The Foundations: Am I Groovin' You - The Pye Anthology, 3CD Set

• 3CD set containing much-loved UK soul act The Foundations’ recordings for Pye including the hits, ‘Baby Now That I’ve Found You’ (UK #1, US #11), ‘Back On My Feet Again’ (UK #18), ‘Any Old Time (You’re Lonely And Sad)’ (UK #48), ‘Build Me Up Buttercup’ (UK #2, US #3), ‘In The Bad Bad Old Days (Before You Loved Me)’ (UK #8) and ‘Born To Live, Born To Die’ (UK #46).

• Plus The Foundations’ UK albums, ‘From The Foundations’ (1967), ‘Rocking The Foundations’ (1968) and ‘Digging The Foundations’ (1969) in full.

• And tracks from the 1969 Marble Arch label compilation ‘The Foundations’ including superb versions of Freddie Scott’s ‘Am I Groovin’ You’ and Bob And Earl’s ‘Harlem Shuffle’ plus the A and B sides of The Foundations’ Pye singles, Clem Curtis solo recordings and rarities.

The embryonic Foundations formed in London in 1965 as The Ramong Sound, then The Ramongs, fronted Sam And Dave-style by two black singers Clem Curtis and Raymond Morrison AKA Ramong. When Morrison left, he was briefly replaced by the future “God Of Hellfire” Arthur Brown before the group settled on a line-up of white British guitarist Alan Warner, bassist Peter Macbeth and drummer Tim Harris, Sri Lankan keyboardist Tony Gomez, Dominican trombonist Eric Allandale, Jamaican tenor saxophonists Pat Burke and Mike Elliott with Curtis as lead singer.

At Warner’s instigation, the now eight-piece changed their name to The Foundations in January 1967 and they honed their craft at the Butterfly Club, an old basement gambling den in Westbourne Grove where Rod Stewart sat in with them. All went well at the club until gangsters running a protection racket tied Curtis to a chair and held a knife to his throat. A new headquarters in a mini cab office proved safer and the band were soon supporting US soul acts Edwin Starr and The Toys.

After signing to Pye Records, The Foundations became the first multi-racial group to hit the top spot in England with their debut release ‘Baby Now That I’ve Found You’ in 1967. They were also the first British soul act to have a hit in the USA where they toured.

When Clem Curtis and Mike Elliott split with the band in 1968, the band bounced back with ‘Build Me Up Buttercup’ co-written by Manfred Mann singer Mike D’Abo and sung by new vocalist Colin Young that was a huge hit on both sides of the Atlantic. The song reached a new audience when featured in the 1998 hit film, There’s Something About Mary. It’s B-side ‘New Direction’ saw the group experimenting with psychedelia while the heavy RnB of 1970 single ‘I’m Gonna Be A Rich Man’ has become a latter day mod favourite.

TRACK LISTING:

DISC ONE
From The Foundations - Mono
1 Baby Now That I Found You
2 I Can Take Or Leave Your Loving
3 Hold Me Just A Little While Longer
4 Come On Back To Me
5 Love Is A Five Letter Word 6 Call Me
7 Show Me
8 Jerkin’ The Dog
9 A Whole New Thing
10 The Writings On The Wall
11 Mr Personality Man Bonus Tracks
12 Back On My Feet Again (mono)
13 Any Old Time You’re Lonely Or Sad (mono)
14 We Are Happy People
15 It’s All Right
16 Build Me Up Buttercup (mono)
17 A New Direction From The Foundations - Stereo
18 Baby Now That I Found You
19 I Can Take Or Leave You Loving
20 Hold Me Just A Little While Longer
21 Come On Back To Me
22 Love Is A Five Letter Word
23 Call Me
24 Show Me
25 Jerkin’ The Dog
26 A Whole New Thing
27 The Writings On The Wall
28 Mr Personality Man

DISC TWO
1 Am I Groovin’ You (studio version)
2 Harlem Shuffle (studio version)
3 Tomorrow (studio version)
4 Give Me Love
Digging The Foundations
5 My Little Chickadee
6 ’Till Night Brought Day
7 Waiting On The Shores Of Nowhere
8 In The Bad Bad Old Days Before You Loved Me
9 A Penny Sir
10 I Can Feel It
11 Take Away The Emptiness Too
12 Let The Heartaches Begin
13 A Walk Through The Trees
14 That Same Old Feeling
15 Solomon Grundy
Bonus tracks
16 Baby Now That I Found You (Colin Young vocal) (stereo)
17 Born To Live, Born To Die
18 Why Did You Cry
19 Baby I Couldn’t See
20 Take A Girl Like You
21 I’m Gonna Be A Rich Man
22 Who Am I
23 In The Beginning

DISC THREE
Rocking The Foundations: Live
1 Love Is All Right (The Horse) (LIVE)
2 People Are Funny (LIVE)
3 Harlem Shuffle (LIVE)
4 Comin’ Home Baby (LIVE)
5 Tomorrow (LIVE)
6 Am I Groovin’ You (LIVE)
7 Back On My Feet Again (LIVE)
8 Any Old Time You’re Lonely and Sad (LIVE)
9 Things Get Better (LIVE)
10 The Look Of Love (LIVE)
11 Stop Her On Sight SOS (LIVE)
12 We Are Happy People (LIVE)
Bonus tracks
13 96 Tears (LIVE)
14 Where The Fire Burns 15 Build Me Up Buttercup (stereo)
16 Back On My Feet Again (stereo)
17 Any Old Time You’re Lonely and Sad (stereo)
18 CLEM CURTIS - Mountain Over The Hill
19 CLEM CURTIS - Time Alone Will Tell
20 CLEM CURTIS - I’ve Never Found A Girl (To Love Me Like You Do)
21 CLEM CURTIS - Point Of No Return
22 CLEM CURTIS - Stand By Your Man
23 NEW FOUNDATIONS (FEATURING COLIN YOUNG) - Something For My Baby
24 NEW FOUNDATIONS (FEATURING COLIN YOUNG) - I Need Your Love