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Beale Street Beats 2: Soul House (Various Artists) on LP

Memphis, Tennessee: large urban metropolis on the Mississippi River, home to such legendary record labels as Sun, Stax, Hi Records and... Home Of The Blues! On two single high-quality 25cm LPs, Bear Family Records® presents an overview of the creative years of this underrated label that released great rhythm 'n' blues, soul, blues and rock 'n' roll throughout the early 1960s. Volume 2 with a focus on the label's rhythm 'n' blues and soul sides. This LP delivers rare tunes that are hard to find on the original format, recordings by Jimmy Dotson, Willie Cobbs, Ed Pauling and the '5' Royales, among others. The 12-page colored folder includes extensive liner notes by Chicago music expert Bill Dahl, with photos from the label archives. Memphis-based Home of the Blues Records cooked up more than it's share of blistering singles during it's all-too-brief early '60s lifespan. Headed by Ruben Cherry (owner of a famous record store of the same handle on Beale Street where Elvis and Johnny Cash shopped) and his aunt, Celia G. Camp, HOTB specialized in tough, horn-driven Memphis R&B tightly arranged by it's house bandleader, trumpeter Willie Mitchell. It's talent roster was split between veteran stars (Roy Brown, The '5' Royales) and big-voiced obscurities that included New Orleans emigre Dave Dixon and Charles James, whose infectious rendition of One Mint Julep for HOTB's affiliated Zab logo is one of the myriad highlights of Bear Family's 10-inch vinyl LP 'Soul House.' The '5"'Royales' Catch That Teardrop and Willie Cobbs' original You Don't Love Me (later revived by The Allman Brothers) are here as well, along with hard-to-find gems by Jimmy Dotson, Billy Adams, and Bill Yates. The instrumental title track is a dazzling showcase for Royales guitarist Lowman Pauling's slashing fretwork