Maurice and Mac, Maurice McAlister and McLauren Green, were both members of the Radiants, a group formed in 1960 by members of the choir at the Greater Harvest Baptist Church in Chicago. They left the group in 1966 and recorded their first single as a duo on the Chess subsidiary label, Checker Records. It failed to create any real interest.
Maurice and Mac were then sent down to FAME Studios to record their second single, a cover of a Dan Penn, Oscar Franck, Rick Hall song, “You Left the Water Running”, which was released by Chess, again on the Checker label, in 1968. The original version was recorded at FAME by Wilson Pickett, based on a demo that Otis Redding had done at Rick Hall’s request.
The Maurice and Mac version is slick and funky, inviting you to tap your feet and join in with the song. It has a feel-good bouncy rhythm and some good harmonies. It is not in the Soul style of Otis Redding’s version, but it is a classic of Muscle Shoals R&B. The horns, the organ and the Blues guitar combine beautifully; everybody is having a lot of fun on that session. The single was on the Cashbox chart for three weeks, and that was as good as it got for the two Chicago boys. Two more single releases recorded in Chicago failed to sell, and they moved on.
They had in fact recorded seven songs at FAME, only one of which had seen the light of day. Then, in 1984, just as with Irma Thomas, a compilation album of their songs appeared in Japan, entitled “Lean On Me” (Chess/P-Vine Special). The album contains all seven of the Muscle Shoals tracks on the second side, combined with seven Chicago tracks on side one.
The FAME songs are all worth a listen. There are two Soul ballads, “You’re the One” and “So Much Love” (written by Goffin and King), beautifully sung with good harmonies. The steady drumbeat and soft horns are typical of FAME.
“Love Power” and “Try Me” are up-tempo songs, presented in the style of Sam & Dave. “Why Don’t You Try Me” (not to be confused with “Try Me”) is a Billy Young song that features a typical FAME organ in the mix. The church-like feel suggests that Spooner Oldham joined the session. “Lean On Me” is obviously not the Bill Withers song from 1972, but a power ballad, with an interesting backing led by piano and organ.
“You Left the Water Running” is the stand-out track, but all seven songs are strong. It is incomprehensible that Chess chose to release only one track.
Bobby Moore was a tenor sax player, who led his own band. He was a native of New Orleans but was stationed at Fort Benning in Georgia whilst on military service, where he formed the Rhythm Aces. In 1961 he left the army and moved to Montgomery, Alabama. The Rhythm Aces got a new line-up and played with Sam Cooke and Ray Charles when they came on tour.
The band recorded a song called “Searching For My Love” in 1965 at the FAME Studios, which Rick Hall took to the Chess brothers in Chicago, who decided to buy the rights to the recording. It was duly released on the Checker label and entered the charts, reaching number seven on the R&B chart and number twenty-seven on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1966, selling over a million copies. Two further singles just made it into the charts, but when their fourth single didn’t sell well, the group was dropped by Chess. They continued to perform in and around Alabama.
Mitty Collier was born in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1941. She started singing in church and joined two Gospel groups, before deciding to raise money towards her education by singing R&B songs in local clubs. During a visit to Chicago in 1959, she entered a talent show, which she won for six consecutive weeks. The prize was an appearance on the same bill as B.B. King and Etta James, which led to a contract with Chess Records. Her first recordings for Chess took place in 1961 and she stayed with them until 1968.
The last song that Collier recorded for Chess was a new version of “Gotta Get Away From It All”, which she had originally recorded in Chicago in 1961. The new version was produced by Rick Hall at FAME Studios.
Unfortunately, the single didn’t make any impression and Collier moved to Peachtree Records in Atlanta.
Lee Webber also recorded one single at FAME in 1968. The A-side is a Penn/Oldham composition called “Party Time” and the B-side is Alabama R&B version of the Lennon/McCartney song “Good Day Sunshine”.
The Penn/Oldham song is an up-tempo dance track, and the Beatles cover is a very unusual version, reconfigured as a Soul song. Webber left Chess soon after and only has one more single to his name. “Your Love’s So Good” was recorded in 1973 for Excello Records, with “Seventh Son” on the B-side.
The last musician to consider in this post is Charles Chalmers. He came to FAME in 1967, while signed to Chess Records, to make a largely instrumental album with Rick Hall, “Sax & the Single Girl”. The tracks are a mixture of Pop hits and Soul tunes, starting with a Penn/Oldham song “Take Me (Just As I Am)”. The Muscle Shoals connection is reinforced by the inclusion of Terry Thompson’s “Night Rumble” and “Two In The Morning”, written by Junior Lowe, Spooner Oldham and Roger Hawkins.
Chalmers was a Memphis musician and was already well-known at FAME when he came to record his album. He had been engaged by Rick Hall to play saxophone on the Wilson Pickett sessions that produced “Land of 1000 Dances” and “Mustang Sally”. During those sessions, Chalmers had met Jerry Wexler and Tom Dowd from Atlantic Records, who later called on Chalmers to play with Aretha Franklin. He went on to record with Etta James, Clarence Carter, Millie Jackson, Dorothy Moore (at Malaco Records) and a host of other artists from a wide range of genres.
Chalmers is best known for his work at Hi Records in Memphis, first as a sax player but then as a backing vocalist, alongside Sandra and Donna Rhodes. Willie Mitchell was responsible for that. He asked Chalmers to organize a session with Sandra and Donna as backing singers, but Mitchell didn’t feel that their vocals were strong enough. He suggested that Chalmers join them, and the results made Mitchell happy. The song was “Let’s Stay Together”, Al Green’s mega-hit.
Chalmers went on to work with Frank Sinatra in Las Vegas, before moving to Miami, where he worked with the Bee Gees and K.C. & the Sunshine Band. In 1989 he moved to Branson, Missouri, where he built his own studio.
The Ace Records (UK) Compilation
In 2015, Ace Records issued a compilation album on their Kent label, featuring twenty-four of the songs that Chess artists had recorded at FAME Studios. Three of the songs were previously unreleased. It is presented as a tribute to Chess artists, but it is also a fascinating collection that demonstrates the genius of Rick Hall and the session players at FAME. The tracks all date from 1967 to 1969; fans around the world have waited a long time for a small UK company to make them available!
“Reaching Out: Chess Records at Fame Studios” on the Kent label
(used with permission)
This is the track listing for “Reaching Out: Chess Records at Fame Studios”.
1. It’s All Wrong But It’s Alright – Laura Lee
2. So Much Love – Maurice & Mac
3. Good To Me – Irma Thomas
4. The Same Rope – Etta James
5. Wanted, Lover; No Experience Necessary – Laura Lee
6. Reaching Out – Bobby Moore And The Rhythm Aces
7. The Sidewinder – Charles Chalmers
8. Security – Etta James
9. Run To Me – Maurice & Mac
10. Too Soon To Know – Mitty Collier
11. Good Day Sunshine – Lee Webber
12. Don’t Lose Your Good Thing – Etta James
13. Two In The Morning – Charles Chalmers
14. Hang It Up – Laura Lee
15. Lean On Me – Maurice & Mac
16. Let’s Do It Over – Irma Thomas
17. I Wanna Be Your Man – Bobby Moore & The Rhythm Aces
18. Sure As Sin – Laura Lee
19. Party Time – Lee Webber
20. Take Me (Just As I Am) – Charles Chalmers
21. You’re Living A Lie – Mitty Collier
22. It’s How You Make It Good – Laura Lee
23. A Woman Will Do Wrong – Irma Thomas
24. Come Back Baby – Bobby Moore And The Rhythm Aces
Hats off to the folks at Ace Records who tracked down these great songs!
