Omnivore reissue of Ru-Jac catalog continues: 'Gene & Eddie with Sir Joe at Ru-Jac'

OMNIVORE’S REISSUE OF RU-JAC RECORDS CATALOG  CONTINUES WITH TRUE ENOUGH: GENE & EDDIE WITH SIR JOE AT RU-JAC  Gene & Eddie and Sir Joe were stars of Baltimore soul and R&B label. Compilation, out September 2, available on CD, digital and blue vinyl. BALTIMORE, Md. — Omnivore Recordings continues its restoration and reissue of the mid-’60s Baltimore-based R&B/soul label Ru-Jac Records with True Enough: Gene & Eddie With Sir Joe at Ru-Jac, the first-ever compilation of single sides by Washington D.C.’s sensational soul duo Gene & Eddie. Also included are the rare sides by Sir Joe, otherwise known as Joe Quarterman, producer/songwriter/artist, who produced and wrote many of the Gene & Eddie sides for Ru-Jac. The compilation is scheduled for September 2, 2016 release on CD, blue vinyl LP (with download card) and digital. Emerging from the very active East Coast ’60s soul scene, Gene, Eddie and Joe had been in bands and recording from the early part of the decade. They formed, or joined, regional acts with names like The Nightcaps, The Knights, Don Downing, The El Corols and The Maidens, sharing stages with bigger, national artists such as Major Lance, Garnet Mimms, Joe Simon, The Soul Children, and The Emotions. For all their ambitions, wider, national success never found them, and with only one local chart hit to their name, “It’s So Hard,” they eventually all called it quits to pursue other endeavors. However, these restored tracks give us a window onto a time when East Coast doo-wop met the soul explosion and got a little funky as it headed into the early ’70s.  Featuring rare photos and extensive liner notes, this is the definitive musical history of Gene & Eddie and Sir Joe Quarterman — True Enough! Omnivore’s Ru-Jac reissue initiative launched with the March 25 release of Mr. Clean: Winfield Parker at Ru-Jac. Track listing: 1. I Would Cry 2. I Tell You 3. Nobody Beats My Love (Sir Joe) 4. If You Give Up Your Love (Sir Joe) 5. You Don’t Fool Me 6. Let Me Go Easy 7. It’s So Hard 8. Sweet Little Girl 9. Let Me Go Easy (Alternate Version) 10. She’s True Enough 11. Baby, I’d Drop Every Thing (Sir Joe) 12. Every Day (I’ll Be Needing You) (Sir Joe) 13. It’s No Sin 14. You’ve Got To Love Me Sometimes 15. Darling I Love You 16. Why Do You Hurt Me Bonus Tracks: 17. It’s So Hard  (Eddie & Gene and the Nightcaps) 18. Check You Later (Eddie & Gene and the Nightcaps) 19. A Guy For You* (Sir Joe) 20. You Don’t Fool Me (Stereo Mix)* 21. Let Me Go Easy (Stereo Mix)* *Previously unissued LP consists of tracks 1-16 with download card of entire CD program

The Bo-Keys from Memphis announce 'Heartaches by the Number' on Omnivore Recordings, April 29

THE BO-KEYS ANNOUNCE HEARTACHES BY THE NUMBER Country meets soul on this inspired collection of jukebox singles featuring Stax and Hi Records originators, producer Scott Bomar, roots guitarist John Paul Keith, and Al Gamble of St. Paul & the Broken Bones street date set for April 29.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The Bo-Keys, a contemporary soul music group that signifies both tradition and innovation, celebrates the release of a third studio album, Heartaches by the Number, on Electraphonic Records via Omnivore Recordings on April 29, 2016. Heartaches by the Number is an exploration of the intersection of country, folk and soul, combining stunning originals with inspired interpretations of jukebox classics from Hank Williams, Merle Haggard, Bob Dylan, Swamp Dogg, Charlie Rich, and Ray Price.  Recorded entirely on analog tape at Electraphonic Recording in Memphis, the set perfectly captures the classic country-meets-soul feeling birthed within the musical triangle of Memphis/Nashville/Muscle Shoals. The core group comprises legendary Al Green drummer Howard Grimes, keyboardist Archie “Hubbie” Turner, horn players Marc Franklin and Art Edmaiston of the Gregg Allman Band, bassist/producer Scott Bomar, saxophonist Kirk Smothers, organist Al Gamble, and guitarist Joe Restivo. On this country-soul journey, special guests including celebrated Hi Records artist Don Bryant, Hi Records and American Studios vocal group the Masqueraders, and roots singer-songwriter and guitarist John Paul Keith join the Bo-Keys in the studio. Front-and-center is Bo-Keys lead vocalist Percy Wiggins, who comes by the groove honestly — in the 1960s, he cut sides for RCA and ATCO alongside future Band of Gypsies musicians Billy Cox and Larry Lee at Bradley’s Barn, Nashville’s eminent recording studio.  Heartaches by the Number is a genre-bending release that sounds like the jukebox roster at a honky-tonk bar or Mississippi juke joint. Merle Haggard’s “The Longer You Wait” is reinterpreted with propulsive horns and a searing organ riff, while the band inserts grit and funk into their interpretation of the Swamp Dogg-penned “Don’t Take Her (She’s All I Got),” first cut as a soul single by Freddie North before country hit-makers such as Johnny Paycheck, George Strait, and George Jones added twang and swagger to the iconic dive-bar lament. Heartaches by the Number builds on the Bo-Keys’ past catalog and adds a new dimension to the group’s potential by metaphorically traveling beyond the Memphis city limits to explore an often-overlooked subgenre of music popularized by Arthur Alexander, Swamp Dogg, Solomon Burke, and Bettye LaVette. The release will also bring new audiences to the Bo-Keys — fans of Adele, St. Paul & the Broken Bones, and the Alabama Shakes will find music that speaks to them on this album. Whether or not you recognize the name, you’ve seen or heard the Bo-Keys: That’s the Bo-Keys setting the mood in TV episodes of Scandal and Scorpion; on the big screen playing the original score for the Oscar-winning film Hustle & Flow and backing Samuel L. Jackson and Bernie Mac in Soul Men; and performing on Cyndi Lauper’s Grammy-nominated Memphis Blues album. Since 1998, the Bo-Keys have kept the spirit of classic Memphis music alive while simultaneously penning a vital new chapter for the sound and style that are etched into the very fiber of American consciousness. “Where many revivalists pale compared to the originals, the Bo-Keys would have fit right in next to legendary Memphis musical crews the Bar-Kays and Booker T. & the M.G.s,” raves the Associated Press, while The New Yorker notes that a recent Manhattan appearance was “one of last year’s tightest, funkiest, happiest shows.” Although the band hasn’t released a studio album since 2011’s Got to Get Back!, the Bo-Keys have stayed busy, performing on John Németh’s Blues Music Award-winning Memphis Grease album (for Best Soul Blues), and placing music in the film Grudge Match and on TV. Heartaches by the Number was produced by Emmy-winning and Grammy-nominated Scott Bomar, the Bo-Keys’ bassist (who also produced Memphis Grease). His other career highlights include working as assistant engineer on Al Green’s 2003 Grammy-nominated comeback I Can’t Stop and its follow-up, Everything’s OK; producing the Grammy-nominated Anthony Hamilton track “Soul Music”; and producing and engineering Lauper’s Memphis Blues, which topped the Billboard blues chart for 13 weeks. In 2005, Bomar composed the score for Hustle & Flow, followed by serving as executive music producer and composer on Black Snake Moan. He won an Emmy for Best Original Music for the documentary I Am a Man: From Memphis, A Lesson in Life and most recently scored the film Mississippi Grind, which features Ryan Reynolds and debuted at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. Look for tour dates and more info on Heartaches by the Number at http://www.thebokeys.com  Track List: 1.Heartaches By The Number Feat. Don Bryant 2.Set Me Free 3.I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry 4.The Longer You Wait 5.I Threw It All Away 6.Learned My Lesson In Love 7.Don’t Take Her (She’s All I Got) Feat. The Masqueraders 8.I Hope You Find What You’re Looking For 9.Wasted Days And Wasted Nights 10. Last Date