Love Songs [RCA Victor/Legacy]

by Etta James

Overview

There can be no debate about Etta James' many gifts as an interpreter of blues, R&B, soul, and jazz -- and she also has a way with a country song that makes the best of them sit up and take notice. Her long and varied career has taken her all along the American music highway. This set of love songs comes almost exclusively from her later BMG-affiliated label recordings, made in mid-'90s and early 21st century -- the opening cut, however, "At Last," was originally issued in 1960 on the Chess label. Many veteran listeners who prefer James' 1950s music may have a hard time appreciating this phase in her career, and it's their loss. For those who do, however (and for those who have yet to encounter the singer properly), these 15 cuts will be a small revelation. Compiled to accent her softer jazz singing persona, Love Songs sets James in the company of jazz greats including Cedar Walton, Tony Dumas, Red Holloway, and George Bohannon on her readings of standards such as "He's Funny That Way," "My Man," "Teach Me Tonight," and "I'll Be Seeing You," among others. Elsewhere, James can be found digging into deeply soulful nuggets like Otis Redding's "I've Been Loving You Too Long" and Brook Benton's "I'll Take Care of You." The closer is her now classically controversial version of Cole Porter's "Night and Day," where she turns the tune inside out and makes it completely her own. But the most beautiful thing here is the skeletal, deeply moving and introspective "My Funny Valentine," where she is accompanied only by a guitar and a trumpet. For the money, this comp is a solidly different taste of James and should be considered. ~ Thom Jurek

Product Details

Release Date:	01/10/2006
Label:	Legacy
UPC:	0828767581521

Tracks

1. At Last
2. I've Been Loving You Too Long
3. There Is No Greater Love
4. He's Funny That Way
5. I'll Take Care of You
6. Come Rain or Come Shine
7. My Man
8. Try a Little Tenderness
9. Teach Me Tonight
10. Time After Time
11. I'll Be Seeing You
12. My Funny Valentine
13. Body and Soul
14. The Man I Love
15. Night and Day

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Etta James   Primary Artist,Vocals
Eddie Harris   Saxophone,Guest Artist,Soloist,Sax (Tenor)
Paul Humphrey   Drums
Cedar Walton   Guest Artist,Piano,Soloist
Sam Levine   Horn
Ralph Penland   Drums,Percussion
Red Holloway   Sax (Alto),Sax (Tenor)
Brent Rowan   Guitar (Electric)
Dann Huff   Guitar (Electric)
Herman Riley   Soloist,Sax (Tenor)
Donna McElroy   Vocals (Background)
Jimmy "Z" Zavala   Sax (Tenor)
Joe McGlohon   Horn
Mike Haynes   Horn
Paul Franklin   Guitar (Steel)
Bobby Murray   Guitar,Soloist
Louis Dean Nunley   Vocals (Background)
Leo Nocentelli   Guitar,Guitar (Electric)
George Bohannon   Trombone
The Riley Hampton Orchestra   Vocals
Kraig Kilby   Trombone
Donto Metto James   Drums,Percussion
Don Potter   Guitar (Acoustic)
Steve Nathan   Keyboards
Vicki Hampton   Vocals (Background)
Tony Dumas   Bass
Terry McMillan   Percussion
Chris McDonald   Horn
Barry Beckett   Keyboards
Lee Thornburg   Trumpet,Trombone (Valve)
John Wesley Ryles   Vocals (Background)
Josh Sklair   Dobro,Guitar,Soloist,Guitar (Electric)
Sametto James   Bass
Ronnie Buttacavoli   Trumpet,Flugelhorn
Jim Horn   Horn
Yvonne Hodges   Vocals (Background)
Michael Rhodes   Bass
Eddie Bayers   Drums
John Clayton   Bass

Technical Credits

Leonard Chess   Audio Production,Producer
Jay Newland   Engineer,Mixing
Joseph M. Palmaccio   Mastering
Jimmy Campbell   Composer
Marty Symes   Composer
Phil Chess   Producer,Audio Production
Reginald Connelly   Composer
Brook Benton   Composer
John Snyder   Producer
Richard McKernan   Assistant Engineer,Mixing Assistant
Howard Fritzson   Art Direction
Dianne Spoto   Liner Notes,Packaging Manager
M. Gordon   Composer
Fulya Yagiz   Design
Kwaku Alston   Photography
Alan Mason   Assistant Engineer
Irving Kahal   Composer
Steven Berkowitz   A&R
Gene DePaul   Composer
Isham Jones   Composer
Cole Porter   Composer
Jeremy Holiday   A&R
Barry Feldman   Compilation Producer
Sammy Fain   Composer
Albert Willemetz   Composer
Sammy Cahn   Composer
Seth Rothstein   Project Director
Donto Metto James   Producer
George Gershwin   Composer
Ira Gershwin   Composer
Lorenz Hart   Composer
Cedar Walton   Arranger
Jacques Charles   Composer
Barry Beckett   Producer
Channing Pollack   Composer
Etta James   Producer
Sametto James   Producer
Maurice Yvain   Composer