New Ike & Tina Turner comp in stores -- LOVE SESSIONS

Madacy Entertainment has released LOVE SESSIONS, a two-disc set from Ike & Tina Turner, listing for a single-disc price. I wanted to recommend it before it's replaced in the bins next month by another Ike & Tina title from another label you haven't heard of.

For those unfamiliar with this particular catalog, Ike Turner recorded for cash up front, like the great bluesmen of yore, resulting in the inevitable scattering of recordings, re-recordings, live versions, fake live versions, and alternate takes, etc., on a plethora of labels, usually reissued on CD with indifferent mastering and zero liner notes or session information. This may be the most confusing major artist catalog out there right now. Lord, I wish Rhino (or someone) would undertake the research/licensing/mastering challenge and release a comprehensive four-disc box.

Despite the SESSIONS title, there is no information that these cuts are from a specific series of sessions or time period, although they date from later in their career. Like most of their CDs, "here's a bunch of stuff, some of it you already have, some of it re-recorded, some of it new to you, here today, gone tomorrow."

I wanted to recommend this particular title because it's a good value, the sound quality's better than usual for this act, and I didn't have most of this stuff already, despite having twelve other Ike & Tina titles. At least I think I don't: with this artist you have to spreadsheet songs and them compare side by side.

All I could ask for is a remix that omits the synthesizer figure from "Never Been To Spain." And in keeping with the generally high annoyance factor with this particular catalog -- as opposed to the music, which I usually love -- it's the first song on this album.

Track listing:

1. Never Been to Spain (Axton) - 2:51
2. Sugar, Sugar (Barry/Kim) - 2:37
3. If You Want It (Turner) - 2:34
4. Mississippi Rolling Stone (Goodman) - 3:33
5. Bold Soul Sister (Turner) - 2:38
6. You Got Me Running (Reed) - 3:05
7. I've Been Loving You Too Long (Butler/Redding) - 3:51
8. Honest I Do (Reed) - 2:26
9. You're Up to Something (Turner) - 3:48
10. Living for the City (Judkins) - 3:32
11. Golden Empire (Turner) - 3:43
12. I Know (You Don't Want Me No More) (Turner) - 3:17
13. You're Still My Baby (Willis) - 2:07
14. Let's Get It on... (Turner) - 2:34
15. Raise Your Hand (Turner) - 2:25
16. I'm Looking for My Wind (Turner) - 3:03
17. Rockin' and Rollin' (Turner) - 3:10
18. Too Much Man for One Woman (Turner) - 2:55
19. Five Long Years (Turner) - 3:28
20. Bootsie Whitelaw (Turner) - 3:54
21. Dust My Broom (Turner) - 2:31
22. The Hunter (Dunn/Jaackson/Jones/Wells) - 6:39
23. Shake a Hand (Morris) - 3:35
24. Mean Old World (Turner) - 2:30
25. 3: 00 in the Morning Blues (King/Taub) - 2:45
26. Reconsider Baby (Fulson) - 2:44
27. I'm a Motherless Child (Turner) - 3:34
28. Chicken (Turner) - 3:17
29. Tina's Prayer (Turner) - 2:59
30. Push (Turner) - 4:58

 

Hey, Ron, did you ever pick up the Collectables issues with all the original Sue recordings? If so, what did you think?

 

Naw. I've been waiting on THE SUE RECORDS STORY to show up cheap somewhere first.

Incidentally, five of their cuts -- "A Fool For A Fool," "Finger Poppin'," "(I'll Do Anything) Just To Be With You," "Somebody (Somewhere) Needs You," and "Tell Her I'm Not Home" -- appear on the excellent Waner Archives release, THE BEST OF LOMA RECORDS: THE RISE & FALL OF A SIXTIES SOUL LABEL.