1. Claude Huey – ‘Feel Good All Over’ (1966)
On the flip of this sparse but effective soul shuffler is
‘The Worst Thing A Man Can Do’ which, according to Claude, is taking the love
of a good woman for granted which displays a disappointing lack of imagination.
Still, I’ll forgive him for ‘Feel Good All Over’.
2. The Wrongh Black Bag – ‘Shake Me, Wake Me’ (1968)
A frantic version of Al Kooper’s Blues Project song and released
as 4a 5 on Mainstream Records. On their way to the studio the band were involved in a car
crash and the session cancelled, never to be rescheduled. Most unfortunate.
3. The Lloyd McNeill Quartet – ‘Dig Where Dat’s At’ (1969)
Self-released in 1969, Asha has recently been reissued by the ever-dependable Soul Jazz
Records. They refer to it as deep jazz and spiritual jazz, and it is, but it
also includes this sprightly flute-led groover.
4. Young Ladies – ‘I’m Tired of Running Around’ (1969)
Oh, Young Ladies, this is beautiful to groove to on a
sunny afternoon.
5. Curtiss Maldoon – ‘Man From Afghanistan’ (1971)
As I’ve said elsewhere, considering most of the tracks on
a new 3-CD set, One Way Glass: Dancefloor
Prog, Brit Jazz and Funky Folk 1968-1975, were made by blokes who thought
teaming a vest with sandals as the height of dressing up, it’s one of the most
rewarding collections I’ve heard for a long time. This track was a fairly arbitrary
pick but when I checked the booklet for more info was delighted to discover the
Curtiss Maldoon LP it came from featured most of Mighty Baby.
6. James Brown – ‘Time Is Running Out Fast’ (1973)
From The Payback,
this thirteen minutes of heavy rhythms sounds like JB attempting to outdo Fela
Kuti at his own game. Irresistible. Check out the lyrics.
7. Roy Ayers – ‘Aragon’ (1973)
From the soundtrack to Coffy, which stars Pam Grier as a nurse who murders a string of
drug dealers in revenge for her sister getting hooked. "They call her
'Coffy' and she'll cream you!"
8. Supergrass – ‘Richard III’ (1997)
The other day I bought The Best of Supergrass for the
bargain price of one English pound. ‘Richard III’ may or may not have been
about that bloke they found buried in a Leicester car park.
9. The Oscillation – ‘Waste of Day’ (2015)
Bug-eyed Floydian psychedelic stew with a bassline that gets under the skin. A few trips around the mind to this is no
waste of time.
10. The Limiṅanas featuring Anton Newcombe – ‘Istanbul
Is Sleepy’ (2017)
Moody French couple and the Massacre man wake ya from
your dreams with a relentless vibrating noise to rattle the bed.
