Al Green - The Immortal Soul Of Al Green '2003

Tracks list

The careers of most soul greats are marked by a struggle to reconcile opposite
impulses--sanctified piety and earthly lust, down-home grit and urbane polish,
bluesy pain and carefree jubilation. Throughout the 70s Al Green floated above
such contradictions by blithely imagining that they didnt exist. The ecstatic
good will with which Greens voice overflowed couldnt be neatly categorized; it
contained the sacred, the erotic, and the just plain old friendly. Similarly
smooth and rough vocal tones were, for him, equally valuable devices with which
to seduce the listener, and his fluid technique was matched by Hi Records
producer Willie Mitchell. Sheathing raw soul within velveteen strings, the Hi
sound didnt so much combine elements of Stax gutbucket and Philly International
suavity as meld the styles whole.

Greens 70s output is near-flawless, which makes compiling him a challenge--why
not just go out and buy a handful of his classic albums? Rather than rise to
that challenge, the 1997 four-disc set Anthology acknowledged defeat with a
hodgepodge of hits, misses, live tracks, and outtakes. All business, The
Immortal Soul of Al Green takes a different tack, presenting a genuine overview:
seventy-five tracks, including practically every charting hit, in rough
chronology. You can hear the early Green, a rough-and-ready southern soul man,
grow comfortable within the smoother Hi formula. And you can hear the later
Green, tiring of that formula, coast into the late 70s (brilliantly, but
coasting regardless) until he steps away from Mitchell to record The Belle
Album, a stripped-down masterpiece based around his own acoustic guitar. The set
is unified by Greens unwavering sensibility, which, through it all, radiates
both comforting warmth and tingling excitement--yet another pair of varied
traits Green refused to acknowledge as opposites. --Keith Harris


Tracks:



Disc One
01. Back Up Train (& The Soul Mates) (2:21)
02. Guilty (& The Soul Mates) (2:58)
03. I Want To Hold Your Hand (2:21)
04. One Woman (3:05)
05. Get Back, Baby (2:16)
06. Summertime (3:00)
07. What Am I Gonna Do With Myself (2:25)
08. I Cant Get Next To You (3:48)
09. God Is Standing By (3:15)
10. You Say It (2:53)
11. Right Now, Right Now (2:52)
12. Are You Lonely For Me Baby (3:58)
13. Driving Wheel (3:00)
14. Light My Fire (3:55)
15. Ride, Sally Ride (Single Edit) (2:24)
16. Tired Of Being Alone (2:52)
17. Im A Ram (3:48)
18. So Youre Leaving (2:56)
19. Ive Never Found A Girl (3:42)
20. It Aint No Fun To Me (3:28)
21. Lets Stay Together (3:19)
22. Old Time Lovin (3:19)
23. La-La For You (3:31)
24. How Can You Mend A Broken Heart (6:25)



Disc Two
01. Im Still In Love With You (3:13)
02. Love And Happiness (5:08)
03. Simply Beautiful (4:12)
04. Oh, Pretty Woman (3:23)
05. Look What You Done For Me (3:06)
06. Call Me (Come Back Home) (3:04)
07. Funny How Time Slips Away (5:34)
08. Here I Am (Come And Take Me) (4:16)
09. Im So Lonesome I Could Cry (3:13)
10. You Ought To Be With Me (3:18)
11. Jesus Is Waiting (5:38)
12. Livin For You (3:12)
13. Lets Get Married (5:36)
14. Beware (Full Lenght Version) (15:08)



Disc Three
01. Take Me To The River (3:45)
02. So Good To Be Here (2:43)
03. My God Is Real (2:44)
04. Sha-La-La (Make Me Happy) (2:58)
05. The City (3:25)
06. God Blessed Our Love (3:56)
07. One Nite Stand (2:26)
08. Im Hooked On You (3:21)
09. Mimi (3:20)
10. Love Ritual (4:20)
11. Rhymes (3:35)
12. Could I Be The One? (4:07)
13. L-O-V-E (Love) (3:09)
14. Strong As Death (Sweet As Love) (4:21)
15. Oh Me, Oh My (Dreams In My Arms) (2:48)
16. I Gotta Be More (Take Me Higher) (2:45)
17. Elis Game (4:56)
18. Love Ritual (Remix) (4:17)



Disc Four
01. Full Of Fire (5:13)
02. Id Fly Away (4:11)
03. Thats The Way It Is (3:41)
04. Together Again (5:20)
05. Let It Shine (3:15)
06. Have A Good Time (3:37)
07. Keep Me Cryin (3:08)
08. Nothing Takes The Place Of You (4:35)
09. I Tried To Tell Myself (3:26)
10. The Truth Marches On (2:41)
11. Belle (4:49)
12. Georgia Boy (7:00)
13. Chariots Of Fire (3:49)
14. Loving You (3:34)
15. All In All (3:38)
16. To Sir With Love (4:07)
17. Wait Here (2:44)
18. King Of All (2:22)
19. Starting All Over Again (3:29)

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