Willie Clayton - Sings The Number Ones (2018)

A gifted Southern soul singer, Willie Clayton has been performing since the late '60s. One of 11 brothers and sisters, the Mississippi vocalist debuted with "That's the Way Daddy Did" on Duplex. He moved to Chicago in the early '70s and became a club and city favorite. Clayton was introduced to Al Green's producer, Willie Mitchell, after appearing with Green, and Mitchell signed him to a deal with Pawn, a subsidiary of Hi. Mitchell produced some fine Clayton efforts, including "I Must Be Losin' You," "It's Time You Made Up Your Mind," and "Baby You're Ready," but none of them hit. He spent time touring with Green, Barry White, and James Brown, and started his own Sky Hero label in 1980, but the song "Living with You, But My Heart Is Somewhere Else" had only marginal regional exposure.

Clayton tried again with the Kirstee label, issuing "Where Has Love Gone," and finally enjoyed a taste of soul success in 1984 when his "Tell Me" (produced by General Crook) and "What a Way to Put It" for Compleat Records nudged onto the R&B charts. Let's Get Together, Clayton's 1993 album for Johnny Vincent's Ace logo, was a smooth soul-blues hybrid dominated by originals but titled after Al Green's immortal hit. Simply Beautiful, his Ace follow-up, found Clayton mixing dusties by Reverend Al, Aretha Franklin, and Arthur Crudup with his own stuff. It's About Love followed in 1999. After the turn of the century, Clayton recorded for the Malaco, Endzone, and Select-O-Hits labels. Among his finer releases during these years were Changing the Game (2004), Love, Romance & Respect (2009), The Voice (2011), and Heart and Soul (2015). Clayton stuck to his tried-and-true sound, and many of his albums during these years peaked in or near the Top Five of Billboard's blues chart. ~ Ron Wynn & Bill Dahl

Tracklist:

1. Walk Away From Love
2. That's The Way I Feel
3. So Glad You're Mine
4. Turn Off The Lights
5. In The Mood
6. So Very Hard To Go
7. Leaving Me
8. Rockin' Chair