VA - Rare Collectable And Soulful Volume 1 & 2 (1997)

From the inception of Britain's Northern Soul club scene onward, the RCA label adorned more crowd-favorite singles than seemingly any other label, but for years none of the company's truly rare classics ever appeared on CD, making the 1997 release of Rare Collectable and Soulful, Vol. 1 a real event: Not only was compiler Ady Croasdell granted access to RCA's vaults, but among the 30 master tapes he brought back, 13 tracks were previously unreleased. The end result remains one of the gems of the vast Kent catalog, as well as one of the seminal Northern Soul collections ever issued -- truly essential listening for anyone with even a passing interest in the classic soul of the mid- to late- '60s. Highlights include the Cavaliers' "Ooh It Hurts Me," Lorraine Chandler's "What Can I Do?," Sharon Scott's "(Putting My Heart Under) Lock and Key," and Roy Hamilton's "Crackin' Up Over You."

Sam Cooke to the contrary, RCA wasn't known as a soul powerhouse in the 1960s, but it did issue its share of recordings in the style. This 24-track compilation doesn't have any hits, although there are little-known outings from Johnny Nash, the Exciters (long after the "Tell Him" days), Roy Hamilton, and ex-Oriole Sonny Til; in fact, about half of it was previously unreleased. A lot of it was produced in New York and Detroit (the Motor City outings largely generated by the Pied Piper production team), and it's largely upbeat, mid- to uptempo, acceptable but unexceptional soul. That's the kind of style, of course, which is so beloved by northern soul mavens, who will want this for the sheer rarity of the material if nothing else. The average soul fan should pass. If you find yourself in between, you may find it useful to know that the better tracks include Lorraine Chandler's gutsy version of "You Only Live Twice" (yes, the same James Bond theme that was a hit for Nancy Sinatra), Hamilton's version of Bacharach-David's "Reach Out for Me," and Nash's Drifters-type go at his own composition "What Kind of Love Is This" (which would be a hit for Joey Dee).