The Poodles - Southern City

[Guest]

Not the annoying yappy dogs, but the girl group who released Step by Step on Southern City records.. Ever wondered why the sound is dog rough?

In a conversation with the owner of Southern City records, he told me that the group which comprised of two sisters Marilyn and Sue Cogdill and their cousin Sharon Cunningham, recorded the track at the labels' small rehearsal studio in Gallatin Tennessee. Normally artists would go to larger, better equipped studios in nearby Nashville to record material intended for release and it was never intended that Step by Step would be released with the low level of sound quality particularly when the label owner had other songs in mind for them. But teenage girls being the breed they are, and having heard themselves on a recording for the first time they were insistent it was released straight away. Fearing the group would split up before any other material could be recorded, or worse go to another label the 45 was released as was, hence the poor sound quality on all the copies. Ironically it was the Poodles one and only release and went nowhere, not helped of course by the sound. The 'B' side 'I got a good thing' was recorded at a local nightclub with a few students strategically placed around the stage for audience sound effects.

Hope you find this little story of interest

More later about the Paramount Four

Mike B