In the late ’60s, Bell recorded a number of male/female duets with partners Judy Clay, Carla Thomas, and Mavis Staples; the ones with Clay were the most successful, “Private Number” and “My Baby Specializes” becoming modest R&B hits. All of his duet projects are assembled here, along with three solo sides that he cut in the 1970s. It’s not among Bell’s most striking work, but it’s decent pop/soul, closer to Motown in feel than a lot of Stax material. I don’t know what the deal is, but the version of “My Baby Specializes” here, though credited to Bell and Clay, only seems to feature Clay, unless that’s Bell adding an odd backup grunt here and there. – Richie Unterberger
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