I have just played a wonderful disc 1 of Honey Cone music the complete hot wax recordings and couldn't believe how good they sounded and much loved a lot of the songs.

While Your Out Looking For Sugar is so good i have the vinyl and deserves more play out.

Shame they wasn't as popular here as America.

  WPaulVanDyk said:

I have just played a wonderful disc 1 of Honey Cone music the complete hot wax recordings and couldn't believe how good they sounded and much loved a lot of the songs.

While Your Out Looking For Sugar is so good i have the vinyl and deserves more play out.

Shame they wasn't as popular here as America.

Possibly because , despite being an good vocal group , they did not offer the mainstream UK punter anything " different " ......

A fine example of their work - to these ears - is " When Will It End " / " Take Me With You " ( US Hot Wax # 7005 released in 1970 ) , which should be on your compilation .

Malc Burton

I always rated Honey Cone/The Honey Cone (Wish they'd make up their minds...) and I bought the first 'Best of' CD that I came across which only served to show me how much great stuff they did and sent me off in search of their albums. Originally I searched for CDs for the 'bonus tracks' that they always shove on these things to get us to duplicate our vinyl, then I started hunting out the real thing, and then I figured 'Why not wait until someone releases a 'complete' of their material?' Then I noticed how much other great stuff there was on the other HDH group releases...

Now I think I'll wait for Ace/Kent to release the complete HDH box set.

I so hate to think I'm missing anything.

  WPaulVanDyk said:

I have just played a wonderful disc 1 of Honey Cone music the complete hot wax recordings and couldn't believe how good they sounded and much loved a lot of the songs.

While Your Out Looking For Sugar is so good i have the vinyl and deserves more play out.

Shame they wasn't as popular here as America.

HDH should be a whole thread devoted to the post Motown work of these guys. It formed the bridge between classic Motown and Philly and Disco.

Ive always loved that synth/organ sound and Im still hearing stuff new to my ears (just love that "Lets Change the Subject " by Satisfaction Unlimited.

Could there be a vault of unreleased material? Or was it all destroyed?

Would it have been a different story if the guys had left Motown more amicablly

Honey Cone's If I Can Fly is one of my favourite Modern Soul records. Only heard it out once (played by my good self, lol).

I have (together with a number of other artistes from HDH's Hot Wax / Invictus / Music Merchat stable) a number of Honey Cone's QC test pressing records.

As well as released stuff there are a couple of unreleased tracks like Taster Of the Honey and slightly different mixes of released tracks (inc I Can Fly).

Vocally a very good group.

Phil

  Geoff said:

Honey Cone's If I Can Fly is one of my favourite Modern Soul records. Only heard it out once (played by my good self, lol).

I really like "If I Can't Fly" too. It should have got some spins around early 1975 ideally. "Somebody's Always Messing Up A Good Thing" is another goodie from 1976, more in the vein of the Emotions Columbia sides.

I believe that "While You're Out Looking For Sugar" was played on the emergent Northern scene on import - and at least once by Tony Blackburn on Radio One C. early 1971!

Don't forget that Edna Wright recorded the immortal classic "A Touch Of Venus" under the pseudonym of Sandy Wynns also!

  phild said:

I have (together with a number of other artistes from HDH's Hot Wax / Invictus / Music Merchat stable) a number of Honey Cone's QC test pressing records.

As well as released stuff there are a couple of unreleased tracks like Taster Of the Honey and slightly different mixes of released tracks (inc I Can Fly).

Vocally a very good group.

Phil

I take it that "Taster Of The Honey" is the same song as the Jones Girls on Music Merchant? I understand that version was also only pressed on demo copies. Not a lucky song then!

The track i realy like and needs playing out "It's Better To Have Loved And Lost" Hot Wax 7205 what a fantastic track for very little money

Steve J

  mel brat said:

I believe that "While You're Out Looking For Sugar" was played on the emergent Northern scene on import - and at least once by Tony Blackburn on Radio One C. early 1971!

Certainly was played in those early days, youth club favourite along with Flaming Embers "Westbound N0.9" and the Invictus stuff. Of course, this was before the import scene really started, so us mobile jocks fell hungrily on anything readily available!

  Jerry Hipkiss said:

Certainly was played in those early days, youth club favourite along with Flaming Embers "Westbound N0.9" and the Invictus stuff. Of course, this was before the import scene really started, so us mobile jocks fell hungrily on anything readily available!

Did you always play soul in the early days when starting out?

P

Edited February 10, 200916 yr by paup-ine

  paup-ine said:

Did you always play soul in the early days when starting out?

P

No, our mobile disco had a gang of us, all into various stuff from soul to rock, we had a residency at a youth club and played pop and current soul, and as the soul buzz started to grow (it was a very "in crowd" thing) we played more and more. In fact quite a few from that club are still around on the scene! Same in the early disco/club days, it was slotted in with funky stuff and pop.

  SteveJohnston said:

The track i realy like and needs playing out "It's Better To Have Loved And Lost" Hot Wax 7205 what a fantastic track for very little money

Steve J

I agree a brilliant track. I also like Don't Count Your Chickens Before They Hatch.

Suz

x

  WPaulVanDyk said:

I have just played a wonderful disc 1 of Honey Cone music the complete hot wax recordings and couldn't believe how good they sounded and much loved a lot of the songs.

While Your Out Looking For Sugar is so good i have the vinyl and deserves more play out.

Shame they wasn't as popular here as America.

Their "The day I Day I Found Myself " from 1972 is an uplifting slice of pop soul. Edna Wright's smooth vocal style is certainly deserving of more plaudits. Her solo career was impressive also.

Edited February 10, 200916 yr by Richard Bergman

  Jerry Hipkiss said:

Certainly was played in those early days, youth club favourite along with Flaming Embers "Westbound N0.9" and the Invictus stuff. Of course, this was before the import scene really started, so us mobile jocks fell hungrily on anything readily available!

Spot on Jerry... in fact there was a trio of UK Hot wax releases that were always played out when new - "While You're Out Looking For Sugar" "Westbound No. 9" and "Somebody's Been Sleeping" by 100 Proof (Aged In Soul).

Top tunes!

Sean