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By O-Dub 
Barbara Acklin: I Can’t Do My Thing
To Sir, With Love
From I Did It (Brunswick, 1970)
Jackie Wilson: Go Away
I Get Lonely Sometimes
From Beautiful Day (Brunswick, 1973)
If you’re looking for soul records, it’s inevitable that you’re eventually going to cross paths with Brunswick. In the R&B world, the label is best known for its association with Jackie Wilson but at various points in history, they were also home to Young Holt Unlimited, Barbara Acklin, Willie Henderson, the Chi-Lites, The Lost Generation, even Lionel Hampton, Orlando [...]
Continue reading BARBARA ACKLIN + JACKIE WILSON: DOING THEIR THING
By O-Dub 
Patti Drew: Tell Him
From Tell Him (Capitol, 1967)
Fever
From I’ve Been Here All the Time (Capitol, 1969)
Hundreds And Thousands Of Guys
From Wild Is Love (Capitol, 1970)
All songs also available on Working On a Groovy Thing.
Ok, time to take a break from Gur-eulogies. I could have sworn I had posted about Patti Drew at some point but it was really in passing. Drew’s not exactly obscure but I wouldn’t go as far to call her a household name either. One of the many hopefuls to emerge [...]
Continue reading PATTI DREW: STOP AND LISTEN
By O-Dub 
The Posse: You Better Come Out and Play b/w That’s What Makes Us Happy
From 7″ (EJC, 197?)
Lil’ slice of Michigan funk here; the A-side sounds like something Norman Whitfield might have whipped up for the Temptations in their psychedelic era but then accidentally ended up in the hands of the Jackson 5 (albeit, the Posse’s falsetto lead here is no MJ). The lyrics make it sound innocent but the vibe is so dark that when the singer croons, “you better come out and play,” it sounds like a threat made by an arsonist holding a [...]
Continue reading THE POSSE + LITTLE DENICE: FLIP SIDES
By O-Dub 
Carolyn Franklin: I Don’t Want to Lose You
From Baby Dynamite (RCA, 1968)
Carolyn Franklin: You Really Didn’t Mean It
From Chain Reaction (RCA, 1970)
Both on Sister Soul: The Best of the RCA Years.
Carolyn Franklin: Deal With It
From If You Want It (RCA, 1976)
(Originally written for Side Dishes)
The fates of the Franklin sisters – Aretha, Erma and Carolyn – comprise a classic American tragedy. One, Aretha, would go onto spectacular fame and worldwide acclaim (big bow and all) while her sisters, Erma and Carolyn, had brief careers as recording artists but never [...]
Continue reading CAROLYN FRANKLIN: DYNAMITE, BABY
By O-Dub 
Sister Rosetta Tharpe: Beams of Heaven + Ain’t No Grave Hold My Body Down
Both available on The Original Soul Sister.
For your reading pleasure: Shout, Sister, Shout: The Untold Story of Rock-And-Roll Trailblazer Sister Rosetta Tharpe
Update 2/8/09: Tharpe has a grave marker now! Long overdue but better late than….
I came from a talk at USC on Friday given by one of my favorite music scholars, Gayle Wald of George Washington Univ. Wald was there to talk about her new book, a biography of gospel/blues/rock n’ roll/R&B great Sister Rosetta Tharpe.
A gospel [...]
Continue reading SISTER ROSETTA THARPE: MAKING THE GUITAR TALK
By O-Dub 
(from l-r, Alton Ellis, Edwin Starr, Labi Siffre, The Impressions
Joe Bataan, Stevie Wonder, the Watts 103rd St. Rhythm Band
Bobby Matos, Nina Simone, Marvin Gaye, Skye 7″)
(This post began life on Side Dishes and has “evolved” since).
I had a strange realization the other week: 2008 might be the first year where I spent more time listening to older music than new music. This hasn’t been out of nowhere – it’s been a long-term shift but it hit me, when I was trying to come up with the standard “Top 10″ list that I’m not [...]
Continue reading THE YEAR IN MUSIC: PART 1 (THE OLD)
By O-Dub 
Q-Tip: Won’t Trade + Believe (feat. D’Angelo)
From The Renaissance (Motown, 2008)
Ruby Andrews: You Made a Believer Out Of Me
From 7″ (Zodiac, 1969). Also on Casanova.
Large Professor: For My People
From The LP (Geffen, unreleased, 1995)
Having sat with Q-Tip’s new album for a few…I have to say, this is phenomenal. I know I may be biased – like many rap fans who grew up in the 1990s, Q-Tip and A Tribe Called Quest might very have been to us what the Beatles were to my parents’ generation. Especially given that Q-Tip has been incognito [...]
Continue reading Q-TIP: THE VIBE IS BACK
By O-Dub 
James Brown: The Chicken
From 7″ (King, 1969). Also on Popcorn.
Sugar Pie DeSanto: A Little Taste of Soul
From 7″ (Gedinson’s 100 Wax, 1962).
John Ellison: You’ve Got to Have Rhythm
From 7″ (Phil L.A. of Soul, 1970). Also on Funky, Funky Way of Making Love.
Lou Courtney: Hey Joyce
From 7″ (Pop-Side, 1967)
Toussaint McCall: Shimmy
From 7″ (Ronn, 196?). Also on Nothing Takes the Place of You.
Little Eva Harris: Get Ready – Uptight
From 7″ (Spring, 1968). Also on The Spring Story.
Bonus: Mighty Mo: The Next Message (Version)
From [...]
Continue reading BLAZE IT UP: FUNK HEATERS
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