Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, February 28, 1994 TAG: 9402260105
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: NASHVILLE, TENN. LENGTH: Medium
Vince Gill on finding himself in the vocal booth next to Gladys Knight: "I was nervous that I wasn't going to be good enough."
Little Richard on Little Richard: "I can sing at the Opry, I can sing a bluegrass song. I can sing a gospel song - It's SOUL!"
It all comes together in "Rhythm, Country & Blues." The MCA Records album, set for release on Tuesday, pairs country and R&B singers, and illustrates just how flimsy the racial barriers are that the recording industry still inflicts on music.
A PBS special taped during the recording sessions will be broadcast beginning Wednesday at 9 p.m. on WBRA (Channel 15). "I've always thought country music was just white soul music," said album producer Don Was during a recent press conference to promote the album.
Was founded the neo-R&B band Was (Not Was) and recently has been producing country music albums (Willie Nelson, Kelly Willis, Kris Kristofferson, Waylon Jennings) as well as high-profile rock projects such as The Rolling Stones.
On "Rhythm, Country & Blues," Was steers things closer to R&B both in song selections and arrangements. The fun comes in the chemistry of the pairings, which combine hot country artists with R&B perennials who have a harder time getting on the radio these days.
Lovett is paired with Green for a version of Willie Nelson's "Ain't It Funny How Time Slips Away." Lovett is no stranger to musical cross-pollenization. He tours with a horn-laden band and has found more success out of country music than within it.
"I've always been interested in great music," Lovett said. "When I hear something great, the question is not `What is that,' but `Who is that.' "
Some songs or performances on the record fall somewhere in between the two poles of the concept. Louisianan Tony Joe White's "Rainy Night in Georgia" has been both a pop (Brook Benton) and country (Hank Williams Jr.) hit.
On "Rhythm, Country & Blues" the late Conway Twitty and Sam Moore (of Sam & Dave fame) do it. It was Twitty's last recording, three days before he died last summer.
Moore said Twitty wasn't trying to be Dave, and he wasn't trying to be Loretta Lynn, Twitty's frequent duet partner.
"I'm really angry with him, because I didn't get a chance to really promote with him," Moore said. "I wanted to go to Branson and ride up and down the road with him."
The song's long fade-out demonstrates how well the two men, who had never met before, got along. "Yeah, I got a big kick out of that growl in his voice," Moore said.
"He almost laughed because I was bugging him about doing it."
Producer-writer Allen Toussaint of New Orleans and guitarist-producer Chet Atkins combine for a sublime version of Toussaint's "Southern Nights." That song was a No. 1 country hit for Glen Campbell in 1977. The Band - considered a rock group in its day but saturated with influences from the whole of American music - is represented by a version of "The Weight," sung by The Staple Singers with Marty Stuart.
Other pairings on the record are Vince Gill and Gladys Knight on "Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing," Clint Black and The Pointer Sisters on "Chain of Fools," Patti LaBelle and Travis Tritt on "When Something Is Wrong With My Baby," and Natalie Cole and Reba McEntire on "Since I Fell for You."
B.B. King and George Jones end the album with "Patches," a Clarence Carter hit.
"Rhythm, Country & Blues" began in the mind of Al Teller, MCA Music Entertainment Group chairman. He said that the "considerable renaissance in both alternate versions of American soul music" inspired the idea to demonstrate that "country put the twang into Chuck Berry and soul put the twitch in Elvis Presley."
by CNB