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Soul Strut 100: #99 Sir Joe Quarterman & Free Soul

RAJRAJ tenacious local 7,782 Posts
edited March 2012 in The Soul Strut 100
I will slowly be unveiling the Top 100 Soul Strut Related Records as Voted by the Strutters Themselves.

#99 is Sir Joe Quarterman & Free Soul



Please discuss your reactions to this record. The thread will be archived later in a seperate part of the site.
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  Comments

  • pcmrpcmr 5,591 Posts
    this was one of the first records the strut put me onto when i was a little dude
    so much trouble on my mind part 2 intro into part1 was one of my favorite songs to play out and i had a random loft party i was DJing go absolutely nuts for it. Solid as fuck funk with outsider cover..bonafide classic in my book
  • froz1froz1 154 Posts
    End to end classic. Finally caught a copy of this a couple weeks back. One of the records the Strut hipped me to back in the day.

    Press photo:
  • BeatnicholasBeatnicholas 1,005 Posts
    still in my top 3 finds of all time, 1 pound. great record, unskippably good.

    I got so much trouble on my mind parts 1 & 2 is a great 7" to cop as well.
  • DuderonomyDuderonomy Haut de la Garenne 7,794 Posts


    :feelin_it:
  • pcmrpcmr 5,591 Posts
    ^^^^
    harder than the meters ;)
  • RAJRAJ tenacious local 7,782 Posts
    Haven't had the pleasure of owning an OG of this??? Saw a sealed copy at a record show that Stinky Steve bought. I was jealous.
  • minimini 880 Posts
    Me and my wife were visiting her old friend. Sitting in the living room I noticed few records on the shelf. Went trough them and in the middle of RHCP records and some finnish rock stuff was Sir Joe Quarterman & Free Soul LP in mint condition. She said she bought it from some flea market years ago because of the cover but didn??t like it, so she gave it to me for free.
    Damn good record too.
  • The_Hook_UpThe_Hook_Up 8,182 Posts
    Sadly, I have never owned a copy, only a 45 of "trouble", which I actually got rid of and copped the (gulp) COLLECTABLES pressing of...it is actually superior to the OG as parts one and two are on one side with another track from the LP on the flip...so you can play it out and have the tasty fuzz solo. One day I hope the LP crosses my path in the field.

    You.know it takes a man comfortable in his collection to admit to ditching an OG for a collectables pressing.
  • UnherdUnherd 1,880 Posts
    One of the first records the strut hipped me to that I actually spent some real loot on. I spent 50 bucks on ebay after hearing "Give Me Back My Freedom", and I actually drove out to some weird little town in Westchester and met some dude in his garage because I bugged out about losing a $50 record in the mail. Got back in the car, and drove off, only to later find that the dude had sealed the mailer onto the cover with no plastic in between. I ripped half the back of the sleeve off opening up the mailer. Probably should've complained, but it sounded great, and I was geeked. Probably my most prized raer at that point.
  • DuderonomyDuderonomy Haut de la Garenne 7,794 Posts
    The_Hook_Up said:


    You.know it takes a man comfortable in his collection to admit to ditching an OG for a collectables pressing.

    I'll take one of those pressings. No shame in parts 1 & 2 together on a 45.
  • leonleon 883 Posts
    This was one of the first records i bought off ebay back in the nineties, a killer- no filler that still gets the occasional spin. Made me buy all 45s off the album too, which are easier to find.
    Isn't there an earlier pressing that's not on GSF? I remember reading that some time ago. Private press?
  • DJBombjackDJBombjack Miami 1,665 Posts
    Although it's not on the album, 'I'm Gonna Get You' gets regular spins by me. Love it.
  • DJ_EnkiDJ_Enki 6,475 Posts
    RAJ said:
    Haven't had the pleasure of owning an OG of this

    Ditto. I'm still on the hunt for a copy that isn't priced through the roof. I do have a couple copies of the "So Much Trouble on My Mind" 45, so at least that's something. But man, what a great record.
  • PATXPATX 2,820 Posts
    DJBombjack said:
    Although it's not on the album, 'I'm Gonna Get You' gets regular spins by me. Love it.

    Yeah that's a good one.

    Never owned the LP but I did once find an empty sleeve which I traded to tripledouble for some random CD called AEIOU2 that turned out to be pretty decent
  • tripledoubletripledouble 7,636 Posts
    ha. whats up man!
    this record was one of my first major fuckups in the game. before i had ever been to a record show, i was at a shop in Baltimore that isnt there any more and the cover caught my eye. twenty buck price tag had me wavering, but i was still gonna buy it. A big heavy dude named Ray who i had bumped into before in Philly walks in, recognizes me and starts chatting. he notices the Quarterman LP and says, "good record. but you should find it cheaper than twenty bucks." hmm, i was pretty new to things, so i figured, what the hell, i'll wait and find a cheaper copy. FAIL. in later years, i got to know Ray well. I'd bet my thumbs that he grabbed the record as soon as i walked out the door.

    ive found it since for cheap (cheaper than twenty!) and had a good help out by sportC on the cover upgrade front.
    great album and the cover is amazing. always surprised me that label execs would let it slide through with those lo-fi hand drawings
  • SoulOnIceSoulOnIce 13,027 Posts
    tripledouble said:

    always surprised me that label execs would let it slide through with those lo-fi hand drawings

    maybe they were encouraged by the success of CSNY "So Far" and Sir Douglas Quintet "1+1" etc
  • pickwick33pickwick33 8,946 Posts
    The_Hook_Up said:
    Sadly, I have never owned a copy, only a 45 of "trouble", which I actually got rid of and copped the (gulp) COLLECTABLES pressing of...it is actually superior to the OG as parts one and two are on one side with another track from the LP on the flip...so you can play it out and have the tasty fuzz solo. One day I hope the LP crosses my path in the field.

    You.know it takes a man comfortable in his collection to admit to ditching an OG for a collectables pressing.

    From the way you're talking, you make it sound like Collectables actually released it on vinyl. This, I haven't seen. I have the Collectables, too, but on CD.

    I also have two of the GSF singles - "I Got So Much Trouble In My Mind" and a song which I don't think appears on the album, "Thanks Dad." Considering that "I.G.S.M.T.I.M.M." was a hit single (on the soul stations), I've never seen the album.
  • CousinLarryCousinLarry 4,618 Posts
    pickwick33 said:
    The_Hook_Up said:
    Sadly, I have never owned a copy, only a 45 of "trouble", which I actually got rid of and copped the (gulp) COLLECTABLES pressing of...it is actually superior to the OG as parts one and two are on one side with another track from the LP on the flip...so you can play it out and have the tasty fuzz solo. One day I hope the LP crosses my path in the field.

    You.know it takes a man comfortable in his collection to admit to ditching an OG for a collectables pressing.

    From the way you're talking, you make it sound like Collectables actually released it on vinyl. This, I haven't seen. I have the Collectables, too, but on CD.

    I also have two of the GSF singles - "I Got So Much Trouble In My Mind" and a song which I don't think appears on the album, "Thanks Dad." Considering that "I.G.S.M.T.I.M.M." was a hit single (on the soul stations), I've never seen the album.

    I have copy of Thanks Dad too, good song. I would love to pick up a copy of this LP.
  • pickwick33pickwick33 8,946 Posts
    SoulOnIce said:
    tripledouble said:

    always surprised me that label execs would let it slide through with those lo-fi hand drawings

    maybe they were encouraged by the success of CSNY "So Far" and Sir Douglas Quintet "1+1" etc

    That cover looks professionally lo-fi. I'm not a fan of the art myself, but it's not like some boner private-press release.

    BTW, that particular CSNY album came out a couple of years later.
  • holmesholmes 3,532 Posts
    great LP, I only have the reissue filed, one of those cornerstone albums of the genre, if someone asks you what an early 70s soul/funk LP should sound like you couldn't do much more than play them this.
  • pickwick33pickwick33 8,946 Posts
    Nothing much I can say that hasn't been said, except that this LP is amazingly solid from front to back. No skipovers. I can't even say that about some of the superstars like War and Mandrill!

    A few of the tracks are obvious ripoffs of "So Much Trouble," but that is actually endearing more than irritating. I wonder what happened for Quarterman & co. to fall off the radar so fast? Maybe the fact that GSF Records was only in the business a year had something to do with it?

    I'm still waiting for their appearance on Soul Train to make the rounds.
  • GuzzoGuzzo 8,611 Posts
    This is one of those wall of fame records I always and never saw. Love the artwood and "so much trouble on My Mind" is just pure classic funk.

    Grabbed a Japanese pressing of this a few months back off the wall at Amoeba. Was more than glad to spend the money to finally have this in my clutches. Loved it spun it out for some folks never heard anyone say a disparaging word about this album
  • PATXPATX 2,820 Posts
    There was a really great radio show/interview with Joe by strutter Soulpower
    http://www.soulstrut.com/index.php/forums/viewthread/61434/#858576
  • spivyspivy 866 Posts
    "the trouble with trouble" "i fell like this" "gonna get me a friend" "I.G.S.M.T.O.M.M" "the way they do my life" "give me back my freedom" are all killer. one of my favorite funk records ever... most likely in the top 5. I grabbed a crisp OG for a very fair price in NYC some years back. not remotely easy to find clean in the real world..
  • DanteDante 371 Posts
    pickwick33 said:
    I'm not a fan of the art myself, but it's not like some boner private-press release.


    :rolleyes:

    great record. still can't afford the og, so the trouble 45 is enough for now...
  • bboyparkzbboyparkz 549 Posts
    Only have "trouble" which I first heard played on John Peels show, he didn't play much fuvk/soul etc but played this one.
    Would love to find the album one day.
  • LaserWolfLaserWolf Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
    Only had it once.
    Think I found it at a garage sale close to home that only had 4 or 5 mid 70s rock lps and this.

    Got a lot of play before it sold.

    Love the art work and was one of the first things I thought of when Mingering Mike broke.
  • pickwick33pickwick33 8,946 Posts
    When an album is as good as this,
    DON'T BE TOO FUCKING PROUD TO BUY A REISSUE
    even if it's on a lame label like Collectables

    Can't find the OG?
    Well, that is why reissues were invented, Hoss...until the original falls out of the sky, just fake it till you make it.
  • Otis_FunkmeyerOtis_Funkmeyer 1,321 Posts
    Proud reissue owner! And some 45s.
    First heard "I Feel Like This" on WKCR in 1997 and I still think it is one of the heaviest and most unique pieces of funk ever made. Best listened to very loudly.

    My YouTube ID is SirJoeQuarterman.
  • staxwaxstaxwax 1,474 Posts
    Such a great record. Was a white whale of mine for quite some time. I cant remember where i pulled my og anymore but its one of those records that will always irk a collectro if they dont own the og. Reissue sits there mocking you. My fav joint is the trouble with trouble. Love the horns on that and i almost always drop it when dj'ing. I will say the cover, albeit colourful, is fugly. Drawn by sir joe himself. Must have had someone at the label scratching their head when he submitted that.
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