VA - Wardell Quezerque, Sixty Smokin' Soul Senders [2006] (2 x CDs)

SMOKIN' SOUL

Previously posted April 27, 2020

VA - Wardell Quezerque, Sixty Smokin' Soul Senders [2006] (2 x CDs)

New Orleans sixties soul is criminally underrated and underexposed. I hadn't heard of Wardell Quezerque until the Robert Parker compilation that collected his work done under this producer. This is the guy behind Barefootin' and Let's Go Baby Where the Action Is; so that makes him a legend for Mods and Northern Soul aficionados. What you get on this CD is pretty much exclusive to CD New Orleans proto funk. This is some top stuff, with early New Orleans R&B, some more soulful works and moving towards the funkier side of the late sixties. You don't get any real standout tracks, although Soul Train has been sampled and covered by many other artists. One of the great things about these discs is the wealth of material here, and although the rhythms might become quite samey the performances are not. There are some really great sounding performances here; you find yourself wondering why artists like Klicky Robinson (who sound like a mixture of Tina Turner/Bettye LaVette) are demoted to obscurity. Some of the more famous names are represented here are Eddie Bo and Earl King. It is the Earl King tracks that add the value to this set, his distinct voice and swagger is one of the highlights here (those who like Earl King need to check out the Motown song A Man and His Book on Soul Satisfaction 5). However, it isn't all good. There are no recording dates for this material, and it sounds like this has been recorded straight off vinyl. On a number of tracks, you can hear the crackling and it's a shame that this makes this a less desirable compilation for the average collector. However, this music is not available anywhere else, and if you like New Orleans music, you'll know that it comes warts and all. You still have to commend the compilers; they have taken 60 relatively obscure tracks by a producer who is probably just as obscure as this music itself and have released a double disc set.  (Amazon)

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Track lists

CD1

01    Curly Moore    Soul Train    2:46
02    Earl Harrison    Humphrey's Stomp    2:33
03    All Red    99 44% Pure Love    2:41
04    C.L. Blast    What Can I Do    3:02
05    Jerry Foucha    Wake Up    2:24
06    Guitar Ray    Ball and Chain    2:59
07    Marie Boubarere    I'm Going Home    2:39
08    Raymond Parker    Ring Around the Roses    2:42
09    Senator Jones    Let Yourself Go    2:32
10    Yvonne Wise    Ding, Dong, Daddy    2:51
11    Vickie Labat    When You're In Love (Take A)    3:07
12    Vic Cornish    Must Be Love    2:31
13    Charles "Soul" Brown    Standing On The Outside    2:29
14    Curtis Johnson    If You Need Love    2:24
15    Eddie Bo    A Heap See (But A Few Know)    2:20
16    Earl King    Poor Sam    2:11
17    Edward Jones    Everything Will Turn Out Right    2:28
18    Jimmie "J"    The Jet    2:25
19    Lydia Marcelle    I've Never Been Hurt Like This Before    2:12
20    Sammy Ridgley    I Heard That Story Before    2:33
21    Fabuletts    You're Using Me    2:47
22    Bates Sisters    So Broken Hearted    2:42
23    George Woods    I Know You Got Someone Else    2:28
24    Billy Tircuit    I Confess    2:44
25    Curly Moore    This Way I Do    3:01
26    Billy Tircuit    Crying    2:30
27    Senator Jones    Whatcha Gonna Do    2:36
28    Jades    And Now    2:56
29    Medallions    You Are Irresistable    2:30
30    Denny Fox    Where You Gonna Find A Love Like Mine    2:35

CD2

01    June Gardner    99 Plus 1    2:18
02    Guitar Ray    Patty Cake Shake    3:01
03    Eddie Bo    You Are Going To Be Somebody's Fool Too    2:31
04    Lydia Marcelle    Everybody Dance    2:32
05    Earl Harrison    Can You Forgive Me    2:58
06    Sammy Ridgley    Shake A Shake Sue    3:01
07    Jerry Foucha    I Believe In Miracles    1:48
08    Earl King    Feeling My Way Around    2:13
09    Elliott Small    Hate To See You Go    3:00
10    George Woods    She's So Fine    2:35
11    Jimmie "J"    No More    2:19
12    Klicky Robinson    When I Wanna See You    2:26
13    Senator Jones    Boston Fleet    2:30
14    Marie Boubarere    I Know    2:41
15    Billy Tircuit    Around About Noon    2:42
16    Curley Moore    Please Do Something For Me    2:32
17    Curtis Johnson    I've Got To Get Away From You    2:50
18    Denny Fox    It's You For Me    2:42
19    Raymond Parker    She's Coming Home    2:11
20    Wardell Quezergue Band    Robert & WQ's Train    2:43
21    Edwards & Jones    Don't Ever Stop Loving Me    2:40
22    Jades    Lucky Fellow    2:35
23    Fabuletts    Can't Stay Away    2:43
24    Bates Sisters    Symphony For The Brokenhearted    2:48
25    Senator Jones    Call The Sheriff    2:22
26    Billy Tircuit    I Was A Fool    2:26
27    Warren Lee    Oh Anna (We're Gonna Get Married)    2:19
28    Vickie Labat    Got To Keep Hanging On    2:45
29    Vic Cornish    Make Up Your Mind    2:27
30    C.L. Blast    I'm In A Daze/C. L. Blast    3:52
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