THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
One song so great it couldn’t just be one song, so it became three — in ‘66 by Ray Sharpe, in ‘67 by Aretha Franklin, and in ‘69 by King Curtis. Curtis — the great saxophonist, writer, band leader and producer — was the connection between all three and the provider of the groove.
1,248) Ray Sharpe — “Help Me (Get the Feeling)”
This ‘66 “raw and groovy soul single[]” featured King Curtis’s Orchestra and Jimi Hendrix on guitar. (Ken Burke, https://musicianguide.com/biographies/1608004469/Ray-Sharpe.html) and was “very similar to Van Morrison/Them’s ‘Gloria’ but with punchy brass riffs added.” (Mickey Rat, https://www.45cat.com/record/456402)
Davie Gordon tells us:
Ray Sharpe said that he was playing “Gloria” with the house band at the Galaxy in L.A. King Curtis and Cornell Dupree were there and Cornell “kept hearing something else as opposed to what I was singing” so they basically rewrote “Gloria” to come up with “Help Me” . . . . Given that Ray and Cornell came up with the tracks I’m sure Jimi Hendrix is there in a supporting not lead role and that the guitar break is by Cornell Dupree.
As to Ray Sharpe, Kub Coda writes:
Ray Sharpe’s biggest and only hit, “Linda Lu,” only made it to number 46 on the Billboard charts and his music doesn’t fit into any convenient categories. He is that anomaly of anomalies, an African-American who made records that sounded like a hillbilly doing rock & roll and pop tunes. Sharpe could pick some pretty bluesy guitar and had a way of vocalizing and stuttering and stretching out syllables with a twang that would have given even Jim Nabors a moment of pause. But producer Lee Hazlewood [see #48, 269, 451, 702] sure knew how to get the best out of him . . . . [His] diverse but cool material . . . deserves a much wider hearing.
Ken Burke expands:
Described . . . as “the greatest white-sounding black dude ever,” Sharpe’s style encompasses all the best elements of early rock ‘n’ roll. As a singer-songwriter, he has mined Chuck Berry-type humor from the situations and wordplay in his songs. As a guitarist, he alternates snarling single note Albert King guitar bends with with twangy, free-flowing rockabilly. . . . The Sharpe family lived near a seedy bar called Cocoanut Grove. Undaunted by the bar’s tough reputation, young Ray talked the owner into letting him play and sing for tips. He proved so popular that he was repeatedly asked back . . . . Forming a band called Ray Sharpe and the Blues Wailers, he built up a good circuit of blues and rock gigs in and around the Dallas/Fort Worth area. . . . Among Sharpe’s early supporters were “Crying in the Chapel” tunesmith Artie Glenn and his son Darrel . . . . Impressed by his Penguin Club performances . . . . [they produced] two strong demos . . . . [which t]he senior Glenn circulated . . . to music industry contacts, finally securing meaningful interest from independent producers Lester Sill and Lee Hazelwood. . . . “That’s the Way I Feel[]” and . . . “Oh My Baby’s Gone[]” . . . is regarded . . . as inspired Chuck Berry-styled rockabilly, blessed with the feel of Texas blues. However, in 1958 the Dot Records’ subsidiary Hamilton Records was unable to sell the disc to the public. Sill and Hazelwood still had faith in their young singer, and called him back to do the four-song session that was destined to jumpstart his career. . . . He needed one more song to fill out the session. “When I wrote ‘Linda Lu’ back in the 1950s, I didn’t think much of it . . . . A buddy of mine named Mike had asked me to write a song about his girlfriend, Linda, who used to come into the club to dance.” . . . After playing the song in clubs, the singer forgot about it[. Then] . . . Lee Hazelwood . . . asked me if I had one more song to make four, and I was stuck. So I started playing ‘Linda Lu” for him.” “Linda Lu,” with it’s half-stuttered phrasing and rhythmic guitar hook, was the perfect teen rocker. . . . Dick Clark began playing “Linda Lu” on his American Bandstand TV program . . . . [and] the record rose to number 46 on the pop charts and number eleven on the R&B charts. . . . Despite a strong rapport with producers Sill and Hazelwood, Sharpe was never able to conjure a follow-up hit to “Linda Lu.” . . . Sharpe returned to the Texas bar scene, where he earned a steady living playing his danceable mix of rock and blues. . . . The Texas blues explosion of the late 1970s and early 1980s, headed up by the Fabulous Thunderbirds and Stevie Ray Vaughan, threw a fresh spotlight on Sharpe’s work.
https://musicianguide.com/biographies/1608004469/Ray-Sharpe.html
Parts 1&2 — the A and B sides of the single:
1,249) Aretha Franklin — “Save Me”
“The phrasing is almost perfect. Comes in waves of tension and release girls lol. The best thing Aretha ever did”. (JohnLang-yc1su4, https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=5YDSeqMaV78&pp=ygUXYXJldGhhIGZyYW5rbGluIHNhdmUgbWU%3D)
Andrew Martone tells us:
In late January of 1967, Aretha began work on her Atlantic Records debut at Fame Recording Studios in Muscle Shoals Alabama. . . . [T]he sessions broke up as a result of some legendary chaos involving Aretha’s husband Ted, a horn player, and Fame’s Rick Hall. After things simmered, Aretha, Jerry, and the Muscle Shoals musicians reconvened in New York City . . . . [T]he first and only record completed that first day was “Save Me.” Saxophonist King Curtis also joined the group in New York, and his presence had a transformative effect on the sessions. . . . It’s his saxophone work that can be heard between verses on “Save Me” (during these sessions he also laid down the sax solo on Aretha’s “Respect”). King Curtis is also the reason that “Save Me” exists. According to Aretha’s autobiography Aretha: From These Roots, King Curtis is the one who wrote “Save Me.” Aretha and her sister Carolyn apparently added some little bits, and “being a generous gentleman, (Curtis) gave Carolyn and (Aretha) credit for (their) minor contributions.” In reality, “Save Me” is based on a record called “Help Me” that Curtis wrote with Ray Sharpe and Cornell Dupree . . . . [I]f the Muscle Shoals sessions hadn’t broken up, Curtis may not have joined the sessions and Aretha’s version of this cut might not exist. . . . [M]usically “Save Me” is a bare bones record that repeats those aforementioned 3 chords over and over again primarily on the guitar and bass, with percussion filling out the instrumentation. Curtis’ sax and the other horns break up the verses, which create the illusion that there’s more to the record. But in actuality it’s the most musically simplistic record on I Never Loved A Man. It’s also the sole record on the LP where Aretha isn’t accompanying herself on the piano . . . . Aretha carries “Save Me” completely solo. It lacks background vocals or vocal layering, which elevated many of her records to another level . . . . But their absence creates no void on “Save Me”. If anything the single vocal furthers the message of the song. Aretha’s cries of “save me, somebody save me” go unaccompanied perhaps because she’s in this struggle alone, as she pleads for help from a man who wants to taunt her.
1,250) King Curtis & the Kingpins — “Instant Groove”
This killer groove by the King is “possibly my all-time fave King Curtis track . . . a soul rocker with relentless guitar rhythm” (Mickey Rat, https://www.45cat.com/record/456680) that “showcases the burning R&B Curtis was best known for. . . . [with] him doing the speaking on the track too.” (StooGP, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6Lfth8OBlg) And, it was “[a] discotheque hit in 1969! Cash Box (1969/08/02 p.51 a report from Holland) Several deejays picked up this record as the discotheque record of 1969.” (yvondouville6460, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6Lfth8OBlg) It even reached #35 on the R&B chart (#127 overall).
Mickey Rat writes:
[“Instant Groove” has] a rare King Curtis vocal followed by Curtis letting out all the stops on a demented Archie Shepp style sax solo and then an electric bass break by Jerry Jemmott. The Curtis and Jemmott bits are overdubs. The backing track on this one is actually part one of Ray Sharpe’s 1966 “Help me” with Jimi Hendrix on guitar. Sharpe’s vocal has been deleted and there are no guitar solos.
As to the bass solo, Blackberryblossom commented on YouTube “First bass solo I´ve ever heard in my life. Still love it.” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6Lfth8OBlg) Seven years later, the bassist Jerry Jemmott himself responded: “First one I ever took!” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6Lfth8OBlg) And he added “No overdubbing here. Live at Juggy Murray’s; New York Funk, from the Bronx”! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6Lfth8OBlg)
As to King Curtis, Bob Porter writes:
King Curtis was the last of the great R&B tenor sax giants. Born Curtis Ousley in Fort Worth, Texas, he came to prominence in the mid-’50s as a session musician in New York, recording, at one time or another, for most East Coast R&B labels. A long association with Atco/Atlantic began in 1958, especially on recordings by the Coasters. He recorded singles for many small labels in the ’50s . . . . Curtis also had a number one R&B single with “Soul Twist” on Enjoy (1962). He was signed by Capitol (1963-1964), where he cut mostly singles, including the number 20 R&B hit “Soul Serenade.” He returned to Atco/Atlantic in 1965, where he remained for the rest of his life. He had solid R&B single success with “Memphis Soul Stew” and “Ode to Billie Joe” (1967). Beginning in 1967, Curtis started to take a more active studio role at Atlantic, leading and contracting sessions for other artists, producing with Jerry Wexler, and later on his own. He also became the leader of Aretha Franklin’s backing unit, the Kingpins. He compiled several albums of singles during this period. All aspects of his career were in full swing at the time he was murdered in 1971. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/king-curtis-mn0000090803#biography
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Within seconds, I was hearing “Gloria”
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