A MIGHTY LOSS

Charles Bradley died this past Saturday. Cancer. He was a soul singer in the classic mold, part James Brown, part Otis Redding. He began his career at age fourteen as a James Brown tribute, and continued off and on that tangent for decades until he auditioned at Daptone. He was signed and had his first LP released at age 62. As he put it "Now, I'm gonna do Charles Bradley." He did, and he did it well.

Check his voice on the songs below. If you need a point of reference, listen to what he does to Nirvana's "Stay Away". Damn.

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Listen:
Charles Bradley - The World (Is Going Up In Flames) mp3 at Hey Cool Kid
Charles Bradley - Stay Away (streaming) at YouTube Nirvana cover
Charles Bradley - Love Bug Blues mp3 at ATumblr (?)
Charles Bradley - How Long mp3 at ATumblr (?)
Charles Bradley - The Telephone Song mp3 at Tin Can Land
Charles Bradley - Strictly Reserved For You mp3 at Melting Pot

JIBBA JABBA LITE NIGHT

Charles Bradley has been here in the not so distant past, so I'll shut up. But I am digging this cover.

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Listen:
Charles Bradley - Heart of Gold mp3 at Cover Me
Visit:
Earlier post with music and video

GFOS TO SOA

Boy, oh boy, is this overdue. Everything that the Daptone mob comes within ten feet of usually finds its way here, one way or another. But Charles Bradley, the plucked from obscurity ex-GFOS impersonator, has been way overlooked. (Thanks to Lady Spinsta for pointing me towards to that trailer below.) These aren't really grunt and shout workouts, this is super smooth summer soul, Summer, maybe not intentionally, but it sure goes down smooth, like water on a hot day.

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Listen:
Charles Bradley - Strictly Reserved  For You mp3 at Melting Pot
Charles Bradley - You Put the Flame on It mp3 at I Am Fuel You Are Friends
Charles Bradley - Heartaches and Pain mp3 at Glorious Noise
Charles Bradley - Why Is It So Hard mp3 at I Pick My Nose
Visit:
Charles Bradley Official site
Charles Bradley at Daptone Records
Charles Bradley at Wikipedia

BUT CAN IT PUMP BLOOD?

Versions Galore, an all-covers blog, just put up three versions of Neil Young's "Heart of Gold," a song that can get messed up quite easily. Until yesterday, I don't recall ever hearing a cover of it that I liked. That's why I thought I'd give you a heads up. Two out of the three that they just posted are really good ones, and there's a third that you might also like. I'm only linking to the one by Betty LaVette (pictured above in her early years). It's really smooth version, with horns and a little flute (surprisingly, not annoying flute). The best one is by Charles Bradley, who is part of that whole Daptone mob. That's the one to get, really. Just trust me, go there to get it. Johnny Cash's version is down below for a little post related flair. And at the bottom are links to two live Neil Young shows, with Crazy Horse, of decent-good quality. Both can be downloaded as single songs or as a full sets. I'm partial to the one Captain's Dead, recorded at a 1987 UK show. (You won't be blamed if Dream Syndicate pops into your head.) The other one is at Visible Voice, from a 1976 Boston show.

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Listen:
Betty LaVette - Heart of Gold mp3 at Versions Galore
Charles Bradley - Heart of Gold mp3 at Versions Galore Go there to get it.
Johnny Cash - Heart of Gold mp3 at Glide Magazine
Full sets:
Neil Young and Crazy Horse - Birmingham England 1987 at Captain's Dead
Neil Young and Crazy Horse - Boston, MA, 1976 at Visible Voice

HOLY SHIT! ALREADY?

Ten years of Daptone Records. Unbelievable. How does that happen? They're too good. Weren't they supposed to have been squashed? It just goes to show you, if you put out a good product and don't overextend yourself, you can make it work. Remember, that's how record labels used to do it. And, like Stax, Chess and Sun, they have their own studio, so they control the sound; and what a sound it is. Have a listen, all of the stuff below was recorded in recent years (with the exception of Pax Nicholas, a rare reissue), yet every one is timeless. Once you get to know the roster, you'll be giddy every time you see the label; like you used to dream about happening again someday (when you were shuffling through your Stax and Motown thrift store finds). It's some most excellent shit friends, and it's high time to start paying attention again, if you haven't already.

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Listen:

Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings - Just Dropped In To See What Condition My Condition Is In mp3 at Passion of the Weiss
The Sugarman Three - Soul Donkey mp3 at The Frump
Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens - What Have You Done mp3 at Sonny Venice
Charles Bradley - Golden Rule mp3 at Musicalicious
Menahan Street Band - Montego Sunset mp3 at Grayson Stebbins
The Budos Band - Budos Rising mp3 at Ear It Now
Pax Nicholas & the Netty Family - Ataa Onukpa mp3 at Other Music
Video:
Daptone Records Celebrates Ten Years at YouTube
Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings - Let Them Knock (Live) at YouTube
The Budos Band - Unbroken, Unshaven at YouTube
Charles Bradley featuring the Menahan Street Band - The World (Is Going Up In Flames) at YouTube
Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens - What Have You Done at YouTube
The Daptone Records channel at YouTube
Visit:
Daptone Records
Soul Reviver - Good profile from the New York Times Magazine
Soul Sides - Today's reminder came from here