Monday, June 29, 2015

NEW RELEASES: GROOVE WITH FEELING; DORE L.A. SOUL SIDES VOL 2; WALT WEISKOPF - OPEN ROAD

GROOVE WITH  FEELING: SOUNDS OF MEMPHIS, SOUL AND FUNK 1975-1985

The later years of the Sound Of Memphis studio – cuts from a time when the legendary deep soul powerhouse was trying on some of the newer modes from the end of the 70s! The work here is a real lost slice of Memphis soul – music from a time when the heyday of Stax and Hi Records had long passed, but smaller indies like SOM were going strong – and able to capture the shifting sound in the great soul city – as singers worked in the sorts of funky club and boogie modes you'd more regularly associate with New York or Chicago! The quality level is surprisingly great – especially since there's a nicely indie vibe to these cuts – not polished disco rehash, but the sort of underground club material that we've always loved from reissues on labels like Numero or Soul Cal – coming here from the surprising source of Memphis. Even more importantly, almost all this material never saw the light of day at the time – since the SOM connections to bigger labels had faded – so the whole thing's like a time capsule, taking you back to some real under-exposed days on the Memphis scene! Titles include "Dream Girl" and "Groove With A Feeling" by Freedom Express, "You Can Bet I Can Get You Yet" and "What You Do For Love" by Lee Moore, "Ridin" and "Attraction" by Erma Shaw, "Cold Blooded Sally" by Fran Farley, "New Lang Syne" by Kannon, "I'll Be Around" by The Jacksonians, "Gone" by Vision, "We Need Love" by Donald O'Connor, "Tighter Tighter" by Demetrius & Takelia, and "Don't Fight It" by Louis Williams. ~ Dusty Groove

DORE L.A. SOUL SIDES VOL 2: 20 YEARS WORTH OF ELUSIVE WEST COAST DANCERS SWEET SOUL BALLADS & ALL POINTS IN BETWEEN

Loads and loads of great group soul sounds from the LA scene of the late 60s and early 70s – a mix of upbeat groovers and laidback harmony tunes that show that the west coast city was every bit as great at handling soul groups as the scenes in Detroit or Philly! Apart from The Whispers – who were the big Dore label stars at the time – many of these other acts didn't break big east of the Rockies – which makes this whole collection a real treasure trove of great discovery – stunning vocals supported by superb arrangements and production, and a selection of tracks chosen with the usual Kent Records care! There's a few solo artists on the set, too – but the main focus is on groups, and titles include "Nothing Lasts Forever" by The Natural Resources, "Getting Back Into Circulation" by The Entertainers IV, "I'm Givin You Notice Baby" by The Fidels, "I Wanna Chance" by The Vows, "I Only Cry Once A Day Now" by The Puffs, "The Girl That I Loved" by Bobby & Eddie Unlimited, "Saigon To San Francisco" by Toussaint McCall, "Just A Little Ugly" by Gail Anderson, "Wind In My Sails" by The Superbs, "I Want YoU" by Dee Torres, and "My Pillow" by The Darlings. ~ Dusty Groove


WALT WEISKOPF - OPEN ROAD

Walt Weiskopf is a hell of a tenorist, and one who's getting more and more of our attention with each new release – able to open up and really blow at a fast-riffing level of creativity, yet always with a sense of focus, soul, and strongly rhythmic approach! We might dub Walt as the heir to a legacy that runs back to Tubby Hayes, and includes the work of Eric Alexander – and there's a creative crackle to this album that reminds us of Alexander's early material – a quality that's further emphasized by the wide range of original material penned by Walt, which really keeps things interesting. The group's a quartet – with Peter Zak on piano, Mike Karn on bass, and Steve Fidyk on drums – but Walt's dexterity often makes it feel like there's a lot more going on, too. Titles include "Premonition", "Chronology", "Tricycle", "Leaves Of Grass", "Electroshock", and "Open Road". ~ Dusty Groove


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