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Wilson Pickett

 
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Wilson Pickett

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Singer, songwriter

Wilson Pickett is recognized as one of the most talented and energetic vocalists of the soul music era. Popularized in the 1960s, soul music offered an explosive combination of gospel-derived vocal displays with a strong emphasis on the presence of a rhythmic instrumental groove. Atlantic Records impresario Jerry Wexler recalled Pickett in his prime: "I called him the Black Panther even before the phrase was political. … His temperament was fire, his flash-and-fury singing style a study in controlled aggression, his bloodcurdling scream always musical, always in tune." The singer’s contemporaries summed up his demeanor with the nickname "Wicked Pickett."

But Pickett’s success stemmed from more than just his vocal abilities. He was a prime participant in the intense creative ferment that launched soul music itself. In 1965, a year after signing Pickett to the Atlantic label, Wexler decided to transfer the singer’s base of recording operations from New York to the Memphis studios of Stax Records. The music that resulted both ignited Pickett’s own career and provided soul music with some of its biggest commercial successes of that time.

Born in Prattville, Alabama, in 1941, Pickett was the youngest of eleven children. His childhood was violent. "The baddest woman in my book, hoooooeee. My mother," he told Gerri Hirshey in Nowhere to Run: The Story of Soul Music. "I get scared of her now. She used to hit me with anything, skillets, stove wood." He ran away from home once. "I cried for a week. Stayed in the woods, me and my little dog." He sang gospel music in church and in small vocal groups but suffered another beating from his grandfather, a preacher, when he was caught with a copy of Louis Jordan’s "Ain’t Nobody Here But Us Chickens." Eventually he left for Detroit, where his father lived. "Me and a million other dudes said ’Later’ to pickin’ cotton and that shit," Pickett recalled.

From Rural South to Midwest
In Detroit, Pickett became one of many southern migrants who honed their singing in church and in impromptu streetcorner quartets. In 1959 he joined a group called the Falcons, which numbered among its members future Memphis soul star Eddie Floyd and Joe Stubbs, the brother of Four Tops vocalist Levi Stubbs. All over the industrial Midwest at this time black musicians were mixing the old musics of the rural South into potent new brews. Pickett offered Hirshey an involved automotive metaphor for the process: "You harmonize, then you customize. Now what kid don’t want to own the latest model? And tell me now, what black kid in some city project can afford it? … So you

look around for a good, solid used chassis. This be your twelve-bar blues. … Then you look around for what else you got. And if you come up like most of us, that would be gospel."

Pickett began to contribute many original songs to the Falcons, who achieved some recording success in the rhythm and blues field. He released several solo singles on small Detroit labels; a demonstration version of one of these, the self-penned "If You Need Me," caught the attention of Atlantic Records executives in New York shortly after its release. Sensing strong competition, Atlantic had its own new star Solomon Burke cover the song, and in 1964 Pickett himself was signed to the label. But success was slow in coming at first. As was the case with future soul diva Aretha Franklin, Pickett was surrounded with smooth pop arrangements that proved unsuited to his raw, emotional style.

Recorded in Memphis
So in 1965 Jerry Wexler decided to record Pickett at the Memphis studios of Stax Records, which had close business ties with Atlantic. The session that followed unleashed Pickett’s vocal energies and resulted in the record for which he remains best known, "ln the Midnight Hour." The process by which the record took shape typified the creative partnerships that swirled around soul’s crucial southern breeding ground. The group of musicians at Stax was interracial to a degree unmatched before or since at any American studio, and it was a white guitarist, Steve Cropper, who worked with Pickett to develop a vocal fragment that Pickett had been improvising in live performances. But Wexler was responsible for the song’s final rhythmic configuration—he had taken note of a teenage dance craze called the "Jerk" and during the session demonstrated it to the amazed musicians.

Soon, due to a disagreement between Atlantic and Stax, Pickett moved even farther south, to the Fame Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. But producer Rick Hall offered much the same environment that Pickett had found in Memphis, and hit records came in a steady stream, including "Land of 1,000 Dances," which rose to Number Six on Billboard magazine’s pop charts, "Mustang Sally," and "Funky Broadway."

Pickett was always ambivalent about returning to the South. In the interview with Hirshey, he described his reaction to his first trip to Muscle Shoals: "I looked down out the plane window, and I see black folks pickin’ cotton, and I say, ’Shit, turn this motherf—in’ plane around, ain’t no way I’m goin’ back there.’" He saw Rick Hall waiting for him at the airport. "How did I know Jerry Wexler gonna send me to some big white southern cat? Woulda never got on that plane. And I woulda made the biggest mistake of my life. Rick Hall made things grow down there."

Decline
Throughout the late 1960s Pickett was an established star, making the rounds of television talk shows even though their hosts were never really comfortable with him. He released several successful covers of pop records, including one of the Archies’ "Sugar Sugar" and a version of the Beatles’ "Hey Jude" that featured a young Duane Allman on guitar. In 1971 he began to record with Philadelphia producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff and had several more moderate hits. But as tastes in black popular music began over the 1970s to swing toward the high-tech realm of disco, Pickett’s popularity declined. Several later recordings attempted to recapture the classic soul atmosphere and were well received by some critics but failed to make much of a commercial impact.

But Pickett’s music was revived for a new generation with the release of the 1991 film The Commitments, which deals with the rise of a fictional Irish band that dedicates itself to American soul music—Pickett’s in particular. The motion picture soundtrack features "In the Midnight Hour" along with other Pickett songs. Pickett appeared live at the film’s swank Manhattan release party and, according to the Village Voice’s Michael Musto, "delved into octaves only the late Minnie Riperton [a seventies singer known for her phenomenal range] could hear." Asked by Rolling Stone for his comments on The Commitments, Pickett pointed to the fictional band’s appropriation of black vocal styles: "This doesn’t do anything for Wilson Pickett, this doesn’t take anything from Wilson Pickett. We are legends in the first place." His 1991 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame tends to confirm his assessment of his own significance.

The 1992 release of a two-disc collection of Pickett’s work—entitled A Man and a Half— also brought him new fans. He told People magazine that he plans an early retirement: "The old farts should get on out of the way. I would like to retire with a good image, a good track record and money in my pocket." That image was marred slightly by a 1992 arrest for driving with open containers of alcohol and further charges of aggravated assault. But Pickett’s place in music history is secure. Entertainment Weekly assessed A Man anda Half this way: "What’s most apparent from [the] superb two-disc retrospective of this sanctified soul titan is the timelessness of his music."

Selected discography
In the Midnight Hour, Atlantic, 1965.
The Exciting Wilson Pickett, Atlantic, 1966.
The Wicked Pickett, Atlantic, 1967.
The Best of Wilson Pickett, Atlantic, 1967.
Hey Jude, Atlantic, 1969.
The Best of Wilson Pickett, Vol. II, Atlantic, 1971.
A Funky Situation, 1978.
American Soul Man, Motown, 1988.
A Man and a Half, Rhino, 1992.
The Very Best of Wilson Pickett, Rhino, 1993.
I Want You, EMI America.
The Right Track, EMI America.

Sources
Books
Guralnick, Peter, Sweet Soul Music, Harper & Row, 1986.
Hardy, Phil, and Dave Laing, The Faber Companion to 20th-century Popular Music, Faber, 1990.
Hirshey, Gerri, Nowhere to Run: The Story of Soul Music, New York Times Books, 1984.
Rees, Dafydd, and Luke Crampton, Rock Movers & Shakers, ABC/CLIO, 1991.
The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll, edited by Jon Pareles and Patricia Romanowski, Rolling Stone Press/Summit Books, 1983.
The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock & Roll, edited by Jim Miller, Random House, 1986.
Stambler, Irwin, The Encyclopedia of Pop, Rock and Soul, St. Martin’s, 1989.

Periodicals
Detroit Free Press, June 25, 1993.
Entertainment Weekly, June 19, 1992.
People, October 7, 1991.
Rolling Stone, September 8, 1988; October 3, 1991; June 25, 1992; August 6, 1992; February 18, 1993.
Village Voice, August 27, 1991.
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AMG AllMusic Guide: Pop Artists:

Wilson Pickett

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  • Genres: Rhythm & Blues

Biography

Of the major '60s soul stars, Wilson Pickett was one of the roughest and sweatiest, working up some of the decade's hottest dancefloor grooves on hits like "In the Midnight Hour," "Land of 1000 Dances," "Mustang Sally," and "Funky Broadway." Although he tends to be held in somewhat lower esteem than more versatile talents like Otis Redding and Aretha Franklin, he is often a preferred alternative of fans who like their soul on the rawer side. He also did a good deal to establish the sound of Southern soul with his early hits, which were often written and recorded with the cream of the session musicians in Memphis and Muscle Shoals.

Before establishing himself as a solo artist, Pickett sang with the Falcons, who had a Top Ten R&B hit in 1962 with "I Found a Love." "If You Need Me" (covered by the Rolling Stones) and "It's Too Late" were R&B hits for the singer before he hooked up with Atlantic Records, who sent him to record at Stax in Memphis in 1965. One early result was "In the Midnight Hour," whose chugging horn line, loping funky beats, and impassioned vocals combined into a key transitional performance that brought R&B into the soul age. It was an R&B chart-topper and a substantial pop hit (number 21), though its influence was stronger than that respectable position might indicate: thousands of bands, black and white, covered "In the Midnight Hour" on-stage and record in the 1960s.

Pickett had a flurry of other galvanizing soul hits over the next few years, including "634-5789," "Mustang Sally," and "Funky Broadway," all of which, like "In the Midnight Hour," were frequently adapted by other bands as dance-ready numbers. The king of that hill, though, had to be "Land of 1000 Dances," Pickett's biggest pop hit (number six), a soul anthem of sorts with its roll call of popular dances, and covered by almost as many acts as "Midnight Hour" was.

Pickett didn't confine himself to the environs of Stax for long; soon he was also cutting tracks at Muscle Shoals. He recorded several early songs by Bobby Womack. He used Duane Allman as a session guitarist on a hit cover of the Beatles' "Hey Jude." He cut some hits in Philadelphia with Gamble & Huff productions in the early '70s. He even did a hit version of the Archies' "Sugar, Sugar." The hits kept rolling through the early '70s, including "Don't Knock My Love" and "Get Me Back on Time, Engine Number 9."

One of the corollaries of '60s soul is that if a performer rose to fame with Motown or Atlantic, he or she would produce little of note after leaving the label. Pickett, unfortunately, did not prove an exception to the rule. His last big hit was "Fire and Water," in 1972. He continued to be active on the tour circuit; his most essential music, all from the 1960s and early '70s, was assembled for the superb Rhino double-CD anthology A Man and a Half. It's Harder Now, his first new material in over a decade, followed in 1999. Pickett spent the early part of the 2000s performing, before retiring in late 2004 due to ill health. He passed away on January 19, 2006, following a heart attack. ~ Richie Unterberger, Rovi
Wikipedia on Answers.com:

Wilson Pickett

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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
Wilson Pickett
Also known as The "Wicked" Wilson Pickett
Born March 18, 1941(1941-03-18)
Prattville, Alabama, United States
Origin Detroit, Michigan, United States
Died January 19, 2006(2006-01-19) (aged 64)
Reston, Virginia, United States
Genres R&B, rock and roll, soul, Southern soul
Occupations Singer, songwriter
Years active 1959–2006
Labels Atlantic, Stax, RCA, Motown
Associated acts The Falcons

Wilson Pickett (March 18, 1941 – January 19, 2006) was an American R&B/Soul singer and songwriter.

A major figure in the development of American soul music, Pickett recorded over 50 songs which made the US R&B charts, and frequently crossed over to the US Billboard Hot 100. Among his best known hits are "In the Midnight Hour" (which he co-wrote), "Land of 1,000 Dances", "Mustang Sally", and "Funky Broadway".[1]

The impact of Pickett's songwriting and recording led to his 1991 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.[2]

Contents

Early life

Pickett was born March 18, 1941 in Prattville, Alabama,[1] and grew up singing in Baptist church choirs.

He was the fourth of 11 children and called his mother "the baddest woman in my book," telling historian Gerri Hirshey: "I get scared of her now. She used to hit me with anything, skillets, stove wood — (one time I ran away and) cried for a week. Stayed in the woods, me and my little dog." Pickett eventually left to live with his father in Detroit in 1955.[citation needed]

Early musical career (1955–1964)

Pickett's forceful, passionate style of singing was developed in the church and on the streets of Detroit,[2] under the influence of recording stars such as David Arvedon, whom he later referred to as "the architect of rock and roll.[3]

In 1955, Pickett became part of a gospel music group called the Violinaires. The group accompanied The Soul Stirrers, The Swan Silvertones, and The Davis Sisters on church tours across the country.[citation needed] After singing for four years in the locally popular gospel-harmony group, Pickett, lured by the success of other gospel singers of the day, who left gospel music in the late 1950s for the more lucrative secular music market, joined the Falcons in 1959.[2]

The Falcons were one of the first vocal groups to bring gospel into a popular context, thus paving the way for soul music. The Falcons also featured some notable members who went on to become major solo artists; when Pickett joined the group, Eddie Floyd and Sir Mack Rice were also members of the group. Pickett's biggest success with The Falcons came in 1962, when "I Found a Love," (co-authored by Pickett and featuring his lead vocals), peaked at #6 on the R&B chart, and at #75 on the Hot 100.[1]

Soon after recording "I Found a Love," Pickett cut his first solo recordings, including "I'm Gonna Cry," his first collaboration with Don Covay. Around this time, Pickett also recorded a demo for a song he co-wrote, called "If You Need Me." A slow-burning soul ballad featuring a spoken sermon, Pickett sent the demo to Jerry Wexler, a producer at Atlantic Records. Wexler heard the demo and gave it to one of the label's own recording artists, Solomon Burke. Burke's recording of "If You Need Me" became one of his biggest hits (#2 R&B, #37 Pop) and is now considered a soul standard, but Pickett was crushed when he discovered that Atlantic had given away his song. However, when Pickett—holding a demo tape under his arm—returned to Wexler's personal studio, Wexler asked him whether he was angry about this loss, but denied it saying "It's over".[4] "First time I ever cried in my life".[citation needed] Pickett's version of the song was released on Double L Records, and was a moderate hit, peaking at #30 R&B, #64 pop.

Pickett's first big success as a solo artist came with "It's Too Late," an original composition (not to be confused with the Chuck Willis standard of the same name). Entering the charts on July 27, 1963, it eventually peaked at #7 on the R&B chart (#49 Pop). This record's success convinced Wexler and Atlantic to buy Pickett's recording contract from Double L Records in 1964.

Rise to stardom: In The Midnight Hour (1965)

Pickett's Atlantic career began with a self-produced single, "I'm Gonna Cry". Looking to boost Pickett's chart chances, Atlantic next paired him with record producer Bert Berns and established songwriters Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. With this team, Pickett recorded "Come Home Baby," a duet with singer Tami Lynn, but this single failed to chart.[1]

Pickett's breakthrough came at Stax Records' recording studio in Memphis, Tennessee, where he recorded his third Atlantic single, "In the Midnight Hour" (1965).[5] This song became Pickett's first big hit, peaking at #1 R&B, #21 pop (US), and #12 (UK).[1] It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.[6]

The genesis of "In the Midnight Hour" was a recording session on May 12, 1965, at which Wexler worked out a powerful rhythm track with studio musicians Steve Cropper and Al Jackson of the Stax Records house band, which also included bassist Donald "Duck" Dunn. (Stax keyboard player Booker T. Jones, who usually played with Dunn, Cropper and Jackson as Booker T. & the M.G.'s, did not play on any of the Pickett studio sessions.) Wexler said to Cropper and Jackson, "Why don't you pick up on this thing here?" He performed a dance step. Cropper later explained in an interview that Wexler told them that "this was the way the kids were dancing; they were putting the accent on two. Basically, we'd been one-beat-accenters with an afterbeat; it was like 'boom dah,' but here this was a thing that went 'um-chaw,' just the reverse as far as the accent goes."[citation needed]

Stax/Fame years (1965–67)

Pickett recorded three sessions at Stax in May and October 1965, and was joined by keyboardist Isaac Hayes for the October sessions. In addition to "In the Midnight Hour," Pickett's 1965 recordings included the singles "Don't Fight It," (#4 R&B, #53 pop) "634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A,)" (#1 R&B, #13 pop) and "Ninety-Nine and A Half (Won't Do)" (#13 R&B, #53 pop). All but "634-5789" were original compositions Pickett co-wrote with Eddie Floyd and/or Steve Cropper; "634-5789" was credited to Cropper and Floyd alone.

For his next sessions, Pickett would not return to Stax; the label's owner, Jim Stewart, banned all outside productions in December, 1965. As a result, Wexler took Pickett to Fame Studios, another recording studio with a closer association to Atlantic Records. Located in a converted tobacco warehouse in nearby Muscle Shoals, Alabama, Pickett recorded some of his biggest hits there. This included the highest charting version of "Land of 1,000 Dances", which became Pickett's third R&B #1, and his biggest ever pop hit, peaking at #6. it was another million selling disc.[6]

Other big hits from this era in Pickett's career included two other covers: Mack Rice's "Mustang Sally", (#6 R&B, #23 Pop), and Dyke & the Blazers' "Funky Broadway", (R&B #1, #8 Pop).[1] Both tracks were million sellers.[6] The band heard on almost all of Pickett's Fame recordings included keyboardist Spooner Oldham and drummer Roger Hawkins.[7]

Later Atlantic years (1967–1972)

Towards the end of 1967, Pickett began recording at American Studios in Memphis with producers Tom Dowd and Tommy Cogbill, and also began recording numerous songs by Bobby Womack. The songs "I'm In Love," "Jealous Love," "I've Come A Long Way," "I'm A Midnight Mover," (a Pickett/Womack co-write), and "I Found A True Love" were all Womack penned hits for Pickett in 1967 and 1968. Pickett also recorded work by other songwriters during this era; Rodger Collins' "She's Looking Good" and a cover of the traditional blues standard "Stagger Lee" were also Top 40 Pickett hits recorded at American. Womack was the guitarist on all these recordings.

Pickett returned to Fame Studios in late 1968 and early 1969, where he worked with a band that featured guitarist Duane Allman, Hawkins and David Hood. A #16 pop hit cover of The Beatles' "Hey Jude" came from these Fame sessions, as well as the minor hits "Mini-Skirt Minnie" and "Hey Joe".

Late 1969 found Pickett at Criteria Studios in Miami. Hit covers of The Supremes' "You Keep Me Hangin' On" (#16 R&B, #92 Pop) and The Archies' "Sugar Sugar" (#4 R&B, #25 Pop), as well as the Pickett original "She Said Yes" (#20 R&B, #68 Pop) came from these sessions.

Pickett then teamed up with established Philadelphia-based hitmakers Gamble and Huff for the 1970 album Wilson Pickett In Philadelphia, which featured his next two hit singles, "Get Me Back On Time, Engine No.9" and "Don't Let The Green Grass Fool You", the latter selling one million copies.[6]

Following these two big hits, Pickett returned to Muscle Shoals and the band featuring Hood, Hawkins and Tippy Armstrong. This line-up recorded Pickett's fifth and last R&B #1 hit, "Don't Knock My Love, Pt. 1".[1] It was another Pickett recording that clocked up sales in excess of one million copies.[6] Two further hits followed in '71: "Call My Name, I'll Be There" (#10 R&B, #52 Pop) and "Fire and Water" (#2 R&B, #24 Pop), a cover of a song by Free.

Pickett recorded several tracks in 1972 for a planned new album on Atlantic, but after the single "Funk Factory" reached #11 R&B and #58 pop in June 1972, he left Atlantic for RCA Records. His final Atlantic single, a cover of Randy Newman's "Mama Told Me Not To Come," was actually culled from Pickett's 1971 album Don't Knock My Love.

In 2010, Rhino Handmade released a comprehensive compilation of these years titled "Funky Midnight Mover – The Studio Recordings (1962–1978)". The compilation included all originally issued recordings during Pickett's Atlantic years along with previously unreleased recordings. This collection was sold online only via Rhino.com.

Post-Atlantic recording career

Pickett continued to record with some success on the R&B charts for RCA in 1973 and 1974, scoring four top 30 R&B hits with "Mr. Magic Man", "Take a Closer Look at the Woman You're With", "International Playboy" and "Soft Soul Boogie Woogie". However, he was no longer crossing over to the pop charts with any regularity, as none of these songs reached higher than #90 on the Hot 100. In 1975, with Pickett's once-prominent chart career on the wane, RCA dropped Pickett from the label.

Pickett continued to record sporadically with several labels over the following decades, occasionally making the lower to mid-range of the R&B charts, however he never had another pop hit after 1974. His last record was issued in 1999, although he remained fairly active on the touring front until he became ill in 2004. Pickett appeared in the 1998 film Blues Brothers 2000, performing "634–5789" along with Eddie Floyd and Jonny Lang.

Personal life and honors

Outside of music, Pickett's personal life was troubled. Even in his 1960s heyday, Pickett's friends found him to be temperamental and preoccupied with guns; Don Covay described him as "young and wild".[citation needed] Then in 1987, as his recording career was drying up, Pickett was given two years' probation and fined $1,000 for carrying a loaded shotgun in his car.[citation needed] In 1991, he was arrested for allegedly yelling death threats while driving a car over the front lawn of Donald Aronson, the Mayor of Englewood, New Jersey.[8] The following year, he was charged with assaulting his girlfriend.

In 1993, Pickett was involved in an accident where he struck an 86-year-old pedestrian, Pepe Ruiz, with his car in Englewood.[8] Ruiz, who helped organize the New York animation union, died later that year.[9] Pickett pled guilty to drunken driving charges and received a reduced sentence of one year in jail and five years probation.[10][11] Pickett had been previously convicted of various drug offenses.[citation needed]

Throughout the 1990s, despite his personal troubles, Pickett was continually honored for his contributions to music. In addition to being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995, his music was prominently featured in the film The Commitments, with Pickett as an off-screen character. In 1993, he was honored with a Pioneer Award by the Rhythm and Blues Foundation.

Pickett was also a popular songwriter, as songs he wrote were recorded by artists like Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, The Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, the Grateful Dead, Booker T. & the MGs, Genesis, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Hootie & the Blowfish, Echo & the Bunnymen, Roxy Music, Bruce Springsteen, Los Lobos, The Jam and Ani DiFranco, among others.

Several years after his release from jail, Pickett returned to the studio and received a Grammy Award nomination for the 1999 album It's Harder Now. The comeback also resulted in his being honored as 'Soul/Blues Male Artist of the Year' by the Blues Foundation in Memphis.[12] It's Harder Now was voted 'Comeback Blues Album of the Year' and 'Soul/Blues Album of the Year.'

In 2003, he co-starred in the D.A. Pennebaker directed documentary Only the Strong Survive, a selection of both the 2002 Cannes and Sundance Film Festivals. In 2003, Pickett was also a judge for the second annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists' careers.[13] In 2005, Pickett was inducted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame. His recordings of "Mustang Sally" and "In The Midnight Hour" were voted Legendary Michigan Songs in 2007 and 2010 respectively.

Pickett spent the twilight of his career playing dozens of concert dates a year until 2004, when he began suffering from health problems. While in the hospital, he returned to his spiritual roots and told his sister that he wanted to record a gospel album.[3] However, he never recovered.

Death

Pickett died from a heart attack on January 19, 2006 in Reston, Virginia. He was 64.[14] He was buried in Louisville, Kentucky. The eulogy was delivered by Pastor Steve Owens of Decatur, Georgia. Little Richard, a long-time friend of Pickett's, spoke about him and preached briefly at the funeral.[3] Pickett spent many years in Louisville when his mother moved there from Alabama. He was remembered on March 20, 2006, at New York's B.B. King Blues Club with performances by the Commitments, Ben E King, his long-term backing band the Midnight Movers, soul singer Bruce "Big Daddy" Wayne, and Southside Johnny in front of an audience that included members of his family, including two brothers.

Discography

Singles

Release date Title Chart positions
US Hot 100[15] US R&B UK[16]
1962 "If You Need Me" / "Baby, Call on Me" 64 30 –
1963 "It's Too Late" / "I'm Gonna Love You" 49 7 –
"I'm Down to My Last Heartbreak" / "I Can't Stop" 95 27 –
"My Heart Belongs to You" (reissue charted in 1965) 109 – –
1964 "I'm Gonna Cry" / "For Better or Worse" 124 – –
"Come Home Baby" / "Take a Little Love" – – –
1965 "In the Midnight Hour" / "I'm Not Tired" 21 1 12
"Don't Fight It" / "It's All Over" 53 4 29
1966 "634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.)" / "That's a Man's Way" 13 1 36
"Ninety Nine and a Half (Won't Do)" / "Danger Zone" 53 13 –
"Land of 1000 Dances" / You're so Fine" 6 1 22
"Mustang Sally" / "Three Time Loser" 23 6 28
1967 "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love" / "Nothing You Can Do" 29 19 –
"I Found a Love – Pt. 1" / "I Found Love – Part II" 32 6 –
"You Can't Stand Alone" (A-Side) 70 26 –
→ "Soul Dance Number Three" (B-Side) 55 10 –
"Funky Broadway" / "I'm Sorry About That" 8 1 43
"I'm in Love" (A-Side) 45 4 –
→ "Stag-O-Lee" (B-Side) 22 13 –
1968 "Jealous Love" (A-Side) 50 18 –
→ "I've Come a Long Way" (B-Side) 101 46 –
"She's Looking Good" / "We've Got to Have Love" 15 7 –
"I'm a Midnight Mover" / "Deborah" 24 6 38
"I Found a True Love" / "For Better or Worse" 42 11 –
"A Man and a Half" / "People Make the World (What It Is)" 42 20 –
"Hey Jude" / "Search Your Heart" 23 13 16
1969 "Mini-skirt Minnie" / "Back in Your Arms" 50 19 –
"Born to Be Wild" / "Toe Hold" 64 41 –
"Hey Joe" / "Night Owl" 59 29 –
"You Keep Me Hangin' On" / "You Keep Me Hangin' On" 92 16 –
1970 "Sugar, Sugar" (A-Side) 25 4 –
→ "Cole, Cooke, and Redding" (B-Side) 91 11 –
"She Said Yes" / "It's Still Good" 68 20 –
"Engine No.9" / "International Playboy" 14 3 –
1971 "Don't Let the Green Grass Fool You" / "Ain't No Doubt About It" 17 2 –
"Don't Knock My Love – Pt. 1" / "Don't Knock My Love – Pt. II" 13 1 –
"Call My Name, I'll Be There" / "Woman, Let Me Be Down Home" 52 10 –
"Fire and Water" / "Pledging My Love" 24 2 –
1972 "Funk Factory" / "One Step Away" 58 11 –
"Mama Told Me Not To Come" / "Covering The Same Old Ground" 99 16 –
1973 "Mr. Magic Man" / "I Sho' Love You" 98 16 –
"Take a Closer Look at the Woman You're With" / "Two Woman And A Wife" 90 17 –
"International Playboy" / "Come Right Here" 104 30 –
1974 "Soft Soul Boogie Woogie" / "Take That Pollution Out Your Throat" 103 20 –
"Take Your Pleasure Where You Find It" / "What Good Is A Lie" – 68 –
"I Was Too Nice" / "Isn't that So" – – –
1975 "The Best Part of A Man" / "How Will I Ever Know" – 26 –
1976 "Love Will Keep Us Together" / "It's Gonna Be Good" – 69 –
1977 "Love Dagger" / "Time To Let The Sun Shine On Me" – – –
1978 "Who Turned You On" / "Dance You Down" – 59 –
"Groovin'" / "Time To Let The Sun Shine On Me" – 94 –
1979 "I Want You" / "Love Of My Life" – 41 –
1980 "Live With Me" / "Granny" – 95 –
1981 "Ain't Gonna Give You No More" / "Don't Underestimate The Power Of Love" – – –
"Back On The Right Track" – – –
1987 "Don't Turn Away" / "Same" – 74 –
"In the Midnight Hour" (re-recording) / "634, 5789 (Soulsville U.S.A.)" – – 62
1988 "Love Never Let Me Down" – – –

[1]

Albums

  • It's Too Late (1963, Double L)
  • In The Midnight Hour (1965, Atlantic)
  • The Exciting Wilson Pickett (1966, Atlantic) US: #21
  • The Best Of Wilson Pickett (1967, Atlantic) US: #35
  • The Wicked Pickett (1967, Atlantic) US: #42
  • The Sound of Wilson Pickett (1967, Atlantic) US: #54
  • I'm In Love (1967, Atlantic) US: #70
  • The Midnight Mover (1968, Atlantic) US: #91
  • Hey Jude (1969, Atlantic) US: #97
  • Right On (1970, Atlantic)
  • Wilson Pickett In Philadelphia (1970, Atlantic) US: #64
  • The Best Of Wilson Pickett, Vol. II (1971, Atlantic) US: #73
  • Don't Knock My Love (1972, Atlantic) US: #132
  • Mr. Magic Man (1973, RCA) US: #187
  • Wilson Pickett's Greatest Hits (1973) US: #178
  • Miz Lena's Boy (1973, RCA) US: #212
  • Pickett In The Pocket (1974, RCA)
  • Live In Japan (1974, RCA)
  • Join Me And Let's Be Free (1975, RCA)
  • Chocolate Mountain (1976, Wicked)
  • Funky Situation (1978, Big Tree)
  • I Want You (1979, EMI) US: #205
  • Right Track (1981, EMI)
  • American Soul Man (1987, Motown)
  • A Man And A Half: The Best Of Wilson Pickett (1992, Rhino/Atlantic)
  • It's Harder Now (1999, Bullseye Blues)
  • Live And Burnin' – Stockholm '69 (2009, Soulsville)
  • Live In Germany 1968 (2009, Crypt Records 2009)
  • Funky Midnight Mover: The Atlantic Studio Recordings (1962–1978) (2010, Rhino)[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Strong, Martin C. (2000). The Great Rock Discography (5th ed.). Edinburgh: Mojo Books. pp. 745–746. ISBN 1-84195-017-3. 
  2. ^ a b c "Wilson Pickett". Rockhall.com. http://rockhall.com/inductees/wilson-pickett/. Retrieved 2012-02-06. 
  3. ^ a b c sacobserver.com (subscription required)
  4. ^ Guralnick 1999, pp. 95–96.
  5. ^ Gilliland, John (1969). "Show 51 – The Soul Reformation: Phase three, soul music at the summit. [Part 7] : UNT Digital Library" (audio). Pop Chronicles. Digital.library.unt.edu. http://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc19832/m1/. 
  6. ^ a b c d e Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. pp. 194, 210, 227 & 301. ISBN 0-214-20512-6. 
  7. ^ Guralnick 1999, p. 259.
  8. ^ a b "Pickett To Perform In Concert To Settle Dispute With Mayor". Jet magazine. March 15, 1993. http://books.google.com/books?id=xboDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA60&dq=Mayor+of+Teaneck&hl=en&ei=VsunTqKIB-bq0gGI-eCTDg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CD8Q6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=Mayor%20of%20Teaneck&f=false. Retrieved 2011-10-25. "Soul singer Wilson Pickett agreed to perform for free in ... Pickett, who is Aronson's neighbor, said in Teaneck Municipal Court that he would perform as his community service. ..." 
  9. ^ "Cartoon Diary: August 1, 1944". Filboidsudge.blogspot.com. 2005-08-01. http://filboidsudge.blogspot.com/2005/08/august-1-1944.html. Retrieved 2012-02-06. 
  10. ^ Leeds, Jeff (2006-01-20). "Wilson Pickett, 64, Soul Singer of Great Passion, Dies". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/20/arts/music/20pickett.html?ei=5070&en=385960ae2b0dd420&ex=1168837200&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1168666205-xFg3SBlc/473ZzYdIJa4CA. 
  11. ^ "Pickett pleads guilty to drunken driving charges – singer Wilson Pickett – Brief Article". Jet. 1993. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1355/is_n12_v84/ai_14121480. 
  12. ^ "Blues.org". Blues.org. http://blues.org/. Retrieved 2012-02-06. 
  13. ^ "Independent Music Awards – Past Judges". Independentmusicawards.com. http://www.independentmusicawards.com/ima_new/pastjudges.asp. Retrieved 2012-02-06. 
  14. ^ Thedeadrockstarsclub.com – accessed July 2010
  15. ^ Joel Whitburn, Top Pop Singles, 12th edn, pp.759–760.
  16. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 426. ISBN 1-904994-10-5. 

Bibliography

External links


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