The Archive Series Vol.3: Movin'

One in a series of six CDs collecting rare and unreleased material by Ike & Tina Turner, Archive Series, Vol. 3: Movin' is a hodgepodge of live and studio material from the 1960s and '70s, with no clarification in the liner notes about what was cut where and when, and who might be backing up the Turners on any of these sessions (though we're told the great New Orleans R&B vocalist Johnny Adams contributed backing vocals on "Bolic"). So this disc is a bit of a mess -- but it's a pretty great mess, with lots of excellent soul and funk chestnuts on deck. Leading off with the sweet and swinging funk of "Sweet Rhode Island Red," this set rolls through extended live blues workouts ("My Man's Wedding Vows"), soulful country covers ("I'm Movin' On"), distinctive reworkings of classic R&B numbers ("Stagger Lee and Billy" and "Put on Your Tight Pants," the latter of which is a barely disguised version of "Hi-Heeled Sneakers"), Meters-style Southern funk ("Took a Trip"), swaggering and confident soul ("Gonna Find Me a Substitute"), souped-up girl group numbers ("Troubles on My Mind" by the Ikettes) and lots more. For the most part, the audio quality is just fine (some of the mixes sound just a bit curious, but not so much that they're unlistenable), and Ike and his various bands over the years are tight and enthusiastically grooving throughout, while Tina sounds like a force of nature whenever she chooses to let her vocal cords go to work. The packaging is unimaginative, the liner notes are dodgy (Martin Celmins' essay mentions that this two-disc set includes two versions of "River Deep, Mountain High" -- except the package only features one CD and "River Deep" doesn't appear at all) and the sequence jumps all over the pace, but this features 53 minutes of music from one of the greatest acts in R&B when they were near the top of their game. Not great as a historical document, but if you're looking for the good groove, you'll find it here. ~ Mark Deming