Cooking tunes

A tasty Bar-B-Que Soul-A-Bration

by Tristam Lozaw

Professor Longhair

I suppose you could call Rhino Records a K-Tel of the '90s, repackaging the past for giggles and profit. But Rhino's novelty sets are usually clever fun backed by great music, not just collections of the embarrassments of our guilty pleasures. Consider the new Bar-B-Que Soul-a-Bration, a made-for-summer two-CD, 37-cut set that pairs classic R&B, soul, and pop party tunes with a hipster's guide to grilling. True, there probably isn't a '60s soul collection that doesn't feature Arthur Conley's "Sweet Soul Music," the Capitols' "Cool Jerk," and Archie Bell's "Tighten Up." Yet mixed in with these are rarer gems like Brenton Wood's "Oogum Boogum" (1967) and the Robins' "Smokey Joe's Cafe" (1955). Since everything here has something culinary about it, some of these tracks were mandatory inclusions. You get a bounty of tooth-pickin' and finger-lickin' allusions to grits, chicken, polk salad, watermelon, jambalaya, file gumbo, chili, and green onions piled atop fatback drums from James Brown, the Meters, Tony Joe White, Mongo Santamaria, Fats Domino, Booker T & the MG's, King Curtis, Little Milton, Albert Collins, and others.

More often than not, the songs included on BBQ Soul are inspired choices. Check out the rare Wendy Rene nugget "Bar-B-Q," the Clovers' 1952 "One Mint Julep," Professor Longhair's "Red Beans," or Willie Bobo's "Fried Neck Bones." And Betty Wright's "Clean Up Woman" provides an unmistakable signal for guests to leave. In all cases, the digital remasterings emphasize depth and clarity -- fat low end, crisp not harsh highs -- without stepping on the raw, butt-bumping style of these period pieces.

As for extras, the two CDs come in jackets that snap into a three-ring cookbook prepared by Gideon Bosker and Karen Brooks, the authors of Patio Daddy-O!. The duo include recipes, the how-tos of grilling and sauces, menu suggestions and shopping lists, instructions on how to dance the funky chicken, games, and invitations that can be photocopied onto postcards. Last, and in my case least, the BBQ binder has lyrics for specially mixed versions of "Soul Man" and "Respect" with directions on how to become a karaoke soul star -- I'll be in the kitchen pretending to mix a pitcher of margaritas.

Karaoke aside, BBQ Soul is a cool idea for jump-starting summer soirees, with a set list of songs at least as good as that mix tape your pal Frankie offered to make for you. Although one can hardly approach such a collection of old R&B wigglers without feeling like a bit player in The Big Chill, just think of BBQ Soul as a grittier alternative to the kind of buttoned-up barbecue Martha Stewart would be likely to endorse. Shake your burger maker.