This new Rumblers set makes the group’s entire output available on CD. (To complete your Rumblers collection, you’ll need our previous Rumblers comp “It’s a Gas”, plus a couple of free-floating oddities exclusive to two of our other compilations of Downey material.)
All but eight of the tracks here are hitherto unissued. Of the previously released material, ‘Boss Drums’, ‘Harlem Nocturne’, ‘Walking With The Boss’, ‘Boss Blues’ and ‘Lost Weekend’ are from the only album the group issued in its lifetime (the rest of which is available on “It’s A Gas”). The latter three titles have never been reissued before. ‘Sorry’, ‘Til Always’ and ‘Gospel Truth’ are from single releases. The first two are vocals and the last was the B-side of the 45 the group released under the moniker the Nylons.
Nine cuts are released here for the first time anywhere. Of these, ‘Poor Boy’, ‘Underwater’ and ‘Wockytok’ are from the group’s initial Downey sessions, and are contemporary with their big hit ‘Boss’. ‘Slingshot’, ‘Rumblin’ And Stumblin’’, ‘Wedgee’, ‘Charger’ and ‘Saxwax’ are from the second line-up of the band (which cut the great ‘Soulful Jerk’). Then there’s ‘Lots To Learn’, an unreleased vocal track lifted from the session the group did using the name Bel Canto’s, under the production eye of a young Barry White.
The booklet contains a host of rarely seen photos supplied by members of the group.
By Brian Nevill
