Born in the town of Slab Fork, West Virginia (a chamber of commerce name if we ever heard one), Bill Withers grew up in Beckley and was the youngest of six. He joined the navy and afterward moved to L.A. to try his luck (1965).
He worked in a factory while putting out demo tapes around town. He was picked up by Sussex Records and put out his first album called "Just as I Am" in 1971 which featured Booker T.(Booker T. and the MG's) as producer and Donald "Duck" Dunn on bass as well as Stephen Stills on guitar. The song yielded the hit "Ain't No Sunshine," which went to number three on the U.S charts. This is the song that Bill sings the words "I know" 26 times. This would win him a Grammy Award.
In 1972, he would record the album "Still Bill." The single "Lean on Me" was released in July of 1972 and shot to number one. In August, "Use Me" was released and made it to number two on the charts.
"Use Me" has such a great opening hook as provided by Bassist Melvin Dunlap and keyboards by Ray Jackson. It takes you in right away. More than any song Withers did, this one seems like a narrated story, but with lots of emotion:
My friends feel it's their appointed duty
They keep trying to tell me all you want to do is use me
But my answer yeah to all that use me stuff
Is I want to spread the news that if it feels this good getting used
Oh you just keep on using me until you use me upUntil you use me up
Everyone he knows wants him out of this relationship but himself. This might remind you of our post about Kristy McColl's "They Don't Know", which has the same message.
Withers would have other hits including "Just the Two of Us" (with Grover Washington Jr.) in 1982.
How cool is "Use Me"? No fewer than thirty-one covers of the song have been released to date, including versions by Mick Jagger, Liza (I'll cover anything) Minnelli and Rockapella. We are of course including his recording along with a cover by Hootie and the Blowfish and Liza with a "Z" for comparison.
Curtis Mayfield and Jerry Butler were both steeped in gospel and sang in the same group. By 1958, they had joined a band called the Roosters and were subsequently renamed Jerry Butler and the Impressions. Curtis did most of the writing, but Jerry was at first, the star. They had a smash hit the same year with "Your Precious Love" and another song that would crack the top 30. Jerry subsequently left, taking Curtis to play guitar for his solo act, but Curtis went back and reformed the Impressions.
In 1961, "Gypsy Woman" would chart at #2 and was their biggest hit to date. After that however, little happened and personnel changes would affect the group.
But Curtis was not done. Moving the group to Chicago, they worked with a new producer who helped them achieve a more soulful gospel sound. This led to "It's Alright", which would become a number one hit on the R & B charts and cross over and pop at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. This would be one of six songs they would place on the R & B charts.
It is a simple song of encouragement and perseverance. Perhaps the first song to hint of Mayfield's impending social activism that would be reflected in all of his work when he went solo in 1970.
When you wake up early in the morning
Feelin' sad like so many of us do
Hum a little soul
Make life your goal
And surely something's got to come to you
And say it's all right (it's all right)Say it's all right (it's all right)
It's all right, have a good time
'Cause it's all right, whoa, it's all right
There are many who feel that the drum playing on "It's Alright" is among the best drum R & B performances ever. It contains triplets on the hi- hat and and fast rolls across the kit. What is curious is that nobody seems to know for sure who it was! Some claim it was Maurice White who did studio work for the Impressions as well as others and would be part of Earth, Wind and Fire.
Many people were influenced by Mayfield's work and that included Bob Marley and the Wailers who covered several of his songs. He is hailed as a Soul and Funk pioneer, and is even referred to as the founder of Psychedelic Soul. This can be easily observed on his masterful soundtrack for the movie "Superfly".
According to Wikipedia. "Two significant characteristics distinguish Mayfield's sound. First, he taught himself how to play guitar, tuning it to the black keys of the piano, thus giving him an open F-sharp tuning—F#, A#, C#, F#, A#, F#---that he used throughout his career. Second, he primarily sang in falsetto register, adding another flavor to his music. This was not unique in itself, but most singers sing primarily in the modal register."
While Jerry Butler and Mayfield went on to successful solo careers, the Impressions carried on and all of them have received prestigious awards and hall of fame credentials.
On August 13, 1990, Mayfield was paralyzed from the neck down after stage lighting equipment fell on him at an outdoor concert at Wingate Field in Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York. He was unable to play guitar, but he wrote, sang, and directed the recording of his last album, New World Order. Mayfield's vocals were painstakingly recorded, usually line-by-line while lying on his back. He was diagnosed with diabetes and died on December 26, 1999.
Prior to his death, (1993), Huey Lewis and the News recorded a cover of "It's All Right" for People Get Ready: A Tribute to Curtis Mayfield. Their rendition peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart. It is such a great cover from this blues band turned pop, that we are including it here. This particular version by them is from a live and superbly recorded concert in Japan (1993).
