Betty LaVette & Carol Fran - Bluesoul Belles Vol 1

"The stellar Bluesoul Belles spotlights Betty Lavette and Carol Fran, two of the more criminally underrated singers from soul music's mid-'60s golden era. Unearthing two dozen tracks from the Calla, Port, and Roulette vaults, many of them previously unreleased alternate takes, the set offers a persuasive argument that, while never earning the critical respect or commercial kudos of their contemporaries, both women deserve consideration alongside the greats of the period. Lavette's opening "Let Me Down Easy," a staple of the Northern soul scene and the countless anthologies it's yielded, is far and away the most recognizable cut here -- the song is her masterpiece, a blisteringly poignant requiem for romance gone bad distinguished by its unique, tangolike rhythm and sweeping string arrangement. The remaining seven tracks don't reach the same peaks, but from the Motown-inspired stomp of "What I Don't Know (Won't Hurt Me)" to the gospel-inflected "Cry Me a River," Lavette's versatility and raw power ring through loud and clear. Although Lavette receives top billing, Fran's contributions comprise fully two-thirds of the disc; best known for her latter-day blues efforts with guitarist husband Clarence Holliman, the aching beauty of her mid-'60s soul sides is revelatory. Though rooted in the blues, her crystalline vocals were nevertheless ideally suited to the uptown style and sophistication of her Port dates; the chart failure of these recordings is baffling, and in particular the remarkable "Any Day Love Walks In" merits the label of lost classic."  Jason Ankeny, AMG

Detroit Gold Vol 1 - The Very Best Of Motor City Soul

I am breaking down bit by bit on the question of Northern soul (American definition, not U.K). Certainly a fair amount showed up on the later Blowing the Fuse discs and on The Five Stairsteps post as well, but here is a set of small label Detroit soul that is largely all of the northern style. These recordings come from a family of minor labels run by Ollie McLaughlin, the label names were Karen, Carla and Moira, after his daughters. McLaughlin was also co-manager of Del Shannon; it was Shannon's success that financed Ollie's own labels. Aside from the Bettye LaVette and Barbara Lewis, I didn't have any of these tracks. This is the first of two ripped by moi from the crispy clean LPs courtesy of Unkie Cliff.

Bettye LaVette - Child of the Seventies

When last we heard from Mz LaVette she had recorded some credible singles, had a minor hit at 16, and had toured in James Brown's Review, the teenager was blossoming into a real talent in her early 20's and so...

"....In 1972, she signed once again with Atlantic/Atco. She was sent to Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in Alabama to record what was to be her first full length album. Titled Child of the Seventies, it was produced by Brad Shapiro and featured the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, now known as The Swampers, but Atco chose not to issue the album.

The mid 1970s saw a brief stint and two 45s with Epic, and in 1978 she released the disco smash on West End Records "Doin’ The Best That I Can". In 1982, she was signed by her hometown label, Motown, and sent to Nashville to record. The resulting LP (her first album actually issued), titled Tell Me A Lie, was produced by Steve Buckingham. The first single, “Right In The Middle (Of Falling In Love)” hit the R&B Top 40. She briefly gave up recording for a six–year run in the Broadway smash Bubbling Brown Sugar, appearing alongside Honi Coles and Cab Calloway.

After LaVette had played her own personal mono recordings of Child of the Seventies for Gilles Petard, a French soul music collector, he sought the master recordings at Atlantic, whose personnel had previously thought they had been lost in a fire some years back. In 1999, he finally discovered the masters and then licensed the album from Atlantic and released it in 2000 as Souvenirs on his Art and Soul label...." wiki

I'm having the same reaction upon hearing this album and realizing that it was deliberately shelved, that I did the first time I heard Paul Pena's New Train (another album inexplicably suppressed in the same year); "What the hell were they thinking?". This album has variety in genre's, great musicians and arrangements, cool songs and strikingly original vocals. Individual songs had appeal across a variety of radio markets, how did they miss it?

You have my old pal wouter to thank for this one, he kindly sent the lossless links (rapidshare) and I have added mp3 links (embedupload).

Bettye LaVette - Take Another Little Piece Of My Heart

Bettye LaVette has always shown a taste for variety in her music and an utter conviction in the way she sings every song. Her career has been, in her own words, "A life lived across the tracks from fame." These recordings come from the 1969-70 period at Silver Fox. Still a teenager, she sings with maturity and the band is great.

"Bettye LaVette (born Betty Haskins, January 29, 1946)
LaVette was born in Muskegon, Michigan, and raised in Detroit. Unlike many of her contemporaries, she did not begin singing in the church, but in her parents' living room, singing R&B and country and western music. She was signed by Johnnie Mae Matthews, a local record producer. In 1962, aged sixteen, she recorded a single, "My Man—He's a Lovin' Man", with Matthews, which became a Top Ten R&B hit after Atlantic Records bought distribution rights. This led to a tour with rhythm and blues musicians Clyde McPhatter, Ben E. King, Barbara Lynn, and then-newcomer Otis Redding. She next hit the charts with “Let Me Down Easy” on Calla Records in 1965. This led to a brief stint with The James Brown Revue. After recording several 45–rpm singles for local Detroit labels, in 1969 LaVette signed to the Silver Fox label. She cut a handful of tracks, including two Top 40 R&B hits: “He Made A Woman Out Of Me” and “Do Your Duty”. The Memphis studio musicians on these recordings have since become known as The Dixie Flyers..."

The next chapter for Bettye is Child Of The Seventies, anyone have it?