Joe Simon - The Chokin' Kind (1969)

Joe Simon is an American soul singer. 

In 1969 Joe Simon finally had his long overdue breakthrough hit. "The Chokin' Kind" (written by country songwriter Harlan Howard and first recorded by Waylon Jennings in 1967) gave him his first R&B #1. It also reached #13 on the pop chart. An album of the same name (his second that year) quickly followed, a great collection of songs showcasing his smooth country-soul sound. It featured covers of some recent hit songs, namely Glenn Campbell's "Wichita Lineman", O.C. Smith's "Little Green Apples" and Otis Redding's "Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay", plus a look back to the doo-wop era with "In The Still Of The Night", originally by The Five Satins. The album generated two more hits, both of them again written by Harlan Howard - "Baby, Don't Be Looking In My Mind" followed "The Chokin' Kind" and charted at #16 R&B, and "Yours Love" would belatedly chart at #10 R&B in 1970.

Simon Sings (1969) <|> Better Than Ever (1969)
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Joe Simon - Simon Sings (1969)

Joe Simon is an American soul singer. 

Joe Simon's series of charting singles continued into late 1968 with two modest R&B hits - "Message From Maria" got to #31, and "Looking Back" reached #42. His third album, Simon Sings, was released in early 1969 on the Sound Stage 7 label. It featured both singles plus many other strong songs, including a splendid country-soul cover of Willie Nelson's "Funny How Time Slips Away" (he wasn't the first and wouldn't be the last soul singer to record this song). It was a solid and consistent album, mostly made up of somber string-backed ballads, which were fast becoming Simon's speciality. It was also the first of three new albums he would release that year.

No Sad Songs (1968) <|> The Chokin' Kind (1969)
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Joe Simon - No Sad Songs (1968)

Joe Simon is an American soul singer.

Joe Simon had achieved scored two hits on the R&B chart in 1966 and 1967 with "Teenager's Prayer" and "My Special Prayer", both on the Nashville-based Sound Stage 7 label. Both had featured on his debut album.Through 1967 and into 1968 he released several more great singles. The three others which became hits were "Nine Pound Steel" (#19 R&B), written by Dan Penn and Wayne Carson Thompson, "No Sad Songs" (#22 R&B), originally recorded by Oscar Toney Jr., and "(You Keep Me) Hangin' On" (#11 R&B), which had originally been a country hit for The Gosdin Brothers in 1967.

His second album came out in 1968. It wasn't an entirely new set of songs, as most of them had already seen release as singles or b-sides, including his three most recent hits. Three of the other songs were also featured on his first album. Nevertheless it came together perfectly, showcasing Simon's distinctive brand of country-soul.

Pure Soul (1966) <|> Simon Sings (1969)
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Joe Simon - Pure Soul (1966)

Joe Simon is an American soul singer.

Joe Simon was born in Simmesport, Louisiana in 1943. His family moved to California in the late 50s, when he joined gospel group The Golden West Gospel Singers, with whom he subsequently moved into secular music in 1959. In the early 60s he attemped to find success as a solo artist, his first break coming on the Vee-Jay label, when he scored a #13 R&B hit in 1965 with "Let's Do It Over" (recorded at Fame Studios in Muscle Shoals, and written by Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham). However he was left without a label again when Vee-Jay folded the same year.

He was then discovered by Nashville radio DJ John Richbourg, who signed him to the Sound Stage 7 label and became both his manager and producer. He quickly scored another hit, "Teenager's Prayer" getting to #11 on the R&B chart. His debut album came out in 1966 - Pure Soul introduced him as one of the great singers of southern soul. Being produced in Nashville, some interesting country music influences crept in with the strings and backing vocals. Simon would soon become known for his blending of soul and country music. The album also included covers of Dee Clark's "Nobody But You" and Percy Sledge's "When A Man Loves A Woman", and it generated another hit with "My Special Prayer" the next year (#17 R&B).

|> No Sad Songs (1968)  
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