This is something of a sequel to RPM's The In Crowd: UK Mod R&B Beat, 1964-1967. Something of a sequel since, although this collection covers the same era, it's a mix of British and American performers, where the prior volume was entirely British. Empire Made is also more explicitly soul-focused, too, although it does make room for some of the more blues- and rock-tinted shades of R&B. Listeners not easily inclined to go with the flow might object to the less focused concept, and it's true that it's a bit of a marble of records fitting under the umbrella of mid-'60s British mod fodder. Nonetheless, the quality of the music is fairly high, mixing not-terribly-well-known cuts by pretty well-known artists with obscurities from both sides of the ocean. In the former category, there are off-the-beaten tracks by the Isley Brothers, the pre-superstardom O'Jays, the pre-stardom Billy Preston, John Lee Hooker, Chuck Jackson, Chris Farlowe, the Spencer Davis Group, and the Pretty Things (though that band's "Come See Me" is actually one of their more popular 1960s singles). Getting into more cultish territory, there are decent sides by British R&B favorites Chris Farlowe and Duffy Power; a 1966 soul tune by the Love Affair, later to become substantial British stars (though never a name in the States); the Smoke's "It Could Be Wonderful," one of that mod band's most soul-influenced tracks; and little-heard, though hardly great, selections by the Alan Bown Set and Charles Dickens. One of the more interesting U.S. soul rarities is Sammy Ambrose's "This Diamond Ring," which probably more accurately reflects what composers Al Kooper and Irwin Levine had in mind for the song before it was covered for a huge hit by Gary Lewis & the Playboys. Also on board are solid soul tunes by mid-level performers like Darrell Banks and Alvin Cash & the Crawlers, whose instrumental "Twine Time" was a big American hit. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide