Tragar Story In Stomp & Stammer Magazine

The Stepfather Of Soul tipped me to an article in the latest Stomp & Stammer featuring fellow blogger Brian Poust from Georgia Soul and his part in Numero Uno's Eccentric Soul Tragar And Note Labels:

Too Beautiful To Be Gone
New Compilation Uncovers Atlanta’s Lost Soul
Written by Gretchen LaBudde

From the perspective of an ATL that rules the 21st century R&B and hip hop charts, it seems odd that no ’60s era soul label thrived in a civil rights center like the City Too Busy To Hate. Just don’t blame Jesse Jones for not laying it all on the line.

The helmsman for the Tragar and Note labels pumped out at least 40 sides between 1968 and 1978. At best, they made regional ripples and eventually landed in dusty obscurity. That is, until Atlanta DJ Brian Poust – creator of georgiasoul.com – discovered the labels and, with help from Chicago's Numero Group, compiled them into a double-CD set, the most recent release in Numero’s Eccentric Soul series.

This first stab at exploring Atlanta’s most prolific soul label exposes not only the songs – the 32 pages of mice-type liner notes detail a neglected history about struggling to score a hit record in a recording scene that required the infrastructure be built from the ground up. The comp also raises questions about why a homegrown soul scene didn’t take hold in a city known for its viable black business community as well as for its tolerance toward civil rights.

“I’m very gratified that this compilation is out because it tells the truth about Jesse Jones and what I did in the record industry in Atlanta,” offers Jones from his home in Los Angeles.

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