MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: THE RU-JAC RECORDS STORY, VOL.s 1, 2 & 3

I'm not really a music reviewer, I just fake it so I can get more records and stuff. See, I'm more of a record collector really. I collect a whole bunch of different genres, soul being one of the main ones. I guess I'm not much of a collector either, because I had never heard of Ru-Jac Records before, until this series of compilations out now on the Omnivore label. It turns out the company was one of those regional labels that existed all over the U.S. until major labels put most of them out of business in the '70's. But back in the '60's, it was still possible to have regional hits that sold enough to keep the small players going, calling on a pool of local talent and those hopeful of breaking outside their market.

Ru-Jac was a small fish on the east coast, set up in the Baltimore area. In the fascinating back story in the liner notes, we find out the owner had been set up in the club business by the local numbers racket king. Through his entertainment business, one Rufus Mitchell became the Berry Gordy-wanna be of Baltimore, and the acts that he met through the clubs provided the label talent.

There were no Ru-Jac stars of note, not one artist broke the national charts, and none of the names are familiar on these compilations, save one. Arthur Conley recorded the smash "Sweet Soul Music", but only after he left the label. Mitchell was a big enough player in the club world that stars such as Otis Redding knew of him, and Mitchell was able to convince Redding to take Conley with him to bigger fame. This set features a couple of demos done before Conley left. Other than that, you get single tracks from such non-notables as Rita Doryse, Leon Gibson, Sir Joe, Little Sonny Daye, and Tiny Tim. Not that Tiny Tim, the other one, without the tulips. Of course, there are going to be people in Baltimore and environs that remember these artists fondly, but not that many.

However, soul fans will find lots to love. Plenty of these singers and groups were pretty darn good. Brenda Jones could easily have been a Motown star, and some of her material is really quite well-written and performed. Same goes for Winfield Parker, another dynamic singer. There were some pretty good studio players involved as well, The Shyndells Band used on many sides here. There weren't any albums though, it was all 45's for the label, they never got close to the point were they could afford to take a chance on that much cash outlay. Often these sessions were scraped-together affairs, paid for by other business interests Mitchell could tap, including partnerships with other local players who wanted in on his club business.

Each volume is jammed with cuts, 22 and more, and they don't dwell on any one artist too long. There are real gems, including the only 45 issued by the classic Gospel group The Fruitland Harmonizers, a wonderful vocal blend with some interesting, unusual harmonies. Some simply are from unknown artists, recorded but never released, names and players lost to time. In some cases, this is probably for the best, as there are a few weaker efforts and lots of bum notes, especially from horn players still learning their craft, if they ever did. One Charles Johnson had been hired to be the Ru-Jac office manager, and got a chance to record. It turned out so poorly, he even lost his office manager job.

It addition to these three compilations, there's a fourth that covers later label efforts in the late '60's and '70's, plus individual sets by the most prolific artists, Winfield Parker and Gene and Eddie, and another that will cover the demo recordings of Conley before he left with Redding is coming in May. Much of the material here comes from unreleased session tapes, or taken from insanely rare and valuable 45's, prized by collectors better informed than me, until now.