Isaac Hayes: The Isaac Hayes Movement - 1970
Coming not long after the unique, ground-breaking four-track album that was Hot Buttered Soul, Isaac Hayes released another one. It was similarly impressive. He had really hit on something here. He was taking soul music to another level.
I Stand Accused has a long, spoken intro before Hayes eventually breaks out into the song. Keen listeners will recognise some of the spoken lyrics as those used by UB40 on Guilty on their 1983 Labour Of Love album. When the song arrives, Hayes's soulful vocal lifts it so high. Beautiful stuff. Classic soul right there. You better believe it, brother.
The cynically-titled One Big Unhappy Family is a big, Stax-y soul number with a yearning, heart-broken vocal from Hayes. Dusty Springfield's I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself is a dignified, soulful rendition. Again, the vocal is excellent, as, of course, is the backing from The Bar-Kays. George Harrison's Something is given a quirky makeover, with some nice electric violin, but a lot of the beauty of the song is lost beneath all the orchestration and backing vocals. This one doesn't quite work for me. It does end with some almost prog-rock inventive instrumentation, however, that makes it a most unusual offering. Some of these experimental covers come off better than others, it has to be said. This one sounds like a bit of a mess to me, despite is obvious ingenuity. I know that sounds bad, but there is a lack of cohesion, in my opinion.
Overall, I prefer Hot Buttered Soul, but this is not without is good points, particularly the first two tracks.
