanc. For "Tighten Up (I Just Can't Stop Dancing)" the following year he was joined by singer Will Downing and Donny Calvin from Rocker's Revenge. This is another sample-happy dancefloor burner which uses Archie Bell & The Drell's soul classics together with a tiny pinch of Janet Jackson's "When I Think Of You" and another piledriving drum beat (LeBlanc again?) that charges along like a herd of stampeding elephants.

I've featured more sophisticated records on Boogie Friday before, but not many that are this enjoyable. It sounds to me like Baker just wanted have some fun in the studio mixing old and new shit up. And you should have some big fun dancing to it. Get The Best Of Wally Jump Jr. if you feel like it.


[Download]
Tighten Up (I Just Can't Stop Dancing) - Wally Jump Jr. & The Criminal Element

Blue-Eyed Rod

When writing about Rod Stewart it's compulsory to use phrases like "wasted talent" "used to be great" and "leggy blondes." By now we all know the story of the guy with the great white soul voice who put out a series of classic albums in the early 70s that brilliantly blended rock, folk and soul and then completely lost the plot because of fame, wealth and Britt Eckland. But there are probably some young whippersnappers out there who only know him as the wheezy singer of Cole Porter tunes your Grandma likes and the randy old goat who married Rachel Hunter so here's a taste of Rod at the height of his glory.

His 1971 album "Every Picture Tells A Story" is probably the best of his early records, this is the one with "Maggie May" which made him a superstar and sent him on the road that lead to "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy" and other embarrassments. From that album comes his cover of The Temptations "(I Know) I'm Losing You" which is just amazing. I hate to commit soul blasphemy but I think this is better than the Temps' version. You can hear what a great white soul singer Rod used to be (he worshipped at the altar of Sam Cooke) and the backing by The Faces is blazingly tough and kicks harder than a boot in the balls. Turn it up.

[Download]
(I Know) I'm Losing You - Rod Stewart

The Wicked

Another great one bites the dust. Wilson Pickett was probably the roughest and rawest soul singer ever to make the pop charts. He had a big, explosive voice that ate songs alive and was perfect for the tough, punchy sound of Stax. They really don't make them like him anymore and I have a horrible feeling that an era is slipping away. I sure hope Percy Sledge is feeling alright.

Though Pickett's forté was meaty stompers like "The Midnight Hour" my favourite track of his is a ballad. "I'm In Love" was a single from 1968 written by Bobby Womack, it's a happy, blissful song but with the wrenching way he sings it you feel that being in love can be a painful, intense experience too. Just sublime.

[Download]
I'm In Love - Wilson Pickett

Boogie Friday

Mad, bad and dangerous to know, Grace Jones was something of an icon before she even made a record. Working as a model in 70s New York she was already a face on the Studio 54 disco scene when she cut her first album "Portfolio" in 1977. Her early records weren't huge commerically but she was a big hit on the gay scene and earned the title "Queen of the Gay Discos." Not that there's anything wrong with that, but come the 80s Grace had a makeover. Her stylist/photographer boyfriend Jean Paul Goude gave her a sharper, more avant garde image and her records gained a modern, sleek funk/reggae/new wave sound to go with it courtesy of producer Alex Sadkin and the killer rhythm section of Sly and Robbie.

This collaboration produced three albums between 1980-82, the most successful of which was the second one "Nightclubbing." The third album "Living My Life" didn't do as well but was still pretty damn good and spawned the single "Nipple To The Bottle." This is very similar in style to her earlier hit "Pull Up To The Bumper" which is a polite way of saying it rips off the same beat. But it's a bloody good beat, powerful and pumping like a big, expensive German car. The song (co-written by Grace and Sly Dunbar) is a savage bitch slap to some man who acts like a baby and Grace isn't the sort of woman to suffer fools gladly. She delivers her lines with such withering venom I almost feel sorry for the poor bastard. We can't all be Dolph Lungren I guess.

"Living My Life" doesn't appear to be in print anymore but this is the 12" version that isn't on the album anyway, you can get it on the 2-CD set "The Compass Point Sessions" or "The Millennium Collection" if you don't want to shell out for the former. While you're in a Grace frame of mind be sure to visit her, um, interesting personal web site.

[Download]
Nipple To The Bottle - Grace Jones

What Tyme Is It?

It's time for a good old-fashioned Northern stomper. The Tymes have been around for donkey's years, they started out singing together way back in 1956 and appear to be still going today with pretty much the same line-up. They scored a hit with their first single "So Much In Love" in 1963 and had a couple more after that before success deserted them and they drifted between labels for a few years, then emerged again in the early 70s as a slick Philly soul act with the hits " Miss Grace" and "You Little Trustmaker" (which I used to sing as "you little trussmaker" when I was a kid - I was such a wag.) If you want a more detailed bio of the group go here.

"What Would I Do" is a thumping great single from 1966 that wasn't a hit except on the talcum-covered dancefloors of Northern England. This is catchy as hell with a chunky big beat that slaps you over the head and demands that you dance. I don't know if the "Bell" credited as writer of this is Philly Soul legend Thom Bell but it could be. There doesn't seem to be a decent Tymes compilation out there but this crops up on a couple of collections like the terrific "Big City Soul Vol. 3."

[Download]
What Would I Do - The Tymes

The Hit Side

Last week the mighty fine Funky 16 Corners blog posted the track "Shimmy" by Toussaint McCall which was the B-side of his most famous track "Nothing Takes The Place Of You." As I'm nowhere near as cool and hip as Larry I'm posting the popular A-side because - obscurity be damned - it's a drop-dead gorgeous record. Not that this was a monster success, it made #5 R&B and #22 in the pop charts in 1967 and was McCall's only hit so it 's not as if I'm posting some Motown chart topper or anything anyway. Whereas "Shimmy" was a down and dirty organ instrumental this is a gentle and delicate ballad that sends a shiver up the spine. Late night soul doesn't get more lonely sounding than this. Listen and weep, then buy "Nothing Takes The Place Of You: The Ronn Recordings".

[Download]
Nothing Takes The Place Of You - Toussaint McCall

Boogie Friday

Who the bloody hell were Julia and Company? I've not been able to find diddly squat about them. It says on the label that this was produced and co-written by some bloke called David Ylvisaker if that means anything to anyone. It doesn't to me. Whatever. "Breakin' Down (Sugar Samba)" is a classic, classic dance track anyway you look at it. It has an slinky Latin Funk groove with just a tinge of smoky Jazz sexiness and the sort of hedonistic exhilaration that makes you feel good all over. It came out in 1983 but with it's sexy uptown vibe and sophisticated production I don't think it would have sounded too out of place in the glittery temples of 70s disco. This is the 12" version which lasts 7 minutes and I still don't think it's long enough. I assume this appears on lots of dance compilations but I've not been able to find one, which is a bit odd I must say.

(The above picture bears no relation to Julia or her Company. It's just some foxy Brazilian lady doing the Samba. I thought it went well with the record.)

[Download]
Breakin' Down (Sugar Samba) - Julia and Company

Miss Jones

When Marc Bolan died in 1977 it didn't take long for the sick jokes to start circulating round my school playground, like "What was Marc Bolan's last hit?" "A tree." Ho ho!

If we'd been a bit older and hipper we would have known that the woman behind the wheel of the car that tragic night was also the person responsible for one of the biggest Northern Soul anthems of all time. That was Gloria Jones and "Tainted Love" of course. Gloria had moved to England because of her cult success on the Northern scene and somehow ended up joining T. Rex where she sang and played keyboards, then became romantically involved with Bolan and had a child with him. Her solo career before that hadn't amounted to much hit-wise, in addition to "Tainted Love" in 1964 she recorded a handful of singles for the Minit and Uptown labels, none of which did anything. Her earlier backing vocal work was a different story though, as a member of The Dreamers and then The Blossoms she sang on Etta James' "Good Rocking Daddy" Sam Cooke's "Chain Gang" The Ronettes' "Be My Baby" and Bobby Pickett's "Monster Mash" amongst others.

"When He Touches Me" was one her Minit singles and when I hear this I wonder why she never made it big (or at least bigger), she certainly had the vocal chops of other, more famous Southern Soul belles. This is a classic deep ballad that's been recorded by a few other soul acts and Gloria's version is about the best I've heard. This is a song that requires intense passion and she uses her big, powerful voice to wring out every ounce of emotion in it. Unfortunately there doesn't appear to be an album of her 60s material (she didn't record a whole lot anyway) but you can get this on "Deep Soul Inferno." She made a couple of albums in the 70s, one of which was produced by Bolan, but they're not in print anymore and I've no idea what she's up to these days.

[Download]
When He Touches Me - Gloria Jones

You'll Never Find Another Love Like Lou

Well 2006 has gotten off to a crummy start with the sad news that Lou Rawls has died of cancer at the age of 72. His warm and silky voice was one of the most inviting and pleasurable sounds in all of music, hearing him was like having your ears dipped in thick hot chocolate. There's no way I can sum up the life of the man in one post (there are excellent obits here and here) so let's just get to the music. It was damn hard to pick just one or two songs so I ended up with a range that shows his versatility, think of this as a mini-album called "The Many Sides of Lou Rawls."

Surprisingly for someone who started his singing career in gospel music (with his school friend Sam Cooke) his first solo albums on Capitol cast him in the mold of a smooth, tuxedo-wearing jazz crooner, but his blues and gospel roots were never far below the surface. "I'd Rather Drink Muddy Water" is a finger-snapping swinger from his classic 1966 album "Live!" Hard to imagine a singer like Lou breaking a sweat but he really gets down and gritty on this.

Lou's more soulful side is evident on "Love Is A Hurting Thing" which is probably my favourite recording of his and one of his biggest hits (sometimes sheer quality wins out over hipster obscurity when choosing music for this blog). He really soars on this gorgeous, emotional ballad from the album "Soulin'" which was the first of a series he made with cult producer David Axelrod. Lou really found his own niche on these albums which drew on the full range of his unique jazz/soul/pop chops with inspired production by Axelrod and arrangements by H. B. Barnum. For the hell of it I've thrown in the peculiar but strangely lovely "Down Here On The Ground" which shows if nothing else that Lou could sing sappy 60s psychedelic dreampop too. This Lalo Schifrin tune was used in the soundtrack of "Cool Hand Luke." The best of his brilliant Axelrod collaborations are collected on "I Can't Make It Alone: The Axelrod Years."

In the 70s Lou signed with Gamble & Huff's Philadelphia International and enjoyed a second career as an uptown soul man. Hits like the swish "See You When I Git There" from 1977 show how his voice was well-suited to the sophisticated sound of Philly Soul, with his masculine baritone he gave Teddy Pendergrass a run for his money in the soul loverman stakes. Who could resist that voice? I've not been able to find a really great compilation of his Philly recordings but you can get this on 'Love Songs."

RIP Lou. One classy dude.

[Download]
I'd Rather Drink Muddy Water - Lou Rawls
Love Is A Hurtin' Thing - Lou Rawls
Down Here On The Ground - Lou Rawls
See You When I Git There - Lou Rawls

Boogie Friday

Sticking with the same late 80s/early 90s London club scene that also produced Galliano (and The Young Disciples, Omar, The Brand New Heavies etc.) comes more Rare Groove-Acid Jazz fabulousness. "The Masterplan" probably defines that whole era more for me than any other record, this 1990 classic was a bit of an anthem back then and always got people moving and grooving and going "yeah yeah yeah." Just hearing that brilliant piano riff takes me back to clubs like Subterrania and The Good, The Bad & The Ugly and a time when I still had the hips to dance all night long.

In true British club music style Barrie K. Sharpe was a DJ and clothes designer (at The Duffer of St. George in Soho) before making records of his own. I don't know a lot about Diana Brown, she also made some records under the name Diana Brown & The Brothers and I think is still around today. I believe that James Taylor (not that one, the Acid Jazz organ player) and one of The Young Disciples play on this but don't quote me on that. Barrie and Diane made one album together called "The Black, The White, The Yellow And The Brown (And Don't Forget The Redman)" which isn't in print anymore. Luckily this crops up on several CDs so you shouldn't have much trouble finding it.

Sorry about the crackles at the start of this, the price of well-played vinyl I'm afraid. I do have this on CD (on the brilliant but sadly deleted "Back To Love" compilation) but it sounded way too fast for some reason. Maybe it's my turntable that's too slow but this sounds just right to me.

[Download]
The Masterplan - Diana Brown & Barrie K. Sharpe

Saucy and Sassy

Something a bit different to start 2006.

Dinah Washington (left) is by far my favourite female Jazz singer, she's not as smooth as Ella or as heartbreaking as Billie, but there's a girlish charm to her voice that I find irresistable. Whether she's singing jazz, blues, R&B, pop - and she could do it all - her personality just shines through. "TV Is The Thing This Year" is a swinging, brillantly bawdy tune from 1953 loaded with more double entendres than a Carry On movie that's just perfect for Dinah's flirty voice. You don't have to be a mastermind to realize she's not actually singing about television. I love the organ at the start of this too, it sounds like something from a cheesy game show. Get it on "Dinah Washington's Finest Hour."

Annisteen Allen (real name Ernestine) was a big-voiced blues singer who made her name singing with the Lucky Millinder Orchestra in the 40s and 50s. Millinder's band were one of the pioneering jump blues acts who helped in the creation of R&B and included such luminaries as Bill Doggett, Wynonie Harris and Bull Moose Jackson in their lineup. Allen cut several solo records (with the Millinder Orchestra backing her up) on the Federal and King labels before signing with Capitol where she released the fabulous "Fujiyama Mama" in 1954. Her sassy vocal on this is the very definition of "attitude" as she reaches out of the speakers and grabs you by the throat (or the balls more like), literally threatening to go nuclear on your ass. This was a big hit and ended up being covered by rockabilly belle Wanda Jackson. "Classics 1945-1953" is a terrific album that collects the best of her King/Federal recordings but the only CD I can find "Fujiyama Mama" on is "1954: The Year That Rocked The World."

[Download]
TV Is The Thing This Year - Dinah Washington
Fujiyama Mama - Annisteen Allen