The Prix Label

Three years we told the world about Columbus, Ohio’s secret soul history, Numero returned to the scene of the crime for further exploration. Victim: Clem Price and George Beter’s no-rep custom studio Harmonic Sounds and its Prix imprint. Built around a few stray boxes of demos, including Penny & the Quarters’ uplifting “You And Me”—as featured in the 2010 film Blue Valentine—the balance of this 19-song collection is filled out with thrilling, previously released material by northern souldiers Joe King and the Royal Esquires, funk workouts from O.F.S. Unlimited, Mitch Mitchell & Gene King, the Soul Ensemble, and Chip Willis, dark, brooding deep soul from Marion Black, and heartstopping, salvation-seeking soul by Eddie Ray. Dante Carfagna’s notes provide crucial insight into Prix’s place on the local scene, and the package is illustrated with dozens of photographs, label scans, and a discographical survey of this brief, but brilliant early ’70s label.