Various Artists – Shake What You Brought! Soul Treasures From The SSS International Label
Shelby S. Singleton was Nashville’s ultimate fat cat, remembered by keyboardist Jim Dickinson as a “redneck” with a “long, greasy ducktail and mirror sunglasses,” passing out cigarettes with his name embossed in gold. Perhaps Singleton’s most famous move was purchasing the legendary Sun catalogue in 1969, then reissuing it on 28-minute fake-stereo platters with “Lifetime Guarantee” imprinted on back. Gleefully ignorant of music and art, Singleton made no attempt to hide that he was in it strictly for the money.
Naturally the music suffered, but what of it? Emboldened by hit successes (Jeannie C. Riley’s “Harper Valley P.T.A.” spawned a near-phenomenon), Singleton launched his R&B-oriented SSS label in 1967, picking up masters and making new recordings with a remarkable inattention to consistency. To be sure, there were great moments — including Johnny Adams’ glorious “Reconsider Me” — but they occurred by chance rather than conscious effort.
As a result, listeners will have a hard time searching for diamonds amidst the coals of this compilation. In keeping with Sundazed’s quirky reissue ethic, the songs are not even among SSS’s better-known: Peggy Scott & JoJo Benson’s delightful “Pickin’ Wild Mountain Berries” is omitted in favor of solo recordings from each (Scott’s is decent, Benson’s abysmal), and the finer catalogue items by Adams are nowhere in evidence. The great Bettye LaVette does get one song, but in general she’s better served by Sundazed’s companion CD of tracks from Silver Fox, an SSS subsidiary.
Still, the disc’s first quarter hits hard, with pocket-tight grooves that wouldn’t sound out-of-place coming from Stax or Fame. Mickey Murray’s “Sticky Sue” doesn’t offer much from a lyrical perspective, but who cares when the band kicks up a storm this ferocious? And Betty Harris’ New Orleans-culled “There’s A Break In The Road” is a pulsating second-line workout with flashes of genuine wit: “You need a new set of windshield wipers, ’cause you’re not seeing things too clear.” But all you’ll ever need to know about songs such as “The Hiccup”, “Soul Butter” and the stupefying “I Wanta Make Her Love Me Till The Cows Come Home” can be found in their titles.
In fact, sets like these make one wonder if the deep well of southern soul is finally starting to run dry. Such concerns are premature as long as forgotten glories such as Paul Kelly’s “Love Me Now” remain unavailable in digital format. But that, of course, is for another compilation.