I'm Deep in a Gospel Soul Rabbit Hole My Friends...Aretha Franklin + More!
I blame Aretha Franklin and Greg Belson. The first name will ring a bell and I'll explain the second shortly. Aretha's movie, Amazing Grace, is available to rent on streaming services (we rented on Amazon) and it's mesmerizing. More on that below. Greg Belson is a DJ who specializes in performing live sets made up of only 45s that specialize in gospel soul, funk and disco. Huh? Can that be any good? Well, I stumbled on a three hour DJ mix he compiled (listen here) and haven't stopped listening since. Both of these occurrences led me to purchasing several gospel LPs over the past week. Not all of these are available on streaming services but I'll include as many links as possible. Here's to feeling the Spirit my friends...
1) Mary, Don't You Weep - Aretha Franklin
Watching Amazing Grace made me want to purchase the double LP of the same name. I happened to mention this to a record store employee and he quickly found a copy for me to buy. The first track is over seven minutes long and is a great reminder of just how effortlessly Aretha could sing. It sounds so easy but by the time the song is over, she's shown just what she can do when she really puts forth effort. One of my favorite parts of this recording is the female background singers answering Aretha's call and then around the six minute mark, they start singing the notes in what I can only describe as a swirling "oh, oh, oh, oh" that actually sounds as if they are moving around the microphone. Watch the movie. You won't be disappointed.
2) He Didn't Have To Do It - The Sensational Williams Brothers
"Man, this song sounds familiar." That was my first thought after listening to this LP by the Williams Brothers that I found. Wait, I remember now. It sounds like ZZ Top's I Thank You. Hold on, isn't ZZ Top covering that song too? Yep. That would be Sam & Dave's song, I Thank You. So, here seems to be the timeline that I can piece together...Sam & Dave 1968, The Sensational Williams Brothers 1977 and ZZ Top 1979. Chances are the Williams Brothers borrowed heavily from Sam & Dave to make a gospel song of the same feeling. Unfortunately this song is not on streaming services but I did find a YouTube video. Be sure to listen about two minutes in when the "ah, ah, ahs" kick in. So good.
3) Hot Line To Jesus - The Rance Allen Group
Released in 1973, Hot Line To Jesus is a gospel stomper from The Rance Allen Group. I recently picked up their Best Of compilation LP released by Gospel Truth which was started by legendary Stax Records specifically to release Rance's music. My favorite lyric from this song is, "I paid my telephone bill with love that my God gives." Works for me. Rance is currently the pastor of New Bethel Church of God in Christ in Toledo, Ohio. Play this one loud.
4) Satisfied - Willie Banks and the Messengers
One of the first LPs I found that confirmed my interest in this gospel soul rabbit hole was Willie Banks and the Messengers' The Things I Can't Change. The album was released in 1973 by HSE Records, featuring a great LP label that's green and black and reminiscent of the classic Nashboro Records label. I now know two labels to keep my eye for while shopping for gospel records! Oddly enough, after finding this LP, I found two more at the local thrift store! I found this same LP jacket but unfortunately the record inside was broken in half, but I did find two more LPs without jackets by Willie and the Messengers and brought both home to listen to. I love the "hallelujahs" in this song. I can't find this LP on streaming services but did find their song, Satisfied, on YouTube. Enjoy!
5) Time Waits On No One - The Brooklyn Allstars
After finding my first batch of gospel LPs at the local record store near me, I decided to swing by the thrift store to see if I could find more, something that rarely happens. Well, turns out I found a wabi-sabi copy of the Brooklyn Allstars' LP, Jesus Loves Me, released in 1967 on Nashboro Records here in Nashville. I was so excited when I saw the jacket but my heart sunk when I realized the LP was missing. I noticed a large stack of records without jackets and thankfully this LP was sitting near the top. Whew. I brought it home, cleaned it up and it sounds great. The jacket cover had the name of the group marked through and Sheila E. written on it instead. My wife assumed that someone used this jacket instead for their Sheila E. album which makes more sense than my assumption that someone named Sheila E. owned the album, ha. Time Waits On No One is a great song from a great LP. Again, I cannot find the LP on streaming services but did find this track on YouTube. Here's hoping these great albums can be reissued again so we can listen in full on streaming services!
My plan for the holiday break is to hook up my turntables to a new mixer I just bought and make an hour long mix of these great gospel jams to share with everyone. If I can pull it off, I'll be sure to post here.
Those are my songs for this week. I hope you enjoy. If you’d like more information about these songs and more, visit my website: aaronhartley.me.
Also, check out the Aaron Calling podcast where I call one of my best friends, Aaron Ford, to talk about music, records and more. Listen on Apple or Spotify!
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