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A long-overdue look at one of the greatest southern soul labels ever – the mighty Dial Records, home to Joe Tex during most of his classic years! The label was based in Nashville, and formed by Buddy Killen to record early work by Joe Tex – right at a time when Joe was helping forge the sound that would later be known as country soul. Through the years, Buddy issues titles independently, and through Atlantic and Mercury – all the time giving Joe just the right sound he needed, while at the same time picking up a host of other artists who were perfect for Dial's unique crossbreed sound. Joe's work has been reissued over the years, but this set's the first time it's been presented alongside that of his peers – in a whopping 2CD set that features 51 tracks in all, complete with notes on Joe, Killen, and the unique style of Dial! Titles include "Footprints On My Mind", "You Oughta Be Here With Me", "Get Your Thing Together", and "Love Connection" by Annette Snell; "I Need You" and "I Am A Carpet" by Little Archie; "Don't Let The Sun Shine On Me" by The Dialtones; "Somebody Will" and "I Refuse To Give Up" by Clarence Reid; "Can't Help It", "Only Your Love", "Chills & Fever", and "Since I Found You" by Paul Kelly; "I've Got A Thing Going On" and "Get Down With It" by Bobby Marchan; "Dr Funky" and "You Really Fooled Me" by Chris Harris; "Can You Dig It" and "Learning To Forget You" by King Floyd; and loads more by Joe Tex, Jean Knight, Frederick Knight, Clarence Henry, and others! CD

Rare soul, with a really great approach – cuts that aren't the usual hits or Northern Soul rarities – and which instead lie in a special space of their own! The title's a reference to the care with which these cuts were put together – not just in the vocals, but also the arrangements – which are usually a cut above, and manage to groove while still adding in larger charts and fuller backings – often at a level that reflects the California origin of many of these tracks, but also echoed by artists from other scenes as well! All of the tracks are super-rare – and a good number are issued here for the first time – handled with that perfect Ace/Kent style, right down to the detailed liner notes too. Titles include "Just Another Smile" by Mel Davis, "When The Boy That You Love" by The Avons, "Hang Around" by Marva Holiday, "They Didn't Know" by Terri Goodnight, "Losing Control" by Mary Saxton, "If You Don't Know" by The Dialtones, "Do The Popcorn" by Little Johnny Hamilton, "Break Someone Else's Heart" by Jeanette Jones, "This Man Wants You" by Jesse Cowan, "It Ain't No Achievement" by The Millionaires, "Butterfly" by The Ballads, and "I'm Sending Vibrations" by The Webb People. CD