Extra Added Soul: Crossover, Modern and Funky Soul

Liner Note Author: Dean Rudland.
J&D's 20-track compilation Extra Added Soul: Crossover explores obscure avenues of '70s soul, concentrating on offshoots of proto-disco, smooth soul, soft funk, and boogie -- highly danceable grooves that have been tagged as an offshoot of Northern Soul called "modern soul" by 21st century R&B mavens. Whether the four-on-the-floor rises to the surface or not, disco is the underpinning of the music here, present in such Philly-styled cuts as Eula Cooper's "Standing by Love" and Mind & Matter's "I'm Under Your Spell," or the stylish breezes of Elvin Spencer's "Lift This Hurt" and the Latin-tinged "No Matter" by La'Fez. If the tracks don't feel as spangly as prime disco, that's also their charm: they were cut on the cheap, so what we're hearing are musicians creating a groove together. That snazzy groove flows throughout these 20 songs, and it's what makes Extra Added Soul: Crossover worth hearing. The songs may not always stick -- and, certainly there are no stars here (Syl Johnson is the closest, unless you count Prince's early band 94 East) -- but the rhythm is infectious and the satin slickness is endearing. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine