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Again, however, Dusty's vocal acumen shines, notably on the swampy R&B excursions "Natchez Trace" and "Willie & Laura Mae Jones" (the latter written by Tony Joe White, of "Polk Salad Annie" and "Rainy Night In Georgia" fame), and "Hi-De-Ho" (the Carole King/Gerry Goffin composition that would be a Top 15 hit for Blood, Sweat, and Tears in the late summer of 1970).Dusty, sadly, passed away in March 1999, just six weeks before her 60th birthday, and not long before she was justifiably enshrined in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Incredibly, however, given its stature as one of the pre-eminent "blue-eyed soul" albums of its time, not to mention it being arguably Dusty's best album, DUSTY IN MEMPHIS barely even broke into the upper half of the Billboard Top 200 Album chart, peaking at a shockingly low #99. Time has clearly been the equalizer for this album in our time.The Deluxe Edition of DUSTY IN MEMPHIS includes other tracks that she recorded between 1969 and 1971 that more or less fit in with the R&B groove of the original, although, with the exception of "What Do You Do When Love Dies." (an outtake from the Memphis sessions), those were recorded in New York and Philadelphia. In terms of how respected she was by so many female singers of her day and beyond, the late Dusty Springfield has probably had a greater impact on America than any other British singer of the entire rock era. But her legacy as the pre-eminent British female singer is undeniable, and the best proof of that is right here, in this essential 1969 album, one of the single greatest albums by any female singer of the rock era, period. That album was DUSTY IN MEMPHIS.Even though Dusty's final vocals were actually recorded in New York, the basic tracks on this album were recorded with the same group of musicians (including guitarist Reggie Young) who had been featured on hits by the Box Tops and Wilson Pickett, and who would also aid and abet local boy Elvis Presley's 1969 comeback sessions. From the very moment she came to this country via the Beatles-led British Invasion in 1964 with "I Only Want To Be With You", she showed a great deal of diversity in the material she recorded, including the Bacharach/David classics "Wishin' And Hopin'" and "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself", and the Phil Spector-influenced "You Don't Have To Say You Love Me." But maybe her biggest artistic impact was when she took a chance and made an album in the heart of the Southern R&B scene in 1968. The relaxed vocal style that Dusty had bought to her previous recordings, minus the vocal showboating of so many divas past and present, aided her so extraordinarily well on this album, most notably on the epochal "Son Of A Preacher Man", which was a large hit for her, reaching #10 on the Billboard Hot 100 in January 1969, and on her version of the 1968 Oscar-winning song "The Windmills Of Your Mind" (from the film THE THOMAS CROWN AFFAIR).
Wish I still had the original l.p. This is her best and one of the best vocal albums of all time. record It's a shame her life was so short. Beautiful, plaintive voice with just the right touch of irony.
More highlights, for me.amongst many."Love Shine Down"/ "Live Here With You"/ "I'll Be Faithful"/ "Have A Good Life Baby"/ "Natchez Trace".whoot. "Cherished", a Gamble/Huff song gives a tiny taste of things to come for Dusty's next album. So many tracks, too numerous to mention them all, we have "That Old Sweet Roll (Hi-de-Ho)", from the magical pens of Goffin/King, "You've Got A Friend" (Carole King), and heck, "Make It With You" (David Gates), is completely and utterly out of this world.
If heaven could be an album, this would be it.Several songs will be familiar to even the newest of Dusty fans; "Son Of A Preacher Man" being one of her most famous and instantly recognisable songs, this is the one that stopped Aretha Franklin in her tracks, making her re-consider her decision not to record it, her version appeared a year after Dusty's. Of the album proper (before the bonuses) the original 11 tracks crams in four by Goffin/King; "So Much Love"/"Don't Forget About Me"/"No Easy Way Down" and "I Can't Make It Alone", there are two by Randy Newman; "I Don't Want To Hear It Anymore", and the excellent "Just One Smile" which wasn't released as a single, but would surely have set the top 10 on fire. "Dusty In Memphis" is an album you can get completely lost in, put it on, sit back, and forget about the outside world, all that exists for the time being is Dusty and Memphis accompanied by the wonderous rhythms and strings of the Memphis Cats, and the sweet soulful backings of the aptly named Sweet Inspirations who complemented Dusty's vocals so well.
On Bacharach/David's "In The Land Of Make Believe" and on Mann/Weil's "Just A Little Lovin'(Early In The Mornin')", Dusty delivers them both with a smooth, sweet purity.Of the three albums that Dusty signed up for in the US, two were released ("Memphis" and "From Dusty, With Love"), the third was shelved, as a result we have an unusual mixture of 14 bonus tracks, longer than the actual album. Anybody out there wondering why we are such a fanatical lot, us Dusty Springfield fans, my advice is; listen to 'In Memphis', get knocked sideways.and wonder no more. "Breakfast in Bed" was covered by UB40/Chrissie Hynde in 1988, twenty years after this album, Dusty's version gives an erotic lush over the vocals; amazingly beautiful, the same could be said for "Windmills Of Your Mind", i just love the slow build on this, i have never heard the original version by Noel Harrison that was used in the film "The Thomas Crown Affair", and don't really want to.
No disrespect, but, once you have heard Dusty sing something, it seems almost akin to sacrilege to hear it covered by someone else.Once again, a look through the list of songwriters may well reduce you to a state of constant drooling.before you have even put the CD on the stereo.
Never knew she was this good.Buy it and you will love it as much as I do. Mostly a lot of good songs.
'I Don't Want To Hear It Anymore' is almost heartbreaking, and 'I Can't Make It Alone' is where it's at. 'Son Of A Preacher Man' is the obvious classic, both sultry and soulful, a song that many have tried but just as many have failed, all except for the phenomenal Dusty. The rest of the album falls flat, and does so with a dull thud rather than a crash.Dusty has made better. Dusty Springfield-Dusty In Memphis **1/2To be honest Dusty In Memphis is not the blue eyed soul masterpiece it is hyped up to be. Sure she was a land mark and original in her time, of course she was influential, and yes those pipes are among some of the best to ever be laid to tape but that does not justify the massive hyperbole that accompanies this album.
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