VARIOUS ARTISTS – THE SOUL OF MONEY (KENT CDKEND 209)

At last we have a brand new Kent compilation aimed at uptempo rare soul collectors. As usual the attention is focused on a particularly label, this time Money Records, one of the great indie LA’s imprint. If you are looking for big rarities, Sonny Herman’s fantastic “What About Me” should satisfy your appetite. It’s a gritty dancer that was played at Stafford in the mid 80s, so in terms of quality has the right pedigree. Another sought after item is the stomping Tony & The Showmen’s “Try My Love”. On the unissued front, I love Johnny Adams’s “Put You Weight On It”, a great West Coast midtempo that sounds like his other stuff on Kent/Modern. Other quality tracks include The Pretenders’ “The Temptation Walk” (a tribute to Curtis Mayfield’s style) and The M&M’s & The Peanuts’ Latin tinged dance craze “The Phillie”. Bettye Swann warm style delivers us a classy midtempo called “You Gave Me Love”, already included in her solo Kent CD. 70s soul lovers will surely fall in love with Delilah Moore’s “I’ll Just Walk Away”, not as rare as “It Takes Love” on Middle Earth, but almost as good. If you prefer early sounds, “Lil Valley” by The M&M’s & The Peanuts is a fine number, in a similar vein to Richard Berry’s “Have Love Will Travel”. A longer version of Hank Jacobs’ “Elijah Rockin’ With Soul”, with groovy party noises in the middle and a great jazz jam at the end, is a pleasant surprise too. To complete the soul spectrum, we have a great ballad in the guise of Moon and Mars & The Soul Producers’ “I’ll Go Back”. Don’t forget to read the booklet, interesting stories regarding an amazing LA record shop. More stuff is in the vaults and a second volume is already scheduled