Rock ‘n’ Roll From The Lone Star State. Having loaded up the station wagon and filled the gas tank, Fantastic Voyage continues its exciting musical travelogue exploring some of the rockin’est recordings from across the USA. Indicative of its independent spirit, rarely has a state offered more musical originality than Texas.

This release is the 4th in our ongoing series chronicling the Best of Rhythm & Blues from the US Charts. This 1961 edition includes informative booklet notes by respected Echoes/Record Collector journalist Mike Atherton, plus details of original labels and catalogue numbers.

Soul Breakout ’61 compiles 56 tracks by various artists displaying the development of soul music in the US charts of 1961. All of the songs were R&B and/or pop hits and many have become classics of the genre.

Bloody ballads, prison moans & chain gang blues. In a world where crime doesn’t pay there are two sides to every crime story. On the one hand, there’s the perpetration of the ghastly deed: the premeditated crime, perhaps painstakingly planned or a prolonged sadistic event; the crime committed in a moment or madness, swiftly enacted and just as swiftly regretted.