THIS IS LOWRIDER SOUL VOL 2

It is testament to the depth of talent in black America in the soul era, that these incredible tacks were deemed surplus to requirements at the time.

A big talking point will be the previously unissued ballad ‘Can’t Nobody’ from Detroit’s top vocal group Brothers Of Soul, which they cut for Galaxy in 1969. That was the year in which the more obscure Mark-Keys, from the same city, offered their re-interpretation of J.T. Rhythm’s ‘My Sweet Baby’. Detroit also provides the Perfections’ tour de force ‘Don’t Take Your Love From Me’, a Jack Ashford gem from the previous year, and harmony was still strong in the city in 1972 when the Houston Outlaws’ ‘What Am I Going To Do’ was released by Westbound. It failed to gain the acclaim it deserved – until now, currently one of the most sought-after and expensive Detroit sides on the Lowrider collectors’ scene. Philadelphia also specialised in this sound as the 60s turned into the 70s, and the Ethics’ ‘Sad Sad Story’ is a classic of its kind, in a similar vein to the offerings of Little Ben & the Cheers, the Vanguards and Johnson, Hawkins, Tatum & Durr; mid-Western groups trying to capture that same soulful feeling. Though the artists on this CD are overwhelmingly male, when the girls hit it right the effect is stunning – as with the Sparkels’ rarity ‘Try Love (One More Time)’. Another pricey original 45 is the Hyperions’ West Coast-recorded and released ‘Believe In Me’. It was hardly known until the Northern Soul A-side was flipped out of curiosity.