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Because of her blues-based comeback in the '90s, Etta James is usually thought of by the general public as a blues singer, but there's a good deal more to the picture than that, and this well-chosen and stunningly varied four-disc anthology, the first extensive survey of her entire career from 1955 to 2008, makes clear that Etta James has long been one of the best singers of her generation -- in any style. In many ways James resembles a female Ray Charles in her unerring ability to tackle (and sometimes combine) all of the strands of American popular music, from rock & roll to R&B, blues, country, gospel, jazz, and pure pop and soul, while still maintaining a distinct feel and sound that is all her own, and she has done this throughout a five-decade career that is astounding for its consistency. There’s so much to marvel at here, beginning with 1955's "The Wallflower" (an answer song to Hank Ballard's "Roll with Me Annie") and ending with a previously unreleased version of Rodney Crowell's “Ashes by Now” from 2008. In between, this set shows off the range of this impressive artist, who tackles everything from orchestral pop (her signature "At Last" from 1960), torch songs ("Don't Cry Baby" from 1961), gospel ("Something's Got a Hold on Me" from 1962), and heart-wrenching soul ("Tell Mama" and "I'd Rather Go Blind," both from 1967) to the unclassifiable (Randy Newman's gothic and lusty "Let's Burn Down the Cornfield" from 1974). It’s all here, drawn from James' incredible recording career on the Modern, Argo, Chess, Warner Bros., Fantasy, Island, Private Music, and RCA Victor imprints. Yeah, Etta James can sing the blues. She can sing anything she wants to, and there’s plenty of proof of that in this welcome (and long overdue) retrospective.
© Steve Leggett /TiVo
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Don Johnson, Trumpet, AssociatedPerformer - Richard Berry, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Johnny Otis, Drums, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Hank Ballard, ComposerLyricist - Maxwell Davis, Producer - Big Jim Wynn, Baritone Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - Devonia Williams, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Jean Mitchell, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Abbye Mitchell, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2003 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Richard Berry, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Joe Josea, ComposerLyricist - Jesse Belvin, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Maxwell Davis, Producer, Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - Devonia Williams, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Leard Bell, Drums, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1955 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Richard Berry, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Joe Josea, ComposerLyricist - Jesse Belvin, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, MainArtist - Maxwell Davis, Producer, Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - Others, Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - Devonia Williams, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Leard Bell, Drums, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1955 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Richard Berry, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Jesse Belvin, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Maxwell Davis, Producer, Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - Dorothy Hawkins, ComposerLyricist - Devonia Williams, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Jean Mitchell, ComposerLyricist - Abbye Mallory, ComposerLyricist - Leard Bell, Drums, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1955 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Earl Palmer, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Joe Josea, ComposerLyricist - Justin Adams, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Dave Bartholomew, Trumpet, AssociatedPerformer - Lee Allen, Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - Harold Battiste, Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1956 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Diaz Johnson, ComposerLyricist - Howard Batiste, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1957 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Richard Berry, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Scott Johnson, ComposerLyricist - Ed Townsend, ComposerLyricist - HARVEY FUQUA, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Guitar, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Maxwell Davis, Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - The Peaches, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Ronie Rae, ComposerLyricist - Maxwell Davis Orchestra, Orchestra/Member, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1958 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Richard Berry, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Joe Josea, ComposerLyricist - HARVEY FUQUA, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Guitar, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Maxwell Davis, Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - The Peaches, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Maxwell Davis Orchestra, Orchestra/Member, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1958 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1957 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Berry Gordy Jr., ComposerLyricist - Gwen Gordy Fuqua, ComposerLyricist - Billy Davis, ComposerLyricist - Riley Hampton, Conductor, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1960 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Riley Hampton, Conductor, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, MainArtist - Edward Bocage, ComposerLyricist - Paul Gayten, ComposerLyricist - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1960 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Riley Hampton, Conductor, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - HARVEY FUQUA, Vocals, FeaturedArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, MainArtist, ComposerLyricist - Riley Hampton Orchestra, Orchestra - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1960 UMG Recordings, Inc.
WILLIE DIXON, ComposerLyricist - Riley Hampton, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Riley Hampton Orchestra, Orchestra - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1960 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Riley Hampton, Conductor, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - HARVEY FUQUA, Vocals, FeaturedArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, MainArtist, ComposerLyricist - Riley Hampton Orchestra, Orchestra - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1960 UMG Recordings, Inc.
WILLIE DIXON, ComposerLyricist - Riley Hampton, Conductor, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - HARVEY FUQUA, MainArtist - Etta James, MainArtist - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1960 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Barbara Belle, ComposerLyricist - Anita Leonard, ComposerLyricist - Stan Rhodes, ComposerLyricist - Louis Prima, ComposerLyricist - Riley Hampton, Conductor, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1960 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Harry Warren, ComposerLyricist - Mack Gordon, ComposerLyricist - Riley Hampton, Conductor, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1960 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Harold Arlen, ComposerLyricist - Ted Koehler, ComposerLyricist - Riley Hampton, Conductor, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1960 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Milton Ager, Composer - Jean Schwartz, Composer - Riley Hampton, Conductor, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Ned Wever, Author - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1960 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Saul Bernie, ComposerLyricist - Stella Unger, ComposerLyricist - Riley Hampton, Conductor, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - James P. Johnson, ComposerLyricist - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1961 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Riley Hampton, Conductor, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Floyd Hunt, ComposerLyricist - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1961 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Burt Bacharach, ComposerLyricist - Bob Hilliard, ComposerLyricist - Riley Hampton, Conductor, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, MainArtist - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1961 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Leroy Kirkland, ComposerLyricist - Pearl Woods, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1962 Geffen Records
Leroy Kirkland, ComposerLyricist - Pearl Woods, ComposerLyricist - Al Duncan, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - John Young, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer - Reggie Boyd, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Matthew Mcauley Murphy, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1961 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Jack Strachey, ComposerLyricist - Harry Link, ComposerLyricist - Holt Marvell, ComposerLyricist - Riley Hampton, Conductor, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, MainArtist - RALPH BASS, Producer
℗ 1962 UMG Recordings, Inc.
DISC 2
Leroy Kirkland, ComposerLyricist - Pearl Woods, ComposerLyricist - Fred Johnson, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - RALPH BASS, Producer - Freddy Johnson, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1962 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Bert Keyes, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Billy Davis, Producer, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Tony Clarke, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1962 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Cliff Parman, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer - Bob Forshee, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1962 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Billy Davis, Producer, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, MainArtist
℗ 1963 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Billy Davis, Producer, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, MainArtist - Tony Clarke, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1963 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Jimmy Reed, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, MainArtist - RALPH BASS, Producer - The Kinfolks, Ensemble - Dana King, Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 1963 UMG Recordings, Inc.
James Mitchell, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1964 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Irma Thomas, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, MainArtist - Leonard Chess, Producer
℗ 1964 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Billy Davis, Producer - Etta James, MainArtist - McAllister, ComposerLyricist - Terry Vail, ComposerLyricist - Leonard Chess, Producer
℗ 1964 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Billy Davis, Producer - Etta James, MainArtist - Terry Vail, ComposerLyricist - Maurice McAllister, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1965 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Billy Davis, Producer - Ted Daryll, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, MainArtist
℗ 1965 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Billy Davis, Producer - Etta James, MainArtist - Sugar Pie DeSanto, MainArtist - Peylia Parham, ComposerLyricist - Shena Dermell, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1965 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Jimmie Davis, ComposerLyricist - Jimmy Sherman, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, MainArtist - RALPH BASS, Producer - Roger Ramirez, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1995 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Billy Davis, Producer, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Raynard Miner, Producer, ComposerLyricist - Carl William Smith, Producer, ComposerLyricist - Sugar Pie DeSanto, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1966 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - RALPH BASS, Producer - Monk Higgins, Producer, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Maurice Dollison, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1966 Geffen Records
Billy Foster, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, MainArtist - RALPH BASS, Producer - Monk Higgins, Producer, ComposerLyricist - Maurice Dollison, ComposerLyricist - Chuck Benard, ComposerLyricist - Chuck Bernard, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1967 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Billy Foster, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, MainArtist - RALPH BASS, Producer - Monk Higgins, Producer, ComposerLyricist - Maurice Dollison, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1967 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Billy Foster, ComposerLyricist - Ellington Jordan, ComposerLyricist - Rick Hall, Producer, Engineer, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer, StudioPersonnel - Gene "Bowlegs" Miller, Trumpet, AssociatedPerformer - Charles Chalmers, Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - FLOYD NEWMAN, Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - David Hood, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Aaron Varnell, Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - Dewey Oldham, Organ, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Jimmy Ray Johnson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Carl Banks, Organ, AssociatedPerformer - Albert Lowe, Jr., Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Roger Dawkins, Drums, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1967 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Wilbur Terrell, ComposerLyricist - Marcus Lewis Daniel, ComposerLyricist - Rick Hall, Producer, Engineer, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer, StudioPersonnel - Gene "Bowlegs" Miller, Trumpet, AssociatedPerformer - Clarence Carter, ComposerLyricist - Charles Chalmers, Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - FLOYD NEWMAN, Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - David Hood, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Aaron Varnell, Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - Dewey Oldham, Organ, AssociatedPerformer - Etta James, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Jimmy Ray Johnson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Carl Banks, Organ, AssociatedPerformer - Albert Lowe, Jr., Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Roger Dawkins, Drums, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1967 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Rick Hall, Producer - Chips Moman, ComposerLyricist - Dan Penn, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1993 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Leonard Caston, ComposerLyricist - Rick Hall, Producer, Recording Engineer, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer, StudioPersonnel - Etta James, MainArtist - Lloyd Cleveland Webber, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1968 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Rick Hall, Producer, Recording Engineer, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer, StudioPersonnel - Otis Redding, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Margaret Wesson, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1967 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Glenn Sutton, ComposerLyricist - Rick Hall, Producer, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - BILLY SHERRILL, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Billy N. Sherrill, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1968 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Rick Hall, Producer, Recording Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Don Covay, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, MainArtist
℗ 1968 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Oliver Sain, ComposerLyricist - Etta James, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Marshall Chess, Producer
℗ 2000 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Album review
Because of her blues-based comeback in the '90s, Etta James is usually thought of by the general public as a blues singer, but there's a good deal more to the picture than that, and this well-chosen and stunningly varied four-disc anthology, the first extensive survey of her entire career from 1955 to 2008, makes clear that Etta James has long been one of the best singers of her generation -- in any style. In many ways James resembles a female Ray Charles in her unerring ability to tackle (and sometimes combine) all of the strands of American popular music, from rock & roll to R&B, blues, country, gospel, jazz, and pure pop and soul, while still maintaining a distinct feel and sound that is all her own, and she has done this throughout a five-decade career that is astounding for its consistency. There’s so much to marvel at here, beginning with 1955's "The Wallflower" (an answer song to Hank Ballard's "Roll with Me Annie") and ending with a previously unreleased version of Rodney Crowell's “Ashes by Now” from 2008. In between, this set shows off the range of this impressive artist, who tackles everything from orchestral pop (her signature "At Last" from 1960), torch songs ("Don't Cry Baby" from 1961), gospel ("Something's Got a Hold on Me" from 1962), and heart-wrenching soul ("Tell Mama" and "I'd Rather Go Blind," both from 1967) to the unclassifiable (Randy Newman's gothic and lusty "Let's Burn Down the Cornfield" from 1974). It’s all here, drawn from James' incredible recording career on the Modern, Argo, Chess, Warner Bros., Fantasy, Island, Private Music, and RCA Victor imprints. Yeah, Etta James can sing the blues. She can sing anything she wants to, and there’s plenty of proof of that in this welcome (and long overdue) retrospective.
© Steve Leggett /TiVo
About the album
- 3 disc(s) - 71 track(s)
- Total length: 03:44:55
- Main artists: Etta James
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Geffen
- Genre: Blues/Country/Folk Blues
© 2011 UMG Recordings, Inc. This Compilation ℗ 2011 UMG Recordings, Inc.
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