Losing/winning me

Ann Sexton – You're Gonna Miss Me / You're Losing Me

Seventy Seven Records – 77-133

Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM, US, 1973

info

I know I can write too much sometimes (much like my talking in real life, yes, I know), but this one should be quick. Continuing with the funk records (of various sorts) featured in the last couple posts, today we have a great lost single from 1973.

I've got no stories to tell you about Ann Sexton.  Until I started writing this and saw that others have documented some of her history, I knew pretty much nothing about Sexton except that she was a Southern soul singer who, from the records I've heard, deserved to be much more widely remembered. I knew she had recorded a couple albums and a clutch of singles for Nashville's Seventy-Seven records and a few other labels though the 1970s. After that, she disappears (from the record bins and my radar anyway). 

According to the internet, she got fed up with the music industry, left the south for NYC in 1980, became a public school teacher, and never let on about her previous career to peers until she retired from the school district 30 years later in 2010. (Damned if that doesn't make her even cooler, right?) She never fully faded into obscurity thanks to the popularity of some of these 45s with the record digging crowd and on the dancefloors of the UK Northern soul scene. That's helped keep the occasional collection or reissue of her music in circulation, so if you enjoy this, keep an eye out for more.

For a 50 year old piece of vinyl with plenty of past spins, I think this rip sounds pretty good. The A side is a slow, Southern soul number with some heavy wah wah, a great horn sound (especially the play between the brass and guitar in the second half), and harmonies from some anonymous back up singers. The B side plays with a similar lyrical theme, but set to an uptempo, funk stormer. Good for the dancefloor but you should also give it a chance on your good headphones: a great arrangement and mix. You're Losing Me is a winner, highlighted by fast paced workouts on bass and guitar, drums and horn stabs that make you move, and Sexton kills it with a delivery that makes me sure I wouldn't want to be the target of her singing. The kind of song that might make you might feel like you've known it for years when you hear it the first time. Classic. 

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Tracklist
A        You're Gonna Miss Me
B        You're Losing Me

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Ever since I met you, you've been doing me wrong (download 24/96kHz FLAC zip file HERE) 

But now I'm getting myself together, now my heart is strong (stream or download 320 MP3 HERE)

My youngest son heard this for the first time today and said "When is this from? I love this era. It just has a sound that gives you some good vibes, you know?" Hard to argue with that. I hope you enjoy it, too.