| Straight from the Heart | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1972 | |||
| Recorded | 1971 | |||
| Studio | Royal Recording Studios, South Lauderdale, Memphis, Tennessee | |||
| Genre | Memphis soul, blues, funk | |||
| Length | 26:08 | |||
| Label | Hi | |||
| Producer | Willie Mitchell | |||
| Ann Peebles chronology | ||||
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| Singles from I Can't Stand The Rain | ||||
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Straight from the Heart is the third studio album by American Memphis soul singer Ann Peebles. It was released on the Hi label in 1972 and included the songs "I Pity the Fool" and "Breaking Up Somebody's Home".
Peebles' second album, Part Time Love, in 1971 was her first record to impact the US R&B albums chart, and she began recording her third studio album at the Royal Recording Studios in Memphis, Tennessee later that year. Peebles' enlisted Willie Mitchell to produce the album and songwriters such as Don Bryant (with whom she was in a relationship and would go on to marry in 1974) and George Jackson. [1] [2] Straight From The Heart also features the Hi Rhythm Section, the house band for the Hi label.[ citation needed ]
Straight from the Heart was released later in 1971 and the song "I Pity the Fool", originally recorded by Bobby Bland in 1961, became a minor hit for Peebles, as it peaked at no. 85 on the Billboard Hot 100. This was her second song to impact the US singles chart, after "Part Time Love" reached no. 45 in 1970. [3]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [4] |
| Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies | A− [5] |
Straight from the Heart was well received by critics, with Richie Unterberger awarding the album 4.5 out of 5 stars in his AllMusic review. Unterberger described the album as "not only a triumph for Peebles, but [Straight from the Heart] illustrated how the Hi label had surpassed its crosstown Stax rival for quality Memphis soul in the early '70s". [1] In his 1981 review of Straight from the Heart in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies , music journalist Robert Christgau gave the album an A− and wrote that "why gritty singing like this can't be heard on 'progressive' radio when a borderline hysteric like Lydia Pense is an automatic add ought to be investigated by the Civil Rights Commission." [6]
The album was also a modest commercial success for Peebles, becoming her first record to chart on the Billboard 200, where it peaked at no. 188. [3] She would go on to enjoy further commercial success with her next album, I Can't Stand the Rain, in 1974. [7]
| Chart (1971) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Top LPs & Tape ( Billboard ) [3] | 188 |
| U.S. Soul LPs (Billboard) [3] | 42 |
Mabon Lewis "Teenie" Hodges was an American musician known for his work as a rhythm and lead guitarist and songwriter on many of Al Green's soul hits, and those of other artists such as Ann Peebles and Syl Johnson, on Hi Records in the 1970s. His credits as a songwriter include "Take Me to the River", "Love and Happiness", "L-O-V-E (Love)", and "Here I Am ".
The Hi Rhythm Section was the house band for hit soul albums by several artists, including Al Green and Ann Peebles, on Willie Mitchell's Hi Records label in the 1970s. The band included the three Hodges brothers, organist Charles Hodges, bassist Leroy Hodges and guitarist Mabon "Teenie" Hodges, together with pianist Archie Turner and drummer Howard Grimes. Many recordings also used The Memphis Horns - Wayne Jackson and Andrew Love - of Stax fame, usually with Willie's brother James Mitchell arranging and (Perry) Michael Allen - piano (Alt). The recordings were made at producer Willie Mitchell's Royal Recording Studio in Memphis, Tennessee.
Ann Lee Peebles is an American retired singer and songwriter who gained popularity for her Memphis soul albums of the 1970s while signed to Hi Records. Her most successful singles include "I Can't Stand the Rain", which she wrote with her husband Don Bryant and radio broadcaster Bernie Miller, and "I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down". In 2014, she was inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame.
Let's Stay Together is the fourth studio album by soul singer Al Green. Released on January 31, 1972, as the follow-up to his moderate success, Al Green Gets Next to You, it was recorded at Royal Recording Studio in Memphis, Tennessee. A commercial success, it peaked at number eight on the pop albums chart and became the first of six consecutive Green albums to peak at number one on the soul album chart, where it held the position for ten straight weeks.
Al Green Explores Your Mind is the eighth album by soul singer Al Green. Unlike previous Al Green albums, this album featured only one major hit, the U.S. No. 7 hit "Sha-La-La ", but did contain the original version of "Take Me to the River", a song which went to No. 26 on the Billboard chart when covered by Talking Heads in 1978. In 2004, the song "Take Me to the River" was ranked number 117 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 greatest songs of all time.
Al Green Is Love is the ninth album by soul singer Al Green. It was his final of six consecutive albums to hit number 1 on the R&B/Soul Albums chart, and it peaked into the Top 40 on the Pop Albums chart.
"I Pity the Fool" is a soul blues song originally recorded by Bobby Bland in 1961 for his first Duke Records album, Two Steps from the Blues. Many music writers believe that it was written by Joe Medwick, although Duke owner Don Robey appears on the songwriting credits.
Livin' for You is the seventh album from soul musician Al Green. Released in 1973 it includes the hit title track and "Let's Get Married." The album cracked the Top 25 in the Billboard Pop Albums chart and was the fourth album from the artist to peak at #1 on the Soul Albums chart.
Full of Fire is the 10th studio album by soul singer Al Green, released in 1976.
Have a Good Time is the 11th studio album by soul singer Al Green, released in 1976.
He Is the Light is an album by Al Green, released in 1985. It was Green's first album for A&M Records.
"Take Me to the River" is a 1974 song written by singer Al Green and guitarist Mabon "Teenie" Hodges. Hit versions were recorded by Syl Johnson, Talking Heads and Delbert McClinton. In 2004, Green's original version was ranked number 117 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Green's 1974 recording was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2011.
I Can't Stand the Rain is the fourth studio album by American Memphis soul singer Ann Peebles. It was released on the Hi label in 1974 and was her highest-charting record on the Billboard 200, where it reached no. 155 and spent 7 weeks. Produced by Willie Mitchell and largely written by Peebles and her husband, Don Bryant, I Can't Stand the Rain included the R&B hits "I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down" and "I Can't Stand the Rain", the latter of which reached no. 6 on the R&B chart and no. 38 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1973.
"Love and Happiness" is a song by Al Green from his album I'm Still in Love with You. Green co-wrote the song with Teenie Hodges. It was released as a single in the United Kingdom on London Records in 1973 and in the United States on Hi Records in 1977. It has been covered by Etta James, Al Jarreau, and many other performers.
"I Can't Stand the Rain" is a song originally recorded by Ann Peebles in 1973, and written by Peebles, Don Bryant, and Bernard "Bernie" Miller. Other notable versions were later recorded by Eruption, Graham Central Station, Tina Turner and Lowell George. The original version is ranked at 197 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Call Me is the sixth album by soul singer Al Green, released in April 1973. It is widely regarded as Green's masterpiece, and has been called one of the best soul albums ever made. In 2003 the TV network VH1 named it the 70th greatest album in any genre. Call Me was a Top 10 Billboard Pop Album, and the third #1 Soul Album. In 2003, the album was ranked number 289 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, and 290 in a 2012 revised list. Praised for his emotive singing style, Green here incorporates country influences, covering both Willie Nelson and Hank Williams. This album contained three top 10 singles on the Billboard Hot 100: "You Ought to Be with Me," "Here I Am " and "Call Me ."
Howard Lee Grimes was an American drummer, best known as a member of the Hi Rhythm Section on records by Al Green, Ann Peebles and others in the 1970s.
Lawrence "Boo" Mitchell is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, audio engineer, and owner of Royal Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. He is best known for his work with Al Green, Solomon Burke, Anthony Hamilton, Rod Stewart, John Mayer, 8 Ball, Lamont Dozier, William Bell and Cody Chesnutt.
Full Time Love is an album by the American musician Ann Peebles, released in 1992. Peebles supported the album by touring with Otis Clay.
"Breaking Up Somebody's Home" is a song written by Al Jackson Jr. and Timothy Matthews, originally recorded by Ann Peebles for her 1971 album Straight from the Heart. It was a successful single for Albert King and was later performed by Bette Midler, Etta James, Gov't Mule, and others.