Wood, Brass and Steel - Wood, Brass and Steel - 1976 - Turbo

What a fantastic cover on this LP! Turbo records was a subsidiary of the great All-Platinum label and is, I fear, not available on CD. Such a pity as it's a great little album and would benefit from a proper reissue. Wood, Brass and Steel were a funky eight-piece outfit comprising the well-known Doug Wimbush on Bass, Otha Stokes on sax, flute and vocals, Randy Bost on trumpet and Flugel Horn, Craig Derry on congas and vocals, and Bernard "Skip" McDonald on lead guitar and backing vocals. On piano we have Hubert Powell as well as strings, clavinet and synth, Harold Sergeant on drums and percussion and Barton Campbell on lead and rhythm guitars. An accomplished and well contained outfit that deserved a greater piece of the action in the 1970s. You will be very familiar with one track in particular on here and that is the instrumental, "Funkanova".

This track hit big again during the Rare Groove scene in the late 1980s, and a cracking powerhouse of 70s synth and horn-driven jazzy funk fusion. The synth is superb and right in the bag of the Mizell Brothers or Roy Ayers. An essential track as you will hear below - a real 'get up and go' record! The track I bought this LP for was the sublime Roy Ayers-like "My Darling Baby". The synth is a dream and the percussion is excellent - the drums courtesy of Harold Sargent. This is summer captured in 4 minutes of jazzy soul heaven! The lead vocal here is Craig Derry. "Without You" is a lot more relaxed, chilled and mellow. Craig Derry vocalises and gets into the vibe, managing to hit a few Marvin Gaye cum Donny Hathaway spots to boot! For funky 70s heads "Theme Song" will raise a smile and get the flares flapping as the horn section kicks in. Very Kool and The Gang! Another vocal cut, "My Lady", should appeal to you if you like the Futures a la "Ain't Got Time Fa Nothin'". This LP has something for everyone - so well worth picking up.

Barry Towler
The Vibe Scribe

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Bunny Sigler - My Music - 1976 - Philadelphia International

This is my favourite album from Bunny Sigler, and I was absolutely over the moon when it was released on CD here in the UK courtesy of the good folks at Edsel. I have to be honest that Bunny's music either grabs me or leaves me stone cold. This album from 1976 is a mixed bag and is, I suppose, nicely representative of all of his 1970s work. I love his vocals, his writing and production from the 70s ‘til today and this album contains some of his best 70s output for Philadelphia International. Disco was really kicking in and it was a time of change. Some artists managed this well; others disappeared without trace. This album traversed the minefield of 'come fly with me' collars, hairy chests, medallions and dodgy movies with John Travolta well and managed to succeed enough for the album still to be heavily sought after today.

I can pick out four tracks that really do it for me. These commence with the anthemic "My Music" which is Philly through and through. It’s climatic, clever and descriptive. Bunny wrestles his yearning vocals over the vibrant percussion, guitar and horns and strikes a hot track in doing so. The CLASSIC "Come On And Dance, Dance, Dance" was featured on Philadelphia Uncovered a number of years ago, and rightly so too. Here it is in its original place. This is a superb dancer where the horns punch with real vigour, as Bunny gets smooth and gruff with his delivery. This is classic Philly soul at its best. My ultimate favourite is the gorgeous ballad “Somebody Loves You”. The intro is so amazing, that if the rest of the song were diabolical then it would still be worth it for this alone!!! The tinkling piano scale, the blowing wind, harp, bells, strings and flute lead us gently into an impassioned ballad of monster proportions. The Philly sound simply does not get any better than this. In the CD reissue, Tony Rounce has written an extensive essay well worth reading, but unfortunately failed to include Bunny’s recent recording with Larry Gold. I consider “Can I?” from 2003 to be the best thing that Bunny has EVER recorded and is CLASSIC Philly in every sense of the word - PLEASE check out my Y2K review of that here: http://soulchoonzreviews.blogspot.com/search/label/Larry%20Gold. This is a very welcome release, and big thanks to Edsel for this.

Barry Towler
The Vibe Scribe

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Thelma Jones - Thelma Jones - 1976 - Columbia

Thelma Jones career was very short-lived, with a few 1960s singles such as "Stronger" and "Souvenirs Of A Heartbreak", and this LP. Thelma promised a great deal and had more than enough to offer. Another one of those artists who were lost in action from an early stage and left us all scratching our heads. This 1976 album for the mighty Columbia label should have acted as a firm foundation for an illustrious career, yet it was not meant to be. We are left, however with this highly collectible album – now available on Japanese CD courtesy of Sony. I have to say that the album is solid and acts as a showcase for Thelma's talents, and the likes of Leon Ware, Bert De Coteaux, Brad Shipiro, Gwen Guthrie, and Ullanda McCullough also support Thelma with their writing, arranging, production and vocal talents.

This album is celebrated for 2 main songs, one being brought to the forefront by Richard Searling in the early 1990s through his excellent Soul Sauce show and Columbia's “Soul Souvenirs Vol. 1” compilation – now a rarity in itself. “How Long” has a really infectious rattling groove with flute and funky guitar paving the way for some seriously sassy and no-messin' vocals. Ex-JB Bob Babbit completes some funky bassline and Jimmy Young rattles off a few choice drum rolls, Thelma, however in total control with her quivering, barely tempered passion and pain and so amounts to one of the strongest mid 70s soul cuts you are ever likely to hear. Our second pick is Leon Ware's inclusion, “I Can Dream” with strings, percussion and tropical island flavour, and is very similar musically to what he was serving up with both Syreeta and Marlena Shaw at this period. One track that really needs elevating to such a status is the gorgeous floater that appears as a special bonus cut on the CD. It's the brilliant 1978 7" release "You're The Song I Can't Stop Singing", which was flipped by "Salty Tears". The CD is worth buying for this gem alone. You should be able to pick this up - not exactly cheap BUT...

Barry Towler
The Vibe Scribe

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Margie Joseph - Hear The Words, Feel The Feeling - 1976 - Cotillion

Collector's Choice are reissuing a draft of classic 70s soul and jazz at the moment, and with everything else resurfacing on CD its getting very hard to keep up! When I was scouring the Internet and discovered that Margie Joseph's 1984 set “Ready For The Night” was being reissued (only interested in “Is It Gonna Be Me And You”), I then discovered this album which I had hitherto been aware of, but had not heard. To discover it was a Lamont Dozier production was a massive boon, so I ordered one straight away, totally on the blind. Let's see...1976...Lamont Dozier...Margie Joseph...yes, well worth the risk! Lamont was firing on all cylinders at this time and was releasing a wealth of quality, timeless soul music and to receive this CD, play it for the first time and discover a wonderful set of 9 Dozier-produced gems was just the icing on the cake! If you love his contemporaneous work with Aretha Franklin, The Originals and Ben. E. King then you will definitely want this CD in your collection.

From the very first track, the meeting of Dozier and Joseph is instantly one of magic. The quality of remastering is second to none, too – so thanks to Bob Fisher for that. There are a few reissue labels at the moment churning out quality albums but shockingly embarrassing quality – check out the Woods Empire and you'll see what I mean – so its great to have properly mastered, legitimate recordings to be proud of. Anyway, I digress a little. With this in mind, savour the sheer quality of “Didn't I Tell You” with its catchy hook and swirling strings – almost a flavour of Philly in here. Fans of Ben E. King's version of “Let Me Live In Your Life” or Aretha's “Sunshine Will Never Feel The Same” will instantly feel at home with “Why'd You Lie” (not the same as the Originals' '75 waxing.) “Prophesy” is a track we all loved over the years – one of Richard Searling's favourite spins on the radio and at Southport and here is the version cut with Margie Joseph; a little less heavier and more, dare I say it, mellow disco. However, this is an excellent version but pales to Lamont's own version. That can be found, should that be a glaring omission from your collection, on Expansion's excellent 2000 compilation.

One of my favourite songs from that particular compilation was “All Cried Out”, and a version appears here – quite different in construction in a number of ways. More of a swayer, this version, and considerably more laid back – add a steel guitar and remove the strings and this could have been a '70s country hit. The arrangement almost verges on the jazzy half way through, and from here the sweetness and softness really takes control. I love this, but prefer the 'original'. My top-dog cut, though, has to be the superb “Don't Turn The Light On”. This is Lamont at full gallop; a strident beat, the hi-hat at the foreground and the strings sweetening the groove in exactly the right place. Mmm...this is delicious stuff indeed and 70s soul at its very best. Margie closes the album with 2 quality tunes called “Feeling My Way”, one which I could hear Lou Rawls equally doing justice to, and “I Get Carried Away”. Again, the strings and arrangement owes something to the work of Thom Bell. This is seriously a CD that should be taking pride of place in your collection and is very nicely priced too. Look out for all the other Margie Joseph albums, all at a nice price. Each one is worth picking up.

Barry Towler

The Vibe Scribe

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Eddie Kendricks - Goin' Up In Smoke - 1976 - Tamla

Eddie Kendricks. The sound of Philadelphia. Yes, a match made in heaven. Norman Harris and his Harris Machine was more than sympathetic to the tenors of the day and Motown were not afraid to pass many of their latest and greatest through the revolving doors at Sigma Sound Studios. This explosive collaboration in 1976 was mainly written as a collaboration with Norman Harris, Allan Felder, Ron Kersey and Phil Hurtt so you will not need a Masters Degree to know what flavour this album has. Personally, I love this album and it's simply a match made in heaven. The title track is a fantastic effort and rates as one of Eddie's best in my own humble opinion. The uptempo groove complete with strings and horns has, unsurprisingly, refrains of earlier dance rhythms of the 20s, and I defy anyone not to love this track. The dramtic nature of the album is not only set by the depressing tone of the album sleeve but by the moody orchestration, especially on melancholic and fact-facing tracks such as "The Newness Is Gone"; this being replaced by the more uplifting and lighter "Sweet Tenderoni". Didn't take him long to find someone else did it? If only it was like that in real life! Lol.

If irresistable grooves that carry you along are your cup of tea then the excellent "Born Again" will do nothing but put a smile on your face, and a spring in your step. Superb. This is positive and uplifting soul music, no more, no less. Indeed "Do You Want Light" almost meanders into Van McCoy territory, which is certainly no crime in my book. The racing and frantic "Thanks For The Memories" will also win you over, as should the gorgeously orchestrated "To You From Me". No matter how low you are feeling, the sound of Philadelphia always manages to bring me back to life. Some may brush this material aside, but that would be short sighted and wrong. It's always sounded good and with a lot of today's inspirational house music reaching back to the roots of Philly International a wwealth of tenors such as Kenny Bobien and Byron Stingley are not only creating great NEW music in a classic style, but it keeps the Philly flame burning forever strong. An essential album, as are most albums from Eddie, and available via Amazon on the superb Motown Solo Albums collections.

Barry Towler
The Vibe Scribe

The Thin Man: The Motown Solo Albums Vol. 2