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"Sweet Inspiration" | |
---|---|
Single by the Sweet Inspirations | |
from the album The Sweet Inspirations | |
B-side | "I'm Blue" |
Released | 1967 |
Recorded | 1967 |
Length | 2:50 |
Label | Atlantic |
Songwriter(s) | Wallace Pennington, Lindon Oldham |
Producer(s) | Tom Dowd, Tommy Cogbill |
Sweet Inspiration is the title of a Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham composition written for, and first recorded in 1967 by, the Sweet Inspirations. It became a Top 20 hit reaching #18 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the spring of 1968, and a live version by Barbra Streisand, in medley with "Where You Lead", would also become a Top 40 hit.
The song was recorded in April 1967 at American Sound Studio in Memphis in the sessions for the Sweet Inspirations' self-titled debut album, produced by Tommy Cogbill and Tom Dowd. Spooner Oldham and Dan Penn had observed the recording session for two tracks intended for the album, which moved Oldham to suggest to Penn that they two could write a stronger song for the group - (Oldham quote:) "As we walked [from the studio] up the steps to [the company's] offices, Dan said, 'You got any ideas?' I said, 'What's wrong with "Sweet Inspiration"?'" Working with a single guitar, Oldham and Penn wrote "Sweet Inspiration" in somewhere between an hour to ninety minutes upstairs, then returned to the studio and ran through the song for the Sweet Inspirations and the other session personnel, Penn singing the song to Oldham's guitar accompaniment. Although Tom Dowd called for a lunch break (Dan Penn quote:) "Spooner had [the opening rolling guitar] lick down so good the musicians wouldn't go eat...They knew by what was happening we could [immediately] cut [the track]," which was completed in a single take. Upon returning to the studio from their lunch break, Dowd and his coterie were played the completed track of "Sweet Inspiration" - (Oldham quote:) "We basically gave 'em a gift. It was fun to see a creative idea come to fruition in about three hours' time." [1]
Issued as the fourth single from The Sweet Inspirations album, "Sweet Inspiration" reached a Billboard Hot 100 peak of #18 in the spring of 1968 and ranked as high as #5 on Billboard's R&B chart. The song also gave the group their first and only Grammy nomination, for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group. At the 1969 ceremony, the group lost to The Temptations' "Cloud Nine".
Barbra Streisand reached No. 37 on the Billboard Hot 100 with her 1972 single "Sweet Inspiration/ Where You Lead" a medley of "Sweet Inspiration" with "Where You Lead" which was the advance single from Streisand's live album Live Concert at the Forum .
The first evident recorded "cover" of "Sweet Inspiration" was that by Diana Ross and The Supremes in collaboration with The Temptations on Diana Ross and The Supremes Join The Temptations a collaborative album by the two groups released November 1968 for which "Sweet Inspiration" was recorded with Diana Ross and Eddie Kendricks as lead vocalists.
King Curtis recorded the song on his 1968 album Sweet Soul
Wilson Pickett recorded "Sweet Inspiration" for his March 1970 album release Right On , Picket having recorded "Sweet Inspiration" in a 29 August 1969 session at Criteria Studios (Miami) produced by Dave Crawford, which yielded five album tracks. [2]
In the autumn and winter of 1975-76 the Yandall Sisters would have a Top 40 hit in New Zealand with their remake of "Sweet Inspiration" which would peak at #8 on 31 October 1975.
Rita Coolidge recorded "Sweet Inspiration" for her May 1978 album release Love Me Again .
In 1989 Dutch female quartet Sisters would have reach #58 on the Nederlands Single Top 100 with their remake of "Sweet Inspiration" taken from the group's album Near Me.
Vonda Shepard recorded "Sweet Inspiration" for her 9 November 1999 album release Heart and Soul: New Songs from Ally McBeal .
Jackie DeShannon recorded "Sweet Inspiration" in a 2 December 1970 session at Capitol Recording Studio (Hollywood): the track was first issued as a bonus track on the 2006 CD release of DeShannon's 1971 album Songs. [3]
The Derek Trucks Band on their 2009 release, Already Free, did a cover of Sweet Inspiration, creating a blues version of the song. [4]
The song has been sampled by Ice Cube in his 1992 track "Check Yo Self" and by Salt-n-Pepa on 1993's "Shoop".
Lady Soul is the twelfth studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin released in early 1968 by Atlantic Records. The album stayed at number 1 for 16 weeks on Billboard's R&B album chart, and it hit number 2 on the pop album chart during a year-long run.
Diana Ross is the debut solo studio album by American singer Diana Ross, released on June 19, 1970 by Motown Records. The ultimate test to see if the former Supremes frontwoman could make it as a solo act, the album was overseen by the songwriting-producing team of Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson, who had Ross re-record several of the songs the duo had recorded on other Motown acts. Johnny Bristol, producer of her final single with The Supremes, contributed on The Velvelettes cover "These Things Will Keep Me Loving You."
Diana Ross & the Supremes Join the Temptations is a collaborative album combining Motown's two best selling groups, Diana Ross & the Supremes and the Temptations. Issued by Motown in late 1968 to coincide with the broadcast of the Supremes/Temptations TCB television special, the album was a success, reaching #2 on the Billboard 200. Diana Ross & the Supremes Join the Temptations spent four weeks at number one on the UK Albums Chart.
Love Child is the fifteenth studio album released by Diana Ross & the Supremes for the Motown label in 1968. The LP was the group's first studio LP not to include any songs written or produced by any member of the Holland–Dozier–Holland production team, who had previously overseen most of the Supremes' releases.
"Respect" is a song written and originally recorded by American soul singer Otis Redding. It was released in 1965 as a single from his third album Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul and became a crossover hit for Redding.
"People" is a song composed by Jule Styne with lyrics by Bob Merrill for the 1964 Broadway musical Funny Girl starring Barbra Streisand, who introduced the song. The song was released as a single in 1964 with "I Am Woman", a solo version of "You Are Woman, I Am Man", also from Funny Girl.
Dan Penn is an American songwriter, singer, musician, and record producer, who co-wrote many soul hits of the 1960s, including "The Dark End of the Street" and "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man" with Chips Moman and "Cry Like a Baby" with Spooner Oldham. Penn also produced many hits, including "The Letter", by The Box Tops. He has been described as a white soul and blue-eyed soul singer. Penn has released relatively few records featuring his own vocals and musicianship, preferring the relative anonymity of songwriting and producing. Dan Penn produced an album on Ronnie Milsap in 1970 on Warner Bros.
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"Shake Me, Wake Me " is a song recorded by the American quartet Four Tops for their third studio album, On Top (1966). It was released in February 1966 as a 7" vinyl single through Motown records. It was written and produced by Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Eddie Holland. A gospel rock track, its lyrics detail a relationship that has ended. It has since been regarded as one of Four Tops' most successful singles ever. It charted moderately well in both the United States and Canada, and became the group's fifth consecutive entry to chart within the top five of the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Four Tops has performed "Shake Me, Wake Me " on various occasions throughout their careers and have included it on several greatest hits albums, including on The Four Tops Greatest Hits (1967) and The Ultimate Collection (1997).
What About Today? is the eleventh studio album released in July 1969 by Barbra Streisand. It is considered to be her first attempt at recording contemporary pop songs and features songs by The Beatles and Paul Simon, among others.
Diana Ross & the Supremes Sing and Perform "Funny Girl" is the thirteenth studio album released by Diana Ross & the Supremes on the Motown label, released in 1968. Berry Gordy had Diana Ross & the Supremes cover the songs from Barbra Streisand's Broadway musical Funny Girl original cast LP to tie-in with the September release of the feature-film version of the musical, also starring Streisand. The LP was not a success, and, with a Billboard 200 peak of 150, ranks as the lowest-charting of the Diana Ross-led Supremes albums.
Live Concert at the Forum is the second live album by American singer Barbra Streisand, released physically on October 1, 1972, by Columbia Records. Produced by long-time collaborator Richard Perry, it was recorded at The Forum in Inglewood, part of Greater Los Angeles, on April 15, 1972, during Four for McGovern, a concert held in benefit for George McGovern's 1972 presidential campaign. A CD version of Live Concert at the Forum was released on September 6, 1989.
Barbra Streisand...and Other Musical Instruments is the fourteenth studio album by American singer Barbra Streisand. It was released on November 2, 1973, by Columbia Records. The album was made available following a 1973 live television special promoted to improve Streisand's image and sound. With world music as the primary genre, the album's instrumentation varies greatly; even items such as kitchen utensils were used to create melodies and beats. With a majority of the songs on the album being cover songs, Streisand also re-recorded various tracks that originated earlier in her career. Her manager, Martin Erlichman, was credited as the album's sole and executive producer.
"Where You Lead" is a song written in 1970 by Carole King with lyricist Toni Stern, introduced on King's iconic 1971 album Tapestry. A Top 40 hit for Barbra Streisand in both a studio and a live version — the latter in a medley entitled "Sweet Inspiration/ Where You Lead'" — the song has also served as the main theme song for The WB dramedy series Gilmore Girls in a lyrically revised version recorded by King and Louise Goffin.
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