ETTA JAMES - SINGS FUNK
Etta
James has sung plenty of styles over the years – R&B in the 50s, soul in
the 60s, even a touch of jazz during her years at Chess – but this smoking set
has Etta singing funk in a mighty bold way – turning her hard soul style
towards some super-sharp grooves! The album's a treasure in the best funky
blues tradition of late 60s Chess work by artists like Muddy Waters or Howlin
Wolf – and the session was unusually recorded in LA, with arrangements by Gene
Barge and Rene Hall – who balance out the sound nicely. Etta's vocals are right
up top the whole way through – and there's a few mellower ballads that have a
hard-burning, deep soul feel. Titles include "The Man I Love",
"Sound Of Love", "Nothing From Nothing Leaves Nothing",
"Your Replacement", and "Tighten Up Your Own Thing". ~ Dusty Groove
BILLY STEWART - I DO LOVE YOU
There's
nobody like Billy Stewart at all – one of the first big overweight lovers in
soul music, and still one of the best – and a godlike talent who was blessed
with a voice that can still send us into raptures so many years later! Billy
passed way to early to leave his mark in the wider annals of soul – but a
record like this is more than enough of a legacy – as it's filled with just the
sort of tunes that made Stewart so unique – especially the kind of
slow-stepping ballads that still managed to come off with a really hard edge.
The vocals are sublime – with the same reach as in his "Summertime"
hit, but turned towards some more personal original material – including
classics like "Sitting In The Park", "I Do Love You",
"Fat Boy", "Fat Boy Can Cry", and "Strange Feeling".
A treasure! ~ Dusty Groove
ROY HAYNES - HIP ENSEMBLE
Drummer
Roy Haynes works here with an ensemble that's definitely as hip as the title
promises – a really righteous group that makes the album one of Roy's most
spiritual records ever! Haynes was always a drummer who was really a cut above,
even back at the start – but here, he really steps out strongly with a new
musical vision for the 70s – working with a lineup that includes George Adams
on tenor and flute and Marvin Hannibal Peterson on trumpet – but players who
give the music a really bold feel, right from the start! The rest of the lineup
is wonderful, too – as Carl Schroeder plays Fender Rhodes with this flowing
vibe that's plenty soulful – alongside bass from Terud Nakamura and Mervin
Bronson, conga from Lawrence Kilian, bongo from Elwood Johnson, and more drums from
Haynes himself. Titles include a sublime reading of Stanley Cowell's
"Equipoise" – plus "Tangiers", "You Name It", and
"Satan's Mysterious Feeling". ~ Dusty Groove
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