EARL VAN DYKE - THE MOTOWN SOUND: THE COMPLETE ALBUMS & MORE

A legendary studio musician finally gets his due – as keyboardist Earl Van Dyke steps out in a massive collection of 60s work for Motown – one that features two full albums, 21 bonus tracks, and some very detailed notes! First up on CD 1 is the excellent That Motown Sound album – heavy batch of Motown soul instrumentals that features backings that are often very similar to the vocal versions on Motown – but which are topped with sweet organ solo work from Earl – who has this lean, mean style that's mighty nice – kind of a Jimmy McGriff groove that really fits the soul of the recordings! Most of the backings are exactly the same ones used for vocal hits, but the use of Hammond really transforms them nicely – making the whole record a sweet popcorn soul version of Motown – almost a bit grittier, with a nice sort of backroom jukebox flavor. Titles include "Try It Baby", "Can You Jerk Like Me", "Money", "Can I Get A Witness", "Come See About Me", and "All For You". Then, CD 1 continues with a huge amount of added bonus tracks – some compilation tracks, singles, and more rare bits – with titles that include "Soul Stomp (live)", "Opus & Funk", "6 By 6", "There Is No Greater Love", "You Name It (live)", "He Was Really Sayin Somethin", "Hot N Tot", "Mobile Lil The Dancing Witch", and a massive four-part version of "The Flick"!

CD 2 starts with Earl Of Funk – a set that's overflowing with great original tracks, plus some sweet funky covers too! The style here is quite different than Earl's previous work – and quite different from most of Motown too – with a hard-edged approach to the grooves that's much more like the work going on in the funky 45 underground on other labels – especially on the drums, which often snap nicely and give the album a great breaking sort of sound! The set was recorded live at the Hi Chapparal club in Detroit, with audience noise dubbed in later – and titles include "The Flick", "Cissy Strut", "Thank You Falletinme Be Mice Elf Again", "Fuschia Moods", "The Stingray", "The Whip a Rang", "Someday We'll Be Together", and "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye". CD 2 then moves on to include another 8 bonus tracks – a few core instrumentals with vocals stripped off and Van Dyke's organ added in – and a few singles too! Titles include "Ode To Benny B"," Gonn Give Her All The Love I've Got", "Fever In The Funk House", "Greedy Green", "Behold", "Up On Your Feet", and "Runaway Child Running Way". The set features 45 tracks in all – and full notes to finally unlock the mystery of this music!

Source: Dusty Groove