On this 2004 two-fer, Collectables for some unknown reason switched the order of release, putting Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs' second album, 1966's Li'l Red Riding Hood, before their first album, 1965's Wooly Bully. Apart from that head scratcher, this is a great re-release by a band that is too often written off as a mere one-hit wonder (as if having one hit is a bad thing; think of how many bands never even pull that off). Fun, funny, and funky, Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs were just about ...   [ read more ]

CD $13.28

The flood of artist tribute albums is pretty loathsome -- too much piggybacking on someone else's creative coattails just to get heard -- but Turban Renewal shapes us more like it, from the name to a dedication to Mattie and Hattie. Take one obscure but deserving artist, assemble the right bunch of in-with-the-out-crowd suspects cum fans, and let 'em loose on the songbook. It may have prompted Rhino to get its Pharaohization best-of compilation out on CD a couple of years later -- but {^Turban ...   [ read more ]

CD $17.08

Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs retain a raucous, off-kilter charm that reaches beyond their massive 1960s hit, "Wooly Bully." Led by keyboardist and singer Domingo Samudio, the Pharaohs throw up a unique brand of Tex-Mex and R&B that sounds like Junior Walker and Doug Sahm jamming at a frat party. This collection has the group's biggest hits ("Wooly Bully," "Lil' Red Riding Hood") as well as some rarer tracks, including a funky take on Little Willie John's {&"Leave My Kitten A...   [ read more ]

CD $10.43