Work has a nasty habit of becoming too time consuming and that’s just what has happened to me lately; in a particularly busy period at work virtually every waking hour has been consumed by work (morning, noon and night … and weekends). As a result my bloggin’ has been relegated to bottom of the list of (my wife’s) priorities.
Tonight, as I sit sweltering in a West Midlands hotel room (again); I am determined to share a few tunes that have ‘haunted’ me for a number of years…
Wanted Dead or Alive - Voices of East Harlem
Many, many, years ago I remember hearing a tune that captivated me, grabbed me, slapped me and left me dazed, but begging for more. For years I was convinced I knew what this tune was and after much scouring found a copy and grabbed it.
When the vinyl plopped on my doormat you cannot imagine my disappointment to discover that, although essentially the song I remembered… something was amiss, not least that the vocals were female!
The tune I had been carrying in my head all these years had the line “wanted, dead or alive; distinguishing features, he’s got cold and shifty eyes” and I had mistakenly assumed it was the following: Cold and Shifty Eyes... yes, Female Vocals?!?!
However, it was not the Voices of East Harlem – Wanted Dead or Alive that I had been coveting, recorded in 1974 (I later came to realise that this was later than the version I had been seeking – making it the ‘cover’ and I put cover in inverted commas as it does not share the same name… confused? stay with me; all will be revealed!).
Released on Just Sunshine Records (JSA-517) the Voices of East Harlem’s “Wanted Dead or Alive” is a tune in its own right and worthy of a spin. Discussions with my friend James (Curry Music) convinced me to check the album version: Still not what I sought...
But even this did not quench my thirst for that tune I’d heard all those years ago…
So, inspired to dig further I delved deep into the archives of the global interwebbynet thingy and eventually, I surfaced this: Found it!
Hypnotics - Beware of the Stranger
And here my journey ends, with a smile on my face that (at last) I had sourced that elusive tune I’d heard (far too) many years before, I finally had Hypnotics’ Beware of the Stranger…
Released on Reprise Records (REP-1140); laid down in 1973 it is interesting to note that Beware of the Stranger is written by James Thompson and E. Dixon; a quick check of the label for the Voices of East Harlem’s “Wanted Dead or Alive” confirms it is indeed the same tune, albeit released with a different title.
I know which version I prefer and I suspect, having read this far (thank you), you know my preference; but as is the case with all music, my preference is personal and subjective. I invite you to listen to the two versions (3 if you include the LP version) and make your own mind up.
If time (work!) permits I hope to be back soon with another Bootsy, Funkadelic or Parliament mix with a special (exclusive?) drop of Christopher CoShea Campbell’s new cut of “Blackbird Singing Accapella”…