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One of R&B's earliest divas, LaVern Baker could grab hold of a song and belt it out with the best of them, whether she was singing bouncy, up-tempo rock & roll or bluesy torch ballads. Baker's contributions to the rockin' and rollin' wing of '50s R&B were in a class with Atlantic labelmates Ruth Brown and the Clyde McPhatter-era Drifters, as the stellar 20-track compilation Soul on Fire: The Best of LaVern Baker proves. Baker had a muscular delivery and a commanding personality on record, so much so that her ravishing visual appeal wasn't even necessary (though it certainly didn't hurt). Here she bellows and growls her way through rock & roll standards like "Tweedlee Dee" (her first big hit), the oft-covered "Jim Dandy" (her only R&B chart-topper), and "See See Rider," not to mention Leiber & Stoller's gospel pastiche "Saved." But Baker was equally powerful on her slow numbers, turning in positively smoldering performances on the classics "Soul on Fire," "Play It Fair," "I Cried a Tear" (her biggest pop hit), and "I Waited Too Long," among others. Baker isn't as much of a household name as she probably ought to be, but Soul on Fire is required listening for anyone interested in the first waves of R&B and rock & roll.
© Steve Huey /TiVo
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Jerry Wexler, Producer - Lloyd Trotman, Bass - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - Freddie Mitchell, Tenor Saxophone - Pinky Williams, Baritone Saxophone - LaVern Baker, Vocals, Writer, MainArtist - Jimmy Lewis, Guitar - Hank Jones, Piano - Gene Redd, Conductor, Arranger - Jermet, Writer - Sylvester Payne, Drums - Vess Payne, Drums
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1954 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Jerry Wexler, Producer - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - Connie Kay, Drums - Sam Coslow, Writer - Sam Taylor, Tenor Saxophone - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - Johnson, Composer, Writer - The Gliders, Additional Vocals - Will Gorsz, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1954 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Jerry Wexler, Producer - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - Connie Kay, Drums - Sam Taylor, Tenor Saxophone - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - Winfield Scott, Writer - The Gliders, Additional Vocals
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1954 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Jerry Wexler, Producer - LINCOLN CHASE, Writer - Howard Biggs, Writer - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - Connie Kay, Drums - Sam Taylor, Tenor Saxophone - LaVern Baker, Vocals, Writer, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - The Gliders, Choir - Mickey Bkaer, Guitar
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1956 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Jerry Wexler, Producer - William Garrett, Writer - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - Connie Kay, Drums - Sam Taylor, Tenor Saxophone - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - Clarence Paul, Writer - The Gliders, Choir - Mickey Bkaer, Guitar
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1956 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Jerry Wexler, Producer - Shad Collins, Trumpet - Lloyd Trotman, Bass - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - Dave McRae, Baritone Saxophone - Emmett Barry, Trumpet - The Gilders, Choir - Sam Taylor, Tenor Saxophone - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - Bill Campbell, Writer - Lawrence Brown, Trombone
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1955 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Jerry Wexler, Producer - LINCOLN CHASE, Writer - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - The Gliders, Choir
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1956 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Jerry Wexler, Producer - Doc Pomus, Writer - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - The Gliders, Choir
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1956 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Jerry Wexler, Producer - Jim Breedlove, Writer - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - The Gliders, Choir - Joan White, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1956 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Dorian Burton, Writer - Jerry Wexler, Producer - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - Ray Ellis, Conductor, Arranger - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - The Gliders, Choir - Howard Plummer, Jr., Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1956 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Dorian Burton, Writer - Jerry Wexler, Producer - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - Ray Ellis, Conductor, Arranger - LaVern Baker, Vocals, Writer, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - The Gliders, Choir - Howard Plummer, Jr., Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1956 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Jerry Wexler, Producer - LINCOLN CHASE, Writer - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - ERNIE FREEMAN, Conductor, Arranger, Piano - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - Plas Johnson, Tenor Saxophone - Ray Martinez, Drums - JOHN ANDERSON, Trumpet - Harry Edison, Trumpet - Joe Comfort, Bass - Billy Johnson, Alto Saxophone - Irving Ashby, Guitar
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1957 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Jerry Wexler, Producer - Al Caiola, Guitar - Ernie Hayes, Piano - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - King Curtis, Tenor Saxophone - Al Julia, Composer, Writer - Bill Marine, Choir - Jerry Packer, Choir - Marcia Neil, Choir - Mike Stewart, Choir - Reggie Obrecht, Conductor, Arranger - Panama Francis, Drums - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Everett Barkside, Guitar - Fred Jacobson, Writer - Leon Cohen, Alto Saxophone - Milt Hinton, Bass Guitar - Urbie Greene, Trombone - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - Julia, Jacobson, Composer, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1958 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Jerry Wexler, Producer - Howard Biggs, Conductor - Wendell Marshall, Bass - Jerry Leiber, Writer - Mike Stoller, Piano, Writer - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - Joe Marshall, Drums - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Taft Jordan, Trumpet - Allen Hanlon, Guitar - Harry Breur, Xylophone - Moe Wechsler, Piano - Ted Solomon, Trumpet
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1957 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Richard Williams, Choir - Jerry Wexler, Producer - Howard Biggs, Piano - Bud Johnson, Alto Saxophone - Wendell Marshall, Bass - Phil Kraus, Marimba - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - Mickey Baker, Guitar - King Curtis, Tenor Saxophone - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - Howard Greenfield, Writer - Sticks Evans, Drums - Neil Sedaka, Guitar, Writer - Chuck Saggle, Conductor, Arranger - Gene Steck, Choir - Leon Hurst, Choir - Maria-Neil Patterson, Choir - Wally Richardson, Bass Guitar - Elise Bretton, Choir - Marilyn Palmer, Choir
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1959 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Jerry Wexler, Producer - J. Morris, Writer - Phil Bodner, Contributor - Romeo Penque, Contributor - Stan Applebaum, Conductor, Arranger - Bucky Pizzarelli, Guitar - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - Moe Weschler, Piano - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - Mundell Lowe, Guitar - Sticks Evans, Drums - Joe Morris, Writer - José Martínez, Congas - Abie Baker, Bass - Doc Severinson, Trumpet - Elise Bretton, Choir - Alan Sokoloff, Choir - Dave Vogel, Choir - Don McLeod, Choir - Gretchen Rhodes, Choir - Jerome Graff, Choir - Stephen Berios, Percussion
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1961 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Jerry Wexler, Producer - Ted Sommer, Drums - Everett Barksdale, Guitar - Bud Johnson, Baritone Saxophone - Wendell Marshall, Bass - Ben E. King, Vocals, MainArtist - Al Caiola, Guitar - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - King Curtis, Tenor Saxophone - Reggie Obrecht, Conductor, Piano - LaVern Baker, Vocals, Writer - Douglas Allan, Marimba
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1960 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Bert Keyes, Piano - Ernie Hayes, Organ - Mickey Baker, Guitar - Haywood Henry, Flute, Baritone Saxophone - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - Jesse Stone, Conductor, Arranger - Carl Lynch, Guitar - Winfield Scott, Choir - Al Sears, Tenor Saxophone - Abie Baker, Bass - Eddie Costa, Vibes - Berisford Shepherd, Drums - Ed Barnes, Choir - Leroy Toombs, Writer - Malcolm Dodds, Choir - Nat Smith, Choir - Sara Wright, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1960 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Bert Keyes, Piano - Howard Biggs, Conductor, Arranger - Gary Chester, Drums - Jerry Leiber, Writer - Mike Stoller, Writer - Stoller, Writer - Dick Vance, Trumpet - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - Jim Stewart, Producer - PHIL SPECTOR, Guitar - Leiber, Writer - Taft Jordan, Trumpet - Sticks Evans, Bass Drums - Al Sears, Tenor Saxophone - J Leiber, Writer - M. STOLLER, Writer - Rudy Powell, Alto Saxophone - Abie Baker, Bass Guitar - Lilton Mitchell, Organ
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1961 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Ernie Hayes, Organ - AHMET ERTEGUN, Producer - Ray Ellis, Conductor, Arranger - LaVern Baker, Vocals, MainArtist - Billboard Magazine, Contributor - Everett Barkside, Guitar - Walter DeVenne, Contributor - Carl Lynch, Guitar - Buddy Lucas, Tenor Saxophone - Sticks Evans, Drums - Russ Saunders, Bass - Paul Griffin, Piano - G. McRainey, Writer - Joe Richardson, Guitar - Rudy Powell, Alto Saxophone
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 1962 Atlantic Recording Corporation
Album review
One of R&B's earliest divas, LaVern Baker could grab hold of a song and belt it out with the best of them, whether she was singing bouncy, up-tempo rock & roll or bluesy torch ballads. Baker's contributions to the rockin' and rollin' wing of '50s R&B were in a class with Atlantic labelmates Ruth Brown and the Clyde McPhatter-era Drifters, as the stellar 20-track compilation Soul on Fire: The Best of LaVern Baker proves. Baker had a muscular delivery and a commanding personality on record, so much so that her ravishing visual appeal wasn't even necessary (though it certainly didn't hurt). Here she bellows and growls her way through rock & roll standards like "Tweedlee Dee" (her first big hit), the oft-covered "Jim Dandy" (her only R&B chart-topper), and "See See Rider," not to mention Leiber & Stoller's gospel pastiche "Saved." But Baker was equally powerful on her slow numbers, turning in positively smoldering performances on the classics "Soul on Fire," "Play It Fair," "I Cried a Tear" (her biggest pop hit), and "I Waited Too Long," among others. Baker isn't as much of a household name as she probably ought to be, but Soul on Fire is required listening for anyone interested in the first waves of R&B and rock & roll.
© Steve Huey /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 20 track(s)
- Total length: 00:52:59
- Main artists: Lavern Baker
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Rhino Atlantic
- Genre: Soul/Funk/R&B R&B
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing. ℗ 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing.
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