Shake It Up With The Soul Chef

Today is the day! It's our very first guest mix at It's Great Shakes. I'm pleased to introduce Vincent The Soul Chef from the fantastic Fufu Stew blog. Vincent has created many a fine mix, both for Fufu Stew and for others around the net. Today, we're the fortunate ones. So, without further ado, let's get right to it. Here's Vincent.

Hello, kiddies.

It is truly an honour for me to join you today with this special mix created exclusively for you the faithful readers of It's Great Shakes! 30 tunes in all, this is a fine blend of all things soulful, even a little bit of twang thrown in for good measure. Now I have never been good with the research aspect like Todd, but I do know a good 45 when I hear it so as I present the tunes to you, I'll give you just a small idea of what each one means to me personally, and in some cases, why it has a permanent home in my crates...

Shake It Up With The Soul Chef!

01 Soulshake-Peggy Scott & Jo Jo Benson (SSS). Let's start the party with a good ol' fashioned down home country fried chunk of soul... I've always enjoyed this duet's work which is very similar to that of Otis Redding and Carla Thomas.

02 Here Come Da Judge-The Buena Vistas (Marquee). Here's a bit of a loose tradition when it comes to doing guest mixes... I normally start them off with a rollicking rendition of this track, most notably Pigmeat Markham and Shorty Long. I was lucky enough to find this much different version at one of my trips to the local record show which I affectionately call the "Fire Haul".

03 Sockin' 1-2-3-4-John Roberts (Duke). Nice tune here, which is actually the A side of "Sophisticated Funk", a tune that was sampled heavily by Cypress Hill on their first record.

04 Shot Of Rhythm And Blues-Jimmy Hughes (Fame). After having had this record for about four years, it finally has a home in one of my mixes. It's a nice little number that will definitely have your foot tapping in no time.

05 Roaches-Maskman & The Agents (Musicor). Here's one from my all time favourite soulful comic, Harmon Bethea. I always buy his 45s when they turn up in the field.

06 Vista Vista-Lee Dorsey (Amy). Here's another classic from one of New Orleans' legendary soul men. While it didn't appear on the now out of print Sundazed comp, I don't suspect that it's too rare.

07 Close Your Mouth Pts 1&2-Rudy Robinson & The Hungry Four (Lau Reen). This is one of those surprise finds that I stumbled across some four years ago at the Fire Haul. While I know a little bit about the artist as a member of the Hungry Five, this gem seems to turn up no relevant information. I really love the twin sax attack, and as always, I pasted both parts together because you just can't walk away from those blinding organ chops.

08 Didn't It-The Drifters (Atlantic). Whenever I think of The Drifters, I immediately think of those lush orchestral tunes that Ben E. King made famous. This one however is a genuine rocker, graciously donated by my best friend's uncle. I am grateful to have a couple of generous benefactors who loan me their 45s to share with you all, some more of which I will feature later on in the mix.

09 That Driving Beat-Willie Mitchell (Hi). This is without question my all time favourite Poppa Willie track. Just listen and you'll see why...

10 Sock It To Em JB Pt. 2-Rex Garvin & The Mighty Cravers (Like). I normally play the A side of this rocker, but I flipped it over to hear what I consider to be one of the first "Dub" records. Although it's certainly not a Reggae tune, the use of reverb could very well have influenced some of Reggae's most famous artists.

11 Testify Pt. 1-The Isley Brothers (T Neck). Thanks to the Vaccarinos for having this one up for sale on my last Fire Haul trip. I've been looking for this one ever since I first heard it some twenty years ago. I certainly can't afford the $150. plus price tag of the LP that this track is featured on, so when I saw the 45 it was a no brainer to snatch it up... The man playing the guitar chops should come as no surprise...

12 Testify Pt. 2-The Isley Brothers (T Neck). I had to flip this one over too...

13 Something's Got To Change-Ray Charles (Tangerine). Here's one of the first 45s I ever owned. My mother gave me this one when I was a kid and needless to say, judging from the sound, the record was well played. Thankfully, it's only hiss and not scratched :-) I just love the piano/organ interplay here which I believe is being done by a young Billy Preston.

14 Think Nothing About It-Gene Chandler (Constellation). I had to slow up the tempo just a bit with this one, a nice Curtis Mayfield composition with that signature sound that made The Impressions a household name.

15 Why Worry-Aaron Neville (Par Lo). Enjoy the flip side of the classic standard, "Tell It Like It Is".

16 Heavy Steppin'-Lou Toby & His Heavies (Peach-Mint). This one's for you, Todd...

17 The Scratch-Robert Parker (Nola). Here's another New Orleans legend. This track was featured on the recently issued New Orleans Funk comp from Soul Jazz, and a highly recommended one I might add.

18 Happy Feet-Robert Parker (Nola). Again, I had to flip the record over...

19 Let Me In-The Sensations (Collectables reissue). I went through a phase of collecting Golden Oldies 45s some fifteen years ago. This is one of my all time favourites. I just love the basic yet manic drum beats here.

20 The Duck-Jackie Lee (Mirwood). This one fit rather nicely here, so I included it in the mix. A well known tune that just feels real good...

21 Killer Joe-The Rocker Fellers (Scepter). I have to say that great minds think alike here as I just received an mp3 of this track from a friend of mine last week. I told him that it was rather ironic that he chose this one because it already had a place in this mix.

22 Night Rumble Pt. 2-The Fame Gang (Atlantic). I can only assume that this is the house band that lived in the legendary Fame Studios of Memphis back in the day. For conformation, you can check out this well written piece on the A side of this wonderful record that the mighty Larry Grogan posted last year.

23 Break A Way-Irma Thomas (Imperial). I have to admit that I first heard this tune when sketch comic legend Tracey Ullman recorded it for her "You Broke My Heart In 17 Places" LP some twenty five years ago. I finally scored a copy of the original, although sometimes I still like to hear Tracey's version.

24 Tighten Up Pt. 2-Archie Bell & The Drells (Atlantic). Everybody has to know part 1 of this standard, but not too many folks seem to flip the record over so I will just for you...

25 Brainwasher Part 1-Jr. Walker & The All Stars (Soul). Here's a rocking tune from the Late Autry DeWalt, taken from the flip side of his standard "What Does It Take To Win Your Love".

26 Sock It To Me Baby-Mitch Ryder (New Voice). Here's a great rocker which should be pretty easy to find in the field. I always loved this group's work on general principle.

27 Misery-The Dynamics (Big Top) ...and this track just slipped in so nicely behind it so it lives here in the mix.

28 Get Down-Harvey Scales & The Seven Sounds (Magic Touch). God I love this record! Pure powerful soul at its very best...

29 Moose Trot-Larry Wilcox & The Oakies (Plantation). I first heard this obscure piece over at Crud Crud a couple of years ago. While you may be asking yourself why I chose to play this country fried tune on a soul mix, I have to admit that I love the heavy tremolo effects on the guitar but wait until they pull out the wah wah pedal... Insane!!!

30 Tip On In Pt.2-Slim Harpo (Excello). I close the mix with another tremolo laden number. I just love the way that it sounds, and as you listen to the lyrics, you'll hear an invitation of sorts to come on by and visit Fufu Stew anytime for more of the same and then some.

Please download and enjoy Shake It Up With The Soul Chef, 72 MB

here's the link to the mp3 file
here's the link to the zip file

Again, I want to thank Todd for inviting me to share a few of my 45s with you all as I celebrate the coming of Fall with an all 45 rpm affair over on my blog. Feel free to drop on by as I will have a few more special mixes lined up in the coming weeks. As always, have a great one and please be safe.

Peace and blessings.