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"…Learn To Live The Golden
Rule…
...Don't Go Through Life Playing A Fool..."
"Encouraging Words"
was the second and last album on Apple Records for long-time friend and
sometimes-collaborator with The Beatles - American keyboardist and Soul Singer
BILLY PRESTON. And along with his excellent debut LP from the year before
(1969's "That's The Way God Planned It") - “Encouraging Words” is not
just one of the Apple labels better offerings - it's a criminally forgotten
Seventies Soul gem and arguably the best album of Preston’s long career. Here
are the promising details…
UK released 25 October 2010 - "Encouraging Words" by BILLY PRESTON on Apple 5099990823923 (Barcode the same)
is an 'Expanded Edition' CD Remaster with Three Bonus Tracks (One Previously Unreleased) that breaks down as follows (54:44
minutes):
1. Right Now
2. Little Girl
3. Use What You Got
4. My Sweet Lord
5. Let The Music Play
6. The Same Thing Again
7. I’ve Got A Feeling
8. Sing One For The Lord
9. When You Are Mine
10. I Don’t Want You To
Pretend
11. Encouraging Words
12. All Things (Must) Pass
13. You’ve Been Acting
Strange
Tracks 1 to 13 are the LP
"Encouraging Words" released September 1970 in the UK on Apple SAPCOR
14 (Stereo only) and on Apple ST-3370 in the USA.
BONUS TRACKS:
14. As Long As I Got My Baby
15. All That I Got (I'm Gonna
Give It To You)
Tracks 14 and 15 first
released on the 1993 CD reissue."As Long As I Got My Baby" (a Billy
Preston song) was intended to be the B-side of Preston's version of "My
Sweet Lord" on Apple 29 (scheduled for September 1970 release in the UK) -
but was withdrawn. “All That I Got (I'm Gonna Give It To You)" was
co-produced with GEORGE HARRISON and released as a 7" single on 30 January
1970 in the UK on Apple 21 (a co-write between Preston and Doris Troy). It's
B-side "As I Get Older" is on the "That's The Way God Planned
It" CD reissue as a bonus (track 14) - both songs were non-album at the
time of release.
16. How Long Has the Train
Been Gone.
Track 16 is Previously
Unreleased and new to this 2010 CD reissue (a co-write with Bruce Fisher). The
song was recorded in January 1970 and then later re-recorded for Preston's 1973
album on A&M Records - "Everybody Loves Some Kind Of Music" (he
would also re-record "When You Were Mine" for his 1976 A&M album
"Billy Preston").
BOOKLET/PACKAGING:
Noted writer and music lover
ANDY DAVIS does the new liner notes for the disappointingly weedy 12-page
booklet (EMI pushes the boat out again people). But with what little text he
has been afforded, Davis does at least fill it with properly informative
details - and it's peppered with some very tasty full-page colour photos of
Preston from the time. No UK singles were issued around the record (possibly
why it disappeared so quick), but there is a full-page reproduction of an
advert for the American single of "My Sweet Lord" on Apple 1826 (it
also names Radio Stations supporting the song).
PLAYERS:
The cast is impressive (if
not a little vague) - GEORGE HARRISON co-produced the entire album with
Preston, ERIC CLAPTON played guitar on 3 tracks - "Right Now",
"Use What You Got" and "Encouraging Words". RINGO STARR and
KLAUS VOORMAN are said to be on Drums and Bass respectively, while DELANEY
BRAMLETT also plays guitar on "Encouraging Words" with Eric. The
Rhythm Section for THE TEMPTATIONS are on there (Bass, Guitarist, Drums) while
members of SAM and DAVE'S band played Drums and Bass too. Both MADELINE BELL
and DORIS TROY provided beautiful soulful backing vocals (Doris Troy's lone
album on Apple "Doris Troy" was released the week earlier - 4
September 1970) while the EDWIN HAWKINS SINGERS are on "My Sweet
Lord" and "Sing One For The Lord".
CONTENT:
Six of the 13 are Billy
Preston originals with "My Sweet Lord" and "All Things (Must)
Pass" being George Harrison compositions. "Let The Music Play",
"The Same Thing Again" and "Sing One For The Lord" are
co-writes with Jesse Kirkland, James Herndon and George Harrison respectively.
Which leaves two cover versions - The Beatles' "I've Got A Feeling"
and "You've Been Acting Strange" by Ronnie Lee Williams (also covered
by Merry Clayton on her 1970 "Gimme Shelter" album). Unlike some of
the other Apple issues, there are no extra tracks via download. But the really
big news is the SOUND...
SOUND:
The same team that handled
the much-praised 09/09/09 Beatles remasters have done this - GUY MASSEY, STEVE
ROOKES, PHIL HICKS and SIMON GIBSON. I always thought the initial 1993 reissue
was dull-as-dishwater soundwise - well not so now because the audio quality
here is BEAUTIFUL - a massive improvement. It also makes you reassess a lot of
the songs and appreciate more Harrison's excellent production contributions.
"Right On" is a
superb opener and sets the tone for the overall funky feel of the album (surely
it would have been a hit single). "When You Are Mine" is a sweetheart
too as is "Use What You Got" (with great wah-wah guitar from
Clapton). Very cool stuff. Conversely - the two most famous 'early versions' of
Harrison classics "My Sweet Lord" and "All Things (Must)
Pass" are the ones that work the least well for me. Not so the stunning
blues-soul of "The Same Thing Again" co-written with the noted Gospel
singer James Herndon - it's a monster. It had customers coming to the counter in
our shop wanting to know which 'Ray Charles' tune we were playing (praise
indeed).
"Encouraging Words"
is a brilliantly brassy dancer with a message for the 'kids' to be kind, stay
in school and don't get suckered (lyrics above). It really is so good. The
brass, the great production and the remaster combine to fill your room with
superlative soul-funk. But for me the absolute dog's undercarriage is the
fabulous Beatles-meets-Gospel "Sing One For The Lord" - Preston's
huge organ playing combines with the choir feel of the backing vocals, George's
meaty guitar riff and a lingering Sitar-sounding instrument called the Indian
Tamboura which floats over the whole thing - it's a stunning cross-pollination
of cultures and music and as close to post-Beatles magic as you can get.
Although a little hissy - the
new song "How Long Has The Train Been Gone" is a slow soulful gem -
it's fantastic - I can't believe its been lingering in vaults all these years.
And like the new bonus track "Something's Got To Change" on the
"That's The Way God Planned It" CD reissue (see separate review) -
it's that rarest thing, a genuine must-have bonus track.
Niggles - the gatefold card
sleeve is nice to look at for sure, but the booklet and overall packaging feel
lightweight (what EMI could get away with). The CD should have one of those
gauze inner bags to protect it - a problem that no record company seems to want
to acknowledge (scuffing and damage). They're minor points I know, but worth
making...
To sum up - I've loved
rehearing this forgotten peach of an album in this hugely improved sound
quality - Seventies Soul lovers 'need' to discover this great record. I'm also
reminded of crying uncontrollably when I saw Billy Preston play "Isn't It
A Pity" live with Eric Clapton and that fantastic band at the
"Concert For George" in The Royal Albert Hall in 2002 - magical. Too
many losses man...remember them and him this way…
PS: see also my reviews for
other releases in this October 2010 series:
"That's The Way God Planned It" (1969) by Billy Preston,
"Doris Troy" (1970), "James Taylor" (1968), "Is This
What You Want?" (1969) by Jackie Lomax, "Magic Christian Music"
(1969), "No Dice" (1970), "Straight Up" (1972) and
"Ass" (1973) by Badfinger
