Betty Boo - My Man Flint *New release*

[theboyfromxtown]

For those of us who joined SDF when it was originally set up, you guys will be delighted to learn of a new track that is being issued by Soul Junction this month.

Here is the information I copied off the Detroit Soul Facebook site
New Release from Soul Junction, Thanks Dave Welding for the Information...
Release Date: Monday January 18th 2016

Betty Boo A.K.A Betty Winston who along with her late sister Jackie, and fellow sisters Diane and Pat Lewis recorded three 45 singles for the legendary Detroit Golden World label during 1964 and 1965 under the group name of The Adorables. With their final Golden World release “Ooh Boy/Devil In His Eyes” [[GW-25) becoming a hugely collectable dance floor favourite in more recent times.

Following the disbandment of The Adorables’ Pat and Diane Lewis both went on to record as solo artists and as part of Isaac Hayes Hot Buttered Soul project.

As for Betty she would go on to record several, at the time unissued songs with Richard ‘Popcorn’ Wylie [[the producer on “Ooh Boy”). These unissued masters would remain in the can until their eventual discovery during the mid 1970’s by Soul Bowl’s John Anderson. Therefore, through a subsequent licensing deal followed by extensive airplay via advance acetates given to the influential DJ’s of the time Richard Searling, Ian Clark and Poke amongst others. Two of Betty’s songs would become dance floor favourites within the Northern Soul scene. Firstly the track entitled “Spellbound” which only appeared on the first Grapevine album ‘Talk Of The Grapevine’ amongst a host of other excellent previously unissued Popcorn masters, released during 1978. Followed a year later by the perennial favourite “Say It Isn’t So” which gained a release on a highly collectable Grapevine 45 as well as featuring on the second Grapevine album, ‘The Sound Of The Grapevine’.

So fast forward to 2016, and a third unissued Betty Boo track “My Man Flint” will be gaining a belated release. “My Man Flint” is Betty’s contribution to the media’s 1960’s cold war influenced obsession with espionage. The British had James Bond, The Russians a whole bunch of former 1930’s Cambridge graduates and the Americans one Derek Flint. Master spy Derek Flint [[played by Actor James Coburn) featured in two spoof spy films, “Our Man Flint” [[1965) followed by “In Like Flint” [[1967) as a suave, undisciplined philandering secret agent [[much to the annoyance of his boss Lloyd Cramden, played by Lee J. Cobb) who invariably saved the western world from being held to ransom by some evil clandestine organisation.

One can only assume that Wylie and Hester wrote and produced this track in the hope that it would be used as part of a future film score? But what seems to have turned out to be the big screen’s loss will now become the Northern Soul scenes gain. Soul Junction’s release of “My Man Flint” features both the vocal and instrumental version. With the instrumental version albeit as a shorter cut being previously issued on the aforementioned Sound Of The Grapevine album under the fictitious artist and title of The Motor City Shakers, “Let’s Do The Duck”.

[theboyfromxtown]

Here is the instrumental that was released under the fictitious title of Let's Do The Duck.

[theboyfromxtown]

The vocal by Betty Boo........aka Betty Winston fan [[of Marvelettes Grass Is Greener On the Other Side fame)..was played on a radio show Soul Discovery and is available on a podcast. [[google search Soul discovery Betty Boo My Man Flint). I managed to record the podcast and the song appears at about 1 hour 28 minutes.

It's superb and even has a sax break.

It's only going to be issued on a vinyl record so far.

[theboyfromxtown]

http://souldiscovery.podomatic.com/e...12_19_14-08_00

1 hours 28 minutes.......

Fabulous.

This used to be what this site was all about

[robb_k]

Betty Boo........aka Betty Winston [[of Marvelettes Grass Is Greener On the Other Side fame).

I didn't know that Betty Winston ever sang with The Marvelettes [[especially as early as 1963)! But, I listened to the Betty Boo vocal, and The Grass Seems Greener back-to-back several times, and they seem to be the same voice. I knew that Betty Winston had sung background vocals with Motown, but never had heard that she was in a group, or sang lead. What is the story behind "The Grass Seems Greener"? -and Betty's involvement with The Marvelettes?

[theboyfromxtown]

I didn't know that Betty Winston ever sang with The Marvelettes [[especially as early as 1963)! But, I listened to the Betty Boo vocal, and The Grass Seems Greener back-to-back several times, and they seem to be the same voice. I knew that Betty Winston had sung background vocals with Motown, but never had heard that she was in a group, or sang lead. What is the story behind "The Grass Seems Greener"? -and Betty's involvement with The Marvelettes?

I asked her about it when she appeared at Northampton.

She was never part of the Marvelettes. Producer Bob Hamilton asked her to sing the song for him and she did because he was a friend of hers.

[robb_k]

I asked her about it when she appeared at Nottingham. She was never part of the Marvelettes. Producer Bob Hamilton asked her to sing the song for him and she did because he was a friend of hers.

I knew Bob Hamilton was a songwriter at Motown, but I never knew he was a producer. Who were the girls backing Betty on that song? I assume that it was just a demo song, and not finished completely for release. I assume that Betty was never signed to a Motown artist contract. Could the other singers have been sister Jackie, and Pat and Diane Lewis?

When I was working on "From The Vaults" in 1977, we discovered the acetate of that song. I could swear it said "Marvelettes" on it, but maybe I'm remembering it wrong. Maybe it was a Jobete Music acetate, with no artist name, and I just wrote down "Marvelettes" as a place holder, as we planned to use it on one of our future albums, waiting for confirmation after finding it among the master tapes. It became moot when our series was discontinued after one LP.

THEN, I forgot to take "The Marvelettes" off and replace it with "unknown artist". The same thing happened with the LaBrenda Ben & Beljeans vs. Andantes vs. Velvelettes misnomer, and Creations/Serenaders misnomer.

[robb_k]

The "Don't Forget The Motor City" website lists 2 versions - one by Bette Winston [[master tape), and the other by her on lead, backed by The Marvelettes [[acetate).

[motownmorph1]

the only time Betty Boo has appeared in the UK was in Northampton in 2005.

morph

[theboyfromxtown]

the only time Betty Boo has appeared in the UK was in Northampton in 2005.

morph

Oh no...I made a mistake earlier.....I meant Northampton not Nottingham.....apologies to those from Northampton.