The Mad Lads - The Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Lads (1969)

The opening harmony notes of "So Nice" will hook you for the rest of this sweet Southern soul collection. I rank this higher than their debut, which had two songs enter the R&B Top 20 (none of these did). These are love songs sung by the exciting, emotional lead tenor of John Gary Williams. Williams is known for his heart-stopping, dramatic slides from natural to falsetto. "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" is given a bouncy treatment, a 360-degree difference from labelmate Isaac Hayes' elongated, slower reading; some pretty strumming by a lead guitarist lays the foundation. Despite its brilliance, "Phoenix" stalled at #28 R&B and #84 pop. Stax gives them a slicker, less Southern sound on "Love Is Here Today and Gone Tomorrow," and it suffers from the tinkering. They stamp "Cry Baby" as their own, giving the soul standard an extraordinary treatment. "Did My Baby Call" is a Steve Mancha composition that the Lads tear up, yet it fail to chart. You'll never mistake the Mad Lads for anything but Southern dudes. Not for one minute will you think they're from Philly, New York, Detroit, Chicago or L.A.