Annette Snell [2023] - I Think I´m Falling In Love / Make You Feel Love Again / This Time We're Really Through [Soul4Real #S4R27]

One that has been leaked for airplay in the last couple of weeks (but Soul4Real maestro Alex Subinas has kept under wraps as to who the artist was) has been announced today. It consists of three previously unreleased 70s songs by Annette Snell: "I Think I'm Falling In Love", "Make You Feel Love Again" and "This Time We're Really Through"

Annetta Snell  (22 Mar 1945 - 4 Apr 1977) was born Sandersville, GA, but moved to Orlando, FL, where she joined a girl quartet, The Mar-Vells who released two singles in 1964. Both singles got multiple releases i.e. the first on Angie and then Butane and their second on Reo and Yorey. They also worked, uncredited, on backing sessions for other artists in Miami. In 1965 they renamed themselves The Fabulettes releasing their first single under the name on Monument in Oct 1965, the flip side of which, "The Bigger They Are (The Harder They Fall)", became a big tune on the Northern Soul scene many years later. They released a further four singles, two for Sound Stage 7, one each on Access and Kangis (which was reissued a year later in 1971 on Phil-L.A. of Soul). However, Snell left the group in 1968, before the last two singles were released, to pursue a solo career.

Paul Kelly, a Miami native who she had met years earlier with The Mar-Vels, took her with him to New York in 1968 to demo some songs he had written. This resulted in her first solo recording as Annetta on Love Hill in 1970 ("Since There's No More Of You"/ "Get A Kelly Way Boy") which was later also released by Sue label owner Juggy Murray Jones on Juggy.  

Kelly later introduced her to Nashville based record producer and music publisher Buddy Killen who founded Dial Records in 1961, primarily as a vehicle to release material by Joe Tex, the label Kelly was also signed to at the time. Killen is also credited as discovering one Dolly Parton. Snell released four singles on Dial between 1973-74 all written by Kelly (two co-written with Killen) and produced by Killen. The first, "I'll Be Your Fool Once More", failed to register, but the last three ("You Oughta Be Here With Me" (#19, 1973), "Get Your Thing Together" (#44, 1974) and "Just as Hooked As I've Been" (#71, 1974)) all entered the R&B chart but didn't crossover.

Killen brokered a deal with his distributor Epic to release some material. Snell was to record an album at Muscle Shoals and cut one single "It's All Over Now" / "Promises Should Never be Broken". She returned for another session produced by Jimmy Johnson and Roger Hawkins which produced another five tracks. When returning home on a flight to Atlanta, GA, the Southern Airways Flight 242 went down in New Hope, GA, during a severe thunderstorm on 4 Apr 1977 killing both pilots and 61 passengers which included Ms Snell.

I have read reports that it was claimed that Snell took the master tapes with her on the flight and that they were destroyed forever, however, that report must have been false as three tracks, co-written by pre-eminent songwriters including George Jackson and Philip Mitchell, have been languishing in the vaults for over forty years, until now as they are being released for the first time. I wonder if the other two are in the pipeline for a future release, as listening to these three along with the two released on Epic, it sounds like it could have potentially been a hit album! 

It has also been stated that "Promises Should Never Be Broken" is unreleased which is also false as I have a copy, originally bought for the A side "It's All Over Now" (perhaps released later?). Of interest to some is that the song was co-written by Mary Gresham ("Voice From The Shadows" CD and sought after single " I'll Never Let You Walk Alone") and her brother Jimmy.

The single is available to pre-order via Paypal for release on 14 Apr '23

€15 + postage (1-5 copies) €3 Spain, €6.90 UK & Europe €10.45 USA & rest of the world 

soul4realrecordlabel@gmail.com

Click on image below for link to where you can buy from.

Details

Rating:	8.6
Explicit:	N
Genre/Style:	Southern Soul
Format:	Single / Previously Unreleased
Media:	7" Vinyl
Label:	Soul4Real
Cat No:	S4R27
Date:	14/04/2023
Key/BPM:	N/A
Price:	€15

Copyright © 2009-2023 SoulStrutter All Rights Reserved