James Brown Live At The Apollo 1962 CD

Recorded live at the Apollo Theater, New York, New York on October 24, 1962. Includes liner notes by Harry Weinger, Alan Leeds, and original release liner notes by Hal Neely.

James Brown And The Famous Flames: James Brown (vocals); Bobby Byrd (background vocals, organ); "Baby" Lloyd Stallworth, Bobby Bennett (background vocals).

Recorded live at the Apollo Theatre, New York on October 24, 1962. Originally released on King (826). Includes liner notes by Harry Weinger and Hal Neely.

James Brown has been an R&B giant ever since "Please Please Please" (1956) first propelled him to the top of the R&B charts. This set caught him at the peak of his early years, at the quintessential showplace for African-American musicians: The Apollo Theater in Harlem. This set is, for many, one of the greatest concert recordings of a pop performer.

Ultradiscs are mastered from the original master tapes using Mobile Fidelity's proprietary mastering technique, then plated with 24 karat gold and housed in a stress-resistant lift-lock jewel box.

Many albums are hyped as legendary; few deserve the accolade. LIVE AT THE APOLLO 1962 is one of those rare albums that lives up to the hype. Released despite label misgivings, LIVE AT THE APOLLO cemented James Brown's reputation as the unchallenged master of soul music. Deejays played the entire album at one stretch--this in an era when radio programmers rejected four-minute singles because they were too long--and the record reached number two on the Billboard pop chart, a previously unheard-of achievement for a gritty R&B album.

LIVE AT THE APOLLO is more than a pop phenomenon, however; it is a document of one of America's greatest performers at the peak of his artistic powers. Brown's singing is orgasmic--just listen to the opening squeal on "I Go Crazy"--and the intensity never lets up. Brown drives his crack band through breakneck versions of early hits before dragging them through the 11-minute bump-and-grind of "Lost Someone," the high point of a show that is nothing but high points. Decades later, this is still one of the greatest live albums of all-time.

Additional Tracks; Live Recording

The James Brown Band: James Brown (vocals); Lucas "Fats" Gonder (spoken vocals, organ); Les Buie (guitar); Al "Brisco" Clark (tenor & baritone saxophones); St. Clair Pinckney, Clifford "Ace King" MacMillan (tenor saxophone); Louis Hamblin, Teddy Washington, Mack Johnson (trumpet); Dickie Wells (trombone); Hubert Perry (bass); Clayton Fillyau, Sam Lathan (drums).

The Famous Flames: Bobby Byrd (organ, background vocals); Bobby Bennett, "Baby" Lloyd Stallworth (background vocals).

The James Brown Band: Les Buie (guitar); Clifford "Ace King" MacMillan, St. Clair Pickney (tenor saxophone); Al "Brisco" Clark (tenor & baritone saxophones); Louis Hamblin, Mack Johnson, Teddy Washington (trumpet); Dickie Wells (trombone); Lucas "Fats" Gonder (MC, organ); Hubert Perry (bass); Clayton Fillyau, Sam Latham (drums).Entertainment Weekly (4/2/04, p.66) - "[B]rown's iconic 1962 concert sounds brighter [on the 2004 remaster] than on the 1990 disc." - Rating: A-
Entertainment Weekly - "...a scorching live performance..." - Rating: A+
Q (5/00, p.134) - Included in Q Magazine's "Best Soul Albums Of All Time"
Q - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...remains Brown's finest recorded document..."
Q - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...remains Brown's finest recorded document..."
Q (p.132) - 5 stars out of 5 - "A serious candidate for greatest live album ever, this was the first and best document of Mr. Dynamite's numerous appearances at the Harlem hotspot."
Down Beat (9/90) - 5 Stars - Excellent - "...without James Brown's brilliant insight into how to foreground rhythms, music from funk to reggae to rap to Afro-pop would be totally different, if it existed at all..."
Down Beat (9/90) - 5 Stars - Excellent - "...without James Brown's brilliant insight into how to foreground rhythms, music from funk to reggae to rap to Afro-pop would be totally different, if it existed at all..."
Goldmine - Highly Recommended - "...Yowww! The greatest live album ever recorded..."
NME (Magazine) (10/2/93, p.29) - Ranked #30 in NME's list of the `Greatest Albums Of All Time.'
NME (Magazine) (10/2/93, p.29) - Ranked #30 in NME's list of the `Greatest Albums Of All Time.'