DJ Kool Keith [2022-09-13] - Soulful Slow Jams [Soul Radio Coast2Coast]

The Soul Emperor's Soulful Slow Jams show broadcast on L.A. station Soul Radio Coast 2 Coast Mon/Tue (12/13 Sep 2022).

As regular readers of this podcast will already know I like to select a few tracks from the playlist and dig up some information about them to add a bit of spice, interest and intrigue.

Charles Brinkley is still a cheapie which has languished in my collection since receiving it in a Soul Bowl soul pack circa 1976 (I'm sure mine skips in one spot). Unsurprisingly the song is written by some heavy hitters Harold Beatty and George Tobin. It is the only release from both label and artist so could be a private press?

It's 'quite' similar to a song written by Beatty the same year by Bobby Moore "Call Me (Your Anything Man)" also produced by Tobin and arranged by Al Gambino on Hot Line which got a national release on Scepter and also a UK issue on Pye.

The group backing Brinkley were Fully Guaranteed who released a single on Apt in 1972 with both sides once again written by Beatty and produced by Tobin. The A side "We Can Make It Together" is well worth snapping up whilst it is still cheap before the Lowrider scene latches onto making the price soar! The flip "Spinning Around" is a bit of a non-descript early 70s tune which seems to have an identity crisis as to whether it's a 60s or 70s tune.

The single did nothing on the R&B chart yet was featured on Soul Train from where I gathered they were a quartet of Johnny Knight (Fort Worth, TX), Robert & James Bean (St. Louis, MO) and Michael Nicholson (Oklahoma City). They had been together for 10 years at that point which means they formed in 1962. I wondered whether Charles Brinkley was a member who was elevated to head billing for the 1975 single but it appears he wasn't and he doesn't seem to have released any further material.

There are no clues on the label as to it's whereabouts but the label design is very similar to the Hot Line label on which the Bobby Moore single was released that, according to Discogs, was based in Las Vegas. So, given the same participants were involved at the same time, I would hazard a guess that it also came out of Vegas.

There is no date is available for the Magnum single but going by the sound of both sides (as the B side is a boogie funk track) and the writer Marvin McDonald, I would guess early 80s, somewhere around 1984, as McDonald was in a group Colorblind who released an album that year. He also played guitar in a group called G.G. And Company on a four track EP "Thinking About You" the same year and only appears to have been active that year.

There are only four listed sales for the record on Popsike and they seem to sell for up to £1,500.

The Players were a quartet from Chicago who recorded an album and four singles for Minit between 1966-67. The group's line-up was Colis Gordon, John Thomas, Herbert Butler and Otha Givens who wrote most of their own material. The seemed to have disbanded in 1967 and the only member who has done anything else since was John Thomas who recorded as Johnny September (his middle name) in the mid to late 70s releasing around six singles on his own K&K label based out of Chicago.

Interestingly their first album contained a version of the Inez Foxx and, her then husband, Luther Dixon song "I Love You A Thousand Times" which was a hit for The Platters in 1966 which was mentioned in last weeks tribute to Inez Foxx. It also has a version of Bobby Hebb's "Sunny" as well as a cover of Percy Sledge's classic "When a Man Loves A Woman".

The first two singles and the A side of their third appeared on the album.  The B side of their third single "That's They Way (I Tend To Business)" was a cover of The Rivingtons 1966 recording of "Tend To Business" on Columbia 1966.

All their recordings were produced by Calvin Carter who was A&R man and producer at Vee Jay Records founded by his sister Vivian (Carter) and her husband James Bracken (V from Vivian and J from James) in 1953. He left Vee Jay when they were forced into bankruptcy due to legal wrangles over The Beatles in 1967. Afterwards he joined Liberty to run the soul subsidiary Minit. In the mid 60s Minit had future soul superstars The O'Jays, Bobby Womack, Ike & Tina Turner on their roster. He is attributed as giving Burt Bacharach his first big break when he was at Vee Jay by asking him to take charge of the recording session for Jerry Butler on his song "Make It Easy On Yourself".

DJ Kool Keith has two shows per week, his Soulful Vibes show Sun 12:00-14:00 (BST/UK Time) on Soul Groove Radio and his Soulful Slow Jams show on Soul Radio Coast 2 Coast 22:00 PDT (Tue 06:00 BST in UK).

All DJ Kool Keith podcast are available to listen/download from Podomatic.

Playlist:

Charles Brinkley - I'll Be What You Want Me To Be [1975]

Woman - I Want To Get Back [1971]

Soul Basement - Trying Hard (feat. Lana Gordon) [2022]

Magnum  - Tell Me Why  [1984?]

Preyé - Red Wine [2022]

Guinn - Dreamin' [1986]

The Cheers - I Made Up My Mind [1969]

The Miracles - Don't Let It End ('Til You Let It Begin) [1973]

Thee Sacred Souls - Once You Know (Then You'll Know) [2022]

Harold Holloway - If It Ain't Broke Don't Fix It [2022]

The Players - Why Did I Lie [1966]

The Players - I'm Glad You Waited [1966]

Archie Bell & The Drells - Just A Little Closer [1969]

Tomorrow's Edition - Million Dollars (12'' Cut) [1987]

Destiny La Vibe Music - Straight Down The Middle [2022]

Destiny La Vibe Music - Different [2022]

Destiny La Vibe Music - Right Kind Of Fool [2022]

Kristina Grace - Chosen [2022]

Soft Tones - What Is Life? [1973]

Janelle Wisdom Athis - Unveiled [2022]

Lady T. - It's All Over Now [2022]

Marcellus The Singer - Toxic Love  [2022]

H'Atina - Elements Of A Real Man [2022]

B. Golden - I'm Through [2022]

Ray, Goodman & Brown - Long Gone [2003]

Ray, Goodman & Brown - Someone's Missing Your Love [1986]

The California Honeydrops - Nothing At All [2022]

Raja-Neé - My Window [2022]

Raja-Neé - Close To Me [2022]

Pete Belasco - One  [2022]

Pete Belasco - Sweeter  [2022]

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