Bill Withers - Live At Carnegie Hall (1973) [MFSL 2014] PS3 ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

Despite the import of the occasion - an October 1972 night at America's most prestigious hall - what really impresses about Bill Withers' Live at Carnegie Hall is the good feeling and sense of interplay passed between the star, his band, and the audience. From the surpassingly casual opening of "Use Me" and its build through eight-plus minutes and an extended ending to the complexity and occasional joy of Withers's socio-personal "Lean on Me", "I Can't Write Left-Handed", and a medley of "Harlem" and "Cold Bologna", Carnegie is an underappreciated document of what for a moment was progressive R&B. Always one of music's most humble performers, Withers quietly, intensely proves his mettle over the length of this album.

A wonderful live album that capitalizes on Withers' trademark melancholy soul sound while expanding the music to fit the room granted by a live show. Lovely versions of "Grandma's Hands" and "Lean on Me" are balanced by heartfelt downbeat numbers like "Better Off Dead" and "I Can't Write Left-Handed," the latter being an anti-war song with a chilling message. The set finishes off with the lengthy "Harlem/Cold Baloney," with lots of audience-pleased call-and-response going on. One of the best live releases from the '70s.

Tracklist:

01. Use Me
02. Friend Of Mine
03. Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone
04. Grandma's Hands
05. World Keeps Going Around
06. Let Me In Your Life
07. Better Off Dead
08. For My Friend
09. I Can't Write Left-Handed
10. Lean On Me
11. Lonely Town, Lonely Street
12. Hope She'll Be Happier
13. Let Us Love
14. Harlem / Cold Baloney

Personnel
Bill Withers - vocals, guitar, piano
Ray Jackson - piano, string & horn arrangements
Benorce Blackmon - guitar
Melvin Dunlap - bass
James Gadson - drums
Bobbye Hall - percussion

Recorded on October 6, 1972 at Carnegie Hall in New York City.
Mastered by Shawn R. Britton at Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, Sebastopol, CA.


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