Marvin Sease - Motel Lover (London 876 224-7)
Motel Lover
Please join me in saying goodbye to the ageless Marvin Sease, who left us yesterday, February 8th. An absolute fixture on the 'Soul-Blues' circuit over the past twenty years, his naughty 'grown-folks' music brought the cheatin' song to the next level, and helped define the genre they now call 'Southern Soul' in the process.
I bought this 45 down at Houserocker Records in Lafayette, Louisiana in 1989. It was a huge local hit - just all over the radio down there, and yet it never even dented the national R&B charts. This is the kind of regional marginalization that frustrated Marvin throughout his career. Along with folks like Roy C and Clarence Carter, he was an immensely popular performer that somehow remained under the radar of the mainstream music industry. He was scheduled to appear this weekend in Montgomery, Alabama as part of something billed as the 'Valentine Cabaret'... the ladies just loved him, man.
May God Rest His Soul.