Curtis Mayfield & The Staple Singers : After Sex
taken from the Soundtrack album “Let’s Do It Again” on Curtom (1975)

Bill Conti : Reflections
taken from the soundtrack album “ROCKY” on Capitol (1976)

Kool & The Gang : Summer Madness
taken from the album “Light Of Worlds” on Dee-Lite (1974)

Shuggie Otis : Island Letter
taken from the album “Inspiration Information” on Epic (1974)

Ok, so this is not my official “Summer Songs” post, which is now going to be a dog days affair, but I want to let everyone know that I’m not dead and am still in love with music. I’ve been going through some pretty heavy stuff lately (basically a divorce, even though we weren’t technically married), and working in the studio more than is probably healthy (you’ll hear the fruits of labor soon enough), but I’m getting back to the blog for real now. I love this place and the chance to sit down with a lil handful of songs like these ones I picked out today feels highly therapeutic.

I heard Curtis Mayfield’s “After Sex” (an old forgotten favorite of mine) yesterday at my friend’s spot, and as I lay melting into the wheelchair that he uses as furniture (superior by far to any lazyboy) I realized that the song was expressing the exact the sound inside me right now. I found myself pulling the needle back at least 10 times. Bill Conti’s “Reflections” came to mind next, as an extension of the same sentiment. I still remember watching Rocky for the first time (it was a hot Summer day then too) and loving the scene where he’s alone in his grimey little apartment and he drops the needle on a record… “Reflections”. It wasn’t until I later scooped Kool & The Gang’s “Light Of Worlds” that I realized Conti was doing what appears to be a pretty blatant knock-off track for the soundtrack (doesn’t really take away from my appreciation of it somehow). And then, to complete the vibe, I knew a little Shuggie was necessary. So here’s to a peaceful and uplifting moment of inner exploration. We all know the feeling.

ps- R.I.P. Isaac Hayes

Joe Bataan: Gypsy Woman (original, Futura version) + Latin Soul Square Dance
From Under the Streetlamps: 1967-1972 (Fania, 2008)

I’m very, very proud to announce the new Fania anthology focused on the work of Joe Bataan, Under the Streetlamps. I was fortunate enough to be asked to write the liner notes for the compilation – you can read a teaser here – and as always, it was a pleasure to rap with Joe but also my first opportunity to speak with the great Bobby Marin as well.

I’ve, er, waxed poetic about Joe on numerous occasions, especially here, so I won’t add a great deal (though look for my Side Dishes post this week to go over some of the basics). I do want to bring attention to the two songs above though, both of which are important inclusions on the anthology. The “Gypsy Woman” version here is quite a find since it’s never been released previously and very few people have ever heard it before. Futura was Al Santiago’s (Alegre) short-lived label and a truly missed opportunity since Santiago recorded both Joe and Willie Colon at a time when no one in the Latin music world had really heard of them but he never capitalized on their potential. This version of “Gypsy Woman” is markedly different from the Fania version; it’s quite slower which gives it a very different feel. Maybe it’s just familiarity but I think the eventual version is better than this early attempt but just for history’s sake, it’s cool to hear the first try.

“Latin Soul Square Dance” comes from the opposite end of Joe’s Fania career. This was never released as a commercial single (just promo only) and it’s from Joe’s “lost” Live From San Frantasia album from which the masters are still MIA and may never be found. It would have come out had Joe not finally stepped off of Fania (with whom he was having issues with at the time) and went on to help found Salsoul Records with the Cayre Bros. Again, a really cool track to include since so few people have ever heard it. Enjoy!

I’m proud to announce the official CD launch of Deep Covers 2: Mas Profundo. It’s already been available as a digital download from the good folks at East Bay Digital* but is now finally available on CD.

Orders taken now!Description: Deep Covers 2: Mas Profundo follows up on two previous covers-related projects: Deep Covers and Soul Sides Vol. 2: The Covers. This time though, I take it international, with 20 songs, all recorded overseas. I tried to balance things by region (otherwise, hell, I could have done an entire CD of reggae covers) but still kept the vibe oriented around soul and funk covers. It’s really astounding what one can find out there – this merely scratches the surface! Overall, I was pleased with how this mix turned out, both in terms of song selection as well as sequencing. There will definitely be a DC3 somewhere down the road but for now, enjoy this in all its global glory.

Tracklisting: (by song title, original artist and country of cover)

1. How Deep? Intro/The Message (Cymande, El Salvador)
2. Rainmaker (Sweden, Nilsson)
3. Use Me (Poland, Bill Withers)
4. Breakthrough (Nigeria, Atomic Rooster)
      5. Slipping Into Darkness (Sweden
6. Tanga Goo Bonk (Philippines, Niteliters)7. I’m Gonna Love You Just a Little More (Jamaica, Barry White)
8. Be My Baby (Jamaica, The Ronettes)
9. Pick Up The Pieces (Brazil, Average White Band)
      10. Wicky Wacky (Colombia
11. Different Strokes (Argentina, Syl Johnson)
12. Buzzsaw/In Gadda Da Vida (Malaysia, The Turtles/Iron Butterfly)
13. Found a Child (Peru, Ballinjack)
14. Cardova (Trinidad, The Meters)
      15. Never Can Say Goodbye (France
16. Groovy Situation (Jamaica, Gene Chandler)
17. Cold Sweat (Brazil, James Brown)
18. Angel of the Morning (Mexico, Evie Sands)
      19. I Who Have Nothing (Panama
20. Sweet Caroline (Guyana, Neil Diamond)

Bonus:
21. Signed, Sealed, Delivered
22. Hit Or Miss
23. September Song

Order now!

*LAME encoded at 320.

The Notations: It Only Hurts For a Little While
From S/T (Gemigo, 1975)

Bonus: The Flamingos: Why Can’t Susie Go to School With Lucy
From Today (Ronze, 197?)

I’m working backwards here since this was my original, introductory post to the Pick Six series. Note: I’m fond of starting new series that promptly go nowhere so just be warned. The idea behind the series was based around the relative little time I have these days to get more posts up and throwing up six at a time seemed like one way to clear the slate faster. However, it also gave me an opportunity to think of my own music library more thematically, hence each Pick Six post will have some kind of thread that ties all them together. Last time, it was Louie Ramirez and for this post, I was going through a stack of soul records and realized that, of late, I’ve been acquiring a grip of LPs by R&B groups built around harmonized singing, ala the Chi-Lites or Stylistics.

Most of these groups were influenced by multi-member gospel singing and not surprisingly, many in these groups could trace their musical histories back to gospel singing prior to their R&B excursions. Especially in a city like Chicago, it’s not hard to guess that a group like the Notations probably took their inspiration from both gospel as well as The Impressions, whose three-part harmonies were incredibly influential. The Notations were first signed with Twinight but by the 1970s, had shifted over to Curtom (via the Gemigo subsidiary), Curtis Mayfield’s label. “It Only Hurts” is one of those sweet soul classics, especially because of that memorable string melody that opens the song. i like the dramatic flourishes throughout the song and the interplay in the quartet’s voices (Clifford Curry, LaSalle Matthews, Bobby Thomas, Jimmy Stoud) work well against one another.

The Temprees were a trio out of Memphis, TN, first signed to We Produce, a Stax subsidiary (same label Ernie HInes’s “Our Generation” came out on). The three, composed of Jasper Phillips, Harold Scott and Deljuan Calvin, were young – high schoolers – when they first met and there’s a charming swagger to them naming their first album Love Men when they probably weren’t that many years out of their peachfuzz yet. “Explain It To Her Mama” kicks off with a pounding little breakbeat and then shifts into a rich, mid-tempo ballad that showcases Phillip’s falsetto.

The Persuaders’ “Trying Girls Out” may be familiar to some of you as the source for the “Girls, Girls, Girls” remix off Jay-Z’s The Blueprint and it makes you appreciate how keen an ear Kayne had back in 2001. The original has a sly humor to it – this is no sentimental love song for certain – but even if it is a players’ anthem, the Persuaders sure do make it sound sweet. This is from their self-titled album, the follow-up to their hit Thin Line Between Love and Hate, featuring Douglas Scott, brothers Willie and James Holland and Charles Stoghill.

Like the Persuaders, the Modulations were another four-member group, formed in Philadelphia and you can hear that classic “Philly sound” draped onto this nostalgia-suffused track. I’m guessing it’s Larry Duncan on falsetto here but surprisingly, it’s pretty damn hard to figure out who else was in the group (besides Glenn Lewis). For real: the album credits the musicians by name but not the singers…whoops.

The Moments are arguably the most famous ’70s vocal group out of New Jersey though they probably went through enough personnel changes to staff two or three groups. By the time they recorded “Love on a 2-Way Street” their membership could either have been the best known combo, with William Brown, Al Goodman and John Morgan, but it could also have been Mark Greene, Richie Horsley and Morgan). Regardless, the Moments were impressively consistent no matter what the line up and this was one of their classics from the last ’60s.

The Montclairs were a short-lived, four man group out of East St. Louis who never really broke it big despite having some serious vocal talent. Signed to Paula for their one and only album, the group was comprised of Phil Perry, Kevin Sanlin, David Frye, and Clifford Williams. “Dreaming Out of Season” was their biggest hit and it’s so good, it’s a shame the couldn’t find the footing to put out even more than they did.

The bonus cut comes from The Flamingos – you remember, of “I Only Have Eyes For You” fame – but this comes from an early ’70s album (hence the “Today” part of the title) where the doo-wop group is trying to stay current with, y’know, the kids. The song is obviously funk-influenced (and not sweet soul) but I thought it’d make a fun bonus cut to hear a classic soul harmony group trying on a different genre. Personally, I think the song does ok though for a social consciousness tune (the title is a clear reference to integration), it’s overly vague despite sounding pretty obvious.

Johnny Johnson: Love Is Blue
Taken from the album Soul Survivor on Bell (1970)

Third Guitar: Lovin’ Lies
Taken from the 7″ on Rojac (19??)

The Parliaments: Your Goodies Are Gone
Taken from the 7″ on Revilot (1967)

Eddie Holman: Four Walls
Taken from the album I Love You on ABC (1969)

O, wracked wail of heartache. O, plaintive moan of sorrow. How the heart strains!

The selections today are born of the kind anguish that I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. The kind where the knees buckle and the heart cramps. The kind that can reduce a grown man to pathetic teary desperation. The kind of abject grief that can drive a guy to the loony bin… or, if fortune prevails, to the recording booth.

We got lucky with the latter.

Leading off with the Johnny Johnson track: um, I mean, WOW. How about this joint. Forget about the folk guitar that gives way to the meanest orchestral onslaught since Beethoven’s Fifth. Forget about the Ghostface sample. Forget that this track has been recorded by a bunch of heads. THIS IS THE VERSION. Listen to ol’ boy holding that note in the last bar of the song. That, my friends, is suffering.

Third Guitar are best known for making a highly noteworthy appearance on Shadow & Chemist’s Brainfreeze, but listen to these cats digging deep on “Lovin’ Lies”. When was the last time heard such ballistic hand drums, breaks and heavy emoting crammed into a track that clocks in at under two minutes?

Then there’s George Clinton in his pre-Funkadelic days cranking out a hard-hitting soul number with the Parliaments (drop the “s”, add acid, and you’ve got one loked out 70 year old with technicolor dreadlocks). A recent flea market find that I can’t seem to get enough of.

And lastly, a repeat of one of the first posts put up on this blog. A song that I have ADORED since the moment it entered my life and will likely continue to adore until the day I die. What a shame that Eddie Holman will only ever be remembered for “Hey, There Lonely Girl” because, as far as I’m concerned this is as good as it gets. Wail on, brother man. Wail on.

Louie Ramirez: The New Breed
From In the Heart of Spanish Harlem (Mercury, 1967)

Bonus: Beatfanatic: Cookin’
From Adventures in the World of No-Fi Beats (Raw Fusion, 2006)

My most recent Side Dishes was on Latin arranger/composer/musician Louie Ramirez and the recommended Louie’s Grooves anthology. I’ve been wanting to write something on Ramirez for a while and though the Side Dishes post allowed me to riff on some of his work, as the comp’s liner notes acknowledge, it just brushes the surface of how deep his catalog can run. I’d suggest folks read that post first and then come back here.

My pick six for Ramirez focuses mostly on albums not already covered by Louie’s Grooves, beginning with arguably the easiest of his solo albums to acquire: In the Heart of Spanish Harlem. This was recorded for Mercury; I find that interesting since Mercury didn’t have a ton of Latin recordings (that I know of) on the label but I suspect it may have had something to do with producer Richard Marin who was doing some A&R work for labels like Mercury and Verve at the time. Marin’s brother Bobby – another Latin soul giant and fellow composer – is on this album as well; he was a frequent collaborator with Ramirez and it’s not at all unusual to see them on the same projects together. In fact, for this album, Bobby appears on the cover photo alongside Richard and Louie

I was always struck at how Ramirez was able to work on so many different labels at the same time; not long after that Mercury album, he must have been working with Fania on the Ali Baba LP (several of the songs from that rare title are on Louie’s Grooves and then he was also working for Morty Craft’s Speed imprint. I wrote about The Latin Blues Band for the Happy Soul Suite piece and I enjoy revisiting it – any Latin album that has Bernard Purdie as your studio drummer is bound to be rather interesting though instead of the funkier fare I could have nodded to, I went with “Oye Mi Guaguanco,” a solid piece of classic Cuban style by Ramirez, feat. (I think) Luis Aviles on vocals.

Like the Latin Blues Band, the Dianne and Carole album was also on Speed. Speed packed, in my opinion, the biggest bang for the buck – their catalog wasn’t more than a dozen titles or so but what was there was almost all exceptional. This Dianne and Carole album is especially notably since it had one of the few examples of female singers heading a Latin soul album (La Lupe excepted of course). There’s very little known about the two singers – their surnames aren’t even credited on the album! In any case, “The Fuzz” leads side 2, where 4/5 of the songs are arranged by Ramirez and I suspect that most of the same players from the Latin Blues Band played on here as well.

Not long thereafter, Ramirez was also helping compose, play on (and possible arrange?) for the great Puerto Rican bandleader Kako and his Live It Up album on Musicor. Personally, I’ve never figured out what separates a shingaling from a boogaloo and “Shingaling Shingaling” certainly displays many of the stylistic characteristics of both. I’m feeling this – and the whole LP is exceptional.

Ramirez was multi-talented as a musician – known to rock both the timbales and vibes – and I wanted to include an example of the latter by including one of his salsa era performances, playing vibes on Cheo Feliciano’s classic “Esto Es El Guaguanco.” He’s a big reason the opening is so memorable and Ramirez comes back to solo towards the second half of the song.

Last in the pick six is this cool lil cover of “Cisco Kid” that Ramirez arranged for the La Crema album, a one-off project that involved him, Bobby Marin and some other familiar folks but in the Latin funk era of the 1970s.

Bonus: As for “Cookin'”, that might have been the first time I “heard” any Louie Ramirez song since it liberally borrows from “The New Breed.” Slammin’ Latin club cut – trust me on this one.