The Three Souls featuring Sonny Cox - Soul Sounds - Argo LP 4044 - Original Argo Pressing, Blue Label, Stereo [Updated version; All this discussion of the Three Sounds this month caused me to pull out my vinyl of The Three Souls - a fantastic, but harder edged R&B Chicago soul jazz combo on Argo - here's a nice true stereo lossless rip]
Sonny Cox - Alto Saxophone
Ken Prince - Organ
Robert Shy - Drums
Only on A1, A2, A4, B1 -
Louis Satterfield - Electric Bass
Gerald Sims - Guitar
Arrangements by Sonny Cox and Ken Prince
Recorded - February 12, 1965, Ter Mar Recording Studio, Chicago
Album Supervision & Production: Roquel Davis and Esmond Edwards
Engineer: Ron Malo
Cover by: Don S Bronstein
Released: August 14, 1965
Well let's start the weekend with a classic Chicago Jazz groover and buried gem in Argo's Blues/Pop/Folk series; the third and final side by The Three Souls! The Three Souls were a really interesting sax/organ/drums trio which were quite active as a popular club/ soul jazz combo in the early 60s Chicago Jazz scene. One gets the impression from the liner notes that the group was a very popular local and regional act playing straight ahead, soulful and groovy jazz which escaped national attention, and were subsequently lost to the popular jazz history/narrative which privileges above else 'innovation'/ and the jazzman as 'artist'/'genius'. The Three Souls certainly weren't in the latter category, but so what? More people probably saw them and listened to them in local clubs/neighborhoods than other higher profile national acts.
A few weeks ago I posted Sonny Cox's first and only solo side cut in 1966, so it's nice to hear him again recorded just a year earlier in a trio context. The choice of material is also interesting; several pop standards and a cover of 'Armageddon', at the time a very recent Wayne Shorter side off one of his classic Blue Note dates in 1964. The second Shorter cover listed on the sleeve, 'Black Nile' is an error, as it seems to have replaced at the last minute by a Cox original, 'Astronaut' (B2) which is indicated on the actual vinyl.
Three Sounds - Many thanks for yet another rarity.
ReplyDeleteThis was reissued on CD in 1998 -- in Japan.
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ReplyDeleteMany thanks, preston !
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ReplyDeleteI really appreciate your efforts to keep these very worthy cultural artifacts from becoming completely extinct. Before Sun Ship I had only seen a handful of Argo LPs over the years and never realized there was plenty of cool in the catalog. I look forward to your future posts. I hope this mine doesn't tap out for a long time. Keep digging!
ReplyDeleteThanks for this and other posts here. I had a couple of argo/ cadet compliation cds way back - the tracks became popular in the UK jazz dance club scene. I had The Heatin' System: Essential Argo/Cadet Grooves, Vol. 2 For me the stand out track was Sahib Shihab - Please Don't Leave Me - Anyhow, ramble over keep up the great work, and agree with 2bad - it's so important to keep this alive.
ReplyDeletehttp://min.us/mbmPu8BKU3
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