King Curtis • King Of The Sax

Review by Steve Leggett

King Curtis and his bubbling, stutter-style tenor sax playing brought a touch of jazz and a whole ton of R&B to countless rock & roll tracks in the early '60s, and his funky edge is one of the reasons records by the Coasters, for instance, continue to sound good 40 years later. This collection brings together a nice set of solo Curtis singles, kicking off with his first hit, "Soul Twist," and its B-side, "Twisting Time," which came out on Enjoy Records in 1962. Curtis was a more versatile musician than many people realize (he did sessions with artists as varied as Lonnie Donegan and Andy Williams, and shows it here by going sans sax, playing a solid electric guitar and handling the vocals on a two-part version of the Ray Charles classic "What'd I Say." Curtis shows himself right at home in Memphis soul territory, too, with the Booker T. & the MG's-styled "Hot Potato (Piping Hot)." The haunting and slightly ominous instrumental "Midnight Blue" is another highlight included here, although one wishes room could have been found for one of Curtis' best tunes, "Soul Serenade," which featured Curtis on saxello. That omission aside, King of the Sax makes for a fine introduction to this extraordinary musician.

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Reseña de Steve Leggett

King Curtis y su saxo tenor burbujeante y tartamudo aportó un toque de jazz y una tonelada de R&B a innumerables temas de rock & roll a principios de los 60, y su toque funky es una de las razones por las que los discos de los Coasters, por ejemplo, siguen sonando bien 40 años después. Esta colección reúne un buen conjunto de singles de Curtis en solitario, comenzando con su primer éxito, "Soul Twist", y su lado B, "Twisting Time", que salió en Enjoy Records en 1962. Curtis era un músico más versátil de lo que mucha gente cree (hizo sesiones con artistas tan variados como Lonnie Donegan y Andy Williams, y lo muestra aquí yendo sin saxo, tocando una sólida guitarra eléctrica y manejando las voces en una versión a dos partes del clásico de Ray Charles "What'd I Say". Curtis también se siente en casa en el territorio del soul de Memphis, con el Booker T. y el MG "Hot Potato (Piping Hot)". El inquietante y ligeramente ominoso instrumental "Midnight Blue" es otro punto culminante incluido aquí, aunque uno desearía que se hubiera encontrado espacio para una de las mejores melodías de Curtis, "Soul Serenade", que presentaba a Curtis en saxo. Aparte de esa omisión, "King of the Sax" es una buena introducción a este extraordinario músico.

 

 

 

Tracks: 

1 - Soul Twist

2 - Twisting Time
3 - What'd I Say (part 1)
4 - What'd I Say (part 2)
5 - I Know (You Don't Love Me No More)
6 - Sack O'Woe (Twist)
7 - Camp Meetin'
8 - Wobble Twist
9 - Irresistible You
10 - Big Dipper
11 - Twisting With The King
12 - Midnight Blue
13 - Hot Potato (Piping Hot)
14 - The Monkey Shout
15 - Get With It
16 - Air Raid
17 - Soul Twist (alt. take)

Release Date: January 27, 2004
Duration: 50:11
Genre: R&B, Pop/Rock, Blues, Jazz
Styles: Southern Soul, Early R&B, Instrumental Rock, East Coast Blues, Regional Blues, Soul,Soul Jazz

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