Dr. John - The ATCO/Atlantic Singles 1968-1974 (2015)

Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Dr. John is often thought of either as an album artist or a session man, not as a musician whose medium is singles. Omnivore's 2015 compilation The Atco/Atlantic Singles 1968-1974 throws a curve to that notion, collecting the As and Bs he released on Atco/Atlantic during the height of his stardom. During this time, he sprawled out on such spooky platters as Gris-Gris but within a few years he streamlined his New Orleans funk and wound up with a genuine Top Ten hit in "Right Place Wrong Time." Both extremes are sampled here and unlike Rhino's 1995 compilation The Very Best of Dr. John, this proceeds in a chronological fashion so it's possible to hear Mac Rebennack shed the Big Easy psychedelia for smooth, rolling funk. Mac certainly did more than what can be heard in these 22 tracks -- his latter-day recordings illustrated the depth of his reach, his early singles hit harder, and the full Atco/Atlantic albums show his mastery of mood -- but this collection illustrates just how smart his development of the Dr. John persona was and hints at all the good music he made.