Steve Holtje: July 8, 2007

1967 Soul

I spent a month working on an article for Culturecatch.com, “67 from 1967.” This is the soul section of that article; the whole thing – with pop, psych, prog, Motown, blue-eyed soul, politics, and more – is here. The order here is what works as a mix rather than any quality ranking.

1. Sam & Dave – “Soul Man”

   Down South, the arrangements were earthier, the declarations of identity more straightforward, and the singing closer to gospel.

2. Otis Redding & Carla Thomas – “Tramp”

   Possibly the spiciest soul duet ever. When Redding died in a plane crash in December ‘67, soul lost one of its greatest singers, and songwriters.

3. Aaron Neville – “Tell It Like It Is”

   More tough talk, but cushioned by the sweetest voice in New Orleans and underpinned by that steady-rolling New Orleans rhythm.

4. George McGregor & the Bronzettes – “Temptation Is Hard to Fight”

   Not all the great soul came out on familiar labels promoting familiar stars. Soul was a phenomenon that thrived on little indie labels that might never reach beyond local markets, such as Chicago’s Twinight label. This obscure gem (love that guitar sound!) comes from the recent two-disc compilation of Twinight material put together on the Numero label’s invaluable Eccentric Soul series.

5. Aretha Franklin – “Respect”

   Aretha took Otis’s “Respect” and made it her own (taking it to #1 on the pop singles chart for two weeks), just like she made the Muscle Shoals band her band by leading from the piano.

6. James & Bobby Purify – “Shake a Tailfeather”

   Another great Southern soul duo, in an ode saluting booty-shaking.

7. James Brown – “Cold Sweat”

   The man who made more booty shake than any of his peers. This is a funk milestone, truly a trailblazing record. And it made “give the drummer some” and “funky as you wanna be” hip catchphrases. All hail Clyde Stubblefield!

8. Magic Sam – “My Love Will Never Die”

   Blues as soul, or as the album title put it, West Side Soul (west side of Chicago, that is). With killer guitar.

9. Albert King – “Born Under a Bad Sign”

   More blues as soul. More killer guitar. Booker T & the MG’s are the backing band. Beat that! “If it wasn’t for bad luck, I wouldn’t have no luck at all.”

10. Desmond Dekker – “007 (Shanty Town)”

    Jamaican soul. The island’s first international star began to reach the world with this song of the downtrodden but ambitious – the “rude boys” – fighting for their share. It became an instant classic of the new rocksteady style and climbed the British charts to #14, previously unheard of for Jamaican artists.