Released at the height of the Vietnam War, Marvin Gaye’s hit-heavy album explored themes of race, environmentalism and conflict. It also marked a new direction for the Motown record label..
Janis Joplin was once voted the ‘Ugliest Man on Campus’. Sharon Jones was told she was ‘too old, too fat, too short, too black’ to succeed in music. Two documentaries chart the lives of these extraordinary women.
Popular African musician Papa Wemba, who died recently, has been close to the heartbeat of the continent’s music. His influence will continue long after his death.
Jimmy Ruffin’s confection of choice was the Eccles cake. The soul singer who definitively diagnosed the emotional condition of broken heartedness on one of Motown’s all-time classic singles was especially…
Some good news for soul music lovers from an unlikely source: a recent trademark decision by the UK’s Intellectual Property Office (IPO) sent a strong message that the iconography of the “northern soul…
By now you’ll be aware that the legendary soul singer Bobby Womack died on Friday, aged 70. As with the death of many cultural “greats”, social media and traditional media have been united in singing his…