Where do I start. I'm 11. Visiting my mate Terry during the Summer holidays in 1969/70 - when his brother isn't around he gets all his records out. This floors me. At home we had a lot of soul singles but real poppy stuff - Motown mainly - this was something else. The original of "It's All Over Now" - before the Stones got their hands on it. Bobby Womack would become much more important to me once I got into the tracks he made for Minit/UA at Muscle Shoals. Sylvia would impress with "Pillow Talk" then later running the All Platinum then Sugarhill labels whilst always recording herself. Obviously we knew Billy Preston had something to do with the Beatles. The great track for me and the reason I sought this out decades later, was for the Bessie Banks version of "Go Now" a hit here for the Moody Blues when Denny Laine was a member. The sleeve says that Bessie's version is "..still regarded by some as the definitive soul record" - there's something I could argue with myself about!
Soul City was a small independent that licensed US recordings that weren't going to see the light of day in the UK otherwise. This seems so a non-point now with i-tunes, the internet and general acceptance of all types of music have their place. Back in the 70's music was played on the radio if it charted (and visa versa if you see what I mean). Finding gems like these meant you had to search and know where to search. Or in my case knew someone who did. This is mono, still says 331/3rpm on the back cover in case two speeds confused you.
Soul City - SCB-1
