Don't Give Up On Me
Encyclopedia
Don't Give Up on Me is a studio album
by R&B
/Soul
singer Solomon Burke
, recorded and released in 2002 on Fat Possum Records
. The album won the MOJO Award
for Album of the Year, as well as the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album. It is noteworthy for the contributions of original and previously unreleased compositions by top-rank songwriter
s, the effect of which placed Burke back in the public eye for a time. Guest stars are Daniel Lanois
, who plays electric guitar on "Stepchild", and The Blind Boys of Alabama
, who feature on backing vocals for "None of Us Are Free". "None of Us Are Free" was also featured at the end of the sixth episode (Spin) of the second season of House
. "Fast Train" was featured during the ending montage of the season three finale of The Wire
.
The title track, written by the team of Dan Penn
and Carson Whitsett
with Hoy Lindsey, gained popularity (and introduced Burke to a new generation) when it was used several times on the popular primetime teen soap opera The O.C.
as one of the signature song of adult couple Sandy and Kirsten Cohen, played by Peter Gallagher
and Kelly Rowan
. It has since become a staple of Burke's live performances and has been covered by Joe Cocker
, as well as Peter Gallagher, who also performed the song on The O.C.
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
/Soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
singer Solomon Burke
Solomon Burke
Solomon Burke was an American singer-songwriter, entrepreneur, mortician, and an archbishop of the United House of Prayer For All People. Burke was known as "King Solomon", the "King of Rock 'n' Soul", and as the "Bishop of Soul", and described as "the Muhammad Ali of soul", and as "the most...
, recorded and released in 2002 on Fat Possum Records
Fat Possum Records
Fat Possum Records is an American independent record label based in Oxford, Mississippi. At first Fat Possum focused almost entirely on recording hitherto unknown Mississippi blues artists . Recently, Fat Possum has signed younger rock acts to its roster...
. The album won the MOJO Award
MOJO Awards
The MOJO Awards is an awards ceremony that began in 2004 by Mojo, a popular music magazine published monthly by Bauer in the United Kingdom...
for Album of the Year, as well as the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album. It is noteworthy for the contributions of original and previously unreleased compositions by top-rank songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
s, the effect of which placed Burke back in the public eye for a time. Guest stars are Daniel Lanois
Daniel Lanois
Daniel Lanois born September 19, 1951 in Hull, Quebec) is a Canadian record producer, guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He has released a number of albums of his own work and has produced albums for a wide variety of artists, including Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Emmylou Harris, Willie...
, who plays electric guitar on "Stepchild", and The Blind Boys of Alabama
The Blind Boys of Alabama
The Blind Boys of Alabama are a gospel group from Alabama that first formed at the Alabama Institute for the Negro Blind at Talladega, Alabama in 1939. The three main vocalists of the group and their drummer/percussionist are all blind....
, who feature on backing vocals for "None of Us Are Free". "None of Us Are Free" was also featured at the end of the sixth episode (Spin) of the second season of House
House (TV series)
House is an American television medical drama that debuted on the Fox network on November 16, 2004. The show's central character is Dr. Gregory House , an unconventional and misanthropic medical genius who heads a team of diagnosticians at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in...
. "Fast Train" was featured during the ending montage of the season three finale of The Wire
The WIRE
the WIRE is the student-run College radio station at the University of Oklahoma, broadcasting in a freeform format. The WIRE serves the University of Oklahoma and surrounding communities, and is staffed by student DJs. The WIRE broadcasts at 1710 kHz AM in Norman, Oklahoma...
.
The title track, written by the team of Dan Penn
Dan Penn
Dan Penn is an American singer, songwriter, record producer and sometime guitar player who co-wrote many soul hits of the 1960s including "Dark End of the Street" and "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man" and "Out of Left Field" & "Cry Like A Baby"...
and Carson Whitsett
Carson Whitsett
Carson Whitsett was an American keyboardist, songwriter, and record producer.-Biography:...
with Hoy Lindsey, gained popularity (and introduced Burke to a new generation) when it was used several times on the popular primetime teen soap opera The O.C.
The O.C.
The O.C. is an American teen drama television series that originally aired on the Fox television network in the United States from August 5, 2003, to February 21, 2007, running a total of four seasons...
as one of the signature song of adult couple Sandy and Kirsten Cohen, played by Peter Gallagher
Peter Gallagher
Peter Killian Gallagher is an American actor, musician and writer. Since 1980, Gallagher has played many roles in numerous Hollywood films. He starred as Sandy Cohen in the television drama series The O.C. from 2003 to 2007...
and Kelly Rowan
Kelly Rowan
Kelly Rowan is a Canadian television and film actress and former fashion model. She is best known for portraying Kirsten Cohen on The O.C.-Early life:...
. It has since become a staple of Burke's live performances and has been covered by Joe Cocker
Joe Cocker
John Robert "Joe" Cocker, OBE is an English rock and blues musician, composer and actor, who came to popularity in the 1960s, and is most known for his gritty voice, his idiosyncratic arm movements while performing, and his cover versions of popular songs, particularly those of The Beatles...
, as well as Peter Gallagher, who also performed the song on The O.C.
Track listing
- "Don't Give Up on Me" (Dan PennDan PennDan Penn is an American singer, songwriter, record producer and sometime guitar player who co-wrote many soul hits of the 1960s including "Dark End of the Street" and "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man" and "Out of Left Field" & "Cry Like A Baby"...
, Carson WhitsettCarson WhitsettCarson Whitsett was an American keyboardist, songwriter, and record producer.-Biography:...
, Hoy Lindsey) - 3:45 - "Fast Train" (Van MorrisonVan MorrisonVan Morrison, OBE is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician. His live performances at their best are regarded as transcendental and inspired; while some of his recordings, such as the studio albums Astral Weeks and Moondance, and the live album It's Too Late to Stop Now, are widely...
) - 5:43 - "Diamond in Your Mind" (Tom WaitsTom WaitsThomas Alan "Tom" Waits is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car."...
, Kathleen BrennanKathleen BrennanKathleen Brennan is an American musician, songwriter, record producer and artist. She was born in Johnsburg, Illinois, as noted by her husband and musical collaborator Tom Waits, in the song of the same name. Brennan and Waits met in 1980 during the filming of the Francis Ford Coppola film One from...
) - 4:24 - "Flesh and Blood" (Joe HenryJoe HenryJoseph Lee "Joe" Henry is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. Henry's musical style spans several genres, including alt. country, rock, jazz and folk.- Early years :...
) - 6:07 - "Soul Searchin'" (Brian WilsonBrian WilsonBrian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
, Andy PaleyAndy PaleyAndy Paley is a noted record producer and musician who has been active since the late 1960s. His work includes stints as a producer for such noted musicians as Madonna, the Ramones, Jonathan Richman, Debbie Harry, Brian Wilson and Jerry Lee Lewis....
) - 3:59 - "Only a Dream" (Van Morrison) - 5:09
- "The Judgment" (Elvis CostelloElvis CostelloElvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
, Cait O'RiordanCait O'RiordanCaitlín O'Riordan is a British musician. She played bass guitar for the British-Irish punk/folk band The Pogues from 1983 to 1986. She later played with Elvis Costello, her husband from 1986 to 2002, as well as several other projects....
) - 3:30 - "Stepchild" (Bob DylanBob DylanBob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
) - 5:10 - "The Other Side of the Coin" (Nick LoweNick LoweNicholas Drain "Nick" Lowe , is an English singer-songwriter, musician and producer.A pivotal figure in UK pub rock, punk rock and new wave, Lowe has recorded a string of well-reviewed solo albums. Along with vocals, Lowe plays guitar, bass guitar, piano and harmonica...
) - 3:46 - "None of Us Are Free" (Barry MannBarry MannBarry Mann is an American songwriter, and part of a successful songwriting partnership with his wife, Cynthia Weil.-Career:...
, Cynthia WeilCynthia WeilCynthia Weil is a prominent American songwriter. She is famous for having written many songs together with her husband Barry Mann....
, Brenda RussellBrenda RussellBrenda Russell is an American-Canadian singer-songwriter and keyboardist. Known for her eclectic musical style, her recordings have encompassed several different genres, including pop, soul, dance, jazz and adult contemporary...
) - 5:29 - "Sit This One Out" (Pick Purnell) - 4:33
Personnel
- Solomon BurkeSolomon BurkeSolomon Burke was an American singer-songwriter, entrepreneur, mortician, and an archbishop of the United House of Prayer For All People. Burke was known as "King Solomon", the "King of Rock 'n' Soul", and as the "Bishop of Soul", and described as "the Muhammad Ali of soul", and as "the most...
- vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, piano forte, electric guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker... - Chris Bruce - electric guitar
- David PalmerDave Palmer (American keyboardist)Dave Palmer is an American session keyboardist native to Texas and living in Studio City, California. Palmer has toured, performed, or recorded with Air, Fiona Apple, Seal, Chris Isaak, Joe Henry, Bobby Previte, Wayne Horvitz, Ponga, Critters Buggin, MC 900 Foot Jesus, Aimee Mann, Solomon Burke,...
- piano forte, keyboardKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments... - David Piltch - bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Jay Bellerose - drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, percussion - Bennie WallaceBennie WallaceBennie Wallace is an American post bop, swing music and jazz tenor saxophonist born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, probably better known for his work with Monty Alexander and Sheila Jordan during the 1970s. He settled in New York in 1971 and played with Barry Harris, Buddy Rich, Dannie Richmond...
- tenor saxophoneTenor saxophoneThe tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor, with the alto, are the two most common types of saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B, and written as a transposing instrument in the treble... - Niki Harris - backing vocalsBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
- Jean McClain - backing vocals
- Rudy Copeland - organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
- Daniel LanoisDaniel LanoisDaniel Lanois born September 19, 1951 in Hull, Quebec) is a Canadian record producer, guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He has released a number of albums of his own work and has produced albums for a wide variety of artists, including Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Emmylou Harris, Willie...
- electric guitar - Clarence Fountain – backing vocals
- Jimmy Carter – backing vocals
- Bishop Billy Bowers – backing vocals
- Ben Moore – backing vocals
- Eric McKinnie – backing vocals
- Caleb Butler – backing vocals
- Joey WilliamsJoey WilliamsJoseph Joshua "Joey" Williams was a former professional footballer.-Career:Williams was an outside forward who started out with his hometown club Rotherham County, playing over a hundred games. In summer 1924 he was signed by Huddersfield Town and won two First Division titles in 1924-25 and 1925-26...
– backing vocals - Tracy PierceTracy PierceTracy Pierce may refer to:*A member of The Blind Boys of Alabama*A case study in the documentary SiCKO...
– backing vocals