Roburt

Back in 1967/68, every local (& most national hit) soul acts filled there live shows with 'covers'. If a new act had a hit 45, they would be rushed into the studio to cut a 'quick album' and many songs included on the album would be covers of songs they were performing live at the time. ............. JUST ABOUT EVERY ACT that played the Wheel in 1967/ 1968 would perform "Knock On Wood" for instance. Lots of soul singers (solo & groups) have told me what songs they used to include in their acts back in those days and the likes of "Open The Door", Motown stuff from the Temptations, 4 Tops & Miracles, JB stuff, Stax & Atlantic stuff, J & B Purify songs, "Knock On Wood" and the like get regular mentions. ANYWAY, many local US TV stations had black music shows & I'm guessing that around Sept / Oct / Nov 67 lots of acts on those shows would have done live versions of "Higher & Higher". Unfortunately none of those clips seem to have survived down the years.

The Jackie Wilson version of "Higher & Higher" was developed from the Chess / Dells recorded 'original song'. Carl Smith was pissed off that even though he had given Chess Records good service for some time, they wouldn't help him out with his medical bills when he fell ill in 67. So he 'jumped ship' and went across to Brunswick taking the 'almost finished' song with him. The Dells cut their version of the original song for Chess and it went onto the group's next LP. Across at Brunswick, the team there took the song Carl Smith had fetched with him, developed it to suit JW and cut Jackie on it. It was released on 45 & became an instant big hit. Coz the JW version was in the charts, the Dells take on the song just remained an album track. Seems litigation was soon instigated & (I believe) the credited writers of the song (on JW's version) had to be amended. Carl Smith wasn't too well liked afterwards and soon headed off to Memphis to get a (short-lived) position at Stax. AT LEAST THAT'S THE VERSION OF THE STORY I GOT FROM CARL back in the 80's when he was running his own Anita Record label out of Memphis. Other versions of the story exist, one being that a copy of the part finished song was found written on waste paper picked from a Chess Records dustbin & it being 'lifted' and taken to the guys at Brunswick. But all the versions acknowledge that the song was initially developed over at Chess Records.

Lots of new local US TV stations started up from the mid through to the end of the 50's. Lots of them operated on a shoe-string to start with and as music shows were cheap to put on & quite easy to film, many had their own locally based show. In Baltimore in 1959, Channel 13 (WJZ) had it's own 'music talent show'. This featured a local MC, a local singing star (Sonny Til of the Orioles), local bands, visiting stars (acts booked on a week long stint at the Royal Theatre such as LaVern Baker) and local amateurs. See ad for the show below ........

Unfortunately, US TV channel soul music show footage was not deemed 'important' back in the 60's. Most local 'black' TV stations + many 'white audience' channels featured music shows that featured soul acts performing live or lip syncing back then. Lots of the 'black' channels were local and owned by blacks but many were taken over by bigger concerns when they had an established audience. The new management usually changed to a 'new programme' schedule and junked all the 'old show' tapes. BUT even some 'so-called' big networked show footage was junked as it wasn't deemed to have an 'extended shelf life'. For instance, a show that ran for quite a while on networked channels was 'Alan Ludden's Gallery' which was shot in the LA area. This was a talk show that featured actors, singers & the like. The singers would perform live after being interviewed . Here's a snap-shot of acts on that show over a month long period .... September 12th 1969 Hosted by Allen Ludden, guests are singer Angeline Butler September 11th 1969 Hosted by Allen Ludden, guests are singer Lenny Welch September 5th 1969 Hosted by Allen Ludden, guests are singer Nancy Ames September 4th 1969 Hosted by Allen Ludden, guests are singer Thelma Houston August 28th 1969 Hosted by Allen Ludden guests are singer Johnny Mathis & the Danny Cox Trio August 25th 1969 Hosted by Allen Ludden, guests are singer-actress Sharon Cash with the Back Porch Majority. August 21th 1969 Hosted by Allen Ludden, guests are singer Gerri Granger August 20th 1969 Hosted by Allen Ludden, guests are singer Angeline Butler August 19th 1969 Hosted by Allen Ludden, guests are singer Gerri Granger August 15th 1969 Hosted by Allen Ludden, guests are singer Joe Williams August 14th 1969 Hosted by Allen Ludden, guests are singer Jackie DeShannon August 13th 1969 Hosted by Allen Ludden, guests are actor / singer Della Reese H B Barnum & Band were on the shows No footage at all from the show seems to have survived. A local show that was screened in the Baltimore area from around 1967 to 1969 was the 'Kerby Scott Show'. This was initially a 60 minute show but when it proved popular with local black & white teenagers (suprise, suprise) the station upped it to 90 minutes duration. The show featured both local live acts and big named artists (including any Motown acts visiting the city) ........

Released on the Certain label in the UK.

Well I'm not a fan of loads of tracks that got played at the Casino ... BUT ... the track that's posted up on post #3 of this thread I do like. A bit fast for these old creakin legs of mine but it is one I would happily listen to in a venue & at home.

Chaly's started a 2nd thread now RE: the above !! COMMENT FROM ABOVE STILL APPLIES ................. Been in touch with the current license holder in the US & he's quite happy to grant the rights for "You Belong To Me" & any 2nd Earl Gains track for release on 45 if anyone here's interested.

Pete, you're thinkin about this recent thread about another of his HBR tracks "You Belong To Me" ..... ..... Seems that a UK released 45 containing "You Belong To Me" & the alt version of "It's Worth Anything" would find a few eager buyers !!! The tracks are available for licensing from US guy !!!

An old piece I wrote about Cody ............. Cody Black must have a very agreeable personality as many of his associations which started out being business related have blossomed into long lasting friendships, no mean feat in a recording industry where rip-offs were an everyday occurrence. He grew up in Cincinnati only a stones throw from the King Record’s headquarters / studio. As a result of this, he got to know King’s owner Sid Nathan at an early age and their friendship would prove to be useful many years later. He cut his first record, “Come To Me (Girl) / Stranger Than A Fairy Tale”, while still in Cincinnati and it was released there on the Pamela label around 1961. I believe he also had a 2nd 45 released whilst in Cincinnati but not too much later he took the decision to relocate to Detroit. This almost instantly proved to be a good decision as he hooked up with Mike Hanks and recorded the Rudy Robinson / Mike Hanks written song “These Chains of Love”. This was released on D-Town Records in 1964 (the song would later be cut by J J Barnes). A year later Cody enjoyed his second release on the label when “Mr. Blue” was released. The 45 didn’t really sell that well at the time but subsequently it has become a much sought after single with soul collectors around the world. “Too Many Irons In the Fire” came next and once again Mike Hanks and Rudy Robinson were heavily involved with it’s recording. Whilst at the label, Cody also schooled some of the other acts, the Precisions being amongst these. Cody’s follow up was allocated a release under the Wheelsville logo, “”I Will Give You Love” being another Mike Hanks effort and by this time Cody and Mike had forged a strong friendship. Later that year (1966) Cody moved across to yet another new record label, having “It’s Our Time To Fall In Love” released on G.I.G. Once again this 45 has become a highly prized collectors item and changes hands for up to £1500 a copy. Another label change came in 1967 when in conjunction with his friends Rudy Robinson and Grant Burton, Cody wrote and produced both sides of a single released on Groove City, “Because You First Loved Me / The Night A Star Was Born”. The established pattern wasn’t broken by his next release, “Going, Going, Gone” escaping on Ram Brock in late 67 / early 1968. 1968 was to prove to be a busy year for Cody, a song called “I’m Slowly Moulding” had already been cut on another artist but its producers weren’t happy with the vocalist’s efforts. They asked Cody to give the song a run through and he quickly nailed it. A label had to be found who would issue the track and so Cody made use of his old friendship with King’s Sid Nathan and an approach was made to that organisation. King took up the offer and the track was soon made available to the record buying public. The Ram Brock label decided to try again, as it reissued Cody’s old cut “The Nite A Star Was Born”, this time coupling it with “Life Goes On”. A 3rd Ram Brock 45 made it into the shops in August 1968, with the release of “Love Like I Never Had”, again written and produced by the Black / Robinson / Burton (BRB) team. By the late 60’s Cody’s writing had become accomplished enough for Mike Hank’s to use a couple of their joint compositions on other artists. The Magictones recorded “Together We Shall Overcome” for Mahs and Toby Lark cut “Lots of Hearts” for USD. Cody was by now quite an established figure on the Detroit recording scene and his status helped him gain many bookings as the opening act on live shows by big stars (Gladys Knight & the Pips, etc.). This action must have raised his profile sufficiently to interest Ted White (Aretha Franklin’s husband). He had just started his own label, Ston-roc and Cody was signed to it. A single was released in 1969, “I Still Love You / Ice Cream Song”. Unfortunately it again failed to chart although “Ice Cream Song” would become a hit in March 69 for another Detroit recording outfit, the Dynamics. Releases on Ston-roc must have created some sort of attention though as Capitol Records signed the company to a national distribution deal. Two 45’s by Cody were issued on Capitol under the deal, “I’m Sorry” (written by Tony Johnson of the duo, Tony & Tyrone) in mid 1970 and “Ain’t No Love Like Your Love”. Cody then took a short break from the recording scene but bounced back by starting his own label in 1977. He formed Renissance Records and put out “Keep On Trying / Steppin On Toes” that year. By now, Cody was so steeped in and accomplished at the tasks associated with song writing, producing and singing that he handled all these duties himself. The following year the label issued a 2nd single, “What Goes Around”. This was to prove to be Cody’s last release as although he continued to record right through to the mid 80’s, none of his later efforts were to escape from the tape vaults. Today, over 40 years after he first started recording, Cody still has a very good reputation as a live performer and his old recordings are regularly included on compilation CD’s of in-demand old soul classics.

My near neighbour Alan Lane set up a web site that I'm sure linked soul track info to footage of the acts performing their tracks on (mainly) US TV shows. Alan & his missus used to run Beat Street Records (Abingdon) but have mothballed the biz after having lots of his 'best stuff' go 'walkabout'. He downloaded 100's of youtube clips to his hard drives & I used to watch the best of em when I went round to his house. His web site address was ................. https://www.beatst.com/SoulCalculus/ ....... but it seems to have disappeared. He either has a new web addy or he has let the site lapse.

You obviously deserved the guys respect Pete & so he repaid a favour. Good on 'im !!

More US good label designs > Blue Cat, Red Bird.

Keeping with the Bobby Hebb theme .............. ....... a French EP .........

. AND ..... while we're on Bobby Hebb .............. . here's a Rhodesian released 45 from him (his 60's big hit of course) ....

Well here's a scan of the cover & label of the original Dutch Bobby Hebb 45 released in November 66 .......... .... so the one above has to be the 70's reissue (following the 45's UK popularity & re-release) ....

Gloria (see piccys above) will be performing in Battersea Park this Friday, Saturday & Sunday (during the Foodies Fest) ......... ....... Mayfield perform just on the Sunday ............ SEE HERE FOR DETAILS .......... https://gmmbookingagency.com/foodies_festival/battersea_park

For folk who can't be bothered to plough thru the whole 60 minutes of fine music above ............ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzmGBeQ2lhg

Really really loving this un .......... Margaret Moss & the Three Stars ‘Don’t let it be too late’ (Three Stars) ........ I'm sure I might have heard the tune before though !!

Some clips off of youtube .......... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udMWca_0Icg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGfN0SgJwTw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1oS7vfzr1g

Yep, that Canadian Tamla Motown label certainly is a looker !! BUT still think the US Windy C is my personal fave .........

An LA club gig he undertook ............

An ad for the 45 ............

Never even realised that this 'limited edition' LP existed till I saw this ad ..........

A US trade ad for the 45 ............

More nominations from me ............ US >> Westbound / Eastbound (multi-coloured label), Minaret, SSS Int, Revilot (light blue, red & orange label), Chelsea, Jetstar & maybe Fast Track (that combination of yellow background with light brown horses ain't great though) Brazil >> Som / Maior