Larry Saunders - Free Angela(1971)Golden Triangle - Rare Soul

This is the second album by Larry Saunders i,ve posted on the blog. As with the first one also very very Rare. Larry has a strong pedigree,his father was world renowned Blues Singer Johnny Ace. Larry was a thoughtful and soulful voice in the 1960s and 70s. With songs ranging from soul and funk to gospel and blues. Saunders spent time in the south and recorded at the legendary Muscle Shoals studio and also spent time in New York. He released this album that was called "Free Angela" that was about civil rights activist Angela Davis and recorded anti-war ballads that were emotional and beautiful. Civil rights issues, mass protest, racial injustice, the early 70s was a lot like now really, except perhaps that more people gave a shit back then. The album was put together by Alexander Randolph on his Golden Triangle label, a singer, promoter, aa well as a record label owner from Virginia. The first half of the album was recorded in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, beginning with the title track by Larry Saunders. On his songs, Saunders’ vocals float above and transcend the ethereal backing of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section. His voice can be compared to singers like Donny Hathaway and Curtis Mayfield, but Saunders is his own man, with his own style. His work on this album is essential listening in the realm of socially conscious soul music. The second half of the album continues with solid mid-1960s rarities from Randolph’s Sound of Soul label. Sound of Soul has long been known to record collectors, with singles routinely fetching hundreds of dollars. Northern fans will know quiet a few i,m sure.
One thing of note between 1970 and 1972 was the arrest and incarceration of activist Angela Davis and the massive subsequent popular campaign to free her on the grounds that her imprisonment was unjust and purely political. Indeed as a card carrying member of the American Communist Party with links to the Black Panthers she was removed from UCLA Department Of Philosophy on the orders of then Governor Of California, Ronald Reagan. Part of the campaign to free Angela was this fundraising LP. Amidst the socially and politically tumultuous 1960s and 1970s, Angela Davis emerged as one of the era’s most controversial figures. Her arrest, incarceration, and trial made international headlines and inspired a movement to free her. In April of 2013 Free Angela & All Political Prisoners, an independent film about Davis was released to much critical acclaim, fetching awards at the Toronto International Film Festival Gala World Premiere, the London International Film Festival, as well as the Stockholm International Film Festival.
Despite the somewhat misleading title, Larry Saunders features on three of these (including the title track)  all of which showcase a falsetto to rival that of Curtis Mayfield and feature instrumentation from no less a group than the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section. Whereas the soul on the Saunders tracks leans towards the thoughtful and tripped-out, it gets bluesy and political on Nitroglycerine’s contribution Old Uncle Tom Is Dead. Later, Brother Love bring out the organs and Judd Watkins’ Paradise is an impassioned slice of doo-wop. If you’re looking for something a little more uptempo you’ll get that too. Tyrone Thomas(Little Tommy) delivers a sassy northern soul cut "Baby Can’t You See" and the closer is Soul Encyclopedia’s bumpin Staxish funky soul groove Geraldine Jones. Did I mention that this album has soul & meaning?

AMM

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