Frank Bey: ALL My Dues Are Paid
Frank Bey
ALL My Dues Are Paid
(NOLA Blue)
Philly soul man number one Frank Bey returns with his sixth album and second on the Nola Blue label, delivering a treatise on peace, love, empowerment and understanding. All My Dues Are Paid is an 11 song collection of glorious Blues, Funk and Soul, that showcases Bey’s powerful baritone and ever positive worldview. He collaborated with Kids Anderson and Rick Estrin at Graceland studios in San Jose, along with a cast of all-star players for what he describes as “one of the best albums he has ever recorded.”
The set opens with the furious cover of Eddie Palmieri and Harlem River Drive, Latin Soul Fusion prototype, ‘Idle Hands.’ Fiery horns jabs emphasizing each point in the history lesson of civil rights and Bet challenges us all to give a dam. He then gives the break up song from the Billy T band, ‘One Of These Days,’ the red clay soul treatment he learned growing up in Georgia, with Lisa Anderson echoing his lines with sweet chorus vocals and Jim Pugh layering Wurlitzer and B3 over the easy groove. Coproducer Rick Edstrom brought in the Nightcats tune, ‘Calling All Fools,” and added horns and keys to the droll swinging Blues. The sons of Soul Revivers join Bey with backing vocals on the first of two covers of “mighty” Mike Shermer tunes ‘It’s A Pleasure,’ adding depth to the joyful modern R&B track. Bey collaborated with Anderson, Edstrom and Texas troubadour Kathy Kilowatt, to write the autobiographical title track ‘All My Dues Are Paid.’ The sizzling Memphis Soul Blues finds him looking back on his life and those who tried to deter him, but he boldly declares “they didn’t know, there ain’t no way to stop Frank bay, it’s my time to shine. “
Bey demonstrates his depth by covering what is considered the greatest country song of all time, ‘He Stopped Loving Her Today,’ putting his own mark on the beloved George Jones standard. Nancy Wright drops in bodacious saxophone on another Nightcats tune, the slinky ‘I’ll Bet I Never Cross Your Mind,’ perfectly flavoring the cabaret Jazzy Blues to match Bey’s Louis Jordan like vocals. The first of two deep cuts from the catalog of the “poet laureate of the blues, “Percy Mayfield, the raucous jump blues from 1962 ‘Never No More,‘ is delivered with authentic fire on a great arrangement fueled by the rhythm section of Paul Olguin on Bass and Drummer Paul Ravelli, alongside Nightcats Keyboardist Lorenzo Farrell and of course Kid Anderson on guitar and a hot horn section. The second is a ridiculously out of print and hard to find track from the profoundly under recognized blues singer songwriter, ‘Ha Ha In The Daytime.’ Written during the time Mayfield was writing and recording for Ray Charles, the easy loping Blues pays tribute to both of these of these icons. He then sheds light on another often overlooked singer the Country Soul pioneer Arthur Alexander, with an enduring cover of his Sentimental love song, ‘If It’s Really Got To Be This Way,’ that was first recorded before his untimely death in 1993 after being inducted into the Alabama music hall of fame. Bey pays tribute to another unlikely hero by transforming Lou Reed’s avant-garde piano ballad ‘Perfect Day,’ into a gospel fueled power ballad. Then continues his sermon on the joyful ‘One Thing Every Day,’ encouraging Is all to make the world a better place. The full breath of Bey’s artistic and emotional power is brought to bare n the dynamic showstopping arrangement of John Lennon‘s ‘Imagine,’ that builds to a glorious grand finale.
The liner notes include the quote, “in my music, I just want to lift people up, and let them know, there is better days.” The album All My Dues Are Paid, continues this mission for Frank Bey and the world is blessed by his efforts.
Rick J Bowen
© 2020