THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
827) Johnny Adams — “Real Live Living Hurtin’ Man”
This ‘ 70 A-side was “ironically written by a pair of female songwriters, Margaret Lewis and Myrna Smith. . . . [It is] classic southern soul.” (The Vintage Soul Machine, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJJNAWp-x5A)
Michael Petitti says that Adams was “an extraordinary voice containing all the pain and joy of human experience.” (https://www.tucsonweekly.com/WeGotCactus/archives/2013/03/01/attractive-nuisance-5-johnny-adams) Bill Dahl says:
Renowned around his Crescent City home base as “the Tan Canary” for his extraordinary set of soulfully soaring pipes, veteran R&B vocalist Johnny Adams . . . . was never particularly into the parade-beat grooves that traditionally define the New Orleans R&B sound, preferring to deliver sophisticated soul ballads draped in strings. Adams sang gospel professionally before crossing over to the secular world in 1959. Songwriter Dorothy LaBostrie . . . convinced her neighbor, Adams, to sing her tasty ballad “I Won’t Cry.”* . . . Adams was on his way. He waxed some outstanding follow-ups . . . notably “A Losing Battle” . . . and “Life Is a Struggle.” After a prolonged dry spell, Adams resurfaced in 1968 with an impassioned R&B revival of Jimmy Heap’s country standard “Release Me” . . . that blossomed into a national hit. Even more arresting was Adams’ magnificent 1969 country-soul classic “Reconsider Me,” his lone leap into the R&B Top Ten . . . . Despite several worthy SSS follow-ups (“I Can’t Be All Bad” was another sizable seller), Adams never traversed those lofty commercial heights again . . . .
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/johnny-adams-mn0000242473
* Karl Dallas : “It was when an upstairs neighbour, songwriter Dorothy Labostrie, heard him singing ‘Precious Lord’ in the bathtub and persuaded him to record a song of hers, ‘Oh Why’ . . . that he began to be recognized as a secular singer. (https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/obituary-johnny-adams-1199802.html)
Pay to Play! The Off the Charts Spotify Playlist! + Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock Merchandise
Please consider helping to support my website/blog by contributing $6 a month for access to the Off the Charts Spotify Playlist. Using a term familiar to denizens of Capitol Hill, you pay to play! (“relating to or denoting an unethical or illicit arrangement in which payment is made by those who want certain privileges or advantages in such arenas as business, politics, sports, and entertainment” — dictionary.com).
The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.
All new subscribers will receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock magnet. New subscribers who sign up for a year will also receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock t-shirt or baseball cap. See pictures on the Pay to Play page.
When subscribing, please send me an e-mail (GMFtma1@gmail.com) or a comment on this site letting me know an e-mail address/phone number/Facebook address, etc. to which I can send instructions on accessing the playlist and a physical address to which I can sent a magnet/t-shirt/baseball cap. If choosing a t-shirt, please let me know the gender and size you prefer.
Just click on the first blue block for a month to month subscription or the second blue block for a yearly subscription.
Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! / Off the Charts: 60s Rock Revelations 