Elegant Soul The Three Sounds

Soul Symphony was the last album cut by the Three Sounds, of which pianist Gene Harris remained the only original member. Bassist Andy Simpkins left after 1968's wonderful Elegant Soul LP, and was replaced on this date by "the Skipper," Henry Franklin. This date is a direct follow-up to its predecessor, in that Monk Higgins returns to orchestrate and arrange a large string group; he co-produced the set with Dee Ervin. Also returning from the previous session is the criminally under-recognized vibraphonist/percussionist Alan Estes. In addition, David Duke and Art Maebe alternately played French horn, Buddy Collette guests on flutes, Freddy Robinson appears on guitars, and the Specialties Unlimited - vocalists Clydie King, Mamie Galore, and Alex Brown - are utilized. In other words, other than a second drummer, Soul Symphony shares a nearly identical setup with Elegant Soul…

An appropriate title for an utterly charming set from the Three Sounds. The trio works familiar territory on Feelin' Good, playing a set of swinging hard bop and classy soul-jazz, but there's a definite spark in the air. Working from a diverse set of standards, originals, contemporary jazz, and blues, the Three Sounds created a cheerful, up-tempo record. Its very ease is deceptive - the music is so accessible and entertaining, it's easy to overlook the sheer musical mastery of the group, which performs at something of a peak on this record. Gene Harris sounds better than ever, turning in an elegant interpretation of "It Could Happen to You," but he's just as able to inject "When I Fall in Love" with unexpectedly vigorous swing and make Monk's "Straight No Chaser" a foot-tapping, danceable delight…

Dee Dee Sharp is best known for "Mashed Potato Time" and "Do the Bird," Top Ten hits in the early '60s. This mid-'70s Philly sound outing has pop leanings that infiltrate the disco so important to the dance music empire of Sharp's husband, Kenneth Gamble. "Love Buddies" is an interesting concept seeing that much of the Philly sound was club oriented, and this first song is the only one penned by Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff. "Touch My Life" is an adequate tune by James Mendell, but it's Sharp's exquisite voice that really shines, taking over the material and making the entire album listenable.

The first solo album by the former leader of the Impressions, Curtis represented a musical apotheosis for Curtis Mayfield - indeed, it was practically the "Sgt. Pepper's" album of '70s soul, helping with its content and its success to open the whole genre to much bigger, richer musical canvases than artists had previously worked with. All of Mayfield's years of experience of life, music, and people were pulled together into a rich, powerful, topical musical statement that reflected not only the most up-to-date soul sounds of its period, finely produced by Mayfield himself, and the immediacy of the times and their political and social concerns, but also embraced the most elegant R&B sounds of the past…

“Under the Rainbow” is Pauline London’s new and long awaited album.
After the important international appraisal which resulted from her first album “Quiet Skies” (2004) Pauline is back with a new cd which tastes like Jazz, Nu-Jazz, Latin-Jazz with hints of authorial pop. Whereas the mentioned first album had an electronic-jazz stamp to it, “Under the Rainbow” represents an evolution towards more acoustic and orchestral sounds…

These 25 tracks represent the Marmalade's complete recorded output for CBS Records, including a pair of outtakes. The band simply moves from strength to strength during their period with CBS, starting with the superb Mike Smith-produced "It's All Leading up to Saturday Night," with its great beat and catchy choruses, and getting better from there. The title track has a special resonance; it's a glistening piece that mixes hard-rock guitar and bass with exquisite harmonies in a manner that overlaps with the Hollies. Yet, with its careful use of guitar distortion pumped up to sound like an orchestra, and a soaring choral phrase or two, the song also strangely anticipates the sound of the Electric Light Orchestra at their most poppy…