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Southern Soul Corner June 2016

I believe it was in our August 2015 edition that I said if I was to be in the market for a Soul/Blues star to be the headliner for a big event, Theodis Ealey would be right at the top of my call list! This came to mind recently a few weeks ago as I listened to my colleague Eric Bowman interview Theodis on his Saturday morning Countdown show. This true bluesman was right there in the early days of what has become today's Southern Soul - he was a working musician for years prior to his first notable album in the genre, 1992's Headed Back To Hurtsville on the Ichiban label. It contained such outstanding tracks as L'il Brown Eyes and I'm The Man You Need. Theodis' signature mark will forever be the ribald single Stand Up In It, which picked up speed such that it was recognized nationally - both the single and the same titled album landed on Billboard's R&B charts in 2004, not an easy feat for a Southern Soul/Blues artist. One of the most recognized songs of Southern Soul's modern era, it has spawned years of answer tunes, lyric references and double entendres. Most overlooked may be his songwriting/arranging/producing skills. Creating his own Ifgam label, he released Theodis Ealey & Friends in 2005, which included productions from Willie Hill, Lebrado and Freddie Hughes, among others. I've told this sequence of events before but the compilation included the first version of the Ealey written Think It Over, as sung by Doc Blakey and LaToya Cathey. The Beach band Sea Cruz repeated the feat in 2012 featuring Butch Barnes and Allie Privette on vocals, creating a top charting a hit with it. Theodis finally decided to record the tune himself, choosing vocal diva Lacee' to insure that it too became a big splash! He also collaborated with her on another single hitmaker, You And I Together, which was the title track of the album which was voted as Blues Critic's Best Blues Soul release of 2013. Long overdue recognition here! 2015's Theodis Ealey Presents: A Southern Soul Mix, Vol 1 constitutes his largest compilation of outstanding arrangements to date. Artists on the release include Columbus Toy, Willie Hill, Gregory P. Jones, Lacee', Heart 2 Heart Band, El Willie, Sonja Moree, Nelson Curry, Jerone Da Entertainer, J. Red the Nephew, Larry Griffith and Frank McKinney. Many of these tracks have charted right here at the Corner over the last several months. Taking time to release some of his own works, Theodis got together with Bruce Billups on a Blues banger charting single late last year called Mississippi Delta. Not letting any grass grow under his feet, he just came out with another new single, the raucous funky Don't Move The Groove. Is this outstanding all around artist the stuff of legends? Heck yes!

One of the up and coming new artists in Southern Soul/Blues is a young man from Jeffersonville, Georgia named Stan Butler. I have to admit I had heard of him but did not realize he had some really good songs out there until he appeared on this month's Daddy B. Nice Top 10 list. So I contacted Stan to get some of the facts behind this rising star and here we are! Growing up in the church with a mother as a Pentecostal Holiness pastor, he sang in the choir while teaching himself how to play drums and keyboard. His spiritual upbringing and strong conviction for his religion may have created some emotional conflict when considering the pursuit of secular music. Stan decided that the music was in his soul and there was nothing wrong with creating songs about life and love. Hooking up with Quent Jackson at Big Baby Studios in Macon, GA, long recording sessions began in earnest. The album Back To Basics gradually took shape as the songs were created and laid down. Released exclusively on Stan's YouTube Channel, Caught Up was the first tune released, but the more popular one has turned out to be Took My Grandma To The Club (of course it was!!), resulting in a video shoot of the song as well. There are seven songs to date composing the album. His popularity from the releases resulted in Stan being asked to open up for Cameo at the Macon Soul Jam. The realization that he was asked to do a live performance initiated Stan to locate John Mills, the owner and director of a band called The Unit. Learning Stan's songs became a very positive experience - the band was ready to perform and so was Stan. The crowd of roughly 3,000 attendees fans in Macon absolutely loved them. Becoming front page news, the group was very pleased and has now become the Stan Butler Band. New beginnings and a successful start should lead to more good things for this young future star!

The following paragraph was originally published in our March 2011 edition of Southern Soul Corner: I recently ran across a new album entitled Southern Soul Party Every Night by an artist named Sharnette Hyter. The release contained several strong grooves so I decided to look a little deeper. It turns out Sharnette is a radio/television veteran from the Dallas, Texas area who has also channeled her performing talents into several genres of music. Her first hit song, Hooked On Luv, came about in the mid’90’s on the European K4B Records label in the House music arena. Sharnette has been tabbed ‘The Queen of Underground Music’ in the Dallas area for her work in showcasing young talent while in club management. She has recently recorded both a Gospel and a Jazz album as well as having a Zydeco hit tune entitled If You Want It. A very interesting and diverse performer across many venues!............ The album I was referring to above actually was released in August of 2010. The Southern Soul community took very little notice at that time outside of Sharnette's immediate area. She is back with an even stronger release that features collaborations with several artists. Grown Folks Talkin' is made up of twelve slammin' Soul cuts, starting with the harmonious I Got A Love, which will surely be on the Corner's new Top 45 next month. Sharnette teams up with Patrick Henry for their stirring rendition of the classic Put It On Paper. How about Hold On featuring Joe Tex II? That's right! Big Cynthia joins Sharnette on Need A Mr. Do Right. Jeter Jones has been on our chart recently - a little Zydeco flavor breaks through on their collaboration of So Much Better. There are several Sharnette solos that are mid-tempo raw Soul singin'. I'm Classy, Hit My Spot Right and Still Don't Pay My Bills fit that description. Sharnette has the pipes to carry big songs but she tempers the pitch just right when needed. Strong production and good instrumentation throughout - this time Sharnette should register on the Southern Soul rolls of significant releases!