Eccentric Soul: The Capsoul Label

Marion Black (Performer), Hawkins, Tatum & Durr Johnson (Performer), Kool Blues (Performer), Bill Moss (Performer), The Four Mints (Performer), Ronnie Taylor (Performer), Elijah & The Ebonites (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 1, 2005)
• Original Release Date: 2005
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Numero
• ASIN: B0006H4FP8
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #22,318 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #18 in Music > R&B > Soul > Northern

Track Listings

1. Johnson, Hawkins, Tatum & Durr - You're All I Need To Make It

2. Marion Black - Who Knows

3. Kool Blues - I'm Gonna Keep On Loving You

4. Bill Moss - Sock It To 'Em Soul Brother

5. Four Mints - Too Far Gone

6. Johnson, Hawkins, Tatum & Durr - You Can't Blame Me

7. Bill Moss - Number One

8. Four Mints - Row My Boat

9. Ronnie Taylor - Without Love

10. Kool Blues - I Want To Be Ready

11. Johnson, Hawkins, Tatum & Durr - Your Love Keeps Drawing Me Closer

12. Elijah & The Ebonites - Hot Grits!!!

13. Ronnie Taylor - I Can't Take It

14. Kool Blues - Can We Try Love Again

15. Four Mints - You're My Desire

16. Johnson, Hawkins, Tatum & Durr - A World Without You

17. Marion Black - Go On Fool

18. Eljah & The Ebonites - Hot Gritts!!! (Instrumental)

19. Bill Moss - Sock It To 'Em Soul Brother (Instrumental)

20. Capsoul Group - All I Need To Make It

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

How does a record become a hit? As history has shown, for every chart-topper, there are easily 10 equally well-made and compelling songs which never become widely-known. Case in point: Eccentric Soul: The Capsoul Label, documenting the tiny Columbus, Ohio label's output during the 1970s. The selections included here are closer to the gritty sounds of Stax than to high-polished Motown soul, but the musicianship and performances would not sound out of place next to the same era's familiar classics from Memphis and Detroit. The Kool Blues' "I'm Gonna Keep On Loving You" apes Sam & Dave's back-and-forth vocal approach, while Four Tops-style harmonies are the template for the Four Mints "Too Far Gone" and "Row My Boat". This collection is an unexpected surprise for the adventurous soul-lover looking to discover something new from the old days. --Ben Heege

Product Description

Short for 'Capital City Soul,' the Columbus Ohio Capsoul label's history spans only five short years throughout the 1970's. Founded by Bill Moss, a local singer and DJ at WVKO in Columbus, Capsoul released just a dozen 45's and one highly sought after LP resulting in a few regional hits. Numero 001 is a compilation of nineteen tracks spanning the label's all but forgotten history.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What A Flashback!, July 15, 2006

By 

Don Thompson (Los Angeles, California United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Eccentric Soul: The Capsoul Label (Audio CD)

Having been born and raised in Columbus during the 60's and 70's all I can say is that I'm flabbergasted. This music creates a visceral sensation that takes me back to the day when Bill Moss (The man with the red hot sauce) along with motivational speaker Les Brown (The man about town) were the voices of WVKO radio. Now living in Los Angeles after thirty years I thought I would never hear the sounds of "Johnson, Hawkins, Tatum & Durr" or "Elijah & the Ebonies" again. I feel like I'm crusin' down old Mt. Vernon Avenue again! Great CD.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars GO ON FOOL !, June 18, 2006

By 

J. Hoffman "soul lover" (dover, pa. United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Eccentric Soul: The Capsoul Label (Audio CD)

At last, there is a cd with "Go On Fool" by the mysterious Marion Black which so little is known of him. With his beautiful voice, one wonders why he wasn't heard of time and time again. But nevertheless, it's so wonderful to find this song on a cd. Plus, the flip side "Who Knows". I still have the original 45 of it released on the Avco record label. The label, that featured stars like : The Premiers, The Softones, The Stylistics, Congress Alley, and Donnie Elbert.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sock it to em Soul Brother!, May 24, 2005

By 

Andre M. "brnn64" (Mt. Pleasant, SC United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Eccentric Soul: The Capsoul Label (Audio CD)

At first, the listener may be put off by the sound quality and obviously low-budget production.

However, upon repepated listening, this can be very appealing as hardcore, grassroots, down-in-the dirt funky little-known underground soul. Granted, this stuff will never make oldies radio, but the overall rawness and lack of polish compared to the more professional soul recordings then made at Motown and Philly International gives the whole thing an appealing sort of ghetto charm.

This is particularly true with "Sock It To Em Soul Brother," where Capsoul producer Bill Moss himself talks about meeting Martin Luther King and other Black heroes of the day. The lyrics here are quite awkward (producer Bill Moss' talents lied elsewhere than performing), but the performance is infectious and the Soul Sisters' background chanting of the title has a cheesy appeal.

Lots of other good stuff here worthy of mention. Johnson Hawkins Tatum and Durr sadly only made a couple of records, but they were quite powerful! "You Can't Blame Me" opens with one of the most atmospheric basslines in Soul music history and is an underrated classic! Their "A World Without You" takes a while to cook upon your first listen. But the ending is dazzling with Virgil Johnson pleading "It's such a lonely, lonely, lonely, lonely, lonely, world!" with powerful vocal percussion as the tune fades out that's enough to make you wanna throw up your hands and say YEAH!

The Kool Blues' "Can't We Try Love Again" is a minimalistic midtempo funk workout that is a nice soundtrack to a seventies summer afternoon in the 'hood. One could just see bellbottomed couples doing Soul-Train style dances to this one. Nice organ work, too. But funk fans and R&B trivia buffs will REALLY get a kick out of Elijah and the Ebonites' "Hot Grits," an admittedly so-tasteless it's hilarious funk spoof of the infamous true incident where a spurned lover threw hot grits on Al Green in the early 70s. The subject matter aside, it's quite the workout.

To the lovers of little known soul, "eccentric" is right! But give it a chance and you'll enjoy it. Such was the Soul music of this era that even it's low-budget variety still makes for enjoyable listening.