George G

The two copies pictured at the top (the promo and gold stock) are the originals.The 45s by other artists on SPQR from that time (Swinging Machine and WIld Things) look like those. The Le Grand one looks like its the same vintage as the SPQR. It's a lot rarer than the SPQR, but I still think the SPQR is first. The promo is probably offered for sale less often than the stock but it's not rare. I like the "working for my baby" side more anyway.

I know here in the US we see the Columbia styrene pressings on promo and stock, I think those are original from 1967/8. The stocks are plain gold. I junked this record 30 years ago (maybe at an Ohio flea market) and turned on a fair number of people who were into garage and rock onto this. I think the backing band were a local garage band, the Swinging Machine who have a 45 of their own on SPQR that looks like the original LG 45s I cited.

I lived there for 6 years. I prefer Russ Ballard, the guitarist/singer in the band Argent

FYI here is one of the garage 45 on Vibra. I got an unplayed copy 29 years ago. https://collectorsfrenzy.com/Details.aspx?id=130649171070

Pay-To-Play is a term I made up years ago to describe record labels that artists paid to have their recordings pressed, distributed, and promoted. In many cases it was not a very wise investment. The most egregious example of this is the AMG/Pilot Master operation from Cincinnati. Back to Vibra - I presume Robert Barry was a studio employee or hired gun freelancer that produced at will. His name being on one sought after 45 doesn't mean it has any collector appeal beyond people wanting that record. Hundreds of records/labels is probably a bit high. Including the Pushers, I can probably think of 15-20 records that are connected to Vibra or Kama, but I don't know how many the song-poem business released. Do you know famed mastering engineer / Sundazed owner Bob Irwin? He lived in that area (I met him 20+ years ago at an Albany record show) and might know more about the Vibra operation

I'm curious about this as well. Leaving aside that it's boring, it was mastered by Tom Boddie in Cleveland but pressed at ARP in Detroit (good move not getting pressed by Boddie!) I know a LOT about bands from that area (they are clearly white greasers) but have never come across this band name. The a side is an instrumental version of "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood". I do have the record. I dunno where I got it. The number 42968 is almost certainly the recording/mastering date (April 29 1968, we use m/d/y in the US). This date coding was commonly done by Akron Recording but the quality of the recording is not up to their standards.

What are you seeking here? I have the Essentials 45, haven't played it in a long time but I remember it's 60s pop with some soul influence. The Pushers looks interesting, I don't recall hearing that one. There are other records on Vibra, garage, country, some of them are rare and in demand. I don't know if Robert Barry was involved in any of these records. I think the operation was a vanity/package plan deal and Vibra was the standard house label. Kama was a record label that produced vanity stuff as well, they also did some Pay-To-Play / Song-Poem records along with some more standard releases. I think they were out of Schenectady also. Are you looking to sell? Price information? The Jimmy Lane 45 is a recent quantity find, that accounts for the price drop. I dunno how many as I am not a cool funk beard rockin' dude that's in the circle.

Bob, the Rotations sale was some years ago. Whatever it goes for now, that was posted earlier. I've seen the Dee Os 45 you mention but I don't have it. Interesting that it's a different recording. I don't think I even listened to the copy I saw! The DeBrossard (the correct label name) 45 was recorded at Motion Picture Sound, a defunct (but the building is still standing, a rare thing in that part of Cleveland) Cleveland studio that recorded mainly film music! I have an ad for the 7th House opening for Aretha Franklin, I think. For some reason I thought they have common members with the Donations aka World War III on Dee Os Weird you mention the 4th Generation, I just got that about 6 weeks ago. Before that I only knew about it through word of mouth - maybe it was you who told me about it!

This was the most successful, and common, record on the label (and the best musically), the one without the piano is probably a second press done shortly after the first one. There was a significant quantity of M- copies of the piano logo around about 10 or so years ago. I assumed they came from the infamous Cleveland 'leaky garage' but I don't know for sure. I found a beat one years ago that I had forgot about and bought one of the M- ones for $75-$100.

Jackie Ross - Selfish One......reused by Leon Haywood (It's Got To Be Mellow), the Explosive Dynamiks, and Purple Mundi. Is there an earlier version of this? More examples of the same intro?

Greg, I've been playing this in Seattle since I started to DJ 6 years ago and it's always a winnner.....definitely has the right sound for OUR scene!

More than 20 years ago I looked at a warehouse load that had a bunch of the Dawn 45. The same load had tons of Toddlin' Town and other Chicago area labels. I think it had been picked for the rare Northern stuff (there was a load of TT label on the market in the early-mid 1980s) but there was still lot of certain titles like Pearl Woods. I presume most of the Dawn 45s in circulation came out of that stash.

Buy this or ZIP IT! https://www.ebay.com/itm/Sean-Morton-Downey-Jr-I-Believe-America-STAX-vinyLP-/120201921720 Don't take it into any bathrooms, though, you might be assaulted by neo-Nazis. He was a DJ on a lot of stations. He's credited on a Miami garage 45 by the "HM Subjects" (actually a band called the Montells)

John, here's a copy so you can compare the cover, etc. It's not worth $40 though, you can find it for under $5 here. If I had one I would be glad to send it over the pond to you. I've found the UK Transatlantic issue of 2QD here in the US. https://www.ebay.com/itm/SKIN-ALLEY-Skin-Tight-1973-UK-PROG-LP-USA-PRESS-MINT-/160706788947?pt=Music_on_Vinyl&hash=item256adefe53

Lena Zavaroni got a big push in the US. I seem to remember her making the talk and variety show rounds. The LP was stinking up the cutout bins for years. Skin Alley had two LPs on Stax (their first two LPs were not released in the US). The first (and better) one "Two Quid Deal" again was heavily distributed. The second one must have been a last gasp as it is much harder to find, although there is no demand for it. They sounded like they were aiming more at the US audience.

I started listening to soul music in late 1968, I remember hearing stuff like Barbara Acklin - Am I the same girl (and "Soulful Strut" a lot more), Vanguards - the thought of losing your love, Dells - There Is and others from that time. I remember hearing "25 Miles" for weeks, it's my pick for the best uptempo soul recording of all time. I was 8 years old at the time. I really liked the early Philly stuff like the Delfonics and Moments, and the Five Stairsteps, but it wasn't until I heard the Chi-Lites (all this would have been around 1970 into 1971) that I was able to appreciate the incredible artistry - same with Al Green and the best of the hitmakers of the era. I lost interest in soul music when the disco era kicked in. It took me about 10 years to come back around to it and start to re-appreciate the stuff. I don't think you need to hear 1000s of obscure records to appreciate soul music, but hearing a wide range of the artists from the biggest to the most obscure does help. Most of my 'peers' have a different perspective as they were too young to hear the stuff in real time as it evolved, their take on records like "Across 110th Street" is different than mine, to them it's some 'rare groove' 'blaxploitation essential', to me it's just an above average radio oldie. It took me a couple years to 'get' Northern Soul, I remember buying a couple Goldmine/Soul Supply comps in a Boston record store (yes, as your jaws drop with the realization that vintage NS comps on LP were sold in US record stores, I am proof that it happened...) back in the late 1980s, that really changed my perspective for NS. I think like anything else it's best to listen to a wide variety of stuff over a period of several years to let things settle in and have time for them to grow. Having listened to a lot of the music in 'real time' evolution I was able to develop my own tastes without having to swim though a tidal wave of MP3s. I'm personally glad I did although it would be nice to be 10-15 years younger right now.

The label was repro'ed from an original copy with the wear and the stamp. It was not 'aged' to make it look old. From memory (I need to look at my original copy at home, which was mint unplayed when I got it) this looks almost the same with some type variation and label tint difference. I'm guessing that all the repro'ed 45s in this set are gonna be pretty much look alikes so people will have to be on the alert to make the distinction. This is no different than the recent run of garage and rockabilly repros. Garage collectors have been discussing this issue for a while and we all agree than in 10 or so years when tribal knowledge is fading that collecting these will be a minefield. That is assuming that the original pressings are still worth anything.....

If you think eBay prices are relevant, $141. I love the crude label with the photo, it's more interesting than the music. https://www.ebay.com/itm/NORTHERN-SOUL-JOHNNY-ROSS-The-SOUL-EXPLOSIONS-Sore-Loser-CHIRRUP-/120931665208?pt=Music_on_Vinyl&hash=item1c2816c538

How about this? https://www.ebay.com/itm/J-T-PARKER-ACADEMY-116-IF-YOU-WANT-TO-HOLD-ON-ITS-TOO-LATE-RARE-LISTEN-/360465693433?pt=Music_on_Vinyl&hash=item53ed6dfaf9

As I am not part of the UK Northern Soul scene/heritage, I always wondered if "Pretty Boy" by Dora Hall and records by Anita Bryant and Patti Page were actually played in the clubs and how they are connected to NS. I started seeing NS want lists in the mid 1980s and DH was always the top record that made me and others of my peers scratch our heads. I don't know if this really fits the subject but can someone explain how these records fit the NS scene, if they really did or are they just a 'wind-up'?

I have a Reverbs acetate, I don't remember the song titles but both sides are good garage. It has a Gateway label. I also have a copy of an old newspaper article about them. As I said, they were a garage band with little/no soul influence. They were pretty well known in the area.

The Bell Boys members in the pic should be Pat Sferro (guitar) Vic Rangel (bass) Joe Merando (drums) Sam Marcitulio (guitar) Joe Rock (lead vocals). The horn players were from the Dana School of Music which was part of Youngstown State university. I don't have their names handy. The guys in the Three Rivers Blues Band were Larry Paxton (guitar) Dave Freeland (drums) Pat Leone (guitar) George Magura (keys?) and others....according to Larry the band had nine members with horns, there were several personnel changes as Larry and Dave left to join a Youngstown based band, Brainchild. Dave is on the Buddah 45, he has a writing credit. Leone is credited on the Lion 45. The members were from all over, but they were booked out of Pittsburgh and the 3 Rivers is a Pittsburgh reference. Dave was from Conneaut. The Jaggerz played the same clubs as the Bell Boys. The Gazebo, and the Sunken Bar at Geneva-On-The-Lake as well as others. Their 1st 45 (as the Jaggers) was recorded and pressed in Cleveland (it's garage, not soul). "The Rapper" song is really not indicative of what they sounded like. I still like the song even though it's pretty stupid (I was 9 when it came out in the spring of 1970). It is true that they were the biggest band of their kind in the Pittsburgh/Youngstown/GOTL triangle. All these bands were part of the same scene, it's likely that a couple people moved between bands, but they were distinct groups with their own sounds. The Insights, Shaddows, and Hi-Guys (recording as the Loading Zone on Columbia) were the competition, along with other unrecorded bands like the Ovations and Soulsations.

Bob, The Bell Boys were started by guys from Aliquippa and New Castle (yes, two words). PA. Later they added members from Youngstown, OH and played mostly in Y'town and Geneva-On-The-Lake, OH (summers). The bass player, Vic Rangle (sic?) made a 45 as 'Rangle' on in the early 70s. The Three Rivers Blues Band were a different operation. I can't recall all the details but I think they were based out of Conneaut, PA which is on a lake that straddles the OH/PA border. The 3RBB guitarist, Larry Paxton, was from Youngstown. They made two 45s, one on Lion and a more successful 45 on Buddah. Neither of which are soul records buy I guess the Lion 45 could be played as a 'mod' sound. You forgot to mention the Hi-Fidelics (sp?) who had a funk 45 that goes for a lot of money when offered, not that it's worth it. weird place to be talking about this but I think that it's good to correct Manship's erroneous information. The Bell Boys 45 was recorded at Akron recording and got airplay and probably sold a thousand if not more copies. They appeared on the Upbeat show in the summer of '68 performing IDWTLYN. However, I don't think this footage was not included in the syndicated version of Upbeat so it's apparenty lost (same as the Explosive Dynamiks and other regional soul or soul related groups)

I forgot that I have this record! It's not promo stamped though.

yes, although it was not directly related to a record search. dried blood also (indeterminant species). Ask people who have done storage salvage...fun! There should a be a 'auto bingo' like game for record digging.....see how many of these you encounter: cat urine spiders mouse/rat leavings smoke/fire damage crusty (food) gunk crazy guy who wants to show you porn crazy guy political/conspiracy rants crazy guy racist/anti-Semitic rants etc...