The Mirwood Singles Collection - Six Volumes (2012)

This collection was put together by an old soul fan 10 years ago called Alan T Who was a DJ in London back in the day and Co-blogger with Oldsoulrebel..Here,s what oldsoulrebel had to say about his friend "Alan was a bit of a character, his knowledge of Motown and early stuff from 62-64 was exceptional but he did have many gaps in his knowledge of later things and during the 70's & 80's he lived in Los Angeles. I remember him asking why he could not find any D.J. scans for stuff like the Mirettes - "He's Alright With Me inst" etc, he didn't know they were 70's boots!" Mirwood Records was an American record label founded by former Vee-Jay executive Randy Wood in Los Angeles in 1965. The Mirwood label was a sister label to Mira Records. It primarily released rhythm and blues and jazz recordings, and has been described as "among the definitive Northern soul labels of all time". Many of its records were written and produced by Fred Smith and arranged by James Carmichael, who hod a distinctive style all their own, creating soul music that was both relentlessly energetic with a fast pounding beat irrestable to Dancers.The label found success with its second single, "The Duck", credited to Jackie Lee, who is actually Earl Nelson of Bob & Earl(but you all knew that !). Other prolific artists recorded on the Mirwood label included The Olympics and Bobby Garrett, the other half of Bob & Earl. The last singles released on the label were issued in 1968. Strangely enough Mirwood is a household name here in the UK Soul Fraternity, Admittedly only among select residences dotted around the north of the UK and the odd foreign outpost. The impact of the Northern scene actually passes down through Familys,because Northern Soul devotees have been brought up, while dandled on their mother’s knee, to the sounds of Jackie Lee, Bobby Garrett and the Olympics playing on the phonogram or old Dansette. To research the label properly was therefore a daunting task. This wasn’t just a group of records that happened to come out under the same brand name, but a musical sound that has determined a way of life for thousands of people who like their soul music fast and frenetic. Unfortunately what has been written about the label has been sparse, speculative or utter rubbish by the non believers. The North’s love affair with Mirwood started innocuously enough with a cool dance number called "The Duck". The singer Jackie Lee happened to have been one half of a successful male soul duo Bob & Earl. His partner Bobby Garrett also recorded for the label as a solo act, with just the occasional recording together. The Duck was a big US hit and saw a lot of life in England’s trendier discotheques in 1966. The follow up album sold well too, but hidden among the tracks was the blueprint for what would become the Mirwood sound. Producer Fred Smith along with arranger James Carmichael used the LP to develop their own house style and tracks like ‘Do The Temptation Walk’, ‘The Shotgun And The Duck’, ‘Everybody Jerk’ and even re-cycled old hits like ‘Hully Gully’ and ‘The Bounce’ were given his brand new groove. The sound was urgent but smooth, with a relentless beat that was enhanced and bewitched by the celestial sound of vibes. They completed and polished off this beautiful gem of a sound and discerning soul fans became aware that a new dimension had been added to the discotheque sounds. The next clue to the new direction was a release from stalwart R&B group the Olympics, previously best known for their 50s, Coasters sounding, rock’n’roll hit ‘Western Movies’. ‘Secret Agents’ was a lifetime away from that old sound and was of course a full-on Mirwood production that did get a UK release at the time. It was the next Mirwood US single that would presage the second bath of masterpieces. The Belles’ ‘Don’t Pretend’/ ‘Words Can’t Explain’ was a double sided slab of uptempo soul heaven that was written by group member Sherlie Matthews. She would go on to be hugely influential in the path the company would take. Her writing talents were spotted and she was signed as a staff writer and went on to provide such soul classics as the next Olympics single and their biggest Mirwood hit ‘Mine Exclusively’. She then contributed ‘The Same Old Thing’, ‘My Little Girl’, ‘Oh My Darling’ and ‘Baby Do The Philly Dog’ among many others. Despite the quality of the Belles single they never got to record as a unit again. Sherlie’s writing skills and the group constantly being used as the sublime Mirwood backing singers saw to that. Additionally the two other group members were world famous soul sisters Brenda And Patrice Holloway who were signed to other companies as solo acts. Their success as a group would have presented Mirwood with a bigger headache than ever signing the Ikettes up from Ike Turner, and changing their name to the Mirettes did. The single failed to register anywhere except in LA but along with Richard Temple’s ‘That Beatin’ Rhythm’, Bobby Garrett’s ‘I Can’t Get Away’, The Sheppards’ ‘Stubborn Heart’ and Jimmy Thomas’ ‘Where There’s A Will’, were discovered by teenage soul fanatics in the UK in the early 70s. They went on to sell thousands to an audience of Northern Soul fans, that eventually covered the globe albeit sparsely. The producers could never have even envisaged that, let alone aimed for it. So what’s the music like then? Well, it’s about being young, vital and full of optimism, falling in and out of love, living for the moment and revelling in life. If you can’t remember what that was like, then this compilation will give you a thrilling reminder. The Belles Northern Soul classic twofer that was given the same release number as the Sheppards but was never released. Although more US chart action occurred with the Olympics and Bob & Earl, much of the Mirwood team’s superlative work fell on deaf American ears. It was the British soul aficionados of the early 70s who discovered these masterpieces to play on their burgeoning Northern Soul scene. The dancers revelled in the relentless beats, pleading vocals and sassy female backing.Virtually any Jackie Lee track was a worthy contender, especially the soul dance classic ‘Do The Temptation Walk’, the master tape discovery ‘Anything You Want (Any Way You Want It)’, and the anthemic ‘Oh, My Darlin’’. Bob & Earl’s hottest number was actually the backing track to Bob’s speedy ‘My Little Girl’, discovered as an accidental UK LP cut in the late 60s. Under the same alias, Bobby Garrett, Bob had another monster sound with ‘I Can’t Get Away’. Ex-Ike Turner sideman Jimmy Thomas arrived at Mirwood in 1966 where Bob Relf recorded him on his own song ‘Where There’s A Will (There’s A Way)’. Jimmy brought the Ikettes along with him & the company switched their name to the Mirettes for the Sherlie Matthews penned ‘I Wanna Do Everything For You Baby’ and others,sadly this was never issued. Sherlie also composed the stomping ‘Mine Exclusively’ and ‘The Same Old Thing’ for the Olympics and ‘Don’t Pretend’ for the Belles. Another Los Angeles stable under the auspices of Henry “Hank” Graham threw the Performers’ ‘I Can’t Stop You’ into the mix and renamed singer Jimmy Conwell as Richard Temple for a 45 that epitomises Northern Soul, ‘That Beatin’ Rhythm’, a credo for a cult. More indie productions came from Eddie LaShae with the Sheppards’ redoubtable ‘Stubborn Heart’ and Sonny Knight’s production of Curtis Lee on ‘Is She In Your Town?’. Many Unissed tracks in this private Collection not on the Kent or goldmine issues. Makes it a must have for any soul fan/collector and an EXCLUSIVE to this blog only!..Original Superb artwork courtesy of Alan T, Art Corrections Courtesy Of Pedro, Art Adjustments by myself & Retagging.Info on Alan T Courtesy of Oldsoulrebel....COMMENTS IN THIS BOX PLEASE GUYS!

AMM

                                             Entire Review Courtesy Of Alan T Via Oldsoulrebel