Dan Penn - Close to Me: More Fame Recordings (2012)

Tracklist

01. Close to Me
02. Without a Woman
03. Trash Man
04. Miss Personality
05. Love Is a Wonderful Thing
06. It Hurts
07. Standing in the Way of a Good Thing
08. Reaching out for Someone
09. I'll Take Care of You
10. I Need You
11. Destroyed
12. So Many Reasons
13. Little Girl
14. I Love Everything About You
15. Lovely Ladies
16. I Dig a Big Town
17. Diamonds
18. She Ain't Gonna Do Right
19. I Can't Stop (The Feeling Won't Let Me)
20. Do You Need It
21. You Really Know How to Hurt a Guy
22. Live and Let Live
23. We're Swinging
24. Downright Uptight Good Woman

The sequel to their acclaimed 2014 release 'The Fame Recordings', Ace presents now 'Close To Me: More Fame Recordings', comprising another two dozen nuggets featuring the unmistakeable voice of songsmith extraordinaire, Dan Penn. As with the previous volume, all the tracks were recorded from 1963 to 1966, when a prolific and driven Penn spent countless days and nights at Rick Hall's FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals honing his writing and recording skills in the company of collaborators such as Donnie Fritts, Marlin Greene and his longtime cohort, Spooner Oldham. The accompaniment features crack Fame sessioneers David Briggs, Junior Lowe, Roger Hawkins, Jimmy Johnson and others. Penn issued a handful of singles in this period in a half-hearted attempt at a solo career; two are featured here, including the title cut. Otherwise the contents of "Close To Me: More Fame Recordings" are previously unreleased. They provide another treasure trove of Penn the writer and Penn the song-stylist, with compelling, impassioned performances throughout. While the songs 'Without A Woman,' 'Lovely Ladies' and 'She Ain't Gonna Do Right' are familiar to southern soul fans through the interpretation of others, Dan's personal treatment of his newly-minted creations casts fresh light on the material and his artistry. There are also many more obscure entries from the Penn songbook, including several tunes like the grooving 'Standing In The Way Of A Good Thing' or the impassioned 'It Hurts' that were never covered. Detailed liner notes with extensive commentary from Penn himself complete the package, along with some rare illustrations. "Close To Me: More Fame Recordings" is further evidence that nobody sings Dan Penn like Dan Penn.

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