VA - Royal Grooves: Funky & Groovy Soul from the King Records Vaults (2012)
XLD Rip | FLAC (tracks, cue, log) - 337 MB | MP3 CBR 320 kbps - 146 MB
1:01:52 | Rhythm & Blues, Soul, Funk | Label: BGP
By the late 1960s, sales on the King label were so dominated by superstar James Brown that other releases by the company were overshadowed and underpromoted. What's more, Brown's success was so massive that, as the liner notes to this CD aptly state, "King's release schedules were dominated by records by Brown, his band, or records that seemed to sound as if they were made by Brown." Almost a couple dozen such tracks from obscure 1967-1973 singles (with the exception of a previously unissued take of Bill Doggett's "Wet and Satisfied") are on this compilation, stretching even past the point where Brown left King for Polydor. Most of the artists are as little known as the singles, with the exception of the Coasters, Hank Ballard, and Bill Doggett, all '50s rock stars who were long past their prime by the time these cuts emerged. Brown had direct or indirect connections to some (though not all) of these discs, sometimes in the production and songwriting departments.