We continue our look back at the music of 50 years ago…..
Take the grooves of Al Green…mix in the funk of James Brown….add the backing of the pros from Muscle Shoals and you have a tasty slice of Southern soul from Bobby Womack…his fourth LP, “Understanding” released in 1972.
Womack maybe doesnt get the press and recognition of those other guys…but he could bring it and this LP shows it.
It includes his big hit “Woman’s Got To Have It” which went #1 on the R&B chart. It got a nice cover from James Taylor a few years later….
Covers on this record include a version of Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” which cracked the Top 40 Pop charts, and as soulful a version of a Beatles song ever put on vinyl with his take on “And I Love Her”
Womack also wrote alot of this record including standouts like “Simple Man” which features a driving backing track from David Hood, Roger Hawkins, Jimmy Johnson, Barry Beckett and the rest of the Swampers from Muscle Shoals.
You can hear the Green and Brown influence on the track “Got To Get You Back”. And the song that leads off the record, “I Can Understand It”, really gets down…and became very popular in the underground and gay nightclubs springing up in the Northeast, which, of course, led to the “disco”craze and few years later.
He also does a slow jam called “Hairy Hippie” dedicated to his brother Harry, who played bass, and was later stabbed by his girlfriend. It became an unlikely hit.
Womack’s other brothers sing background on the record as do Patrice Holloway and actress Pam Grier.
He may not be remembered by as many folks as Reverend Al or the Godfather of Soul but he delivers a high energy, solid performance both live and on record. Check it out!
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