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Gavin B. · 05-19-2013, 11:28 AM

The Atlantic Story (continued)

Roster of 2nd Tier Atlantic Records Artists

Solomon Burke

Recommended Recording

The Definitive Soul Collection (2006)

Solomon Burke recorded 32 singles with Atlantic in the early Sixties. Burke didn't have a large white crossover audience like Aretha or Ray Charles but his steady string of hits between 1965 and 1966 reportedly kept Atlantic Records financially solvent after Ray Charles signed on with ABC and prior to Aretha's breakthrough in 1967. The Definitive Soul collection cover most of those early '60s singles on Atlantic by Burke.

The Drifters

Recommended Recording

The Definitive Soul Collection (2009)

The Drifters were one of the earliest Atlantic R&B groups and it was R&B artist Clyde McPhatter who originally signed on. Amhet Ertegun was a fan of McPhatter and sought him out in 1952. McPhatter agreed to sign with Atlantic on the condition that he be allowed to form his own vocal group. McPhatter recruited a group of singers he knew from the Mount Lebanon gospel singers and dubbed them the Drifters. The Drifters weren't strictly a soul group. Many of their hits were written by some of the legendary Brill Building song writing teams like Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller, Carol King & Gerry Goffin, Barry Mann & Cynthia Weil, and Doc Pomus & Mort Shuman. The broad appeal of such songs pop oriented songs as On Broadway, Up on The Roof, and Under the Boardwalk built a solid white crossover audience in an era when most black R&B artists only received airplay on black operated radio stations.

Joe Tex

Recommended Recording

Joe Tex 25 All Time Greatest Hits (2000)

Joe Tex was mostly unknown to white audiences for most of the '60s, but his record sales on the R&B charts equaled James Brown & Otis Redding. His real name was Joseph Arrington but picked up the "Joe Tex" nickname because his Texas origins.

Tex began as an artist on King Records where a lifelong rivalry between him and King Records label mate James Brown began. The feud began when Tex opened for James Brown at a show in Brown's hometown of Macon Georgia in 1963. Tex was a bit of clown with an offbeat sense of humor. In his final song, Tex parodied James Brown's finale routine by rolling around on the floor of the stage in a tattered cape screaming "Somebody help me get outta this cape." JB wasn't laughing. Brown retaliated by seeking out Tex at an after-hours party and shooting up the nightclub with a gun.

Throughout his entire career Tex accused Brown of stealing his song material, his dance moves and his microphone tricks. Indeed both singers had similar stage moves and similar raw bombastic funk driven musical sound. In 1968 Tex even challenged Brown to a singing contest for the title of Soul Brother #1. Brown declined the throw-down in a polite & dignified press released which enraged Tex even more.

Frustrated with living in the shadow of James Brown at King Records, Tex moved to Atlantic Records but he never broke through to a large white crossover audience, unlike his nemesis, James Brown.

The Coasters

Recommended Recording

There's A Riot Going On

The Brill Building songwriting team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller took The Coasters under their wing in the mid-'50s and produced their first album on their own small indy label, Spark Records. The record was popular enough that Atlantic Records offered Leiber and Stoller an independent production contract to produce and record the Coasters for Atco Records an Atlantic subsidiary label. The Coasters biggest career asset was having Leiber & Stoller as their songwriters, producers & patrons. The team wrote six top ten hits for Elvis Presley including Jailhouse Rock & Loving You & also wrote several hit singles for producer Phil Specter's stable of girl groups at Philles Records. The Coasters' involvement with Leiber & Stoller provided a path for the Coasters to get crossover airplay on Top 40 radio.

Some of the Coasters' most popular songs like Charlie Brown & Yakety -Yak and Little Egypt had comic/novelty themes, but others like Poison Ivy and Bad Blood had more conventional themes. Some may find the four CD collection There's a Riot Going On to be a bigger dose of the Coasters than they can handle. For the more squeamish I recommend the single disc 2011 anthology Baby That Is Rock 'n' Roll. Baby That Is Rock 'n' Roll is mastered in the monaural format but the fidelity of the sound is outstanding.

Recommended Recordings by Other Significant Altantic/Atco Recording Artists

Sam & Dave

Soul Men (1967)

Ben E. King

The Very Best of Ben E. King (1996)

Don Covay

Mercy/See-Saw (2000)

William Bell

Soul of A Bell (1966)

LaVern Baker

Soul On Fire The Best of LaVern Baker (1991)

Clarence Carter

This Is Clarence Carter (1968)

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05-19-2013, 11:28 AM	#17 (permalink)
Gavin B. Model Worker Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 1,248	The Atlantic Story (continued) Roster of 2nd Tier Atlantic Records Artists Solomon Burke Recommended Recording The Definitive Soul Collection (2006) Solomon Burke recorded 32 singles with Atlantic in the early Sixties. Burke didn't have a large white crossover audience like Aretha or Ray Charles but his steady string of hits between 1965 and 1966 reportedly kept Atlantic Records financially solvent after Ray Charles signed on with ABC and prior to Aretha's breakthrough in 1967. The Definitive Soul collection cover most of those early '60s singles on Atlantic by Burke. The Drifters Recommended Recording *The Definitive Soul Collection* (2009) The Drifters were one of the earliest Atlantic R&B groups and it was R&B artist Clyde McPhatter who originally signed on. Amhet Ertegun was a fan of McPhatter and sought him out in 1952. McPhatter agreed to sign with Atlantic on the condition that he be allowed to form his own vocal group. McPhatter recruited a group of singers he knew from the Mount Lebanon gospel singers and dubbed them the Drifters. The Drifters weren't strictly a soul group. Many of their hits were written by some of the legendary Brill Building song writing teams like Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller, Carol King & Gerry Goffin, Barry Mann & Cynthia Weil, and Doc Pomus & Mort Shuman. The broad appeal of such songs pop oriented songs as On Broadway, Up on The Roof, and Under the Boardwalk built a solid white crossover audience in an era when most black R&B artists only received airplay on black operated radio stations. Joe Tex Recommended Recording Joe Tex 25 All Time Greatest Hits (2000) Joe Tex was mostly unknown to white audiences for most of the '60s, but his record sales on the R&B charts equaled James Brown & Otis Redding. His real name was Joseph Arrington but picked up the "Joe Tex" nickname because his Texas origins. Tex began as an artist on King Records where a lifelong rivalry between him and King Records label mate James Brown began. The feud began when Tex opened for James Brown at a show in Brown's hometown of Macon Georgia in 1963. Tex was a bit of clown with an offbeat sense of humor. In his final song, Tex parodied James Brown's finale routine by rolling around on the floor of the stage in a tattered cape screaming "Somebody help me get outta this cape." JB wasn't laughing. Brown retaliated by seeking out Tex at an after-hours party and shooting up the nightclub with a gun. Throughout his entire career Tex accused Brown of stealing his song material, his dance moves and his microphone tricks. Indeed both singers had similar stage moves and similar raw bombastic funk driven musical sound. In 1968 Tex even challenged Brown to a singing contest for the title of Soul Brother #1. Brown declined the throw-down in a polite & dignified press released which enraged Tex even more. Frustrated with living in the shadow of James Brown at King Records, Tex moved to Atlantic Records but he never broke through to a large white crossover audience, unlike his nemesis, James Brown. The Coasters Recommended Recording *There's A Riot Going On* The Brill Building songwriting team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller took The Coasters under their wing in the mid-'50s and produced their first album on their own small indy label, Spark Records. The record was popular enough that Atlantic Records offered Leiber and Stoller an independent production contract to produce and record the Coasters for Atco Records an Atlantic subsidiary label. The Coasters biggest career asset was having Leiber & Stoller as their songwriters, producers & patrons. The team wrote six top ten hits for Elvis Presley including Jailhouse Rock & Loving You & also wrote several hit singles for producer Phil Specter's stable of girl groups at Philles Records. The Coasters' involvement with Leiber & Stoller provided a path for the Coasters to get crossover airplay on Top 40 radio. Some of the Coasters' most popular songs like Charlie Brown & Yakety -Yak and Little Egypt had comic/novelty themes, but others like Poison Ivy and Bad Blood had more conventional themes. Some may find the four CD collection There's a Riot Going On to be a bigger dose of the Coasters than they can handle. For the more squeamish I recommend the single disc 2011 anthology Baby That Is Rock 'n' Roll. Baby That Is Rock 'n' Roll is mastered in the monaural format but the fidelity of the sound is outstanding. Recommended Recordings by Other Significant Altantic/Atco Recording Artists Sam & Dave *Soul Men* (1967) Ben E. King *The Very Best of Ben E. King* (1996) Don Covay *Mercy/See-Saw* (2000) William Bell *Soul of A Bell* (1966) LaVern Baker *Soul On Fire The Best of LaVern Baker* (1991) Clarence Carter This Is Clarence Carter (1968) ======================= __________________ There are two types of music: the first type is the blues and the second type is all the other stuff. Townes Van Zandt