Soul Express Album Review

BARBARA & THE BROWNS Can't Find Happiness / The Sounds of Memphis Recordings
(Kent, CDKEND 278; 54 min), 2007
Can't Find No Happiness / It Hurts Me So Much (To Be Able To Look And To Know I Can't Touch) / If I Can't Run To You I'll Crawl / I Don't Want To Have To Wait / Pity A Fool / Big Party / Plenty Of Room / I'm Gonna Start A War / You Don't Love Me / Watch Dog / Man Around The House / Got To Be Somebody / Things Have Gone To Pieces / Play Thing / Great Big Thing aka Till You Came / There's A Look On Your Face / If It's Good To You (It's Good For You) / Watch Dog (alt.) / Things Have Gone To Pieces (demo) / It Hurts Me So Much (To Be Able To Look And To Know I Can't Touch) (alt.)

A four-girl family group out of Memphis, led by Barbara Brown, was first known as the Brown Sisters, but by the time they enjoyed their first and only charted single, Big Party, in 1964 (first on Wil Mo, then leased to Stax; peaked at # 97-pop) they had become Barbara & the Browns, and later on it would be only Barbara Brown on a couple of labels (Atco and Tower).
This 20-track compilation has eight previously unreleased cuts (three of them are alternative takes), and it can roughly be divided into two parts. The first one covers releases on such labels as Cadet, Atco and Tower between 1966 and '68 - including most of the unreleased songs, too - and the second one offers singles on XL and Sounds of Memphis from 1971 and '72.
If you're into raw and horn-heavy Memphis sound with intense and gospel-infused singing, then this set is for you. Although Barbara's six Stax sides (from '64 and '65) are not included, there is more than a fair share of big-voiced deepies to satisfy your soul - Can't Find No Happiness, It Hurts Me So Much, If I Can't Run To You I'll Crawl, I Don't Want To Have To Wait (this one has appeared on a number of compilations before), Pity A Fool, Big Party, Play Thing and Great Big Thing. Most of them are placed in the first part of the CD, but starting from track # 7 there are also some toe-tappers, dancers and stompers on display. The '68 Tower single contains two country-soul sides, the touching Things Have Gone To Pieces and the bluesy There's A Look On Your Face. Can't Find Happiness was well worth the wait.
Heikki Suosalo

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