Uptown – Vinyl LP

Limited vinyl LP pressing. Insanely raw soul from 1971! Extremely rare and being reissued for the first time here from Colemine Records. Gloria Barnes teams up with The Ohio Players and Lee Moses to create her only LP, Uptown, that would become highly desirable in the deep soul/funk market and just now seeing the light of day in 2017. Gloria Barnes got her start as Towanda Barnes, releasing 45’s on both The Groovy Label in 1966 and A&M Records in 1969. Uptown, her one and only full-length offering, came two years later in 1971 on the somewhat obscure, but vibrant Maple label. The Johnny Brantley produced long-player yielded impressive results and features backing from both Lee Moses & The Disciples and The Hustlers. The platter mixes upbeat tracks with some fiery deep soul and includes “You Don’t Mean It”, a song penned by the Ohio Players. Gloria’s version of the cut became popular among those in the know in England’s Northern Soul movement.