Sam Dees: "The Show Must Go On"

$10 sealed OG copy on ebay?  Yes please, can I have two?  This is a masterful slab of deep, spacy soul, and the tone is set immediately with the opening “Child Of The Streets,” which sounds like a more despairing take on “What’s Going On”-era Marvin, with Sam Dees’ eerie vocals being run through a delay effect, collapsing into the entropy of the funky yet foreboding music.  This is heavy stuff; it’s Marvin Gaye or Curtis Mayfield on a dead-end street, devoid of their usual uplifting, affirming optimism.  Dees works several different creative angles on the rest of the LP, from the searing, screaming “Claim Jumpin’” to the mellow Southern soul of the title track to the almost modern soul-sounding “Come Back Strong,” and he even continues the tale he began with “Child Of The Streets” on the B-Side opener “Troubled Child,” making this a concept album of sorts, and one that hangs together well.  Sam Dees spent most of the ‘70’s writing songs for other artists, so this record serves as a different representation of his gifts, showcasing the talent he brought to the table as a singer/songwriter/producer/performer in his own right.  I’d go so far as to put this LP in the “lost classic” category, it’s that good.