Robbk

I've seen the Jean Shy on Chief several times, but I NEVER saw a record by her on Starville. I doubt that one was released as a regular issue with a decent sized press run. Jean being a member of a duet rings a bell.

Thanks for that research. So, now we're back to square one. We have no idea where the recording was found. Maybe it WAS some kind of re-working of a studio group's budget LP early '60s recording? Maybe it actually WAS Sandy Phillips and The Topovers' Masterseal version?

THIS sounds like the best answer. Crown Records was Modern Records' catch-all, multi-genre 45RPM label from 1952-1956, for records they didn't know how to market, or know what to do with (like VIP was for Motown). In 1957, they used it as a budget LP label for cover records of recent hits recorded by unknown in-house artists given false individual and group names, and for repackaging their own R&B and Jazz oldies, and picking up non-hit-failed Pop, MOR and ethnic music, and repackaging it. Modern's Crown LPs lasted well into the early 1960s. Ray Charles' "Unchain My Heart" was released in Fall 1961. So that Crown LP that contained the Sandy Phillips and The Topovers' cut (not the older Crown label shown on the video, but the later, gray label, without the Crown illustration (only text), could have been released in November or December 1961, or early 1962. My guess of 1964-66 probably happened because of its later processing. The sound on the Crown video above sounds earlier, and 1961-62 matches it perfectly.

Clearly, Remington's new budget LP operation started in Detroit, used a Canadian pressing plant, probably in Windsor (but certainly, somewhere in the nearby portion of Ontario (London, or Toronto Metro Area) to master and press their recordings (and, perhaps, they even used a recording studio there, as well). That sounds reasonable, and explains the old sound of the instrumentation and recording acoustics.

Yes!!! I forgot about James Hunter! When I first heard a few of his cuts, I thought they were Detroit cuts from 1966.

If this is true that it's a 2010 recording, they did a hell of a job making the instrumentation sound "old". It sounds like it was recorded in 1965 or 1966. I can't remember ever hearing ANY songs recorded after 1976, or maybe one in 1977, in which the instrumentation sound WAYYYYY too modern for my taste, and my HATING the sound. However, on this recording, the instrumental has none of those modern elements that I dislike. I can't imagine how that is possible, IF this was a 2010 recording. Why can't I think of even ONE example of a post 1976 song that meets that standard???

So, you think it is NOT Sandy Phillips and The Topovers with Don Raleigh's Orchestra, recorded at the end of the 1950s, or in the early 1960s in a Canadian studio for Masterseal/Buckingham Records, but, rather, a 2010 retro-nostalgic recording? To me, the video above, said to be Sandy Phillips(purported to have been slowed down), sounds EXACTLY the same as the sample of The Green Apples' version, supposed NOT to have been slowed down. This makes no sense to me. I wish Discogs had an audio file of The Sandy Phillips version.

I am well known in Nederland (at least by Disney Comics fans) as a Disney artist and writer, and I draw drawings and sign autographs there. I've placed a pencil drawing of mine and mijne Keerstkaartje below for your viewing pleasure. Also, I'm not quite a foreigner, because my family comes from Den Haag. In fact, my great aunt was the model who posed for the famous "De Visservrouw" (statue of the fisherman's wife) op de strand in Scheveningen.

I was making a joke. But you now see why although I write comedy stories (voor nederlandse Donald Duck Weekblad), I am not a World-Famous comedy writer!

So Sandy Phillips was a fellow Canuck, singing for one of Canada's top budget labels (The equivalent of USA's Tops Records). And he was the male band singer for Don Raleigh's orchestra. I didn't know that Old "Bones" moonlighted as a band leader. Don Raleigh was the centre for our Winnipeg Jr. A ice hockey team the year before I was born. He played for The New York Rangers for 9 years. He retired from professional hockey in 1958, so I guess he could have been a bandleader in 1964. Actually, Sandy did a pretty good job on "Unchain My Heart" - a LOT better than Hugh Laurie, anyway.

I listened to "Junkers' Blues". It's awful. He slowed it down from a raucous 1940 Boogie Woogie tune, to a 1920's Big City Blues tune, with a vocal that sounds like a White hick from Idaho trying to sing The Blues. I know there is a long tradition of remaking songs in very different music genres, but this is very disappointing, because he's one of my favourite comedic actors.

Thanks for uploading this. It's pretty disappointing, considering how well he's done at mimicking the American accent in his acting career, and what a great actor he is (both serious and comedic). The instrumentation is very good (but way too modern for me). But his vocal is weak. Not very good to my taste. And he's recorded one of my all-time favourite Blues songs, "Junkers' Blues", by Champion Jack Dupree (who I saw appear in a club in Oldenburg in 1990 (where he resided for many years) (when I lived in Bremen). I'd be afraid to listen to THAT.

Hugh Bloody Laurie!!!! Sang THAT song! Next, you'll tell me that Eric Idle sang it in "The Spanish Inquisition Sketch"! Did he record a Soul LP! "Hugh Laurie sings R&B Favourites"!

I bought Ray Charles' version new, when it first came out. It's just about my favourite Ray Charles song. Sorry, my English is not so good anymore. What I should have said was "I haven't heard THIS VERSION before."

Very nice! I've never heard of him nor the record, nor have i heard the song before this. Never seen that name. Very interesting. Must be from 1965 or '66. i would guess. Was it taken of a studio demo?

Panama probably doesn't have a gigantic local record industry. Perhaps Motown Panama is one of the largest distributors in that market, and they just picked up the distribution rights for that record, as whoever distributed Brunswick, at the time of that release, didn't think the potential oldies sales from it were worth paying for those rights; whereas Motown Panama wanted to expand their general oldies sales, and thought getting those two prestigious Soul oldies would help put their oldies series on the map, and also, they could promote it enough to warrant their paying for its rights? To answer this question, one would have to know a lot about Panama's record industry's market conditions at the time of that release. Chances are that it was Universal Records who distributed Brunswick. So, it is very possible that that release occurred during the period that Universal has distributed Motown. Based on that better likelihood, it may well be that Universal's major Soul oldies label at the time of that release was Motown. Although there is no special oldies label text designation on that label, it may be a special Motown series dedicated only to Soul oldies releases. The catalogue number series might provide a clue to answer that question. I'd be willing to bet that either the "P" series of that catalogue number is NOT Motown of Panama's normal, current records series, OR the starting numbers "1900" series is different from their normal, current release series (e.g. a designation representing their "Oldies Series").

I believe that when Johnny Pate was hired to run ABC's production office in Chicago in 1966, his agreement with ABC was that his publishing company, Yvonne Music, would split the publishing rights to all the cuts he'd produce which were newly written by himself or his staff, or the artists who would sing them with ABC's PamCo Music, which was wholly owned by ABC, after their split with Paramount. Of course, songs that were written previously but agreed upon by Pate and the artists (and their managers) would keep their own original publishing rights. I don't remember any ABC records produced by Pate that had PamCo sharing rights with the original writer's publishing company (without Yvonne's participation).

Pamco was short for Paramount Co. and was one of the main 1960s in-house publishers of ABC Records, Yvonne was likely Johnny Pate's publishing company. I have only seen "Pamco/Yvonne" as the publishers listed on different pressings of that record. To what variations of publisher listing names are you referring? Were they only on WDJ pressings, which you think may have been earlier - BEFORE ABC-Paramount leased the record???? And they had only Yvonne, or a completely different publisher listed?

No! Williams left Fortune in early-to-mid 1961, when he started with Motown. Sport started in 1967.

Andre Williams was a producer at Sport Records. Maybe that listing came from an acetate commissioned by producer, Andre Williams, and it was the instrumental for Johnny Soul's version? Williams did talk through his "Pearl Time" chart record on Sport 105 in summer 1967. And they could possibly have planned for a follow-up to it. It was a Midwest regional hit. But I doubt that Sport ever released a commercial 45 of Williams version, as I never even saw a WDJ issue of it. But, maybe it was recorded as an instrumental backing intended for a follow-up release to "Pearl Time", as they often recorded 4 cuts, to cover the optional 2nd release. The 2nd release probably wasn't cancelled because of poor sales of "Pearl Time" , because that sold fairly well. But I doubt there was ever a commercial release of an Andre Williams version. Maybe the instrumental originally made for Williams' version was given to Johnny Soul to record, after a disagreement between Sport's owners and Williams over the proceeds from "Pearl Time"? Interesting that Johnny Soul's version was a Mike Hanks joint venture production with the Sport people, and Andrew Harris produced it. And it was co-written by Mike Hanks and Emanuel Lasky.

Yes, I doubt that he was the Decca artist. He'd have to have been born before 1905-1910. He didn't become a band leader at 2 years old! The Caravan record is quite a bit too early for him, as well. The name rings a bell with me, other than the ABC 45. But, I don't remember that name as a member of a Chicago Soul group.

Yes, I am curious, too. It is strange that such a good singer only had so few recordings, and working with such a prestigious producer/arranger as Johnny Pate. And I don't remember him appearing at venues in Chicago in the mid-to-late 1960s.

It's a shame that Bob Abrahamian (may he rest in peace) never had the opportunity to interview any member of The Vontastics, for whatever reason. He interviewed almost all the Chicago Soul creators of their time.

I don't hear ENOUGH similarity between the two voices to think the odds are decent that Earl Jackson was a Vontastic under a different name. I think it is possible, but not very likely.

Yes. sad to hear this. He was very nice to me, back in 1980, making up a special big batch of Specialty hard card stock company sleeves for me. But, he lived a long life to 104. Condolences to his family.