Etta

Do I smell some Amy Winehouse here ...

You probably don't see her very often around because she is so very great. Maybe also because of her explicit lyrics (like in Wet Match). Etta "Big Mama" James is of God-status in R&B. She is an inspiration for many youngsters nowadays. Here are a few albums that I copy-pasted from the web.

[1] Etta James Rocks The House, 1963 Chess (Vinyl Rip)
ROCKS THE HOUSE is the only live recording from Etta James' Chess recording career (late 1950s to mid 1960s). Recorded live at The New Era Club, Nashville, Tennessee on September 27 and 28, 1963. Originally released on Argo (4032). Includes liner notes by Ralph Bass and by Don Snowden. Personnel: Etta James (vocals); David Walker (guitar); Gavrell Cooper (tenor saxophone); Vonzell Cooper (organ); Marion Wright (bass); Freeman Brown, Richard Waters (drums).

Side A
1. Something's Got a Hold on Me
2. Baby What You Want Me to Do
3. What'd I Say
4. Money (That's What I Want)

Side B
1. Seven Day Fool
2. Sweet Little Angel
3. Ooh Poo Pah Doo
4. Woke up This Morning

Though the studio albums Etta James made for Chess in the 1960s usually had the blues singer surrounded by lush production and string-heavy arrangements, this live date finds her performing with only a rhythm section, organist, guitarist, and tenor saxophonist. The singer seems to respond to both the stripped-down setting and the enthusiastic audience with noticeable abandon. In fact, James the classy balladeer, a role she sometimes plays on her studio albums, is nowhere to be found on this blazing set.
The set is straight-edged blues and R&B, including covers of some hits of the day, like "Money (That's What I Want)" and Ray Charles's "What'd I Say." Jimmy Reed's "Baby What You Want Me To Do" (on which James does a growling, harmonica-imitating vocal solo) steps up the blues quotient.

[2] Etta James, Tell Mama, 1968, Chess (Vinyl Rip)
Recorded at Fame Studios, Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Originally released on Cadet (802). Includes liner notes by Lee Hildebrand & Morry Roth. Personnel: Etta James (vocals); Albert Lowe, Jr., Jimmy Ray Johnson (guitar); Charles Chalmers, Aaron Varnell, Floyd Newman, James Mitchell (saxophone); Gene "Bowlegs" Miller (trumpet); Dewey Oldham (piano, organ); George Davis, Marvell Davis (piano); Carl Banks, Barry Beckett (organ); David Hood (bass); Roger Dawkins (drums).

1. Tell Mama
2. I'd Rather Go Blind
3. Watch Dog
4. The Love of My Man
5. I'm Gonna Take What He's Got
6. Same Rope, The
7. Security
8. Steal Away
9. My Mother-in-Law
10. Don't Lose Your Good Thing
11. It Hurts Me So Much
12. Just a Little Bit

Having already been an established leading soul singer for 13 years and having 18 R&B hits to her name, in 1967 Etta went to record in Alabama at the legendary Muscle Shoals studio. The result was her most accomplished album, on which her voice had been mixed to perfection, allowing her to sound strong on the previously distorted high notes. James was rightly seen in a different light as one of the great soul voices of all time as she belted out powerful tracks such as "The Love Of My Man" and "Watch Dog". Her slower numbers were equally arresting, including the wonderful "I'd Rather Go Blind."

[3] Etta James, Tell Mama - The Complete Muscle Shoals Sessions, 2001 (you need part-2).
Recorded at Fame Studios, Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Originally released on Cadet (802). Includes liner notes by Lee Hildebrand & Morry Roth. Digitally remastered by Erick Labson (Universal Mastering Studios-West, North Hollywood, California. Personnel: Etta James (vocals); Albert Lowe, Jr., Jimmy Ray Johnson (guitar); Charles Chalmers, Aaron Varnell, Floyd Newman, James Mitchell (saxophone); Gene "Bowlegs" Miller (trumpet); Dewey Oldham (piano, organ); George Davis, Marvell Davis (piano); Carl Banks, Barry Beckett (organ); David Hood (bass); Roger Dawkins (drums).

1. Tell Mama
2. I'd Rather Go Blind
3. Watch Dog
4. Love of My Man, The
5. I'm Gonna Take What He's Got
6. Same Rope, The
7. Security
8. Steal Away
9. My Mother-in-Law
10. Don't Lose Your Good Thing
11. It Hurts Me So Much
12. Just a Little Bit
13. Do Right Woman, Do Right Man
14. You Took It
15. I Worship the Ground You Walk On
16. I Got You Babe
17. You Got It
18. I've Gone Too Far (previously unreleased)
19. Misty - (previously unreleased)
20. Almost Persuaded
21. Fire
22. Do Right Woman, Do Right Man (previously unreleased, alternate take)

As the title suggests, this is the definitive edition of Etta James' Tell Mama long-player. For this single-disc release the original album is augmented with five previously unissued tracks - documented during James' four Muscle Shoals sessions circa '67-'68. The question of why a rural Alabama town became a conduit for some of the most memorable and instantly identifiable grooves may still be up for debate. The evidence exists in droves and Tell Mama could certainly be considered exhibit A. These sessions feature the same impact that would redirect several first ladies of soul. Notable among them are Dusty Springfield's Dusty in Memphis, Aretha Franklin's I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You) and to somewhat lesser acclaim, Jackie DeShannon's Jackie. Tell Mama showcases some of the unique and admittedly darker qualities of what might best be described as R&B noir. "I'd Rather Go Blind," "Steal Away," "I'm Gonna Take What He's Got" all exemplify the essence of the blues - making the best of a bad situation. The flipside of the sombre subject matter is the satisfying conviction in the music - which is where the remastering becomes particularly noticeable. No longer does the brass section sound alternately muffled or harsh as it has on previous releases. Likewise, the churning Hammond B-3 organ swells with rich textures. Perhaps the most sonically evident
improvements are the subtle ones, such as the supple fretwork on "Sweet Dreams," "I'd Rather Go Blind," and the jazzy percussive shuffle of "The Same Rope."

[4] Etta James, Sings Funk, 1970 Cadet
1. Tighten Up Your Own Thing
2. Sweet Memories
3. Quick Reaction & Satisfaction
4. Nothing From Nothing Leaves No
5. My Man Is Together
6. Are My Thoughts With You
7. The Man I Love
8. Sound Of Love
9. When I Stop Dreaming
10. What Fools We Mortals Be
11. Your Replacement

As you can read on the back, funk isn't a style or something like that - it's just, well, Etta. Etta with chorus, Etta with full brass, Etta with strings even. Etta singing a Gershwin song, Etta singing a Bee Gees song, Etta singing three Acuff-Rose songs, Etta singing four Pearl Woods songs. (Pearl Woods?) Highlights: the Acuff-Rose songs.
I can not tell you if this was ever released as a CD. This was sent to me a while back by someone who has most of his LPs on disc now. I used to see this in cut out bins along with a couple other Chess releases from the early 70's.

[5] Etta James, Right Time, 1992
Recorded at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio, Sheffield, Alabama from March 15 to May 31, 1992. Includes liner notes by David Ritz. Personnel: Etta James, Steve Winwood (vocals); Lucky Peterson (guitar, organ); Steve Cropper, Will McFarlane, Jimmy Johnson, Jay Johnson (guitar); Kirk "Jelly Roll" Johnson (harmonica); Hank Crawford (alto saxophone); Harvey Thompson (tenor saxophone); Jim Horn (baritone saxophone); Mike Haynes, Gary Armstrong (trumpet); Clayton Ivey (piano); Frankie Crawford (synthesizer); David Hood, Willie Weeks (bass); Roger Hawkins, Steve Ferrone (drums); Tom Roady (percussion); Cindy Walker, Marie Lewey, George Soule, George Jackson (background vocals).

1. I Sing the Blues
2. Love and Happiness
3. Evening of Love
4. Wet Match
5. You're Taking up Another Man's Place
6. Give It Up (duet with Steve Winwood)
7. Let It Rock
8. Ninety Nine and a Half (Won't Do)
9. You've Got Me
10. Night Time Is the Right Time
11. Down Home Blues

When Etta James reunited with famed Atlantic R&B producer Jerry Wexler in 1992, it marked the first time the legendary pair had worked together on an album since 1976. Soul mecca Muscle Shoals was the chosen recording site this time around and Wexler pulled out the stops by getting such famous names as Steve Cropper, Hank Crawford, and Lucky Peterson to back the great James. The material chosen also played to James' strengths and included material originally recorded by Wilson Pickett ("Ninety Nine and a Half [Won't Do]"), Mable John ("You're Taking up Another Man's Place"), Al Green ("Love and Happiness"), and Ray Charles ("Nighttime is the Right Time").
All these tracks are given their due thanks to Etta James' powerful vocals and soulful phrasing. Other highlights include a particularly vivid duet with original blue-eyed soul prodigy Steve Winwood on Allen Toussaint's "Give It Up," and the delightfully ribald "Wet Match," in which a sassy Miss Peaches chastises a boastful lover who doesn't quite measure up. Although THE RIGHT TIME deliberately returned to the southern soul of TELL MAMA, Etta James also showed off her blues chops with such steady scorchers as "I Sing the Blues" and "Down Home Blues."

Enjoy