If
Bettye Swann is remembered by anyone other than soul obsessives, it is for her chart-topping hit "Make Me Yours" from 1967. Hopefully, this collection will open a few ears to the low-key, genre-bending singer who blended the full-bodied gritty sound of Southern soul and the smooth sheen of soul from the urban North. It covers the years 1968 to 1970, after she left Money Records and set up shop with Capitol and producer Wayne Shuler. The union did not provide any hits, but the body of work is quite impressive.
Swann was equally adept at slinky, sassy uptown soul like "(My Heart Is) Closed for the Season," "Cover Me," and "You're Up to Your Old Tricks Again" as well as down-home, heartbroken ballads like "Little Things Mean a Lot," the bluesy "Don't Touch Me," and
Otis Redding's "These Arms of Mine," but also unique blends of styles like her Baroque soul take on
the Bee Gees' "Words" and her countrified funk version of
Marvin Gaye's "Ain't It Peculiar." In fact, she often dipped into country music for material and came up with some impressive songs like her aching version of
Patsy Cline's "Sweet Dreams," which comes darn close to the original in the heartbreak stakes. Her takes on "Stand By Your Man" and "Angel of the Morning" are beautiful and soulful reinterpretations, too. Unfortunately, her duet with
Buck Owens on "Today I Started Loving You Again" remains in the vault, but her solo version was released and is quite wonderful.
Bettye Swann certainly deserves to be discovered; this disc is packed with original, soulful, and exciting music from beginning to end. Credit to Honest Jons for putting it out. First
Candi Staton, now
Bettye Swann -- first-class collections from a label that is doing things right. ~ Tim Sendra