Syl Johnson Black

Joining Otis, Wilson, and Percy, plus both Sam and Dave, is a new deity in the eternal soul pantheon. Take it from Syl Johnson himself: “This box set is the history of a masterful artist whose time has just arrived.” The self-proclaimed “most sampled artist ever,” Syl finally gets his due on this 4CD box covering his most productive period, 1959 through 1972. Collected for the first time are all of Syl’s Federal, Twinight, Zachron, Special Agent, Cha Cha, and TMP-Ting 45s, plus period cuts from his Japan-only LP Goodie Goodie Good Times, and a murderer’s grip of previously unreleased and little-heard out-takes. Lovingly remastered from the original source tapes, these 81 songs never sounded sharper, clearer, or funkier. And historian Bill Dahl’s comprehensive track-by-track annotations bring deep-research backstory to every one.

Syl Johnson began the ’60s a blues singer and session guitarist and concluded it having synthesized his own brand of gritty Chicago soul. Their first signee, Syl Johnson set the tone at Twinight Records, writing and producing fifteen 45s during his four year tenure with the label. This double LP neatly bundles each side of each of Johnson's Twinight 45s, from the heavily-sampled grunts on “Different Strokes,” to the ghetto-conscious “Concrete Reservation.”

Sylvester Johnson (born Sylvester Thompson; July 1, 1936 – February 6, 2022) was an American blues and soul singer, musician, songwriter and record producer. His most successful records included "Different Strokes" (1967), "Is It Because I'm Black" (1969) and "Take Me to the River" (1975).

Sylvester Johnson (born Sylvester Thompson; July 1, 1936 – February 6, 2022) was an American blues and soul singer, musician, songwriter and record producer. His most successful records included "Different Strokes" (1967), "Is It Because I'm Black" (1969) and "Take Me to the River" (1975).

2017 release. Rebirth Of Soul is Syleena Johnson's celebration of soul music as she puts her personal spin on both well-known and lesser known classic R&B songs such as "Chain of Fools," "Is It Because I'm Black," "The Makings of You," "I'd Rather Go Blind" and more. Produced by her father, the R&B/blues legend Syl Johnson who gave Syleena her start in the music business, Rebirth Of Soul is a joyous love letter to soul music recorded live in the studio on analog tape with musicians who played on classic R&B hits in Syleena's hometown of Chicago.

Living in The Age of The Reissue offers a variety of benefits for the musically-minded person. Now, you can get to know Carl Perkins in the same way that the public at large knew Elvis Presley back in the day. The constraints of what is popular now no longer dictate the kinds of music we are familiar with, in spite of sales figures, the proliferation of music videos (distributed through whatever means is popular at the time), or even their inclusion in TV and film. The Age of The Reissue liberates us from the stale conformity of Top 40, and allows our musical dollars the chance to flow in obscure, seldom traveled paths, and in many cases, offer us a chance to excavate the past in a way that was never previously thought possible.

The Big Payback is a 4CD box set of rare soul and funk released in 1998 by Clubmasters. It consists of 10 songs on each disc, featuring the works of Syl Johnson, Eddie Bo, Chuck Carbo, and Nu Sound Express, a few of which have been sampled over the years in hip-hop. Many of these recordings are sourced from vinyl.

2010 compilation, an installment in the popular Backbeats series that explores different aspects of the Soul/Dance/Black music scenes and covers such diverse areas as New York Disco, Southern Deep Soul, 70's Detroit, 70's Funk, Philly Classics, 60's and 70's Soul Anthems, 80's New York House, 70's and 80's Rare Groove, Southern Crossover Soul and Soulful Jazz-Funk.

"Dave Godin's Deep Soul Treasures - Taken From The Vaults… Vol. 1-5 (1997-2019)" is a series of compilation albums curated by Dave Godin, a renowned soul music expert, journalist, and compiler. The albums feature a selection of classic soul and R&B tracks, with a particular focus on deep, often obscure or rare, cuts that were influential in the development of the genre.