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Carla Thomas - The Queen Alone
Concord/Stax
As part of Concord's ambitious reissue program
coinciding with Stax Records' 50th Anniversary celebration this
year, this gem of an album from legendary soul singer Carla
Thomas once again sees the light of day. Though not known to
many of the current generation, Thomas was a fantastic singer
and if the label is only reissues of Thomas' albums during this
50th Anniversary celebration/campaign, I am glad they picked
this one because this album shows Thomas at the apex of her
formidable talents.
Thomas, one of Stax' most underrated and unheralded
soul stars, was often the label's ace in the hole. In tandem
with her legendary father, DJ/artist/songwriter/A&R man/ Rufus
Thomas, Carla Thomas scored one of the first hits for the
venerable soul label with the song "'Cause I Love You" in 1960
when the label was still called Satellite Records. Shortly
thereafter, she began scoring hit after hit as a solo act,
starting with the song "Gee Whiz" and racking up many R&B and
pop hits right up to the early '70's. She also recorded one hell
of a duet album with the late soul singer Otis Redding in the
mid '60's that deserves to be in everyone's music collection
whether you like soul music or not. The album is called King and
Queen and it is a monster, almost a template for the way duets
should be sung, and could arguably be the best album Redding
ever recorded. You simply have to own it, it is that good.
But back to this album, which is glorious in it's own
way.
During an overseas tour in 1966 shortly before
recording this album, Thomas was crowned "Queen" by soldiers in
Vietnam who chose Thomas as their recording artist of the year.
The executives at Stax then decided to use the title recently
bestowed on her as a hook to hang her next album since it also
reflected back to her album with Redding. Having a "concept" in
place upon Thomas' return, the label commissioned the
songwriting team of Isaac Hayes and David Porter (yep, Hayes had
a lucrative songwriting career writing hits for soul duo Sam and
Dave and other Stax artists long before he made his fame as an
artist in his own right and decades before this generation knew
him mostly as the voice of Chef on the TV show South Park - talk
about your renaissance men) to write a passel of songs for her
to record. They came through in spades! Though the album
produced only minor hits, it is more the fault of the public who
missed the album in the midst of other groundbreaking musical
releases like Pet Sounds and Revolver among others than it is of
Thomas and the other artists' who contributed to this album as
you will hear. It is simply one of the most impeccably sung,
written and performed albums of the '60's and one of the best in
the Stax catalog bar none. If anything this good could actually
be reproduced by musicians today Amy Winehouse wouldn't have to
drink and Joss Stone wouldn't have to have ringers help her sing
her songs. Featuring five outtakes as good as anything released
on the album, this CD is a cornucopia of great soul equalling
anything released on Motown by the Supremes, Vandellas or any of
those groups. If her version of the Chuck Jackson (by way of
Burt Bacharach) hit "Any Day Now" or her version of Dusty
Springfield's "All I See Is You" don't break your heart, then
try one of the other fourteen songs, 'cause they'll probably do
it. Want to see a grown man weep? Play this album for me late at
night.
Deep soul fans will simply adore this record as will
fans of '60's female soul stars like Dionne Warwick, Aretha
Franklin and Diana Ross. Though she has never really gotten her
just due, Thomas' best work is equal to that of any of the stars
previously mentioned and now she is finally being given the
recognition she has deserved all along. Just take the time and
listen to these songs and try to come with a reason she is not
every bit as famous as the other female soul singers in the
pantheon of the greats. For my money, Thomas has always ranked
very high on my short list of favorite female artists. Check out
this album and see why, because all the reasons are in these
songs. She is simply marvelous. - Scott Homewood
www.staxrecords.com
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