3614 Jackson Highway: Cher immortalized the Sheffield, Alabama address of Muscle Shoals Sound Studio as the title of her 1969 album.  The superstar was just one of the many legends who passed through the Studio's doors in hopes of capturing some of that southern swamp magic; others include The Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin, Paul Simon, Wilson Pickett, Rod Stewart, and Bob Dylan.  Much of that earthy sound was conjured by The Muscle Shoals Horns, the brassy complement to the studio's famed Rhythm Section.  Elton John liked the Horns so much that he even took them on the road, including to Madison Square Garden for the famous November 1974 performance with John Lennon.  Now, Robinsongs has returned The Muscle Shoals Horns' three albums (on various labels, now all under the Sony Music umbrella) to CD in a 2-disc package expanded with five bonus tracks.

Rhythm Section members Barry Beckett, Roger Hawkins, Jimmy Johnson, and David Hood founded Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in 1969 after establishing their tight-knit, gritty sound at Rick Hall's FAME Studios.  Atlantic Records' Jerry Wexler was an early patron, giving the foursome startup funds to start the studio in a former coffin showroom.  3614 Jackson Highway would remain in use until 1979 when the gang moved operations to a larger facility at 1000 Alabama Avenue; in 1985, the studio was sold to Malaco Records who continued to operate it until 2005.  A film production company purchased the building two years later, and it's still in use today as a recording studio.  More miraculously, 3614 Jackson Highway reopened in 2017 as a major tourist attraction by day and functional studio by night.

2016 inductees into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame, The Muscle Shoals Horns were formed by Harvey Thompson (saxophones), Ronnie Eades (baritone sax), Harrison Calloway (trumpet), and Aaron Varnell (trombone).  Not long after, Varnell was replaced by Charles Rose, and the four-piece core lineup remained intact - with other players coming and going - through the mid-1980s.

Studio co-founder and keyboardist Barry Beckett championed the concept of the horn section as headliners.  After playing on the 1975 indie LP The Cream of Muscle Shoals, Beckett ushered them into the studio next year as The Muscle Shoals Horns for their proper debut on Bang Records.  Born to Get Down featured Harrison Calloway on vocals and as the group's primary songwriter; Beckett and drummer Roger Hawkins played on the album, too.  Funk, soul, and the emerging disco sound all influenced the LP, fused with the Muscle Shoals Horns' trademark earthiness.  "Born to Get Down (Born to Mess Around)" gave them a top ten R&B hit and "bubbled under" the Hot 100, while the album itself peaked within the Billboard 200 at No. 154 and a stronger No. 26 on the R&B Albums survey.

They moved from bang to Ariola for 1977's Doin' It to the Bone.  Though Charles Rose wasn't considered part of the official lineup for this record, his trombone playing can still be heard throughout the LP.  An increased budget meant that strings could be featured, too, lending the album a bigger sound than its Bang predecessor.  While floor-fillers were still the order of the day, Doin' It to the Bone also further expanded the group's sound with ballads and flourishes of Latin and jazz.  David Hood, Barry Beckett, and Roger Hawkins all played on the LP.  Lead single "Dance to the Music" (not the Sly and the Family Stone classic) stalled at No. 57 R&B.

By the time of the group's third and final album, Muscle Shoals Sound Studio had moved and the sound of popular music had shifted thanks to the prominence of electronics. 1983's Shine On was recorded for Fred Foster's Monument label with Charles Rose back in the official ranks, and David Hood and Roger Hawkins among the musicians.  Shine On featured synthesizers, drum machines, and vocoders as it embraced a metallic 1980s production style.  The Horns, though, still lent the LP a requisite grit and authenticity missing from many albums of the era.  Shine On failed to chart or to spin off a successful single, but it remains more than a curiosity as it shows the group's soulful sound in an altogether different context.

The Muscle Shoals Horns continued to work throughout the 1980s but had largely parted ways by the dawn of the new decade.  The core lineup reunited in 2015 for the reissue of the albums (now out-of-print) contained on this new collection, and members have since played with Paul McCartney, Buddy Guy, Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, and others.  Robinsongs' reissue of their three major albums includes a 12-page booklet with liner notes by Charles Waring as well as new remastering by Oli Hemingway.  Five bonus singles (four 7" and one 12") are included.  Note that Doin' It to the Bone has been split across two discs to allow all of the material to fit in one package.  This celebratory set from The Muscle Shoals Horns is available now from Cherry Red/Robinsongs at the links below.

Muscle Shoals Horns, Born to Get Down / Doin' It to the Bone / Shine On (Cherry Red/Robinsongs ROBIN69CDD, 2024) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

CD 1:

1. Open Up Your Heart
2. Break Down
3. Where I'm Coming From
4. Hustle to the Music
5. Who's Gonna Love You
6. Bump De Bump Yo Boodie
7. Born to Get Down (Born to Mess Around)
8. Get It Up
9. Give It to Me
10. Bump De Bump Yo Boodie (7" Version)
11. Where I'm Coming From (7" Version)
12. Born to Get Down (Born to Mess Around) (7" Version)
13. Dance to the Music
14. Addicted to Your Love
15. I Just Wanna Turn You On
16. A Love for You (And a Love for Me)
17. What's Goin' Down
18. Sexual Revolution
19. Can't Break the Heart

CD 2:

1. Keep On Playin' That Funky Music
2. Doin' It to the Bone
3. Beware of the Rip-Off
4. I Just Wanna Turn You On (12" Version)
5. Celebrate, Recreate, Participate
6. Don't Bust Yo' Bubbles
7. She Was Once My Woman
8. Get Down Tonight
9. We Can Work It Out
10. Shine On
11. Shoalin' (Funky N' Half-Hip)
12. More Than Ever Now
13. If You Don't Want My Lovin' (Give It Back)
14. She Was Once My Woman (7" Version)

CD 1, Tracks 1-9 from Born to Get Down, Bang LP BLP-403, 1976
CD 1, Tracks 10-11 from Bang single B-728, 1976
CD 1, Track 12 from Bang single B-721, 1976
CD 1, Tracks 13-19 and CD 2, Tracks 1-3 from Doin' It to the Bone, Ariola America LP ST-50021, 1977
CD 2, Track 4 from Ariola America 12-inch single PRO-7693, 1978
CD 2, Tracks 5-13 from Shine On, Monument LP FW 38530, 1983
CD 2, Track 14 from Monument single WS4-03874, 1983