Bobby Womack & The Valentinos - Bobby Womack & the Valentinos (CA)

All Music Guide

It was a travesty when Bobby Womack and his brothers split -- the sum was better than the individuals. If they had stayed together, they might be Rock Roll Hall of Fame candidates. They possessed soulful voices and good songwriting skills, and produced themselves. The Cleveland, OH natives' best recordings were on the SAR label owned by Sam Cooke, and still aren't available on CD (and neither are these). This is a collection of their Chess recordings; the brothers went their separate ways after the tenure. "What About Me" got considerable play in some markets but failed to make an impact, though it was top-notch and Southern-fried. Northern soul favorite "Sweeter than the Day Before" is even further down soulville and garnered little notice in the States, but it is well known to Northern soul collectors. Womack recorded "I Found a True Love" later as a solo; it was also cut by Wilson Pickett, who cut quite a few of Womack's creations. While bred and buttered in Cleveland, the Valentin...os had a gritty deep soul sound that was magical on the right material. - Andrew Hamilton, All Music Guide Read more Less