Under-rated stars

One of the undoubted stars of the Ponderosa Stomp in recent years has been Barbara Lynn, the left handed guitarist/singer who made a string of great records during the 1960s, produced by Huey Meaux. I bought some of her excellent Jamie singles recently which show off her talent to perfection: A Letter to Mommy and Daddy, You're Gonna Need Me (pictured) and Everybody Loves Somebody. Here's the excellent You're gonna need me http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Rnl6CBlRU4 Barbara was a real highlight of several of my New Orleans trips in the last few years (here's a photo from the Stomp in 2008) and is one of those artists whose work has been neglected and under-rated over the years.

Another such artist is Oscar Toney Jr, who was a stand out act at the Porretta Soul Festival last year. One of my local record shops is closing down - yet another sad closure! - and in the closing down sale I bought some singles for £1 each, including Oscar's excellent cover of Clyde McPhatter's Without Love (There is Nothing) released on the Bell label. I'm not going to reveal the location of the shop as I hope to buy some more good vinyl in the next week or two, but it's a sad reflection of the times. More and more independent record shops are closing down as a result of the rise of Ebay and the decline of interest in vinyl. In this increasingly virtual age of music I can only hope that lovers of the real thing - vinly records - will keep the faith. I don't want just a sound in my ear with nothing physical to hold or look at - I want vinyl!