Tag Archives: Etta James

Etta James: Let’s Roll

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On May 6, 2003, “Private Music” label released “Let’s Roll”, the twenty-sixth Etta James studio album. It was recorded in 2003, and was produced by Etta James, Josh Sklair, Donto Metto James and Sametto James. “Let’s Roll” won a “Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album” in 2003, and in 2004 the “W. C. Handy Award” as the “Soul/Blues Album of the Year” from the “Blues Foundation”.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – vocal
  • Josh Sklair – banjo, 12 string guitar, acoustic and electric, slide guitar, synthesizer
  • Bobby Murray – electric guitar
  • Jimmy “Z” Zavala – harmonica, tenor and baritone saxophone
  • Sametto James – bass guitar
  • Donto James – vocals, drums, percussion
  • Tom Poole – trumpet
  • Lee Thornburg – trombone

Track listing:

  1. Somebody to Love – Delbert McClinton, Gary Nicholson
  2. The Blues Is My Business – Kevin Bowe, Todd Cerney
  3. Leap of Faith – Glen Clarke, Gary Nicholson
  4. Strongest Weakness – Bekka Bramlett, Gary Nicholson
  5. Wayward Saints of Memphis – Kevin Bowe, Delbert McClinton
  6. Lie No Better – Gary Nicholson
  7. Trust Yourself – Kevin Bowe, Grady Champion
  8. A Change Is Gonna Do Me Good – Al Anderson, Bob DiPiero
  9. Old Weakness – Gary Nicholson
  10. Stacked Deck – Billy Wright
  11. On the 7th Day – Kevin Bowe, Kostas Lazarides
  12. Please, No More – David Egan, Greg Hansen

Etta James: Love’s Been Rough On Me

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On April 29, 1997, “Private Music” label released “Love’s Been Rough on Me”, the twentieth Etta James studio album. It was recorded in 1997, and was produced by Barry Beckett.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – lead vocals
  • Don Potter – acoustic guitar
  • Paul Franklin – steel guitar
  • Brent Rowan – electric guitar
  • Josh Sklair – electric guitar
  • Dann Huff – electric guitar
  • Steve Nathan – keyboards
  • Barry Beckett – keyboards
  • Michael Rhodes – bass guitar
  • Eddie Bayers – drums
  • Terry McMillan – percussion
  • Jim Horn – saxophone
  • Sam Levine – saxophone
  • Joe McGlohon – saxophone
  • Mike Haynes – trumpet
  • Chris McDonald – trombone
  • Vicki Hampton – backing vocals
  • Yvonne Hodges – backing vocals
  • Donna McElroy – backing vocals
  • Louis Dean Nunley – backing vocals
  • John Wesley Ryles – backing vocals
  • Dennis Wilson – backing vocals
  • Curtis Young – backing vocals

Track listing:

  1. The Rock – Russell Smith, Jim Varsos
  2. Cry Like a Rainy Day – Greg Barnhill, Kenny Greenberg
  3. Love’s Been Rough on Me – Gretchen Peters
  4. Love It or Leave It Alone – Kara Cody, Will Jennings, John Keller
  5. Don’t Touch Me – Hank Cochran
  6. Hold Me – Graham Lyle, Troy Seals
  7. If I Had Any Pride Left at All – John Greenbaum, Seals, Eddie Setser
  8. I Can Give You Everything – Al Anderson, Terry Anderson
  9. I’ve Been Loving You Too Long – Jerry Butler, Otis Redding
  10. Done in the Dark – Josh Sklair, Etta James

Etta James: The Second Time Around

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On December 14, 1961, “Argo” label released “The Second Time Around”, the second Etta James studio album. It was recorded 1960 – 1961, and was produced by Phil Chess and Leonard Chess.

Personnel:

  • Etta Jemes – vocals
  • Riley Hampton – arrangements, conductor
  • Johnny Magnus – liner notes

Track listing:

  1. Don’t Cry Baby – Saul Bernie, James P. Johnson, Stella Unger
  2. Fool That I Am – Floyd Hunt
  3. One for My Baby (and One More for the Road) – Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer
  4. In My Diary – Michael Angelo Graham, Mark Silverman
  5. Saven Day Fool – Billy Davis, Berry Gordy, Sonny Woods
  6. It’s Too Soon to Know – Deborah Chessler, E.H. Morris
  7. Dream – Johnny Mercer
  8. I’ll Dry My Tears – Etta James, Clyde Walker
  9. Plum Nuts – Robert Plummer
  10. Don’t Get Around Much Anymore – Duke Ellington, Bob Russell

Etta James: Matriarch Of The Blues

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On December 12, 2000, “Private Music” label released “Matriarch of the Blues”, the twenty-fourth Etta James studio album. It was recorded in 2000, and was produced by Donto Metto James and Sametto James.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – lead and backing vocals, liner notes
  • Josh Sklair – acoustic and electric guitar, slide guitar, keyboards, rhythm arrangements
  • Bobby Murray – guitar
  • Leo Nocentelli – guitar
  • Mike Finnigan – Hammond organ
  • Jimmy Zavala – harmonica, tenor and baritone saxophone
  • Sametto James – bass, engineer, mixing
  • Donto Metto James – drums, engineer, mixing, percussion
  • Tom Poole – trumpet
  • Terrance Galloway – engineer assistant
  • Doug Sax – mastering
  • Julie Bruzzone – creative director
  • Sonny Mediana – design, photography
  • Rudy Calvo – make-up
  • Lupe DeLeon – executive producer

Track listing:

  1. Gotta Serve Somebody – Bob Dylan
  2. Don’t Let My Baby Ride – Deadric Malone, O. V. Wright
  3. Rhymes – Al Green, Teenie Hodges
  4. Try a Little Tenderness – Jimmy Campbell, Reg Connelly, Harry M. Woods
  5. Miss You – Mick Jagger, Keith Richards
  6. Hawg for Ya – Otis Redding
  7. You’re Gonna Make Me Cry – Deadric Malone
  8. Walking the Back Streets – Sandy Jones, Jr.
  9. Let’s Straighten It Out – Benny Latimore
  10. Born on the Bayou – John Fogerty
  11. Come Back Baby – Ray Charles, Lightnin’ Hopkins
  12. Hound Dog – Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller

Etta James: Queen Of Soul

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On December 5, 1964, “Argo” label released “Queen of Soul”, the fifth Etta James studio album. It was recorded in 1964, and was produced by Leonard Chess.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – vocal
  • Riley Hampton – arranger
  • Bert Keyes – arranger
  • Cliff Parman – arranger
  • Al Pokonka – arranger
  • Phil Wright – arranger

Track listing:

  1. Bobby Is His Name – Etta James, Ed Townsend
  2. I Wish Someone Would Care – Irma Thomas
  3. That Man Belongs Back Here with Me – Angela Riela, Clint Ballard Jr.
  4. Somewhere Out There – Billy Davis, Carl Smith, Wilfred McKinley
  5. Breaking Point – Maurice McAlister
  6. Flight 101 – Cathy Lynn, Robert Higginbotham
  7. Loving You More Every Day – Ronnie Mitchell
  8. Do Right – Fred Johnson, Leroy Kirkland, Pearl Woods
  9. I Worry ‘Bout You – Norman Mapp
  10. Mello Fellow – Ed Townsend

Etta James: At Last!

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On November 15, 1960, “Argo” label released “At Last!”, the debut Etta James studio album. It was recorded January – October 1960, and was produced by Phil Chess and Leonard Chess. Magazine “Rolling Stone” ranked “At Last!” at number 191 on its list of “500 Greatest Albums of All Time”.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – vocals
  • Harvey Fuqua – vocals
  • Riley Hampton – arrangements, conductor
  • Don Bronstein – cover
  • Don Kamerer – liner notes

Track listing:

  1. Anything to Say You’re Mine – Sonny Thompson
  2. My Dearest Darling – Edwin “Eddie Bo” Bocage, Paul Gayten
  3. Trust in Me – Milton Ager, Jean Schwartz, Ned Wever
  4. A Sunday Kind of Love – Louis Prima, Barbara Belle, Anita Leonard, Stan Rhodes
  5. Tough Mary – Etta James, Joe Josea
  6. I Just Want to Make Love to You – Willie Dixon
  7. At Last – Mack Gordon, Harry Warren
  8. All I Could Do Was Cry – Billy Davis, Gwen Fuqua, Berry Gordy
  9. Stormy Weather – Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler
  10. Girl of My Dreams – Charles “Sunny” Clapp

Etta James: The Dreamer

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On November 8, 2011, “Verve Forecast” label released “The Dreamer”, the twenty-ninth and final Etta James studio album. It was recorded in 2011, at “Fort Athens Studios”, and was produced by Etta James, Josh Sklair, Danto and Sametto.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – vocals
  • Big Terry De Rouen, Bobby Murray, Leo Nocentelli – guitar
  • Josh Sklair – guitar
  • Divid Kirk Mathews – keyboards
  • Sametto James – bass
  • Donto James – drums, engineer
  • Jimmy Z – saxophone
  • Lee Thornburg – trumpet, arrangements
  • Kraig Kilby – trombone
  • Terry Howard – engineer
  • Ed Cherney – mixing
  • Bernie Grundman – mastering
  • Rudy Calvo – make-up
  • Artis Mills, Lupe De Leon – executive producer

Track listing:

  1. Groove Me – King Floyd
  2. Champagne & Wine – Otis Redding
  3. Dreamer – Bobby Bland
  4. Welcome to the Jungle – Guns N’ Roses
  5. Misty Blue – Bob Montgomery
  6. Boondocks – Little Big Town
  7. Cigarettes & Coffee – Otis Redding
  8. In the Evening – Ray Charles
  9. Too Tired – Johnny “Guitar” Watson
  10. That’s the Chance You Take – Johnny “Guitar” Watson
  11. Let Me Down Easy – Little Milton

Etta James: Seven Years Itch

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On September 26, 1988, “Island” label released “Seven Year Itch”, the fifteenth Etta James studio album. It was recorded in 1988, at “Digital Recorders” in Nashville, Tennessee, and was produced by Rob Fraboni, Rocky Fataar and Barry Beckett.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – vocals
  • Kenny Greenberg, Reggie Young, Steve Cropper – guitar
  • Art Neville, Barry Beckett – keyboards
  • Bob Wray, James “Hutch” Hutchinson, Willie Weeks – bass
  • Ricky Fataar, Roger Hawkins – drums
  • Jim Horn – saxophone, horn arrangements
  • Jack Hale, Mike Haynes, Quitman Dennis – horns
  • Howard Steele, Rich Schirmer, Scott Hendricks – recording
  • Barry Beckett, Scott Hendricks – mixing

Track listing:

  1. I Got the Will – Otis Redding
  2. Jump into My Fire – Johnny Cobb, Jana King
  3. Shakey Ground – Jeffrey Bowen, Alphonso Boyd, Eddie Hazel
  4. Come to Mama – Willie Mitchell, Earl Randle
  5. Damn Your Eyes – Steve Bogard, Barbara Wyrick
  6. Breaking Up Somebody’s Home – Al Jackson, Jr., Timothy Matthews
  7. The Jealous Kind – Robert Guidry
  8. How Strong Is a Woman – Bettye Crutcher
  9. It Ain’t Always What You Do (It’s Who You Let See You Do It) – Carl Hampton, Homer Banks, Raymond Jackson
  10. One Night – Mike Read, Troy Seals

Marvin Gaye And Tammi Terrell: United

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On August 29, 1967, “Tamla” label released “United”, album by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell (the first of three collaborative albums). It was recorded in 1967, and was produced by Harvey Fuqua, Johnny Bristol, Hal Davis and Berry Gordy, Jr.,

Personnel:

  • Marvin Gaye – lead and backing vocals
  • Tammi Terrell – lead and backing vocals
  • Harvey Fuqua, Johnny Bristol, The Originals, The Andantes, The Spinners – backing vocals
  • The Funk Brothers – instrumentation

Track listing:

  1. Ain’t No Mountain High Enough – Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson
  2. You Got What It Takes – Berry Gordy, Jr., Gwen Gordy, Tyran Carlo
  3. If I Could Build My Whole World Around You – Harvey Fuqua, Johnny Bristol, Vernon Bullock
  4. Somethin’ Stupid – C. Carson Parks
  5. Your Precious Love – Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson
  6. Hold Me Oh My Darling – Harvey Fuqua
  7. Two Can Have a Party – Johnny Bristol, Harvey Fuqua, Thomas Kemp
  8. Little Ole Boy, Little Ole Girl – Harvey Fuqua, Etta James, Brook Benton
  9. If This World Were Mine – Marvin Gaye
  10. Sad Wedding – Johnny Bristol, Jackey Beavers
  11. Give a Little Love – Johnny Bristol, Harvey Fuqua, Clyde Wilson
  12. Oh How I’d Miss You – Hal Davis, Frank Wilson, Vance Wilson

Etta James: Etta James Sings For Lovers

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On August 24, 1962, “Argo” label released “Etta James Sings for Lovers”, the fourth Etta James studio album. It was recorded in June 1962, and was produced by Leonard Chess and Phil Chess.

Personnel:

  • Etta James – vocal
  • Riley Hampton – arrangements
  • Al Poskonka – arrangements
  • Ron Malo – engineer
  • Don Bronstein – cover
  • Ralph Bass – supervision

Track listing:

  1. Don’t Take Your Love from Me – Henry Nemo
  2. How Do You Speak to an Angel – Bob Hilliard, Jule Styne
  3. Fools Rush In – Johnny Mercer, Rube Bloom
  4. Don’t Blame Me – Jimmy McHugh, Dorothy Fields
  5. Someone to Watch Over Me – Ira Gershwin, George Gershwin
  6. Again – Dorcas Cochran, Lionel Newman
  7. I Want to Be Loved – Savannah Churchill
  8. It Could Happen to You – Jimmy Van Heusen, Johnny Burke
  9. These Foolish Things – Eric Maschwitz, Harry Link, Jack Strachey
  10. Prisoner of Love – Clarence Gaskill, Leo Robin, Russ Columbo