"Occasional Rain" by TERRY CALLIER – Second Album from June 1971 on Chess/Cadet Records (USA) featuring Charles Stepney Arrangements and Production with Minnie Riperton and Kitty Haywood from The Rotary Connection on Backing Vocals (July 2008 Universal/Verve Originals CD Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Outside The Golden Circle Of Your Love…"

'Lost Masterpiece', 'Forgotten Classic', 'An Album You Must Hear Before You Die' - take your pick... Because 1971's "Occasional Rain" by TERRY CALLIER genuinely fits them all - it really does.

Hailing out of Chicago and a childhood pal of Curtis Mayfield - Callier had put out only 1 album before this called "The New Folk Sound Of..." on US Prestige in early 1965 (see separate review). It did little business. Session years then went by until his signing to the Chess offshoot label Cadet, where he made 3 albums with legendary producer and writer CHARLES STEPNEY. The other two albums are "What Color Is Love" (1973) and "I Just Can't Help Myself" (1974) which are equally good - especially "Color" (see reviews for all).

Charles Stepney is another big name in small circles - a hero of sorts for soul lovers. He was involved in The Rotary Connection with Minnie Riperton, produced four albums with The Dells and even twiddled the knobs on the iconic and now much-vaulted psych-blues-fusion album "Electric Mud" by Muddy Waters. I'd personally scour down anything he had a hand in...a genius...

UK and Europe released July 2008 - "Occasional Rain" by TERRY CALLIER on Universal/Verve Originals 0602517664883 (Barcode 602517664883) is a straightforward CD transfer and remaster of the June 1971 US LP on Cadet Records CA 50007 (his 2nd album) and plays out as follows (43:26 minutes):

1. Segue No.1 - Go Ahead On [Side 1]

2. Ordinary Joe

3. Golden Circle

4. Segue No. 5 - Go Head On

5. Trance On Sedgwick Street

6. Do You Finally Need A Friend

7. Segue No. 4 - Go Head On [Side 2]

8. Sweet Edie-D

9. Occasional Rain

10. Segue No. 2 - Go Head On

11. Blues For Marcus

12. Lean On Me

13. Last Segue - Go Head On

Two other words printed on the back inlay beneath the CD also give this reissue the edge - GAVIN LURSSEN. He's an American sound engineer and I've sung his praises before (see separate reviews for "Gold" by THE CRUSADERS and "Careless" by STEPHEN BISHOP). Lurssen has just short of 900 mastering, remastering and audio restoration credits to his name (Universal, Hip-O Select) - his work stretches back decades, so he knows his way around a master tape or two. He was also called upon by the George Harrison Estate to handle the 2014 remaster of the Triple-LP Box Set/2CD Remaster for “All Things Must Pass” (see review).

I mention this because a lot of the songs on here are quietly soulful, Stepney didn't clutter them with instruments except when it complimented the melody - so the remaster needed the deftest of touches and Lurssen has done that. The sound quality isn't trebly or loud or showy - it's just there - sweet as a nut - the music just 'sails' out of your speakers in the most gorgeous way. You're left with a genuine sense of shock on two fronts (a) why has this beautiful soul album gone unnoticed for so long by the vast majority of music lovers out there and (b) a sense of relief - that in finally releasing "Occasional Rain" in 2008, Universal have picked the right guy to do the job.

Musically it breaks down like this - there's eight 8 songs separated by five 40-second "Segue" bits. No one knows why the first Segue is called "Go Ahead On" and the other 4 "Go Head On" (which is what the lyric is)? Some people think the Segues cool, while others feel they haven't worn well and now sound gimmicky. Personally, I find the songs surrounding them so beautiful that I don't notice...they're that good. I would love to hear the full song proper...

The most famous track off the LP is "Ordinary Joe" which has turned up on Acid Jazz type compilations and was a big draw in the UK. Other highlights are the acoustic urban trouble song "Trance On Sedgwick Street" which along with "Blues For Marcus" features the beautiful Cello work of EARL MADISON - and combined with Callier's impassioned vocals makes the tracks sound like Cat Stevens meets Nick Drake - really lovely and soulful. The love songs are up there as well - "Do You Finally Need A Friend" and the truly gorgeous "Golden Circle" (lyrics above). There's a strange guitar ping that floats over "Occasional Rain" giving it an ethereal otherworldly feel - very soulful and very Donny Hathaway in structure and churchy feel. Then comes the album's big finisher - and what a peach it is. "Lean On Me" is an impassioned six and half minute long friendship song with backing vocals from Minnie Riperton and Kitty Haywood - it's just gorgeous and finishes the mellowest of LPs on a genuine high.

Downside - although the gatefold card digipak is nice to look at, for me one of the big let downs is the complete lack of a booklet and therefore a sense of history, photos, insights etc... If ever a soul album deserved a little more luxury shown, then "Occasional Rain" is it.

If you're unconvinced and have heard too many praising reviews before - the entire LP is available on iTunes as a download - I'd recommend trying "Golden Circle" or "Occasional Rain" or "Lean On Me"- you'll be hooked. (The 2008 "Originals" remaster of "What Color is Love" is also available on iTunes).

Like Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On", Donny Hathaway's "Extension Of A Man" and Stevie Wonder's "Innervisions" - this is a proper soul album - a gem all the way through and sill beautiful and inspiring to this day - some 30/40 years after the event.

Of late Terry Callier has morphed (like Richie Havens) into a sort of elder statesman of soul still spreading his gospel of love and understanding - check out "Timepeace" from 1998 - unbelievably good and relevant to the now and not just past glories.

I've warbled on a bit I know, but this album deserves it. Buy it, cherish it, enjoy it - and I envy you the journey...

"Upchurch" by PHIL UPCHURCH (August 2014 Japan-Only CD Reissue on Universal/Cadet as part of the 'Chess Best Collection' Series) - A Review by Mark Barry...

...Badly Mastered - Dubbed From Vinyl Most Likely...

I'm a huge Charles Stepney fan - the arranger, producer, songwriter and driving force behind the Cadet Records label - Chess's offshoot for Soul and more Avant Garde material.

I own the Japanese SHM-CD of Upchurch's meisterwerk "Darkness, Darkness" - a double-album from 1971 Remastered onto one CD. That disc is virtually Audiophile in its sound quality – a blast - unfortunately - not so here.

"Upchurch" is the album that preceded "Darkness, Darkness" - released Stateside mid 1969 on Cadet Records LPS-826 as a 10-Track LP in Stereo.

1. Black Gold [Side 1]

2. America

3. As You Said

4. You Wouldn't, You Couldn't Be True

5. Cross Town Traffic

6. Adam And Charlene [Side 2]

7. Spinning Wheel

8. Voodoo Chile

9. More And More

10. Midnight Chile

Uncharacteristically the normally solid 'Chess Best Collection' CD Reissue Series out of Japan is poorly represented here on this 2014 reissue. It's clear the album has been mastered from a clean record but you can still here the distorted edges of the notes - never more so than on the awful beginning of the Hendrix cover "Voodoo Chile" with scratches aplenty. And as other buyers have pointed out - someone has edited out the beginning of the epic "Black Gold" Side 1 opener - reducing the Charles Stepney penned track from 4:31 minutes on LP to 4:16 minutes on CD. And given that Stepney layered 36 players onto the track (strings and singers) - being a vinyl dub - it feels terribly cluttered and overly harsh too audio-wise. To the CD release itself...

Japan-only released 27 August 2014 on Universal/Cadet UICY-76556 (Barcode 4988005840219) - "Upchurch" by PHIL UPCHURCH is also budget priced (part of the Chess Best Collection series) so can be bought for about twelve quid including P&P in the right places (35:05 minutes). The gatefold slip of paper that acts as an inlay repro's the front and rear artwork of the original 1969 Cadet Records sleeve - but the gatefold Japanese inlay inside that is in Japanese-only and tells you bugger all – not even mastering credits. The musicians are listed and for me one of the big draws here is DONNY HATHAWAY on Piano and the James Mack Singers giving it those "Black Gold" backing vocals.

So the disc sounds good - very good in places - his own "You Wouldn't, You Couldn't Be True" and Upchurch's cool Flute and Guitar take on Blood, Sweat & Tears "Spinning Wheel" - a sexy Rock groove written by the band's vocalist David Clayton Thomas that was adapted by many Soul Artists who heard the potential in the song. But his cover of Hendrix's "Cross Town Traffic" sounds terrible - distorted and out of joint. "As You Said" (a Cream cover from "Wheels Of Fire" penned by Jack Bruce and Pete Brown) doesn't fare much better but Don Juan Mancha's "More And More" is excellent. 

For the price it's not a bad buy and there's no other CD on the market even in 2018. But we can only hope that someone like Hip-O Select or Cherry Red has a go at the Stepney output - Box Set and Individual Releases? For those who must have it - I'd advise a listen first if possible...

"Songs/Hey Love" by ROTARY CONNECTION featuring MINNIE RIPERTON (October 1998 'Ace/Beat Goes Public' Reissue - 2LPs onto 1CD - Duncan Cowell Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...In The Sunshine Of Your Love..."

I've had this October 1998 CD by Ace Records/Beat Goes Public for years now and treasure it like its some sort of Soul Holy Grail. It features 2LPs Remastered on one disc - Rotary Connection's "Songs" (1969) and "Hey, Love" (1971).

The albums are a tale of two worlds - "Songs" is made up entirely of cover versions and features the combined talent of singers SIDNEY BARNES, the mercurial MINNIE RIPERTON and (the mysterious) JERIMIAH – all three being principal vocalists. "Hey, Love" from 1971 saw major line-up changes and for me a huge step up in the songwriting quality. Here are the connecting details...

UK released October 1998 - "Songs/Hey, Love" by THE ROTARY CONNECTION featuring MINNIE RIPERTON on Ace/Beat Goes Public CDBGPD 115 (Barcode 0296675111520) features 2LPs Remastered onto 1CD and plays out as follows (75:27 minutes):

1. Respect

2. The Weight

3. Sunshine Of Your Love

4. I Got My Mojo Working

5. The Burning Of The Midnight Lamp

6. Tales Of Brave Ulysses

7. This Town

8. We’re Going Wrong

9. The Salt Of The earth

"Songs" was originally US released in the summer of 1969 on Chess/Cadet-Concept LPS-322 and credited to ROTARY CONNECTION. Label boss MARSHALL CHESS and the visionary CHARLES STEPNEY co-produced the record.

JON STRICKLAND played a fuzz guitar as they laid into Cream's "Sunshine Of Your Love", "We're Going Wrong" and "Tales Of Brave Ulysses", The Band's "The Weight" and "This Town" by Stevie Wonder. There are also stabs at Otis Redding's "Respect", Jimi Hendrix's "The Burning Of The Midnight Lamp", "Salt Of The Earth" by The Stones and "I've Got My Mojo Working" by Muddy Waters. “Songs” is not a slave-the-original album - the covers are tear 'em up re-workings and I love what they did. The fuzz guitar in "Mojo" is amazing. Sidney Barnes also had the most beautifully expressive voice - the velvet of Brook Benton meets the soulfulness of Marvin Gaye circa "What's Going On". But admittedly with its heavily laden string-arrangements and lush vocal backings (Minnie soaring into the octaves) - it may not be everyone's purist idea of Soul - but for me the better moments (the trio of radically re-worked Cream covers) make it so worthwhile. However, things moved on immeasurably and undeniably with the next record.

10. If I Sing My Song

11. The Sea & She

12. I Am The Black Gold Of The Sun

13. Hangin' Round The Bee Tree

14. Hey, Love

15. Love Has Fallen On Me

16. Song For Everyman

17. Love Is

18. Vine Of Happiness

I've always considered "Hey, Love" to be a bit of a masterpiece (see my separate review for the new 2013 remaster out of Japan on the "Chess Best Collection" series). Originally released on vinyl in the States on Chess/Cadet Concept CC 50006 in August 1971 and credited to THE NEW ROTARY CONNECTION - it features the hand of writer/arranger/player maestro CHARLES STEPNEY. Stepney was Chess's answer to Norman Whitfield - a man with a conscience and a way with a funky and soulful tune. The other attractions are MINNIE RIPERTON, KITTY HAYWOOD, SHIRLEY WAHLS and DAVE SCOTT all on Lead Vocals with Stepney playing a huge number of instruments as well as arranging. Top session-men include superb guitarists PHIL UPCHURCH (see my review of his stunning 1971 double-album "Darkness Darkness" also on Japanese CD) and the axework of PAT FERRERI. The album also featured RICHARD RUDOLPH (Minnie Riperton's husband of the time) - he solo wrote both "Hanging Round The Bee Tree" and "The Sea & She" and excepting one other - co-wrote the rest of the album with Stepney.

The album's big tune is the magnificent "I Am The Black Gold Of The Sun" which was rescued from obscurity by British/US Funksters NUYORCIAN SOUL featuring JOCELYN BROWN when they sampled and covered it in November 1997 on the Talkin' Loud label. They brought the song and Rotary Connection in general into the charts (to 31). Ace then reissued this CD the following year (Oct 1998) and there's been vinyl repros of the "Hey, Love" LP in the West End of London ever since - meeting the demands of those constantly searching for something cool and Soulful to rediscover.

Besides "Gold" there are 4 other masterpieces on here - the echoed and swirling vocals of "Hanging Round The Bee Tree" (graced many of my Reckless in-store play lists), the gorgeous and sunny upbeat title track "Hey, Love" followed by Kitty Haywood letting it vocally rip on the sublime "Love Has Fallen For Me" (covered by Chaka Khan on her "I'm Every Woman" LP). But the best for me is the lone TERRY CALLIER track (a songwriter Stepney was plugging) called "Song For Everyman" - it is just brilliant and sends me every time I hear it (lyrics from it title this review). We should also mention the sublime vocals of SIDNEY BARNES who never seemed to get the credit he so richly deserved. And what can you say about the voice of MINNIE RIPERTON who could make grown men cry by just hitting an octave most couldn’t reach…

The DEAN RUDLAND liner notes are superb (I've raved about his writing across so many Ace and Kent Soul reissues) and the remaster by Sound Mastering of London used the original master tapes (probably DUNCAN COWELL). It's lovely - full of presence and vocals swirling around your speakers – properly fab.

So why didn't they make it? I suspect that with all those hippy-dip lyrical references to helping out your brother and bombing others with love - the group was perceived as a poor man's Fifth Dimension - a sort of watered down gathering peddling a lame "Hair" musical. This of course did for them commercially and is just plain wrong as an assessment. Typically it took British Soul fans to reignite interest and a torrent of well-deserved praise has followed ever since.

Charles Stepney is a sort of underground cult figure now amongst aficionados - spoken about in hushed tones. Minnie Riperton went solo and produced a string of gorgeous Soul albums in the mid-Seventies only to sadly succumb to breast cancer at a criminally young age in 1979.Still - they all have this legacy to remind us. A fantastic CD – and one you need to discover...

PS: see also my in-depth review of the singular "Hey, Love" reissue out of Japan in 2013 as part of their "Chess Best Collection" Series - and a separate review for their first album just called “Rotary Connection”...