Like volume five of this series, this is devoted to soul hits of the late '60s and early '70s, though oddly (again, like volume five) there's no indication from the title that this is a soul collection. Like this whole series, the ostensible purpose is to gather a bunch of rare versions: All 16 of the tracks are presented in their "stereo single version," except for the Parliaments' "(I Wanna) Testify" and Robert Parker's "Barefootin'," which are heard in (you guessed it) their mono single versions. If you have the kind of tin ears that fail to easily distinguish between these and other versions you might have heard, you'll still find it a good selection of soul hits that usually aren't over-played on oldies radio, also including the Esquires' "Get on Up," Bob & Earl's "Harlem Shuffle," Archie Bell's "I Can't Stop Dancing," Brenton Wood's "Oogum Boogum Song," and the Friends of Distinction's "Going in Circles." As for really big smashes, you get the Isley Brothers' "It's Your Thing," King Floyd's "Groove Me," and Jean Knight's "Mr. Big Stuff." There's also a smattering of less overexposed chart singles that you might not have heard in a long time: Spyder Turner's "Stand By Me" (which contains some amusing impressions of 1960s soul stars), Peggy Scott & Jo Jo Benson's "Lover's Holiday," James Carr's "The Dark End of the Street," R.B. Greaves' "Always Something There to Remind Me," and the Staple Singers' "Heavy Makes You Happy (Sha-Na-Boom-Boom)." ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide