*JUST IN!* VA – Open Your Mind – Jai Alai ESP LP

The second Jai Alai album takes its name from a track on Winners (1979) by New York band Kleeer, who evolved from Pipeline via The Universal Robot Band before becoming a major force on the soul and boogie scene; their full-length “Open Your Mind” is simply sublime.

Two originally unreleased tracks will delight completists of Aretha Franklin and Dionne Warwick. Aretha co-produced “The Boy From Bombay” with Quincy Jones — perhaps a little too quirky at the time — while Warwick’s Ashford & Simpson-produced “Someone Else Gets The Price” has all the hallmarks of a missed hit.

Philadelphia’s Pieces Of A Dream, discovered by Grover Washington Jr., were fêted across Europe throughout the 80s. Their Elektra album Imagine This (1983) yielded the wonderfully moody “It’s Time For Love”. Further mining of the Elektra vaults yields a highly collectable Phat Phili Mix of Teddy’s “Believe In Love”, alongside a jewel from Leon Ware’s Rockin’ You Eternally (1981). I was fortunate to get to know this musical genius very well but he is still underappreciated as a master of sensuous soul; “Got To Be Loved” ranks among his finest.

There’s not enough space here to fully cover Gerald Levert’s “What About Me”, but my liner notes to the Jai Alai release JAR14 “Top Of My Head” detail just how talented he was — and this is further proof.

The two least-known artists make a strong impression. Andy Bey’s “I Know This Love Can’t Be Wrong” recalls Jon Lucien at his best, while Phajja — a promising Warner Bros. signing in 1997 — disappeared after just two albums; their Cutfather & Joe production here is as polished as any hit by The Emotions.

By the time Etta James recorded “Evening Of Love”, she was four decades into her career, delivering this beautiful ballad with total assurance. Truly epic Southern soul.

-Steve Hobbs

tracklist:

A1 Aretha Franklin – The Boy From Bombay
A2 Dionne Warwick – Somebody Else Gets The Prize
A3 Andy Bey – I Know This Love Can’t Be Wrong
A4 Pieces Of A Dream – It’s Time For Love
A5 Kleeer – Open Your Mind
B1 Leon Ware – I Got To Be Loved
B2 Teddy Pendergrass – Believe In Love
B3 Phajja – What Are You Waiting For?
B4 Gerald Levert – What About Me
B5 Etta James – Evening Of Love