The Motherhood — “Soul Town”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — October 2, 2023

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

970) The Motherhood — “Soul Town”

If you’ve heard this “[b]reezy and badass” (J. John Aquino, http://afistfulofsoundtracks.blogspot.com/2011/01/rock-box-track-of-day-motherhood-soul.html) “dose[] of funky soul” (https://www.lpcdreissues.com/item/i-feel-so-free-2), it is likely because the track played over the closing credits of Ocean’s 13. It was a ‘69 B-side in Germany and a track on I Feel So Free, the Motherhood’s “space-age bachelor-pad classic”. (https://www.forcedexposure.com/Catalog/motherhood-the-i-feel-so-free-cd/ZG.9104CD.html) The über-groovy number could have easily subbed for Quincy Jones’ “Soul Bossa-Nova” in Austin Powers. Yeah, baby!

LPCD reissues tells us that:

Their rare debut album ‘I Feel So Free’ has nine originals and a few unique cover tunes, with [Klaus] Doldinger’s searing alto and soprano sax and clarinet lines aided and abetted by the pounding drums of Udo Lindenberg and Amon Duul’s Keith Forsey. The overarching format is jazz, but as the material was recorded in 1969, here there are plenty of psyche leanings throughout the disc, as well as doses of funky soul.

https://www.lpcdreissues.com/item/i-feel-so-free-2

Forced Exposure says:

The brainchild of legendary Berlin-born saxophonist and bandleader Klaus Doldinger, this psych-funk ultra-rarity was recorded and released in Germany in 1969. Featuring superb Beatles and Cream covers, as well as nine funky, punchy originals . . . . With original copies changing hands for well over $600, it makes its welcome reissue debut here.

https://www.forcedexposure.com/Catalog/motherhood-the-i-feel-so-free-cd/ZG.9104CD.html

As to Doldinger, Marios tells us:

Klaus Doldinger, best-known for leading the excellent fusion group Passport in the 1970s and ’80s, has had a diverse and episodic career. He started out studying piano in 1947 and clarinet five years later, playing in Dixieland bands in the 1950s. By 1961, he had become a modern tenor saxophonist, working with such top visiting and expatriate Americans as Don Ellis, Johnny Griffin, Benny Bailey, Idrees Sulieman, Donald Byrd, and Kenny Clarke, recording as a leader for Philips, World Pacific, and Liberty. His late 60’s recordings were under the name “Motherhood”.  They released two albums “I Feel so Free” in 1969 and “Doldinger’s Motherhood” in 1970, both for the label Liberty. In “I Feel so Free” featuring nine funky, punchy originals and two covers from Beatles and Cream. The original vinyl copies changing hands for well over 500 euros. However, in 1970, he initiated a long series of fusion-oriented sessions for Atlantic that featured his tenor, soprano, flute, and occasional keyboards with an electric rhythm section. In addition to writing music for films (including Das Boot) and television in Europe, Doldinger has remained active as a player who occasionally explores his roots in hard bop into the late ’90s, but because he has always lived in Europe, he remains underrated in the U.S. 

http://therockasteria.blogspot.com/2018/05/the-motherhood-i-feel-so-free-1969.html

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