Sunday, June 28, 2009

This week in the Shack

After all of the news this week, I think it's time for a happier set of soul music. Please dance if you're so inclined, or just sit back with a drink in your hand and dig it.

1. Joss Stone - Don't Cha Wanna Ride (3:31)
2. The Rascals - Groovin' (2:30)
3. War - All Day Music (3:59)
4. Brownout - Brown Wind And Fire (3:01)
5. The Budos Band - Chicago Falcon (2:53)
6. Joe Bataan - Chick-a-Boom (3:48)
7. Sly & the Family Stone - Family Affair (3:08)
8. Marvin Gaye - What's Happening Brother (2:43)
9. Curtis Mayfield - Mighty Mighty (Spade and Whitey) (6:56)
10. The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band - Express Yourself (3:53)
11. Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s - More Peas [Complete Version][#] (13:44)
12. The O'Jays - Give the People What They Want (4:11)
13. Yannick - Ces Soirées Là (3:21)
14. Solange Knowles - Sandcastle Disco (4:28)
15. Little Jackie - I Liked You Better Before (3:58)
16. Major Lance - The Monkey Time (2:48)
17. Barbara Acklin - Am I the Same Girl (2:56)
18. Dusty Springfield - Breakfast in Bed (2:58)
19. Dee Dee Sharp - I'm Not in Love (5:15)
20. Young-Holt Unlimited - You Gotta, I Gotta (4:06)
21. Jackson 5 - Joyful Jukebox Music (3:14)
22. Marvin Gaye - Ain't That Peculiar (2:59)
23. Junior Walker & the All-Stars - Pucker up Buttercup (3:15)
24. Archie Bell & the Drells - Tighten Up (2:39)
25. Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - How Long Do I Have To Wait For You? (4:03)
26. Stevie Wonder - Sir Duke (3:51)
27. War - Get Down (4:28)
28. Mingo Fishtrap - Land of Dreams (4:22)
29. Earth, Wind & Fire - Shining Star (2:49)
30. Cameo - We're Goin' out Tonight (4:42)
31. Tower of Power - Diggin' on James Brown (4:52)
32. James Brown - Licking Stick-Licking Stick (4:52)
33. Steamheat - Radiator (3:53)
34. Donny Hathaway - A Song for You (5:27)
35. Corinne Bailey Rae - Like a Star (4:02)
36. Daryl Hall & John Oates - She's Gone (3:28)
37. The Lost Generation - This Is the Lost Generation (3:34)
38. The Chi-Lites - (For God's Sake) Give More Power to the People (3:48)
39. The Temptations - Shakey Ground (4:03)
40. El Michels Affair - Detroit Twice (3:00)
41. Incredible Bongo Band - Apache (4:53)
42. Me'Shell Ndegéocello - I'm Diggin' You (Like an Old Soul Record) (4:25)
43. Dazz Band - Let It Whip (4:46)
44. Kool & the Gang - Get Down on It (4:56)

(soul 18)

Sunday, June 21, 2009

This week in the Shack

This week's set is a mix of blues and early R&B. As always, I hope you dig it.

1. Gary Clark, Jr. - Blue Light Boogie (2:59)
2. Ray Charles - St. Pete Florida Blues (3:38)
3. Louis Jordan - Let the Good Times Roll (2:45)
4. The Treniers - Bald Head (2:48)
5. Count Basie/Joe Turner - Good Morning Blues (3:51)
6. Dinah Washington - The Blues Ain't Nothin' But a Woman Cryin' for Her Man (3:48)
7. Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers - New Blowtop Blues (6:25)
8. The Cats & the Fiddle - Crawlin' Blues (3:10)
9. Little Willie John - Heartbreak (It's Hurtin' Me) (2:51)
10. Count Basie/Joe Williams - Roll 'Em Pete (3:12)
11. Eddie Durham - Sliding Along (4:11)
12. Jazz Me Blues Band / Yoko Noge - Don't You Feel My Leg (8:17)
13. Shorty Long - Richland Woman (2:52)
14. Asylum Street Spankers - Shave 'Em Dry (2:47)
15. Eden Brent - Mississippi Flatland Blues (3:13)
16. Fiona Boyes - Celebrate the Curves (3:51)
17. Dr. John - Stakalee (4:34)
18. Asylum Street Spankers - It's Dry Down Here (4:35)
19. Old Crow Medicine Show - Cocaine Habit (2:42)
20. Candy Kane - Put It All In tThere (4:40)
21. Lucy DeSoto - Can't Get That Stuff No More (4:18)
22. Omar & The Howlers - Big Round World (3:11)
23. Guy Forsyth - Don't Turn Me In (5:14)
24. Albert Castiglia - Hurricane Blues (5:00)
25. Malford Milligan - Palace of the King (4:19)
26. Howlin' Ron Wolf - I Asked for Water (She Gave Me Gasoline) (2:50)
27. James Cotton - Key to the Highway (4:48)
28. Alfred Harris - Miss Ida (3:27)
29. Big Walter Horton - Back Home to Mama (3:11)
30. Ruth Brown - (Mama) He Treats Your Daughter Mean (2:55)
31. Paul Bascomb - Pink Cadillac (2:23)
32. T-Bone Walker - I Know Your Wig Is Gone (2:44)
33. Wynonie Harris - Quiet Whiskey (2:28)
34. Buddy Johnson & His Orchestra - Lil' Dog (3:06)
35. Etta Jones - Fine Brown Frame (3:51)
36. Ivory Joe Hunter - All States Boogie (2:37)
37. Count Basie/Joe Turner - Honey Hush (2:39)
38. Pat Valdelar - Rock Me Baby (2:43)
39. Jimmy Liggins - Drunk (2:33)
40. Joe Liggins - Trying to Lose the Blues (2:53)
41. Dinah Washington - Long John Blues (3:10)
42. Maria Muldaur - TB Blues (3:11)
43. Rory Block - Pea Vine Blues (3:34)
44. Son House - Death Letter (4:21)
45. Robert Johnson - Sweet Home Chicago (3:04)
46. Peter Green with Nigel Watson - Me And The Devil Blues (3:02)
47. Big Joe Williams - Sugar On The Bottom (3:23)
48. Eric Gales - Custard Pie (4:01)
49. J.B. Lenoir & Big Walter "Shakey" Horton - Slow Down (1:52)
50. Jesse Mae Hemphill - Baby, Please Don't Go (3:13)
51. North Mississippi Allstars - Po Black Maddie (4:32)

(blues 18)

Sunday, June 14, 2009

This week in the Shack

Three A.M. Eternal

It's three a.m. and the rain patters against the windows. You sit at the table in the dark, smoking your last cigarette and trying to accept that she isn't coming back.

Or maybe the one you wanted left the club with someone else.

Maybe the jobs have all dried up, but that hasn't stopped the rent coming due next week.

Or maybe it's just that you've realized that you're no longer young, and you're haunted by that spectre that stands just behind your left shoulder and whispers "Is this all there is?".

The radio plays softly in the corner, weaving a tightrope of heartbreak and hope and you clench your jaw against the pain and frustration that you'd howl out, if only you weren't afraid that someone might hear. And the smoke rises up towards the ceiling.

It's always three a.m. somewhere. It's always raining in someone's heart.

1. Rufus Thomas - The Memphis Train (2:33)
2. Sam & Dave - Soul Man (2:40)
3. The Solution - My Mojo Aint Working No More (3:52)
4. Wilson Pickett - I've Come a Long Way (3:10)
5. King Curtis - A Whiter Shade of Pale (5:38)
6. Jimmy Church - Right on Time (2:26)
7. Allen Toussaint/Elvis Costello - Who's Gonna Help a Brother Get Further? (5:03)
8. Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - 100 Days, 100 Nights (3:45)
9. Chaka Khan - Too Much Juice (Dark Streets Album Version) (3:02)
10. Aretha Franklin - Chain of Fools (2:47)
11. The Marvelettes - Destination: Anywhere (2:40)
12. Angeline Ball - I Can't Stand the Rain (3:11)
13. T Bird and the Breaks - Two Tone Cadillac (4:35)
14. Otis Redding - Day Tripper (3:33)
15. Sam & Dave - Everybody Got to Believe in Somebody (3:14)
16. Bettye LaVette - Piece of My Heart (2:21)
17. Dusty Springfield - Son of a Preacher Man (2:29)
18. Percy Sledge - I'm Hanging up My Heart for You (2:38)
19. The Solution - She Messed Up My Mind (4:17)
20. Otis Redding - Cigarettes and Coffee (4:00)
21. Clarence Carter - Slip Away (2:33)
22. Etta James - Tell Mama (2:23)
23. Jimmy Ricks & The Raves - Daddy Rolling Stone (2:19)
24. Ray Charles - Rockhouse (Parts I & II) (3:55)
25. Wilson Pickett - In the Midnight Hour [Live & Burnin'] [Live] (8:09)
26. The Staple Singers - Heavy Makes You Happy (Sha-Na-Boom-Boom) (3:12)
27. Laura Lee - Dirty Man (2:53)
28. Joss Stone - Victim of a Foolish Heart (5:31)
29. Booker T. & the MG's - Green Onions (2:54)
30. Bobby Newsome - Jody, Come Back and Get Your Shoes (3:16)
31. The Temptations - I Wish It Would Rain (2:51)
32. Aretha Franklin - Do Right Woman, Do Right Man (3:13)
33. Candi Staton - Another Man's Woman, Another Woman's Man (2:31)
34. Al Green - Here I Am (Come And Take Me) (4:16)
35. Bettye Lavette - Down To Zero (3:10)
36. Little Beaver - Blues For Mama (3:21)
37. Nicole Willis & The Soul Investigators - No One's Gonna Love You (6:06)
38. Otis Redding - Chained and Bound (2:40)
39. Bobby "Blue" Bland - Cry Cry Cry (2:42)
40. Joan Osborne - Eliminate the Night (4:08)
41. Solomon Burke - You're Good for Me (2:50)
42. Baby Washington - Breakfast in Bed (3:10)
43. Gospel Comforters - Jesus Will Help Me (3:01)
44. Mavis Staples - For What It's Worth [Live] (2:52)
45. Ruby Johnson - When My Man Comes Down (2:45)
46. Percy Sledge - The Dark End of the Street (2:45)
47. Clarence Carter - I'd Rather Go Blind (3:03)
48. Nina Simone - Feeling Good (2:57)
49. Ray Charles - Losing Hand (3:13)
50. James Brown - It's a Man's Man's Man's World (3:17)
51. Ann Peebles - I Feel Like Breaking Up Sombody's Home (2:28)
52. Al Green - Take Me to the River (3:43)
53. Joe Tex - S.Y.S.L.J.F.M. (The Letter Song) (Original) (2:50)
54. Little Milton - Blind Man (8:51)

(soul 17)

Sunday, June 7, 2009

This week in the Shack

1. Asylum Street Spankers - Summertime (6:20)
2. Kurt Elling - Goin' to Chicago (5:39)
3. Count Basie/Joe Turner - The Honeydripper (6:45)
4. Allen Toussaint - West End Blues (3:51)
5. Alfred Harris - My Life Blues (3:05)
6. Memphis Slim - Going Down Slow (4:00)
7. Jazz Me Blues Band / Yoko Noge - Rocks in My Bed (9:16)
8. Gene Harris - Stormy Monday (4:51)
9. Willie King & the Liberators - Pickens County Payback (6:13)
10. Howlin' Wolf - Three Hundred Pounds Of Joy (3:06)
11. Guy Forsyth - Adam's Rib (5:27)
12. Cephas and Wiggins - The Blues Will Do Your Heart Good (3:08)
13. Memphis Slim - Bertha May (6:52)
14. Buddy Guy - Done Got Old (3:23)
15. Jimmy Witherspoon - Past Forty Blues (4:23)
16. Koko Taylor - Insane Asylum (4:22)
17. Albert Castiglia - Big Toe (5:31)
18. Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble - Willie the Wimp (4:36)
19. Mem Shannon - Do You 'Yuh' What I Say (6:39)
20. Deneen McEachern - Black Sky El (4:06)
21. Marc Broussard - Lonely Night In Georgia (6:21)
22. Herbie Hancock/Jonny Lang/Joss Stone - When Love Comes to Town (8:41)
23. Gene Harris - Down Home Blues (7:00)
24. Janiva Magness - Do I Move You (4:38)
25. Nina Simone - Blues for Mama (4:00)
26. Count Basie/Joe Turner - Honey Hush (2:39)
27. Lou Rawls - I'd Rather Drink Muddy Water (2:38)
28. Ray Charles & The Count Basie Orchestra - Saturday Night (4:05)
29. Joe Guitar Hughes - Stuff Like That (3:59)
30. Tom Waits - Wrong Side of the Road (5:13)
31. W.C. Clark - Where There's Smoke There's Fire (3:35)
32. Brother Yusef - Blues Is My Story (4:35)
33. Etta James - W-O-M-A-N (3:17)
34. Marc Broussard - Home (5:02)
35. Shawn Mullins - Homeless Joe (2:42)
36. Chris Thomas King - Da Thrill Is Gone From Here (4:40)
37. B.B. King - Don't Answer the Door, Pts. 1 & 2 (5:10)
38. Nina Simone - I Want a Little Sugar in My Bowl (2:33)

(Blues 17)

Monday, June 1, 2009

This week in the Shack

Summer's here. I hope you're all out there dancing your asses off and making good memories.

1. Jamiroquai - Virtual Insanity (5:40)
2. Stevie Wonder - Living for the City (7:25)
3. Sly & the Family Stone - Dance to the Music (3:00)
4. Aretha Franklin - Rock Steady [Alternate Mix][#] (4:31)
5. Sam & Dave - Soul Man (2:40)
6. Mel and Tim - Good Guys Only Win in the Movies (2:46)
7. Tyrone Davis - Can I Change My Mind (2:45)
8. Solange Knowles - 6 O'Clock Blues (3:36)
9. Joss Stone - Don't Cha Wanna Ride (3:31)
10. The Chi-Lites - Give It Away (2:46)
11. The Lost Generation - This Is the Lost Generation (3:34)
12. Marvin Gaye - Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology) (3:16)
13. Curtis Mayfield - We the People Who Are Darker Than Blue (6:45)
14. Bettye Lavette - I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got (2:11)
15. Ryan Shaw - Memphis Train (2:52)
16. John Legend - Burning Down The House (2:41)
17. Little Jackie - 28 Butts (3:08)
18. Young-Holt Unlimited - Wack Wack (3:01)
19. Ray Charles - I Got a Woman (6:19)
20. Junior Walker & the All-Stars - Cleo's Mood (2:42)
21. Joss Stone - Fell in Love With a Boy (3:38)
22. Sly & the Family Stone - Frisky (3:12)
23. Shirley Scott - Messie Bessie (4:19)
24. Orgone - I Get Lifted (7:26)
25. Menahan Street Band - Make The Road By Walking (3:01)
26. John Legend - Motherless Chile (4:23)
27. Donny Hathaway - Valdez in the Country [#] (4:08)
28. The O'Jays - Love Train (2:58)
29. Jackson 5 - Make Tonight All Mine (3:18)
30. Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes - Wake Up Everybody (7:32)
31. The Chi-Lites - Oh Girl (3:45)
32. Simply Red - Holding Back the Years (4:29)
33. Darondo - Didn't I (3:29)
34. Joe Bataan - Ernestine (5:14)
35. Curtis Mayfield - Little Child Runnin' Wild (5:26)
36. War - Slippin' into Darkness (3:47)
37. Kashmere Stage Band - Do Your Thing [Extended Version][#] (5:23)
38. Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings - What Have You Done For Me Lately? (3:16)
39. Duffy - Mercy (3:40)
40. Nicole Willis & The Soul Investigators - If This Ain't Love (Don't Know What Is) (3:28)
41. Bobby Womack - Across 110th Street (3:48)
42. Willie Hutch - Ain't That (Mellow, Mellow) (2:58)
43. Marvin Gaye - What's Happening Brother (2:43)
44. Funk Factory - Rien Ne Va Plus (5:18)
45. Ebony Rhythm Band - Ode to Billy Joe (4:51)

(soul 16)