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The
African Beavers "Find My Baby" RCA
How much howling can you fit into one side of a 45! An early sixties RnB on a lovely green RCA test pressing,
this did make issue and aint a biggie so you will find a
copy cheaply if you look for it. With raw n' gritty, early Wilson
Picket style, soulful, call and response vocals and the wildest
beat guitar work that collides in a lovely nod to the garage
sound that would have been emerging around the time this was
recorded. The flipside "Jungle Fever" is another howling
gritty RnB number. |
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Johnny
Acey "My Home" D.J.L.
Sounds like blues man Johnny had been through hell and back
when he wrote and recorded this. A slept on funky blues should-be-classic
with more than a soulful twist to it. This is a bitter twisted
tale of a hard working man who comes home to find out he may
not be the king of his castle after all, judging by the 2 cups
on the table and the cadillac parked out front some monkey business
may be going on! |
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Al
Reed "Sorry About That" AXE
"You
say I don't shake like Jelly and I don't taste like ham"
- what a line! This girl he's appologising to must be mighty
tasty to get Al saying sorry all over the place about every
short coming he thinks he might have. Just faster than midtempo
this RnB classic ignites the dancefloor everytime. I was playing
the lovely Eddie Bo sound-a-like and tittyshaker-friendly flipside
"99 44 / 100 pure love" for years before I braved
the better known side listed here. |
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Big
Maybelle "96 Tears" ROJAC
I have listed two 45's from this Queen of RnB, the first is
a gravel voiced mad as hell rendition of the ? and the Mysterions
classic "96 Tears". Whereas the original is a snide
comeback at a lover who spurned the singer and went on to
greater things, in this version Big Maybelle doesn't skirt
around the issue quite so, in fact she delights in a singing
about how she is gonna come out trumps and wreak misery on
this person. A massive 45 on the mod scene that I have actually
seen make a girl cry! |
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Bobby
Davis "Damper Down" M-PAC
Bloody hell the next three 45's pull no punches, all are seriously
HEAVY N' RAW RnB rockers. I have no idea about this 45 - for
all I know I could be showing you an 80's bootleg or an original
issue. An absolutely storming RnB howler that would be bordering
on Rockabilly but as it's played at 500mph I cant quite see
that description working. Its
hard to keep track of what Bobby is screaming but I think its
another tale of a partner playing away while he's working all
hours. |
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Pearl
Woods "Sippin' Sorrow" DAWN
Starting to get big spins
at the moment, this was dug out for me by a friend who said
it was just my type of 45 and how right he was. Pearls sings
like she may have been on the gin when she recorded this almost
slurring the line "sipping sorrow with a spoon".
Another tale of a spurned woman who's letting her man know
how she's gonna get along without him - is it just me or is
their a pattern emerging here? |
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Eddie
Bo "Tell It Like It Is" RIC
Eddie's early Ric stuff is as ignored as his rock n' roll recordings
are, but what people are yet to discover is that they are amongst
his best work. This killer RnB stomper captures a young Eddie
Bo singing his heart out proving he has a great singing voice.
In contrast to the run of 45's listed so far that deal with
revenge and getting over a heartbreak this time around Eddie
is wanting to know where he stands with his lady and for her
to "tell it like it is" the song is filled with 'borrowed'
Rn'B lyrics and musical parts from the early New Orleans classics
but still makes one hell of a record. The flipside "Every
Dog Got His Day" sounds like it may have found it's way
into Little Stevie Winwoods collection just prior to his stepping
into the studio for the first time and will leave you panting
like a dog upon hearing it. |
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Jeane
Mitchell & Harmonica Fats "Goodbye Fats" NORMAR
Opening with a screaming harmonica and Jeane screaming "God
knows how I tried" this call and response masterpiece see's
Jeane and Fats involved in a bust up with Jeane having reached
the end of her tether looking after this no good dirty dog and
she certainly knows how to diss a man. After every one of her
lines outlining her mistreating Fats can be heard in response
sounding nonchalent and barely interested in her woes even when
she tells him she's taking all the food, the furniture and his
alligator. It isn't until she starts to demand his cadillac
and money that Fats starts to sound roused and when she disses
his momma he becomes quite vocal indeed. The song ends with
Fats blowin his harmonica as Jeane leaves the house telling
it like it is. "You'se Irrespectable"! The flipside
is a typical RnB workout designed to create a new dance craze
called "The Funky Drop". |
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Chuck
Edwards "Do Right Baby" / "I Don't Want No Company"
RENE
"hush your mouth open your arms look
out woman her i come... baby".
Payed a high price for this obscure RnB gem as one listen will
make you realise you can't let it pass, many of you will be
familiar with Chuck for his 45 "Downtown Soulville"
and while the sound of this 45 is very removed from that soul
classic in fact the blues ballad "Do Right baby" is
in a way an embryonic version of "Downtown" with chuck
singing many of the lines he was later to develop into the song.
Somewhat of a suprise treat for me as I purchased this for the
B-side, this Otis Redding sounding track will leave you begging
for the needle to be dropped back at the begining. The B-side
"Company" is a blacker than black RnB soul dancer
that would be described as fast only by a man who collects deep
soul. A sweaty cellar club anthem that is waiting to be if only
a few more copies would turn up.
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Diamond
Joe "Hurry Back To Me" SANSU
After the gorgeous Moanin' and Groanin' this is my favourite
track by Diamond Joe, it's a cool example of that classic mid sixties New Orleans sound. A tale of a chap who suspects
his lady may not have been true but realises that regardless of her naughty actions, when
her train comes around that track - all will be forgiven! |
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Big
Maybelle "Mama (He Treats Your Daughter Mean)" ROJAC
The second RnB growler from Big Maybelle on that heart stopping
label is a report to her Momma about... yep you guessed
right - another dog of a man who is the meanest that has ever
been, taking all her money, treating her badly and even making
her call him honey! This one doesn't really push the mean mistreated
soul sister genre very far but it is a great example of the
style and a fun tale to boot. With some lovely piano work cooking
from underneath that always gets me dancing around the frying
pan. |
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Chet
"Poison" Ivey & His Fabulous Avengers "The
Poo Poo Man" BEE CEE
What the hell is this record all about? What is a Poo Poo Man
and why does Chet think that all the girls should check him
out as he's the Poo Poo Man - am I missing something? Poo to
me is something that comes out of ones backside/butt/ass/arse/fanny/booty,
does Chet think that his badself is some kind of walking embodiment
of all things Poo? More alarmingly Chet screams the lines "come
on in get it while you can" over and over again punctuating
the lyric periodically with the line "'cause I'm the Poo
Poo man" - is this an open invitation to buggery? His
live shows must have put blowfly in the shade. Great 45 though! |
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Roosevelt
Fountain & The Pens Of Rhythm "Red Pepper" PRINCE-ADAMS
Its not until you flip the 45 over
to the raucous pt 2 that things really start cookin' with the
organ freaking out straight away and the sax keeping a tight
dancable rhythm throughout, it even has a couple of freezes
towards the end for audience participation. By rights this should be an essential
yet it's just another unwanted 'unknown' clogging up the dealers boxes. |
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Frankie
Coe & The Mighty Soul Messengers "Get It Jerk"
BIG CITY
With plenty
of raw screams and howls to "shake it shake it shake it
Baby". The Get It Jerk apparently is a dance that Frankie
started and the song is a call to the floor for all girls to
get down and Get It Jerk. Nice rough 'n' funky tittyshaker beat. |
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Ruff
Francis & The Illusions "Give Me Mercy" ESSICA
This raw RnB monster has been blowing apart dancefloors recently
on the funk scene, seeing the price occassionally rise to stupid
amounts. As the deepfunk scene goes (in some quarters) more
disco/modern soul inclined perhaps this kind of sound no longer
cuts it in the majority of clubs of a sometimes fickle scene
that turns over records faster than it can break them. Luckily
it has never been far away from the mod crowd who appreciate
a good bit of handclapping and highly dancable stomp giving
a littlle bit more life to a fantastic 45. |
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Ruby
& The Party Gang "Hey Ruby (Shut Your Mouth)"
LAW-TON
With a title like that you know you are in for a treat, a little
bit of New York boogaloo, a little bit of funky groove and a
whole heap hipshakin' goes into this this late night rowdy houseshaker.
A first class call and response between some poor chap trying
to get some sleep after a hard days slog and Ruby an unsympathetic
party queen who parties as hard as she works and aint never
gonna relent. Ruby is the neighbour from hell but damn funky
assed in her style. Plenty of copies of this flying around to
keep it nice and cheap.
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Kenny
Ballard "It Sure Looks Good" TOY
Quite a rare one here that I was lucky enough to pick up for
a mere few pounds. The sound is that of a typical mid sixties
cellar club RnB mid-tempo dancer with Kenny singing with just
enough toughness and attitude to make us forget he's called
Kenny and convince of his cool. With a tight repetitive beating
rhythm driving through the track it's easy to see why later
releases on this label became a point of interest for the funk
scene. Proto funk? Am I going crazy or does this sound just
like Al Trahans 'Can I Feel It' without the funk. |
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Slim
Willis Band "Wind Me Up Baby" REGINALD
What a sound! I bought this for the flipside based on a recommendation
and immediately regreted it but then flipped it over and discovered
this killer RnB wailer. Quite a unique sound that's unlike anything
else listed in this excavation, it sounds like it was recorded
in a rush and luckily the producer never got the chance to gloss
it over leaving it lovely and raw sounding. Probably the best
thing I have heard on what appears to me so far to be quite
a mediocre label. |
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Big
Mama Thornton "Wade In The Water" ARHOOLIE
Not to everybodies likening, in fact you should never play this
to elderly people or anyone with a heart condition unless of
course they are extremely hip and prepared for the shock. Becoming
a bit of a RnB club staple this really is a seriously heavy
sound, for me its the definitive version of the composition
and strikingly different from all the other countless eardrum
friendly versions. Big Mama really does let it all out, but
still it only leaves me pining for her classic 'Hound Dog'. |
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The
Maskman & The Agents "Yaw'll" Dynamo
Well for under five pounds you could buy no better 45 than this
with the equally great flipside "One eye open" your
money is well spent. An infectious midtempo RnB with a lovely
bluesey flavour and a heavy hip hop feeling, this one should
get the needle back to the begining for a repeat spin. The Maskman
reorded soooo many 45's I keep turning them up regular as clockwork,
I forget how many I have? 20 or so I think, they all very from
off kilter Rnb to out and out funk madness, and quite often
the titles are just as much fun as the lyrics. |
