Records You Don't Know Exist

If it wasn't for Robert Christgau's review in Rolling Stone, I would've never known that there was a CD out called The Three Tenors Of Soul. And that doesn't make me happy. If you're a fan of Philly Soul, then this is a must. It's not on a rinky-dink label. Shanachie is pretty well known. But since its release in mid-September, I've seen no press on it. The three tenors here are Russell Thompkins Jr. (Stylistics), William Hart (Delfonics) and Ted Mills (Blue Magic). Thompkins is the legend of the 3 and has a bigger catalog. Both he and Mills still sound pretty good. An amazon.com reader review tipped me off that Hart's falsetto is shot and it could be. He's the only one not to get a solo shot and he's barely heard throughout. This isn't a pure collaboration. Of the 10 songs (all but 1 are Old School classics; the new one is a duet and new song written by Hall & Oates), 4 feature all 3.

Produced by Philly Soul veteran Bobby Eli, this will bring back falsetto memories of old. Having spent years wondering how the laggards at the RRHOF can fail to induct Gamble & Huff, this keeps me satisfied knowing that Old School legends are still recording and touring.