Pitchfork

Tomorrow, February 6, Chicago label Rabbit Factory will release Birmingham Sound: The Soul of Neal Hemphill Vol. 1. (It's available on eMusic now.) It's a compilation of soul from Birmingham, Alabama in the 60s and 70s named for plumber-turned-studio owner Neal Hemphill. Hemphill was responsible for a great deal of the music produced in the city during that time, and the 23-track compilation includes tracks by Frederick Knight (who wrote "Ring My Bell", a hit for Anita Ward), the Blue Notes, and Ralph "Soul" Jackson.

Rabbit Factory will also use the two Jackson tracks on a 45 release in conjunction with the compilation, with "Set Me Free" on the A-side and "Take Me Back" on the B. The label has offered both tracks for download at the links below. "Set Me Free" is an uptempo plea backed by a female chorus, while "Take Me Back" is a little more wistful.

Tracklist:

01 Little Lois Barber: "Specify"
02 David Sea: "Believe in Me"
03 The Blue Notes: "Even If You Got Love"
04 Frederick Knight: "Here After I'm Hereafter"
05 Cold Grits: "Funky Soul"
06 Eddie Steele: "Groove Me Mamma"
07 Pat Peterman: "I Love the Way You Do Your Thing"
08 Chuck Strong: "I Got Married Too Soon"
09 Ralph "Soul" Jackson: "Set Me Free"
10 Roscoe Robinson: "Let Me Be Myself"
11 Bill "Butterbean" Flippo: "Love Keeps Hanging On"
12 Broadneck: "Psychedelic Excursion"
13 Little Lois Barber: "Thank You Baby"
14 The Blue Notes: "High Time"
15 Chuck Strong: "I Thought It Over"
16 Frederick Knight: "You've Never Really Lived"
17 Pat Peterman: "You Gonna Reap It"
18 Sam Dees: "Train to Tampa"
19 Roscoe Robinson: "Two Heart Accident"
20 David Sea: "Let's Just Get Together"
21 Ralph "Soul" Jackson: "Take Me Back"
22 Broadneck: "California Cool Ride"
23 Eddie Steele: "Self"