Dick’s Picks: Hard-to-find, rousing soul ’45 from UK all-round entertainer Kenny Lynch (yes, Jimmy Tarbuck’s mate!)
Kenny Lynch
Kenny…where do we start? Lynch grew up in Stepney, East London as one of 13 children; his sister Gladys (stage name Maxine Daniels) was also a jazz singer of some note. After leaving school at 15, picking up various jobs and a stint in Army, not only did he emerge as the regimental featherweight boxing champion but was also a bit of an actor and his singing voice was pretty darn good too! Early ’60s ’45s were largely hit and miss affairs but in ’63 his cover of a little known Liverpool beat combo’s ‘Misery’ (that’ll be The Beatles arf arf) failed to chart it did earn Lynch the honour of being the first artist to cover one of their songs….
By the mid-’60s Lynch was penning tunes for other artists (that’s him what wrote ‘Sha-La-La-La-Lee’ by the Small Faces, they hated it apparently) and by ’67 Kenny released this little rousing, string-drenched soul stormer….
…needless to say the record bombed but would take on a life of its own once it was picked up by the Northern Soul crowd who were just a bit partial to a ’45 that ticked the right boxes – and a pain-filled, heart-wracked lyric with a rousing Johnny Harris string backed arrangement did just that – now quite widely regarded as a top British northern soul effort too (and you don’t get many of them to the pound)……
Looking for new and back catalogue vinyl, rare pressings and collectable vinyl and CDs?
Explore eil.com… the world’s largest online retailer of rare and out of print vinyl, CDs and music memorabilia – since 1987.
Be the first to comment