18 tracks, 2 previously unreleased including Moses Smith's "Try My Love"
Excerpts from the liner notes:
Out of the cauldron of soul activity in the 1960s, Philadelphia produced enduring records that in the vinyl era were never heard with their full, outstanding production values. Tom Moulton’s painstaking and vibrant mixes finally provide a new and exciting perspective on the quality of the music from Philly in that era.
Imperial Cs’ Phil-La of Soul 307, released in November 1967, has become one of the most sought after records on the label -- or from Philadelphia for that matter.
Pookie Hudson, side from singing lead with fifties group the Spaniels, had many solo releases on Chess, Double L, Jamie, Neptune, and Parkway. "This Gets To Me," released as Jamie 1319, was produced in 1966 by legendary Philly producer Bob Finiz.
The Rotations, the instrumental backing band for Barbara Mason, recorded some soul instrumentals for producer Morris Bailey . The instrumental of "D9" was recorded by Barbara Mason with different lyrics on Arctic 120 as "Bobby Is My Baby." Richard Parker, a producer/songwriter from Detroit, was brought to Philadelphia by Jimmy Bishop where he wrote "I'm Confessin" for Honey & Bees and sang vocals on "D9," which was released on Arctic subsidiary Frantic in late 1965. The Rotations had a second single, "A Changed Man," on Frantic 202 and a 70s single on Lawton . Richard Parker also had solo singles on Philips, Commonwealth and Right On.
The Volcanos started out singing backing vocals for Patsy Holt, who would later find fame as Patty Labelle and the Bluebelles. When they added lead singer Eugene Jones , they began rehearsing until Kenny Gamble stepped in and took interest in the group, recording their first single "Baby" in late 1964 for Arctic Records. Their second record, "Storm Warning," was very successful in the Philadelphia area, reaching the Top Ten on nearly every AM radio station. "A Lady's Man" was recorded at Golden World Studios in Detroit with the Motown session musicians, mastered at Virtue Studios in Philly, and released in June 1966 on Arctic. After a few singles on Harthon and Virtue, lead singer Eugene Jones had a few solo records out as Gene Faith whilst members of the Volcanos became the Trammps.
Kenny Gamble began his career as a singer in the group the Romeos, which backed up Harthon and Arctic groups. He also had a 45 on Heritage with Thom Bell as Kenny & Tommy. The Romeos consisted of Roland and Karl Chambers, Winnie Walford and Thom Bell. When Thom left to become a producer, he was replaced by Leon Huff. "The Jokes On You" was originally released in May 1966.
The Temptones was formed in the fall of 1965 while its members -- Daryl Hall, Barry Glazer, Brian Utain and Ken Halpern -- attended Temple University in Philly. In mid-1966 the group recorded an original "Goodbye" at a small studio in the basement of a shoe store. This demo led to many appearances, including winning second place at an Uptown Theatre talent show sponsored by James Brown. The Ambassadors won first place and DJ Jimmy Bishop signed both groups to a recording contract with Arctic. The Temptones were good friends with the Temptations and used to hang out with them whenever they came to town. "Girl I Love You" is very much inspired by the Eddie Kendricks-like lead sung by a young Daryl Hall.
The Royal Five had a few singles out on various labels before having the honor of having the very last record to be released on the highly acclaimed Arctic label (160), "Ain't No Big Thing"/"Peace of Mind." It was recorded with Jimmy Bishop in 1969 along with the previously-unreleased, group-penned “Five Miles."