Keep On Keeping On

Two unreleased disco funk bangers from Joe Tex backing band THE SECOND RE$$URRECTION. Dug out from Sonny Cravers Stanson Records archive, The band did release one ultra rare disco/modern 45 which goes for $3000+ all day long also coming to Athens of the north soon.One of the most widely travelled, widely heard unknown groups in the world. A band of serious Funk musicians who have shared the stage with the elite of the elite. They have shared the stage with Jean Carne, Boston, Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show, Rufus & Chaka Khan, The Isley Brothers, Shalamar, Tavares, Rufus Thomas, Tyrone Davis, Barbara Lynn, Millie Jackson, The Brothers Johnson, B.T. Express, Brick, Frank Lucas, The Drifters & Blue Magic. They won equal acclaim when they played alongside Earth, Wind & Fire at The CBS Family Affair. They performed at New York's Rialto Theatre, The Apollo, and toured East and West Germany. They performed for the movie premier of Rudy Ray Moore's, Petey Wheatstraw - The Devil's Son-In-Law at Chicago's Regal Theatre.The original name of the group was THE SIX DEGREES SOUTH (A Very rare funk45 I released when working at Jazzman Records) based out of Lawton Oklahoma. A nomadic group, they completed a 3 year trek primarily booked at military bases across the nation. They also played a variety of college and university towns, ski-lodges, various clubs and hotel ballrooms. They initially dabbled in recording producing a vinyl 45' single entitled, Loving You Is Too Far Out. Upon returning to home-base the group met the legendary soul singer, Joe Tex. Being into funk, we were not all that familiar with his soul sound. He explained what he wanted to do and the end results of what could be accomplished. The band, already being self-contained and autonomous seized the opportunity to utilize not only Tex's fame in the music/radio world but his label connections. Unknowingly, this group almost single-handedly launched Tex's career back into the spotlight allowing him to re-emerge and re-invent himself after a 5 year sabbatical.They played, wrote and produced-in-part Joe Tex's Bumps & Bruises album containing the mega-hit, Ain't Gonna Bump No More (With No Big Fat Woman. This culminated into Tex's first gold album, won a Grammy nomination and was #86 on Billboard's 1978 year-end chart.On the flip side the bands own LP was shelfed after the single "Smoke in the Disco" did not live up to Stansons Records expectations, as these things go it later became a huge modern/northern soul record and is coveted by collectors all over the world, so lets share a bit more of the Lost LP...,.