Here’s the only known recording by the strangely named Sag War Fare… which is apparently meant to be a pun on “Savoir Faire.” (more…)

Here’s a steamy gumbo of blues, soul and funk from Louisiana to suit the last day of sultry summer weather, from Bobby Rush. (more…)

RIP Lamont Dozier – Motown songwriting legend, one-third of the hitmaking trio Holland-Dozier-Holland. (more…)

The Toys were a teenage trio who formed at high school in New York in 1961. They sold two million copies of their only hit single. (more…)

I just couldn’t make up my mind which version of this sweet soul song to post. It was recorded and released by two Texans named Bobby only a few months apart in 1973. (more…)

Here’s another slice of classic soul from Detroit’s Soulhawk label, written and produced by Popcorn Wylie. (more…)

When I think of 1967 I think of psychedelia, hippies, flower power, LSD. This record came out that year – the Summer of Love – but it’s nothing like that. (more…)

He’s not exactly a household name but Popcorn Wylie is one of the key figures in Detroit soul music. A producer, songwriter, singer, bandleader, pianist and record label boss, he discovered some of the biggest names and played on some of the biggest Motown hits. (more…)

This is what used to be called a “Negro Spiritual” dating back to slavery days in the USA. It was first published in 1867 and I think the first recording was by Marian Anderson in 1925. (more…)

Chuck Brown is surely not the only convicted murderer to have a hit record, but his crime lends a certain macabre cachet to his place in pop history. (more…)