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Shades of Blue
R&B; Discussions
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(Posted: 03 Dec 2005 19:59 )
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Wondered if any of you guys and gals out there had an unsung blues or soul hero/heroine?
I've always had a soft spot for Percy Sledge - like most others I first came across him when 'When A Man Loves A Woman' was released and always thought he was unjustly remembered mainly for only that one record.
Although he did have a number of other R&B hits, that track is all you ever tend to hear on the radio. But a cursory listen to any of his "Best Of" compilations will offer up some of the best country-soul and southern soul to be heard anywhere. Some of the 'softer' sides are particularly fine, especially 'Sudden Stop', 'Take Time To Know Her' and the much underrated 'True Lovel Travels On A Gravel Road'.
We always see the same old names trotted out when it comes to great soul singers - Redding, Pickett, Solomon Burke etc. and all with good reason; but Percy was a beautifully expressive singer, very different in style to many of his peers, and his name deserves to be right up there when we're talking about the great vocalists in soul!
So who's your unsung hero or heroine?
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(Posted: 04 Dec 2005 18:38 )
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How about J.J. Barnes? Great voice and he did some quality stuff back in the 60's and early 70's. 'Real Humdinger' is a classic soul recording. I just knew J.J. Barnes was going to rule the world and then... it was as if he feel off the end of the earth. He's a true unsung hero. His stuff's hard to find but anything he did is worth a listen.
A couple of unsung heroines are Mitty Collier and Laura Lee. I could listen to those ladies sing all day long. Heck, they could read from the telephone book and I'd be happy.
A quick note on Percy Sledge: Another great song that has gone under the radar is "It Tears Me Up." That's my all-time Percy favorite. Man, talk about heartbreaking music.
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(Posted: 04 Dec 2005 20:09 )
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My unsung hero is still going strong.....
Mighty Sam McClain has been recording since the sixties and, apart form a couple of minor R&B chart entries, has never received the recognition he deserves.
He struck a major label deal with Telarc and released "Blues for The Soul" in 2001 and I really thought he was going places - but it never really happened. He's often put out albums that have received critical acclaim, but never broken through. He's now releasing CDs on his own label. He has a great voice and you never know, he might still break through 
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(Posted: 04 Dec 2005 22:01 )
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Quote:
A couple of unsung heroines are Mitty Collier and Laura Lee. I could listen to those ladies sing all day long. Heck, they could read from the telephone book and I'd be happy.
Couldn't agree with Gerald more about Mitty Collier - it's one of the disappointments of my life that I can't seem to get hold of a compilation of her work. I know "Shades of Genius" was around a while back but I've never been able to pick up a copy anywhere.
Another of my unsung heroine's is Lorraine Ellison. 'Stay With Me Baby' is still the most emotionally charged recording I've ever heard (it had to be personal didn't it?) but the anthology "Stay With Me - The Best Of" proved she was far more than just a one song wonder. You have to pay an awful lot to pick up this Best Of nowadays, but I've already got a copy 
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Guest (Posted: 09 Dec 2005 16:03 )
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Quote:
Another of my unsung heroine's is Lorraine Ellison. 'Stay With Me Baby' is still the most emotionally charged recording I've ever heard (it had to be personal didn't it?) but the anthology "Stay With Me - The Best Of" proved she was far more than just a one song wonder
Ellison definitely - a grossly undervalued talent.....
And what about Billy Stewart - he recorded some great sides for Chess, but tends to get remembered, if at all, for his idiosynchratic version of 'Summertime'. But 'Strange Feeling', 'Sitting In The Park', 'Fat Boy', 'Reap What You Sow" etc. were all terrific records. Died horribly young as well 
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(Posted: 14 Dec 2005 21:15 )
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Quote:
And what about Billy Stewart - he recorded some great sides for Chess
Billywas a great talent - some of his sides were a little "engineered", a little gimmicky for sure but he had a great voice and put out some excellent material. Not a bad writer either.
Another favourite, under publicised hero - the vocal duo the Knight Brothers. Best known, if known at all for the truly wonderful, emotional 'Temptation 'Bout To Get Me'. They only recorded a few sides with Chess (circa 6 releases plus B Sides), but they were all very fine. One of the duo (Leon Diggs) was also responsible for writing their most famous song, recorded by many others over the years. The (Young) Rascals version isn't half bad incidentally 
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Guest (Posted: 27 Dec 2005 20:42 )
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Gladys Knight - not because she didn't have success, as clearly she did. But because she is so often overlooked when it comes to great soul singers. Right from 'Every Beat Of My Heart', her great version of 'Heard It Through The Grapevine' through to her excellent, commercially successful 70s sides and beyond, her performances were always soul personified. Not always the best material, but what a great voice.......undervalued 
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(Posted: 09 Feb 2006 18:32 )
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there are so many,but one who comes to mind is the great[chuck jackson]-any day now-i wake up crying-tell him i'm not home-if i didn't love you,are just afew of the line of hits from this legendary showman.
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