Soul on Sunday - The Exciters / Tell Him

Bit of a story behind this - apparently Dusty Springfield heard this and was inspired to record in a "soul style". Don't know whether that's true, but it is a nice story. I've been listening to a lot of this band recently, having just got hold of this excellent composition, so expect more Excitement in the coming weeks...

Soul on Sunday - Mayer Hawthorne / Just Ain't Gonna Work Out

...and we're back with SoS after a short break (sorry!).

Something new here from Stones Throw records, I know nothing about this except what my ears tell me - that it's very good. And that it reminds me a little of Smokey Robinson's early post-miracles output.



Album out in September, apparently.

Soul on Sunday - Only Fools Run Away / James Carr

More goldwax goodness, and this time it's the debut single from their biggest star, James Carr. It's some way from the country influenced soul that brought him acclaim, but still a great vocal performance.

Soul on Sunday - Wonderful to be in Love / The Ovations

I've just got my hands on this compilation of Goldwax singles, and it's really rather wonderful. Covering the early years of the label (and offshoots such as the Bingo and Bandstand labels) it includes some R&B, Blues and even country-tinged offerings, but as you'd expect it's the soul tracks that stand out the best. It includes two of the handful of tracks that O.V.Wright recorded for them, and James Carr's early work.

I've picked the second Goldwax single from the Ovations, It's wonderful to be in love. The first Goldwax single to make it's mark commercially, it reached the Billboard R&B top 30 in 1965.

Soul on Sunday - Every Little Bit Hurts / Brenda Holloway

Easily one of the most under-rated acts on Motown, Brenda Holloway's sound was closer to the southern soul sounds than many of her Tamla contemporaries. Perhaps as a consequence of the slightly different sound, she never felt a good fit with the label and retired to the life of a housewife in 1970. Back performing, this is her first and biggest hit from a concert in 2005.

Soul on Sunday - Where Did Our Love Go / The Supremes

Some classic Motown this week with the single that broke the Supremes and gave us Diana Ross (for better or worse). At this point in their career, the Supremes were struggling to get noticed but when the Marvelettes passes on the chance to record this HDH song, the Supremes did it and it became their first number one. The story goes that the lead vocal was originally scored for Marvelettes' lead Gladys Horton so was lower than Ross was used to. Singing at this register gave her voice the warm tones that went on to dominate the Supremes and brought them a run of hits.

Soul on Sunday - The Thrill is Gone / Aretha Franklin

Something a bit more blues-influenced from Aretha this week, with her version of a song made popular by BB King. I love this side of Aretha, slowed down and led by the piano (which she played on this).

Soul on Sunday - What Have You Done / Naomi Shelton and the Gospel Queens

I was sure that I'd put this up before, but it would seem not and with the album about to be released now is as good a time as any. I've been listening to a lot of old gospel recently from the 1940s and 50s (watch out for some here!) and, despite being new, this slots in quite neatly alongside.

Soul on Sunday - Eyes on the Prize / Mavis Staples

Here's a classic protest song, with a video to match, as done by Mavis Staples on her latest album, 2007's "We'll never turn back". The album was conceived as a collection of songs about the American civil rights movement, and is well worth looking out for. Mavis' voice has matured with time, taking on a rich, rounded tone since her days with the staple singers.

Soul on Sunday - Gonna Getcha Back / Eli "Paperboy" Reed and the True Loves

Went to see Eli "Paperboy" Reed and the True Loves on Wednesday. If you're not aware of them then they are a soul/R&B band who remind me of a cross between early James Brown (think Live at the Apollo) and James Carr. If you really aren't aware then get yourself this album.

I saw them last at Latitude 2008, in the Music and Film tent at about 1 in the morning, and they were one of the highlights of the whole festival. Could they cut it when I was much brighter of eye and bushier of tail? Oh yes, very much so. An energetic performer, it's on the up-tempo songs that he really shines, notably on The Satisfier and set closer, Take My Love With You. He tries out a couple of new songs and also does a short solo set including some songs from his pre "and the true loves" past. There's also a cover of the Ace Of Spades from a recent EP which still doesn't seem to have been released over here.

Here's Gonna Getcha from Wednesday (picture poor, sound pretty good):


And here, as a special bonus, is Take My Love With You in Madrid last year:

Soul on Sunday - So In Love / Curtis Mayfield

I've got some kind of weird ear infection thing going on so it feels like my head has been pumped full of cotton wool at the moment... despite that I know that this is amazing. Taken from the album "There's No Place Like America Today" which featured in a book called 1001 albums you must hear before you die...

Soul on Sunday - Someone Out There / The Flirtations

If you've got three hours to spare this bank holiday Monday (and you're in the UK), get yourself over to the BBC website and listen to Mark Lamarr's show from Friday night. He had the Flirtations in for a session and it is well worth the listen.

Here they are doing their thing in 1969 on Spanish TV.

Soul on Sunday - Yes To The Lord / The Stovall Sisters

Some heavily gospel-influenced soul for you this week, and I make no apologies for selecting from the same album as last week. This trio of sisters performed backing duties for a host of well known names, not to mention being the Ikettes for a brief period in 1970, but this is from their own album.

Soul on Sunday - Somethings Burning / The Marvellos

Having featured one of the best known soul tracks last week, I feel duty bound to go for something a little more obscure this time so I present a song about which I know almost nothing. It was release in 1966 on Warner's soul subsidiary Loma and it features on a compilation called After Hours 2 which is well worth a fiver of anybody's money.

Soul on Sunday - Heard in Through The Grapevine / Marvin Gaye

Probably my all time favourite song. Here is Marvin Gaye doing it in 1968:

Soul on Sunday - I'm Just a Prisoner / Candi Staton

Yes, I know I'm a day late... Sorry, won't happen again etc.

I was sure that I'd featured Candi Staton on a previous Soul on Sunday, but when a song of hers came up on iTunes, I checked and found epic fail on that score. So to make amends here she is, doing the title song from her 1969 album.



She really emerged in the late 60s / early 70s as a superb southern soul vocalist, performing a range of material including covers of country classics like this version of Stand by Your Man:



Of course she may be best known for some of the work she did with the Source in the 80s and 90s, including this mega smash, You've Got the Love.

Soul on Sunday - Steam / Laura Vane and the Vipertones

Something about as new as it's possible to get, this is the debut single from a new anglo/dutch soul act... and it was out last month (ish). It's weird how some of the best soul releases of the last couple of years have come from countries not normally associated with that kind of music (I'm thinking of the Soul Investigators from Finland and Lefties Soul Connection who are also from the Netherlands)... maybe there's something in the water in Northern Europe? Or maybe the world is just getting a little bit smaller. Anyways this is great, and I'll definitely be looking out for the album which, according to the website is due for release in May.

Not the East 17 song:

Soul on Sunday - Wish There Was Someone There / Irma Thomas

It's always nice to discover new soul acts and this is one such case - before listening to Mark Lamarr's Friday night/Saturday morning show I had never really listened to Irma Thomas, but then I had a "where have they been all my life" moment and will definitely be checking out more of her stuff. Apparently she was a contemporary of Aretha Frnaklin et al but never really crossed over to mainstream success.

Anyway this will have to do for now, one of my favourite of the songs played on God's Jukebox:

Soul on Sunday - Maybe Just Maybe / Blue Magic

Some Philly sounds this week with this chilled song from Blue Magic. They were one of a slew of bands that sprung up in Philadelphia in the early-to-mid 1970s, aping the sounds of Gamble and Huff; indeed Blue Magic were backed by the MFSB band. Like a lot of Philly bands, they struggled with the rise of disco and faded from view after 1976.

Soul on Sunday - Is it Because I'm Black / Syl Johnson

I dug out an old compilation of 70s soul and funk this week and it had this on it - perhaps the best known song from Syl Johnson. Recorded in 1969, it inspired Willie Mitchell to sign Johnson to Hi Records, where he provided a rawer counterpoint to Al Green's smooth stylings. Unfortunately at the time smooth sold, and Al Green got the success whereas Syl Johnson didn't and despite some well received albums he retired in 1982.