The Very Best of Bettye Swann, 1964-1975

by Bettye Swann

Overview

No wonder Bettye Swann is beloved by soul connoisseurs: she walked the fine line separating uptown elegance and Southern grit, a skill that's marvelous but not especially commercial. Swann had one major hit -- "Make Me Yours," an R&B chart-topper in 1967 which also crossed over to 21 on the Billboard Hot 100 -- and she racked up a few other R&B hits over the next six years ("Don't Touch Me" went to 14 in 1969, "Victim of a Foolish Heart" peaked at 16 in 1971), but she always remained on the cusp of success without ever really achieving stardom. Ace's 2015 collection, The Very Best of Bettye Swann 1964-1975, is the first-ever compilation to chronicle the entirety of her career, opening with nine selections from her pivotal Money recordings, then stopping for her Capitol sessions of 1969, and concluding with her Atlantic recordings, which were documented in their entirety on Real Gone's 2014 double-disc set. That collection provides one of a handful of rarities here -- these are primarily new remixes, usually of the Money material -- but this isn't a collection for the hardcore, it's a disc constructed to tell Swann's story and make a case for her talents. At that it is superb, illustrating the range and depth of her material, with nearly every single seeming like a smash hit that never happened. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	10/02/2015
Label:	Kent / Kent Soul
UPC:	0029667243827
Rank:	84141

Tracks

1. Make Me Yours [Mono]
2. You Gave Me Love [Remix] [Previously Unreleased]
3. I Will Not Cry [Mono] [Remix] [Previously Unreleased]
4. I Think I'm Falling in Love [Mono]
5. Don't Take My Mind [Mono]
6. Fall in Love with Me [Mono]
7. Don't Wait Too Long [Mono]
8. Our Love
9. A Change Is Gonna Come [Remix] [Previously Unreleased]
10. Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye
11. Angel of the Morning
12. (My Heart Is) Closed for the Season
13. Traces
14. Tell It Like It Is
15. Don't Touch Me
16. I'm Just Living a Lie [Mono]
17. All the Way in or All the Way Out
18. Today I Started Loving You Again
19. Victim of a Foolish Heart
20. When the Game Is Played on You
21. Kiss My Love Goodbye
22. I Want Sunday Back Again
23. Time to Say Goodbye
24. Either You Love Me or You Leave Me

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Bettye Swann   Primary Artist

Technical Credits

Tank Jernigan   Arranger
Alton Scott   Producer
Bettye Swann   Composer
Bonnie Owens   Composer
James Cobb   Composer
Carl Hampton   Composer
Wayne Shuler   Producer
Anthony Bell   Composer
Emory Gordy Jr.   Composer
Lee Diamond   Composer
John D. Loudermilk   Composer
Homer Banks   Composer
Sam Cooke   Composer
Rob Keyloch   Remixing
Robert Morrison   Composer
Jimmie Haskell   Arranger
Phil Hurtt   Arranger,Composer,Producer
Phil Wright   Producer,String Arrangements
Rick Hall   Producer
Mickey Buckins   Composer,Producer
Merle Haggard   Composer
Red Lane   Composer
Mike Lewis   Arranger
Brad Shapiro   Producer
Arthur Wright   Arranger,Composer,Producer
George Davis   Composer
George Jackson   Composer
Hank Jacobs   Arranger
Chip Taylor   Composer
Curly Putman   Composer
Hank Cochran   Composer
LeBaron Taylor   Arranger,Producer
Tony Bell   Arranger,Producer
The Young Professionals   Producer
Perry Buie   Composer