To the many of you out there who enjoyed the talent, energy, hot vibes, sweaty moments and electrifying atmosphere of the artists on this CD, either live on stage or off some old bit of vinyl, let me say welcome to Where It's At. Your favourites are back without the hisses and pops.
This memory making "cool-ection" has a lot to offer. Prepare yourself for a rare event, a CD with a prepond-erance of valued music, not your run-of-the-mill disc with half a dozen hits and the balance a collection of fluff and filler under the guise of rare nuggets, or rediscovered tracks. We DJs are very picky when it comes to ownership and the selection of product. Amongst the thousands of compilations in the market place, this is a collection worth having two of.
Have a butcher's at this list of mega tracks, 26! You can't get many more on here without severe compression!! I even rediscovered Clarence Carter's, Looking For A Fox, lost in the void for years. Thank You Ace!! Check out Esther Phillips and Charlie Palmieri, what memories. I toured with many of the artists on the CD and had a chance to really get to know them. I criss-crossed the UK with Percy Sledge-.-his two best ever songs are both on WHERE IT'S AT. Order two of these compilations and play Percy back to back, Warm And Tender Love and When A Man Loves A Woman. It doesn't get any better. The House That Jack Built just sizzles!! I start my soul shows off with Arthur Conley's Sweet Soul Music as often as I can get away with it. He toured the UK when sweet soul was at its crest in popularity and knocked 'em dead every night. When you hear the intro, best put on your safety belt.
Ace Records is also introducing some California type soul. This is soul mixed with a bit of Latin, making the case for fusion. Latin music is currently riding a crest of popularity and this trend will only grow. Conclusion: these tracks should work well at my next party here in Los Angeles and yours at your next function at the junction! When you listen to this fusion work, it's magic on the soul. The difference between Northern Soul and Southern Soul becomes very apparent.
Talk about favourites! See Saw, Gee Whiz, Tighten Up, Soul Finger, Release Me. The Hump Man never sounded like this! Have mercy Mr Percy! Let us not forget Sam and Dave, here with one of the most distinctive tracks these musical-dragon slayers ever recorded. When they sang You Don't Know Like I Know on stage it was the penultimate showstopper!
I think the power song (amongst lots of super soul power) in this collection is the "Wicked" Pickett's Midnight Hour. This tune just says it all. You can play this at most events and it always get everyone's attention. Feel the power!
The last time I saw Wilson was after his gig at the Albert Hall (mid-70s), he had just had a great night, lots of screaming and hot vibes. I had MCed the event and we were all invited guests of his record company for dinner somewhere in Soho. Wilson was hanging with me as I was hanging with the girls and he thought I had a car, so he just stayed behind when the rest of the group went on ahead. When we had taken all the phone numbers we legally could, he asked me for a lift to the dinner party. He assumed I had transport on four wheels. Wrong. So reluctantly for the first time he got to go on my souped-up Norton 750. It was an eye opening first for him! You can imagine the rest. We took off like a rocket! He kept his eyes closed and just held on for dear life. The Emperor ran with the tac in the red!! Full-speed through London, and as far as Pickett was concerned I was driving up the wrong bloody side of road. He was one happy camper to get to the dinner party.
PS In the end he admitted he loved the ride, errrr yeah. This compilation WHERE IT'S AT rates very high in my book and I hope to play it for you at a gig sometime in the near future. That is if you catch me on the road somewhere soon!! I only do about five gigs a year in the UK and hope you show up at the next one. My global listeners will get an earful starting today. Have Mercy!
By Emperor Rosko
