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7"
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RB 117EP
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"Zindy Lou" is an irresistibly infectious mid-tempo floor worker, with a slightly exotic feel, based around an off-kilter rhythm and all the doo wop vocal tricks that the group The Chimes can muster. On the flip, more vocal group greatness from Arthur Lee and the Crowns, with the groovy R&B winner "Rooba Lee".
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7"
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RB 116EP
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All-time great jump blues classic from Daddy Cleanhead, the older brother of LA bandleader and R&B star Chuck Higgins. With a rock solid rhythm, catchy piano and bass riff, humorous and light-hearted lyrics and a rousing, rasping sax break, what's not to like? Doesn't get much better! Also features Jimmy Liggins's "Saturday Night Boogie Woogie Man".
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7"
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RB 114EP
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Not to be confused with the Supremes of Motown and Diana Ross fame, this Supremes were a male vocal group from Columbus, Ohio. They recorded the fantastic "Don't Leave Me Here to Cry" at Cosimo Matassa's famous studio in New Orleans in 1957, and the record certainly has a strong Crescent city flavor, especially in the shuffling rhythm track. On the flip, there is the beautiful ballad "Just For You & I", the pairing surely making this one of the best doo-wop double-siders ever.
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7"
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RB 115EP
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Two offerings of R&B history back-to-back from The Coasters, perhaps the most successful and popular of the many vocal groups that sprung to prominence in the doo-wop era of the '50s. The Leiber-and-Stoller-penned "Three Cool Cats" was certainly aptly named; decades later, the song retains all of its easy charm, swagger, and instant appeal. It's one of those records that will never date. The same could be said for the flip, "Down in Mexico," a song that appeared in its 1970s reworked guise in a Tarantino flick, but appears here in its superior, original, super-sleazy 1950s form.
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7"
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RB 113EP
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Back-to-back, two more sexy rhythm and blues jivers from the queen of sass, Ruth Brown. "Daddy Daddy" glides along a slinky Latin rumba beat as Ruth sings a lascivious ode to her lover. Turn it over and "I Would if I Could" is built around a more straight-ahead, pounding rhythm with horn and piano stabs contrasting nicely with Ruth Brown's high pitched vocals.
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7"
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RB 108EP
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Landmark material here from Ray Charles, with one of his signature works and a song which inspired a million copycat attempts. Half a century later, "What'd I Say" remains as fresh and exciting as ever before and is guaranteed to fill any dancefloor in the known universe.
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7"
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RB 109EP
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Pure rock and roll history here from one of New Orleans' finest, Larry Williams. "Slow Down" is nothing short of a total masterpiece, an eternally infectious classic which moves along like a '56 Cadillac, while "Dizzy Miss Lizzy" is equally seminal, a wild and hot mess of N'awlins piano, second-line drums, great horns, and a catchy, scratchy guitar riff.
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7"
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RB 112EP
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Stone cold essential twin spin from the real King of Rock & Roll -- none other than Richard Wayne Penniman aka Little Richard. Seminal, piano-bashing, high-octane New Orleans screamers back to back! Not much left to be said about these landmark recordings, except throw on either side of this double-sided stick of vinyl dynamite and watch the dancefloor erupt!
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7"
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RB 110EP
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2022 restock. Two more sexy sides from the queen of R&B sass, Ruth Brown. Here, Ruth is in a more somber mood vocally on "The Tears Keep Tumbling Down," even if the swaying, stomping backing music is still apt to set feet in motion. On the flip-side, our girl laments her poor life choices on "If I Had Any Sense," another powerful mid-tempo R&B sure shot sounding great on this loud-pressed 45.
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7"
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RB 107EP
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Two killer Latin beat R&B sides from the queen of sassy, '50s R&B, Ruth Brown. "Shine On" is a high-tempo, rollicking rumba screamer, while "Please Don't Freeze" is slower and sexier. Both sides are equally essential, however, and both sound better than ever on this loud pressing new reissue pairing.
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7"
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RB 105EP
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Super-sassy and super-sexy R&B twin-spin from lesser-known female blues shouter Carmen Taylor, with "Ding Dong" a slouching, sleazy mid-tempo twist on the "Hound Dog" motif and "Big Mamou Daddy" an uptempo rock & roll honker. Early Atlantic pressings were notoriously hissy and pressed quietly on 45rpm, which makes this newly mastered pressing the best way to enjoy these largely forgotten killers on DJ-friendly 7" vinyl.
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7"
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RB 106EP
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Barrett Strong's "Money (That's What I Want)" was one of the first big hits for Berry Gordy's Tamla/Motown stable in Detroit. "Money" was covered hundreds of times over in the years that followed and has become perhaps one of the most famous songs of the 20th century. Richard Wylie covers it here, followed by "I'll Still Be Around."
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7"
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CHECKER 541EP
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Two unissued sides from New Orleans bluesman Sugarboy Crawford here, originally recorded for Checker. And what can we say about "Watch Her, Whip Her," except that it may just be the least-PC R 'n' B side you've ever encountered. Lyrically, the song is clearly a relic from a whole other era. Its take on the domestic violence theme is difficult to really fathom in this more enlightened era. Regardless, the music and playing is first-rate on both sides, with a top notch N'awlins ensemble underpinning both tracks with a clattering, down-home rumba.
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