v/a- LENIS GUESS PRESENTS UNBROKEN MELODIES: Various Artists Out Of Norfolk, Virginia LP

Highly recommended.

A mighty deep dig into the overlooked soul scene in Virginia – put together by the same folks who gave us the fantastic Raw Soul/Ol Virginia Soul compilations a number of years back.

The set focuses on the special studio productions of Lenis Guess – head of LGA Records, and a strong force in the underground scene in Norfolk – a city east of Richmond, and one that had its own great little soul scene for a number of years too.

Some of the material here was issued on very small run 7" singles – but a number of others also never saw the light of day back in the 70s, yet are killers that resonate equally well with the singles – raw soul with a nicely gritty vibe, and some slight traces of the more upbeat modes that were hitting Virginia at the time.