(EXTRA)ORDINARY: JOE BATAAN written by O.W.

First off, for my Angelinos, Joe Bataan is playing at the Crazy Horse in West Covina on Sunday. See you there!

I recently finished up a set of liner notes for an upcoming anthology on Joe's rich recording catalog for the Fania label. As folks probably know, I'm a huge fan of Joe and it's been a genuine honor to be able to interview him over the years and bring attention to his remarkable career.

This post is part of the boogaloo series (and I'll do some more closer to the date the comp drops) but was really inspired by what is Joe's best-known song, "Ordinary Guy." It's not just a fan favorite - he's recorded it five times (and released it six) - but it's also a song integral to his own sense of self; he may be a star but in his own mind, he's still just a regular Joe (you saw that coming, right?) From the man himself: "While in prison, we did a lot of experimenting with songs. I had first heard the title “Ordinary Guy” in prison in Coxsackie, so I eventually rewrote the words, came back home, put ‘em to music. The song makes me cry sometimes when I see the reaction of people. In New York, it is so popular. People just love that song, and I guess the words mean a lot. “Hey, I’m just an ordinary guy, don’t expect anything else. That’s me” and I’ve always been that way. Having sung the song and how I have endeared a lot of people, how they felt about it, only influenced me more [to] give more of my heart than almost any other song. It describes me."

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Joe Bataan: Ordinary Guy
From Gypsy Woman (Fania, 1967)

The original version of "Ordinary Guy" was recorded for Gypsy Woman, Joe's debut album for Fania. He and his band, the Latin Swingers, recorded the album in one single studio session, a relatively unusual practice. By the end of the day, Joe had this - his last song - left to record but his voice was starting to give out. Session engineer (and Fania co-founder) Johnny Pacheco asked, "'Don’t you want to come back tomorrow?’ and I said no," said Joe. "Actually, my fear was that they were going to change their mind and not use it." So, even with his voice at the point of breaking, they recorded this and completed the entire album that day.

Ordinary Guy
From 7" (Fania, 1967)

For reasons not entirely clear, Fania decided to re-record the song to release on single. For the most part, this 7" version isn't wildly different from the LP except that Fania brought in pianist Richard Tee. Tee changes the opening to the song, giving it a stronger presence, especially with a striking arrangement that sounds very much like the beginning of Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell's "Precious Love." This is probably my favorite version of the song, precisely for that intro which gives the tune such a rich, soulful feel to it. (Thanks to Reynaldo for digitizing).

Interestingly, at the Crazy Horse show, when Joe sang "Ordinary Guy", he opened it with that same Tee melody.
Ordinary Guy
From Riot! (Fania, 1968)

By Joe's third album, the gold-selling Riot!, Fania convinced him to record the song again, but this time with a dramatic makeover as the song was given a new arrangement by Broadway's Harold Wheeler. Joe admits, "I didn't particularly like it...I love it now but at the time, I just thought he was altering my music because he gave it this jazzy feel. It had to grow on me because I thought it was too fast." This new version, in my opinion, is lovely and a great change-up from the original. Wheeler adds in some vibes, speeds up the tempo a bit, and has Joe open with some soaring vocals and well-timed drum hits.

It's worth noting, Fania put this same recording - albeit longer by a few seconds - onto Joe's Singin' Some Soul album. I'm guessing it's because they thought it'd fit well with the concept of that album. That would be the last time Joe recorded "Ordinary Guy" for Fania.

Muchacho Ordinario
From Salsoul (Mericana, 1973)

The next incarnation of the song is perhaps the most unique: a Spanish-language version that appeared on Joe's first post-Fania album, Salsoul. The arrangement is completely different too - here, the song isn't really in the R&B vein, it's much more like a son montuno. Bueno!

Ordinary Guy
From Afrofilipino (Salsoul, 1975)

The final version of the song came on the next album, Afrofilipino. This is a version I know a lot of Soul Sides folks are familiar with - I comped it for Soul Sides Vol. 1. I like to think of it as a bridge version between the Latin-fied flavor of "Muchacho Ordinario" and the more R&B stylings of the earlier versions. The song is more in a soul vein in the beginning but at the end, he yells, "salsa!" and the ballad then transforms into a whirling dance tune.

THE HAPPY SOUL SUITE written by O.W.

Unraveling musical mysteries is part of what motivates me as a music journalist. I don't claim to be very good or thorough at it, but the process alone is a way to appreciate the beauty and complexity of music-making that isn't necessarily transparent through listening alone (or, er, the sonic equivalent of "transparency").

This post is one such example and it begins, for me at least, with a song called "Happy Soul" that appears on an album by The Moon People that I picked up at the Groove Merchant a few years back. (Note: ironically, "Happy Soul" is the one song I did NOT include in the Suite but for reasons that will become clear shortly). "Happy Soul" is very striking, especially for a Latin soul song because 1) it's fast and 2) it's funky. Really funky. Funkier than most Latin soul songs one can think of. I would play it out when I could, especially because it's a great "transition" track between Latin and funk sets. It's not surprisingly then that, in 2006, when the DJ Premier-produced Xtina Aguilera single, "Ain't No Other Man" came out, I recognized the sample immediately.

At least I thought I did.


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A little while later, I heard "Happy Soul (With a Hook)" by Dave Cortez with the Moon People and it was basically the same instrumental track as "Happy Soul" but with Cortez' trademark organ vamping all over it. Then, last year, I discovered the Latin Blues Band and their album, Take a Trip Pussycat. On there, they have a song called, "I'll Be a Happy Man" and it is basically, the same exact song as "Happy Soul" only with vocals (and without the Cortez organ).

The plot thickened.

The LBB, the Cortez single and the Moon People album are all on Speed, a smaller Latin label of the late '60s that specialized in Latin soul and boogaloo bands, including Frankie Nieves, and one of the rare female Latin groups, Dianne and Carole and the Latin Whatchamacallits. It's one of the great, great Latin boutique labels of that era and the Big Ol' Bag O Boogaloo series comps heavily from their catalog (with some odd omissions but that's for another time). It was on that album that I heard The Moon People's "Hippy Skippy Moon Strut" which sounded like the Cortez' song but minus the organ and with a new piano arrangement.

WTF?

Around the same time I acquired a copy of the LBB album (thanks Rodney!), I also stumbled across this feature on the great Spectropop website (Latin fans should check out their thorough Tico feature). They finally helped me put many of the details together and I'm trying not to duplicate their already great work but, there was one element yet to add here: the testimony of Bobby Marin.

Marin is a composer and producer and he and his brother Richard were major players in the NY Latin scene in the 1960s and '70s. I spoke to Marin while putting together the liner notes for an upcoming Fania anthology on Joe Bataan and wanting to take advantage of being able to speak to such a storied veteran in the scene, I asked him what some of his favorite compositions were and he named "I'll Be a Happy Man." At that point, I didn't own the album yet so I had no idea he, along with Louie Ramirez and other players, were in the Latin Blues Band and I asked him to trace for me the history of the song. Between the Spectropop site and Marin's own information, here's what I was able to pull together (and to be sure, I really should talk to Marin again to fill in blanks):

Morty Craft - who ran Speed and was the main producer for the label - reassembled the Latin Blues Band into The Moon People. I'm not clear why he did this nor why he would have the group essentially record over their own LBB backing tracks with slight changes (but sans vocals) and then release it as its own album. I guess Craft felt like he could sell consumers the same songs twice. "Happy Soul," from what I can tell, is simply "I'll Be a Happy Man" without vocals. Well, almost without vocals...Marin told me that when he was in the studio, editing the Land of Love album, he insisted that they keep something of his original vocals, which ended up being a "whoooo!" somewhere in there. (In any case, I didn't include "Happy Soul" in the suite since it's a subtraction with no additions, unlike the other songs).

Soon thereafter, Craft sold the mechanical rights to that instrumental to Morris Levy at Roulette. At that point, the song transforms into "Happy Soul With a Hook." The original piano is stripped off and replaced with Cortez' organ playing plus some spacey wah-wah guitar. Speed ends up releasing this "new" song as a single. According to Spectropop, "Hippy Skippy Moon Strut" appears just a few months later and it is basically "Happy Soul With a Hook" minus organs, keeping the wah-wah, and throwing on that new piano arrangement I mentioned plus some vocals yelling, "hippy skippy!" and similar phrases. That single appears on Roulette rather than Speed (possibly because the latter had been purchased by Roulette by this point). Then fast forward nearly 40 years and DJ Premier flips "Hippy Dippy" for Xtina and the story ends.

Well, not quite.

My convo with Marin yielded two more tidbits of information. First of all, RCA apparently didn't clear the sample correctly. My guess is that they cleared the mechanical rights but not the songwriter rights and when Fania (who, by now, owned the Speed catalog) figured this out, they got ready to sue. The problem is: they didn't know who the original composer was either and one day, when Marin was visiting, they asked him, "hey, would you happen to know who the composer is?" upon which Marin replied, "yeah...me." So as it turns out, Marin is waiting to see if a settlement happens, and if so, he likely stands to make a nice piece of change off this.

The second piece of info I gleaned from him was around who the hell was the drummer on the song. After all, one reason why the song stands out so much, why it probably got remade three times and then sampled, is because of those drum breaks. They're unusual for a Latin soul song - I can't think of many other songs in that era that featured open breakbeats - so I had to ask Marin about it. His reply, "well, that was Bernard Purdie."

Jaw drop.

That explains quite a bit...and it makes total sense (Purdie did a grip of studio work in NY in that era, plus the drumming sounds like something he'd put together) but it's a detail that, as far as I can tell, no one has ever noted before. And that, my friends, is the kind of discovery that motivates me to get up every morning. With all that, thanks for reading...here's the "Happy Soul Suite" for your edification:

Soul-Sides.com presents...The "Happy Soul Suite"

Created from...

The Latin Blues Band feat. Luis Aviles: (I'll Be A) Happy Man
From Take a Trip Pussycat (Speed, 1968)

Dave Cortez with The Moon People: Happy Soul (With A Hook)
From 7" (Speed, 1968). Also on El Barrio: The Bad Boogaloo.

The Moon People: Hippy, Skippy Moon Strut
From 7" (Roulette, 1969). Also on Big Ol' Bag O' Boogaloo Vol. 1.

Christina Aguilera: Ain't No Other Man
From Back to Basics (RCA, 2006)

BOOGALOO[LA] GETS ITS OWN MUXTAPE written by O.W.

Want to know what kind of music we roll to at Boogaloo[LA]? Peep:

FUNKY OUT written by O.W.

Editor's Note: This following reflection on funky jazz is by David Jaffe. This should have been posted a long time ago (my bad) but I think people will take away something great from his insights - and excellent tastes. --O.W.

From David Jaffe:

For a long time I’ve wanted to write about the funky side of free jazz. Like most styles of Black American music of the late ‘60’s and early ‘70’s, jazz in general, and free jazz in particular, served as spiritual, protest and dance music. One might more easily recognize the spiritual side of the genre in meditations of John Coltrane or cry of Albert Ayler. Also evident is the demand for equal rights in the colorations of Archie Shepp or the staccato of Rashied Ali. What is less obvious, unless one is careful, is the music that draws less on the intellectualism of the out-jazz, new-thing scene and more on git-out-the-chair-and-shake-your-thang sound created by many of the musicians associated with the free movement.
CONTINUE READING...



It is likely that most of the African-American musicians commonly classified as out players had at one time or another played in R&B outfits. Many out instrumentalists, particularly those on the rosters of labels like Prestige and Blue Note, had also played in funky soul-jazz bands. For alert listeners the influences of R&B, soul and funk can be found in the recording of the musicians regularly associated with the New Thing in jazz, even so much as the music crosses over into the realm of pure funk. In this out jazz absent is the free improvisation, tonal experimentation and textured playing most familiar to free jazz fans, and present is the in-the-pocket playing with a groove and a break down most commonly associated with the music of James Brown and deep funk.

Sun Ra was the original Method Man of the out big band scene (“mad different methods to the way he do his shit”). His musical universe covered big band, free jazz, doo wop, R&B, funk, soundtracks, and so much more. Sun Ra had a fair number of funky recordings, the most famous, or at least well known, of which is Lanquidity. The album has been described as lounge jazz, or dance jazz where dance in this case equates to disco. Neither of these descriptions apply, as was true of many of the descriptions of Sun Ra’s work. The closest approximation to a labeled style of the present example might be blaxploitation. On the track included here, the seriously funky Where Pathways Meet, even the lead solo by Eddie Gale brings the stanky stuff. The Disco Kid guitar solo is so Funkadelic, and the multiple percussionists keep the groove in the pocket.

Sun Ra: Where Pathways Meet
From Lanquidity (Philly Jazz, 1978)

Eddie Gale also recorded two lesser known lp’s for Blue Note. As an aside, it is worth noting that all of the tracks included here, like most free jazz, was recorded for smaller independents or self-released for as much as a lack of interest by the public as the lack of understanding by the majors. On this track, Black Rhythm Happening, the traps duty falls to Elvin Jones, one of the greatest jazz drummers ever. While little of Jones’ playing could be considered pure funk, he did play on many funky soul jazz sides. Unlike Jones, Gale did not have enough opportunities to record, possibly because of his militant themes. His playing was very influential, however, and the Black Rhythm Happening lp was a direct influence Archie Shepp’s better known Attica Blues.

Eddie Gale: Black Rhythm Happening
From Black Rhythm Happening (Blue Note, 1969)

One band that did have tremendous opportunities to record was the Art Ensemble of Chicago. Their soundtrack to the French film Les Stances A Sophie is a classic among jazz film soundtracks as well as some of the bands funkiest music. The film was part of the French New Wave, and not the only film of the genre to use funky accompaniment. On the cut "Theme De Yoyo" the ACOE is joined by soul and funk singer Fontella Bass, wife of trumpeter Lester Bowie. Following Bowie’s death three decades later Bass would record "All That You Give" with Cinematic Orchestra for Ninja Tune. Cinematic Orchestra would then cover "Theme De Yoyo" for their ex post facto soundtrack to Man With A Movie Camera, a silent-era Russian propaganda film).

While both Cinematic Orchestra tracks are very good and worth tracking down for downtempo fans, neither can approach the outright funky of the original "Theme De Yoyo."

Art Ensemble of Chicago: Theme De Yoyo
From Les Stances A Sophie (EMI France, 1970)

Like the ACOE, Joe McPhee had more opportunities to record overseas than at home. Also like the ACOE McPhee made his recording debut on a small, independent domestic label. In the case of the ACOE, their first recording came out as the sophomore release on the Nessa label, still active today, under the name the Roscoe Mitchell Art Ensemble. McPhee’s first release as a leader was the inaugural release on the CjR label, which as far as I know, only released three lp’s, all of which were McPhee’s. On the track "Shakey," Jake McPhee is clearly influenced by both Coltrane and James Brown. The band includes organ, electric piano, electric bass, and two percussionists. This kind of track, recorded live, includes elements of touring soul and R&B groups on which many jazz players cut their teeth, as noted above, and lengthy, free improvisation practiced by the out players. McPhee apparently decided to pursue more free avenues of expression and neither of his other later two lp’s for CjR include the kind of work heard here.

Joe McPhee: Shakey Jake
From Nation Time (CJR, 1971)

One player who frequently played in the funky vein was Phil Ranelin. His early funky sides can be found on the artist-owned Tribe label, such as "Sounds From The Village" on Vibes From The Tribe. The track is equally Funk Brothers’ Motown and electric-era Miles Davis, paying homage to the hard-bop Detroit forefathers of the previous generation (i.e. Yusef Lateef, Donald Byrd, Roy Brooks, etc.) and looking forward to the House and Techno forefathers of two generations later.

Phil Ranelin: Sounds From The Village
From Vibes From The Tribe (Tribe, 1976)

Artist-owned labels were frequently purveyors of out jazz. Another example is the proto-Hip-Hop of Maulawi’s "Street Rap" on Strata East. More of an argument between a couple in the city than a rap, the arrangement of the vocals (!?) over the funky accompaniment is meant to be downright ghetto soul. Similarly, Rudolph Johnson’s Black Jazz recording of Devon Jean comes on like the theme song to Sanford & Son. Interestingly, Johnson’s Second Coming lp, also from Black Jazz, clearly shows the influence of less-funky-but-truly-beautiful A-Love-Supreme-era-Impulse-work of John Coltrane.

Maulawi: Street Rap
From S/T (Strata East, 1974)

Rudolph Johnson: Devon Jean
From: Spring Rain (Black Jazz, 1971)

Both Webster Lewis’ Do You Believe and Roy Brooks’ The Free Slave are live recordings that open with funky drums. The funk continues on Believe with Lewis’ organ and the vocals of Judd Watkins. If the track reminds the listener of Barry White, that is because Lewis was at one time White’s band leader. One will also be forgiven for hearing a connection to fellow funky out organist Larry Young for whom Lewis took over in Tony William’s Lifetime. Brooks was more of a soul jazz and post-bop drummer than a free drummer. He will be familiar to Blue Note junkies as the drummer behind Horace Silver’s Song For My Father. Brooks is also well know for helping introduce the world the post-bop styling of Woody Shaw, who played trumpet on The Free Slave. Shaw’s playing here harkens back to Larry Young’s Unity and Shaw’s own In The Beginning. While neither of those two titles is as funky as The Free Slave, which shows the influence of boogaloo, they are both fantastic.

Webster Lewis: Do You Believe
From In Norway - The Club 7 Live Tapes (Plastic Strip,
2007, Originally released Arne Bendiksen Records, 1971)

Roy Brooks: The Free Slave
From The Free Slave (Muse, 1972)

WATTS 103RD WEEK: PT. 3 written by O.W.

The Watts 103rd St. Rhythm Band:

Fried Okra (Mono)
Spreadin' Honey
From Hot Heat and Sweet Groove (Warner Bros. 1967)

65 Bars and a Taste of Soul
Poverty Stricken Chicken
From Together (Warner Bros., 1968)


Comment
Oh Happy Gabe (Sometimes Blue)
From In the Jungle, Babe (Warner Bros., 1969)

Rather than try to tackle on all six of the Rhino UK reissues of the Watts 103rd series on Warner Bros., it just seemed more expedient to do half now and the other half soon. Andy Sax, the same guy who who put together the two Rhino Handmade comps I wrote about last week, also was responsible for putting together the entire series line for Rhino UK, complete with practically a second album's worth of bonus songs and new liner notes. It's too bad it didn't come out domestically only since folks could have saved some money on them but at $17 a pop, it's not they're way overpriced either.

I picked two songs off each CD to highlight, beginning with the first and arguably "false" Watts 103rd St. Rhythm Band album from 1967. "Spreadin' Honey" is the song that purportedly started it all - the first to use the Watts name when the single first appeared on Keymen records. As I note in my liner notes for Live at Haunted House though, it's an open question if Wright even played on "Spreadin' Honey" and none of the other Watts musicians remember playing on that single either. Regardless though, it's what put the Watts Band on the map, having first started out as a hit theme for radio DJ Magnificent Montague, then as its own single, and THEN, jacked (well, supposedly jacked) by the Soul Runners for another single, this time on Mo Soul.

"Fried Okra," on the other hand, was recorded by the second Watts Band, the same on that Wright worked together with on the Bill Cosby LPs. No Gadson or McKay here but James Carmichael (pianist/arranger) was in the mix for these sessions which fill up all but one song on that first Watts album ("Spreadin' Honey" being the exception. It was included by Warner Bros.' insistence). Even though I don't really love anything off this first album, "Fried Okra" at least has a slinky, funky jazz feel that I can roll with. This is the mono version which is included as a bonus on the CD - it has a harder bite than the original stereo version.

But wait...the thing about "Fried Okra" is that it further confuses the whole "Soul Runners vs. Watts 103rd" debate. A very similar track appears on a Soul Runners' 45 as "Grits N' Cornbread" and as Funky 16 Corners has researched, also shows up in the early '70s (?!) as "Let It Crawl" by Society's Bag (again, on WBs). WTF? Who recorded what, when? If the Soul Runners had nothing to do with the Watts Band (which is seems to be the conventional wisdom)...I could see how "Spreadin' Honey" was recorded first by the Watts Band and then "borrowed" by the Soul Runners but "Grits N' Cornbread" didn't appear on the first Watts album until 1967 yet came out by the Soul Runners, supposedly, in 1967. What gives?

No confusion about the next pair of songs - they come from Together, the first "real" Watts Band album insofar as it contains the personnel everyone associates with the Watts 103rd name. It's also my favorite album by the group, thanks to a stellar trio of songs built around "65 Bars and a Taste of Soul," "Giggin' Down 103rd," and "A Dance, A Kiss and a Song." Out of those, I'm posting up "65 Bars" because I like how hard a funk groove this lays down, especially with the horn section blazin' away and a solid, in-the-pocket contribution by drummer James Gadson. "Poverty Stricken Chicken" is one of the bonus songs on Together; a previously unreleased song from the vaults that sounds like it should fit right around the time Together was being recorded. I can hear part of their earlier, Top 40 style here - there's a very Stax-like quality to part of the arrangement - but you also hear some of the new ideas Wright was cooking up in this era.

In the Jungle, Babe is probably the Watts album I'm least familiar with and I'm not even sure why...I just never listened to it much even though it has some of the group's most interesting songs, including "Comment" and "Love Land." "Comment," in particular, was considered controversial at the time for Wright's tackling of racial tensions. As he put it to me, "people didn't like it" and when I asked, "which people," he grinned and said "White people." Musically too, it's an extraordinary ballad with its gospel brushes, the string accompaniment and an indelible set of vocals. (For whatever reason, it also sounds very post-Pet Sounds). To me, it's really ahead of the curve for an R&B song - reminds me of something Roberta Flack or Donny Hathaway would have recorded a few years down the line.

"Oh Happy Gabe (Sometimes Blue)" is presumably a play on "Oh Happy Day" but name-checks trumpeter Gabriel Flemings. I had never heard this song in its entirety until recently and I'm feeling it like [braille/cordury/stucco]. It's a lovely instrumental that builds in subtle layers, especially the overlapping horns. Magnificent song, all around.

Part 4 of the Watts 103rd Week (well, more than a week) will wrap up with the other three albums available as part of this Rhino/Warners UK reissue set.

MIDNITE BRIGHT: THEE MIDNITERS written by O.W.

Thee Midniters: Jump, Jive and Harmonize + Hey Little Girl
From In Thee Midnite Hour (Norton, 2006)

Thee Midniters: That's All
From Giants (Whittier, 1967). Also available on their Greatest Hits.

Since I've been in L.A., I've tried to start learning about the bands with local roots down here and one name that kept popping up was Thee Midniters. I quickly learned why: they were the Chicano rock n' roll band of the 1960s - not just locally in their hometown of East L.A. but nationally too, with hits like "Whittier Blvd." and a version of Chris Kenner's "Land of 1000 Dances." Their exploits are well-chronicled in David Reyes and Tom Waldman's history of Chicano rock, also entitled Land of 1000 Dances.

Silly me though...I'm so used to lowrider-type soul that I just assumed that an East L.A. band would be some suavecito tip but while the group certainly had their share of ballads, such as the mellow "That's All", they also had an impressive catalog built off of some beautifully rough, rollickin' garage rock singles. I'm talking about some of the hardest sides I've heard in a while - fuzzed out, crunchy, but packing a wallop. Just listen to "Jump, Jive and Harmonize" and how vicious those opening guitar lines are from George Dominguez. Then you throw in George Salazar (or was it Danny Lamont?) attacking the drums while Little Willy G screams down the vocals.

If you dig that sound, the entire In the Midnite Hour disc collects those songs (no slow jams, just the ruff stuff) and what really impresses me isn't just the energy of the singles but also how sophisticated many of the rhythm arrangements are. Especially with a song like "Hey Little Girl" (a previously unreleased single), I can hear all kinds of similarities to some of the ideas James Brown was working out on his songs like "Night Train." These are just my initial impressions - I'll have to dig deeper, maybe take myself to the aforementioned Whittier Blvd.

Here's a bonus video of Little Willie G singing "That's All""

MUXOLOGY written by O.W.

Hua put me up on this new experiment in social music networking: muxtape.com.

I've gone ahead and created my first Soul Sides Muxtape, filled with a bunch of goodies, a few songs I've written about but most of them I've yet to yap about here. Consider it the preview.

I like the lo-tech quality of the site and its basic concept but seriously, would it kill them to throw in a search function? Random play is not a bad idea in principle but I still like some level of organization. And while we're whining, it'd be nice to be able to FF and RW on a track. But really, we like it otherwise.

In any case, be sure to peep the other muxtapes in rotation, including Hua's (both of them), Sasha Frere Jones' and Tony Phrone. Sasha just blew my mind a bit by including a cover of "Crumbs Off the Table" by Dusty Springfield.

HOP TO THIS: RABBITS & CARROTS written by O.W.

Rabbits & Carrots: Las 4 Culturas + Romeo Y Julieta
From Soul Latino (Musart, 1969). Also available on LP.

Bonus: Rabbits & Carrots: Express Yourself (snippet)
From We Got More Soul EP (Musart, 1971). Also on Soul Latino (CD but not LP)

File Soul Latino under those albums seemingly too good to be true - a group of Mexican rock/jazz musicians with a trio of brothers and nephews at core - sitting down in 1968 to record a series of instrumentals, most of them with a hard, funk edge. Frankly, if someone had told me this was some retro-soul band, masquerading as a vintage group with that backstory - I'd sooner believe the hoax. Not that Mexico City would lack the necessary musicians to put something like this together but it's like stumbling across an album such as that by Chile's infamous Xingu. Given how rare this purports to be, it's a genuine treat that the folks at Vampisoul got Musart's permission to reissue it.

Yes indeed: Rabbits & Carrots were real, as was their Soul Latino album and subsequent EP. That album constitutes one of the holy grails of Mexican funk albums and it's not just because of rarity or its unusualness - it's damn well put together and recorded well. Check out how they take on Don Randi's "Theme From Romeo and Juliet" - all dissonant whines and moody loops, beautifully accented by Luis Agúero's guitar and a brass section lead by Ramón Flores and Ramón Negrete and I'm assuming its bad leader and percussionist Salvador Agüero on those tinkling chimes.

"Las 4 Culturas," according to the liner notes, is the album's sole "original" song, a song about the Tlateloco Massacre. That may very well be true that the song is meant to inspire awareness around the murder of potentially 200-300 people before the Mexico City Olympics but musically speaking, most people would probably note: "uh, isn't this 'Get Up, Get Into It, Get Involved' by James Brown?" And you'd be right - it is. In fact, that's how it's billed on this 12" from a year or so ago. Not that I'm complaining - it would make sense to take a song with a title as politically charged as Brown's and reapply it to the happenings in Mexico City.

For a bonus cut, I threw on a tease of the group's 1971 cover of "Express Yourself." This came after Salvador Agüero (nickname "Rabito," hence the group's name) left the band and a vocalist named Max (Max what?) joined. This isn't necessarily my favorite cover of the Watts 103rd's immortal classic but I dig its Spanish-language remake and given the timing with the Watts 103rd Week, it seemed only apropos (plus, that ridiculous drum-break toward the end doesn't hurt either). Just be aware: this song, along with covers of "Sex Machine," "We Got More Soul" and "Spill the Wine" are available on the CD of the album, as well as a separate EP, but it's not on the vinyl LP version of the Soul Latino album.

WATTS 103RD WEEK: PT. 2 written by O.W.

Puckey Puckey: Jams and Outtakes, 1970-71 is very much the companion compilation to Live at the Haunted House. The latter captures Charles Wright and the Watts 103rd St. Rhythm Band at the beginning of their career - Puckey Puckey follows the group at the beginning of their end.

As with Haunted House, I'm making an excerpt of my liner notes for Puckey Puckey available to ya'll but just keep in mind - this is barely a quarter of the total notes so please do pick up the CD (5000 copies only, then they're permanently gone). I touch a little bit on what makes this compilation so interesting in that excerpt but here's the basics:

The Watts Band recorded. A lot. A. Lot. Maybe it's because they had Warner Bros. dollars behind them but Wright took the band into the studio often and had them jam for hours. As a result, the amount of unreleased music - much of its rehearsal jams and the like - is beyond expectation. We're talking hours upon hours. Reissue producer Andy Zax went through and culled what he thought were the best parts.

Here's two I pulled off this two-disc set:
CONTINUE READING...



Charles Wright and the Watts 103rd St. Rhythm Band: Express Yourself (alternate version) (snippet) + Jam #3 (snippet)
From Puckey Puckey: Jams and Outtakes, 1970-71 (Rhino Handmade, 2008)

Yeah folks - there's an alternate version of "Express Yourself." My face melted just a lil when I learned about that. If for no other reason, it's worth copping the comp just for this. We're not talking about, "alternate version with an extra horn." We're talking about basically a wholly different flavored recording. It's the same song, sure, but it's so much more laid-back and languid - you can feel the band just riding in that pocket on this one. Normally, I'd give you the whole song to enjoy but in this case, there's enough to tease you.

"Jam #3" is an example of the long, flowing grooves that Wright would have the band work on in rehearsal. When I say long, I mean long - this total song is over 20 min (hence why I snipped it). On the one hand, you can hear all kinds of ideas being worked on here, really ambitious long-form ideas that the Watts Band wasn't able to put out on record but you can see some connections between them, James Brown in the past, and looking forward to Clinton's P-Funk experiments.

These long sessions were a point of considerable tension within the group, certainly not the only one, but it didn't help matters and it was during this phase that the group was churning out some of their best work but also beginning to fall apart, especially as the group's success grew. By '72, with the departure of drummer James Gadson and most of the rhythm section, the Watts Band was no more.

Next in the Watts 103rd series: a monster overview of the recent Rhino UK series of Wright & Watts 103rd, Warner Bros. reissues.



And, oh yeah - there will be a giveaway at the end of all this and the mother-of-all giveaways it shall be!

WATTS 103RD WEEK: PART 1 written by O.W.

I am very proud to announce the release of a new, 2-CD set by Charles Wright and the Watts 103rd St. Rhythm Band called Live at the Haunted House - May 18, 1968. This is "never heard before" material (sort of...I'll get back to that point in a moment) and is an incredibly rich document of not just the Watts 103rd's own history, but a snapshot of the Los Angeles R&B scene in the late 1960s.

I wrote the liner notes for both this album and its companion compilation on Rhino Handmade, Puckey Puckey (more on that in a later post). It was an incredibly awarding experience, especially as a follow-up to the equally enriching Betty Davis liners. It wasn't just an opportunity to research one of my favorite bands and speak to folks like Charles Wright, Melvin Dunlap and James Gadson - it also allowed me to untangle a mystery that's surrounded the band for over 40 years: just how many Watts Bands were there?

CONTINUE READING...

Answer: at least three, with almost completely different personnel. I've created this excerpt from the notes that details this history. However, this doesn't include the second part of the liners - about the Haunted House and historical significance of the May 18th gig - nor any of the incredible images of the band, recovered from the archives. (In other words: get the album. Like all Handmade items, this is limited to 5000 pressings with no other pressings after. Once they're gone, they're gone).

Charles Wright and the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band: Do Your Thing/Band Intros + We're a Winner/I Can't Turn You Loose
From Live at the Haunted House - May 18, 1968 (Rhino Handmade, 2008)

Here's the super-condensed history behind this recording: back in the mid-60s, Wright and his band, The Wright Sounds (which would morph into the Watts 103rd Band) had a regular gig at the Haunted House in Hollywood (see this great photo of the Haunted House's stage). At their shows, they would mostly play a medley of Top 40 R&B hits (especially since the group itself didn't have much original material recorded at this point). One of the things that makes this live show taping so important, in particular, is that edits from it ended up as songs on Together, the first "real" Watts 103rd Band album.

If you look over the album's tracklisting as a whole, you'll find the original, uncut versions of songs from Together such as "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" and "Stormy Monday." However, the most significant song recorded that night ended up being an improvised groove following "Funky Broadway" that became "Do Your Thing" after Wright edited it down. During the gig, the "Band Intros" came next and I included that recording too, just for kicks.

The gig ended with a cover of one of my favorite songs by the Impressions: "We're a Winner" plus a very short reprise of "I Can't Turn You Loose" before they closed out the night.

Next in the Watts 103rd series: Puckey Puckey: Jams and Outtakes, 1970-1971 plus a monster overview of the recent Rhino UK series of Wright & Watts 103rd, Warner Bros. reissues.

And, oh yeah - there will be a giveaway at the end of all this and the mother-of-all giveaways it shall be!

TRAVELOGUE written by O.W.

Sorry to have been away for a while - my thanks to the Captain's Crates crew for holding it down.

I've been on award tour, starting last week at Duke University where I gave a pair of talks in conjunction with their Transcultural Humanities project. It was a great opportunity to talk about my work but the real enjoyment was spending some time, rapping with Mark Anthony Neal who brought me out there. He put me up on this stunning Max Roach/JC White Singers song but I'm still trying to track it down so that'll have to wait.

CONTINUE READING...

I did catch an equally compelling exhibit at the Nasher, an impressive, first-ever retrospective of Barkely Hendricks' paintings. Hendricks has flown under the radar for decades but hopefully, this show - which will travel to the Studio Museum in Harlem and then the Santa Monica Museum of Art - will rectify that situation. His works from the '60s, in particular, are such beautiful snapshots of the time, both in terms of the cultural signifiers and the personalities that he captures in them. Here's a personal favorite, "Tuff Tony":

Folks might be more familiar with this more recent painting of Fela:

If you're in Durham...or New York in the fall (or Santa Monica next spring, or Philly after that), I highly recommend you see his work. Soul inspired, for real. Shout out to Trevor Schoonmaker for having the foresight and resources to put this retrospective together. Here's a video preview he helped put together for the Nasher:

After Duke, I came home for all of 12 hours then had to fly out again for the EMP Pop Conference in Seattle. I. Love. This. Conference. Which is probably something only an academic would ever say, but f--- it. I have no shame in my appreciation for the conf (as noted in the past). I'm not going to do a complete run-down but I'll say this much: the conf does much to both inspire me intellectually as well as turn me onto new music/ideas/people. Here's a quick scattering, perhaps a follow-up post later.

1) Jeffrey Govan: This bassist in the LA ska scene is also now a grad student at USC's American Ethnic Studies program. He gave on paper on the Latin influence on ska back in the 1960s (and influence that has been remarkably cataloged here. Apart from introducing me to the Skatalites' "Latin Goes Ska" (a flip on Perez Prado), I was most thankful for Govan putting all of us onto this:

Tommy McCook and the Skatalites: Sauvitt
From 7" (Dodd, 1964). Also available on Tribute to Tommy.

It's a cover of a Mongo Santamaria song ("Sauvito") and the subtle intertwining of ska and Latin rhythms here are simply delicious. I love how the song opens with that piano, how the horns come in and layer themselves, and my favorite moment comes right before the two bridges with the four note horn hits - wish they had made that into an entire chorus. Great song - a new favorite.

2) Lauren Onkey: This professor at Ball State Univ. is doing fascinating research on the undersung Black rock and doo-wop bands who were part of the Mersey Beat scene in Liverpool circa the 1950s/60s. Onkey was drawn to this research given how, in most of the literature she had seen on Liverpool's music scene and the Beatles, rarely were any of the city's numerous Black bands ever acknowledged even though groups like the Fab 4 played with them and, according to some rumors, learned their R&B-styled chops from them. Onkey also makes the very provocative argument that Liverpool's historical Black population (dating back centuries to the city's prominence as the slaving port in Great Britian) is one reason why the blues fetishism that hit other British bands like the Rolling Stones or Cream bypassed Liverpool groups - they had grown up with Black people and thus, weren't as likely to romanticize/nostalgize them through the blues.

In any case, during her talk, she played this clip by the Liverpool doo-wop group, The Chants, who worked with the Beatles early on before they really became "The Beatles." Here they are, covering the jazz standard, "I Could Write a Book."


3) Gayle Wald: I last mentioned Gayle a year ago, in connection to her book on Sister Rosetta Tharpe. Gayle's now working on researching the life and times of the late Ellis Haizlip, a remarkable artistic force in New York, who, among other things, hosted the PBS show, Soul!. It's hard to quite capture how remarkable a show this was - in the late '60s through early '70s, it was an incredible meeting point of different Black artists, musicians, politicians, etc. in ways that have never really been duplicated since (no, not even by Arsenio).

The problem is that this show will likely never, ever be released to the public on DVD or any other format - the release contracts signed at the time make such a occurrence logistically impossible for all practical purposes. It's a damn shame - the clips that Gayle brought included a mind-melting interview between Haizlip and Farrakhan talking about gay sex, Ashford and Simpson performing on one of the last Soul! shows and - coincidentally enough - Max Roach w/ the JC White Singers.

Luckily (however illegally), clips have snuck out, including this 1973 performance by the Spinners on the show.


4) Last but not least, one of the other people on my panel (besides Gayle) was EMP organizer and fellow L.A. partner-in-culinary-crime Eric Weisbard who did a paper on Elton John's "Benny and the Jets" - a song that most everyone (I presume) has heard but may not remember being a big hit on not just the pop charts, but also the R&B charts. Don't believe it? Just ask Mary. Or the Diabolical:

Biz Markie: Benny and the Jets
From Sounds of Silence (by the Beastie Boys) (Capitol, 1999)

For real though, listening to that version isn't half as fun as watching it:

MOTOR CITY GHOSTS written by O.W.

Nolan Strong and the Dialbos: The Wind
From 7" (Fortune, 1954)

The Jesters: The Wind
From 7" (Winley, 1960). Also on Best Of...

Laura Nyro w/ Labelle: The Wind
From Gonna Take a Miracle (Columbia, 1971)

I recently went to a "Listening Party" event at the LACE, where my friend and colleague RJ Smith gave a great talk on the city of Detroit through its music. With images from Detroitfunk.com rotating on a video screen, RJ covered several decades worth of deindustrialization, White flight, abandonment, un-development and the post-humanization of Detroit.

One of the songs he played during this tour was "The Wind" by Nolan Strong and the Diablos, a decent sized doo wop hit from the mid-1950s that I found incredibly haunting and more than a little spooky given the echo effect that permeates the recording. It is such an affecting track that ti's probably not surprising that it found many future fans. The Jesters' 1960 version is especially well-executed - retains many of the dreamy elements of the original but it's a more accessible recording too. Even Laura Nyro was a fan - recording a 1971 version with Labelle on back-up vocals I presume. Her high voice fits especially well with the song, mirroring the original falsetto but even more piercing. Notably though, Nyro leaves out the spoken bit in the middle (which might be just as well).

Wind wind blow oooooh oooh blow wind wind

When the cool summer breeze
Sends a chill down my spine
And I long for my love's sweet caress
I know she is gone but my love lingers on
In a dream that the wind brings to me.

AL GREEN'S GOT WHAT WE NEED written by O.W.

Al Green feat. Anthony Hamilton: You Got The Love I Need Babe
From Lay It Down (forthcoming 2008)


Take the venerable Al Green, put him in the studio with The Roots' ?uestlove as an exec producer, and sprinkle in some Anthony Hamilton on the chorus and the Daptone Horns for added flavor.
This album could be really, really good.

FALLIN' OFF THE REELS VOL. 2 GIVEAWAY written by O.W.

DJ Akalepse: Fallin' Off the Reel Sampler Mix

Tracks from Fallin' Off the Reel Vol. 2 (Truth and Soul, 2007)

On the one hand, I think it's great that labels like Truth & Soul and Daptone are making it a point to put new soul vinyl out in circulation. As a DJ and collector, that obviously appeals to my sensibilities but I also realize that a lot of fans don't necessarily have turntables at home so when something like, say, that great Timothy McNealy version of "I'm So Glad You're Mine" comes along, I'm glad to give it some shine but I also realize that many may not end up purchasing it because it's in a format they can't access.

That's why I'm glad that Truth & Soul has been very smart in making sure to compile most of their releases into semi-yearly albums available on both CD and vinyl as a way to making sure that if you were forced to miss the boat the first time, you'd still have a chance to catch up later.

Fallin' Off the Reel Vol. 2 is, in my opinion, even stronger that its preceding volume, thanks how prolific the label has been in the last two years or so since the series inaugural release. Here's the complete tracklist and I've bolded the songs that, by themselves, could have been justification enough to get this:


01. BRONX RIVER PARKWAY- La Valla
02. BRONX RIVER PARKWAY - Nora Se Va
03. TYRONE ASHLEY'S FUNKY MUSIC MACHINE - Just A Little While Longer
04. TYRONE ASHLEY'S FUNKY MUSIC MACHINE - I Can't Help Myself
05. BLACK VELVET- Is I Me You Really Love
06. BLACK VELVET - An Earthquakes Coming
07. QUINCY BRIGHT- Phil My Don
08. RAEKWON & EL MICHELS AFFAIR - PJ's
09. EL MICHELS AFFAIR - A Little Sloppy (Bonus Beat)
10. EL MICHELS AFFAIR - This One's For My Baby
11. QUINCY BRIGHT- Big Black Hole
12. LEE FIELDS & THE EXPRESSIONS- My World
13. LEE FIELDS & THE EXPRESSIONS - Love Comes and Goes
14. BRONX RIVER PARKWAY - Aqua Con Sal
15. BRONX RIVER PARKWAY- Me Toca
16. TIMOTHY MCNEALY- What's Going On
17. TIMOTHY MCNEALY- I'm So Glad You're Mine
18. THE FABULOUS THREE- Odyssey Revisted* previously unreleased

It's not that I don't like the other stuff but, for example, I'm a massive fan of the Bronx River Parkway stuff - it's always good to hear new Latin soul/funk being worked with and BRP, like Brownout and others, are doing a great job of playing with such a venerable and excellent tradition.

Likewise, Lee Fields is one of the great success stories in the retrosoul movement's ability to support artists from a different generation who may not have gotten the propers they deserved then but are getting that second chance now (see also: Sharon Jones). And the Timothy McNealy reissues are blissfully good.

That plus a slick little El Michaels Affair instrumental that sounds as good as anything on their Sounding Out the City album.

---

Soul-Sides.com has a few copies of the album to give away - we have 2 copies left on CD.

To get one, I'll package it with any Soul Sides-related CD (digital orders not eligible).

In addition, T&S has offered up 2 CDs and 2 LPs for free.
To try for one, solve this puzzle. I've taken snippets from four well-known sample sources.
If you can name the artists - just the artists will suffice - for all four, send your guesses to: soulsides AT gmail.com. Please include your mailing address and indicate if you want the CD or LP.

Good luck! I'll select four winners at random by next Monday.

COMMENDABLE COMPS ROUND 6 written by Captain Planet

Delta 5 : Mind Your Own Business
taken from the compilation Disco Not Disco on Strut (2008)

Set The Tone : Dance SUcker (Francois K Mix)
taken from the compilation Funky Nassau on Strut (2008)

Sonora Casino : Astronautas A Mercurio
taken from the compilation Obsession on Bully (2008)

The Funkees : Akula Owu Onyeara
taken from the compilation Nigeria Special on Soundway (2007)

Juan Bautista : Estoy Aqui Pero No Soy Yo
taken from the compilation Bachata Roja on iASO (2007)

Is it just me, or are there a higher percentage of compilations to new releases nowadays? It feels like the market for re-issued recordings is catching up with the market for brand new material- could just be my twisted, old-timer perspective though. Whatever the case may be statistics-wise, I'm certainly happy that there are so many other people devoting themselves to putting together great collections like these.

STRUT RECORDS IS BACK! And I'm gonna shout about it. These guys put out some really enlightening comps when I was first getting into DJ-ing, and then in '03 they closed up shop. This latest enstallment of the Disco Not Disco series brings us more hard to find indie 12" cuts from an era when lenghty dubbed-out, electro dance music could be considered punk. On Funky Nassau, Strut pulled together a wide range of work from Chris Blackwell's Compass Point Studios in The Bahamas to shed some light on a scene that I have always had a soft spot for. From big names like The Talking Heads and Grace Jones to lesser-knowns like Guy Cuevas, this record captures some of the best fusions of dub and new wave that came out in the early 80's. It's the sound of of NYC's greatest party acts chilling out on the beach in a cloud of weed smoke with some of reggae's MVP's (Blackwell & Sly Dunbar).

The Obsession comp was tastefully pulled together by Mike at Academy Records, which has long been one of my favorite places to get schooled on cool records- and often take them home at reasonable rates. Wild psych monsters from the far reaching corners of obscurity is the bill here, and there's really nothing short of behemoth in the line-up. Track by track liner notes with cool pics help too. This track from Sonora Casino is one that I'd heard about as a mythological anomaly for quite some time now, and finally can listen to on repeat!

Soundway really don't need much introduction or explanation on this site. Everytime they put something out you can guarantee that you'll be getting more than your money's worth. These dudes are some of the heaviest collectors out there. While the set this time is less focussed on funk and dancefloor material, the overall vibe and richness of sounds is top quality.

And finally, something that is long overdue: a collection of old school acoustic bachata! Some readers might remember my discovery of Luis Segura a few years back on a trip to the Dominican Republic. And while I do not intend in anyway to detract from that man's genius, I also have always had the nagging suspicion that his sound was part of a bigger scene that I needed to dive into. The soulful, pleading falsetto. The bouncing bongo taps and staccato guitar plucks. THIS IS THAT SCENE! The music that was banned under Trujillo, that survived in the campos and made it to the city and finally onto records in the 60's. And to my knowledge, this is the first time that any of these songs have been available outside the DR. Thank you iASO.

**NOTE** FOR COMMENDABLE COMPS 1 - 5, SEE THE CAPTAIN'S CRATE ARCHIVE

WEDDING TUNES REVISITED written by O.W.

Two bits of personal trivia. 1) I have never, in the 15 years I've been a DJ, DJed a wedding. The reasons are partly logistical (I don't own speakers, lights or an amp), mostly personal (I've heard enough groom/bride-zilla stories to want to steer clear). In fact, at my own wedding, we didn't even have music, something that surprised many of my friends but seriously, it never occurred to me (note: our wedding was a potluck in a friend's backyard so "low-key" would be an understatement).

This all changed last Saturday night when I agreed to DJ a friend-of-a-friend's wedding in Los Angeles. It was a very, very nice affair, held at the Skirball Center, not too far up the 405 from where I live. In some ways, it was a little conventional: the requested playlist included such wedding favorites as "Joy to the World" by Three Dog Night and Young MC's "Bust a Move" and I even had some ABBA ready to go (though never did around to playing it). I also got to drop in a few songs of my own choosing though I tried not to wild out too far - this wasn't a Boogaloo gig after all.

It did get me to thinking about wedding songs and brought me back to this older post. People should definitely check out the comments for dozens of great wedding song suggestions.

CONTINUE READING...


Pamoja: Ooh Baby
From 7" (Keiper, 1970)

Bettye Swann: Make Me Yours
From 7" (Money, 1967). Also on S/T.

For me, I was reminded by how great "Ooh Baby" by Pamoja is (so I re-upped it) and I also thought about this special, wedding 7" that my friend and former DJ partner Vinnie Esparza created for his wedding a couple years back: "Make Me Yours" by Bettye Swann, one of the absolute gems from this Louisana soulstress (and a #1 R&B hit back in '67). I love the idea of a custom 45...makes me wish I had thought of that for my own wedding but oh well, maybe for the 10th anniversary.

John Coltrane: Body and Soul
From Body and Soul (Atlantic, 1960). Also on Coltrane's Sound.

From Saturday's wedding, I'm including one of the songs I played during dinner (yes, O-Dub does dinner jazz), "Body and Soul" by John Coltrane, featuring the majestic McCoy Tyner on piano, dropping an opening riff for the ages. I didn't realize this, but when "Body and Soul" originally appeared as a song in the musical Three's a Crowd in 1930, it was treated as too suggestive and banned from radio for a year. This is a beautiful rendition, like most of Coltrane's ballads from his Atlantic and Impulse years. The song just moves you.

Alton Ellis: I'm Still In Love With You
From Sings Rock and Soul (Coxsone, 1967). Also on I'm Still In Love With You.

Lastly, one song I didn't play but would love to at someone's wedding (apparently, I'm now for hire; holler): "I'm Still In Love With You," by Alton Ellis. This is NOT a cover of the Al Green song but rather, an original (I believe) by the prolific Jamaican innovator of rocksteady. Beautiful, beautiful tune and a classic riddim once Althea and Donna got their hands on it.

REMEMBERING JOEL DORN written by O.W.

Editor's Note: Ben Newman, aka Benge, has been a Soul Sides reader for years and constantly heps me to good music not to mention plays SS downloads on his WRUV show, Sex Fly. He recently did a tribute show to Atlantic Records producer Joel Dorn, the under-sung mastermind behind dozens of astounding albums for over four decades. I certainly learned something in the process and invited Benge to write-up a tribute post for us. Enjoy! --O.W.


CONTINUE READING...

Written by Benjamin Newman:

I decided to do a tribute show to Joel Dorn this past week on Sex Fly (the radio show I've been for the past 18 years on WRUV-FM in Burlington, VT) only to open up Rolling Stone a few days later and find that this was the week when "Killing Me Softly with His Song," which Dorn produced, was number one in Billboard in 1974. I had to smile, because it was a serendipitous moment which felt like part of the magic that seems to have surrounded this man.

For those who don't know the story, which sadly is way too many, Joel Dorn began his career at 19 as a jazz DJ on WHAT-FM in Philly and doggedly pursued Neshui Ertegun at Atlantic Records until Ertegun was convinced to allow Dorn to produce Hubert Laws's debut in '64. Dorn quickly rose to v.p. of the label and went on to produce an absurd number of great records at Atlantic for the likes of Max Roach, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Les McCann, Eddie Harris, Joe Zawinul, Roberta Flack, Mongo Santamaria, and Yusef Lateef to name a few.

I urge you to Google him, because there's a whole lot more delightful info about the man, including him starting up a number of independent labels (check