The Relatives

The Relatives

A glorious hour of witness on the Continental Club stage in October and it's easy to see how Dallas' Relatives might have been overlooked. They're born of the church, but the Rev. Gean West's holler and the group's amalgam of soul, funk, and R&B point higher. Back in the early 1970s, West and his (actual) Relatives had a minor hit with "Don't Let Me Fall," a sweet sip of redemptive, almost psychedelic soul. Cue local archivists Heavy Light Records, who have unearthed 10 more songs – four previously unreleased – pressed them to vinyl and CD, and given them light. The recordings are rough in spots, but the material is illuminating and diverse, whether proto rap ("Rap On"), good-foot funk ("This World Is Moving Too Fast"), and velvet harmonizing ("Speak to Me"), never mind the relentless bassline of "Walking On." Liner notes come courtesy of Chronicle scribe Thomas Fawcett, who got to hang with the reverend and hear the story of how Houston label owner Don Robey, impressed with West's voice, tried to get him to go R&B. "That's before James Brown got famous. That's the God's heaven truth."