It's Great Shakes

Roger Binninghof: "Over My Head"

2011-11-10T19:54:00.003-06:00

Well, here I was, thinking about shutting down this blog. Just when I was sure that I wanted to call it quits, I went and found a record that I just had to get up here.

This is the kind of record that It's Great Shakes was made for, terrific song and almost no presence at all on the net. I only found mention of "Over My Head" on a couple Minaret discography listings and, even there, they misspelled the artist's name.

I posted this song on Facebook and Jeff Lemlich commented to tell me that Mr. Binninghof was a student at Vanderbilt University, who had a hand in several Minaret releases. Thank you to Jeff for that info.

Anyway, "Over My Head" is a garagey winner and another reminder of just how many great records are out there waiting to be discovered.

The Falcons - Let's Kiss and Make Up/Take This Love I Got

2011-08-13T08:11:00.006-05:00

Back after a long layoff for a weekend post. Maybe I ought to subtitle this entry, "adventures in scratchy records, part one". I don't care though because, sometimes, records are great scratches and all.

I found this at a recent record show and it's a two-sided winner. My somewhat limited experience says grab a Falcons record whenever you see one. This rule certainly applies here. Love the guitar work, among other things.

The Carter Brothers: Do The Watusi

2011-07-27T12:20:00.000-05:00

Here's one of my favorite of my recent finds. I like its wild qualities that take its standard dance realms to a higher plane. The group that did this also did "Do The Flo Show" and recorded several singles for Jewel between 1965 and 1967. I don't know where this fits in their canon, but I do know it's a winner, one that deserves your investigation.

The Hollywood Tornadoes - "The Gremmie, Parts 1 and 2" (Aertaun)

2011-07-27T12:00:00.000-05:00

The Hollywood Tornadoes are actually the same Tornadoes that cut the classic "Bustin' Surfboards." Why they added the "Hollywood" to their name is not quite known (it might have been to avoid confusion with the British Tornadoes who were hitting big with "Telstar at this time), but one thing's for sure: this is certainly a two-sided rock 'n' roll instrumental cooker and that's really all you need to know. So let 'er rip. Hope you dig.

The Fifth Order: Goin' Too Far/Walkin' Away (Diamond)

2011-06-04T14:02:00.001-05:00

Well, it's time for another two-sider and what a two-sider it is. It's from 1966 and it's from a Cincinnati, Ohio group who first released this on the Counterpart label. When it scored big regionally (#1 in Columbus), Diamond picked it up for national release, but it didn't do as well. Whatever the case, this is classic garage pop. While it's not a screamer or anything like that, this is still damn great. Both sides are presented here and both are worth hearing. Also, check out the Flower Bomb Songs blog for more detailed information about this band.

Jimmy Carroll: "Big Green Car"

2011-06-04T10:12:00.007-05:00

Look what a quarter will still get you. That's what I paid for this 1958 winner at a recent record show. Surprising too, since it'd sat for nearly half the day before I found it. I didn't know the tune but it sure looked interesting enough to risk two bits.

This thing has it all, from a revving engine to some great, wild guitar. Just click below to step on the gas.

And the acquisitions continue....

2011-05-07T13:09:00.001-05:00

Hello again. Well, the 45 acquisitions continue to pile up around these parts. Here's the latest batch. Some were scored off eBay, some from Ray Peters, some from the Indy Record Show and some from a new used record store that just opened in Fountain Square.

But before I begin, I need to say in passing that I am currently grieving the loss of my dog Max. It got to the point where he couldn't climb the steps to the house anymore and he was whimpering in constant pain. I could see that the only thing to do was to let Max go. I am very devastated, so please forgive my having to pass this along to you.

In the meantime, here we go:

Floyd Cramer: Flip Flop and Bop (RCA Victor) This guy is best known for his softer instrumental "Last Date" and I believe he was a top session player in Nashville. This song here is a piano rocker produced by Chet Atkins. Pretty keen for what it is.

Boots Brown and His Blockbusters: Cerveza (RCA Victor) He also had a version of "Chili Beans." which I also have. I believe this was a minor Top 40 hit in 1958. At least that's what the guy I bought this from wrote on the sleeve. Pretty kickin' instro with a Latin flair.

Los T.J.s: Pure De Papas (RCA Victor (Spanish) (This is one of my favorite pick-ups from the past month, a frantic take on "Hot Pastrami" with lots of screams and yells and a killer guitar break.)

Arthur 'Guitar Boogie' Smith: Philadelphia Guitar (Starday). Found this in the dollar bin and it's a red-hot guitar instro from a guy who first hit with "Guitar Boogie" for MGM in 1948 and recorded several records for that label.)

Mickey and Sylvia: There'll Be No Backin' Out (Vik) Pretty decent fast mover from the "Love Is Strange" duo. Anybody know what their best record is? Just curious.

Jimmy Maddin: Jeanie, Jeanie, Jeanie (Imperial) This is the original version of the same song Eddie Cochran covered. This has more of an R&B feel with a good guitar break.

The Five Dollars: Doctor Baby (Fortune) It's always worth picking up things on the Fortune label and this doo-wop number from a group that usually backed Andre Williams is no exception.

Jay Bentley and the Jet Set: Watusi '64 (GNP Crescendo) Good frat-style dancer. Don't know much about it but I do see it around a lot.

The Wolf Man: Strange (Okeh) Just what the title says, has Wolfman Jack-style vocals (could this be the real Wolfman Jack?) over a stompin' soul background.

The Coasters: The Shadow Knows (Atco) Typical Coasters greatness. "You better watch your P's and Q's and your M's and N's and O's, because The Shadow Knows!"

Etta James: The Wallflower (Modern) "Roll with me, Henry," later bowderized by Georgia Gibbs as "Dance With Me, Henry." This is the original and it's great.

Little Junior Parker: Stranded (Duke) Pretty good blues stomper from the guy who gave you "Sweet Home Chicago."

The Versatones: Bila/Tight Skirt (Fenway) According to my Goldmine guide, this is the second time this single's been issued. It's an upgrade copy of my Atlantic issue, which is all beat up. Both sides of this is off-the-wall doo wop madness of the highest order.

Little Richard: Dance What You Wanna (Vee Jay) Pretty good later Little Richard from 1965. He's also got a killer version of "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" on this label from about the same period.

Freddy King: Double Eyed Whammy (King) Smokin' hot soul platter from a guy who's got a lot of killer sides, both vocal and instrumental (of course). Comes complete with the expected smokin' guitar work. Me thinks this smokes, get the picture?

Eddie Baxter: Fortune Cookie Parts 1 and 2 (Kapp) Pretty cool oriental instro.

Terry Noland: Patty Baby (Brunswick) Decent 50s rocker, a little too much emphasis on the backing vocal chorus.

Johnny Fortune: Surfer's Trip/Soul Traveler (Park Ave.) Excellent surf guitar two-sider from a guy who's cut quite a few of them, including "Soul Surfer" and "Dragster." From 1963.

Buddy Johnson: Rock It (Mercury) Big band blues bopper with rappin' vocals by Mr. Johnson. From 1957)

The Jive Bombers: Bad Boy (Savoy) Classic doo-wop heard in the end credits of John Waters' 1990 film "Cry Baby" (I think, though I could be wrong).

Stevie Wonder: We Can Work It Out (Tamla) Top 20 hit from 1971 in which Mr. Wonder funkifies the Beatles.

Chris Columbo: You Can't Sit Down (Battle) Interesting version of the Phil Upchurch/Dovells tune with emphasis on a coronet. Unfortunately fades out before the drummer gets to get some.

Clarence 'Frogman' Henry: Tore Up Over You (Parrot) 1965 oddity from the "Ain't Got No Home" moaner.

George Hamilton IV: If You Don't Know (ABC Paramount) The flip of "A Rose and a Baby Ruth" is this not bad rockabilly rocker.

Elmore James: Dust My Broom (Jewel) Killer blues as you can expect. Weird thing is that Elmore is mispelled on both sides. One side says "Elmo James," the other says "Elmer James." Weird.

Jimmy McGriff: Hello Betty (Sue) Typical killer organ stomper from Mr. McGriff.

Elvin Jones: Midnight Walk (Atlantic) Pretty keen jazz instro from this well-known drummer, both sides taken from his album.

Dickey Doo and the Don'ts: Ne Ne Na Na Na Na Nu Nu (Swan) Found this at last! Kool whacko instro that I dig a lot.

Little Willie John: Take My Love (I Want To Give It All To You) (King) Another winner from Mr. John, this one has him in a fast blues mode.

The Jives: I Want You (Tear Drop) Pretty cool Tex-Mex style funk.

Jimmy Patton: Ya I'm Movin'/Love Come Back To Me/Let Me Slide/I'm Not Shuckin' (Rollin' Rock) 1970s reissue of some really hot rockabilly that I do indeed dig.

Mae West and Somebody's Chyldren: Shakin' All Over (Tower) In which Ms. West brings her shimmyin' ways to rock 'n' roll. From an album called "Way Out West," I believe and pretty cool for what it is.

Mae West: Put The Loot in the Boot Santa (Dragonet) More West whackiness, this time for the holidays.

Sumpin' Else: Baby You're Wrong (Liberty) Pretty great garage rocker with some fuzz.

Eddie Bo: Dinky Doo (Ric) Not my favorite record from this New Orleans legend, but still pretty damn fine, even if a little too sweetened with strings.

There are a few others, but I need to listen to them a little more first. I've also got a few from last Sunday's record show that I have to go through. We will see.

Well, that about brings everything up to date as far as my record collecting goes. Hope you enjoyed reading it and hope to have a couple more things posted before too long. We will see.
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Vince Edwards - Squeelin' Parrot (Twist)

2011-04-17T11:49:00.006-05:00

Just some fun here for a Sunday. I wrote a bit about this record on the blog about five years ago, before we had sound capabilities. Vince Edwards played Dr. Ben Casey on TV. He made a few other records. I'm not sure that a need to hear any of the rest. This greatness is the exception.

The Sidekicks - Not Now

2011-04-16T09:34:00.007-05:00

Great Beatles cop here. As it turns out, it wasn't just a one off. The Sidekicks were previously the Redcoats. Although the Redcoats didn't release material in their time, a more recent CD issue shows they had the Beatle bug all along. I'd recommend tracking it down, from 2001 on Dionysus. Meanwhile, the Sidekicks released an album in 1967. I haven't heard all of it but I can't imagine this isn't the best thing on there. "Not Now" is also the b-side flip to their version of "Fifi The Flea", originally by the Hollies. Stick to this side.

Round Robin: Gonna Tear The House Down Parts 1 and 2 (Shot)

2011-04-10T12:04:00.000-05:00

Here's one from a guy better known for doing a series of "Slauson" singles, particularly "Do The Slauson," which was a minor hit He's also better known for a very hard-to-find record (and one on my list) called "I'm The Wolfman. He also cut a 45 for Capitol called "The Vulture." He was an LA-based R&B artist who was a local favorite. A couple of his other sides are "Kick That Little Foot Sally Ann" and "The Roundest of Them All." This is a Round Robin side from the Shot label and it does kick a lot of booty. Both parts are presented here for your enjoyment.

Jay Dee Bryant: Get It (Enjoy)

2011-03-03T12:09:00.000-06:00

Here's a quick one for you to enjoy. It was featured in the blog "The Singing Bones" a few months back, but we're featuring it here because it's a great soul mover that just may fill the floor at your next dance party. That's all that needs to be said, so hope you dig.

Joe Bennett and The Sparkletones: Gotton Pickin' Rocker/I Dig You Baby (ABC-Paramount)

2011-02-12T12:10:00.002-06:00

This is one of my most recent finds that I scored at the Indy Record Show and I think it's a two-sided rockabilly monster! It was the third single for this group of teenagers who recorded this after scoring big with "Black Slacks" and less so with "Penny Loafers and Bobby Sox." It's kind of a shame that this didn't take off because it's as high quality as their previous two records. That only means that both sides are KILLER! The group would record several more records for ABC-Paramount, then a few on the Paris label. They disbanded in the early 60s. If you haven't heard this record, then do yourself a favor and click on! You're in for a treat on both sides.

The Interpertations: Soul Affection (Bell)

2011-02-11T12:08:00.006-06:00

Here we have an amazing full-speed soul 45 which comes from a Philly group that appears to have a complicated history, which I won't go into. Once again we have Larry Grogan at Funky 16 Corners to thank for any information we have on them. It's on one of his earlier blogs, so it would be recommended to do a Google search for The Interpretations Soul Affection and you should be able to pick it up from there. But what you really should do is give this a listen. It's a super-speed soul stomper in the vein of Watson and the Sherlocks' "Funky Walk" on Soulville if you've ever had the chance to hear that. Until you do, give this a play. I'm sure you'll dig it. You'd better.

Indy Show Finds

2011-01-30T20:36:00.002-06:00

Well, here I am again and as promised, here's a little report on the Indianapolis record show. I didn't spend a whole lot and besides, too many of the 45 dealers had nothing but copies of records that were hits. Can't these dealers ever find anything cool and obscure without having to peddle the same "hits" over and over again? That said, I still managed to find a few gems and here they are:

Joe Bennett and the Sparkletones: Cotton' Pickin' Rocker/I Dig You Baby (ABC Paramount) I was really glad to find this, a two-sided rockin' rockabilly gem! Ranks right up there with "Rocket," "Penny Loafers and Bobby Socks" and, of course, "Black Slacks."

The Hollywood Flames: Buzz Buzz Buzz/Crazy (Ebb) This went to #11 in 1957 and was this L.A. group's only hit, but what a hit it was. In fact, both sides of this are rockin' uptempo doo wop of the highest order. I also have the equally great "Frankenstein's Den"/"Strollin' on the Beach" from these guys and I am definitely on the lookout for more.

The Crescendos: Crazy Hop (Nasco) These guys had a Top 5 hit in 1958 with "Oh Julie," a record I see around a lot. This must have been the follow-up and it's a nice doo wop rocker. They were from Nashville.

Ricky Nelson: Ricky (4-s0ng EP) (Verve) This covers Ricky's two Verve singles before he went to Imperial and greater fame. I got it because it includes the Las Vegas Grind instrumental "Honey Rock" by Barney Kessel.

Terry Knight and the Pack: One Monkey Don't Stop No Show/The Train (Lucky Eleven) I never saw this one before, but I don't think it's their best single. They attempt a more soulful direction complete with horns, covering the Joe Tex standard on the A-side and rockin' a little harder on the flip (but still with those damned horns). This one's from 1967 and it may be thei5r last single as Terry Knight and the Pack. My favorite of theirs remains "How Much More (Have I Got To Give) from the previous year.

The Rivieras: Whole Lotta Shakin'/Rip It Up (Riviera) Here's another one I haven't seen before, and it's got a Jerry Lee Lewis cover and a Little Richard cover, done up in their usual fratty garage rock style. Not necessarily mandatory, but nice nonetheless.

Dicky Doo and the Don'ts: Wild Party (Swan) Another nice rocker, this one from 1959 from the folks who brought you "Click Clack." Now, errrr, anyone have a copy of "Ne Ne Na Na Nu Nu" they'd like to sell?

A Pair of Kings: The Monster (RCA Victor) Well, whad'ya know, another Halloween novelty I can put in my Halloween 45 collection.

Larry Dale: Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee/Keep Getting Up (Atlantic) Here's the real find of this bunch, a rockin', shufflin' version of the Sticks McGhee classic backed with a sax blowin' instro with great rhythm guitar on the flip. If anyone knows anything about this guy, please drop us a line.

So there ya go. Let's see if I'm able to make it to the March 20 show or not. Maybe they'll have some better dealers then. We shall see.

Big Jay McNeely - The Squat

2011-01-30T07:00:00.003-06:00

Back in the early months of 2010, I found a Big Jay McNeely record on Swingin', "Psycho Serenade", which is a wild r&b vocal number. Then, late in the year, I found this great, swingin' (as the label name would imply) instro by McNeely's band. This one features what must have been a young Leon Haywood on organ. As much as I love "Psycho Serenade", I may like this one even better. I especially like the part near the end when everything stops for a moment, before kicking into gear again. It's almost as if they figured they needed another 20 seconds or so out of the tune and decided to keep going.

Yet more new acquisitions

2011-01-29T11:25:00.007-06:00

Hello, all. Well, looks like it's time for yet another list. (Aren't you thrilled?) I've added a few more goodies to my library, which I am going to tell you about right now. These come from eBay and a few other places. So, here they are, without further adieu:

Larry Collins: Get Along Home Cindy (Columbia)(At least I think that's the title, but the label's real worn off. Plus, I once watched a clip of The Kingston Trio doing this exact same song in its folk version. This one's a decent rock 'n' roll version with a solid guitar break, as can be expected by one half of The Collins Kids in his adolescent stage.)

The Galaxies IV: Let Me Hear You Say Yeah (Veep)(Really cool garage frat rock, highly uptempo and charging.)

The Bluebeards: Come On A-My House (Date)(Sort of a psychedelic version of the old Rosemary Clooney chestnut with some Middle Eastern influence by way of some sitar breaks. Strangely enough, the B-side, "I'm Home," has the exact same melody as Johnnie Walker's "You're All Mine" on Tollie.)

The Countdowns: You Know I Do (Bear)(Garage punk 'n' roll with some sweet guitar stinging. These guys were from Iowa and this record comes from 1968.)

The Interns: Hard To Get (Uptown)(Very tough California garage punk from 1968 with fuzz. Wish the copy was a bit better, but it gets the job done.)

Stacy Lane: African Twist (Excello) (Stompin' soul, that's all I have to say.)

The Exciting Voices: Didn't It Rain (Bel Canto)(Swingin' gospel shouter that takes a bit to get started, but when it gets going, it cooks!)

Hound Dog Clowns: Super Fox (Uni)(In which Kim Fowley pretends to be James Brown. Lots of screams on this off-the-wall attempt at funk.)

Hully Gully Boys: Yabba (Amy) (Off-the-wall instrumental with lots of African rhythms and tribal yelling. "Fool's Paradise" on WFMU plays a soundbite of this after the soundclip that says "I take real enjoyment in good music, stuff like that. Surprising, huh?"

The Sounds of Jack Downes: Monkey Mash/Up Up and Away (Vistone)(Side A's a smokin' funky instro, while Side B's the Fifth Dimension classic done up the smokin' instrumental way.)
The Supertones: Slippin' and Sloppin' (Parts 1 and 2)(Everest)(Pretty cool guitar instrumental on Part 1, less so on Part 2.)

The Big Beats: Rush Me (Columbia)(Pretty cookin' guitar and sax instrumental. I was told that Trini Lopez is on this.)

The Chapelaires: Gloria (HAC)(Pretty good slow doo-wop record. Not necessarily my cup of tea, but good for what it is.)

Starlites: Valerie (Fury)(This is a really cool doo-wop tune that has a righteous desperate vibe to it. Too bad my copy is extremely hammered. I'm glad someone enjoyed it.)

The Night Hawks: Bunny Ride (Pacific)(Decent instrumental with a noir-ish edge to it.)

Aretha Franklin: Rough Lover (Columbia)(One of Aretha's pre-Atlantic sides, this is a good soul shouter, with Lady Soul demanding a REAL man.)

Buddy Miles Express: Funky Mule/Don't Mess With Cupid (Mercury)(Equally funked-up instro version of the Marvin Holmes classic "Ride Your Mule" with some wild drum work, backed up with a solid pounding version of the Redding-Cropper penned favorite.)

Sonny Green: It's A Game/I Can Ketch But I Can't Hold (Fuller)(Pretty solid slow blues two-sider with some shouting vocals.)

Dick St. John: Boogie Man (I Ain't Afraid Of You)(Rona) (This goes to my Halloween collection: holiday novelty with lots of sinister laughing.)

Dick Dale and his Deltones: Surf Beat/Peppermint Man (Deltone)(I don't think I need to describe this one. You either know it or you don't.)

Smokey Smothers: I've Been Drinking Muddy Water/I Ain't Gonna Be No Monkey Man No More (Federal)(Easily one of the best of this batch. Smokin' hot blues cookers with wild guitar work. This copy's hammered, but it plays okay. I gotta hear more of this cat's stuff.)

Warren Lee: Funky Belly (Wand)(Solid New Orleans funk 'n' soul. Somebody else does a song with this title, but I don't remember who.)

Bob Callaway and the Chicks: Native/Look Out For The Clothesline (RCA Victor)(Jungle madness on the A-side with cries of "Bwana" and "Ungawa" backed up with a pretty cool novelty tune on the flip.

Bill Deal and the Rondells: Tuck's Theme (Heritage)(Really great soul instrumental. My copy's got a big scratch on it, but it does play well.)

Les Cooper and the Soulrockers: Garbage Can (Everlast)(Decent soul instrumental. His best remains "Let's Do The Boston Monkey."

Johnny Otis: Hey Hey Hey Hey (Dig)(Cool R&B version of a song also done by Little Richard. Not sure if this version came first or not.)

Tony Sheridan and the Big Six: Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop (Polydor International)(Really fine mod record from someone once associated with The Beatles. I think this came afterward, but I'm not sure.)

Harmon Bethea The Maskman: Prices and Crises (Jan Jan)(Early 70's funk in which The Maskman raps about price increases. Still timely today, me thinks.)

Junior Dean and the Avalons: Chick Chick (Dee Jay Jamboree)(80s reissue of a smokin' hot rockabilly cut.)

Rockin' Ramrods: I Wanna Be Your Man (Plymouth)(Rockin' garage version of a Beatles tune.)

Well, that's it for today. There's a record show in Indy tomorrow, so we'll see what kind of cheapies I can scoop up. You'll get another report about it here when I get around to it. I also have some records lined up to post from Round Robin, The Interpretations and Jay Dee Bryant. More 45s will follow from either me or Todd. Until then, see you later.

2010 Favorite Finds

2011-01-01T23:36:00.006-06:00

Considering it's been almost three months since I've bothered to post anything, I suppose a hello and an apology is in order. There are more 45's on the way. Plus, I want to get another aircheck up sometime soon.

Here are my favorite finds of 2010. Most of these were two bucks or less.

Big Jay McNeely: Psycho Serenade (Swingin')
Big Jay McNeely: The Squat (Swingin')
The Four Sounds: Mama Ubangi Bangi (Ran-Dee)
Pancho Villa & the Bandits: Ain't That Bad (Symbol)
Nathaniel Mayer & the Fabulous Twilights: Leave Me Alone (Fortune)
The Sensational Guitars of Dan & Dale: Batman Theme/Robin's Theme (Tifton)
The Runaways: 18th Floor Girl (Alamo Audio)
The Remains: Don't Look Back/Me Right Now (Epic)
Timmy Thomas: Have Some Boogaloo (Goldwax)
Commonwealth Jones: Do Do Do/Who's Been Here (Columbia)
Neal Ford & the Fanatics: Shame On You (Hickory)
Bing Day: I Can't Help It (Mercury)
Ike & Tina Turner: Two Is A Couple (Sue)
Round Robin: Gonna Tear The House Down (Shot)
Marty Robbins: Long Tall Sally (Columbia)
Johnny Thunder: Groovy Two Shoes (Diamond)
The Rumblers: I Don't Need You No More/Boss (Dot)
Liverpool Five: She's Mine (RCA Victor)
The McCoys: Say Those Magic Words (Bang)
Pandora & the Males: Kiddie A Go Go (Fibra)
The Drifters: Didn't It (Atlantic)
We Believe: Breathalyser (Dunhill)
The Meters: Chicken Strut (Josie)
Bobby Marchan: Shake Your Tambourine (Cameo)
Jay Dee Bryant: Get It (Enjoy)
The Jewels: Smokey Joe (Dimension)
The Poppies: Do It With Soul (Epic)
Wilbert Harrison: The Horse (Fury)
Bobby Parker: Watch Your Step (V-Tone)
Nappy Brown: Open Up That Door/Pleasin' You (Savoy)
Bob Seger & the Last Heard: Persecution Smith/Chain Smokin' (Cameo)
Jessie Hill: Scoop Scoobie Doobie (Minit)
Jaycee Hill: Bump! (Epic)
Ted Taylor: Daddy's Baby (OKeh)
Natural Bridge Bunch: Pig Snoots (Norman)
Clifton Chenier: Ay-Tete Fee/Boppin' The Rock (Specialty)
Wynona Carr: Jump Jack, Jump (Specialty)
Art Neville: Zing Zing (Specialty)
The Hueys: You Ain't No Hippie (Instant)
Ronnie Hawkins: Who Do You Love/Bo Diddley (Roulette)
Bill Craddock: Ah, Poor Little Baby/Lulu Lee (Date)
Howlin' Wolf: Pop It To Me/I Had A Dream (Chess)
Lowell Fulsom: The Letter (Kent)
Scat Man Crothers: Golly Zonk! (HBR)
Four Gents: Soul Sister (HBR)
Mike Evans: Gruesome (A&M)
The Teddy Boys: Jezebel (MGM)
Otis Clay: Got To Find A Way (One-derful!)
The Dukays: Say You Love Me/The Jerk (Jerry-O)
Jimmy Castor: Magic Saxophone (Smash)
Jackey Beavers: Hold On (Sound Stage 7)
Smokey Johnson: I Can't Help It (Nola)
Collay & the Satellites: Little Girl Next Door (Sho-Biz)
Andy Dio: Sattelite (Johnson)
Larry & the Hippies: Enough For Everybody/Gimme Some of Yours (Toddlin' Town)
New Colony Six: Cadillac (Sentar)
The Electric Prunes: You've Never Had It Better (Reprise)
The Underdogs: Friday At The Hideout (Reprise)
The Mod VI: It's Not The Same/Long Tall Sally (Poe)
The Soul Support: Come Back Ness (Retrop)
Willie Mitchell: Buddy Bear (Hi)
The Premiers with Leroy: Run Along Baby/Back Again Run Along Baby (LEO)
The Emperors: My Baby Likes To Boogaloo/You Got Me Where You Want Me (Mala)
The Preparations: Get-E-Up (The Horse) (Heart & Soul)
Johnny Williams: Breaking Point (Twinight)
Lee Dorsey: Go-Go Girl (Amy)
Bobby Patterson: T.C.B. or T.Y.A. (Jetstar)
The Pedestrians: It's Too Late (Atco)
Lettie & Junior: Blues In The Night (Cub)
Peppermint Harris: Little Girl (Jewel)

Lots of others that I could have listed. Thanks to Brian Marshall for his continued help with the blog. I couldn't do it without his continued participation. Here's to a great 2011 for everybody. The first record show of the year is next weekend, January 9 in St. Louis.

Some More New Acquisitions

2010-11-13T13:00:00.002-06:00

Hello, everyone. Well, once again the record bug has bit me and here's another crop of wax that I've managed to pick up in the last couple of months. As before, I'm going to tell you a little bit about each one. Hope you enjoy:

The Banlons: Hey Good Lookin'/I Like It (Fidelity.....Great rockin' doo wop with a Hank Williams cover and a cool original.)

The Swingin' Medallions: Rollin' Rovin' River (123....A later period offering in which they have a brassier sound....a far cry from the genius of "Double Shot (Of My Baby's Love).

Aaron Neville: Over You (Minit) Classic New Orleans r & b with a song later covered by Paul Revere and the Raiders.

Hank Ballard and the Midnighters: House With No Windows/Cute Little Ways (King) A double sider from Mr. Ballard and his crew, a slow one and a more raucous flip.

Rabbit and Geno: Why Did You Go (Bow) Pretty cool sleazy R&B ballad.

John Lee Hooker: No More Doggin' (Battle) Accoustic blues from the master.

The Road Runners: Little Pig (Commerce) Pretty cool fratty rocker.

The Jordan Brothers: It's A Shame (Vim) I like this fast-paced rocker a lot, but some of their others ("The One That Got Away") are better.

Chuck Berry: Jaguar and Thunderbird/Our Little Rendezvous (Chess) This is one from Chuck you don't see too often and it's got two heapin' helpin's of his classic sound. "Jaguar and Thunderbird" is very much along the same lines as "Maybelline."

Bill Yates and His T-Birds: Don't Step On My Dog (Sun) Solid soul stomper along the same lines as Rufus Thomas.

Lyn Collins: Think (About It)(People) Female funk empowered by Mr. James Brown.

Hannah Dean: Itty Bitty Love (Columbia) Chick rock 'n' roll shouter

The Emanons: Calypso Bop/Stomper (Doll) Both sides are good guitar instrumentals with one side being more smokin' than the other. I believe, however, the label got the sides mixed up. Still, a killer record from "The only pinup record in the world."

Sir Guy and the Rockin' Cavaliers: Funky Virginia (N.P.G.) Really cool stompin' funky record.

The Teen Beats: The Slop Beat/Califf Boogie (Original Sound) Two more killer instros from this group. I also have Swimmin' Parts 1 and 2 from these guys.

Sam Hawkins: Hold On Baby (Blue Cat) Not too bad Northern Soul.

Booker T. Averhart and the Mustangs: Take Your Shoes Off Parts 1 and 2 (Kent) Another really cool funky number with Part 1 being vocal and Part 2 being instrumental.

The T-Birds: Full House (Andex) Really great rockin' instrumental. Don't know if they're related to Bill Yates' T-Birds or not. My guess is probably not.

Mr. Kasandra and the Sandrets: Hully-Gully-Suzie-Q (Sahara) Pretty good soul dancer.

Ersel Hickey: Hangin' Around (Epic) Pretty good rockabilly bopper.

Kipper and the Exciters: Drum Twist Parts 1 and 2 (Torch) Really great drum/guitar instrumental. This is actually Kip Tyler, who wrote and produced.

The Interpretations: Soul Affection (Bell) Really great, speeded-up funk record.

The Velvelettes: He Was Really Sayin' Something (V.I.P) Great Motown girl pop stomper. It was a minor hit for them, I believe.

The Hi-Boys: Billy Boy (Mala) A bit on the frat rock-ish side.

And there you have the extend of my record collecting as of late. I'm sure there's more to come. I hope so anyway.

Streak - "Bang Bang Bullet"/"Black Jack Man" (Deram)

2010-10-08T13:06:00.000-05:00

This two-sider is something I got turned onto recently, having won it off eBay. The copy I have is a U.S. issue, but I believe this is a British band. The Purepop blogsite says two members would later go onto a group called The Arrows. Or is it the other way around? No matter because both of these sides are real gut-punchin' rock 'n' roll that can be compared to The New York Dolls and Alice Cooper. If these guys are British, then they can also be compared with their fellow glam-mates Sweet and Gary Glitter. "Bang Bang Bullet" gets a slight edge over its B-side, but they're both really good, so they're both presented here. Fair enough?

The Brotherhood: "Are You A Turtle (Yes I Am)"(Dial)

2010-10-03T14:12:00.000-05:00

Here's yet another dance sensation sweepin' the nation....well, it should have swept the nation, but you know how these things go. As it stands, another group of unknown forces have left behind another smokin' soul stomper that should've filled dance floors, but hey, it's still here for us to enjoy in the 21st century. I don't know anything about this group and couldn't find anything on them, so just forget about all that and savor this record for what it is: a red-hot shit-kickin' soul extravaganza! That's right, I dig it. If you have any moxie about you, then you oughta, too.

Sunny and the Sunliners - "No One Else Will Do" (Tear Drop)

2010-10-03T11:40:00.000-05:00

This one is easily one of my favorite finds of the year! I heard it featured on another blog (one of Westex's, I believe) and fell immediately in love with its soulful garage sound complete with a swirling Farfisa organ. I knew I had to have one, too, and, as par for the course, when the opportunity to sieze one popped up, I jumped on it. It has made many visits to my turntable ever since. This song is so great, it's got the power to have you up and jumping. This group had a Top 20 hit in Billboard in 1963 with "Talk To Me" and I believe its leader, Sunny Ozuna, is still active. Whatever the case, this one is one to be savored.

Liverpool Five - She's Mine

2010-10-03T11:29:00.003-05:00

Here's another recent find of mine. After I brought this home, along with the rest of the take from the record show, I emailed a list of my finds to Brian Marshall. He commented that the Liverpool Five are hit and miss, something I totally agree with. I've had a couple of their other singles and, while they weren't bad, they certainly weren't anything terrific either. Well, this one is a big HIT around here. I love the guitars and the manic drumming, a la the Yardbirds on "I'm A Man". The Liverpool Five as real garage rockers.

The Nite Hawks: "Chicken Grabber"/"Big Top" (Del Fi)

2010-10-02T12:12:00.000-05:00

Another day, another two-sider. I'm not 100% certain, but I believe this is from 1959. I do know that the top side, "Chicken Grabber," was featured in the 1997 "restored" version of John Waters' "Pink Flamingos." It's a wild and slightly demented instrumental with crazy cackles and a growling vocal going "Here chick, chick, chick, yeah." You flip it over and another wild raver awaits you with "Big Top." Both sides of this thing are smokin' hot and well worth your ears and that's all I have to say about it. Well, not quite, as I will mention that I've seen copies of this go as high as $150, so here are both sides so you can see what you're missing.

The Four Sounds - Mama Ubangi Bangi

2010-10-02T12:10:00.003-05:00

Here's a record that I picked up at July record show in St. Louis. Sure enough, just about that time, the excellent Rock & Roll Ichiban blog posted it. It's a huge favorite though, so, if you missed it over there or would just like to hear it again, I decided to give it a go over here. What we have here is just a great jungle-esque r&b 45. Indeed, it would be right at home in the Jungle Exotica series. I may have checked to see if it was a part of that but I've already forgotten what I found out. One of my favorites of this year.

Bobby Parker: "Watch Your Step" (V-Tone)

2010-10-01T12:00:00.002-05:00

Hello again, and it's time for another soul stomper, this time from 1961. It's got it all: a shit-hot guitar riff, rhythms that recall Ray Charles' "What I Say," blastin' horns, shriekin' girlie chorus and wild, soulful vocals....I mean the whole thing just works up a complete sweat. I was reading one of Larry Grogan's old "Funky 16 Corners" post which, if I'm not mistaken, cites this as an inspiration for The Beatles' "I Feel Fine." Needless to say, this easily smokes The Beatles and wipes the floor with 'em. Do yourself a grand favor and check this out. It is indeed a thing of beauty. Oh, by the way, Parker is still playing to this day. Just thought you should know

Lonnie Youngblood - "Soul Food (That's What I Like) (Fairmount)

2010-09-28T12:39:00.002-05:00

Well, here's another hipshaker for ya to get you through the week. I know for a fact that Jimi Hendrix played on several of Youngblood's sides and I believe he played on this one, too. The b-side, "Goodbye Jessie Mae," is a surprisingly good blues side. Maybe we'll feature that someday. In the meantime, here's a bona-fide stomper from Mr. Lonnie Youngblood. And while you're at it, check out some of his other 45s like "Go Go Shoes," "Go Go Place" and "African Twist Parts 1 and 2." Those are also more than worthy.

St. Louis Record Show Haul

2010-09-25T16:30:00.005-05:00

It's two weeks on since the latest St. Louis record show and I'm just now getting to this. As much as I hate to stick everyone with another list, it's probably all I can muster today. Nothing was over two bucks, this go around.

Roddie Joy: I Want You Back (Parkway)
Bob Seger & the Last Heard: Persecution Smith/Chain Smokin' (Cameo)
Chuck Fayne: Tokyo Stomp (Crest)
Bill-Beau Trio: Bill's Five Count (Misty)
Noble Watts: Jookin (Enjoy)
Millie Rodgers: Slip Away (Ultima)
Lebonte: Dead Pigeon (Sound-O-Rama)
The Flamingos: She Shook My World (Philips)
The Isley Brothers: Nobody But Me (Wand)
The Capitols: Patty Cake (Karen)
Leon Haywood: 1-2-3/Soul-On (Imperial)
Brother Jack McDuff: Black Is!/Win, Lose or Draw (Cadet)
Little Richard: Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On (Vee-Jay)
Bill Craddock: Lulu Lee/Ah, Poor Little Baby (Date)
Jesse Gee: Don't Mess With My Money (Barry!)
C. Smalls & Co.: Keep On Groovin' (A&M)
The Panic Buttons: Come Out Smokin' (Gamble)
The Blossoms: Tweedle Dee (MGM)
Jessie Hill: T.V. Guide (Downey)
John Roberts: Baby, I Need Somebody (Duke)
Junior Wells: I Can't Stand No Signifying (Blue Rock)
The Vontastics: Day Tripper (St. Lawrence)
Big Guitar: Tony's Folly (Big Guitar)
Tiny Watkins: Fine Driving Machine (Excello)
The Artistics: Hope We Have (Brunswick)
The Birdies: The Huckle-Buck - 65 (Charter)
James Brown & the Famous Flames: Think (Federal)
The Kinks: David Watts (Reprise)
The Mighty Trojans: Just Got Up (Joed)
The Fiestas: It Don't Make Sense (Old Town)
The Preparations: Get-E-Up (The Horse) (Heart & Soul)
The Pedestrians: It's Too Late (Atco)
Bobby Patterson: T.C.B. or T.Y.A. (Jetstar)
Charles Mann: A Good Thing (Lanor)
Smokey Johnson: I Can't Help It (Nola)
Jackey Beavers: Hold On (Sound Stage 7)
The Fabulous Counts: Jan Jan (Moira)
The Emperors: My Baby Likes To Boogaloo (Mala)
The Electric Prunes: You've Never Had It Better (Reprise)
Inez & Charlie Foxx: I Fancy You (Symbol)
The Mirettes: In The Midnight Hour (Revue)
Lee Dorsey: Go-Go Girl (Amy)
Sir Mack Rice: Mini-Skirt Minnie (Stax)
Ted Taylor: Help The Bear (Atco)
Sunny & the Sunliners: No One Else Will Do (Tear Drop)
Dick Dale & the Del-Tones: Surf Beat (Deltone)
The Top Notes: Twist and Shout (Atlantic)
Billy Farrell: Slippin' and Slidin' (Imperial)
Charles Lattimore: Do The Thing (Shout)
Carter Brothers: I Don't Care (Jewel)
First Gear: Thank You Baby (Myrrh)

Some Recent Acquisitions

2010-09-18T13:37:00.002-05:00

Hello everyone, and hope you're having a good warm day. It's time for yet another list that you're so used to (or tired of) seeing on this blog. So far it's been a year of not much collecting for me as I've been spending a good portion of the year searching for work. Much like the rest of America. But the record collecting bug has not died with me, not by a long shot. So, here's a little list of some records I've been accumulating the past several months. This, as always, is for your entertainment only, and you never know, some of these things may be posted as entries on the blog. But for now, here we go:

The Countdowns: Do It/Done (Anderson....smokin' instros from Anderson, IN)
Senor Soul: It's Your Thing (Whizz....instro funk version of the Isley Brothers classic...I think these guys contained members of what would become War)
B.J. Baker: Anywhere (Decca....kind of Northern soul like, from the TV series "Ir0nside")
The Traces: Runaround Sue (Laurie...really cool hard soul version of Dion's hit)
The Famous Ward Singers: Got On My Travelin'Shoes (Savoy....killer gospel with lots of high shriekin'!)
Nancy Butts: Let Me Be Free (Flaming Arrow....good soul with lots of organ)
Guys and Dolls: Chinatown (Karol...good funk, but seems a little racist to me)
Fantastic Epics: Fun and Funk Pts. 2 and 3 (Torries....really great funk instro...but fades out at a killer fuzz solo!)
Ted Taylor: Honey Lou (Ronn.....great funky soul, another great side of his on Ronn)
Don Gardner and Dee Dee Ford: Don't You Worry (Fire...great, along the lines of "I Need Your Lovin'")
Sunny and the Sunliners: Hip Huggin' Mini (RPR...great Texas soul)
Sunny and the Sunliners: No One Else Will Do (Tear Drop....great Tex-Mex farfisa-flavored garage soul)
Screamin' Jay Hawkins: The Whammy/Strange (Roulette....another wacky one from the screamin' master.)
Bobby Fuller Four: Never To Be Forgotten (Mustang....one of the greats from Mr. Fuller)
The Nite Hawks: Chicken Grabber/Big Top (Del Fi.....two great instro rockers)
Yusef Lateef: Bishop School/Raymond Winchester (Atlantic...two hot pieces of instro funk/jazz)
J.J. Barnes: Chains of Love (Groovesville...great soul dance floor filler)
Flower Island: Everybody's Excited (Scepter....great fuzz/psych instro)
Fleetwood Mac: Stop Messin' Round (Epic...very early Fleetwook Mac)
The Jades: Gotta Find Me Somebody To Love (Imperial...good soul mover)
Little Janice: Mirror Mind/Not Til Him (Pzazz....good sister funk)
Don Covay: Sweet Pea (Don't Love Nobody But Herself )(Atlantic...good soul mover from Covay)
Streak: Bang Bang Bullet/Black Jack Man (Deram)(Great glam rock a la Sweet)
The Rappers: Krunchberry Beast (Roach....great funk instro)
Mike St. Shaw and The Neon: Great Balls of Fire (Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On) (Atco....great mover a la Mitch Ryder with lots of killer fuzz guitar)
The Last Word: Runnin' and Hidin' (Atco...great fuzz guitar soul garage mover)
Wilson Foster: We Wanna Work Pts. 1 and 2 (Excel....pretty cool soul stomper)
The Brotherhood: Are You A Turtle (Yes I Am) (Dial.....great soul dancer)
The Carter Br0s.: Do The Watusi (Coleman....great crude soul dancer)
Lula Reed: You Gotta Have That Green (Federal....killer r & b)
Simtec and Wylie: Gotta Get Over The Hump (Mr. Chard.....great funk)
The Safety Patrol: Lovin' Time (Colossal....very good bubblegum)
Arnett Cobb: Flying High Mambo (Atlantic....cool r&b mambo instro)
Otis and Carla: Ooh Carla Ooh Otis (Atco....pretty much what you'd expect from this pairing)
The Soul Children: Tighten Up My Thing (Stax...typical record from them)
The Village Sound: Hey Jack (Don't Hijack My Plane)(Hip...reminds me of the Grass Roots)
Jimmie and Vella: Well (Imperial...pretty cool soul duet, really starts screamin' toward the end of the song, has okay soul version of "Nights In White Satin" on the flip)

And that's that.

Neal Ford and the Fanatics: "Shame On You" (Hickory)

2010-09-18T12:30:00.000-05:00

This one ranks as one of my all-time favorites and with its sinister vocals could also qualify as a cool Halloween spin. I also love the swirling organ that burns throughout the piece. From what I've been able to gather, "Shame on You" was supposed to be the plug side, when somebody flipped it over and played the B-side "Gonna Be My Girl" and that became a regional hit in some areas. Some people think that's the better side, but I disagree strongly. "Shame on You" is the real killer with a lot of punk 'n' roll attitude and that's the side we're featuring here, whether you like it or not. DEATH TO POPSTERS!!!!

Eddie Smith and the Hornets - "Upturn" (Rel)

2010-09-05T11:03:00.000-05:00

What we have here is a rather smokin' guitar instrumental from Eddie Smith and the Hornets. I don't know much about Smith and couldn't find anything on him on the web (as usual), but I did find a listing that says this is from 1959. But whatever the year, you'll find this instro chugs along at a breakneck pace with lots of stingin' guitar twangin' and thumpin'. So put the car in cruise control and go full throttle with this one.

Bobby Marchan - "Shake Your Tambourine" (Cameo)

2010-09-03T13:30:00.000-05:00

Hello, everyone, and welcome to another quickie. This one comes from the mighty Bobby Marchan. It was one of five singles he recorded for Cameo-Parkway between 1966 and 1967 and it's a real hipshaker, the kind we like to feature around here on "It's Great Shakes." It's yet another dance sensation that didn't take off, but that's okay. This thing still has the power to make you start jumpin' onto the dancefloor with Bobby hoopin' and hollerin' while the band lays down a real wild groove. This one should get your Labor Day weekend off to a good start. The flip's a ballad, but I prefer the hollerin' myself.

Record Round-up

2010-08-17T06:00:00.001-05:00

Hello, it's been awhile. Thanks so much to Brian for his post of the Pancho Villa disc, one of my favorite record finds of the year. I thought it might be fun to do some mini reviews of other recent finds. These records are from last month's St. Louis record show and my recent trip to California.

Mike Evans: "Gruesome" I found this and several others at an outdoor flea market in Nipomo, CA. The take that day was pretty decent, especially for the money and included a Remains 45. This one was purchased blind, based mainly on the song title. What we have here is a nice slab of garage rock, indeed a novel take-off on "Gloria". I'm pretty certain this was nothing more than a throw-away b-side but it's a winner and I love the overall sound of this record.

The Kin-Tels: "The Dodge" Here we have a curious record put out by the Kin-Tel Corp. (thus the group name) that sounds like it was intended for an ad campaign. It's a nice pop ditty about Dodge automobiles, with a little cool guitar thrown in. I'd love to get the scoop on this. To me, it sounds like it's from about 1965. There's a different version on each side, although they sound the same to me.

Joe Brown: "The Mustang, Part 1" Yet another record that was totally unknown to me. This one is an r&b dance number that owes more than a debt of gratitude to Alvin Cash. Joe Brown even name checks the Twine and Barracuda, among several other dance steps. Central to it all, of course, is the Mustang. The flip side is more of the same.

We Believe: "Breathalyser" Still more proof that you never know what you'll find on the b-side of an otherwise forgettable disc. The top side of this is lame pop and then we have this nifty Hammond B3 driven instro, with some good guitar, on the flip. Every once in awhile, the music slows down so some poor guy can blow into a breathalyser, as the title implies. An unexpected winner.

Pancho Villa and the Bandits: "Ain't That Bad" (Symbol)

2010-08-14T12:31:00.004-05:00

Hello, everyone, and welcome to another infrequent post on this blog. But the wait will be worth it because what I'm about to present to you is a total monster soul cut. It's "Ain't That Bad" by Pancho Villa and the Bandits and let me tell you, this thing SMOKES! It's got lots of gritty guitar punctuated by the lead vocalist shoutin' and screamin' a whole lotta stuff that you don't know what it's about, but you don't care because it sounds so cool.

I don't know much about the band because, as par for the course, I couldn't find anything. But I do know that this is from 1964 as it was listed in Symbol's discography. I've also heard this played on WFMU's mandatory "Fool's Paradise With Rex" and he says it's on the Pee Vee label, so I guess Symbol must have picked it up for national distribution.

Whatever the case, do yourself a favor and immerse yourself in the smoky, dirty grooves. In short, check this out and crank it loud. It just might make you a happy puppy, trust me.

July Record Show Finds

2010-07-31T06:55:00.004-05:00

The latest record show in St. Louis was already three weeks ago. Sorry for the tardiness in making this post. Since then, I've been to California and back, where I also found a few records, including a long time want. Anyway, here's what the take looks like from St. Louis, always a great show for cheap 45's.

Erma Franklin: I'm Just Not Ready For Love (Shout)
Ernie K-Doe: Gotta Pack My Bag (Duke)
The Bouncin' Beats: The Bounce (Epic)
The Four Sounds: Mama Ubangi Bangi (Ran-Dee)
Rodge Martin: They Say (Dot)
The Valentinos: You've Got The Kind of Love That's For Real (Jubilee)
Natural Bridge Bunch: Pig Snoots (Norman)
Lonnie Youngblood: Soul Food (That's a What I Like) (Fairmount)
The Triumphs: Burnt Biscuits/Raw Dough (Volt)
B.B. King: Shoutin' The Blues (Kent)
Wynona Carr: Jump Jack, Jump (Specialty)
Wynona Carr: Till The Well Runs Dry (Specialty)
Maurice McAllister: Baby Hang On (Chess)
The Faithful Wonders: I Found Out For Myself (St. Lawrence)
The Olympics: Workin' Hard (Arvee)
Bobby Marchan: Shake Your Tambourine (Cameo)
Moss & the Rocks: There She Goes (Chattahoochee)
Eddie Smith with the Hornets: Upturn (Rel)
The Right Kind: I've Been Changed (Galaxy)
The Combinaires: Topaz (Rescue)
Wilbert Harrison: The Horse (Fury)
Guitar Gable &the Musical Kings: Congo Mombo (Excello)
Bobby Parker: Watch Your Step (V-Tone)
Jackie Verdell: Are You Ready For This (Decca)
The Males: Kiddie A Go Go (Fibra)
Little Jimmy Griffin: If Things Don't Change (R)
Johhny Otis: The New Bo Diddley (Eldo)
Bobby Charles: No Use Knocking (Chess)
The Springers: I Know My Baby Loves Me So (Way Out)
Eddie Cochran: Cut Across Shorty (Liberty)
Joe Brown: The Mustang (Nation)
The Mod VI: Long Tall Sally/It's Not The Same (Poe)
The Viceroys: Goin' Back To Granny's/Get Set (Seafair Bolo)
Otis Clay: Got To Find A Way (One-derful!)
The Lovers: Got A Whole Lot of Lovin' To Do (Lamp)
Bill Justis & the Jury: Blowing Rock (NRC)
Kings V: Purple Wail (FTP)
Pancho Villa & the Bandits: Ain't That Bad (Symbol)
Taj Mahal: A Lot of Love (Columbia)
Billy Hope & the Badmen: Bad Times (Savoy)
Sugar & the Spices: Do the Dog (Stacy)
The Crew: Hot Wire (Brass)
Peppermint Harris: Little Girl (Jewel)
Larry Birdsong: You'll Never Never Know (Excello)
The Rumblers: Boss/I Don't Need You No More (Dot)
Commonwealth Jones: Do Do Do/Who's Been Here (Columbia)
The Del-Knights: Everybody Popeye (Bronko)
Jimmy Castor: Magic Saxophone (Smash)
Al Perkins: Really (USA)
Johnny Aldo & the Relatives: Aldo Rock (Aldon)
Jaycee Hill: Bump! (Epic)
Jeanne & the Darlings: Soul Girl (Volt)
Billy Larkin & the Delegates: Hold On! I'm A Comin' (World Pacific)
Art Neville: Zing Zing (Specialty)
The Meters: Chicken Strut (Josie)
Andy Dio: Sattelite (Johnson)
Sugar Pie De Santo: I Don't Wanna Fuss (Checker)
The Supremes: Run, Run, Run (Motown)
Glenn Watts: Money Gives Dignity (Bunky)
The Bondsmen: Shotgun/Patricia Anne (USA)
The Underdogs: Friday At the Hideout (Reprise)
Liverpool Five: She's Mine (RCA Victor)
The Kin-Tels: The Dodge (D)

Sister Rosetta Tharpe: "That's All" (Verve)

2010-06-08T17:48:00.005-05:00

Hello again everyone. Well, it's been yet another long time between posts and this one's gonna be a bit of a quickie. But I wanted to share with you a little gem by the mighty Sister Rosetta Tharpe. Now, mind you, I'm a bit of a novice when it comes to this dynamo, but when I heard her version of "When The Saints Go Marchin' In," I was hooked. This woman could play a mean guitar and she did it for The Lord! Yow!

She shows off some o'that mean guitar work in this selection, which is over and done in 1:33. That's the way we like 'em around here, short and right to the point. Anyway, she raps a lot about people gotta have religion now. A girlie chorus chants "That's all, that's all at a couple of points to top things off. But that guitar sure be smokin'! Now, if any of you out there are in the know about the Sister's repertorie, I'd definitley appreciate some recommendations. In the meantime, here's "That's All" for your enjoyment and I hope you do.

Bing Day - I Can't Help It

2010-05-15T23:10:00.003-05:00

Hello out there in blog land! What's this, something other than a list? Yes, what I'm going to do today is something very different. I'm going to post an actual record for your consideration. I know it seems like a novel idea but I'm going to do it anyway.

Not much info to give you on Mr. Bing Day. What I'll say is that "I Can't Help It" is an outstanding rocker and one of the best records I've found this year. I'll also add that the Mercury label is an entirely underrated source for 1950's era rockers and r&b. There are all sorts of winners that turn up on the imprint. Here is but one example.

Latest Record Show Take

2010-05-07T23:27:00.004-05:00

Ain't it great that this blog has been reduced to a bunch of lists? I checked back and found that I haven't posted an honest to goodness record in six months! That's terrible and something that I hope to rectify in the near future.

Here's what I got at least weekend's record show in St. Louis. It was a pretty decent show.

Wilson Pickett: I'm Gonna Love You (Double-L)
Eddie Bo: The Hook and Sling (Scram)
The People's Choice: Let Me Do My Thing (Phil-L.A. of Soul)
Gayle Haness: Love Love and Affection (Bang)
Ike & Tina Turner: Dust My Broom/Anything You Wasn't Born With (Tangerine)
Ike & Tina Turner: Two Is A Couple (Sue)
Ricky Allen: You'd Better Be Sure (Age)
Hank Ballard & the Midnighters: The Rising Tide (King)
Rufus Dore: Rib Tips (King)
Big Al Sears: Here's The Beat/Great Googa Mooga (Groove)
Junior Wells: Cha Cha Cha In Blue (Profile)
Lowell Fulsom: The Letter (Kent)
Paul Perryman: Just To Hold My Hand (Duke)
Willie Mabon: I Gotta Go Now (Mad)
Bob & Earl: Uh Uh No No (Uni)
The Goodtimers: Twistin' Train (Epic)
Syl Johnson: Straight Love No Chaser (Zachron)
Larry & the Hippies: Enough For Everybody/Gimme Some of Yours (Toddlin' Town)
New Colony Six: Cadillac (Sentar)
Roscoe Shelton: You Ought To Take Time Out For Your Love (Sound Stage 7)
Chuz Alfred: Buckeye Bounce (Savoy)
The Capitals: Three O'Clock Rock (Triumph)
D.D. (Foots) Ford: D.D.'s Bounce (Glow-Hill)
Johnny Williams: Breaking Point (Twinight)
The Fuller Brothers: Moanin', Groanin' and Cryin' (Keymen)
The Wallace Brothers: Woman, Hang Your Head In Shame (Jewel)
The Van Dykes: I've Got To Find A Love (Mala)
Elmore Morris: Before I Turned My Back On You (Crackerjack)
The Soul Support: Come Back Ness (Retrop)
The Jimmy Velvet Five: Good Good Lovin' (United Artists)
Larry Muhoberac: Look Out (Cover)
John Chester & His Chessmen: Bye Bye Johnny (Interphon)
Oscar McLollie: The Honey Jump (Class)
Tennyson Stephens: Rain, Rain, Rain (Back Beat)
The Rollers: Got My Eye On You/Bonneville (Liberty)
The One-Derful Band: Honey In The Bee-Bo (One-Derful!)
Jimmy Hughes: I'm A Man of Action (Fame)
The Clovers: The Kickapoo (Brunswick)
Eddie Carr & the Navajos: Evil, Evil Evel Knievel (A&M)
Lloyd Price: Lawdy Miss Clawdy (Turntable)
Jackie Wilson & Lavern Baker: Think Twice (Brunswick)
Marie Knight: I Thoought I Told You Not To Tell Them (Baton)
Clifton Chenier: Ay-Tete Fee/Boppin' The Rock (Specialty)
Sugar Pie Desanto: It Won't Be Long (Checker)
The Diplomats: Your Love Is A Shelter (Dynamo)
B.B King: Whole Lot of Lovin' (Kent)
The Jewels: Smokey Joe (Dimension)
Sam Hawkins: Sugar Man (Epic)
Little Esther: It's So Good (Savoy)
The Ideals: The Gorilla (Cortland) hammered but playable
J.C. Davis: Monkey (Chess) ditto
The Camelots: The Chase (Comet)
Jerry-O: Funky Football (Wand)
Four Gents: Soul Sister (HBR)
Ted Taylor: Daddy's Baby (OKeh)
The Apostles: Six Pack (Kapp)
Alvin Cash: Saddle Up (Chess)
The Pyramids: I'm The Playboy (Cub)
The Rare Breed: Come And Take A Ride In My Boat (Attack)
Wilbert Harrison: Off To School Again (Doc)
Bobby Rush: Niki Hokey (Jewel)
Lonnie Russ: My Wife Can't Cook (4J)
Timmy Thomas: Have Some Boogaloo (Goldwax)
Nappy Brown: Open Up That Door/Pleasin' You (Savoy)

Next show, July 11th.

St. Louis Record Show - March 2010

2010-03-20T22:50:00.003-05:00

Long time between posts on this end. Thanks to Brian for posting earlier in the week. I hope to get around to putting up some actual music soon. Here's what I got at the St. Louis record show this month. Good show, well attended. I got some things for as little as a quarter.

Hal Singer: Catnip (DeLuxe)
The Dells: Hallways of My Mind (Cadet)
Tommy Wills & His Twisting Tomcats: Aw Shucks/Hard (Terry)
The Olympics: Secret Agents (Mirwood)
Big Jay McNeely: Psycho Serenade (Swingin')
Bobby Freeman: The Duck (Autumn)
The Teddy Boys: Jezebel (MGM)
Joe Simon: Moon Walk (Sound Stage 7)
Wilson Pickett: Soul Dance Number Three/You Can't Stand Alone (Atlantic)
The Jim Conley Combo: Nite-Lite Slop (Dempsey)
Leo Five: The Thang (L.G.)
The Flares: Shimmy And Stomp (Press)
Nathaniel Mayer & the Fabulous Twilights: Leave Me Alone (Fortune)
Scat Man Crothers: Golly Zonk! (HBR)
The Hueys: You Ain't No Hippie (Instant)
Lloyd Price: Such A Mess (KRC)
Bobby Lee Trammell: My SusieJ.-My Susie Jane (Radio)
Jesse Lee Turner: Baby Please Don't Tease (Carlton)
Ted Royal: I Really Go For You (G-D)
Round Robin & the Parlays: Do The Slauson (Domain)
Marty Robbins: Long Tall Sally (Columbia)
Johnny Fuller: Swingin' At The Creek (Specialty)
Jimmy McCracklin: Shame, Shame, Shame (Art-tone)
Bing Day: I Can't Help It (Mercury)
Paul Kelly: Call Another Doctor (Dial)
Collay & the Satellites: Little Girl Next Door (Sho-Biz)
Wynonie Harris: Sweet Lucy Brown/Bloodshot Eyes (Roulette)
Fabulous Fakes: No Excess Baggage (Columbia)
The Hot Tamales: Out of Sight (Diamond)
The Hideaways: Hide Out (Mirwood)
Fern Kinney: Sweet Devil (Atlantic)
The Drifters: Didn't It (Atlantic)
Chuck Bernard: My Baby (Satellite)
Dale Anderson: Working All Day (Raynard)
The Ravens: Here Is My Heart (Argo)
Booker T. & the MG's: Plum-Nellie (Stax)
Jimmy Soul: Church Street In The Summertime (S.P.Q.R.)
The Creators: Yeah, He's Got It (Philips)
Joey & the Twisters: Do You Want To Dance (Duel)
Floyd Morris: Bee Que (BBS)
Don Covay: You've Got Me On The Critical List (Atlantic)
Freddie Bell & His Bellboys: Rompin and Stompin (Wing)
Prince La La: She Put The Hurt On Me (A.F.O.)
Mr. Wiggles: Fat Back (Parkway)
Willie Mitchell: Buddy Bear (Hi)
Lou (Moondog) Lawton: St. Louis Blues (Heart & Soul)
Round Robin Monopoly: Love's Out To Getcha (Truth)
The Ovations: Qualifications (Goldwax)
Juggy: Oily (Sue)
Billy Prophet: What Can I Do? (Sue)
Fontella Bass & Bobby McClure: Don't Mess Up A Good Thing (Checker)
Joe Tex: C.C. Rider (Dial)
Fender "Guitar" Slim: Tender Rock (Enrica)
Sir Charles Matthews & the Vennel Soul Choir: That Soul Thing (Newmis)
Dyke & the Blazers: City Dump (Original Sound)
Ruth Brown: Just Too Much (Atlantic)
Dick Holler & the Holidays: Double Shot (Of My Baby's Love) (Comet)
Otis Redding: Look At The Girl (Atco)

That's about it. I'm looking forward to being in St. Louis the first Sunday in May for the next go around.

Guitar Jr. - The Hoss (Mercury)

2010-03-17T11:13:00.001-05:00

Greetings and salutations and all the rest of that. Well, I see it's been too long since we've posted anything on this blog. Funny how time slips away, I guess. Anyway, it's time for a little new blood and I've got a pretty cool one to share with you today. This comes from a cat that goes by the name of Guitar Jr. and it concerns another dance craze that didn't quite take off, but what the hell, it left a tasty little jam anyway.

From what I've been able to dig up, Guitar Jr.'s real name is Lonnie Brooks. At least that's what I gather since I've mostly come across a discography bearing records by both Lonnie and his Guitar Jr. monicker as he appears to have released records under both names. This one comes from 1960 and it comes after a spell of singles he recorded for the Goldband label in the late 50s. ("The Crawl," from this period, is on my want list. If anyone knows where I can find one, let me know. I'd prefer the original as opposed to the later e.p. reissue, but I'll take what I can get.)

Whatever the case may be regarding Mr. Brooks' name, the most important thing is that this is a pretty swingin' little item with some highly tasty guitar work. And if you don't know the actual steps of The Hoss, well, maybe a listen or two of this will find you trying to invent dance steps of your own. Just be careful of the furniture.

Will be back again soon with another bit of rockin' noise. I promise you won't have to wait two months for it.

Favorite Finds of 2009

2009-12-26T14:00:00.000-06:00

Greetings and welcome to the end of another year. I hope everyone had a great Christmas holiday. And now, it's that time again where I take stock of all the ways the record gods have blessed me in the year just passed. You just saw Todd's list and now it's my turn. This has not been one of my favorite years as there's a lot of stuff going on that ain't necessarily to my liking. But rather than bore you to death with that, I will now share with you what I thought were the high-points of my record collecting year. So, here we go in no particular order:

Tommy Ridgely: Double Eye Whammy (Ric)
Jerry-O: Funky Football (Wand)
James Brown: Tell Me What Yo're Gonna Do (King)
Sister Rosetta Tharpe: That's All (Verve)
The Del-Knights: Everyb0dy Popeye (Bronco)
Richard Berry and the Soul Searchers: Go Go Girl (AMC)
Gene "The Draggin' King" Moles: Burning Rubber (Challenge)
The Wailers: I Don't Want To Follow You (Viva)
The Monarchs: Friday Night (Zone)
Tommy Mitchell: Jukebox Help Me Find My Baby (Mercury)
Lowell Fulsom: Don't Drive Me Baby (Checker)
Mitty Collier: I Can't Lose (Peachtree)
Rufus Thomas: Chicken Scratch (Stax)
Rufus Thomas: The Funky Bird (Stax)
The Rhythm Rockers: Rendezvous Stomp (Challenge)
Bobby Marchan: Booty Green (Fire)
Roddy Jackson: Moose on the Loose/Hiccups (Specialty)
Earl King: Trick Bag (Imperial)
Myra Barnes (Vicki Anderson): (The Answer To 'Super Bad')Super Good Parts 1 and 2 (King)
TV Slim and His Guitar: The Big Fight (Checker)
Maurice and Mac: Kick My Cat, I'll Beat Your Dog (Checker)
The Storey Sisters: Bad Motorcycle (Came0)
Cozy Powell: Race with the Devil/And Then There Was Skin (Chrysalis)
Ray Burden: A Hot Rodder's Dream (Adonis)
Jimmy McCracklin: The Wobble (Mercury)
Jesse Hill: Whip It On Me (Minit)
The Caps: The Red Headed Flea (White Star)
Eyes of Blue: Apache '69 (Mercury)
Leon and the Burners: Crack Up/Whiplash (Josie)
Rex Garvin and the Mighty Cravers: I Gotta Go Now (Up on the Floor) (Like)
Mongo Santamaria: Mongo's Boogaloo (Columbia)
Jim Doval and the Gauchos: Scrub (Diplomacy)
Chuck Bridges and the L.A. Happening: Bad Sam (Vault)
Willie Mitchell: Buddy Bear (Hi)
Harmonica Fats: Mama Mama Talk To Your Daughter For Me (Darcey)
The Raiders: Walking Through The Jungle (Brunswick)
Sam Price: Rib Joint (Savoy)
Nappy Brown: Skiddy Woe (Savoy)
The Counts: Wailin' Little Mama (Dot)
Dave Clark Five: All Night Long (Epic)
Jimmy Reed: Shame Shame Shame (Vee Jay)
The Idle Race: Here We Go 'Round The Lemon Tree (Liberty)
Sonny Lowery: Goodbye Baby Goodbye (Specialty)
The Versatones: Tight Skirt and Sweater/Bila (Atlantic)
The "5" Royales: Do The Cha Cha Cherry (King)
Jan and Arnie: Gas Money (Arwin)
The Yardbirds: A Certain Girl/I Wish You Would (Epic)
Robert Williams and the Groovers: Loud Mufflers/Cranberry Blues (Tip Top)
The Five Stars: Pickin' on the Wrong Chicken (Note)
Normie Rowe: Shakin' All Over (Jubilee)
The Flamingos: The Boogaloo Party (Phillips)
The Packers: Soul Time Parts 1 and 2 (Tangerine)
The Soul Sisters: Flashback (Sue)
Ramsey Lewis: Wade in the Water (Cadet)
Eugene Church: Miami/I Ain't Goin' For That (Class)
Champion Jack Dupree: Old Time Rock And Roll (Vik)
Jimmy Bee: Hot Pants (Cherry Red)
The Countdowns: Watermelon (Image)
Kings V: Purple Wail/Honky Tonk Cha Cha (Pala)
Mack Rice: Love's A Mother Brother (Atco)
Jeanne and the Darlings: Hang Me Now (Volt)
Arthur Conley: Whole Lotta Woman (Atco)
Arthur Conley: Aunt Dora's Love Soul Shack (Atco)
Bobby Sax: Sock It (DePlace)
Buddy Lamp: Have Mercy Baby (Peanut)
The Ikettes: Prisoner In Love (Teen)
Eddie and Ernie: Woman What Do You Be Doing (Revue)
The Collins Kids: Move A Little Closer (Columbia)
King Curtis: Soul Theme (Atco)
Otis Clay: She's About A Mover (Cotillion)
Bobby Lee Trammell: Shirley Lee (ABC-Paramount)
Jackie Wilson and Count Basie: Uptight (Everything's Alright) (Brunswick)
The Bobbettes: I Shot Mr Lee (Triple X)
Ramblin' Jimmie Dolan: Hot Rod Race (Capitol)
Hank Thompson: Rockin' in the Congo (Capitol)
Tennesse Ernie Ford: Catfish Boogie (Capitol)
The Short Kuts: Hold It Baby (Pepper)
Jackie and Tut: 10-2 Double Plus (Chess)
The U.K.s: Your Love Is All I Want (Cameo)
Gloria Jones: Heartbeat Pts. 1 and 2 (Uptown)
Yvonne Fair: Say Yeah Yeah (Dade)
Bird Rollins: Don't Worry 'Bout It (Disco)
Nick Harris and the Soundbarriers: Big Nick (Northwest)
Junior Wells: You Oughta Quit That/I'm Gonna Cramp Your Style (Bright Star)
Mongo Santamaria: Sunshine of Your Love (Atlantic)
Hank Ballard: From The Love Side (Polydor)
Tommy Tucker: Chewin' Gum (Checker)
"Little" Bobby Gilbert: HOt Road (BigBell)
Brother Jack McDuff: Grease Monkey (Prestige)
R.D. Stokes: My Sandra's Jump (II Bros.)
The Mixtures: Jawbone (Linda)
Better Sweet: Like The Flowers (M.O.C.)
Conway Twitty: Shake It Up (Mercury)
Timothy T.J. Williams and Two Shades of Soul: Coming Back To Miami (Josie)
Arty and the Supremes: Hombre/Bruno (Daytone)
Solomon Burke: Keep Looking (Atlantic)
Bob and Earl: Dancin' Everywhere (Mirwood)
King Coleman: Salt And Pepper (Sylvia)
The Rotten Kids: Let's Stomp (Mercury)
Spyder Turner: You're Good Enough For Me (MGM)
Muddy Waters: My Dog Can't Bark (Chess)
Little Willie John: Do You Love Me (King)
Little Willie John: Leave My Kitten Alone (King)
B.B. King: Mashing The Popeye (Kent)

Well, that's about it. I could list a lot more, but I don't want to drag it out too much. Hope that 2010 treats you well and may you be blessed in all your travels. Hope to have more for you in the coming year. In the meantime, don't party too hard.

Favorite Finds 2009

2009-12-25T22:35:00.003-06:00

It's that time again. Yeah I know, it's hard enough to believe that I'm posting anything here regardless the time year. Despite all of that, here are my favorite record finds of 2009. This isn't a list of valuable records, merely the ones I found in 2009 that I've enjoyed listening to the most.

In no particular order:

Homer & Jethro: Houn' Dawg (RCA Victor EP)
The Carefrees: Hot Blooded Lover (London International)
The "5" Royales: Tell The Truth (King)
Spyder Turner: You're Good Enough For Me (MGM)
Kenny Smith & the Loveliters: Night Beat (Fraternity)
Rudi "Tutti" Grayzell: Duck Tail/You're Gone (Starday)
Jean Wells: With My Love and What You've Got (Calla)
Lloyd Price: How Many Times (KRC)
Bobby Fuller: Saturday Night/Stringer (Todd)
B.B. King: Bim Bam (RPM)
The Four Blazers: Peanut Butter (Buddy)
The Elite: One Potato (Charay)
Tony Harris: Chicken, Baby, Chicken (Ebb)
The Brave New World: Cried (Epic)
Bob Cathey & the Night Riders: Johnny B. Goode (Clef)
The Jackasses: Shake It Up/Sugaree (Bray)
J.J. Jackson: I Dig Girls/That Ain't Right (Calla)
Georgie Fame & the Blue Flames: Last Night (Imperial)
Willie Mitchell: Bad Eye (Hi)
The Flirtations: Nothing But A Heartache/How Can You Tell Me? (Deram)
The Ray Men: Baby, What'cha Want Me (Diamond)
The 5 Spots: Black Rock/Mr. Fortune (Soma)
The Pyramids: Pyramid's Stomp/Paul (Best)
Joe Valentine: Hands On, Hands Off (Ronn)
Lulu & the Luvers: Forget Me Baby/Shout (Parrot)
Jimmy McCracklin: Looking For A Woman (Imperial)
Louis (Blues Boy) Jones: Come On Home (Sabra)
Sister Rosetta Tharpe: That's All (Verve)
The Gay Jays: Chicken Back (Josie)
The Noblemen: Dirty Robber (USA)
The Raging Storms: High Octane (Flame)
The Tramps: Ride On/You're A Square (Arvee)
Gino Washington: Like My Baby/I'll Be Around (Atac)
Sugar Pie Desanto: Soulful Dress (Checker)
The LaSalles: La La La La La (V.I.P.)
The Big Guys: Propulsion/Zombie (Palette)
Hal Singer: Hot Rod/Rock N' Roll (Savoy)
Russell Evans & the Night Hawks: Send Me Some Cornbread (Atco)
Tom & Jerroo: (Papa Chew) Do The Boo-Ga-Loo (Jerry-O)
The Curiosities: Walkin' The Dog/Scotty (Seeburg)
Ruth Brown: Papa Daddy (Atlantic)
Chuck Evans: Two Timin' Little Women (Skoop)
Wilbert Harrison: Let's Stick Together/Kansas City Twist (Fury)
The Flock: Are You The Kind (Destination)
The Sparrow: Green Bottle Lover (Columbia)
Big Maybelle: Ring Dang Dilly (Savoy)
"Candy" Phillips: Timber (Atlantic)
Teddy & the Rough Riders: Money and Gold (Huron)
Janis Martin: Ooby Dooby (RCA Victor)
Rudy Dozier: Wicked (Teen-Time)
Billy Brown: Meet Me In The Alley, Sally (Columbia)
Bob Luman: Red Hot (Imperial)
Bobby Comstock: Right Hand Man (Ascot)
Leon Haywood: It's The Last Time (Decca)
Jackie Wilson: The Who Who Song/Since You Showed Me How To Be Happy (Brunswick)
Keith Allison: Action, Action, Action (Columbia)
Inez Foxx: I Got It (Dynamo)
Earl Cosby: Ooh Honey Baby (Mira)
Thee Midniters: Whittier Blvd. (Chattahoochee)
Roy Moss: You're My Big Baby Now/You Nearly Lose Your Mind (Mercury)
Gloria Jones: Heartbeat (Uptown)
Tom Hartman: Sunshine Woman (Bell)
? & the Mysterians: Do Something To Me (Cameo)
The Five Sounds: Loadin' Coal (Epic)
The Tabs: Mash Dem Taters (Vee Jay)
Irma Thomas: Break-A-Way (Imperial)
Clifton Chenier: Calinda (Arhoolie)
The Midnighters: Tore Up Over You (Federal)
Soul Tornadoes: Go For Yourself/Funky Thang (Burt)
Johnny Moore: A Dollar Ninety Eight (Wand)
Dick Dale & the Del-Tones: Del-Tone Rock/Let's Go Trippin' (Deltone)
The Dardenelles: Baby, Do The Froog/Alright (Cameo)
Ural Thomas: Can You Dig It? (Uni)

That's it, as I have to draw the line somewhere. I suppose that I could list a "bubbling under" like Billboard magazine used to do. I hope that everyone had a good 2009 and here's to a great year ahead.

Rudy Dozier - Wicked

2009-11-10T19:48:00.009-06:00

Is this the best record I've found this year? Could be, especially when you consider I snagged this at the bottom of a box of otherwise worthless dross in a junk store and not at some record show. When I first found this, I had no idea who Rudy Dozier was and still don't, really. Maybe I did a little poking around on the net looking for information but I've long since forgotten if I found out anything. Did he make any other good records? Any other records at all? Looking at the label, it might not be Rudy Dozier singing at all. Somebody named Vince Tamburo is "featured". Is he the vocalist?

"Wicked" is a great, screaming rocker that's over all too soon. Finds like this are the true joy of record collecting, completely unknown and unexpected. You never know.

Record Show Haul

2009-11-05T20:53:00.003-06:00

Last Sunday was the latest record show in St. Louis. I found all kinds of cool stuff, mostly for two bucks or less. Away we go...

Baby Dee: Sittin' Here Wond'rin' (Amber)
Russell Evans & the Nite Hawks: Send Me Some Cornbread (Atco)
Southside Revue: Chittlins (Mellow)
The Brave New World: Cried (Epic)
Little Joe & the Thrillers: Let's Do The Slop (OKeh)
Jimmy McCracklin: Susie and Pat (Art-tone)
Roger & the Gypsies: Pass The Hatchet (Seven B)
Major Lance: Girls/It Ain't No Use (OKeh)
The Elite: One Potato/Two Potato (Charay)
Johnny Moore: A Dollar Ninety Eight (Wand)
Syl Johnson: Let Them Hang High (Twinight)
Clarence Reid: Nobody But You Babe (Alston)
Gary (U.S.) Bonds: Slow Motion (Legrand)
Lulu & the Luvers: Shout/Forget Me Baby (Parrot)
Norm West: Baby Please (M.O.C.)
The Monarchs: Take Me Home (Sound Stage 7)
The Continental 4: The Love You Gave To Me (Jay-Walking)
Jack Eely & the Courtmen: Louie, Louie '66/David's Mood (Bang)
The El Venos: Geraldine (Groove)
Tony Harris: Chicken, Baby, Chicken (Ebb)
The Olympics: What'd I Say (Arvee)
The Olympics: Good Lovin' (Loma)
The Curiosities: Walkin' The Dog/Scotty (Seeburg)
Soul Tornadoes: Go For Yourself (Burt)
Georgie Fame & the Blue Fames: Last Night (Imperial)
Joey Giam & the Noblemen: Pumpkin (Klik)
Betty Harris: Mo Jo Hannah (Jubilee)
Frank Frost: Harpin' On It (Jewel)
Shirley Wahls: Don't Destroy Me (Smash)
The Uniques: Fast Way of Living (Paula)
Professor Alex Bradford & the Bradford Specials: I Don't Care What The World May Do (Specialty)
Ramsey Lewis: Do What You Wanna (Cadet)
The Midnighters: Tore Up Over You (Federal)
The Midnighters: Is Your Love For Real (Federal)
Googie Rene: Big Time (Class)
The Leaves: Hey Joe, Where You Gonna Go? (Mira)
Priscilla Bowman: A Rockin' Good Way (Abner)
Etta James: Miss Pitiful (Cadet)
The Shondells: Watussi, One More Time (King)
Shirley Gunter & the Flairs: I Want You (Modern)
Jean & the Darlings: How Can You Mistreat The One You Love (Volt)
Prince Curtis: Mama's Little Girl (Chess)
Jiv-A-Tones: Flirty Gertie/Fire Engine Baby (Felsted)
Warren Storm: Troubles, Troubles (Nasco)
Joe Simon: Say (That Your Love Is True) (Vee-Jay)
Jimmy McGriff: Chip!! Chip!! (Jell)
The Downbeats: Downbeat/Rug Cuttin' (Dynamite)
Jean Wells: With My Love and What You've Got (Calla)
Vigor Fisher & the Fishermen: Batter Up (Angie)
Eric & the Vikings: Get Off The Streets Ya'll (Soulhawk)
Tom & Jerroo: (Papa Chew) Do The Boo-Ga-Loo (Jerry-O)
Jamo Thomas & the Party Brothers: Education Is Where It's At (Decca)
Lloyd Price: How Many Times (KRC)
Larry Hart: A Looka - A Looka (Okeh)

That's about it. I've had a lot of fun spinning these here in the house this week. I hope to have some of them converted to digital soon.

Bill Doggett "Monster Party" (King)

2009-10-30T18:29:00.004-05:00

Happy Halloween, everybody! I hope everybody has a great ghoulish time and doesn't overload on all the candy. And I just thought I'd check in with this appropriately-themed nugget from the ever-prolific Mr. Honky Tonk himself, Bill Doggett!

I'm going to take a guess here and say that this was one of Doggett's follow-ups to his massive 1956 hit "Honky Tonk." I know for sure that Doggett was with King from 1951 to 1960 after which he recorded for a slew of labels including Warner Brothers, Columbia, Roulette, ABC-Paramount and Sue. And while Doggett was best known as an organist, this particular recording follows a norm set by "Honky Tonk" in which the lead instruments are the sax and the guitar.

What we have here is a rollicking novelty instrumental with a Halloween theme. I believe this might have also been released as "That's Enough, Lock 'Em Up," which is how this record ends with all the monsters being rounded up and presumably taken to the pokey. In the interim, you get such wordplay as "Who's there? Your man, Rodan!" and "Frankenstein! Where's the wine!" So don't think too much about it and just join the party where you're likely to have as good a time as any.

Gene Summers - "Green Eyed Monster" (Charay/Mercury)

2009-10-13T01:01:00.002-05:00

Here's a little pre-Halloween nugget for you, one I hope you will enjoy. It comes from a man who Gene Vincent once said "was gonna be a big star." Unfortunately, like so many other hopefuls, it didn't happen. But he did leave some tasty, raucous 45s for us to savor, of which this was one. The person in question is named Gene Summers.

Summers is better known to fans of rockabilly due to his recordings on the Dallas record Jan ("School of Rock & Roll, "Nervous, "Gotta Lotta That" (a personal fave)) and Capri ("Alabama Shake," another fave). In his early days, he performed with a virtual catalog of stars including Ronnie Hawkins and a whole host of others. This particular recording was made in 1966, originally for Major Bill Smith's Charay label. It was picked up for wider distribution by Mercury, which is the 45 on display here.

The song itself is a frantic piece with lots of organ, pounding bass, chirping guitar and frenetic drums. It's all about the monster of the title who comes around to make young lovers believe in lies. "But if you trust the one you love," and all your love is true, then the monster will hang his head in shame "and slink away from you." Doesn't sound too scary to me, but at least it's still a cool song. I hope you think so, too.

The Thunderbirds - Thunderbird Twist

2009-10-04T14:18:00.010-05:00

Ah, reruns. Yup, that's what we have for you today at It's Great Shakes, a repeat of the very first record I blogged here. The good news is that we weren't wired for sound back in June of 2005, so this is the first time "Thunderbird Twist" will be heard here.

Four plus years later, this disc is still a favorite and I still know next to nothing about its origins. Here's what I originally wrote:

"Oh, how I love this record! Discs like this are exactly why I wanted to start a blog. As far as I can tell, there's absolutely nothing about this platter posted anywhere on the net.

"Thunderbird Twist" is a wild, upbeat, r&b styled pounder that sounds like it owes a debt of gratitude to "What'd I Say". Indeed, it's the kind of thing that may have been dreamed up on the spot, maybe to fill the backside of a 45. Or perhaps these guys played this live to fill the dance floor. Even would'a worked on me, Mr. Two Left Feet himself!

The tune begins with the singer shouting "Hey Hey Hey" and then horns and a big drumbeat follow. The lyrics are pure dance floor stuff, for instance "Hold it, knock on wood, ahh you're lookin' good". Pure genius in my book.

I don't know exactly when this record was released, though given the title, I'd guess 1961 or '62. It's not a twist record really, just one of a million or so that used the popular dance craze in its title, twist or not. There have been loads of combos using the Thunderbirds moniker through the years. I have no idea whether this bunch of Thunderbirds made any other records or not. The only real clue about possible band members is that Wild Bill Robinson is credited with writing both "Thunderbird Twist" and its flipside, "Lady's Choice" a so-so r&b instrumental. The RCS website has listings for seven different Delta labels but not this New York based one. Given all I don't know about this record, obviously any additional information would be greatly appreciated."

Since I wrote that, the song has been posted at another blog or three and I've learned of at least one other version of the song, namely "The T-Bird" by Rocker Roberts, which now resides in my collection. But "Thunderbird Twist" and the band that recorded it are still otherwise a mystery. Great record though, scratches and all. I hope that you enjoy it.

Indy Show Finds - September Edition

2009-09-19T18:34:00.000-05:00

Hello all. As I promised, I now give you yet another report on my findings at the September Indy record show on Sunday, September 13. It wasn't all that spectacular. Pickings were a bit on the slim side as there were fewer dealers than before. Plus, I only had $50 so I couldn't get too much. However, I didn't walk away empty handed. I managed to scrape a few goodies, most of them out of the dollar bins.

This time, since I didn't get a whole lot, I thought I'd do this a bit different. Rather than just list the records as I normally would do, I'm going to try to tell you a bit about each record I picked up. So, without further adieu, here we go:

Huey Smith and the Clowns: Scald-Dog/Pop-Eye (Ace)

It's always worth it to pick up a Huey Smith record, but this one doesn't quite reach the heights of "Well I'll Be John Brown" or "Don't You Just Know It." But as it is, both sides ramble along nicely, which is just what you'd expect. From 1962.

Joe Hinton: Love Sick Blues/You Know It Ain't Right (Back Beat)

I've heard a lot about this guy but I can't say I'm too impressed with this. It's not the raw, gutbucket soul I expected it to be, but a bit more polished. Maybe after a few more listens....

Mickey and Sylvia: There Oughta Be A Law (Vik)

This strikes me as kind of a follow-up to their big hit "Love Is Strange" since it sounds similar to it. Not the greatest thing, but pleasant enough. And the guitar work is pretty cool. From 1957.

Duane Eddy and the Rebels: Shazam (Jamie)

Pretty much what you'd expect from Mr. Eddy. I don't know, is it just me or are there too few good Duane Eddy records out there? His instrumentals don't have much punch to them. This one's not too bad, though. From the movie "Because They're Young" (1960).

Dale Wright and the Wright Guys: Please Don't Do It/Goody Goody Good-Bye (Fraternity)

This was the follow-up to "She's Neat" and it charted, too (#77 in 1958). This is one of those cases where the back-up vocals ruin everything by making it sound too corny. Wright's best record remains the non-charting "That's Show Biz," which we documented in this blog earlier.

The Undisputed Truth: What It Is (Gordy)

This was one of the follow-ups to their big (only) hit "Smiling Faces Sometimes" and it only made it up to #77 in 1972 (#38 on the soul chart). This one's a hip-shaker and that's all that really matters.

Gene Chandler: Kissin' in the Kitchen (Vee Jay)

This is the flip side of Chandler's 1962 No. 1 smash "Duke of Earl." Who would have thought that a gem of snappy R&B awaits you when you turn the record over? I heard this side was really good and I'm not disappointed.

Leon Ashley: Mental Journey (Ashley)

I thought this looked like a soul record, but it turned out to be country and not very good country at that.

Nappy Brown: Skiddy Woe (Savoy)

Todd has featured this on the "R&B Dance Party" blogcast so I don't have to tell you how cool it is.

Rufus Thomas: The Funky Bird (Stax)

It's usually a no-brainer to pick up a Rufus Thomas record and this one, from 1973-74, is no exception. While I don't think it's his best record, it's certainly got a tight butt-shakin' groove that makes it worth spinning a time or two.

Chuck Bridges and the L.A. Happening: Bad Sam/Keep Your Faith Baby (Vault)

I don't know anything about Mr. Bridges or this record, but I will tell you that both sides are funky as all hell with shrieking vocals at various intervals. Investigate it.

So, that's about it. Next time, I hope to have a bit more loot to work with and there'd better be better dealers. That and I'll have to make sure the batteries in my Numark record player are up and running. Next record show here in Indy is in November, so we'll see how we do and maybe my luck will be a little better. Maybe.

St. Louis Record Show Recap

2009-09-19T18:06:00.004-05:00

Nothing like a good record show to get me out of hibernation. Sorry to take three months between posts. Last Sunday was the latest show in St. Louis, with lots of goodies to be had. Here's what I got.

Pacific Gas & Electric: Wade In The Water (Power)
The Jackasses: Shake It Up/Sugaree (Bray)
Bobby Comstock: Right Hand Man (Ascot)
The LaSalles: La La La La La (V.I.P.)
Sugar Pie Desanto: Soulful Dress (Checker)
Leon Haywood: It's The Last Time (Decca)
The Delights Orchestra: King of The Horse/Do Your Thing (Atco)
Donald Height: Bona Fide Lover (Shout)
Z.Z. Hill: Gimme Gimme (Kent)
Brenda & the Tabulations: Hey Boy (Dionn)
Wayne Cochran: My Little Girl/The Coo (Scottie)
Detroit Jr.: The Way I Feel (U.S.A.)
Wilbert Harrison: Let's Stick Together/Kansas City Twist (Fury)
Andy Wilson: Little Mama (Athens)
James Brown & the Famous Flames: Mashed Potatoes U.S.A./You Don't Have To Go (King)
Bobby Marchan: I Just Want What Belongs To Me (Dial)
Rudy "Tutti" Grayzell: Duck Tail/You're Gone (Starday)
Jackie Wilson: The Who Who Song/Since You Showed Me How To Be Happy (Brunswick)
Homer Banks: A Lot of Love (Minit)
The Four Blazers: Peanut Butter (Buddy)
Ural Thomas: Can You Dig It? (Uni)
Bob and Earl: The Sissy (Chene)
Ruth Brown: 5-10-15 Hours (Atlantic)
Ruth Brown: Papa Daddy (Atlantic)
Ray Charles: Heartbreaker (Atlantic)
Felice Taylor: It May Be Winter Outside (Mustang)
The Delegates: Pigmy (Aura)
Butch Davis and the Capris: Turn On Your Love Light (A-Bet)
Erma Franklin: Don't Wait Too Long (Epic)
The Da-Kars: Shot In The Dark (Josie)
The Snow Men: Ski Storm (Challenge)
Gene Summers: Green Eyed Monster (Mercury)
Freddie Fender: I Can't Remember When I Didn't Love You (Imperial)
Albert King: Night Stomp (Stax)
Joe Hinton: True Love (Back Beat)
Bill Doggett: Monster Party (King)
Tony Fox: I've Got To (Do It To It) (Calla)
Al Green: Hot Wire (Bell)
Ted Ford: Pretty Girls Everywhere (Sound Stage 7)
Cash McCall: You Can't Take Love (Thomas)
Arthur Prysock: Good Rockin' Tonight (Old Town)
The Shadows of Knight: Potato Chip (no label - cardboard record)
Red Prysock: Teen-Age Rock (Mercury)
Ollie & the Nightingales: Girl, You Have My Heart Singing (Stax)
Jackie Moore: Here I Am (Shout)

That's it. I'll try and be back soon.

Bobbie Graham - "Zoom, Widge and Wag" (Fontana)

2009-08-23T13:19:00.003-05:00

Greetings and hello! It's been way too long since there's been a post in this blog, so here's a little something to attempt to convince you that this blog isn't dead. Todd's no doubt been very busy and I've been tied up a bit too, mostly trying to find another job. (Good luck, right?) Anyway, here's a little solid sender from England from one Bobbie Graham.

Bobbie Graham is best known as Britain's foremost session drummer. It's his drumming you hear on The Kinks' double-whammy "You Really Got Me" and "All Day and All of the Night." Other groups Graham has played with include Herman's Hermits, The Animals, Bert Elliot and the Fenmen, Dave Berry, Lulu and the Luvvers, Dusty Springfield and just about anyone who was anyone in British rock 'n' pop, with a few exceptions. One could say that Graham is to Britain what Hal Blaine is to the USA.

Graham recorded few solo singles and the record we present to you today is one of his first. But there is another notable presence on this record. This person started out as a session man and would later join The Yardbirds. Not long after that, he would win everlasting glory as the guitar man in Led Zeppelin. Yep, that's right, I'm talking about Jimmy Page. That's his guitar solo you hear toward the end of the record and I believe he is even co-credited with writing the song.

What should matter most, though, is that this is a rippin' cool instro which features leapin' guitar, poundin' drums, wailin' organ and a bit of sassy horn work all put into the mix. Sounds like a heapin' good stew if you ask me.

Indy Show Finds - July Edition

2009-07-12T20:03:00.002-05:00

Hello again. Well, another Indy record show has come and gone and it's time once again to report my findings to you. As always, there's a lot more I could've gotten, but money was tight as usual. I still managed as I always do to find a few cool items, which I now share with you, delighted reader. So, here they are, along with a few items I just got off eBay:

Jan and Arnie: Gas Money (Arwin)
Cozy Powell: Dance with the Devil (Chrysalis)
Louis Prima & Keely Smith: I Got You Under My Skin (Capitol)
Wanda Jackson: This Gun Don't Care (Capitol)
Jimmy McGriff: Stump Juice/The Worm Turns (Groove Merchant)
Ray Burden: A Hot Rodder's Dream/Sweet Lou From Lou (Adonis)
Rufus: Brand New Day (Epic)
Little Richard: Travelin' Shoes (Atlantic)
Little Richard: The Girl Can't Help It/All Around the World (Specialty)
The Storey Sisters: Bad Motorcycle (Cameo)
Sam the Sham and the Pharoahs: Black Sheep/My Day's Gonna Come (M-G-M)
Ted Taylor: Funky Situation (Ronn)
Charles Brown & Amos Milburn: Educated Fool (Ace)
James Brown: Tell Me What You're Gonna Do (King)
Jimmy McCracklin: The Woggle (Mercury)
Sister Rosetta Tharpe: That's All (Verve)
The Monarchs: Friday Night (Zone)
The Del-Knights: Everybody Popeye (Bronko)
Bobby Mizzell & Lee Wayne: Same Thing (20th Fox)
The Wailers: I Don't Want To Follow You (Viva)
Tommy Ridgely: Double Eye Whammy (Ric)
Jerry-O: Funky Football (Wand)

And that's about it for this round of recent additions to the Brian Marshall 45 library. Sorry, I haven't posted here lately. I got a couple of ideas for posts, but I just haven't had much time. Hopefully, I can get another couple of posts up here in the next few weeks. We will see. In the meantime, I hope you enjoyed this little list and rest assured, another will follow after the next Indy record show in September. We will see.

Radio Aircheck - WIFE Indianapolis 1968

2009-06-13T12:40:00.009-05:00

The WIFE studios at 1440 N. Meridian Street

A little weekend fun here. I haven't posted any old radio airchecks in the past, although I have quite a few of them. Here's one from my hometown of Indianapolis.

WIFE, 1310 AM, was the top 40 giant of Indy for years. They changed their call letters to WIFE from the old WISH-AM around 1963 and were the only real rockers in town for several years. This allowed them to take a fairly conservative approach to top 40 radio, that'd capture both the kids and some adults. It seemed to work, as their numbers were huge well into the 1970's, by which time they were getting rock and roll competition from WNAP on the FM dial and, eventually, both WXLW and WNDE on AM.

Jay Reynolds, the disc jockey heard here, spent much of his career in Indianapolis. He also worked at WABC in New York during the first half of the 1970's. WIFE remained a top 40 rocker until about 1980 when they switched to an adult contemporary format and then changed call letters and formats several times over the years.

The aircheck is 55 minutes in length. The music runs the gamut, just like you'd expect from the top 40 stations of the day, from the latest pop hit by Bobby Goldsboro, to the rock and roll of the Amboy Dukes to the soul music of Sam and Dave. There's a newscast, plus some classic radio spots for Indianapolis Raceway Park, Mountain Dew, Burger Chef and our friends Sam and Dave pop up again as pitchmen for Country Club Malt Liquor.

Here it is, from August 8, 1968.

Little Willie John Triple Play

2009-06-07T12:00:00.002-05:00

Little Willie John: Do You Love Me (King)

Little Willie John: Leave My Kitten Alone (King)

Little Willie John: Let's Rock while the Rockin's Good (King)

Hello again, all. Looks like it's been a while since anything was posted on the ol' blog, so I thought I'd break the silence with a little tribute to someone considered an influential R&B legend who recorded for King in the 50s and early 60s and scored 14 times on the R&B charts. His best known hit is "Fever," which was covered more famously by Peggy Lee who went Top Ten with it. He was convicted of manslaughter in 1966 and would die under mysterious circumstances in prison in 1968. James Brown recorded a tribute to his music a few years later. He was inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame in 1996. The person I speak of is Little Willie John.

I tried to sum up John's history in a bit of a nutshell as it is fairly well-covered on the Web and elsewhere. The records we serve up today are three of his more uptempo records, with one of them being a full-on bonafide shaker. Don't get me wrong, all of them are great, but "Do You Love Me," from 1960, is a fave with John shakin' and shriekin' all over a super-fast groove that barely pauses for breath until it finally comes to an abrupt stop at the end. Believe me when I tell you it's a cooker of a record.

The other two, "Let's Rock While The Rockin's Good" (1958) and "Leave My Kitten Alone" (1961 for my copy...I believe it was released earlier in 1959 as well) are also quite fine in their own right, both showing John equally at home with more typical R&B surroundings. On both of these records, John is backed by a girlie chorus and his vocals blend in well with them. What else can I say? Try 'em all.

If you want to check out more about Little Willie John (and you should), you can Google his name and you'll find several items about him, including a Wikipedia entry. But what really matters is his music and I'm told John cut a lot of great records. Here are three of them.

3 quickies from the fifties (well, almost)

2009-05-11T18:14:00.008-05:00

Hello again, everyone. I've been in a bit of a posting mood, so I'd like to talk about a couple of records I just got and a record that's an all-time fave. In fact, all three of these records are (if they're not there already) all-time faves and their roughly from about 1957 to 1960. Read on and enjoy.

The Noblemen: Dirty Robber (USA)

This is the all-time fave I was telling you about. It was originally issued at two different times on two different labels in 1960. Those labels are Profile and USA. I've got a suspicion that USA must have picked it up from Profile, as a second Noblemen 45 called "Dragon Walk"/"Thunder Wagon" was issued on that label shortly after. That's a great instro 45, but this one is, too, with lots of wailin' sax, poundin' guitar and frantic drums. "You're a dirty robber! Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!!!"

Robert Williams and The Groovers: Loud Mufflers/Cranberry Blues (Tip Top)

Here's yet another group I couldn't find any information on. I did a Google search for this and all I could find was its listing on various radio show playlists and a couple of comp listings. I do know that "Loud Mufflers" had some action on the "Teenage Riot" comp LP and that both songs may have seen action on some of the Buffalo Bop comp CDs, but that's about it. What you need to know, however, is that both songs kick ass! "Loud Mufflers" is a ditty about some kid who keeps getting stopped by the cops because "Loud mufflers make too much noise." "Cranberry Blues" is faster and is about people going crazy with cranberry fever. Both sides feature awesome guitar work with killer guitar breaks, while "Cranberry" even features a frantic drum solo midway through. Can't go wrong with this.

The Five Stars: Pickin' on the Wrong Chicken (Note)

It's a little hard to get a handle on this group because there were several groups out there who shared this name. The Five Stars of this record put this to wax in March of 1958 on the Indianapolis-based label Note. Then, Hunt, a label which had some success with the Virtues' "Guitar Boogie Shuffle" and which had some Dick Clark involvement, picked up the disc and reissued it on their label. The Goldmine Guide to 45 R.P.M. Records also lists this as being issued by ABC-Paramount. Whatever the case, this is a bouncy doo-wop number that speeds along its merry way and keeps cookin' right up to the end. It kind of has a Bill Haley feel except that it's a little faster. Also, Indianapolis rocker Ronnie Haig played guitar on this record and Wes Montgomery is said to have played on it also, though I can't confirm it.

So there you go. Three very fine records to get you started on the good foot this week. Hope you enjoy.

Spyder Turner - "You're Good Enough For Me" (MGM)

2009-05-11T11:46:00.004-05:00

Once again we have a b-side that's better than the actual hit. Spyder Turner reportedly didn't like his novelty version of "Stand By Me," in which he did his impersonations of Jackie Wilson, David Ruffin, Billy Stewart, Chuck Jackson and Smokey Robinson. Yet, it ended up being his only chart-making hit rising to #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 in February of 1967. It did even better on the soul chart going up to #3. On the b-side of the record, however, there's a real boot-shaker of a tune which is our focus for this entry.

A bit of info on Turner: Born Dwight Turner in West Virginia in 1947, he settled with his family in Detroit after years of moving around to various locations. There, in his teen years, he began singing in glee clubs and with various doo-wop groups. By the mid 60s, he and his band The Nonchalants were working up and down all the bars in town. After the band broke up, Annie Gellen, host of the "Swing Time" TV show out of Lansing, Michigan, arranged for Turner to submit an audition tape to MGM. Thus, his version of "Stand By Me" was born. Turner later told Blues and Soul magazine that MGM "felt it was good enough. I didn't agree. I didn't like it but I wanted a record deal so I went on ahead and did a B-side for them." (This information comes from Wayne Jancik's book "The Billboard Book of One-Hit Wonders.")

That B-side is really where the action is on this record with Turner and his chick back-up singers working up a sweat singin' and stompin' while the back up band keeps up a steady beat that never lets up. Turner's delivery is smooth and cool while the back up singers chirp "Good enough, you're good enough for me baby." The whole result of this is that we got a full-fledge soul mover and shaker which easily trumps the better-known A-side.

Turner is still recording and performing today. You can get the latest info on him at his website http://www.spyderturner.com/. Also, another record by Turner you should seek out is his recording of "Ride In My 225" on Fortune Records, which came before "Stand By Me." That's another great record worthy of your ears, but that's another time and perhaps another blog entry.

St. Louis Record Show Finds

2009-05-07T21:51:00.003-05:00

Okay, Brian gave you the lowdown on the recent Indy record show. Here's what I was digging up in St. Louis, the very same day. It was a pretty good record show, with most of my finds coming at three tables. I sprang for a few "more expensive" items but, per usual, a good deal of this was under two bucks each.

Candy Phillips: Timber (Atlantic)
Brenda & the Tabulations: Baby You're So Right For Me (Dionn)
Frank Frost: Jelly Roll King (Phillips International)
Al "TNT" Braggs: Home In That Rock (Peacock)
Dee Clark: Crossfire Time (Constellation)
The Mauds: Brother Chickee (Mercury)
Stop Inc.: Second Line (JB's)
Pat Shannon: Maybelle (Decca)
Chuck Johnson: Elephant Fair (Invicta)
P.W. Cannon: Hey Hey (Hickory)
Kenny Smith & the Loveliters: Night Beat (Fraternity)
The Five Jets: The Shake (Jewel)
Benny Spellman: Fortune Teller (Minit)
Eddie & Ernie: The Cat (Eastern)
The Pyramids: Pyramid's Stomp (Best)
Carl Perkins: Hambone (Columbia)
The Hawks: The Grissle (ABC-Paramount)
Joe Haywood: I Would If I Could (Enjoy)
The Rays: Elevator Operator (XYZ)
Danny Overbea: Stop (Apex)
Howard Tate: Stop (Verve)
Bobby Jones: The Boogie Train (Capri)
The Esquires: You Say (Bunky)
Johnny Daye: I Need Somebody (Stax)
Little Mack Simmons: Givin' Me A Hard Time (Duo Sound)
Calvin Lee: Valley of Tears (Minit)
The Astors: Candy (Stax)
Bobby Powell: That Little Girl of Mine (Whit)
The Impressions: Check Out Your Mind (Curtom)
The Cleftones: She's So Fine (Roulette)
Jimmy McCracklin: Arkansas (Imperial)
Jimmy McCracklin: It's Got To Be Love (Imperial)
Lee Rogers: You're The Cream of The Crop (D-Town)
McKinley Mitchell: No Love (Like My Love) (One-derful!)
Spyder Turner: You're Good Enough For Me (MGM)
Jimmy Reed: Dedication To Sonny (Boy Williamson) (Exodus)
The Ventures: Diamond Head (Dolton)
The People's Choice: I Likes To Do It (Phil-L.A. of Soul)
The People's Choice: The Wootie-Te-Woo (Phil-L.A. of Soul)
Lightnin' Hopkins: Move On Out, Part 2 (Jewel)
The Meters: Doodle-Oop (Josie)
Jackie Lee: The Chicken (Uni)
Jimmy & Stan: Tahiti (Murco)
The Swingers: The Groove, Part 1 (Ranwood)
The Gay Jays: Chicken Back (Josie)
The Raging Storms: High Octane (Flame)
The Noblemen: Dirty Robber (USA)
Landlords and Tenants: Back Up Part 2 (Buddah)
The Ray Men: Baby, What'cha Want Me (Diamond)
Eddie Purrell: The Spoiler (Volt)
The 5 Spots: Mr. Fortune/Black Rock (Soma)
Gene Allison: Now That We're Together (Cherokee)
Bob Luman: Red Hot (Imperial)
The "5" Royales: Tell The Truth (King)

Indy Show Finds - May Edition

2009-05-03T19:45:00.003-05:00

Well, another Indy record show has come and gone and it's time once again to report my findings to you. This wasn't the best Indy show because there were fewer 45 dealers this time and really not that many people there, unless they all came in the morning. (I didn't get out there until around 12:30, as I had somewhere else to be in the morning hours.) That said, I usually manage to find something, so I came back with another pile of 45s, which I now share with you.

Wilson Pickett: Soft Soul Boogie Woogie (RCA Victor)
Billy Cobham: Crosswind (Atlantic)
Stevie Wonder: Every Time I See You I Go Wild (Tamla)
The Marvelettes: As Long As I Know He's Mine (Tamla)
Eddie Floyd: Soul Street (Stax)
The Cowsills: The Impossible Years (MGM)
Herman's Hermits: I Gotta Dream On (MGM)
The Pretty Things: Honey I Need/I Can Never Say (UK Fontana)
The Dramatics: Hey You! Get Off My Mountain/The Devil Is Dope (Volt)
Solomon Burke: How Big A Fool (Can A Fool Be)(Bell)
REO Speedwagon: 157 Riverside Avenue (Epic...It's an early one, so help me)
Jr. Walker and the All-Stars: Groove Thang (Soul)
Billy Boy Barton: Monkey Business (Gulf)
Etta "Miss Peaches" James: Number One/I'm A Fool (Modern)
Little Johnny Tayler: Keep On Keeping On (Ronn)
The Archies: Everything's Alright (Kirshner)
Bill Black: Closin' Time (Hi)
Bobby Bland: Ain't No Love in the Heart of the City (Dunhill)
Carla Thomas: Some Other Man (Is Beating Your Time) (Stax)
The Five Stars: Pickin' on the Wrong Chicken (Note)
Bill Doggett: Night Train Pts. 1 and 2 (King)
The Midnighters: Work With Me Annie (King...a reissue I think)
Bill Haley and His Comets: Rock-A Beatin' Boogie (Decca)
Dion: Be Careful of Stones That You Throw (Columbia)
Earth Wind and Fire: Evil (Columbia)
Johnnie Taylor: Take Care of Your Homework (Stax)
Barbara Mason: Come To Me (Arctic)
Paul Kelly: Chills and Fever (Dial)
Issac Hayes: Type Thang (Enterprise)
The Marketts: Out of Limits (Warner Bros.)
The Doors: Tightrope Ride (Elektra)
Johnny Cassell: Gotta Dance (Smash)
Buddy Miles: We Got To Live Together Pts. 1 and 2 (Mercury)
Ramsey Lewis: Wade in the Water (Cadet)
Bobby Freeman: Oughta Be A Law (Double Shot)
Eugene Church: I Ain't Goin' For That/Miami (Class)
Ruby Andrews: (I Want To Be) Whatever It Takes To Please You Pts. 1 and 2 (Zodiac)
James Brown: Let's Go Get Stoned (Smash)
Billy Very & Judy Clay: Country Girl - City Man (Atlantic)
Robert Williams and the Groovers: Cranberry Blues/Loud Mufflers (Tip Top)
The Counts: Wailin' Little Mama (Dot)
The Dave Clark Five: All Night Long (Epic)
The Bob Seger System: Lucifer (Capitol)
The Rivieras: Rockin' Robin (Riveria)

And that's about it. Not the most spectacular of finds, but not bad either.

Will be back in a while with another post or two, probably Bobbie Graham or Dean Parrish...or both. We sill see.

The Big Guys - Propulsion/Zombie

2009-05-02T08:53:00.005-05:00

I'm happy to fill another request today. This time, Brian Marshall said that he wanted to hear the Big Guys single that I posted in my recent finds post a couple of weeks back. So, here it is.

There's not a lot that I can tell you about these guys. A couple of sites list this record as a 1964 release, which is a couple of years later than I would have guessed. Both sides have that really cool early 60's instro sound.

"Propulsion" is just about what you'd imagine from a song with that title, a fast paced guitar and sax rocker. There's also some organ and drums-a-plenty tossed into the mix. On second thought, maybe 1964 does sound about right because this song reminds me a just bit of "Wipeout" from the year before.

"Zombie" is a bit slower but just as good. Lots of sax here, with a great guitar part in the middle. The organ gives it just a bit of a haunting, spooky feel, which was probably the idea, given the title.

A Few Recent Finds

2009-04-19T11:34:00.010-05:00

Hello, I thought that I ought to check in as I do every once in a great while. I'll be starting a new job tomorrow, so my posts here might slow down even more, if that's possible. Anyway, I thought that I'd list a few of my recent acquisitions. These came from a record store and an antique mall find.

The Big Guys: Propulsion/Zombie (Palette)
Bobbie Graham: Zoom, Widge and Wag (Fontana)
The Capitols: We Got A Good Thing That's In The Groove (Karen)
Joe Lee: Arkansas Gal (Alley)
Clifton Chenier: Calinda (Arhoolie)
The Tabs: Mash Dem Taters (Vee-Jay)
Ted Taylor: Miss You So (Ronn)
Big Maybelle: Ring Dang Dilly (Savoy)
Bobby Lee Trammell: You Mostest Girl (Radio)
Bobby McClure: I'll Be True To You (Checker)
Jimmy McCracklin: Steppin' Up In Class (Imperial)
Barbara Lynn: Oh! Baby (We Got A Good Thing Goin') (Jamie)
Brenda & the Tabulations: That's In the Past (Dionn)
The Midnighters: Come On and Get It (Federal)
Freddie Watson & the Restorators: The Unlucky Seven (Eloys)
Brother Jack McDuff: Can't Get Satisfied (Atlantic)
James Brown: Think (Polydor)
Bobby Byrd: I Need Help (I Can't Do It Alone) (King)
Otis Williams & His Charms: Burnin' Lips (DeLuxe)

O.V. Wright - "Monkey Dog" (Back Beat)

2009-04-11T12:51:00.001-05:00

Sorry it's taken me so long to post something on this blog, as life can sometimes get in the way of a good thing. With that in mind, here comes a solid, super-speed pressure cooker from a man better known for his deep soul sides. I'm talking about O.V. Wright and on this one, he combines two dances to make one. It's another dance craze song that didn't quite make it but left behind a swell kicker of a song nonetheless. Dear reader, I give you "Monkey Dog."

Here's what Wikipedia had to say: O.V. Wright was born October 9, 1939. He was discovered as a gospel singer along with James Carr by a songwriter and manager named Roosevelt Johnson. His first recording was in 1964 called "That's How Strong My Love Is," which was later recorded by such perenials as Otis Redding. Due to a contractual obligation to a previous manager, Don Robey, Wright began recording for Robey's Back Beat label for which he would score R&B hits like "You're Gonna Made Me Cry," "Eight Men, Four Women," "A Nickel and a Nail" and "The Ace of Spade." He was imprisoned in the mid 70s for narcotics offenses and his recording career, despite recording for the legendary Memphis label Hi Records, never recovered. A continuing drug problem weakened his health and led to his death by a heart attack at age 41.

Now, that's only a sketch of Wright's incredible career (and due to Wikipedia's reputation for "accuracy" may not be entirely reliable). Therefore, I direct you to Red Kelly's websites "The A-Side," "The B-Side" and "Soul Detective" for more in-depth coverage of his music and life. The links are provided at the right of this blog.

"Monkey Dog" is the B-side of Wright's first R&B hit "You're Gonna Make Me Cry" in 1965. If you only know Wright's slower sides, this one is a more uptempo number than you may be used to, but Wright did justice on faster numbers like "Baby Be Mine," too, and this one's kind of in that realm. Check it out for yourself. (I must warn you, however: the copy used here is a little rough.)

Tom Hartman - Sunshine Woman

2009-03-31T07:00:00.001-05:00

I've received another request via my St. Louis record show post and thought that I'd take care of it, right away. A fan of the Aerovons wanted me to post Tom Hartman's "Sunshine Woman" and here it is.

I have to admit that I'd only heard of the Aerovons in passing before today and hadn't heard any of their music. A quick search yielded both an interesting story and some interesting music.

The tale of the Aerovons is better told on other sites around the web but here's a brief sketch. The band was formed in St. Louis, circa 1966. They had a fascination with the Beatles to the point that they held out on recording until they reached London's Abbey Road studios in early 1969. Hartman was the chief songwriter and to say that his compositions had a strong Beatles influence would be an understatement. Originally a quartet, the Aerovons lost one member before recording even began and then another a few months later. EMI, who had planned to release an album, thus scrapped the project and the disc wasn't released until a recent CD issue.

A couple of years later, Tom Hartman went to Los Angeles, where he hooked up with producer Mike Post, who would later gain fame as composer and hitmaker of several TV theme songs. Released in 1971, "Sunshine Woman" is a terrific example of glam rock and early power pop. This time, Hartman's song sports a strong tip of the cap to the Rolling Stones, with a bit of the Who tossed in. It's yet another sadly forgotten and obscure rocker. I'm happy to post it here for your enjoyment.

Some Recent Finds

2009-03-29T07:00:00.000-05:00

I've had a chance to go digging for records a few times over the past couple of weeks. Here are some of my finds from thrift stores, junk shops, antique malls and my favorite record store.

Inez & Charlie Foxx: Yankee Doodle Dandy (Symbol)
The Racket Squad: Higher Than High (Jubilee)
Barbara Lynn: I'm A Good Woman (Tribe)
Luther Ingram: Ain't That Nice (Decca)
Monty Alexander: Spunky (World-Pacific)
Hank Ballard & the Midnighters: The Twist (King)
Joe Tex: You Said A Bad Word (Dial)
Lawson Rudd: Shake This Town (Harvest)
Roddie Joy: He's So Easy To Love (Red Bird)
Roy Moss: You're My Big Baby Now/You Nearly Lose Your Mind (Mercury)
The Dozier Boys: Special Kind of Lovin' (Fraternity)
Jimmy Reed: I'm Going Upside Your Head/The Devil's Shoestring, Part 2 (Vee-Jay)
Jimmy McCracklin: Looking For A Woman (Imperial)
The Ithaca's: Michael's Madness (Val)
The Cresendos: Crazy Hop (Nasco)
The Dardenelles: Baby, Do The Froog (Cameo)
Jerry McCain: Red Top/Twist "62" (OKeh)
Dean Parrish: Skate (Boom)
Round Robin: Sit and Dance (Domain)
Stevie Wonder: Ain't That Asking For Trouble (Tamla)
Count Victors: Peepin' 'N Hidin' (Coral)

That about does it. As always, comments are quite welcome.

Mitty Collier - I Can't Lose

2009-03-27T07:51:00.007-05:00

Here's a great one for the weekend, "I Can't Lose" by Mitty Collier. I've wanted to blog this record since first finding it at a record show a couple of years ago. The trouble was, my first copy was rough enough that it skipped on the portable player I use to convert vinyl to digital. So, I kept my eyes open and, sure enough, another copy presented itself, recently.

Mitty Collier is probably best known for the string of records she made for the Chess label, beginning in 1961. She remained with the Chicago imprint long enough for them to release about 15 singles. In 1969, she signed with William Bell's Peachtree label out of Atlanta. She made five singles for Peachtree over the next couple of years.

"I Can't Lose" is a soul shouter. Mitty Collier's rough, gravely voice makes the record, as she challenges all comers to try and take her man. She doesn't care about their wigs or mini-skirts because, as she sings, "I can't lose with the stuff I use". I'd say that she's pretty convincing.

I don't know a whole lot about the other records that Collier made for Peachtree but this one is a pretty easy find. A nice copy shouldn't cost more than a few bucks. It's an example of a great record that can be had for peanuts.

Indy Show Finds - March Edition

2009-03-22T17:41:00.002-05:00

Today, I spent a good few hours doing what record collectors like me live to do. Diggin', of course. Yep, it was another Indy Record Show and once again, I had a good haul. I got to see Scott, who came down from Wisconsin and he had a few choice items as he always has had in the past. And I really lucked out at a table that had everything priced to a buck or less. Well, without further adieu, here's how I made out:

Yvonne Fair: Say Yeah Yean (Dade)
Yvonne Fair: Just As Sure (As You Play, You Must Pay) (Smash)
Conway Twitty: Shake It Up (Mercury)
Kool and the Gang: N.T. Parts 1 and 2 (De-Lite)
Jeanne and the Darlings: Hang Me Now (Volt)
Bobby Sax: Sock It (DePlace)
The Soul Sisters: Flashback (Sue)
The Ikettes: Prisoner of Love (Teena)
Mack Rice: My Baby (Lu Pine)
Mack Rice: Love's A Mother Brother (Atco)
Buddy Lamp: Have Mercy Baby (Peanut)
Hank Ballard and the Midnighters: The Switch-A-Roo (King)
Hank Ballard and the Midnight Lighters: On The Love Side (Polydor)
Vicki Anderson: If You Don't Give Me What I Want (I Gotta Get It Somewhere Else)(King)
Vicki Anderson: Baby Don't You Know (King)
Bob and Earl: Dancin' Everywhere (Mirwood)
The Ovations: Dance Party (Goldwax)
Spyder Turner: You're Good Enough For Me (MGM)
Otis Clay: She's About A Mover (Cotillion)
Bobby Freeman: Can You Stand The Pressure (Double Shot)
Solomon Burke: Keep Looking (Atlantic)
Better Sweet: Like The Flowers (M.O.C.)
Arthur Conley: Aunt Dora's Love Soul Shack (Atco)
The Great Gaylord: Squat With Me Baby/Do De Squat (Norton)
The Short Kuts: Hold It Baby (Pepper)
Tommy Tucker: Chewing Gum (Checker)
Jackie and Tut: 10-2 Double Plus (Chess)
O.V. Wright: I'm Gonna Forget About You (Back Beat)
Rufus Thomas: I'll Be Your Santa Baby (Stax)
James Brown: Tell Me What I Did Wrong (Federal)
The Endeavors: Manchild (Gambit)
Lee Dorsey: Ride Your Pony (Amy)
Esther Phillips: Cheater Man (Atlantic)
King Curtis: Soul Theme (Atco)
Laura Lee: Rip Off (Hot Wax)

And that about does it for this time. Next show is in four weeks, so I guess I'd better start savin' my pennies. I'll no doubt have more to tell you about when the time comes. Until then, this stuff oughta keep me busy for a while. As always, if you have any questions about any of these, leave a comment and I'll try to answer them.

I'll be back a little later this week with another music post from O.V. Wright. Stay tuned.

The Rare Breed - "Beg, Borrow and Steal" (Attack)

2009-03-19T17:53:00.006-05:00

This one is easily one of my all-time favorites. It's a solid sonic popper with a heavy garage edge and plenty of attitude. "I'd rather beg, borrow and steal than go back to you" sums it all up quite nicely. But there is a bit of confusion related to this. You see, it's the same recording as by another more famous name. Allow me to explain.

The record was produced by Jerry Kasenetz and Jeff Katz, the production team behind many a bubblegum classic. It was first released on the Attack label in 1966 and was recorded by a group of 16 and 17 year olds. When this didn't originally hit, Kasenetz and Katz took it to Cameo-Parkway and re-released it under a new name: The Ohio Express. The record then blasted off to #29 in October of 1967. They followed it up with their version of The Standells' "Try It" and only made it to #83. But the next time the name "Ohio Express" appeared, it was on the newly-formed Buddah label and the song would become a smash: "Yummy, Yummy, Yummy." And the rest, as it's often said, is history.

In addition to the Ohio Express, Kasenetz and Katz would also score big with the 1910 Fruitgum Company and The Music Explosion and would leave behind a legacy of highly dancable rock 'n' roll records in the face of the hippie steamroller. As for The Rare Breed, their name would appear one more time on a second single for Attack, "Come and Take a Ride In My Boat." After that, nada.

So if you were confused by this record either being by The Rare Breed or The Ohio Express, now you know the story. Now, let's crank this one up.

Dave Sheffield - Snatchin' Peaches/Ling Ting Laundry

2009-03-17T10:51:00.007-05:00

Don't let it be said that I don't take requests. Someone left a comment on my recent St. Louis record show post, asking that I blog today's record sometime soon. And, absent any other bright ideas, I figured that now would be as good a time as any to get to it.

A couple of things. I have no idea who Dave Sheffield is. I can only find a listing for him and this one record. About all I can tell you about it is that both sides were recorded in late 1960 and the disc was probably released then too, early 1961 at the latest.

What we have here are a pair of rock and roll novelties that sort of resemble The Coasters, especially "Ling Ting Laundry". Both sides feature some good guitar. I really wish that I could tell you more. Maybe someone out there can fill in some of the blanks. If so, let's hear from you.

St. Louis Record Show Finds

2009-03-07T23:29:00.002-06:00

Hello, it's been a week, so I thought that I ought to finally get around to posting some of my latest record show finds. The show in St. Louis was another goodie for finding cheap 45's. Nothing I bought cost over three bucks and a bunch were a dollar and under. So, without further ado:

Etta James: Tighten Up Your Own Thing (Cadet)
Arthur Conley: Run On (Atco)
Lavern Baker: So High So Low (Atlantic)
Mitty Collier: Git Out (Chess)
The Landslides: We Don't Need No Music (Huff Puff)
Rinkydinks: Hot Potato (Everlast)
Dee Clark: Hot Potato (Constellation)
Al Jones: Mad, Mad World (Poplar)
The Joe Simon Band: Oon-Guela (Sound Stage 7)
Homer & Jethro: Houn' Dawg (RCA Victor EP)
Irma Thomas: Break-A-Way (Imperial)
Geraldine Hunt & Charlie Hodges: Together (Calla)
Merl Saunders Trio: High Heel Sneakers (Fantasy)
Tony Allan: Strange Talk (Imperial)
The Falcons: Fine, Fine Girl (Atlantic)
Inez Foxx: Live For Today (Dynamo)
Gene Chandler: No Peace, No Satisfaction (Checker)
The Carefrees: Hot Blooded Lover (London International)
The Five Sounds: Loadin' Coal (Epic)
? & the Mysterians: Do Something To Me (Cameo)
Earl Cosby: Ooh Honey Baby (Mira)
Tom Hartman: Sunshine Woman (Bell)
The Outsiders: I'm Not Tryin' To Hurt You (Capitol)
Carl Holmes: Mashed Potatoes (Atlantic)
The Mystics: Pain (Metromedia)
Young-Holt Unlimited: Horoscope (Brunswick)
Rev. Sylvester Haynes: When The Saints Go Marching In (Norman)
Royal Teens: Sham Rock (ABC-Paramount)
The Isley Brothers: It's Your Thing (T-Neck)
B.B. King: Confessin' The Blues (BluesWay)
Johnny "Hammond" Smith: Smokin' Kool (Prestige)
James Brown: I'm A Greedy Man (Polydor)
O.V. Wright: Monkey Dog (Back Beat) hammered but playable
D.C. Ramblers: Steppin' In There (Keynote)
Otis Leavill: I Love You (Dakar)
Millie Jackson: Love Doctor (Spring)
Ann Peebles: Somebody's On Your Case (Hi)
Al Kent: Where Do I Go From Here (Ric Tic)
The Mirettes: Stand By Your Man (Uni)
The Esquires: You've Got The Power (Wand)
Little Milton: My Baby's Something Else (Checker)
Little Milton: Sacrifice (Checker)
Cleve Duncan & the Penguins: Universal Twist (Eldo)
Otis Redding: Satisfaction (Volt)
Don Gardner: I Don't Know What I'm Gonna Do (Jubilee)
Lowell Fulsom: Too Many Drivers (Kent)
Bill Doggett: Fat Back (Sue)
Bill Doggett: (Let's Do) The Hully Gully Twist (Warner Bros.)
Bobby Christian: Possum Strut (Mal)
John Lee Hooker: Big Legs, Tight Skirt (Vee-Jay)
Marvin Gaye: Hey Diddle Diddle (Tamla)
Marvin Gaye: Hitch Hike (Tamla)
George Torrence & the Dippers: Fine Foxey Frame (Duo Disc)
Dee Dee Sharp: Let's Twine (Cameo)
Jimmy Bee: Funky Way (Kent)
The Common Pleas: Funky Judge (Crimson)
Hal Singer: Hounds Tooth (Savoy)
Hal Singer: Hot Rod (Savoy)
Little Walter: Teenage Beat (Checker)
The Johnny Otis Show: Country Girl (Kent)
J.J. Jackson: I Dig Girls (Calla)
The Moonglows: I'm Afraid The Masquerade Is Over (Chess)
Solomon Burke: The Generation of Revelations (Bell)
Gladys Knight & the Pips: The End of Our Road (Soul)
Lloyd Price: Bad Conditions (Turn Table)
Dave Sheffield: Snathcin' Peaches (Capitol)
Z.Z. Hill: It Can Be Fixed (Audrey)
The Righteous Brothers: Little Latin Lupe Lu (Moonglow)
Big Brother & the Holding Company: Down On Me (Mainstream)
Little Richard: Rip It Up (Specialty)
The Staple Singers: What Are They Doing? (In Heaven Today) (Epic)
Aldora Britton: The Hard Way (Decca)
Sandy Nelson: Day Train (Imperial)
Tina Britt: Sookie, Sookie (Veep)

I'll try and be back with another post in the next few days.

Gloria Jones - "Heartbeat Parts 1 and 2" (Uptown)

2009-03-06T19:54:00.001-06:00

Well, it looks like it's been another while since either Todd or I posted. Today, we break the monotony a little bit with a record that's become a bit of a fave since I picked it up in January. I'm talkin' 'bout the ever-super, ever-fine "Heartbeat" by Gloria Jones.

What I find strange is that I can't find any chart listings for Jones, even though I've seen a clip of her doing this song on "Shindig." (Search YouTube.) If Jones is remembered for anything, it's that her "Tainted Love" only made the U.S. Top Ten in a cover version by British electro-poppers Soft Cell. You would think with as dynamite as this record is, it would have made some headways. I guess not.

What matters more than anything, though, is that this is a really hot, smokin' slab of full throttle soul that goes full speed and never stops, spilling over onto both sides of the record. I'm sure a few of you music bloggers know about this record already, but for those of you who don't know it, here it comes. Hope you enjoy the ride.

Bobby Lee Trammell - Arkansas Twist

2009-02-12T08:22:00.010-06:00

Here's a really great, upbeat dance number by Bobby Lee Trammell, "Arkansas Twist". I picked up this record in St. Louis, last year and it's been a favorite ever since.

Bobby Lee Trammell was born in Jonesboro, Arkansas in 1934. He died there just last year. His recording career started in 1958 with a nice rocker called "Shirley Lee" on the Malibu, CA based Fabor label. By 1962, when "Arkansas Twist" was released, Trammell was a veteran of the recording industry, having made singles for half a dozen different labels. The Alley imprint was based in Trammell's home town and today's disc was its first release.

Trammell kicks off the record by shouting, "Hey girls, let's twist!". That's followed by a popping on the drums and then guitar and piano fall in the background. Trammell then explains how to do the dance, singing "you shake a bit, you twist a little bit, that's how you do the Arkansas Twist". In fine fashion, there's a cool guitar break in the middle. After one more verse, the piano plays out the record. Great stuff and all in just a little over two minutes.

Fred Green - Wham Slam Bam

2009-02-03T11:08:00.005-06:00

Here I am, out of hibernation. I guess that I figure if the groundhog can be bothered to poke his head out, the least that I can do is comply. Mr. Groundhog surely must have predicted six more weeks of winter because it's already coming true. While it was 40 degrees yesterday, today is cold and windy, with wind chills in the single digits. Good call.

Today's record is one that I found out scavenging a couple of months ago. I was in an antique mall, where I found a big box of unsleeved singles that were priced at a quarter each. Of course, I love digging through a box like that, especially when right away I start finding gems. Such was the case on that day. The records were dusty and in well played condition but cheap and, in a moment of good fortune, most of the better titles cleaned up well enough to be keepers.

I always enjoy finding records on the Bobbin label because it's yet to let me down. The St. Louis imprint was active from 1958 to 1963 and released a little over 40 singles in all. Some of the better known artists on the label include Oliver Sain, Fontella Bass, Little Milton and Albert King. While Bobbin seems to have released mostly r&b, a few white rockers sneaked out too.

Fred Green wasn't a name that I was familiar with but the title "Wham Slam Bam" was more than promising. About all that I've found about him is that he belonged to a couple of vocal groups before recording for Bobbin, including the El Torros, who had a few singles on the Duke label.

"Wham Slam Bam" is some really rockin' r&b. From 1959, it begins with a Chuck Berry riff on the guitar. In fact, the guitar is the main instrumental accompaniment, as Green sings lead along with backing vocals. I wish that I could tell you more about who else is on the record, especially the guitarist. Could it be Albert King?

Fred Green is credited with writing "Wham Slam Bam", which clocks in at just under two minutes. Any and all additional information about him and his record are much appreciated.

Three quick ones

2009-01-30T19:12:00.007-06:00

I now present to you three 45s I've managed to scrape up in the last month. They may not be the most killer tunes we've presented on this blog, but they're all equally worthy in their own way. I hope you agree:

Rosco Robinson - "That's Enough" (Wand)

Here is a record that's become a real fave in my household. This was originally released on Gerri before Wand picked it up for national distribution. It made # 62 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in August of 1966, which marked his only appearance on that chart. I believe that Red Kelly has written extensively about Robinson on his "A-Side" and "B-Side" blogs, so you might want to check there for further info. What this one is is a swingin' piece of uptempo soul characterized by Robinson's smooth vocals and the chicks in the background who moan "That's enough, oh baby, that's enough" and make the song even sexier.

Richie Barrett - "Some Other Guy" (Atlantic)

Here we have something that may remind you a bit of Ray Charles as it's got a vocal delivery reminiscient of the Genius. The song comes from the team of Jerry Lieber and Mike Stoller and the record was released in 1962. There is a video on YouTube that has Barrett himself talking about his recording and Leiber and Stoller explaining the song's genesis. I don't have the link, so look it up yourself. In the meantime, enjoy this tasty R&B groove.

The Uniques - "It's All Over Now" (Paula)

This prolific outfit had a number of boss sides with "Fast Way of Living," "Run and Hide" and "You Ain't Tuff" among them. The lead singer, Joe Stampley, would have greater success in the 70s and 80s on the country charts. The song was, of course, originally performed by The Valentinos (whose Bobby Womack co-wrote it with his brother), then covered by a number of artists, including, most notable of all, The Rolling Stones. This cover has a lot in common with the Stones' version, but I think it has a garage groove all its own with plenty of cool guitar work. See for yourself.

Thurston Harris - "Do What You Did" (Aladdin)

2009-01-17T14:02:00.001-06:00

What we have here is a case of a one-hit wonder's follow-up being even better than his hit. The hit is "Little Bitty Pretty One," the man is one Thurston Harris. This was his next record after "LBPO." It made the R&B Top 20 and made it to #57 on Billboard's pop charts, but after that, nothing else charted. But I like this one better because it has a much wilder edge. This one comes blasting out of the gate with Thurston's wailing vocals taking full center. There's also a blastin' sax solo for those of you who like that kind of thing. Really, though, take a chance on this real gone one. And that's all I'm gonna tell ya.

It's Great Shakes Radio #5 - Club Nitty Gritty

2009-01-08T14:08:00.007-06:00

Today, I decided that I'd put together a mix that features several of my favorite finds of the past year, 16 in all. I don't believe that any of these have appeared on the blog before now. It's mostly up-tempo stuff and I hope that everyone likes it.

Here's the rundown:

Travis Wammack: Louie Louie (Atlantic)
Chuck Berry: Club Nitty Gritty (Mercury)
Little Richard: Dance What You Wanna (Vee-Jay)
Shirley Ellis: Sugar, Let's Shing-A-Ling (Columbia)
The Sweet Delights: Baby Be Mine (Atco)
Trini Lopez: Sinner Not A Saint (United Modern)
Herbie Mann: Philly Dog (Atlantic)
Round Robin: Slauson Town (Domain)
The Shangra-Las: Simon Says (Smash)
Gene Chandler: Soul Hootenanny, Part 1 (Constellation)
Willie Mitchell: That Driving Beat (Hi)
Earl Van Dyke: Soul Stomp (Soul)
Jamie Lyons: Soul Struttin' (Laurie)
The Olympics: Good Things (Parkway)
The Brotherhood: Are You A Turtle (Yes I Am) (Dial)
Zu Zu Blues Band: Zu Zu Man (A&M)

Indy Show Finds - January 2009 Edition

2009-01-04T19:03:00.003-06:00

Yeah, I know what you're thinking: not another list. Well, too bad, brother, because I decided to start the year off right by heading to our bi-monthly record shows. Lots of cheap soul with a couple of other surprises are what awaited me when I started my digging. And now, here are the results:

Ann Sexton: It's All Over but the Shouting (77)
Junior Wells: You Oughta Quit That (Bright Star)
Aretha Franklin: Spanish Harlem (Atlantic)
Bobby Darin: Queen of the Hop (Atco)
Bobby Darin: Splish Splash (Atco)
Mongo Santamaria: Sunshine of Your Love (Atlantic)
Jackie Moore: Sweet Charlie Babe (Atlantic)
Lee Michaels: Can I Get A Witness (A&M)
The Friends of Distinction: Grazing in the Grass (RCA)
Charlie Rich: Lonely Weekends (Phillips)
The Fireballs: Bulldog (Top Rank International)
Ray Smith: Rockin' Little Angel (Judd)
Fred Wesley and the J.B.s: Damn Right I Am Somebody Pts. 1 and 2 (People)
The Joneses: Hey Babe (Is The Gettin' Still Good) Pts. 1 and 2 (Mercury)
Mary Wells: Can't You See (You're Losing Me)(Atco)
James Brown: The Spank (Polydor)
The Walker Bros.: Make It Easy On Yourself/Doin' The Jerk (Smash)
Tennessee Ernie: Catfish Boogie (Capitol)
Timothy T.J. Williams and the Shades of Soul: Coming Back to Miami (Josie)
Richard Groove Holmes: Don't Mess With Me (Blue Note)
Lucy Blue: Steal My Heart Away (Big Tree)
The Classics: Eenie Minie Mo (Musicnote)
Bird Rollins: Don't Worry 'Bout Me (Disco)
Howard Johnson: Slide (Shout)
Richie Barrett: Tricky Dicky/Some Other Guy (Atlantic)
Nick Harris and the Soundbarriers: Big Nick (Northwest)
Johnnie Taylor: Don't You Fool With My Soul (Pts. 1 and 2)(Stax)
Arthur Conley: Whole Lotta Woman (Atco)
Roscoe Robinson: That's Enough (Wand)
Gloria Jones: Heartbeat Pts 1 and 2 (Uptown)
Vernon Garrett: Shine It On/Things Are Getting Better (Kent)
Brenda and the Tabulations: Hey Boy (Dionn)
Willie Hutch: Get Ready for the Get Down (Motown)
Effie Smith: Harper Valley P.T.A. Gossip/The Natural (Eee Cee)
The Uniques: It's All Over Now (Paula)
Sir Douglas Quintet: Bacon Fat (Tribe)
King Coleman: Salt and Pepper (Sylvia)
O.V. Wright: I'd Rather Be (Blind, Cripple and Crazy)(Back Beat)

And that's about it for this round. I hope to get a record or two posted up here within the next couple of weeks. Until then, I do hope you enjoyed the list as it's always a pleasure to share my latest finds with you people. There will be similar reports throughout the year, as well as lots of records to lay on you, so check in ever so often. And leave a comment or two.

Favorite Finds 2008

2009-01-03T16:31:00.007-06:00

Here I am, posting for the first time in a few weeks. It's been a pretty busy holiday season and I've spent quite a bit of time whittling down my list of favorites for the year. Even at that, there are still over 100 items here. There probalbly could have been almost twice as many, thus the work involved in trimming the list to a more "modest" size. It was another great year for finding records. Here's hoping that 2009 even comes close.

Danny Zella & His Zell Rocks: Wicked Ruby/Black Saxs (Fox)
Woody Guenther & "Cheaters": Bang Dangin' Time (Shout)
Harmonica Fats: Tore Up/I Get So Tired (Darcey)
Sister Rosetta Tharpe: When The Saints Go Marching In (Mercury)
Buddy Johnson: Bring It Home To Me (Mercury)
The Free: Decision For Lost Soul Blue/What Makes You (Marquee)
Trini Lopez: Sinner Not A Saint (United Modern)
Willie Mitchell: That Driving Beat/Everything Is Gonna Be Alright (Hi)
The Rivingtons: You Move Me Baby (Vee-Jay)
Janis Martin: Let's Elope Baby/Barefoot Baby (RCA Victor EP)
Eddie Cochran: Jeannie Jeannie Jeannie (Liberty)
Clock Work Orange: Your Golden Touch/Do Me Right Now (Creole)
The Guilloteens: For My Own (HBR)
Ritchie Ray: The Twirl (Imperial)
Bo-Pete: Do You Wanna (Have Some Fun)/Groovie Little Suzie (Try)
The Yardbirds: A Certain Girl/I Wish You Would (Epic)
The Jolly Jax: Things Are Tough/Pony Shuffle (Airmaster)
Bobby Lee Trammell: Arkansas Twist (Alley)
The Five Du-Tones: The Chicken Astronaut/The Cool Bird (One-derful!)
George Jones: White Lightning (Mercury)
The Ideals: Mojo Hanna (Cortland)
Thurston Harris: Be Baba Leba/I'm Out To Getcha' (Aladdin)
The Shangra-Las: Simon Says (Smash)
The Johnny Otis Show: Castin' My Spell (Capitol)
Bert Convy: The Gorilla/The Monsters Hop (Contender)
Count Yates: Chimpanzee (Regis)
Milton Howard: Funky Shing-A-Ling/I'm From Missouri (Sound Stage 7)
Jackie Cray: Maybelle (Limelight)
King Coleman: Hang It Up (King)
King Coleman: Let's Shimmy (Symbol)
Kenny & the Kasuals: Journey To Tyme (United Artists)
Jackie Lee: The Shotgun and The Duck (Mirwood)
Rhoda Scott: I-Yi-Yi-Yi (Tru-Sound)
Norma Rudd: He's Mine (Sure-Shot)
Zu Zu Blues Band: Zu Zu Man (A&M)
Round Robin: Slauson Town (Domain)
Round Robin: The Roundest of Them All (Domain)
Roosevelt Grier: Deputy Dog (Youngstown)
Chet "Poison" Ivey: 'Tater Patch/The Slop (Atco)
B.B. King: You're Gonna Miss Me (Kent)
B.B. King: Long Gone Baby (Kent)
The Wild Ones: For Your Love (I Would Do Most Anything) (United Artists)
Little Richard: Dance What You Wanna (Vee-Jay)
Nervous Norvus: Stoneage Woo (Embee)
Earl Van Dyke: Soul Stomp (Soul)
Jimmy McCracklin: The Wobble (Mercury)
Jimmy McCracklin: Georgia Slop/Let's Do It (The Chicken Scratch) (Mercury)
Jimmy McCracklin: Get Back (Premium)
The Electric Duck: Most People Get Happy (Avco Embassy)
The Dave Clark Five: Five By Five (Epic)
Don & Dewey: Jelly Bean (Specialty)
Don & Dewey: Get Your Hat (Specialty)
The Righteous Brothers: Koko Joe (Moonglow)
Chris Kenner: Sick and Tired (Imperial)
Rory Storm & the Hurricanes: I Can Tell/Faron's Flamingos: Let's Stomp (Columbia)
Jim Doval & the Gauchos: Fire Ball/Good and Bad (Dot)
Aaron Neville: Space Man (Par Lo)
Vernon & Jewell: That's A Rockin Good Way (Kent)
Tarheel Slim & Little Ann: Lock Me In Your Heart (Fire)
Clarence & Calvin: Rooster Knees & Rice (Atco)
Nappy Brown: Skidy Woe (Savoy)
Travis Wammack: Louie Louie/Upset (Atlantic)
Betty Lavett: Shut Your Mouth (Atlantic)
Betty Everett: Hands Off (Vee-Jay)
Louis Jones: The Birds Is Coming (Decca)
Babbara Lynn: Club A-Go-Go (Tribe)
The Trashmen: Bad News/On The Move (Garrett)
Eddie Holland: Leaving Here (Motown)
Jessie Hill: Whip It On Me/I Need Your Love (Minit)
Jamo Thomas & His Party Brothers: I Spy (For The FBI) (Thomas)
Sly: Buttermilk (Autumn)
Smiley Lewis: Ain't Gonna Do It (Imperial)
The Comsats: Astronaut (Felsted)
Jerry O: (Funky) Four Corners (Boo-Ga-Loo)
Jerry O: Funky Charge/There Was A Time (White Whale)
Eddie & The Showmen: Squad Car (Liberty)
Billy LaMont: Sweet Thang (20th Century-Fox)
Jimmie Lester & His Roc-Kats: Granny Went Rockin' (Canon)
The Kitchen Cinq: Determination (LHI)
Barry Ebling & The Invaders: I Can Make It Without You/Sunny Day Rain (Norman)
The Bobbettes: Speedy/Come-A Come-A (Atlantic)
Shirley Ellis: Sugar, Let's Shing-A-Ling (Columbia)
The Dynamic 7: Squeeze Me (Sound Stage 7)
Floyd Smith: Soul Strut (Dakar)
Johnnie & Joe: Shortning Bread (Lana)
Alvin Cash: Alvin's Bag/Whip It On Me (Toddlin' Town)
Wild Bill Davis: Breaking Out (Rca Victor)
Sax Kari: Chocolate Fizz (J.O.B.)
Hugh Barrett & the Victors: There Was A Fungus Among Us/Got The Bull By The Horns (Madison)
Willard Burton: The Twistin' Twist (Peacock)
Bobby Marchan: Booty Green (Fire)
The Upsetters: Jaywalking (Fire)
The Changin' Times: How Is The Air Up There/Young & Innocent Girl (Philips)
Fred Green: Wham Slam Bam (Bobbin)
Larry Birdsong: Somebody Somewhere (Champion)
Johnny Carl: Let's Go (United Artists)
Herbie Mann: Philly Dog (Atlantic)
Bob Morrison: Hey! Puppet Man (Columbia)
Syl Johnson: Dresses Too Short (Twinight)
Louis Jordan: Ella Mae/Fire (Mercury)
Jeanie Allen: I'm Your Slave (Arliss)
Paul Peek: Short Shortnin' (NRC)
Jamie Lyons: Soul Struttin'/Flowers To Sunshine (Laurie)
The Olympics: Good Things (Parkway)
The Violinaires: I'm Going To Serve The Lord (Checker)
Sanford Clark: 9 lb. Hammer/Ooo Baby (Dot)
Howlin' Wolf: Three Hundred Pounds of Joy (Chess)
Lowell Fulson: Don't Drive Me Baby (Checker)
Dale Hawkins: My Babe (Checker)
B.J. Thomas & the Triumphs: Candy Baby (Scepter)
The Dartells: Clap Your Hands/Where Do We Stand? (HBR)
Chuck Berry: Club Nitty Gritty (Mercury)
Gene Chandler: Soul Hootenanny, Part 1 (Constellation)
Jimmy Gordon: Buzzzzzz (Challenge)
The Sweet Delights: baby Be Mine (Atco)
Nolan Strong: Mind Over Matter (Fortune)
Billy Gayles: Take Your Fine Frame Home (Federal)
Jimmy Soul: My Baby Loves To Bowl (S.P.Q.R.)
The Sisters: Ooh Poo Pa Doo (Del-Fi)
The Brotherhood: Are You A Turtle (Yes I Am) (Dial)

I hope to be back in a few days with another post.

Favorite Finds of 2008, Part 2

2008-12-23T17:48:00.003-06:00

Picking up where I left off....

Chet Atkins: Boo Boo Stick Beat (RCA Victor)
Wynonie Harris: That's Me Right Now (King)
Otis Williams and His Charms: Blues Stay Away From Me (DeLuxe)
Harmonica Fats: Tore Up/I Get So Tired (Darcey)
Don Hines: Baby Tell It Like It Is (Hi)
Prince Harold: Baby You've Got Me (Mercury)
Radiants: Hold On/I'm Glad I'm The Loser (Chess)
Shirley & Lee: Rock All Nite (Aladdin)
Sugar Billy: Super Duper Love Pts. 1 and 2 (Fast Track)
Ted Taylor: Everywhere I Go (Ebb)
Betty Everett: Hands Off (Vee Jay)
Betty Everett: Take Me (Uni)
Shirley Ellis: The Nitty Gritty (Congress)
Larry Willliams: Boss Lovin' (El Bam)
Cal Valentine and the Texas Rockers: The Boogie Twist Pts. 1 and 2 (Lyons)
Arthur Conley: Funky Street (Atco)
The Soul Children: Hold On I'm Coming (Stax)
Herbie Mann: Hold On I'm Comin' (Atlantic)
Lulu Reed: Say Hey Pretty Baby (Federal)
Boyd Bennett and His Rockets: Tennessee Rock & Roll (King)
Titus Turner: Taking Care of Business (Glover)
Larry Dale: Let The Doorbell Ring (Glover)
The Magicians: About My Love (Columbia)
Paul Hampton: Slam Bam Thank You Ma'am (Columbia)
Ronnie Self: Ain't I'm A Dog/Rocky Road Blues (Columbia)
Jimmy Richards: Butter Bean Suzy (A&M)
Carl Perkins: Glad All Over (A&M)
Buchanan and Goodman: Santa and the Satellite Pts. 1 and 2 (Luniverse)
Bobby Byrd: If You Don't Work, You Can't Eat (King)
The J.B.s: Hot Pants Road/Pass The Peas (People)
The J.B.s: J.B. Shout (People)
Maceo and the Macks: Paarty Pts. 1 and 2 (People)
Ray Sharpe: Monkey's Uncle (Jamie)
Ohio Players: Rattlesnake (Westbound)
The Stereos: Sweetpeas In Love (Gibraltah)
Albert Collins: Ain't Got Time (Imperial)
Albert Collins: Defrost (Hall-Way)
Brother Jack McDuff: Can't Get Satisfied (Atlantic)
Ronnie Haig: Rocking With Rhythm & Blues/Money Is A Thing of the Past (Note)
Eddie and Ernie: You Give Me Love To Go On (Revue)
Joe Turner: Honey Hush (Atlantic)
Gentleman June Gardner: Last Night (Emarcy)
Johnny Williams: Breaking Point (Twinight)
The Knight Bros.: That'll Get It (Checker)
The Isley Brothers: Standing on the Dance Floor (Atlantic)
Lenny Capello: Cotton Candy/Tootles (Ric)
O.V. Wright: Oh Baby Mine/Working Your Game (Back Beat)
Bowlegs and His Band: One More Time Pts. 1 and 2 (Vee Jay)
Robert Parker: Across The Tracks (Ron)
Freddie Fender: Mean Woman (Imperial)
Little Beaver: Funkadelic Sound (Cat)
C. Smalls & Co: Keep On Groovin'/The Buzzard (A&M)
Society's Bag: Let It Crawl (Warner Brothers)
Dino Desi & Billy: The Rebel Kind (Reprise)
The Five Royals: I Like It Like That (Smash)
Rufus Thomas: Love Trap (Stax)
Rufus and Friend: Yeah Yea-ah (Atco)
Henry Lumpkin: Soul Is Takin Over (Buddah)
Wynona Carr: I'm Mad At You (Specialty)
The Manksman and The Agents: There'll Be Some Changes (Dynamo)
Howlin' Wolf: I Smell A Rat (Chess)
Azie Mortimer: That's That (Get Off My Back)(Number One)
The Esquires: You Say (Bunky)
Jimmy McCracklin: Pretty Little Sweet Thing (Minit)
Dick Dale and the Deltones: Misirlou (Deltone)
The Checkmates: Hey Mrs. Jones Pts. 1 and 2 (Arvee)
Jimmy Rivers Combo: The Blue Eagle Pts. 1 and 2 (Ron)
Buddy Ace: Hold On (To This Old Fool)(Duke)
Gene Anderson: The Devil Made Me Do It (Westbound)
Denise Lasalle: Keep It Coming (Westbound)
Danny Overbea: I'm Tired of Being Tossed Around (Federal)
Lowell Fulsom: Guitar Shuffle (Hollywood)
Chuck Carbo: Be My Girl (Rex)

WHEW! Well, that about wraps it up for this year. Now, I'm looking forward to seeing what 2009 has in store! I hope it's plentiful.......for you and everyone else out there. Let's hope and pray for a triumphant 2009! Again, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Favorite Finds of 2008

2008-12-23T16:06:00.005-06:00

Hello, everyone. First off, I'd like to wish all of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. As is customary in these parts, it's time for the annual record roundup you know and love as "Favorite Finds of 2008!" This year was kind of hit or miss record-wise for me. But the gems are still out there and I found my share of 'em. So, here's the best of what I picked up this year. Enjoy.

Jimmy McGriff: Discothque U.S.A. (Sue)
Jimmy McGriff: Lonely Ave. Pts 1 and 2 (Sue)
Jimmy McGriff: The Bird/Plain Brown Bag (Capitol)
Freddy Cannon: 20th Century Fox (Warner Brothers)
Billy Mashburn: Don't It Sound Good Pts 1 and 2 (Atlantic)
The Outsiders: Gotta Leave Us Alone (Capitol)
Billy Ware: Monkey Vs. The Baboon (Theoda)
B.B. King: Get Myself Somebody (Bluesway)
Soul Shouting Tommy: I'm The Man (Anla)
Mark Valentino: The Push and Kick (Swan)
Dave "Baby" Cortez: Popping Popcorn (Okeh)
Jerry Cook: Funky Wagon (Troyx)
Allen Page: She's The One That's Got It (Moon)
Johnny Oits: Jaws (Hawk Sound)
Solomon Burke: (No, No, No) Can't Stop Loving You (Atlantic)
"Little" Bobby Gilbert: Hot Road (BigBell)
Little Willie John: Spasms (King)
Bob Arlin and His Band: East L.A. (Olympia)
Billy Guy: Whip It On Me Baby (Double L)
R.D. Stokes: Partying Groove/Me Too (II Bros.)
Wilson Pickett: I Can't Stop (Double L)
Clint Miller: Bertha Lou (ABC-Paramount)
Billy Bland: Chicken In Basket (Old Town)
Wendy Rene: Bar B-Q (Stax)
Bill Coday: Get Your Lie Straight (Galaxy)
Little Walter: Me and Piney Brown (Checker)
Wilson Pickett: Fire and Water (Atlantic)
Screamin' Jay Hawkins: You Made Me Love You (I Didn't Want To Do It) (Okeh)
Lowell Fulsom: Coming Home (Checker)
Lowell Fulsom: The Thing (Kent)
The Pretty Things: Midnight To Six Man (Fontana)
Samson and the Groove Masters: Mercy Twist (Whitted)
Irma Thomas: Don't Mess With My Man (Ron)
Chris Montez: Go Head On (A&M)
The Orchids: Good Gully! (Wall)
June Jackson: Let's Try Dancin' (Bell)
The Endeavors: I Know You Don't Want Me (Stop)
The Royal Checkmates: Get Out Of My Life Woman (Faro)
Lowell Fulsom: Why Don't We Do It In The Road (Jewel)
Obie Plenty: Beef Stew (Verve)
Shep and the Limeliters: The Monkey (Hull)
Ricky Nelson: Believe What You Say (Imperial)
Big John Greer: Record Hop (King)
Katie Webster & Cookie with His Cup Cakes: You Gonna Need Me (Goldband)
Moonglows: Chickie Um Bah (Chess)
Brenda and the Tabulations: Scuse Uz Y'all (Top and Bottom)
Bill Coday: I Got A Thing/Let Me Be Your Handy Man (Galaxy)
The In Crowd: Do The Surfer Jerk (Musicor)
Woody Guenther & Cheaters: Gang Bangin' Time (Shout)
The Olympics: (I Wanna) Dance with the Teacher (Demon)
T-Bone Walker: Hey Hey Baby (Modern)
B.B. King: Mashing the Popeye
The Olympics: Shimmy Like Kate (Arvee)
B.B. King: Beautician Blues (Kent)
Dennis Coffey and the Lyman Woodard Trio: It's Your Thing (Maverick)
Rudy Robinson and The Hungry Four: Close Your Mouth Pts 1 and 2 (Lau-Reen)
Bobby Hendricks: Itchy Twitchy Feeling (Sue)
Freddy King: Girl Fromn Kookamunga (King)
The Flirtations: Nothing but a Heartache (Deram)
Lloyd Price: The Chicken and the Bop (KRC)
Big Al Downing: Georgia Slop (Columbia)
Bo Diddley: Diddley Daddy/She's Fine, She's Mine (Checker)
Bobby Byrd: We Are In Love (Smash)
Thurston Harris: Do What You Did (Aladdin)
Chuck Howard: Crazy, Crazy Baby (Port)
Phil Flowers and the Flower Shop: Like A Rolling Stone (A&M)
Henry Moore: Rock Junction (King)
The Boys in the Band: (How Bout A Little Hand For) The Boys in the Band/Sumpin' Heavy (Spring)
The Electric Prunes: The Great Banana Hoax (Reprise)
Soupy Sales: My Baby's Got A Crush On Frankenstein (Reprise)
Butterfield Blues Band: Come On In (Elektra)
Inez and Charlie Foxx: Undecided/I Ain't Going For That (Dynamo)
Jack Nitzche: Rumble (Reprise)
Lendy and the Thundertones: Hot Ice/Jungle Fever (Dot)
Lenny and the Thundertones: Street Beat (Dot)
Buster Benton: Good to the Last Drop (Jewel)
Roy Lee Johnson and the Villagers: The Dryer (Stax)
The Turnarounds: Soul Walk (Tangerine)
The Far Out Underground Acid Rock Feet of Harry Zonk: For What It's Worth (Crazy Horse)
Little Brenda Lee: Bigelow-6200 (Decca)
Ace Cannon: Drunk (Hi)
Ace Cannon: Soul For Sale (Hi)
Eddie Bo: Check Your Bucket Pts. 1 and 2 (Bo-Sound)
John Kasandra: (What's Under) The Natural Do (Respect)
Prentice Moreland: Chubby Ain't Chubby No More (Challenge)
Gordon Young: Fills Her Skirt (Felsted)
Hank Ballard and the Midnighters: The Continental Walk (King)
King Floyd: Baby Let Me Kiss You (Chimneyville)
The Troyes: Rainbow Chaser (Phalanx)
Jerry Allison and the Crickets: Now Hear This (Liberty)
Joe Tex: If Sugar Was As Sweet As You (Dial)
Joe Tex: You're Right, Ray Charles (Dial)
Brenda Lee: Let's Jump The Broomstick (DeccaL0
Dale Wright with The Wright Guys: That's Show Biz (Fraternity)
Aaron McNeil: Draculena (Captiol)
Buzzie: Stone Soul Booster (Gordy)
Ohio Express: Hot Dog (Super K)
Elton Anderson: Cool Down Baby (Mercury)
Bobby Marchan: Chickie Wah Wah (Gale)
Leon Childs and the Hy-Ton: Jet Stream (Vin)
Otis and Carly: Knock On Wood (Stax)
Jim Doval and the Gauchos: Bony Maronie (Diplomacy)
Jerry Williams: What's The Matter With You Baby (Calla)
The Sandpebbles: Love Power (Calla)
The Sandpebbles: Forget It (Calla)
Ernest Tubb: Thirty Days (Decca)
Etta James: What I Say (Argo)
The Stereos: I Feel Soul A' Coming (Cadet)
Aaron Neville: Space Man (Par Lo)
The BBC: Upside Down (Mega)
Juggy: Soul At Sunrise/Just A Minute (Sue)
Al Browne's Band: Soul Pts. 1 and 2 (Providence)
Rodge Martin: Lovin' Machine (Bragg)
Koko Taylor: Don't Mess with the Messer (Checker)
The Frenchmen: Limbo Las Vegas (T.N.T.)
Lavell Hardy: Don't Lose Your Groove (Rojac)
Kim Tolliver: (Your Trying To) Cop My Stuff (Rojac)
Jackie Lee: The Shotgun and the Duck (Mirwood)
Joe Simon: The Whoo Pee )(Vee Jay)
Taj Mahal: Everybody's Got To Change Sometime (Columbia)
Round Robin: Gonna Tear The House Down Pts. 1 and 2 (Shot)
King Curtis and the Kingpins: Cook-Out (Atco)
Hot Toddys: Shakin' and Stompin' (Corsican)
The Beeds: Run To Her/You Don't Have To (Team)
Jimmy McGriff: Chip! Chip! (Jell)
Ruth Brown: Papa Daddy/I Don't Know (Atlantic)
Ruth Brown: Taking Care of Business (Atlantic)
Ruth Brown: This Little Girl's Gone Rockin' (Atlantic)
The Fame Gang: Grits And Gravy (Fame)
Dee Dee Sharp: Do The Bird (Cameo)
The Bobettes: Come-A Come-A/Speedy (Atlantic)

Well, it looks like there's going to have to be a Part 2, so bear with me a few minutes. I'll be right back.

Billy Guy - "Whip It On Me Baby" (Double L)

2008-12-10T17:13:00.005-06:00

This here 45 is easily one of favorite discoveries of the year. I have Todd to thank for turning me on to this record. It's been making frequent return trips to my turntable. Plus, WFMU's Dave The Spazz recently featured it on his show "Music To Spazz By," so it comes with some pretty strong credentials.

Billy Guy was best known as a member of The Coasters and sang lead on many of their hits including "Searchin'," "Wait A Minute," "Run Red Run" and "Little Egypt." He was a favorite of Leiber and Stoller, the songwriting team who wrote a great percentage of The Coasters' material, because of his "clowning" abilities. Guy was originally a part of a duo called Bip and Bop and recorded a single for Aladdin before he was asked to join The Coasters in 1955, which he would remain with until roughly 1961. After he left the group, he recorded solo sides for ABC-Paramount. Then, in 1963, he recorded some solo cuts for Lloyd Price's Double L label, of which this is one.

Throughout the rest of the sixties and the seventies, Guy would record singles and albums for various labels including Chalco, Sew City, Verve and Platinum. He would also record comedy albums and produce other artists including several spoken word albums. He passed away in the mid 90s sometime (1995, I think).

So, how do you describe this? Let me think for a minute....I think I'll call it soulish pop. Naah, that's too weak. What I can say for sure is that this is a hot tune in which Guy does a call-and-response with a vocal chorus. Example: Guy: When. I. Say "Give me money." The chorus: "Whip it on me baby, whip it on me baby." Guy also pitches his voice at shrieking high intervals when he goes, "Yeah.....Yeah....YEAH, BABY, YEAH, BABY, YEAH!!!!!" and shoots the whole thing into the stratosphere. To be honest, the song starts up poppy and upbeat and stays that way throughout. But somehow I feel this record isn't quite of this world. Anyway, I love it and I hope you do, too.

The Shondells - I Gotta Tell It

2008-12-08T08:16:00.005-06:00

A good week to everyone. I haven't posted here much lately which I have to apologize for. Nothing but pure laziness on my part. I've gotta thank Brian for all of his excellent posts that have sort of kept us afloat the past several weeks. Speaking of Brian, I also want to wish him a happy belated birthday. He turned 45 back on December 3rd. Thanks Brian, for all of the help with the blog these past 3+ years.

I had a request from an anonymous someone, who left a comment on the blog the other day. He or she wanted me to post The Shondells' "I Gotta Tell It", a record that I listed in my most recent St. Louis record haul post. Being that I already had the record digitized, I decided to get it up on the blog right away. I like getting requests, anyway and am happy to oblige, whenever possible.

There have been a few outfits called the Shondells over the years, the best known, of course, being the Tommy James led band. Today's bunch of Shondells were a girl group from Pomona, CA. The only real info I have about the membership is listed right on the label, where vocals are credited to Novella Simmons and Shirlee Brooks. "I Gotta Tell It" is from 1962 and is the second of four singles the girls released on the King label, all in the 1962 or '63 time frame. In fact, the King singles seem to comprise their entire recorded output.

The song, itself, has a standard girl group vibe, with the singer trying to tell everybody how fine her guy is. The backing vocals warn her to hush her mouth before someone comes along and steals him away. The instrumentation is fairly sparse, with drums, guitar, hand claps and an organ bridge. I'm probably missing something in there but you get the idea.

The Rivingtons - "You Move Me Baby" (Vee-Jay)

2008-11-25T07:53:00.004-06:00

Here we go again with another highly-charged piece of 60s soul. It comes from a group who introduced us all to Papa Oom Mow Mow and The Bird's The Word which gave way to The Trashmen's immortal "Surfin' Bird." Me, I dig 'em all and their all in the It's Great Shakes pantheon of classic killer tunes, but for now, the spotlight shines on the ones who started it all, The Rivingtons.

The Rivingtons were an L.A. based vocal group consisting of Carl White, Rocky Wilson Jr., Sonny Harris and Al Frazier. They were first formed as The Sharps and appeared on Paul Anka's first recording, Duane Eddy's "Rebel Rouser" and Thurston Harris' "Little Bitty Pretty One." Liberty's the label for which they recorded the "Oom Mow Mow" trilogy, as well as several other fine sides like "The Weejee Walk," "The Shaky Bird (Parts 1 and 2)" and my favorite of the Oom Mow Mow's "Mama Oom Mow Mow." They recorded all of this between 1962 and 1964. As the 60s progressed, they recorded sides for the Quan, Reprise, RCA Victor and Vee Jay.

This entry comes from the Vee-Jay period (1964-5). I've got a feeling it's a pick-up as Goldmine's 45 guide lists this single as also being released by a label called A.R.E. American. Of course, like many a great side, it wasn't a hit, but Vee-Jay must've known something good when they heard it, because this one's a killer.

I'm going to let this one speak for itself. Often the very words and phrases that describe this....full-throttle, rockin', righteous, whatever....are words that you, dear reader, have probably heard and seen more than a million times. So, I'm just gonna jump back and let this record's greatness pump its relentless beat, chunky guitar work and searing vocal hollerin' do the talking for me. And if you don't like it, you can't say I didn't try.

Wild Bill Davis - "Breaking Out, Parts 1 and 2" (RCA Victor)

2008-11-24T14:15:00.001-06:00

Hello, everyone and welcome to the midpoint of the week. We now present to you a hard-drivin', brass-laden, organ-pumpin' two-part instrumental epic from a man they used to call Wild Bill Davis!

Davis is very well-known among jazz enthusiasts as one of the leading organists in the field. In fact, before the emergence of Jimmy Smith in 1956, Davis was considered the top organist out there. Prior to that, though, he played guitar and wrote arrangements with Milt Larkin's band between 1939 and 1942. Then, between 1945 and 1949, he was the pianist for Louis Jordan's Tympany Five. In 1950, he switched to organ and would remain a top practioner all the way up to his death in 1995, playing and recording with such figures as Buddy Tate, Memphis Slim and Lionel Hampton, in addition to his own trios.

I'm assuming this is an early 1960s recording, but what the hey? What matters most is that this piece is as hard-chugging a piece as you can find with Davis wailing away on the organ backed by a brass section, a twangin' guitar riff and a full-on frenetic rhythm section. One can hear the influence of swing with all the horns blarin' in the background, but that only adds to the full-throttle energy of the song and Davis' wailing organ. Check it out and see for yourself.

If anyone out there knows some other Wild Bill Davis recordings I should check out, please feel free to leave a comment or two.

Danny James - "Boogie in the Mud" (Goldband)

2008-11-24T11:45:00.002-06:00

We now take you to the swamps of Louisiana with this guitar-strummin' piece of swamp-style boogie called, appropriately enough, "Boogie in the Mud." It comes from a man who was a little bit better known as a session guitarist for his label's other artists, but also recorded a sizable amount of material on his own. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Danny James.

Here's a little information on James that I quote from the always informative "Home of the Groove" blogsite:

"Between 1962 and 1970, Danny James played on numerous sessions at Goldband and for other local area studios, as well, including several classic swamp pop tunes: Little Eddy's "Linda Lu", Tommy McLain's "Sweet Dreams" and "Before I Grow Too Old" singles, and Charles Mann's "Red, Red Wine"........Long in poor health, Danny James Sonnier passed away in 1991 at the age of 46."

I take it that this is one of James' best known works, as it's the title of an Ace compilation of his work. (I believe it's out of print now, but I'm not sure). Whatever the case may be, this, to my ears, is a fairly low-down affair with James cooing for his baby to get down with him in the mud. In the midst of that, while an accoustic guitar strums away and a bass lays down a good thump, James plucks away tasty licks on his electric guitar. This continues all the way through, leaving James not too successful in the come-on department. "What you mean you're gone?" he says, "That's cold, baby!" as the record slowly fades out.

Me thinks this is a high-quality swamp rocker of the highest order. For some reason, it kind of reminds me of Tony Joe White's "Polk Salad Annie" because it has a lot of the same feel. That said, I hope you'll dig this record for the qualities it has on its own.

November Jukebox

2008-11-20T09:25:00.025-06:00

Here's an idea that I'm borrowing from Westex's great Diggin' It blog. The only difference being that he put in enough work to write a bit about each record. I'm afraid that you're on your own here, ha. Well, I gotta get something up here, so Brian isn't doing all of the work.

These are all records that I've picked up during the month of November. That'd include this month's record show, plus some finds that I made last week at an estate sale and in an antique store.

Woody Guenther & Cheaters - "Bang Dangin' Time" (Shout)

2008-11-17T19:51:00.005-06:00

Here now is one of those records that seems to have slipped through the sands of time. But when you unearth it, you're in for a choice slab of rockin' funk that's a guaranteed hip-shaker. The record in question is today's entry into the It's Great Shakes files, "Bang Dangin' Time" by Woody Guenther and Cheaters. It's a recent find for me at the Indy show and it's definitely one of my fave finds of the year.

In trying to find information on this record, a Google search turns up the entry in Larry Grogan's "Funky 16 Corners" blog. Flick over there to read it and it turns out that Larry couldn't find any information either. What little is known is that the record was released in April of 1968 on the Shout label, which was a subsidiary of the better-known Bang label. Another clue is provided by the songwriter credit which lists one "James Shaw." At first, I thought that it was Mighty Hannibal, but further research indicated that there's more than one James Shaw out there. (See the comments section for Larry's entry. When you do, note that the last entry is from someone who claims to be the drummer of the band.)

But we all know that it's what's in the grooves that count, right? Well, this one's got grooves to spare and then some. Backed up by a smokin' band that includes piano, guitar, sax and horns and with a great rhythm section with some serious tambourine shakin', the lead singer mounts off about "We're gonna bang dang until the break.of day/Girl, I'm never gonna let you get away" as female chorus shout "BANG DANGIN!" in the background. What else do I need to say? This one moves and shakes all the way to the fade-out, so do yourself a favor and check out this rather obscure funkster. You'll no doubt be a happier person once you discover this lost gem of a 45!

Indy Show Finds - November Edition

2008-11-16T17:49:00.003-06:00

Well, it's Indy record show time once again. I didn't have a whole lot of cash so my finds won't be as spectacular as Todd's, but I did find some really cool items, most of them for a buck or two or three. So, here we go:

Screamin' Jay Hawkins: You Made Me Love You (I Didn't Want To Do It)(Okeh)
Lloyd Price: The Chicken and the Bop (KRC)
Bo Diddley: Diddley Daddy/She's Fine, She's Mine (Checker)
Bobby Hendricks: Itchy Twitchy Feeling (Sue)
Wilson Pickett: Fire and Water (Atlantic)
Bobby Byrd: We Are In Love (Smash)
Tom & Jerry: Dancin' Wild/Hey Schoolgirl (Big)
The Olympics: (I Wanna) Dance with the Teacher (Demon)
The Olympics: Shimmy Like Kate (Arvee)
B.B. King: Beautician Blues (Kent)
Woody Gunther & Cheaters: Bang Dangin' Time (Shout)
The Flirtations: Nothing but a Heartache (Deram)
Freddy King: Girl From Kookamunga (King)
Dennis Coffey & the Lyman Woodard Trio: It's Your Thing (Maverick)
Bill Coday: I Got A Thing (Galaxy)
Rudy Robinson and The Hungry Four: Close Your Mouth Parts 1 and 2 (Lau-Reen)
T-Bone Walker: Hey Hey Baby (Modern)
The In Crowd: Do The Surfer Jerk (Musicor)
The Fugitives: Mean Woman (Columbia)

And here's a few others I just got in the past few weeks from a few eBay scores and flea market finds:

The Harbour Lites: Run For Your Life (Fontana)
The Orchids: Good Gully (Wall)
Katie Webster and Cookie with his Cupcakes: You Gonna Need Me (Goldband)
William Bolinger: You Can Lead Your Woman to the Altar (Chess)
Irma Thomas: Hip Shakin' Mama (Maison de Soul)
The Royal Checkmates: Get Out Of My Life Woman (Faro)
June Jackson: Let's Try Dancin' (Bell)
Wendy Rene: Bar B-Q (Stax)
The Endeavors: I Know You Don't Want Me (Stop)
Big John Greer: Record Hop (King)
Soupy Sales: My Baby's Got A Crush On Frankenstein (Reprise)
Shep and the Limeliters: The Monkey (Hull)
Billy Bland: Chicken In Basket (Old Town)
Lightnin' Hopkins: Feel So Bad/Shot Gun (Imperial)
The Pretty Things: Midnight To Six Man (Fontana)
Ricky Nelson: Believe What You Say (Imperial)
Thurston Harris: Do What You Did (Aladdin)
The Soul Reps: Soul Food (Limelight)
Billie & Lillie: Creepin' Crawlin' Cryin' (Swan)
Miles Davis: Molester Parts 1 and 2 (Columbia)

And a few others I'm to lazy to get up and find at the moment. Hope you enjoyed this little trip into the diggin' fields. As always, if there's one of these you'd like to know about, please leave a comment or two.

Next Indy show: January 4.

Brenda Lee - "Let's Jump The Broomstick" (Decca)

2008-11-15T19:33:00.006-06:00

You may know Brenda Lee from all the 60s hits she had ("All Alone Am I," "I'm Sorry," "I Want To Be Wanted," etc.) but her rockin' side is one that gets barely touched on if at all. Today's entry in the "Its Great Shakes" archives of great 45 sounds is an example of that. It's called "Let's Jump The Broomstick" and like the title says, it jumps!

The record was released in 1959 before Lee's string of hits would soon begin. In fact, her very next record, "Sweet Nothin's," would be her first Top Ten record, going to #4 at the end of the year. So, what we have here is a nifty little percussor to her massive success. I would guess that a record like this is one of the reasons she was nicknamed "Little Miss Dynamite."

Brenda Lee is sort of hit or miss with me. I'm not a fan of ballads, I can't stand "All Alone Am I" and I get sick of hearing "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" repeated ad nauseam every holiday season. This one, however, is an upbeat rocker of the highest order. Maybe it's not exactly killer, but it definitely holds its own.

On it, Brenda gives it a full-throttle, full-speed vocal workout with fast, sharp delivery, while your standard issue 50s rock 'n' roll band keeps up the tempo behind her. I take it as a call to elope as Brenda sings:

My father don't like it
My mother don't like it
My sister don't like it
My brother don't like it
So come on little baby,
Let's jump the broomstick,
Come on let's tie the knot.

She was probably around 13 or 14 when she recorded this, as she had been singing professionally since she was six. She was signed to Decca in 1956 and one of her early records (her first, I think), "Bigelow-6200, had her age posted as 9 on the label. Whatever her age, this one is definitely up there in the rockin' department. At least I think it is.

Roy Lee Johnson and the Villagers - "The Dryer (Pt. 1)" (Stax)

2008-11-09T12:23:00.001-06:00

Here we have a smokin' hot piece of funk from 1972. It's from a man who's recorded blues and soul for labels like Columbia ("When A Guitar Plays The Blues"), Okeh ("Black Pepper Will Make You Sneeze"), Phillips ("Guitar Man")and Josie ("Boogaloo No. 3"), among others. Quite a number of his 45s are relatively easy to get and are well worth it. This record is his entry in the funk genre and it's quite a winner as I hope you'll agree when you hear it.

Johnson was born in 1938. Details about his life are scarce, even though his singing and songwriting career have lasted for more than 40 years. His best known credit remains "Mister Moonlight," a song he wrote and recorded for a single that was later recorded most famously by The Beatles. This single comes around the time of an album he recorded with The Villagers for the Stax label and like I said, it's a winner.

The record opens with Roy making the following declaration: "Hahaha, I'm gonna take you out of the washer, then I'm gonna put you in the ringer and then I'm gonna throw you in the dryer." Thus begins a raucous tune with scratchy guitar, a killer bass line, loud, blazing organ and blastin' horns. The momentum keeps up throughout the 2:18 running time of the song, as Roy yelps and sings all over the place.

Here's yet another side that should have been a hit. But whatever, this is as killer a piece of solid funk as I've ever come across. Hope you dig it as much as I do.

Dale Wright and the Wright Guys - "That's Show Biz" (Fraternity)

2008-11-07T20:40:00.004-06:00

We take you now to the more rockabilly side of things. Well, maybe it's not pure rockabilly per se, but it does have a nice little bit of satire on the late 50s rock 'n' roll scene. And it does rock accordingly. The record I'm talking about is "That's Show Biz" by Dale Wright and the Wright Guys from 1959.

Wright was born in 1938 and had worked as a DJ in the Midwest. He was signed to the Cincinnati-based label Fraternity Records in 1957 after they heard a song he wrote on the air. Between 1957-1960, he recorded some twenty or so sides, charting twice in 1958 with "She's Neat" (#38) and "Please Don't Do It" (#77). He was dropped from the label in the early sixties, but continued to record for smaller labels up through the decade. Later, he returned to radio doing a talk show for a Lexington, Kentucky radio station.

Our tale begins with Dale calling No Hit Record Company and telling them about a song he just wrote that he thinks would be a hit, but the guy on the phone tells him in a lowdown voice, "Sorry kid, that's showww biz!" Thus we have the theme of the record in which Dale sings and swings his tale of desperation while getting nowhere. At the end, he figures that he always wanted to drive a truck anyway, which probably would have been the end result of his endeavors. Still, a really cool record that I hope you dig.

St. Louis Record Show Haul

2008-11-07T13:10:00.003-06:00

Better late than never. Sorry to be so slow in posting. I've been dealing with a sick little boy at home this week. A couple of trips to the doctor and some antibiotics later, he's doing fine and back at school today. Here's what I got at last weekend's record show in St. Louis. Mostly soul and r&b this time around. Per usual, stuff runs the gamut from near mint down to just playable.

Lee Maye: At The Party (Tower)
Aaron Neville: Space Man (Par Lo)
Cleve Nickerson: Big Bob (Savoy)
Bob and Earl: You Made A Boo-Boo (Class)
The Mighty Hannibal: Get Back (Decca)
Tarheel Slim and Little Ann: Lock Me In Your Heart (And Throw Away The Key) (Fire)
The Shondells: I Gotta Tell It (King)
Vernon and Jewell: That's A Rockin Good Way (Kent)
Eugene Church: The Struttin' Kind (Class)
Hamp Jones: Pack Your Clothes (East West)
Darryl Carter: L-O-V-E (Venture)
Chuck Jackson & Maxine Brown: Can't Let You Out of My Sight (Wand)
Ted Taylor: Need You Home (OKeh)
Little Joe: Ev'ry Now and Then (OKeh)
Jimmy McCracklin: Head Over Flip (Imperial)
Chicago Cubs Clark St. Band: Slide (Chess)
Royal Teens: Open The Door (Forgot The Key) (ABC-Paramount)
Nanette Workman: If It Wasn't For The Money (Atco)
The Louis Brothers: Gettin' Cooked (Dot)
Billy Wade and the 3rd Degrees: Tear It Up (ABC)
The Moonglows: Chickie Um Bah (Chess)
Big Maybelle: Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On (OKeh)
Ike & Tina Turner: Good Bye, So Long (Modern)
Ike & Tina Turner: We Need An Understanding (Pompeii)
J.J. Jackson: Down, But Not Out (Loma)
The Waryores: Fat Emma (Colt)
The Blossoms: Son-In-Law (Challenge)
Jerry O: (Funky) Four Corners (Boo-Ga-Loo)
Jerry O: Funky Charge (White Whale)
Tim and Jean: Twisted (Checker)
Pat & Lolly Vegas: Robot Walk (Apogee)
Johnny Watson: Wolfman (OKeh)
Barbara and the Uniques: You're Gonna Make Me Cheat On You (Arden)
Tony and Joe: The Freeze (Era)
Al Thomas: Jealousy (Little Green Man) (Scepter)
Travis Wammack: Upset (Atlantic)
The Chevels: That Ain't Right (Marlo)
Alvin Cash: Alvin's Bag (Toddlin' Town)
Danny James: Boogie In the Mud (Goldband)
Danny James: Soul and Wine (Goldband)
O.V. Wright: I'm In Your Corner (Back Beat)
Shack: Too Many Lovers (Volt)
Chris Kenner: Sick and Tired (Imperial)
Piano Red: Jump Man Jump (Groove)
Phil Upchurch: Muscle Soul (Milestone)
Shirley Wahls: We've Got To Keep Movin' On (Smash)
Jamie Lyons: Soul Struttin' (Laurie)
Bobby Marchan: Help Yourself (Cameo)
Bobby Marchan: (Ain't No Reason) For Girls To Be Lonely (Gamble)
Russell Byrd: Hitch Hike (Symbol)
Penny Candy: The Rockin' Lady (Flippin')
Little Richard: She's Together (Brunswick)
Johnny Wyatt: Everybody's Goin' Mod (Bronco)
The Precisions: You'll Soon Be Gone (Drew)
The "5" Royales: (Something Moves Me) Within My Heart (King)
Rick Lancelot: Hoo Doo Man (RCA Victor)
Muddy Waters: Muddy Waters Twist (Chess)
McKinley Mitchell: Uncle Willie (One-derful!)
The Olympics: The Boogler (Duo Disc)
Paulette Parker: (Gimme Back) My Love (Duke)
Pauline & Bobby: No Messin Around (Expo)
Albert King: This Morning (Bobbin)
Junior Wells: Up In Heah (Bright Star)
Maurice and the Radiants: I Gotta Dance To Keep My Baby (Chess)

That's about it. Because it's been such a busy week, I've barely had a chance to listen to some of these. I haven't found the time to digitize any of them yet. I'm hoping for sometime next week.

Happy Halloween, Everyone!

2008-10-31T10:19:00.004-05:00

Well, tonight's the night for ghosts, goblins, spooks, monsters and all things scary. We at "It's Great Shakes" hope you all have a great time tonight whether you're hustling for candy, all dressed up as your favorite spook, toilet-papering your neighbor's trees, partying all night and getting smashing drunk or just sitting at home watching the horror movie marathon on TCM. Whatever you do, may your Halloween be filled with wild rock 'n' roll and crazy R'n'B. Stay safe and sane and we'll see you in November. And while you're at it, be sure to check out all the Halloween posts at The Devil's Music, Like Dynamite To Your Brain, Blues for the Red Boy and Funky 16 Corners to name just a few. Links are provided as always on the right hand side of this blog. Happy Halloween, over and out.

Bert Convy - "The Monster's Hop"/"The Gorilla" (Contender)

2008-10-19T19:21:00.005-05:00

With Halloween quickly approaching, It's Great Shakes now presents a nifty novelty 2-sider recorded by a man who would later be associated with game shows like "Tattletales," "Super Password" and "Win Lose Or Draw." I'm talking about Bert Convy, of course.

In addition to being a prominent game-show host and panelist, Convy had appeared on Broadway and appeared in numerous TV movies, TV shows and films, even directing on a few occasions. Before all that, Convy had a Top Ten hit as part of The Cheers with "Black Denim Trousers." Shortly after his stint with The Cheers, Convy worked as a solo act, recording this two-sider gem in 1959 for the Contender label. Not too long after that, Roger Corman cast him in his cult classic "A Bucket of Blood." He would soon have a massive, multi-faceted career that would last for nearly 30 years before dying of a brain tumor in 1991.

We've featured this record on this blog before, but now we can present it with the addition of sound so you can feel as well as hear it, hahahaha. But anyway, he gets into a scary monster party on one side and deals with a crazed gorilla, out of his cage, who eats the Purple People Eater whole on the flip. It's our hope that you enjoy them.

Bert Convy in A Bucket of Blood, 1959

O.V. Wright Memorial and Tribute Concert

2008-10-16T10:23:00.009-05:00

I have sort of a special blog post today. Yes, I'm taking time out of my busy posting schedule (heh, heh) to bring you something a bit different. Yesterday, I received an e-mail from Red Kelly. If you're not familiar with Red, he's the purveyor of such fine blogs as Soul Detective, The "A" Side, The "B" Side and Holy Ghost. I'm not sure how he finds the time to run four blogs, let alone pack them with tons of great information.

Additionally, Red has something special that he's been participating in over the past several months. I'll let him explain in his own words, taken from his e-mail.

"As you may have noticed, I became involved with the O.V. Wright Memorial Fund this past March. Our goal was to collect enough money to place a headstone on O.V.'s unmarked grave down in Memphis. Through the generosity of Soul Fans from around the world, we have been able to raise over $2000, and have ordered the monument that was selected by O.V.'s widow, Alberta. It will be dedicated in a graveside ceremony at the Galilee Memorial Gardens in Memphis on Sunday, November 16th, the 28th anniversary of Wright's death.

We will be holding a tribute concert in conjunction with all of this the night before at the Ground Zero Blues Club in Memphis. The event will feature Otis Clay and Hi Rhythm performing the music of O.V. Wright, along with some possible 'special guests'.

Proceeds from the sale of tickets will benefit The Soul of Memphis Foundation."

Red goes on to explain that he's in charge of promoting the concert, a role that's completely new to him. He's kindly asked that some of his friends around the net help him in his task. I'm more than happy to do so.

As you can see, the concert will be held on November 15 at the Ground Zero Blues Club in Memphis and feature Otis Clay. Tickets can be purchased through the O.V. Wright Memorial Fund site.

The Marksmen - "Night Run" b/w "Scratch" (Blue Horizon)

2008-10-06T13:48:00.004-05:00

Here we have a heapin' helpin' of guitar instrumental goodness. If both of these sides sound like The Ventures to you, it isn't surprising to learn that there is a very strong Ventures connection. This is a 1960 collaboration between two guitar players, one of whom was Nokie Edwards, the Ventures' own lead guitarist.

The other figure in this connection is a guitarist by the name of Gene Moles, who previously had played on the Jimmy Thompson TV show and on the very first recordings Buck Owens made for Capitol in 1959. Later, he met Edwards and got together to record three songs, two of which make up this record. Moles also wrote songs that The Ventures would later record.

"Night Run" basically takes the melody from one of Brahms' "Hungarian Dances" and slows it down to fit into a rock 'n' roll mold. "Scratch" is a more straightforward instrumental piece, later covered by Eddie and the Showmen on the flip of their "Squad Car" single in 1963. Both songs have that twangin' guitar sound that the Ventures made popular. But they both hold their own in that they're both instro swingers in their own right. See if you don't agree.

It's Great Shakes Radio #4 - R&B Dance Party

2008-09-24T14:30:00.006-05:00

Hello, a happy middle of the week. I hope that everyone enjoyed Vincent's excellent mix, last week. Once again, I want to thank him for stopping by and sharing it with us. Please do check out Fufu Stew for more of the same.

Today, I'm drawing my inspiration from Vincent's mix and presenting my first podcast since this past January, namely It's Great Shakes Radio #4. Here are 22 R&B spins from the mid 1950's to the mid 1960's, all taken from (sometimes scratchy) 45's. I hope that you enjoy it.

The rundown:

1. Thurston Harris - Be Baba Leba (Aladdin)
I first heard this on one of the garagepunk.com forum comps and knew that I needed a copy for myself. Lucky me, I found it reasonably priced at one of the recent record shows. I'm not sure of the origins of "Be Baba Leba" but it's closely tied to Helen Humes, who recorded it in about 1945.

2. Harmonica Fats - I Get So Tired (Darcey)
Can't say enough about this one, a pick-up at the most recent record show. Both sides are great r&b blues. Maybe I'll feature "Tore Up" sometime in the future. Anyway, there seem to be plenty of copies of this floating around on eBay and the like.

3. Jessie Hill - Whip It On Me (Minit)
Is it possible to have enough Jessie Hill 45's? I guess maybe if you had them all. "Whip It On Me" is one of his earlier sides for Minit, still on the older, orange label style. The flip of this, "I Need Your Love", isn't any slouch either.

4. Pancho Villa - Bobby's Guitar (Arliss)
Two records and two winners on the Arliss label. After finding the strong "I'm Your Slave" by Jeanie Allen earlier in the year, this Pancho Villa 45 presented itself earlier this month. While the Allen number is a rocker, "Bobby's Guitar" is an excellent, blues based, r&b instrumental, a la Freddy King.

5. Donnie Elbert - Hear My Plea (DeLuxe)
Here's Donnie Elbert with that patented high-pitched vocal that he'd carry with him right on into the 1970's, when he'd have some success on the pop chart, while remaking Motown hits. I picked "Hear My Plea" to go here because it sounded liked it belonged right after the Pancho Villa tune.

6. Buddy Johnson - Bring it Home To Me (Mercury)
If you haven't acquainted yourself with Buddy Johnson, do yourself a favor and start now. His records seem to spring up regularly and never cost more than a few bucks. Here, his sister Ella handles vocal duties, as she did on many of his best sides. "Bring It Home To Me" is prime r&b out of the big band tradition and my favorite Buddy Johnson disc, so far.

7. Nappy Brown - Skidy Woe (Savoy)
I finished making up this podcast yesterday, only to read a couple of hours later that Nappy Brown had passed away on September 20th at the age of 78. Maybe this can serve as a tribute to him in some small way. I have several of his Savoy singles, with this recent find being among my favorites. RIP Nappy.

8. Gene Allison - Somebody, Somewhere (Calvert)
I've had this record for a year or two and have been wanting to get it up on the blog. From 1956, I believe this was Gene Allison's first release and only one for the Calvert label. He'd go on to make many more records up to about 1970.

9. Jimmy McCracklin - The Wobble (Mercury)
In a career that stretches back to the mid 1940's, Jimmy McCracklin has to be a contender for making good records on the most different labels. The best of them have that great, jumpin' r&b sound. Here's one of them from 1959, "The Wobble".

10. The Upsetters - Jaywalking (Fire)
Brian blogged this record ages ago. I'm now pleased to present it here, so everyone can hear it for themselves. Better late than never, I suppose. Anyway, The Upsetters were Little Richard's backing band. "Jaywalking" is an instrumental with a few one liners and maniacal laughs tossed in for good measure. Oh, and there's a flute solo, somewhat unusual for a record like this.

11. Bill Robinson & the Quails - The Cow (American)
Bill Robinson & the Quails go back at least to 1954 on the DeLuxe record label. Here they are several years later in 1963 with a great, mid-tempo, r&b dance tune. I'm not sure of the hit status of "The Cow", although it made this WQAM (Miami) year-end survey. Funny to see it nestled in between Elvis and Allan Sherman.

12. Betty Lavett - Shut Your Mouth (Atlantic)
From what I can gather, this was Betty Lavett's first single, released in 1962. That means she would have been just 16 years old at the time. It seems that she's still going strong today. "Shut Your Mouth" is another mid-tempo, r&b gem, with a great vocal.

13. Betty Everett - Hands Off (Vee-Jay)
From one Betty to another, here's a record collecting lesson in always flipping over those hits. Here we have the b-side of Everett's huge "The Shoop Shoop Song". That's right, the outstanding "Hands Off" is just lurking over on the other side, waiting for someone to play it. Being the record's hit status, it ought to be an easy and cheap find. Thanks to Brian Marshall for cluing me in on this one.

14. Johnnie & Joe - Shortening Bread (Lana)
Lana Records was a 1960's era label that specialized is reissues and re-recordings of previous hits. Here, Johnnie & Joe" reprise their "Over The Mountain, Across The Sea" on the a-side. The big mystery is this terrific version of "Shortening Bread" on the flip. It doesn't look to have appeared before this Lana release. I'm not sure whether it's something that was left over from their Chess days or if Johnnie & Joe recorded it especially for this single. Either way, it's a winner.

15. Chet "Poison" Ivey - 'Tater Patch (Atco)
Chet "Poison" Ivey is a little tough to get a handle on. He recorded for several labels right on through the 1960's. "'Tater Patch" is one of his early releases, perhaps even his first, from 1959. It's a revved-up dance tune, with lots of piano, sax and some cool guitar. "The Slop", on the flipside, is also a winner.

16. Round Robin - The Roundest of Them All (Domain)
Up to a couple of months ago, I'd never heard of Round Robin. Now, I have a couple of his records. This was the first, found on my vacation trip to California. It's a great, upbeat dance number from 1964. I've also seen footage of him performing this song on Shindig!

17. Willard Burton - The Twistin' Twist (Peacock)
I don't know a lot about Willard Burton. One thing I do know is that I like this record a lot, from the whoops and hollers, to the great, wailing organ and sax. I found this disc at a local flea market a few months back for just a couple of bucks. It has "1962" written on the sleeve. So there you go.

18. Roosevelt Grier - Deputy Dog (Youngstown)
You learn something new every day. I found this record just last week, digging in the backroom of a record store. I wondered if it was the same "Deputy Dog" that Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs recorded for one of their albums. On arriving home and giving this a spin, I found that it's indeed the same song. Not only that, but I also noticed that Roosevelt Grier, himself, is given songwriting credit. Sure enough, a quick check of Sam the Sham's Little Red Riding Hood LP confirmed that he's credited there too. There's barely any mention of this disc on the net, as it shows up in a discography or two and that's about it. Doesn't anyone know about this thing? From about 1966.

19. Noble "Thin Man" Watts - The Beaver (Cub)
Noble "Thin Man" Watts is probably best known for his string of singles for the Baton label during the mid to late 1950's, instrumentals like "Blast Off", "Flap Jack" and "Hard Times (The Slop)". Here's one from just after that, from 1960. I seem to have scored a lot of things on the Cub label recently and this is one of the best of that bunch.

20. Rochell & the Candles - Hey, Pretty Baby (Swingin')
I've had this record for several years and have wanted to get it blogged. It's a pretty great r&b rocker from 1961, complete with guitar break. Rochell & the Candles had a few other singles for the Swingin' label, none of which I've heard. I wonder if any of them are as good as this one?

21. Baby Cortez - Honey Baby (OKeh)
Dave "Baby" Cortez is most closely identified with his series of organ instrumentals released for labels like Clock and Chess during the 1960's. Occasionally, he'd sneak in a vocal number and here's an early one from him, dating back to 1958. It's a really good r&b rocker with a guitar break. The flipside of this, "You Give Me Heebie Jeebies" is a Little Richard styled rave-up.

22. Sonny & Jaycee - You Keep Doggin' Me (Ember)
Here's another one from 1958. I can't get much of a handle on this record, outside of the fact that it was Sonny Terry and J.C. Burris, with perhaps some help from Sticks McGhee tossed in. It's one of those discs that seems to have fallen between the cracks which is a shame, as it's really good. Good enough, in fact, to close out this edition of It's Great Shakes Radio.

Indy Show Finds - September Edition

2008-09-15T13:59:00.003-05:00

Hello all. I hope you've been digging our special mix prepared by the mighty Vincent the Soul Chef. There's some very tasty tunes on that set, so if you haven't yet, I encourage you to do so immediately.

Speaking of tasty tunes, I found a mess of them at yesterday's Indianapolis Record and CD Show. As usual, if I had more cash I would undoubtedly get more, but this time I managed to find some nice stompin' R&B, plus a few rockabilly classics and even one sort-of garage record. I recap my findings for you now, whether you dig it or not:

The Checkmates: Hey Mrs. Jones (Parts 1 and 2) (Arvee)
Gentleman June Gardner: It's Gonna Rain/Last Night (Emarcy)
Lulu Reed: Say Hey Pretty Baby (Federal)
Don Hines: Baby Tell It Like It Is (Hi)
Amen Corner: High in the Sky (Deram)
Ronnie Haig: Rocking with Rhythm & Blues (Note)
Freddie Fender: Mean Woman (Imperial)
The Original Casuals: So Tough (Back Beat)
Wynona Carr: I'm Mad At You (Specialty)
Dick Dale and the Del-Tones: Misirlou/Eight Till Midnight (Deltone)
Johnny Williams: Breaking Point (Twinight)
Lowell Fulsom: Coming Home (Checker)
O.V. Wright: Oh Baby Mine/Working Your Game (Back Beat)
Danny Overbea: I'm Tired of Being Tossed Around (Federal)
Azie Mortimer: That's That (Get Off My Back) (Number One)
Albert Collins: Ain't Got Time (Imperial)
Howlin' Wolf: I Smell A Rat (Chess)
Buchanan and Goodman: Santa and the Satellite (Parts 1 and 2) (Luniverse)
The Fantastic Johnny C.: (She's) Some Kind of Wonderful (Phil L.A. Of Soul)
Joe Turner: Honey Hush (Atlantic)
Little Willie John: Spasms (King)
The Esquires: You Say (Bunky)
Carl Perkins: Glad All Over (Sun)
Lou Donaldson: Aligator Boogaloo (Blue Note)
The Knight Bros.: That'll Get It (Checker)
Terry and the Chain Reaction: Keep Your Cool/Stop Stoppin' Me (United Artists)
Herbie Mann: Hold On, I'm Comin (Atlantic)
The Soul Children: Hold On, I'm Coming/Make It Good (Stax)
Otis Williams and his Charms: Blues Stay Away From Me (Deluxe)
Bill Doggett: Raw Turkey (King)
The Rock-A-Teens: Woo Hoo (Roulette)
Gary U.S. Bonds: Workin' For My Baby (Legrand)
Chuck Willis: Betty and Dupree (Atlantic)
Dante and the Evergreens: Time Machine (Madison)

So, there you go. As always, if you got questions or comments you like to make, please do so. I'm reasonably pleased with this group and I will no doubt be there on November 16, when the next show is. Afterwhich you will get another report. You lucky devil, you!

Again, I stress, check out Vincent The Soul Chef's righteous special mix for "It's Great Shakes." Not only will you be glad you did, but it just might help make you a little hipper, if you know what I mean and I know you do.

Shake It Up With The Soul Chef

2008-09-15T08:00:00.002-05:00

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.

Record Show Recap and More

2008-09-09T14:06:00.005-05:00

This past Sunday was the date of the latest record show in St. Louis. I was able to go and dig up a few treasures. I thought that I'd list them for you but, first, a couple of other items.

Vincent the Soul Chef of the tremendous Fufu Stew blog is going to join us later in the week for our very first guest mix. Vincent has already forwarded the tracklist to me and it looks fantastic. I hope to have it up and going before the weekend, so be sure to check back.

Next, I wanted to share a new website with you, namely RnB45.com. They have features, including sound files, plus a full-fledged message board. The focus is r&b from the early 1950's to the mid 1960's but discussion of early rock and roll, doo-wop, garage rock, soul and other music of the time is also welcome. Please pay them a visit and sign up, if you're so inclined.

Okay, now on with the list of my record show haul.

Lowell Fulsom: Lovin' Touch (Kent)
Al Green: True Love (Hi)
The Gifts: Rock My Soul (Ballad)
The Watts 103rd St. Rhythm Band: Spreadin' Honey (Keymen)
Delores Hall: Good Lovin' Man (Keymen)
Sonny Spencer: Gilee (Memo)
Inez Foxx: Hi Diddle Diddle (Symbol)
Inez and Charlie Foxx: You Fixed My Heartache (Dynamo)
Ernie Tucker: Can She Give You Fever (Earth)
King Coleman: Hang It Up (King)
Bobby Lee Trammell: Arkansas Twist (Alley)
The Parkettes: The Peg (Ludix)
Shirley Ellis: Sugar, Let's Shing-A-Ling (Columbia)
Milton Howard: Funky Shing-A-Ling (Sound Stage 7)
The Dynamic 7: Squeeze Me (Sound Stage 7)
Gene The Hat: (Pass) The Bug (Gee)
Harmonica Fats: Tore Up (Darcey)
Lloyd "Fatman": Good Gracious (OKeh)
Nappy Brown: Skidy Woe (Savoy)
Round Robin: Land of A Thosand Dances "The Na Na Song" (Domain)
Arthur Prysock: Woke Up This Morning (Wing)
Cookie and His Cupcakes: I'm Twisted (Paula)
The Free: Decision For Lost Soul Blue (Marquee)
The Mellokings: Do Baby Do (Herald)
Steve Alaimo: Ooh Poo Pah Doo (Atco)
Davie Allan and the Arrows: Shape of Things To Come (Tower)
Betty Everett: Hands Off (Vee-Jay)
Elmo James: Fine Little Mama (Fire)
U.S. Bonds: Not Me (Legrand)
Buddy Johnson: Bring It Home To Me (Mercury)
Buddy Johnson: Rock On (Mercury)
Little Archie: I Am A Carpet (Dial)
Timmie "Oh Yeah!"Rogers: I've Got A Dog Who Loves Me (Cameo)
James Brown with the Famous Flames: No, No, No, No (Federal)
The Flairs: Roll Over Beethoven (Palms)
Benny Gordon and the Soul Brothers: A Kiss To Build A Dream On (RCA Victor)
Johnny Sayles: The Concentration (Chi Town)
Junior Lewis: Hi-Dee You All (Hootenany Soul) (Scepter)
C.L. Blast: I'll Take The Case (Atlantic)
Paul Peek: Short Shortnin' (NRC)
The Dukays: Mellow-Fezneckey (Jerry-O)
Don and Dewey: Get Your Hat (Specialty)
Jesse Anderson: Send Me Some Loving C.O.D. (Jewel)
Danny and the Zeltones: Kansas City (Big Top)
Betty Lavett: Shut Your Mouth (Atlantic)
Shirley & the Shirelles: Playthings (Bell)
Albert Collins: Turnin' On (Imperial)
Dale Hawkins: Lifeguard Man (Checker)
Monk Higgins: Baby You're Right (Sack)
Ricky Allen: Skate Boo-Ga-Loo (Bright Star)
Don Covay and the Goodtimers: Pony Time Twist (Fleetwood)
Pancho Villa: Bobby's Guitar (Arliss)
Thurston Harris: Smokey Joe's (Aladdin)
Hank Ballard and the Midnighters: Can't You See-I Need A Friend (King)
Bo Diddley: Bo Diddley (Checker)
Willie Dixon: Crazy For My Baby (Checker)
The Intruders: Don't Give It Away (Gamble)
Harold Betters: Dirty Red (Gateway)
Marvin Holmes & the Uptights: Thang (Uni)
The Coasters: The P.T.A. (Atco)
The Velours: Tired of Your Rock & Rollin' (Cub)
Jimmy Jones: Itchin' (Cub)
Arthur Conley: Star Review (Atco)
The Drippers: Honey Bunch (Moon Shot)
The David Rockingham Trio: Soulful Chant (Josie)
Clarence & Calvin: Rooster Knees & Rice (Atco)
The Rivingtons: The Willy (Vee-Jay)
Art Grayson: Bad Dreams (4 Corners of the World)
Lee Rogers: Go-Go-Girl (D-Town)
Lonnie Russ: Tell Me How (4J)
Richie Barrett: Some Other Guy (Atlantic)
Solomon Burke: It's Been A Change (Atlantic)

That's about it for this time. Please come back for the Fufu Stew guest mix later in the week.

The Aire-Dales - Drumsville/Just Plain Mess

2008-09-02T07:58:00.005-05:00

A happy new week to everyone. I hope that everybody enjoyed the long weekend here in the States. And thank goodness it looks like disaster was avoided on the Gulf Coast this time around, although plenty of folks have property damage and are without electricity. Here's hoping that everyone who lives in that region is doing okay in the aftermath of Hurricane Gustav.

I'm sorry for the lack of posts here, recently. I've taken a little time away from the blog, a needed short break. Also, I've taken a bit of a break from record digging the past couple of weeks, resulting in a scant few things to add to the collection. This coming weekend's record show in St. Louis should help take care of that. One thing that I have done is digimatize (to quote Larry Grogan) a lot of records in the interim, including today's selection.

Details on the Aire-Dales are a bit sketchy. They often backed lead singer Rocky Roberts. In fact, their "The T-Bird" was featured in the mix that I did for Fufu Stew back in July. Both that record and this one are from 1963. One member of the Aire-Dales was drummer Doug Fowlkes, who's credited with penning both sides of today's record. According to Jeff Lemlich, in the additions to his book Savage Lost, the Aire-Dales were from Key West, FL and also included Don Borga (bass), Charles Barron (rhythm guitar), Jerry Armstrong (lead guitar), B-flat Barnes (saxophone) and Austin Roberts (saxophone), who was later replaced by Fred Lawrence.

So, today we have a couple of instrumentals. "Drumsville" lives up to its name, beginning with some wild pounding on the skins. Soon, an organ and sax join in, as the tune clips along at a very fast pace. There are a pair of breaks, one for the drums and another where the bass guitar is heard jamming with the rest of the band. There are also a lot of handclaps. Meanwhile, "Just Plain Mess", despite the title, isn't quite as frantic. It has a bit of a "Night Train" vibe, lots of drums, plus another large dose of organ and sax. All in all, it's a fine, rockin' pair of instros.

The Boys in the Band - (How Bout A Little Hand For) The Boys in the Band/Sumpin Heavy (Spring)

2008-08-18T10:32:00.006-05:00

Here we have a rather unusual two-sider. Unusual in a sense that you would have never thought it charted, but it did. Plus, the A-side is from a flop movie that barely got a release and the song did way, way, WAY better than the movie ever did. Allow me to elaborate further, if I may.

The Boys in the Band were an eleven-person studio group led by Herman Lewis Griffin. According to Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles book, Griffin was the first husband of Mary Wells. I don't know much more about Griffin other than he died of a heart attack in 1989. The song "(How Bout a Little Hand For) The Boys in the Band" was written by the team of Jerry Lieber and Mike Stoller for a 1970 Warner Brothers movie called "The Phynx," about a rock group recruited to spy behind the Iron Curtain. It's known for featuring cameos by a variety of pop stars and American Icons from James Brown to Colonel Sanders. Lieber and Stroller wrote all the songs for the film. So, what happened?

Well, the movie was reportedly so bad that Warner Brothers promptly buried it. Today, it can only be seen through bootleg channels, but even there it has a rotten reputation with fans of obscure cinema. The song, however, made it up the Billboard charts all the way up to #48. Not bad for a song from a bomb movie. This would be the only time the group would ever make the Hot 100 in any form. However, they would reach #34 on the R&B charts with a record called "Money Music." After that, nada.

So, what do we have here? We have one side of an upbeat soul stomper (the hit side) and a nice funky instrumental for a flip. Both of which are well worth hearing. I've read that the songs in the film were not particularly memorable, but one listen to "(HBALHF)TBITB" can put you in a good party mood. The B-side has a slow, cookin' groove that really sounds just fine to these ears.
Try 'em both.

Nervous Norvus - Stoneage Woo

2008-08-18T07:00:00.001-05:00

Here's a record that I found on my trip to California, "Stoneage Woo" by Nervous Norvus. I mentioned in an earlier post that I had the chance to check out a bunch of thrift and antique stores while out west. One antique store had a bunch of 45's, including several that I wanted. I negotiated a price of two bucks each with the proprietor. As it turns out, this was probably the biggest bargain of the bunch, as it's both a great record and also pretty tough to find.

Nervous Norvus was born in 1912 as, and sometimes recorded under the name, Jimmy Drake. He's best known for his big 1956 hit, "Transfusion", a song that was on his first single, recorded for the Dot imprint. He made two more 45's for Dot in 1956. Beyond that, he recorded sporadically over the next several years on a variety of small labels. Drake, who was already well into his 40's by the time he started making records, died in 1968.

As for "Stongage Woo", it was released in 1961 on the Embee label out of San Francisco. In keeping with other Nervous Norvus recordings, it's very strange and unusual, perhaps even especially so. And while some would dismiss it as a mere novelty, that really misses the point. Yes, there's certainly a novel element but the song also rocks and in fact sort of defines do it yourself, lo-fi rock and roll.

If you like primitive, "Stoneage Woo" has it in both sound and subject matter. Instrumentally, there's but a single guitar and various percussive sounds. Nervous Norvus sings the tale of boy meets girl back in the (really) olden days. The words mostly wind up being a series of grunts, giggles and oohs. Pure genius.

In 2004, Norton Records released a Nervous Norvus retrospective on CD with a whopping 33 tracks. I don't own it but, given Norton's long track record of quality releases, it must be a hoot to listen to.

Happy Vinyl Record Day - Take 2

2008-08-11T11:27:00.006-05:00

Hello, everyone and a "Happy Vinyl Record Day" from the other half of this blog. Gee, is it here already? Well, for me, every day is Vinyl Record Day. There's hardly a day that goes by where I'm not playing a few of my 45s. Unfortunately, my regular turntable decided to go on me so I've been having to use my Numark record player, which I normally use for digging. It may not be much, but it's better than nothing. Anything to get my 45 fix, if you know what I mean?

Last year, I wrote about what the 45 meant to me with my piece "The Call of the 45." What else can I say after that? Things haven't changed since I wrote that piece and I'm still in there digging and collecting. I have stacks of 45s all over my desk to prove it. So, I thought I'd go ahead and tell you a little about some of the records I've been getting lately. Alas, unlike Todd, I have no way to put sound files on my computer so you'll have to use your imagination. So here we go:

The Fame Gang: Grits 'n' Gravy (Fame) - I don't know for sure if this was the studio band for Fame Records or not. In fact, I don't know anything about this one. All I know is that it's a real funky hip-shaker that starts off with a solid groove and doesn't let up until the finish. I've been finding a lot of soul and funk lately, as it seems to be the easiest to find. This one is definitely right up there with the best of them.

The BBC: Upside Down (Mega) - Todd may have blogged this one before, but a repeat never hurt anybody. I'm told that this is actually Bill Black's Combo made to sound hipper, but whatever the case, this one's another keeper with loud, funky guitar and blasting sax. The beat has this jerky feel that's a little weird, but this thing still has a lot of firepower behind it.

Phil Flowers and the Flower Shop: Like A Rolling Stone (A&M) - Here we have the Bob Dylan classic as a soul stomper. It's missing one of the verses (or maybe it was edited out, I don't know), but it's got a vocal delivery that seems to cross Otis Redding with Billy Stewart. The lead vocalist shouts and screams as the band cooks alongside him. This was co-arranged and conducted by Tony Camillo, who, in 1975, would later be a one hit wonder as Tony Camillo's Bazuka with a song called "Dyn-o-mite."

Ace Cannon: "Drunk" and "Soul For Sale" (both Hi) - These two come from a man who had a minor hit with a song called "Tuff." What I've usually heard from this man is mostly mellow sax stuff, but these two both have a hard, funky edge to them that makes them really stand out. "Soul For Sale" is a cookin' instrumental, while on "Drunk," Mr. Cannon sings in a raw, gruff voice about the pleasures of being in an inebriated condition.

Henry Moore: "Rock Junction"/"Spongie" (King) - The label says that Mr. Moore conducted the featured orchestra with Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, so that's ample reason to check this out. As expected, both sides are snappy instrumentals that feature a lot of blasting sax. Both sides chug along at a breakneck pace and both are worth a spin or two.

The Turnarounds: "Soul Walk" (Tangerine) - I don't know anything about this group, but I love this record. This is as stompin' a soul dance cut as you can get and that's all I need to say about it.

Like Todd, I too have a lot of fun discovering things I've never heard before. That's what keeps this hobby going. No matter how many things you've heard, there's always something cool that you haven't encountered before. The best thing about it is when you can find them cheap. That's something that may be harder and harder to do especially with most of the good ones being snapped up by collectors with high prices on their minds. But the rewards are more than worth it when that cool 45 you just snapped up only cost you a couple of bucks or less. I've done more than my share of finding cheapies and paying collector scum prices and I will no doubt continue to do so, as there's still much gold to be mined.

Happy Vinyl Record Day everyone! Let's all get out there and crack open your favorite records and play them good and loud to your heart's content. That's what this day celebrates after all.

Oh, and here's an address for you to find other Vinyl Record Day posts:

jabartlett.wordpress.com/2008/08/11/vinyl-record-rundown-2008

There are many fine reads to be had, all of which reflect the passion of all record nuts. So, please, check 'em all out. I don't know how to link, so you'll have to type it in. Or, there IS a link for "The Hits Just Keep On Comin',"the blog that's sponsoring the whole shebang on the right of this blog (in the blog list section) so hit that and it'll take you there, too. Whatever you do, give the blogswarm a little support, if you'd be so kind. Thank you and enjoy the spinnin'.