Various - Black Gold

  by Lisa Torem

published: 17 / 10 / 2016

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Review

Chess Records was formed by two brothers on the south side of Chicago, where it launched the careers of Etta James, Bo Diddley and Chuck Berry, but this new album project sheds light on many other Chess artists, whose songs have been since admired and sampled as a result of the Northern Soul movement and the hip hop genre. The ambitious recording project resulted in the production of two separate discs. Disc One contains twenty tracks and Disc 2 contains twenty-two. Disc one begins with the melodic Ramsey Lewis track, ‘Les Fleur’, which is as colourful and poetic as 88 keys will allow. Vocalist Marlena Shaw sings about America’s most star-studded landscape in ‘California Soul’. Her rendition is sultry and power packed. ‘Memory Band’ has some strange stuff going on; but apparently the band, Rotary Connection didn’t have to swell on its success. ‘The Getaway’ is an instrumental by Alvin Cash, which packs in a lot of spirit in under three minutes. Kudos for the writhing horns and funky drums. This collection could not be complete without the legendary Muddy Waters in ‘Mannish Boy’. “I’m a rolling stone/I’m a man child/I’m a natural man…” His voice floats from guttural to soft to determined in a flash. No wonder his career launched a revolution in England. The Dells make a brief appearance on ‘Funky Breeze/Ghetto Scene’ and Phil Upchurch makes his first appearance, too, on spine-tingling electric guitar. What follows is ‘Black Gold,’ which could stand being more developed, but as it exists, it’s a pretty good example of what electronic instruments with bright players can achieve. Etta James is marvellous on the fierce ballad, ‘Out on the Street Again’. Brother Jack McDuff’s ‘The Electric Surfboard’ is a superb and engrossing track, too. Anyone familiar with John Fogerty will be intrigued by Bo Diddley’s rendition of ‘Bad Moon Rising’. Sugar Pie DeSanto may well not have achieved the status of Etta James, but their few songs on the project really grab one’s attention. Interestingly, Gene Chandler made a serious go of an R & B career years after his 1962 hit, ‘Duke of Earl’, which found him singing in an entirely different way. ‘In My Body’s House’ recorded in 1969 has enjoyed new status by contemporary bands. Jimmy Ponder’s version of ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps’ is incredibly creative and awash with expert tone. Dorothy Ashby’s ‘The Moving Finger’ astonishes because of her amazing skill on the harp. Disc one ends with the heart-stopping ‘Julia,’ reimagined by Ramsey Lewis, who demonstrates complete sensitivity when tackling John Lennon’s harmonic changes. Disc Two: Rotary Connection just doesn’t seem to fit in with the other material, but Brother Jack McDuff’s ‘Jelly Jam’ is pure genius because of the variance of rhythms and cool attitude. Etta James returns with the ebullient ‘In the Basement,’ which begs the question: “Where do you go when the money gets low?” English groups probably got a lot of progressions from songs like these. ‘Humpin’, Bumpin’ and Thumpin’ shows off Andre Williams’ vocals. Monk Higgins brings out the clarity and hidden funkiness of ‘The Look of Love’. It’s punchy and quasi reggae. Ramsey Lewis returns with another Beatles cover: ‘Everybody’s Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey’. The accents are deep and the mood is effervescent. Pigmeat Markham has lots of spirited fun asking, ‘Who Got The Number?’ And although ‘Little Bitty Pretty One’ is a song that’s been widely covered, Wayne Cochran makes it swing uniquely. Jo Ann Garrett is a female performer who hasn’t got her due, but her rendition of ‘Walk On By’ is heartbreaking and superbly genuine. The Soulful Strings do a lot with the hip instrumental, ‘Chocolate Candy’ and Bo Diddley’s ‘Hit or Miss’ offers a good look at his raw talent. Not to be missed is the falsetto of the frontman of the Vibrations in ‘Shake It Up’. Archie Whitewater’s ‘Hulk’ is only 1:59. What was he thinking? But somehow the theme gets quickly developed and gracefully resolved. The series ends with the Phil Upchurch version of ‘Spinning Wheel’, which is layered with sizzling electronics and style. In summary this is a fascinating collection which helps to illustrate the phenomenal transitions American music has undergone since the Chess heyday. That said, some of the samples and breaks merely left me hanging. I’d prefer the full-blown to the chopped. But there are some terrific surprises and tight arrangements which, hopefully, will honour the Chess legacy for years to come.

Track Listing:-