Richard "Dimples" Fields was one of the most unusual figures on the soul music landscape: a self-proclaimed feminist who portrayed himself as a two-timing ladies' man, whose quirky ballads were alternately earnest and humorous - sometimes uncomfortably so.   Fields made his gambit for mainstream success under the patronage of Casablanca Records founder Neil Bogart.  He brought the soul man onto his eclectic Boardwalk Records roster alongside such artists as Joan Jett, Ringo Starr, Carole Bayer Sager, The Beach Boys' Mike Love, Ohio Players, Chris Christian, and Harry Chapin.  On June 28, Cherry Red's Robinsongs imprint will collect Fields' entire Boardwalk album output - along with two albums recorded for RCA - on the 3CD set The Albums 1980-1985.

The set includes all three of Fields' Boardwalk LPs - Dimples (1980), Mr. Look So Good (1982), Give Everybody Some (1982) - and his two RCA releases, Mmm... (1984) and Dark Gable (1985). Hailing from Oakland, California by way of Hammond, Louisiana and possessed of a lighter-than-air voice that could recall Smokey Robinson one minute and Michael Jackson the next, Fields had worked his way up the showbiz ladder.  Before joining Boardwalk, he'd self-released three albums on which he'd honed his irreverent persona and displayed a willingness to push the boundaries of good taste.  Bogart's industry clout positioned Dimples to attract a wide, mainstream audience far beyond his cult-favorite independent LPs, but he was also promised the creative freedom to write and produce his albums as he saw fit.

Dimples included what remains Fields' signature song. "She's Got Papers on Me" sounds much like a standard soul ballad of the day: lush and pretty, with sweet background vocals and a sincere lead.  But Dimples isn't serenading his woman with a message of love.  Instead, he's complaining that he'd rather be with his mistress than with his wife who, unfortunately, holds that pesky marriage license (the "papers" in question).  Around four-and-a-half minutes into the nearly seven-minute track, though, he flips the script.  Betty Wright shows up as the singer's scorned wife and promptly cuts him down to size.  Wright's defiant rap elevated "She's Got Papers on Me" from a mere novelty to a must-hear song.  Shockingly, Boardwalk never released the turntable hit - which attracted national attention, inspired answer songs, and stoked controversy within the African-American community - as an A-side.  But Dimples was everywhere, garnering attention in JET, Record World, Cash Box, and Billboard and appearances on American Bandstand with the typically unflappable Dick Clark even a bit bemused.

1982's Mr. Look So Good was previewed by the single release of what would become Fields' most commercially successful song.  "If It Ain't One Thing...It's Another" was revived from his 1974 indie LP Spoiled Rotten, but he replaced the original's lo-fi instrumentation with lush strings and background voices.  The song finds a blasé singer listing societal ills (taxes are too high, the suicide rate is up) as well as his own "first world" problems (his woman is "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde").  For the extended Boardwalk take, Fields added to his list of complaints, most memorably exclaiming with incredulity, "This ugly woman named Sadie calls and says she's having my baby!"  Only moments later, he's asking his listeners to read the Bible and pray for him.  Much as he had on "She's Got Papers on Me," Dimples subverted all expectations.  He blended sincerity with casual misogyny, and laced biting social observations with (ironic?) humor.  The song shot to No. 1 for three weeks on the Billboard Hot Soul Singles chart.  It also gave Dimples his only U.S. pop hit when it reached a respectable peak of No. 47 on the Billboard Hot 100.  The album also included such eyebrow-raising fare as "(A Woman at Home and) A Freak on the Side" and the "She's Got Papers on Me" sequel "Taking Applications," alongside covers of The Moonglows' "Sincerely" and Jackie Wilson's "Baby Work Out."  He had included revivals of The Five Satins' "In the Still of the Night" and The Penguins' "Earth Angel" on Dimples, and would continue to feature faithful updates of oldies on his Boardwalk LPs.

Dimples' third Boardwalk set, Give Everybody Some, offered more social commentary with "People Treat You Funky (When Ya Ain't Got No Money!)" plus slick renditions of Sam Cooke's "You Send Me" and the jazz staple "Moody's Mood for Love."  The latter featured a vocal spot from Patrice Rushen, while The Waters were featured on the upbeat admonition to "Let It All Hang Out."  With the passing of Neil Bogart, though, Boardwalk was folding, and so Fields moved to RCA for his next two albums.  Mmm... included the steppers' favorite "Jazzy Lady" (another re-recording from his indie days) and the lead single "Your Wife Is Cheatin' on Us," with Dimples tackling double infidelity with a Michael Jackson-esque lead vocal.  The punningly-titled Dark Gable had love and lust on the mind (what else?) with such songs as "Real Good Lovin' Tonight" and the lyrically shocking "Neckgrabber."  He offered pointed words of advice to young women in startlingly frank fashion on "Don't Give It Up Too Soon" but settled down for a credible remake of England Dan and John Ford Coley's hit "I'd Really Love to See You Tonight."

Dimples moved onto Columbia for one more major label album, 1987's Tellin' It Like It Is, before returning to independent recording.  He died in 2000 of a stroke, but not before leaving a behind a fascinating discography of truly singular R&B, pop, and soul.  The Albums 1980-1985 is housed in an eight-panel digipak, and the 20-page full-color booklet includes new liner notes by TSD's own Joe Marchese as well as credits and photos.  Oli Hemingway has mastered from best available sources, per the label.  This celebration of Mr. Look So Good is out on June 28 from Cherry Red's Robinsongs imprint, and you'll find the track listing and pre-order links below!

Richard "Dimples" Fields, The Albums 1980-1985 (Robinsongs ROBIN72T, 2024) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

CD 1

1. I Like Your Lovin'
2. Let Me Take You in My Arms Tonight
3. Let the Lady Dance
4. Lovely Lady
5. In the Still of the Night (I'll Remember)
6. She's Got Papers on Me
7. I've Got to Learn to Say No
8. Earth Angel
9. Don't Ever Take Your Love
10. If It Ain't One Thing, It's Another
11. After I Put My Lovin' on You
12. Baby Work Out
13. Look So Good
14. Taking Applications
15. (A Woman at Home and) A Freak on the Side
16. Sincerely
17. The Lady Is Bad

CD 2

1. People Treat You Funky (When Ya Ain't Got No Money)
2. Butter
3. Wish Somebody Loved Me (The Way I Love You)
4. Don't Ever Stop Chasing Your Dreams
5. You Shouldn't Have Made It So Good
6. Let It All Hang Out
7. You Send Me
8. Moody's Mood for Love (I'm in the Mood for Love)
9. Goodbye You...Hello Her
10. Jazzy Lady
11. Your Wife Is Cheatin' on Us
12. Dear Mr. God
13. Woman (Let Me Into Your Life)
14. Dog or a Hog?
15. We've Gotta Stop Meetin' Like This

CD 3

1. Don't Turn Your Back on My Love
2. I Need You So
3. Shake 'Em Down
4. Real Good Lovin' Tonight
5. Neckgrabber
6. I'd Really Love to See You Tonight
7. Make My Dreams Come True
8. Don't Give It Up Too Soon
9. One Special One
10. You Sure Know How to Give a Party
11. She's a Bad Li'l Lady

CD 1, Tracks 1-9 from Dimples, Boardwalk LP NB1-33232, 1980
CD 1, Tracks 10-17 from Mr. Look So Good, Boardwalk LP NB1-33249, 1982
CD 2, Tracks 1-9 from Give Everybody Some, Boardwalk LP NB-33258, 1982
CD 2, Tracks 10-15 & CD 3, Tracks 1-2 from Mmm..., RCA LP AFL1-5169, 1984
CD 3, Tracks 3-11 from Dark Gable, RCA LP AFL1-5482, 1985