Blue Night is an album by the American musician singer Percy Sledge, released in 1994.[3][4] Sledge considered it his first album since the early 1970s.[5]
| Blue Night | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1994, France 1995, United States | |||
| Recorded | March 1994 | |||
| Studio | Cherokee (Hollywood) | |||
| Genre | Soul, R&B | |||
| Label | Sky Ranch[1] Pointblank/Virgin[2] | |||
| Producer | Barry Goldberg, Saul Davis | |||
| Percy Sledge chronology | ||||
| ||||
The album was nominated for a Grammy Award for "Best Contemporary Blues Album".[6]
Production
editRecorded in Los Angeles in March 1994, the album was produced by Barry Goldberg and Saul Davis.[1][2] Steve Cropper, Bobby Womack, and Mick Taylor contributed guitar parts to the album.[7]
Blue Night's liner notes were penned by Jerry Wexler.[2]
Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [8] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [9] |
| The Indianapolis Star | [10] |
| MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide | [11] |
| USA Today |  [12] |
The Ottawa Citizen thought that Sledge's "story songs are told from an adult perspective, unflinching and real as rain."[13] USA Today wrote that Sledge breathes "emotional fire into the Temptations' 'I Wish It Would Rain', Otis Redding's 'I've Got Dreams to Remember' and James Carr's 'These Ain't Raindrops'."[12] Marc D. Allan, of The Indianapolis Star, considered the album "easily the best record I've heard this year," writing that "the music is live and passionate, with a minimum of strings and clutter in the arrangements but enough horns and female backing vocals to punctuate the lyrics."[10]
The Guardian noted that "Steve Cropper leads the simpatico, understated accompaniment to complete a polished update of steamy, old-style southern soul."[14] The Vancouver Sun determined that Blue Night "might be better considered as urban blues than soul/R&B."[15] The Irish Times wrote: "Gravelled by age and experience, this guy just breathes in the direction of lyrics and potential sap turns to music poetry of the most potent kind."[16]
In a retrospective article, Rolling Stone praised Sledge's cover of Fats Domino's "Goin' Home", writing that, "goosed along by slide guitar from former Rolling Stone Mick Taylor, [it] shows that if Sledge wanted to, he could've rocked as hard as any other Louisiana R&B singer."[17] MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide called Sledge "emotionally centered and nothing less than inspiring."[11]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "You Got Away with Love" | Pat Robinson, Rocky Burnette | 4:15 |
| 2. | "Love Comes Knockin'" | David Malloy, Gregg Sutton | 3:42 |
| 3. | "Why Did You Stop" | Carla Olson | 4:40 |
| 4. | "I Wish It Would Rain" | Barrett Strong, Norman Whitfield, Roger Penzabene | 3:12 |
| 5. | "Blue Night" | Hasse Huss, Mikael Rickfors | 4:48 |
| 6. | "These Ain't Raindrops" | Quinton Claunch | 2:48 |
| 7. | "Your Love Will Save the World" | Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb | 3:47 |
| 8. | "First You Cry" | Buddy Flett, David Egan | 3:56 |
| 9. | "Going Home Tomorrow" | Alvin E. Young, Antoine Domino | |
| 10. | "The Grand Blvd." | Carla Olson, George Green | 5:40 |
| 11. | "I've Got Dreams to Remember" | Joe Rock, Otis Redding, Zelma Redding | 4:09 |
References
edit- ^ a b "Percy Sledge records again". Edmonton Journal. 20 Aug 1994. p. B4.
- ^ a b c Morris, Chris (Apr 22, 1995). "Sledge looks for comeback with Virgin's 'Blue Night'". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 16. p. 11.
- ^ "Percy Sledge Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2021-09-29. Retrieved 2021-09-29.
- ^ "Percy Sledge obituary". The Guardian. April 15, 2015. Archived from the original on September 29, 2021. Retrieved September 29, 2021.
- ^ Herndon, David (16 June 1995). "Rave On: When Percy Sledge Loves a Song". Newsday. p. B25.
- ^ "Percy Sledge". Grammy Awards. November 23, 2020. Archived from the original on September 29, 2021. Retrieved September 29, 2021.
- ^ Buckley, Peter (September 29, 2003). The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides. Archived from the original on September 29, 2021. Retrieved September 29, 2021.
- ^ "Blue Night". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2021-09-29. Retrieved 2021-09-29.
- ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 7. MUZE. p. 522.
- ^ a b Allan, Marc D. (9 June 1995). "Sledge hammers out 11 outstanding tracks". The Indianapolis Star. p. D7.
- ^ a b MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1998. p. 519.
- ^ a b Gundersen, Edna (13 June 1995). "Sledge's beautiful 'Blue'; Glass' imaginative 'Beast'". USA Today. p. 7D.
- ^ Ward, Bruce (28 Feb 1995). "Sledge's soul as sound today as it was in '60s". Ottawa Citizen. p. B8.
- ^ Spencer, Neil (20 Nov 1994). "Pop Releases". The Observer Review Page. The Guardian.
- ^ Armstrong, John (16 Mar 1995). "Recordings". Vancouver Sun. p. C8.
- ^ "Popular". Sound & Vision. The Irish Times. 24 Feb 1995. p. 14.
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (April 15, 2015). "Percy Sledge: 10 Essential Tracks". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on September 29, 2021. Retrieved September 29, 2021.