Working Man's Soul

"What a belter! This is one groovy, hipshaking mother of an album. These are gritty, honest records. Dripping in Brut 33, bad shirt and ties, dodgy beer stained carpets and boozy Friday nights 'down the club'. Very funky. Great for a party and a laugh...see you there!!! Working Man's Soul celebrates the forgotten world of cabaret performers from the 1960s and 70s and selects the cream of the funky club cuts unearthed from records only previously available on private pressings. Manufactured by the artists themselves in miniscule quantities, these records were sold only at live performances in socia clubs, miner's welfare clubs and working men's clubs across the UK. The compilation covers everything from soul, funk and jazz to rock and easy listening. Jazz standards given a bit of extra pep sit next to funky filmic big band numbers, while Hammond players show off their chops, guitarists give their plank a spank, vocalists belt it out good and proper and even the drummer gets a chance for a solo. The common theme here is a strong groove designed to keep a busy dancefloor moving: After all, this is music written to be performed down the Social to celebrate the good times and the end of the working week! The records from which these tracks are taken have been unearthed by Licorice Soul over many years of persistent (and usually fruitless) searching at flea markets, car boot sales, charity shops, and even the odd proper second hand record shop. The majority of these tracks are here made commercially available for the very first time, each brings with it its own story of success, failure, or years of simply hoping, and in its own unique way, evokes the golden age of the British club circuit."

from the liner notes to Working Man's Soul Vol. 1, on Licorice Soul label, 2009