I'm amazed that Tennyson Stephens is such a mystery figure; even though his career in music has spanned more than 50 years, little is known about the man. He has been a part of Honolulu's live jazz scene for many years, and also cut a highly regarded jazz LP with Phil Upchurch in the mid 70's in addition to releasing a small handful of soul 45's.
This great side certainly has a mysterious vibe, and I believe that it is his debut disc, and one that shows off his fantastic, rich voice to great effect. The song has a fantastic groove and a very sophisticated jazzy soul sound; in fact, it sounds several years ahead of its release date!
from 1961...
TENNYSON STEPHENS - RAIN, RAIN, RAIN
Great record. And I totally agree with you - I'd have placed this as from 1966 or 67. It definitely has that James Brown funky groove thing going on.
ReplyDeleteLove this. Thank you.
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