Incomparable Soul Vocalist [Import]

Lou Johnson (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 23, 2010)
• Original Release Date: 2010
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Kent Records UK
• ASIN: B00347ZYLG
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #212,472 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Reach Out For Me

2. The Last One To Be Loved

3. Please, Stop The Wedding

4. The Panic Is On

5. No Other Guy

6. Unsatisfied

7. Magic Potion

8. Park Avenue

9. (There's) Always Something There To Remind Me

10. If I Never Get To Love You

11. It Ain't No Use

12. Walk On By

13. A Time To Love - A Time To Cry

14. Kentucky Bluebird (Send A Message To Martha)

15. Thank You Anyway (Mr D.J.)

16. What Am I Crying For

17. Wouldn't That Be Something

18. You Better Let Him Go

19. Who Is It Now

20. Just Be A Woman

See all 25 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Lou Johnson cut a CDs worth of great NYC Brill Building and 1650 Broadway soul, mainly ballads, for the rich and successful Big Top label. His work is as good as any singer of the era and he also happens to be compiler Harboro Horace's favourite vocalist of all time; Lou's talents are quite rightly praised to the hilt.

On this CD we have every known Big Top recording, including five unreleased acetates and a non 45 LP track from an album that was never officially released.

There is the original and a great previously unheard vocal take of Lou's Northern Soul dance classic Unsatisfied. Plus his stunning original version of Roy Hamilton's revered 45 The Panic Is On which outshines even that great record.

Writers Bacharach and David used Lou for the male interpretations of their great 60s soul ballads which were often hits for Dionne Warwick. Lou's more uncompromising style meant they didn't sell so spectacularly but they were more than the equal in performance. Reach Out For Me, The Last One To Be Loved and Kentucky Bluebird (Message To Martha) are taken to another level of artistry and emotion.

Unheralded song-writing team Giant, Baum and Kaye, who had considerable success with Elvis Presley, provide the majority of the songs. Their relationship with Lou was the artistic high point of both participants' careers.

Several years in the making, this compilation is a must for every serious soul fan and every lover of 60s soulful vocals on impeccably crafted songs.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lou Johnson - Incomparable Soul Vocalist, March 23, 2010

By 

Peter Burns (London, England) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Incomparable Soul Vocalist (Audio CD)

So here it finally is Lou Johnsons' superb complete Big Top collection. This is an album that a few of us have been trying to get released on CD for 25 years or more (I wrote my first feature about him in August 1968). Though Lou had a couple of hit singles with the original versions of `Reach Out For Me' ('63) and `(There's) Always Something There To Remind Me' ('64), his record label seemed hell bent on wrecking his chances of becoming a star. They ceased trading on a couple of occasions and changed their name three times in their short life. The ten singles he cut were of exceptional high quality and there were no throw away B-sides either. As his producer, Burt Bacharach turned in some of his finest work as he and Johnson blueprinted a sophisticated soul style with `If I Never Get To Love You', `The Last One To Be Loved' and `Kentucky Bluebird' (plus those already mentioned) before Burt left to launch Dionne Warwick at Scepter. Undaunted Lou went on to record a half dozen more superb records with producers Bill Giant, Bernie Baum & Florence Kaye including `Please Stop The Wedding', `A Time To Love, A Time To Cry', `What Am I Crying For' and the earlier `It Ain't No Use'. As if this were not enough the soul miners at Kent Records uncovered the previously unissued `Love Build A Fence', `Who Is It Now', `No Other Guy' (originally on his scheduled but unissued album `Anytime') and the fantastic original version of `The Panic Is On', later cut by Roy Hamilton. Every one of the 25 tracks on this masterwork is a gem so don't miss this opportunity to hear the incomparable Lou Johnson's finest album.
Peter Burns [..]

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Regarding the "monaural" sound content, July 20, 2010

By 

J. C. Bartlett III (Millersville, MD United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Incomparable Soul Vocalist (Audio CD)

A couple of people who've reviewed this CD on this, and other, sites have made note of the fact the all selections are in "mono" (I have not yet heard this CD myself). Those who collect the "Big Top" label are aware that very little of that label's output exists in stereo, although (probably) most of Big Top's recordings were originally made in multi-track. Apparently, the Big Top tapes have disappeared over the years. The most recent tale I heard is that Big Top may have stored their tapes in the vaults of their New York neighbor...Atlantic Records...after shutting their doors. Sometime during the 70's, Atlantic suffered a disastrous tape vault fire, that resulted in the loss of a lot of material. This could explain what happened to the Big Top tapes, if this is true. Furthermore, quite a lot of Big Top's output consisted of material leased from EmBee Productions of Detroit (Del Shannon, Don & Juan, Johnny & The Hurricanes, Bobbie Smith & The Dreamgirls and several other acts). Over the years, those tapes disappeared as well, though to where, no one seems to know. In the 1980's, some good-quality mono Del Shannon tapes were discovered in Germany and a two-track production master of his "Little Town Flirt" album was unexpectedly found. The stereo "Runaway With Del Shannon" CD was mastered from the very rare vinyl LP, as those tapes are long gone. Some Big Top stereo Johnny & The Hurricanes tracks have also surfaced...but from unknown sources. That's about it for Big Top stereo. For Big Top tracks released outside the USA, there are very likely mono copy tapes on file in various foreign tape vaults...for example England's London Records and Germany's Heliodor Records (where the mono Del Shannon tapes were found, in the 80's). I have no information on the Lou Johnson material. Since I do not yet have the CD, I'm unable to say whether or not any such info (about possible tape sources) is in the CD booklet. However, I look forward to getting this shamefully-overdue compilation.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally Available!, March 26, 2010

By 

rollo (usa) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Incomparable Soul Vocalist (Audio CD)

Lou Johnson is the most underated Brill Building r&b singer who ever recorded in N.Y.. I am so glad that his recordings on Big Top records have been compiled and released, even if they are monaural. This is soul history here.