Eccentric Soul: The Big Mack Label

Tomorrow, at the blogger's panel at NEMO, I'm sure we'll all be ask how we find and decide what music we post about. Well, I'm still trying to think of a good answer to that question. It's tough because it's different almost every time.

One great example is how I came upon the spectactular new soul compilation from The Numero Group called Eccentric Soul: The Big Mack Label. A few weeks ago, I was going to lunch with k of Analog Giant and jds of Lat 44.2N when k started playing some new disc. It sounded great so I asked if I could borrow it. Well, for various reasons, I failed to get around to listening to it. Then about a week later, Casey of solidstate posted a podcast which included a killer tune from an obscure soul man named Ed Henry. That led me to buy the song from iTunes. The next day, I saw the disc from k again and started reading the track listings as I got ready to spin it. Then it hit me...damn...there's that Ed Henry guy again! I then checked the album's title and finally made the connection. I had learned of the album from two different sources.

And it was a great suggestion from both of them because the compilation is 19 tracks long of smoking 60's/70's soul without a clunker in the bunch. According to the liner notes, The Big Mack Label was a soul label out of Detroit that recorded its artist out of the label owner's house. That makes sense since the songs don't have a slick polished production to them. They feel more like one-take-wonders which is how I like my soul anyway. When listen to the album, you can just imagine all of these musicians crammed into one room in the house and the walls just shaking like they want to dance along with everyone else.

The Numero Group has apparently released three other Eccentric Soul compilations focusing on other under-appreciated labels. I haven't heard them yet but they are certainly at the top of my buying list.

So, when they ask how I find new music tomorrow, maybe I'll just say, "Sometimes, I just go to lunch with friends."

Mae Young | Let's Give Our Love a Try | Buy
Soul President | Get It Right | Buy
The Performers | Mini Skirt | Buy