Funk my Soul

Hi, everybody. Finally i am back with a new blog.
A totally R’n'B, Soul, Funk, Disco, Groovy blog.
All my posts to Lost In Tyme Blog (1,5 years work) can be found below.

From now on I can promise 2-3 new posts every week. I hope you support this effort to remind the greatest albums of black music.
A lot of you will discover artists and albums never thought they existed.
I buy vinyl for several years and i still do. I would like to share them with you, always with quality @320 vinyl rip including artwork.
Please do not forget to leave comments. Communication is very important.
You can also ask for records and i will try to post them.

Thank you for your support so far.

Enjoy!

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Heavy heavy funk from this lost Chicago group an undisputed powerhouse in the mid 70s, and one of the city’s few funky combos to really break out to a national audience! The album’s the group’s second, and is oddly even more obscure than their first and it’s a stone cold blend of fuzzy guitars, stepping basslines, horn blasts somewhere between early Kool & The Gang and some of the doper group soul records of the time. Includes a great remake of the group’s classic “I’ve Been Watching You” redone here from the first album, with cool electric piano bits sounding a lot like a lost Wu-Tang sample.

This is a @320 vinyl rip of my original 20th Century record with covers.

Tracks
A1 Ain’t Gonna Watch You No Mo’ 6.15
A2 Do It To Me 3.22
A3 Funk Talk 2.47
A4 Ain’t It A Shame 3.07
A5 Love Is For Fools 4.36
B1 I’ve Been Watching You 5.23
B2 Only Time Has Changed 4.52
B3 Country Girl 2.45
B4 Just Moving 3.46
B5 Acknowledge The Mind 2.54

The Southside Movement was an American soul and funk musical group from Chicago, Illinois. Comprised of vocalist Melvin Moore, guitarist Bobby Pointer, keyboardist Morris Beeks, bassist Ronald Simmons, drummer Willie Hayes, alto saxophonist Milton Johnson, trumpeter Steve Hawkins, and trombonist Bill McFarland, the group began as the backing band for the soul duo Simtec & Wylie. Southside Movement issued their self-titled debut LP on the Wand record label in 1973; it included the Top 20 R&B hit “I’ve Been Watching You,” which became a breakbeat classic. Their second album, Moving South appeared in 1974, which provided another breakbeat favorite in the track “Save the World”. In 1975, the group released their last album Movin’, and despite some success, the Southside Movement disbanded that year. Southside Movement’s tracks “I’ve Been Watching You” and “Save the World” appeared later on the classic breakbeat compilation “Ultimate Breaks and Beats”.

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A must have for every soul brother and sister! Everything is perfect here, the chemistry is right, Etta swindles from the sheer contempt of “Tell Mama”, to the poignancy of “The Love of my man”, to the exuberant “Security” and the moving “I’d rather go blind”….Five stars are not enough!!

A classic album from Etta recorded at Muscle Shoals, with deep soul backing that’s different than that used on many of her Chicago-recorded albums of the 60s! Etta’s back in hard-belting R&B-tinged territory here a bit more sophisticated than the 50s, with a good mix of hard soul numbers and ballads, opening up in some southern territory that really suits her well.

This is one of the greatest soul albums ever recorded, and is certainly among etta james’ best work.

This is a @320 vinyl rip of my original Cadet record with covers.

Tracks
A1 Tell Mama (2:20)
A2 I’d Rather Go Blind (2:33)
A3 Watch Dog (2:06)
A4 Love Of My Man (2:37)
A5 I’m Gonna Take What He’s Got (2:32)
A6 The Same Rope (2:39)
B1 Security (2:44)
B2 Steal Away (2:19)
B3 My Mother In Law (2:20)
B4 Don’t Lose Your Good Thing (2:26)
B5 It Hurts Me So Much (2:34)
B6 Just A Little Bit (2:11)

1
California singer, then plagued with personal demons, went to record her best 1960s Southern soul outpost Fame Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, was where the work. Accompanied by the same house bluesmen who’d roweled Aretha Franklin just months earlier, James unleashes “Tell Mama” (a Top Forty hit in 1967), “I’d Rather Go Blind” (her magnum opus), and ten pearls of slightly lower luster. Her vocals throughout are paragons of female virility.

2
The ever-vivacious Etta James is one of R&B’s true greats, an artist whose work will always stand the test of time and this album, originally released in 1968, is one of her best-known and most powerful. More dynamic than expressive, James was a gal who clearly knew how to rock, capable of the same sort of expansiveness as Jimmy Rushing or even jump blues shouters such as Wynonie Harris, but also with a touch of the sleekness seen in Dinah Washington and Ella Fitzgerald. The “Tell Mama” album is a flawless, timeless crowd pleaser, packed with upbeat, compact material, a tailormade showcase for James’ mousy snarl. Backed by the best of the Muscle Shoals crew, this is music that can’t easily be faulted;

3
More soul than blues, Etta James’ “Tell Mama” originally came out in 1968 as a twelve-track LP. The sound is terrific, clear and realistic, as is the production by Rick Hall. And those who feel that Etta James’ Chess recordings featured too many violins and not enough power need to pick up “Tell Mama” right away!

The original album was top-notch in its own right, featuring the all-time classic soul ballad “I’d Rather Go Blind”, excellent covers of Ed Townsend’s “I’m Gonna Take What He’s Got”, Otis Redding’s “Security” and Jimmy Hughes’ “Don’t Lose Your Good Thing”, and a couple of driving up-tempo numbers, most notably Don Covay’s “Watch Dog” and the magnificent title track.
Etta James never sounded better than during these four 1967-1968 sessions, and the various musicians never set a foot (or a finger) wrong.

There really isn’t a single weak track among the twelve songs originally issued. Even practically unknown songs like the swaggering soul stomper “My Mother In Law” and the slow “It Hurts Me So Much”, which have never been covered by anyone and don’t appear on any of Etta James’ compilation albums, are highly enjoyable, and Etta’s rendition of “Just A Little Bit” (AKA “I Just Want A Little Bit”) is a supremely funky slice of soul-blues.

4
Having already been an established leading soul singer for 13 years and having 18 R&B hits to her name, in 1967 Etta went to record in Alabama at the legendary Muscle Shoals studio. The result was her most accomplished album, on which her voice had been mixed to perfection, allowing her to sound strong on the previously distorted high notes. James was rightly seen in a different light as one of the great soul voices of all time as she belted out powerful tracks such as “The Love Of My Man” and “Watch Dog.” Her slower numbers were equally arresting, including the wonderful “I’d Rather Go Blind.”

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A sublime bit of east coast soul and the only full album ever cut by this heavenly-voiced trio! The group have a sound to rival the best of their contemporaries on the harmony soul scene, one that floats along on a light pillow of strings and soul, with just the right amount of heavier touches to give the record a bit more of the HDH depth. The falsetto bits are especially nice drifting out in front of the deeper vocals and the whole thing’s got a solidness that should have made these guys huge.

These brothers from St. Louis are the Delfonics of the Mid-West. If you like the style of male vocals from the ’70s, this is a must buy.

This is a @320 vinyl rip of my original Buddah records with covers. There’s a CD reissue only in Japan.

Tracks
A1. The Day You Leave 3.54
A2. I’ve Been In Love 3.44
A3. I Can’t Hold On Much Longer 3.01
A4. Under My Wings 3.49
A5. Wish I Had You 3.05
A6. ‘Til There Was You 3.00

B1. My World Is Empty Without You 5.25
B2. Rainy Days & Mondays 3.45
B3. I’ve Come To Stay 4.12
B4. Angel Girl 4.00
B5. You Ain’t Livin’ Unless You’re Lovin’ 3.35

1
….I’ve been collecting classic soul since the 1990s. For so long, I have searched for a group that had similar vocal and instrumental styling as The Main Ingredient during their early years. And The Smith Connection fits that description. This early-70s group, has all the beautiful orchestral and vocal styling of that era. Their harmonizing is beyond words. In some songs, their vocals blend together so smoothly until they almost sing like the wind. I will say that parts of this album are very syrupy and sweet, and for anyone not familiar with early-70s soul groups, they may write this album off as sounding “dated.” But hey, that was the sound of the time and it’s still beautiful to hear.
My favorite song on this album is ‘Til There Was You. It is gorgeous! I also like I’ve Come To Stay and My World Is Empty Without You. If you listen to I Can’t Hold On Much Longer (another favorite), listen to the amazing falsetto who comes in at the end of each verse “…a love you won’t regret!” And “…I love you so much more!” Perfect timing and delivery. My voice cracks when I try to sing those lines. As I have mentioned before with other lesser known soul artists, with so much great competition out there at the time, I understand why this group isn’t as memorable as they should be, but they still deserve more attention. They earned a spot in soul history. After hearing this album, the group leaves me hanging for more.

2
The first time I heard these guys was back in the 70’s. I was just a teenager then in high school. It was one of my fathers’ records I heard him playing and it blew me away. Years later I still remember them even though its been years since I heard them. A definite collectors item for those into classic soul R&B.

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Their classic second record, and a pivotal album in defining the east coast uptempo sound of the mid 70’s. Rochelle Fleming and the gals sing in soulful harmony style, while Norman Harris and Vince Montana lay down some heavy uptempo grooves. Includes their classic “scolding” songs “The Player”, “Hustler Bill”, and “Guilty”, plus a number of other nice groovers.

Powered by Norman Harris, the First Choice became one of the greatest female disco acts of all time. Classic Philly Soul - early disco!

This is a @320 vinyl rip of my original Philly Groove records with covers.

Side A
1. The Player (7:10)
2. Guilty (4:51)
3. You Took the Words Out of My Mouth (4:44)
4. You’ve Been Doin’ Wrong For So Long (3:56)

Side B
1. Hustler Bill (5:28)
2. All I Need Is Time (4:42)
3. Guess What Mary Jones Did (4:59)
4. Guilty (Instrumental) (4:51)

Although they never had commercial success commensurate with the quality of their records, Philadelphia’s First Choice were probably the finest female vocal group of the disco era. Originally formed by Rochelle Fleming and Annette Guest the group went various names and personnel changes before settling on First Choice and the line up of Flemming, Guest, Wardell Piper and Mulaney Star. Working with Philly mainstays Norman Harris and Alan Felder the group recorded their debut single, the frantic “This Is The House Where Love Died” on Scepter/Wand in 1972.

Star left the group after that and the remaining trio recorded “Armed and Extremely Dangerous” for Philly Groove. It was their biggest pop hit, thanks to one of the definitive proto disco beats. Despite the record’s success, Piper left the group and replaced by Joyce Jones on “Smarty Pants” , which went to #9 in the UK.
Flemming was at her best and the rhythm from drummer Earl Young and Bassist Ronnie Baker was soon to become the definition of disco.

In 1974 “The Player” was classic Philly Sound, with the hissing hi-hat and deep, watery Feder Rhodes as well as great vocals from Flemming, while “Guilty” a cover of The Pearl records – suffered by not having Flemming on lead.
First Choice signed with Warner Bros in 1976, but their stay only lasted foe the album “So Let us entertain you”. With Jones replaced by Ursula Herring the group signed to Salsoul’s Gold Mind and record some of disco greatest records. ” Doctor Love” was a pumping dancefloor classic, while “Double Crossed”may have been preety uninspiring for the most part – by – numbers Salsoul/late Philly disco – but the string intro was one of disco’s most sublime moments. Most sublime of all, was “Let No Man Put Asunder” recorded in 1977, the 1982 remix turned it not only into one of the greatest disco records, but one of the building blocks of house music. It was 1979 “Love Thang”, that finally established Rochelle Flemming as one of the greatest disco divas. The group split up after the release of “Breakaway” but Fleming continued to record club anthems into 90’s.

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Bettye Swann has an amazing voice & delivery. The sound quality is great as are the arrangements. One more fine example of how Soul Music manifested itself across America in the 60’s; each region with it’s own amazing signature. Only shame is the Pop Charts ignored so much really good music and great artists such as this lady & and Baby Washington, Maxine Brown etc.
Heavy deep soul from Bettye Swann - a great female soul singer from the 60s.

This is a @320 vinyl rip of my original Collectables Lp with Covers.

Tracks
A1. Make Me Yours 2.45
A2. Fall In Love With Me 2.50
A3. Don’t Look Back 2.52
A4. Don’t Wait Too Long 2.40
A5. Don’t Take My Mind 2.35
A6. I Can’t Stop Loving You 3.45

B1. I Think I’m Falling In Love 2.49
B2. You Gave Me Love 2.45
B3. The Heartache Is Gone 2.21
B4. I Will Not Cry 3.08
B5. What Is My Life Coming To 2.43
B6. A Change Is Gonna Come 3.56

Uncut (p.132) - 4 stars out of 5 - “She once made the rainiest stetson ballads scorch with R&B sparkle….Terrific.”

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This is a masterpiece of Deep Soul.

Incredible voice. If you’re a 60’s R&B fan and by chance you’ve never heard “Are You Lonely For Me” you need to rectify that NOW. Freddie writes some good tunes, sings with utter authority and actually tops Solomon Burke on “Cry to Me.”

Deep soul belter Freddie Scott, is best remembered for his 1966 R&B chart-topper “Are You Lonely for Me,”. In 1961, he also resumed his recording career, cutting “Baby, You’re a Long Time Dead” for the Joy label. In 1962, fellow Aldon songwriters Gerry Goffin and Carole King approached him for assistance with “Hey Girl,” a new tune they hoped to pitch to soul singer Chuck Jackson. When Jackson proved unable to make the scheduled recording session, Scott cut the vocal instead, and when Colpix Records finally issued the ballad a year later, he entered the Top Ten on both the pop and R&B charts. A slow-burning rendition of Ray Charles’ R&B classic “I Got a Woman” followed, affirming Scott as a deep soul singer of uncommon depth.

In 1965, he even released Everything I Have Is Yours, a cabaret-inspired LP comprised largely of hit movie themes. The makeover fell flat, and Scott returned to a more traditional soul dynamic with the excellent Lonely Man. Record sales were virtually nonexistent, however, and after two last-gasp Columbia singles — including the poignant ballad “Don’t Let It End This Way” — the label let him go. Scott resurfaced in 1966 at Shout Records, the fledgling soul label founded by producer/songwriter Bert Berns — together they co-wrote “Are You Lonely for Me,” a simmering, bluesy knockout that reportedly required over 100 vocal takes prior to completion. Scott’s Herculean effort was rewarded with a record that topped the R&B charts for four weeks while rising to number 39 on the pop charts. The 1967 follow-up, “Cry to Me,” proved a commercial disappointment, but Scott’s impassioned, tender performance represents his creative apex. He returned to the R&B Top Ten with the funky “Am I Grooving You?,” and while “Just Like a Flower” missed the charts entirely, 1968’s “(You) Got What I Need” earned a spot in the R&B Top 40 as well as an eccentric cover by rapper Biz Markie some 20 years later.

But after Berns died, his wife proved unable to keep Shout Records afloat, and following one last Shout single, “No One Could Ever Love You,” Scott left the label, spending the next two years without a record deal. He finally landed with the short-lived Elephant V, issuing “Sugar on Sunday” in 1970. After cutting a follow-up, “I’ll Be Leaving Her Tomorrow,” he again packed his bags, moving to ABC’s Probe imprint for I Shall Be Released, scoring his final R&B Top 40 entry with the title cut, a powerful rendition of the Bob Dylan perennial.

When Probe folded, Scott was again seeking a place to record, signing to Vanguard for the one-off 1971 single “I Guess God Wants It That Way.” Pickwick International released 1972’s “The Great If,” and two years later Scott resurfaced on Mainstream with the ballad “You Are So Hard to Forget,” which proved his final single. By now he made his living primarily through writing advertising jingles with longtime composing partner Miller, and also turned to acting, appearing in the films Stiletto and No Way Out.

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