Roburt

This guy's been around for the last few years, BUT HIS NEW TRACK has been playlisted on Radio 2 ... I like it a lot ...

John (the writer of the Florida Soul book) has informed folk that Wayne Cochran has passed away. John did a chapter on Wayne in his book. Wayne was a pastor at a Ft Lauderdale church.

My choice would to have been in the Stax studio when Booker T & the guys laid down "Green Onions" .... a throwaway B side at the time, made up & cut quickly on the spot in a few minutes.

I went to the MIAMI BOOK FAIR yesterday & attended the Florida Soul book presentation. Along with the author, the panel consisted of the great Jackie Moore, Timmy Thomas, Willie Clarke, Helene Smith & Marlon Johnson (co-director of Deep City documentary). It was a fun meeting, though not enough people attended it. All the artists present talked about events in their careers (that are discussed in the book). Timmy Thomas did a bit of a new song he's cut and Jackie was so happy I knew "Both Ends Against The Middle", we sang a short duet on it. As well as the book presentations, there are loads of cool stalls selling cheap books, magazines, postcards, prints, posters, etc. ALSO stuff for kids and food lovers (a marquee where chefs were doing presentations, cooking food, etc) and numerous food stalls selling every type of cuisine. There was also a music stage on one of the (closed) streets and I got to see a reggae / funk band perform plus (after dark) a jazzy blues outfit. No idea who they were but both outfits were decent. Pity the artists at the book presentation didn't go up on stage and sing a short set.

More old bits about Felice ....

Ideally the show would have started a few years earlier (to have caught soul's golden years) but it was great for 70's groups & singers (O'Jays, Dells, Dramatics & many more). There were loads of great local (& some national) music shows before it BUT unfortunately (unlike Soul Train) most of that footage has been lost as it wasn't deemed worthy of retention at the time).

The 3 versions from 67/68 of "I Feel Love Coming On" .... Lori Hampton was working with Bob Keene as late as October 68. By then, Felice had enjoyed 2 US 45's on Kent and cut further tracks for the label with Eddie Grant in the UK. The Bunny's from the Playboy Club in London also cut a version, as did Rusty Greenfield (think that was a UK 'Embassy type cheap LP' track originally -- which was then released in Germany) and a French singer also cut a version of the song.

So Julian Covay lives in Oxford & has a studio in his back garden ... I'll have to find out where & call round (being from the area) ...

More bits on US artists & their records getting foreign exposure. Why a record company in racist apartheid ruled South Africa thought Bobby Bland & other Duke records would sell there is beyond me, but they obviously did ... though I believe Percy Sledge's records sold well there & the likes of C L Blast toured there and even recorded there (an LP & 45's that were not released anywhere else). Sam Baker's UK / Euro tour came about a bit by accident as Stax wanted extra Stax acts on that tour (Eddie Floyd & another on this package headed by Sam & Dave with Percy Sledge & Arthur Conley also on it) .... it seems that other Stax acts had existing gigs to honour in the US ... so Sam Baker & Linda Carr ended up on the tour (and both got releases to tie in with the tour).

I'm Gonna Miss You.

Another one I like (& seeing as I'm in Florida, quite appropriate) .....

Lots of stuff that was quite soulful in the middle of the disco era was dismissed at the time (coz the instrumentation sounded too much like stuff getting mainstream disco / radio play. With the passage of time, some sounds have dated whilst others seem fresher now than then . Here's two (one being a slow dancer) I like ... from Marva Hicks ....

A few more bits on foreign record & soul happenings (including Lebanon) ...

Thanks for that. I went to see a show @ the Saville ---- Garnett Mimms & Jimi Hendrix ... though we walked out before Hendrix had finished his act (not to our liking, playin the guitar between his legs, throwing it on the floor & setting fire to it, no really decent songs) .... most Sunday night concerts (when Epstein was running it) would have one or more of the Beatles in attendance (in a private box).

With regard to her upsetting DJ's ..... it's said that when she went on radio stn visits to help promote her Mustang releases, she acted very high-handed, was bad mannered and basically 'upset the DJ's' she had interviews with. So, after she'd left the stn, they refused to play any of her records again .... not something that's gonna please the guys back at your record company. So "I Feel Love Coming On" was never released by Mustang in the US and they allowed her to sign with Kent Records. Her version of the song (a Barry White composition) was produced by Barry White, so he must have been mad to stop one of his own songs being released. The Linda Carr version of the song followed about 6 to 8 months later (in April 68), did escape in the US and both sides of this Ranwood 45 featured Barry White written songs ... although I have no idea if he was actually directly involved with Linda's version, it seems he had some input (hence her cutting 2 of his songs to form her 1st Ranwood 45 -- Ranwood being run by Randy Wood of Mira / Mirwood Records)..

Matt, I mentioned your night in the other recent NY soul thread.

I've been to the building that housed the Esquire, but many years later when it was another club (it's just round the corner from Sheff Midland Stn). It was a bit Ironic, but a Mojo revival night in the 80's was staged there. Stringfellow attended, Geno Washington was the live act & Searling was pencilled in to be the DJ -- but being midweek, he couldn't get over the hills in time, so another Radio Hallam DJ took his place. I was a Mojo goer, Mojo fans rarely attended the Esquire & vice versa. Esquire was a jazz & then blues club that 'ran out of legs' around 1965. The Mojo became the top Sheffield club shortly after opening (which was just after the above piece was written). If an act that Esquire clubbers wanted to see was on at the Mojo AND the Wheel, many would go see them @ the Wheel rather than the Mojo (such was the rivalry).

A few relevent snippets from the 60's music press .... sometimes an act gained a high profile in a 'strange' country coz they went on tour there (doing live shows, visiting radio stns, doing TV shows or meeting the press there). Lots of US soul / latin soul acts would play gigs in Brazil or military bases in other Sth American countries .... In the UK, a new US 45 would just about always get an immediate release here if the act was say Edwin Starr, Inez & Charlie Foxx, Ike & Tina, Ben E King , Oscar Toney Jnr ... coz those acts were always over here doing shows ....

Felice Taylor's solo recording career started with a bang, got her international success & was over in a flash .... By all accounts, she upset US radio DJ's and hence, the management at her US record label and was quickly dumped. But not before, 3 or so of her LA recordings (masterminded by guys like Barry White with help from Frank Wilson and assocs) had hit the bigtime in the UK (and from there, in Europe also). She visited the UK to promote her President 45's, made TV appearances (does video of any still exist ... is the "Winter Outside" video a UK effort ?). She even recorded here, with Eddie Grant being her producer ... but she returned to the States and instantly disappeared off the music scene. A few questions ..... did she make any UK club appearances, singing live ... She spent some weeks over here but I'm sure she didn't play any northern venues. Maybe she did a couple of London clubs, but I have no details of which (if she actually did). Why wasn't I Feel Love Coming On" released in the US ?? Why wasn't a US cut track utilised as the A side of her last UK 45, why get Eddie Grant to produce a poppy cut in a London studio instead ?? I believe that the cut of "I Feel Love" included on the BOSS SOUL CD is different to the UK 45 track, why ?? Who decided to cut Linda Carr on the song & release that version in the US ? ? It seems that she's still around in LA, perhaps a UK promoter could fetch her back over here for a live show or two.

Curtis Mayfield wrote dozens of songs that have been played on the UK soul scene, many being on 45's by other Chicago artists (Gene Chandler, Major Lance, 5 Stairsteps, etc) ... in just about all cases, there is a Impressions LP version of those songs.

There was a very similar thread just a couple of weeks ago. Not too much info was offered on that one though.

I wasn't trying to imply that soul only escaped around the world via EMI's connections ... but if EMI was the UK licensee for a US label, that meant not only did stuff escape here but (many times) in numerous other territories too (Jamaica & Barbados are two others I didn't mention in my earlier post). Of course, many US labels would just license EMI to handle their product here in the UK and they would seek other reps across Europe or in Australia, New Zealand, Sth Africa, Nigeria, Rhodesia, etc. BUT, with many US labels having no directly employed overseas staff, using a company like EMI (which had global reach), was many times their easiest option to get their product out across the world. Berry Gordy was more than happy with EMI's efforts on his label's behalf for over 10 years.

In answer to question above .... there seemed no rhyme or reason why certain cuts escaped in a foreign country or not. If a US track had a UK release via EMI (like stuff from 20th Century Fox in the 60's), this could lead to it being considered for release in numerous Commonwealth & European countries where EMI had a major presence. Similar tracks that EMI had the rights to were even sub-licensed to other UK labels. Record folk here must have thought the Fashions 20th Century 45 (I.O.U.) had legs as it escaped twice in the UK in the 60's -- the 2nd time on indie label Evolution. Other stuff EMI had the rights to here also escaped on labels like Pama. EMI even pressed up 45's here and sent them to foreign branches of the company, where they got an official local release. So, UK Tamla Motown's escaped in the likes of Portugal (in locally printed piccy covers) with other UK EMI 45's being marketed in the likes of Belgium & Holland.

UK Jay Boy 45's were usually lifted off a US copy of the relevant 45 and then Euro released versions taken from the UK copy ... so a fault on the US version was 'spread' across Europe & then into Sth Africa, India, Australia & N Zealand if the single had legs. Guess that means that the US Jay Boy label came first. US 45 version of this was a Nov 68 release, UK one also Nov 68 .... so maybe it was a simultaneous thing (with a US acetate used to source the UK Jay Boy copy). It was played in UK soul clubs from the day it was released here.

John tells me that Timmy Thomas has been added to the panel at this event and will also perform (the Florida Soul event November 19th, 4:30 pm, in the Miami Book Fair). ALSO the great Jackie Moore (who also has a chapter in his book) will also be on the panel and even though she says she is having trouble with her voice, she is considering joining her buddy Timmy and performing as well.. This should be a Big Fun Event, John says that he just has to herd cats ... meaning ... as moderator handle input from all the various panellists -- these now include Willie Clarke, Helene Smith, Marlon Johnson (do-director of Deep City documentary) Timmy and Jackie. HE ADDS THAT ...... everything at the book fair is free PLUS open to public Details: Sunday Nov 19, 4:30 pm Miami Dade College, Wolfson Campus Bldg 7, room 7128 300 NE 2nd Ave Miami Fl 33132 I'm already in Sth Florida & can't wait for the 19th to come around.