Ann Peebles Albums (10)
'Fill This World with Love'
Release Date 1/1/1996
Tracks 15
Label Bullseye Blues
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Working off the critical success of her 1992 album Full Time Love, with this 1996 effort Ann Peebles proves that Full Time Love was no fluke. With a voice that has lost none of the power or seduction of her glory days at Hi Records, Peebles blasts through uptempo numbers such as "I'm Yours" and the title track, a duet with the great Mavis Staples. Even more amazing is the seven-song medley that comprises the middle of the album. Filled with her old hits ("Walk Away"), brilliant cover renditions ("I Pity the Fool") and new compositions ("Ninety-Nine Pounds"), the medley is a testament not only to husband Don Bryant's production skills, but to the artistry and talent of the assembled musicians (most of all Peebles). ~ Steve Kurutz, All Music Guide
'The Handwriting Is on the Wall'
Release Date 1/1/1982
Tracks 25
Label Hi
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
If This Is Heaven, Ann Peebles' 1977 attempt to merge her Southern soul influences with the disco grooves that were dominating the airwaves and the charts, proved to be a commercial disappointment, and for her next album, Peebles and longtime producer Willie Mitchell took a grand step backwards. Released in 1979, The Handwriting Is on the Wall boasted some high-powered funk backdrops, but for the most part the album finds Peebles taking on a set of straight-ahead soul numbers in which she was usually either taking a man away from some woman who didn't know how to hold on to him, or was warning the ladies why they should stay away from her significant other. Peebles is a tower of defiant sass on "I Didn't Take Your Man" and "You've Got the Papers (I've Got the Man)," she leaves no doubt about why she's dating outside her age group on "Old Man with Young Ideas," and "Bip Bam Thank You Mam" alerts listeners to the consequences of not pleasing Ms. Peebles. Willie Mitchell pairs Peebles up with some full-bodied soul and funk arrangements for these songs, and while unfortunately most of the great Hi Rhythm Section were unavailable for this record, the players on board do fine work, even if the groove lacks the ineffable touch of Peebles' finest work. The Handwriting Is on the Wall was Ann Peebles' last album for Hi, and the last new set she would release until 1988, but it captures one of the great R&B singers of the 1970s doing what she does best, and here she bows out on a high point. ~ Mark Deming, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
By 1977, straight-ahead Southern soul had stopped selling in big numbers and disco had taken over the R&B market, and like many of her peers, soul diva Ann Peebles tried to make the best of matters by turning up the groove quotient on her album of that year, If This Is Heaven. Peebles, one of the best and most underrated soul songbirds of the 1970s, had already demonstrated she could work wonders with a dance-friendly track on her previous set, 1975's Tellin' It, and If This Is Heaven's first two cuts, "A Good Day for Lovin'" and the title number, find her and producer Willie Mitchell leaning toward disco while still leaving a taste of their classic-style Memphis groove in the mix, and if Howard Grimes' four-on-the-floor drumming dates these tracks a bit, Peebles still sings her tales of love both good and bad with the passion, force, and clarity that made her a legend. Still, Peebles sounds a bit more at home on "I'm So Thankful," a solid soul shot about a contented wife and mother (which she wrote herself and reflected her then-current status as a new mom), and the slow bluesy "You're Gonna Make Me Cry," and while this album is hardly a cookie-cutter disco throwaway, If This Is Heaven still has an air of compromise about it. While Peebles had no reason to be ashamed of her performances on this disc, it certainly doesn't capture her in her most comfortable surroundings. ~ Mark Deming, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Ann Peebles was at the height of her fame in 1975 when she cut the album Tellin' It -- she had scored her biggest chart hit the year before with "I Can't Stand the Rain," and Tellin' It reflected the kind of hard-edged but soulful groove that had taken Peebles to the upper reaches of the charts (and was producer Willie Mitchell's stock in trade). The album's opening cut, "Come to Mama," even features the same sort of fractured rhythmic undercurrent that had hooked "I Can't Stand the Rain," but Peebles and Mitchell had the good sense not to deliver ten remakes of her hit; instead, Tellin' It merges polished production with tough, sinewy grooves (the strings on "Stand By Woman" and "It Was Jealousy" add a touch of class, but don't clutter up the funk of Howard Grimes' superb drumming and the punch of the Memphis Horns), and Peebles here reaffirms her status as one of the best female voices in R&B, cutting to the heart and soul of each lyric whether she's looking for a new man ("Doctor Love Power") or breaking up someone's previously happy home ("Stand By Woman"). And while the disco explosion would make soul sets like this obsolete in a few years, Tellin' It features plenty of cuts that can fill the dancefloor without robbing Peebles of her soulful passion and sassy spirit. Fine stuff. ~ Mark Deming, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
This wonderful album, originally released in 1974 on the Memphis-based Hi Records label, deserved a wider audience than it ended up getting at the time. It played to Ann Peebles' great strength, her poised and sultry voice, and surrounded by the sparse, easy funkiness of the trademark Hi rhythm section and producer Willie Mitchell's perfect use of horns and strings, she sings like a resilient but disappointed angel on this impressive set of songs about the darker side of love. Her best song is here, the eccentric but brilliant "I Can't Stand the Rain," along with a marvelous version of Joe Simon's "(You Keep Me) Hangin' On," and perfect readings of a pair of Earl Randle songs, "If We Can't Trust Each Other" and "I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down." Peebles sings her heart out, and with those somehow bright-sounding Hi grooves behind her, it all comes together to make a classic album of dark, bouncy, and beautiful Southern soul. ~ Steve Leggett, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
A lean, tough set that was not only a triumph for Peebles, but illustrated how the Hi label had surpassed its crosstown Stax rival for quality Memphis soul in the early '70s. The guitars are spare, funky, and bluesy, the horn section punchy, and the material far earthier and down-home than the increasingly formulaic grooves at Stax. There were three modest R&B hits on the album ("Slipped, Tripped and Fell in Love," "I Feel Like Breaking Up Somebody's Home," "Somebody's on Your Case"), much of which was penned by Peebles or her husband Don Bryant. Peebles' vocals were convincingly biting, and she never, unlike many other singers of the era, tried too hard for her own good. The main flaw of the record is its length (26 minutes), which was short even by early-'70s standards. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
For reasons seemingly lost to history, Ann Peebles' second album, Part Time Love, featured four songs that were lifted from her debut LP, This Is Ann Peebles, which came and went with little notice less than a year earlier. Despite the recycling of "It's Your Thing," "Crazy About You Baby," "Give Me Some Credit," and "Solid Foundation," Part Time Love does have a different overall feel that sets it apart from Peebles' first set. Peebles hardly seemed like a beginner on This Is Ann Peebles, but she's even more confident on Part Time Love's new material, with a tougher and more soulful edge announcing itself on "I'll Get Along" and the title cut, and while the Hi Records house band are as tight as ever here, the newer songs have a funkier energy that suggests how much was changing in R&B as the 1960s gave way to the '70s. Part Time Love also isn't filled with a number of instantly recognizable covers like the debut, forcing fans to make a mental comparison between Peebles and the likes of Aretha Franklin (though this does carry over This Is Ann Peebles' take on the Isley Brothers' "It's Your Thing"), and Peebles puts her brand on several new tunes on this album, giving them a fresh and vibrant reading that's passionate and effective. If Part Time Love is flawed, it's because this really seems more like half an album -- running a mere 27 minutes and featuring four songs from Peebles' barely cold debut album, this is a curiously skimpy effort from a singer as accomplished as this, though that's not the sort of complaint that's likely to register when you're listing to music as beautifully crafted as this. ~ Mark Deming, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
When Ann Peebles returned to the studio after a long absence, little had changed. True, this enriching CD was produced by Ron Levy instead of Willie Mitchell, who had handled all of her classic Hi dates of the 1970s. But for all intents and purposes, Full Time Love is state-of-the-art Peebles. Gritty, unpretentious and hard-hitting, this magnificent date throws pop and urban contemporary considerations to the wind and screams "Memphis soul" in no uncertain terms. Peebles still had a monster of a voice, and her singing is as confident as ever on such raw and earthy material as "St. Louis Woman (With a Memphis Melody)," "Read Me My Rights" and "Ain't No Business Like Your Business." But perhaps the most revealing cut is a remix of her biggest hit "I Can't Stand the Rain," which will inevitably be compared to the high standards of the original 1974 version. Played next to the original, this remake sends out a strong message that a first-class soul goddess was still very much in her prime. ~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide
