June Yamagishi feat. Bobby Womack [1988] - Give This Love A Try [Meldac #Med-41]

Following on from the Erica Falls post, where we alluded to this recording, this is a later re-recording of Bobby Womack's "Trust Your Heart" taken from his 1978 "Pieces" album (which had David Ruffin and Brandye on BGVs and Michael Henderson on bass), re-titled "Give This Love A Try".

It was released by June Yamagishi's on his 1988 "My Pleasure" album which featured Bobby Womack. The CD version is 12:47 with the vinyl version cut to just under 6 minutes. The prices of vinyl copies are around £300 but CD copies can be found for around £30-£40.

We'll post both versions (which aren't available on Spotify so they will be YouTube posts) along with the original 12" version of "Trust Your Heart" which was not originally on the "Pieces" album (12" vinyl only) until a CD reissue in 2012.

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

Details

Rating:	8.8
Explicit:	N
Genre/Style:	Modern Soul
Format:	Album Track
Media:	CD / Vinyl
Label:	Meldac
Cat No:	Med-41
Date:	1988
Key/BPM:	N/A
Price:	£30-£40 / £300 (approx.)

Copyright © 2009-2023 SoulStrutter All Rights Reserved

101 North [1988] - So Easy [Capitol #B-44227]

Speaking to DSG promotions' Gary Van Den Bussche yesterday regarding the new single by Lynn Davis he mentioned one of the multitude of tracks on which she has provided backing vocals. 

The song is "So Easy" from 101 North's self-titled debut album in 1988 which also appeared on the follow up album "Forever Yours" in 1991. It was also released as a single on Capitol in 1988.

101 North only released the two albums and three singles and seems to have consisted of four session singers who had worked with Duke.

The album was written, arranged, produced and performed on by George Duke so no surprise that Ms Davis also featured, but the lead singers on this track are Carl Carwell (EWF 1994-97) and Josie James. 

You may or may not be familiar with Josie James but if you've ever listened to Stevie Wonder's "Another Star" (who hasn't?) then she was his backing vocalist as well as on many other artists recordings including Patrice Rushen, George Duke (of course), The Jacksons, Randy Brown, Brothers Johnson, The Crusaders, Joe Sample, Wayne Henderson and even Heaven 17's "Penthouse & Pavement", Wham's debut album and "Inner Feelings" for Billy Ocean (so she must have been in the UK for a couple of years in the early 80s) amongst many others. From 1998 she toured with Burt Bacharach and was with George Duke until his death in 2013.

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

Details

Rating:	8.7
Explicit:	N
Genre/Style:	80s Soul / Quiet Storm
Format:	Single / Album Track
Media:	Digital
Label:	Capitol
Cat No:	B-44227
Date:	1988
Key/BPM:	4A/59
Price:	£1

Copyright © 2009-2023 SoulStrutter All Rights Reserved

Rose Royce [2022] - Is It Love You're After (Edit) [Warner Music Group - X5 Music Group]

I've no idea why now, but Rose Royce's 1979 hit "Is It Love You're After" has been reissued digitally today (10 Jun 2022). It is subtitled (Edit) which is the 7" 3:50 version rather than the full 5:00 LP/12" mix. I also noticed that there was a "Car Wash" remix released in Feb but it's rather 'clubby'.

As Peter Sellers' catch phrase relating to Michael Caine once said 'there's not many people know that', but the song, written by Miles Gregory, was first recorded by Spyder Turner in Jun 1978. It was on his "Music Web" album and also released as the B side of his single "Get Down" on Whitfield. In fact it isn't even listed by SecondHandSongs which inaccurately states that Rose Royce's version was the first release in Aug 1979.

It fared better in the UK than US reaching #13 on UK pop chart in Jan 1980 on it's ninth (and tenth) week of a thirteen week run on the chart, missing out on Billboard's Hot 100 reaching only #105.

S'Express sampled it for their 1988 UK#1 pop hit "Theme Form S'Express" and by many others before and since.

Rose Royce's lead singer Gwen Dickey is appearing in the UK in Sep/Oct this year as part of the Giants Of Soul tour.

UPDATE. purely by chance a few days after posting this I have just come across a 12 minute, presumably 'bootleg', mix of it on YouTube (posted below). A YT comment suggests that it was done by DJ EXPAT .. anyone know?

12 Minute 'bootleg' mix

Details

Rating:	8.8
Explicit:	N
Genre/Style:	Modern Soul
Format:	Single
Media:	Digital
Label:	Warner Music / X5 Music
Cat No:	None
Date:	10/06/2022
Key/BPM:	10B/118
Price:	£1

Copyright © 2009-2022 SoulStrutter All Rights Reserved

Eleanor Grant [2021] - The Love I Gave To You / Magic [Good Time Records]

The first 'wow' moment of the week! For lovers of 'real' soul music this is phenomenal deep soul ballad from Eleanor Grant released 23 Apr 2021. However, it was originally released in 1988 on her album titled 'Magic' released on Zip which is the only release on the Chester, PA, label, so perhaps it was a self release?

Her debut single, in 1975, is her version of a Paul Kelly song 'You Oughta' Be Here With Me'. The song was originally recorded by Annette Snell in 1973, who earier was a member of The Mar-Vells, later known as The Fabulettes, who died in a plane crash in 1977 after returning to Atlanta from a recording session for an unreleased (uncompleted) album at Muscle Shoals, Alabama.

In the last few years Eleanor Grant has resurfaced and released a gospel album in 2015 'Love Has Brought Me Home', a cover of Gaye's 'Sexual Healing' in 2019 and the title track of her 1988 album 'Magic' last month (19 Mar 2021), which isn't a bad 80s modern soul tune so I'll also post that. 

Click icons below for further information or to connect with the artist.

Details

Rating:	9 / 8
Genre/Style:	Deep Soul / Modern Soul 80s
Format:	Single
Media:	Digital
Label:	Good Time Records
Cat No:	None
Year:	23/04/2021 / 19/03/2021
Key:	3A / 7B
BPM:	60 / 119
Value:	£1 / £1

Bobby Womack / June Yamagishi [1978 / 1988] - Trust Your Heart / Give This Love A Try [Columbia #3-10672 / Meldac #MEL-41]

Two versions of the same song, from Bobby Womack's 1978 album 'Pieces' 'Trust My Heart' and then reworked on June Yamagishis' 1988 album 'My Pleasure' retitled 'Give This Love A Try' featuring Bobby Womack.

Bobby Womack [1978] - Trust Your Heart [Columbia #3-10672]

June Yamagishi Feat. Bobby Womack [1988] - Give This Love A Try [Meldac #MEL-41]

1988 remake of  'Trust Your Heart' from June Yamagish's 'My Pleasure' album.

Mico Wave, Joe Stonestreet & Andy Baylor [2021] - A Love of Your Own (1988) [Kaelco Records]

on 31 Mar 2021 Mico Wave released a cover of a song written by Ned Doheny and Hamish Stuart who both released it in 1976 Stuart with the Average White Band on 'Soul Searching' and as a single and Doheny on 'Hard Candy' and as a  single.

1976 Average White Band

1976 Ned Doheny

Mico Wave is Michael Kerry Lane who recorded some solo material as well as being in the group The Deele after the departure of Kenny 'Babyface' Edmonds and Antonio 'L.A.' Reid.  He also worked with members of Parliament/Funkadelic such as George Clinton, Bootsy Collins and Gary Shider.

This track is taken from his 1988 album 'Gonna Be One Of Those Nights' hence the '(1988)' in the title, but I can't find any trace of the album so perhaps it was unreleased? He says that he will be re-releasing nine albums in the next year.

Several others have covered the song including

1976 The Ebonys 'Sing About Life'

1976 Millie Jackson 'Lovingly Yours' and as a flip side to ' I'll Live My Love For You'.

1977 Donnie Elbert 'From The Gitgo'

1977 Melissa Manchester 'Singin' 

1988 Millie Scott 'I Can Make It Good For You' and as a single

1988 Tease 'Remember' group included Chuckii Booker

1992 Leslie Smith 'Les Is More'

1994 Howard Hewett 'In Time'

This is a coincidence as a few days ago I featured a track ('Crystal Clear') from the same abum.

1995 Barrio Boyzz 'How We Roll'

2007 Paul Taylor & Lauren Evans 'Ladies Choice'

There are a couple of other more recent versions by Mai Doi todd in 2018 and Sun Kin 2020 but they are not as good. I've also found a new version reelased in Feb 2021by Eliot Kennedy which I'll post separately.

Click icons below for further information or to connect with the artist.

Details

Rating:	8
Genre/Style:	80s Soul / Cover Version
Format:	Single
Media:	Digital
Label:	Kaelco Records
Cat No:	None
Year:	31/03/2021
Key:	7A
BPM:	68
Value:	£1

Anita Baker (for International Women's Day)

Into the 80s now, and as far as I'm concerned the obvious choice for the best female artist to emerge in this decade was Anita Baker.  Here's 'six of the best' - her top charting singles from the 80s.

1986 - Sweet Love

1986 - Caught Up In The Rapture Of You

1987 - Same Ole Love (365 Days A Year)

1987 - No One In The World

There's also an 'amateur' video of her perfroming this with an impromptu contribution by BeBe Winans in 2021.

1988 - Giving You The Best That I Got

1988 - Just Because