Category Archives: Hammond Organ

Big Ups with Jazzman Gerald

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Of all of the Big Up interviews (which btw have all been great in my opinion), this has been the most anticipated. Jazzman Gerald is a guy who does things the way he wants. In other words, he is the guy who set the bar for reissues and bringing the underdog artist to the public’s eyes and ears. He has been doing it well, taking care of the artists he reissues, all the while running a record label dynasty that is quite impressive. When not DJing rare music all over the world, he’s keeping all the record collectors, DJs, producers and artists scrambling to get his latest releases and compilations. Heard he’s a football supporter, but no mention of it in the interview. Gerald get at me on that! It is an honor for us to have Gerald in this latest installment of Big Ups. Enjoy!

Jazzman Records on the web.

TheJazzman Gerald Blog. See what he’s up to.

Follow Jazzman on twitter.

Keep Diggin’!

Lonnie Smith – See Saw

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Download or Listen to Lonnie Smith – See Saw from the Blue Note Lp Turning Point

Here we go midweek again, and I’m excited to be able to lay another All 45 Mix on the Flea Market Funk family. I’ve got a ton more in me, including some guest mixes, so stay tuned for that. This next record I picked up over the last few weeks. It’s kind of funny too, because I get records from all over, and in some particular spots, dudes are really trying to give it a go. They’ll buy whole record collections, and put every Samba, bad 80′s, and Big Band records out for sale. They will charge inflated prices for common records. They will take a major label pressing of a record and turn around and sell me the private label record (that the artist sold out of his trunk). Most of all, they will talk to me about Funk and Soul like I don’t know what the fuck I’m talking about. That’ how I got this record. There’s more in the Jazz genre than John Coltrane (although if I find them on the cheap I always buy them). I don’t claim to be an expert, I just like what I like, and know what I know. I buy records to play, and I like good music. I’m not paying a grand for a record, sorry, so I will not pay an inflated E Bay price for a record I’m gonna play out. The rant is over. But I digress, we will now get into some Lonnie Smith and “See Saw” on Blue Note Records from 1969.

Dr. Lonnie Smith was born in 1942 in Lackawanna, New York. His family was musically inclined, and Smith got involved with the church through Gospel singing, as well as in vocal groups in the 1950′s. He started out playing the trumpet, but he switched to Hammond B3. Self taught on the organ (from listening to Bill Doggett and Jimmy Smith records), he immediately became an expert at it, somewhat of a local legend on the organ. Playing at Buffalo’s famous Pine Grill, got the attention of players such as George Benson and Jack McDuff. This drove him to go to NYC (as so many Jazz cats did in that era) to play. With Benson, there was an instant connection on and off stage, and Smith became part of the George Benson Quartet in 1966. They released two records as a quartet before Smith would venture out solo. When Finger Lickin’ Good (B Boys steal that name from Check Your Head?) came out on Columbia in 1967, Smith had Benson on Guitar, Melvin Sparks on Guitar, Marion Booker on Drums, and Ronnie Cuber on Saxophone. It was his hook up with Lou Donaldson that started his long relationship with Blue Note. Check out Alligator Boogaloo, Mr. Shing-A-Ling, and Midnight Creeper if you need proof. Smith’s presence at this time at Blue Note was important, and he churned out Soul Jazz records such as Think! , this full length Turning Point . He would also put out Move Your Hand and Live! At Club Mozambique (where I first discovered him). I’d highly recommend that record if you haven’t checked it out. Smith worked with the best of the best in Jazz: Lee Morgan to Blue Mitchell to Lou Donaldson to Norman Connors to Idris Muhammad to Ron Carter to Reuben Wilson to Jimmy McGriff and beyond. His Soul Jazz sides made his East Coast presence in the Jazz community grow country and world wide. In the 70′s Smith would convert to Sikhism. This new, life changing outlook did not deter his touring. He played smaller venues with a variety of sidemen. I’m wondering if he ever played the West side of Asbury Park, NJ, which boasted up to 40 clubs back in the day. Smith went on to put out records on Kudu, Groove Merchant, and even TK among others. He is a legend on the B3 and keeps great company with Groove Holmes, Jimmy Smith, Jack McDuff, Jimmy McGriff, and Shirley Scott. He’s easily one of my top Jazz organ players, just an unmistakable sound. Still touring and playing today at the age of 67, he shows no signs of slowing down.

“See Saw” is a cover of the Don Covay/ Steve Cropper tune. From the slow moving Smith organ in the beginning to Leo Morris’s drums, this killer piece of Soul Jazz changes moods into som Jazz Funk all through out the 5 minutes and 45 seconds of the side. Lee Morgan shines on this people as well. His trumpet solo is just what the good Doctor ordered, among the blazing guitar of Melvin Sparks. Let’s not forget players such as Bernie Mauphin on Tenor Sax and Julian Preister on Trombone. These cats aren’t too shabby either. This tune is well worth the price of admission itself, but the rest of the LP is a hit too. While Aretha Franklin made her mark with this song as well as Smith, I think the Smith side is the better of the two. Not to take anything away from Lady Soul, but I have a soft spot for the Hammond B-3. This my friends, was a good score. Enjoy and I’ll see you again soon. Keep Diggin’!!

The Village Callers – Hector

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Download or Listen to The Village Callers – Hector from the Rampart Records 45

Today is a record that I had known about for quite a while, but didn’t end up getting a copy of it until earlier this year. Jack the Ripper always had this in his bag, and Larry from F16 always raved about it. It really is a great record, and if you’re not familiar with it, get familiar. Here’s The Village Callers with “Hector” on Rampart Records from 1968.

The Village Callers would come out of a band called Marcy and the Imperials. MATI would grown into the Village Callers (allegedly taken from a Willie Bobo record), who fused a Latin sound into their music, and were one of the first bands in the LA area to do so. Their sound was a mix of Latin percussion, Jimmy Smith style organ, some R & B, and Mongo Santamaria and Wille Bobo sounds thrown in to round it out. The original line up featured Ernie Hernandez on guitar, Joe Espinoza and Manny Fernandez, on bass and drums respectively, Angie Bell on vocals, “Fuzzy” Martinez on the saxophone, and Chuck Masten on percussion. The Village Callers had a few other singers as well: Ersi Arvisu and Al Anaya, who came in and out of as band members often do. This line up was the lineup that recorded the live record, and the Callers did go through many other musicians in their time, some from Marcy and the Imperials, some not. The band played in many of the hot venues in LA and through California, when they were introduced to Eddie Davis of Rampart Records by their manager Hector Riviera. Get the correlation? The Callers would play gigs with the Watts 103rd Street band in some of the hippest venues in LA. There was a sort of battle for these young, hot musicians, and when they were offered some money (I believe $10,000), they took it and jumped ship from Rampart. This was a bad move in the long run, as even though the Village Callers got air play on the radio, the band would soon move into another direction. With personnel changes, the band would soon change it’s name to Silvanus and become a Rock band. The Latin flavor was gone. Many of the former VC musicians would go on to play with other bands, such as Poverty Train, Orange Colored Sky, and the Sal Chico Band.

This record is something. Recorded live at the Plush Bunny, the groove is, unfuckable with. The organ is the main focus, but when the groove locks in, and the horns start to blow, it’s a full blown freak out. Allegedly they were going for a “Tequila” sound, but this side is much,. much better. It has been said that bass was tripled in the studio and the original was so long that they had to divide it into two parts. Now there was much fooling around and busting of chops of their manager throughout, in English and in Spanish. This is a record that any good 45 DJ should own. You can get it under $20 and I highly recommend it. Ask any of the 45 Session guys and I think they’d say the same. I’ll see you Friday with some treats before the Holiday weekend here in the States. Keep Diggin’!

Jimmy McGriff – I’ve Got A Woman Part 1

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Download or Listen to Jimmy McGriff – I’ve Got A Woman Part 1 from the Jell Records 45

I have no idea where the week went, but I figured I’d end the week out with an artist I really dig. He is no stranger to Flea Market Funk, and a definite favorite artist of mine. In fact, I pick up everything I come across, cheesy or not. I originally posted something on McGriff here, so for a bit of background on the man, check that out. This particular record I picked up at the annual Ocean Grove Flea Market this Summer. It’s not really known for it’s vinyl. Number one, it’s more sausage trucks and crafts more than music. Number two, the guys who have the records, think that the Classic Rock they have is priceless. Riiiight. This record was unsleeved, and when I tried to sleeve it up he told me it was a dollar extra! Uh, Ok Mister-it’s-90-degrees-out-and-your-vinyl-is-melting. Thankfully, I rescued this side from Jimmy McGriff, a cover of Ray Charles’ “I’ve Got A Woman Part 1″, on Newark, N.J.’s own Jell Records..

Jimmy McGriff was a lot of things: multi-talented instrument player, former soldier, former police officer, a pioneer in Soul Jazz, and forever the experimentalist in the area of the Hammond B-3. He was one of Philly’s finest Jazz musicians right up until his death from multiple sclerosis in 2008. It is unfortunate that even though he was so close, I never got to see him live. “I’ve Got A Woman Part 1″ starts off with that great Hammond sound, slowly, then McGriff busts through it like he was a guy in Pamplona running with the bulls. This side cooks people! It’s a great cover that I’m sure Ray Charles would have approved of. This is definitely a side that I’m sure McGriff busted out while playing in one of the many West Side of Asbury Park, NJ clubs during the 50′s and 60′s. There were over 40 in the prime of that time! This side goes out to my man Pat James Longo, aka Primitive Sound System, who’s going to be a guest at the August 14th Asbury Park 45 Sessions. We were speaking on how we can’t pass up McGriff sides. I’ll see you next week, have a great weekend. Keep Diggin’!

The DT6 – (Theme from) The Baden Persuader

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Download or Listen to The DT6 – (Theme from) The Baden Persuader from the Starla Records SRC 1002 45

After a great weekend, and a great 40th birthday party, FMF is back. Even if I wanted to get something out on Monday, the old Dell “shit the bed”, as my friend Mark would say, in military jargon. So Sunday I went and picked up a new desktop. I had my Mac, but all my Photoshop stuff had to be reloaded on the PC, so it was best that I just relaxed. This midweek post brings us back to Glasgow, Scotland again, and our old friends at Starla Records. They have kept me abreast of there ever growing stable of seven inches, and when this one came my way through the post, I was excited to play it out. I first gave it a spin at the last Asbury Park 45 Sessions , where there were a lot of inquiries on what it was, and exactly where it was from. Let’s not delay any further, and get into latest release from The DT6 and the “(Theme from) The Baden Persuader” on Starla Records.

Coming straight out of Glasgow, the Starla Records house band has come away with another winner. Sounding like it has come out of some 60′s soundtrack to a spy movie done by the illegitimate love child of Lalo Schifrin, Mikis Theodorakis, and those unknown Turkish Psych Funk comps that mysteriously turned up a few years ago, this forty five starts out with a BANG. It’s Turkish and or Middle Easter flavor leads you right into slamming drums and the newly installed Starla Hammond organ, which dominates the track. And why wouldn’t it? It sounds lovely. The horns are a nice touch as well, giving it that soundtrack flavor. You would swear this thing was the theme song to a chase scene involving a Turkish outdoor market, bullet dodging, and screeching tires from a Hacı Murat. On a whole, this side is tighter than tight. If the first two releases on Starla are any indication on how the third is going to be, how do I preorder? I ride hard for these guys, and wouldn’t mind hooking up some Asbury Park 45 Sessions/ Starla Records DJ collaborations in Glasgow. Let’s make that happen guys.
The DT6 make their live debut proper on Friday 26 June supporting the legendary James Taylor Quartet in Glasgow’s Old Fruitmarket as part of the Glasgow Jazz Festival. Tickets and info are available from www.jazzfest.co.uk. I’ll be back Friday with the last Soul Investigators 45, until then, Keep Diggin’!

Buy this record here. Support this record label and preserve Funk and Soul music!

Check out the video for the song:

The Soul Investigators – Brown Sauce

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Download or Listen to The Soul Investigators – Brown Sauce from the Timmion Records 45

Well, as I promised last week, I have 2 more Soul Investigators sides to review, this being the second one. I had an overwhelming response with the first side, so I’m excited to get this one out. The first installment of the FMF Sticker series are here. I will be selling them singly for a bit, but only in a limited quantity. The rest will be for the 4 part Series. So if you’re jonesing to get you Flea Market Funk on and you want to represent, you can Pay Pal me at djprestige@djprestige.net. US orders are $1 for the sticker and 50 cents for postage, International orders are $1 for the sticker and $1.50 for postage. Please specify the quantity of stickers you want. That being said, let’s get into another great side by The Soul Investigators on Timmion Records. Here’s “Brown Sauce”, Timmion #017.

Starting off with some heavy drums, “Brown Sauce” moves right into some decent Hammond organ and just takes you away. It’s drums/ guitar combo remind me of a lost Meters track that was eventually sampled by Premier for another break-neck beat. However funky Jukka’s drums are, and Pete and Sami’s guitar/bass combinations slam it, the sound that resonates throughout the song and brings it to the next level is Antti’s organ. It moves you man, from start to finish. I know it’s 2009, but really I’m feeling 1971. I’m feeling like I’m in some chicken shack of a bar, drinking a Schaeffer from a pop top can, and dressed in my best Saturday night outfit. This is how music should be made. I know I’m partial to the Hammond organ, but hell, this track smokes. I urge all of you to get over to the Timmion site and buy it. I’ll see you Friday with some more goodness. Keep Diggin’!

Friday June 12th: Asbury Park 45 Sessions LIVE!

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Well, it’s that time again folks. If you like Funk and Soul spun on all 45′s, well then you will have to motivate and get out to the World Famous Asbury Lanes in Asbury Park, NJ. I have been doing this party with the 45 Sessions crew for 2 years, and it just keeps getting stronger. Where else in NJ are you going to get to hear the foundations of today’s music spun on vinyl, let alone on 45? Stop getting all excited that Scion has DJ’s with 45′s, we’ve been doing it for over two years strong, right in your back yard! The usual suspects will all be out bringing you the best in Deep funk, Raw Soul, and other surprises, all on 7″. So walk, run, drive, hitch hike, or however you can down to the Lanes. It’s only $5. Support your local Funk and Soul DJ. The Asbury 45 Sessions is preserving Funk and Soul, one 45 at a time. To see what kinds of stuff we spin, do a search for “45 Sessions” in the box to the lower left. Keep Diggin! Hope to see you out.

The DT6 – Don’t Doubt Me

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Download or Listen to The DT6 – Don’t Doubt Me from the Starla Records 45

A lot of records pass through my desk and turntables here at Flea Market Funk. Most, of course are ones I’ve spent time digging up in some rodent infested mini van or some pile of complete garbage out at a flea market. Other times, I get turned on to stuff through my other diggin’ or DJ buddies. As of late, I’ve been getting packages in the mail. I love mail. If you have a Funk or Soul 45 you put out, get at me. I love to spread the word of good music. This side is one of the latter. It came through the Post, and the second I put the needle on it on my portable, I fell in love with it. Here’s DT6 with “Don’t Doubt Me” on Starla Records.

Coming straight out of Glasgow, Scotland, Starla Records come out strong with this heavy Hammond side. Starla Records was put together by DJ’s Craig Reese (Loosejoints) and Mark Robb (The Buff), and musician/ engineer Marco Rea (Rainbow Family/ Palimino). Recorded entirely in Glasgow, it features the cream of the crop of Glasgow’s new wave of Funk and Jazz musicians. I like their purpose of putting this label together too, they want to showcase the thriving music scene in Glasgow. This is really a labor of love (and I know how that is), and this vinyl only label has plans to release many a limited edition, pressed 45 in the future.

Let’s get to the meat and potatoes of this thing, shall we? Wasting no time and going right for a big drum break and Hammond beginning, DT6 add the flute, some jangly guitar (they know how to pull on my heart strings), and a bad ass bass line as the flute continues throughout. A subtle horn section (which is equally as funky) plays a game with the drummer, as he “gets some” quite frequently. The big star here though really is the Hammond organ as it just grinds it’s way into a frenzy, hopefully like the people on the dance floor when I play this out this weekend and in my mini Mid Atlantic Tour. Good on ya Glasgow, Starla Records, and DT6. Keep this shit movin and thanks for keeping the Funk alive. Ye would make yer mum proud ( said in my best Kenny Dalglish accent).

Copies can be ordered from Starla by emailing starlarecords (at) gmail.com for cash/money order details.

The records are priced at £5 each with the following rates for postage -
UK (First Class) £1, Europe (EU Airmail) £2 , Rest of World (Airmail) £3. We will discount for multiple orders, please get in touch for wholesale details.

Support These guys and this kind of music!

Keep Diggin’!

Also Friday:

Truman Thomas – My Soul

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Download or Listen To Truman Thomas – My Soul from the Veep 45

Today’s midweek post is gonna be a bit on the short side. I’ve got some stuff to take care of (aka real world moves), which without saying much will be the start of probably the most important (and the best) decision I’ve ever had to make. That being said, I want to throw out an organ side introduced to me by my friend Mr. Funky 16 Corners aka Larry Grogan at a past record show. Had it not been for him, well I would have passed by this side because I didn’t read that after the name, it said organist. The side I am speaking of is Texas born organist Truman Thomas, and “My Soul”. In many times in life, you have to hold on to a lot of things. Material possessions may come and go, but honestly, you always have your Soul. Enjoy this great side (and the great drum break in the middle), and if you want to read more about the history of it, stop on over to the archives of the F16 Corners webzine. Have a great week, I’ll see you Friday. I’m catching the NY Red Bulls match vs. Barcelona tonight, so look for me on the TV in ESC 101. Keep Diggin’!

07.18.08 Asbury Park 45 Sessions Recap

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The 45′s were so hot we broke the fan!

This 45 Sessions was definitely a special one. All the nights are basically free form, as long as you play it on 7 inch. We all bring the Deep Funk and Soul, but it’s always nice when someone throws in some Classic Rock Breaks, Hip Hop, or some good Reggae in the mix. What we did tonight, is just switch every half an hour, so each of the five DJ’s had to be on their toes, and so did the audience. The night had a little bit of drama, but when isn’t there any at a bar, filled with people drinking and bowling? We got a great write up in the local paper the day of, and I thank the Asbury Park Press for hooking that up. Here’s a few photos of the night, as well as my play list. More play lists as they come in.


DJ Prestige on the cut
DJ Prestige Play List for 07.18.08 45 Sessions

Intro: Monster Shindig/ HBR
Hank Johnson – You Lost Your Thing/ Sex Machine Records
Ohio Players – Funky Worm/ Westbound
Tony Newman – Soul Thing/ Parrot
Binky Griptite & the Mellowmatics – Mellomatic Mood/ Daptone
John KaSandra – (What’s Under) The Natural Do/ Respect
Mophono – Tighten Up Remix/ CB
Roger Collins – She’s Looking Good/ Galaxy
TnT Band – The Meditation/ Cotique
$mall Change – Steviano Italiano/ Bstrd Boot Nuggets!
James Brown & the Fabulous Flames – Night train/ King
Charles Bradley & the Bullets – This Love Ain’t Big Enough for the Two of Us/ Daptone
Tammi Lynn – Mojo Hannah/ Cotillion
Betty Wright – Baby Sitter/ Alston
Joe Gibbs & the Professionals – Lick To Yu Chin/ Belmont
Cobra – Flex/ Shang
Tony Tuff – Run Come Come/ Scorcher
The Expressions – Money I$ King/ Truth and Soul
Edwin Starr – Back Street (Instrumental)/ Ric Tic
Pamoja – Oooh Baby/ Lotus Land
The Undisputed Truth – California Soul/ Gordy
Tom Jones – Looking Out My Window/ Parrot
Wendy Lynn – I Can Remember/ King
Sammy Brown – Got To Leave This Towm/ Grassroots


The Devil Dick layed down heat


M.Fasis threw down some great 45′s.


Funky 16 Corners Larry Grogan en fuego.


DJ Prime Cuts (Mundo) always coming through with the goods.


DJ Jack the Ripper straight from Gitmo.

Tonight Asbury Park 45 Sessions

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Tonight is another installment of the Asbury Park 45 Sessions. Our special guest of course is the Devil Dick. We’ll all be serving up some fresh, funky, and of course dusty 45′s the whole night. If you’re in the area, do stop in. Cheers. Keep Diggin’!

Brother Jack McDuff – Hot Barbecue

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Brother Jack McDuff – Hot Barbecue from the Prestige 45

Here’s a midweek treat for all of the Flea Market Funk Family. It’s a bit of a preview of what’s to come on Friday, as I am finally dropping another podcast. I still have some Guest DJ Mixes on deck (have no fear), but I figured I’d throw this side out, which is one of my favorite Latin organ sides. In fact, it’s been done a bunch of times, also by Pucho and His Latin Soul Brothers (on Milestone Records). You can read all about Brother Jack McDuff from the very first FMF post, the post that started it all, here. For now though, get those Summer vibes flowing, and settle in with the Brother as he does what he does best, smokes it on the Hammond. What’s ahead is FMF Vol. 29: Frank ‘N Beans. It’s a great selection of Summer inspired sides and artists, that you can pump at your next barbecue, gathering, or soiree. Enjoy this side, and I’ll see you Friday, Keep Diggin’!

FMF Guest Mix Series: Funky 16 Corners

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I know it’s a holiday here in the States, but guess what? The FMF Guest Mix Series continues! Today we have a good friend, digging cohort, and mentor throwing down some great records: Larry Grogan from the mighty Funky 16 Corners. He’s got as deep as crates as anyone I know, and there is always some straight H-E-A-T from start to finish on these mixes. I know you’ll enjoy it. Here’s Larry’s take on the mix:

“Hey there.
Allow me to get things rolling by saying Happy Anniversary to my man DJ Prestige and the mighty Fleamarket Funk blog.
I’ve known Pres for a couple of years now and it’s been clear to me (and anyone else paying attention), that he is a man with deep crates and a contagious enthusiasm for the music he loves.
A little over a year ago, when he asked me to saddle up with the Asbury Park 45 Sessions crew (another enterprise that just celebrated it’s one-year-anniversary) I was both psyched and honored because I know that in addition to the fact that he’s what they used to call a righteous dude, he’s got his eyes on the prize.
If you’ve been fortunate enough to fall by one of the 45 Sessions you will have witnessed the gathering of a DJ crew with a wide range of sensibilities and approaches to the music we call soul. You can come down to the World Famous Asbury Lanes, grab yourself a cold beer and a basket of tater tots, take a load off your feet and open your ears as the resident selectors (and a growing list of stellar guests) lay down gritty R&B, Northern Soul, solid hardcore funk and all manner of breaks covering the entire soulful spectrum of the last 50 years. The thing that really hits home is the fact that no matter how diverse the sounds, no matter how many subgenres are represented, things always sound as if they belong together.
There’s a vibe there, and we’re all tuned into it, and we were all brought there by DJ Prestige.
The vibe here at Fleamarket Funk takes that journey into the macro and fine tunes it to the micro, reflecting his own diverse tastes with bits of funk, soul, jazz and reggae laid side by side, always worth a listen (and a read) and always groovy.
When Pres asked me to whip up a guest mix to help celebrate the anniversary of FMF, I hit the crates right away. Though initially unsure of what path I might take (in the process I eventually pulled a couple of stacks of 45s out that I’ll mix for Funky16Corners) I locked on to a record I pulled during a recent dig (side by side with AP45 cohorts Prestige, DJ Prime and DJ Jack the Ripper) – that being Moe Koffman’s ‘James Brown’s Bag’ – and worked from there, building on a soul jazz/jazz funk thing until I had just over an hours worth of superior grooves to bring to the table.
I won’t go into great detail, but I will let you know that herein you will find some tasty Hammond, groovy guitar, cool flute and vibes and the funkiest version of ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ you’ve ever heard.
I hope you dig it, and that we’re all here next year to do it again.
I’ll see you around the interwebs.”
Peace
Larry

Six Million Dollar Groove Track List:

Buddy Rich – It’s Crazy (World Pacific)
Wynder K Frog – Jumping Jack Flash (UA)
Bobby Christian – Boogaloo (Ovation)
Roy Meriwether Trio – Jesus Christ Superstar (Notes of Gold)
Moe Koffman – James Brown’s Bag (Jubilee)
Odell Brown & the Organizers – No More Water In the Well (Cadet)
Johnny Lytle – The Snapper (Tuba)
Freddy Robinson – The Coming Atlantis (World Pacific Jazz)
Wilbert Longmire – Scarborough Fair/Canticle (World Pacific Jazz)
Ernie Wilkins Big Band – Funky Broadway (Mainstream)
Little Richie Varola – Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf (Verve)
Freddie McCoy – Beans and Rice (Prestige)
Brother Jack McDuff – I Can’t Be Satisfied (Atlantic)
Jimmy Smith – Sugar Sugar (MGM)
Herbie Mann – Bitch (Atlantic)

Download or Listen to Six Million Dollar Groove by Funky 16 Corners

Keep Diggin’!

Tony Newman – Soul Thing

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Tony Newman and his Boxer band mate Ollie Halsall


The label is beat but the song is pure HEAT!

Tony Newman – Soul Thing from the Parrot Records 45

As real world moves encroach on my blog world this week, I bring you a really great record, that was passed on to me many years ago from the sale box of on Larry Grogan from Funky 16 Corners. I had just started to make the serious transition from Lp and part time 45 collector to full on 45 junkie. Larry said: “You might be interested in this.” As a matter of fact, I was, and have played it out (at the inaugural Asbury Park 45 Sessions), and included part of it on the first Flea Market Funk Mix/ Podcast from last February. Before I get into this, I’d like to shout out my friend and great DJ, DJ Andy Smith. Congratulation to the King of the Document Mix Series and his missus as they celebrate the birth of their two new twins. Best of luck. Andy can be seen working doubles (of kids!) on his MySpace page and website. Here we go midweek with Tony Newman and “Soul Thing” on Parrot Records.

Richard Anthony “Tony” Newman was born in 1943 in Southampton, Hampshire England. Inspired by a combination of Bill Haley’s “Shake, Rattle, and Roll”, and Louis Belson, Newman would escape a not so great home life by playing drums. His perseverance and natural ability landed him a gig on Gene Vincent’s 1960 record “I’m Going Home”. From there he has played with as Sounds Incorporated, Jeff Beck, David Bowie, Three Man Army, T.Rex, May Blitz, Donovan, Mick Ronson, and a long list of notables. He at any time, would open up for The Beatles, and many other major league acts. Newman tells tales of opening up for the Fab Four at Shea Stadium in 1969, and for the most part was a veteran studio drummer and all around journeyman musician throughout the Rock scene. Apparently quite a character as well as a bad ass drummer, the Englishman would eventually relocate to Nashville, where he’d be involved with Crystal Gayle and the Everly Brothers and Country Music. He now resides in Las Vegas, where he still performs.

“Soul Thing” does not disappoint. A Hammond monster with a heavy drum beat provided by Newman, I can easily say that this is one of my most favorite 45′s. Newman took a cue from UK library guru Keith Mansfield on this side, and put out one of two solo efforts in his career (the other was “Hoolie Ghoolie”). There’s lots of funny coincidences about this side, Quentin Tarantino has used it in both Kill Bill and Death Proof ( it was background music before both films), also pointed out to me by a coworker as the theme song from Queen Street Gang by psych/ fuzz band Arzachel. That version was a bit slower, but there is no mistaking it’s “Soul Thing”. You can read more about this record in the old Funky 16 Corners webzine from back in the day. Another shining example of a non Funk or Soul guy laying down some funky, funky stuff. FMF recommended. Have a great one, and we’ll see you Friday. Keep Diggin’!