JANICE'S BLUES ALLEY
PRESENTS
AL GREEN
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Al Green was the first great soul singer of the '70s and arguably the last great Southern soul singer. With his seductive singles for Hi Records
in the early '70s, Green bridged the gap between deep soul and smooth Philadelphia soul. He incorporated elements of gospel, interjecting his
performances with wild moans and wails, but his records were stylish, boasting immaculate productions that rolled along with a tight beat, sexy
backing vocals, and lush strings. The distinctive Hi Records sound that the vocalist and producer Willie Mitchell developed made Al Green the most
popular and influential soul singer of the early '70s, influencing not only his contemporaries, but also veterans like Marvin Gaye. Green was at
the peak of his popularity when he suddenly decided to join the ministry in the mid-'70s. At first, he continued to record secular material, but
by the '80s, he was concentrating solely on gospel. During the late '80s and '90s, he occasionally returned to R&B, but he remained primarily a
religious performer for the rest of his career. Nevertheless, Green's classic early- '70s recordings retained their power and influence throughout
the decades, setting the standard for smooth soul.
Green was born in Forrest City, AR, where he formed a gospel quartet, the Green Brothers, at the age of nine. The group toured throughout the South in the mid-'50s, before the family relocated to Grand Rapids, MI. The Green Brothers continued to perform in Grand Rapids, but Al's father kicked the boy out of the group after he caught his son listening to Jackie Wilson. At the age of 16, Al formed an R&B group, Al Green & the Creations, with several of his high-school friends. Two Creation members, Curtis Rogers and Palmer James, founded their own independent record company, Hot Line Music Journal, and had the group record for the label. By that time, the Creations had been re-named the Soul Mates. The group's first single, "Back Up Train," became a surprise hit, climbing to number five on the R&B charts early in 1968. The Soul Mates attempted to record another hit, but all of their subsequent singles failed to find an audience. In 1969, Al Green met bandleader and Hi Records vice president Willie Mitchell while on tour in Midland, Texas. Impressed with Green's voice, he signed the singer to Hi Records, and began collaborating with Al on his debut album. Released in early 1970, Green's debut album, Green Is Blues, showcased the signature sound he and Mitchell devised -- a sinewy, sexy groove highlighted by horn punctuations and string beds that let Green showcase his remarkable falsetto. While the album didn't spawn any hit singles, it was well-received and set the stage for the breakthrough success of his second album. Al Green Gets Next to You (1970) launched his first hit single, "Tired of Being Alone," which began a streak of four straight gold singles. Let's Stay Together (1972) was his first genuine hit album, climbing to number eight on the pop charts; its title track became his first number one single. I'm Still in Love With You, which followed only a few months later, was an even greater success, peaking at number four and launching the hits "Look What You Done for Me" and "I'm Still in Love With You." By the release of 1973's Call Me, Green was known as both a hitmaker and an artist who released consistently engaging, frequently excellent, critically-acclaimed albums. His hits continued uninterrupted through the next two years, with "Call Me," "Here I Am," and "Sha-La-La (Make Me Happy)" all becoming Top Ten gold singles. At the height of his popularity, Green's former girlfriend, Mrs. Mary Woodson, broke into his Memphis home in October 1974 and poured boiling grits on the singer as he was bathing, inflicting second-degree burns on his back, stomach, and arm; after assaulting Green, she killed herself with his gun. Green interpreted the violent incident as a sign from God that he should enter the ministry. By 1976, he had bought a church in Memphis and had become an ordained pastor of the Full Gospel Tabernacle. Though he had begun to seriously pursue religion, he had not given up singing R&B and he released three other Mitchell-produced albums -- Al Green Is Love (1975), Full of Fire (1976), Have a Good Time (1976) -- after the incident. However, his albums began to sound formulaic, and his sales started to slip by the end of 1976, with disco cutting heavily into his audience. In order to break free from his slump, Green stopped working with Willie Mitchell in 1977 and built his own studio, American Music, where he intended to produce his own records. The first album he made at American Music was The Belle Album, an intimate record that was critically acclaimed but failed to win a crossover audience. Truth and Time (1978) failed to even generate a major R&B hit. During a concert in Cincinnati in 1979, Green fell off the stage and nearly injured himself seriously. Interpreting the accident as a sign from God, Green retired from performing secular music and devoted himself to preaching. Throughout the '80s, he released a series of gospel albums on Myrrh Records. In 1982, Green appeared in the gospel musical Your Arms Too Short to Box With God with Patti Labelle. In 1985, he reunited with Willie Mitchell for He Is the Light, his first album for A&M Records. Green tentatively returned to R&B in 1988 when he sang "Put a Little Love in Your Heart" with Annie Lennox for the Bill Murray comedy Scrooged. Four years later, he recorded his first full-fledged soul album since 1978 with the U.K.-only Don't Look Back. Al Green was inducted to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. That same year, he released Your Heart's in Good Hands, an urban contemporary record that represented his first secular album to be released in America since Truth and Time. Though the album received positive reviews, it failed to become a hit. Green did achieve widespread recognition eight years later with his first album for Blue Note, I Can't Stop. One and a half years later, he followed it with Everything's OK. His third Blue Note album, 2008's Lay It Down, featured an updated sound that still echoed the feel of his classic earlier soul style. Stephen Thomas Erlewine. AllMusic.com |
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Back Up Train 1967 | |||
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01. Back Up Train 02. Hot Wire 03. Stop And Check Myself 04. Let Me Help You 05. I’m Reachin’ Out 06. Don’t Hurt Me No More |
07. Don’t Leave Me 08. What’s It All About 09. I’ll Be Good To You 10. Guilty 11. That’s All It Takes (Lady) 12. Get Yourself Together | ||
Al Green Gets Next To You 1970 | |||
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01. I Can't Get Next To You 02. Are You Lonely For Me Baby 03. God Is Standing By 04. Tired Of Being Alone 05. I'm A Ram |
06. Driving Wheel 07. Light My Fire 08. You Say It 09. Right Now, Right Now 10. All Because | ||
Green Is Blues 1970 | |||
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01. One Woman 02. Talk To Me 03. My Girl 04. The Letter 05. I Stand Accused 06. Gotta Find A New World |
07. What Am I Gonna Do With Myself 08. Tomorrow's Dream 09. Get Back Baby 10. Get Back 11. Summertime | ||
Let's Stay Together 1971 | |||
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01. Let's Stay Together 02. La-La For You 03. So You're Leaving 04. What Is This Feeling 05. Old Time Lovin |
06. I've Never found A Girl 07. How Can You Mend A Broken Heart 08. Judy 09. It Ain't No Fun To Me | ||
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I'm Still In Love With You 1972 | |||
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01. I'm Still In Love With You 02. I'm Glad You're Mine 03. Love And Happiness 04. What A Wonderful Thing Love Is 05. Simply Beautiful |
06. Oh, Pretty Woman 07. For The Good Times 08. Look What You Done For Me 09. One Of These Good Old Days | ||
Livin' For You 1973 | |||
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01. Livin' For You 02. Home Again 03. Free At Last 04. Let's Get Married 05. So Good To Be Here |
06. Sweet Sixteen 07. Unchained Melody 08. My God Is Real 09. Beware | ||
Call Me 1973 | |||
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01. Call Me (Come Back Home) 02. Have You Been Making Out O.K. 03. Stand Up 04. I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry 05. Your Love Is Like The Morning Sun |
06. Here I Am (Come And Take Me) 07. Funny How Time Slips Away 08. You Ought To Be With Me 09. Jesus Is Waiting | ||
Al Green Explores Your Mind 1974 | |||
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01. Sha-La-La (Make Me Happy) 02. Take Me To The River 03. God Bless Our Love 04. The City 05. One Nite Stand |
06. I'm Hooked On You 07. Stay With Me Forever 08. Hangin' On 09. School Days | ||
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Al Green is Love 1975 | |||
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01. L-O-V-E (Love) 02. Rhymes 03. Love Sermon 04. There Is Love 05. Could I Be The One |
06. Love Ritual 07. I Didn't Know 08. Oh Me, Oh My (Dreams In My Arms) 09. I Gotta Be More (Take Me Higher) 10. I Wish You Were Here | ||
Greatest Hits 1975 | |||
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01. Tired Of Being Alone 02. Call Me (Come Back Home) 03. I'm Still In Love With You 04. Here I Am (Come And Take Me) 05. Love And Happiness 06. Let's Stay Together 07. I Can't Get Next To You 08. You Ought To Be With Me |
09. Look What You Done For Me 10. Let's Get Married 11. Livin' For You 12. Sha La La (Make Me Happy) 13. L-O-V-E (Love) 14. Full Of Fire 15. Belle | ||
Full of Fire 1976 | |||
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01. Glory, Glory 02. That's The Way It Is 03. Always 04. There's No Way 05. I'd Fly Away |
06. Full Of Fire 07. Together Again 08. Soon As I Get Home 09. Let It Shine | ||
Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 1977 | |||
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1. Love And Happiness 2. Sha-La-La (Make Me Happy) 3. Take Me To The River 4. L-O-V-E (Love) 5. Rhymes |
6. For The Good Times 7. Keep Me Cryin' 8. Livin' For You 9. Full Of Fire | ||
The Belle Album 1977 | |||
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1. Belle 2. Loving You 3. Feels Like Summer 4. Georgia Boy |
5. I Feel Good 6. All 'N All 7. Chariots Of Fire 8. Dream | ||
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Tokyo Live... On Fire in Tokyo 1978 | |||
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01. L-O-V-E (Love) 02. Tired Of Being Alone 03. Let's Stay Together 04. How Can You Mend A Broken Heart? 05. All 'N All 06. Belle 07. Sha-La-La (Make Me Happy) |
08. Let's Get Married 09. God Blessed Our Love 10. You Ought To Be With Me 11. For The Good Times 12. Dream 13. I Feel Good 14. Love & Happiness | ||
Precious Lord 1982 | |||
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01. Precious Lord 02. Rock Of Ages 03. The Old Rugged Cross 04. Morningstar 05. How Great Thou Art |
06. Glory To His Name 07. What A Friend We Have In Jesus 08. In The Garden 09. Hallelujah | ||
White Christmas 1983 | |||
| 01. White Christmas 02. The Christmas Song 03. Winter Wonderland 04. I'll Be Home For Christmas 05. Jingle Bells |
06. What Christmas Means To Me 07. Oh Holy Night 08. Silent Night 09. It Feels Like Christmas | ||
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I'll Rise Again 1983 | |||
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01. It Don't Take Much 02. Jesus Is Coming 03. Leaning On The Everlasting Arms 04. I Close My Eyes And Smile 05. Ocean Blue (I'll Rise Again) |
06. Look At The Things That God Made 07. I Just Can't Make It By Myself 08. I Know It Was The Blood 09. Straighten Out Your Life | ||
He is the Light 1985 | |||
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1. Going Away 2. True Love 3. He Is The Light 4. I Feel Like Going On 5. Be With Me Jesus |
6. You Brought The Sunshine 7. Power 8. Building Up 9. Nearer My God To Thee< | ||
Soul Survivor 1987 | |||
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01. Everything's Gonna Be Alright 02. Jesus Will Fix It 03. You Know And I Know 04. Yield Not To Temptation 05. So Real To Me |
06. Soul Survivor 07. You've Got A Friend 08. He Ain't Heavy 09. Twenty-Third Psalm | ||
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I Get Joy 1989 | |||
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01. All My Praise 02. End Is Near 03. As Long As We're Together 04. Mighty Cloud Of Joy 05. Tryin' To Get Over You |
06. Blessed 07. Praise Him 08. I Get Joy 09. You're Everything To Me 10. Tryin' To Do The Best I Can | ||
Love Rituals 1989 | |||
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01. Love Ritual 02. Strong As Death (Sweet As Love) 03. I Think It's For The Feeling (It's Alright) 04. So Good To Be Here 05. Up Above My Head 06. Surprise Attack/Highway To Heaven |
07. Mimi 08. Love Is Real 09. I Want To Hold Your Hand 10. Ride Sally Ride 11. Beware 12. Love Ritual | ||
One in a Million 1991 | |||
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01. Too Close 02. Where Love Rules 03. Amazing Grace 04. Saved 05. The Old Rugged Cross |
06. The Lord Will Make A Way 07. No Not One 08. Pass Me Not 09. In The Holy Name Of Jesus 10. None But The Rightous | ||
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Truth 'N' Time 1991 | |||
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1. Truth 'N' Time 2. King Of All 3. Say A Little Prayer 4. Happy Days |
5. Blow Me Down 6. Lo And Behold Wait Here 7. To Sir With Love< | ||
Love is Reality 1992 | |||
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01. I Can Feel It 02. Love Is Reality 03. Just Can't Let You Go 04. You Don't Know Me 05. Again |
06. Positive Attitude 07. Sure Feels Good 08. A Long Time 09. Why 10. I Like It | ||
Your Heart's In Good Hands 1995 | |||
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01. Your Heart's In Good Hands 02. Keep On Pushing Love 03. Could This Be The Love 04. Love Is A Beautiful Thing 05. One Love |
06. Don't Look Back 07. Best Love 08. Your Love (Is More Than I Ever Hoped For) 09. What Does It Take 10. People In The World (Keep On Lovin' You) | ||
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Anthology 1997 | |||
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Disc 1 01. Back Up Train 02. Hot Wire 03. Stop And Check Myself 04. I Want To Hold Your Hand 05. Tomorrow's Dream 06. I'm A Ram 07. I Can't Get Next To You (Live) 08. Light My Fire 09. Intro To Tired Of Being Alone 10. Tired Of Being Alone 11. Driving Wheel 12. Listen (Take 2) 13. True Love 14. Guilty 15. We've Only Just Begun (Live) |
Disc 2 01. Intro To Let's Stay Together 02. Let's Stay Together 03. So You're Leaving 04. Judy (Live) 05. La-La For You 06. How Can You Mend A Broken Heart (Live) 07. I'm Still In Love With You 08. I'm Glad You're Mine 09. Look What You Done For Me 10. Love And Happiness (Live) 11. Simply Beautiful 12. 'The Technique Of Writing My Songs...' (Interview) | ||
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Disc 3 01. Call Me (Come Back Home) 02. You Ought To Be With Me (Live) 03. Have You Been Making Out O.K. 04. Here I Am (Come And Take Me) 05. 'I Took What I Learned From Rock & Roll...' 06. Jesus Is Waiting 07. Free At Last (Live) 08. Livin' For You 09. Mimi 10. I Think It's For The Feeling 11. Sha-La-La (Make Me Happy) (Live) 12. Take Me To The River 13. L-O-V-E (Love) (Live) 14. Rhymes 15. The Love Sermon 16. God Blessed Our Love 17. 'That's My Dog Roma...', 'How I Sing The Way...' |
Disc 4 01. 'I Don't Have To Go To Your Church...' (Interview) 02. I'd Fly Away 03. Full Of Fire 04. Together Again 05. Love Ritual (1988 Remix) 06. Always 07. Have A Good Time 08. Love And Happness 09. Too Close (Live) 10. 'We Try To Furnish...' (Interview) 11. 'But One Thing I Like About Jesus...' (Interview) 12. Belle 13. Wait Here 14. Chariots Of Fire 15. I Feel Good (Live) 16. Dreams (Live)/All 'N' All 17. 'I Know One Thing I Had To Do...' (Interview) | ||
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I Can't Stop 2003 | |||
| 01. I Can't Stop 02. Play To Win 03. Rainin' In My Heart 04. I've Been Waitin' On You 05. You 06. Not Tonight |
07. Million To One 08. My Problem Is You 09. I'd Still Choose You 10. I've Been Thinkin' Bout You 11. I'd Write A Letter 12. Too Many | ||
Everything's OK 2004 | |||
| 01. Everything's OK 02. You Are So Beautiful 03. Build Me Up 04. Perfect To Me 05. Nobody But You 06. Real Love |
07. I Can Make Music 08. Be My Baby 09. Magic Road 10. I Wanna Hold You 11. Another Day 12. All The Time | ||
Lay It Down 2007 | |||
| 01. Lay It Down 02. Just For Me 03. You've Got The Love I Need 04. No One Like You 05. What More Do You Want From Me 06. Take Your Time |
07. Too Much 08. Stay With Me (By The Sea) 09. All I Need 10. I'm Wild About You 11. Standing In The Rain | ||
