George Jackson - Don't Count Me Out: The Fame Recordings, Vol. 1 (Kent, 2011)

George Jackson

Don't Count Me Out: The Fame Recordings, Vol. 1

Kent

2011

Rating: 9 ceramic cherubs out of 10

I'm almost mad that it took me this long in my life to learn of George Jackson.  Largely unknown or forgotten by the masses, Jackson was a well known songwriter (penning tracks for Wilson Pickett, Clarence Carter, Bobby Bland, and many more) who worked with the legendary Muscle Shoals hit machine in the sixties.  When not writing for others he wrote and performed himself, though apparently he was overshadowed by all the stars around him.  Which is kinda dumbfounding to me honestly, because just one listen to this compilation will have you asking how did this man not achieve the fame of Sam Cooke and Otis Redding and others superstars of that era. 

This collection is apparently the first of possibly three compilations of the recordings he did for Fame in the sixties.  Nearly every single track is pure gold, true southern soul that rips your heart out and makes you want to slow dance with a beautiful lady at the same time.  And this coming from a man who hates dancing.  This album will see a lot of airplay on my stereo from here on out, and even if he never achieved the fame he deserved in the real world, he's likely to be placed on a high pedestal in my house.