JOHNNY ADAMS – IT´S YOU BABY, IT´S YOU / THINK ABOUT YOU (S4R45)

JOHNNY ADAMS (S4R45)

IT´S YOU BABY, ´IT´S YOU / THINK ABOUT YOU

New Orleans has always spawned a potpourri of musical styles. Native Johnny Adams, fondly nicknamed “The Tan Canary” due to his multi-octave range, epitomised the soul/blues ballad genre. However, he is probably best remembered for his late 1960s country-oriented hits “Release Me” and “Reconsider Me”, the latter of which demonstrated his stratospheric falsetto.

Adams’ recording career commenced a decade earlier on Joe Ruffino’s Ric set-up, for which he released several 45s including “A Losing Battle”, a Top 30 R&B chart entry. It culminated with a series of excellent Rounder albums in the 1980s and 1990s, including the much-acclaimed One Foot In The Blues.

Pitched roughly in the middle period (late 70s) was a tenure with producer Senator Jones and his Hep’ Me imprint. “It’s You Baby, It’s You”, a horn-led mid-tempo swayer, and the beat-ballad ‘Think About You”, were originally unreleased tracks, only appearing on the US Ace compilation Greatest Performance in 1993.
This soulful pairing now receives its debut release on a 7″ single and is a most worthy addition to the Soul4Real canon.

RAY ELLIS