1. Jerry Butler sings a great version of "Woman's Got Soul" I had never heard before. It's very similar to the version by The Impressions, with similar syncopation and rhythm guitar but featuring a seemingly more pronounced deeper voice for the horns, a faster tempo, and a loud and proud pianist coming out of the blues and jazz tradition. Butler's approach to the song's lyrics are appropriately 'on point' in terms of emphasizing the same parts of the song Mayfield and The Impressions do, but with his deeper voice and immense gravity instead of Mayfield's falsetto, the song sounds much more forceful and yet weak in Butler's melismatic approach. It's almost as if the protagonist of the song is so giddy his voice falters a bit and his nervousness brings him back down to Earth.
2. Joe Williams has a baritone, but it all works with the jazzy orchestral arrangement of Mayfield's tune. I have written a review of the album on which Williams recorded "Woman With Soul," accessible here. He comes from the 'blues shouter' and jazz traditions, and it all works because, as mentioned previously in my other post on the relationship between jazz and soul in the collaborations of Mayfield and Pate. To be honest, as a sucker for jazz, the swinging drums and big band orchestration that is even 'jazzier' than the Mayfield original, makes this one of my favorite performances of "Woman's Got Soul." Listen to those horns, who could resist? And through it all, Williams miraculously manages to retain his dominance in the musical layers established by the large band.
3. The Cherokees also recorded a version, and honestly, I never heard of them before. They're a 1960s rock band, from Australia or the UK, and I am less fond of their guitar-driven rock cover and their almost dull singing. It's unfortunately true, in so much of the rock music from this era, rock musicians tended to lack the vocal styles and chops that were almost essential in soul. Their approach on the rhythm of the song is where things are more interesting, due to the almost 'garage' rock sound of the band. It's folksy or garage-like in its simplicity and clearly a product of rock percussion rather than the jazz swing of Williams. Nevertheless, those rocking drums combined with the guitar outro, is moving and dance-worthy. This song serves as a powerful reminder of the dialogue between rock/pop and 'black' genres of music in the 1960s. Everyone was singing each other's music and influences flowed both ways.
4. The Impressions (with Curtis Mayfield) features Mayfield on guitar, which probably explains some of the similarities between this version and Butler's. It lacks the same strolling piano licks of Butler's cover, but makes up with Mayfield's fine falsetto, the addition of his excellent back-up singers to round out his higher-pitched vocals and a more melodic, emphasis on Mayfield's rhythm guitar as the basis of the song without so much of the excess hornfare in Butler's take. In some ways, the lack of the strikingly independent piano licks on this version of the song allows Mayfield's voice to shine with his unique and aptly gospel-tinged hope for "the woman's got soul." It's imbued with so much spirituality and longing combined with fast-paced drumming to keep it all together. Though not swinging, clearly
5. The Impressions (live) is valuable for seeing a live performance of what to me represents the epitome of 1960s Chicago soul. Listen to Mayfield's voice, watch the relaxed smiles, well-dressed, stylish group. It's essentially the same as the studio recording, but with the addition of seeing the band look like they're enjoying themselves, it's worthwhile in my book. Mayfield's voice sounds less restrained, however, holding his lines a little longer with that irresistible falsetto. In addition, the smile on Gooden's face during his brief baritone interlude, sounding almost like Elvis, shows the group enjoying themselves! That visual appeal is obviously not going to be found in an audio recording. "And all the love that I have belongs to the woman with soul!"
6. B.B. King also sings the song, but I am not overly fond of this arrangement. It is, unsurprisingly, more about placing King's guitar at the forefront with electric piano instead of the acoustic piano found in the versions recorded by The Impressions and Jerry Butler. It is less centered around horn arrangements, and sounds like something from the 1970s or perhaps 1980s.
7. Tavis Minner, last but not least, does a good job singing the song in what sounds like a very similar arrangement used by Joe Williams, with similarly large band accompaniment. Minner, unfortunately, is not as strong a vocalist as Mayfield or Butler, but ain't bad. Minner's physicality, energy, endeavors to channel Williams, improvises on the lyrics, and gets the crowd clapping, earning him an 'A' for effort. Not bad, not bad at all. "She got soul!!!!"
I will really have to locate a biography of Mayfield to expand upon his life and music for this blog. Enjoy!
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