The Exciting Wilson Pickett
The Exciting Wilson Pickett, released in 1966, was the third album by R&B and soul singer Wilson Pickett. The album charted at #3 on the U.S. Billboard R&B albums chart and #21 on the popular albums chart. According to AllMusic, this album firmly established Picket's "stature as a major '60s soul man".[3] The album launched four major hits for Pickett, but AllMusic emphasizes that the non-hit cuts, "of nearly an equal level", will be of more interest to collectors.[3]
The Exciting Wilson Pickett | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | August 1966 | |||
Recorded | May 12, 1965–May 8, 1966 Memphis, Tennessee and Muscle Shoals, Alabama | |||
Genre | R&B/Soul | |||
Label | Atlantic 8129 | |||
Producer | Jerry Wexler, Steve Cropper, Jim Stewart, Rick Hall, Tom Dowd | |||
Wilson Pickett chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [1] |
Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [2] |
Originally released on the Atlantic label, the album has been re-issued on CD by Rhino, Collectables and Warner Bros. Records. In 2007, a new LP edition was released by the label 4 Men with Beards.
Hit singles
The Exciting Wilson Pickett launched four crossover hit singles. "In the Midnight Hour" reached #1 on the Billboard R&B singles chart and #21 on the pop singles chart. "Land of a Thousand Dances" reached #1 and #6 respectively, his biggest pop hit. "Ninety-nine and a Half (Won't Do)" reached #13 and #53. "634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.)", a song which Pickett had not on first hearing liked, reached #1 and #13.[4]
Pickett later redid the song "Land of a Thousand Dances", originally a hit in 1963 for New Orleans-based composer Chris Kenner, for the soundtrack of The Great Outdoors, a 1988 film starring Dan Aykroyd and John Candy.[5]
Track listing
- "Land of 1000 Dances" (Chris Kenner) – 2:28
- "Something You Got" (Kenner) – 2:58
- "634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.)" (Steve Cropper, Eddie Floyd) – 3:00
- "Barefootin'" (Robert Parker) – 2:22
- "Mercy Mercy" (Don Covay, Ronald Dean Miller) – 2:30
- "You're So Fine" (Lance Finney, Willie Schofield, Bob West) – 2:38
- "In the Midnight Hour" (Cropper, Wilson Pickett) – 2:36
- "Ninety-nine and a Half (Won't Do)" (Cropper, Floyd, Pickett) – 2:44
- "Danger Zone" (Cropper, Pickett) – 2:12
- "I'm Drifting" (Homer Banks, Pickett, David Porter) – 2:54
- "It's All Over" (Cropper, Pickett) – 2:21
- "She's So Good to Me" (Bobby Womack) – 2:17
Personnel
- Wilson Pickett – vocals
- Tommy Cogbill, Donald Dunn – bass guitar
- Steve Cropper, Jimmy Johnson, Chips Moman – guitar
- Joe Hall, Isaac Hayes, Spooner Oldham – keyboards, piano
- Roger Hawkins, Al Jackson Jr. – drums
- Wayne Jackson, Gene "Bowlegs" Miller – trumpet
- Charles "Packy" Axton, Andrew Love, Charles Chalmers – tenor saxophone
- Floyd Newman – baritone saxophone
Production
- Haig Adishian – cover design
- Steve Cropper – supervisor
- Tom Dowd – engineer, supervisor
- A. Scott Galloway – liner notes
- Rick Hall – engineer, supervisor
- Dan Hersch – digital remastering
- Bill Inglot – digital remastering
- John Peck
- Bob Rolontz – liner notes
- Nick Samardge – photography
- Jim Stewart – engineer, supervisor
- Jerry Wexler – supervisor
References
- Allmusic review
- Larkin, Colin (2007). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195313734.
- The Exciting Wilson Pickett at AllMusic
- 634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.) at AllMusic
- Land of 1000 Dances at AllMusic