Unwind Yourself: The King Recordings 1964-1967 Hank Ballard

£11.70

Genre:
60s Soul
Label:
Kent
Format:
CD
Catalogue Id:
CDKEND 451

The R&B star’s surviving 1964-67 King recordings, reissued in their entirety for the first time.

“Unwind Yourself” focuses on the period in Hank Ballard’s long career that has remained relatively under the radar in the CD era. It features every surviving record he made between early 1964 and late 1967, a period during which soul took over from R&B and his King label-mate James Brown spearheaded the funk revolution. Ballard made every effort to remain up-to-date but struggled to get his records heard by a wide audience. Whatever reasons DJs might have had for ignoring them, it surely was not the quality of the records or Ballard’s performances, which are first-rate throughout.

While this collection is aimed primarily at soul and funk fans, there are lots of choice R&B cuts to grab the attention of those who enjoy music of an earlier vintage. The vast majority of the tracks here have never been reissued. All but three are presented in the straight-ahead mono sound of the original King singles and albums. The remaining three are heard in genuine stereo (rather than pesky 2-track, with vocals on one channel and everything else on the other). Featured musicians include Lonnie Mack, Beau Dollar and a host of other Cincinnati notables, not to mention James Brown himself. The CD booklet offers a vast array of original labels, album sleeves and beautiful period photos, some of which have never been seen before.

The loose chronology of the track listing enables the listener to hear how capably Ballard moved with the times, and what a pity it was he didn’t find a newer, younger audience to enjoy these selections in the way earlier fans had relished ‘The Twist’ and ‘Work With Me Annie’.

Tony Rounce

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Track listing

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Side 1

Delivery & Returns

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We offer free P&P to UK addresses. For all other territories packaging is free and postage is charged on a weight basis.

We use Royal Mail First Class for UK deliveries and standard Air Mail for all other territories, very large orders will usually be sent via parcelforce. You may cancel your order at any time prior to your order being dispatched by emailing us at orders@acerecords.com ensuring that you quote your name, address and order reference number or by telephoning +44 (0) 208 453 1311 between 9am and 5pm GMT/BST, Monday to Friday. Please note: As music downloads are dispatched immediately after purchase, there is no possibility of cancelling these orders.

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You have the right to cancel your order within seven days of purchase, or seven days of receipt of the goods (whichever is the longer). If you choose to cancel your order, full payment will be returned to you. Returned items should be sent to: “Returns” c/o Ace Records, Such Close, Letchworth Garden City SG6 1JF, United Kingdom. Music downloads should be returned to us via the email address: orders@acerecords.com including a copy of your notice of cancellation and order number.

Press quotes

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Reaffirms his lofty status in US soul history ★★★★

Record Collector

Ballard's vovals can still raise goosebumps. A true hero.

Ugly Things

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