THE MELLOW MOODS – TELL LOVE HELLO
A trio of lovely ladies from the Philly scene of the 70s –
heard here in a surprisingly great contemporary recording! The Mellow Moods
grew up in the same generation as bigger Philly female trios like First Choice
or Three Degrees – and although they never hit the heights of those groups,
they had a wonderful harmony sound that was every bit as great as some of the
stellar male groups that were making mellow soul magic in the underground! All
these many years later, a reformed version of the group works here with Butch
Ingram and the Ingram Family – who provide the perfect sort of Philly backings
for their vocals – contemporary, but handled with lots of classic touches that
really fit the choice of material. The whole thing feels more like a set of
female harmony soul from the late 70s, instead of something from this century –
and titles include "Stop Taking My Love For Granted", "Tell Love
Hello", "Right On The Tip Of My Tongue", "Tell Him That I
Love Him", "Hello Stranger", and "Selfish One". ~ Dusty
Groove
PIERRE FAVRE - DRUMSIGHTS
Percussionist Pierre Favre is at his most tuneful here –
working in that mode that's still freely creative, but which also makes him one
of the more melodic players on the European avant scene – a distinction that's
made us really look out for his records over the years! Favre's working here
with his DrumSights quartet – a group with Chris Jaeger, Markus Lauterburg, and
Valeria Zangger – who work with with Pierre on a range of drums in a really
wonderful way! Unlike similar sessions like this – which could be very
bombastic – there's a sense of balance, timing, and tune that make the whole
thing really beautiful – as the other players seem to have picked up on Favre's
careful touch with his sticks and brushes. Titles include "Dance Of The
Feline", "Sycamore", "Along", "Pow Wow",
"Again", "Brushes Flock", and "Games". ~ Dusty
Groove
URAL THOMAS & THE PAIN
The wonderful return of Ural Thomas – an older soul singer
who gave us a few great singles back in the day – but who's now back in tip-top
form, as if the passage of years hasn't made a difference at all! Thomas is
working here with a younger band of musicians, but the set's hardly got the feel
of one of those "old singers with young cats" records – as the
production and presentation is very unified – with instrumentation that really
gets at the right spirit for Ural's vocals, instead of adding them on as an
extra level – and nicely gritty recording of the music, which makes the whole
thing feel just like the older singles. Thomas gives us a lot more than before
– a bit of funk, some deep soul, even a few bluesy currents – and the
double-length set features titles that include "Can't Make It Without
You", "Now You Love Me", "Poor Side Of Town",
"Smile", "Here Comes The Hurt", "Fade Away",
"A Whole New Thing", "Pain Is The Name Of Your Game", and
"When I Get This Feeling". (Limited edition of 950 available copies
with old school "tip on" cover and booklet!) ~ Dusty Groove
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