Can't You Love Him - Rev. Stanley Keeble & The Voices of Triumph

I am by no means a religious person. Unfortunately for my record collection, this choice has left me with a plebian knowledge of gospel music, a member of the musical specturm that often demonstrates serious funk and/or soul tendencies (a fine example: the Good God! collection compiled by the fine folks at the Numero Group a few years back). The addition of funky gospel sides to my record colleciton has been further limited by the lack of "funky tip-offs"* on gospel records. Fortunately, the aquisition of a portable turntable has made it a little bit easier for me to stumble on gospel finds as of late. One such example**, acquired just this last weekend during a dig at one of my favorite spots in Chicago, has been provided for you listening pleasure today...

Can't You Love Him - Rev. Stanley Keeble & The Voices of Triumph - Sounds of Soul



Stanley Keeble was born in Chicago in 1937. His musical career started in 1952 with the Fellowship Bible Church choir, a group he directed, as well as accompanied on the piano and organ. His career in gospel music was continued through connections with artists like Inez Andrews and Jesse Dixon. In 1968, he decided to start his own gospel choir, The Voices of Triumph***, who back him on today's selection. Although I'm not sure how long the group was active, I do know that he worked with the group through at least 1974, as that is the publishing date stamped on the 45 label. More recently, he is credited with establishing the Chicago Gospel Music Heritage Museum, as well as hosting a weekly radio program on WKKC.

*Examples include, but are not limited to, the word "funky" in the song title or an artist name like, "(insert first name here) and the (insert object here)".

**There's no use in denying that I was initially drawn to this record by the imprint name, Sounds of Soul. Luckily, as has happened a great many times in the past, the imprint name tip-off didn't fail to impress.

***The Voices of Triumph are also featured on the Good God! collection released by Numero Group.

Philly Barracuda pt. 1 - Holly Maxwell

Hello again. Most of the regulars in these parts probably noticed that there wasn't much action around here last week. The onslaught of dirty diapers coupled with getting back to the daily grind full time left me wiped out to the point that it felt like I couldn't keep my thoughts straight, let alone write anything worth reading. Luckily things have been a sailing a bit more smoothly over the last few days, so I figured it was high time to get back here and provide you with a nice slice of dance craze 45 action...

Philly Barracuda pt. 1 - Holly Maxwell - Star



Interestingly, despite the reference to Philly in the title, this single was actually a Windy City product, as publication and production credits are given to Monk Higgins' Special Agent company, which he started during his time working in Chicago. Higgins, who shares writing credits with Holly Maxwell for this single, was a staple in the Chicago R&B and soul scene throughout the 1960s*. Despite the absence of a date on the 45 label, it's safe to assume that this single was recorded during or before 1969, as Higgins left Chicago for L.A. in that year to begin working with a number of west coast labels, including United Artists. Holly Maxwell was born and raised in Chicago, spending a significant part of her life trying to break into the music scene there. She got her start in the music business singing with the group the Tourjourettes during her high school years. She later attended Chicago Musical College in 1965, where she pursued studies in classical music. Her collegiate career ended early, however, after signing a deal with Constellation records, where she would record two singles that sold well locally, but never really picked up steam regionally or nationally. At least two more singles were recorded for the Star label in the mid- to late-60s, including today's selection. In 1969, Maxwell landed a deal with Curtom records that resulted in the release of one single, while in 1970 she cut a single for Smit-Whit records. With only limited success achieved in Chicago, Maxwell headed west for L.A. sometime in the early 1970s. During her time in L.A. she was managed by Monk Higgins' cousin Barbara Acklin who landed her a gig working with Ike Turner as Tina Turner's fill-in. Holly remained in L.A. until 1985, at which point she relocated back to Chicago. Despite never really amassing a level of critical acclaim in the states, Holly had/has a steady gig at Maxwell's Cafe (which is of no relation to her) in Paris, France.

With fingers crossed, but no promises, I hope to be back in a few days with the next volume in the Trunk of F.U.N.K. mix series.

*Monk Higgins is also credited with a single entitled "Barracuda" that was recorded by Alvin Cash and the Registers for the Mar-V-Lus label sometime during the 1960s. Despite the similar name, the two singles share very little, if any, musical qualities in common.

Fried Neckbones and Some Home Fries

Hello again. Although my time's been pretty well occupied with all things related to caring for a child, it looks like we're starting to develop a bit of a schedule. Luckily for me, the change of pace has afforded a bit of free time to pull out a nice little Latin side for your listening pleasure.

Fried Neckbones and Some Home Fries - Willie Bobo - Verve




A little while back I stumbled across this box set from Verve records that I couldn't reasonably pass up*. A big part of my inability to avoid it's purchase stemmed from the great cover art (see the photograph above). However, what really sealed the deal was a "nice price" opportunity to hone in my knowledge of a jazz percussionist that was effectively unknown to my ears at the time. Luckily for me, this was a wise choice as the set includes five 45s containing tracks from each of Willie's three Verve LPs (Spanish Grease, Uno Dos Tres/1,2,3, and Feelin' So Good). Also included was a one-page info sheet which, aside from giving a fair bit of biographical information, identifies jazz pianist (and digger's dream) Mary Lou Williams as the party responsible for breaking Willie into the scene**. The insert also mentions that after his work with Williams, Willie played with Cal Tjader for 4 years and was a featured player with Tito Puente before deciding to start doing his own thing in 1961. While recording under his own name he released sixteen albums, including a staggering seven LPs for the Verve label between 1965-1968 and the funky classic Do What You Want To Do, Tomorrow Is Here for Sussex in 1971. Unfortunately for the music world, Willie passed away at the age of 49 after complications from illness.

Relying only on an echo-ey chorus singing the title over and over, some fairly simple percussion, and a smooth, slinky horn line, Fried Neckbones and Some Home Fries burns along at a nice slow pace. In reality, I think it's the simplicity of this song that really makes it so great, as there's no unnecessary filler muddying things up. This track has always been the standout of the box set for me, as it creates a vibe that reminds of warm summer nights. Enjoy, and I'll try to be back in the next few days with something new for your listening pleasure.

*This box set is from the "Verve Celebrity Scene" series, which also features boxes from Jimmy Smith and Wes Montgomery.

**I've since read that Willie Bobo (born William Correa) was given the nickname "Bobo" by Mary Lou Williams during his time playing with her.

Get It Together

Hello again. A few weeks back Ava from Jemsite sent me an e-mail asking if I'd be interested in putting together a guest post for her blog. For those not in the know, Jemsite is a community dedicated to guitars, rock and roll, and the music industry as a whole. Her invitation indicated that she was particularly interested in a post on the collaboration between rock and funk. While I wouldn't consider myself foremost expert, I figured I could put something interesting together. So, with notion of the marriage between funk and rock fresh in my mind, I dug through my collection and hand-picked a dozen or so tracks that fall under one of three categories: 1) rock songs influenced by funk, 2) covers of funk songs by rock artists, or 3) covers of rock songs by funk/soul/jazz artists. The result is available on the Jemsite blog by following the link below.

Get It Together - Trunk of F.U.N.K. vol. 015 - Jemsite Guest Mix

Tracklist

Title - Aritst - LP Title (if applicable) - Label

Prelude – The Millenium – Begin – Columbia
Black Dog – Deodato – First Cuckoo – MCA
Train – The Buddy Miles Express – Expressway to Your Skull – Mercury
As I Lay Dying – Melting Pot – Ampex
(I Know) I'm Losing You – Rare Earth – Rare Earth
Funk-In-Wagnall – Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds – Dunhill/ABC
Go On Home – Gee Gee Shin – La Louisianne
Taurus – Dennis Coffey – Goin' For Myself – Sussex
Let A Woman Be A Woman – Roy Head – Same People – Dunhill/ABC
Get It Together – The Grass Roots – Dunhill/ABC
Season of The Witch – Al Kooper, Steven Stills, Mike Bloomfield - Super Session – CBS

And now for some really important news.... I was a bit slow in putting up this post as this has been a huge weekend for myself and my family. My wife and I welcomed our first daughter, Isabel Jane (photo at left), into the world late Friday night. We're finally home again, as mom and baby are both doing quite well (we've all actually had a reasonable amount of sleep over the last few nights, which is a nice surprise). I'd like to say that I hope things won't change too much around here, but there's really no way of knowing how busy the little bugger is going to keep us over the coming weeks. Hopefully I'll be back in a few days with a new single, but until then, enjoy.

The Bushman - The Tenth Dymentions

Hello again. I hope that this last weekend has treated you well, as it did me, instilling a renewed sense of energy to approach the upcoming week with a full head of steam. I've got some huge news on the horizon (more on that in a few days), which, coupled with the time to finally sit back and relax a little bit, has left me feeling a lot better about things on the whole. It was with these feelings of excitement and energy that I chose today's single, a track that storms out of the gate from the first note and doesn't even consider quitting until the final note is played...

The Bushman - The Tenth Dymentions - Sapphire




We seem to have stumbled upon a trend here in the last few weeks, as this single is yet another example of a side that I've held onto for a bit in the hopes of being able to dig up any relevant information on the group. What I can tell you is that the Tenth Dymentions were a Chicago group, that this single was produced by Joe Savage, an individual with a reasonably long track record in Chicago indie productions in the late 60's and early 70's, and that writing credits on this single are given to Vern Ryan, who is presumably a member of the band. This band may in fact be the same group (or at least similar to) the Fantastic Dimensions who released a Northern mover on the Sapphire label (also credited to Vern Ryan). Other than that, there aren't a whole lot of other specifics out there on the band or the label.

The Bushman, a dance whose steps are not very well explained in vocals, relies on a full horn section that's blasting away throughout most of the song, a choppy guitar line that's really similar to the sound of Alvin Cash's Keep on Dancing, a fairly subtle organ line to round out the sound, and some hand drumming to help set the groove right for getting bodies moving on the dance floor.

Enjoy, and I'll be back in a few days with another guest mix.

Instrumental # One - Richard Terry & Co.

I hope you've been enjoying the guest mix I dropped last week over at This Is Tomorrow. I was definitely pleased to be given the opportunity to contribute to one of my current favorite music blogs. And if you haven't made your way there yet, be sure to stop by, not just for my guest mix, but for all of the other great singles and mixes hosted on the site. With that said, I know I had promised a fresh new single late last week, however, an untimely bout of the flu left me in a wholly unproductive state. In an attempt to make up for the lateness of it's delivery, I've chosen a newly acquired 45 from a powerhouse songwriting duo out of Chicago that will definitely be in heavy rotation over the coming months...

Instrumental # One - Richard Terry & Co. - Nickel



My first glance of the artist name listed on the 45 left me confused, as I was not familiar with an artist by the name of Richard Terry out of Chicago. However, taking a closer look at the writing credits cleared things up immediately. Instead of Richard Terry & Co., the artist name should have read Richard, Terry & Co., as Richard is none other than Richard Pegue (a prominent Chicago DJ and songwriter whose been in the business since the early 1960's*), while Terry is Terry Thompson (Pegue's long-time songwriting partner). Over the course of his career, Richard Pegue has worked at the Toddlin Town', Met, Nickel, Penny and TwiNight labels, among others where he wrote songs not only for himself, but also for The Perfections and Ronaldo Domingo. The songwriting duo of Pegue and Thompson was featured previously in the Windy City Workout mix, as the duo is credited with writing the Brothers and Sisters track, Nobody is Gonna Turn Us 'Round on the Toddlin' Town label. Aside from his work with Pegue, I haven't been able to dig up too much information on Terry Thompson. Additionally, I unfortunately still don't know who is involved in the Co. credited on this record as there isn't a ton of information out there on this particular side**.


*As far as I know, Richard Pegue is still hosting a radio show on Saturday nights on Chicago's WKKC 89.3 fm

**The flip to this single is the very soulful I've Got To Find A Way by the Hallelujah Chorus.

Can I Get A Witness?

A few weeks back, Mike over at This Is Tomorrow got in touch with me to see if I'd be interested in putting together a guest mix for his blog. For those that don't head over there regularly, he does some mighty fine work covering all things funk, soul, and hip hop, so with little hesitation I whipped together a handful of current favorites...


Can I Get A Witness? - Trunk of F.U.N.K. vol 014. - Guest Mix for This Is Tomorrow

Tracklist

Title - Artist - Label

Gossip – Cyril Neville – Josie
Free Your Mind – The Politicians – Hot Wax
What Can You Bring Me – Charles Wright and the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band – WB
Razor Blade – Little Royal and the Swingmasters – Tri Us
(Do The) Hot Pants – Mr. Jim and the Rhythm Machine – Wizdom
Jukebox – Fried Chicken – Stone
Football – Mickey and the Soul Generation – Maxwell
Family Affair – The Family – North Bay
Will You Be Ready – Samson & Delilah – ABC
Something or Other – Richard's People – Tuba
Can I Get A Witness? – Barbara Randolph – SOUL
Fight Fire With Fire – Delia Gartrell – Right-On
Who's the King? (You Know That's Me) – Joseph Henry – Daptone
(I've Got) So Much Trouble On My Mind – Sir Joe and Free Soul – Mantis
Here's Some Dances – The Eight Minutes – Jay Pee

Enjoy, and I'll be back later in the week with a new single.