 | A Proper Introduction to Ruth Brown: Teardrops From My Eyes by Ruth Brown
Buy new: £7.79 In the 50s, it's not too extreme a position to suggest that the wonderful Atlantic Records label was built almost entirely around Ruth Brown's early R'n'B successes. You've got a glimpse of them here.
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 | Soul on Fire: The Best of LaVern Baker by LaVern Baker
Buy used from: £4.99 Baker had a stunning voice and a brashly seductive vocal delivery that, with little effort, could crack walls, and yet her ballad singing was wonderfully sensitive. A classic.
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 | The Best of Esther Phillips (1962-1970) by Esther Phillips
Buy new: £34.69 / Used from: £15.03 Phillips was versatility in itself: she was adept at singing blues, early R'n'B, gritty soul, jazz, straight-up pop, disco, and even country, being a master in each style.
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 | The Complete OKeh Sessions 1952-1955 by Big Maybelle
Buy used from: £4.92 Her mountainous stature matching the sheer soulful power of her deep, gravelly voice, Big Maybelle was one of the premier R'n'B chanteuses of the 1950s.
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 | The Sue Singles by Baby Washington
Buy new: £12.69 / Used from: £5.49 Washington's tremendously moving voice, earthy but sophisticated, perfectly epitomized uptown soul. She was once cited by Dusty Springfield as her all-time favourite singer.
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 | Fine, Fine, Fine by Ikettes
Buy used from: £18.99 One of the premier backing groups in R'n'R history, the Ikettes had some Top 40 success in their own right. The early Ikettes featured Robbie Montgomery, Venetta Fields and Jessie Smith.
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 | The First Cut by P.P. Arnold
Buy new: £3.48 / Used from: £3.99 I've seen her live and she KNOWS what Soul is.A former Ikette herself, she toured with them in the 60's, becoming 'The first Lady of Immediate' Label, after suggestion by Mick Jagger to stay in London
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 | Golden Classics by Erma Franklin
Buy new: £12.69 / Used from: £4.60 I know there will always be Aretha. But, what can I say? I prefer her old sister's own musical accomplishments, which you can personally check in songs like the most celebrated 'Piece Of My Heart'.
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 | Margie Joseph Makes a New Impression/Phase II by Margie Joseph
Buy used from: £8.69 Frequently compared to Aretha Franklin, singer Margie Joseph recorded a series of excellent records for Atlantic during the 1970s, that won her a spot in the pantheon of soul cult favorites.
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 | Mr. Big Stuff by Jean Knight
Jean Knight's only big hit was a monster, the sassy funk classic 'Mr. Big Stuff', one of the largest-selling singles ever released by Stax, which was rewarded with a nº 2 in the US pop chart.
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 | The Best of Barbara Lynn: The Atlantic Years by Barbara Lynn
Buy used from: £56.12 Lynn's formidable talents where ahead of her time.Not only could she sing with rich and affecting soul, but also wrote her own hit songs, and was a sharp, facile guitarist, playing left-handed no less
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 | Woman to Woman by Shirley Brown
Buy new: £7.98 / Used from: £6.04 'Woman To Woman' encapsulated the 'cheating' genre and not only became a massive hit, but inspired several answer songs in the process, among which Millie Jackson's 'Still Caught Up' is a good example
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 | Bluesoul Belles, Vol. 3: The Hi Recordings 1965-1978 by Jean Plum & Veniece
Buy used from: £29.99 Haven't you heard Jean Plum's 'Today I sing the Blues'?. Then you don't know what is all about.
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 | The Fantasy Years by Betty Everett
Buy used from: £15.49 Betty have always applied her emotive mezzo-soprano pipes to a variety of material with great authority. This collection brings together the best of her work for Fantasy between '70 and '75.
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 | Just One Look: The Best of Doris Troy by Doris Troy
Buy used from: £44.99 Again, another Ichiban Soul Classics wonderful album that, unfortunately, is now out of print. Don't be put off by the dreadful cover, this is Doris Troy at her best. Just let's wait for a re-issue.
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 | Hello Stranger: The Best of Barbara Lewis by Barbara Lewis
Buy new: £7.98 / Used from: £3.49 Pop-soul doesn't get much better than Barbara Lewis, whose seductive, emotive croon took 'Hello Stranger' to nº 3 in 1963. Check her 1969 only album for Stax, which gave her sound a grittier approach.
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 | Dreamer by Patti LaBelle & the Bluebelles
This second album on Atlantic from The Bluebelles offers a really exciting agenda of songs, and showcases some of the best works from songwriters Curtis Mayfield, Trade Martin and Burt Bacharach.
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 | Take Away the Pain Stain by Patti Austin
Buy used from: £18.98 This wonderful collection focuses on a teenaged Pattis late 60s recordings for the Coral label, and includes a couple of Northern Soul classics. An interesting curiosity.
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 | Come Get It: The Complete Josie Recordings 1970-1971 by Honey & the Bees
Buy used from: £11.89 This minor, but talented Philadelphia female soul quartet, made some relatively little-known records for the Arctic and Josie labels in the late '60s and early '70s, before disbanding in 1973.
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 | The Best of Gwen McCrae by Gwen McCrae
Buy new: £4.98 / Used from: £9.06 Best remembered for her number one R'n'B hit, pop Top Ten, 'Rockin' Chair' from 1975, Gwen McCrae was a gutsy Southern soul diva with a particular affinity for dance tracks.
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 | Hotlanta Soul Vol.1 by Loleatta Holloway
Buy new: £12.69 / Used from: £8.99 With her full-bodied gospelized vocals, Holloway epitomized like no other singer of her day, the transition of African-American popular music from soul to disco in the late 70s.
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 | The Best of Carla Thomas by Carla Thomas
Buy used from: £9.49 Born in 1942, in Memphis, as a daughter of Rufus Thomas, Carla Thomas was at Stax from the beginning to the end and gained the surname of 'Memphis Queen'.
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 | At Memphis & More by Inez & Charlie Foxx
Buy used from: £79.19 As a solo artist, Inez Foxx signed with Stax/Volt in 1972. Although apparently uncomfortable with their recording methods, the results, including this album, were excellent.
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 | Just Loving You by Ruby Andrews
Buy new: £16.59 Andrews made her reputation in 1967 with her one crossover hit 'Casanova', which featured a typical Chicago-style mid-tempo lope and went to nº 9 in the R'n'B charts and nº 51 in the pop charts.
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 | Anthology by Ann Sexton
Buy new: £10.78 / Used from: £6.49 Ann Sexton is one of the great unsung female soul singers of all time. This Anthology puts together for the first time all the tracks from her much sought-after only two albums, from 1971 and 1977.
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