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(Fred Hughes - as real as it gets)

I don't know what became of Fred Hughes. He had a major hit on the R&B charts with this track, Oo Wee Baby, I Love You, which he recorded for Vee-Jay in 1965. Shortly after that, he went over to Checker and later Brunswick and had a string of singles which didn't do as well as expected. And by the 1970s he more or less dropped out of the picture.

Unfortunately, it's a story that happens way too often, and some with tragic results.

Regardless of his whereabouts now, what he did do is record one of the classics of the Soul idiom, one which has endured well over these 40+ years. A song which no one has duplicated, despite a few attempts.

Not bad.

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(James Brown - Fulfilling a fantasy)

Everyone knows the voice of James Brown; you can't forget it and you can't mistake it for anyone else - that's a given.

But James Brown the instrumentalist - that's another story. In 1964 he was finally able to fulfill a lifelong dream and was signed by Smash Records to do an instrumental album featuring Brown on keyboards, backed by some of the best Jazz/Blues musicians in the country. No vocals.

The results baffled the fans at first. The first track issued in 1965 from those sessions "Evil" didn't chart. But Smash persisted and this track, Try Me, an instrumental version of his hit on King Records some years earlier, was a follow up single and it was a pretty good sized hit.

Needless to say - it is another unforgettable side of James Brown.

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(Brenda Payton - promo shot for Dry Your Eyes - sez it all)

Back to deep-soul (or Northern Soul if you're in the UK). Brenda & The Tabulations from 1967. Dry Your Eyes did rather well on the charts in 1967, going up to #20 on the pop charts and #8 on the Soul charts.

I don't usually make a habit out of putting charted records on the Roundtable, but this one is so good and it's been such a favorite of mine for years that it seems timeless and totally cool for a Saturday night - especially if you're going solo.