His best album, an overlooked classic
rocksteady | Seattle, WA USA | 04/12/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I don't give 5 stars lightly. I agree with everything that the first reviewer has said. Long admired by music industry insiders, Allen Toussaint is a major American talent. If you don't know who he is, he produced and wrote many hits for New Orleans artists such as Lee Dorsey, LaBelle, and others, and has worked as an arranger for Robert Palmer, The Band and Paul McCartney, to name a few. This album is the ultimate Allen Toussaint -- great songs, great arrangments and a thematic quality makes it one whole piece of work. This is helped along by the fine New Orleans musicians who play on the recording, including members of the Meters and the great Gary Brown on sax. This record did spawn hits for other artists, "Southern Nights" and "What Do You Want The Girl To Do" where two songs that became very successful cover versions for Glen Campbell, Boz Skaggs and Bonnie Raitt. While not a killer singer, Toussaint's vocals are warm, soulful and intimate, and I've loved this record since it first came out in the mid-70s."