If you have a SPECIAL LADY OUT THERE LIKE I DO, THIS ONE GOES OUT TO YOU BABY!
THAT'S ENOUGH,onVenture is Lewis second great 45 – not as obviously bluesy as his other 45s but the song is a very strong one and his voice is even more throatily impassioned. Not too sure about the bridge though – can that be a melodica? Surely a tenor sax would have been much more appropriate. The flip “Oh” is a class piece of midtempo music just on the soul side of R & B. Is that Lewis doing the whistling?
The Esquires first formed in 1957 around the Moorer family, whose Gilbert (died: 28 August 2008), Alvis, and Betty all became members. They went through many lineup changes over their first decade, which saw them aiming mostly for local recognition. In 1966 they moved to Chicago and auditioned for Curtis Mayfield, who was not interested in signing them. They then attempted to sign with Constellation Records, but the record label went under at the end of 1966; they signed instead with Bunky Records, Constellation's successor. Bunky was distributed by Scepter Records on the national level.
Their debut record for Bunky/Scepter was "Get on Up", which became a major hit in the United States, peaking at #11. Following the release they played Chicago's Regal Theater and the Apollo Theatre in New York City. Further singles were also successes, and the group released one full-length LP. After five singles on Bunky the group signed a deal with Scepter themselves late in 1968. They later returned to Bunky and then, in 1970, signed with Capitol Records for one single ("Reach Out") and Lamarr Records in 1971 for "Girls in the City".
Even though it was released on Bell, a New York label, this is a Los Angeles recording which Anthony Renfro, who was the founder of the Renfro label there, recorded and subsequently leased to Bell records to get more exposure (it did eventually gain a release on Renfro records as well but not until several years later). The membership of The Attractions is somewhat unclear because it was really a one-man show, focusing on lead singer Morris Chestnut. Other members were used on the recordings but often only to provide backing for Chestnut and enhance his performance. This is the groups first (of five) 45, released in 1967 and it is already clear that it is Chestnut´s rather unique vocals that seperates the group from the countless others that were trying to break through in the RnB market of the mid-60s. After Chestnut had fallen out with Renfro producer / songwriter Ronald Saunders the group disbanded and Chestnut went on to record with other groups as well as a solo artist, including the northern biggies "Lonely Lonely" with The Soundmasters and, of course, the pivotal "Too Darn Soulful" as a solo artist. Enjoy! (SOULTREATS)
"My Boy Lollipop" was doubly significant in Britishpop music history. It was the first major hit for Island Records (although it was actually released via Fontana Records because Chris Blackwell, Island's owner, did not want to overextend the label's then-meagre resources; in the U.S. the record appeared on the Smash Records subsidiary of Mercury Records), and Small was the first artist to have a hit that was recorded in the bluebeat style. (She was billed as 'The Blue Beat Girl' on the single's label in the U.S.) This was a music genre that had recently emerged from Jamaica, and which, as with ska, was a direct ancestor of reggae.
Millie continued to tour and perform up to the early 1970s.
