Customer Reviews

Soul Patrol: Southern Soul Classics

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I happened upon this little known disc while searching for one of the hardest-to-find songs on my "want" list. James Carr recorded "Dark End of the Street" for Memphis' Goldwax records back in 1967. That particular label got very little distribution here in the Northeast. To the best of my knowledge I had never heard the song and frankly had never even heard of it until a fellow collector dropped by my house one night raving about a new CD he had picked up. He argued that "Dark End of The Street" was perhaps one of the greatest soul tunes ever recorded. I must concur and I am absolutely thrilled to finally add that song to my collection. "Soul Patrol" from South Carolina based Ripete records features "Dark End of the Street" and 23 other important Southern Soul Classics.
You will find many familiar tunes on this disc and discover some you may never have heard of. Virtually all of them are terrific. In 1971, B.B. King released "The Thrill Is Gone", a tune he had been performing in his live shows for years. It would become his biggest hit and also his signature song. Al Green recorded under the watchful eye of producer Willie Mitchell at Memphis based Hi records. He would have 7 Top Ten singles in the early 70's. The biggest hit of them all, 1971's "Let's Stay Together" is included here. Likewise you will find Luther Ingram's gut wrenching "(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want To Be Right" and Clarence Carter's "Slip Away" which he recorded at the legendary Muscle Shoals studios in Alabama. Add to that other familiar songs like "Take Time To Know Her" from Percy Sledge, Marvin Gayes 1982 comeback hit "Sexual Healing" and James Brown's classic "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag" and you will see why I think so highly of this collection.
I would be remiss if I failed to mention some of the tunes I discovered for the first time on "Soul Patrol". Just about everyone is familiar with Freddie Scott and his 1963 hit "Hey Girl". While that particular song was not included Ripete decided to feature his lesser known 1966 hit "Are You Lonely For Me". Nice tune. And if you have never heard O.V. Wright's "That's How Strong My Love Is" or Jimmy Hughes "Steal Away" you are in for a real treat. Ripete has included a fine 8 page booklet to round out the package. All in all, this one is a real nice find. Recommended.

Piggybacking the others, this is a great series. Two on this disc not to be missed are Precious Precious by Jackie Moore and Jealous Kind of Fella by Garland Green. Again this is a great series.

The title say's it all. You can't pick just one song to listen to, because there all great, and every song will bring out the soul in everybody. I highly recommend this album to everyone. My brother has it, my mom has it and I have it.....so your next! It's worth every penny.