Any Chicagoans Here Remember The Softiques?

[robb_k]

They were a West Side [[Marshall High) Chicago-Sound girls group, whose only record was a demo recorded and pressed up by Sheldon Recording Studio, as a VERY tiny press run of DJ copies, the only actual vinyl commercial style issues on Sheldon's own label. I remember the group. Maybe I saw them at one of the Park shows? I don't remember ever seeing their record back in 1964-65 [[I'd have bought it for sure). I also don't remember hearing it played on WBEE, WVON, or WNYR. I really don't think it got airplay. Gloria Lewis sang lead on the fabulous "B" side, "Two Kinds of Boys", and Betty Berry sang lead on the "A" side "Bashful [[I'm That Kinda Girl"). The other members were Gloria Carver and Valencia Gray. Their songwriter and producer was Curtis McCormack [[whose name rings a bell in my memory, but I can't remember any of his other productions, singers or groups associated with him, or record companies for whom he worked. I hope some of you will remember them, and maybe any releases they had in the late '60s or early '70s.

Here's the best side:


I was trying to find out who the other 2 group members were, and if they ever had any other releases. I seem to remember them still appearing in Chicagoland in 1966 and '67. The late Bob Abrahamian interviewed Betty a few years ago about her career, and The Softiques, on his great website "Sitting In The Park". And I've just heard it. So, some of my questions were answered. I'm also trying to find out who played lead guitar on it, and General Johnson's part in that record project. I assume that he might have been the financier, and marketer. McCormack was the artistic force as songwriter [[and maybe manager).

Here's the other side:


Apparently, both sides have been played on The Northern Soul scene, prompting their reissue in 2009 [[which seems to have been a bootleg, as Bob mentioned that The Girls got no residual royalties payments from those sales). The chop off of the ending of "Two Kinds of Boys" must have been a too early cut off on the acetate. I'm sure the original recording had a trail off, rather than the abrupt stop, on the master tape, which would have been kept by McCormack or General Johnson. The version played on YouTube [[and likely used for the repressing) was probably taken from the Sheldon acetate, which was left at Sheldon's recording studio, to use to press up any commercial press run that might have come later IF McCormick had been successful in shopping the group to a record company. But, clearly he failed to even get it a regular rotation airplay. "Two Kinds of Boys" was clearly good enough to chart regionally, even with all the competition of so many great Chicago productions during that period. What a shame. At least we can enjoy it now. Too bad the artists didn't get any benefit from those sales.

[robb_k]

Attachment 21513
Where are the old-timers from Chicago? I'm remember that we had a few here on this forum. There was one almost my age, named "Mr. ............" I can't remember it. But he knew his mid-'60s Chicago Soul pretty well. I've lost contact with Bob Pruter. He and Bob Abrahamian would be the ones to ask. But, sadly Bob A. has passed on. Someday we'll ALL be gone. Younger people will be able to hear the old music, full of wonder, but were not there when it was made, and was something fresh and new.

At least I hope that forum posters will listen to the songs and tell us what they think of them.

[stingbeelee]

Hi Robb, I'm not from Chicago, so I can't tell you anything on the group. I listened to the songs and I'm perplexed as to why some of the Chicago labels such as Constellation or Toddlin' Town or Mar-V-lus wouldn't have put them on their labels. The group sings quite good, the high harmony on 'Bashful' is a hard thing to sing; but to me the lead singing is somewhat lacking. I would've picked them up on my label based on the background singing alone.

[Motown Eddie]

At least I hope that forum posters will listen to the songs and tell us what they think of them.

I listened to the two songs by The Softiques and I think they're excellent. While I've never heard of the group before, the performances & the songs are great. As another poster stated, I wonder why The Softiques weren't picked up by one of the Soul Music lables in Chicago. Thanks for posting these songs.

[Motown Eddie]

I looked up The Softiques on the Discogs.com site and they had a single release with John Spear, "Sea Of Love"/"We Could" on the KB label [Discogs didn't list a year for this single's release].

[Boogiedown]

if I'm hearing right, TWO KINDS OF BOYS, is but clapping sounds, a rhythm guitar and a distant drum set .......and it sounds good!

[robb_k]

Hi Robb, I'm not from Chicago, so I can't tell you anything on the group. I listened to the songs and I'm perplexed as to why some of the Chicago labels such as Constellation or Toddlin' Town or Mar-V-lus wouldn't have put them on their labels. The group sings quite good, the high harmony on 'Bashful' is a hard thing to sing; but to me the lead singing is somewhat lacking. I would've picked them up on my label based on the background singing alone.

I don't care that much about Betty Berry's lead singing on "Bashful". But, I think Gloria Lewis did a decent job on "2 Kinds of Boys". I like it a lot. Clearly, these were just studio demos, not a real commercial issue. The backgrounds are very sparse, and the mixes are awful. Yes, it's perplexing that a well-known promotor with connections in The Business, like General Johnson, couldn't get this record picked up even by a small local record company. You'd guess that he and McCormack could have raised the money for a finishing of the recording, and paying for proper DJ copies, and a first commercial pressing for local demand after getting some airplay. In better times Johnson and McCormack could have had a one-record "Ma & Pa" label, run out of his house, to get the airplay to get it picked up by VJ, or Chess, or One-Der-Ful, or Constellation, or even Okeh or Mercury, or Johnny Pate at ABC. Based on "Two Kinds of Boys" you'd think that Curtis Mayfield could have done wonders with them. I'd love to hear John Spears and The Softiques on KB! Centralia is a Farm town in rural, central Illinois. A weird place to have a Soul record company.

[robb_k]

I've now heard the John Spear and The Softiques record. Pure cornpone, with no vocal backups. I wondered why downstate, Centralia, in the middle of C&W yodeling country, would producer a Soul record. This meshes better with The Softiques' members memories of not recording any other songs, or having any releases. There were no backup siungers, so I assume THESE Softiques were Spear's band musicians. Another of life's coincidences that the C&W record was pressed in Chicago, within no more than a couple years of the Soul group's Sheldon demo.