JAMES CARR

JANICE'S BLUES ALLEY PRESENTS

JAMES CARR

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One of the greatest pure vocalists that deep Southern soul ever produced, James Carr is often mentioned in the same breath as Otis Redding, Percy Sledge, and Aretha Franklin in terms of the wrenching emotional power in his delivery. Or at least he is by hardcore soul aficionados; despite producing several classic R&B singles and some of the most intense country-soul ever waxed, Carr never achieved the pop crossover success that could have made him a household name, and his material wasn't always as distinctive as that of Stax artists like Redding or Sam & Dave. Ultimately, though, Carr's greatest obstacle was himself: he was plagued for much of his life by severe depression that made pursuit of a career -- or, for that matter, even single recording sessions -- extraordinarily difficult, and derailed his occasional comeback attempts.

James Carr was born June 13, 1942, in Coahoma County, MS, near Clarksdale; his father, a minister, moved the family to Memphis when Carr was very young. Carr began singing in church at age nine, and performed with several area gospel groups in his teenage years, including the Harmony Echoes (though not, as legend had it, the Soul Stirrers). Both Carr and Echoes manager Roosevelt Jamison had been harboring ambitions for careers in secular music, and the two began looking for a solo deal for Carr in 1963. Stax turned him down, but in late 1964 he caught on with Goldwax, a Memphis label started by Quinton Claunch (who'd earlier co-founded Hi Records) that, in its early days, also featured O.V. Wright (with whom Carr had sung in the Redemption Harmonizers). Over the next couple of years, Carr cut several singles that ranged from Motown-ish pop to soul-blues, searching for the best stylistic match for his richly expressive baritone.

Carr finally hit in 1966 with the country-soul ballad "You Got My Mind Messed Up," a Top Ten R&B hit that earned him comparisons to Otis Redding. It kicked off the prime period of Carr's recording career, and among his next few singles was his clear-cut masterpiece "Dark End of the Street." Given a tortuously intense performance by Carr, "Dark End of the Street" was a bleak tale of adultery that marked the first songwriting collaboration between Dan Penn and Chips Moman; although the song was recorded by the likes of Aretha Franklin, Clarence Carter, Linda Ronstadt, and the Flying Burrito Brothers, Carr's original version still stands as definitive. Featuring other hit singles like the Redding-esque "Love Attack" and the exquisite "Pouring Water on a Drowning Man," Carr's 1966 debut LP You Got My Mind Messed Up is also considered a classic by many Southern soul collectors.

Despite Carr's first flush of success on the R&B charts over 1966-1967, things were not looking up. Carr signed on with Phil Walden, Otis Redding's manager, in 1966, but without Roosevelt Jamison around (he'd served as Carr's caretaker just as much as his manager), Carr found himself unable to deal with the stress of touring; he frequently wandered off alone and got lost. By 1968, his mental state had deteriorated greatly, making even recording sessions a challenge. He was able to complete a second LP, 1968's A Man Needs a Woman, but in Muscle Shoals for his last Goldwax session in 1969, he simply sat at the microphone and stared into space, singing only one song (the Bee Gees' "To Love Somebody"). Not long afterward, Goldwax went bankrupt; wary of the singer's instability, Capitol rescinded an offer to buy out his contract, and although Carr signed with Atlantic, he released only one single in 1971.

In 1977, Carr released one single on the small River City label, which was run by Roosevelt Jamison. Two years later, he undertook a tour of Japan that started off well; however, at the Tokyo gig, Carr -- apparently having taken too many anti-depressants -- stood motionless at the microphone as though in a hypnotic trance. He returned to Memphis, where he lived with his sister (in between institutionalizations), and spent much of the '80s barely conscious of the world around him. With medication, his condition improved to the point where Jamison and Quinton Claunch cut an album with him in 1991 for a revived Goldwax. The record, Take Me to the Limit, received mixed reviews, although its very existence was an achievement in itself. Carr was even able to return to the road, touring the blues circuits in America and Europe. In 1994, he released another album on Claunch's new Soultrax label, titled Soul Survivor. Unfortunately, Carr was soon diagnosed with lung cancer, and spent several years battling the disease before finally succumbing on January 7, 2001.

-- All Music Gide, Steve Huey

	The Dark End of the Street
	Pouring Water On A Drowning Man
	You Got My Mind Messed Up

LINK	YEAR	TITLE
	1967	You Got My Mind Messed Up
	1968	A Man Needs A Woman
	1991	Take Me To The Limit
	1994	Soul Survivor
	1995	The Essential James Carr
	2001	24 Karat Soul
	2001	The Complete Goldwax Singles
	2004	My Soul Is Satisfied: The Rest of James Carr
	2006	A Man Worth Knowing: 1990′s Goldwax & Soultrax Recordings

1967 You Got My Mind Messed Up

01. Pouring Water On A Drowning Man
02. Love Attack
03. Come Back To Me Baby
04. Don't Want To Be Hurt Anymore
05. That's What I Want To Know
06. These Ain't Raindrops

07. The Dark End Of The Street
08. I'm Going For Myself Now
09. Lovable Girl
10. Forgetting You
11. She's Better Than You
12. You've Got My Mind Messed Up

1968 A Man Needs A Woman

01. A Man Needs A Woman
02. Stronger Than Love
03. More Love
04. You Didn't Know It But You Had Me
05. A Woman Is A Man's Best Friend
06. I'm A Fool For You
07. Life Turned Her That Way
08. Gonna send You Back To Georgia
09. The Dark End Of The Street
10. I Sowed Love And Reaped A Heartache
11. You've Got My Mind Messed Up
12. A Losing Game

13. A Message To Young Lovers
14. Let It Happen
15. You Gotta Have Soul
16. You Hurt Me So Good
17. I Can't Turn You Loose
18. Let's Face Facts
19. Who's Been Warming My Oven
20. Please Your Woman
21. Your Love Made a U-Turn
22. The Lifetime Of a Man
23. Tell Me My Lying Eyes Are Wrong
24. Ring Of Fire

1991 Take Me To The Limit

01. Take Me To The Limit
02. Sugar Shock
03. Love Attack ‘90
04. You Gotta Love Your Woman
05. High On Your Love

06. She's Already Gone
07. Our Garden Of Eden
08. I Can't Leave Your Love Alone
09. What's A Little Love Between Friends
10. Lack Of Attention

1994 Soul Survivor

01. Soul Survivor
02. A Man Worth Knowing
03. Put Love First
04. I Can't Leave Your Love Alone
05. Things A Woman Needs

06. Day Dreamin'
07. All Because Of Your Love
08. I'm Into Something
09. Memphis After Midnight
10. That's How Strong A Woman's Love Is

1995 The Essential James Carr

01. You've Got My Mind Messed Up
02. I'm A Fool for You
03. You Didn't Know It But You Had Me
04. The Dark End Of the Street
05. Lovable Girl
06. Stronger Than Love
07. I Gotta Go
08. Love Attack
09. You Don't Want Me
10. A Man Needs A Woman

11. Coming Back To Me Baby
12. Forgetting You
13. Pouring Water On A Drowning Man
14. These Ain't Raindrops
15. Freedom Train
16. What Can I Call My Own
17. I'm Going For Myself Now
18. Gonna Send You Back To Georgia
19. Let It Happen
20. To Love Somebody

2001 24 Karat Soul

01. It's Sweet On The Backstreet
02. The Dark End Of The Street
03. Pouring Water On a Drowning Man
04. I'm Into Something
05. Soul Survivor
06. Take Me to The Limit
07. Gonna Marry My Mother-In-Law
08. She's Already Gone
09. A Man Worth Knowing
10. Try My Love

11. All Because Of Your Love
12. Things A Woman Needs
13. Hungry For Your Love
14. Love Attack
15. High On Your Love
16. Memphis After Midnight
17. I Can't Leave Your Love Alone
18. That's How Strong My Woman's Love Is
19. What's A Little Love Between Friends
20. That's When The Blues Began

2001 The Complete Goldwax Singles

01. The Dark End Of the Street
02. These Ain't Raindrops
03. A Man Needs A Woman
04. Life Turned Her that Way
05. Freedom Train
06. Pouring Water On A Drowning Man
07. Everybody Needs Somebody
08. That's The Way Love Turned Out For Me
09. To Love Somebody
10. You've Got My Mind Messed Up
11. I'm A Fool For You
12. A Losing Game
13. Stronger Than Love
14. Lovable Girl

15. Forgetting You
16. Love Attack
17. She's Better Than You
18. Coming Back To Me Baby
19. That's What I Want To Know
20. Talk, Talk
21. I Can't Make It
22. Only Fools Run Away
23. You Don't Want Me
24. Lover's Competition
25. Row, Row Your Boat
26. Gonna Send You Back To Georgia
27. Let It Happen
28. A Message To Young Lovers

2004 My Soul Is Satisfied: The Rest of James Carr

01. Pouring Water On A Drowning Man
02. Love Attack
03. What The World Needs Now Is Love
04. She's Better Than You
05. I Can't Help Myself
06. A Woman Is A Man's Best Friend
07. A Losing Game
08. Row, Row Your Boat
09. Hold On
10. I'll Put It To You
11. Let Me Be Right
12. Bring Her Back

13. Hit And Run
14. A Woman's Got The Power
15. Hungry For Your Love
16. It's Sweet On The Backstreet
17. The Dark End Of the Street
18. I'm Gonna Marry My Mother-In-Law
19. That's When The Blues Began
20. Try My Love
21. Jordan River
22. You've Got A Friend
23. My Soul Is Satisfied

2006 A Man Worth Knowing: 1990s Goldwax & Soultrax Recordings

01. Pouring Water On A Drowning Man
02. Take Me To The Limit
03. Sugar Shock
04. Love Attack ‘90
05. You Gotta Love Your Woman
06. High On Your Love
07. She's Already Gone
08. Our Garden Of Eden
09. I Can't Leave Your Love Alone
10. What's A Little Love Between Friends

11. Lack Of Attention
12. Soul Survivor
13. A Man Worth Knowing
14. Put Love First
15. Things A Woman Needs
16. Daydreamin'
17. All Because Of Your Love
18. I'm Into Something
19. Memphis After Midnight
20. That's How Strong A Woman's Love Is