LPCDreissues: Looking forward to the past

Arkansas-born Johnnie Taylor started out his singing career in doowop, shifted to gospel (singing with The Highway QCs and The Soul Stirrers), had a stint as a preacher and then a brief solo gospel singing career on the SAR label (during which period he cut the standout performance Rome Wasn't Built In A Day). He moved to Stax in 1966 and, after a few tentative recordings, found his stride under the tutelage of producer Don Davis. Chronicle gathers together 20 fine soul sides on one CD, among them Who's Makin' Love, Testify ( I Wonna), I Believe In Love, Jody's Got Your Girl And Gone, I Am Somebody and Steal Away. All charted, I Believe In You actually reaching the No 11 slot in 1973. Taylor's work at Stax, an amalgam of affectionate love and downright cheating songs is among the most enduring soul of that era. Following the demise of Stax, he moved to CBS and found stardom through massive crossover hits like Disco Lady and albums Eargasm and Rated Extraordinare. In the '80s, after a period of inactivity, Taylor returned with Just Ain't Good Enough on the Beverly Glen label. Picked up by the Malaco organisation, out of Jackson, Mississippi, it marked a great return to form that carries on up to the present. Chronicle, nonetheless, captures Taylor's finest, most soulful moments to date and shows why his best work is on a par (as Peter Guralnick notes in Sweet Soul Music) with that of Otis Redding and William Bell.
Tracklisting:01 WHO'S MAKING LOVE 02 TAKE CARE OF YOUR HOMEWORK 03 TESTIFY (I WONNA) 04 I COULD NEVER BE PRESIDENT 05 LOVE BONES 06 STEAL AWAY 07 I AM SOMEBODY 08 JODY'S GOT YOUR GIRL AND GONE 09 I DON'T WANNA LOSE YOU 10 HIJACKIN' LOVE 11 STANDING IN FOR JODY 12 DOING MY OWN THING 13 STOP DOGGIN' ME 14 I BELIEVE IN YOU (YOU BELIEVE IN ME) 15 CHEAPER TO KEEP HER 16 WE'RE GETTING CARELESS WITH OUR LOVE 17 I'VE BEEN BORN AGAIN 18 IT'S SEPTEMBER 19 TRY ME TONIGHT 20 JUST KEEP ON LOVING ME