Saturday, December 05, 2020

The Feel it Advent-ure 2020: Door 5


Jean Elias made only one record as far as anyone seems to know. The Duke/Peacock/Back Beat stable of labels made almost no use of Muscle Shoals recording studios, but this is where both sides of this 45 were laid down. I don't think  this 45 troubled the chart compilers though, the only Billboard references I can find to the single are listings in the "ones to watch" section in late November 1971. It is a mystery why Jean never found her way onto wax again as she is a good singer, this 45's tracks are above the average, and a Duke label stable Billboard advert as late as August 1972 was still listing Jean as being on their roster. I suspect for Jean it was a case of right place, wrong time. By 1972 the more "down home" Soul was starting to struggle to be heard in the face of the rapidly emerging Philly style and more lavishly arranged up town soul and funk.  

I thought I had posted the B side - How Can I Go On Fooling Myself - before, but it seems not. Of the two sides it certainly seems to be referenced much more frequently on the internet; it was, I am sure, the reason I bought this 45 a few years ago now and it has been the only one that has stuck in my mind. However, playing both sides again today I'm thinking the A side deserves some love too.

Jean Elias - You Made Me A Anybody's Woman  1971

  

1 comment:

drew said...

I like that, another to add to the list.