James Govan was born in Mississippi but moved to Memphis as a child. It was in Memphis that one of FAME’s songwriters George Jackson first heard Govan singing. On Jackson’s recommendation, Govan was signed to FAME Records. Jackson introduced Govan to Mickey Buckins, who took him to FAME in 1969, where he recorded “Wanted: Lover”, a song previously recorded there by Laura Lee in 1967. When the single failed to sell, Buckins came up with a new idea. He suggested Govan sing some contemporary pop songs, adding a typical FAME slant, plus some songs written by the FAME team. Altogether, the FAME sessions generated sixteen tracks. One of the pop songs and one of the FAME songs were chosen as the next single, George Harrison’s “Something” and a George Jackson/ Mickey Buckins composition entitled “You Get A Lot To Like”, released in 1970.
Just as Chess Records had left many of the FAME recordings in the vaults, so Rick Hall now did the same with the James Govan material. And just as with Chess, it took the efforts of Ace Records in the UK to bring them back into the light of day. Ace released a retrospective Govan album in 2013, giving it a title that echoed the first single, “Wanted: The FAME Recordings”, on their Kent label.
James Govan’s album “Wanted: The FAME Recordings” on Kent Records
(used with permission of Ace Records UK)
The album has a lot of merit, and the sixteen tracks show why several people in the music business saw Govan as the next Otis Redding. FAME Records released their own retrospective compilation in 2019, “The FAME Recordings”, with twelve of the sixteen tracks.
The collection of songs is unusual, combining some Muscle Shoals compositions with covers of a variety of well-known Pop songs, albeit written by master songwriters Lennon and McCartney, Carole King and Bob Dylan.
Sadly, Buckins’ idea didn’t work in terms of sales. Govan left FAME and went back to Memphis. But he was not quite finished with Muscle Shoals. In 1983 he came back, not to FAME but to Broadway Sound studio in Sheffield, where he recorded his first album. Broadway was originally Quinvy Studios, built by Quin Ivy around 1968, but it now belonged to David Johnson, Ivy’s former engineer, who produced the album. The session band was exceptional! David Hood (bass), Roger Hawkins (drums) and Jimmy Johnson (guitar) came over from Muscle Shoals Sound Studio. The Muscle Shoals horns turned up too, Harrison Calloway Jr. (Trumpet), Ronnie Eades (baritone sax), Charles Rose (trombone) and Harvey Thompson (tenor sax). Clayton Ivey (keyboards), Roger Clark (drums) and Travis Wammack (guitar) all added contributions. The album, entitled “I’m In Need”, appeared in 1987 on Charly Records, re-released in 1996 by Over-Eazy/Overture Music. Charly issued it again in 2013. In 2007, Soulscape Records in the UK paired ten Govan tracks with ten from Sandra Wright for the release of “The Broadway Sound Sessions”. Finally, in 2014, David Johnson released his own version of the same songs, giving the album a much better name: “The Muscle Shoals Recordings”. So, after waiting years to hear most of James Govan’s recordings, fans now have access to twenty-five studio tracks, plus a live album or two.
The best of the songs are slow ballads, often with an Otis Redding style phrasing. George Jackson wrote many of them. The quality of the recordings is excellent, both at FAME and at Broadway, with Govan’s powerful voice always to the fore. The Broadway songs often have excellent backing vocals and a strong horn arrangement. Amongst the more up-tempo tracks are “Stuck On You”, with its bouncy Sam & Dave beat, and a cover of Elvis Presley’s “That’s Alright Mama” (written by Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup). Another cover hints at the Country music links between Muscle Shoals and Nashville: Waylon Jennings’ song “We had It All” becomes a powerful Soul ballad in the hands of James Govan. Perhaps the most surprising choice of all was “Way Over Yonder”, a lovely Carole King song, that Govan delivers with intimacy and passion, with a strong Gospel feel.
Later Govan teamed up with another local musician Don Chandler and, together with the Boogie Blues Band, took up a residency at the Rum Boogie Café on Beale Street, which lasted from 1989 until 2014, when Govan died.
He was a talented singer, who somehow never got lucky. His songs have certainly stood the test of time and are well worth seeking out.
