Polished label retrospective
Zub | Forks Twp., PA | 06/23/2001
(4 out of 5 stars)
"A 2-disc, 46-track collection of well-known and some hard-to-find tunes put out by Curtis Mayfield's Curtom label in the late 60s and 70s. While these are all r'n'b hits, many had respectable showings on the pop charts as well. Curtom's powerhouse hits such as Mayfield's "Freddie's Dead", the Impressions' "Finally Got Myself Together" and the Staple Singers' "Let's Do It Again" anchor the repertoire. Also included are productions that originally appeared on Mayfield's other labels (Stairsteps on Windy C and Fascinations on Mayfield). Among the more recognizable hits are some seldom- and never-found-elsewhere sides such as Major Lance's "Stay Away From Me". There are a few notable omissions such as Donny Hathaway's "I Thank You" duet with June Conquest. Swapping this for one of the multitude of songs by other artists represented would have added to the quality of this collection. Sound quality is excellent overall with all tracks on disc two and most on disc one (with the exceptions of 1-6, 16, 18, 21, 23, 24) in stereo. Included is a flopover booklet with a detailed history of the life of the label. A high-quality, musically superior collection from the folks at the Sequel Records division of Castle Music in the U.K. nb: As it is not shown in the Amazon track summary, below are the artists' credits for the tracks on these discs. Track 26 in the Amazon listing is actually track 1 on Disc 2 and so on. *** Disc 1: 1-4,6: Five Stairsteps;9,13: Five Stairsteps and Cubie; 5: Fascinations; 7,8,10-12,14,15,17,19,20,25: Impressions; 16: Major Lance; 18,21-24: Curtis Mayfield *** Disc 2: 1,3-6,10,17,21: Curtis Mayfield; 2: Natural Four; 7,15: Leroy Hutson; 8: Notations; 9,11,13,14: Impressions; 12,16: Staple Singers; 18,19: Linda Clifford; 20: Curtis Mayfield & Linda Clifford"
Track Listings (46) - Disc #1