The Counts (1973) Love Sign +2 (Ultra-Vybe 2021)

 

The Counts released their third album, Love Sign, in 1973 on Aware Records.

The album highlights the band’s interplay with stretched-out funk vamps, jazz-inflected solos, and extended instrumental passages. It marks their first release on Aware and their last with drummer Andrew Gibson.

Guitarist Leroy Emmanuel wrote “Love Sign” and “Too Bad (You Don’t Love Me).” Keyboardist Mose Davis contributed “Just You, Just Me” and “Riding High.” Saxophonist Demo Cates provided “Sacrifice,” while all four members share credit on the closing “Counts Medley (Play It Again, Far Out, Counts Blues).”

The title track unfolds across nearly eight minutes of layered riffs and alternating instrumental breaks. “Too Bad (You Don’t Love Me)” compresses the band’s drive into a tighter format with Emmanuel on lead. Davis balances introspective tones on “Just You, Just Me” against the more strident pace of “Riding High.” “Sacrifice” adds compact vocal passages, while “Counts Medley” stitches together three motifs into a nine-minute performance that moves from brisk funk to freer blues stretches.

The Counts (1971) What's Up Front That-Counts +1 (Westbound Records 2023)

The Counts released their second album, What’s Up Front That Counts, in 1971 on Westbound Records.

The album shifts their focus toward longer, hard-driving funk workouts with a rough Detroit edge, balancing stretched-out jams with compact vocal numbers. It appeared as their first under the shortened name after initial releases as the Fabulous Counts.

Keyboardist Mose Davis wrote three songs (“Rhythm Changes,” “Thinking Single,” and “Bills”). Guitarist Leroy Emanuel contributed “Why Not Start All Over Again.” All five members co-wrote the title track, while saxophonist Demo Cates and vocalist Raoul Keith Mangrum share credits on that piece.

The opening cut, “What’s Up Front That Counts,” runs nearly eight minutes with organ-led riffs, wah-toned guitar, and alternating vocal chants. “Rhythm Changes” rides clipped piano phrases across a taut rhythmic base. Emanuel’s “Why Not Start All Over Again” extends into a six-minute vamp with sharp brass accents, while Davis alternates between brisk, riff-centered funk (“Bills”) and more fluid movements on “Thinking Single” and “Pack of Lies.”

 

The Fabulous Counts (1969) Jan Jan (DBK Works 2008)

The Fabulous Counts released their debut album, Jan Jan, in 1969 on Cotillion Records.
 

The album mixes Davis’ Hammond-led funk instrumentals with vocal soul covers, balancing raw Detroit rhythm with lean arrangements. Its release followed the local success of the title track, which became the band’s signature number.

Organist Mose Davis wrote four tracks, including “Jan Jan,” “The Bite,” “Scrambled Eggs,” and “The Other Thing.” Guitarist Leroy Emanuel contributed “Dirty Red.” They also cover songs by James Brown (“It’s a Man’s, Man’s, Man’s World”), Sly Stone & The Family Stone (“Simple Song”), The Beatles (“Hey Jude”), Young-Holt Unlimited (“Soulful Strut’), and Johnnie Taylor (“Who’s Making Love”). Producer Popcorn Wylie provided “Girl From Kenya.”

“Jan Jan” centers on organ riffs and shifting sax lines, while “Dirty Red” emphasizes Emanuel’s sharp-toned guitar lead. “Scrambled Eggs” and “The Bite” stay close to their R&B-jazz roots with compact instrumental pacing. Covers range from elongated takes on “Hey Jude” and Brown’s torch ballad to brisk, rhythmic versions of “Soulful Strut” and “Who’s Making Love.”