fistfight doo-wop

First things first: the Ratatat show and afterparty were insane last night. Ratatat's set at Gypsy was sold out by 8:30 PM, and the afterparty was ridiculous. I've never seen so many people at the Cavern on a Wednesday night. And hot people, too. Dancing. I've got a huge photo/recap post planned for later today that is going to be awesome, but for now, music:

Jesus Christ, those dudes over at Numero Group are unreal. They've just released the third installment (this year) of their Eccentric Soul series, in which they compile rare and forgotten soul/funk from various regions of the U.S. This time, on Eccentric Soul: Mighty Mike Lenaburg, the focus is on that notorious soul hotbed of Phoenix, AZ.

On this compilation of totally obscure and kickass soul from the '60s and '70s, according to the Numero Group site, "...Mike Lenaburg's productions represent that wrong side of the desert sound. A melange of Tejano psychedelia, flutey funk, horny soul, and fistfight doo-wop." Umm, "fistfight doo-wop"?? Hell yes. It was damn near impossible to choose just one song from this comp to share, but I think this one should suffice. You might think this dude sounds like a poor-man's James Brown, and you might be right. Hell, he even gives the Godfather of Soul a shout out in the song. But this track exemplifies the raw, sweaty, authenticity of the entire record.

Ronnie Whitehead Out of Breath mp3

This record, along with all other Eccentric Soul releases (Columbus, Chicago, Miami, and Detroit) can be found here. All come with our highest recommendation.