NS565 Little Eddie Taylor [1967] - I Had A Good Time [Peacock 1949]

565 Little Eddie Taylor [1967] - I Had A Good Time [Peacock 1949]

b/w:      Forgive One Mistake (official A side)

Label:     Peacock

Cat No:  1949

Year:      1967

Value:     £600

The rarest release on Peacock on the flip side of deep soul gem 'Forgive One Mistake'.  This was a big spin at Cleethorpes Pier around 1975 and got bootlegged on a white label promo.

There's a nice article about him over at Sir Shambling's Deep Soul Heaven. According to the article Swammp Dog (Jerry Williams) claims Little Eddie is Johnnie Taylor's brother but Johnnie wouldn't acknowledge him! You can also hear the A side 'Forgive One Mistake' and his only other known release was on Tropical (Miami) from around 1967/8 'Just The Way You Are' which is a bluesy deep soul doo wop type outing on Tropical 101 b/w 'The State Song'.

Little Eddie Taylor [1967] - Forgive One Mistake [Peacock 1949]

Eddie Taylor [196?] - Just The Way You Are [Tropical 101]

NS566 Margaret Mandolph [1965] - Something Beautiful [Planetary P-106]

566 Margaret Mandolph [1965] - Something Beautiful [Planetary P-106]

b/w:        I Wanna Make You Happy (official A side)

Label:    Planetary

Cat No:  P-106

Year:      1965

Value:    $650

Planetary was a Los Angeles based label and Something Beautiful is the flip side of the the second of 2 45's issued by thirteen year old Margaret Mandolph on the Planetary label. Released in May of 1965 the A side of this dreamy piece of soulful, girl group pop would be in a chart war with a version by Jackie and Gayle on the Mainstream label. While neither charted, they have both grown in stature and are both highly sought after by Girl group music collectors. Dusty Springfield even recorded a version that was included on her 1965 LP entitled, 'OOOWEEE!'. The Margaret Mandolph version is by far the winner of the three. Produced and arranged by the talented David Gates, it has been written that if there is a record being played in heaven then this one is it.

It was the B side 'Something Beautiful' that interested Northern punters getting airplay in the mid 70s (circa 76) at the Winter Gardens in Cleethorpes and then went national being played at all the top venues.  It was covered by UK actress Adrienne Posta (appeared in To Sir With Love with Lulu) on Decca in 1966 and released on CD.  To supply demand it was bootlegged in the mid 70s as a White Demo.

Margaret later toured Europe in "Hair",  joined a jazz outfit called Love Joy and was quite well-known in the Oakland CA area, where she sang in musical plays written by her brother Bobby Mandolph who recorded for Vault in the early 60's and was a member of the group 

Purple Olive.

Robert Mandolph Sr., played the keyboards for Sam Cooke, Bobby Womack, Lou Rawls and many others as a studio musician.

Margaret met David Gates (Bread) in 1963 and later cut the 2 Planetary singles produced by him. She also recorded a demo of Popsicles And Icicles which the record company released by The Murmaids.

Margaret Mandolph [1965] - I Wanna Make You Happy [Planetary P-106]

Adrienne Posta [1966] - Something Beautiful [UK Decca F 12329]

Margaret Mandolph [1964] - If You Ever Need Me [Planetary P-102]

$202.50

Margaret Mandolph [1964] - Silly Little Girl [Planetary P-102]

The Murmaids [1963] - Popsicles And Icicles [Chattahoochie #CR-628]

NS567 The Parliaments [1965] - Heart Trouble [Golden World GW-46]

567 The Parliaments [1965] - Heart Trouble [Golden World GW-46]

b/w:        That Was My Girl (official A side)

Label:     Golden World

Cat No:  GW-46

Year:      1965
Value:     ?


George Clinton's Parliaments post doo-wop and pre funk era.  This is classic mid 60s Detroit from the Golden_World stables.

Golden World Discography @ Global Dog

"Heart Trouble" was the third official release by the Detroit soul group The Parliaments. The single was released in 1965 by Golden World Records (GW-46). "Heart Trouble" was the only single that they recorded for the label.

In 1965, the Parliaments' line up consisted of George Clinton, Grady Thomas, Ray Davis, Fuzzy Haskins, and Calvin Simon, a line-up that would remain intact until 1977.

"Heart Trouble" was later re-worked in 1973 under the title "You Can't Miss What You Can't Measure", featured on the Funkadelic album Cosmic Slop. Another version of the track was recorded approximately three years earlier, yet did not surface until the 2008 release of the CD "Toys". The b-side, "That Was My Girl" was remade in 1972 and was featured on America Eats Its Young.

~ Wikipedia

You Can't Miss What You Can't Measure:

The Parliaments [1965] - That Was My Girl [Golden World GW-46]

NS569 Vala Regan & The Valarons [1966] - Fireman [Atlantic (UK) 584009 / Atco 45-6412]

569 Vala Reegan & The Valarons [1966] - Fireman [Atlantic (UK) 584409 / Atco 45-6412] 

b/w         Living In The Past

Format  45

Label     Atco / UK Atlantic

Cat No  45-6412 / 584009

Year       1966

Value     £150

This appears to be the only known 45 by Vala Reegan & The Valarons and their identity is a mystery.  This is a spectoresque outing from 1966.  

John Manship describes it as follows in his Dec 2010 Rare Soul Auctions page:

'Breathtaking! A near perfect example of Red Atlantic’s most-valued 45 and this one is a DEMO! Two awesome Bob Crewe projects delivered by the the mysterious Vala Reegan and her team, make this head-turning offering so very much more than just a vision of beauty. This is the very pinnacle of collecting rare BRITISH vinyl!'

The comment relates to 'collect-ability'.  This is not 'my cup of tea' and smacks of  mid 60s blue-eyed pop music.  A US Atco copy was listed for £150 and an Atco demo offered for sale at £180.

A recent auction of a red Atlantic UK copy made £822 and a current auction on eBay with 2 days left has a current bid of £400 ... watch this space.  Personally I wouldn't give £5 for it! ... but that's just my opinion.

The flip 'Living' In The Past' was also recorded in 1966 by Barbara Banks on Veep 1247 as the official A side to the classic 'River Of Tears' co-written with Gary Knight who also co-wrote 'Living In The Past'.

Vala Reegan & The Valarons [1966] - Living In The Past [Atlantic (UK) 5849009 / Atco 45-6412] 

Barbara Banks [1966] - Living In The Past [Veep V 1247] 

NS568 Barbara Lynn [1971] - Take Your Love And Run [Atlantic 45-2812]

568 Barbara Lynn [1971] - Take Your Love And Run [Jetstream #804 / Atlantic #45-2812]

b/w (Until Then) I'll Suffer (official A side)

Format  45

Label     Atlantic

Cat No  45-2812

Value     £15

On the flip side to deep soul '(Until Then) I'll Suffer' on Jetstream / Atlantic, 'Take The Love And Run' is a Motownesque outing by Barbara Lynn picked up on by the Northern scene.  It's not too difficult to find or expensive as the A side was a hit.  Plenty has been written about Barbara Lynn on the net so check out Barbara Lynn @ Wikipedia

Barbara Lynn Discography @ soulfulkindamusic

Barbara Lynn Discography @ Soul Of The Net

Barbara Lynn [1971] - (Until Then) I'll Suffer [Jetstream #804 / Atlantic #45-2812]

NS570 Phil Terrell [1966] - Love Has Passed Me By [Carnival CAR 523]

570 Phil Terrell [1966] - Love Has Passed Me By [Carnival CAR 523]

b/w          Don't Run Away

Format:  45

Label:    Carnival

CatNo:   CAR 523

Year:     1966

Value:    £225

Phil Terrell Flood was at school with Robert 'Kool' Bell.  Phil played local clubs in Jersey City with Kool & The Flames but left before they went through several name changes Jazziacs, Soul Town Band and eventually Kool & The Gang in 1969.  His cousin (Winston Lovett) was a member of The Manhattans and Phil used to sing with them before they signed to Carnival   and often deputised for George 'Smitty' Smith when he was ill.  When Smith died Phil was considered as a replacement along with Carnival artist Harry Caldwell, but Carnival discovered Gerald Alson who was chosen.

Phil Terrell recorded two singles for Carnival: CAR-113  I'll Erase You From My Heart / I'm Just A Young Boy and CAR-523 Love Has Passed Me By / Don't You Run Away.  The Manhattans are on backing on both.

‘Love Has Passed Me By’ was a huge record for Ady Croasdel at the 100 Club in the mid-80s and, according to Ady, his other two contributions ‘I’ll Erase You (From My Heart)’ and ‘I’m Just A Young Boy’ are so good they will surely have their day soon and all are available on the Carnival Northern Soul CD.

Carnival Discography @ soulfulkindamusic

 The track was issued on 100 Club's 15th Anniversary 45 on Kent 6T 10-A with Vic & John - Why Did She Lie on flip.

Phil Terrell [1966] - Don't You Run Away [Carnival CAR 523]

Phil Terrell [1965] - I'll Erase You (From My Heart) [Carnival CAR 513]

Phil Terrell [1965] - I'm Just A Young Boy [Carnival CAR 513]

NS571 Andre Brasseur [1968] - The Kid [Congress CG-271]

571 Andre Brasseur [1968]  - The Kid [Congress CG-271]

b/w    Holiday

Format:  45

Label:    Congress / CBS

CatNo:  CG 271 / 2557

Year:     1968 / 1970

Value:  

This has absolutely nothing to do with soul music and is one of those 'blips' on the Northern Soul scene whereupon a record that has the right beat and is obscure enough gets spun, however it was a massively popular instrumental in its day when originally played at the legendary Twisted Wheel club in Manchester and has subsequently become a big oldie.
There seems to be a bit of a mystery as to the correct title.  It would appear that on some pressings the labels were reversed, so what has been know for years as 'The Kid' is in fact called 'Holiday'.

André Brasseur, (born 1939) is a Belgian keyboard player and organist. Brasseur has released many albums and singles in his own country, but internationally is best known for his double A sided single The Kid/Holiday, which was released on the CBS label in the UK. Though it never reached the UK charts, The Kid became popular in the famous Northern Soul venue The Twisted Wheel, based in Manchester, and DJ Noel Edmonds used Holiday as the theme tune to his Radio 1 programme in the 1970s. In the same period at Radio Veronica, a Dutch pirate radio, DJ Lex Harding used The Kid as the opening sequence to his daily afternoon broadcast program. Brasseur is also famous for his 1965 instrumental single 'Early Bird', which sold over 6 million copies worldwide.

Here's a live version he did in at Pukkelpop 2016 in Belgium.  It seems that over the years Holiday has now become known as The Kid! even though there is one irate comment stating that this  is NOT The Kid it's Holiday!!!!

Here's the 'official' version of The Kid:

NS572 The Wonderettes [1965] - I Feel Strange [Ruby E-5065-A]

572 The Wonderettes [1965] - I Feel Strange [Ruby E-5065-A]

b/w          Wait Until Tonight

Format:  45

Label:     Ruby / United Artists

CatNo:   E-5065-A / UA-944

Year:      1965

Value:  

A cracking mid sixties Detroit sound that could have come straight out of Studio A (Motown).

The Wonderettes was a Detroit girl group founded in 1963 by song-writer Johnny Robert Thornton, and Jack Thomas, and managed by Bob Schwartz (owner of Ruby label, and perhaps Enterprise?).

Members were Rose Johnson-Thornton, Lavernah Williams, and Joan Rutledge 

The Wonderettes are a bit of a mystery although it would appear they did a lot of work locally in Detroit backing other artists.  The record was originally issued on Ruby and then reissued on United Artists in Sept 1965.  They had a few other recordings before falling into obscurity.

After recording on local labels Enterprise (1964) Work Out Fine / Love' Got A Hold On Me and Ruby (1965) I Feel Strange / Wait Until Tonight. I Feel Strange got national release on United Artists presumably afer selling well locally on Ruby. There was a follow-up in 1965 Mend My Broken Heart /  And If I Had My Way on United Artists after I Feel Strange made it to the Billboard charts.  For this release the name was changed to Rose St. John & The Wonderettes. Another release on Veep I Know The Meaning / Fool Don't Laugh and a final release backing Johnnie Mae Matthews as Johnnie Mae Matthews & The Wonderettes - Cut Me Loose / Lonely You'll Be followed in 1967 even though there doesn't appear to be any backing vocals on Lonely You'll Be!

A few titbits from a discussion on the Soulful Detroit forum

Johnnie Mae Matthews recorded with them but could shed no light on them, Joe Hunter was involved in the Ruby recording but had no idea who they were,  Bob Schwartz owned the Ruby label.

The Wonderettes [1965] - Wait Until Tonight [Ruby E-5065-A]

Unfortunately I can only find a low quality clip of the flip until a better one is posted.

The Wonderettes [1964] - Work Out Fine / Love's Got A Hold On Me [Enterprise #E-5025]

They had an earlier release on Detroit label Enterprise:

No YouTube clip available for 'Work Out Fine'

Johnnie Mae Matthews & The Wonderettes [1967] - Lonely You'll Be [Atco # 45-6528 / Art #YT 002]

Strangely there doesn't appear to be any backing vocals on the Johnnie Mae Matthews  track (credited as the Wonderettes) but does on the same song recorded by Calvin Williams (with no credits)!

Johnnie Mae Matthews & The Wonderettes [1967] - Cit Me Loose [Atco # 45-6528 / Art #YT 002]

Rose St. John & The Wonderettes [1966] - And If I Had My Way [United Artists #UA 997]

Rose St. John & The Wonderettes [1966] - Mend My Broken Heart [United Artists #UA 997]

Rose St. John & The Wonderettes [1966] - Fool Don't Laugh [Veep # V 1231]

Rose St. John & The Wonderettes [1966] - Fool Don't Laugh [Veep # V 1231]

NS575 Mandrill [1973] - Never Die [Polydor PD 5059]

575 Mandrill [1973] - Never Die [Polydor PD 5059]

Format:  LP

Label:   Polydor

CatNo:  PD 5059

Year:     1973

Value:   £15-£20

This was Blackpool Mecca Highland Room spin on release in 1973.  Things were beginning to change on the scene and Ian Levine and Colin Curtis instead of hunting down obscure oldies from the 60s were seeking out up-front new releases and ultimately became responsible for breaking many well known 70s tracks which crossed over into the pop charts such as Tavares, Betty Wright, George Benson, Esther Phillips.  This diversion was the birth of what later became known as Modern Soul.

Mandrill is an American funk band formed in Brooklyn, New York City in 1968. The band was formed by three brothers: Carlos Wilson (trombone, vocals), Lou Wilson (trumpet, vocals) and Ric Wilson (sax, vocals). The brothers were born in Panama and grew up in the Bedford-Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn. Other members of the band included Bundy Cenas (bass), Neftali Santiago (drums, percussion, vocals), Juaquin Jessup (lead guitar, percussion, vocals), Charles Padro (drums), Claude 'Coffee' Cave II (keyboards, percussion, vocals) and Fudgie Kae Solomon (bass) and Omar Mesa (Guitar).

I believe that Never Die is an album only track not released on 45.  It was released on side 1 track 2 of the 'Just Outside of Town' album on Polydor in 1973.

Their music is much sampled by many of today's hip-hop acts.  The Just Outside of Town album has been reissued on CD available here.

NOTE: The YouTube clip chose shows a few images of the, now legendary, Blackpool Mecca Highland Room.

In later years another Mandrill track was played - Too Late

Mandrill [1977] - Too Late [Arista #AS 0375]

NS573 Damon Fox [1966] - Packing Up [Fairmount F-1021-B]

573 Damon Fox [1966] - Packing Up [Fairmount F-1021-B

b/w          Bonie Maronie (official A side)

Format:  45

Label:    Fairmount

CatNo:  1021-B

Year:     1966

Value:   $750

Another artist very difficult to track down. This is his only release on Fairmount which was one of the last issues on the label and possibly his only ever release. The only original copy that I have been able to find for sale on the net was priced at $750.  This is a 100 mph dancer with a funky shuffling beat from 1966.  I don't recall hearing it played out anymore.

Fairmount Discography @ soulfulkindamusic

Fairmount Discography @ Global Dog

Damon Fox [1967] - Bonie Maronie [Fairmount #1021]

He cut another 45 on Philly's Crimson label in 1968 Gotta Get My Baby Back / Black Widow Spider

Damon Fox [1967] - Gotta Get My Baby Back [Crimson #CR-1013-A]

Damon Fox [1967] - Black Widow Spider [Crimson #CR-1013-B]

The flip side is a deep soul cut.

NS574 Rita & The Tiaras [1967] - Gone With The Wind Is My Love [Dore 783]

574 Rita & The Tiaras [1967] - Gone With The Wind Is My Love [Dore 783]

b/w

Format:  45

Label:    Dore / Destiny (UK)

CatNo:  783/ DS 1002

Year:    196? / 1979

Value:   $2000

Rita is Rita Graham a jazz singer who went on to become one of Ray Charles' Raelettes. This 45 was released on Dore 783 in 1967.  Rita was brought in at the last minute to front The Tiaras by Lou Beaty.  The full story can be read over at The Soul Guy where there's a great interview with Rita.  This is an evergreen favourite on the Northern Soul scene with many considering it to be one of their all time favourites.

Dore 45 Discography @ soulfulkindamusic

Rita is also known on the scene for her 'My Cup Runneth Over' on her 1968 'Vibrations' LP on Tangerine TRCS-1505 produced by Ray Charles. 

 

Rita Graham - My Cup Runneth Over 

After leaving Ray Charles, she recorded 8 45s with Mike Post ('Afternoon Of The Rhino' fame)  as Rye & Rita Jean on Bell and released a 45 'Rich Man, Poor Man' on Motown subsidiary Prodigal (P-0626-F) in 1976.  Rita still sings to this day.  You can read more at Rita's own website over at  Rita Graham Sings

UK Destiny 1979 Bag

Original Take - Original studio version which was later shortened for the 45 to accommodate radio air-time.

Rita Graham - My Cup Runneth Over - Vibrations LP - Tangerine

Since posting this many years ago a few more releases have seen the light of day

Dore Strings [2009] - Gone With The Wind (Instrumental) [Kent Select]

Gloria Jones [2012] - Gone With The Wind Is My Love [Soul Purpose (UK)]

Another lesser known version from 1968 by:

Betty Willis [1968] Gone With The Wind (Is My Love) [Mojo #102]