It boggles my mind as to why he never blew up like crazy.
I would love to see an Unsung about him.
What do u think his problem was?
Was Curtom not able to promote him? Payola? Who was Curtoms distributer?
Disco emergence killing off a carried over Soul generation?
.
I've been a huge Hutson fan for years and managed to track him down about seven years ago. He's extremely shy, somewhat of a recluse .. he even changed his first name from Leroy to Lee because he didn't want to be subjected to the many "Leroy jokes."
We talked much over the years and became friends. In 2008, he agreed to be guest on our radio show Midnight Soulstice, giving his first radio interview in over a decade. We dedicated the entire show to him, you can download it here: http://midnightsoulstice.podbean.com/2010/07/11/live-leroy-hutson-interview-special/
In 2010, he finally agreed to do some shows in Europe - his first in over 20 years. Considering the fact that he doesn't really like performing live (he's more of a studio artist), his shows were absolutely fantastic and well received, especially in the UK (we sold out Indigo2 in London.)
To answer your questions, Curtom Records was partially at fault for the lack of commercial success of his records. At the time, Curtom manager Marv Stuart pushed the label towards Disco releases, which ultimately killed Curtis' career as well. There was little promotion for Leroy's records, especially after Warner took over Curtom from Buddah as distributor in 1975. Ironically, many of the songs Leroy produced for other artists (notably Linda Clifford and the Natural Four) became bigger hits than his own.
It should also be noted that Leroy wrote "The Ghetto" in collaboration with his friend and dorm roomate Donny Hathaway, and he briefly joined the Impressions after Curtis left, but exited the group after just one album to puruse his solo career on Curtom.
Regarding this particular album, I can say that it is not only my personal favorite and in my opinion one of the greatest Soul albums ever recorded, but it is also Leroy's favorite. He told me that they recorded the album over a span of just three or four days and there was magic in the studio .. a magic that he had never felt before and never after that. I think it's safe to say that this is his greatest piece of work, even though I consider all of his albums extremely strong. I'm definitely glad that it made the list, though I wish it would have been higher.
I'm not sure if Leroy will perform again after the European tour. He has enjoyed it very much, and it was something that he always wanted to do. The time was right. He lives in Miami Florida nowadays, and he is pretty well off because of all his song writing. His son is also in the music business - he produced Jill Scott's two most recent albums.
i get confused about Curtom production. there was rich tufo and hutson. did curtis produce? what else was hutson on? who produced "super people" and the notations album?
Curtis did produce neither. Leroy produced all of his solo albums himself, with the expection of "Closer to the Source," which he co-produced. Richard Tufo was an arranger for Curtom - he arranged most of Curtis' solo albums, except "Superfly," which Johnny Pate arranged.
Leroy did not produce the Notations. For Curtom, he produced his own albums, three albums for the Natural Four, several albums for Linda Clifford. He produced a few sides for Gemigo, like Arnold Blair and a group called Ground Hog ("Bumpin"), which was basically his Funk side-kick. He also produced two albums for the Voices of East Harlem on Just Sunshine Records.
Before he joined the Impressions, he was part of the Mayfield Singers for Mayfield Records. His very first songwriting session with Mayfield was "I'll never forget you" for Nolan Chance, which he co-wrote with Donny Hathaway and which Curtis produced. It was released on Thomas Records, a subsidiary for Curtom.
Can someone give me the low down the non LP version of lucky fellow? It has a sharper early 80s or later production feel to it (poorer imo). "From the vaults" discovery? later remix ? contemporary 7" alternative version ?
There is no "official" non-LP version. The mix that you posted was done by someone else. Unfortunately, Curtom did not release "Lucky Fellow" on a 45. "All because of you" was the only single release from this album, and that's a different mix (obviously shorter, with an edited intro) and an instrumental version on the flipside. But several years ago, a 45 of "Lucky Fellow" popped up on Ebay. I think it was released on Buddah in Indonesia or some exotic place - Leroy didn't know about it. I'm still upset that I missed out on bidding on it. It was the only time I saw it.
Even though Hutson's records were released during a time when black audiences were starting to become more album-oriented (as opposed to singles), he remains one of those guys I never heard on the radio, but I saw the LPs around consistently. I'd put Black Heat, Maxayn, and Funk Inc. in the same category. You know somebody had to be buying those things, because they were so ubiquitous. But who and how?
According to Billboard, Hutson had two singles in the soul Top 40. The highest-charting (at #25) was an instrumental, "Feel The Spirit In '76," that I remember hearing once or twice before it died.
LOVE Leroy Hutson. Love this album. Here's a hidden gem from a later album he did:
It picks up a bit after the initial AM Gold early part.
hellllll yesss. at the 4:44 mark is where i start getting chills. that was the first hutson album i ever found and that was my cut right there.
for the record, that suit on the cover is untouchable. i mean, dark skinned dudes in white suits is usually real sharp style combination. (please dont post the kobe in a bonnet photoshoot). i was working on my roof last easter and some dude walks down the street with a white suit and matching hat and it was just some jaw dropping shit. i thihnk i said "damn" outloud and when he looked up i had to give him props, which he had probably already gotten all day.
someone mentioned it, but i forget how Leroy Houtson The Man LP sounds. I gotta dig that and Love oh Love out.
The man is an album I remember not digging as much as Love Oh Love, S/T, or II. Had a weird follow up to the track he did with Donny Hathaway called "the ghetto '74" or something like that. I'd say its not essential.
i resptcfully disagree with guzzo on this. "the man! writer/producer/artist/superstar!!" has some amazing shit on it and it. essential. my third favourite hutson.
Love all the Curtom releases...
One of my favourite soul singer/musicians since i started collecting in 1975, discovered him around 1990 and quickly picked up all his albums shortly afterwards.
I feel 'Hutson' should be further up the SS 100 personally!
and soul power, thanks for all the insight into hutson and curtom.
so what does an arranger do? does that mostly concern the string section?
You're welcome.
The role of an arranger can vary. In the case of the Impressions, Johnny Pate's role was huge. Curtis could not read and write music. He composed his music on his guitar and he'd record some simple demos, sometimes backed by a rhythm section (such demo of "Little Child running wild" was released on the "Superfly" CD set on Rhino.) Then he'd give the demo to Johnny, or later Richard Tufo, and they'd write the arrangement. That would not be just string arrangements, but also the band arrangements.
Leroy Hutson however is a trained musician. He studied music at Howard University, so he knows how to read and write music. That's why he was able to write the arrangements for his solo albums by himself, including the string arrangements. He's definitely a genius .. there aren't too many people around who are skilled song writers, singers, arrangers, instrumentalists and producers.
It should also be noted that Leroy wrote "The Ghetto" in collaboration with his friend and dorm roomate Donny Hathaway
indeed. Thanks for those posts.
From what I remember, he, Donny and Roberta Flack were all classmates in college. Would love to hear some stories from those days.
The orchestration and production on "Lucky Fellow" (especially the last 1/4) is goosebump good. Anthem lvlz for real. It's a shame he never had quite the same success as his peers.
It should also be noted that Leroy wrote "The Ghetto" in collaboration with his friend and dorm roomate Donny Hathaway
indeed. Thanks for those posts.
From what I remember, he, Donny and Roberta Flack were all classmates in college. Would love to hear some stories from those days.
The orchestration and production on "Lucky Fellow" (especially the last 1/4) is goosebump good. Anthem lvlz for real. It's a shame he never had quite the same success as his peers.
yo D, i was saying the same in the Les McCann Layers thread. From what ive gleaned over the years from liner notes, there seemed to be a lot of collaboration and love between McCann, Roberta, Donny, Leroy and Eugene McDaniels. Man oh man that is a charisma all star team. Imagine if you were in school and you got to hang out with those characters for a semester?!
As good as he was, he was expanding on existing styles of R&B/Soul/Funk and didnt really change the game or cause a paradigm shift IMO.
Rick James and Prince come to mind whom put a heavier stamp on the game in terms of cats that were multi-talented.
I think he very much deserves to be called genius ... it's a term that I don't use lightly.
Back in the 1960s and 1970s, only very few Soul singers actually wrote their own songs and arranged and orchestrated them .. Hutson is one of a few, and he is also a multi-instrumentalist. During his prime years, he wrote some exceptionally beautiful music for himself and other artists with little or no help from outside producers/arrangers/composers. And he did in fact have a huge impact on Soul music .. not so much over here in the States, but in the UK. One could argue that the soulful side of the Acid Jazz movement and Modern UK Soul (or "London Soul") from the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s was based on the sound that Hutson created .. which is why he is possibly the prime artist in the so called Rare Groove scene in the UK, and when he performed there a couple of years ago, he created an excitement among his fans that I have rarely seen in my career in this biz.
Hutson never achieved the level of fame that Rick James or Prince did ... which had a lot to do with the fact that he was never signed to a major label and he never enjoyed performing live. In fact, most of his hits that his fans love so much, he had never performed live until his European tour two years ago. The guy is a studio musician ... that's where he unleashes his creative energy, and you can't possibly judge his talents unless you have seen him work in this environment.
I think one could call Prince a musical genius for sure .. but Rick James? Sorry, I'm not convinced ... If you gave Rick some sheet music paper and a pen, I doubt he could have written out the arrangements for a 15-piece ensemble and string orchestra ..
It should also be noted that Leroy wrote "The Ghetto" in collaboration with his friend and dorm roomate Donny Hathaway
indeed. Thanks for those posts.
From what I remember, he, Donny and Roberta Flack were all classmates in college. Would love to hear some stories from those days.
The orchestration and production on "Lucky Fellow" (especially the last 1/4) is goosebump good. Anthem lvlz for real. It's a shame he never had quite the same success as his peers.
The story of how Hutson and Hathaway wrote "The Ghetto" is quite interesting .. In short, they roomed together in DC during their time at Howard University and one day, Hutson came up with the basic idea for this song, playing on his Wurlizter in their apartment. Hathaway came home, heard Hutson jam and sat next to him .. he hammered out the lyrics .. starting with "This ... is the Ghetto" and the two of them wrapped up the entire song in a couple of hours. Hutson remembers how they listened to the playback of the song while looking outside, watching the traffic on U-Street, and both felt like the way the traffic lights were moving they were in harmony with the rhythm of the song. He has a very vidid memory of this moment.
As good as he was, he was expanding on existing styles of R&B/Soul/Funk and didnt really change the game or cause a paradigm shift IMO.
Rick James and Prince come to mind whom put a heavier stamp on the game in terms of cats that were multi-talented.
I think he very much deserves to be called genius ... it's a term that I don't use lightly.
Back in the 1960s and 1970s, only very few Soul singers actually wrote their own songs and arranged and orchestrated them .. Hutson is one of a few, and he is also a multi-instrumentalist. During his prime years, he wrote some exceptionally beautiful music for himself and other artists with little or no help from outside producers/arrangers/composers. And he did in fact have a huge impact on Soul music .. not so much over here in the States, but in the UK. One could argue that the soulful side of the Acid Jazz movement and Modern UK Soul (or "London Soul") from the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s was based on the sound that Hutson created .. which is why he is possibly the prime artist in the so called Rare Groove scene in the UK, and when he performed there a couple of years ago, he created an excitement among his fans that I have rarely seen in my career in this biz.
Hutson never achieved the level of fame that Rick James or Prince did ... which had a lot to do with the fact that he was never signed to a major label and he never enjoyed performing live. In fact, most of his hits that his fans love so much, he had never performed live until his European tour two years ago. The guy is a studio musician ... that's where he unleashes his creative energy, and you can't possibly judge his talents unless you have seen him work in this environment.
I think one could call Prince a musical genius for sure .. but Rick James? Sorry, I'm not convinced ... If you gave Rick some sheet music paper and a pen, I doubt he could have written out the arrangements for a 15-piece ensemble and string orchestra ..
I tend not place too much wieght on the number instruments a cat can play. Each cat can provide many things to the table regardless of string arrangments that the other cat cant. "He plays 12.......But He plays 20!"
I disagree that one cant judge a musicians ART unless i see him tinkering in his or her studio. Does one really need to be in the studio to appreciate Angela Winbush, Lionel Ritchie, Barry White, Stevie Wonder,Isaac Hayes, or Maurice Whites ART?
Good call on the UK love though.
I tend not place too much wieght on the number instruments a cat can play. Each cat can provide many things to the table regardless of string arrangments that the other cat cant. "He plays 12.......But He plays 20!"
I disagree that one cant judge a musicians ART unless i see him tinkering in his or her studio. Does one really need to be in the studio to appreciate Angela Winbush, Lionel Ritchie, Barry White, Stevie Wonder,Isaac Hayes, or Maurice Whites ART?
Good call on the UK love though.
These are fair points. But the difference between Hutson and the other artists you mention is that they are well known and so are their talents. Very little is known about Leroy Hutson ... If you didn't do your research, you would believe he was just another obscure Soul singer who never got his break ...
If you play Hutson's music to any Soul music lover with superficial knowledge, especially here in the States, you generally get a very positive and very surprised response ... surprised because people usually love his music immediately but have to admit that they've never heard about him.
Bottom line, on a different label, with better promotion, Hutson could have definitely enjoyed more commercial success. But I still maintain my belief that his music was a bit too complex for the average Soul music listener of his day. Going by my many long conversations with him, I believe that he is content with that ... there is no bitterness. He found his place, and he appreciates his music being valued as it is. I am proud to be able to call him my friend today, and I can honestly say that he is one of the nicest people I've ever met in my life. And that's a rare thing in the music biz.
But I still maintain my belief that his music was a bit too complex for the average Soul music listener of his day.z.
i dunno. lets say hhis prime was the entire decade of the 70s. The average "soul" listener probably was coppin early Earth Wind @ Fire or some of the experimental steez done by artist that heads appreciate.
But the radio still played Donny Hathaway, Stevie Wonder, George Clinton, Mandrill, (Feel free to add on) cats that were far from pedestrian in their music.
That was one of the most fertile times in Soul/Funk and to place Hutson on some Rubic Cube of Soul is an exagerration IMO.
Comments
I've been a huge Hutson fan for years and managed to track him down about seven years ago. He's extremely shy, somewhat of a recluse .. he even changed his first name from Leroy to Lee because he didn't want to be subjected to the many "Leroy jokes."
We talked much over the years and became friends. In 2008, he agreed to be guest on our radio show Midnight Soulstice, giving his first radio interview in over a decade. We dedicated the entire show to him, you can download it here:
http://midnightsoulstice.podbean.com/2010/07/11/live-leroy-hutson-interview-special/
In 2010, he finally agreed to do some shows in Europe - his first in over 20 years. Considering the fact that he doesn't really like performing live (he's more of a studio artist), his shows were absolutely fantastic and well received, especially in the UK (we sold out Indigo2 in London.)
To answer your questions, Curtom Records was partially at fault for the lack of commercial success of his records. At the time, Curtom manager Marv Stuart pushed the label towards Disco releases, which ultimately killed Curtis' career as well. There was little promotion for Leroy's records, especially after Warner took over Curtom from Buddah as distributor in 1975. Ironically, many of the songs Leroy produced for other artists (notably Linda Clifford and the Natural Four) became bigger hits than his own.
It should also be noted that Leroy wrote "The Ghetto" in collaboration with his friend and dorm roomate Donny Hathaway, and he briefly joined the Impressions after Curtis left, but exited the group after just one album to puruse his solo career on Curtom.
Regarding this particular album, I can say that it is not only my personal favorite and in my opinion one of the greatest Soul albums ever recorded, but it is also Leroy's favorite. He told me that they recorded the album over a span of just three or four days and there was magic in the studio .. a magic that he had never felt before and never after that. I think it's safe to say that this is his greatest piece of work, even though I consider all of his albums extremely strong. I'm definitely glad that it made the list, though I wish it would have been higher.
I'm not sure if Leroy will perform again after the European tour. He has enjoyed it very much, and it was something that he always wanted to do. The time was right. He lives in Miami Florida nowadays, and he is pretty well off because of all his song writing. His son is also in the music business - he produced Jill Scott's two most recent albums.
Curtis did produce neither. Leroy produced all of his solo albums himself, with the expection of "Closer to the Source," which he co-produced. Richard Tufo was an arranger for Curtom - he arranged most of Curtis' solo albums, except "Superfly," which Johnny Pate arranged.
Leroy did not produce the Notations. For Curtom, he produced his own albums, three albums for the Natural Four, several albums for Linda Clifford. He produced a few sides for Gemigo, like Arnold Blair and a group called Ground Hog ("Bumpin"), which was basically his Funk side-kick. He also produced two albums for the Voices of East Harlem on Just Sunshine Records.
Before he joined the Impressions, he was part of the Mayfield Singers for Mayfield Records. His very first songwriting session with Mayfield was "I'll never forget you" for Nolan Chance, which he co-wrote with Donny Hathaway and which Curtis produced. It was released on Thomas Records, a subsidiary for Curtom.
There is no "official" non-LP version. The mix that you posted was done by someone else. Unfortunately, Curtom did not release "Lucky Fellow" on a 45. "All because of you" was the only single release from this album, and that's a different mix (obviously shorter, with an edited intro) and an instrumental version on the flipside. But several years ago, a 45 of "Lucky Fellow" popped up on Ebay. I think it was released on Buddah in Indonesia or some exotic place - Leroy didn't know about it. I'm still upset that I missed out on bidding on it. It was the only time I saw it.
According to Billboard, Hutson had two singles in the soul Top 40. The highest-charting (at #25) was an instrumental, "Feel The Spirit In '76," that I remember hearing once or twice before it died.
It picks up a bit after the initial AM Gold early part.
So Smooth.
Is L H : The Man any good? Never found it.
hellllll yesss. at the 4:44 mark is where i start getting chills. that was the first hutson album i ever found and that was my cut right there.
for the record, that suit on the cover is untouchable. i mean, dark skinned dudes in white suits is usually real sharp style combination. (please dont post the kobe in a bonnet photoshoot). i was working on my roof last easter and some dude walks down the street with a white suit and matching hat and it was just some jaw dropping shit. i thihnk i said "damn" outloud and when he looked up i had to give him props, which he had probably already gotten all day.
someone mentioned it, but i forget how Leroy Houtson The Man LP sounds. I gotta dig that and Love oh Love out.
so what does an arranger do? does that mostly concern the string section?
The Man! was actually his second LP.
Confusingly, Hutson II was his fourth.
check this song out:
I think he meant Hutson II as a sort of sequel to Hutson, same way War had a series of albums titled "The Music Band."
http://midnightsoulstice.podbean.com/2010/07/11/live-leroy-hutson-interview-special/
One of my favourite soul singer/musicians since i started collecting in 1975, discovered him around 1990 and quickly picked up all his albums shortly afterwards.
I feel 'Hutson' should be further up the SS 100 personally!
You're welcome.
The role of an arranger can vary. In the case of the Impressions, Johnny Pate's role was huge. Curtis could not read and write music. He composed his music on his guitar and he'd record some simple demos, sometimes backed by a rhythm section (such demo of "Little Child running wild" was released on the "Superfly" CD set on Rhino.) Then he'd give the demo to Johnny, or later Richard Tufo, and they'd write the arrangement. That would not be just string arrangements, but also the band arrangements.
Leroy Hutson however is a trained musician. He studied music at Howard University, so he knows how to read and write music. That's why he was able to write the arrangements for his solo albums by himself, including the string arrangements. He's definitely a genius .. there aren't too many people around who are skilled song writers, singers, arrangers, instrumentalists and producers.
From what I remember, he, Donny and Roberta Flack were all classmates in college. Would love to hear some stories from those days.
The orchestration and production on "Lucky Fellow" (especially the last 1/4) is goosebump good. Anthem lvlz for real. It's a shame he never had quite the same success as his peers.
yo D, i was saying the same in the Les McCann Layers thread. From what ive gleaned over the years from liner notes, there seemed to be a lot of collaboration and love between McCann, Roberta, Donny, Leroy and Eugene McDaniels. Man oh man that is a charisma all star team. Imagine if you were in school and you got to hang out with those characters for a semester?!
I think he very much deserves to be called genius ... it's a term that I don't use lightly.
Back in the 1960s and 1970s, only very few Soul singers actually wrote their own songs and arranged and orchestrated them .. Hutson is one of a few, and he is also a multi-instrumentalist. During his prime years, he wrote some exceptionally beautiful music for himself and other artists with little or no help from outside producers/arrangers/composers. And he did in fact have a huge impact on Soul music .. not so much over here in the States, but in the UK. One could argue that the soulful side of the Acid Jazz movement and Modern UK Soul (or "London Soul") from the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s was based on the sound that Hutson created .. which is why he is possibly the prime artist in the so called Rare Groove scene in the UK, and when he performed there a couple of years ago, he created an excitement among his fans that I have rarely seen in my career in this biz.
Hutson never achieved the level of fame that Rick James or Prince did ... which had a lot to do with the fact that he was never signed to a major label and he never enjoyed performing live. In fact, most of his hits that his fans love so much, he had never performed live until his European tour two years ago. The guy is a studio musician ... that's where he unleashes his creative energy, and you can't possibly judge his talents unless you have seen him work in this environment.
I think one could call Prince a musical genius for sure .. but Rick James? Sorry, I'm not convinced ... If you gave Rick some sheet music paper and a pen, I doubt he could have written out the arrangements for a 15-piece ensemble and string orchestra ..
The story of how Hutson and Hathaway wrote "The Ghetto" is quite interesting .. In short, they roomed together in DC during their time at Howard University and one day, Hutson came up with the basic idea for this song, playing on his Wurlizter in their apartment. Hathaway came home, heard Hutson jam and sat next to him .. he hammered out the lyrics .. starting with "This ... is the Ghetto" and the two of them wrapped up the entire song in a couple of hours. Hutson remembers how they listened to the playback of the song while looking outside, watching the traffic on U-Street, and both felt like the way the traffic lights were moving they were in harmony with the rhythm of the song. He has a very vidid memory of this moment.
I tend not place too much wieght on the number instruments a cat can play. Each cat can provide many things to the table regardless of string arrangments that the other cat cant. "He plays 12.......But He plays 20!"
I disagree that one cant judge a musicians ART unless i see him tinkering in his or her studio. Does one really need to be in the studio to appreciate Angela Winbush, Lionel Ritchie, Barry White, Stevie Wonder,Isaac Hayes, or Maurice Whites ART?
Good call on the UK love though.
These are fair points. But the difference between Hutson and the other artists you mention is that they are well known and so are their talents. Very little is known about Leroy Hutson ... If you didn't do your research, you would believe he was just another obscure Soul singer who never got his break ...
If you play Hutson's music to any Soul music lover with superficial knowledge, especially here in the States, you generally get a very positive and very surprised response ... surprised because people usually love his music immediately but have to admit that they've never heard about him.
Bottom line, on a different label, with better promotion, Hutson could have definitely enjoyed more commercial success. But I still maintain my belief that his music was a bit too complex for the average Soul music listener of his day. Going by my many long conversations with him, I believe that he is content with that ... there is no bitterness. He found his place, and he appreciates his music being valued as it is. I am proud to be able to call him my friend today, and I can honestly say that he is one of the nicest people I've ever met in my life. And that's a rare thing in the music biz.