Remembering A True Soul Legend and Friend

In June of 2009 I decided I wanted to start up a radio show. Somewhere I could interview the legends that recorded the music I loved so much.. During this time I was also tuned into The Love Zone with Maurice Watts & Howie Vines every Friday night. This is the radio station that I learned many classics from including a little record called "Let's Play House" Which instantly caught my attention because it had that sweet soul harmony sound that I dug so much (which was provided by Samm Culley, Thomas Price & Ervan Waters aka The Diplomats). I was instantly hooked and played it on repeat! I had to find out about this cat named Tony Drake and this great record he cut in 1969. After some research I ended up finding Tony on MySpace and sent him a message. He wrote me back the same day and agreed to do an interview with me. I was very nervous doing my first interview and TD knew it. But talking to him was like talking with an old friend rather than a Soul Legend. Over the years we kept in touch and would talk for hours.. TD would tell me incredible stories about hanging out with Marshall Thompson & The Chi-Lites, Harold Melvin, members of the Temptations and of course his old friend Jackie Wilson. I always thought of him as like another father to me and he always considered me to be like another son. Im beyond saddened just knowing I'll never be able to call him again.. TD made a huge impact on me and Im glad I got the chance to know him. I'm going to miss my friend, mentor and Soul pops. R.I.P Samuel Earl Garner aka Tony Drake (1945-2017)

Unknown Soul Artists

As a collector of Soul music Promotional photos I sometimes run across photos that are Unknown.. These are faces lost in time and its hard to say if we will ever know who they are.. This band is possibly from the DC Area I'm told.. Any clues would be great!