James Purify

[Guest]

So last week I was in Florida visiting relations and we happened to slide into a restaurant and blues bar in Pensacola called the Five Sisters (good food btw) where a blues trio were playing as the nights entertainment.  An older guy then came to the microphone and announced it was time for some soul music and belted out in fine form Shake your Tail Feather and I'm Your Puppet and a couple more before letting the band continue and sitting down at the table next to us to tuck into a fried chicken dinner. A brief hello to confirm and yes, here was James Purify having sung for his supper, still with a great voice at 71 years old but not in the best of health and a kinda sad look behind the smile - but with a genuine willingness to chat although he was keen to know how Gino Washington was getting on in the UK as he was a top man. It was strangely surreal but I got the mandatory selfie and had a good enough chat about all sorts of rubbish - then we had to leave. I realised I knew nothing about him at all really and looked up a bit on the net and found this article from a couple of years ago which maybe of interest to some - and as always makes you wonder about the journey from then to now.

https://panhandlermagazine.com/nonfiction/john-capouya/

[Roburt]

Interesting article ......... James & Bobby were over here all the time in the mid to late 60's (& then again in the 70's when their re-issues were hits) .... not surprised that he asked after Geno, they followed each other around the clubs of Britain .....