Pat Lundy – 1973 – Only LOve Spoken Here

Rip, posting and adittional info's by Nikos

A great little album from Pat Lundy – an enigmatic talent who crops up a number of times over the years – but always on different record labels, and always with a slightly different sound and style! This album's one of Pat's best – and has her working in a sophisticated soul style that's a lot like Marlena Shaw, with but some deep soul undercurrents too – a really great blend that was way ahead of its time when first issued back in 1973 – and a set that's still unlike most other records we can think of! Burt Keyes handles the arrangements, and he gives the whole thing a great sense of class right from the start – but also knows how to hit some funkier moments too, which really let Lundy unlock the bolder side of her vocals.

Tracks
A1 I've Never Been An Woman Before 4:53     
A2 No More Tears To Cry 3:24     
A3 Thank Heaven For You 3:54     
A4 Love Child  3:19     
A5 He's The Father Of My Children 2:57     
B1 Only Love Spoken Here 3:07     
B2 It's Impossible 3:33     
B3 Friend Of Mine(I Wanna Thank You So Much) 3:08     
B4 What Is Love 2:37     
B5 Love, Love, Love 3:03

For a singer with such an incredible voice, almost next to nothing is known about the late Pat Lundy who recorded for a mixed bag of labels for almost two decades, ending in the late '70s.

After leaving girl group The Symbols, she made 45s for Heidi and Deluxe before signing with Columbia which at that time was still looking for great R&B vocalists as "replacements" for Aretha Franklin, but equally clueless as to what to do with them. With six Columbia singles and one LP under her belt, Pat Lundy signed with RCA, another company renowned for finding great black talent but being less than stellar in marketing it!!

However, with Pat and producer Buddy Scott at the helm, they managed to make an incredible and very soulful R&B album, almost in spite of themselves and the little promotion it was given upon release. When legendary producer and Now Again Records owner, Eothen Alapatt walks past your office and exclaims, "You have this Pat Lundy album?" and is even more shocked when you say you're re-releasing it, you know you've risen to the heights of a crate-digger's paradise. It's like the ultimate endorsement of good taste!

Producers Buddy Scott and Herb Lovelle assembled an array of top class musicians for this release ranging from Ralph McDonald on percussion and Frank Wess on Tenor and flute to legendary NY arranger Bert Keyes. From the opening rap (by which we mean the old school talking in a song!) on "I've Never Been A Woman Before" to the rousing soul gospel closer "Love, Love, Love", there's simply not a dud song on this package. If you didn't know that "It's Impossible" was a schmaltzy Perry Como MOR ballad and just heard Pat's version, you'd think this was a soul song written just for her.

Pat had the unique ability to sing in two styles, both of which meld equally well with each other. One side of her is the warm and sensual "cuddle up with me between the sheets", the other being that of a more traditional powerhouse R&B belter who could probably give any other performer of that era a good run for her money.
"Only Love Spoken Here" is one of those exceptionally rare crate-digger paradise  where the thrill of finding something that is almost totally unknown, is completely outshone by the fact that it is an absolutely incredible album.

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Download link

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