Soul City Philadelphia

Compiled and annotated by soul music authority Clive Richardson, Soul City Philadelphia is the latest in a series that has previously explored the nascent soul scenes in Detroit, New York, Chicago and Los Angeles.

Soul City Philadelphia presents records which served to establish the musical direction of the city in the late 1950s and early 1960s, at the dawn of the soul era. America s fourth-largest city proved to be a focal point for money, growing to be a major banking centre on the East Coast, and money also brought music - as cited by Tony Cummings, author of The Sound of Philadelphia, the Philly sound was made possible due to a web of coincidences which brought the right people to the right place at the right time.

The Philly Sound means different things to different people, depending on their age or musical era of choice. In the early 1960s the sound was likely to be the blasting sax solos and crisp snare-beat which typified the chart hits on Bernie Lowe s Cameo and Parkway labels, generated by the key A&R duo of Kal Mann and Dave Appell. It is this style that forms the focus of this anthology, with Lowe s labels being matched for independent success by the likes of V-Tone (run by Venton Buddy Caldwell from 2034 Ridge Ave), Chancellor (run by Peter DeAngelis and Bob Marcucci from the Chancellor Room of the Hyatt Hotel), and Heritage (run by Jerry Ross). Also featuring are artists who originated in Philadelphia but who achieved success on labels outside the city, such as the Sensations, Solomon Burke and the Majors.

Other famous artists included on this 60-track 2CD selection include Don Covay, Bobby Parker, Screamin Jay Hawkins, the Orlons, Donnie Elbert, Lee Andrews and Chubby Checker, but as always in this series, there are fascinating recordings by lesser-known acts. Here we have music from the formative period of the soul era in Philadelphia.

Tracklist

CD 1
1-1 Bobby Parker - Watch Your Step
1-2 Bobby Parker - Steal Your Heart Away
1-3 Jolly Jax - There’s Something On Your Mind (Part 1)
1-4 Jolly Jax - There’s Something On Your Mind (Part 2)
1-5 Cruisers - Cryin' Over You
1-6 Cruisers - Don't Tease Me
1-7 Al Downing - If I Had Our Love To Live Over
1-8 Al Downing - Words Of Love
1-9 Screamin' Jay Hawkins - Ashes
1-10 Screamin' Jay Hawkins - Nitty Gritty
1-11 Sensations feat. Yvonne Mills - Cry Baby Cry
1-12 Yvonne Baker & The Sensations - That’s My Desire
1-13 Yvonne Baker & The Sensations - Party Across The Hall
1-14 Gainors - This Is A Perfect Moment
1-15 Gainors - Where I Want To Be
1-16 Gainors - Tell Him
1-17 Gainors - Darlin’
1-18 Don Covay - The Popeye Waddle
1-19 Don Covay - One Little Boy Had Money
1-20 Orlons - Holiday Hill
1-21 Orlons - Tonight
1-22 Orlons - Don’t Hang Up
1-23 Orlons - The Conservative
1-24 Ben Higgins - A Whole Lot Of Lovin’
1-25 Ben Higgins - Really Paradise
1-26 Blue Notes - She Is Mine
1-27 Blue Notes - The Letter
1-28 Blue Notes - My Hero
1-29 Blue Notes - A Good Woman
1-30 Blue Notes - Blue Star

CD 2
2-1 Majors - A Wonderful Dream
2-2 Majors - Time Will Tell
2-3 Majors - She’s A Troublemaker
2-4 Majors - A Little Bit Now ( A Little Bit Later)
2-5 Dreamlovers - When We Get Married
2-6 Dreamlovers - Just Because
2-7 Dreamlovers - Welcome Home
2-8 Dreamlovers - Let Them Love (And Be Loved)
2-9 Dreamlovers - I Miss You
2-10 Solomon Burke - It’s All Right
2-11 Solomon Burke - Be Bop Grandma
2-12 Bobby Peterson Quintet - One Day
2-13 Bobby Peterson Quintet - Mama Get Your Hammer
2-14 Donnie Elbert - Will You Ever Be Mine
2-15 Donnie Elbert - Half As Old
2-16 Donnie Elbert - Baby Let Me Love You Tonite
2-17 Lee Andrews & The Hearts - Maybe You'll Be There
2-18 Lee Andrews & The Hearts - All I Ask Is Love
2-19 Lee Andrews - I Wonder
2-20 Chubby Checker - Toot
2-21 Chubby Checker - Dance The Mess Around
2-22 Chubby Checker - The Fly
2-23 Yvonne Baker & The Sensations - Eyes
2-24 Yvonne Baker & The Sensations - No Changes
2-25 Bunny Sigler - I Won’t Cry
2-26 Bunny Sigler - Come On Home
2-27 The Larks - It's Unbelievable
2-28 The Larks - I Can't Believe It
2-29 Boss-Tones - Mope-itty Mope
2-30 Boss-Tones - Wings Of An Angel