Enter multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, producer Jon Tiven and his talented wife Sally. Tiven was the guy who, in 1990, had found Arthur Alexander driving a school bus in Cleveland and made possible his short career resurgence; it seems to have since become Tiven's calling in life to find and record these folks and he is doing a hell of a job. "It's Harder Now" was both Pickett's triumphant return and, ultimately, his swan song. The album received 3 W.C. Handy awards and a Grammy nomination, Wilson was voted Male Artist of the Year, Comeback Artist of the Year, etc... I remember at the time eagerly awaiting the next chapter, but alas, it never came.
I have come to revere this album as one of the strongest final statements of any artist I can think of. A giant portion of what makes it so good is the writing and musicianship of Jon and Sally Tiven. Jon plays guitars, organ, piano, harmonica and saxophones, (whew!) produces, and writes, while Sally is the very funky bass player and frequent song collaborator. The music is exceptionally well played, like Muscle Shoals good, but it is the songs that make this one so special. Wilson's voice has moved to the bluesier side and there is a weight and gravel to his voice that was not there before. The songs fit him to a tee, oozing sex and bravado while acknowledging the passage of time, this is a mellowed Pickett as he makes clear on Soul Survivor and It's Harder Now. Other songs like What's Underneath That Dress and All About Sex, however, have a wicked sense of humor that is just irresistible. Had he been provided material this good in the prior decades, who knows?... If you don't have this one, DO NOT PASS ON IT! ALL KILLER!
12 comments:
http://www.embedupload.com/?d=5YQYFFELIX
Wow !!! Killer indeed !!!
Great to hear this - The old masters can't be beat
as this performance proves - Nice one KC - Just a shame we didn't get more - Great soulful passion from the ever Wicked Pickett !
Cheers
And hats off to Jon and Sally Tiven - Every track is a gem !
I am in shock at how good this album is. I can't think of any of his albums that have moved me like this. When I say that, I am thinking of the album as a whole as opposed to a few tracks. My favorite has always been "The Exciting..." but that has changed now. Another epic post here KC!!
It is a crime how little Wilson Pickett was recorded in his later years. For me, the greatest moment in the Blues Brothers movie was when Pickett got the microphone. Until that moment, I had assumed that he had lost his voice. Why else would one of the greatest American voices go unrecorded for so many years?
i have a live performance of bruce springsteen where the wicked one joined him onstage in these later years for a couple of songs and as bruce says as pickett takes the stage, "it's about to get very real in here . . ."
A great album by a great singer. One Summer when home from college I was lazily passing the afternoon by listening to my favorite "underground" station and the D. J. introduced Pickett's "Lay Me Like You Hate Me." That seething, volatile, prickly masculinity that was so often Pickett at his best nearly knocked me over. I would mention the song to friends who liked soul and they had never heard of it which sadly tells the story of too much of Pickett's later career. In fact, some friends thought I was making the title up. As far as I am concerned, "wilsonpickett" should be an adjective that describes that powerful combination of charm, sexual magnetism, duende, soulfulnness, gospel sincerity and passion, and volatility that Pickett embodied. For example, "man, Teddy Pendergrass could sing so wilson-pickett at times."
Simply put, Pickett is one of those singers whom I appreciate more and more as I get grow and this album is a fantastic effort that I did not have in my collection until now. My drinking days are long over but as I grow older, Wilson goes down more and more like the finest brandy, so smooth, warming, and sensually tasteful with a hint of rawness that pleases the palate. Thanks for posting this one; it's definitely a keeper.
The Unkle sez... Great minds think alike Feilimid. I just added a copy of "Lay Me Like You Hate Me" to a few files I was going to pass on to KC & then I see your post.
Thanks. I think that song encapsulates everything that made Pickett what he was, the raw sexuality and incredible soulful tension that he expressed so adeptly with that great voice. I finally found the song and the album on which it was included several years ago and it was just as raw and powerful as I remember it. Sometimes the memory leads one astray and one is disappointed on rehearing what one liked years ago, but not so with Pickett or that song. To be honest, I am honored that our favorite Uncle agrees with my assessment of the song.
thank you for this nice surprise, KC!
i downloaded it on the strength of your review, and it's a far better album than i would have thought.
is it ALL killer? some of the songs aren't that great in my opinion, but the tiven family plays very well, and pickett is still pretty wicked. so it's a pretty good album as far as i'm concerned.
"Lay Me Like You Hate Me" is a startling distillation of what Pickett's always really been about
I absolutely agree!!! The tension and the violent passion of the song are the essence of Pickett.
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