Another great funk reissue from BBE. Compiled by Ian Wright (not that one, sports fans), this release is a flawless collection of female funk singers, largely from the mid-60s to mid-70s. For those "in the know" - the record collectors, djs, the "Big Daddy" readers, and insanely voracious afficienados who populate the funk scene - I need only list the names involved. For the rest of us, who need a regular dose of heavy funk but who can't or don't take the time to track down the 45's, only a few of the following women will be familiar. But they're all worth hearing. Check this for a roll-call: Ruth Brown, Monica Chaffeur, Joyce Dunn, Shirley Vaughan, Ann Robinson, Pearl Dowell, Barbara Lynn, Deloris Ealy, Mary Love, Inell Young, Marie "Queenie" Lyons, Viola Wills, Dorothy Black, The Trinikas, Gloria Williams, Anna Raye, Dolores Ealy and The Kenyattas with Jimmy Liggins Guitar and Orchestra, Barbara and Gwen, The Aristocrats, and Big Ella. Phew! Some 'spotters will notice the odd sample or two, lifted by far less creative types, but we really need only concern ourselves with how vibrant and vital this music is. BBE subtitle it "the real sound of the undergound soul sister", and paraphrasing Ruth Brown, it's a stone groovy thing.
