Horse Opera (starring Cliff Nobles)
August 12, 2013 6:26 PM Subscribe
You may know The Horse as a groovin' RnB instrumental record from the 1960s. You may know The Horse as a popular marching band tune. But did you ever hear the vocal version? OK then, how about the other vocal version? Ever danced The Mule or The Camel?
Here's the story of how three records were made using the same backing tracks and how a singer named Cliff Nobles became associated with a series of instrumental records on which he does not appear.
Eohippus
The Horse opera begins with Jesse James. Not the Missouri outlaw, but the Philly soul songwriter /producer. James took a shotgun approach to record production. He would have several artists record the same song, sometimes with different arrangement in hopes one version or another would be a hit. One that did was Boogaloo Down Broadway sung by The Fantastic Johnny C.
James had himself previously recorded a song called Love is Alright (This is not that record, but about 80% of the track as it appears on a re-issue sampler.) when he heard Cliff Nobles singing in a local church.
The Good
Cliff Nobles rode into town (Philly) in 1967 and formed Cliff Nobles & Co. with guitarist Bobby Tucker, bassist Benny Williams, and drummer Tommy Soul. They recorded a few obscure singles on the tiny Moon Shot label, including "Little Claudie" b/w "Pony the Horse" (sorry, no link.)
Guitarist Tucker had also played on the aforementioned Boogaloo Down Broadway. Jesse James liked Cliff's voice and the band's energy and arranged studio time with the Phil-L.A. of Soul label. Their second single was a new arrangement of the aforementioned Jesse James record Love is Alright, featuring those now famous punchy horns.
There's two sides to every 45RPM record, but there's not always two songs available. It was not entirely unheard of in those days to record a variation of the A-side and include it as the B-side. The only difference between the A-side and the B-side of Phil-L.A. of Soul 313 was that the vocals had been left off of the flip. This version was dubbed The Horse after an earlier dance step.
The record wasn't going anywhere, when a DJ in Tampa, Florida started playing the instrumental B-side. The phones lit up, and so did sales. The Horse became a number 2 hit the summer of 1968.
It was only kept out of the number 1 spot by Hugh Masekela's monster instrumental hit Grazin' In The Grass -- which was also a hit two years later in a very different arrangement. Here's The Friends of Distinction givin' us all the run-down on English pronouns. (Ghod, I love this clip, baby, can you dig it!)
Something similar happened to Barbara Acklin. She'd recorded a song called Am I The Same Girl, which was eclipsed by an instrumental version credited to Young-Holt Unlimited (although no member of that organization actually appears on the record). Soulful Strut used the same backing tracks as Am I The Same Girl, replacing the vocals with a piano melody.
The Bad
Naturally, with a hit single on the charts, Cliff had to tour to support it. Unfortunately, since he didn't write it, didn't sing it, and didn't play any instruments on it, he was reduced to demonstrating the dance steps. Here he is on local dance party show Groove In (worth watching just for the clothes). Poor Cliff is game, but his dance partner 'Little Tina' seems oblivious to both the steps and to Cliff.
Doubtless 'Little Tina' is Tina Blount, another singer in James' stable. Here she is with Nobles & Co. bassist Benny Williams, credited as Benny & Tina on Over My Dead Body and This Love Is Real.
Next, Cliff was sent back into the studio to record another set of lyrics over the original instrumental backing -- The Horse Is All Right (Phil-L.A. of Soul 316). And there's our third record release using the identical backing tracks.
The Ugly
At some point in late 1968, an album credited to Cliff Nobles and Co.was produced, entitled The Horse. Eight out of twelve tracks were instrumentals. Having ridden The Horse to the top of the charts, James and Phil-LA of Soul tried The Mule, The Camel, and an instrumental (!?) version of Boogaloo Down Broadway.
None of Cliff's vocal tracks on the LP hit:
Judge Baby, I'm Back (an answer record to Shorty Long's Here Comes The Judge.)
Let's Have A Good Time
The More I Do For You Baby
Burning Desire
but The Horse charted a second time as the B-side to The Mule.
Later in the year came Horse Fever, another instrumental credited to singer Cliff Nobles. Discerning ears will recognize this as Judge, Baby. . . with the vocals removed.
And a final indignity, The Fantastic Johnny C. went to #25 with Hitch it to the Horse.
Cliff kept at it, and in 1973 just missed the bottom of the RnB top 40 with This Feeling of Loneliness backed with We Got Our Thing Together.
Cliff Nobles left the music business sometime in the mid-1970s.
About the time Cliff was hanging up his spurs, the horn section that had made The Horse the hit it was went on to become the nucleus of MFSB, best known for TSOP, aka the theme for Soul Train.
Sources
BadCat
Examiner
Chancellor of Soul
Funky 16 Corners
Here's the story of how three records were made using the same backing tracks and how a singer named Cliff Nobles became associated with a series of instrumental records on which he does not appear.
Eohippus
The Horse opera begins with Jesse James. Not the Missouri outlaw, but the Philly soul songwriter /producer. James took a shotgun approach to record production. He would have several artists record the same song, sometimes with different arrangement in hopes one version or another would be a hit. One that did was Boogaloo Down Broadway sung by The Fantastic Johnny C.
James had himself previously recorded a song called Love is Alright (This is not that record, but about 80% of the track as it appears on a re-issue sampler.) when he heard Cliff Nobles singing in a local church.
The Good
Cliff Nobles rode into town (Philly) in 1967 and formed Cliff Nobles & Co. with guitarist Bobby Tucker, bassist Benny Williams, and drummer Tommy Soul. They recorded a few obscure singles on the tiny Moon Shot label, including "Little Claudie" b/w "Pony the Horse" (sorry, no link.)
Guitarist Tucker had also played on the aforementioned Boogaloo Down Broadway. Jesse James liked Cliff's voice and the band's energy and arranged studio time with the Phil-L.A. of Soul label. Their second single was a new arrangement of the aforementioned Jesse James record Love is Alright, featuring those now famous punchy horns.
There's two sides to every 45RPM record, but there's not always two songs available. It was not entirely unheard of in those days to record a variation of the A-side and include it as the B-side. The only difference between the A-side and the B-side of Phil-L.A. of Soul 313 was that the vocals had been left off of the flip. This version was dubbed The Horse after an earlier dance step.
The record wasn't going anywhere, when a DJ in Tampa, Florida started playing the instrumental B-side. The phones lit up, and so did sales. The Horse became a number 2 hit the summer of 1968.
It was only kept out of the number 1 spot by Hugh Masekela's monster instrumental hit Grazin' In The Grass -- which was also a hit two years later in a very different arrangement. Here's The Friends of Distinction givin' us all the run-down on English pronouns. (Ghod, I love this clip, baby, can you dig it!)
Something similar happened to Barbara Acklin. She'd recorded a song called Am I The Same Girl, which was eclipsed by an instrumental version credited to Young-Holt Unlimited (although no member of that organization actually appears on the record). Soulful Strut used the same backing tracks as Am I The Same Girl, replacing the vocals with a piano melody.
The Bad
Naturally, with a hit single on the charts, Cliff had to tour to support it. Unfortunately, since he didn't write it, didn't sing it, and didn't play any instruments on it, he was reduced to demonstrating the dance steps. Here he is on local dance party show Groove In (worth watching just for the clothes). Poor Cliff is game, but his dance partner 'Little Tina' seems oblivious to both the steps and to Cliff.
Doubtless 'Little Tina' is Tina Blount, another singer in James' stable. Here she is with Nobles & Co. bassist Benny Williams, credited as Benny & Tina on Over My Dead Body and This Love Is Real.
Next, Cliff was sent back into the studio to record another set of lyrics over the original instrumental backing -- The Horse Is All Right (Phil-L.A. of Soul 316). And there's our third record release using the identical backing tracks.
The Ugly
At some point in late 1968, an album credited to Cliff Nobles and Co.was produced, entitled The Horse. Eight out of twelve tracks were instrumentals. Having ridden The Horse to the top of the charts, James and Phil-LA of Soul tried The Mule, The Camel, and an instrumental (!?) version of Boogaloo Down Broadway.
None of Cliff's vocal tracks on the LP hit:
Judge Baby, I'm Back (an answer record to Shorty Long's Here Comes The Judge.)
Let's Have A Good Time
The More I Do For You Baby
Burning Desire
but The Horse charted a second time as the B-side to The Mule.
Later in the year came Horse Fever, another instrumental credited to singer Cliff Nobles. Discerning ears will recognize this as Judge, Baby. . . with the vocals removed.
And a final indignity, The Fantastic Johnny C. went to #25 with Hitch it to the Horse.
Cliff kept at it, and in 1973 just missed the bottom of the RnB top 40 with This Feeling of Loneliness backed with We Got Our Thing Together.
Cliff Nobles left the music business sometime in the mid-1970s.
About the time Cliff was hanging up his spurs, the horn section that had made The Horse the hit it was went on to become the nucleus of MFSB, best known for TSOP, aka the theme for Soul Train.
Sources
BadCat
Examiner
Chancellor of Soul
Funky 16 Corners
Fantastic post! I actually haven't clicked any of the links yet, but with a post like that, who needs links?
posted by snofoam at 7:01 PM on August 12, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by snofoam at 7:01 PM on August 12, 2013 [1 favorite]
This post is magnificent. Bravo.
It was only kept out of the number 1 spot by Hugh Masekela's monster instrumental hit Grazin' In The Grass -- which was also a hit two years later in a very different arrangement. Here's The Friends of Distinction givin' us all the run-down on English pronouns. (Ghod, I love this clip, baby, can you dig it!)
I'm in the process of cataloging my 45s and I keep coming across delightful surprises like both versions of Grazin' in the Grass. So far no Cliff Nobles but I've got my fingers crossed now.
posted by fuse theorem at 7:20 PM on August 12, 2013
It was only kept out of the number 1 spot by Hugh Masekela's monster instrumental hit Grazin' In The Grass -- which was also a hit two years later in a very different arrangement. Here's The Friends of Distinction givin' us all the run-down on English pronouns. (Ghod, I love this clip, baby, can you dig it!)
I'm in the process of cataloging my 45s and I keep coming across delightful surprises like both versions of Grazin' in the Grass. So far no Cliff Nobles but I've got my fingers crossed now.
posted by fuse theorem at 7:20 PM on August 12, 2013
NedKoppel: "How do you give a standing ovation on Metafilter?"
You get down and get funky.
posted by Big_B at 7:23 PM on August 12, 2013 [1 favorite]
You get down and get funky.
posted by Big_B at 7:23 PM on August 12, 2013 [1 favorite]
Herodios: "Boogaloo Down Broadway sung by The Fantastic Johnny C. "
The history on Cliff and The Horse is something, but this track blows my damn mind. Thank you Herodios!
posted by Big_B at 7:25 PM on August 12, 2013
The history on Cliff and The Horse is something, but this track blows my damn mind. Thank you Herodios!
posted by Big_B at 7:25 PM on August 12, 2013
I was surprised and charmed by the Dexys Midnight Runners cover of "The Horse" when I heard it on the Searching for the New Soul Rebels reissue.
posted by escabeche at 7:37 PM on August 12, 2013
posted by escabeche at 7:37 PM on August 12, 2013
Great post! I've got some of these on old 45s, a couple on LP compilations, and a couple more as low-fi mp3s, but it makes me want to find a nice collection of all the hits from the Phil-L.A. of Soul label. Google shows a couple of "greatest hits" compilations, for Cliff Nobles and the Fantastic Johnny C, so maybe that's about as close as it's possible to get.
Also appreciate the digressive mentions of "Grazin' In the Grass" and "Am I The Same Girl," two more songs that bring back some good memories. (The British group Swing Out Sister did a fun cover of the latter song in the early 90s; the live version, with a slightly different feel, also is worth a listen. )
I must quibble, though, with the characterization of "Hitch It To The Horse" as a "final indignity." as both it and The Fantastic Johnny C's hit version of "Boogaloo Down Broadway" are pretty great records. Anybody that doesn't dig the interaction of the groove and the baritone sax lick on "Hitch It..." should check their pulse, to see if they have one.
posted by Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner at 8:33 PM on August 12, 2013
Also appreciate the digressive mentions of "Grazin' In the Grass" and "Am I The Same Girl," two more songs that bring back some good memories. (The British group Swing Out Sister did a fun cover of the latter song in the early 90s; the live version, with a slightly different feel, also is worth a listen. )
I must quibble, though, with the characterization of "Hitch It To The Horse" as a "final indignity." as both it and The Fantastic Johnny C's hit version of "Boogaloo Down Broadway" are pretty great records. Anybody that doesn't dig the interaction of the groove and the baritone sax lick on "Hitch It..." should check their pulse, to see if they have one.
posted by Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner at 8:33 PM on August 12, 2013
This really is a good post. Bravo indeed.
My favorite part: "Cliff had to tour to support it [but] he didn't write it, didn't sing it, and didn't play any instruments on it...."
* * *
It was only kept out of the number 1 spot by Hugh Masekela's monster instrumental hit Grazin' In The Grass
The Horse is of course a legendary instrumental, but to my mind not as good as the Masekela song. (I saw him perform last year, first time in a long time, and even in his early 70s, he’s still got it.)
posted by LeLiLo at 11:14 PM on August 12, 2013
My favorite part: "Cliff had to tour to support it [but] he didn't write it, didn't sing it, and didn't play any instruments on it...."
* * *
It was only kept out of the number 1 spot by Hugh Masekela's monster instrumental hit Grazin' In The Grass
The Horse is of course a legendary instrumental, but to my mind not as good as the Masekela song. (I saw him perform last year, first time in a long time, and even in his early 70s, he’s still got it.)
posted by LeLiLo at 11:14 PM on August 12, 2013
I must quibble, though, with the characterization of "Hitch It To The Horse" as a "final indignity."
I had meant to say, "crowning indignity", as there was more to come. Indignity for Cliff, to see another singer hitch a top 40 record to The Horse, while Cliff was basically being used by his record company as a brand name to market instrumentals that he could not really profit from.
My favorite part: "Cliff had to tour to support it [but] he didn't write it, didn't sing it, and didn't play any instruments on it...."
One thing I wasn't able to find out was what kind of coin Cliff got off the experience. The Horse was #2 on both the pop and rnb charts for three weeks and sold a million copies in the first three months.
Composer Jesse James is still cashing royalty checks for marching band sheet music, Super Instrumental Hits of the Sixties compilations, and the occasional radio play on oldies stations. Hell, I bet The Horse is still on a few jukeboxes. And the band gets paid, too, though not so much.
But I wonder what kind of royalties are paid to the guy who sang the flip side, has his name on it, and whose name was subsequently used to market product with increasingly tenuous connections with the original. I can hear the voices of the record company lawyers in my head now, quibbling over the difference between "Cliff Nobles" and "Cliff Nobles & Co."
We do know that Cliff didn't retire wealthy. All source say he worked in construction, then "the electricity generation industy" before dying of cancer at the age of 67.
There's more to life than getting rich off of a pop record, though. Hopefully, Cliff enjoyed the ride.
posted by Herodios at 7:00 AM on August 13, 2013
I had meant to say, "crowning indignity", as there was more to come. Indignity for Cliff, to see another singer hitch a top 40 record to The Horse, while Cliff was basically being used by his record company as a brand name to market instrumentals that he could not really profit from.
My favorite part: "Cliff had to tour to support it [but] he didn't write it, didn't sing it, and didn't play any instruments on it...."
One thing I wasn't able to find out was what kind of coin Cliff got off the experience. The Horse was #2 on both the pop and rnb charts for three weeks and sold a million copies in the first three months.
Composer Jesse James is still cashing royalty checks for marching band sheet music, Super Instrumental Hits of the Sixties compilations, and the occasional radio play on oldies stations. Hell, I bet The Horse is still on a few jukeboxes. And the band gets paid, too, though not so much.
But I wonder what kind of royalties are paid to the guy who sang the flip side, has his name on it, and whose name was subsequently used to market product with increasingly tenuous connections with the original. I can hear the voices of the record company lawyers in my head now, quibbling over the difference between "Cliff Nobles" and "Cliff Nobles & Co."
We do know that Cliff didn't retire wealthy. All source say he worked in construction, then "the electricity generation industy" before dying of cancer at the age of 67.
There's more to life than getting rich off of a pop record, though. Hopefully, Cliff enjoyed the ride.
posted by Herodios at 7:00 AM on August 13, 2013
For years, this has come on the radio from time to time, and I've said, I need to remember to look up the vocals version and see what it sounds like. Never did, until this post with its handy link!
It sounds . . . . okay.
posted by JanetLand at 7:40 AM on August 13, 2013
It sounds . . . . okay.
posted by JanetLand at 7:40 AM on August 13, 2013
I played saxophone in high school marching band, and "The Horse" was our school's fight song. I have played it literally thousands of times, but I never heard the vocal version(s) or knew of its twisted history. Thanks for this post! Now I feel like I should go make out with a flag girl under the bleachers.
posted by vibrotronica at 7:56 AM on August 13, 2013
posted by vibrotronica at 7:56 AM on August 13, 2013
By some weird twist of fate, I first owned the vocal version prior to ever hearing the better known instro hit, which I found quite bare in comparison. Glad to know the whole etymology now.
posted by bonefish at 9:13 AM on August 13, 2013
posted by bonefish at 9:13 AM on August 13, 2013
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