Praise Poems, Vol. 6

LET'S CELEBRATE - Part 2! Why? The Universe knows that Tramp is celebrating their 40th trip around the sun in 2018. And what about planet Earth? Well… it is as blind as it is in so many other situations. Therefore, it is time to shine the light on Tramp for all of its unremitting efforts. As musical diversity is vanishing, especially in the field of African American music from the 1960s/70s, it is our duty to stop the extinction of threatened species of music in the same way an animal welfare activist would do anything to save a gorilla's life. Tramp Records keeps this beautiful heritage alive, every single day, again and again and again. So we are here wondering why Earth people and especially to those from our beloved home country; why? why are you just sitting there, going about your life unaware of this historic event? That is really a pity!

The announcement is especially striking when it comes to the prestigious "Praise Poems" series. Like all its predecessors, this sixth volume contains sixteen Soul, Folk and Jazz nuggets from between the early 1970s and 1980. The fact that ALL songs have not been compiled elsewhere yet is a jaw-dropping phenomenon! The track listing starts with the amazing "Cherokee" by Verses. Next comes Monopoly's latin-jazz jewel "Things I Could Be" followed by a monster cover version of Stephen Stills' "For What It's Worth". Fans of Oscar Brown Jr. will be delighted to discover Federico Cervantes as well as three more little known but outstanding funky-jazz tracks. Orange Lake Drive's insanely romantic and hopelessly optimistic "Rare Thing" steps into new territory and the recordings by Michael Kiser, Alan Burton and Waves prove to be beautiful examples of privately produced sunshine pop from the 1970s. Garage 7" collectors will freak out to finally get a chance to listen to Daybreak's super hard to find cover version of Richie Havens' all time classic "Freedom" while others may agree that the unbelievably melancholic "Soda Creek Ferry" by Ted Ritchie is the highlight of this sixth volume. The album closes with "Laughing In The Sun" by Elrige Anselmi and Flood's incredible six minute psych masterpiece "White Bird".

Almost one hundred great unknown songs have been re-released on the first five volumes in the "Praise Poems" series, the majority of which can not be found elsewhere, and Vol. 6 is no exception. The work of Germany's tiniest but grooviest record label is still incomprehensibly underestimated. We know you diggers, collectors, mavens, aficionados, fanatics, completists, enthusiasts, and just plain record geeks know what's up and we heartily salute you! Without your support there would be no Tramp Records. But now it's time for a broader cultural shift for good music and a sweeping move to uphold the legacy of the unsung heroes of funk and soul. Therefore, we humbly petition you: in 2018, Don't keep all this glory to yourself! Turn your friends and neighbors on! Thank you!