The Escorts

Artist: The Escorts

LP: All We Need Is Another Chance

Song: "Look Over Your Shoulder"

[ listen ]

Before leaving Smash Records, I inquired about other basement record stores nearby. I remembered visiting one in the Adams Morgan area three years before, but I couldn't remember its name. The guy directed me to Joint Custody across the street, which had a really narrow stone stairwell entrance leading to minty green caverns filled with vintage riches. The store had only been open for a couple of months, so it wasn't the place I'd been looking for (I found it the following day), but Joint Custody had some really great stuff—like this 1973 debut LP by The Escorts, a soul group made of guys doing hard time in New Jersey's Rahway State Prison for crimes like armed robbery and murder. I don't know about you, but if someone accosted me on the street and started singing like these guys do here, they could go ahead and murder and armed robberize me and I'd hardly make any fuss at all. Surprisingly, there's no info about The Escorts on Wikipedia, but you can read about Reginald Haynes, one of the original members of the group, on the Legendary Escorts webpage here. I've included notes and lots of neat photos from the back and inside of the album below, and the track posted above includes an interview soundbite from producer and Motown veteran George Kerr.

[ the outside of Joint Custody — Washington, DC ]

[ the Joint Custody stairwell — Washington, DC ]

[ the inside of Joint Custody — Washington, DC ]