Format Details: Jewel Case
Format Details: Single Sleeve Vinyl Album
Release Date: 27 March 2006
Label: Kent
Packaging Type: Jewel Case
No of Units: 1
Barcode: 029667226226
Description
This CD seems to have been on the back burner for some time, but now it has come to the boil with the explosive intensity of Spencer Wiggins' vocals. I recall back in the early 70s meeting a guy in Brighton who was returning home who had decided to sell his 45 collection. Whilst picking through them I came across Spencer's Uptight Good Woman and asked naively "What's this like?"� After a few seconds on the turntable, I was smitten and had discovered "real soul"�, or to be more specific the kind of soul cooked up on the banks of the Mississippi or down in Muscle Shoals in the 60s. Uptight Good Woman still sends shivers down my spine as Spencer sings over the haunting organ and tells us of his desire for "a good little woman who will stay by my side"� before the band break into full power. This 22 track CD collects together all the sides from the Goldwax period. Some of the later masters recorded by Goldwax at Fame and subsequently sold to Fame are not included; they were erroneously issued as Goldwax sides in the 70s and 80s. This CD is the very best of Spencer Wiggins from his golden period in the mid-to-late 60s. When I first started on the quest of finding out more about Goldwax artists, Spencer Wiggins was at the top of my list. None of my sources knew what had happened to him. Then a series of contacts began, starting with UK collector Nick Sands, who gave me Dan Greer's telephone number, who then gave me Spencer's brother Percy's number. The singing soul brothers were still in touch, and I was able to speak to the Spencer, then recently retired. Our conversations are the basis for the notes which accompany this CD. There are also previously unpublished photos courtesy of Percy Wiggins and Goldwax producer and co-owner Quinton Claunch. Spencer has been overlooked by the popular press, and even by some soul commentators, in favour of James Carr. Hopefully this first UK collection will demonstrate that he has a place up there with the greats. Spencer accepts that if he had had management he may have been more successful in the 60s, but like many artists he decided to drop out of the business when there weren't enough gigs to pay the bills. He left Memphis and re-located to Florida in the 70s and though he tried gigging at weekends, he soon gave up as the live music clubs closed during the disco boom. He continued to sing at his local church, where, following in his father's footsteps, he became deacon. When I last spoke to him he had just released a gospel CD. Unfortunately he was adamant that he would never sing secular music again; so we are just left with this legacy of classic songs from the lost age of southern soul. All the songs here are the product of a multi-ethnic mix which had been sown in the soil of Memphis and Muscle Shoals and washed up on the banks of the Mississippi over several generations. When you listen to the songs you can hear a multitude of styles, from the rocking R&B beater Soul City USA to the country sou
Description
A vinyl album featuring 14 of the great southern soul singer's finest Goldwax recordings. Although Spencer Wiggins first made the R&B charts with his Fame 45 'Double Lovin'' in 1970, it is his eight Goldwax singles, released in the latter half of the 60s, for which he is most famous among soul fans. Veering from deep melancholic ballads to raucous uptempo groovers, those 45s epitomise southern soul. Southern soul is a close cousin of the blues, and 'Lover's Crime', Spencer's first single on Goldwax's Bandstand USA subsidiary, was an early Isaac Hayes composition of that ilk. 'Sweet Sixteen', which was unreleased until 1977, is a full-on blues, presumably shelved by Goldwax as they wanted to keep Spencer known as a soul singer, even though he excels on the number. A strong country influence is apparent on 'I Never Loved A Woman (The Way I Love You)' which rivals Aretha Franklin's Atlantic breakthrough single from a couple of years earlier. 'Once In A While (Is Better Than Never At All)', written by Goldwax boss Quinton Claunch, an ex-country singer, and songwriter George Jackson's 'Old Friend' are also in the country bag. The dramatic ballad 'Up Tight Good Woman', penned by Dan Penn, Spooner Oldham and Jimmy Johnson, is probably Spencer's best-known recording and remains a highlight of his live performances. Penn and Oldham also provided 'Take Me Just As I Am', another standout track. 'He's Too Old' and 'I'm A Poor Man's Son' are vibrant, warm-hearted numbers taken at a jaunty pace, although still very much southern soul, whereas 'Lonely Man' is the only song with hints of a Detroit influence, and has consequently cost collectors appreciably more than the norm. Spencer is primarily a preacher today but his 2010 appearance at the Cleethorpes rare soul weekender demonstrated he is still a great performer. More recently he completed a successful two-date visit to London and Manchester with his brother Percy. ADY CROASDELL
Tracklisting
Tracklisting
Z.Z. Hill
Wilson Pickett
Willie Bollinger / Willie Walker
William Bell
William Bell
Wee Willie Walker
Warren Raye & The Infernal Blues Machine
Walter Jackson
Spencer Wiggins
Spencer Wiggins
Spencer Wiggins
