Throughout the phases of their recording career, from straight rhythmic gospel to Civil Rights protest anthems and what might be called soul-folk, to the funky grit of their
Stax years,
the Staple Singers always delivered songs that said something, and even when the grooves of songs like 1971's
"Respect Yourself" or 1972's reggae-tinged
"I'll Take You There" were sending people to the dancefloors, the lyrics were hopeful, message-driven prayers of support for a better self, a better community, and a better world. Both
"Respect Yourself" and
"I'll Take You There" were from the group's third album for
Stax Records, 1972's
Be Altitude: Respect Yourself, and taken with the opening track of the LP,
"This World," they form the heart of the best full0length
Staple Singers LP ever recorded. The group's previous two albums for
Stax, 1968's
Soul Folk in Action and 1969's
We'll Get Over, had been produced by
Booker T. & the MG's guitarist
Steve Cropper, and while both were fine and sturdy releases, neither had much commercial success.
Al Bell took over production reins for
Be Altitude, and he quickly moved recording sessions from Memphis to Muscle Shoals, where the group cut basic tracks with a crack session band that included guitarists
Eddie Hinton and
Jimmy Johnson, bassist
David Hood, keyboardist
Barry Beckett, and drummer
Roger Hawkins. It worked, and
Be Altitude remains the high-water mark of
the Staple Singers' joyous fusion of gospel, blues, and
Curtis Mayfield-styled Chicago soul. [This reissue adds a couple of bonus tracks from the album sessions, alternate versions of
"Heavy Makes You Happy (Sha-Na-Boom Boom)" and
"Walking in Water Over Our Head," a track that didn't make the album but was certainly worthy of being there, and coming like this at the end of
Be Altitude, it makes
the Staple Singers' finest album even richer.] ~ Steve Leggett
![Only for the Lonely [Compilation]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0025218881227_p0_v1_s90x140.jpg "Only for the Lonely [Compilation]")
