Southern Jazz Music

I fully agree with the other reviewer. The Southern Sons compare favorably with the best contemporary vocal groups including the Mills Brothers and the Golden Gate Quartet.

This set matches the complete recordings of one of the best pre-war jubilee quartets, the Southern Songs, with the first recordings of the Harmonizing Four. The first national exposure came for the Harmonizing Four when they sang at President Roosevelt's funeral - after that they toured extensively, making a tour of Europe in 1966. The Southern Sons were a great group in the jubilee tradition - their version of the Negro National Anthem, "Lift Every Voice and Sing" is worth the price of the CD. For more resources related to African American music and history, visit my website at CreativeFolk.com

During the first half of the 1970s,"cheatin'" songs (mostly ballads) were a fixture in the Soul music world. This superb compilation features songs that deal with adultery, its consequences and the viewpoints from those involved in such affairs. Shirley Brown, James Carr, Isaac Hayes, Phillip Mitchell, Lloyd Price, Candi Staton, Millie Jackson, The Soul Children and others sing truly convincing (and at times heart-wrenching) tales of love, lust, longing, desire and heartbreak--all of which remain relevant to this very day. Listen with an open mind--and without judgment--and you are sure to enjoy a rarely anthologized side of the classic Soul ballad from singers who knew what they were singing about. The booklet essay is also very informative and most tracks' sound quality is excellent.

I got burned on this and don't want anyone else to. My fault for not researching it better. I wanted to get this for certain songs that don't appear on the other Sam And Dave collection I own and figured at 6.98 it would be a bargain. Wrong! When I put it in to listen to it, I immediately knew something was wrong and closer inspection on the back of the CD reveals "all selections are new studio re-recordings". Garbage. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. I won't go into details, but suffice to say, the re-recordings are poor. One star because they don't offer zero stars.

I just love this guy!!!!
His music touches me,
He has become one of my favorite musicians.


He is wonderful live...
His energy is healing!!!!!!
These songs havent stopped dancing in my head since I got this
CD:
"Happiness " is just that... happines...
"Sucess-", "Night people","Lover of love" and
" You will not lose."
It is a wonderful collection!!!!


Thank you Allen Toussaint!!!!!!!!!!!

If everyone who plays music today were to come to town on the same night and I had to pick just one to go hear, it'd be Allen Toussaint (sorry, Keith; sorry, Van). A magnificent songwriter, Toussaint has extended the rich traditions of classic New Orleans r&b without ever abandoning his roots in them; he also is an absolutely brilliant pianist and a distinctive, captivating singer. This album includes 16 of the strongest recordings he made for Warner Brothers in the '70s, when he was at the top of his game. "What Do Want the Girl to Do?" (which has been covered by Boz Scaggs and Bonnie Raitt), "You Will Not Lose" and "With You in Mind" are by themselves worth the price of this CD, and then some. The Allen Toussaint Collection

Heres a New Orleans artist that should be in everybodies collection. Allen Toussaint is a record producer, arranger, songwriter, musician and occasional performer. He produced the horn charts for The Band, worked with McCartney and The Meters. These 16 tracks are taken from his best albums, which all date from the 1970's I believe.

The first two tracks are from "Whisper to a scream". Amongst the backing musicians are Dr John and John Boudreaux. "What is success" (track 2) is a great soulful track where you can hear a little of Allen's underrated Piano playing. The vocal and brass arrangements are superb and give the track a distinctive sound all of its own, and it remains my favourite on the album. Tracks 3-5 are from the album "Life, Love and faith". Tracks 6-10 are from "Southern Nights" and the remaining tracks are from the album "Motion". Southern Nights is the other stand-out track for me. A beautiful melody with a vocal that sounds as though its been put through some sort of electronic effect.

Theres no weak tracks on this collection and the only think better than owning this is to go and buy the original albums. Now I wonder how much they are....

wow soul sister is so cool i love that song its so cool its on the soundtrack for my favorite movie another day in paradsie wow vincent kartheiser is hott!!!!!

This is a fine introduction to an American master. From his songwriting,to his piano work,to his soulful voice and his art with arrangements Allen Toussaint is a top line talent. As another said, he has produced too many New Orleans legends to name as well as offering up masterful arrangements to The Band (check out the horn parts on Rock Of Ages). If you don't know his work-start here and then work your way out.

This album overflows with soul and many tracks can be called "funky" without causing more fatigue to a word that is grossly over used. Listen to "Soul Sister" and tell me it's not one of the funkiest songs you've ever heard. It almost demands a shaking of one's hindquarters. "Last Train","From A Whisper To A Scream" and "What Do You Want The Girl To Do?" are also standout tracks but there is considerable depth beyond that. The only weakness this cd has is that tracks 11-15 don't live up to rest of the album. This is a minor weakness as these lesser tracks also have their ways plus they represent a part of his career that demanded inclusion on this period retrospective. Still,this would have been a 5 star release if they somehow could have fit more of his top shelf stuff in place of these noticably weaker tracks.

I would bet that this cd will create in you,as it did for me,a desire to track down his other work. That's all that matters. You can never have too much soul...