WILLIAM BELL - I FORGOT TO BE YOUR LOVER

An absolute classic of deep soul, william Bell achieved the highest possible level of performance on this record. Not to mention the typically brilliant performance of the Stax band. Records like this remind me of how great it is to be alive.

from 1968...

THE REACTORS - DO THAT THING

My oh my how I wish I could find some more info on this band/ record. It's a complete mystery, apparently. One things is for certain is that while so many sub-par garage 45's get attention, this overlooked gems is a real corker.

from 1966...

THE SPELLBINDERS - CHAIN REACTION

This New Jersey group perfectly nails the Motown/ Temptaions sound on this classic northern soul track. Way before "The Hustle", Van McCoy produced/ wrote some wonderful soul; this is one of my favorite examples.

from 1966...

MONGO SANTAMARIA - COLD SWEAT

I don't know how it's possible, but Latin soul jazz superstar Mongo S. somehow took James Brown's ultra funky anthem and made it even funkier.

from 1968...

BARBARA LYNN - SECOND FIDDLE GIRL

In honor of this legend performing in San Francisco last night (one of the best concerts I've EVER seen, by the way- her local pickup band was dead on and she was BLAZING) here's a great one that she rocked last night. If you've been following this blog for awhile, you'll know for sure how much I love Ms Lynn and as always my recommendation is to acquire EVERYTHING available from her.

from 1962...

WALTER SCOTT - SILLY GIRL

This ballad has been a real favorite of mine as of late; a bit more MOR than I usually feature but it's truly such a great song and performance...Walter Scott was the lead singer in Bob Kuban & The In Men ("The Cheater" was featured here a few weeks ago, where we relayed the tragic tale of Walter's tragic murder in the hands of his wife's lover).

from 1967...

KRIS PETERSON - MAMA'S LITTLE BABY IS A BIG GIRL NOW

Here's another hot Detroit 45! Kris Peterson released a few other 45's, and went on to be a guest vocalist with the likes of P-Funk and Frank Zappa. This is "the one" though. Originally released on a small Detroit label, it was picked up by Capitol for national distribution. Surprising that it wasn't a huge hit!

from 1967...

PAT LEWIS - CAN'T SHAKE IT LOOSE

Me oh my do I love the early GEORGE CLINTON productions outta Detroit. This one is a killer, by the sweet voiced Ms Lewis (later a member of Isaac Hayes backup singers). This one is a real doozie, and was later recut by Funkadelic (although not released at the time).

from 1966...

THE DONAYS - DEVIL IN HIS HEART

It's a real mystery about how the Beatles got ahold of such amazing rare records to cover in their early days (they probably bought them from sailors, but that whole situation just seems surreal). Perhaps Brian Epstein had a source for imports? It just seems too strange that they got ahold of this one, shortly after its release in the US (where it flopped) and covered it for their first album. Whatever the case, this girl group gem is unspeakably hard to find (took me a LONG time to track down a copy). Thanks again to the fab four for doing their part in spreading the word. When we were re-watching the "Anthology" series recently and the Beatles were performing "Some Other Guy" at the Cavern in '62, I said to my girlfriend "You know, the Beatles really were the original northern soulies".

from 1962...

THE RAELETS - ONE ROOM PARADISE

The only thing wrong with this soul scorcher is that its over WAY too soon...But I guess that just makes us want more, huh? This is my fave cut from Ray Charles' amazing backup singers.

from 1967...

THE RAELETS - ONE ROOM PARADISE

NEW COLONY SIX - AT THE RIVER'S EDGE

One of the best ever Yardbirds ripoffs, Chicago's kings of the garage really whip it into a frenzy on this cut.

from 1966...