Hathaway, Donny
Everything Is Everything
Rare & Collectible Vinyl Records

Sealed 2019 All Analogue Remastered Reissue, Pressed At Pallas In Germany On Virgin Vinyl. “Everything Is Everything Sounded Like Nothing Before It, Based In Smooth Uptown Soul But Boasting A Set Of Excellent, Open-Ended Arrangements Gained From Hathaway's Background In Classical And Gospel Music. After Gaining A Contract With Atco Through King Curtis, Hathaway Wrote And Recorded During 1969 And 1970 With Friends Including Drummer Ric Powell And Guitarist Phil Upchurch, Both Of Whom Lent A Grooving Feel To The Album That Hathaway May Not Have Been Able To Summon On His Own (Check Out Upchurch's Unforgettable Bassline On The Opener, "Voices Inside (Everything Is Everything)"). All Of The Musical Brilliance On Display, Though, Is Merely The Framework For Hathaway's Rich, Emotive Voice, Testifying To The Power Of Love And Religion With Few, If Any, Concessions To Pop Music. Like None Other, He Gets To The Raw, Churchy Emotion Underlying Ray Charles' "I Believe To My Soul" And Nina Simone's "To Be Young, Gifted And Black," The Former With A Call-And-Response Horn Chart And His Own Glorious Vocal, The Latter With His Own Organ Lines. Everything Is Everything Was One Of The First Soul Records To Comment Directly On An Unstable Period; "Tryin' Times" Speaks To The Importance Of Peace And Community With An Earthy Groove, While The Most Familiar Track Here, A Swinging Jam Known As "The Ghetto," Places Listeners Right In The Middle Of Urban America. Donny Hathaway's Debut Introduced A Brilliant Talent Into The World Of Soul, One Who Promised To Take R&B Farther Than It Had Been Taken Since Ray Charles Debuted On Atlantic.” John Bush, AMG.