Soul on Top

Soul on Top is the 28th studio album by American musician James Brown. The album was released in April 1970, by King. Brown and saxophonist Maceo Parker worked with arranger/conductor Oliver Nelson to record a big band, funk and jazz vocal album. It was recorded with Louie Bellson and his 18-piece jazz orchestra at United Western Recorders in Hollywood, California in November 1969, and features jazz standards, show tunes, and middle of the road hits, as well as a new arrangement of Brown's funk hit "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag".

Soul on Top
Studio album by
James Brown
ReleasedApril 1970
RecordedNovember 10–11, 1969
GenreSoul, jazz
Length51:57 (2004 reissue)
LabelKing
ProducerJames Brown
James Brown chronology
Ain't It Funky
(1970)		 Soul on Top
(1970)		 It's a New Day – Let a Man Come In
(1970)

The album was reissued in 2004 with one previously unreleased bonus track, a big band version of Brown's 1967 hit "There Was a Time", and new liner notes by jazz critic Will Friedwald.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic [1]
The Village VoiceA[2]

Reviewing the Verve reissue for The Village Voice in September 2004, Tom Hull said, "This extends Ray Charles's omnivorous big-band soul, with Brown reinventing standards—'That's My Desire,' 'September Song,' 'Every Day I Have the Blues,' 'Papa's Got a Brand New Bag'—in front of Louie Bellson's orchestra, which arranger-conductor Oliver Nelson barely manages to discipline, so caught up is the band in the singer's excitement. In Brown's discography, just a curio. But in the whole history of big band jazz, there's never been a singer like him."[2]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."That's My Desire"Helmy Kressa, Carroll Loveday4:10
2."Your Cheatin' Heart"Hank Williams2:59
3."What Kind of Fool Am I?"Leslie Bricusse, Anthony Newley3:06
4."It's a Man's, Man's, Man's World" (Unedited Version)James Brown, Betty Jean Newsome6:40
5."The Man in the Glass"Bud Hobgood5:56
6."It's Magic"Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne3:14
7."September Song" (Unedited Version)Maxwell Anderson, Kurt Weill5:02
8."For Once in My Life" (Unedited Version)Ron Miller, Orlando Murden4:43
9."Every Day I Have the Blues" (Unedited Version)Memphis Slim4:28
10."I Need Your Key (To Turn Me On)"Louie Bellson3:46
11."Papa's Got a Brand New Bag"Brown4:41
12."There Was a Time" (2004 reissue only)Brown, Bud Hobgood3:04

Personnel

Notes

References
  1. Henderson, Alex. "James Brown: Soul on Top > Review" at AllMusic. Retrieved September 21, 2011.
  2. Hull, Tom (September 28, 2004). "Jazz Consumer Guide (2): The Caribbean Tinge". The Village Voice. Retrieved June 25, 2020 – via tomhull.com.



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