DISC ONE: AM I THAT EASY TO FORGET LENOX RECORDINGS (1962-63) 1. I CAN’T HELP IT 2. AM I THAT EASY TO FORGET 3. BE HONEST WITH ME 4. I REALLY DON’T WANT TO KNOW 5. I’VE FORGOTTEN MORE THAN YOU’LL EVER KNOW ABOUT HIM 6. JUST OUT OF REACH 7. NO HEADSTONE ON MY GRAVE 8. WHY SHOULD WE TRY ANYMORE 9. AFTER LOVING YOU 10. I’D FIGHT THE WORLD 11. RELEASE ME 12. A LOVER’S HYMN 13. DON’T FEEL RAINED ON 14. GOD BLESS THE CHILD 15. HALF A HEART 16. WHY WAS I BORN 17. DON’T LET ME GO 18. WHILE IT LASTED 19. YOU NEVER MISS YOUR WATER (TILL THE WELL RUNS DRY) – with Big Al Downing 20. IF YOU WANT IT (I’VE GOT IT) with Big Al Downing ATLANTIC RECORDINGS (1964) 21. HELLO WALLS 22. MOJO HANNAH 23. I SAW ME 24. DOUBLE CROSSIN’ BLUES – with Jimmy Ricks DISC TWO: JUST SAY GOODBYE ATLANTIC RECORDINGS (1964-66) 1. IF YOU LOVE ME, REALLY LOVE ME 2. MAKE BELIEVE DREAMS 3. TOO SOON TO KNOW 4. YOU’RE THE REASON I’M LIVING 5. OUT OF THE BLUE 6. MAKIN’ WHOOPEE 7. SHANGRI-LA 8. I WISH YOU LOVE 9. ‘TIS AUTUMN 10. PEOPLE 11. THE GIRL FROM IPANEMA 12. MEDLEY: MOONGLOW /A THEME FROM PICNIC 13. AND I LOVE HIM 14. SOME THINGS YOU NEVER GET USED TO 15. LET ME KNOW WHEN IT’S OVER 16. I COULD HAVE TOLD YOU 17. HE TOUCHED ME 18. YOU CAN’T GO HOME AGAIN 19. THE SHADOW OF YOUR SMILE 20. THE PARTY’S OVER 21. A TASTE OF HONEY 22. IT’S ALL RIGHT WITH ME 23. JUST SAY GOODBYE 24. AS TEARS GO BY 25. UPS AND DOWNS 26. EVERY TIME WE SAY GOODBYE 27. LET THERE BE LOVE 28. CRAZY HE CALLS ME DISC THREE: TOO LATE TO WORRY, TOO LATE TO CRY ATLANTIC RECORDINGS (1965-67) 1. WHEN A WOMAN LOVES A MAN 2. SOMEBODY ELSE IS TAKING MY PLACE 3. FEVER 4. TRY ME 5. WHEN LOVE COMES TO THE HUMAN RACE 6. C.C. RIDER 7. CHERRY RED 8. CONFESSIN’ THE BLUES 9. I’M GETTIN’ ‘LONG ALRIGHT 10. ROCKS IN MY BED (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED) 11. IN THE EVENING 12. ROMANCE IN THE DARK 13. I WONDER 14. CHEATER MAN 15. I’M SORRY 16. WATCH DOG (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED) ROULETTE RECORDINGS (1969) 17. TOO LATE TO WORRY, TOO BLUE TO CRY 18. I’M IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE (MOODY’S MOOD FOR LOVE) 19. TONIGHT, I’LL BE STAYING HERE WITH YOU 20. SWEET DREAMS 21. TOO MUCH OF A MAN (TO BE TIED DOWN) 22. NOBODY BUT YOU DISC FOUR: I’M GETTIN’ ‘LONG ALRIGHT ATLANTIC RECORDINGS (1970) 1. DON’T LET ME LOSE THIS DREAM (LIVE) 2. AND I LOVE HIM (LIVE) 3. I LOVE PARIS (LIVE) 4. CRY ME A RIVER BLUES (LIVE) 5. I’M GETTIN’ ‘LONG ALRIGHT (LIVE) 6. RELEASE ME (LIVE) 7. IF IT’S THE LAST THING I DO (LIVE) 8. MAKIN’ WHOOPEE (LIVE) 9. SHANGRI-LA (LIVE) 10. PLEASE SEND ME SOMEONE TO LOVE (LIVE) 11. JUST IN TIME (LIVE) (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED) 12. BYE BYE BLACKBIRD (LIVE OUTTAKE) (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED) 13. FANCY (LIVE) (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED) 14. BAD NEWS BLUES AKA MEDLEY: BLOW TOP BLUES/JELLY JELLY BLUES/LONG JOHN BLUES (LIVE OUTTAKE) (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED) DISC FIVE: CATCH ME I’M FALLING ATLANTIC RECORDINGS (1970 continued) 1. DON’T LET ME LOSE THIS DREAM (LIVE OUTTAKE) (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED) 2. FEEL LIKE I WANT TO CRY AKA FEEL LIKE I WANNA CRY (LIVE) (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED) 3. PLEASE SEND ME SOMEONE TO LOVE (LIVE OUTTAKE) (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED) 4. IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU AKA LOOK WHAT HAPPENED TO ME (LIVE) 5. A WOMAN WILL DO WRONG 6. CATCH ME I’M FALLING 7. SOME CATS KNOW 8. SET ME FREE 9. BRAND NEW DAY 10. I’M IN LOVE 11. JUST LIKE A FISH 12. TOMORROW NIGHT 13. ALL GOD HAS IS US 14. HE KNOWS WHAT TO DO FOR ME 15. CRAZY LOVE • Disc 1: AM I THAT EASY TO FORGET covers Esther’s recordings for Lenox Records including her 1962 hit version of ‘Release Me’, her sole LP for the label (reissued by Atlantic in 1966 as “The Country Side Of Esther Phillips”) plus nine non-album tracks including two duets with ‘Big Al’ Downing, most making their digital debut alongside Esther’s first recordings for Atlantic. • Disc 2: JUST SAY GOODBYE (titled after the popular UK Northern soul track) includes Esther’s first two albums for Atlantic, 1965’s “And I Love Him!”, the title track of which yielded her US hit cover of the Lennon & McCartney song and the 1966 LP “Esther Phillips Sings”, with big band arrangements by Oliver Nelson, Ray Ellis & Jimmy Wisner. • Disc 3: TOO LATE TO WORRY, TOO BLUE TO CRY features Atlantic recordings cut between 1966-1967, primarily singles’ sessions with a previously unreleased track (‘Watch Dog’) from Esther’s only session in Memphis and eight 1966 Nesuhi Ertegun-helmed, Onzy Matthews-arranged tracks including the previously unreleased ‘Rocks In My Bed’; as well as the six tracks from Esther’s 1969 sessions for Roulette Records. • Disc 4: I’M GETTIN’ ‘LONG ALRIGHT is the first-ever release of all the tracks from Esther’s best-selling Atlantic album “Burnin’” produced by King Curtis, recorded live in January 1970 at Freddie Jett’s Pied Piper club, with two previously unissued cuts, ‘Just In Time’ and ‘Fancy’ and two outtakes. • Disc 5: CATCH ME I’M FALLING (a UK Northern soul favourite track) completes Esther’s Atlantic legacy with four cuts from the ‘live’ 1970 sessions including the previously unissued ‘Feel Like I Want To Cry’ and two outtakes without studio overdubs; and the eleven tracks from her 1970 Miami sessions originally planned as an entire LP, only issued in 1986 as part of a posthumous retrospective entitled “Set Me Free”. |