The Tibbs "Damaged Heart" (Record Kicks)

There has been a lot of lovely low(rider) tempo contemporary soul music released in 2020 on a bunch of fine imprints such as Big Crown, Colemine and Penrose. Of those that found their way into Not Unloved's wee box o' soul, the impeccably sung "Rome" by Dojo Cuts (Colemine) takes the garlands. For whatever reason, however, I didn't buy or even hear half as many soul 45s that could fire up the dancing feet. One notable exception was "Damaged Heart" by Dutch group The Tibbs on Record Kicks. If mp3s wore out like cassettes, my download of"Damaged Heart" would have dropouts galore. There's something so addictive about its shimmy and flow. Elsa Bekman's powerful, yet never over-cooked vocal performance is a real joy, too. I say this a lot but if I ever play records out again, this 7" will be among the first on the decks.

 

Les Baroques "Such A Cad"

Not a French (or, for that matter, French-Canadian) group despite the name, Les Baroques hailed from the Netherlands. This 7" found its way into the Not Unloved singles box as it scratched the Nederbeat itch I'd been feeling since discovering recently that a) The Selfkick's "Gosh, I'm Your Woman Not Your Wife" had thee most crazed, amphetamine-pumped noise breakdowns of any song produced on the continent of Europe in the 60s (if you know of any other contenders for that mantle please leave a comment!) and that b) at 250+ quid for a decent copy, Not Unloved will never be able to afford The Selfkick's "Gosh, I'm Your Woman Not Your Wife". "Such A Cad" is a chirpy singalong tale of a "lost" young fella snogging every other girl in town - including his best friend's girlfriend...the rotter! - because the girl he really wants doesn't want him back. Bonus points for the yob-like drawl on "am I".

The Motions "For Another Man" (Havoc, 1965)

There's a tiny little guitar figure, just a few notes, that announces the end of each line in the verses of The Motions' heart-melting, "For Another Man", which is so perfect that I'd happily take it over the entire careers of most alleged axe heroes. Its economy, placement and sheer beauty make it worthy of admiration. It's so much more than the sum of its notes; pure alchemy. That it's allied to an almost perfect downer melody makes it all the more powerful. Luckily for me, "For Another Man" is available digitally so I can listen to those few notes over and over and over without trashing a beautiful 54 year old 7".

The Sandy Coast "Subject Of My Thoughts"

Nearly a year ago The Higher State's Edinburgh show provided ample evidence that they could craft a heart-tugging melody and that they knew their way around a catchy downer jangle.  Recently on Facebook they've been sharing some Dutch beat gems that give an insight into the music that makes their Chelsea boots tap in unison and unsurprisingly there's been some wonderfully sombre jangle to enjoy.  To Not Unloved's ears, the best track they've posted thus far is by The Sandy Coast:

Time to bookmark The Higher State's page, I'd say!