Welcome Back!

After five heavenly ‘Idiot’ free days away from the ‘Coal Face’, I return here refreshed and invigorated and ready to hit you up with some more of the ‘Good Stuff’.

I finally managed to finish organising the many piles of records that were slowly taking over Hook & Sling HQ like some sort of ever growing vinyl mould. I can actually see the floor now!

So I’ve been spending what little spare time I currently seem to have cleaning, sorting and filing away these new acquisitions at ‘Camp Hook & Sling’. Not that I’m complaining of course, as any vinyl ‘Geek’ will tell you, half the allure of collecting is being able to totally immerse yourself completely uninterrupted in your hoard! (Cut to Vinyl Addicts Anonymous Meeting somewhere….Enter Me….”Hello everyone, my name is Mr Double Down and I’m a Vinyl addict!”…You get the picture!)

A well earned spot of digging (more?….really?) was also sandwiched in between catching up with friends, and a highly enjoyable trip down to Bar Breeze in Worthing, where the guys who run Sussex By The Sea laid on a great afternoon of Northern Soul and Motown.

Before we kick things off here, I’d like to give a big shout out to the ‘Blogfather Of Soul’, the legendary Larry Grogan, who is temporarily incarcerated in hospital. A BIG get well soon comes your way from Camp Hook And Sling!!!

We’ve had a recent flurry of guest contributions here at The Hook & Sling so I felt it was time to step back up to the plate with a very aptly titled new mix of my own for you. So here we go!

First up is Afro-Jazz maestro Hugh Masekela and his Uni Records release ’Puffin’ On down The Track’. Having slipped under my Soul radar, I rushed out and secured my own copy as soon as I heard it! From the get-go the funked up train whistle sets the tempo for this feel good groover, which is led along by some tasty horn rises and a nice guitar lick. At around the same price as a pint, this is well worth snatching up if you come across a copy!

Alvin Christy pushes us on down the Deep Funk road with ‘I Don’t Know What You Got, released on the visually attractive PinPoint Record label. The punchy horns and powerful vocals really hold the track together on this bare bones affair.

‘I’m So Tired’ by Bobby Bland is about as anguished as a record can get, as he seems to lay it on the line to his ‘lady friend’. Released on the Duke label in 1972, this soulful groover is tight as fuck with its tidy drumming. Quality!

We roll hard for ‘Brother Ray’ around these parts, and when this 45 turned up in a recent lot I scored, I was to say the least very pleasantly surprised. ‘Let Me Love You’ is heavier on the funk than most of his ABC records output of the time and has already been promoted to my ‘Play Out Box’. Top Stuff!

As you know, I love me a nice slice of early R&B and Jump Blues. This Jimmy McCracklin 45, ‘The Walk’ from 1958 ticks all the boxes. The piano man from St. Louis, Missouri switches the thermostat right up a notch or two with this bouncing toe tapper, which also went down a storm when I recently played it out at Bump & Hustle Vs Betterdays a short while back.

Of late I’ve been partial to picking up Soul and Funk 45 picture sleeves when I see them. A few weeks I caught up with a London dealer who has a rather helpful knack of keeping 45s aside for me for when I roll by on my way home. After going through the pile he’d set aside, I settled for a couple of interesting looking 45s.

This sparked a long conversation on the ins and outs of how soul and funk record labels chose to try and push sales in Europe by using picture sleeves with 45’s. Trailing off mid-sentence, the record dealer walked over to a cupboard and pulled out a dusty pile of around 30 singles, all of which were picture sleeves. I sifted through the goods and settled on a nice haul of James Brown picture sleeves (amongst other artists).

One of those I picked up by The Godfather was this great looking Serbian issue of ‘My Thang’ with ‘People Get Up And Drive Your Funky Soul’ on the flip. A fabulous 45, both visually as well as aurally, I’m sure you’ll all agree!

Not content with their own fantastic output, the good folk at Daptone Records have created the Ever-Soul record label as a new subsidiary concentrating on quality soul releases from the 70s. This 45 from Eddie & Ernie hits the ground running. ‘Bullets Don’t Have Eyes’ was hailed by the late Soul aficionado Dave Godin as “If this one got the plays it could really go places”. A sentiment I completely agree with. It is also worthy of mention that the duo were only 16 and 19 respectively which adds to the fact that this is a serious record by anyone’s standards!

The polished production along with the drums, which are high up in the mix, drew me to this soulful number by The Festivals. I picked this 45 up in amongst the recent Job-Lot I scored, and was a completely unexpected find!

The Spinners 45, ‘I’ll Be Around’ is a great track, which I immediately snapped up when I came across it whilst out digging at one of my favourite London spots. Instantly catchy and a big favourite with all of the crowds I’ve played it to!

Kings Go Forth have completely taken the Soul scene by storm. With their first release selling out even before the single had been pressed to wax, it seems that the group from Milwaukee can do no wrong. ‘Don’t Take My Shadow’ is their latest 45 and is a fantastic slice of solid 70’s sounding soul. The polished production by Andy Noble and Dave Cusma shines through on this fantastic 45, which I urge you to grab before it’s too late! A seriously innovative 45, and perfect for today’s mix!

We close out today’s mix with Little Charles And The Sidewinders. A quality 45, as well as a new acquisition that certainly ticks all the boxes! This is a real ‘Grower’ of a 45 and once it manages to get its soulful shaped talons into your head, will never leave, Guaranteed!!

That’s all for today’s mix, but I’d like to drop a big heads up on Y’all.

After the past three years of holding our monthly Soul & Funk parties at La Havana Bar, we are upping sticks as it were, and moving across town to a brand new venue in Chichester, West Sussex.

Saturday 5th September 2009 will see us re-launch our monthly night at The Vestry, an up and coming venue, which has gone from strength to strength since opening!

This will be yet another chapter in the continuing story book that is The Hook & Sling, and I sincerely hope all of you will be a part of that in whatever form you can!

Check out the flyer below and don’t forget to pencil the new dates into your diaries, it’s going to be a blast!!

Enjoy today’s mix and remember Innovate, Don’t Imitate! (My set lists are available on request for the ‘sheep people’ that don’t quite get it!) .

I’ll be back here shortly with some of the ‘Good Stuff’ for you so don’t stray too far!

Track List

Hugh Masekela – Puffin’ On Down The Track – Uni

Alvin Christy – I Don’t Know What You Got – PinPoint

Bobby Bland – I’m So Tired – Duke

Ray Charles – Let Me Love You – ABC Records

Jimmy McCracklin – The Walk – Chess (Blue Chip Series)

James Brown – People Get Up And Drive Your Funky Soul – Polydor

Eddie & Ernie - Bullets Don’t Have Eyes – Ever-Soul Records

The Festivals – Gee Baby – Colossus

The Spinners – I’ll Be Around – Atlantic Records

Kings Go Forth – Don’t Take My Shadow – Mr C Records

Little Charles And The Sidewinders – Nobody Know’s – Redsands Records

Download Mr Double Down Presents Innovate, Don’t Imitate HERE