NS591 Bobby Jason - Wall To Wall Heartaches [Ranwood R-813]

591 Bobby Jason [1968] - Wall To Wall Heartaches [Ranwood R-813]
b/w You Don't Know The Meaning Of The Word

Format:   45
Label:     Ranwood
CatNo:    R-813
Year:      1968
Value:     $170

Again, I'm afraid no information on the artist.  Once again sounds like a white 60s pop singer to these ears, but this was a big all-nighter sound back in the day and is kinda haunting and catchy.  Bobby Jason's other 'claim to fame' on the scene was his name being used as a cover up for William Powell's 'Heartache Souvenirs' (see previous post NS598) when it was first played as Bobby Jason 'All These Things'.

The track was written by Pat Vegas and produced in California, I would guess late 68 or 69.

Ranwood Records was started in 1968 by Randy Wood (after he left Dot Records) together with Lawrence Welk. Most of Welk's recorded musical output from that point on was released on the Ranwood label. Welk acquired Wood's interest in the label in 1979. During the mid 1980s, the label was folded into the larger umbrella Welk Music Group, which also acquired the folk and bluegrass labels Vanguard and Sugar Hill.

Looking at a discography for Ranwood it produced predominantly middle of the road material.  Needless to say there is no album by Bobby Jason (on Ranwood at least).  Notable artists appearing on Ranwood include Linda Carr (3 releases including 'I Feel Love Coming On') b/w 'In My Life'  [Ranwood 406] (see clip below) and Damito Jo (8 releases including 'I'll Save The Last Dance For You' issued twice, once a B side and again as A side).

Linda Carr 'In My Life' [Ranwood 406]  100mph Northern Soul

NS592 Cajun Hart [1968] - Got To Find A Way [WB-Seven Arts]

592 Cajun Hart [1968] - Got To Find A Way [Warner Bros.- Seven Arts 7258]
b/w Lover's Prayer

Format:   45
Label:     Warner Bros - Seven Arts.
CatNo:   7258
Year:     1968
Value:    $400-$650

Can find absolutely no information about Cajun Hart, but they definately sound 'blue-eyed' ... possibly a country band and with a name like cajun presumably from the south i.e. New Orleans area? Check out this link ... very southern and very country?

This 45 is very hard to come by and  has sold for between $400 and $650 in the last few years.  A UK demo will set you back around £350+.

It was reissued on limited edition UK Warner Bros. WB7258 in 2005 with Linda Jones 'Last Minute Miracle' on the flip to promote 'After Hours 3 - More Northern Soul Masters' CD. A 29-track compilation delving deep into the vaults of Atco, Atlantic, Loma, Reprise and Warner Brothers by Richard Searling.

NS593 Cliff Nobles [1966] - My Love Is Getting Stronger [Atlantic]

593 Cliff Nobles [1966] - My Love Is Getting Stronger [J-V A-1034 / Atlantic 45-2352]
b/w Too Fond Of You

Format:   45
Label:     J-V / Atlantic
CatNo:   A-1034 / 45-2352
Year:      1966
Value:     $406 on J-V $376 on Atlantic

Nobles was born in Grove Hill, AL, in 1944, and moved to Mobile aged two. He joined the high school choir and started singing lead for a popular local group called the Delroys. After school, he moved to Philadelphia, PA. Nobles cut three singles for Atlantic Records that went unnoticed.

He later formed Cliff Nobles & Co., which consisted of Benny Williams (bass), Bobby Tucker (lead guitar), and Tommy Soul (drums). The group made tapes for Jimmy Rogers (not to be confused with the country singer of the same name), who made them available to producer/writer/singer Jesse James. James started writing songs for Nobles and the band, and secured a contract for the group with Phil La of Soul Records. The first release bombed. The second featured "Love Is All Right," backed with "The Horse." "The Horse" became a huge hit and established Nobles as a legit one-hit wonder. Ironically, "The Horse" was simply "Love Is All Right" without Nobles' vocal, Nobles isn't even featured on "The Horse." He neither sings nor plays an instrument on the track; the brass playing on the song would become famous years later as MFSB. The whole incident was an accident, the side with the vocal was supposed to be the side that was plugged, but DJs kept playing the non-vocal version. The record would have gone to number one, but another instrumental, "Grazin' in the Grass" by Hugh Masekela, was even more popular and occupied the top spot for two weeks. The week of July 29, 1968, had to be the first time in modern pop music history that two instrumentals were ranked at numbers one and two, respectively, on the charts. Shamelessly, Phil La of Soul released two more instrumentals -- "Horse Fever" and "Switch It On," -- and credited them as being by Cliff Nobles, though Nobles didn't play an instrument. A later single on Roulette actually featured Nobles' singing and nearly cracked the R&B Top 40, stalling at number 42. Phil La issued an album entitled The Horse that consisted of mostly instrumentals and dance tunes like "The Mule," "The Camel Walk," and "Judge Baby I'm Back," a tune sounding like a hit that Nobles sings with a feel similar to a Berry Gordy, Jr. production for the Contours. Moonshot Records released an LP one year later, in 1969, where Nobles sang three songs, the rest being instrumental.

The Atlantic material remains in the vaults. Supposedly, Nobles was an excellent entertainer and a gifted dancer, but, in essence, he was the Milli Vanilli of the '60s.

~ Modified from Andrew Hamilton, All Music Guide

http://chancellorofsoul.com/nobles.html

NS594 Isley Brothers - My Love Is Your Love

594 Isley Brothers, The [1967] - My Love Is Your Love
b/w N/A

Format:  LP
Label:     MFP
CatNo:    50014
Year:      1972ish
Value:     £10

This was never originally released as a single although it has now been 'issued' on a phoney UK Tamla Motown TMG 499 Green Demo (note TMG numbers started at 500! which is a bit of a giveaway!).  It was 'discovered' on a budget LP (Tamla Motown Presents The Isley Brothers on MFP (Music For Pleasure) 50014 in the UK / Europe in the 70s which delved into the Motown archives of Isley Brothers material, some of which had previously been unissued. 

The album contains a wealth of decent 60s Motown dancers.

Note:  This YouTube clip sounds a little fast to my ears!

NS595 The Inspirations - Your Wish Is My Command [Midas 9003]

595 The Inspirations [1966] - Your Wish Is My Command [Midas 9003]
b/w I'll Take A Chance On You

Format:   45

Label:     Midas
CatNo:   9003
Year:      1966
Value:     $1230

I can find very little info about The Inspirations or Midas records, any contributions would be helpful. The Inspirations on Midas was led by Billy Miller who wrote and sang lead on the track.  He also recorded as Billy & Betty (Miller wife/sister?) who later called themselves The Soulful Twins .

Billy & Betty (aka The Soulful Twins)

There are numerous groups calling themselves The Inspirations, from Gospel, Doo Wop and Reggae bands and at least two other groups who had a Northern Soul following.

Two other recordings which were big sounds on the Northern Soul scene are:

The Inspirations [1967] - No One Else Can Take Your Place [Breakthrough] (Northern Soul).  
This issue is a one-sided original and is extremely rare.  One sold in 2019 for $9,000.

Charles Diamond & The Inspiration [1977] - No One Else Can Take Your Place [Breakthrough] 

A 1977 reworking of their earlier Northern Soul track.

The Inspirations [196?] - Touch Me, Kiss Me, Hold Me [UK Polydor 56730 / US Black Pearl 100] (Northern Soul).

This is a mid sixties girly group sound and almost certainly not the same group as above, but still a big sound in its day.

NS596 Charles Sheffield - It's Your Voodoo Working [Excello 45-2200]

596 Charles Sheffield [1961] - It's Your Voodoo Working [Excello 45-2200]
b/w Rock 'n' Roll Train

Format:   45
Label:     Excello (Nashville, Tennessee)
CatNo:   45-2200
Year:      1961
Value:     $700 or $875 WD or £54 Iciban

It was reissued on Ichiban records CS-007 in 1985 along with Clarence Carter - 'Messing Up My Mind' on the B side.

Charles Sheffield (aka Mad Dog) was an early-'60s R&B singer from Lake Charles, LA, noted for the local/regional hit "It's Your Voodoo Working," which is acclaimed more now than when it debuted on Excello Records in 1961.  Sheffield cut "It's Your Voodoo Working" at Crowley Studios, which is most noted for blues and R&B recordings. He wrote and recorded 'Voodoo' along with about five other songs which failed to cause a ripple, and then soured on the business and disappeared from sight.

~ Andrew Hamilton

Charles ‘Mad Dog’ Sheffield, cut 'It's Your Voodoo Working' for J. D. Miller at his Crowley, Louisiana studio in 1961 and released on Nashville’s Excello Records, as were many of Miller’s productions.

Sheffield was a blues singer originally from the Beaumont, Texas area on the Gulf Coast, who started off recording as Mad Dog Sheffield in 1957. Backed by the Clarence Garlow Orchestra, he cut a tune called “Mad Dog” for the Goldband label (#1045) out of Lake Charles. Louisiana. Eddie Shuler, owner of Goldband, then leased the single to Hollywood Records (#1079) that year to no avail. Around 1959, the singer started recording with Miller, who initially issued two singles on his in-house Rocko label credited to Charles Sheffield. Then, Miller got Excello to put out “It’s Your Voodoo Working” b/w the fast chuggin’ “Rock ‘N Roll Train”, and a follow-up, “I Would Be a Sinner” b/w “The Kangaroo”; but, despite their excellent quality, both records, like Sheffield’s previous releases, failed to catch on. As far as I know, he only had two other singles, both credited to ‘Prince Charles’ and recorded for ‘The Crazy Cajun’, Huey Meaux, who issued them on his Teardrop and Jetstream labels respectively between 1962 and 1965.

Full article is @ Home Of The Groove

NS597 The Ambassadors [1965] - Too Much Of A Good Thing [Pee Vee 1000]

597 The Ambassadors [1965] - Too Much Of A Good Thing [Pee Vee 1000]

b/w Whole Lotta Soul

Format: 45

Label:    Pee Vee

CatNo:  1000

Year:     1965

Value:    $350 - $500  J.Manship £300

A blue-eyed soul group from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, originally formed as The Seven Dwarfs (who recorded 'Stop Girl'). They became the Ambassadors in 1964.

The " Too Much of a Good Thing " session was recorded in Philadelphia (for Pee Vee owned by Pancho Villa) with the following personnel:

Bill Parmer (bass), Bobby Bitts. (drummer), Bob Weaver and Mike Sultzbach (sax), Tony Purcell (trumpet), Don Hodgen & Rick Reardon (vocals), Burton (piano), Eric Spitzer (guitar).

For full story from Burton the keyboard player visit http://www.northernsoulmusic.co.uk/ambassadors.html.

Found another posting @ SoulSource (visit site for full story) from the sax player:

"The group started as the Seven Dwarves. In 1964, they added two horns—a trumpet and a sax, very unusual for the time—and became the Ambassadors. Our first gig was at the Silver Springs Fire Hall, near Lancaster. In 1965, we cut our first record, Too Young for Me (flip side: Pork Chops, an instrumental) on the Fleet label. We cut a second disk, I Want a Love (flip side: Those Things Called Girls), which was never marketed. Only one copy of that record exists: a metal and acetate dub. Our third record was Too Much of a Good Thing, on the Pee Vee label (flip side: Whole Lotta Soul). The group had several drummers and bass players over the years, and we lost one singer, who was no longer with the group at the time of Too Much. The Ambassadors continued playing through December, 1966, then disbanded.

In 1984, most of the original members reunited, with a couple of new guys, to play a reunion concert. It went so well that we kept going, playing with various personnel until 1992. We continued with the same music: the sweet soul sound of the sixties. Since 1992, we have reunited several times for one-time concerts, the most recent being in October, 2004.

We played behind a number of acts in the ‘60’s, including Lee Andrew and the Hearts. But we never played behind the Trannells—also from Lancaster, by the way. They were their own band. Our only connection to them was that our bassist on Too Much once played with them.

Our records are occasionally available on e-bay. A brand new copy of Too Much of a Good Thing—never played, still in original sleeve—recently brought $370.

By the way, the Ambassadors from Philadelphia, referred to on this site as the Uptown/Atlantic/Arctic group, was a different group."

7 Dwarfs [196?] - Stop Girl

Password

It has been brought to my attention that the passwords are not consistent, therefore, all NS 600 posts have been re-uploaded with the password reset. See comments in individual posts. Sorry for any inconvenience and please let me know if passwords are not compatible.